Vexen AU (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
self_replication) wrote2017-08-29 04:25 pm
self_replication) wrote2017-08-29 04:25 pm
AU stuffs (WIP)
Character Name: Vexen (Even)
Character Canon: Kingdom Hearts (AU)
Character Age: 39 or there abouts (32 when he lost his heart)
History:
Canon Point:
After fixing Xion's face, so nearish the start of KH2 in his AU
AU/CRAU Summary:
Born in Radiant Garden to a wealthy family, Even grew up in a normal, if privileged, household. Being an only child, he was given the best of everything and his parents encouraged him down the path of science. Once he was old enough, he pursued a career in scientific research, eventually coming to the attention of Ansem the Wise, who then made the brilliant man one of his apprentices. It was here he flourished; forming working relation- and friendships with the other apprentices and a strong bond with one of the Royal Guards, Aeleus, that eventually blossomed into a strong relationship. Once Ienzo became Ansem’s ward, Even was also on babysitting duties. He taught the child this and that about science, allowing him to wonder the labs without much supervision, given that Even refused to leave his experiments for a prolonged period of time. Over time though, he grew to form a strong friendship with the child – once got over his initial jealously.
One such lack of proper supervision resulted in the child coming under attack by Unversed, though thankfully, two keyblade wielders, Aqua and Ventus, stepped in and saved the child. Even thanked them, noting there was something about Ventus he found interesting, but he did not get a chance to pursue the line of thought as the pair left to deal with the rest of the Unversed, following a changed version of their stories that Even, to this day, is unaware of.
Suffice to say, the Unversed were dealt with, and life continued on.
However, everything changed when a young man known as Xehanort arrived in a storm of light and darkness following a changed version of events at the Keyblade Graveyard, memories lost in the process. The young man soon became one of Ansem’s apprentices, for amnesic or not, the man was brilliant. Eventually, Ansem would start an experiment to study the lingering darkness in people’s hearts, using Xehanort’s heart as a base point. This was also done in an effort to unlock his memories. In order to do so, an underground laboratory was constructed, Even in charge of furnishing it with only the highest standard of equipment.
However, Dilan, Braig, and Aeleus would prove to be voices of reason and would be responsible for the slow, cautious nature the experiments took. Along with this, they would make sure that fail-safes were implemented and adhered to, though only Dilan and Aeleus would truly stand by Ansem the Wise when he later demanded they shut down the experiments. However, these two would slowly be dragged back into the secret experiments.
They performed the experiments in secret for almost a year before being discovered again. Angered, Even, along with several others (Most notably, Xehanort) accused Ansem of standing in the way of science. Not long after, Ansem was banished to the Realm of Darkness by Xehanort himself.
Ten months later, the Gardens fell, and Even lost his heart trying to protect Ienzo from Xehanort. Though be it by chance or fate, he survived as a Nobody that would come to be called Vexen. Though he woke with Ienzo and Aeleus, it would be a while before they were discovered, given that everyone had been scattered throughout the worlds. By trial and error, the trio discovered that they had each gained an elemental affinity. This was then tested on several subjects, one of them being the dusk scout that Xemnas was using at the time. Shortly after that, they were located and renamed by Xemnas, Xehanort’s Nobody. (By that token, it was also using this method that they found Aqua’s discarded armour and keyblade, still where it had fallen when the woman was killed. This armour would be collected by Xemnas himself and hidden away.)
Eventually, Vexen became known as the main scientist. While many of the others sort out more of their kind, Vexen started his research into the mysteries of the heartless and in time, the Unversed that still roamed the worlds. Though he would later be forced to abandon it in favour of other projects for the Organization, he did not destroy his notes as directed.
A few years prior to the start of Kingdom Hearts one, he along with several former members, were sent on a mission that would result in the discovery of Castle Oblivion… and the defenders it possessed. The defenders numbered all of two, but one of them was a keyblade Master, the other a Nobody who seemed to be a ghost on the field, allied with the Master. While the mission was aborted, it did show that should they ever require it, a second castle was possible. Not long after that, the group as a whole journeyed to the keyblade graveyard at Xemnas’s urging. Here, they would take down Lingering Will/Terra’s armour, losing several members in the process. Once the battle was over, the armour was taken back to the Castle That Never Was, where it joined Aqua’s, hidden in a room that only Xemnas had access to.
While they played little direct role in the events of the first game, the organisation was aware of Eraqus and Sora running around, along with Vanitas's resurgence from the Realm of Darkness. They targeted Sora to be the primary keybearer of their plans, simply as he would prove to be the easiest to manipulate, distracting Eraqus with nobodies on other worlds. Not long after Roxas’s birth (events that caused it are the same as canon), Vexen was allowed access to the boy’s data, and once Xemnas returned with data on Sora’s memories, he created Xion alongside another replica - the one that would become a Riku Replica. A day later, Xion was introduced as the 14th member. Along with this, Vexen spent some time instructing Roxas on the finer points of missions and how to gather information without being too obvious about it.
Twenty-two days after Roxas' birth, Xemnas sent out an advance team to take possession of the castle, believing that it held something of importance if it was so guarded (and, more than that it seemed so familiar). They managed to take it after skirmishing with Aqua and Eraqus, along with failing to recruit Aqua to their side, though Vexen did notice something unusual about the female Nobody. She appeared to have a heart. Inside, they soon found the young Nobody, Namine, who was revealed to have powers over memories connected with Sora - and Ventus, who'd recently been freed from the Realm of Darkness. Vexen, unconcerned with that (and fuming that Marluxia had been given control of the castle), retreated to the basement and set up his labs. There, he worked on the replica program, completing his own replication within hours of setting up his laboratory. Only two would know that he was using a replica: Lexaeus and Zexion.
From here, events in Castle Oblivion proceed much as in canon, with the key differences being they did have to fight off Eraqus and Aqua at least once more, and later deal with Vanitas near the outskirts of the castle (who kills Riku not long after CoM events, turning the boy into a nobody in the process, given that he stabs him in the heart, unlocking his heart accidentally.) This also released Ansem Seeker of darkness on the worlds again, but he's swiftly dealt with by Eraqus.)
On top of this, half of Vexen’s actions were done by one of his replications. Alongside this, the replications both die in the real one’s place. The first one is sliced in half and burned by Axel in front of Sora, and the second one arrived to late to stop Axel from using the Repliku to kill Zexion. It dies by Axel and Ira's hand (who then has a bit of a breakdown, not that Vexen knows.)
The final difference is that the Riku Replica, or Ira, survived thanks to the combined efforts of both Namine and Ventus. Ira would go onto take the real Riku's place in events that followed, while the real Riku lost his memories when Vanitas attacked him again, aiming to finish off what he saw as a problem. Obviously, Riku survived, but only just. Mickey would take him in and teach him how to use the darkness based powers, along with Soul eater, in a responsible manner.
After his replica's first death, Vexen then ended up in discussion with both Lexaeus and Zexion on best how to handle the situation when the pair came to ‘clean his labs out’. The discussion ended with Vexen realising that going to anyone without hard proof would be foolish, along with the fact that his use of a replica meant reasonable doubt cast on his own activities. Despite his pride, Vexen remained hidden and kept an eye on the other members, fuming as he started to realise that Axel must be working with someone, as there was no reason to kill Zexion - or attempt to murder him. Going over what he knows of the wildcard and what was discussed along with what Zexion said before he died, he concludes that it has to be Saix. The man is the one who handles the missions, and whom Axel seems the most friendly with. Though, he also realises that he has far from enough proof to cast reasonable doubt on Axel, let alone Saix – even if his thoughts on the matter are true. Axel is an invaluable team member, and so is Saix.
Once again, Vexen is forced to swallow his pride.
While the situation is far from ideal, Vexen is willing to put aside his pride and ego and bide his time gathering data. In the meantime, he turns his attention to working out his next move – and watching the rest of the events in the castle unfold as best he can. Though when Axel remains behind to search the castle, Vexen is forced to abandon his labs and half-finished research in order to keep himself alive and out of any cross-hairs that Axel might still have. When he finds Vexen’s labs, Axel does note that the machines have been used recently (along with the information there about the replica program), and sets about destroying the half-finished replications there.
Given Axel’s actions (and wheeling and dealing on many levels, though Vexen is not aware of this), Vexen can only conclude that returning to command would be a waste, given that undoubtedly he’d be thought of as a traitor – more so given Axel himself has been through his labs and found all his data, including his latest research. The last thing that Vexen wants to do is die or be turned into a Dusk for something that he is innocent of; for the moment, his ego takes the back seat. While outside of his labs, Vexen is witness to a group leaving (DiZ, Ventus, Namine, Ira and the trio of sleepers), though the scientist wasn’t close enough to make out words.
Once he was sure that Axel and the rest were gone, Vexen returns, and again sets up labs there and keeps up with his research, leaving only a few times to set up information gathering points, and keep an eye on what the Organization is doing - he also notices that Vanitas seems to have vanished, oddly enough. Though, soon enough, he’s forced to abandon his labs in favour of moving around when lesser nobodies start to appear and attack him. It seems that his data is correct and he has been declared a traitor. He knows that Axel is behind this.
When he becomes aware that Xion’s still active, he moves in and captures her, though he keeps his hood up at all times. He then drags her back to the now abandoned Castle Oblivion. A few tweaks to her coding and inserting an experimental line to see if Dual Wielding is possible, he releases her before going back into hiding, though he accidentally leaves some of his notes behind allowing Xion to find them.
One move later to the outskirts of Twilight Town, Vexen finds himself confronted by a Sora-faced Xion and Ira, backed up by Axel. While he is pleased to see that Xion has fulfilled the purpose she was made for, he’s forced, at keyblade point, to ‘fix’ Xion’s face. He does so, giving her one that looks similar to her ‘brother’, Ira. Once done, he makes himself scarce, though not before gathering up his notes and such.
It’s while on this move that Vexen will find himself arriving in-game.
Personality:
Right from the start one can tell Vexen is a genius – albeit one that's blinded by his own work. He's intelligent enough to make what amounts to clones in KH verse, including ones of himself because he can, nothing more nothing less. It's also clear that he has enough intelligence to know that there seems to be other agendas going on around him – and he does like to know everything that is happening around. But, given his elitist attitudes, he deems it beneath his notice to really stick his nose into most things, something that does come back to bite him later. He's also a pompous, arrogant person who looks down on people, and has no qualms in being extremely condescending towards them. To stay that he's miles ahead of the other members is, at best, an understatement.
Vexen has stated that he's a scientist. Everything to him is seen as some form of experiment, given that it's stated that all he wanted to do was study/research things. Science is one of the most important things to him, as shown when he agrees to allow the Riku Replica to be used in a plan against Sora. However, given the manner in which he conducts himself - abrasive, high-strung, and ridiculous - very few want to work with him. So much so that when they are forced to, he's often dismissed as more trouble that he’s worth, more so given that the man almost never stops to explain his work to anyone who questions it. Instead, he harasses and or talks down to them, or if he does, he does so in a manner that makes it clear he thinks they are complete idiots. This has the result of either being ignored or dismissed, which only furthers the resentment he holds. More so given he does complain about people disrespecting their elders, though this line of thought could be linked to his rank as number 4 in the Org.
Vexen has his pride and it is something that he finds hard to swallow, though after his own replication’s death, he is forced to do so in order to at first try and gather proof on the real traitors, and later he has to swallow it again when he's trying to stay alive due to (mis)information that he's a traitor. One who made a replication of himself for unknown reasons. His pride is most apparent in that when something goes right, Vexen is extremely pleased. By the same token, when something goes wrong or results are not as expected, Vexen will show all the signs of wounded pride, choosing to lock himself away in the laboratories until he corrects his own mistake, or he finds out why things went wrong.
Becoming a fugitive has greatly impacted on Vexen's pride. Having to swallow that was not an easy thing. Right from when the first replica died, he was forced into accepting that it was far better, at the time, to pretend that he was dead. He stood a greater chance of getting information that way, and though he did not liked it, he was won over with logic, thanks to Lexaeus and Zexion. Their deaths were not easy to deal with, more so given they were his lovers - two people he trusted and cared for above all else, even science.
The fact that he had to set this ego aside even more when it became apparent that Axel had stayed behind was hard, more so given Vexen had no time to truly hide the fact that he was still alive. Later, being on the run would result in more swallowing of ego and pride, something that he started to ignore as best he could. It stung when he realised that he'd been reported as a traitor, explaining why lesser nobodies were trying to kill him. But without proof - what little he had was circumstantial - good solid proof, it would be impossible to clear his name.
Tied to his pride is a solid ego, but it does need the reassurance that he is worth something. While he has no trouble backing said ego up, he can feel threatened. Noticeably as Even when Ienzo was taken in, though Even soon realised the folly of being threatened by a mere child. The next biggest threat to his ego was Xehanort, who drove the man further into science in an attempt to prove that he was still the smartest, more so given that Xehanort soon replaced him as 'top apprentice'.
The next threat to his ego is Marluxia. He despises Marluxia, not only is the neophyte one of the most flippant towards him, but Marluxia also shows Vexen very little respect. On top of that, Marluxia is given control of Castle Oblivion by Xemnas himself. For Vexen this is a matter of both ego and indignation. How dare they give control of such a vital project to a neophyte who has his own plans. It’s almost insulting that a position of power is given to him, one that allows Marluxia to continue his flippant behaviour. In fact, it just gives him even more footing to do that without having to be accountable for whatever plans he has in mind for Sora. Admittedly, plans that Vexen knows scant about, other than they Marluxia might not wish to hand Sora over at the end of it all. He dismisses it as just a little game though, showing that he thinks little of Marluxia overall. Though, the bitterness remains. It’s as if those higher than him are snubbing him and by-passing who would be the most effective in managing the Castle. Though there is little that Vexen can do given that in this case, Marluxia reports right to Xemnas, and Vexen is rightly scared of Xemnas given the man has the power to kill or turn him into a dusk. So, while he might despise the lower-ranked member, he has no choice but to bite his tongue.
However, Vexen does have bonds with Lexaeus and Zexion. Strong ones that have withstood the test of being a Nobody; he loves them, plain and simple. His relationship with Zexion is just as strong as it is with Lexaeus. The three of them balance each other out and he’s far from happy when he learns of their deaths. It rocks him to the core, and it’s the first time that he would admit to feeling loss and grief since he lost his heart. While yes, Vexen wants nothing more than to tear into Axel, he knows that he must stay his hand. And his emotions at this point are easily passed off as him remembering what it is like to be furious and feeling helpless to change things, more so when he’s has witnessed proof of Axel being a traitor but without recordings or otherwise more substantial proof, it’s useless. And then there is the fact that it is unlikely Axel would work alone given the risks that he’d be taking.
It grates at him, but Vexen is able to swallow his pride and accept that he needs to move in the shadows. To this end, it’s why he hates moving bases: He wants to complete a replica and send it out to die. The sooner that is done, the better. He has no issues with doing this, simply as to him, replicas are tools, going so far as to see Xion as a faceless puppet, and Ira as little more than a disposable tool. The fact that both of them met wasn’t in his plans, and now that both seem to have developed true hearts, not the fabrications of ones. It is curious, but again, he’s had to accept that he doesn’t have the time nor means to fully study this.
Vexen does not believe that he has a heart. He’s a Nobody, they don’t have hearts, it’s what they’re told when Xemnas inducts them into the Organization. So he believes that what emotions he does feel are illusions, things that his mind conjures up when needed. But, as time goes on and he clings to the links with Lexaeus and Zexion, he does start to regrow his heart; Human shaped Nobodies have that capability – and it’s this heart that allows him to feel the emotions he does towards Lexaeus and Zexion’s deaths, along with anger and fear to name a few. Of course, Vexen will deny this for a very long time, though his interest in the whole issue was renewed after he noted that Aqua, a Nobody, seemed to have a heart. Interesting, given that as far as Vexen knows, the only way to get a heart back is to unlock Kingdom Hearts. It requires further study.
Because of the denial over having a heart, when the dam breaks and he's flooded with any strong emotion, he's going to be blinded by it and emotionally driven. At the same time, he fears what it means and the ‘loss of control/loss of his rational side’, so it's likely that he'll deny it as much as he can. He doesn't have a heart, therefore he's safe from emotional input.
Vexen is a workaholic. He will, given the chance, literally work himself into exhaustion, sometimes even forgetting that he needs to eat. One could say that he’s rather driven though this could also be simply as he enjoys what he’d doing. He lives for research, and to him life is just one big experiment, and without his heart, he has no qualms doing questionable things in the name of science. Like create replicas, or tweak Xion’s coding more etc. He doesn’t even express remorse that she swallowed up the hero’s nobody. To him, it was just the end results of a pet project. Nothing more, nothing less, and while he might have fussed over her creation, it boils down to the fact that he wanted it to be as perfect as possible.
Vexen also likes to talk and will talk for hours if given the chance. He also seems to like giving demands and taunting people with what information he has (re Sora) but at the same time, he fails to realise just how much he can give way when he's talking. Case in point, the Sora thing in CoM. He just. Starts talking and doesn’t know when to stop. Though, at the same time, given that Vexen was using his replica at the time, it is also likely that the replication wanted to try and get out from under Real Things control. Much like the other two replications that he created had slipped his control, something that Vexen is still extremely displeased about. Though, he’s been unable to test out any ideas that he had re replications and maintaining control over them given that he’d been on the run an unable to set up a true laboratory anywhere for a sufficient period of time
Last but not least, Vexen has a decent amount of paranoia around him now. It stems from living for about a year as a fugitive, not knowing how long he’d be able to stay in one place etc. He’s almost always looking over his shoulder. He's also much, much more critical of things. Not to mention more guarded and protective of his notes and things in general. It’s something that he does try and ignore, along with ignoring how much of his pride is truly hurt by this. While he is paranoid, it also means that he is much more alert to things that might seem mundane to others, but could mean the difference between surviving a run-in with lesser nobodies or dying.
And if it’s one thing that Vexen does not want, it’s death.
Abilities:
Physical Strength: Vexen is no heavyweight, and he's one of the weakest in terms of physical attack strength. Though this has gotten better in the year he's been on the run, he's still pretty weak. Though he is strong enough to lift the shield and strike with it, there's not as much force behind it as say, Lexaeus swinging his sword or Xaldin's spears.
Mensa level genius who is extremely academic and takes notes like you would not believe, be they mental or physical. He's skilled at observation and the sciences, leading more to the practical application of science than the theoretical.
Seemingly inhuman ability to live off willpower and tea or coffee for a prolonged period of time when he is conducting his experiments and research; the downside of this is that when he sleeps, he sleeps for at least 12 hours.
Light/Dark sensing: As Even, he had the gift to look into another’s heart and discern the nature of it. This is something he kept as a Nobody, though not something that he advertises.
Shield Summon: He can summon his shield, Frozen Pride, to his side in a heartbeat from hammerspace. He also used uses it to attack in a slashing motion, along with block and defend against attacks.
Ice control: As a nobody, his elemental power is over ice, allowing him to form and manipulate it as he pleases. He's capable of a summoning a Blizzard, along with a larger version known as Diamond Dust. He can freeze his foes, cause icy patches to appear in the surrounding area, along with summoning ice needles from the ground. He's also capable of summoning up a sword made out of ice that he uses to attack with, too. Along with this, he can create a pair of spinning ice-daggers that are then thrown at his foe. And, he can coat his shield in ice and elongate the spikes on the shield with said ice.
Vexen also as the ability to collect and manipulate Data, allowing him to create replicas, though no much is known about this ability. From what is shown in the games, it seems that Vexen simply gathers it by observing his chosen target or engaging them somehow, often via 'walk through them. Common consensus would indicate that this is done by magic, given canon never explains this skill. It's weird.
There will be a permissions post for the powers that need them.
Character Canon: Kingdom Hearts (AU)
Character Age: 39 or there abouts (32 when he lost his heart)
History:
Canon Point:
After fixing Xion's face, so nearish the start of KH2 in his AU
AU/CRAU Summary:
Born in Radiant Garden to a wealthy family, Even grew up in a normal, if privileged, household. Being an only child, he was given the best of everything and his parents encouraged him down the path of science. Once he was old enough, he pursued a career in scientific research, eventually coming to the attention of Ansem the Wise, who then made the brilliant man one of his apprentices. It was here he flourished; forming working relation- and friendships with the other apprentices and a strong bond with one of the Royal Guards, Aeleus, that eventually blossomed into a strong relationship. Once Ienzo became Ansem’s ward, Even was also on babysitting duties. He taught the child this and that about science, allowing him to wonder the labs without much supervision, given that Even refused to leave his experiments for a prolonged period of time. Over time though, he grew to form a strong friendship with the child – once got over his initial jealously.
One such lack of proper supervision resulted in the child coming under attack by Unversed, though thankfully, two keyblade wielders, Aqua and Ventus, stepped in and saved the child. Even thanked them, noting there was something about Ventus he found interesting, but he did not get a chance to pursue the line of thought as the pair left to deal with the rest of the Unversed, following a changed version of their stories that Even, to this day, is unaware of.
Suffice to say, the Unversed were dealt with, and life continued on.
However, everything changed when a young man known as Xehanort arrived in a storm of light and darkness following a changed version of events at the Keyblade Graveyard, memories lost in the process. The young man soon became one of Ansem’s apprentices, for amnesic or not, the man was brilliant. Eventually, Ansem would start an experiment to study the lingering darkness in people’s hearts, using Xehanort’s heart as a base point. This was also done in an effort to unlock his memories. In order to do so, an underground laboratory was constructed, Even in charge of furnishing it with only the highest standard of equipment.
However, Dilan, Braig, and Aeleus would prove to be voices of reason and would be responsible for the slow, cautious nature the experiments took. Along with this, they would make sure that fail-safes were implemented and adhered to, though only Dilan and Aeleus would truly stand by Ansem the Wise when he later demanded they shut down the experiments. However, these two would slowly be dragged back into the secret experiments.
They performed the experiments in secret for almost a year before being discovered again. Angered, Even, along with several others (Most notably, Xehanort) accused Ansem of standing in the way of science. Not long after, Ansem was banished to the Realm of Darkness by Xehanort himself.
Ten months later, the Gardens fell, and Even lost his heart trying to protect Ienzo from Xehanort. Though be it by chance or fate, he survived as a Nobody that would come to be called Vexen. Though he woke with Ienzo and Aeleus, it would be a while before they were discovered, given that everyone had been scattered throughout the worlds. By trial and error, the trio discovered that they had each gained an elemental affinity. This was then tested on several subjects, one of them being the dusk scout that Xemnas was using at the time. Shortly after that, they were located and renamed by Xemnas, Xehanort’s Nobody. (By that token, it was also using this method that they found Aqua’s discarded armour and keyblade, still where it had fallen when the woman was killed. This armour would be collected by Xemnas himself and hidden away.)
Eventually, Vexen became known as the main scientist. While many of the others sort out more of their kind, Vexen started his research into the mysteries of the heartless and in time, the Unversed that still roamed the worlds. Though he would later be forced to abandon it in favour of other projects for the Organization, he did not destroy his notes as directed.
A few years prior to the start of Kingdom Hearts one, he along with several former members, were sent on a mission that would result in the discovery of Castle Oblivion… and the defenders it possessed. The defenders numbered all of two, but one of them was a keyblade Master, the other a Nobody who seemed to be a ghost on the field, allied with the Master. While the mission was aborted, it did show that should they ever require it, a second castle was possible. Not long after that, the group as a whole journeyed to the keyblade graveyard at Xemnas’s urging. Here, they would take down Lingering Will/Terra’s armour, losing several members in the process. Once the battle was over, the armour was taken back to the Castle That Never Was, where it joined Aqua’s, hidden in a room that only Xemnas had access to.
While they played little direct role in the events of the first game, the organisation was aware of Eraqus and Sora running around, along with Vanitas's resurgence from the Realm of Darkness. They targeted Sora to be the primary keybearer of their plans, simply as he would prove to be the easiest to manipulate, distracting Eraqus with nobodies on other worlds. Not long after Roxas’s birth (events that caused it are the same as canon), Vexen was allowed access to the boy’s data, and once Xemnas returned with data on Sora’s memories, he created Xion alongside another replica - the one that would become a Riku Replica. A day later, Xion was introduced as the 14th member. Along with this, Vexen spent some time instructing Roxas on the finer points of missions and how to gather information without being too obvious about it.
Twenty-two days after Roxas' birth, Xemnas sent out an advance team to take possession of the castle, believing that it held something of importance if it was so guarded (and, more than that it seemed so familiar). They managed to take it after skirmishing with Aqua and Eraqus, along with failing to recruit Aqua to their side, though Vexen did notice something unusual about the female Nobody. She appeared to have a heart. Inside, they soon found the young Nobody, Namine, who was revealed to have powers over memories connected with Sora - and Ventus, who'd recently been freed from the Realm of Darkness. Vexen, unconcerned with that (and fuming that Marluxia had been given control of the castle), retreated to the basement and set up his labs. There, he worked on the replica program, completing his own replication within hours of setting up his laboratory. Only two would know that he was using a replica: Lexaeus and Zexion.
From here, events in Castle Oblivion proceed much as in canon, with the key differences being they did have to fight off Eraqus and Aqua at least once more, and later deal with Vanitas near the outskirts of the castle (who kills Riku not long after CoM events, turning the boy into a nobody in the process, given that he stabs him in the heart, unlocking his heart accidentally.) This also released Ansem Seeker of darkness on the worlds again, but he's swiftly dealt with by Eraqus.)
On top of this, half of Vexen’s actions were done by one of his replications. Alongside this, the replications both die in the real one’s place. The first one is sliced in half and burned by Axel in front of Sora, and the second one arrived to late to stop Axel from using the Repliku to kill Zexion. It dies by Axel and Ira's hand (who then has a bit of a breakdown, not that Vexen knows.)
The final difference is that the Riku Replica, or Ira, survived thanks to the combined efforts of both Namine and Ventus. Ira would go onto take the real Riku's place in events that followed, while the real Riku lost his memories when Vanitas attacked him again, aiming to finish off what he saw as a problem. Obviously, Riku survived, but only just. Mickey would take him in and teach him how to use the darkness based powers, along with Soul eater, in a responsible manner.
After his replica's first death, Vexen then ended up in discussion with both Lexaeus and Zexion on best how to handle the situation when the pair came to ‘clean his labs out’. The discussion ended with Vexen realising that going to anyone without hard proof would be foolish, along with the fact that his use of a replica meant reasonable doubt cast on his own activities. Despite his pride, Vexen remained hidden and kept an eye on the other members, fuming as he started to realise that Axel must be working with someone, as there was no reason to kill Zexion - or attempt to murder him. Going over what he knows of the wildcard and what was discussed along with what Zexion said before he died, he concludes that it has to be Saix. The man is the one who handles the missions, and whom Axel seems the most friendly with. Though, he also realises that he has far from enough proof to cast reasonable doubt on Axel, let alone Saix – even if his thoughts on the matter are true. Axel is an invaluable team member, and so is Saix.
Once again, Vexen is forced to swallow his pride.
While the situation is far from ideal, Vexen is willing to put aside his pride and ego and bide his time gathering data. In the meantime, he turns his attention to working out his next move – and watching the rest of the events in the castle unfold as best he can. Though when Axel remains behind to search the castle, Vexen is forced to abandon his labs and half-finished research in order to keep himself alive and out of any cross-hairs that Axel might still have. When he finds Vexen’s labs, Axel does note that the machines have been used recently (along with the information there about the replica program), and sets about destroying the half-finished replications there.
Given Axel’s actions (and wheeling and dealing on many levels, though Vexen is not aware of this), Vexen can only conclude that returning to command would be a waste, given that undoubtedly he’d be thought of as a traitor – more so given Axel himself has been through his labs and found all his data, including his latest research. The last thing that Vexen wants to do is die or be turned into a Dusk for something that he is innocent of; for the moment, his ego takes the back seat. While outside of his labs, Vexen is witness to a group leaving (DiZ, Ventus, Namine, Ira and the trio of sleepers), though the scientist wasn’t close enough to make out words.
Once he was sure that Axel and the rest were gone, Vexen returns, and again sets up labs there and keeps up with his research, leaving only a few times to set up information gathering points, and keep an eye on what the Organization is doing - he also notices that Vanitas seems to have vanished, oddly enough. Though, soon enough, he’s forced to abandon his labs in favour of moving around when lesser nobodies start to appear and attack him. It seems that his data is correct and he has been declared a traitor. He knows that Axel is behind this.
When he becomes aware that Xion’s still active, he moves in and captures her, though he keeps his hood up at all times. He then drags her back to the now abandoned Castle Oblivion. A few tweaks to her coding and inserting an experimental line to see if Dual Wielding is possible, he releases her before going back into hiding, though he accidentally leaves some of his notes behind allowing Xion to find them.
One move later to the outskirts of Twilight Town, Vexen finds himself confronted by a Sora-faced Xion and Ira, backed up by Axel. While he is pleased to see that Xion has fulfilled the purpose she was made for, he’s forced, at keyblade point, to ‘fix’ Xion’s face. He does so, giving her one that looks similar to her ‘brother’, Ira. Once done, he makes himself scarce, though not before gathering up his notes and such.
It’s while on this move that Vexen will find himself arriving in-game.
Personality:
Right from the start one can tell Vexen is a genius – albeit one that's blinded by his own work. He's intelligent enough to make what amounts to clones in KH verse, including ones of himself because he can, nothing more nothing less. It's also clear that he has enough intelligence to know that there seems to be other agendas going on around him – and he does like to know everything that is happening around. But, given his elitist attitudes, he deems it beneath his notice to really stick his nose into most things, something that does come back to bite him later. He's also a pompous, arrogant person who looks down on people, and has no qualms in being extremely condescending towards them. To stay that he's miles ahead of the other members is, at best, an understatement.
Vexen has stated that he's a scientist. Everything to him is seen as some form of experiment, given that it's stated that all he wanted to do was study/research things. Science is one of the most important things to him, as shown when he agrees to allow the Riku Replica to be used in a plan against Sora. However, given the manner in which he conducts himself - abrasive, high-strung, and ridiculous - very few want to work with him. So much so that when they are forced to, he's often dismissed as more trouble that he’s worth, more so given that the man almost never stops to explain his work to anyone who questions it. Instead, he harasses and or talks down to them, or if he does, he does so in a manner that makes it clear he thinks they are complete idiots. This has the result of either being ignored or dismissed, which only furthers the resentment he holds. More so given he does complain about people disrespecting their elders, though this line of thought could be linked to his rank as number 4 in the Org.
Vexen has his pride and it is something that he finds hard to swallow, though after his own replication’s death, he is forced to do so in order to at first try and gather proof on the real traitors, and later he has to swallow it again when he's trying to stay alive due to (mis)information that he's a traitor. One who made a replication of himself for unknown reasons. His pride is most apparent in that when something goes right, Vexen is extremely pleased. By the same token, when something goes wrong or results are not as expected, Vexen will show all the signs of wounded pride, choosing to lock himself away in the laboratories until he corrects his own mistake, or he finds out why things went wrong.
Becoming a fugitive has greatly impacted on Vexen's pride. Having to swallow that was not an easy thing. Right from when the first replica died, he was forced into accepting that it was far better, at the time, to pretend that he was dead. He stood a greater chance of getting information that way, and though he did not liked it, he was won over with logic, thanks to Lexaeus and Zexion. Their deaths were not easy to deal with, more so given they were his lovers - two people he trusted and cared for above all else, even science.
The fact that he had to set this ego aside even more when it became apparent that Axel had stayed behind was hard, more so given Vexen had no time to truly hide the fact that he was still alive. Later, being on the run would result in more swallowing of ego and pride, something that he started to ignore as best he could. It stung when he realised that he'd been reported as a traitor, explaining why lesser nobodies were trying to kill him. But without proof - what little he had was circumstantial - good solid proof, it would be impossible to clear his name.
Tied to his pride is a solid ego, but it does need the reassurance that he is worth something. While he has no trouble backing said ego up, he can feel threatened. Noticeably as Even when Ienzo was taken in, though Even soon realised the folly of being threatened by a mere child. The next biggest threat to his ego was Xehanort, who drove the man further into science in an attempt to prove that he was still the smartest, more so given that Xehanort soon replaced him as 'top apprentice'.
The next threat to his ego is Marluxia. He despises Marluxia, not only is the neophyte one of the most flippant towards him, but Marluxia also shows Vexen very little respect. On top of that, Marluxia is given control of Castle Oblivion by Xemnas himself. For Vexen this is a matter of both ego and indignation. How dare they give control of such a vital project to a neophyte who has his own plans. It’s almost insulting that a position of power is given to him, one that allows Marluxia to continue his flippant behaviour. In fact, it just gives him even more footing to do that without having to be accountable for whatever plans he has in mind for Sora. Admittedly, plans that Vexen knows scant about, other than they Marluxia might not wish to hand Sora over at the end of it all. He dismisses it as just a little game though, showing that he thinks little of Marluxia overall. Though, the bitterness remains. It’s as if those higher than him are snubbing him and by-passing who would be the most effective in managing the Castle. Though there is little that Vexen can do given that in this case, Marluxia reports right to Xemnas, and Vexen is rightly scared of Xemnas given the man has the power to kill or turn him into a dusk. So, while he might despise the lower-ranked member, he has no choice but to bite his tongue.
However, Vexen does have bonds with Lexaeus and Zexion. Strong ones that have withstood the test of being a Nobody; he loves them, plain and simple. His relationship with Zexion is just as strong as it is with Lexaeus. The three of them balance each other out and he’s far from happy when he learns of their deaths. It rocks him to the core, and it’s the first time that he would admit to feeling loss and grief since he lost his heart. While yes, Vexen wants nothing more than to tear into Axel, he knows that he must stay his hand. And his emotions at this point are easily passed off as him remembering what it is like to be furious and feeling helpless to change things, more so when he’s has witnessed proof of Axel being a traitor but without recordings or otherwise more substantial proof, it’s useless. And then there is the fact that it is unlikely Axel would work alone given the risks that he’d be taking.
It grates at him, but Vexen is able to swallow his pride and accept that he needs to move in the shadows. To this end, it’s why he hates moving bases: He wants to complete a replica and send it out to die. The sooner that is done, the better. He has no issues with doing this, simply as to him, replicas are tools, going so far as to see Xion as a faceless puppet, and Ira as little more than a disposable tool. The fact that both of them met wasn’t in his plans, and now that both seem to have developed true hearts, not the fabrications of ones. It is curious, but again, he’s had to accept that he doesn’t have the time nor means to fully study this.
Vexen does not believe that he has a heart. He’s a Nobody, they don’t have hearts, it’s what they’re told when Xemnas inducts them into the Organization. So he believes that what emotions he does feel are illusions, things that his mind conjures up when needed. But, as time goes on and he clings to the links with Lexaeus and Zexion, he does start to regrow his heart; Human shaped Nobodies have that capability – and it’s this heart that allows him to feel the emotions he does towards Lexaeus and Zexion’s deaths, along with anger and fear to name a few. Of course, Vexen will deny this for a very long time, though his interest in the whole issue was renewed after he noted that Aqua, a Nobody, seemed to have a heart. Interesting, given that as far as Vexen knows, the only way to get a heart back is to unlock Kingdom Hearts. It requires further study.
Because of the denial over having a heart, when the dam breaks and he's flooded with any strong emotion, he's going to be blinded by it and emotionally driven. At the same time, he fears what it means and the ‘loss of control/loss of his rational side’, so it's likely that he'll deny it as much as he can. He doesn't have a heart, therefore he's safe from emotional input.
Vexen is a workaholic. He will, given the chance, literally work himself into exhaustion, sometimes even forgetting that he needs to eat. One could say that he’s rather driven though this could also be simply as he enjoys what he’d doing. He lives for research, and to him life is just one big experiment, and without his heart, he has no qualms doing questionable things in the name of science. Like create replicas, or tweak Xion’s coding more etc. He doesn’t even express remorse that she swallowed up the hero’s nobody. To him, it was just the end results of a pet project. Nothing more, nothing less, and while he might have fussed over her creation, it boils down to the fact that he wanted it to be as perfect as possible.
Vexen also likes to talk and will talk for hours if given the chance. He also seems to like giving demands and taunting people with what information he has (re Sora) but at the same time, he fails to realise just how much he can give way when he's talking. Case in point, the Sora thing in CoM. He just. Starts talking and doesn’t know when to stop. Though, at the same time, given that Vexen was using his replica at the time, it is also likely that the replication wanted to try and get out from under Real Things control. Much like the other two replications that he created had slipped his control, something that Vexen is still extremely displeased about. Though, he’s been unable to test out any ideas that he had re replications and maintaining control over them given that he’d been on the run an unable to set up a true laboratory anywhere for a sufficient period of time
Last but not least, Vexen has a decent amount of paranoia around him now. It stems from living for about a year as a fugitive, not knowing how long he’d be able to stay in one place etc. He’s almost always looking over his shoulder. He's also much, much more critical of things. Not to mention more guarded and protective of his notes and things in general. It’s something that he does try and ignore, along with ignoring how much of his pride is truly hurt by this. While he is paranoid, it also means that he is much more alert to things that might seem mundane to others, but could mean the difference between surviving a run-in with lesser nobodies or dying.
And if it’s one thing that Vexen does not want, it’s death.
Abilities:
Physical Strength: Vexen is no heavyweight, and he's one of the weakest in terms of physical attack strength. Though this has gotten better in the year he's been on the run, he's still pretty weak. Though he is strong enough to lift the shield and strike with it, there's not as much force behind it as say, Lexaeus swinging his sword or Xaldin's spears.
Mensa level genius who is extremely academic and takes notes like you would not believe, be they mental or physical. He's skilled at observation and the sciences, leading more to the practical application of science than the theoretical.
Seemingly inhuman ability to live off willpower and tea or coffee for a prolonged period of time when he is conducting his experiments and research; the downside of this is that when he sleeps, he sleeps for at least 12 hours.
Light/Dark sensing: As Even, he had the gift to look into another’s heart and discern the nature of it. This is something he kept as a Nobody, though not something that he advertises.
Shield Summon: He can summon his shield, Frozen Pride, to his side in a heartbeat from hammerspace. He also used uses it to attack in a slashing motion, along with block and defend against attacks.
Ice control: As a nobody, his elemental power is over ice, allowing him to form and manipulate it as he pleases. He's capable of a summoning a Blizzard, along with a larger version known as Diamond Dust. He can freeze his foes, cause icy patches to appear in the surrounding area, along with summoning ice needles from the ground. He's also capable of summoning up a sword made out of ice that he uses to attack with, too. Along with this, he can create a pair of spinning ice-daggers that are then thrown at his foe. And, he can coat his shield in ice and elongate the spikes on the shield with said ice.
Vexen also as the ability to collect and manipulate Data, allowing him to create replicas, though no much is known about this ability. From what is shown in the games, it seems that Vexen simply gathers it by observing his chosen target or engaging them somehow, often via 'walk through them. Common consensus would indicate that this is done by magic, given canon never explains this skill. It's weird.
There will be a permissions post for the powers that need them.