“C’mon, Roxas, let’s get in gear,” said Axel from behind him.
“I know, I know. Do you need anything?”
“Never do. An ace like me is always ready.”
“…He’s an ace, kupo? At what?” the Moogle remarked for Roxas’s ears only.
But Roxas repeated the gibe. “You’re an ace? At what?”
“Pfft. Not like you toddlers would get it,” Axel mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck and sulking in defeat.
Roxas and the Moogle turned to each other and snickered.
“…Hurry up already,” Axel complained.
“Sure thing, Mr. Ace!” Roxas was still laughing.
Their mission today was gathering hearts in Agrabah.
They had just taken out several Heartless when Axel stopped short.
“What is it?” Roxas was immediately cautious, but Axel held a finger to his lips.
“Hmm…?”
“There…” Axel pointed to a bulky figure wandering about. It didn’t look like a Heartless, though.
In fact, his name was Pete, and they were right to suspect that he might be up to no good.
“What’s he doing, poking at the wall like that?” Roxas murmured.
At almost the same moment, Pete cried, “Bingo!”
“Huh?”
Pete pushed a certain spot, and a section of the wall began ponderously sliding away to reveal a secret passage. “Heh-heh. I finally found it! Open sesame for me!”
Then he walked in, and they lost sight of him.
After waiting a good few seconds, Roxas and Axel peered into the passageway and saw the desert beyond. It simply led through the city walls.
“Change of plans. Our new mission is trailing lunkhead there,” said Axel. “And try to be subtle about it.”
He stepped into the passage.
“Wait, what?” Roxas started. “We’re out on heart gathering. Won’t we get in trouble if we just—?”
“Looking into any suspicious characters you come across is an important part of the job.” Axel stood with his arms akimbo as if to lecture Roxas for trying to stop him.
“But isn’t that still disobeying orders?”
“Nah, it’s called flexible thinking. Got it memorized? Anyway, we can still collect plenty of hearts after we follow him. No harm, no foul.”
“…I guess,” Roxas said grudgingly.
Maybe he understood and maybe he didn’t quite.
“C’mon, before we lose him.” Axel walked on and Roxas scrambled to follow.
* * *
From the other side of the wall, they could see a great statue of a tiger’s head with gaping jaws enshrined in the middle of the desert’s expanse. Even from this distance, it was clear that the mouth was big enough for someone to walk inside. Someone like the large, suspicious figure gawking at the tiger’s huge teeth.
Keeping a safe distance, Roxas and Axel went after him.
“I had no idea this was here,” Roxas marveled. The tiger’s mouth led down into a cavern beneath the sands—no natural cave but chambers carved out of rock for purposes unknown.
There was no sign of Pete.
“This place is way bigger than it looked from outside…” Confounded, Axel shook his head. “Yeah, I think we lost him.”
“So now what?”
“Guess we’ll have to put a pin in that part of the mission. Back to collecting hearts.”
Wait, now we’re not going to investigate him? Confused, Roxas squinted. “You don’t want to look for him?”
“I mean, I would’ve liked to know what he was up to, but finding out about this cave is enough for today,” said Axel. “Besides, this place is huge. Searching for one lunkhead in here would be way too much trouble.”
“What happened to this being an important part of the job?” Roxas was rather annoyed with Axel for insisting they pursue their quarry all the way out here and then declaring it “too much trouble.”
“Like I said. Flexible thinking.” There was a hint of mischief in Axel’s reply.
“Oh, I see.” Roxas laughed. “We’d better head back to the city, then.”
The pair left behind the cave for now and returned through the desert to the winding streets of Agrabah.
They destroyed the Heartless lurking in the city. Collecting hearts did not make for a very challenging mission.
“That takes care of that,” said Axel. “Shall we?”
“Yup.”
But as they were about to make their way back to the corridors, Axel put out a hand to stop Roxas. Right in front of them were two denizens of Agrabah.
One was a young woman with long, lustrous black hair, dressed so finely that she had to be royalty; she was anxiously clasping her hands and gazing up at a relatively ordinary man. “Aladdin, are you sure? I think you should get some rest.”
“I’ll be all right,” said Aladdin. “The sandstorms finally let up—we have to work on patching up the city.”
“That’s true, but still…” The young woman averted her eyes in worry. “You’ll run yourself ragged at this rate.”
“I’m fine, Jasmine. But we don’t know when another storm will hit. We need to get everything up and running again before it does…”
Agrabah was indeed in better repair than when Roxas had last seen it. So there hadn’t been a sandstorm for a little while.
“If only Genie were around.” Jasmine sighed.
“I miss him, too, but this isn’t a job for magic. Agrabah is our city. We have to be the ones to fix it up.”
“Yes… Of course, you’re right.” Jasmine lifted her face and tried to give him an encouraging smile.
“Now, I should get back to work.”
“Wait—I’ll help, too.”
Aladdin and Jasmine walked together down the street leading to the bazaar.
“Does the guy we saw before have something to do with all the storms?” Roxas wondered.
“Dunno… But we’ll find out sooner or later,” Axel said dismissively. “Let’s get out of here for now.”
He was already briskly striding away, and Roxas had to jog to catch up with him again.
Axel and Roxas perched atop the clock tower, enjoying their ice cream.
“You’re more upbeat than you were,” Axel remarked, peering intently at Roxas.
I am? Well, maybe, Roxas thought. Something had changed in Axel, too, since Castle Oblivion—but he wasn’t sure exactly what.
“So are you.” Roxas settled for telling him. “More…upbeat.”
“Really? You think? Guess that kid musta rubbed off on me.”
“Huh?”
“Er—let’s just say it’s all thanks to you that we can sit here eating ice cream and laughing for no reason.”
Axel said a lot without explaining himself. Who was “that kid”?
Trying to think, Roxas realized that there was someone missing. “I guess Xion isn’t gonna show today…”
It made him uneasy that he hadn’t seen her in so long. It reminded him of how he’d felt when he thought Axel might have been terminated.
He didn’t want anyone to disappear.
In lieu of a reply, Axel took another bite of ice cream.
He woke up to another morning as usual. Xion was absent from the lobby again.
“Hey, Roxas,” Axel called.
He turned. “Axel… Have you seen Xion?”
“Number fourteen?” Axel looked around, scratching his head. “Hmm, now that you mention it…nope.”
“It’s been a while now.” Roxas’s voice was low and anxious. “At least ten days.”
In fact, he hadn’t seen her since the day he had awakened from his mysterious sleep.
Axel crossed his arms. “Wish I could help. But I took off for Castle Oblivion almost as soon as Xion joined up. There’s a lot I missed.”
But I promised her all three of us would get together for ice cream, Roxas thought.
“The two of you are friends, right? Tell you what—I’
ll pick Saïx’s brain and see what I can find out.”
Roxas nodded eagerly. “Thanks, Axel.”
Axel clapped him on the back in an effort to reassure him. “Well, the sooner you get your mission over with, the sooner you’ll get back for an update.”
He watched Roxas walk away and plopped himself down on the sofa. He had not seen Xion since returning from Castle Oblivion.
And even before he’d left, he had only seen that perpetually hooded figure in the lobby a few times. Xion had never spoken to him. He couldn’t have said whether their number fourteen was a boy or a girl.
But Roxas called Xion his friend. When had he managed to befriend someone whose face was always hidden?
Axel made sure that all the other members in the lobby had vanished into the Corridors of Darkness—all but Saïx—then got to his feet. “So what’s on the docket for me today?”
“Have you finished compiling your report on the Keyblade wielder?” Saïx demanded.
Axel shrugged, although it was part of the job. They were required to hand in reports on the results of certain investigative missions. “Nope, not yet.”
Saïx gave him an exasperated sigh. “Why do you think I sent you on a mission with Roxas yesterday immediately upon your return?”
“…Uh, to write up a report comparing the two, I guess?”
“You’re the only one who can now. Maybe you should have thought of that before eliminating the others. So give me that report and then get on with your mission.” Having given his orders, Saïx returned his attention to the reams of data.
“Yeah, sure thing,” said Axel. “One question, though. About Xion…”
Saïx raised his head again, and there was something about the look in his eyes that Axel didn’t like. “When were you told to have any contact with Xion?”
“Look, Roxas just wants to know what happened to the only kid newer than him.”
Saïx blinked thoughtfully. “Well, they have been associating with each other.”
Apparently Saïx had quite a few thoughts about Xion that he was keeping to himself.
“And? What’s the deal? Where’d Xion go?”
“Number fourteen left on a mission to destroy a giant Heartless and never returned,” Saïx replied with some distaste.
“What, and we’re not even looking for the kid?”
Members of the Organization were occasionally handed cumbersome missions that kept them away from the castle for days on end. But “never returned” was another matter entirely.
Worst-case scenario, it meant that Xion was no more.
“Of course, we’re looking.” Saïx stared hard at Axel. “I have Dusks investigating. They simply haven’t found anything yet.”
Axel recognized that expression from years of shared history—it meant he was mulling over something very important. He had to wait for Saïx to finish thinking.
“…Very well. I suppose it’s time you were in contact with that one yourself.”
“Now what are you talking about?”
He knew that Roxas and Sora were connected. But did Xion have something to do with it, too?
If that was the case, it would make sense for Roxas to be so taken with Xion, and yet, all Axel could recall of Xion was shadow and silence. Had their newest member finally unhooded while he was off in Castle Oblivion?
“You are the only one to interact with both Roxas and the Keyblade’s chosen,” Saïx explained. “As such, it should be interesting for you to associate with that one as well.”
“Okay, this isn’t really an answer to my question, though,” Axel protested.
“It will be. So get me that report today. And tomorrow, I’ll put you and Roxas on the search for Xion.”
Well, that was something. He would have to finish his homework. Although he had a nagging feeling that Saïx was dangling a carrot before him with no intention of giving it to him.
“Then I better get to work, huh?” Axel shifted his shoulders and headed back to his room.
Axel finished the report, hardly getting any sleep in the process, and figured he might as well get back to the Grey Area.
To be honest with himself, he had been sweating bullets the entire time. It wasn’t simply writing things down. He had to decide what to include and what to leave out, where he could get away with fudging the truth—it made for a grueling project.
The lobby was still empty. With an enormous yawn, Axel collapsed on the sofa. Even Nobodies needed sleep.
He crossed his arms and let his eyes close. Just a little catnap…
“That is not a bed.”
A sudden rebuke cut through the peace and quiet, and Axel startled awake.
“What…? Oh. Saïx.”
“Were you expecting someone else?” Saïx looked down at him with distinct displeasure. “Did you hand in the report?”
Axel stretched his back. “Obviously.”
“Then you’ll leave for that mission with Roxas as we discussed.”
“Right. Gotcha.” As he popped his neck, trying to work out the kinks, Saïx walked away to stand in his usual spot.
Before too much longer, Demyx and Luxord arrived, and then eventually Roxas.
Axel got up from the sofa, stretching for the umpteenth time. “Hey, there you are. Rise and shine.”
Roxas, too, was rubbing his eyes. “Sorry… I couldn’t sleep.”
“I asked Saïx about Xion,” Axel told him.
At that, Roxas looked up.
“Your friend was sent out on a mission but never returned.”
“But…why not?” Roxas nervously averted his eyes. “Shouldn’t the mission be over with by now?”
Axel gave him a gentle push and started toward Saïx. “I dunno, but we’ll find out soon enough.”
“How?” Roxas asked skeptically.
Axel grinned at him. “You and me get to go track down Xion. That’s our mission today.”
“Really?!” Brightened, Roxas looked back to him.
“Nope, I’m pulling your leg,” Axel joked. “Yes, really! Hurry up and get ready, will you?”
“Yeah! Let’s go!” Roxas dashed off toward Saïx.
“Hey, I mean actually get ready first. We don’t know what we could come across.”
“I’ll be fine!” said Roxas, then blurted at Saïx, “Where’s our mission today?”
“Twilight Town,” Saïx replied dispassionately. “Don’t come back until you find out what happened to Xion.”
“Got it!”
The kid could get a little too task oriented, in Axel’s opinion.
“C’mon, Axel!” Roxas called.
“I’m coming, I’m coming.”
With an impatient glance over his shoulder, Roxas opened a dark portal and stepped in without wasting another second.
Just like always, the sunset enveloped Twilight Town in its glow.
“I wonder where Xion could be…” Roxas peered apprehensively at their surroundings. The corridors had taken them to the top of the back-alley steps.
“The mission assigned to number fourteen was to take out a giant Heartless. So we should start by looking for one of those,” Axel reasoned.
Roxas sank into thought.
“Well, at least it’s not some world we’ve never been to,” Axel added. “We know the place. Should be easy enough to dig for information here.”
“A giant Heartless needs a wide-open space, right?” said Roxas. “Should we just check out those?”
“Good call. The closest one from here would be…let’s see, the sandlot?”
“Okay. Let’s go.”
It was down the steps right in front of them, in fact.
“I’m not seeing any Heartless,” Axel muttered.
Across the lot, a couple of Twilight Town kids sat on a bench chatting—two-thirds of that trio, the spiky-haired boy and the sweet-faced girl.
“Say, Olette, where’s Pence?” the boy asked.
“He went to check out the tunnels on his own.”
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So the girl’s name was Olette, and the absent one was Pence. That had to be the stocky one.
“You know, he’s been acting funny lately.” The boy cocked his head, thinking. “Like he’s up to something and not telling us, or…”
“Could that have anything to do with Xion?” Roxas asked.
“Maybe or maybe not,” said Axel. “You never know.”
They listened in unapologetically.
“Oh, come to think of it—yesterday, when I went to our usual spot, I saw him rushing to hide something,” said Olette.
“Hmm…” The spiky-haired boy folded his arms. “Yup, pretty suspicious. What is he up to?”
Those three were always together, but it seemed they each had their own concerns, too. They weren’t completely joined at the hip.
Anyway, there was a phrase that stood out to Roxas. “Where do you suppose their ‘usual spot’ is?”
Clueless, Axel shrugged. “Guess we’ll have to poke around. Any ideas, Roxas?”
“Well, ours is up on the clock tower…”
“Yeah, I bet that’s where you wanna look.” Axel laughed.
They both wanted to just find Xion and have sea-salt ice cream in their own usual spot.
“But I think those kids must have a different hideout,” said Roxas.
“Like where?” Axel cricked his neck again. He liked to think he knew this town inside and out, but nothing came to mind.
“It’s a private place just for them, so it can’t be very big,” Roxas explained. “And it must be somewhere not a lot of people come by.”
“I guess our spot is like that, too…,” Axel admitted. “We might as well look around.”
“In the tunnels maybe?”
Axel immediately scoffed at that idea. “Did you see any decent hangout spots in those tunnels?”
They had scoured the tunnel system during missions. There weren’t exactly a lot of hideaways—not where people would want to stay for any length of time.
Then something else crossed Roxas’s mind. “What about under the tracks?”
“Under…? Where?” Train tracks went on for miles. Searching for one spot under them hardly made sense.
“There’s this fence around the corner from where we came in,” said Roxas, “and it has a gate that goes to some kind of shed.”
Kingdom Hearts 358-2 Days Page 10
