[Video] XXIII - This was suppose to be on Friday Night.
[The feed switches again on the Network, a minor glitch faltering with the screen as it focuses on...a black horse. (Or a unicorn, depending on whoever sees this at the time.)
...Yes, that same horse/unicorn.
It appears Xemnas ended up wandering the entirety of Western District. And up above him, Kingdom Hearts is viewed in its mellow glory against the dark sky. His head rose up as he pawed the strange ground beneath him, letting a low rumble escape his muzzle.
The stillness slowly gave way to the sound of a lone acoustic guitar, several notes growing louder as the scenery around the First fades into blackness.]
Hello darkness, my old friend...
I've come to talk with you again.
[He turns his head artfully with the words sung, each line given an elegant equine pose.]
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping...
And the vision that was planted in my brain-
[The tail swishes, out and downward.]
Still remains...
[His head then bows as his voice resounds within the darkness.]
Within the sound...of silence.
[The rest draws out before giving way to the crash of drums and cymbals, a musical cue for the black background to tear away and reveal another place completely.
It's raining. Tall, shadowed buildings and harshly-lit skyscrapers. The heart-shaped moon and the white fortress in the distance.
Xemnas reverts back into his normal state of being simultaneously, striding down the stylized urban streets.]
In restless dreams I walked alone.
Narrow streets of cobblestone...
[He stops under the light of the flickering lamppost, dramatically looking over a shoulder.]
Beneath the halo of a street lamp,
[Gloved hands raise his hood over his head, shadowing his features.]
I turn my collar to the cold and damp
[The scenery suddenly brightens as the Nobody looks upward, now standing on the Altar of Naught. Kingdom Hearts bursts overhead, releasing the hearts it once contained.]
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light -
That split the night -
[Arms reach out in vain for the falling hearts, all of it being engulfed by the shadows.]
...And touched the sound...of silence.
[It comes back to what appears to be Nautilus. Normalcy is not present when the moon shines down upon everything and its Wakened residents.]
And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more...
[Kingdom Hearts flashes a second time, but it is also consumed by the darkness.
And then thousands of glowing eyes appear.]
People talking without speaking...
[Glowing violet eyes.]
People hearing without listening...
[The First comes back into view as the eyes fade back into the blackness, still staring up into the nothingness as it turns out to be an unchanging city of glass, damages and all.]
People writing songs that voices never shared.
No one dared...
...Disturb the sound...of silence.
[Xemnas doffs his hood unceremoniously, brow furrowing deeper as the angle becomes askewed. He starts shouting at what may have been an audience that existed at a point in time, wisps of shadows that have never shown themselves to be true. Many? Maybe even one? It is not clear.
Hands and arms articulate his words as they always have, expressing what he cannot feel.]
"Fools," said I, "you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows!
Hear my words that I might teach you!
Take my arms that I might reach you!"
[As his arms are held outward, something cuts into him, exploding violently in flame. He starts to disspate, eyes closing slowly as he fades into darkness.]
But my words like silent raindrops fell...
And echoed in the wells...of silence...
[There is another rapid transition, breaking away like glass. It shatters in various sizes and shapes, reflecting other events as Xemnas, now in a coat of a similar pattern, continues to pass through without hesitation.]
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made...
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming...
[He stops again to raise a hand toward the sky, thespian flair not spared in the least.]
And the sign said "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls...
[It is then withdrawn just as dramatically, his head bowing slightly.]
And whispered in the sound...of silence.
[With the last few notes, the edge of the Northern District fades back in. Xemnas, however, remains as he is, violet eyes and everything. And yet, those eyes aren't as vibrant as they were suppose to be.
He almost smirks as he lifts his head again.]
...Nautilus. Who would have thought this would come into play?
Have you been restored? A trick of the mind? Mere nostalgia, perhaps? Whatever your reason, I can already tell this is not the same place.
There is change. And it is still alive and well.
...Yes, that same horse/unicorn.
It appears Xemnas ended up wandering the entirety of Western District. And up above him, Kingdom Hearts is viewed in its mellow glory against the dark sky. His head rose up as he pawed the strange ground beneath him, letting a low rumble escape his muzzle.
The stillness slowly gave way to the sound of a lone acoustic guitar, several notes growing louder as the scenery around the First fades into blackness.]
Hello darkness, my old friend...
I've come to talk with you again.
[He turns his head artfully with the words sung, each line given an elegant equine pose.]
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping...
And the vision that was planted in my brain-
[The tail swishes, out and downward.]
Still remains...
[His head then bows as his voice resounds within the darkness.]
Within the sound...of silence.
[The rest draws out before giving way to the crash of drums and cymbals, a musical cue for the black background to tear away and reveal another place completely.
It's raining. Tall, shadowed buildings and harshly-lit skyscrapers. The heart-shaped moon and the white fortress in the distance.
Xemnas reverts back into his normal state of being simultaneously, striding down the stylized urban streets.]
In restless dreams I walked alone.
Narrow streets of cobblestone...
[He stops under the light of the flickering lamppost, dramatically looking over a shoulder.]
Beneath the halo of a street lamp,
[Gloved hands raise his hood over his head, shadowing his features.]
I turn my collar to the cold and damp
[The scenery suddenly brightens as the Nobody looks upward, now standing on the Altar of Naught. Kingdom Hearts bursts overhead, releasing the hearts it once contained.]
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light -
That split the night -
[Arms reach out in vain for the falling hearts, all of it being engulfed by the shadows.]
...And touched the sound...of silence.
[It comes back to what appears to be Nautilus. Normalcy is not present when the moon shines down upon everything and its Wakened residents.]
And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more...
[Kingdom Hearts flashes a second time, but it is also consumed by the darkness.
And then thousands of glowing eyes appear.]
People talking without speaking...
[Glowing violet eyes.]
People hearing without listening...
[The First comes back into view as the eyes fade back into the blackness, still staring up into the nothingness as it turns out to be an unchanging city of glass, damages and all.]
People writing songs that voices never shared.
No one dared...
...Disturb the sound...of silence.
[Xemnas doffs his hood unceremoniously, brow furrowing deeper as the angle becomes askewed. He starts shouting at what may have been an audience that existed at a point in time, wisps of shadows that have never shown themselves to be true. Many? Maybe even one? It is not clear.
Hands and arms articulate his words as they always have, expressing what he cannot feel.]
"Fools," said I, "you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows!
Hear my words that I might teach you!
Take my arms that I might reach you!"
[As his arms are held outward, something cuts into him, exploding violently in flame. He starts to disspate, eyes closing slowly as he fades into darkness.]
But my words like silent raindrops fell...
And echoed in the wells...of silence...
[There is another rapid transition, breaking away like glass. It shatters in various sizes and shapes, reflecting other events as Xemnas, now in a coat of a similar pattern, continues to pass through without hesitation.]
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made...
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming...
[He stops again to raise a hand toward the sky, thespian flair not spared in the least.]
And the sign said "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls...
[It is then withdrawn just as dramatically, his head bowing slightly.]
And whispered in the sound...of silence.
[With the last few notes, the edge of the Northern District fades back in. Xemnas, however, remains as he is, violet eyes and everything. And yet, those eyes aren't as vibrant as they were suppose to be.
He almost smirks as he lifts his head again.]
...Nautilus. Who would have thought this would come into play?
Have you been restored? A trick of the mind? Mere nostalgia, perhaps? Whatever your reason, I can already tell this is not the same place.
There is change. And it is still alive and well.