What makes a heart?

[Atticus the Fallen]

White sands, bright sun, and roaring waves. A bright day, and a salty sea breeze...

These are some of the Heartless' least favorite things. And yet, the darkness swirled and from the depths of the corridor stepped the nightmare himself, the keeper of the infinite darkness, the master manipulator of the heart... Atticus the Fallen...

He walked along the ivory sands, his weight not sinking into the sand. In fact, he didn't even leave behind footprints, as if he wasn't even there. He stopped a moment later... staring down at the ground where deep below something waited...

Thump Thump...

Lifting a hand, Atticus snapped his fingers, and three shadows reluctantly crawled from their safe havens below overturned tree limbs and rocks. They came forward, looking up at their father figure as he pointed to the spot he had stopped at, indicating their target.

Thump Thump...

It wouldn't take long. They dug the thing up with little effort, then retreated into the shade once more, as though the sunny sands burned their sensitive feet. Poor things were scratching at their eyes frantically, a result of the light on their glowing eyes. Atticus stood there a moment still, looking to the Dead Man's Chest now unearthed. He knealt down and placed his hand on the lid...

Thump Thump...

His hand sinked inside, passing through solid matter without use of a key... and plucked the still-beating heart of Davy Jones from the safety of the chest. He stood, holding the squirming, barnacle-encrusted thing in his hand as easily as one held a flower.

Thump Thump... Thump Thump...

The pulse was quickening. Its master was disturbed. Good. They'd come here soon... And Atticus now held the bargaining chip. He turned to look out over the oceans... waiting patiently to see a ship break the surface of the water... unknowing that he'd have a different visitor all too soon...

[kefka]

***From Cross-Generational, in Gaia***

[glow=yellow,2,300]The patient waves bucked the shoreline, and the sands blew soflty in the wind. But very soon the wind had picked up and the skies began darkening. A loud, angry wailing cry echoed throughout the island.

A ring of fire broke through the clouds above and a flaming rocket shot forth, spiraling down until it reached the water. When the smoke from the contact subsided, the colorful Kefka could be seen walking on the surface of the waves, leaving behind an angry, oily trailing fire. When he reached the shore he cried in anger, and pointed towards Atticus.

"YOU!" he intoned deeply, and inched close to the mage's face. "You led me into a trap! There was another...there was a sword-wielding porcupine on the loose! He's ruined EVERYTHING! I've left him to perish at the hands of the Heartless as of now, but he tore down my tower! Oh, you coy little scuttlefish, should you do THAT again, I will..." he began trailing off, dancing around, pacing, ranting and raving.

"It was a lovely massacre, though, for most of it. I must admit he's pretty good at helping to cause destruction in his own right...I WANT THAT SWORD DESTROYED!"[/glow]

[Atticus the Fallen]

And for all his flailing and madness, the mage Kefka threatened remained calm in equal measure. He didn't move even a micrometer when the man went right up into his face. He didn't react even as he marched about sputtering curses about porcupines and swords. He only reacted once the clown settled down.

"I take it you failed then..." his voice whispered, even if it seemed everywhere at once. "Not suprising..." he looked down at the heart thumping in his hand. "You said 'sword' not 'keyblade', yes? Then there is nothing to worry about..." He looked up slowly, watching with mild interest as the angry harlequin paced. "He'll be overwhelmed eventually, this intervening heart... You need not be so stressed..."

He looked out over the ocean once more, still waiting on the other to come. It might take a little while, seeing as he had the entire ocean at his disposal. Still, the waiting had to be unbarable for Kefka. "Be mindful of your angry heart, dear jester..." he warned, not because he wanted Kefka to calm down, but because he had a feeling this kind of gentle care would enrage him yet further. Rage was but one of many paths to darkness, after all... and maybe if the clown felt too inadequate...

"Perhaps next time, you'll take me up on my offer to bolster your power..." he added quietly.

[kefka]

[glow=yellow,2,300]"Failed...FAILED? You don't know the half of it! There's barely enough hearts taken to suffocate a dying orphan! And that dreg saved most of the victims before I could choke out their insignificant little lives..."

When the mage suggested he calm down, he nearly exploded. But instead he folded his arms and tapped his foot angrily in the sands. When he noticed, he cried out in anger.

"Gah! Ahem...there's SAND on my boots!" With a snap of his fingers, two heartless appeared before him and swarmed his feet and disappeared. The sand that had taken a new home was now gone, and Kefka smiled victoriously.

"What on Earth...what are we doing here! It's foul! This place needs a little more burning, and less ugly!"[/glow]

[Atticus the Fallen]

Atticus tilted his head lightly as the funnyman had two of his extended family come forward and clean his boots. Stupid, and pointless, considering in two steps he'll be in the exact same situation he just escaped from... but that was alright. Bowing his head caused the rim of his hat hide the amused glint in Atticus' eyes. Dependance on the Heartless was a sure sign of a heart growing far too comfortable with the darkness. It would be an utter shock to the clown when the day came that they invited him to join their kind... whether he wanted to be one with their hive or not. This is why Atticus allied himself with people like Kefka and Maleficent. They were easy prey.

"That is... unfortunate..." Atticus whispered in response to Kefka's 'report' on his progress. "But even a few given the gift of becoming our family is a blessing... One day, all will savor the delights of being Heartless..." He looked up slowly, gently stroking the heart in his hand with a sharpened thumb.

"As for what we're doing here, my good buffoon... Turn your gaze to the horizon and see for yourself..." he pointed... and sure enough, the waves were beginning to break, and the flying Dutchman was coming into view. His new victim was taking the bait...

[Davy Jones]

He had been on edge since the entire affair had begun. The instant he felt that dread tightening around his chest, he made the order, breaking off from a sinking ship that could wait for HIM, he demanded the Dutchman make straightaway for the island. His crew knew better than to question their captain, lest they become part of the ship itself, a wraith mumbling nonsense while half-encased in wood and sea fodder...

The Dutchman rocketed through the oceans faster than most modern warships could travel over it. It cut through the waves as easily as a hot knife through butter or a good cutlass through flesh. It took such little time the crew hardly had the opportunity to heave to when Jones marched to the deck, roaring as the water receded over the deck. "GET A SEARCH PARTY ON THAT BLASTED ISLAND!!!"

Within seconds, they were emerging from the surf. Half a dozen armed pirates, all of them nigh immortal due to their deal with the devil of the seas himself. You could hack them to pieces but they'd keep coming, like starfish. Even if you annhilated every atom of them, their souls would linger on, deadly as ever. They weren't living, so they couldn't die, but neither were they dead. They were the true cursed ones, doomed to spend their afterlives serving Jones, and never stopping for anything.

And right now... they wanted the heart...

[kefka]

[glow=yellow,2,300]Standing alongside Atticus, Kefka had begun constructing a sand-castle version of Cloud, and killing it. He was growing bored by the third time he'd knocked down the despicable statue.

When he saw the creatures made by Davy Jones arise from the depths of the sea, he jumped in excitement.

"Fishies, fishies, everywhere! And not yet a bie to eat!" He grinned, and snapped his fingers. A fork and a knife appeared in each hand, and he scraped them together greedily.

"This is the envoy your friend's hired, then? Looks like dinner to me!"[/glow]

[Davy Jones]

"We ain't interested in YOU, funnyman!" barked one of the pirates, the one that most resembled a hammerhead shark. He pointed a clawed finger forward, shaking it at the Heartless. "We just want what the magician has!" he growled before pulling out a flailing weapon of sorts.

The others all began to circle around the two of them, chuckling darkly or sharpening their weapons against one another's. One in particular, the one with barbs like a pufferfish, was advancing rather close, eager to run someone through even as others sat back and waited for the order from the Captain's first mate.

[Atticus the Fallen]

The dark mage stood in place as the advancing horde came ashore. They didn't concern him very much... frankly, they were close to the dark enough that he could almost convert them right now... Goodness knows he had enough heartless on his side to easily overwhelm six fishy phantoms. However, he didn't want them destroyed just yet... He had, pardon the pun, bigger fish to fry.

Kefka, however, was a wild card here. He seemed eager to kill, maim, and destroy, completely oblivious to the prize at hand. Atticus would have to put his plan into action now before the clown had a chance to go nuts all over the unsuspecting pirates. Holding his hand out with heart in his clutch, he squeezed it ever-so-gently, just enough to give out a warning. One would would pass from his lips, and one only. It would be the one word that would grant him all the power he needed to turn the entire fury of the oceans of this world to his dark desires.

"Parlay," he muttered over the distant roar of an enraged sea-devil...

[kefka]

[glow=yellow,2,300]"P-par...LAY!? You mean party, right!? You wish to party with fish? graah!" Kefka began glowing red.

He squeezed his eating utensils rather tightly, causing them to melt between his fingers. His eyes burned with the intensity of a maelstrom, and the skies above followed suit.

"This is bullocks! This is just down-right orderly! I'll have none of it! Rules and regulations, my bright and colorful bum! Let's get this over with already! Bring forth your leader or die!"

Kefka raised a hand outward, aiming his open palm towards the Dutchman. He cried out in a shriek a simple command "Ultima", and soon bursts of white-blue missiles began springing forth in arches, setting their targets on the ship.

"BRING HIM HERE AT ONCE! WE HAVE NO TIME FOR PLEASANTRIES!!!"[/glow]

[Davy Jones]

The spectacular display of magical prowess was... flashy, I'll give ya that... But as the pirates all watched the blast of magitek powered might hurl towards the ship, a few couldn't help but chuckle outright. Before it could slam into the sides of the Dutchman, a massive tentacle rose from the waves and smacked the blast away like a mildly annoyed cow batting at flies. The explosion didn't even phase the creature, even if it was sliding the tentacle back into the water. The result was that for all his sound and fury, Kefka's blast was fairly impotant.

The pirates turned again, the few that were chuckling now openly laughing like this was the biggest joke they'd heard in ages. Maybe it was. The only one not having a good time at Kefka's expense was the head of the little group, who grumbled like an ill-tempered old man before nodding to Atticus.

"Fine... YOU come, but the fool stays behind..." he turned, walking towards the waves. "C'mon, then. Davy Jones ain't a patient man..." HE, unlike some painted members of this parade, did follow rules and codes. He was a pirate, not a bloody barbarian, after all...

The pirates all began to walk to the water, not stopping even as their feet hit the water and their heads sank underneith the waves. Some were even still laughing at Kefka's fireworks... others were just watching the two with mild disdain..

[Atticus the Fallen]

Atticus waited for the last pirate's head to dip below the surface before unceremoniously dumping the beating heart into the clown's hands. "Here..." he muttered, not at all concerned for what the jester had to say as he began walking towards the waters. "Stay on the shore... I'll contact you shortly. Do nothing to the heart until I say so, except safeguard it against any who wish to claim it for their own..."

With that, the heartless began to walk into the water, submerging quickly and walking along the bottom of the ocean at a steady, even pace, as easily as he walked on land. This was impressive because even the pirates moved in slow-motion against the waves and such. Eventually, they'd rise on the Dutchman, where Jones immediately demanded to know where the heart was.

"I left it in the hands of my associate..." Atticus whispered, waving a hand to create a screenlike structure out of swirling shadow just off his shoulder. "I did not want to risk having it taken from me by force once I was onboard. If any attempt to rais opposition, I will have him do any number of terrible things to it... as he is by far more creative than I in his torture methods..." he turned his head lightly, speaking now to the clown behind him in the screen. "Kefka!"

On the shore, the screen would swirl into existance, appearing before the clown. "Negotiations are about to begin... Please take great care with your charge while we discuss how to handle this... transaction..." he said calmly, now looking again to Jones, whom Kefka could see and communicate with through the screen...

[kefka]

[glow=yellow,2,300]Hunched over the beating organ, Kefka stared at it with mild interest, though you could barely tell with that ever-plastered smile on his face. When the Shadowscreen appeared, he peered upward, an eyebrow raised. He looked past Atticus at the tentacle-faced creature and shuddered, disgusted.

"All right, but don't test my patience! I'm just dying to invent a sport based around body parts, and I don't want to get old waiting!"

He returned to examine the beating heart, and squeezed it lightly, noting the squishy texture. "Ew."

"Oh, and when you're done, do be sure to give my regards to the pretty little number beneath the waves..."

He rolled the heart in his hands a couple times before placing it within his robes for safe-keeping. He'd thought about returning to Maleficent, or even abandoning Atticus here, and going off to do what he wanted, but instead elected to conjure a small number of his Heartless to kick around and toy with.

"Ease my boredom!"[/glow]

[Davy Jones]

Jones growled lightly at the clown's disgusted face, stepping once forward in desire to take his massive crab's claw and rip the jester's throat out for even TOUCHING what belonged to HIM. His head twitched to the side, tentacles waving as he adjusted his attention to the magician nearby. "Tell your harlequin t' get his gloved mitts off me propertay!" he demanded, only to be put in his place when Kefka squeezed lightly.

He gripped at his chest, gasping lightly from pain. He took that step back to his starting point, his breathing a little strained. "Call him OFF..." he demanded, holding that claw up to keep his men at bay, knowing full well that if they tried anything that lunatic would start getting cheeky with his barnacle-encrusted organ.

"State your business, and get off my SHIP..." the demon of the seas spat, saltwater splashing from his lips as he snarled...

[Atticus the Fallen]

"I'm glad we're on the same page, then..." Atticus muttered, walking around Davy Jones, partly to keep Kefka's vision open and part to assert his dominance in the scene, knowing full well it would drive Jones insane.

"Kefka will hold on to your heart for me. Insurance, if you will, of your alliance to our cause..." spoke the heartless, pretty much putting everybody in their respective places as he paced around the ghostlike monster of the oceans.

"In the meantime..." he continued, snapping his fingers to summon several new Heartless, all pirate themed and bouncing up and down in place expectantly as they swung their swords in eager anticipation of an attack. "You'll keep a number of my crew on board... From this day forward, you no longer accept new crewmembers who wish to escape death... you don't give any options. Any wayward sailors that come your way are to become heartless... No choice."

He stopped, and looked to Jones. "If you need more crew members, tell one of my kind and you will have them. If you need more power, call upon the darkness and you will have it. From now on, you work for the Heartless... not a stretch considering you, yourself are like us..." he tapped his chest to indicate the lack of a heart and thus a conscience in Jones.

Turning his back on Jones, he looked into the screen as he continued to speak. "In return, Kefka will keep your organ safe... you need not lurk the oceans in fear of being replaced any longer. You've gained power and peace of mind at the price of freedom... a fair trade if you ask me..."

He now addressed the clown. "We're done here..." he said simply. "Adieu, Jones... Happy hunting..." with that, he stepped THROUGH the screen, appearing back on shore next to the clown.

"I believe your patience is deserving of reward. You are to choose the next destination, and I will accompany."