Glossary

The Glossary is a series of reports entailing key pieces of information that have a great effect on Sora and Riku's adventures. These reports delve into the background of the Keyblade War and the Keyblades, as well as that of Master Xehanort's grand scheme and the results that of which have deeply impacted the two heroes.

A key-shaped weapon forged by man during the age of fairy tales. Any other origins have yet to be revealed.

All Keyblades have one of three natures: light, darkness, or heart. These last two are exceptional; most documented Keyblades, including Sora's and Riku's, are Keyblades of light.

The heart must be proven before a Keyblade will appear in its master's hand. No lock can withstand a Keyblade, nor can any non-agent of llight.

Special Keychains allow the Keyblade's appearance and performance to be altered.

Guardians of the balance between light and darkness. Through the "Bequeathing," they choose the next generation of Keyblade wielders, training their bodies and tempering their hearts so that they, too, might one day be Keyblade Masters.

While the word "master" might be tossed around, only an existing Keyblade Master can pass on the title and its associated powers. They often elect to test candidates for the Mark of Mastery.

Among the Keyblade Masters is one true "Successor" who is tasked with protecting a hallowed ground known as the Land of Departure.

Arguably the most powerful Keyblade Master in history, and a staunch advocate for a world where light and darkness are equal. In his thirst for knowledge, he allowed his heart to succumb to darkness.

While attempting to reproduce the Keyblade War, he was thwarted by three young Keyblade wielders, and his body was seemingly destroyed.

However, Keyblade Masters have the power to remove hearts and transfer them to other "vessels." Master Xehanort has leveraged this power of recombination and clashed with Sora under a number of identities.

An ancient and epic war that lives on in fairy tales. It erupted over a sacred place known as "Kingdom Hearts" ─ the source of all light.

Keyblade wielders from the legions of light and darkness vied to control Kingdom Hearts, and wiped out all the World's light as a result.

Legend has it that the fragmented worlds we know today survived from the last glimmers of light within the hearts of children.

Living embodiments of the darkness within our hearts, and therefore the darkness that has been in the world since its inception, Although they originate in our hearts, they have no hearts of their own, hence their name.

They instinctively hunt for hearts, and survive and reproduce by stealing them. They have no leaders or hierarchy, least of all the chaotic "Purebloods" which arise spontaneously.

"Emblem Heartless" ─ those created artificially by Xehanort's "Ansem" ─ behave in much the same way.

According to legend, the source of all true light is known as "Kingdom Hearts."

We know Xehanort has created two Kingdom Hearts now, both artificially, by amassing enough hearts. One was made from the hearts of worlds, and the other from the hearts of people.

The Kingdom Hearts made from the hearts of worlds had a door that led to the realm of darkness; its depths were never fully charted.

The Kingdom Hearts made from the hearts of people was believed to have the power to recomplete someone whose heart had been lost.

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, by they retain their human memories, which served as a reservoir from which to draw human emotion.

Unlike Heartless, Nobodies are hierarchical and choose to be subject to the Organization's leadership.

When the strongest of heart become Nobodies, they retain human form even after their heart is gone.

Ansem the Wise had six apprentices, the best of whom called himself Xehanort. The real Ansem abandoned his studies of the heart, but Xehanort could not let it stop there. He and the other apprentices betrayed Ansem and cast their hearts away to continue their master's research.

Xehanort's Nobody took a new name, Xemnas, and formed an organization with the other apprentices' Nobodies. Once their numbers grew, they became known as "Organization XIII," though at one time they had a fourteenth member.

Organization XIII's goal was to complete Kingdom Hearts from the hearts of people, by defeating Heartless and collecting the hearts they had captured. Sora thwarted their plan, however, destroying the Organization's members and setting a multitude of captive hearts free.

Another name for the princesses of heart: the only seven people in the world whose hearts are pure light.

While not necessarily royalty, they are called "princesses" because they are all female and the one who brings them together will reign over all worlds.

The nature of the princesses' power is not entirely clear, but once already their hearts have been stolen to create an entrance to Kingdom Hearts and a so-called "Keyblade of heart."

Xemnas, leader of Organization XIII, gave new names to all who entered its ranks. Each name was an anagram created from the member's original name plus the letter X.

This X is known as the Recusant's Sigil, and has manifested itself in both obvious and insidious ways throughout Sora's adventures.

If Kingdom Hearts is a lock, then this blade from the age of fairy tales was the key.

It could be argued that without the χ-blade, the Keyblade War might never have been waged; after all, you cannot possess what you cannot find or unlock.

It is clear the blade was the inspiration for human-wrought Keyblades. The letter χ can be pronounced both "key" or "kye" (leading to some confusion) and symbolizes the perfect crossing of light and darkness. The χ-blade can be forged via a high-dimensional clash between those two poles.

It is believed that the Recusant's Sigil also derives from χ.

Not long after Sora was born, his heart connected with that of a boy named Ventus. Ventus's heart had been torn apart, but Sora saved him by sharing a part of his own heart.

Several years later, three young Keyblade wielders ─ Terra, Aqua, and Ventus ─ found themselves embroiled in a battle with Master Xehanort. In their travels, Master Aqua and Terra both met Sora and his best friend, Riku. Sora promised Aqua to keep Riku on the right path, while Riku made a secret promise with Terra. Not long after, Terra became a vessel for Master Xehanort, and Aqua vanished into the realm of darkness. As for Ventus, he shattered his own heart to protect his friends and returned to Sora's heart, where he sleeps to this day.

Years later, after Sora got older, he unknowingly hid his friend Kairi's heart inside his own to protect it. When Sora became a Heartless, he also inadvertently gave form to Kairi's Nobody, Naminé, while creating his own Nobody, Roxas.

Another being was also created: a replica named Xion. Xion was formed from Sora's memories of Kairi, and she had the power to copy Roxas.

Ultimately, Xion and Naminé realized their place and guided the pieces back where they belonged; Naminé returned to Kairi's heart, and Xion and Roxas returned to Sora's.

Many hearts have touched Sora's, and those connections remain ─ but their stories ended in sadness, a sadness in which they still sleep.