character application info

basic info

Name: Zexion
Age: 20
Canon: Kingdom Hearts
History: Canon Overview
Character History:
Ienzo was once a ward and apprentice of Ansem the Wise, the sagely ruler of a small kingdom of light called Radiant Garden. The youngest among his five companions and doted on by the king, he took part in conducting secret experiments on darkness in the heart, requesting that a laboratory be constructed for their exclusive use. Led by an enigmatic and amnesiac newcomer called Xehanort, they betrayed their Master by conducting dangerous research against Ansem's wishes. Xehanort penned reports under the Master's name, and later banished their king beyond the door to darkness, assuming his identity.Their experiments on the heart spawned creatures of darkness called Heartless, which were eventually manufactured by the droves, overrunning the castle and surrounding kingdom. The Heartless invasion then spread beyond, swarming into the shadows of other worlds. Ienzo and his peers cast off their hearts and fell into darkness themselves, reviving as Nobodies, beings which are the counterpart husks of a body which has lost its heart.

Ienzo's Nobody was given the new name Zexion, and became part of Organization XIII as their sixth-ranked founding member. He retained his loyalty to their cause for many years, traversing the worlds and the realms of in-between to continue their studies, in hopes of finding a way to regain their whole being and claim a world for themselves, as per their leader's fanatical vision. Obtaining the legendary Kingdom Hearts would be the cornerstone to this plan, but for many years they lacked the necessary key.

Close to a decade later, Zexion was assigned to one of Organization XIII's side projects, exploring memory and data replication, conducted within their second headquarters of Castle Oblivion. There he took a very cautious and reactive approach, remaining in the company of his long-term peers as tensions grew between the dividing lines of original and newer membership.

When two visitors arrived in the castle, the Keyblade Hero Sora and his friend Riku, things took a turn for the worse. While Sora's memories were being manipulated as part of an attempt to overthrow the Organization's hierarchy, Zexion and his cohorts on the lower floors were distracted by another intruder in Oblivion's basements. The close resemblance of Riku's darkness to that of their leader was seen as a troubling matter.

Zexion's cohort scientist, Vexen, created a replicated clone of Riku, and was eliminated as a traitor on the upper floors, sparking further worry as Zexion realized his traitorous associates were not above killing one another. When even closer colleague Lexaeus fallen had in combat against Riku, Zexion realized there was no one left to trust, and decided to make his own stand against the boy alone.

Preferring not to engage in a direct combat, Zexion initially tried a manipulative approach, trying to shame Riku into despair and hopelessness. Zexion's condeming words held an uncanny paralell to his own disgraceful ruin, suggesting that Zexion is quite self-aware and projects his guilt onto others. When Riku miraculously saw through the illusions and embraced the inner strength of his darkness, proving too resilient to handle, Zexion breathlessly retreated- only to be confronted by traitorous executioner Axel and the renegade replica resembling Riku. Realizing his last potential ally had turned on him, Zexion was consumed by darkness and destroyed.

Strengths:

Intelligence / Knowledge - Zexion is well-educated, thanks to a healthy headstart in booksmarts. Born to cottage industry publishers and raised by a Sage-King who values wisdom, learning and progressive technology, Ienzo was considered a gifted boy and studied alongside men more than twice his age as their intellectual equal. When his apprenticeship was cut short, he continued to study rigourously on his own, and has background knowledge in assorted sciences, city engineering, the lore and language of many (Disney) worlds, TRON-comparable computer technologies and magic.

Illusions (& other Magic) - Zexion's elemental specialty is illusion magic. As an illusionist, he can conjure up sensory deceptions 'from scratch' by scripting or copying down a description of the mirage into his Lexicon, which can then be easily extracted from its pages with minimal focus and inflicted upon a chosen target(s). Creating an unplanned, on-the-fly hallucination requires much more intensive concentration and active attention to crafting details- it leaves things much more loosely open to the interpretation of his victims' psyche, so it's typically much easier to use his Lexicon-stored compilation of illusions as a tool to channel the ability.

Lexicon Pocket Dimension- An immersive hallucination, capable of fuller mind control if a victim looks directly at the Lexicon's pages. It takes a great deal of willpower and sureness of reality to escape this. Zexion can also summon and banish the Lexicon in and out of existence at will, but not while he's keeping someone in there, making it a static object.

Physical Mirage Combat- In battle, he is shown to capable of both copying and reflecting an enemy's weapons and appearances. These weapons can do real damage to a target if they are fooled by it's mirage, but his skill with these is limited by his own experience and training- he is obviously no master of every copied tool that comes into his hands, and so he prefers to avoid fighting whenever possible.

Common Magic- Zexion knows the standard set of magic spells used by mages in the Kingdom Hearts universe, including fire and blizzara and other elemental casting. Because he's developed a personal tradition of magic much more sensory and psychologically-based, he makes less use of manipulating the concrete world, preferring to work within his own affinity.

Limit Break- Meteor Mirage, a devestating attack, summons indigo energy balls which deals heavy damage to its area of effect. This wears him out, and would require blowing all his reserves of mana energy, so he'd only be using it under duress in extreme situations.

Using Dark Corridors- Nobodies, without hearts and wearing the protection of their resistant coats, are able to traverse the realms of nothingness and darkness betwixt and between the realm of light (physical world). They can cheat their way across very long distances by taking these shortcuts, essentially a teleportation device, although it's not particularly safe to drag anyone with their heart intact along with them.

Sensory Memory- As one might expect of an illusionist who obsessively catalogs information, Zexion has a very keen nose and sharp senses, remembering the exact tasting notes of a wine sampled months ago with ease, or being able to single out an individual by the 'scent' of the darkness their heart produces. This uncanny knack for detail supports his other talents, but is worthy of note on its own as a perception-based skill.

Tactical Advisory- Erring on the side of precaution, and having a good sense of restraint, Zexion is a capable collaborator and strategist, patient and clever, able to detach himself from matters of sentimental value and look at things objectively. While he might seem useless on the front lines, as a support he is good at long-range planning and keeping egos in check with sensible rationale.

Work Ethic- Because he has grown up as part of a group, Zexion holds high standards for collaborative work and generally holds no qualms with authority, provided his Superiors prove themselves worthy. He can comfortably resign himself to being an agreeable, dedicated follower, but will take up his own plans on the sly if someone clearly doesn’t know how to handle a leadership role. Cooperation is important among allies, and Zexion appreciates the value of teamwork. Although he prefers to avoid dirty deeds whenever possible, with the understanding that others are simply better suited for it, he’ll take his own tasks seriously and hold up his end of responsibility. If someone else takes initiative to deal with an unpleasant task? "Better him than us."

Flaws:
Physicality Zexion is physically weakest and youngest among his colleagues, and very used to overcompensating for the fact he is a glass cannon. He has no formal training in physical combat, and his constitution is certainly nothing spectacular. Well aware of this disadvantage, he tends to avoid direct confrontations, relying heavily on keeping himself allied with a trustworthy protector...without Lexaeus here, he'll have to find new reliable muscle.

Sycophantic / Susceptible to Manipulation- While using deception, he has also ironically proven just as easily decieved. He is not so much of an independent mastermind as to avoid being pulled into a more powerful and charismatic leader's schemes. Offer him the sureness of protection, or power, or lure his curiosity with irresistible knowledge? Zexion will take the bait.

General Distrust / Paranoia - Perhaps because he took part in an usurpation as a child, and knows himself and his closest friends fully capable of turning on their king, Zexion has a powerfully wary fear of betrayal. A cynic, he doesn't tend to think the best of people's intentions and assumes everyone will act with some degree of selffishness. He'll sniff out traitors in his midst and watches his back, for fear of being taken advantage of or plotted against. He has a fear of abandonment if he fails to prove useful, and avoids making fast friends where tenative alliances of convenience are safer.

Reactionary-- While shrewdly intelligent, Zexion is primarily a bookish thinker who relies heavily on deep analysis and planning. He needs time to mull-over and think things through, preferring slow tactical puzzles to quick games of wits. Somewhat rigid in his thinking patterns, and not 'streetsmart', he is less capable acting on his feet in action-heavy situations, and can be caught deeply off his guard when things don't turn out the way he anticipated. Reactionary, his typical instinct is to wait for someone else to act first. This sets him at a disadvantage of hesitance- if you can surprise him, Zexion's recovering fumble is likely to be his undoing.

Emotionally 'Out of Touch- Nobodies are not, in fact, incapable of growing new hearts as they form bonds. However, unaware of this potential, Zexion's spent most of his formative adolescent years steeped in apathy and suppression of his emotions, capacity for compassion and personal attachments. Repression and denial your own feelings for over a decade is bound to bite you in the ass, sooner or later.

Miscellaneous: Morally steeped in shades of deep grey, Zexion is outwardly malicious to his decided enemies, and has preyed upon innocents, but conversely also holds to an austere personal code of 'respectable' conduct. While he is certainly capable of being cruel and merciless, he keeps it within the framework of a task, and does not appear to hold deep pleasures in outright villainy and embrace total evil, as he does not associate with Maleficent's band, nor align himself with Heartless and the darkness. He has taken part in traitorous collaborative disobedience and terrible experimentation, which has led to the destruction of thousands of hearts and worlds. However, now that his heart has fallen into darkness, he does not plan to dive in after it, distancing himself from an alignment with the dark. Instead, he walks an ambiguous in-between with the hopes of attaining completion- but true redemption isn't something he truely concerns himself with seeking. There is a thick wall of aloof unwillingness and denial to let himself experience remorse for those actions, but can identify past mistakes, and hold regrets- he does not take up an aim to change his ways or atone for his past wrongdoings.

However, Zexion is shown to value reciprocity and fairness. He has a strong sense of what's "deplorable" conduct between allies, and doesn't hold those who skiv off their share of the work in high regard. Zexion is firm about keeping efficient, and seeing things through to maximum potential. He's quietly fussy and finicky, preferring things well-maintained and orderly, and respecting the hierarchy of the Organization- (except when his elders squall for respect...then he's prone to raise an eyebrow and ignore them). Ego and outward arrogance is usually met with dismisssive annoyance.

With an intense curiosity for exploring the unknown, Zexion has a fatal attraction to enigmatic persons and undiscovered mysteries, one which leads him to a path of treason and corruption in his former life as Ienzo. While always questioning he is cautious, however, and doesn't charge blindly into risky situations- but some puzzles and clues will prove an irresistible temptation. He prefers his own nature to be shrewdly shadowed as well, preferring not to show his hand until the opponent’s cards and guard are down. For these reasons, he may often seem coolly detached and elusive in demeanor, presenting little unless he has a specific invested agenda to act upon.

Zexion conducts himself with 'civilized' politeness, minding his P's and Q's with a careful veneer of good taste and dignity. For the most part, he is tolerant, if exasperated when niceties are not returned. While he seems a little erudite, pedantic and aloof, not easy to get close to on a personal level, he isn’t particularly obnoxious and efforts to carry himself pleasantly even if the company manages to get under his skin. Sometimes, a sardonic sense of darker humor and intentional mindgames can slip though, but he plays cleanly with his colleagues, understanding that some degree of interdependence is necessary. When everyone pitches in with their own strengths, well-coordinated, things get done. When selfishness and ulterior motives reign, well...

When things begin to unravel, Zexion is quick to blame lack of unity in purpose and questions the loyalty of his comrades. He has an ear to the ground and a proclivity for suspicion, holding those he does not consider his closest allies at an arm's length. As a betrayer himself, he knows how easily loyalties can shift, and with bitter years of data to support it behind him, expects even the kindest hearts to fail themselves in the end. As one of the founding Nobodies, he is cold to those he cannot rely upon, and this is especially notable in his attitude toward newer Organization membership. Drawing dividing lines between old and new, Us and Them, he regards change with agitation and wary watchfulness. When instructing their newest member Roxas, Zexion lays down his stark expectations, defining their purpose, and warning that he will not respect those who don’t perform well on missions.

His encounter with Riku demonstrates how Zexion acts in the rare cases he is called to take up offensive stance against an opponent. Talented at identifying sources of darkness, he chooses to avoid combat for as long as possible, using his illusions to prey upon shame, guilt, negativity and self-doubt. He exploits as many of these emotional weaknesses as possible before resorting to cruder forms of violence. While paired with the distortions of illusion, his messages are grounded in truth, showing that while Zexion is deceptive, he prefers to wield a twisted, razor-edge truth wherever possible, rather than dispensing easy outright lies. While a master of illusion, Zexion is not so overconfident in his abilities to understand that brutal honesty is sometimes a more wickedly effective weapon than a full web of fabrication.

On the surface, Zexion might seem a little bland and severe for his age, overly mature, crisply ascetic. He does in fact enjoy a great deal of creature comforts, but relishes them in the privacy of his own space. To reveal the things he truly enjoys in front of people he doesn’t trust is to lend them an opening to mislead him with his own desires. Left to his own devices, he can be something of a sensory hedonist, but you won’t find him taking in his pleasures around strangers.

game plans

Starting Faction: Warlord

Goals: Zexion is a character I've played in sex games before, but never really to his potential as an antagonist and manipulator. The conflict at Ennervation will hopefully facilitate that! I'm putting him on the Warlord's side for a rougher start, a direct push toward gaining power, and an aim to put him side-by-side with ambitious brutes as a deft hand with a little more finesse for psychological warfare.

He's not beneath playing bedwarming pet or favorite servant of an officer climbing in the ranks, if it means holding subtle sway on the sidelines. If possible, I'd like to start him recently planted into that sort of role instead of playing out the breaking-in process. I'm generally not a fan of playing out violent non-con situations (rape involving excruciating physical torture or resulting in sustained injury) though I'm aware this is standard operating procedure on the Warlord's side. I'll do my best to plot around these encounters, or keep them as offscreen mentions.

Sexually speaking, he has a long way to develop ripped from his canon, but I fully intend to play some porn with him, so being banded in a faction that demands it should punt him into sexual proactivity! Though magically quite capable of weilding serious influence, Zexion will have to seek out means of sustaining his illusions as well as avoiding attracting suspicion.

I'd really like Zexion to grow into the role of seducer, plying the other side as well as his own allies with hedonistic temptation! As he learns the productive, more sustainable power of pleasure on the land, he'll soften his methods to be more geared toward producing sustained esctasy than hard and fast results. I can see him eventually running a plush intellectual salon / all night orgy where the seating is cushioned, the food is plentiful, and possibly half of the opulence isn't even real.

There's lots of potential for him to cross lines under various guises, and act as an informant or recruiter.

I'd also like to pursue knowledge-gathering plotlines, venture into setting lore/history and magical experiementation, and would remain open to eventually turncoating to a middle ground 3rd party, under the right leadership?