The Holy Trinity

[Secondary Characters]

"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the darkness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, `Lenore!'
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, `Lenore!'
Merely this and nothing more."

~The Raven, Edgar Allan Poe


Somewhere, below the fabric of reality yet overlooking all, they would gather. Three forces were they; powerful and omnipotent. They would meet here as they had hundreds-THOUSANDS of times before, observing the motions of mortals like pieces on a chessboard. Sometimes the white would be ahead, sometimes the black. Always, the third party remained neutral, a score-keeper in an endless game of Light and Darkness.

HE, as usual, would be the first to arrive. He had taken many forms before, at least as many as there were cycles. Today, he'd come in a form that he'd hope would be familiar to the new third deity. Garland's metal footsteps would resonate in this anti-space, striding with ease over the glowing stained-glass floors which made up the central area of their meeting-ground.

The old mosaic of their battles... both iconic and vague. It depicted the three of them in their most primordial appearances. His was a four-armed monstrosity with horns and a visage of pure evil. Hers, the delicate maiden reclining uneasily with her hands over her heart. Typical. But the third party, the one for whom he truly wanted to be here... her image was that of a blindfolded, and thus impartial, woman holding a sundial between her hands. The three were arranged in precise balance, perfect equilibrium. This was the very foundation of reality, just as it was the foundation of their personal gathering place.

Garland scoffed somewhat at this, walking to the center and standing over "his" own image. Here, he would wait... No fair to the others to begin watching the Final Run. There was time, after all... Not all of the pieces were yet where they belonged on the board, but the Endgame was approaching. No one could deny that. Its proximity would bubble over a sense of urgency in the other two. Then, they would come.

Then... he'd get to see her again.

[Secondary Characters]

When Cosmos had finished with her meddling over in Castle Oblivion she returned to her place beside the others, her eyelids weak and her heart filled with sorrow. She took a seat beside her darker half and folded her hands together on her lap.

"We must talk, Chaos," she said, her eyes locked on the reality before them, glazed with a wetness only meant for Ultimecia.

"Things are not boding over well for either of us..."

[Secondary Characters]

The armor clad beast of a man made no indication that he was aware of the other's presence for a long time. Frankly, he was not here for her. When she spoke, a moment of silence passed like an eternity between them. Such was the nature of opposite forces.

"For your side, perhaps..." muttered Garland, now called Chaos. "I couldn't possibly care less what happens to the light. Frankly, I'm better off without it..." he finished. His crossed arms betrayed the harshness of his tone. He was concerned about current affairs. Theirs was a task to maintain a delicate balance, with its fulcrum a place of pure neutrality.

However, what difference did it make to him if the scales tipped slightly his way? His was the mind of a crusader, a conquerer. He would only gain ground this way, and that fulcrum so busily upholding both halves like Atlas bearing up the sky would be free to be with him, as he had dreamt of for longer than eternity.

But then... darkness is pointless without light to contrast it.

The argument was bittersweet. One way or the other, they had no jurisdiction to interfere directly in mortal affairs. That one of his, taken from her was the one to find a way to upset the balance, even knock them from their purch was an event which he held no power to sway. It all came down to this. Sitting and observing. Waiting and watching. Maddening for a man who's every instinct was to tear down the veil of reality and take the battlefield personally.

"Why do we do this, Cosmos?" he asked at length, eyes never shifting under that helm to look upon her. "Why do we even cater to this ridiculous realm? Look at them all... scurrying like rats on a sinking ship. If the black mage's plan goes through, the last of your light disappears and you along with it..."

He looked up finally, eyes unseen through the gold lenses in his visor. "So tell me... was it worth it? Martyring yourself for the sake of these creatures?"

[Secondary Characters]

"Why do we do this, Cosmos?"

"Why do we even cater to this ridiculous realm? Look at them all... scurrying like rats on a sinking ship. If the black mage's plan goes through, the last of your light disappears and you along with it..."

Cosmos kept her crystalline eyes on Her cupped hands as they rested in Her lap. She could not give Her counterpart a response just yet, as She, Herself, asked the same questions and mulled over similar outcomes...all the while thinking about that which was already lost.

"Chaos," She said, then sighed rather briefly as She cocked Her head upward to meet the amber-gold of his visor.

"I know little of the outcome to this current war...as one of yours saw to that already." Cosmos gave a glance to the empty seat that should house the Mediator--the Witch of Time. "Though...I am sure--quite positive--that you have not achieved victory just yet. You have failed to show my people the truth of it all--the darkest darkness--and brought them over." She spoke of some members of the Light who'd fallen from Cosmos' perch, but then found their ways back.

"Your side reeks of foul-play, Chaos. Look at what your very own has done. Heartless, the lot of them."

"So tell me... was it worth it? Martyring yourself for the sake of these creatures?"

Cosmos smiled, and, shyly, ducked Her head some into her shoulders as She gazed at the empty seat nearby.

"Yes. I must believe in them if balance is to be restored."

[Secondary Characters]

"Your side reeks of foul-play, Chaos. Look at what your very own has done. Heartless, the lot of them."

The armor-clad "Chaos" scoffed lightly at this. Rather uncharacteristic of Cosmos to take such a shot at his "pieces". Normally, these silly meetings went generally the same. She sat there looking forlorn and sorry for herself while their mediator, the one perfectly neutral force, sat between making sure they didn't attack one another over the result.

Then, she answered his question with an all-too-typical "yes". He'd only grumble lightly at this as his arms uncrossed. "You're a fool... you've always been a fool. Giving of yourself so freely to beings that barely know you or what you offer. If you hadn't done it THIS time, we'd already be in another cycle by now. Even the source of your power is now under attack and still you sit there with your hopes and dreams. Playing dirty or not, at least when those who follow my path attempt to manifest destiny they are doing so actively..."

He paused, then gruffed once more. "Face it. If my soldiers didn't resort to 'foul-play' as you put it, yours would do nothing, acheive nothing, and understand nothing."

Here, he fell silent, and stared at that chair once more until he was compelled by a glimpse of Cosmos longing for its former owner to speak again. "And if my side did not take matters into their own hands... nothing, not even time herself, would ever change."

[Secondary Characters]

"You're a fool... you've always been a fool. Giving of yourself so freely to beings that barely know you or what you offer. If you hadn't done it THIS time, we'd already be in another cycle by now. Even the source of your power is now under attack and still you sit there with your hopes and dreams. Playing dirty or not, at least when those who follow my path attempt to manifest destiny they are doing so actively..."

Cosmos took Chaos' criticism as one in Her position should; there was hurt in Her eyes, but Her posture was straight and mannerly. She sat there silent while He drove His accusations home and took apart Her entire philosophy piece by piece. She frowned and shook Her head before turning to face the god of Discord once more.

"My dear Chaos, what I do in the privacy of my own realm is none of your concern. My hopes, my dreams...they are mine, and though I am not blind to the actions of your side, yes...I still believe in them. You have seen their zeal, bred their sadness and even felt their fury, have you not?"

"Face it. If my soldiers didn't resort to 'foul-play' as you put it, yours would do nothing, achieve nothing, and understand nothing."

The Cornelian traitor-turned-God may have been right. Harmony without Discord was meaningless, hence why the cycles began in the first place. Cosmos simply shrugged, shaking Her head a second time.

"I disagree on one part there...foul-play is truly unnecessary, Chaos, if your arrogance is so grand. Why would you need such dirty tricks in the first place? And why the extra strength of the Heartless? What is wrong with your power? Why do you fear Harmony so?"

She would have continued, had Chaos not directed His eyes over to where Ultimecia should have been, and then said something he truly should not have.

"And if my side did not take matters into their own hands... nothing, not even Time Herself, would ever change."

Harmony clenched Her fists into balls, albeit barely ruffling even a single fiber on Her light-woven silky dress. Her immaculate golden locks, however, masked eyes that could equal that of the enraged pawns of Her order now.

"No one ever asked for Ultimecia to change!" blurted Cosmos, who recoiled in her seat abruptly after speaking the Witch's name. The Goddess' eyes began to let out tears which would trickle down her porcelain face. "She abandoned Chaos...and Harmony, in order to ride the path In-Between...and though I know of her state...such an act by your side was completely unnecessary!"

[Secondary Characters]

"No one ever asked for Ultimecia to change!" blurted Cosmos, who recoiled in her seat abruptly after speaking the Witch's name. The Goddess' eyes began to let out tears which would trickle down her porcelain face. "She abandoned Chaos...and Harmony, in order to ride the path In-Between...and though I know of her state...such an act by your side was completely unnecessary!"

"Was it?" Chaos muttered, his eyes slowly turning to face Cosmos once more. He had never seen her so agitated... but there was something more here. He knew what it was. He was stricken by it too, but this was HIS age now. "You know how time works... For as much power as she holds, not even the Time Witch can escape the relentless march of her own age. Your Ultimecia was getting old and weary. Even she was tired of her position, and you know it. It has been long since past time for 'the switch', and she carried on. Unless something was done, something jarring and cruel, she'd have kept going on..."

He paused, looking again to the seat, waiting for the one who was to take it as her own to come. "And remember, Cosmos... It's not I who warrants the use of my pieces' tactics. They all make their decisions. Ours is only to provide what we can. The Heartless were perhaps my most ambitious creations, ravenous with desire to blot out all light which they view as their enemy. But they have a secret power that has yet to be revealled. In the end, Cosmos..."

Chaos paused, chuckling darkly. "... the greatest, most perfect irony of all..."

He looked to her once more, and though she couldn't see through that visor, Cosmos had to know he was smiling darkly.

"...is that you're not going to be the hero this time."

[Twilight Path]

"My, my, my..." echoed about the space around the Gods. A simple flicker of neutral light fused with a mixture of black and purple began to form a few feet away from them, and from it would arise two women: One, the substitute witch, and the other, a very pregnant looking woman by the name of Tera (going 9 months in perhaps?), " It appears that we have stumbled upon an argument." called out the woman with silver hair with a glazed expression.

She helped the girl down on a chair that spored of the same void as them, and walked over to the Gods, specifically the one with armor, and wrapped her delicate arms around his covered neck to embrace him softly, "Such squabble seems rather insignificant to these circumstances... it appears that one believed 'Her' to be as ever lasting as herself... the other believes that the death was imminent and just." she frowned, "... can you simply agree to disagree?"


Jenova freed the new Knight from her grasp, and held at her arms in thought, similar to Ultimecia when she thought about the future (who knows if this was an act to crawl under Cosmos' skin... to point out change.) The Unverse's eyes darted over to the sitting girl, "There was nothing fair about her death, but it did happen. That has to be accepted... all that matters now is the future...and it appears rather bleak...but fear not, Cosmos-- perhaps the roles shall switch, and Darkness shall produce a hero to this story... but if the Hero arises from darkness... shall a villain arise from light? A rather cryptic thought."

The creature closed her eyes in thought, "Strange... how I cannot see so far into the future as She could... I must yet hone my new abilities for I can simply hunch... or could it be that I did not receive all the abilities?" she thought out loud to herself, " How intelligent Ultimecia was." she chuckled, throwing her hands to the side to show two half arrows forming, and watched them in a trance "... perhaps she knew of my dark desires... my allegiance with Chaos and the might of His Rule... so maybe such unfathomable control of time has been split for the sake of neutrality... but who among us could possibly possess the skills to control time for the Light? The white mage? I test her right now, to see if she is the wielder of Her blessing. She is my hunch, but I may be wrong... so, who-- I wonder... could have been her choice for the Light?"

[Shantotto]

[glow=teal,2,300]By this point Shantotto had started to become more aware of events unfolding. Up until now she simply wanted nothing more than to control a world... or two, leaving Ultimecia to fend to the "balance" of things. This was all good fun till her untimely demise, leaving Shantotto in charge of the balance and power.

With her counterpart gone, she saw a clear vision of the path she had to take. New events are to unfold and she was to be part of it. She left her study in a purple and black haze of a warp rift. A small rift no bigger than a few feet high would form several feet to Cosmos' side and the loud echo of Shantotto could be heard as she walked through, stopping short between the two Gods. "O~hohohohohoh! What an ungrateful little shrew. Oldmecia does confound me as to why she would pick the likes of you! Dealing with creatures in such a dark and gloomy place, although..." she started to speak with a most seductive and dark voice "...It does somewhat appeals to my taste."

Only a short time had past since the pieces of Ultimecia's elaborate puzzle started to fall into place. Now she would strike a more serious note, staring into the eyes of Chaos as she did into the eyes of Ultimecia when they fought for supremacy. "I believe something was taken from me you see, something a bit taller than me. One a bit more round and fat. If its all the same I'll be taking her back." She reached behind her small taru back to grab her staff. "If you fancy yourself a hero then please, try and interfere. I have a new spell brewing, one... you all shall fear." she spoke in a dark, ominous voice.

As most know with Shantotto, her egocentric personality tends to take over. She halted all actions for a moment. It seemed like a rock had hit the small taru between the eyes as she quickly turned and pointed her staff to cosmos, and began to speaking an almost... motherly voice. "And just what are you to do here?! There is but one destroyer you should fear and she is here. Your last... and best defense."

She spoke to the Goddess in an almost scolding manner. She saw no reason for Cosmos to present herself in such a dreary place. Seeing as how this was a war and she was there to win, at least for Shantotto's side. She then turned her attention back to Chaos and Jenova, again with the same stare. "Once again my dear Jenova, I don't make threats. If this spectacle shows no result by the time I'm done researching my ultimate spell, there will be no regrets. Now be a good lass and take this pass, hand over my prize or my wrath you shall rise."[/glow]

[Secondary Characters]

The Dark God had wrapped his arms around Jenova when she first appeared, enjoying a moment of togetherness after... what was it? 2000 years? What man could lay claim that they waited that long for love's sake? Can one even begin to imagine the hunger this titan felt for the touch of his beloved, for whom he travelled through time and gained the power of the gods themselves? Can one even fathom the depths of his desire to simply be WITH this woman, even if their reunion was a fleeting, temporary thing in the face of more "important" matters?

When she left his arms, Garland- no, Chaos felt a horrible tugging at his heart. It had to be ignored however. There was time for that later. Now, it was their duty to overlook the Final Run of the light, and witness its progression into the face of perfect fear.

And then, the Taru made her appearance. She ranted on about how she was superior, despite her mortal standing. The Knight stood there, looking down at her with an eyebrow quirked behind that false visage. When she finished her monolouge, the dark one simply lifted his helm to look right at Cosmos. "Was I so presumptuous when I was mortal?" he asked, half wishing to destroy the little thing just to prove a point, but knowing from his love's words that if this diminuitive mage was here, she had a role to play in this delicate balance.

Metallic armor shifted lightly as Chaos turned his gaze to Jenova once more. "I believe we've found your so-called 'better' half, my dear... Otherwise, would not the White Mage be here, instead of... oh..."

He waved a hand over the swirling vortex in the center of their meeting, where they were observing the events of this latest cycle of battle. It took them to the World That Never Was, where a contradiction made itself as apparent as the world itself. The White Mage was in the middle of attacking a golden-haired warrior who was protecting her from the Phantom Blot.

"... destroying her friends and allies, perhaps?" he asked, then looked to Cosmos with an almost triumphant smirk hidden under that mask of his. "The Light assaulting The Light... beautiful irony. A better villain I could not ask for. But then again, this might not be exactly what I was speaking of earlier. There could be many more layers to your sins, Cosmos, that are yet to be revealled..."

[terra]

Terra's mind was still swirling, not really able to make sense out of most things that had gone on in the moments past, but now her mind had started to become clearer, like a thick fog was clearing from her mind.

Terra found herself almost like waking from a dream, a bad one a that, she looked around from the chair she just realized she was sitting in while feeling a slight bump from her protruding belly. Her eyes finally focused on others in the room only to become confused again, she recognized two of the four figures in front of her, Joneva and the teddy bear. "Have i gone mad?" she asked herself as she looked to the two others already recognizing them as a god and goddess, having already seen Goddesses back home.

Then she saw the vision of Abigail Fighting a Blonde guy, and it instantly gave her a shock as the momery of Edgar came flooding back to her. Slowly Terra pushed herself out of her chair and walked over to the teddy bear, Terra reached out and grabbed the teddy by the collar and picked her up turning her around to face Terra. "By the Goddesses, what the hell is going on here Shantanto!?" Terra looks over to the vision and then over to Joneva "And what happened to Edgar? Joneva" Terra was getting irritated quickly and she wanted some answers.

[Twilight Path]

"Such impudence." The Unversed watched between Chaos and Cosmos, her eyes never wavering, until... from her question, arose a possibility the size of a toy stuffed- bear. What WAS this girl, thinking she was better than the God CHAOS himself? A soft chuckle escaped the girls lips, especially when such a thing pointed what seemed to be a staff at her. "Threats you don't make, but hilarity, you certainly do." joked Jenova, finding herself walking closer to the midget, and holding her hand out to measure such size, "... Still, you spoke of an Oldmecia, do you mean you knew Ultimecia, little one...?"


She did not mean to demean the Taru, but she couldn't help but feel motherly at such a small size, "The one you see behind me, has something dear to me as well... you will simply have to wait in lin--" she was interrupted by said woman.

"By the Goddesses, what the hell is going on here Shantanto!?" Terra looks over to the vision and then over to Joneva "And what happened to Edgar? Joneva" Terra was getting irritated quickly and she wanted some answers


Jenova was caught off guard with this sudden act of bravery, and she quickly looked over to Chaos to see what he thought of all of this. Such DRAMA in the realm of GODS, honestly! She sighed when addressed about the fallen guard, and held out her arms and rested them at her waist line, " He's dead. You know this bit of news. The White Mage, manipulated by the Harlequin Kefka killed him mercilessly, or would have." she would say bluntly. So much for bedside manner. Something else had caught her attention, "...YOU are Shantotto then... you were Ultimecia's second? You are...shorter than I presumed you'd be... What is going on here...? How did you get to such a place-- unless, Chaos is indeed right about it, and have received Her blessing?"

[Secondary Characters]

[glow=cyan,2,300]Cosmos folded her hands, rather unprepared for this domain to be invaded and, very soon, crowded. She watched things unfold, as she always would, and even grimaced when her apparent ally Shantotto began gloating.

After some time the Goddess of Harmony had had enough. She stood without warning, the white plane behind her now beginning to violently shake as she dropped her arms.

"That is enough," she commanded, waving her hands towards the two half-witches of time. "Harmonious Stasis," she chanted, most likely in an attempt to keep them frozen in place long enough to quell whatever battle may yet ensue.

"Can we not get along here?" she asked, her voice forlorn and still longing. She smiled sweetly over at Terra, and then frowned when gazing upon her belly.

"We must all calm down. Chaos, you have upset the balance, as have you, Jenova. Shantotto, you must not give in to the darkness in the same manner."[/glow]

[Shantotto]

[glow=red,2,300]Shantotto had made her demands and was soon waiting for her prize to be handed over. She listened as Chaos spoke of a mage, a White Mage none the less. At that moment, she could only laugh hysterically inside knowing because of her teachings, a bit of destruction and mayhem could be had. In a sense she felt responsible and proud of her young mage becoming more than a total loser.

Though her small inside celebration was cut short as someone had the audacity to not only touch but manhandle her person but picking her up from the ground she stood. And who of all people would dare act on such a whim but her prize Terra. She heard Terra speak something to her, however in her absolute furious rage she was unable to comprehend what she was saying. Her eyes were like a straight and sharp piercing spear unto anyone who would gaze upon them. “This… how…has she any idea the sheer terror I can bring?! She has but seconds to unhand me or the wrath of thunder shall make her head ring…” she thought to herself while dangling in the air.

Her anger grew even more intense as she began to her Jenova’s taunting words. But before she could react, Cosmos herself stood to stay the mood. Seeing this as a prime opportunity to free herself, took her staff and a loud thud could be heard as Shantotto whacked Terra across the head.

Finally on the ground, she could only sigh seeing as she couldn’t set the poor girl ablaze. Then she heard the words of Cosmos come from behind her.[/glow]

“That is enough! Can we not get along here?”

[glow=Teal,2,300]A spell had been chanted from what would sound like a great distance echoing all around...[/glow]

“We must all calm down. Chaos, you have upset the balance, as have you Jenova. Shantotto, you must not give in to the darkness in the same manner.”

[glow=Teal,2,300]She heard Cosmos speak once again, this time irritating the little tarutaru. With the now bestowal of Ultimecia's blessing, Shantotto slowly raised a shaky hand and snapped her little fingers. A bright colorful hue would quickly flash and dissipate, and from her body shards of clear translucency started to fall and shatter to the ground. Once free of that under-handed spell, she quickly turned to point her staff at the presence of the Goddess. “O~hoho! I would not have thought one so benevolent to attack its own. Why, if I had known no better, I'd have lumped you in with the other Chaos clones and simply nailed you with rock and stone. And while on the subject, just who are you to speak such ill manner to one such as me?! I am here to set the balance and set this girl free! Then accuse that which is here to defend the Light?! I should throw aside these petty plights and show you the wrath of Shantotto’s might.” She now turned to Jenova, taking a deep breathe, “Now the girl I will take, and you shall do nothing more than sit in my wake.”[/glow]

[Secondary Characters]

The eyes of Chaos watched as Cosmos herself was compelled to take action. Dark chuckling would begin to eminate from his helm, as though utterly amused by everything he was seeing. All members of the Light here were behaving so strangely as of late with the abrupt and admittedly forced yet long overdue changing of the guard. The laughter would echo throughout the strange betweenworld that they occupied, drawing attention even as Shantoto struggled to maintain some sense of dominance in a place where she had shaky authority at best.

"Balance..." he muttered, his eyes on the standing Cosmos. "Am I really the one who upset it?" he asked. His hand waved again to change the images. This time, it showed two young men standing side-by-side with a monarch mouse and facing a familiar man wearing a black cloak...

"Denizens of light, answer this: Why do you hate the darkness?" asked the cloaked man in a deep, unsympathetic tone.

Then, the mouse with keyblade in hand answered, "Aw, we don't hate it. It's just kinda...scary. But the world's made of light AND darkness. You can't have one without the other, 'cause darkness is half of everything. Sorta makes ya wonder why we are scared of the dark."

His thought was concluded by the boy with longer hair and a keyblade that reflected a twilight path. "It's because of who's lurking inside it."

Chaos froze the image here, seeming amused. "But that wasn't the end, was it Cosmos? Like determined warriors, your ilk marched into Kingdom Hearts and laid seige to what was there. They defeated something between, and destroyed the essence of something vital: the middle path..."

He let this sink in a moment, not even bothering to contain the chuckle in his throat. "Do you see now, Cosmos? Do you see why we are gathered here yet again, our roles reversed?" he chided, a strange delight in his voice as he watched.

"YOU are the villain this time! YOU allowed your warriors to blindly stumble into a sacred place and fight their battles there! Speak of balance all you wish, accuse me of being the force that throws it all akimbo, but remember this, now and forever..."

Chaos lifted a hand, pointing directly at Cosmos with a triumphant glee. "YOU destroyed the fulcrum of the scales, and sent BOTH sides toppling this way and that! And in the mayhem, my heartless went forward to find peace for our kind... and then what happened??"

Another wave, and scenes of his darkness being slaughtered mercilessly by the light played, overlooked by Atticus the Fallen, who demonstrated a stranger side to himself in the swirling, smokelike screen before them... that of a burdened soul hurt with every single heartless fallen. "YOU fight the darkness at every turn! You abandoned balance in favor of a world full of light!"

Another swipe, enthusiastic and energetic from Chaos. The scene changed to the Rose rushing headlong toward the World That Never Was, where the best chance for Darkness was waiting on the last of the Light. "And your final betrayal laid bare! The Light charges forward, ready to attack the darkness at its heart! Soon, it will all come down to one versus another, and there can only be one victor!"

Chaos' head tilted back and his booming laugh echoed around. "Have I upset the balance?? NO! The truth of it all is that it was COSMOS who raised the sword against the sword in a one-sided dance of destruction, with only this as the final result!Maybe this could have been different, maybe this could all have been avoided!"

Chaos allowed his laugh to quiet and his chuckle to cease as his eyes turned once more to the others, allowing the scene to play out before them. "Let us all watch... as a new balance is formed by Cosmos' determined soldiers, hm? Will it be a world of uniform white, or one of perfect black? No matter who wins, the mistake that brought it all to an end will be remembered..."

Helm turned slowly to the screen and that chuckle died away finally. "... Cosmos, you fool... if only you had taken up the Shield..."