#and with what we now know about braig's true identity...

[catboygirljoker]

because it was last year when i got into kingdom hearts, i had all of the (current) kingdom hearts story available to me at once. i didnt really avoid spoilers at first because i assumed it wouldn't matter to me. so i knew about xigbar being luxu before i really knew xigbar at all—i knew about xigbar being luxu before i knew who vanitas was! i found out about this in the context of looking up kingdom hearts character names in order to make an oc; i saw that Xigbar also went by the names Braig and Luxu. i was like, huh, thats weird, and looked it up.

and i found out that he was an immortal body hopping prophet who had been forced to bear witness to the slaughter of countless child soldiers and whose entire life's purpose is to ensure the second coming of the man who orchestrated that slaughter.

and at first i thought it was boring.

like. i actively thought it was a bad, uninteresting writing choice. now, [gestures,] CLEARLY i dont think that. and because this is my damn house and i feel like it, i wanna make a post about why i thought what i did and why i changed my mind.

at the time, i had never played any of the games and assumed i never would. i'd only ever watched cutscene compilations and a couple of streams, up to DDD, not including KHUX. i hadn't paid very close attention to xigbar, beyond the impression that he was a weirdo and an asshole and pretty fuckin ugly*¹ but also kind of a silly goofster who's fun to watch and maybe he can get it idk.

so i found out about the luxu reveal by reading wikis and posts. and the way the luxu information was presented was this: his entire personality was fake. that he was only putting on an act this entire time. "xigbar" was a persona, and "luxu" was the real person.

i. think that's wrong. and also boring. i think it's boring because that means that we've spent several games getting to know this iconically weird dickish character, forming—well, not necessarily an attachment to him, i know a lot of people think he's annoying in a way that doesnt fill them with unbridled lust—but some kind of connection with him, some kind of idea of him. and if his whole personality is fake, that means that that connection didn't mean anything. he was a blank void this entire time, we know nothing about him. where there was an interesting, memorable character, there's now a stranger instead.

i think it's wrong for a few reasons. one, even if the luxu we see in KHUX isn't very much like xigbar, there are still glimpses of xigbar. the veneer of cold pragmatism in the face of the keyblade war when we first meet him, the bit where he's with the master of masters and goes "sigh.......sigh..........SIGH—" trying to get his attention. he's more innocent and bright-eyed for sure, but he's still kind of a little shit! and is it not believable to think that over the hundreds or thousands*² of years his personality would change?

and also . if his personality were fake. if it were a ruse, if he had put on a character just to hide his true identity and fit in with the organization and carry out his plans. wouldn't he. i dunno. pick a better personality? like wouldn't he be less of a shithead? wouldn't he try harder to get along with people and ingratiate himself to them so they'd spill their secrets or stay loyal to him or whatever?

the reason i changed my mind on whether the luxu reveal is boring/uninteresting is because, well, for one, we do get to meet luxu before it's revealed that he ends up being xigbar. it's shockingly difficult for me to get the timeline on when different story updates in KHUX happened, but at the very very least we get his first scene, and in that scene, him wearing the black coat and holding the Gazing Eye is a pretty compelling introduction. he's not some rando, he has significance in the story, he raises a bunch of questions. (i assume we got a lot more of him before the luxubar reveal, but my point remains.)

also, having paid more attention to xigbar, there are absolutely indications for the entire series that he has More Going On. it's difficult for me to be "objective" about this, as someone who started paying attention to him after i found out what that More was, but ive seen a lot of anecdotes from people who picked up on there being something weird about him, wondering why he has so much presence and significance and power. it may or may not have been setup for luxubar. but him turning out to be a primary antagonist for the next arc of the series doesn't come out of nowhere and isn't a sudden jump in his importance or change in his role. he goes from being a lynchpin in one antagonist's master plan to being a lynchpin in another. he goes from being weird and mysterious to being even weirder and more mysterious. he's had a significant role in every game he's appeared in, and his role remains significant.*³

in conclusion, it was the thing that made me write a fic about him.

[or start writing. ive got 20 pages in that notes document and counting.]

ENDNOTES:

*¹—at the time i couldn't tell the difference between any of his models (besides 3 versus not 3, ofc) and conflated all of them with his model in 2, which, i am world number 1 fucked up old man xigbar simp, and man. his model in 2 is jacked up. i try&try and still have a lot of trouble finding him hot in that game. sad! oh well. there's other games

*²—i dont think it's been thousands of years. or i hope it hasn't. A Thousand Years is a comically long amount of time and multiple of that is kind of ridiculous. i'm willing to accept a few hundred. maybe one thousand at the MOST. ah well, its not that important

*³—in contrast to this, i do not . personally think that "demyx is the master of master" theory is very good. i think that if it were to happen it'd be bad writing. i will spare you my paragraph about this.

[xnymphae]

Auntie J is doing these eons late because she’s a meme // @gravitasfatum​

Nowadays, most familiar faces were comforting ones. Seeing how Sora, Kairi, and Riku had grown up over the last decade made her feel so proud... Seeing Terra and Ventus again after so long apart filled her dying heart with warmth... With Xehanort and his ilk seemingly defeated, Aqua held some hope that she wouldn’t see any familiar faces that were decidedly not comforting... Of course, no good thing could last forever, and upon encountering the man with the eyepatch, the young Master stopped dead in her tracks. 

All those years ago, he was right at Xehanort’s side, and they had battled fiercely until he retreated and Vanitas ambushed her... She never knew his name. All she knew was that he was the enemy. He was there again at the Keyblade Graveyard, after she had finally returned to the Realm of Light... but there was no rematch that day. Aqua thought he had been vanquished like the rest, but there he stood, and there she bristled. Light flashed from her hand, sheer instinct calling upon her tried-and-true keyblade, and those faded blue hues narrowed, piercing the other with her cold gaze. While her allies basked in her motherly warmth, her foes met frigid ice, “..Why are you still here..?!”

[true-intha-blu]

In Regards to Kingdom Hearts UX: Dark Road; Baldr, Loki, Luxu, and Luxord

Hi there. This is True-InTha-Blue coming to you with some interesting lore I was discussing with some very wonderful people on the Destined Oath Discord server. Once again I thank them for helping me out with this analysis and mythos research, as well as asking questions that really got my brain thinking about what all of this could be. This, of course, is in relation to the Kingdom Hearts Union Cross Dark Road game that was released 6/22/20. Specifically for Chapter 1.

This does contain slight spoilers so for those who want to go in completely blind. I recommend playing through KHuX:DR first, then coming back to my theory. This will go over a lot of Norse Mythology, how it relates to this new game, what roles the characters play, and what it could mean in the future. Warning, I’m not one for screenshots so prepare for a large amount of text.

Theory time:

In KHuX:DR we’re introduced to the new character, Baldr, named after a prominent god in Norse Mythology. As the Son of Odin, Baldr’s murder is what eventually leads the world into Ragnarok, the Norse armageddon myth.

Let’s investigate the Mythos of Baldr.

Baldr is the Norse god of peace, justice, light, forgiveness, and love. He and his mother, Frigg, had prophetic dreams of his death. As such, Frigg made every object and being in existence vow to never bring harm to Baldr. Every object and being except one, mistletoe. This was because no one saw mistletoe as a threat and was too young to make such an agreement.

This made Baldr pretty much indestructible. As per usual with the Norse gods, they made sport of this by throwing dangerous stuff at the man since they knew he couldn’t die. That was until Loki decided to fashion an arrow or spear (Different tellings of the myth have different weapons) out of mistletoe. He handed this weapon over to Baldr’s blind twin brother, Hodr. Thinking that it would bounce off his brother like usual, Hodr ended up killing his brother.

Heartbroken, Frigg called upon Hermod, another one of her sons and messenger of the gods, to go to Hel and retrieve Baldr.

In Hel, the goddess Hel (it is both a location and a person. Also not to be confused as Hell), said that Baldr could be revived if everyone (objects included, alive and dead) cried for him.

In Norse mythology, “Hel” is both a place and a goddess. Hel (the place) is the norse underworld. Hel (the goddess) is the one who reigns over the Underworld. When Hermod reached Hel and asked how Baldr could be revived, he was told that if every being in existence cried for his brother, then Baldr would return.

Everyone did, except one.

Loki, disguised as the giantess Þökk (pronounced Tokk), did not cry. As such, Baldr is set to stay in Hel until Ragnarok.

Now let’s look at Loki’s role in Norse Mythology.

He is often (or always) depicted as a shapeshifting trickster. In fact much of the trickster archetype in modern stories stems from Loki’s place in mythology. For a large part of the Mythos, Loki either aids the Aesir (the Norse Gods) or is malicious towards them. No matter what Loki eventually comes to be the enemy of the Norse gods at the end of Ragnarök.

So where am I going with this?

There are two major groups of people: Those who see Odin and the Master of Masters as being the same person, and those who see Odin and Luxu as the same people. But I think that people are focusing on the wrong deity. Instead, I think that shifting the focus onto Loki is the key. As a shapeshifter, Loki has gone by many names. Luxu parallels this, as he’s most likely taken on countless different names besides “Braig” or “Xigbar”.

In fact, let’s focus on the meaning behind Luxu’s name.

Like all of the Foretellers, Luxu’s name parallels one of the Seven Deadly Sins, that of Lust (Luxuria). Loki, in a myth where he insults all of the Aesir, is called a “Pervert God”. Loki has also been accused of doing perverse things. Luxu may not have a sexual lust, but rather a lust for power. There is also the fact that Luxu is associated with the goat, a Catholic symbol of lust.

Also to note in this conversation of Loki insulting the gods. This is the one that leads Loki to being bound to a rock with a snake dripping venom over his eyes until he is released from Ragnarök. The context is that Loki killed a servant, was kicked out of a party, and then came back to ruin the party but the Skaldic god Bragi says that Loki shouldn’t be allowed back in. Loki however called on blood bonds with Odin (because they are half-brothers) to be invited.

There is one other thing of note in the myth about Loki insulting the Aesir. After a certain point, he got kicked out, only to return to ruin the party even more. The god Bragi said that he shouldn’t be allowed in, but Loki calls his blood bond with his half-brother Odin, saying he has every right to be invited. As things continue, this leads to Loki’s capture and his near eternal punishment of being bound with poison dripping on his face. Then: “Loki declaims a toast to the gods, with a specific exception for Bragi. Bragi responds that he will give a horse, sword, and ring from his possessions so that he does not repay the gods "with hatred." Loki responds that Bragi will always be short of all of these things, accusing him of being "wary of war" and "shy of shooting." Bragi responds that, were they outside of Ægir's hall, Bragi would be holding Loki's head as a reward for his lies. Loki replies that Bragi is brave when seated, calling him a "bench-ornament," and that Bragi would run away when troubled by an angry, spirited man.”

And this is also remarkably interesting because I have seen the Bragi = Braig/Luxu theory, but this kind of contradicts it. It makes me think that Bragi and Odin are red herrings in all of this. Remember, we do not know what happened to the Master of Masters, except that he ��faded from existence’ one day. Nor do we know why or how MoM showed himself to Young Xehanort in the Keyblade Graveyard. Only Luxu has been confirmed to have the ability to change bodies

Keep in mind, the No Name Keyblade was passed down from Luxu to his student. When the time came, that student passed on the keyblade as well, the cycle continuing into the present. This was all so MoM could see into the future and author the Book of Prophecies.

Now I wish to bring up another name of Loki, that of Lóðurr. It can be translated into Lodur.

Please understand that the context between these two names is still being debated by scholars, but I think this is important to bring up nonetheless.

Lodur is one of the gods that helped create the first two humans, the others being Odin and Hoenir. Let’s assume this is just another name for Loki. Remember how earlier I said that Loki is the main archetype for both the good and bad trickster in stories? Let’s go to something you may have noticed.

Lodur. Let’s add an ‘X’, reminiscent to the old Org XIII style. It becomes Luxord.

Now remember that scene in the beginning of Re:mind DLC? With Xigbar/Luxu and Luxord asking questions about each other’s identity?

My take is that Luxord is the other role of Loki, the more beneficially trickster. Now this may be more of a stretch if not for the fact that we kinda believe/see Luxord’s somebody in Yozora’s time. As of now, it is a major point of both curiosity and contention within the fandom.

One theory is that Yozora’s world is connected to the breaking of the One World before the end of the Keyblade World. This is inferred because Yozora seems to know what a keyblade is and knows how to fight the wielder of one.

Since Lodur (the Norse god) has a hand in the creation of the world in Norse mythology, which (going by the KHuX:DR lore about the worlds’ development) may have been one of the first worlds to develop from the Keyblade War thus tying Luxord to the legacy of the keyblade war stated by Xemnas.

To add a bit on the Luxu/Xigbar and Luxord to Loki parallels:

-      Both fights with them have misdirection, trickery with locations or indirect fighting styles when confronted by Sora. This fits a trickster archetype

-      Also Braig/Xigbar uses arrowguns. In myth, Baldr was killed by an arrow (That may be a bit of a stretch though so don’t take it too seriously.)

In the end, we have a lot to think about here.

I am less inclined to look at Master Odin from KHux:DR and would rather look out for someone we have not seen yet, a Loki or a Þökk. And keep an eye on Baldr whenever he shows up.

There are many other connections to tie ‘Bad’ Loki to Luxu. Loki heralding Ragnarok could parallel the fall of Scala Ad Caelum. Loki being a Johtun but being able to hang around the Norse gods could be a parallel to how Luxu may be among the students but actually being a foreteller.

If any reader has any details they want to share to clear up some details about the mythos, want to correct an inaccuracy, or wish to elaborate on the topics more, please share them. I am always up for fun, healthy, and well-reasoned discussions.

My next theory will be about the development of the worlds and the foretellers and how they came back.

Stay tuned, Blue

[Edited by @SourCherryBomb]

[nadziejastar]

Other than Lea and Isa’s backstories, what other aspects of the Dark Seeker Saga do you think were hopelessly botched?

Day 358: Goals

Author: Xemnas

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

- The Number One thing that was botched was Xehanort’s entire backstory and character. Why did he turn evil? How did he get possessed? Why was he trying to open Kingdom Hearts? How did he get possession of the MoM’s Keybalde? That’s something we were obviously supposed to learn before KH3 came out, yet we’re only getting it after the fact with Dark Road. And who knows if it will still be the same backstory as it was originally envisioned for the DSS.

-The whole time travel concept. What exactly are portals and how was that the key to defeating Master Xehanort in KH3? We never learned about Scala ad Caelum, and why MX was there during the final battle, which also was confusing. Overall, the ending of KH3 made NO sense to me.

- Xemnas was botched. Why was he trying to complete Kingdom Hearts in Days and KH2? How would completing Kingdom Hearts allow him to turn all the members into Xehanorts? Did Xemnas know exactly what he was trying to accomplish or was he being guided subconsciously? What memories did Xemnas have? Terra’s? Master Xehanort’s? What was No Heart, his armored form? What was the Lich? All left unanswered.

-  Riku’s character arc was just botched. KH3D hinted at an unresolved subplot with “Ansem” and Riku Replica. “Ansem” was also connected to Riku’s Way to Dawn Keyblade and also Terra. Riku’s connection to Terra was pretty much dropped in KH3.

-The subplot about Ansem the Wise, his regret over his past and the data he put inside Sora, which was supposed to be the secret to saving everyone. That was botched.

-After learning about the experiments in detail, the rest of the apprentices should have been more fleshed out characters. Ienzo’s trauma as an orphan and child cult member should have been explored. Why did Even want to atone? How did he feel about the experiments? How did Braig first become a vessel? What were Aeleus and Dilan’s part in it all? What was going on with Xehanort’s memory during that time? And how did Kairi tie into all of this? Instead of getting the answers to these questions, the experiments have apparently been totally retconned. 

Xemnas: A heart is never lost for good. There may have been variances in our dispositions, but a number of us unquestionably showed signs of a burgeoning replacement. Once born, the heart can also be nurtured. Our experiments creating Heartless were attempts to control the mind, and convince it to renounce its sense of self.

-The Number Two thing that was botched was the whole concept of “vessels”. Xehanort’s whole goal during the DSS was about planting his heart into unwilling people so he could use their empty husks as puppets in his Keyblade War. He needs empty shells without hearts, so he can put his own heart inside. But, the idea was that no being truly can exist without a heart. Even Replicas and Nobodies form hearts to fill the void. So, Xehanort can’t just create machines or Nobodies without hearts and and plop his heart inside of those. He has to resort to other means.

The experiments caused the test subject's heart to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle.

-The experiments on the darkness of the heart were also hopelessly botched along with with the concept of vessels. At first, all the subjects’ hearts collapsed. Without a heart, Xehanort wouldn’t have been able to turn them into vessels. With a collapsed heart, they’re broken and useless, like Ventus was at the beginning of BBS. 

Day 355: Mind

Author: Xigbar

If Kingdom Hearts can be said to possess a mind of its own, it is surely rejecting Xemnas—no, rejecting Xehanort.

In KH3D, Xemnas said the experiments were about mind control, to convince it to renounce its sense of self, but that seems to no longer be the case. The idea was apparently that someone needs a heart to become a vessel. Xehanort can basically absorb their hearts into his own and control them. But someone with a mind of their own can still reject Xehanort’s heart. Braig accepted Xehanort of his own free will. But most he had to possess unwillingly.

Xemnas: But then, through Roxas, Sora himself began to shape "it" into "her," giving Xion a sense of identity. Our plan seemed like a failure at this point...

Replicas even gain minds of their own. So, the experiments were about creating a subject without a sense of self so they couldn’t reject him. 

“Xemnas and Xehanort formed the Organization for a specific reason—round up a bunch of empty husks, hook them up to Kingdom Hearts, then fill them all with the exact same heart and mind,” Xigbar explained behind him. 

Sora turned around. Empty husks? Is he saying they’re going to break them with pain and sorrow and put another heart into them…? Or did they already do it?

They’d cause the subject so much pain they couldn’t live with it. Their heart would go to sleep. Their mind would fracture. But they wouldn’t die. 

Xehanort: Roxas... Now, there was a worthy candidate. But, unfortunately, he became too aware of himself, and returned to Sora. Organization XIII's true goal is to divide Xehanort's heart among thirteen vessels.

Without self-awareness, they’d be the perfect vessel, like Roxas was at first. The Dark Seeker Saga was all about healing pain. Subject X’s memories have nothing to do with the Dark Seeker Saga. Mind control was a lot darker, more interesting, and made more sense as far as making vessels.

[ladydreilgard]

Post Re:Mind Speculation

Its that time kiddos. The time of year to dissect the latest Kingdom Hearts release for answers to any of the many, many, many, many questions that we have. So, I feel like post Re:Mind there’s three big parts to talk about here, so let’s divvy them up under the break.

Sora, Yozora, and the Nameless Star

Where to begin with all this. So after meeting Yozora Sora mentions a girl who mentioned him and that she had a message for him. Based off this we can assume that the Nameless Star is who he is referring to there. So right off the bat we can discern some interesting facts about Yozora from this. The Nameless Star tells us that Yozora has been transformed and that his heart has been replaced with that of another. But of course this is hardly the first time we’ve heard a story like that. Riku and Terra were both victims of this as a result of Xehanort, and Luxu admitted that he’s been hopping from body to body for years and that Braig/Xigbar is just his most current identity. So then is Yozora a victim of the same technique that Xehanort and Luxu have used? Yozora himself seems surprised that Sora was actually able to recognize him as Yozora, as if he expected himself to look like someone else. 

So first, we gotta work through a question here: is the form we see in Re:Mind pre- or post-possession? It seems to me to make the most sense that the Yozora we see in Re:Mind is his true form, and that whoever’s possessed him has caused him to take on a new form. The dialogue wouldn’t line up otherwise. We can match the appearance to the name thanks to Verum Rex. So what does Yozora look like now? How much was he transformed? It could be as minor as hair and eye color change (re:Terra) or as dramatic as a completely different body (re:Riku). 

Why did we see him as Yozora then? As what he’s supposed to look like. Presumably because the battle takes place in a dream. Yozora tells Sora that “this isn’t the real world”. Sora was last seen stuck in the Final World, the realm of death, which we know crosses over to the realm of sleep. And of course, before the battle arena changes to Shibuya, it first changes to Sora’s Station of Awakening. Chirithy mentioned is Sora’s first visit to the Final World that he had accidentally visited it before through the Station of Awakening, confirming that the Stations can be used as a gateway between dreams and the afterlife. It make sense that in his dreams, that when connecting to Yozora’s heart, Yozora just looks like Yozora, like he’s supposed to. 

But all of this dances around the biggest questions here raised by two quotes: "Why are you using Sora’s name?” “I was told to save Sora”. Why attack Sora if he’s supposed to rescue him? Well, what similar situations do we have to work with in the series? Traditional combat is used to “save” someone when they’ve been taken control of by some outside person/force (Riku, Terra, Aqua, Ven, Xion, etc., etc., etc.) Could the same thing have happened to Sora? It would explain the first quote as well. Being taken control of often comes with a change in physical appearance. If Yozora had never seen Sora before the wording would be different in that quote. “Why are you using Sora’s name?” implies that Yozora knows what Sora’s supposed to look like, that this isn’t it. That his first assumption is “You’re not really Sora, you’re lying. Why are you stealing Sora’s name?” 

The other possibility is that there is a second person named Sora and that Yozora is confusing one for the other. That he knows A Sora but not OUR Sora. I find this unlikely though. First, from a meta perspective, I doubt the series would want to introduce a brand new character with the exact same name as the protagonist. Granted, this is Kingdom Hearts, and its no stranger to needlessly complicated plot points, but I feel like even they have to realize the marketing nightmare that that would be. Having two Ansems was bad enough, but two Soras would be a trip and a half. Secondly though, I feel like from a narrative perspective its the less interesting option. Where does that plot go? Well we figured out there’s another Sora and Yozora was confused because he thought the Sora we knew was the Sora he knew. Now there’s a second character name Sora and Yozora goes off to help them instead and maybe Sora helps too. The other though? That suggests that something happened to Sora. That someone took control of him, or possessed him, or perhaps will in the future. Perhaps Yozora was doing the right thing just at the wrong time. Someone trying to beat up Terra at the beginning of Birth by Sleep because they know he gets possessed but don’t realize he hasn’t already? Or perhaps he’s been lead to believe that Sora has been possessed when really he hasn’t. That has a lot more interesting places that can go. It also allows for Yozora to be in opposition to the player while still being a “good guy”. The two Soras theory could be true, but I feel like its much more straightforward, and has much less narrative potential, while also adding a lot of naming confusion to the series. All of that together makes it feel very unlikely to me. 

Another possibility that just occurred to me as well is that perhaps Yozora simply didn’t expect Sora to be able to retain his body. Most people when they travel to the Final World lose their from and appear merely as floating stars. Yet Sora’s managed to retain his body. Perhaps Yozora expected to find Sora in this state and was taken aback to find that had somehow retained his form. The fight is the only part that doesn’t quite fit with this theory. If he thinks Sora has lost his body and then finds out that he has, then why fight him? Why capture/freeze/crystalize him? Those actions make sense if he thinks Sora’s been taken over by someone or something else. But not so much if Sora is merely more alive then he expected him to be. 

But who told him to save Sora in the first place? After the arena changes to Shibuya he mentions having gone through some trials before being told to save Sora. We can surmise from the Secret Movie that the Master of Masters is also in Shibuya. Perhaps he was the one who appointed this task to Yozora? He mentioned “some trials” and we know that he had his body taken away from him. Perhaps Yozora was competing in some variant of the Reaper’s Game (assuming that Nomura is planning on crossing the streams more between Kingdom Hearts and TWEWY) and saving Sora was his final task? I feel like this part is just kinda grasping around. We have nothing solid to go on. 

So to recap what we can say for sure so far 

"He’s been changed beyond recognition-his heart replaced with another” - Nameless Star in reference to Yozora

Yozora is surprised both that Sora knows him and that he is able to recognize him as Yozora

Yozora arrived in Shibuya went through some sort of trials and then was told to save Sora

Yozora doesn’t recognize Sora to the point of doubting that he is who he says he is 

Yozora has likely never met Sora before (“You know me?” “Sure. I’ve heard of you.”) 

The Secret Episode is likely a shared dream between Yozora and Sora, and/or the two of them connecting to each other through their dreams (Sora’s surprise at being in one piece, Yozora being surprised that he looks like himself, the setting changing from The Final World to the Station of Awakening to Shibuya, the episode ending with us seeing Yozora waking up in the back seat of a car, the talk of dreams in the Limit Cut Episode immediately before)

The Secret Movie “Yozora” is a recurring dream that Riku’s been having (although he does not mention the presence of The Master)

How, exactly, all of these pieces fit together is the tricky part. This is all going much longer then I expected so I’m just gonna end this post here though. The other two portions will be shorter so I’ll probably put them together in another post. If you have any thoughts or theories feel free to let me know. I’ve been puzzling over all of this for days now and I’m sure I’ll still be a year from now XP

[madfictionland]

Master Xehanort - NOT a flawless mastermind!

I’m always having trouble to understand people in KH ‘discourse’. They have every right to hate the series for many different reasons, please be my guest, but they usually do it with this silly argument that it’s so damn lame and impossible for Master Xehanort to plan all of this and predict so many variables... But I’m like... he didn’t, really... so what’s your problem even...

Sure, Xehanort kind of takes the credit for everything that happened (in DDD) and makes it sound like everything went ‘according to plan,’ but I thought that’s just what villains do, you know? Despite some setbacks, especially *when their other splintered selfs still achieve results that ultimately lead to his final goals*, it is actually fair to claim the credit. In the end it turned out perfectly well and Master Xehanort learnt a big deal of things. And knowledge is extremely important in his line of business. In the end, he WAS too eager regarding creation of his own pure light and darkness which wasn’t the right way.

But it seems like people don’t even live in a logical world anymore (once they decided they don’t like the direction the series took) and they need everything explained by characters for some reason, like a lenghty lecture from Master Xehanort perhaps... with admission after admission about where his initial plans went wrong and how exactly (which is ludicrous to expect even).

Here is a quick look at things he DID NOT predict/planned for:

1. He never planned to be defeated by Aqua and for amnesia Terranort to be created.

2. He never planned for amnesia-esque (thus less efficient) Ansem and Xemnas.

3. He never planned for the exact timing of DDD meeting and his recompletion. His words about how ‘it’s been decided’ are to be taken with a grain of salt, naturally, since Nomura’s concept of time is tricky and *kind of* fixed (since it does happen... it’s ALL been decided already, apparently). And Master Xehanort himself, despite his ambitions and discoveries, seems to be a strong proponent of ‘fate’ which corresponds with that rule of time. He took interest in Ventus because he felt like it was destiny, after all, and there are more instances of such thinking behind Xehanort.

4. He never planned for Ansem and Xemnas to be defeated since he never planned for their creation in the first place.

Now, it doesn’t mean his plans begun and ended in BBS. BBS focuses exclusively on his ambitions and schemes sorrounding Ventus and Terra but there was clearly more behind the man. Including vast knowledge about the lore, nature of the world, hearts and darkness. He did study everything about a keyblade and keyblade war which is a messed-up subject in and of itself, with so many things unclear and hopefully to be explained in KH3. Pure light and darkness? X-blade shuttered into 20 pieces? 7 pure hearts? Hearts born from darkness? Keyblade War connected to Kingdom Hearts? Door to Darkness connected to Kingdom Hearts? Maybe they’re all just legends, hence so many different stories and unclear answers? or at least that’s an explanation they can go with, so it’ll make sense. In any case, all of them crucial info for Xehanort and something to keep in mind when scheming!

See... there are so many things that it’s actually hard to get your priorities straight. I actually know this feeling pretty well when it comes to personal life or fandom activities!

So what did he plan or what were his ideas, logically?

1. Whatever his destination... Norting other people along the way seemed like a great idea (the first experiment being Braig/Vanitas most likely). But what he wanted for his original self was a perfect young vessel such as Ven or Terra, a keyblade wielder.

2. Looking for ways to forge the x-blade/make Kingdom Hearts manifest itself he already learnt of the 20 pieces of it and 7 lights. Whether there is an actual utilization behind number 13... or maybe he thought it was edgy and cool which would be character-accurate if you ask me... the idea behind 13 versions of himself working in perfect unison towards their shared goal was easily hatched. If only the Nortification technike proved to be working... possibilities were endless.

3. Maleficent seemed like a perfect candidate to be set on a path towards 7 princesses. Something crucial and what could come in handy - regarding the Door to Darkness or even the x-blade.

4. He did know how to time travel so he certainly had such an option in mind and taking into account his established, natural curiosity with the world... and with extremes such as darkness/keyblade war... not surprising he would be willing to test it and utilize it. However, it required to abondon his body which he wasn’t going to do just yet. Plus: it would be a very experimental endevour and he had better things to do. (But do you know who did think it was a great idea and felt compelled to initiate it, despite his other ambitions? Ansem Seeker of Darkness, the most brazen and insane version of Xehanort. The premise was literally about gathering 13 “seekers” of darkness so makes sense considering his own strong obsessions.)

5. Knowing that he has many different things to explore (because he has barely even scratched the surface), other than his main goal... he probably did plan to split himself into a heartless and nobody, eventually. He never really got a chance to do it and have his two halfs cooperate in perfect union (which was clearly not the case with Ansem and Xemnas). We’re to assume that amnesia Xehanort, at some point, did remember this original idea of MX, and acted accordingly.

Master Xehanort was an explorer and ambitious darkness wielder. I’m sure there was no shortage of original ideas, pathways and new, potential plans. But in the end, he had Ventus and his main attention and hopes were to exploit him to forge the x-blade. In his eagerness, that’s what he put most of his energy into during BBS. He never really realized or even initiated most of those other plans and ideas. Well... at least not on his own...

But just as Young Xehanort’s heart led him to explore the outside world (which may actually be due to fixed ‘time paradox’) in the same way different versions of Xehanort felt compelled to put into motion different fragments of his plans and ideas. Destiny and fate, the strange feeling and exploration of the unknown and darkness, something that drives Xehanort forward, very similar to how Sora is guided by his heart and in contrast to it. His younger self captures it perfectly and even though his older self (+ other incarnations) act and maybe even feel like they are in control of everything they do to achieve their own goals... at their core they’re still guided by this basic premise:

Both the irony and fascinating factor behind Xehanort. Whenever he is delayed or his plans go not as planned... all these events may still contribute to the final outcome. In the end, he was destined to end up there. So in essence, all went according to plan and his ambitions continue to progress. All of this while the old man Xehanort, his ‘original’ self... sleeps in sort of limbo state.

Now what one needs to understand to even begin to comprehend what Nomura was going for here (which most people don’t care about and it’s actually understandable, all things considered) is that Xehanort exists across many different layers of self and even planes of existence/reality (as a force of darkness or a more spiritual force in his own and Terra’s body).

There is NO ONE PERFECT MASTERPLAN.

What we have here is basically:

- Xehanort’s plan put into motion in BBS - which failed to achieve his master goal (although he did Norted Braig and maybe Vanitas).

- Apprentice Xehanort does his research and formulates some of the plans and ambitions that are later passed on to Ansem Seeker of Darkness and Xemnas, along with Apprentice Xehanort’s history and sense of self (he is aided by Nort!Braig in hopes that Master Xehanort will eventually regain his complete memory and sense of self).

- Apprentice Xehanort - being Xehanort - gets obsessed with the darkness and hearts very quickly and achieves a certain mastery. Some of it may be his heart guiding him, despite amnesia. Some of it may be actual memories resurfacing. That leads to him being able to summon his keyblade and extract his heart, though his identity is still pretty twisted and memories incomplete (calls himself Ansem, just like he did in the reports). This twisted sense of self continues into Xemnas/Ansem.

- Ansem pursues his own ambitions and curiosity regarding Kingdom Hearts, Door to Darkness and Darkness. He makes good use of Maleficent (earlier set on a path by MX) and, recalling some of his original Destiny Island’s past, tries to posses Riku (similarities between the two are just too big and you can see why Ansem was so stubborn about Riku’s body).

- Xemnas aspires to become one with Kingdom Hearts of released hearts and achieve eternity, at his highest “tragic villain” moments being influenced by more humane aspects of Apprentice Xehanort and possibly Terra (”Unfortunately, I don’t remember joy”). But beyond that, he is still Xehanort and everything that the man entails, for the most part...

Most of Apprentice/Ansem/Xemnas’es plans, knowledge and ambitions came from MX’s memories that they were able to access OR - what’s more likely - they were simply influenced by them, at first unknowingly. Furthermore, at the peak of their power - especially Xemnas and Ansem - they may recall a great deal of their past and true purpose. But it doesn’t mean they cooperate in perfect unison - because they don’t really know everything, miss important pieces of the puzzle (like keyblade war, for example) and remain their unique, unstable beings, with their own share of drama and goals. Which is why they have self preservation insticts and desire to succeed at their own goals (that wouldn’t be the case if there wasn’t any amnesia factor involved... with their sense of self being 100% Xehanort). But EVEN THEN... there is a catch. They share Xehanort’s core feature - which is this compulsive instint to follow *fate* whenever it presents itself and explore the unknown without fear nor care for one’s safety. Plus, due to different factors, they are far less stable in the sanity department! THAT’S WHY:

- Driven by some of MX’s memories (Point 2 and 4 of MX’s ideas) Ansem explores time travel and meets his younger self whom he directs on the path towards 13 Seekers of Darkness, a ‘crazy’ fail-safe which is actually a part of fixed time paradox...

- Xemnas is actively working towards Nortification project which is the true main goal and premise behind the Organization and their many detours/experiments all along.

- After being visited by Young Xehanort (at some point prior to their respective failures) - they join him without hesitation and serve under the new organiztion and their recompleted self in the future. We are to assume that Young Xehanort (who observed everything through time travel) educated them, hence they know all about their failures and events they missed.

Now, all of those big plans happen simultaneously and, for the most part, independently from one another. It’s not a single master plan but when you have so many versions of yourself somewhere out there... the odds are really in your favor. And that’s not even thanks to Master Xehanort being an efficient mastermind villain (which he is only to some extent) but due to his enormous drive to pursue Kingdom Hearts and study the dark unknown around him. Which is true for all versions of Xenahort, especially those strongly associated with his original self and not influenced by 'lesser’ traits of vessel personas (Braig’s light attitude, for example, since, as a Nort, he is kind of impatient for the final destination but NOT curious enough to dedicate himself fully to all the research and detours).

So even if his BBS plan failed and main variables shift all the time - in the end Master Xehanort remains on top. Not thanks to him, really, but kind of thanks to him. And guess what? Once he returns and recomplates himself... he actually feels like he’s been doing all these things and he gets to keep all knowlegde gathered in the process. Despite setbacks, fate has clearly been in his favor and he emraces it.

Master Xehanort is NOT a perfect chess master, directly responsible for everything that’s happened in the world of KH. But he IS an efficient short-term strategist with many ideas (as we saw in BBS) who, despite his grand goal of becoming god-like, is both driven by and strongly intertwined with fate. Sure, there are many confusing elements to it and time travel in particular wasn’t explained too well, but all things considered - MX not being such a flawless mastermind is why I still love this villain!

[jcmorrigan]

Do you prefer the original Organization XIII or the new Organization/The Seekers of Darkness (or at least those we know so far)?

~~~PEOPLE WHO KNOW THE LEAKED KHIII SPOILERS DO NOT INTERACT~~~

Not really a fair question, since we DON’T know the identities of all of the True Organization yet (Is Aqua a Nort? Is she a Darkling?), and we’ve had all of the original Organization known for SEVERAL games now, so I’m naturally inclined to lean toward the original Organization if only because I know ‘em all and what their deals were (for the most part…there may be a whole Strelitzia thing in the works that reframes everything). 

Also, the two rosters are incredibly similar, with only a few swaps out here and there. Those swaps are important, though, and I’m going to touch on that.

I will say the biggest thing the True Organization has going for it is that Ansem is part of it. Ansem is a fantastic and threatening baddie, and his presence, as well as that of the Master himself, elevates this group up from Xemnas’ band of mistakes. (Like, seriously, if you consider the grand Xehanort plan, the original XIII were kind of just a big screw-up that Xemnas got wrong the first time until Master Xehanort stepped in and went HOW COULD YOU GET THIS WRONG? YOU LITERALLY TOLD YOURSELF HOW TO DO IT. THAT’S IT. I’M TAKING YOUR PEOPLE, ADDING MY OWN, AND MAKING THIS LEGITIMATE.) But…that comes with its own set of baggage as well.

And I will say…there was once a time I thought I would never come around to liking Organization XIII as a band of characters again. I used to be knee-deep in the fandom just devoted to them, and I did…things. Horrible things. Things I won’t speak of in public. I renounced what I had done and swore “never again.” But as time passed, I was able to come at the Organization with a more mature perspective (I won’t say COMPLETELY mature; I’ll say MORE mature) and appreciate them through the lens of having some more fandom experience and more experience loving villains in general.

All that being said, I have to give it to the original Organization: Xemnas’ band of screw-ups. And here’s why:

-Xaldin. This is probably the most important factor. Now, I’m no huge screaming fan of Xaldin or anything. He’s not my favorite. But I do LIKE Xaldin a lot. And Xaldin is one of the most important Organization members when it comes to actual manipulation of the worlds. He and Luxord caused the most damage that wasn’t confined to Castle Oblivion, and with Xaldin, it’s poignant because he flat-out used manipulation and bargaining to string the Beast along. It’s IMPRESSIVE. And everything pointed to his character being nasty and rotten without anything redeeming to him. Everything in II depicted him as a ruthless manipulator, and though we were supposed to think he had no heart at the time, it still looked like he was having FUN. (But guess what! Thanks to the Nort heart, HE ACTUALLY WAS HAVING FUN!) Beyond that, 358/2 Days continued down this path, painting him as a terrible mentor who had no patience with Roxas (”NO BREAKS”) and spent his days stalking and scheming. That they should bring back almost everyone else for the True Org EXCEPT one of their meanest and toughest is a shame. 

-While I do like Ienzo and Aeleus better as heroes, the original lineup meant I did get to enjoy them alongside the others in the group. And unlike Xaldin, you could make arguments that both of them had more sympathy - Zexion may have played Riku like a fiddle in CoM, but he also had those seemingly throwaway lines about the Organization coming apart and how much of a shame it was. Lexaeus had almost nothing to go on, so I could buy literally any character development on him.

-As for the outright good people, the original lineup had the ever-important Axel, Roxas, and Xion. No, it wasn’t good for them to be trapped there, but it still meant I could enjoy their struggles and their friendships in the context of “Wait…we work for the BAD guys, don’t we?” and their relationships to said bad guys, who are their ROOMMATES. Xion is one of my favorite KH characters to this DAY. Yes, she may be returning as of that recent trailer, but that’s not confirmed, and furthermore, we don’t know if she’s there of her own free will or if this is some kind of brainwash. Leading to…

-When the original lineup had good people trapped in it, they were manipulated. Roxas and Xion thought they were with the right people because it was all they ever knew. These people raised them from their conception as beings that existed. Axel started out as rotten as the rest, then had his perspective flipped by Sora and Roxas’ influence and realized he no longer fit into the cutthroat crowd. The True Org has at least one good person (Terra) and maybe more (Aqua?), but in both those cases, they’re not there out of a poetic reason like that. They’re there because they’ve been straight-up brainwashed and had different hearts stuffed into them. There’s no free will involved, which doesn’t make for as interesting of a story to me. (…This is a theme with me, I’m realizing, because I’m now recalling the parallel to my frustration with the brainwashing in DanganRonpa…)

-In the original lineup, Marluxia and Larxene were definite traitors to the rest, which made them unique and gave them an interesting subplot. Now at least one of them (Larxene) has fallen in line to work for Xehanort and doesn’t seem like she’s about to turn traitor last minute.

-Braig is a double-edged sword. On one hand, one of the things that makes him GREAT is his endurance, from II to BBS to DDD and into III. We got to see him evolve from just another minion to…there’s a reason WHY he’s ranked II. He’s one of Xehanort’s oldest confidantes and maybe even has his own plans on the side. He wouldn’t be the great character he is now if we DIDN’T have his Nortified journey. However…all the same, when he does appear in DDD and his speech patterns are modified to reflect Xehanort’s because of the heart taking over, it kind of feels tragic. He’s less of a free spirit and you can hear it in the way he talks - maybe he still seems to be happy with himself on the surface, but there’s something off about the guy who used to talk like a surfer dude now becoming loquacious as they come. 

-And Ansem? Actually better when he WASN’T tied to ANY Organization. Ansem is a powerhouse who destroys worlds. His fascination with the Darkness is almost deviant from the rest of the Norts - they focus on forging the x-blade while Ansem wishes to link the worlds to Darkness. I actually just have such a hard time picturing him blending into any GROUP. Which I’m sure will be rectified when I see it in practice, but as cool as it is that he’s now part of the big bad group, that’s actually a point against.

III could change my mind entirely, but for now, I’m nostalgic for the old Organization. Though, to be fair, Vexen is in both rosters, and he’s the one who matters most to me, so I can’t complain too much.

[dewprisms]

ok so, it’s been a day, i think i’m ready to collect my thoughts on KH3

where to begin....the plot I guess?

So what....even happened. like, Xehanort seems to have done a change on why he’s doing all this, but i’ve seen examples that it’s not far-fetched but idk it just seems like poor writing if “i love darkness” xehanort was really trying to bring back the light...there’s stuff that never got explained with so many characters too so i’ll just

sora: him hiding his pain was always implied but a lot of people really are too dumb to realize that and called him OoC in this game, like Coded and DDD were leading up to all this. I joked that he died but then it turns out he really did fucking die. and then he died again to bring back kairi. and now he’s in shibuya??? do i gotta play twewy now cause i dont care about that game

riku: why did they not let him interact with kairi. why. their relationship got shafted hard. its like, are they even really friends anyway? or just with sora? the soriku in this game was strong af despite being the one where sokai was made canon

kairi: GOD WHERE DO I BEGIN Kairi I’m so fucking sorry Nomura did all this shit to you. Hype you up with keyblade training. helping with the final battle. then what happened? needing rescue, everyone getting hurt because you need saving. getting your ass beat by xion (at least in my game, jfc she died faster than donald ever did), getting kidnapped immediately after, again. then GETTING KILLED BY XEHANORT SO SORA CAN HAVE HIS MAN PAIN then having Sora die so he could bring Kairi back so she can cry about being lonely. why the FUCK isn’t she the one looking for him, why are they having Riku do it? why does nomura fucking hate her. she deserves better than this. i’ll never be over this even if Kairi gets redeemed in every subsequent game. they fucked up real bad with her and I’m so fucking pissed off.

roxas: my boy. where is the convo about him and ven. we just saw them notice each other but no words exchanged. this is the guy who’s been having an identity crisis since he was born. and nothing at all? come on.

xion: my girl her new outfit is so gosh darn  f r e s h like damn son. but, why is she back? why was she with the orgxiii? how did they even get her when she was inside sora’s heart???

lea: i still dont like him. he kidnapped kairi and hurt her friends and he makes kairi call him axel, the name he had when he did all that, so he could project his faded memories of xion onto her. he was abusive to xion and roxas, i knew they were gonna reunite because they’re friends but he NEEDS to apologize for what he did to them, the constant lying, attacking xion because she ran away from her abusive situation because he didn’t want to be lonely, and the writers turned his threat into a heartwarming scene? no fuck that. everyone forgave him for everything far too easily.

isa: APOLOGIZE TO ROXAS AND XION TOO YOU FUCK. especially xion. now he’s suddenly friends with them? fuck that. he needs to make up for how he treated them.

x: it would’ve been great if they had brought her up in days, it just comes so out of left field that isa and lea were trying to find and save some girl who’s name they dont even know. why the fuck is Skuld even in the present, cause that’s likely who she is. more forced ties to the money hungry gacha game i can’t bear myself to leave.

ven: my son, i have nothing bad to say about him

terra: my son, i’m surprised the guardian = terra’s heartless theory was true, and like damn, he got messed up so bad his heart, body AND soul/mind got split? but, where was his interactions with riku. he did bequeath his keyblade to him. but nothing is said between them, they don’t even interact outside of a small race in the ending.

aqua: why do people say they wrote her bad? i mean yeah she just immediately gave up against the heartless swarm instead of fighting it but she was trapped in the realm of darkness and taken over by the darkness for 10 years like just a few hours before hand.....she still got off pretty good in the end.

namine: i swear i was worried they forgot about her, she helped LW find terranort which brought terra back, and she came back. that ending? she and xion are def dating.

replica riku: replinami is fucking canon i dont care what you say. im still sad, he could’ve had the replica body anyway, it was implied there were many more, and even could’ve just made more. roxas and ven, and kairi/namine/xion can exist despite being identical, why can’t he and riku?

demyx: what the hell even happened to him? he dropped off the replica body and ansem the wise then disappeared from the rest of the game. we legit have no clue what happened to him. all we know is that he got benched from the nort 13, then xemnas confirmed he was also a keykid in the age of fairytales, but even khux hasn’t revealed that yet, larxene just got revealed like 2 months ago. i feel like him being revealed as a keykid should have jossed the theory of him being the master of masters but people still going at it. then again....(far below)

luxord: also a keykid even though he looks too old (prob the beard), his characterization seems to be in line with days, how he resigned to his fate that he was just gonna serve the org til the end because he had nothing left. also what the hell was that “wild card” he gave to sora, it never got brought up again.

marluxia: he also forgot his past like them all too, only remembering when sora beat him. i’m guessing he’ll never find strelitzia, she was in the final world too so she’s def dead. although namine was there too.....

larxene: god i love this absolute bitch. saying “ugh xemnas” to his face is such bad bitch energy. all of her scenes were so good. she only went along because of marluxia though....and yet neither of them remembered their past as keykids but stuck together anyway. they’re canon hush.

ienzo: what a good boy. he’s really trying hard to atone.

vexen: i’ll admit i didn’t trust him, but he was sincere in wanting to repent.

aeleus/dilan: lmao the former got like 1 line and the latter got like 1 grunt and nothing else. they were just kinda there. weird considering what Xaldin was like in 2/days.

ansem sod: uh.....what was with the attempted redemption in his defeat, literally nothing ever implied he was wanting to quit because he suddenly always knew they would fail

xemnas: same as ansem, literally nothing implied he was sad over being lonely because nobody actually liked him or his authority

young xehanort: imagined getting burned by freakin woody of all people. also what was his deal. he’s like the only one who didn’t get some kind of sad or redeeming cutscene. and he was the one who implied sora would die if he abused the power of waking outta nowhere. idk, something about him seemed off compared to like. every other nort.

donald and goofy: donald straight up decimated Terranort in the first/failure timeline, like dude literally died from zettaflare

Mickey: I wish he had died instead of Kairi :/ just because she was already being treated like shit

Eraqus: He apologized to Aqua and Ven but not Terra :/ at least he’s with his boyfriend in the afterlife

Xehanort: All the fights were easy as shit and the finale was anticlimatic. I actually like him less because of the fucking Kairi bullshit. Also his new VA just doesn’t work. He suddenly has an accent, his voice is nowhere near as deep and he lacks emotion in most of his lines. And people thought Terra and Aqua’s voices were emotionless? At least Xehaqus is canon ig

braig/xigbar/luxu’s getting his own post

[nadziejastar]

Theory on Subject X and Saïx’s Berserk State

“Rejoice, Naminé. Soon you’ll meet the hero you’ve been longing for.”

Naminé’s shoulders tensed when he said her name. She didn’t look up when she spoke, her voice tiny and faint. “I’m…glad.”

I think the real meaning of “358/2 Days” was supposed to refer to the fact that Axel was reliving his past for the entire year. I’ve written before about how I think Isa originally awakened his berserk state not because he was filled with darkness, but because he wanted to protect Lea. And I want to go into more detail about that. I found it interesting that in the manga, right after Axel disappeared, Saïx felt like tormenting Kairi in her cell. He used a line similar to Marluxia about Naminé waiting for her hero. 

“A heart? I have a heart? No one wants your nonsense!” Saïx raised his sword over Naminé—but Riku was there with Soul Eater to intercept the blow.

“Hmph. I don’t have time for these games.” Darkness welled from a rift behind Saïx. “Run along and help your dear hero.”

During the battle for Destiny Islands, Saïx said that Riku couldn’t protect anything using darkness. Then he said to go help your “dear hero”, referring to Axel.

“Why would caring about something be a weakness?” Xion asked, baffled.

Roxas lowered his head. “I don’t know. I didn’t get it, either.”

I’m not the only one surrounded by things I can’t understand, Xion thought. Axel would explain it, though…

“I hope Axel comes back soon,” said Roxas.

She nodded. They would have so many things to ask him.

I think Isa was used as bait before. And that’s why it was mentioned that Axel would know what it meant to have something you care about be a weakness.

Roxas dallied anyway, peering through the doors again. The rose, the thing he treasures, is his weakness?

Nope, I don’t get it.

I wonder if Axel will know what it all means…?

It’s mentioned more than once, too. On Day 119, and Day 150.

“What are you going to do with us?” she demanded.

Saïx narrowed his eyes. “You are the fire that feeds Sora’s anger.”

That was all he said. And then he vanished again.

“I have to do something…,” Kairi murmured. “Sora’s in danger because of me…”

Saïx seemed to have very personal contempt for Kairi. And here’s a good example of why I just cannot accept that Saïx gets to play on the beach and eat ice cream with everyone in the epilogue, instead of Isa. He tortured Kairi, lol. They really weren’t trying to pull any punches with his characterization. Sora was not even there to witness it, so there really was no reason for him to do this other than to vent his feelings and take his anger out on her.

The Beast had a ferociously strong heart—its strength of will alone had taken him to Hollow Bastion to save one of the princesses, Belle.

“Looks strong,” Axel remarked from behind them.

“Yeah. He is,” Riku said, sinking into thought.

His heart is even stronger than his body. It’s exactly the kind of heart the organization wants…

“But someone that strong won’t just do whatever the organization says,” Naminé murmured.

“Well, this is their chance to show how persuasive they can be,” Axel said with a bitter smirk.

Even in KH2, they implied that Axel knew how “persuasive” the organization could be at getting people to do things they didn’t want to do.

Day 171: The No. i Project

Author: Saïx

Xion failed to complete its mission. If this continues, destroying it and using the next Replica as the Duplicate would undoubtedly yield a higher-grade copy. No. i was among the initial lot, which naturally raises questions about its capabilities. At present, it is nothing short of broken. I cannot fathom why Xemnas would want to keep it.

I think there was a similar situation where Isa was trying to protect Lea who wanted to rescue him. Lea was in danger because of Isa, so Isa was full of conviction, like Kairi. He went berserk, and used up every bit of his strength. I think that the Beast was meant to parallel Isa’s backstory as well as Lea’s. You can see even more clearly in the manga that the Beast went berserk trying to protect Belle. But he felt like he failed.

Saïx sounded vaguely disgusted. “What do you care for a broken, defective failure?”

Isa probably collapsed like Xion and the Beast did. I definitely think that the ordeal caused Isa to be in a state where he lost his sense of self, and he became zombie-like, similar to Roxas during his first week. And that’s when he was Norted. Saïx would have no memory of this happening. Xemnas and Xigbar do, which is why they are amused by his obliviousness.

Day 174: Just a Replica

Author: Saïx

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

A few days later, Xion was asleep but still functioning and copying. Saïx still thought she was broken and didn’t know why Xemnas wanted to keep her. And Xemnas gave Saïx a creepy smile. Day 174 is called “Action, Reaction”. That is another name for Newton’s third law. “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”. Whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second object exerts a force back on the first object. The force exerted by the second object is equal in strength and in the opposite direction to the first force.

Roxas: Look, I'm just saying. All I saw in the hole they dug was a wooden chest full of junk.

Axel: And the Heartless were in the chest?

Roxas: I dunno. I think maybe something else is causing them to show up.

Axel: Like?

Roxas: Didn't something seem kind of off to you about the guy in red?

Axel: Off? Off how?

The mission on Day 174 was in Neverland. Roxas learned how to fly because he believed, and Hook was drawing the Heartless to himself due to his greed. The same concept is brought up when Axel came here with Roxas later, too. 

Saïx: So, you really do care for her. In that case...the answer is no.

Sora: You rotten...!

Saïx: Are you angry? Do you hate me? Then take that rage, and direct it at the Heartless.

It’s similar to the relationship between Roxas and Xion. And actually the experiments that Young Xehanort was conducting on Andy’s toys, too. He was “testing the strength of their bond”. I bet there was a similar situation between Lea and Isa’s hearts. In the manga, Axel knew that Hook was drawing the Heartless to him and convinced him to throw away the treasure (to save Peter Pan, surprisingly). And a comparison was made to Axel having something he was afraid to lose. I think the apprentices were using Isa to draw the darkness out of Lea or something. Instead of greed like Hook, it would be rage and hatred.

“Sora or Xion—it matters not. But we need one of them under our control. Bear that in mind.”

Saïx nodded, and a serene smile came to Xemnas’s face.

If that smile meant anything, it was beyond him.

Xemnas gave Saïx a creepy when he was asked about the memory devices. Saïx was wondering what Xemnas’s true agenda was for placing them.

“Sora has a pretty powerful effect on her,” said Xigbar, pensively stroking his chin.

“Both of them have connections to Sora, but we only need one of them under our thumb,” Xemnas replied. “Whether Xion takes from Roxas the rest of what he has to give…or whether he destroys her first and takes back what is his, there is no change to our plans. No matter how, Sora’s power will belong to us.”

“Understood.” Xemnas disappeared nearly before he heard his order acknowledged.

“Don’t let us down now, kiddo. Shouldn’t be too much trouble without a heart,” Xigbar told Saïx.

Same thing here. Xemnas asked if the devices were ready, he reminded Saïx that they only needed one of them, and Xigbar made a weird comment about Saïx being a kid without a heart. Xemnas and Xigbar seemed to take pleasure in reminding Saïx that they only needed one. Lea and Isa apparently had some kind of reciprocal effect on each other, like Roxas and Xion did.

A memory. My first memory. Saïx took me by the hand and brought me out of Castle Oblivion. “This is the last you’ll see of these walls… Xion.” Yes, I remember what he said to me. And I remember where I was. Castle Oblivion.

Day 224 is called “Anomaly”. Both Xion and Naminé are called anomalies. 

Subject's memories have not returned, and our conversations remain less than lucid.

Subject X was also a unique subject who didn’t collapse like all the others. On this day, Xion remembered that she was taken from Castle Oblivion by Saïx. 

Hayner: We can't be together forever... so we'd better make the time we do have something to remember.

Axel suggested going to the beach, which was a sign that he knew something bad was coming.

Secret Report 1: Recollections

Secret Report 1 is obtained after clearing Battlegate 1 at Olympus: Realm of the Gods / Courtyard.

Am I alive? I awoke in a cell, alone until the researchers came with their tests and their prodding to uncover my identity. I had no answer to offer them. Four friends, and a key…that is the sum total of my memory. I could not even recall my name. I was simply called “X” there. My only solace was the time I spent talking with the two boys who would visit from time to time. One day, a man came to take me from the prison. I could not see him for the darkness, save that he wore an eyepatch.

Subject X was taken somewhere by Braig/Xigbar, like Xion was by Saïx. This report is located at Olympus. Perhaps the Realm of the Gods was drawing an allusion to the Final World, which is where people exist between life and death. Isa was sent there after going berserk. 

Ansem's Report 2

The experiments caused the test subject's heart to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle. Some time later, I went below and was greeted by the strangest sight. Creatures that seemed born of darkness...What are they? Are they truly sentient beings? Could they be the shadows of those who lost their hearts in my experiments?

Ordinarily the subject’s heart would collapse and they’d become a Heartless. But Lea believed in Isa so he was the only subject whose heart didn’t. It’s “action, reaction” at work. Lea’s heart had an effect on Isa’s heart, and vice versa. Isa was an anomaly and then became a highly valued specimen by Xehanort.

Demyx: Hey, even us Nobodies need our rest, right? Exhaustion kills!

Saïx: I’m sending you with Demyx today. Try to inspire in him a little of your work ethic.  

Demyx: Heartless duty again today? I keep telling them I’m not cut out for this stuff…

The recurring theme at Olympus Coliseum was that Demyx wasn’t cut out for fighting, and that nobody expected much from him. Day 224 was no different. The mission took place at Olympus Coliseum and Saïx wanted Demyx to go with Roxas to make increase his work ethic. Phil said this was the “big day” where Roxas could finally compete in the Games and Demyx slacked off.

Demyx: Right!? And what a shocker to find out Xigbar was the other finalist! What’s up with that… I can’t imagine he was here on a mission. You never can tell what that guy is thinking…

Roxas: Maybe he just wanted an excuse to fight me… To test me.

Demyx: No way, man! I wouldn’t read into it too deep. Besides, the mission’s over, right? All’s well that ends well, man!

Roxas: I…guess so, but…

The most noteworthy part of the mission was that Xigbar was the finalist; he wanted to test Roxas. I think Xigbar was also tasked with testing Isa after he recovered from the initial incident. 

Roxas: So people work you harder when they have expectations? The Organization expects me to do hard missions all the time. Aren't expectations the same thing as orders?

After he went berserk, they probably thought he had much more fighting potential than they originally thought, and pushed him harder. Isa was left in a bad state afterwards. Not long after, Ansem the Wise discovered what was going on. He took Isa, hid him away, and released the remaining subjects.

Secret Report 3: Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 1

Subject was found in the central square shortly after dawn. Female, approximately fifteen years old. After seven days’ observation, she spoke her first words, but could not provide a name. Subject exhibits signs of profound amnesia, and displays concern for which world this is. Her words suggest that she departed her home world with others, though she cannot recall the names of her erstwhile companions. All efforts to explore those memories have met with a rejection response.

After his initial experiments on me, Ansem the Wise ceased his research into the heart, his hand stayed by some fear I cannot fathom. Yet this new subject is like me: devoid of memories. She is the perfect sample upon which to continue my master's work. She, too, could benefit from it; by traversing the heart, we have a direct path into memory. I myself have begun to reclaim my lost past thanks to these very experiments.Who is she? Whence has she come? These are questions no scientist could ignore.

In the manga, Saïx was in a bad mood after learning that Xion and Demyx had been using his computer. He went into his berserk state and tested Demyx when he was slacking. Roxas was upset that he’d use force on a comrade, but Saïx said anyone who obstructed their goal was expendable, even organization members. Roxas didn’t quite understand what he meant, but it seemed like he was speaking from personal experience. This is the only time Saïx’s berserk state gets featured like this in the Days manga, so I tend to think that it was related to his backstory.

“Get up.”

“Just five more minutes…,” Axel mumbled.

“No. Get up—now.” The voice was distinctly annoyed.

Axel relented and opened his eyes. “What are you even doing in here?”

Saïx was standing next to his bed, as irritated as one might have guessed from his voice. Axel hadn’t been so rudely awakened since before turning into a Nobody.

“Xion ran away.”

In the manga, this whole scene with Saïx at Olympus Coliseum was on Day 255 while Axel was looking for Xion. It was immediately prior to Axel arriving on the clock tower and telling Roxas why the sunset was red. Then lying to him about Xion’s disappearance. The novel seemed to be drawing a connection to Axel’s past on Day 255. He mentioned that he hasn’t been rudely awakened like that since becoming a Nobody. And it just so happens that Subject X was discovered shortly after dawn. 

Every time he tried to wake up, all Axel could think was how badly he wanted to go back to sleep—although he was getting enough rest.

He just wished he could have a day to himself and do nothing but sleep. It was probably some remnant of his human memories.

I’m sure that Lea had sleeping issues ever since he was kidnapped and experimented on, but they probably got even worse when Isa went missing. Axel was thinking this after he took Roxas to Castle Oblivion.

Day 276: Behind the Truth

Author: Axel

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

Day 276 was a pretty important day. This is when Axel reluctantly suggests that they go looking for Xion.

Secret Report 4: Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 2

My pilot studies used a handful of subjects, but none possessed the fortitude to endure them. Ultimately, all suffered mental collapse. I knew it would be a heavy blow to lose a subject as unique as she. Upon discovering the tests I’ve been conducting, my master demanded that I cease my work immediately and destroy what research I have compiled. Worse still, he ordered the release of my remaining subjects. She is gone. Where is Subject X now? Has “wise” Master Ansem hidden her away?

There really are uncanny similarities between Subject X’s story and the story of 358/2 Days. Xion was gone, Subject X was gone. Roxas and Xion are unique, and Subject X was unique. I think Axel also went to look for Subject X. Because Subject X was Isa.

[nadziejastar]

What would your ideal resolution for how the Lea/Isa subplot would’ve been handled in KH3?

If it were up to you, how would you have written the subplot between Axel/Lea and Saïx/Isa?

I know you probably have a LOT of questions like this, but how would you give a proper redemption and healing to Lea?

I went into more detail about how I think Isa’s story was originally going to be here, more about him being Subject X here, and about his redemption and post KH3 characterization here. Basically, I think Lea needed to use the power of waking on him, and fight his shadow self, like we did with Aqua.

I think Isa was a lot like Terra originally. He didn’t really need to be redeemed since he was never a bad guy. There was not even any time to give Isa a redemption arc, so I have to think that he was originally supposed to be just an innocent victim, like Terra was. He only needed to be rescued, then go back to being his true self. Then he can join the good guys in the epilogue no problem. In addition to those posts, there’s one more theory I have regarding the experiment where the apprentices lost their heart.

Eraqus: You must know, I care for you like my own son. If I could have my way, I would name you Master in a second.

Eraqus: But, how can I, when you are so obsessed with power? Terra, you mustn’t be afraid of losing. Fear leads to obsession with power, and obsession beckons the darkness.

Eraqus: You must never forget.

Terra: Thank you, Master. I swear…I will not fail you again.

Terra’s weakness was his obsession with power. Xehanort exploited this. However it was really more about his fear than about his desire for power. Fear of losing was really his fear of disappointing his master and thus losing his approval. This was why Terra wanted to be strong so badly. He had a fear of losing Eraqus’ approval and subsequently, his love. He tied his love with his approval. Eraqus told Terra to stop being afraid, but he didn’t realize he was the cause of Terra’s fears.

Xehanort: You see how powerless you are to save them? Savor that rage and despair. Let it empower you!

Terra: You will pay, Xehanort! Was my Master–no, my father, Eraqus not enough for you? Leave my friends alone!

And this is what made Terra succumb to darkness. Xehanort was able to turn Terra and Eraqus against each other due to Terra doubting Eraqus’ love. His mistake was giving Terra too much power to fight back. Darkness born of hatred and rage can make the person mentally strong—a bit too strong.

Xehanort: Your body submits, your heart succumbs–so why does your mind resist?

Terra was completely self-aware when he was possessed. He constantly fought back and it created a constant power struggle. The Lingering Will was his mind fighting back. Xehanort learned his lesson. He needed to create darkness born of absolute fear, despair, pain, and powerlessness. This would totally shatter the person’s psyche. After such trauma, their sense of self is entirely gone. He no longer has to put up with all the resistance of the mind.

Xigbar: No. That wasn’t “stuff,” it was a dream. The falling asleep part was definitely our bad. But we can’t put stuff in your head. Hey, I got an idea. Ask your heart. See if it’s got a clue.

Sora: Well…my heart was aching. That’s why I kept going.

Xigbar: Oh… Thank you, Sora’s heart, for pushing him right into our clutches. Aren’t hearts great? Steer us wrong every time.

They were trying to get Sora to experience so much pain that he mentally/spiritually shatters and goes to sleep. They know his heart is so powerful it won’t collapse. This is why he made such an appealing target for a vessel.

Xemnas: It’s about time you noticed. Indeed. A heart is never lost for good. There may have been variances in our dispositions, but a number of us unquestionably showed signs of a burgeoning replacement. Once born, the heart can also be nurtured. Our experiments creating Heartless were attempts to control the mind, and convince it to renounce its sense of self. But understand, one can banish the heart from the body, but the body will try to replace it the first chance it gets, for as many times as it takes. And so I knew, even after we were divided into Heartless and Nobodies, it was just a temporary separation.

He can’t get rid of the heart entirely. But he also can’t have the person putting up as much resistance as Terra did. So he decides that shattering their mind/soul is the only way to go.

It is my duty to expose what this darkness really is. I shall conduct the following experiments:

-Extract the darkness from a person’s heart.-Cultivate darkness in a pure heart.-Both suppress and amplify the darkness within.

So Xehanort conducted the mind control experiments.

Naminé: Sora will have to awaken these memories, but this is where they will sleep until that time comes. They are important…and yet, dangerous too.

Mickey: Namine, how are they dangerous?

Naminé: These memories, all of them are too painful. Handled the wrong way, they could damage Sora’s heart, even break it. That’s why I needed for Sora to find a way to face that kind of hurt. So I left the message for all of you.

Of course, this is risky. Too much pain causes the heart to break along with the mind.

The experiments caused the test subject’s heart to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle.

And this is exactly what happened to Ven and everyone else during the experiments.

Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 2

Subject’s memories have not returned, and our conversations remain less than lucid. My pilot studies used a handful of subjects, but none possessed the fortitude to endure them. Ultimately, all suffered the collapse of their hearts. I knew it would be a heavy blow to lose a subject as unique as him. Upon discovering the tests I’ve been conducting, my master demanded that I cease my work immediately and destroy what research I have compiled. Worse still, he ordered the release of my remaining subjects. He is gone. Where is Subject X now? Has “wise” Master Ansem hidden him away? Whatever the case, I will not be deterred. —Xehanort

All except one person. Subject X, who I think was originally Isa.

Xaldin: Our work here is done, Roxas. The beast’s weakness is clear.

Roxas: It is?

Xaldin: To hold something dear is to let it hold you. His heart is in thrall to it, don’t you see? And that, Roxas, is ample weakness.

Roxas: I’m not sure I follow.

Xaldin: Nor should you. You have no heart to love with. Come. We return.

His heart survived because he had such a strong connection to someone. Lea.

Axel: You’ve got memories from here in the Organization, right?

Roxas: Yeah… I do, don’t I? I couldn’t bear to lose my memories of you or Xion.

Axel: Well, see? There ya go. Everybody’s got something they want to hang on to.

Roxas: It’s scary to think I could lose you guys.

Lea kept him going in the darkness, but Isa was afraid of losing him. And I think Xehanort was able to exploit this fear.

Roxas: That still doesn’t explain what love is… Is love fighting to protect what’s most important to you? Where does its power come from?

Beast: Belle… I couldn’t bear to see you…or the other’s hurt. A master protects his castle… I don’t want to lose you.

Belle: I’m right here…

He couldn’t bear losing Lea. It was his weakness. And unlike with Terra, Isa was not a prospective Keyblade master. He was in a situation where he was completely helpless and unable to fight back.

Roxas: So he wasn’t fighting to protect the rose. He was protecting the people in the castle. Protecting her. She’s what matters most to him. But…Xaldin said it was the rose.

I think Lea and Isa felt the same way about wanting to protect each other. They were each others’ weakness. By threatening Lea, they could cause Isa a lot of pain.

Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 1

Subject was found in the castle basement shortly after dawn. Male, approximately fifteen years old. After seven days’ observation, he spoke his first words, but could not provide a name. Subject exhibits signs of profound amnesia. What fragments can be gleaned suggest that he arrived with another, though he cannot recall the name of his erstwhile companion. All efforts to explore those memories have met with a rejection response.

Isa was badly traumatized by something after he was taken by Braig out of the cell. I think they threatened to hurt Lea. And I think Isa had a mental breakdown, causing him to lose his self-awareness, allowing Xehanort to implant his heart in him. Then I think Ansem found him. He still remembered his friend, though he couldn’t remember his name. I think it’s because he desperately wanted to protect him.

Roxas: It’s not like I have memories from before the Organization. Don’t you remember? I acted like a zombie.

Axel: Right, that first week you could barely form a sentence. But come on, you’re still kind of a zombie.

I think he would have been in a similar state that Roxas was in at the beginning of Days. No self-awareness. Can’t remember anything or talk lucidly. He was a total zombie. But he was not totally broken. After a week of Axel showing him kindness, he came around and started acting like a normal person again. Just like how Terra and Aqua were able to get Ven to come around after they spent enough time with him and showed him love and kindness.

Recollections

Am I alive? I awoke in a cell, alone until the researcher came and asked me countless questions to uncover my identity. I had no answer to offer him. A friend…that is the sum total of my memory. I could not even recall my name. I was simply called “X” there. One day, a man came to take me from the prison. I could not see him for the darkness, save that he wore an eyepatch. Even now, I feel no closer to understanding who I am. —Unknown

I think Isa was similar. He had Xehanort’s heart and mind inside of him, but the process of being taken over is gradual. So he was still himself when Ansem the Wise helped him become lucid and started his memory experiments on him.

There is no doubt that the Heartless are deeply connected to the people’s hearts. Further study may unravel both their motivations and the mysteries shrouding the heart. As a start, I have built a device that artificially creates Heartless. By recreating the conditions that spawn the Heartless naturally, I should be able to produce them artificially. This device is the culmination of all my research thus far. The machine’s test run successfully created a Heartless. This may be a step toward creating a heart from nothing. The artificially and naturally created Heartless showed nearly identical traits. But the two types remain distinct for the purpose of the experiment. So, I will mark the ones that are created artificially.

While all this was going on, Xehanort created a machine that creates Heartless. This would be the Heartless Manufactory, where we see Leon fight in KH2.

What are the details of Ansem’s apprentices fall into darkness?Most of what had happened with Ansem’s apprentices before their fall into darkness is unknown, aside from what was touched upon in Secret Ansem Reports. And the mystery of “the plan that was decided on after Axel and Saix entered the Organization” that was talked about in the Secret Reports in Days still remains. According to Nomura there is still much about the Organization’s humans that has yet to be said.

The Heartless Manufactory is right next to the lab and the computer, the D.T.D. There was an experiment taking place, and Ienzo and Even lost their heart. Braig was confused when he had his stolen.

Cid: Talk about yer good timin’!

Yuffie: The MCP is wreaking havoc inside the computer.

Donald: Not again!

Cid: Accordin’ to Leon, anyway… He went on over to Ansem’s study to find out what all the ruckus was about. Turns out the MCP is using the data in that computer to crank out Heartless.

The computer is connected to the Datascape and Tron’s world. You have to be standing in that area to be transported. Leon yelled at Sora to run because he was standing there. It was also responsible for creating all the Heartless surrounding the castle.

Tron: A computer system—for processing data. This system is a copy of one created by a corporation called ENCOM. The original program was destroyed. But this copy was acquired by another User. The new User updated and customized the programs, renaming the system “Hollow Bastion OS.” He used the system for town maintenance, and to advance his private research.

Xehanort planned all of this in advance. He changed Ansem’s original program and renamed it “Hollow Bastion”. He wanted to plunge Radiant Garden into darkness.

Watching that foolish beast flail about only deepens my disdain for humans and their incessant need to be pinned down by feelings. We became Nobodies precisely to avoid the shackles of emotion. It was only later that we realized the scale of that loss: that some things simply cannot be done without a heart. Nonetheless, I see nary a pleasant thing about it.

Braig was shocked when Xehanort stole his heart, but Xaldin never acts like becoming a Nobody was unexpected. He said they chose to become Nobodies.

Xemnas: My friends! Remember why we have organized–all the things we hope to achieve. The strength of the human heart is vast. Soon, though…we will have gained power over it! Never again will it…have power over us.

And when the apprentices are recompleted, they’re all huddled inside the transporter area. I think they had some idea that they would become Nobodies in advance, even if Xehanort acted strangely and then turned himself into a Heartless. Perhaps everyone except Xaldin felt coercion about this, but it still seems the apprentices were in on whatever plan Xehanort promised them when they became Nobodies. That they’d gain mastery over the heart. Whatever was going on in this experiment turned them all into Heartless, then Nobodies. I’m not sure if Xehanort personally extracted all their hearts like he did with Braig, or if the machine turned them into Heartless.

The moon hung in the sky outside the window, a great glowing heart. Sprawled in bed, Axel stared at it without really looking, idling the time away before he had to leave on a mission.

“We will conquer hearts and make them our own. Hearts shall never again have power over us.”

For the past few days, he had been mulling over what Xemnas could have meant by that speech. Hearts having power over them? What was that about? Whenever Axel was whiling away the hours by himself, that phrase kept bouncing around in his head. He didn’t know what was so compelling about it.

Axel on the other hand, had NO idea what they were talking about, in the novel. Roxas and Xion didn’t either. And considering Saïx was obsessed with the Chamber of Waking, he didn’t seem to know that much about what was going on, either. And the only ones outside of that transporter area are Lea and Isa. I’m sure that was not random. Braig was by the computer when he lost his heart. Lea actually looks like he was running towards the computer. And it doesn’t look like he was running from outside of the transporter area. It looks like he came straight out of the Heartless Manufactory when he ran to the computer.

When he woke up after being recompleted, he was right next to the computer. Like he was desperately trying to stop whatever was going to happen and save Isa. But he collapsed on the way there and lost his heart.

If a strong-hearted person loses or is robbed of that heart, their body and spirit can live on as a Nobody. Nobodies have no hearts, but they retain their human memories, which served as a reservoir from which to draw human emotion.

And it looks like Isa was heading toward Lea in his final moments. Maybe after Lea collapsed and his heart was stolen, Isa ran toward him. I think Isa witnessed Lea lose his heart. That was his worst fear and it was actually happening right in front of his eyes. It would have been extremely traumatic for him to watch his friend get his heart taken and then start to fade away, like Even and Ienzo were. He thought Lea was gone for good.

It looks like he collapsed on his way toward him. In a matter of moments his heart is stolen, too. This is when I think Isa finally mentally shattered all the way. Losing Lea is way too traumatic. He goes to the Realm of Sleep. Then as a Nobody, all that was left was Saïx—Xehanort’s mind and heart with Isa’s memories. No more resistance from Isa’s mind or heart. Lea had no idea that his friend got Norted, so all he knows is that he became a Nobody along with him, and he remembers everything that happened to them that day in the lab. And Saïx has no idea he’s a Xehanort, either.

There’s WAY too many parallels between Terra and Isa for me to ignore.

Lea picked up Terra’s wooden Keyblade right after Terra leaves.

And Roxas becomes Axel’s ice cream buddy while he feels lonely. How do people think that Roxas had no connection to Ven or his heart?

Both of them had a purpose. 

Both of them stop attacking when their friend is in danger.

This is when Saïx should have done what Terra did.

Terra and Saïx are canonically the last two fights, according to the journal.Ven and Lea just happened to get knocked out when the Heartless swarm comes.Not a coincidence. Lea and Ven were supposed to use the power of waking.

I think Lea/Isa should have had a teary reunion like Ven/Terra did.

[nadziejastar]

Xemnas: A heart is never lost for good. There may have been variances in our dispositions, but a number of us unquestionably showed signs of a burgeoning replacement. Once born, the heart can also be nurtured. Our experiments creating Heartless were attempts to control the mind, and convince it to renounce its sense of self. But understand, one can banish the heart from the body, but the body will try to replace it the first chance it gets, for as many times as it takes. And so I knew, even after we were divided into Heartless and Nobodies, it was just a temporary separation.

Sora: Why, then? Why did you lie to them and tell them they had no hearts?

Xigbar: Xemnas and Xehanort formed the Organization for a specific reason–round up a bunch of empty husks, hook them up to Kingdom Hearts, then fill them all with the exact same heart and mind. Translation–they were gonna turn all the members into Xehanort.

I suppose. But I’d still say it was more likely that they were being experimented on in the lab that day. That was the Heartless Manufactory. Xemnas said that the experiments creating Heartless were attempts to control the mind and get it to renounce its sense of self. And Xehanort formed the Organization in order to take the empty husks and fill them with Xehanort’s heart and mind.

“I can’t claim to know the outcome of this venture, either. We are dealing with hearts, after all—unpredictable at best.” Ansem aimed the end of the device at Kingdom Hearts. The one great heart—Kingdom Hearts. But what was a heart? For all that, I never did find the answer, Ansem thought.

When a person’s heart was taken from them, a Heartless was created, a thing with no sense of self, while the body and soul left behind would become the makings of a Nobody. But what if someone deliberately released their heart from their body through the strength of will alone? Sora and Xehanort had managed to retain their selfhood even after becoming Heartless.

In other words, it sounds like Xehanort thought that Nobodies would make the perfect vessels.

Ansem’s Report 13

Where does the body go when it separates from the heart? If the soul remains within the body, is it still considered to be deceased? When the heart returns to the Heartless, the physical form disappears. But that is merely true in this world. Perhaps the body exists in another form in another world. If that is the case, then it is possible for one to exist in two worlds. A being that is neither darkness nor light; belonging nowhere; abandoned by its heart; a mere shell of its former self. The relation between the heart and body is complex. However, I am certain that if your self exists here, then by definition, the other cannot truly “exist.” The other, the one which does not exist, shall be dubbed, “Nobody.”

Xehanort apparently is the one who discovered Nobodies during these experiments. He probably assumed that they would have no sense of self, like the Heartless.

The group called the Organization is a group of nobodies who gathered together. Nobodies–beings who don’t exist. Beings who lost their hearts to darkness, Heartless. And then, when strong-hearted beings become Heartless, the body and soul exist separately from the heart, and receive life in this land. That’s a Nobody. And then, Nobodies born from the owners of especially strong-hearted beings fall into birth still retaining their human shape. That means, the Nobodies gathered as Organisation members once held strong hearts. Really? Axel wondered to himself. Did that self in my memories really have a strong heart? Don’t really know. And then, Nobodies without hearts wish for only one thing. A heart. If I was asked if I wanted a heart, I guess I’d answer that I did. But, do I really want a heart? Can a heart really fill this hollowness I’ve carried since I fell into existence as a Nobody?

Most Nobodies that are born are like Dusks. Only a very strong-hearted person creates a Nobody that retains the same shape as its former self. That seemed to be the ultimate goal of the experiments, at least at the end. Xehanort wanted to find strong-hearted people, create humanoid Nobodies by turning them into Heartless and then he’d have perfect vessels. And he apparently tricked the apprentices (except Braig) into willingly becoming Nobodies. They’d be exactly the same, just without hearts. And of course, he’d use the test subjects from the experiments who didn’t become corrupted by darkness. They would obviously have strong hearts and if he forcibly extracted their hearts like he did with Braig, then they’d create special Nobodies.

“I am Lexaeus. You’ve done well thus far. But to possess your powers and yet fear darkness… What a waste.”

Riku scowled. “I do not…fear it!” he said as if to convince himself. “I’m—”

“I sense that you do,” Lexaeus interrupted, quite unperturbed. “You’re also capable of controlling the darkness. Cast away your useless fear. Open your heart and embrace the darkness.”

“And if I don’t?” Riku retorted, steadily closing in on Lexaeus.

If he embraced the darkness, he would become stronger—but he didn’t need that kind of strength. He only wanted to use his own strength.

Lexaeus absolutely talks like becoming a Nobody was a choice he made. He looks down on Riku for being afraid of darkness.

Lexaeus gave him the briefest of smiles and raised his heavy ax-like sword. “Then, you lose both light and darkness—and disappear!” Enormously powerful darkness radiated from him, fierce enough to make Riku think of Ansem. Riku grunted as the pressure of it slammed against him.

“I, Lexaeus, will not yield to the frail heart of an infantile coward! Now, stop resisting—and let the darkness in!”

“Never!” Riku brandished Soul Eater and rushed at Lexaeus. “I am not afraid of the darkness!”

“Ha! Nonsense! You can become stronger… But if you do not accept the darkness…you will be destroyed!” Lexaeus’s sword knocked Riku back and came down on the floor with enough force to cleave it, scattering chips of marble, which Lexaeus crumbled in his fist.

These bits from the CoM novels are sadly the most characterization Lexaeus gets. 

“Rgh… To think…you had so much power…” Now Lexaeus dropped heavily to his knees.

Riku jumped back to put some distance between them, also out of breath. “What’s the matter, Lexaeus…?” he said between gasps.

Even without using the darkness…I can still defeat you.

“Darkness isn’t…all it’s cracked up to be, huh?” Riku told him. “This fight…is mine.”

But you can tell that he is really obsessed with strength.

Lexaeus gave him a cruel smile. “Hmph…so I must accept my defeat here. But do not make the mistake of underestimating the darkness in me! As I am destroyed, it will leave this ruined vessel and drown you!”

Then there was a terrible shock wave far greater than what Riku had felt from the darkness that Lexaeus radiated before the battle.

“Wh…what’s happening?!” A relentless swirl of darkness surrounded him, swallowing him up until he disappeared into it.

Lexaeus laughed madly. “This is my strength… I, number five in the organization… I who was once his favorite pupil!”

Those were Lexaeus’s final words before he vanished into the darkness.

We do get a particularly interesting bit of info. He was a favorite pupil. Given the way he talks about fearing the darkness, it sounds like he’s referring to Xehanort. Aeleus was lured in by the promise of greater power.

When Zexion thought back on their erstwhile research, the “plan” seemed to him like a contradiction in terms—trying to reclaim what they had lost through their own actions. He didn’t believe they had done anything wrong by studying and producing the Heartless. It just so happened that in that process, they had forfeited their own hearts.

Zexion said that they lost their hearts while studying and producing Heartless. Of course, he was a kid, so I don’t expect him to know everything that was going on with Xehanort. But he and Even lost their hearts around the same time. Ienzo doesn’t talk like Xehanort personally extracted his heart like he did with Braig. He speaks like it was the result of the experiment they were doing.

“I tell you, the project failed,” Marluxia repeated. “And I must report that failure to our leader.”

Their leader—a man who had once had another name with other memories… He was the actual fake. The one who had stolen the identity of Ansem.

“What— No, wait! Don’t tell him that!” Vexen sounded as if he might fall to his knees and beg.

Marluxia made a small cruel smirk and told him quietly, “Perhaps we can work something out.”

“How?” Vexen looked up.

And all I can really say about Even is that he doesn’t like going down into the basement where the experiments took place, because apparently he has bad memories of being there. And he is absolutely terrified of Xehanort. I don’t think he was ever a willing participant in what was going on. But he seems to have gone along with what the others were doing due to fear and probably a desire to protect Ienzo.

Day 119: Hearts and Emotion

Author: Xaldin

Watching that foolish beast flail about only deepens my disdain for humans and their incessant need to be pinned down by feelings. We became Nobodies precisely to avoid the shackles of emotion. It was only later that we realized the scale of that loss: that some things simply cannot be done without a heart. Nonetheless, I see nary a pleasant thing about it.

Xaldin flat-out states that he chose to become a Nobody to escape emotions. When they were recompleted, Even, Ienzo, Dilan, and Aeleus were inside of that transporter area. This is what let the MCP warp Sora into Space Paranoids. And Braig was already with Young Xehanort when he was recompleted.

“We’re Nobodies. We have no one to be—we just are. But now you don’t have to be at all. No more existence, no more memories.

You’re off the hook.”

Axel didn’t seem to be paying attention to Sora and the others. He only looked at Vexen.

“No one to be?” What could that even mean…?

But Lea and Isa were outside of that area, and they were the only two “apprentices” wearing the black robes. Lea looks like he was going towards the computer and Isa looks like he was going towards Lea. And Axel never talked at all like someone who ever planned to lose his heart like all the other apprentices. He clearly was not in on whatever plan they had. Axel treats the apprentices far differently than the other Organization members. He’ll happily play cards with Luxord, and he defends Demyx when Roxas makes fun of him for being useless. But he delights in taking out Vexen and Zexion. And those two seemed like they were the apprentices who were the least morally responsible for what happened.

“Nothing less from the great Ansem—that’s what I should say, isn’t it? Or maybe—”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! I’m protecting those islands!” Riku rushed into range, but this time the Claymore, Saïx’s sword, was there to block Soul Eater.

“How do you expect to protect anything when you’ve cloaked yourself in darkness? You sold your soul for power. Was it worth it?”

“Shut up.” Soul Eater pushed back the Claymore with a terrific clang.

When Saïx faces Riku in KH2, he acts absolutely disgusted with him for giving himself over to darkness in order to gain power. He was furious when Naminé told him he had a heart. He wanted one more than anything.

The human form of Xigbar, one of Organization XIII’s members. He became a Nobody during a certain experiment.

The journal in KH3D said that Braig became a Nobody during a certain experiment. And in KH3D, all of the Nobodies who have been recompleted have separate journal entries. Lea, Braig, Even, Ienzo, Aeleus, and Dilan all have journal entries for their regular selves. But Isa didn’t get one. Just Saïx. It implies that he wasn’t even recompleted as Isa at all. And when Braig and Young Xehanort retrieve him, he’s still unconscious. Young Xehanort calls him “Saïx” before he’s even retrieved. There was just nothing to ever indicate that they were apprentices before KH3. And it still feels implausible at best.

[nadziejastar]

"She’s a Mirror That Reflects You”

And Xion was a girl Roxas cared about, which made her like the girl Sora cared about. She was a reflection of Sora’s memories. “That’s why his recovery is stalling,” Riku went on. “They have the part that’s most precious to him—his memories of Kairi.”

Xion prevented Sora from waking up because she was siphoning off his most precious memories, which were the key to his awakening. She was also acting as a mirror—a puppet who was merely reflecting his most precious memories of Kairi. 

He’d been dreaming. It left him in terrible anguish—a nightmare about his two best friends torn away from him because he was too weak to protect them. Because he had lost the use of the Keyblade.

He wondered if Xion had that same helplessness when she couldn’t use her Keyblade. Roxas got up and stared into space. He felt so…heavy. So tired and listless. Like he hadn’t slept at all. He just wanted to go back to sleep.

Was it because of the dreams? But he dreamed all the time. Even if he couldn’t always remember them so vividly, the dreaming was nothing new.

His reflection in the mirror was no different from usual. Maybe his eyes were a little red—probably because he was so tired.

Roxas couldn’t recover because there was a puppet draining him of his strength. 

“Ugh, I’ve got enough on my plate.” He groaned, imagining Saïx’s face if he reported all this.

Those days as a trio had been so wonderful. Why did this have to happen? The memory of his heart twinged. Had the breakdown of a friendship always been this painful? It was hard to tell when he didn’t have a heart anymore.

“Don’t wanna get up…”

But he dragged himself out of bed, taking a huge stretch and cricking his neck. He had to get to the Grey Area early if he wanted to talk to Saïx. Most likely, today would be another bad day.

It’s basically what Organization XIII did to Axel, too. They replaced Isa with Saïx, a puppet created from Isa’s memories. Axel was the Organization’s puppet like Sora would have been if his memories of Kairi had been replaced with Naminé. And I would argue that Saïx was doing the exact same thing to Axel that Xion was doing to Roxas. Unbeknownst to him, his strength and energy were also being drained from him by the puppet.

Outside the window, the moon—the heart-shaped moon—floated. Axel watched it, still sprawled on his bed. There was still a little time before he had to leave on his mission.

To gather hearts, to have hearts of our own, to not let the heart mislead us…

For these past few days, I’ve been thinking about the meaning of Xemnas’ words. To not let the heart mislead us? What does that mean? Whenever I’m alone, these thoughts just float around in my head the whole time. I don’t know why I have to think so much about it. I bet the other Nobodies don’t.

The heart… emotions. I think about their origins. Contemplate it. Reason about it. When did I start doing this?

The truth was, Axel knew when. Maybe I’ve been pretending I hadn’t noticed.

This is a passage from the novel. It’s on Day 117 ~Secrets~. It’s the night before Day 118 ~Lazy Day~. The day Axel spent all day of their vacation in bed sleeping, before joking about his dark secrets to Roxas and Xion. 

Yeah… I started thinking about this stuff when Roxas—no, Roxas and Xion joined the Organisation. 

Those two had lobbed so many questions at him as they grew as Nobodies. Was it just their curiosity that had him thinking so much? But it hadn’t started when they joined the Organization. It was after he’d gotten to know Xion, after Castle Oblivion. 

Anyhow, I have to admit that something is changing inside of me. Before this, I wouldn’t have thought about those kinds of things. Changing… why am I changing?

I called it ‘contemplating’, but it’s just rambling.

Axel felt the waver of an unexpected presence, and sat up in bed.  “Don’t just barge in here—you could at least knock,” he said, in a displeased manner.

It’s also the day Axel complained in his report that Saïx was the one who changed, not him.

Saïx was standing next to the bed. Axel looked away from him and stared at a speck on the wall. However, seeming to not notice Axel’s attitude, Saïx began to speak in his usual tone.

“How has Xion been acting?”

“S’not like I’ve been keeping watch in particular, so I wouldn’t have a clue,” Axel answered in a sulky tone.

“You seem quite close,” Saïx continued.

For a moment, Axel thought about the reasons Saïx could have for being so interested in Xion. 

I already know why Roxas is special. The Nobody of the Keyblade Hero is going to be special.

But, I still don’t have the information to decide how Xion is special compared to other Nobodies. I wanted to know, but now I already understand that it would be useless to ask Saïx to tell me.

“What, am I meant to report even that to you? If you don’t need anything, get out,” said Axel, getting up out of his bed with a violent movement.

Speaking of changes, my relationship with Saïx has, too. I think it’s changed slightly since I’ve had time with Roxas and Xion. I couldn’t really say how, though.

Even in this scene, what’s going through Axel’s mind is that his relationship with Saïx has changed. It’s written to be mostly similar to the game, but there’s an interesting addition to this scene...

“You and Xion are on the same mission today.”

“Thank you ever so much for going to all the trouble to tell me that,” Axel answered, facing the mirror and starting to get ready.

“I need you to go to Castle Oblivion again soon.” Saïx glared at Axel’s reflection, their eyes meeting in the mirror.

“Orders from ‘Lord’ Xemnas?” Axel asked, lips curling.

...A mirror. And I’m sure that was done with very much symbolic meaning in mind.

Saïx didn’t reply to that. “That castle still has secrets. Even there, there are unknown places—”

“Unknown places?” Axel interrupted. He turned his gaze back on his own reflection in the mirror. “You’re talking about that chamber. I’ve scoured the place and I haven’t found it. It won’t be discovered that easily.”

The tension in Saïx’s pursed lips slackened a little. “Very well, I’ll tell you something you’d like to hear. Xion was born in that castle. Just like Naminé was, in that castle.” Saïx was silent for a moment. “The place Naminé and Xion were born—sounds like a place you’d like to go, am I right?”

That’s bait. But there’s no skill in simply taking the bait.

Axel snorted and turned to Saïx. “Well, well, well… it sounds like the one who wants to go to that castle isn’t me, it’s you, am I right?” Axel said, as he stepped past Saïx, out of his field of vision. “Cause if you go to the chamber that Xemnas is searching for—you’ll figure out his true goal, right?”

Because he’s finding it increasingly hard to recognize Saïx as Isa anymore. 

“The Chamber of Repose, and its twin, the Chamber of Waking,” Saïx began, back still turned.

“Xemnas has a goal that he hasn’t told anyone. A clue towards it should be in the Chamber of Waking. If we can get our hands on it, we’ll have the advantage in every conceivable way—for our goal, too.” At that last word, Saïx turned and looked at Axel.

I know… our goal. That part won’t change.

Axel sighed, and said, “Vexen and Zexion were in your way. That’s why they were taken care of—so you’d reach the top of the Organisation, right?” 

It’s almost like I’m telling myself this.

Because he’s not Isa. He’s Xehanort masquerading as Isa.

Us not having hearts doesn’t mean our behavior means nothing.

It doesn’t mean we can’t think. Doesn’t mean we don’t have goals. Acting for the sake of those is something both humans and Nobodies share.

“I do the dirty work, so you better get to the top.” I’m not lying when I tell him this.

Axel looked as Saïx. Saïx stared back.

Yeah… we have a goal. That part won't change.

Saïx turned his back on Axel.

“In a few days, you’ll be sent to Castle Oblivion on a solo mission. Be expecting it,” said Saïx, leaving the room.

Alone, Axel clenched his fists, and followed Saïx out of the room.

Axel is just as much trapped by an illusion as Roxas and Sora. An illusion that keeps him trapped by his most precious memories. But the mirror has to break at some point.

Xion got up and looked in the mirror. 

It’s me. Nothing new.

After getting ready for the day, she went to the Grey Area and found Saïx and Xigbar there.

Xion also had a habit of looking in the mirror. The first time she does, Xigbar and Saïx are there.

Xion washed her face and looked in the mirror. Nothing out of the ordinary about her reflection. 

I’m the same as ever.

Then she left her room and headed for the lobby. Depending on when she showed up, she would run into some of her coworkers and miss others. Today she found no one there except Saïx and Xigbar.

Xigbar and Saïx are there again the second time, too.

Xion got up and took care of her morning routine in front of the mirror in the corner of the room. 

I’m the same as ever.

And yet, I’m not.

She stared hard at the mirror’s reflection. It showed…someone else. But she knew who it was.

The boy who looked like Roxas.

For a moment, she lowered her gaze, then looked again.

Just her.

Her and her identity crisis. Xion laughed at herself.

I have time here. Riku gave it to me.

But not forever. I’ll ruin everything if I stay. I have to decide…before the Organization decides for us.

The third time, she’s alone. Something’s different. She doesn’t recognize her reflection for a moment. This is the day she runs away in Wonderland, and Xigbar and Axel are there. This is also the day Axel told Roxas that Xion was a mirror. I’m excited to see how the KH3D novel writes this scene when it’s localized. It think Axel looking at his reflection while wondering where Braig and Isa were was...intentional, to say the least.

[nadziejastar]

It really bothers me that the "Axel the assassin" angle has been quietly gone. In CoM he was deadly, KH2 goes so far as to call his underlings Assassins, in Days you can make the argument that he's going out of his way to not let the kids know about that side of him, but by the time of KH3 he's completely lost any sense of danger and is instead the comic relief.

Ugh, I hate it too. Everything about Axel suggested that he had a horribly tragic backstory, along with Isa. Axel’s been reduced to comic relief now. What a crock. Talk about character assassination. No pun intended. He was the only one along with Isa who was recompleted with the black coat on. And he can still use the corridors of darkness as a human. But not just use them. This is important: He can create them.

Riku: I’ll open a path!

Mickey: You don’t belong in the dark realm anymore, Riku.

Riku couldn’t do this after getting rid of Xehanort’s Heartless.

Ienzo: There’s no place that he could go now that he’s human. He has no means of leaving this world.

Mickey: The dark corridors—

Ienzo: Are beyond his faculties and mine now.

And in KH3, when everyone is looking for Even, Ienzo says that they can’t use the corridors of darkness anymore, either. They could only do it as Nobodies. So, it’s not a technology thing. Apparently it’s extremely rare for regular people to have the ability to create these corridors. What made Lea so special? Sadly, I highly doubt this will ever come up again.

My choice to befriend darkness here in the midst of nothingness was a sound one. The moment I stared straight ahead with a calm heart, neither rejecting darkness nor fearing it, I gained a newfound power. A superhuman power—the power of darkness. It is likely Xehanort and the others were enraptured by this power, eventually becoming its prisoners. I do not intend to allow my heart to be devoured by the darkness, as they did, of course. With this new power, I uncovered a “corridor of darkness” that connects the realm of nothingness to the outside world. While it is still difficult to come and go as I please, my banishment is now a thing of the past.

DiZ learned how to use the corridors when he was trapped in the Realm of Darkness. He calmly accepted the darkness without fear, and then gained the ability.

Riku: No vessel, no help from the Heartless… So tell me, how’d you get here?

Beast: I simply believed. Nothing more to it. When our world fell into darkness, Belle was taken from me. I vowed I would find her again no matter what the cost. I believed I would find her. So, here I am. She must be here. I will have her back!

Then there was the Beast. He used a corridor due to his desire to find Belle.

Nomura: There is one more method, the use of the “Dark Corridor”. There are those who are on a fallen path, essentially not being on the path they should be. Only those who can be said to have a Dark existence or an In-between existence can make these doorways. On rare occasion those with particularly strong feelings or hatred, such as the case with Beast and DiZ and perhaps others like them can open these paths. However you must be careful when coming into contact with such darkness. As such, if you use these paths too often you will be completely swallowed by darkness. Sora has used these paths several times before, but the degree of frequency hasn’t allowed the darkness to stain his heart, so you can think of the influential power of darkness as being dependent upon the strength of the persons heart.

But Nomura specifies that it’s strong feelings of hatred that open these paths.

The distant days spent in that beautiful paradise are an illusion to me now. How long have I been here, banished to the realm of nothingness? It is only by relying upon my anger and hatred that I have been able to retain my sense of self here where all existence is nullified. My heart is being overcome with hatred toward my apprentices, possessed by the darkness, and with the anger I feel for stupidly allowing myself to be betrayed. Is this darkness, eating away at my heart? I cannot continue to idle away my time here. What are Xehanort and the others attempting to do? I must unravel the mystery of these Ansem’s Reports, intercept my apprentices, and defeat them. That is my mission…the only way to repay the world for my sins.

DiZ wanted revenge, and the Beast wanted to murder anyone who took Belle. It’s all consistent with Lea being a subject on the experiments of the darkness of the heart. He’s a very unique person to be able to create the corridors of darkness. Being recompleted didn’t instantly get rid of his hatred.

Lea: You know what? I’ll bring ‘em back myself.

Ienzo: Huh? How, exactly?

Lea: Why do I always get stuck with the icky jobs?

He was feeling enough hatred at this moment to open a corridor. He must have been feeling like the Beast. He wanted Isa back, like the Beast wanted Belle. But not just that. He would murder anyone in his way. His intentions on bringing Braig back were probably not so nice. So why does he have so much hatred compared to the other members? Well, here’s a passage from the KH2 novel. It’s after Sora leaves the castle during the 1000 Heartless fight.

Just after Sora and his friends rushed outside because of the noise…a man in a black cloak stole into the empty computer lab.

The screen displayed a picture of a man with a white beard.

Axel quietly pushed back his hood, revealing a shock of bright red hair. He squinted, leaning closer to peer at the screen.

But there was something else that grabbed his attention more than the man in the picture—something about the computer system itself.

The interface looked familiar. It was a lot like the one the computers in the organization headquarters used. That wasn’t the only thing giving Axel déjà vu. He stared at the screen…

He recognizes the computer from the data Twilight Town.

“…What are you doing here?” said a voice behind him. Axel spun around to find another man in black standing there. Seeing that Axel was ready to fight, the newcomer pushed his hood back and shifted his shoulders.

“Ansem… Oh, Riku, it’s you.” Axel breathed a sigh of relief, recognizing the face. “Don’t scare me like that, okay? I got people after me, y’know.”

“Well, if so, you should be a little more cautious.” Riku pulled up his hood again and went to join Axel in front of the computer. “You’re weak anyway,” he added, and a small laugh escaped him.

“Wh— Hey, I just let my guard down for—”

“So this is Ansem’s computer?” Riku interrupted Axel’s protest.

“Who’s the man in this picture?”

“Beats me.” Axel shrugged.

Hold up. Axel doesn’t recognize Ansem the Wise?

“…I thought someone in the organization would be more help.”

“I’m not in the organization!” Ignoring Axel, Riku began typing on the keyboard, and the screen displayed some data about the man. It seemed Sora and the others had left the information unlocked.

How were you an apprentice if you don’t even recognize Ansem the Wise?

“…Ansem? …That’s the real Ansem?” Riku murmured, reading the text above the picture. Beside him, Axel stayed quiet. A little while back, when he and Riku had exchanged information, they’d both come to understand that the man who called himself Ansem had only stolen Ansem’s name.

And he only found out recently from Riku that Xehanort wasn’t really Ansem? People just dismiss it and say the novels aren’t canon, but I don’t think that’s a satisfactory explanation at all. They do deviate from the games, sure. Axel and Riku are working behind the scenes in the KH2 novel. But the story only deviates in ways that enhance canon.

Like, in the KH2 novels Namine can tell that Axel has a heart. Axel is way more important and has more interaction with the good guys, and his relationship with Saix got more focus than it did in KH2. Stuff like that. The writer was obviously told the whole story ahead of time, and wrote the novels to be consistent with that. If Lea was envisioned as an apprentice, surely the writer would have known that as well. She was one of the main scenario writers for Days. She basically created Xion. Of course she’d know if Lea was an apprentice.

“Oh!” Axel blurted.

“What is it?”

“I remember now! The screen looks like that computer in Twilight Town!” he exclaimed with certainty. The details of the system interface were the same. The one in Twilight Town had seemed more advanced, though. As if this one was its predecessor.

“It has the same layout and the functions. That computer was managing Twilight Town, and this one is managing Hollow Bastion. Both of these systems were developed for town administration. There’s no way anyone else could’ve designed this. It has to mean they both have the same creator.” As Axel rushed to explain, Riku only kept staring silently at the computer.

“…So where did the real Ansem go?” Axel said finally.

“There is one person whose true identity we don’t know,” Riku muttered. At that, Axel looked up from the screen, meeting Riku’s eyes.

They’re talking about DiZ. Axel doesn’t seem to know anything about Ansem the Wise. But he does know about using the dark corridors—the D.T.D.