Editing Darkness

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{{Q|All worlds begin in darkness, and all so end. The heart is no different. Darkness sprouts within it, it grows, consumes it. Such is it's nature. In the end, every Heart returns to the darkness whence it came! You see, darkness is the Heart's true essence...|[[Xehanort's Heartless]]}}

[[File:Heartless hires.png|thumb| The emblem of the Heartless, Hearts that have been conquered by  darkness]]

'''Darkness''' is a force parallel to [[Light]], and is also used in the form of attacks in the ''Kingdom Hearts'' universe. Darkness has been known to cause people to lose their hearts to it if they have delved too deep into it. Slowly suppressed and conquered by its influence, these unfortunate souls become [[Heartless]] and, if their [[Heart]] is strong enough, leave behind a body that becomes a [[Nobody]]. Those who follow the path of Darkness will usually gain untold power at the expense of something of their former selves.

Though darkness is mostly used by the series' villains, it is not entirely malevolent; friendly characters are able to use the powers of darkness to some effect, ranging from opening the [[Corridor of Darkness|Corridors of Darkness]] to projecting dark energy blasts (one of [[Riku|Riku's]] [[Ability |abilities]] in ''[[Kingdom Hearts II]]'').

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

In [[The Gathering]] and [[Birth by sleep (Video)|Birth by sleep]] videos , Master Xehanort said to Terra, Aqua, and Ventus that Keyblades are the remains of the Keyblade Wielders after the [[Keyblade War]] between the battle of [[Light]] and [[Darkness]].

===''[[Kingdom Hearts]]''===

In ''[[Kingdom Hearts (game)|Kingdom Hearts]]'', the roles of light and darkness play very typical roles in the game's story and game mechanics, with light being a positive aspect, and darkness being a negative one, since the [[Heartless]] are the embodiment of Darkness. Most of Sora and company's quest is aimed at closing the [[Door to Darkness]] and eliminating [[Heartless]] creatures. The entire story seems at first very biased towards the force of Light. However, one important belief about light is that there is always "a light in the deepest darkness". This plays a role many times in the story, including when Sora opens the Door to Darkness and finds a blinding light inside with [[King Mickey]]. Even through all of the bias towards light, the opposed forces are in fact still balanced with a closed [[Door to Light]] and a closed Door to Darkness. There are also two Keyblades, one from the Realm of Light, which is used by Sora, and one from the Realm of Darkness, which is used by King Mickey.

===''[[Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories]]''===

In ''[[Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories]]'' Reverse/Rebirth, Darkness plays a large role in Riku's game, since the main enemy is [[Organization XIII]] and [[Xehanort's Heartless]].  

The most major story development about light and darkness in the story is Riku's constant struggle throughout the game, with him against the darkness in his heart. He tries to shun the darkness and [[Xehanort's Heartless]] out of him, but he cannot do it. Because of this, "Ansem" taunts him that darkness is his destiny. Riku finally finds a revelation in himself when he talks with Naminé after Zexion, in the guise of Sora, blinds him with light. Riku finds that darkness is not bad, and he should use it along with light to help defeat his enemies, and give him more power. This changes Riku, and "Ansem", thinking that Riku has turned to the darkness, mockingly tells him that he was right about Riku's destiny. Riku fights "Ansem" and destroys him, but he is still in Riku's body. This is due to Riku declining [[Naminé|Naminé's]] offer to seal "Ansem" away in Riku's heart along with his memories of the castle. Then, at the end of the story, [[Ansem the Wise|DiZ]] asks Riku which path he wishes to take. He decides to take the road to dawn, a path leading from darkness to light. This also gives him his Keyblade with it's respective name.

The Organization use the Corridor of Darkness to travel different worlds to collect [[Hearts]].

''Kingdom Hearts II'' presented darkness as a power for not only the villains, but the heroes as well. Many of the protagonists of the series such as Riku and Sora use darkness during the game.

Riku, in the form of Xehanort's Heartless, has a command over numerous powers of darkness. He's able to cast the Dark Firaga spell, open corridors of darkness, and use darkness in finishing moves for his combos. After Riku returns to normal, he can no longer use the corridors of darkness, but is able to use the dark firaga spell and dark shield.

[[Organization XIII]] uses the power of darkness either to help them fight or use the [[Corridors of Darkness]]. After Xemnas absorbs the remnants of Kingdom Hearts, he uses both power of light and darkness.

Maleficent, once again an antagonist, uses darkness as well. She uses it to cover [[Disney Castle]]'s [[Hall of the Cornerstone]] with thorns. She's also able to use darkness to create walls of green fire.

Darkness is even used by Sora in the game. When he enters his [[Anti Form]], he turns into a black silhouette of himself and attacks enemies with powers of darkness.  

When Sora and the others confront Xemnas, he asks the warriors why they hate darkness. King Mickey replies that they don't really hate it, and are just scared of it. He goes on to say that the world has both light and darkness, and darkness is half of everything. He then says that it makes him wonder why they are scared of the dark. Riku answers that "it's because of what's lurking inside it", meaning Xemnas and the other villains.

==Weapons and Special Uses of Darkness==

[[Image:Kh.jpg|thumb|244px|[[Saïx]] opening a Corridor of Darkness for [[Roxas]].]]

While darkness is often associated with evil, it can be used for the force of good. If one can accept darkness into themselves without allowing the darkness to consume them, they may wield its powers without succumbing to its influences (as in Riku's situation).

[[King Mickey|King Mickey's]] [[Mickey's Keyblade|Keyblade]] is a Keyblade from the Realm of Darkness, though this does not mean that it is actually affiliated with Darkness; in this case, it means that it is necessary to close world doors from the side of the Realm of Darkness.

Darkness is also seen being manipulated into attacks by the Heartless and Nobodies, and to a greater degree [[Maleficent]], the members of [[Organization XIII]], and Riku. [[Sora]] can also slightly manipulate Darkness in ''Kingdom Hearts II'' through his [[Drive Form]], [[Anti Form]], in which the darkness inside Sora that was created when he became a Heartless in ''[[Kingdom Hearts (game) |Kingdom Hearts]]'' reawakens. He and [[Jack Skellington]] also use dark power during "Dance Call". Darkness is also an element used in multiple forms of [[Magic]], the most notable being [[Gravity]].

Darkness can also be used for transportation. Experienced users of Darkness are able to open a Corridor of Darkness to travel between locations with a great degree of speed. However, these are physical corridors of Darkness, and prolonged or repetitive use of this means of travel will often allow Darkness to manifest deeper within a being, leaving them more vulnerable to its negative effects in the long run.

There are many items that have used for protection against darkness. Some of these items are seen as simple things such as the [[Midnight Anklet]] and [[Champion Belt]] which boost the equipped character's resistance to dark-element attacks, or the infamous [[Black Cloak]] worn by King Mickey, Riku, and the members of Organization XIII which protect the wearer from the negative effects of using the Corridors of Darkness.

Darkness creates and feeds off of primal emotions such as revenge, hate, and greed. In the process, it makes those it affects experience and exhibit these feelings while constantly making those feelings stronger, eventually leading to the affected becoming a Heartless. Darkness can also change the physical appearance of those it affects, up to such extremes as a normal person becoming a [[Shadow]] and Riku taking on the form of [[Xehanort's Heartless]]. Also, those who use the Corridor of Darkness, or come in contact with Darkness of any form on a regular basis, have their Heart "stained" by Darkness, which leads to a change in eye color to a golden yellow color. Members of Organization XIII and [[Naminé]] do not experience this due to the fact that they are Nobodies and do not have hearts to stain. Also, Riku does not have yellow eyes because the explosion of the [[Kingdom Hearts Encoder]] cleansed his body from the effects of Darkness.

==Known and Notable Darkness Users==