Braig

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"For a Keyblade Master, you're not very—what's the word—good?"

—Braig

Braig, misspelled as "Bleig" in the North American version of Kingdom Hearts II, is one of the six apprentices of Ansem the Wise, and the original persona of Xigbar. He serves as a supporting antagonist in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep.

Journal entry

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

A mysterious man who is up to something behind the scenes.

He and Master Xehanort have an understanding; Braig staged the Master's kidnapping to draw the darkness out of Terra, but that same darkness left Braig scarred.

Story

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

"Oh, so this kiddo thinks he's a full-fledged Keyblade wielder? He's got the angry look down."

—Braig to Ventus

Braig confronts Terra when he comes to Radiant Garden, claiming to have captured Master Xehanort. Braig leads the skeptical Terra underneath Radiant Garden, where he shows Master Xehanort chained to a large pole, to Terra's horror. Braig then engages Terra in a duel, intent on eliminating him and taking his Keyblade. Terra is reluctant to fight back out of fear of succumbing to the darkness and endangering Master Xehanort, until the latter screams for him to use the Keyblade and avoid shaming Master Eraqus. Terra fights back and eventually defeats Braig by using the power of darkness, in the process scarring Braig's face and permanently damaging his eye.

However, it is soon revealed that Braig was working with Master Xehanort. Angered greatly at the loss of his right eye and scarring on his face, Braig attempts to shoot Master Xehanort from behind, claiming that he didn't sign up to be "collateral damage", but Master Xehanort threatens him into backing down and continuing with their plan to make Terra succumb to the darkness.

He later appears in the Keyblade Graveyard, having succumbed to the darkness himself, indicated by his remaining eye becoming yellow and his ears becoming pointed. He appears in front of Aqua and Ventus, attempting to turn them against Terra, but they refuse to forsake their friend. After mocking the angry glare Ventus gives him, Braig is challenged by Aqua and defeated. Since he had only needed to stall for time, he turns and runs. Aqua gives chase, but she turns back, not wanting to leave Ventus alone in his fragile state, and Braig returns to Radiant Garden.

Later, back in Radiant Garden, Braig leads Dilan and Ansem to an amnesiac Terra-Xehanort, the result of Master Xehanort possessing Terra's body. Braig smiles triumphantly to himself, satisfied that his partner's plan worked.

However, Braig later approaches the new Xehanort, now an apprentice under Ansem, and is dismayed to find that the new Xehanort does not recognize him, and Braig's attempts to help Xehanort remember prove only to annoy him. Braig, at one point, questions if this new Xehanort is actually Terra, but Xehanort still does not respond, much to Braig's relief. Braig nevertheless promises to look out for Xehanort.

Between Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep and Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days

Braig became one of six apprentices to Ansem the Wise, the ruler and scientist of Radiant Garden, alongside Dilan, Even, Aeleus, Ienzo, and Xehanort. After Ansem began performing tests on Xehanort's heart, Braig convinces the other apprentices to aid him and Xehanort in conducting inhumane experiments on the human heart and the darkness within it. Such experimentation led to the mass creation of Heartless. Ansem quickly discovered their secret experiments, and immediately ordered them to stop. One day, after being advised to review their research data by King Mickey, Ansem found that the effects of their experiments had become irreversible.

Eventually, Braig and the other five apprentices dabbled too deep into darkness through their continued experiments. Braig, along with the others, was consumed by the darkness, producing a Heartless. However, all the apprentices had strong wills, and so a Nobody for each of them was created, Braig's being Xigbar. The six Nobodies formed Organization XIII, and banished Ansem the Wise to the Realm of Darkness.

Other appearances

File:Braig Stabbed KH3D.png

Braig stabbed with Master Xehanort's Keyblade in the TGS Trailer

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Braig appears at the end of the TGS trailer, where he finds Even and Ienzo passed out inside Ansem's computer room and is stabbed in the chest by an unseen man with Master Xehanort's Keyblade.

A February 2012 issue of Famitsu hints that Lea is searching for Braig, who seems to have not yet reappeared in Hollow Bastion with the other revived apprentices.

Appearance

Braig wears a guard's uniform with a dark slate grey jacket, silver highlights, and two rows of gold buttons on the front. He wears a black belt and white gloves adorned with a silver, curled heart symbol. His jacket bears some resemblance to Xigbar's black coat, sporting the same pointed shoulders. He also wears black, knee-high boots and a tattered, red scarf. In terms of facial features, Braig sports brown eyes, though they turn gold upon his acceptance of the darkness, upturned eyebrows, and dark, shoulder-length hair that he wears slicked back. After his fight against Terra, he loses his right eye and receives a jagged scar over his left cheek, making him and Master Eraqus the only two characters that are seen receiving scars during the story. Once he is able to take the bandages off, Braig wears an eyepatch to cover his lost eye.

Braig wields two Arrowguns shaped like crossbows. They are colored in shades of silver and a faded, metallic purple and adorned with the same curled heart symbol as his gloves.

Personality

Since Braig is the original persona of Xigbar, he possesses some of Xigbar's personality. He is shown to have a laid-back, cocky attitude, and doesn't often take things seriously. Braig can also be cold and merciless at times, seen once when he kidnaps Master Xehanort and tries to eliminate Terra for his Keyblade (although this was later revealed to be staged by Master Xehanort), and again when he tries to destroy Aqua and Ventus to get Terra to fall to darkness and cruelly asking who wants to go first. He often refers to Master Xehanort as an "old coot", and like Xigbar, very frequently says "As if.".

Abilities

"You better start running!"

—Braig, during his battle with Terra

File:Braig gun comparison.jpg

The Japanese release on the left, English on the right

Braig, like his Nobody Xigbar, wields twin Arrowguns in battle, using them to fire a variety of quick shots. He uses a telescopic view in battle and is able to teleport, warp his bullets, and levitate upside-down via space distortion. Like his Nobody's, Braig's HUD display has a silhouette of his Arrowguns in each of the four cardinal directions. The shots Braig fires when he is sniping are violet like Xigbar's, but they seem to have explosive properties to them. He can also combine his two weapons into one in order to fire powerful shots in rapid succession. Braig is also very agile, able to make high leaps into the air, and quickly run around opponents while leaving after-images of himself.

In the Western and Final Mix releases of Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, his targeting reticule was changed drastically, much like it was for his Nobody, Xigbar. Instead of the crosshair-shaped reticule used when fighting Terra, the American, European, and Final Mix versions simply showed three violet dots, vaguely showing Braig's aim.

Gallery

• Braig (Eye-patched) KHBBS.png

  Braig with his scar and eyepatch

• 

  Braig's Arrowgun

See also

• Xigbar