Editing Dark Figure

{{Game|KH1|FM1|358|COM|REC|FM2|BBS}}

{{Youmay|Xehanort's Guardian|[[Guardian|the Heartless]]}}

[[File:Xehanorts_Guardian.png|thumb|right|250px|Xehanort's Guardian in ''Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep'']]

'''Xehanort's Guardian''' is a dark entity, similar to a Pureblood [[Heartless]], which is used by [[Ansem, Seeker of Darkness]] throughout the ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' series. First created by the original [[Xehanort]] and used to battle Aqua, the Guardian is also temporarily used by [[Riku]] when he takes on the form of "Ansem" during the battle with Roxas. The Guardian serves not only to protect Xehanort from attacks, but also to fight for him when needed.

===''[[Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep]]''===

After losing to [[Aqua]] in the first half of their battle, Xehanort's great rage caused the Guardian to take shape behind him. Xehanort re-challenged and lost to her yet again, the Guardian dissolving and dragging Xehanort into the Realm of Darkness. Aqua then proceeded dive into the dark pool before her after him, sacrificing her armor and Keyblade to save [[Terra]]'s body.

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===''[[Kingdom Hearts (game) |Kingdom Hearts ]]''===

[[File:Guardian_World_of_Chaos.png|thumb|left|The Guardian as a part of the World of Chaos]]

After conversing with [[Sora]] over the heart, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness proceeded to summon his Guardian, preparing to battle Sora due to his naivety. It later appeared alongside him during Xehanort's second battle with Sora, again transforming and increasing in size to become part of the [[World of Chaos]]. It, along with the rest of the World of Chaos, was destroyed at the hands of Sora, [[Donald Duck|Donald]], and [[Goofy]].

In ''Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories'', Ansem, Seeker of Darkness appeared in front of Riku in [[Castle Oblivion]] in an attempt to possess Riku as he had before. Enraged when Riku chose to fight rather than submit to him, Ansem again summoned the Guardian behind him. The Guardian attacking after Riku's transport to [[Kingdom Hearts (world)|the abyss]], its mighty fist barely missed him. The boy's final battle with the Seeker of Darkness ensued, and Riku emerged victorious.

===''[[Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days]]''===

[[File:KHFM+_Riku-Roxas.jpg|thumb|Riku, in the form of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, uses the Guardian to capture and defeat Roxas.]]

Realizing his loss to [[Roxas]] was inevitable, Riku unleashed the dark power that was Ansem, Seeker of Darkness that he had been holding back from within his heart. After transforming into [[Riku-Ansem|a pseudo-Ansem, Seeker of Darkness form]], Riku used the Guardian to grab Roxas by the waist and squeeze him to the point of unconsciousness. This then allowed Riku to take Roxas to [[Ansem the Wise|DiZ]] as assigned, the only downside being the fact that he was stuck in the form of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness.

===''Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep''===

The Guardian will fight for its master, grasping onto Aqua and carrying her high into the air, slamming her against the ground before returning to Xehanort. It may also send electrical surges forward from its fists. As it will do all in its power to prevent Aqua from attacking Xehanort, it may also perform a punching attack to drive her off. It may also fire dark energy balls before vanishing for a time and allowing Xehanort to land a few quick hits with his Keyblade. When the Guardian latches itself onto Aqua, the player must rapidly tap the {{Button|c}} button to escape a devastating attack. Dodge Roll can be used to avoid many of the Guardian's attacks. The Guardian will also be transported along with Xehanort and Aqua to a bright realm through Terra's remaining consciousness as it fights Xehanort from within. Here the Guardian will shoot an occasional energy ball. One can return Aqua to the real world by hitting Terra, or if they wait, activate a command unique to this battle. If the player correctly inputs the on-screen prompts, the battle will end instantly as Aqua and Terra double-team the Guardian and attack it with a burst of light. So long as the player heals when necessary and uses the proper Deck Commands, taking full advantage over Shoot Locks and Command Styles, both Xehanort and the Guardian should fall in due time.

===''Kingdom Hearts''===

The Guardian fights this time for Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. It will utilize the same tactics as past encounters, also able to fire disks of dark energy from its palms. When Ansem, Seeker of Darkness commands the Guardian to "come," it will temporarily defend him from all frontal damage. When Ansem says, "Submit!" it will latch on to the closest party member. When it latches onto Sora, a "?" will appear above his head. The Guardian will continue to attack Sora, changing the Attack option to Freeze when he comes near Ansem. Freeze will cause the Guardian to temporarily freeze Sora, giving Ansem time to attack him. If Freeze isn't selected, it will periodically drain a large portion of HP. However, if timed perfectly right, a [[Dodge Roll]] can null out the damage received from the Guardian. The Guardian will soon come back to Ansem. When Xehanort's Heartless shouts "Take this!", the Guardian will create an energy shield before Ansem that damages Sora as Ansem flies into him, although it can be easily blocked using [[Guard]]. The Guardian also participates in one of Ansem's most powerful desperation attacks, rising up from the ground several times beneath Sora until the attack ends in a surge of dark energy. This, too, can be avoided using Guard or Dodge Roll.

When part of the World of Chaos, the Guardian does no damage to the player, merely creating strong gusts of wind to keep Sora away from Ansem.

The Guardian will perform the shock attack, punch tactic, and Ansem's most powerful desperation attack when fighting against Riku. It should be noted that in ''Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories'', it also can fire the dark energy disks at the opponent.

The Guardian has an ink-black muscular, humanoid form with a partially bandaged head with relatively human features. The Heartless has yellow eyes gleaming above a mouth filled with sharp teeth, as well as two long antennae spouting from the top of its head. A hole appears in-between more bandages on the torso in the shape of a heart.

While part of the World of Chaos, the Guardian mutates, its antennae becoming long horns, the rest of its body distorted by the darkness to look more muscular and ominous. Blue orbs rest on its shoulders, faint golden eyes also on the chest. Red tendrils extend from the back, attaching to the Guardian with a snake-like head attachment. Its hands become massive wings, and an extension similar to a scorpion's stinger juts out of its back. The torso also appears more skeletal, with multiple rids and vertebrae showing.

The Guardian has many dark powers to assist Xehanort in battle. It has incredible strength and uses it to punch opponents and slam them into the ground with tremendous force. It also has magical abilities such as shooting electrical surges or dark fireballs. In the original Kingdom Hearts and Re:Chain of Memories, it has an attack called Shock Slash where it fires disk-shaped blasts of dark energy at enemies. It can also posses enemies, holding them still while Xehanort attacks. When Xehanort is in desperate need, it uses its powerful signature move: the Dark Shadow. During this attack, at Xehanort's command, causes Xehanort's Guardian to dive into the ground, attacking opponents from below until returning to Xehanort, and releasing surges of energy in different directions.