The Silent Ballroom

[MeadowSong]

***From the Chamber of the Black Queen***

[glow=Purple,2,300]The whole castle began to shake, the floors vibrating so much things everywhere were jumping in place. In particular, the large portrait of Maleficent fell face-first onto the ground below, missing both the apprentice and Heartless completely.

That, however, did not stop the large frame from bouncing vigorously. However, it was only when the quake ceased did things begin to go strange.

The back of the portrait, a black sheeting, caught afire, and not a normal blue-to-red. It was more of a black to green, and it was increasing in magnitude. Soon the whole painting's back was engulfed in this flame, and it was from that the black witch rose and stepped out, her face showing that she was less than pleased. Diablo, seeing Shego, knowing something bad was going to happen, left his perch at her side and flew high into the rafters, overlooking the ballroom.

Maleficent approached them, ignoring Kefka and his Heartless, and taking her bony hand to shove Acteur aside. Soon Shego was in her direct line of fire, and her gaze narrowed.

Staring daggers at her apprentice, she directed her sceptre downward, and used it to raise Shego's chin upward, so she could look her mistress in the face. Her reptilian eyes scanned this young woman, trying to see exactly what in her makings had caused her betrayal.

"Shego," the witch intoned coldly, the windows all around bending outward slightly due to her thick, angry aura. "It would seem that I am cursed with a reserve of backstabbing apprentices...though you succeeded in bringing one of my better ones back to this happy flock. But of course you couldn't have known of the monster you created when taking the good general's hand, now did you? But I assure you, Shego...what she would have done to you in those halls is much more kind than what I will do to you, should you not have access to a proper reason I shouldn't."[/glow]

[Shego]

[glow=green,2,800]The thief was forced to the ground by invisible wires after being sliced here and there, fault of crystallized shadow daggers. Thankfully enough, her wounds would immediately close to her healing abilities, yet it didn't mean she was not in a bind. She would gasp loudly, coughing as she still continued to clutch at her chest. The dark tendrils making it difficult to breathe as well, with the other discomforts. The black-and-green woman would squint a little in her position to look up at the grand actor, and she was impressed with his talents, "Shakesp--...Acteur..." she rasped between breaths.

It was then when an unannounced guest burst into sensational danger, warping in the room, shooting lightning and what have them all around. Amazing, that it had missed the sophisticated poet, along with the clever thief. She couldn't make out what the clown was saying, for the lack of oxygen reaching her lungs, her world began to look hazy...dark, or was it what was happening next, that she thought it was the missing of air?

A spiral, black and green fogs later, what implied that the executioner had arrived, arose Maleficent. The emerald-eyed woman grew paler still, knowing that she was into a world of hurt as is, only to succumb to more. She felt the cold tip of the scepter force her head up until gaze met with icy stare of her boss. The poor woman had beads of sweat trailing down her weakened form, the bags under her eyes making her appear sicker than her creamy green complexion as she stood at Death's Judgement...[/glow]

"It would seem that I am cursed with a reserve of backstabbing apprentices...though you succeeded in bringing one of my better ones back to this happy flock. But of course you couldn't have known of the monster you created when taking the good general's hand, now did you? But I assure you, Shego...what she would have done to you in those halls is much more kind than what I will do to you, should you not have access to a proper reason I shouldn't."

[glow=green,2,800]"Queeny..." The thief whimpered between gasps, exposed to the darkness and aura around her that was drainning as is, "... you have...your Chuckles back." she hissed between inhales, and short exhales, " ... you... wanted her...back, and I...had an idea of doing it." Shego's eyes began to close, looking dim, " ...to... spy on the heroes... if she wasn't with us...anymore... they don't know... what she's become... "

There was a long pause, as her eyes shut even more, resting her head upon the pointy sceptre end that held her there, growing weak, ".... I was.... jealous." she whispered now, "... felt... I was being replaced as is... the moment you saw her..." she swallowed a little, throat becoming dry, " ... but it was... going to come to that anyway...wasn't it? ... why else...want her back?"

The thief's eyes glanced at the floor, unable to hold them up to the witch's eyes, " ... as a good apprentice... I only did my job, no matter the cost, right? That's what....the highest bidder gets..."

Finally, Shego's eyes closed, and she removed her chin from the scepter to sit straight, her hand gripping tightly at her chest still, " If it still makes you happy.... to torture me... so be it.... As you wish... Queen Maleficent."[/glow]

[Atticus the Fallen]

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave..." the shadows around them would begin to whisper. The Shadows that had been watching would hear the words creeping from their namesake and begin to shuffle out of the room from their unseen places in the rafters and around the chandelier.

In the view of all, dark swirls would whisp their way up from a pool of darkness that had formed only moments before. This... was not a corridor. It was something else. As the dark tendrils twisted and bended and contorted skyward, they pressed in on each other to create legs, a torso, arms, a hatted cranium, and hellish raven wings. Yellow eyes would open, glowing despite this transluscent image seemed not all there. In fact, it hardly was. The Fallen had made his presence known... in the form of an illusion of himself, his proxy, his avatar. "He" strode forward slowly, taking in all around him before bowing his head to address all in attendance...

"It makes my heart weep... to know I am gone but two minutes... and already the household has turned on itself..." The first he would speak to would be Acteur, his hellish eyes lifting to meet the matching set behind that theatrically changing mask. "Let her go. Can't you see the poor thing can barely breathe as is?" he said, knowing full well the reason... but this wasn't the way to do it. Her heart couldn't be FORCEFULLY taken, not like this. That would produce another of the mindless multitude that serve as battleground fodder. That wasn't Atticus' goal. He wanted strong, independant Heartless to join their family, to enrich their culture and make their society prosper...

Shego'd have to make that call on her own. He now looked to the theif and very kindly and very caringly spoke... "My apologies... Miss Go..." he hinted softly with his knowledge of what was going on...

"Atticus" then walked over to Maleficent, unafraid of her power, or her wrath as he strode right next to her to whisper into her ear. "Beware your Paranoia, my beloved queen of the night..." he warned... then walked around behind her as he strode and spoke.

"So... we believe Shego is a traitor..." he said aloud as he walked. "But let's examine the facts, shall we? The FACT of the matter is that she did as was willed by her employer, to lull the holy knight back into the fold of darkness... Further, she exceeded expectations by providing her with an in on the former Beatrix's compatriots..." The illusion waved a hand, creating a massive shadow screen for everyone to see. It showed the activity below ground, two talented warriors locked in battle. "Already, our Heartless General battles Cloud Strife in the basements of this castle, laying the seeds of darkness in his heart which will take root and provide us with a cunning and merciless ally..."

A pause... Atticus bowed his head, and turned it very slightly to Maleficent once more. "And she did this all under her own initiative, without need for you to bother yourself with orders and needles banter. She has gone above and beyond for you, and you threaten to do... most dark and fowl things to her in return. Tisk. Tisk." The shadowy creature stood up straight, his hands behind his back as his eyes seemed to close in thought.

"Granted... her act was... quite believable. But you wanted the best in every field. You have her. Not only is she a skilled assassin and thief, but she makes a fine prima donna to Acteur's prima uomo..." He opened his eyes slowly, looking upward at the moon just beyond the glass... that shattered duplicate Kingdom Hearts...

"Shego... should be commended for her power play... but that isn't why I came..." He looked to Kefka now, his tone serious and urgent. "I need your assistance with a small matter... There's a boy in Traverse Town I want you to take care of. Rip him, tear him, cut him to little tiny pieces then blow those into oblivion, I don't care. I don't even want his HEART intact..."

Now what could be bothering the Fallen so much that he would want THAT?

[MeadowSong]

[glow=purple,2,300]It took a while for everything to sink in, and for Maleficent there were so many places to fill. She was enraged, confused, and very upset. She backed away from Shego and slammed the sceptre down hard. She could tell with the static energy in the room it would make even dust shudder. She looked around to everybody in the room, giving them all her own personal touch of expression, the only smile angled at Kefka.

"To all who seek audience,"she called out to no one in particular. "There has been a great shifting of loyalties throughout my castle...Atticus, my shadowy fiend, you in particular have been a thorn in my side for far too long. You think my eyes do not reach the deepest depths of even your soul? You think that the perversion of my powers is not enough to invade your minds?"

She began her circling the room, ranting and raving about things far beyond her power to stop, all of her victories, and all of her losses. She spoke of how things would be different, and that there would be no more betrayals. She would see to that.

"As Mistress of All Evil, there are standards I must meet, and I will not have anyone overstepping their boundaries in attempts to disobey my orders or usurp my throne.

"No, Shego, I am not going to kill you. Nor will I turn you into a mindless Heartless. Indeed, I have far greater plans for you yet. You're still my number one candidate to take my mantle when I am gone, my dear. And with this betrayal, though I find it awkard and overbearing, it is nothing less than what I would have done in your situation. However, there is no need to be jealous of Beatrix. Her heart is what I seek, most of all. And the fact she is a brilliant character, she is. Half light, half dark. It is incredible, the monumental power there. And we could use that to our advantage.

"And besides, think of the army we are building."

She grinned. And then, hopefully to everyone's surprise, she opened a Corridor and stepped inside.

"Everyone will get back to their duties."[/glow]

*Off to the Chamber of the Black Queen*

[kefka]

but that isn't why I came..." He looked to Kefka now, his tone serious and urgent. "I need your assistance with a small matter... There's a boy in Traverse Town I want you to take care of. Rip him, tear him, cut him to little tiny pieces then blow those into oblivion, I don't care. I don't even want his HEART intact...

[glow=Yellow,2,300]When the tension died down a little, he broke the silence of the room by laughing maniacally, nearly falling over from the shaking.

He stood up and kicked the barrel aside, a Heartless catching it quickly before smashing into the wall and taking it to where everything else was brought.

Arms spread, Kefka paraded around the chamber, stretching as he did so, and cracking knuckles and neck.

"I've been so bored, of late!" he cried theatrically, and turned to Atticus' image. "So you say I get to tear this worm's heart to shreds, even? Oh, goodie! Well, then, you've got to do something for me! You know that place I went before, but then was called away so quickly? Find the pretty maid there, hair as green as an emerald. Her name's Terra, and that powerful creature is what I seek. Grab her, and the boy's as good as dog food!"[/glow]

[Shego]

[glow=green,2,800]The thief... stayed there, on her knees because of the powers holding her there. Deep emerald-eyes wide, as they looked to the floor, surprised by the amazing turn of events. She continued to have troubles breathing, but to her amazement, it didn't mean she was dead. The green-and-black dressed woman shivered in place, in disbelief she had some out of this alive, for now.

Slowly but surely, the pale woman raised her head up to stare at the decrepit, dusty ceiling, trying to make sense of what had happened. She would part her tainted lips slightly, yet no sound at all would come out of it. A single bead of sweat would trickle down from her jaw, down to her neck and disappear between cloth and skin as it traveled further. She heard the clown, but again he was incoherent to her ears. She could not hear Acteur anymore, nor Atticus.... Her eyes had rolled upward, and soon close. The Shakespearean Poet will feel an increasing tug at the strings, which, if not for them, the thief would of fallen backward. She hung there, like a puppet, seeming to sit on her own, though the reality of it was that the woman had fallen unconscious. [/glow]

[Acteur de la Noir]

For his part, Acteur looked between the performers in this little drama as they went their separate ways...and while his mask remained in that leering smile, the Heartless puppeteer was rather un-nerved. What could trouble Atticus, savior of the Heartless, so much that he would demand the utter destruction of a given target, right down to the heart? And Maleficent...while she was ultimately fated to be a victim of her own darkness, it would be wise not to underestimate her...for she was both absolutely wicked and alarmingly devious. The way she had addressed Shego's betrayal was evidence of that.

But for the time being, Acteur had more pressing concerns--namely, tending to the poor girl who'd gotten too tangled up in the performance he and she had concocted. With a flick of his wrist, Acteur dismissed the puppet strings of Darkness that had kept Shego bound to his will...and, as the green-and-black beauty pitched backward, the lanky Heartless actor was there to catch her, cradling her unconscious body gently in his arms and letting her settle back to the ground.

Absently stroking his gloved fingers along the super-criminal's forehead to dash away the sweat that had gathered along her brow, Acteur contemplated on how best to tend to the human. And, despite himself, the Heartless puppetmaster felt...something. Just a spark, perhaps. But, from what he understood of humans, they had a word for this...

..."pity," wasn't it?

[Atticus the Fallen]

Atticus looked to Kefka as he suddenly started making demands. Oh well. Wasn't there a human saying that went "if you're good at something never do it for free"? Atticus could respect Kefka's view on this matter, and what was one heart in exchange for another? Besides... Atticus had plans for the clown already in motion. Best to keep him happy for the time being.

"Fine, then. I'll bring her to you the moment I find her, but in the meantime I want this boy dealt with HARSHLY. Stall with tormenting him if you must until you get your prize, but I don't want him to have a MOMENT's freedom. Not. One. SECOND." He turned away from the clown now, facing the actor instead.

"Tend to our dear Miss Go, Acteur..." Atticus requested, looking over the scene. Already he could tell that the woman was closely tied to the darkness... but he couldn't bring her into the fold JUST yet. She had to accept it herself, on her own terms. To force it into her would only produce a shadow, and that would be no good at all. Their kind needed independant thinkers if they were to survive. Shego was particularly good at surviving. "She's too valuable an asset to the cause to let suffer so..." the way he phrased it could easily be interpreted as meaning either Maleficent or the Heartless.

After all, Atticus had been careful this whole time. At no point had he betrayed Maleficent even in the slightest. She was suspicious of him, but only because he, too, was Heartless. Yes, he savored the knowledge that one day he'd tear her still-beating heart from her breast and envelope it in the darkness she herself worships so, but in the meantime... you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

That aside, what had he said to Shego besides the truth? How many times had he said "This is your choice" rather than give her no option? Maleficent was... simply growing frightened in her own heart, pushing away her allies away for fear of betrayal. But fear, too, was a path to his kind. And one day, she would find herself all alone in the dark with no one to save her from her sorrow... and he would come, and offer her his hand and welcome her into their family, where she would be loved unconditionally for who she is... by billions who see her as a hero for her dark deeds.

But that time was in the future. Right now, there were more important things to attend to... The great shadow of Atticus began to whisp away... his voice trailing behind...

"Just get rid of the boy, Kefka... And this Terra will be yours."

[Cloud]

"Not today..." Cloud muttered as he looked over his shoulder to Beatrix. Suddenly, he did the most logical thing in the world that no one ever seems capable of thinking of when held at swordpoint from behind. He ran FORWARD. Really, why had this not been a strategy before Cloud came up with it? With enhanced speed, he would be able to get some distance before Beatrix could throw the tainted holy at him, and be ready for it.

Cloud knew he probably couldn't beat her. Truth be told, he really didn't want to. Beating her meant losing a friend, so he had to think of another way. He had to call on his old battle knowledge to pull up something he could use as a distraction that would simultaneously deal with holy and get her off his tail for now. He could use one of his limit moves... but it'd take a lot out of him to force it.

As if he had a choice. In the split second it took Bea to release the ball of Holy (as she undoubtably would have seeing Cloud make a break for it), this entire thought process ran through his head, and he turned in mid-dash with his sword swinging over his shoulder.

"RRRAAAAGGGHHHHH!!!!" He yelled, slamming it down where he just was to create a wave of energy that rushed toward Beatrix, swallowing up her energy attack to add to its own power along the way. The force threw Cloud an extra ten or so feet, but that was just dandy with him. It put him at the stairs leading to the ground floor, where he was going to go next anyway. As the beam rushed at Bea, growing in size as it did until it engulfed the entire hallway in width and breadth, Cloud quickly made his getaway into the lobby...

[General Beatrix]

[glow=red,2,300]"Holy!" she cried, releasing the ball of tainted light and launching it full-force at the blonde man. However, she did not calculate that he would force a deeper power within, so when she saw the beam of energy consume her attack, and continue towards her, she swore.

"Son of a--" she turned tail and ran in the opposite direction, but the beam was growing wider and taller. She knew that eventually they would make contact, but she didn't think giving up was an option. So she shook her head with a frown and opened a Corridor in front of her.

Diving forward, she disappeared into the rift. Another thing she didn't count, though, was that Cloud's Blade Beam would somewhat folllow her, and it finally struck true, digging into her back and leaving a long, blood-red scar. The blue rose emblem on the back of her uniform tore, and was replaced by this reminder.

"Aghh!" she cried, reappearing from a corridor in the silent chamber of Maleficent's personal ballroom. She crashed hard on the floor and fell unconscious. The darkness that had been circulating her body moved on to her brain, to taunt her, goad her, and just plain tortuer her while she slept.[/glow]

[Acteur de la Noir]

To Atticus' decree, Acteur de la Noir dipped his head in a respectful nod, tipping the wide brim of his nobleman's hat to the image of the Heartless magus. "As you command, Maestro," he responded in a theatrically-solemn tone. "I shall place the same value upon her well-being that I would my own."

His flair for dramatics aside, the Heartless puppeteer was indeed true to his word--no sooner had that statement left the waxing crescent of his mask's wide smile than had he turned to the unconscious villainess in his arms, those keen yellow eyes appraising her languishing visage thoughtfully. After a few moments' consideration, Acteur nodded decisively. "Hmmm...I daresay this calls for a little mood music," he mused aloud. "A Requiem, perhaps...albeit not of the usual sort." With that, he glanced over to the shadows cast by a nearby pillar, extending one of his lanky arms and snapping his gloved fingers briskly. "Come forth! Play a song for our fallen ally!"

The command was answered by a thickening of the translucent blackness, rippled by a current of the penumbral translocation energies that the Heartless used to manifest themselves...and, then, with a ghostly halo of magical manifestation, a duet of unusual-looking Heartless appeared. Even smaller than the Shadows, these two creatures had conical bodies reminiscent of robes, an impression reinforced by the yellow-orange hats that hid much of their faces. To those knowledgeable, these Heartless would quickly be identified as belonging to a series whose designations were a mixture of color and song--in this case, the Green Requiem, a breed of Heartless known for its unusual ability to heal--namely, to wield a form of pure magic that one didn't often associate with the denizens of the darkness.

Moving through the air with a butterfly's grace, the twin Requiems flitted over to Acteur de la Noir, peering at the unconscious Shego with their glowing yellow eyes. As one, they began to glow with a soft green light, which splintered off into astral leaves and swirled forth to envelop Shego's prone body. Anyone versed in magic would recognize the "leaves" as the manifestation of Cure magic...and that in this case, they would hopefully serve to soothe Shego's pain and reinvigorate a body that had been drained by the darkness. A most ironic thing, considering what was casting the magic...an irony that was not lost an Acteur as he waited to see what effect the magic would have.

[Shego]

[glow=green,2,800]Little by little, the leafs of healing brought by the Green Requiem would take effect on the female. Wherever such grace of cure would land on her, the muscle would twitch softly, to pertain a much slower, snake-like movement from the thief. A groan would escape the lips of the femme fatale, as the world around her began to phase in. Her green hues would roll forward, and would examine the settings around her, watching the green cloaked, cone shaped heartless at one point before eyes trialling of to the composer. Shego blinked once, then twice, transfixed on her Ally's mask, a light, mint blush would creep upon her cheeks the moment she understood what was happening. Was she in a sweet embrace?

"...A....Acteur...?" She'd ask, to make certain her mind played no tricks. She would reach up to tap lightly at the rim of the nobleman's hat, letting it move a millimeter out of place, she gasped, shooting up to a sitting position, " Whoa!" the woman cleared her throat, her world not making much sense yet, by her distorted sight, "Whoa, hey, uhm, no... no touchie, Poe. No touchie... no touch."

Shego would squirm a little within the hold, but not necessarily fight her situation. The healing effects of the miniature-like heartless were aiding her wounds, and he, the primo uomo, was tending to her comforts. When was the last time, or first, that she, a dangerous criminal felt so... important to another? THIS spoiled?

"I'm fine, Casanova!" She tried to pretend her way out of this situation, feeling out of her element, "... You can have them stop now... You can stop now."[/glow]

[Acteur de la Noir]

Acteur de la Noir was an entity--an individual--born of performances and stagecraft. These origins had not only formed the entire basis for his theatrical mannerisms, but given him a certain flair for scrutinizing the behavior of others--an actor's ability to see past the surface, beholding the nuances in someone's "performance" that would otherwise be missed. Thus did the Heartless puppeteer take notice of the subtle nuances of Shego's response to his care--that faint hue of lime that stained her pale, Gothic features; the subtle inflection in her voice as she demanded to be let go; the fact that she didn't push him away outright, despite having the strength in her restored body to do so. Combined, these small hints gave the implication that, irate though she might sound, the super-villain might have appreciated--perhaps even enjoyed--his actions on her behalf more than she was letting on

If nothing else, she certainly sounded like her usual self.

"Ah...feeling better zen, cherie?" Acteur observed brightly, relaxing his arms so that Shego might slip free at her leisure. Lifting a hand to the brim of his hat, he tipped it chivalrously and added, "Forgive ze apparent presumption on my part; your condition was such that I could not, in good conscience, leave you as you were."

There was a pause, and when Acteur pushed his hat back up, the features of his mask had changed to an expression of sincere penitence. "Further, I owe you an apology for my responsibility in ze matter--I fear that a number of ze symptoms you suffered from might be attributed to my Phantom Puppetry. Ze intention was to imply to Maleficent that you could not possibly be lying...that you were acting in her best interests, a loyal apprentice through and through." Another pause, and he shook his head. "Alas, it is clear to me that my performance got decidedly out of hand. Perhaps I underestimated the potency of my own magic. Perhaps I simply got carried away. Regardless, I feel responsible for the predicament in which you found yourself--indirectly or otherwise."

With those words, the Heartless Puppeteer sank to one knee, bowing his head low and folding an arm across his chest in a 17th-century gesture of deep apology. "It was never my intent to draw you into such a situation, milady. For that, I can only offer my sincerest apologies...and my vow to personally atone for my folly, however I can."

Then, without warning, Beatrix came crashing in unannounced, causing Acteur to leap to his feet and whirl toward her with a snap of his tattered cape. "Eh?! What's all this, then??"

[Shego]

[glow=green,2,800]The clever thief stood up as the Heartless spoke and examined that all of her wounds, and her irrepressible fatigue had gone. She took a breath, and watched him kneel for an apology. To that, the woman crossed her arms and looked to him, rather disappointed, " You were just following orders,"commented Shego. To the eyes of darkness, it could of been implied she meant Beatrix's orders...instead of her own.

The pale-skinned woman reached down with a glove-covered hand and tipped his hat forward to tease, "Good Job," she mumbled, reaching further down and sinking her fingertips to the fabric of his tattered cape, and pulling him up by it, " but Scarecrow help you, if you EVER pull that bondage string act again!" the girl leaned close enough to stare deep within the yellow orb behind the mask, "You got that, Poe?"

She honestly didn't wait for a response as she reached up with both hands to fix the small wrinkles she had formed upon the mistreatment of the cape. A warm hand across the fabric would make it nice and smooth once more. The green female parted her lips and breathed in softly before exhaling, blowing a cool air over the area she had fixed so as to not burn the Shakespearean Heartless. The thief would turn in place, and begin to face a random passageway, pausing a few feet away from the romantic gent. She stayed there, still for several seconds, until her head turned slightly to the right and muttered, in a soft, almost non-shego-like manner, "....thank you."

The emerald-eyes of the woman shot out to view the unconscious Beatrix, starring intently at the still body, though nothing was coming to mind. She had said what she wanted to say, and that is all she would say, before quietly leaving the Silent Ballroom, and head toward the Black Queen's Chambers.

...The General will have to wait.[/glow]

[kefka]

[glow=Yellow,2,300]Kefka said nothing, only chuckling when Beatrix came flying out of a Corridor nearby. He jumped quick and leaped into it before it closed, marching off to destroy his next opponent.

***Off to And So it Begins, Traverse Town***[/glow]