reflectionsofdestiny | Christmas presents... [RP scene: DR continuity]

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Christmas presents... [RP scene: DR continuity]

While in many worlds, this is the time for festivals celebrating the rebirth of the year, calling forth the sun again, remembering ancient traditions and ancient myths... there's no sign of any of that here.

It's Xeha's laboratory. A crisp, clean place, though one with the odd sign of human personality stamped on it. Photographs and a toddler's plushie with a missing eye sit on a desk alongside any number of notes and a tablet computer. Plenty of work seems to have been going on around here: things produced, things trialled. A familiar black coat and a white labcoat hang together on a stand.

More important than all that at the moment, though, is something currently set up in a side room. A forcefield of soft red light screens it from the rest of the world, and the walls seem to be crossed with lasers.

An ornate blade set on a simple stand, with equipment around it.

Its creator's waiting just outside the doorway.

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There's no doubt the place is gearing up for the local holidays and the inconveniences that often come with it. Braig has no real interest in the trapping of celebration, though. The light is nice, but he doesn't mind the darkness either. It's too much a part of him for him to actually mind it.

It doesn't take him long to get to Xeha's place once he;s asked to. Even without proper portals, he manages to be comparatively punctual and in any case, he suspects he knows what this is about. That and the fact that curiosity is something he's more that willing to indulge mean that Xeha isn't waiting long at all before Braig shows up, ready and willing to see what it is Xeha has in mind.

"Come on in."

Xeha gestures him in with a smile. At last, time to start the last stage of this project that's taken up so much of his time lately. Not that he minds: he'd rather be busy than be sitting idle, rather be finding out the truth than letting time slip past.

"It's just through this way."

Braig will admit that it can be nice to be busy. But he's equally fond of simply taking a moment to relax. No need to go running around like a fool all the time. Still, he has to admit to being curious about what this thing's going to look like when it's done and that's more than enough to pique his interest.

"Lead the way."

"Just here-"

He picks the black coat off the hanger with his free hand as he gestures with the other towards the room in question. As he slips it on, bends to sort out the zipper, he looks up-

"Go in first. I'll be right there."

Right where the blade's sitting. What's there looks noticeably different to what Braig would have last seen, though still rather dull and lifeless.

Different indeed, although even he can tell it's not a finished blade yet. He's seen enough to know they aren't so lifeless, and as much as he wants to just reach in and grab the thing he refrains (if just barely). This is supposed to be scientific research and that means he shouldn't be contaminating the variables before everything is ready, regardless of how much he may want to.

Instead, he waits as patiently as he can for Xeha to finish up his own preparations. It's not very, but then again, he's never much been one for patience.

"Apologies for keeping you waiting. But you can understand that I want to minimise contamination in the void-field environment. While exposure from my own light or darkness would probably not affect a blade designed for you too greatly, I'd rather not take the chance."

With that, Xeha walks into the room to set down a couple more pieces of equipment, connecting them into a nearby console. Around the blade, lights start to glow on the floor, almost like something from The Grid.

"What we will be aiming to do is to leave an imprint, an influence, from your heart on the blade's structure. More than that, we will be attempting to work back through your own heart to Kingdom Hearts itself - or at least, to what residue and connection it would have left during your exposure to it when closing the Door." For a moment, he smiles dryly. "Not ideal, I'll admit, but given the consequences of what would be ideal, I believe it is likely for the better this way."

It's true that a little influence from Xeha's heart will probably only have a minimal effect on the outcome in the end, Braig can't blame Xeha for his caution. After all, he already has a keyblade and Braig has yet to earn his properly. Or finish having his made, but that's about the same thing, as far as Braig is concerned. What really matters is that it's finally within his reach, and he nods at the explanation that's offered.

"Whenever you're ready, then."

Xeha nods, pulling a couple of wired-on parts away from the other equipment and passing one over to Braig.

"Just slip this over your head, make sure that this sensor's resting over your heart. Then put these gloves on and rest your hands on the blade itself. I'll start the light and dark flow when you say. If it becomes uncomfortable, let me know straight away."

The first attempt at using untested equipment, and he's a little concerned about it: not overly so, however. He's run all the calculations. All the predictions. There's nothing that he can see that can go wrong.

It's less odd than Braig would like, being handed bits and pieces of entirely untested tech. He knows Xeha will have run all that he's capable of with it, but it still seems like he should be warier of it than he actually is, especially when his heart is involved.

All the same, he does as Xeha's asked without so much as a flicker of concern about the things that could go wrong. If it gets him closer, he'll take just about anything without (too much) complaint. He does still take a moment to make sure everything is settled comfortably, though, before he reaches out to the blade itself. Even this is more than he might have dreamed could ever come true, and he takes a couple moments to make sure he's not too gleeful about the idea. After all, if they're trying to make an imprint of his heart, shouldn't it be best to leave his emotions at something approximating the way they normally are?

It's only once he's sure he's ready that he finally speaks up. "Go ahead."

Another nod. Xeha runs his fingers over the controls of his equipment, and-

"Very well."

Two words spoken in a deep, warm voice, and the room dims around them. The patterns on the floor begin to move, and a device on the far side of the room moves down. Coursing through the equipment Braig's wearing comes a steady pulse of energy: tamed, controlled magic alone. Just a background to begin with, nothing of note, but picking up...

And a beam of light energy aims straight for Braig's heart.

If Xeha's done the calculations right, this shouldn't hurt a bit.

The feeling of magic running through the bits and pieces he's wearing is odd, but it's not actually bad. Light knows he's gone through worse before. It's almost calming even... and then that bright beam of light comes shooting for his heart and Braig can't help but tense up in preparation for the pain he expects.

Only it never comes, and that's perhaps the oddest of all. He knows he's got more darkness in him than just about any of the other apprentices, and yet here he is, unharmed by the light. It takes a moment, but eventually the instinctive terror fades away. He's still not sure what else will be involved with this, but he's at least okay with what he's been subjected to this fair.

It's a relief for Xeha, too, to see that Braig's unharmed. Calibrating such an intense light flow for a heart like that had been difficult. Precise. But, ultimately, necessary to pick up all the details needed.
This is not a time to dwell in the light or the dark alone, given what they seek to create.

"Very good. I'm going to intensify this flow for a short period - it may be uncomfortable, but nothing worse."

And he does just that.

In front of them, the blade starts to glow.

"Sure thing."

It's odd, really. Mentally, he's all but fretting himself silly, but physically? Physically it's more like he's simply a little too warm, or sitting a little too close to a fire. Nothing he can't handle, and so he does the mental equivalent of sitting on the part of himself that's trying to worry itself to death.

Besides, the blade is actually starting to do something, and that's more interesting than just about anything else, at this point.

It's faint. Just a shimmer, just a hint - just a suggestion that something is being stored within it, some kind of connection is being made. But in a darkened room like this, that faint and growing glow is enough for a thin smile to cross Xeha's lips.

"The impression's taking. A little longer and I think we'll be able to switch to the darkness imprint."

A subject which, if he's honest with himself, he's more than a little worried about. He's spent so long trying to avoid working with the dark more than he has to - and this is one of those subjects for which he's had to.
(And it's felt too easy to do so.)

The fact that the blade is doing something it's supposed to be doing is more than enough for Braig, and he can't keep from grinning slightly as he nods at the comment. He doesn't have anything to actually say, but if he can weather the light this well he'll have absolutely nothing to fear from the darkness. It's an old friend, by now, and he can handle a little more of the same as far as he's concerned.

For now, however, he simply waits, and watches.

The light flow grows, the blade's shimmering intensifies, and Xeha looks between the outputs on his equipment and the sights in front of him. Looking good.

"Switching in three - two - one."

He catches himself holding his breath as he flicks a switch. The pure glow flickers out of existence, to be replaced by what could only be its opposite, faint ethereal curls drifting away from the focused beam - a mutter and a little adjustment, and they're gone.

"This will take a little longer."

But not a second longer than he has to be around it for.

Braig won't lie. It's a relief to have the light switched over for darkness, even despite Xeha's displeasure. He knows the darkness, welcomes it as if it were an old friend and so this time being caught in the beam is comfortable. He'll wait as long as Xeha needs to now.

It's the least he can do and they have to imprint the darkness somehow.

It's a little more complex for Xeha to fine tune the darkness flow, and anxiety shows faintly on his face. Braig, he's sure, will be just fine during this stage. But even with the familiar black coat's protection, he's more than a little worried that some exposure is going to backfire, will start pulling at what lies beneath his heart.

The blade's glow is changing, now. Dark and light ripples: irregular at first, but settling into a smooth pulsing, up and down. Colours are starting to shine in the metal; a tight knot of light and darkness is forming by the pommel.

He realises what it is. His heart leaps, his pulse races.

"... the chain!"

He's taken every reasonable precaution, and for all that Braig is well aware of what lurks inside Xeha's heart, he's pretty sure that a little darkness probably won't have much of an effect. What's one drop, in what is likely already an ocean bounded around by light? He doesn't know to ask though, and even if he did, the various glows that are running through the blade are more than enough to keep his attention.

He can't help but grin at Xeha's surprised comment. He'd noticed the little knot of light and darkness, but up until Xeha had said something he hadn't really realized what it was.

"Heh. Now we're getting somewhere."

"We are, indeed."

Xeha's smiling, now: he checks between the blade, Braig, and his readouts with evident pride beginning to show. This is real. It's happening.

(And no-one's been hurt, he quietly thinks, before dismissing the thought.)

The light and dark pulses over the blade are becoming smoother still, blending into each other, making the blade itself look almost liquid: what has he made here? he wonders. Is it truly a keyblade of the light - and he's finding himself willing to use the word, now - one of the dark, something else, given whose influence was in its creation?

The chain, though: he's a little concerned, there. It doesn't seem to be settling down as easily. "Are we missing something?"

There's a moment of silence as Braig considers. Though he's seen more than a few keyblades in his time, he's not anything like an expert on them. They've got both the light and the darkness, so the only thing left is... well, he's not sure. Unless it reacts to intent as well, which is so far out of his realm of understanding as to be entirely incomprehensible. But well... there's one thing that might work, odd though the idea is.

"Ah, hang on. I wanna try something."

Braig takes a deep breath before very carefully moving his hands down the blade until one of his hands reaches the hilt. The blade's made, more-or-less, but it's not yet his, and really what better to claim a weapon than by making as if to use it; his fingers close around the hilt without a moment of hesitation, though he doesn't lift it off the floor. Instead, he rests his other hand along the shaft, very much as if he were holding it in his lap.

He's got no idea if it'll work, but it certainly feels right.

Edited 2012-12-23 17:46 (UTC)

"You-"

Xeha's momentary worried exclamation is cut short as he realises that Braig's impromptu movement isn't hurting the energy flow - a momentary ripple, but easy enough to compensate for.

In fact, it seems to - he can't quite believe it. It seems to be the right thing. The energies moving over the blade expand for a moment, and with a shimmer on the air not unlike a conventional keyblade summoning, clamp back down onto the weapon. It's solid again, now. Substantial, real. And the knotted scarf-like keychain - yes, he can call it that, now - speaks of whose heart was the catalyst for all this.

He cuts the darkness flow and just stares for a moment.

"... We did it. Braig, we've done it!"

For once in his life, Braig is honestly without words. He'd dreamed, yes, but the dream pales in comparison to reality.

He waits until Xeha cuts the flow of darkness, and then he carefully lifts it off the floor, testing the weight and heft of the blade now that it's real and solid under his hands. It suits him, even though he's not really much of blade user, and he can't say that he's surprised.

He doesn't find his voice in time to answer Xeha's comment, but he's very obviously over moon about the whole thing.

Edited 2012-12-23 21:14 (UTC)

A silent Braig says as much to Xeha as any words could have. He's quietly rejoicing, himself - this has worked. All that study, all those sleepless nights, all that worry: it's all paid off. How long has it been since a truly new keyblade was created? Before the wars, at least... but here, now - it's done. And it looks, to his eyes, perfect.

There'll be time for testing later. Time to make sure that what they've got here is truly functional, that it's not just some - replica. But for the moment, he shuts down the console - light flickering back on around the room, the grid on the floor fading - and steps over to his brother's side with a warm smile.

He's not sure what to say himself for the moment, either...

Maybe there isn't a need to say anything at the moment. Braig certainly doesn't seem to be up to saying much of anything at all as he finishes taking a few practice swings with it. Admittedly, he doesn't let it go, but that's mostly because it's still too new for him to want to let it disappear into other-space that Keyblades go when they aren't in use.

Eventually he manages to find his tongue again, although he's still nowhere near as talkative as he normally is.

"...Thanks."

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