Dive Into The Heart: Mercade Alexander

Dive Into The Heart: Mercade Alexander
Date of Scene:	22 December 2012
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	An unconscious Mercade finds himself having an unusual dream...
Cast of Characters:	Mercade Alexander, Avira
Tinyplot:	Fragmentary Passage

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Avira has posed:
It happens without warning.

Had Mercade laid his head down to sleep? Had he been knocked out during a fight? Had he become lost in his daydreams? It's no longer important at this point. He feels the sensation of falling-no, sinking down deeply into the darkness. It feels like he's moving through a vast body of water as he falls, yet he breathes normally as if he were surrounded by regular air. Yet all around him, there is nothingness.

He sinks like a stone for what feels like ages before the material around him feels like its growing thicker. Gravity seems to rebel and his descent slows until the detective can easily right himself. His feet touch something solid.

The instant Mercade stands upon his own power, the darkness seems to crumble away beneath him, multicolored lights seen beneath his feet that suddenly spread out all around him. The ground continues to remain solid but the darkness is banished by the scene spread out beneath his feet. Should he take enough steps back, he will notice he stands upon a large circular platform crafted of stained glass.

The stained glass bares an intricate picture-and a familiar face. King Mickey is featured in the center, triumphantly wielding his keyblade. A smaller circle, set off center, is settled near his head, featuring even more smaller circles arranged within them. Inside those circles are the images of people that Mercade is unlikely to recognize: Yen Sid, Minnie, Donald, Goofy...well, alright, he may recognize Pete.

A voice calls out in the darkness, extremely familiar to Mercade. It is undoubtably that of Avira's, though it sounds the way she does as a human.

"So much to do...
...such a long road ahead..."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade has been having strange dreams lately.
Sometimes he is not sure if he is awake... or asleep.

Compared to the nightmares of guilt that wrack him in the aftermath of the Fall of Manhattan, this is blessed relief. He falls through darkness, floating...

And he stops, stepping onto something unfamiliar. His eyes snap open, and he looks down, the 'ground' lightning up below him. He blinks. "What... Could this be?" He asks. He looks over the area, taking several steps back to looks down upon the stained-glass design. "Where am I?" He says to nothing in particular. So many people. Most of them not even human... Who is that strange wizard with the severe gaze? The dog and the duck? Mickey is obvious, and he's seen the other doglike guy, but...

"This is really weird." He says, tapping his foot for a moment as he thinks. The voice of Avira shakes him out of his reverie, and he looks up, blinking. "Avira!?" He calls. "Are you here too?" He looks around, trying to pinpoint the direction the call is coming from.

Avira has posed:
Mercade's questions remain unanswered. For a few seconds it feels like he's completely alone. Then the overwhelming feeling of being watched follows but he will see nothing in the darkness beyond the stained glass platform. Although it emits a lot of light, nothing out in the vastness of the black space beyond can be seen.

"Mercade..." the voice says, almost as if Avira is truly going to answer. There is no other sign of the familiar woman, besides that voice.

Suddenly, the platform he stands upon rumbles slightly.

Three stone diases emerge from the ground, somehow not breaking the glass of the platform in the process. For a few seconds, they remain empty before upon each one, there is a sparkle of white light. The white lights give way to shapes.

A shield, baring an insignia on the front very reminiscent of King Mickey's head. A sword with a similar shape integrated into the hilt. A short staff-or wand perhaps?-topped with what is undoubtedly a gem shaped as...more of the same.

"Power sleeps within you, Mercade."

The platforms surround him at equal distances, putting the detective in the center of a triangle.

"If you give it form...
...it will give you strength."

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade steps to one side, looking around at the three daises. They're... odd things. How did they rise without...

Mercade frowns. So many unanswered questions. He looks over each of the objects on the dais. A shield. A sword. A staff.

The voice gives him a hint as to their nature. "Give it form..." Mercade says aloud.

The objects seem simple enough. A sword, for power. A shield, for endurance. A staff, for wisdom. What does he choose? He looks between the three, considering for several moments. He looks towards the sword... And then the shield, then the sword again... But then he turns to face the staff, stepping towards it.

Avira has posed:
Each object is solid to the touch. Mercade may feel free to reach out and take it from the dias. Yet for each item he handles, he'll hear the voice of Avira again, ringing out in the darkness, coming from everywhere. Strange that, no matter how much he tries he cannot pinpoint the direction her voice comes from.

Upon reaching the staff, she speaks: "The power of the mystic.
Inner strength.
A staff of wonder and ruin."

Silence hangs in the air for a long moment before she speaks again, her voice almost sounding unsure. Avira did know of Mercade's unpleasant experiences with magic through Riku, after all.

"Is this the path you wish to take, Mercade?"

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade is told what the staff symbolizes as he begins to reach for it, and for a minute, his hand stops. He almost recoils.

Magic. That word has had so many... negative connotations for him since he has come to the worlds beyond Manhattan. The Darkness that Riku imparted to him. The horrors Leida had shown. The tricks and illusions of Micha Melchiott, the Mistress of Games... And the terrifying evil that hides deep within his friend Will.

But other things come to mind as well. Avira's facility with ice magic. The healing powers of Maira and Aerith. The whimsical magics of Merlin... And the power of the Keyblade wielded by Sora. Was that not, too, magic? It was not all darkness and pain...

"With understanding, comes power." Mercade says. "And you would certainly never tell me to back down just because I got my ass kicked once or twice, Avira. I'm not running away. Not anymore." He reaches out, setting his jaw as he picks up the staff.

Face your fears... And turn them into strength.

Avira has posed:
"...very well." Avira's voice sounds approving. Mercade's hand closes around the staff. It certainly feels solid and just touching it brings an electric feeling to his hands. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, though, the weapon vanishes in a burst of light. Though he cannot see it, Mercade will easily get the sense that it is still there.

"You will walk your path with a mystic's power. Now..."

The two pedistals remain, holding the shield and the sword, both faintly glistening with their own power.

"Which shall you give up in return?"

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade has made his choice. He smiles to himself. He knows, somewhere, that she understands.

In return, however... Nothing comes without cost. He has to make a decision. He looks to the remaining two pedestals. "Well... curses. Guess I can't just be good at everything." He chuckles to himself.

"So which one..." He looks between the sword and the shield... And he considers, before making a decision, stepping forward to the sword.

Avira has posed:
"The power of the warrior.
Invincible courage.
A sword of terrible destruction.
This is the power you forfeit.

The sword disappears completely. Unlike the staff, Mercade does not get any sense of the weapon 'on' him.

The diases all simultaneously sink into the platform and only now does it show signs of cracking the colorful stained glass below. Without warning, the glass shatters, starting from the outer edge of the circular platform, moving inwards until it crumbles beneath Mercade's feet, leaving him freefalling through the darkness amongst the shards. Even if they touch him, the shards do not hurt him and they dissolve into motes of light that blink into the dark.

This time Mercade is not left completely berfit of light. Beneath his feet in the direction that he falls is another platform of stained glass. From this height, he can see the picture clearly-the design is extremely different. Small circles ring the outer edge, in each one symbols evocative of things he would see in New York city, associated with his job especially. The Empire State Building. The Xanatos Enterprises logo. The badge of the NYC Police. Within the center are two figures, each one facing each other, holding an upward-pointed sword with both hands.

One he'll clearly recognize as the black-furred mutate form of Avira. Here on the glass she looks every bit a heraldic beast with her wings half-folded behind her. Across from her, posing in the same way, is the much lighter-looking form of Deidra. Deidra's wings are not caped but held out as well, contrasting the shape nicely with the feathered wings of Avira the mutate.

Much like before, Mercade's fall slows gradually enough for him to land neatly, this time on the edge of the platform. "You've accepted your power to fight."

Dark spots begin appearing across the platform, boiling like tar, before familiar yellow eyes start to rise from the dark spots. Heartless. Pureblood Heartless. At their appearance, the staff materializes into Mercade's hand.

"Many a time you'll be expected to fight. No matter what, Mercade..."

The Heartless, four in number, crawl after the detective eagerly, threatening to force him over the edge-or worse, if he doesn't do something.

"Keep your light burning strong!" That tone should be familiar to Mercade-that same cheerful and determined tone Avira's urged him with before.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade looks panicked for a moment as he sees the platform crumble beneath him. "Oh no!" He yells, before he falls...

And lands on the next platform in a kneeling position. Huh. Just like last time. He better not get used to this, though. It'd be embarassing for him to pancake later on because he thought he had some mysterious protection from gravity. He looks over the platform, standing up. "Avira... Deidra..." He says, as he looks over the platform. "Manhattan..." He says, his emotions churning. The wounds are still fresh in his mind.

The dark spots appear, and Avira calls him to fight. Mercade looks up, shocked for a moment as Heartless begin to appear. "Heartless?! Here!?" He grimaces, reaching for his gun as Avira exhorts him...

There is no gun. Mercade should have expected that. It's not like he falls asleep in his coat and with his weapons... But the staff appears. "Well, that's something!" Mercade says, spinning it in his hands and testing the heft as the Heartless swarm towards him.

He leaps to one side as the Heartless converge eagerly after him, and he twists, raising the staff and quickly striking out. He doesn't want to let them catch up to him, run him down or corner him, so he quickly leaps to one side, working his way around the central portion of the platform. One of them catches him with a hungry claw, slashing into him. The pain causes him to grimace as he hits the floor, coming to a kneel. Pain is very real here, it seems... But he's not without a weapon, at least.

"I have no idea what's going on here... But as long as I can fight, you're going to get the best I've got!" He yells, striking repeatedly with the weapon as he harries them, attacking repeatedly with as much strength as he can muster.

Avira has posed:
There are most certainly no guns on Mercade. Not even the one given to her by Mica as a gift, suggesting this place certainly is not a part of the physical world. Not that the darkness and strange gravity was indicative enough.

But Mercade is anything but defenseless. The staff certainly feels heavy enough to cause quite a bit of damage should he strike with it. The electricity-like power flowing through it would bring far more comfort. Unlike the sick feeling he's no doubt felt when Mercade was showed Riku's darkness or when Leida invaded his mind, this power feels very much a part of him.

Pain is very much a part of him here. Those Heartless feel real when they strike. They move just how Mercade has come to know them, clustering and trying to overwhelm him. They are not deterred by his swings.

Not even when, as he swings down, there is a small burst of power. This happens right after Mercade boldly declares that he's going to give them the best he's got. His willpower channels through the weapon into the blow and with that strike, the Heartless it comes down upon dissolves back into inky mist.

"Inner strength will see you through."

The remaining heartless relentlessly pursue him, all three leaping at him at once. Mercade better move, or they will pile upon him!

"Do not be afraid. Reach in and grasp it!" Words from Avira, certainly believed by the woman judging by how excitedly she says them.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
It's different. He knew it would be different. Is this what magic felt like?

The crushing of one of the Heartless gives him hope. Mercade watches it melt away, his spirits rising. He can win this. He's going to win this.

The three Heartless strike at him, lunging for him even as he takes one down, but he stands his ground, eyes narrowed. "The line has to be drawn." He yells then, lashing out. He takes the offensive, bringing the staff up and around even as they descend. "FOR MANHATTAN!" He yells, trying to focus as adrenaline and the heat of the moment threaten to overwhelm his senses. He pulls what he can from inside him, yelling as he lashes out with all his force. They descend upon him, slashing and ripping at him... but he braces, standing and taking the hits as he can as he puts his all into that single, deadly strike. The pain is real. The wounds are real. But as long as he stands, as long as he has the will to fight, he will continue.

And right now. it also means they have no way to avoid what comes.

Avira has posed:
"It isn't all like drowning." Avira's voice rings out, echoing words Mercade had told her what felt like a lifetime ago when they had talked about magic.

Indeed, it feels like an extension of himself lashing out, beyond just the physical reach of the staff. The force of will is easily apparent, lashing out beyond the crystaline 'orb' on the end in a silvery ripple. As the Heartless converge, they are just as quickly thrown back in the direction they came from, flying several feet through the air. When they hit the stained glass platform, they slide, leaving a smokey trail of darkness behind them.

On their backs, they wiggle feebly for a second or two before melting away into the platform. Pools of darkness remain where they fell.

Silence reigns. No other heartless emerge from the darkness but the black spots do spread along the surface of the glass platform. Eventually the whole platform is covered, including beneath the empowered Mercade's feet. He sinks as if he was in quicksand, no amount of struggling ceasing his descent. Darkness covers him and for a few seconds, he blacks out.

He will reawaken lying face-down, the staff no longer in his hand, on an entirely new platform. Lifting his head, he'll have quite a sight to behold.

Up front, in the center of the circle, features Mercade himself. He stands there with a saucy grin on his face, his famous DETECTIVE HAT upon his head. One hand holds a shotgun, which is resting over a shoulder while the other holds one of his, formerly-lost, handguns.

All around him in smaller circles of stained glass are the faces of those most dearest to his heart. The Twilight Detective Agency is all there: Will, Deidra, Tom, Celina, Avira, Han, even that awful Max. It isn't just the TDA that is featured. Mercade will also see Cirra and Riku featured in the panel.

Off to one edge of the platform is a freestanding set of double doors, currently closed. He will feel compelled to walk to them.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
"Hell yeah! Well, if the choice is sink or swim, I'll take swim every time." Mercade laughs through the pain, watching the Heartless melt away.

And then the next plaform begins to dissolve. He has a sudden surge of alarm, as he's seen this before. When Manhattan fell. When he tried to help Leida, before she...

He looks around, but he has nowhere to run. He yells, thrashing as he tries to resist... But moments later, he vanishes into the darkness.

"Bluuuuuuuuuh." Mercade says eloquently as he comes to, and he struggles to his feet, and he looks over the area to see he's got... a new platform. "Well... uh..." He scratches the back of his head. "This is flattering and all..." He says, as he looks over the platform. His eyes fall on Riku, and he frowns, another surge of emotions... But he keeps them inside for now.

He looks over at those double doors, and begins walking towards them, since he has nothing else that he can see that he can do at the moment.

Avira has posed:
As Mercade walks to the doors, he'll feel a mounting sense of dread. Those doors seem to glow softly, emitting a gentle light that would be recognized had he seen the Light of Manhattan. Suddenly, Avira's voice rings out again.

"The closer you get to the light..."

He'll feel it. Something weighing heavy against his soul like a sandbag, pressing against him, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. There's something behind him.

"The greater your shadow becomes."

It's his shadow, but it's longer than normal. More importantly, should he watch it, he'll notice it getting longer and wider, stretching all across the length of the platform. From the darkness of it, purple mist begins to pour out and the ground shakes. Massive, long spindly fingers crawls out of the rift, followed by long spindly legs. A head emerges, wearing a huge tophat, with glowing yellow eyes peering out from underneath the brim. It has no nose or mouth. Long twitching tendrils coat its back and frame its face-a head of hair grown wild.

Mercade's entire shadow is consumed by the being, which stands two stories tall, even while it remains crouched before Mercade.

Suddenly, there are familiar voices. Each of the circles of stained glass containing the members of the TDA glow brightly. From them, each member emerges, standing tall. Ready to fight!

"Don't worry, Mercade!" Will calls out.
"We've got this!" Avira waves her spine.
"Let's kick it's ass!" Tom cracks his knuckles.
"Mmm." Max is holding a rose for some reason, "That's right."

Yellow eyes peer at the lively members of the detective agency around it. They start to converge upon the giant Heartless, only to stop suddenly as dark flames shoot up underneath each person. Mercade's friends lift into the air, squirming and struggling, yelling out in indignation or fear. All cries immediately cease as black crystal forms around them, trapping them.

The crystals fly through the air, appearing to shrink, and swarm around the Heartless. A black chain appears, connecting each crystal together, then settling around the large creature's neck.

The staff weighs heavily in Mercade's hand as the giant Heartless turns towards him.

"But don't be afraid." Avira's voice, notably, does not come from the one trapped in the crystal.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade walks towards the door, his footsteps slowing as he feels something dragging down upon him. He raises a hand to his chest, thinking... feeling... trying to determine what is wrong.

And he grunts, staggering for a moment as it begins dragging him down almost physically. He looks behind himself... And horror arises.

The massive top hat causes him to reel. "B... Boss?" He says, fear freezing his soul as he sees the madness unfold. How can he fight something so... huge?

"Will, Avira... Tom! Max!" He calls, starting to rally... only for the true ugliness to manifest. "You!" He yells, ineffectually, as his emotions run wild, fear and anger written across his face. He could /feel/ it there.

You're not good enough
You are just holding them back
You're worthless, at least they could do something
A real man would have been there
She can do better than you
You can't protect anyone

"Ggggh...." Mercade says, his staff sagging to the ground as his own will turns against him, dragging him down. He collapses to one knee, desperately using the heavy weapon to keep himself upright.

The massive form is destroying him without even laying a finger on him.

Avira calls to him, and he looks up, his eyes focusing. "You're... That's not you..." He says, grimacing as he drags himself to his feet, tearing his mind away from the horrible vortex of self-defeating thoughts to focus. "Damn it... You're the most... literal metaphor I've ever seen." He says.

The staff begins to hum as he raises it, slowly pointing towards the massive form. "But you know what... I'm not going to lose to you... I'm not going to lose to /myself/!" He grips the staff with both hands, and begins to charge. "IT DOESN'T MATTER IF I'M GOOD ENOUGH OR NOT! WHAT MATTERS IS THAT I FIGHT... AND I KNOW I'M GOOD ENOUGH TO KICK YOUR ASS!" He yells, as he leaps, trying to strike for the hamstring to bring it low enough to do some real damage.

Avira has posed:
Often the hardest person to face is yourself.

The negative thoughts are relentless with this Heartless here. Every bit of doubt, every bit of loathing he may have felt throughout his life is reflected here. From the young boy wondering where his father went to the grizzled detective failing to reach Manhattan in time to help at all. His friends are taken away before him and he is absolutely powerless to stop it.

The Heartless starts to lope forwards as Mercade falls to one knee before it, yellow eyes staring down at him, unblinking. Without a single blow, it looks to have won this struggle. A large, clawed hand reaches out for the prone detective, fingers outstretched, ready to scoop him up.

Then the tides change. Mercade stands, pointing his staff at the outstretched hand in front of him, which has actually stopped suddenly. It seems almost repelled by Mercade's words, boosted by the disembodied voice of his guide.

Then Mercade takes action. It's as if the pause button has been deactivated-the hand comes down, grasping at the spot on the ground where Mercade had been kneeling seconds before. Mercade himself evades that hand and charges, going for the back of one of its knees. The tall, yet thin Heartless sinks to one knee, mirroring the motion Mercade had made moments before. It's still quite tall though. Mercade might have to leap onto something else should he want to nail it in the face.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
Mercade charges, grimacing as he hammers into the back of that leg. Once, twice. The massive thing crumples, falling to one knee.

One thing is for sure. He can move. He can actually move. He feels invigorated, as he launches himself up into the air, to the upright knee, and from there to leap for one of the outstretched chains. He grapples onto it with one hand, swinging around it to lunge for the head, yelling as he unleashes a series of strikes for the face.
"You won't take me." Mercade says, rebuking the hissing, withering voice in his heart. "You can't! Because no matter how bad it gets... Even if I'm not some kind of superhero... Even if I'm not as good as I should be..." He grimaces, dropping and swinging, sweeping around the back. and hammering into the back of the beast's head again.

Surrounded by the writhing blackness, Mercade brings the weapon back, the crystal flaring brightly. "I have people who care about me. I'M NOT ALONE! AND I WILL PROTECT THEM!"

Avira has posed:
"You feel it, don't you, Mercade?" Avira's voice again. She sounds excited.
"Your heart's power. It burns strong. Will you master it?"

The thing recoils with each strike to the face, its entire form quaking with each blow. It seems that striking the darkness here, head-on in the spot that no doubt takes the greatest amount of danger to reach, is the most effective. It isn't hard to realize why. After enough strikes, the hairlike tentacles unwrap and reach out at Mercade, trying to ensare him, but missing as the detective drops to the ground.

The Heartless doesn't appear to say anything, but the crystal necklace containing his "friends" jangles, as if trying to get at him with their presence. As if to dig up the thoughts he no doubt had when he beheld the ruined Manhattan with his own eyes and started to wonder if the rest of the TDA had been claimed by the darkness as the city had. But at the same time...

"C'mon Mercade, kick its ass!"

Her voice sounds fired up. Exactly the Avira Mercade would remember fighting alongside.

Swinging around to the back has mixed results. On one hand, the detective does have quite a nice strike that way, dealing a severe blow. At the same time, this buries him deep into the writhing tendril hair of the Heartless, which immediately starts to entangle him. Apparently it feels that the hair should be sufficient to hold Mercade and pull him into the Heartless.

The feelings of doubt intensify at this, threatening to drown Mercade in his darkness.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
"This is pretty crazy!" Mercade responds. "I've never really felt anything like it!" As he says it, he knows it's not precisely true. He's felt echoes of it before, in dire situations that he had inexplicably won through. In that rush of adrenaline as he evades terrible danger. When he told Leida to save herself.

"But whatever it takes... I'm going to use it to help people!"

Even so, he swings himself into the mass of Darkness, putting himself into the center of the danger. As his will falters, the gleaming light vanishes, engulfed by the blackness.

Could the massive creature have vanquished Mercade?

He hangs in darkness, doubt rushing in his mind.

You haven't changed at all. You started as nothing. You will return to nothing. This power of yours is going to consume you, and you're going to be no better than those things you fight... You can't control it. And when you lose that control...

You will destroy all of them.

Fear threatens to overwhelm him, and his grip falters on his staff...

"Let's promise... That we won't lose each other like that ever again."

The hand clenches. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Outside of the Heartless, light suddenly leaks out from between the 'hair'-like tentacles, moments before there is a massive, dull thud. There is an explosion of annihilating, brilliant force as the shockwave blasts outwards, Mercade screaming as he hangs in the air as the center of a tiny flare that quickly winks out. He hits the ground, smoking... But he looks up.

"I won't ever lose you again."

Avira has posed:
As Mercade sinks into his own darkness, the guiding voice of Avira seems to be saying something. At this point it's impossible to make out-all he can tell is that Avira sounds like she's shouting at him from very far away. It doesn't matter. In a few seconds, it won't matter anymore. Mercade will be consumed and only darkness will remain.

He sees himself, without his light, interacting with other people in the real world. He is cruel and callous. His friends abandon him or try to get him help, only to be betrayed. Those that still try to reach him are taken down, one by one.

That memory suddenly wedges itself between Mercade and those thoughts. A promise spoken between him and the barer of the voice guiding his way tonight.

Light leaks between the thick strands of hair and, without eyes in the back of its head, the heartless does not notice. Not until it's too late and the pain of the light is upon him, practically detonating the back half of its head as Mercade frees himself. When he next looks up at the creature, he'll see that the back half of its head looks like it was just scooped away. It shows no sign of regenerating or reforming.

Yet it still moves. Slower now it turns all the way around to face the defiant detective, baleful yellow eyes glaring down at him. Both claws rear back, then shoot forward, each reaching hand trying to grasp ahold of Mercade frantically. Its movements are much faster but at the same time, Mercade gets the sense of...desperation.

Like a cornered animal, his darkness continues to strike out at him.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
And what he sees there will perhaps haunt him in quiet moments for a long time.

But right now, Mercade raises his staff, and there is an explosion of light as he meets the incoming assault of the Heartless upon him. Mercade raises his staff, the weapon projecting a barrier pulse of force that takes the desperation strike. The impact shakes the barrier, and it breaks, the energy whiplashing back into Mercade, causing him to grunt, falling to one knee...

But Mercade raises the hand, holding the staff, and lets it go.

The staff doesn't fall. The weapon hangs there, in the air, humming as a charge builds. Mercade looks up at the desperate Heartless, and points above it. The staff flicks, flying through the air from an impulse of pure will, and it orients itself above the Heartless, pointing itself downwards. A gleaming light gathers around the Mickey head atop the staf, an impulse of white force.

He's starting to believe. In himself, and in those many things people have told him. "It's time to finish this." He says...

And then there is a blinding beam of light, the explosion punching downwards as the beam of power spears through the massive Heartless vertically.

And a moment later, the staff hammers downwards, falling with intense power as it blasts downwards with a final, devastating strike, powered by Mercade's burning willpower. "GET OUT!" Mercade yells. He'll think of something more dramatic and cool later.

Avira has posed:
He contends with one long, spindly hand slamming against his barrier. The second hand is not quick to follow, the force of the resistance stunning the Heartless for some critical few moments. It is in these moments, Mercade takes command of that power flowing through him and releases his weapon. It floats to the air.

The Heartless reaches for him all too quickly now, perhaps sensing he is 'without' his weapon. It isn't true though. Mercade can still feel it as a part of him, even floating high above the incredibly tall Heartless. Just as those huge fingers cage the detective against the platform, the blast of white light spears downwards, carving a hole through the Heartless completely, starting from it's tophat. That massive hand freezes. Then the followup brings the staff down through it, much like the beam, and the impact of the weapon against the stained glass sends a shockwave of power spreading from the point of impact.

The Heartless dissolves away into an enormous morass of black mist that smokes off of the platform like a freshly extinguished fire. It doesn't all disappear completely, shrinking back down into the abnormally long shadow of Mercade. Then, even that abnormally long shadow disappears, sliding back into one of normal length. It's still very 'misty' looking, like that of a Heartless.

The panels in the stained glass that had showed his TDA friends are filled with their pictures again.

"You are not powerless, Mercade." The voice of Avira sounds peaceful and serene.
"You are never powerless."
"So don't forget."

The staff vanishes with several sparkles of light, but again, he can still feel it 'with' him. That ornate double door at the edge of the platform remains. As he goes to it, he will find that the doors will open for him when he pulls the handles.

Mercade Alexander has posed:
The massive shadow vanishes in the cataclysmic display of light and power.

For several seconds, Mercade breathes, recovering from the intense amount of... energy he had expended there. "That was incredible."

Soon enough, he turns away, nodding. "Thank you, Avira." He says. "I won't forget."

At that, he steps forward and opens the doors.

Avira has posed:
Beyond the doors is light. Intense light that immediately overwhelms him and obscures his vision. He will no longer feel himself moving but he gets the sense that he did go through those doors.

Wherever he was, be it asleep, knocked out from a fight, or merely daydreaming, he finds himself coming to. The real world is around him and Avira is nowhere in sight.

Yet, undeniably, Mercade feels a little different.