DChiuch

With luck, we can bring Roxas back into our fold, but even if Sora should awaken, as the hero of the Keyblade, he is bound to keep unlocking hearts. If he should come to target us, we need simply subdue him and use his powers ourselves once more. I must become one with Kingdom Hearts. I will become a higher existence. All of my true ambitions begin there.

Roxas left. It's so like him to just leave that WINNER ice cream stick behind. Come tomorrow, I'll probably get the order to hunt him down, but leaving that here makes it feel so permanent. I wish the three of us—three? No. That the two of us could share some ice cream again someday. That's what it is to be friends.

Our plans never accounted for the possibility of both Xion and Roxas leaving. How did this come to pass? When did Roxas grow strong enough to outmuscle me? What were you really after, Lea? We joined the Organization at the same time, and formulated our plan. At this point, it's just an idle fantasy. Everything changed. You, and me.

The gears of Xemnas' plans have begun to spin wild since the loss of half our membership at Castle Oblivion. The results are there, but can this state of affairs fairly be called a success? If Kingdom Hearts can be said to possess a mind of its own, it is surely rejecting Xemnas—no, rejecting Xehanort. Roxas left the Organization today.

I wanted to see Roxas one more time, but couldn't. What would I say? Did I ever really exist? Even if not, I just hope that those times we spent watching the sun set were real. I know Naminé will tell me how to get back where I belong. I should hurry to see her.

I couldn't tell Xion she was wrong, and I can't bring myself to end her. But it's either that, or I have to erase Roxas. There's no future where the three of us can sit around and eat ice cream. I know Roxas will never understand. I don't want to acknowledge it myself.

Riku gave me this time. Axel told me to spend it thinking for myself. The Organization is determined to erase either me or Roxas. They'll never allow us to coexist. I love Roxas and Axel. I'm sure Saïx would scoff at that. Call it a trick of my artificial memories. But the time I spent on that clock tower was real. I wish the three of us could stay together, just like this, forever. But I have to end this. I'll never forget today's sunset. Even if Roxas and Axel do, I won't forget.

Be they a puppet or the hero's Nobody, we merely need a functional Keyblade master. The details are unimportant. The puppet has developed to a point where the hero of the Keyblade may be entirely redundant. Indeed, perhaps we ought never allow Sora to awaken. He cannot be controlled. He will rise up against us. We must move our agenda ahead with that firmly in mind.

Axel's always helping me out, so I just assumed he would again. How long has he known about me? Maybe since long before we met in Castle Oblivion. But he told me to think for myself. I was so happy. But now, as I get stronger, Roxas keeps getting weaker. I shouldn't exist anymore. They say that Nobodies were never meant to exist, but I'm the real affront. But before I'm gone, I want to help Roxas and Axel. Even just a little. I think the boy I saw today is the same Sora from my memories.

Xion is burning through missions at full tilt. She seems frantic. Why, I don't know. And speaking of, I still don't know what to say to Roxas. Even without my orders from Saïx, I'd do anything to stop Roxas from being erased. I just don't know if I can stand by and let that happen to Xion, either.

We watched the sun set today. The three of us. I didn't think we'd ever be able to do that again. It's like that dream I had—the one where I was by the shore with Roxas and Axel, watching the sun set over the water. I just want to stay with them. But how? What should I do?

Roxas doesn't trust me after the whole Xion incident, but I can't tell him the truth yet. So I keep lying. It's no big deal when you're a Nobody. There's no guilt, no feeling at all. So why does it still sting, just a little, when I lie to him? All my dealings with Roxas give me this bizarre illusion of humanity.

Axel failed to report that the impostor and Xion are working together. Instead, that news came from Roxas. The boy is far more easily handled than Axel, but now Axel has captured Xion and returned her to us. His motives are impossible to read. Our plans can be altered if necessary, but doing so can only delay their realization.

The man they're calling the impostor, that fake Organization member? It's Riku. Roxas could very well remember that, somewhere deep in his memories. Still, it's too soon to report this. I need to know why Xion was with him first. If she's siding with the hero, it could easily mean her erasure. What are you planning to do, Xion?

None of us really know everything that's going on in Castle Oblivion. Some rooms even Xemnas doesn't know about. Not many are even aware that Xion was born there. I wonder if the truth about that place will ever surface.

Axel and Roxas are up to something. No plot they concoct will change the fact that the Organization has cast off Xion, though. Our plans have split, diverged, and advance now to the next stage. The No. i project and Replica Program merely paved the way. Our true goals lie elsewhere.

Xion is gone. Roxas still doesn't know anything, but Xion found out. That's why I need to find her. We don't have hearts, so we accept the facts we're given as the truth. But something far more important lies behind that truth. Saïx would laugh at people with no hearts calling one another friends, but that doesn't make it not so. As the Nobody of the hero of the Keyblade and the Replica of that Nobody, these two are special. Unique in every sense of the word. But that doesn't change the fact that we're friends. Nothing will. Got it memorized, Xion?

The air is charged. I can feel it. You go out on a big gamble at a time like this, and you're going to lose big. That said, it's betting against the worst odds that nets you the biggest win. I'm eager to see how this hand plays out.

Xion's disappearance is fascinating. If she really is breaking from our control, it's a sign of her approaching the essence of the hero. It seems Saïx doesn't truly "see" her. I'm curious to know how she appears to the others. I see her as...him, though I suspect that Xemnas sees entirely something else in her.

Xion's appearance should vary based on the relation of the viewer to her. Saïx sees her simply as a puppet. The Program approaches completion. Through Roxas, Xion is assembling a copy of the hero of the Keyblade. As proof, she sometimes appears to take on his form to my eyes.

My body feels heavy, and my head aches. I'm too busy dreaming to get any rest from sleep. Axel knows something. He's hiding some secret. It must be in Castle Oblivion. That's where I was born.

Even if Xion is a replica—a puppet—she's still Xion. I understand that in my head, but how do I interact with her now? Riku Replica[1] was just a tool, but I can't just use Xion. No, I was wrong to have just used Riku Replica[1] in the first place. How is a man-made puppet any less worthy than a Nobody that was never meant to exist at all? They're both ambiguous. Tenuous at best. And she's my friend. Even if neither of us should exist, that doesn't invalidate the bonds we form. Next break we get, I told her we'd all go to the beach. I hope we get the chance. Our little summer vacation. I know if we can get together and laugh about stupid stuff, this nagging doubt will go away.

I thought I'd never see the word "replica" again. Any rational man would realize the Riku Replica was not likely unique, but I'm the only one in the Organization who knew of his exceptional copying functionality, and that he ultimately formed a sense of self. The fact that I knew all that and still never noticed the truth about Xion speaks to how remarkable a Replica she must be. But my questions remain unanswered. Who is she a Replica of? Naminé? Kairi? Or perhaps someone entirely different? Why did the Organization admit her into this membership? And why would such a fine Replica fall unconscious or sporadically lose its command of the Keyblade?

I finally wake up, just to pass out again? Why? Because I'm a failure? I dreamt the whole while I was out. It was something nostalgic, but what? Why can't I remember? It could be a key memory from my human life. All I can remember is the sound of waves, gentle, in the distance.

Xion continues to sleep. All analysis on its function suggests no marked change. The copying appears to be working, but a Replica is a Replica. My latest report to Xemnas on this net me no clear answers. He simply stood, smiling. At times I find his thinking impenetrable.