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News ► KH Character Files: Short Stories - Master Xehanort, Master Eraqus, Vanitas



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SweetYetSalty

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I hope there will be one of these story thingies on Vexen. That may be might last chance to get the inside scope on the Replica Program. They'll probably just focus on his atonement but I hope there is some Replica Program thing because there is so much I wanna know. Like what are the bodies even made of? Marble from C.O.?
 

kirabook

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About BbS, I honestly truly think if the game had released on the PS2 like originally intended (or pushed to the PS3), we could've had more time to spend with each character separate and together.

When you look at the early trailers of BbS, there definitely seems to be more going on between at least Terra and Ven. For example, there's a scene of Ven and Terra chilling in Hallow Bastion and Terra thanks Ven for saving him. It seemed to be a callback to Xemnas holding Roxas's shoulder, like... it was important for some reason.

You've got Terra holding unconcious Ven ready to fight Xehanort (later, the scene is clearly reused for Terra vs Eraqus)

Aqua only makes an appearance via a shadow when Ven asks her to kill him, it seems like only she was there/Ven was specifically asking her to do it.

Hell, I created entire theories that Ven was Sora long lost forgotten big brother or something because they were just chilling in Destiny Island as Sora and Riku were playing in the distance unbothered.

BbS as released did have some flaws, but I honestly do still love the story and the gameplay. It's still my favorite game of the series I think. Kingdom Hearts does need more casual events, like why not have the three of them meet in Disney Town and rekindle their friendship (that's basically what happens except they're all separated when they resolve to make up. How silly is that)

Maybe the age thing is true. Older fans more likely prefer BbS and the younger ones Days? I mean, I do appreciate Days, but well, that has its own issues for me that I still forgave in the end.
 

Foxycian

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About BbS, I honestly truly think if the game had released on the PS2 like originally intended (or pushed to the PS3), we could've had more time to spend with each character separate and together.

When you look at the early trailers of BbS, there definitely seems to be more going on between at least Terra and Ven. For example, there's a scene of Ven and Terra chilling in Hallow Bastion and Terra thanks Ven for saving him. It seemed to be a callback to Xemnas holding Roxas's shoulder, like... it was important for some reason.

You've got Terra holding unconcious Ven ready to fight Xehanort (later, the scene is clearly reused for Terra vs Eraqus)

Aqua only makes an appearance via a shadow when Ven asks her to kill him, it seems like only she was there/Ven was specifically asking her to do it.

Hell, I created entire theories that Ven was Sora long lost forgotten big brother or something because they were just chilling in Destiny Island as Sora and Riku were playing in the distance unbothered.

BbS as released did have some flaws, but I honestly do still love the story and the gameplay. It's still my favorite game of the series I think. Kingdom Hearts does need more casual events, like why not have the three of them meet in Disney Town and rekindle their friendship (that's basically what happens except they're all separated when they resolve to make up. How silly is that)

Maybe the age thing is true. Older fans more likely prefer BbS and the younger ones Days? I mean, I do appreciate Days, but well, that has its own issues for me that I still forgave in the end.
It not going to lie, I hated that, the story of bbs revolved around our three heroes Terra Aqua and ventus, but still mainly terra and ven (only cause of their connection to Xehanort and Sora) the 2008 trailers is an example of what I mean and how it focused on both of them, however both of their story was shifted and was changed cause aqua took most of the portion from their story’s, she was given the longer story, Now unfortunately Terra has the smallest worlds and had met the least characters (plus his dodge pales in comparison to his friends) while Aqua had more areas to visit in the worlds compared to terra and she met the most Disney characters, now I know her being new (compared to terra and ven) is what gave her to do more stuff in the game but still I’m not fan of how unfair it was, to begin with the story of bbs was created to explain the origin of apprentice xehanort but soo far they managed to take the spotlight from terra (a character we have been theorizing about since 2008) instead the spotlight was given to this random girl we never met before (which I’m ok with but...) but at least they should have made it fair and put more effort with terra like they did with aqua.
 

kirabook

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It not going to lie, I hated that, the story of bbs revolved around our three heroes Terra Aqua and ventus, but still mainly terra and ven (only cause of their connection to Xehanort and Sora) the 2008 trailers is an example of what I mean and how it focused on both of them, however both of their story was shifted and was changed cause aqua took most of the portion from their story’s, she was given the longer story, Now unfortunately Terra has the smallest worlds and had met the least characters (plus his dodge pales in comparison to his friends) while Aqua had more areas to visit in the worlds compared to terra and she met the most Disney characters, now I know her being new (compared to terra and ven) is what gave her to do more stuff in the game but still I’m not fan of how unfair it was, to begin with the story of bbs was created to explain the origin of apprentice xehanort but soo far they managed to take the spotlight from terra (a character we have been theorizing about since 2008) instead the spotlight was given to this random girl we never met before (which I’m ok with but...) but at least they should have made it fair and put more effort with terra like they did with aqua.
Hm, I'm almost positive that not only was Aqua created at the same time as the boys, but the story was always supposed to be split between the three and the only reason why we didn't see Aqua in the super early trailers is because her model wasn't done yet. Maybe.

You see, if I recall correctly, Ven's model was just an edit of Roxas and Terra's an edit of Apprentice Xehanort. There wasn't a character similar to Aqua to edit from, she was new.

Based on KH2's secret ending and and a weird long cutscenes dedicated to her armor in KH2FM, I really do think she always had her own role and place.

The problem with BbS, imo, is that it's a PSP game with little to no room for whatever story might've existed before.
 

Foxycian

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Hm, I'm almost positive that not only was Aqua created at the same time as the boys, but the story was always supposed to be split between the three and the only reason why we didn't see Aqua in the super early trailers is because her model wasn't done yet. Maybe.

You see, if I recall correctly, Ven's model was just an edit of Roxas and Terra's an edit of Apprentice Xehanort. There wasn't a character similar to Aqua to edit from, she was new.

Based on KH2's secret ending and and a weird long cutscenes dedicated to her armor in KH2FM, I really do think she always had her own role and place.

The problem with BbS, imo, is that it's a PSP game with little to no room for whatever story might've existed before.
You got a point there I won’t deny that but if you look at the trailers of 2008 the story was quite different, the main focus seemed to be about

1. who is that Roxas look alike and what is his connection to Sora?

2. and why is Xehanort an old man when in kh2 he was young?

And why does this terra guy look like Xemnas and has lingering will keyblade? The story of bbs 2008 played differently from what we have now

In 2008 trailer

1. Ventus is not shrunken in castle of dreams and actually visited the castle and meet Cinderella

2. Terra talked to maleficent when the castle was shrouded in thorns this part I guess was part of terra’s story but was given to aqua now

“I could list other stuff more but those two are enough”


terra may have had an interesting story’s cause of how he interacts with the characters (even tho he has the least interactions with the Disney characters) but I still didn’t like how he got the short end of the stick

if I remember correctly, the old interview for bbs said the original purpose of bbs was to explore the origin of the man in the armor (lingering will) and apprentice xehanort (terra and xehanort). But soo far Terra lost his spot light when final mix came and it give aqua more spotlight then she already has, I’m aware that terra was caught by xehanort and same with Ventus that’s why aqua is the only one available to use, but still wish they gave him more stuff to do since the story of bbs was mostly about him, and honestly give him a better invincible dodging skill like his friends...

But then again I commented on the fact that aqua being new is why she gets to do more stuff, I guess they somewhat? Made it (somewhat...) equal for all three since (still terra needed better dodge skill) the story of birth by sleep and kingdom hearts is split for each of the characters

birth by sleep story focused the most on

1. Terra 40% (involvement in the story)
2. Xehanort 35% (involvement in the story)
3. Ventus 30% (involvement in the story)
4. Vanitas 25 (involvement in the story)
5. Aqua 20% (involvement in the story)
6. Eraqus 15% (involvement in the story)
7. Mickey 10% (involvement in the story)

Kingdom hearts xehanort saga focused mostly on (among bbs characters only and I guess Mickey ofc)

1. Xehanort 50% (involvement in the story)
2. Terra 45% (important to the saga)
3. Ventus 40% (important in the story)
4. Aqua 35% (involvement in the story)
5. Vanitas 30% (involvement in the story)
6. Eraqus 25% (involvement in the story)

kingdom hearts xehanort saga and foretellers saga

Ventus 50% (involvement in the story)

the rest is unknown among the bbs characters, since among his trio Ventus seems to be the most important figure in terms of plot when we connect both xehanort and foretellers saga.

but yea I guess they all had it equal since each had his time to shine. thier three journey’s in bbs, Terra, (most important fate in bbs that connect to kh1) ven, (involvement in Kh franchise from the start and connection to Sora and roxas plus exploring ven’s past) aqua, (journey in bbs Final ep, secret ep and bbs sequel 0.2 which was supposed to be a full game from what I heard but was cut down unfortunately)

point taken, I agree they had it equally but wish terra had bigger role and more story to play other then just being the guy who (sets everything in motion) gets possessed and be the villain who started the story of kingdom hearts xehanort saga.

Not related to the topic but wish future games will give us more bbs trio more then the other trios, I really enjoyed their dynamic Warrior, Thief, mage,

Just like there is rumors of Dream drop distance 2 in gonna wish there is birth by sleep 2, I just want to see more of them.
 

kirabook

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Some characters have moved positions/locations, but that doesn't mean a different character took their place. Their role in the world just changed. Or, entire scenes/locations changed. It happens.

There are scenes of Ven and Terra chilling in Hallow Bastion. That location doesn't even exist as of BbS. That's because, if I recall, this game was apparently a post KH2 game in the very early stages. We can stretch it and say this scene is technically the one when Ven and Terra part ways in Radiant Garden. No screen time taken, just moved and the meaning completely changed.

Xehanort and Ventus have an encounter in Olympus Coliseum where Ven looks mesmerized by whatever Xehanort is holding. This scene technically happens near end game in the Keyblade Graveyard. No screen time taken, just a different spot and similar meaning.

With the Cinderella, clearly the whole story layout/split was going to be different. The scene we see in the earliest trailers with Ven doesn't happen for any of the characters. Terra meets Cinderella before the ball after her dress got ripped to shreds then leaves. Ven meets Cinderella before the ball and helps her make a dress and leaves. Aqua meets Cinderella after the ball in her house (and sees her running away before that). I don't think this is Aqua's fault, they just changed how the world was gonna playout. (Sadly, we didn't get to see cute sparkly Ven in awe of the castle)

The scene where Ven asks to be erased is in Destiny Island and from what we can see, only Ven and Aqua are there (Aqua via shadow, again, because I think she was unfinished and they probably didn't have a voice for her either). In BbS, this scene happens in the Keyblade Graveyard and now it's a trio moment.

Etc etc etc. I would be very interested in seeing how BbS was supposed to be, but I truly believe Aqua always had her place in the plot independent of Terra and Ven. As I mentioned, she had an entire scene dedicated to her old rusty armor in KH2 with Xemnas talking to it. Xigbar purposely tried to start up a rumor mill about said armor and room and who Xemnas could be speaking to and who is the "friend". All this mystery from KH2.... for Aqua. That automatically makes whatever role she had quite significant independent of Terra and Ven.

Do I think the team could've divided the worlds and screen time better? For sure for sure. Can't count how many essays I've written about this. My solution was to not require all the characters to visit all the same worlds. Instead, maybe each world gets visited by 2 characters. Whatever world a character isn't required to visit turns into a dungeon or something.

Let's take Cinderella for example. Maybe only Aqua and Ven visit that world, Terra can learn the "believe in your dreams" spiel somewhere else.

Maybe only Terra and Ven visit Olympus Coliseum. As fun as it was to see Aqua get asked out on a date and be confident in taking on 2 bosses solo, maybe she didn't really need to be there.

Maybe only Terra and Aqua visit Snow White's world. Ven getting all flustered about Dwarfs thinking he's a thief was uber cute, but it wasn't super necessary eh?

Might help with their timeline issues among other things. They could also spend way more time in worlds where all three are together, like Radiant Garden or even the very beginning of the game before the test.

As things are, it's not like Aqua was just added into the mix halfway through the game and so they took other character time and gave it to her. They just suck with time management.
 

Recon

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“It is as exactly as someone who taught me” - Xehanort

Who’s the someone? MoM?
 

sakonan7

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[parsehtml]<p>Continuing on with our translations of the Kingdom Hearts Series Character Files, here are the short stories for Master Xehanort, Eraqus and Vanitas!</p>
<p>As always, credit goes to&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://twitter.com/_KH_ENGLISH">goldpanner</a>&nbsp;</strong>for the translations!</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Xehanort"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Xehanort.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Xehanort.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-efc2391f-7fff-0cf6-8084-0e39f73b2213">Master Xehanort Story: My Dear Old Friend</span></strong></span></p>
<blockquote>
<p><em>This world is just too small.</em></p>
<p>Nothing but the blue sea, the blue sky, and the white sand. I wanted to get away from that world.</p>
<p>I left my home to travel due to guidance from the future.</p>
<p>And, on my journey towards <em>him</em>, I brushed with darkness several times. If you can control it, the darkness is nothing to fear. That's what I thought.</p>
<p>I'd spent some time training. I had a friend.</p>
<p>His name was Eraqus. A special Keyblade wielder, whose veins flowed with the blood of the very first generation of Masters, from the age of fairy tales. It had been promised to him from birth that he would one day wield a Keyblade&mdash;a completely different world from mine. I didn't want to chase after him. I wanted to be someone who could walk shoulder to shoulder with him.</p>
<p>We had all sorts of conversations over the game board.</p>
<p>Sometimes we spoke of our training itself, sometimes we talked about what we ought to strive toward.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Have you heard of the ancient Keyblade War?"</p>
<p>I moved a piece and captured one belonging to Eraqus.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Huh? Of course I have.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Eraqus moved a piece then, and captured one of mine.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Long ago, Keyblade wielders waged a war over the ownership of light.&rdquo;</p>
<p>I moved another piece. That was how this game worked&mdash;you moved the pieces, again and again.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Yeah, the Master's favorite story.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;I wonder what they planned on doing with Kingdom Hearts after making it appear,&rdquo; I said to Eraqus. It was a question I had been mulling over.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Who knows? I don't get why anyone would initiate a war,&rdquo; he said. It is certainly difficult to understand. But wars begin because something starts them, they begin for a reason.<br />I had another question for him. &ldquo;So&hellip;you know the &lsquo;Lost Masters&rsquo;?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Who?&rdquo; Eraqus asked, as though he had never heard the words&mdash;or as though he was pretending as much.</p>
<p>&ldquo;They're the ones who started the Keyblade War.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Never heard of 'em. Where'd you heard about that?&rdquo; he replied, and then stared at the board. He seemed to be considering something.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Or&hellip;" I continued, "they're the ones for whom the war started.&rdquo; Yes, the Keyblade War was started for the sake of the Lost Masters. Suspicion rose in my heart, and I voiced it. &ldquo;You can drop the facade.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Facade?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;&lsquo;On that land shall darkness prevail and light expire.&rsquo; A prospective Keyblade Master should know this.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;If you say so,&rdquo; Eraqus shrugged.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The Gazing Eye sees the fate of the World. The future&mdash;&mdash;it's already been written.&rdquo;</p>
<p>I looked at a Keyblade hanging on the wall. It was a special Keyblade: the oldest one, which had been passed down by Keyblade Masters for generations.</p>
<p>After that, I set out on a journey traveling the worlds alone, in order to prepare myself for the Mark of Mastery examination. I learned many things on that trip.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Decades later&mdash;&mdash;we found ourselves on different paths.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Wait, Xehanort,&rdquo; he said, stopping me. We had both aged so much already.</p>
<p>&ldquo;There is a reason the precepts bar us from such knowledge. Why do you seek the X-blade? Would you blanket all the worlds in darkness, reduce them to nothing!?&rdquo;</p>
<p>We were already Keyblade Masters, and he was the protector of that land. Protecting it was the burden of Keyblade Masters: maintaining the balance between light and darkness and ensuring that this neutral ground would not be abused, by using methods that our predecessors had devised. As such it was he, not I, who was the Keyblade Master most suited to protect that land.</p>
<p>&ldquo;But darkness did cover the world once, in legend," I tell Eraqus as he follows me. "We know so little about the Keyblade War&mdash;&mdash;only that it was just the beginning. Amidst that crisis a precious light was found. It is a curious tale&mdash;&mdash;and one worth exploring. They say ruin brings about creation. So what, then, would another Keyblade War bring? When the darkness falls, will we be found worthy of the precious light the legend speaks of? I must have these answers.&rdquo; I turn to Eraqus. &ldquo;The X-blade needs to be forged, and with it, the door to the Keyblade War unlocked!&rdquo;</p>
<p>That was the answer I had reached at the end of a long journey.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Fool... You would risk an apocalypse out of sheer curiosity? I will never allow it, Xehanort. Not while I live!&rdquo;</p>
<p>He was probably right. But there is more than one right answer out there in the world. The concept of there being only one right answer is merely a deception.</p>
<p>&ldquo;But once again you have it all wrong, Eraqus," I continued. "Darkness is a beginning, you see, not an end. At birth, every one of us emerges from darkness into a world of light, do we not?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Poetic excuses!&rdquo;</p>
<p>The light only shines because there is darkness, and darkness can only exist because there is light. I turned my back on Eraqus and began to walk away.</p>
<p>&ldquo;If words won't dissuade you, only one thing will.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Eraqus summoned his Keyblade, and charged at me. I turned and fired a shot at him. It ravaged his face. To be taken down so easily&mdash;I wasn't sure I could call him my friend any longer.</p>
<p>He shook, clutching his face. &ldquo;That power... Has the darkness taken you, Xehanort?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Not your concern."</p>
<p>I turned my back on Eraqus, and left that land behind me.</p>
<p><br />I stand on the sands of my home. When the sun goes down on this island, all you can hear is the roar of the waves. I set out from this world once upon a time. Now I am back again, carrying a boy. Why did I choose this place, I wonder? It's because I want to let this boy&mdash;who didn't choose for his heart to be tainted by darkness, whose heart is now broken&mdash;at least sleep in peace. Perhaps then a shred of fondness for my home still remains in my heart.</p>
<p>But, the boy I thought would never wake again when I returned to this island&mdash;Ventus&mdash;raises a Keyblade to the sky. Contrary to my assumption, his heart is not broken after all.<br />There is now no darkness in his heart. That darkness now belongs to another boy. If so, then this means I have within my grasp a boy with a heart of pure light and a boy with a heart of pure darkness. It is exactly as someone had taught me.</p>
<p>The light in Ventus is still sleeping. In order to awaken it, it would be best to place him near a very strong source of light. My former friend is a perfect fit.</p>
<p>I shall pay him a visit.</p>
<p>Everything I have done is for the sake of the &chi;-blade. And, for the sake of seeing with my own eyes what lies beyond the Keyblade War.</p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Eraqus"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Eraqus.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Eraqus.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-01e87cc3-7fff-6233-70e4-07ac1954e342">Master Eraqus Story: Perpetual Check</span></strong></span></p>
<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Have you heard of the ancient Keyblade War?"</p>
<p>We used to have all kinds of conversations over the game board. The game had many different pieces. It was connected to our training.</p>
<p>We were still young, and together we devoted ourselves to our studies. But, before I knew it, we had somehow stepped onto different paths.</p>
<p>Despite this, over the long months and years we crossed each other many times, our weak relationship never quite fading. He was my friend, you see. Or, at least I thought so.</p>
<p>How many years ago was it now, that you fired that black miasma from your Keyblade and scarred my face?</p>
<p>&ldquo;That power... Has the darkness taken you, Xehanort?"</p>
<p>&ldquo;Not your concern," you said, as you turned your back and left. Your drive to learn more about the world led you to fall to darkness&mdash;it made you seek the &chi;-blade, and Kingdom Hearts.</p>
<p>You&rsquo;d said darkness is a beginning, and that the world itself was born from it. But even if that were true, we cannot allow the world to return there.</p>
<p>I wonder if the measures I put in place to stop you worked, Xehanort.</p>
<p>I was always by your side.</p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Vanitas"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Vanitas.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Vanitas.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-678f5b07-7fff-9a81-006e-ef7bf7815de9" style="font-size: medium;">Vanitas Story: Vanish into The Blue</span></strong></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><em>Empty creature from Ventus riven...<br />to you, the name Vanitas shall be given.</em></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Who am I to you? What do you think I am? </span><span>You can only exist as light because I am our darkness. </span><span>Right? I am both you and not you at the same time. I bet you never even imagined you had darkness inside you, huh? But darkness is in everything. Look, it's there right by your feet, isn't it? Your shadow. The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow it casts. And that shadow will pull the rug right out from under your feet.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>As soon as I was split from you, I stood alone in the badlands. These badlands, lying so close to the Keyblade Graveyard, are marked with the faint traces of battle.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I&rsquo;ve known ever since the moment we were split why I came to exist. I am a dark fragment of a heart&mdash;a vessel for negative emotions.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>In the tearing winds of the badlands, I clenched my fist and closed my eyes against a painful emotion. As I did, a black shadow began to rise from behind me. I looked up at it, and red eyes shone from the shadow as it formed into a monster.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I reached out to the monster, and it wound around me like a playful kitten. The monster&mdash;the Unversed&mdash;was new to existence, just like me. I swung my Keyblade down on it. The Unversed vanished without even a cry.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The Unversed&mdash;the name means "one not versed in life." Does it really? I don't care whether it means anything at all. The monsters are both me and not me at the same time. Hey, just like the two of us, right? I don't care which is the real body.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I wonder how many negative emotions there are in the world. If you think there's only rage and hatred, you're wrong. There's sadness, loneliness, anxiety, envy&mdash;they all, however, only serve to feed hatred.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Feel the hate. Feel the rage. Of course I should hate my existence. You've hated yourself too, haven't you? I hated you, Ventus. I tried to merge with you, and for a moment I faded away.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Did I really hate you? Or was that hatred really directed at myself? It doesn't matter anymore.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Now I'm back in this world, despite having faded away once before. Someone is using me again. Looks like Xehanort wasn't satisfied just bringing me into existence. I hate Xehanort, I hate Ventus, I hate all of you, I hate the entire world, and I want to fade away again.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr">I didn't ask for this. To be sifted apart, nice and neat. We should be free to choose. Not just light, not just darkness. We decide what we are, and that's exactly what I did.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I came from emptiness, and I will return to emptiness.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>What is emptiness? It's neither darkness nor light&mdash;it's something in an even deeper abyss&hellip; Goodnight, Ventus.</span></p>
</blockquote>[/parsehtml]
Vanitas and Xemnas have just become best friends
 

sakonan7

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Everything, the world, himself, Ventus. He was only a receptacle of what was not needed.
The only thing that remained for him was the shadow of the light that Ventus was bathed in.
One day he would be returned to nothingness. Peace. He held no aspirations beyond that.
But as long as the pain of existence remained, he would strike back at the Light.

Oh yeah, Good job Goldpanner.
It kind of makes sense. Vanitas is born from negative emotions. I'm thinking we will learn more about Vanitas though because it looks like he might be the darkness from UX.
 

sakonan7

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[parsehtml]<p>Continuing on with our translations of the Kingdom Hearts Series Character Files, here are the short stories for Master Xehanort, Eraqus and Vanitas!</p>
<p>As always, credit goes to&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://twitter.com/_KH_ENGLISH">goldpanner</a>&nbsp;</strong>for the translations!</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Xehanort"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Xehanort.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Xehanort.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-efc2391f-7fff-0cf6-8084-0e39f73b2213">Master Xehanort Story: My Dear Old Friend</span></strong></span></p>
<blockquote>
<p><em>This world is just too small.</em></p>
<p>Nothing but the blue sea, the blue sky, and the white sand. I wanted to get away from that world.</p>
<p>I left my home to travel due to guidance from the future.</p>
<p>And, on my journey towards <em>him</em>, I brushed with darkness several times. If you can control it, the darkness is nothing to fear. That's what I thought.</p>
<p>I'd spent some time training. I had a friend.</p>
<p>His name was Eraqus. A special Keyblade wielder, whose veins flowed with the blood of the very first generation of Masters, from the age of fairy tales. It had been promised to him from birth that he would one day wield a Keyblade&mdash;a completely different world from mine. I didn't want to chase after him. I wanted to be someone who could walk shoulder to shoulder with him.</p>
<p>We had all sorts of conversations over the game board.</p>
<p>Sometimes we spoke of our training itself, sometimes we talked about what we ought to strive toward.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Have you heard of the ancient Keyblade War?"</p>
<p>I moved a piece and captured one belonging to Eraqus.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Huh? Of course I have.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Eraqus moved a piece then, and captured one of mine.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Long ago, Keyblade wielders waged a war over the ownership of light.&rdquo;</p>
<p>I moved another piece. That was how this game worked&mdash;you moved the pieces, again and again.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Yeah, the Master's favorite story.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;I wonder what they planned on doing with Kingdom Hearts after making it appear,&rdquo; I said to Eraqus. It was a question I had been mulling over.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Who knows? I don't get why anyone would initiate a war,&rdquo; he said. It is certainly difficult to understand. But wars begin because something starts them, they begin for a reason.<br />I had another question for him. &ldquo;So&hellip;you know the &lsquo;Lost Masters&rsquo;?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Who?&rdquo; Eraqus asked, as though he had never heard the words&mdash;or as though he was pretending as much.</p>
<p>&ldquo;They're the ones who started the Keyblade War.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Never heard of 'em. Where'd you heard about that?&rdquo; he replied, and then stared at the board. He seemed to be considering something.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Or&hellip;" I continued, "they're the ones for whom the war started.&rdquo; Yes, the Keyblade War was started for the sake of the Lost Masters. Suspicion rose in my heart, and I voiced it. &ldquo;You can drop the facade.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Facade?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;&lsquo;On that land shall darkness prevail and light expire.&rsquo; A prospective Keyblade Master should know this.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;If you say so,&rdquo; Eraqus shrugged.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The Gazing Eye sees the fate of the World. The future&mdash;&mdash;it's already been written.&rdquo;</p>
<p>I looked at a Keyblade hanging on the wall. It was a special Keyblade: the oldest one, which had been passed down by Keyblade Masters for generations.</p>
<p>After that, I set out on a journey traveling the worlds alone, in order to prepare myself for the Mark of Mastery examination. I learned many things on that trip.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Decades later&mdash;&mdash;we found ourselves on different paths.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Wait, Xehanort,&rdquo; he said, stopping me. We had both aged so much already.</p>
<p>&ldquo;There is a reason the precepts bar us from such knowledge. Why do you seek the X-blade? Would you blanket all the worlds in darkness, reduce them to nothing!?&rdquo;</p>
<p>We were already Keyblade Masters, and he was the protector of that land. Protecting it was the burden of Keyblade Masters: maintaining the balance between light and darkness and ensuring that this neutral ground would not be abused, by using methods that our predecessors had devised. As such it was he, not I, who was the Keyblade Master most suited to protect that land.</p>
<p>&ldquo;But darkness did cover the world once, in legend," I tell Eraqus as he follows me. "We know so little about the Keyblade War&mdash;&mdash;only that it was just the beginning. Amidst that crisis a precious light was found. It is a curious tale&mdash;&mdash;and one worth exploring. They say ruin brings about creation. So what, then, would another Keyblade War bring? When the darkness falls, will we be found worthy of the precious light the legend speaks of? I must have these answers.&rdquo; I turn to Eraqus. &ldquo;The X-blade needs to be forged, and with it, the door to the Keyblade War unlocked!&rdquo;</p>
<p>That was the answer I had reached at the end of a long journey.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Fool... You would risk an apocalypse out of sheer curiosity? I will never allow it, Xehanort. Not while I live!&rdquo;</p>
<p>He was probably right. But there is more than one right answer out there in the world. The concept of there being only one right answer is merely a deception.</p>
<p>&ldquo;But once again you have it all wrong, Eraqus," I continued. "Darkness is a beginning, you see, not an end. At birth, every one of us emerges from darkness into a world of light, do we not?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Poetic excuses!&rdquo;</p>
<p>The light only shines because there is darkness, and darkness can only exist because there is light. I turned my back on Eraqus and began to walk away.</p>
<p>&ldquo;If words won't dissuade you, only one thing will.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Eraqus summoned his Keyblade, and charged at me. I turned and fired a shot at him. It ravaged his face. To be taken down so easily&mdash;I wasn't sure I could call him my friend any longer.</p>
<p>He shook, clutching his face. &ldquo;That power... Has the darkness taken you, Xehanort?&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;Not your concern."</p>
<p>I turned my back on Eraqus, and left that land behind me.</p>
<p><br />I stand on the sands of my home. When the sun goes down on this island, all you can hear is the roar of the waves. I set out from this world once upon a time. Now I am back again, carrying a boy. Why did I choose this place, I wonder? It's because I want to let this boy&mdash;who didn't choose for his heart to be tainted by darkness, whose heart is now broken&mdash;at least sleep in peace. Perhaps then a shred of fondness for my home still remains in my heart.</p>
<p>But, the boy I thought would never wake again when I returned to this island&mdash;Ventus&mdash;raises a Keyblade to the sky. Contrary to my assumption, his heart is not broken after all.<br />There is now no darkness in his heart. That darkness now belongs to another boy. If so, then this means I have within my grasp a boy with a heart of pure light and a boy with a heart of pure darkness. It is exactly as someone had taught me.</p>
<p>The light in Ventus is still sleeping. In order to awaken it, it would be best to place him near a very strong source of light. My former friend is a perfect fit.</p>
<p>I shall pay him a visit.</p>
<p>Everything I have done is for the sake of the &chi;-blade. And, for the sake of seeing with my own eyes what lies beyond the Keyblade War.</p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Eraqus"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Eraqus.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Eraqus.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-01e87cc3-7fff-6233-70e4-07ac1954e342">Master Eraqus Story: Perpetual Check</span></strong></span></p>
<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Have you heard of the ancient Keyblade War?"</p>
<p>We used to have all kinds of conversations over the game board. The game had many different pieces. It was connected to our training.</p>
<p>We were still young, and together we devoted ourselves to our studies. But, before I knew it, we had somehow stepped onto different paths.</p>
<p>Despite this, over the long months and years we crossed each other many times, our weak relationship never quite fading. He was my friend, you see. Or, at least I thought so.</p>
<p>How many years ago was it now, that you fired that black miasma from your Keyblade and scarred my face?</p>
<p>&ldquo;That power... Has the darkness taken you, Xehanort?"</p>
<p>&ldquo;Not your concern," you said, as you turned your back and left. Your drive to learn more about the world led you to fall to darkness&mdash;it made you seek the &chi;-blade, and Kingdom Hearts.</p>
<p>You&rsquo;d said darkness is a beginning, and that the world itself was born from it. But even if that were true, we cannot allow the world to return there.</p>
<p>I wonder if the measures I put in place to stop you worked, Xehanort.</p>
<p>I was always by your side.</p>
</blockquote>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a name="Vanitas"></a><a href="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Vanitas.png"><img src="https://images.khinsider.com/2020%20Uploads/02/Vanitas.png" alt="" width="450" height="253" /></a><br /><strong><span id="docs-internal-guid-678f5b07-7fff-9a81-006e-ef7bf7815de9" style="font-size: medium;">Vanitas Story: Vanish into The Blue</span></strong></p>
<blockquote>
<p dir="ltr"><em>Empty creature from Ventus riven...<br />to you, the name Vanitas shall be given.</em></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Who am I to you? What do you think I am? </span><span>You can only exist as light because I am our darkness. </span><span>Right? I am both you and not you at the same time. I bet you never even imagined you had darkness inside you, huh? But darkness is in everything. Look, it's there right by your feet, isn't it? Your shadow. The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow it casts. And that shadow will pull the rug right out from under your feet.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>As soon as I was split from you, I stood alone in the badlands. These badlands, lying so close to the Keyblade Graveyard, are marked with the faint traces of battle.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I&rsquo;ve known ever since the moment we were split why I came to exist. I am a dark fragment of a heart&mdash;a vessel for negative emotions.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>In the tearing winds of the badlands, I clenched my fist and closed my eyes against a painful emotion. As I did, a black shadow began to rise from behind me. I looked up at it, and red eyes shone from the shadow as it formed into a monster.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I reached out to the monster, and it wound around me like a playful kitten. The monster&mdash;the Unversed&mdash;was new to existence, just like me. I swung my Keyblade down on it. The Unversed vanished without even a cry.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>The Unversed&mdash;the name means "one not versed in life." Does it really? I don't care whether it means anything at all. The monsters are both me and not me at the same time. Hey, just like the two of us, right? I don't care which is the real body.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I wonder how many negative emotions there are in the world. If you think there's only rage and hatred, you're wrong. There's sadness, loneliness, anxiety, envy&mdash;they all, however, only serve to feed hatred.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Feel the hate. Feel the rage. Of course I should hate my existence. You've hated yourself too, haven't you? I hated you, Ventus. I tried to merge with you, and for a moment I faded away.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Did I really hate you? Or was that hatred really directed at myself? It doesn't matter anymore.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>Now I'm back in this world, despite having faded away once before. Someone is using me again. Looks like Xehanort wasn't satisfied just bringing me into existence. I hate Xehanort, I hate Ventus, I hate all of you, I hate the entire world, and I want to fade away again.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr">I didn't ask for this. To be sifted apart, nice and neat. We should be free to choose. Not just light, not just darkness. We decide what we are, and that's exactly what I did.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>I came from emptiness, and I will return to emptiness.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>What is emptiness? It's neither darkness nor light&mdash;it's something in an even deeper abyss&hellip; Goodnight, Ventus.</span></p>
</blockquote>[/parsehtml]
The thing about Eraqus playing a part, I don't think he did. Eraqus just had to prove that light, or those who defend the light would win the in the end. He didn't have to play a direct part or do the winning himself. And he got to see that because he was by Xehanort's side the whole time, inside Terra's heart.
 
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