Roxas

"What's gonna happen to me now? Just tell me that. Nothing else really matters anymore."

—Roxas

Roxas is Sora's Nobody and a former member of Organization XIII, born when Sora took his own heart. Although Sora's heart was soon restored, Roxas continued to endure and exist, oblivious of Sora's existence for most of his life. Prior to the events of Kingdom Hearts II Roxas was Rank XIII within the Organization, and bore the title Key of Destiny (めぐりあう鍵 Meguriau Kagi, lit. "Happened-upon Key") because of his ability to wield the Keyblade. He wields the element of Light, and uses it to dual-wield two Keyblades and command pillars of light to strike opponents with powerful blows. When he was a member of the Organization, he commanded the Samurai Nobodies.

Roxas was also the mysterious hooded figure in "Another Side, Another Story" as well as in Deep Dive. During the prologue of Kingdom Hearts II, the player controls Roxas until Sora is awakened. In the upcoming game, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for Nintendo DS, Roxas will be the main character. This game will focus on the time period between Roxas's birth and his departure from the Organization, eventually leading to his capture at the hands of Riku and DiZ.

Journal Entries

Kingdom Hearts II

• Twilight Town Entry

A boy who lived in Twilight Town and saw Sora's memories in dreams.

His summer vacation has come to an end, and many of his thoughts and feelings with it.

• Character Link Entry

Organization XIII's Number XIII, a Keyblade wielder and denizen of darkness.

He vanished with a satisfied look after battling Sora -- but Sora was the only one who could see him in the first place.

Story

Birth

"Do you remember your true name?"

—Xemnas in the opening of Kingdom Hearts II.

As stated in the Secret Ansem Reports, Roxas was born when Sora stabbed himself with the Dark Keyblade forged from the hearts of six of the seven Princesses of Heart in order to free Kairi's heart at the cost of his own. But Sora's time as a Heartless was short, as Kairi's light had fetched Sora's heart from the darkness, restoring him to his former self. Thus, Sora and Roxas co-existed, but Roxas would be without his true memories, and the two were incomplete without one another. Even so, Roxas' status as Sora's Nobody granted him the ability to use the Keyblade. This makes Roxas a very unusual Nobody besides his capacity to experience actual human emotions, something that Nobodies are normally incapable of. However, as he wields a Keyblade, which serves as a homing beacon for the Heartless, he is constantly under risk of being attacked by them when not under the protection of other Organization members.

Time in the Organization

"Why did the Keyblade choose me? I have to know."

—Roxas to Axel upon his departure from the Organization.

Roxas was born in Twilight Town and soon discovered by Xemnas, who gave him his name. Having nowhere else to go, Roxas joins the Organization in hopes of finding the answers he needs. On that same day, Roxas meets Axel, and the two soon become best friends. When he visits Twilight Town, sometimes he catches sight of three regular kids: Hayner, Pence and Olette, and wishes to befriend them.

As he spends more time with The Organization, Roxas grows increasingly impatient towards his unanswered questions, such as where he came from and why he can wield the Keyblade. He works actively to help the Organization in their plan for Kingdom Hearts, using the Keyblade to defeat the Heartless.

Eventually, Roxas becomes fed up with recurring dreams of Sora, the other self he didn't know, and decides to leave the Organization to find him, hoping to solve all the mysteries behind his non-existence. Axel, who knows Sora's whereabouts at the time, intercepts Roxas and tries to convince him not to go through with it, warning him that the Organization would destroy him if he betrayed them. However, Roxas remains indifferent, saying, "No one would miss me," and continues on, leaving a dejected Axel behind.

Capture

"You can't beat me! No matter how many times you try!"

—Roxas, engaging Riku

File:KHFM+ Riku-Roxas.jpg

Riku, taking the form of Xehanort's Heartless and confronting Roxas in the World That Never Was

Roxas, having just left the Organization to seek out Sora, is attacked at Memory's Skyscraper by countless Neoshadow Heartless, which surround him. Roxas draws out his Keyblades, ready to defend himself. But, after slaying many Heartless, he realizes there are too many Heartless to fight alone. But when Riku suddenly appears, Roxas lends him his Oblivion keyblade and they both defeat the Neoshadows. However, Riku immediately turns on Roxas once the Heartless are defeated. Roxas bests Riku at first, but Riku willingly succumbs to his inner darkness and takes on the physical appearance of Xehanort's Heartless. The fight continues, and then comes to an end when Riku is overwhelmed by the darkness and Xehanort's Heartless emerges to help, pummeling Roxas senseless and knocking him out before Riku is able to regain control. DiZ then appears and opens up a portal to the old mansion in Twilight Town, where Roxas came into being and where DiZ resides.DiZ's intention was to join Sora and Roxas together in order to help Sora wake up faster after regaining his memories. However, he knows the Organization is hunting fervently for their missing member, so DiZ places him in a virtual Twilight Town. There, Roxas would be kept safely away from the Organization while he lived as a normal boy, unaware of his past.

Digital Twilight Town

File:Roxas-2.jpg

Roxas in Twilight Town

"Sora, you're lucky. Looks like my Summer vacation is...over.."

—Roxas, upon reuniting with the slumbering Sora

For some time, Roxas lives a normal life in the digital Twilight Town, becoming best friends with three kids: Hayner, Pence, and Olette. It is this time in the digital Twilight Town that serves as the prologue to Kingdom Hearts II. But as Naminé completes the task of restoring Sora's memories, Roxas soon begins experiencing these memories through a number of dreams, similar in appearance to poor quality video tapes. In addition mysterious events start to occur around town. Strange white creatures, the Nobodies, begin invading the town, stealing photographs and attacking Roxas. These Nobodies had been sent along with Axel by the Organization, who had finally located their former member, in an attempt to capture him. However, in times of dire need, the Keyblade (a single Kingdom Key this time) inexplicably comes to aid Roxas, and disappears once the threat is gone.

Along with the Nobodies, Roxas comes into contact with Naminé several times, seeming to know things about Roxas that he himself doesn't. Also, as observed by DiZ, Naminé's contact with Roxas connected his heart with Kairi's, who Roxas remembered as a friend of Sora. He also meets a mysterious man in a Black Cloak, later revealed to be Riku, who at one point asks a cryptic question: "Can you feel Sora?" Roxas later meets another mysterious figure masked in red bandages, DiZ, who was responsible for his imprisonment. Though the intentions of these characters are not made clear, one being named Axel, claiming that he knows Roxas, arrives with a more direct goal. He wants to bring Roxas back with him to the Organization's stronghold, though he is not afraid to defeat the young boy to accomplish his goal. He battles Roxas in the midst of the Struggle tournament, but only DiZ's timely interruption spares Roxas from defeat.

In addition to these mysterious people, Roxas also begins to see strange anomalies. Time often freezes, and only he and select people seem to be unaffected. He also sees strange "glitches" around town that he could not explain. For some time, Roxas continues to be befuddled by all these events.

That all changes when summer vacation comes to a close, and the truth is revealed: Naminé informs Roxas that he is a Nobody, and that he is supposed to meet with Sora, the one from his dreams, in order to complete him. Along with that, Roxas discovers that he is living in a digital Twilight Town, and that his friends aren't real, just data. He encounters Axel once again, who had been ordered to eliminate Roxas if he refused to return. DiZ, however, manages to freeze Axel in his tracks, along with the rest of the world, thus saving Roxas. DiZ then tells him to go to the abandoned mansion. He does so, and there he encounters Naminé. She reveals to him information on Organization XIII and states that reuniting with Sora would not cause him to disappear, but make him whole. However, she is interrupted by DiZ, but before she is taken away, she promises him that they would meet again, even if they won't recognize each other. Desiring to see Sora, Roxas makes his way through the mansion and begins to recall his former life. In doing so he realizes that he had been captured and placed into the digital world by DiZ and the mysterious cloaked man. Roxas then destroys DiZ's computer in anger, even though it was just a digital copy.

Roxas then meets with Axel one last time, but despite the fact that Roxas has regained his memories, Axel states that it is too late. The two battle once more, but this time Roxas is able to call on all of his dormant abilities, including summoning his two weapons: Oathkeeper and Oblivion, and soundly defeats his old friend, though with great regret. Roxas hopes that they will meet again, though Axel chuckles and responds that only Roxas has a next life. Axel then retreats into the darkness, failing in his mission to capture or kill Roxas. Roxas then enters the pod room where Sora is kept, but not before seeing Donald Duck and Goofy slumbering in their own pods. DiZ is there to greet him, revealing his intentions and fueling Roxas' rage with cutting remarks about Roxas' purpose and nature.

Roxas, in his anger, tries to cut down DiZ, but sees that this DiZ is only a hologram. It vanishes, and the pod in the center of the room opens. All his anger drains away when he sees Sora slumbering in the pod. Sadly smiling, he says to Sora "You're lucky. Looks like my summer vacation...is over". With those words, Roxas respectfully accepts his fate and rejoins with his counterpart.

Resting and Hints

"I wanted to see Roxas. He...was the only one I liked... He made me feel...like I had a heart."

—Axel, during his last moments of existence

Right after the prologue ends, Sora hears Roxas call out to him, and wonders who it is before hearing Donald and Goofy do the same and waking up.

Though he does not truly appear to Sora throughout most of the game, Roxas is frequently mentioned. Most of the Organization members believe that Sora is Roxas and refer to him as such, which both frustrates and confuses him. Roxas himself manages to maintain a presence within Sora despite "resting". The first time this is hinted at is when Sora departs from Twilight Town for the first time, saying goodbye to Hayner, Pence, and Olette. To his surprise, a tear rolls down his cheek, expressing Roxas' own sadness in separating from his own friends, and feels strangely sad to be leaving Twilight Town. Also, Sora instinctively knows how to ride a skateboard, (a skill that was not touched upon in the first game) and is shown to be very skilled in doing so; presumably, this is an ability passed down from Roxas.

During the second visit to Twilight Town, Roxas' presence within Sora is again apparent. As Sora looks through the crystal orb and at the orange sun, he subconsciously feels Roxas truly within him, and briefly takes on Roxas' appearance as he does so (at least to the player). Then, during Sora, Donald, and Goofy's brief stay in a Realm of Darkness after the Battle of the 1000 Heartless, Riku leaves two clues for them, one of which is a picture from the digital Twilight Town which shows Roxas, Hayner, Pence, and Olette standing in front of the abandoned mansion at Twilight Town. Despite Sora having never seen or met Roxas before, he immediately knows his name. When Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey enter the digital Twilight Town, Sora calls it "Roxas's Twilight Town", and we are then shown a flashback of Roxas destroying the computers. It is also made apparent that Axel is determined to transform Sora into a Heartless; if Sora became a Heartless, then Roxas would be reborn.

Finally, a dying Axel reveals his intent to Sora and his relation to Roxas before fading into nothingness from using all his energy. His death, as Xemnas said, was strong enough to finally, truly awaken Roxas at last. Only after the death of Saïx does Sora find out why the Organization thought that he and Roxas are one and the same.

Encounter with Sora

"You make a good other..."

—Roxas, upon having been defeated by Sora.

File:Kh2-roxas.jpg

Roxas artwork by Tetsuya Nomura

The hints of Roxas' presence within Sora come to a climax in the World That Never Was. At Memory's Skyscraper, two Samurai Nobodies arrive and block Sora from Donald and Goofy. Then, Roxas, shrouded in an Organization cloak, confronts Sora, summoning his Keyblades (much to Sora's surprise). The two are transported to the Station of Serenity, and they share an intense battle, which was originally depicted in a short cutscene, but became an actual boss battle in Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+. During their fight, Roxas says that he is someone from the dark, and Sora wonders if he is Riku. His guess is incorrect, and Roxas says that he had defeated a Riku once. He also asks a strange question: "Tell me...Tell me why he picked you!", referring to the Keyblade(the confusion stems actually from a mistranslation in dialog) and attacks Sora in a rage. At one point, Roxas floats from above, and sees the images of Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy next to Sora, and finally understands that Sora has the Keyblade because of the bond with his friends. Still, Roxas continues to attack, and is able to knock the Keyblade out of Sora's hands. But Sora defeats him in the end, after he surprises Roxas when the Keyblade comes back to him. A wounded Roxas drops his weapons, remembers the events after his "birth", drops his hood, revealing his face, tells Sora, "You make a good other," and leaves with a satisfied look.

It is revealed that the encounter was actually a mental struggle between Roxas and Sora when Sora returns to the World That Never Was. He asks his companions about the mysterious Keyblade-wielding Nobody, but Donald and Goofy say that they saw no one other than themselves, and that Sora had just disappeared, leaving them to fight some Nobodies. Sora is confused, but continues on.

As Sora makes his way up the Organization's stronghold, the Organization members, before being cut down one by one, make more and more confusing remarks about Roxas. Upon Saïx's loss, Sora questions why the Organization calls him "Roxas", and Riku reveals that Roxas is his Nobody, which gives him the power to use the Keyblade. Sora is taken aback by this at first, but then remembers his brief transformation into a Heartless while attempting to rescue Kairi. Riku also explains that Roxas left the Organization, and Riku tried to bring him to DiZ, but was defeated. Riku then took on the form of Xehanort's Heartless and used the darkness as a weapon. He managed to bring Roxas back so that he may join with Sora in order to awaken him from his sleep. However, Riku realized that Roxas had left in the first place because he really wanted to meet Sora, and thus Riku didn't have to fight him. Sora sadly expresses that he wants to meet Roxas as well, but Riku points out that Roxas rests within him. On their way to fight Xemnas, DiZ (now revealed to be the real Ansem) apologizes to Roxas for his mistreatment of him, though he didn't know whether or not he could hear him.

After Xemnas' seeming defeat, Roxas and Naminé reunite, with Roxas projecting himself through Sora before Naminé joins with Kairi. They are happy that they met again, and say that unlike other Nobodies, they got to meet their original selves and become whole. Finally, Roxas and Naminé believe that as long as Sora and Kairi are together, so will they, and accept their place within Sora and Kairi after being promised by their counterparts that they would always be together.

Roxas and Naminé are seen one last time, when Sora and Riku return to Destiny Islands. As Sora and Kairi reunite, they smile at each other, while Roxas and Naminé do the same. With the death of Xemnas, Roxas could be considered the only surviving member of Organization XIII, if only an ex-member.

After the release of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days it is unknown if Roxas will appear as a playable character in any future installments, or if 358/2 Days will be the last time players can control him. This information has yet to be revealed by Square-Enix.

Personality

"You should share some of that hatred with Sora. He's far too nice for his own good." --DiZ, to Roxas.

Roxas, unlike other Nobodies, seems to possess real emotions, stemming from the fact that he, like Naminé, is a special Nobody. Many ranges of feelings come from him depending on his situation.

He is far more prone to anger than Sora, temperamental, can be aggressive, has a snark and bite to him, and stands his ground. He even expressed some dislike for being compared to him early on due to their relation, which DiZ notes with amusement in their encounter. He is sometimes shown to have a devil-may-care attitude for the most part, and can be selfish, but not selfish enough to not, in the end, return back to Sora willingly in understanding. He also isn't the type to just let things happen, to twiddle his thumbs when there's something about himself he doesn't comprehend. He constantly rebels against what he's told is his "place" and is a fiercely independent individual. On the other hand, Roxas tends to be ironically melancholy and stoic, solemn and distracted, especially as he comes to realize the truth about himself all the more. Roxas is also not as impulsive. But, like Sora, they both have little patience for people who seem to be bending their will or trying to confuse them. He doesn't have Sora's extreme lust for life, but he does wish and desire one of his own, and he loves and cares for his friends like his other self would, the one indestructible trait he and Sora share. Something proven when, despite that it was Data Hayner, Pence, and Olette who he interacted with, he meets up with Axel in the clock tower in Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ for a last goodbye, and says he hopes the real ones are okay. Nonetheless, he can and is able to be happy, as he's shown laughing, being calm and carefree in good company many times. If not, just sometimes coming off a little distant.

Roxas also seems to be noted the smarter half of Sora, as he is not as easily fooled by his enemies and is more likely to think his actions through unless angered.

Examples of Roxas's emotional capacity are as follows:

• He angrily attacks DiZ when the latter taunts him and continues to strike at the entity after realizing that it was just a digital image.
• Happily holds up the Champion Belt after winning the Struggle tornament.
• Beforehand, he tried to cheer Hayner up right after beating him.
• Respectfully accepts his fate and rejoins with Sora after seeing him despite initial refusal to do so.
• Continues to apologize to Hayner for disappointing the gang.
• Satisfyingly tells Sora "You make a good other" after their duel.
• Pleaded for Riku and DiZ to let Naminé go.
• Destroys DiZ's computer system after regaining his memories.
• He genuinely cares for Naminé.

Fighting Style

File:Roxas.jpg

Roxas with his Keyblades

When he attacks with his full power, Roxas dual wields 2 Keyblades, the Oathkeeper and the Oblivion, and uses the element of Light, becoming a highly dangerous foe. He can glide at fast speeds, so fast in fact that he leaves behind a lens flare, and control thirteen sword-shaped shields of light energy which can connect to form a laser array. He can levitate his Keyblades in the air and whirl and spin them rapidly, showing a great deal of proficiency and skill with the blades, and can also counter any extended combo with a more powerful one of his own, even creating a ring of damage just by twirling them in a circle. His special attack involves him floating in the air and shooting his thirteen light shields around the arena, which then light it up in a thick twilight mist as Roxas begins shooting blue spheres of light at his opponent from energy gathered in his hands. He'll often attack rapidly from side-to-side, confusing the opponent, leaving a trail of light behind him. He can also perform the Duel Bout technique (similar to his Samurai Nobodies) where he rushes at his opponent and slashes at them quicker than the blink of an eye, causing intense damage if not repelled, the twist is that Sora can utilize Roxas' Keyblades if he does repel the attack. However, when Sora steals Roxas' keyblades, Roxas resorts to utilizing his light shields to full effect, before moving in to steal his keyblades back from Sora.

In comparison to Sora, Roxas seems to have a far more aggressive style: he is constantly on the offensive, and abandons any defensive moves he had previously used, such as the Guard technique, in favor of speed and strength. This makes it easier to catch him off guard (since he is never on guard anyway) but it can still be tough to hit him since he is so fast. In their mental struggle in The World That Never Was, he briefly manages to overpower and disarm Sora.

Roxas's battle with Riku, as seen in Another Side, Another Story, involves him running up the side of Memory Skyscraper and passing by Riku as he leaps off. During the battle against Xemnas in the same location in Kingdom Hearts II, Sora can trigger a reaction command that mirrors this scene. Comparing the cutscene version to the Another Side, Another Story version, how Roxas runs passed Riku after lending him Oblivion is different in the two. In the cutscene version, Roxas has nothing in his right hand, but in Another Side, Another Story, he has the Kingdom Key in his right hand as he's passing Riku.

Without the ability to dual-wield if not chosen, he uses the Kingdom Key. This appears to be his main form of fighting in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. This is likely because he just joined the Organization, and his true powers hadn't awakened yet. This would have to be seen more as the story/game progresses.

It is interesting to note that as well, when not dual-wielding, Roxas uses the same two-handed "heavy hitter" fighting style as Sora.

Weapons

File:Roxas Keyblades.PNG

Oathkeeper (white), Oblivion (black)

In battle, Roxas dual-wields two Keyblades, Oathkeeper and Oblivion (both of which represent Sora's feelings towards Kairi and Riku, respectively), although he can also wield the Kingdom Key, such as during the events of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days and his time in virtual Twilight Town. Roxas is the first character in the series who shows the ability to dual-wield Keyblades. Sora was later able to do this himself, but only while utilizing his Drive Forms. However, Tetsuya Nomura stated that Sora does have the potential to dual-wield Keyblades in his normal state, as Roxas can do everything that Sora can. He controls the element of light and the Samurai Nobodies. Although it would normally be impossible for a Nobody to wield a Keyblade, Roxas, as the Nobody of the chosen wielder of the Realm of Light, Sora, can wield them. Of course, as the Heartless use the Keyblades as a homing signal, he is constantly under attack by them when not under the protection of Organization XIII, though they do not seek out his heart, unlike Sora. However, as the Organization's goal is to gather as many hearts as possible by using the Keyblade to extract them from Heartless, Roxas's inclusion to the Organization was actually their saving grace, as they no longer had to manipulate Sora, until Roxas deserted the Organization.

Quotes

• "Okay fine. You asked for it!"
• "Hayner! Pence! Olette!"
• "Why did the Keyblade choose me? I have to know."
• "No one would miss me."

• "Riku?...I defeated a Riku once."
• "I hate you so much."
• "Sora ... you're lucky. Looks like my summer vacation is...over."
• "Tell me... tell me why he picked you!"
• "You make a good other."
• "Was that... Was that a joke? Cause I'm not laughing!"
• "You said we'd meet again but when we did, we might not recognize each other."
• "No! My heart belongs to me!"
• "I think I understand. I see myself the way you remember me, and you see yourself the way I remember you."

Trivia

• Roxas's music theme is simply named "Roxas", however, when you fight him, a slightly fast-paced, version called "The Other Promise" is played. An orchestration of "The Other Promise" is included of Yoko Shimomura's Square Enix album Drammatica. The melody remains the same, but is played with the pace of and begins with "Roxas".

• Roxas and Axel appear to be good friends with Xion, the mysterious fourteenth member of Organization XIII, as they are shown in screenshots to be casually hanging out on the Destiny Islands (ironically, the homeworld of Roxas's former self) and are seen eating sea-salt ice cream on the Twilight Town clock tower.

• Ven, a character in the yet to be released PSP title Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, bears a striking resemblance to Roxas. However it's unsure if they have any sort of connection.

• Before his name was revealed, he was often known as the "BHK" Meaning "Blond Haired Kid".

• Airwalk, incidentally, has a shoe model named after him, specifically the Roxas Dot. They also have a model named after Demyx.

• During one of the cutscenes in Twilight Town, you can hear someone sneeze in the background while Roxas is talking.