Who is the Darkness That is Missing and Must be Reclaimed?

[Dagesh Lene 366]

At the end of the Toy Story trailer, Young Xehanort says some interesting things to Sora.  This is how their exchange goes:

 

Young Xehanort: "One heart's shadows fill the emptiness of another.  See how they bring him to life?  Like Heartless and Nobodies, they fit together."

 

Sora: "Yeah, great.  Why are you doing this?!"

 

Young Xehanort: "There is a darkness we are missing and must reclaim.  The way hearts connect in this world can provide a clue."

 

Now, if Young Xehanort had just said that there was a darkness they were missing, I wouldn't have thought much of what he was saying.  After all, we did see that they still need a thirteenth darkness at the end of Dream Drop Distance.  However, because he said that the missing darkness must be reclaimed, I am led to think that whoever this darkness is was once a darkness but is one no longer, and the seekers of darkness are on a mission to make this person a darkness once again.  Who could this person possibly be?  I think that it could be four different people:

 

1. Sora

 

I think that this is the least likely person who Young Xehanort could be referring to, but he was supposed to be the thirteenth darkness.  Maybe the seekers of darkness haven't given up on making him one of them yet.  There are few quotes from the seekers of darkness that could be interpreted in a way that backs this up.  Xemnas says to Sora in the Orchestra trailer, "How do you expect to bring Roxas back when he should never have existed in the first place?  There is only one way to accomplish it...Sora, are you finally going to call upon the darkness?"  This could be Xemnas trying to trick Sora into calling upon the darkness so that they could make him a seeker of darkness.  Also, Braig/Xigbar says to Sora in the Pirates of the Caribbean trailer, "And at the end, you'll finally realize what destiny has in store for you.  In fact, your reward might be right around the corner."  This could be Braig/Xigbar talking about how Sora is destined to be a seeker of darkness.  However, there are also some other quotes from these same scenes that could be interpreted to prove that they are not trying to make Sora a seeker of darkness.  In the E3 Showcase trailer, Xemnas says, "Nothing would please us more than Roxas' return."  This could mean that they actually want Roxas as a seeker of darkness and not Sora.  Maybe they are telling Sora to call upon the darkness because they think that it is the only way to bring Roxas back.  After all, that's how Axel was trying to bring Roxas back in Kingdom Hearts II.  Also, Braig/Xigbar says in the E3 Showcase trailer, "Still Sora, that doesn't mean you should change.  Accept the power you're given.  Find the hearts joined to yours."  This could be the destiny that Braig/Xigbar is talking about in the Pirates of the Caribbean trailer.  So basically, there is evidence to support both cases.  However, I don't think that Sora is the one that Young Xehanort is talking about, mostly because he's the hero of the story, and who will we play as in the final battle if not Sora?  Unless this is one of the surprises that Nomura is warning us about.

 

2. Terra

 

Terra (from within his own heart) hinted that he had a plan to free himself from Xehanort's control in the secret ending of Birth by Sleep, and the fact that Xehanort returned as Master Xehanort and not as Terra-Xehanort, which he should have since Terra-Xehanort was the one who became a Heartless (Ansem, Seeker of Darkness) and a Nobody (Xemnas), could be a hint that Terra did successfully free himself from Xehanort's control.  Perhaps Xehanort wants him back.  However, there is one thing that makes me doubt that this is the case.  At the end of Dream Drop Distance, we see that twelve of the thirteen darknesses have already been chosen, and we know that one of them was Terra, Aqua, or Ventus since Xehanort said that one of the Keyblade wielders King Mickey mentioned, in addition to Sora, belonged to him now (the only other Keyblade wielders King Mickey mentioned were himself, Riku, and Sora).  It is possible that Xehanort was referring to Terra, however, in the E3 Showcase trailer, we see Riku and King Mickey return to Mysterious Tower while Sora was still in his Kingdom Hearts II outfit.  This seems to imply that this scene happens early on in the game, which means that, if they are returning from their mission to the Realm of Darkness, they already found out by this point in the game that Aqua was a seeker of darkness.  And if they found out about Aqua that early in Kingdom Hearts III, then she had to have been the one that Xehanort was referring to, unless Terra freed himself from Xehanort's control and Aqua became a seeker of darkness within the short amount of time between the end of Dream Drop Distance and the beginning of Kingdom Hearts III.  Also, if it is true that Terra wasn't the one that Xehanort was referring to in Dream Drop Distance, then this must prove that he had no intention to get Terra back since he was trying to make Sora his thirteenth vessel instead of Terra, unless he is no longer after Sora and is now trying to get Terra back as his thirteenth vessel.

 

3. Roxas

 

Roxas was part of the original Organization XIII, which would explain why Young Xehanort would count him as a former darkness since the original Organization XIII was supposed to be the seekers of darkness before they were all defeated.  This would also explain Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, and Xemnas' interest in bringing Roxas back.  Also, maybe that is why Young Xehanort is talking about getting a clue from the way hearts connect in Toy Box.  Maybe the seekers of darkness are researching the way hearts connect in Toy Box in order to find a way to bring Roxas back from within Sora's heart.

 

4. Xion

 

Like Roxas, Xion was technically part of the original Organization XIII and could, therefore, be counted as a former darkness.  True, Saix says in 358/2 Days that she was never a real member because there were never more than thirteen chairs in Where Nothing Gathers, but Xion was also considered as a replacement for Roxas.  Also, like Roxas, she could be the reason the seekers of darkness are researching the way hearts connect in Toy Box since she is also within Sora's heart.  However, I don't think that Xion will end up being the one who Young Xehanort is talking about, especially since everyone forgot about her once she was defeated by Roxas and went back to Sora.

 

However, these are just my thoughts.  What do you guys think?  Also, are there any other people who Young Xehanort could be referring to who I missed?

Edited August 4, 2018 by Dagesh Lene

[Shifter 12]

Not sure but since we see the other members of the original 13 making an appearance maybe one of them? Also someone posted a what looked like a trailer for 100 Acre Woods for KH3 but it might be fake.

[SoraDaxjer28 263]

Not sure but since we see the other members of the original 13 making an appearance maybe one of them? Also someone posted a what looked like a trailer for 100 Acre Woods for KH3 but it might be fake.

 

Considering Disney's "'Christopher Robin'" just came out yesterday, I would not be surprised if that is a fake video.

 

[Da-Awesom-One 23]

Not sure but since we see the other members of the original 13 making an appearance maybe one of them? Also someone posted a what looked like a trailer for 100 Acre Woods for KH3 but it might be fake.

 

For the record, this is fake. It was made as a joke,

Edited August 4, 2018 by Da-Awesom-One

[KingdomHearts3 2,591]

For the record, this is fake. It was made as a joke,

They did a nice job though. Now back to topic, that missing darkness I thought turned out to be Vanitas because since Sora was saved in HD3D, they still had to find a replacement and I thought it was fitting that it was Vanitas. I am assuming world order in KH3 matters.

[Dagesh Lene 366]

They did a nice job though. Now back to topic, that missing darkness I thought turned out to be Vanitas because since Sora was saved in HD3D, they still had to find a replacement and I thought it was fitting that it was Vanitas. I am assuming world order in KH3 matters.

 

I didn't think of Vanitas!  I just assumed that he was one of the twelve darknesses that had already been chosen by the end of Dream Drop Distance.  However, since we know that the Vanitas we see appear next to Young Xehanort in La Cite Des Cloches was just an illusion, it would certainly make you wonder why the Vanitas that showed up was just an illusion if he had already returned as one of the seekers of darkness.  Vanitas could also be counted as a former darkness.  After all, he did have yellow eyes in Birth by Sleep, which could mean that he was already a vessel for Xehanort before he was destroyed by Ventus within his heart.  However, this begs the question: if Vanitas was not one of the twelve seekers of darkness present at the end of Dream Drop Distance and is going to be the new thirteenth vessel, who was the twelfth vessel (the one we thought was Vanitas)?  We already know who ten of them are (not counting Vanitas):

 

1.   Master Xehanort

2.   Young Xehanort

3.   Ansem, Seeker of Darkness

4.   Xemnas

5.   Braig/Xigbar

6.   Isa/Saix

7.   Luxord

8.   Marluxia

9.   Larxene

10. Terra/Aqua/Ventus (we do not know for sure which one of them Master Xehanort was referring to at the end of Dream Drop Distance)

 

I had assumed up until now that Vanitas was the eleventh known member in that room, but if he wasn't, then that means we don't know who two of them are.  Of the original characters who we know about, I think it is safe to assume that we can exclude all of the other members of the original Organization XIII (including Xion) except for Demyx (since Demyx is the only one whose fate is still unknown).  I also think we can exclude Namine since she became a part of Kairi.  So, that would leave these characters as possible seekers of darkness:

 

1. Demyx

2. Riku Replica

3. Ansem the Wise

4. Master Eraqus

5. Lingering Will

6. All of the original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover

 

I think that is safe to assume that none of the original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover will be one of the seekers of darkness for two reasons.  First, Young Xehanort said that he was the Xehanort from the most distant past, and since all of the original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover existed way before Young Xehanort, that would seem to imply that none of them could be seekers of darkness.  Second, I think that all of the members of the seekers of darkness will be characters that Sora has interacted with throughout his many journeys (except for Vanitas and Master Xehanort), and, since Sora never interacted with any of the original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover, I think that lessens the likelihood that any of them will be seekers of darkness.  However, Young Xehanort did mention the "lost masters", who started the Keyblade War, in one of the very first Kingdom Hearts III trailers, so maybe the Foretellers (and maybe some of the other original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover) will play a bigger role in the game than I thought.

 

I also think we can exclude Master Eraqus from this list since Master Xehanort killed him in Birth by Sleep.  Even though Master Xehanort hinted that Master Eraqus may have set foot in Terra's heart, which could hint at a possible return for him, I don't think that we will see him return in Kingdom Hearts III since he has never been mentioned among those who need to be saved.

 

I think we can exclude Lingering Will from this list as well since he is a part of Terra, and not a part of Terra in the same way that Roxas is a part of Sora.  Lingering Will is literally the lingering will of Terra and nothing more (as far as I can tell).  However, from some of the canon dialogue that was spoken at one of the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra performances, it sounds as if Namine has reached out to Lingering Will, which might mean that there is more to Lingering Will than I thought.

 

I think we can exclude Riku Replica from this list as well since I am fairly certain that he is the one we see next to Riku in the Pirates of the Caribbean trailer.  That would leave these characters as the two unknown seekers of darkness present at the end of Dream Drop Distance:

 

1. Demyx

2. Ansem the Wise

 

If Vanitas is the thirteenth vessel, then I think that these two are the most likely options for the eleventh and twelfth vessels.  However, as I already said, Lingering Will and the original characters from Union χ[cross] and Back Cover could still be potential candidates, as there may be more to them than I originally thought.  However, I still think that Demyx and Ansem the Wise are the most likely candidates.

 

With all of this being said, I think that, while Vanitas could be who Young Xehanort was referring to, he is one of the least likely options, in my opinion, because I personally think it is more likely that he was one of the twelve seekers of darkness present at the end of Dream Drop Distance.

[Karxrida 154]

Xion being the missing darkness wouldn't make sense since no one knows she exists.

 

Which naturally means there's a good chance it's her.

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

This is a pretty good theory you have here, Dagesh Lene!

 

Out of these four, I think that Terra would be the one that Young Xehanort was referring to. I think that maybe Terra may have actually freed himself and is currently trying to find his way back to Aqua and Ven, which is why Young Xehanort said what he said! I hadn't started thinking about this until some time ago, when I looked at the Frozen trailer and saw Aqua norted! It could be that Xehanort found his way to Aqua and took advantage of the weakness in her heart due to her time in the Realm Of Darkness, and perhaps he deemed her a worthy vessel because in her weakened state she'd be easier to control, unlike Terra, who could've freed himself! But hey, who knows? It could also be Roxas, given how Nomura said that Roxas is one of the game's biggest secrets!

Edited August 5, 2018 by The Transcendent Key

[Chasm 108]

All i know is that you can't reclaim what you didn't have in the first place. As of right now, the only possibilities can be Sora, Aqua, Roxas, Terra, and Vanitas, and based on YX's words it sounds like they are referring to Sora. The strain from the pain of those that he's probably trying to save inside of him will probably be the catalust if they're aware of the denizens inside of him. Don't forget Namine told Data Sora that Sora probably wont be able to handle the strain that it would put on his heart.