List of Glossary terms

All the glossary entries that appear in the Reports of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance and Kingdom Hearts III:

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Keyblades

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 light.

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

Keyblade Masters

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.

Master Xehanort

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 the 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.

The Keyblade War

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.

Heartless

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.

Kingdom Hearts

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.

Nobodies

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, but they retain their human memories, which serve as a reservoir from which to draw human emotion.

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

Organization XIII

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.

Seven Princesses

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."

Recusant's Sigil

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.

χ-blade

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" and "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.

Hearts Tied to Sora

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.

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 end in sadness, a sadness in which they still sleep.

Secret Message

The past will be reawakened
as a new number
in never—before—seen detail

Prepare yourself for the awakening
of the next number

Kingdom Hearts III

Keyblades

Weapons fashioned in ancient times in the image of the χ-blade in order to fight back the darkness and maintain order in the World. Keyblades can only be wielded by chosen individuals who are strong of heart.

Shaped like keys, they operate any lock in existence, and are imbued with magic and other unique capabilities. Keyblade wielders may "bequeath" their powers to the next generation upon meeting worthy individuals.

Keyblade Masters

A title reserved for the select few who have proven their knowledge and skill with the Keyblade is sufficient to protect the order of the World.

In the past, Masters Eraqus and Xehanort achieved this rank, as did Yen Sid. In recent times, Aqua, King Mickey, and Riku have become Masters as well.

The Keyblade War

An epic clash in the distant past, when the forces of light and dark fought for control of Kingdom Hearts—the collective heart of every world—and the χ-blade that serves as its key. The battleground upon which the war was fought is now known as the Keyblade Graveyard, a barren place where Keyblades jut from the ground like tombstones.

Master Xehanort seeks to recreate the Keyblade War in order to forge the χ-blade, unlock Kingdom Hearts, and learn what mysteries await in the world beyond.

The χ-blade

An implement created as a counterpart to Kingdom Hearts, and the only key that can open it. All other Keyblades are believed to have been created in its image. The χ-blade was destroyed during a great battle in the past. It will be reforged when seven hearts of pure light clash with thirteen pure darknesses.

In the past, Master Xehanort divided the darkness and light in Ventus's heart and pitted them against one another, artificially creating a χ-blade, but his experiment failed and the incomplete blade was destroyed.

Heartless

Foot soldiers in the forces of darkness. They can appear in any world, and attack those living there in order to steal their hearts.

The Heartless are formed when a person's heart is separated from their body and the darkness in the heart takes physical shape. They act autonomously, and their attacks are able to corrupt even those with hearts of light, giving rise to new Heartless in turn.

A Keyblade can free these stolen hearts from the darkness, and so Sora travels the worlds actively seeking out Heartless to defeat.

Heartless can be roughly divided into two categories: Purebloods, the original strain, and Emblem Heartless, which were artificially created.

Nobodies

Embodiments of emptiness that serve the darkness. Nobodies arise alongside Heartless, while the empty body left behind becomes its own autonomous creature.

Nobodies who possessed exceptionally strong hearts in life may retain their original appearance, as did all of the previous Organization XIII's members. Not everyone fares so well, however; most bodies cease to exist the moment their hearts are lost. As a result, Nobodies are fewer in number than their Heartless counterparts.

Unversed

Creatures aligned with the darkness. They arise from powerful negative emotions, and when defeated, they return to the source of pure darkness from which they came: Vanitas.

The Unversed's presence in a location is clear evidence that Vanitas is somehow involved. So long as their master continues to exist, they will spawn endlessly.

Dream Eaters

Creatures native to the Sleeping Worlds that feed on dreams. Two types exist: Nightmares that eat good dreams and plant bad ones in their stead, and Spirist that eat only bad dreams. The Spirits have fought alongside Sora and Riku in past battles.

In the age of fairy tales, Spirits called the Chirithy once provided assistance to Keyblade wielders.

Organization XIII

A group of thirteen powerful Nobodies who retained their human appearance, led by Xehanort's Nobody, Xemnas. They attempted to create an artificial Kingdom Hearts by gathering hearts released from fallen Heartless, but Sora and his friends thwarted their plans and put an end to most of their ranks.

The members of Organization XIII were recompleted as humans after their destruction. Like Sora's newfound ally Axel, they retain memories of their lives both during the Organization and before.

The Real Organization XIII

A new Organization under Master Xehanort's direct command. It comprises the thirteen pure darknesses he needs to reenact the Keyblade War.

Many members are recognizable from the old Organization. Despite regaining their humanity after their defeat, they chose to become Nobodies again. They now scour the worlds for candidates to complete their numbers.

The Three Realms

The worlds Sora travels are divided into three regions: the realm of light, the realm of darkness, and the realm between.

Worlds in the realm of light and the realm between exist as planets in a great sea of stars, which Sora and his friends explore aboard their smile-powered gummi ship.

The realm of darkness, however, exists in a space closed off from time. It is accessible only via dark corridors—pathways that open for agents of darkness, or when worlds become unstable—or by using the "power of waking." As a result, Aqua has spent years wandering the realm of darkness, unable to return to the light.

Datascapes

Artificial simulations based on real-world data. Inside a datascape, time can be made to loop infinitely, and the possible becomes possible.

The alternate Twilight Town that Roxas shared with Hayner, Pence, and Olette is one such world.

Order

Donald's magic ensures that Sora and his fellow travelers will always assume an appropriate form for the worlds they visit, so as not to disrupt the world order.

In general, the guardians of light take the utmost care not to spread knowledge of other worlds to the residents of the places they visit—or at least they try. Sora has a habit of forgetting, and every slip of the tongue earns him a fresh lecture from Donald.

The Power of Waking

In Yen Sid's words, "the power to free a heart from its sleep." By the end of his Mark of Mastery examination, Sora had acquired the power of waking, but he lost it when he nearly became a vessel for Xehanort.

It is a rare and special power that, at the time of this writing, only Riku and the King possess.

Lost Memories

Sora's memories of his adventures at Castle Oblivion in the realm between, and of the members of Organization XIII he faced there. In the end, he cast aside his memories of Castle Oblivion and fell into a deep slumber in order to repair the original memories he'd lost.

The Nobodies of Organization XIII were unaffected by the castle, and still retain unilateral memories of their encounters with Sora there.

Ansem's Code

A set of data Ansem the Wise cached within Sora while Sora's memories were being repaired. It was entrusted to Riku during the Mark of Mastery examination.

Ienzo and the others back at Radiant Garden are doing their utmost to decipher this data, since it may hold the key to saving Roxas, Naminé, and others.

The Replica Program

A research project that was helmed by Vexen when he was part of the original Organization XIII. The goal was to create empty vessels that could contain a heart and outwardly reflect its original appearance.

The previous Organization used the replica to copy Sora's memories, hoping to give life to a Keyblade wielder of their own. But while Vexen did manage to create viable specimens, the program was cut short before it could reach completion.

The Black Box

The object of Maleficent and Pete's search. Maleficent believes it has been hidden away since the age of fairy tales, but no one knows where it is or what exactly it contains.

The Old Words

"May your heart be your guiding key."

A phrase oft intoned by Keyblade users in the age of fairy tales. The words live on today, though few still recite them.