Xehanort

Unreleased

Master Xehanort is a major character in the upcoming PSP game Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep. Not much is known about him, but he is apparently a powerful mage and a skilled Keyblade warrior. Prior to release of his name, he was known as "Bald Man", "Old Man", or most commonly "UEM" meaning "Unknown Elder Mage". Some fans affectionately refer to him as "Baldinort" after the release of his name, which reflects his different hairstyle and in order to distinguish him from the current Xehanort. Any connection Master Xehanort has to Xehanort, or any other character, is currently unconfirmed.

Story
Little is known about the role the old man will play in the game. However, it has been known for quite a while that the main characters Terra, Aqua, and Ven are searching for him.

Sometime, either early in the story or before it entirely, Master Xehanort disappeared alongside his enigmatic apprentice, which is also referred to by fans as the "DS", or Dark Soldier. The details of their disappearance are uncertain as of yet, but it is known that it foreshadows a great disaster in the universe of Kingdom Hearts. Apparently, he is in search of the Princesses of Heart, and judging by the trailer "Birth By Sleep", he is also seeking Kingdom Hearts.

During the course of the game, he meets alone with Terra in the Gathering Place (also known as "Sunset Horizons" by some fans, due to the title of the music given to the first trailer that is unlockable even in the English version of Kingdom Hearts 2). He seems ashamed about his apprentice's lust for dark power, almost sorry, and perhaps lets on that he is not quite as evil as some may think. He further went on to say that those who submit to darkness are not qualified to wield the Keyblade, and that, that man (likely being his apprentice) is already a monster infused with darkness. He then seems to plead that Terra use his power to defeat the darkness and correct his mistake. This mistake is probably Xehanort not being able to stop his apprentice from falling into darkness.

Eventually, Master Xehanort faces off against the three warriors, alongside his apprentice. He utilizes incredibly powerful magic, especially what appears to be Blizzard magic that can completely freeze a person. He also wields a hefty Keyblade ambidextrously and moves with amazing speed. Terra, Ven, and Aqua stand no chance against him during the duel. As the battle comes to an end, he turns his Keyblade into a ball of dark energy and uses it to summon a Kingdom Hearts with a blue aura in the sky.

Appearance and Abiltlies
Master Xehanort appears to be an old man, bald except for thin eyebrows and a long white goatee. His ears are pointed and his eyes are amber. He has broad, hunched shoulders and a crooked back. He overall appears as a somewhat feeble old man, certainly deceiving given his power.

His attire is nearly identical to the clothes that Xehanort's Heartless wears in Kingdom Hearts, namely, a white and black cloak with a red inner lining, a white shirt, black boots and white gloves. The only major difference in appearance between them is that Xehanort's Heartless has his chest bared, along with his emblem on the front, while Master Xehanort does not. There are a few minor changes as well - Xehanort's Heartless' cloak has a gold lining on the edges, while Master Xehanort's cloak does not, etc. The similar appearance, along with his name, have given rise to immense speculation to a connection between the two.

Despite his bent and fragile appearance, Master Xehanort seems to be one of the most powerful figures to appear in the Kingdom Hearts universe and also has the unique ability to wield a Keyblade. His Keyblade has a black/silver finish, a spiky shaft, and a head resembling the blade of a battle axe. It bears some similarities to Riku's Soul Eater and the Oblivion Keyblade.

He is clearly a very powerful mage and possesses exceptional physical strength. With his magical abilities he is able to make massive columns of earth erupt from the ground and has also been shown to be able to lift hundreds of Keyblades from the ground with a powerful manipulation of wind, creating a destructive vortex which moves at his will that his apprentice sometimes rides. His ice magic not only damages on impact, but also spreads through Terra's left arm freezing it in the process. After grabbing Ven by the head with a single hand and crushing his helmet he instantly froze his entire body although it appears to have been only externally as he was still conscious and moved his eyes.

He also displayed the ability to either teleport or move at an extreme speed as he appeared to have vanished when Ven attempted to slash him from the back. His skill with the Keyblade is also impressive. He deflected Terra's powerful strikes effortlessly and is able to wield it with either hand. He also has an as-of-yet unexplained ability involving the Keyblade. He can turn it into a ball of blue-purple energy that can be fired into the sky and apparently summons Kingdom Hearts.

Some think that Master Xehanort is the creator of the keyblade because he can control where the keyblades move during his keyblade storm and has such high levels of magic. Another reason he is thought to have created the keyblade is because he can use the keyblade's power by turning it into a ball of dark aura to summon Kingdom Hearts in the sky.

Speculation
The mysterious Master Xehanort has opened the world to many different assumptions.


 * One of the most common theories involves him possessing Terra. Due to Terra's similarities to Xehanort and Xemnas, it is believed that Master Xehanort was consumed by the power of Kingdom Hearts, and his spirit went on to Terra, whose eyes subsequently turned yellow and hair white from the overwhelming darkness entering his heart. Terra then lost his memory and ended up in Radiant Garden, where all he could remember was his possessor's name, and became the man known as Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness in Kingdom Hearts. Terra's belt-buckle is reminiscent of the Nobody and Heartless symbols, giving a reason why these symbols came to be. Also, in Kingdom Hearts II:Final Mix+, Xemnas travels to the Room of Sleep to visit Aqua's Armor, and addressing it as friend, and in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, he sees Xion as Ven. This ties Xemnas with an alliance to the three warriors in Birth by Sleep. While Terra appears in Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix, he is referred to in the Journal as "Lingering Sentiment", so Terra's presence in the game is still questionable.
 * He states to Terra to cross the wall of darkness and light to his 'origin', and further on into one video Terra says that he doesn't care about being Master, further confusing the role of Terra in Master Xehanort's plans.
 * A great possibility is that Master Xehanort was defeated by Terra, Ven, and Aqua, but somehow lost much of his power and became Xehanort himself, and began seeking Kingdom Hearts once again. This would explain the similar appearances between him and Xehanort's Heartless.
 * Master Xehanort's Apprentice could be the Xehanort that spawned the Heartless Ansem and the Nobody Xemnas. This theory would make sense due to Ansem The Seeker of Darkness' name belonging to Ansem the Wise, and perhaps Xehanort's name was stolen from Master Xehanort.
 * Another possibility is the fact that Terra, in fact, becomes Master Xehanort's Apprentice (and the new Xehanort), and the "Terra" seen fighting alongside Ven and Aqua is the Lingering Sentiment from Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix, created when Terra succumbed to the darkness. This would also make sense if Master Xehanort were referring to Terra having become a monster infused with darkness and begging Lingering Sentiment to correct this mistake by destroying Terra, and if Lingering Sentiment were demanding to know what Master Xehanort had done with Terra's heart. This would explain why Lingering Sentiment had nothing but hatred for Xehanort (referring to Master Xehanort for doing this to Terra). Further supporting this theory is Master Xehanort's Apprentice informing Ven that "Terra is no longer Terra" in the 2009 Tokyo Game Show trailer.

Gallery
Maître Xehanort