News ► SPOILERS Kingdom Hearts X[chi] - Meeting Skuld

[gosoxtim]

I feel like Skuld my secretly be the Master of Masters. I dunno... I just feel like a Valkyrie, who spirits people who die valiantly in battle to Valhalla (in Norse mythology, anyway), might also be someone who has eyes that can "gaze into the future". Or at least be someone with eyes that have seen a lot more than most have. Perhaps Chirithy is just exaggerating about how powerful the Grand Master is in the II.8 trailer.

Also, I know this is all Norse mythology, but I wonder... Do you think Nomura might try to bring some Christianity stuff into this all, too? If there are going to be three sisters (or at least a trio of three girls), he could possibly do something like the God, Jesus, Holy Spirit idea mixed in with all of this. IDK. It's just a thought.

Edit: I also think that the Player is a Xehanort vessel: the last one, probably. Perhaps the reason he/she never spoke before was just because he/she was an empty shell. But now- now Xehanort has capitalized on that fact, given the Player a piece of his heart, and that's why he/she's suddenly speaking.

lightupthesky maybe i mean i would why not nomura can bring christinty is some shape or form who know maybe kingdom hearts is heaven

 

[BlackOsprey]

Also, I know this is all Norse mythology, but I wonder... Do you think Nomura might try to bring some Christianity stuff into this all, too? If there are going to be three sisters (or at least a trio of three girls), he could possibly do something like the God, Jesus, Holy Spirit idea mixed in with all of this. IDK. It's just a thought.

Eh, Nomura's already delved into some Christian stuff before. For example, the design of the X-Blade strongly resembles the papal coat of arms...

which is often referred to as "the keys to the kingdom of heaven." The gold key represents power over the divine world (heaven) while the silver key is power over the temporal world. Keys to a kingdom, made of a cross between to opposites, hm? Now doesn't THAT sound familiar...

 

[LightUpTheSky452]

lightupthesky maybe i mean i would why not nomura can bring christinty is some shape or form who know maybe kingdom hearts is heaven

It wouldn't be the first time we've seen some form of Christianity in the series, either. Sora is pretty much a Jesus figure, with Xehanort being Satan-like, after all.

And just the whole light vs. darkness thing in general, really.

I also read somewhere that the X-Blade is supposed to represent the Keys to Heaven (kind of like what you just said above, about KH somewhat representing Heaven), or something like that, but I'm not a hundred percent sure on that one

Edit: BlackOsprey, you're psychic. You're the Master of Masters! You just answered my question about the X-Blade representing the Keys to Heaven, without even realizing I was going to ask about that. Dang, you're good. LOL.

 

[BlackOsprey]

The whole light vs dark thing has been a common theme since humans were able to tell stories. The concept's older than dirt and far more ancient than Christianity.

 

[gelandporn]

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but in addition to being representative of the "future" for the Norse trio of fates, Skuld also translates to "guilt."

As usual with Nomura's selection of character names, this one has potentially multiple layers of meaning.

She could be connected to the Book of Prophecies (it being the power of the "future") or the Heartless in chi... Or both.

lightupthesky maybe i mean i would why not nomura can bring christinty is some shape or form who know maybe kingdom hearts is heaven

There's plenty of parallels you can draw between Kingdom Hearts and various religions/mythology because it draws from some pretty universal concepts and motifs. For example, Kingdom Hearts itself can be seen as the equivalent of Heaven or a state of grace in Christianity, or a cross between Valhalla and Yggdrasil in Norse mythology. Likewise, the Keyblade War is the Kingdom Hearts equivalent of the Apocalypse or Ragnarok.

 

[The_Echo]

I also think that the Player is a Xehanort vessel: the last one, probably. Perhaps the reason he/she never spoke before was just because he/she was an empty shell. But now- now Xehanort has capitalized on that fact, given the Player a piece of his heart, and that's why he/she's suddenly speaking.

Hm, that seems a bit out there to me. Now, Ephemera being the final vessel, that's something I can get behind.

But Player? I mean, that'd require establishing a canon gender/appearance for a modular character, which is a bit sticky.
And sure, Player has trained under Hades and acquired a certain dark influence, but it would seem to me, especially if that Nightmare Chirithy does indeed belong to Ephemera (and also his encounter with the Mysterious Figure), he's the most likely candidate.

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but in addition to being representative of the "future" for the Norse trio of fates, Skuld also translates to "guilt."

Oh shit
It's happening.

I knew Guilt was gonna be important somehow

 

[BlackOsprey]

Edit: BlackOsprey, you're psychic. You're the Master of Masters! You just answered my question about the X-Blade representing the Keys to Heaven, without even realizing I was going to ask about that. Dang, you're good. LOL.

The darkness gave me future sight.

(It also helps that I spend at least 15 minutes every weekday stuck in a chapel, staring at a banner of the papal emblem and noticing things because I'm a bored nerd.)

Speaking of little things I've seen, after staring at the chapel's round stained-glass window (hey, there's the inspiration for the Stations of Awakening!) for who knows how long, I noticed something a bit neat: there's a Chi in there. Well, it's part of the chi-rho, the first two letter for the Greek word for "Christ." But! Still! Jesus is represented by Chi!

I mean, sure, light and darkness and the concept of the spirit/soul/heart are ancient and universal themes, but the X, the Greek letter that happens to look like it, and the things they represent? Not so much. X's. X's everywhere.

 

[gosoxtim]

i think skuld is connected to hearts and the future in some way which we dont know yet

 

[Audo]

 

[BlackOsprey]

Oh, right. Jesus already made a cameo, I forgot. =w=

 

[gosoxtim]

could the book of prphices be consder a book of relgion?

 

[BlackOsprey]

could the book of prophecies be considered a book of religion?

No. Predicting the future ≠ religion. Sure, a lot of religions have some prophecy and maybe some text about the end of the world, but you need a LOT more than that to have a book of religion.

 

[The_Echo]

No. Predicting the future ≠ religion. Sure, a lot of religions have some prophecy and maybe some text about the end of the world, but you need a LOT more than that to have a book of religion.

There are certain parallels that could be made with the Unions and the Keyblade War.

Whereas the Abrahamic religions warred over the Holy Land, here the Unions war over the Light, the clash of similar-yet-opposed ideologies. The Foretellers, analogous to say the Pope or similar positions. The Master of Masters, who bestows the Foretellers with their titles and powers, who has a certain omniscience via "gazing into the future," could be in some respects a God figure.

This may be a stretch but Ephemera's relationship with Ava and subsequent fall into darkness (assuming that's what happened) could be thematically linked to Lucifer.

Obviously no 1:1 scenarios here, but similarities.

 

[CrystalRaine]

There are certain parallels that could be made with the Unions and the Keyblade War.

Whereas the Abrahamic religions warred over the Holy Land, here the Unions war over the Light, the clash of similar-yet-opposed ideologies. The Foretellers, analogous to say the Pope or similar positions. The Master of Masters, who bestows the Foretellers with their titles and powers, who has a certain omniscience via "gazing into the future," could be in some respects a God figure.

This may be a stretch but Ephemera's relationship with Ava and subsequent fall into darkness (assuming that's what happened) could be thematically linked to Lucifer.

Obviously no 1:1 scenarios here, but similarities.

I came up with a theory a couple of months ago on the KH13 forums that the story of Chi could be inspired by the Zoroastrian creation story and that the Foretellers could be counterparts to the Zoroastrian archangels:

Basically, in the story, there is a God of Light (Ahura Mazda) and a God of Darkness (Angra Mainyu). The God of Darkness plans to destroy the light, so the God of Light creates 6 angels to protect his creations: Sky, Water, Earth, Plants, Animals, and Fire. The Foretellers' keyblades feature imagery that match each of these concepts.

The Leopardus keyblade resembles a bolt of lightning, Vulpeus looks like a tidal wave, Ursus has a rocky motif, Anguis features leaves and vines, and Unicornis resembles a bow and arrow. I believe that a 6th foreteller is based on Asha, the angel of fire, and if the rebirth theory is true (which after the recent story update is looking more and more likely), then it can be logically concluded that Lea is the reincarnation of the 6th apprentice/Foreteller.

Also, Ava is a name derived from the Zoroastrian word Aban, meaning waters; this fits the theory that Kairi is the reincarnation of Ava, and that Ava's keyblade has a sea motif.

 

[LightUpTheSky452]

Also, Ava is a name derived from the Zoroastrian word Aban, meaning waters; this fits the theory that Kairi is the reincarnation of Ava, and that Ava's keyblade has a sea motif.

Hmm. That's really interesting, actually! And something that I didn't know. It seems to be a good hint that Ava is, in fact, Kairi's original incarnation, definitely

(And even though I, personally, don't want the Rebirth theory to be true, if it means that Kairi's personality is actually like Ava's--and we'll get to see more of it if she develops more in future installments--I wouldn't mind that at all.)

...

@BlackOsprey Not to get too off topic here, but isn't the fact that X is the Greek letter for "Chi" also explain why Christmas is sometimes shortened to just X-mas? (I think I read that somewhere. And it would make sense.)

...

So, guys... what if Skuld is the person that Young Master Xehanort was asking Braig to get in the added scene in Re:Coded? Her name starts with an "S", doesn't it? And the scene was already talking about Chi stuff. (Note that I don't really think that this likely, but I just thought I'd throw it out there for fun. ^_^)

...

I also meant to say that I feel like KH gets darker all the time. LOL. This new stuff about the Heartless talking--and being the former Keyblade wielders who were fighting for Lux, and that still want it--makes me feel like when we learned that Xehanort was experimenting on people, confining them beneath the castle, and bringing in live specimens to sacrifice to them when they became Heartless, basically, and thus creating even more Heartless that way.

And this is a series published by Disney that's supposed to be okay for children to play. Ha!

 

[Goldpanner]

(They, plural, if the translation is correct)

actually there was no pronoun at all. i had to use the most neutral one possible.

 

[gosoxtim]

everglow upload the video with tranlations
[video=youtube;2j1S4olvPrI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j1S4olvPrI[/video]

 

[Goldpanner]

Thank you so much for the translation to this, btw, goldpanner! I was already interested in this before really knowing what was happening, but now that I know so much I feel like this is a dose of medicine I'd been missing greatly. You're too kind for putting this into all of our laps, and I can't thank you enough for it.

no worries!! i was pretty excited to get such a big chunk of story too

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but in addition to being representative of the "future" for the Norse trio of fates, Skuld also translates to "guilt."

As usual with Nomura's selection of character names, this one has potentially multiple layers of meaning.

:O i didn't know that...

 

[Sephiroth0812]

Feels good that my translation wasn't that far off.
The Nightmare Chirithy doesn't use a pronoun, it's left out due to context.

By the way, I think that the cross on the Black Costumes (frankly I prefer that to Garment) bearing a resemblance to the thorns on the Heartless emblem is more pertinent than the resemblance of a Recusant's Sigil. But it could be both.

actually there was no pronoun at all. i had to use the most neutral one possible.

I see, however wouldn't then be "You'll know soon enough" be sufficient if the Nightmare Chirithy didn't specify anyone?
Or maybe Nightmare Chirithy was remaining unspecific because its player isn't a "person" per se but the Darkness itself?

If I remember correctly it was stated that a Chirithy disappears when its player falls, however it is never specified if that is really an "end" so it could also be that the Chirithy in question is turned into a Nightmare just like people turn into Heartless when they lose their heart to Darkness.

The thorned cross on the Heartless emblem is a sigil too though, it represents a heart captive in Darkness/that is the "property" of Darkness, like chains holding it.
That's why Riku's symbol is the same as the "Heartless emblem" but without the cross. His heart has much Darkness, but isn't a prisoner/property of it.

This may be a stretch but Ephemera's relationship with Ava and subsequent fall into darkness (assuming that's what happened) could be thematically linked to Lucifer.

Obviously no 1:1 scenarios here, but similarities.

So practically insinuating Ephemera might be the Satan/"ultimate evil" of the KH universe?

 

[BlackOsprey]

So practically insinuating Ephemera might be the Satan/"ultimate evil" of the KH universe?

Something about that phrase just made me laugh more than it should've. I know that anything's possible, but somehow the idea of Ephemera being KH Satan is just hilarious for some reason. Diabolic dandelion-head...