Xemnas

Xemnas, the Superior of the In-Between (狭間の指導者) is the Nobody of Xehanort, Rank I within Organization XIII, the ruler of The World That Never Was and the main antagonist of Kingdom Hearts II. He wields the power of nothingness, and channels this into his weapons, red blades of energy called Ethereal Blades. He commands the Sorcerer Nobodies. Xemnas, as the superior, is the first member and founder of Organization XIII, with all other Nobodies under his control. He is the most powerful member, so much, that Marluxia would not dare to face him even with the support of Axel and Larxene until Sora was completely under his control. Furthermore, Vexen immediately complied with Marluxia's order to eliminate Sora when he made the empty threat that he would report Vexen's failure to the Superior. He also appears to be the Organization's most intelligent member.

Despite his original name being Xehanort, he uses an anagram of his mentor's name: Ansem, due to Xehanort stealing the name prior to discarding his heart and body. Xemnas is a playable character in the multiplayer format of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days.

His complete being, Xehanort, may also have an appearance in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, due to his possible connection to Aqua, whose armor resides in the Chamber of Repose (see below).

Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
A mysterious man who appeared at Hollow Bastion.

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
No. I XEMNAS

''Organization XIII's leader. Through power over nothing, he seeks power over everything.''

Weapon: Ethereal Blades

Kingdom Hearts II

 * First Entry

''Organization XIII's Number I. He directs the group as its leader. ''

''In truth, he is the Nobody of Xehanort, who was apprenticed to Ansem the Wise. In secret, Xehanort studied the doors and the heart of all worlds, ultimately stealing his master's name, Ansem. When Xehanort became a Heartless, his Nobody Xemnas came into being.''

Xemnas is using Sora, collecting the hearts released every time a Heartless falls to his Keyblade.


 * Second Entry

''Organization XIII's Number I, who acts as leader of the group. Xemnas is the Nobody of Ansem's apprentice Xehanort.''

He used Sora and his Keyblade to collect hearts from the Heartless and see Kingdom Hearts to its completion.


 * Organization XIII

Organization XIII's Number I. He directs the group as its leader.

''Organization XIII is a unique presence among the Nobodies. They think and plan, and seem to have a greater goal.''

What that is remains to be seen, but they appear to know a bit about the Keyblade.

Appearance
Like all the Organization members, Xemnas wears the basic black cloak, boots, and gloves. He has amber-orange eyes and dark skin (though it appears much lighter in-game than in some artwork), much like his complete being, Xehanort. His hairstyle resembles Xehanort's more than his Heartless counterpart's does, but it is silver as, opposed to Xehanort's white hair, and much layered and messier, with some of it falling over his shoulders.

During two parts of his battle with Sora and Riku, Xemnas dons armor adorned with dozens of Nobody symbols on his shoulder pad (he only has one, on his left shoulder, helmet, crown, boots, knees, and breastplate. His crown and shoulder pad are gold, while the rest of the armor is colored in light shades of blue and black. He has two white belts on his waist and what seems to be a white tuft of fur on his right shoulder in place of armor. Several cords criss-cross in front of his torso, connecting to massive, oblong pieces of armor worn on each arm. Xemnas's faceplate is beak-like in structure and he wears clawed, metal gloves. Perhaps the most striking features of this armor are the odd, pulsating growths sprouting from Xemnas's right shoulder and both arms. These growths appear organic and are a mixture of red, orange, yellow, and white. While the larger one on his shoulder seems to connect Xemnas to his dragon-like Nobody battleship, the other two just lie on the ground, seemingly serving no purpose.

In his final battle with Sora and Riku in the Realm of Nothingness, Xemnas's appearance is unchanged, save for his cloak. His once all black cloak is now a white one covered in black designs, many of which resemble the Nobody logo.

Testing Sora
Xemnas first appears in Kingdom Hearts Final Mix, arriving at Hollow Bastion to see Sora after recruiting Roxas. The Princesses of Heart sense his incredible power, and Sora, Donald, Goofy, and the Beast go to the abandoned area where they fought Maleficent to investigate, and soon encounter Xemnas. He is at first intangible, and passes through Sora, causing him to experience many of his memories in rapid succession (a power seen again in Chain of Memories) and use it later after the fight to create Xion. Sora asks who the man is, and Goofy wonders if it is Ansem, and though Xemnas says he is familiar with the name, he does not clarify how or who he is. He then launches an energy attack at Sora, who manages to deflect it (with some difficulty). Xemnas remarks how Sora looks like "him", and that he is not complete, but only confuses Sora. He then attacks the Keyblade wielder, intending to test his power.

Afterwards, he backs off, appearing to be defeated, but quickly abandons the facade. He finds Sora fascinating, and says that they will one day meet again and disappears, but not before making an ambiguous comment on how he is but a "mere shell".

Deep Dive
This is a secret movie in Kingdom Hearts Final Mix. "Kingdom Hearts" then appears on the screen. Back on the Dark Meridian, Roxas finishes his walk across the screen. A hooded Xemnas turns to Roxas and speaks to him (his voice is not heard, but his mouth is seen moving). The quote comes on the screen "He looks just like you". Sora is then shown flying over an endless ocean, seemingly asleep, and the final quote "It's all coming back to me, the true..." appears.

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
Xemnas plays a large role in 358/2 Days, serving as the driving force for all the events in the game. Once Roxas is inducted into Organization XIII, Xemnas makes use of Roxas's ability to use the Keyblade to release captured hearts and use them to form Kingdom Hearts. At the same time, he begins his experiments on the Replica Project and created a clone of Sora using the hero's memories. The result is Xion (No. i with an x in it) who Xemnas hoped to use as an alternative in case Sora proved useless to his plans. Xion was made the fourteenth member of the group, but did not get a throne. The plan was for Xion to gradually develop Sora's abilities and then merge with Roxas to become a complete clone of Sora. For this reason of the two being planned to be merged into one, along with the fact that Xion is not a true nobody, the name of the group remained Organization XIII. Xion was also a prototype of the project and Xemnas planned to destroy her and make a perfect one if Xion did not meet his demands.

Xemnas sends all the members on their missions to further their plans while placing Xion in the care of Roxas. Xemnas eventually extends his plans and operations to Castle Oblivion. With this fortress in his control, he sends five members to conduct experiments on memory with the use of Naminé who was abducted and being held prisoner by the Organization. Xemnas places Marluxia in charge due to his high rank in skills and also charges Vexen with the task of experimenting on another replica from the Replica Project who would later turn out to be the Riku Replica. Xemnas was also the one who handed down the order to Marluxia to lure Sora to Castle Oblivion and experiment with the hero. However, once the Dusks brought back rumors of traitorous activities occurring in the castle, Xemnas sends Axel to neutralize the threat. Once Xemnas sends Axel to insure that Marluxia and Larxene are kept in line, Roxas and Xion go on more missions together. Xemnas's plans falter when five Organization members and the Riku Replica are eliminated and Naminé escapes, but continues on with Xion, placing Axel in charge of capturing her whenever she tries to escape to find out who she really is.

He orders the other members to do all they can to create powerful Heartless for Roxas to defeat such as what Xaldin was doing to Beast. Roxas gradually feels remorse for what he is doing on the behest of this group and questions their motives and loses trust in them when he sees how people with hearts live and what Xemnas is ordering the Organization to do to them. Roxas ultimately leaves the group when Xion does the same to find his other half and answer all the questions that he now knows Organization XIII will never tell him, battling and defeating Saïx in the process. The Replica Project ultimately fails when Xion, who learned from Naminé that she was nothing more than a clone, is absorbed by Roxas instead after she went insane and fought Roxas in an attempt to absorb him for a true existence. This granted Roxas his signature ability to wield two Keyblades at once and also brought the restoration process of Sora's memories to a complete stop. This causes DiZ to order Riku to bring Roxas to him in order to resume the process of Sora's memories being regained.

With her dying breath, Xion reveals the true evil nature of the Organization and how Xemnas is simply using everyone to obtain Kingdom Hearts for his own warped desires. Roxas, emotionally shattered and having seen enough of the Organization's treachery, goes to the World that Never Was to confront Xemnas and the rest of the Organization. Before he can though, he is attacked by the Heartless and then is engaged in a fight with Riku. While Roxas defeats him, Riku uses the powers of darkness to transform himself into Xehanort's Heartless to overwhelm Roxas. Riku takes him to DiZ to be sealed in a digital version of Twilight Town. Xemnas discontinues the Replica Project and orders Axel to bring back Roxas or kill him, setting the stage for Kingdom Hearts II.

It's interesting to note that the Secret Reports in this game confirm Xemnas's true reason for his lust for Kingdom Hearts. He does not value acquiring a heart, but becoming a great being and remaking the universe in his image. He refers to the conquest of all that lives as his "true" goal that no other member knows of.

Roxas
In the opening scene of Kingdom Hearts II, Xemnas is seen at a dark beach. Roxas soon joins him. Xemnas says that he has been to see Sora, also commenting on how the two look alike. Roxas asks just who he is, but Xemnas only explains just what he is. When Roxas repeats the question, Xemnas states that his name is of no importance and answers the question with his own question: "What about you? Do you remember your true name?". Roxas begins to answer, but then realizes that he doesn't.

According to Tetsuya Nomura, this scene is not truly real. Rather, it is a mix of all of Roxas' emotions, feelings, and desires.

Another encounter with Sora
True to Xemnas' words, he and Sora meet again at Hollow Bastion, the same world he was first encountered, albeit restored, accompanied by Saïx, Xigbar, Demyx, Xaldin, and Luxord (although all of their faces are hidden by their hoods, and do not directly face Sora), although Sora doesn't recognize him or his cloak from their first encounter. They taunt and mock him, only furthering Sora's desire to defeat them. Xemnas makes an empty joke about how he thought they could've been friends, and then leaves.

From there on in, Xemnas remained at his castle while his group's members traveled to make sure Sora stayed on track, while increasing the number of Heartless for him to fight.

Heartless invasion
Xemnas is not seen again until the Heartless invasion, arriving to the Computer room to access the Chamber of Rest before appearing to look down upon the Heartless army that had temporarily halted in the Great Maw. King Mickey, upon seeing his face, immediately remembers just who's Nobody Xemnas is: Xehanort, the apprentice of Ansem the Wise. Xemnas then runs off, and King Mickey gives chase, though Sora, Donald, and Goofy are impeded from following by the Heartless.

After an exhausting battle, the three make their way to the cliff overlooking Villain's Vale; finally catching up with the King. King Mickey addresses him by his original name, and Xemnas merely remarks that it has been ages since he had abandoned that name. Sora demands to know where Riku and Kairi are. Xemnas claims to know nothing of any "Kairi", and as for Riku, Xemnas tells Sora to ask his King. Then, he vanishes into a corridor of darkness, but not before King Mickey follows him in. However, as King Mickey later appears in Twilight Town, it is obvious that either Xemnas managed to escape him or that King Mickey simply lost track of him.

All united
Xemnas again appears in the World That Never Was, standing upon the highest tower of the Nobody castle, asking Kingdom Hearts to share its power with all Nobodies. Saïx then appears, asking whether Kingdom Hearts is complete. Xemnas says it will be soon, and allows Saïx to end their game and finish off Sora and his companions.

After all Organization members save for himself had been eliminated, Xemnas comes to greet Ansem the Wise, who had been attempting to digitally seal Kingdom Hearts away. The former pupil mocks his teacher, stating that he is the source of all Heartless, for inspiring him to go where Ansem himself did not dare to venture. Though Ansem admits that his foolishness was the source of much misery, he questions Xemnas on how this was what he had been seeking. Xemnas says it is that and more, and reveals his plans to create a brand new world, one heart at a time. He admits he thought that Ansem would praise him, but instead only held him back, consumed by the jealousy he had for his student. But he understands that Ansem was not able to control his heart.

Ansem scoffs at this, stating that they both claim to understand the heart, but actually know as little about it as they had in the very beginning. He declares passionately that Xemnas will fail and so will his world, and tells Riku and Sora to finish what he had started. After bidding farewell to the King and apologizing to Roxas, Ansem's Kingdom Hearts Encoder explodes, and Xemnas retreats just as the bright light envelops the area. The explosion also caused severe damage to Kingdom Hearts, causing countless hearts to rain down upon the world, which would transform into Heartless upon touching the darkness that coated the world.

Sora and the others then travel up to the very top of the tower, where Xemnas lamented over the damage done to Kingdom Hearts. He asks the three Keyblade wielders to fetch him more hearts, and when they refuse, he asks why they hate the darkness. King Mickey responds that they don't hate the darkness, but just that it's "scary". But he knows that the world is made of both light and darkness, and then wonders why they really are afraid of the darkness. Riku adds that it is because of who  or what's lurking inside that darkness.

Xemnas then asks another question: if they accept the darkness, yet choose to live in light, why do they loathe those who are nothing, having been turned away from both the darkness and the light? Riku answers that it's because they endangered the worlds, and Xemnas tries to justify it with the fact that they had no choice. However, Sora does not believe this, stating that they don't even exist and feel no remorse about anything. Xemnas chuckles, stating that it is very true, and proceeds to face Sora one on one in an arena of nothingness, with Memory's Skyscraper towering above them.

Xemnas appears defeated, returning Sora to the Castle That Never Was, but Xemnas is still alive and well, basking inside Kingdom Hearts, urging it to join forces with him to gain the power needed to destroy their common enemies. Sora and the others try to stop him, but it is too late, and Xemnas is absorbed into Kingdom Hearts. Fortunately, the worlds created a door for Sora and the others to enter, for they wanted them to be the guardians of their destiny. They then follow Xemnas into Kingdom Hearts, but they see that Xemnas has taken its power and transformed the realm into a place resembling the World That Never Was with a giant fortress in the middle. He says that their hearts have led them to their deaths, seeing that it may not be worth following one's heart, and takes note of it, before hurling a building at them. This causes Kairi and Mickey to be separated from the others, but even so, Sora and co. defeat Xemnas in his knight-like form. He thinks that he needs more hearts and more rage, but Sora tells him that hearts are more than just anger or hate, and asks if he remembers, which he doesn't, before seemingly fading back into the darkness.

Ultimate destruction
With the help of Naminé, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, and the King get safely to Destiny Islands, but before Sora and Riku can follow, Xemnas attacks once more; having merged with a gigantic mechanical dragon. After another difficult battle, Xemnas takes Sora and Riku to a realm of nothingness, with Xemnas wearing a robe representing both light and darkness. He says that if both light and darkness are eternal, then so too must be nothingness. Riku and Sora says this is true, but that does not mean Xemnas is eternal. They then share a very tense battle, with Xemnas wounding both Sora and Riku with various attacks. This is also the only time you ever play as Riku, during a point in the battle where Xemnas tries to suck Sora's Heart out, and Riku has to save him. Riku is badly injured during the fight, so Sora batters Xemnas into submission with his and Riku's Keyblades. Sora and Riku then finish him off. Xemnas fades into darkness, making him the last Organization member to fall and ending the threat of Organization XIII and the madness of Xehanort forever.

Personality
Being the founder of Organization XIII and apparently the oldest of Nobodies, Xemnas is truly emotionless and does not even remember what it was like to have emotions. He claims that this allows him to have a clear understanding of the heart, but in reality this has warped his mind into believing that only anger, hatred, and other negative feelings make up a heart.

Not to mention, his lack of emotion gives him absolutely zero remorse over his actions, as well as the loss of the other members of the Organization. The only thing he truly cares about is Kingdom Hearts and his desire for power, and even laments it when it is damaged. Unlike the other members of the organization, Xemnas does not seem to want Kingdom Hearts for a true existence. Rather, much like his Heartless counterpart, he wants it to use it to obtain power and remake the universe in his image. This concept is furthered as Xemnas thinks that nothingness is the source of much power and does not seem to despise it in the slightest.

In other matters Xemnas speaks with calmness and deep authority. He has a tendency to be overly melodramatic making long-winded speeches, exaggerating his false rage and sorrow with wide sweeping arm movements and hand gestures. While ridiculous in nature, his exaggerations are representations of his lack of emotion. He's very intelligent overall, and knows how to manipulate others, particularly Sora and his friends.

In battle
As the leader of Organization XIII, Xemnas wields nothingness, and manifests this as blades of energy called Ethereal Blades. In his encounter with Sora as the "Unknown", and their first battle in Kingdom Hearts II, Xemnas is very agile, and attacks with swift acrobatic combos with his blades. He can also teleport, fly, and create energy barriers to shield himself. Besides using them as melee weapons, Xemnas can fire his Ethereal Blades as laser-like projectiles, and can either fire them directly from his hands or create them in mid-air. In all three battles with Xemnas' unarmored form, Xemnas also incorporates some sort of attack that drains his opponent's health with a sphere of dark energy, though the exact manner of this has varied (see below).

After donning his armor, Xemnas gains access to the powers and/or weapons of his fallen Organization comrades, such as Xaldin's lances and Roxas's power over light. In this form he is immobile, attacking enemies with his massive sword when they come close. He can still project barriers, and summon crests of light in the air to fire white beams of energy at his enemies.

In the final battle of Kingdom Hearts II, Xemnas' power increases dramatically. He can create copies of himself, summon torrents of white and black thorns much like Twilight Thorn, and retains his normal ability to use his Ethereal Blades and project barriers. As his ultimate, final attack, Xemnas summons thousands of Ethereal Blades around Sora and Riku to bombard them from all sides with no hope of escape.

In Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, in his encounter as the Unknown, Xemnas also had the ability to encase himself in a blue ball of energy that made it impossible for Sora to attack him, and would also fire out a set of powerful lasers. The ball would follow Sora around if he ever to tried to get away from it. In his first battle with Sora in Kingdom Hearts II, Xemnas can encase him in a field of dark energy that steadily drains his health, that can only be broken by using the reaction command. In the final battle in Kingdom Hearts II, Xemnas uses an attack known as the "Invitation to Nothingness", in which he ensnares opponents in a sphere of dark energy that slowly drains their life force.

Weapon
Xemnas uses weapons called Ethereal Blades (Aerial Blade (エアリアルブレード) in Japanese), known as Interdiction. They are beams of red energy and extend directly from the palms of his hands, without any hilt or handle. He can summon or disperse them at will, and may be able to change their length as well. They are solid despite their appearance, but do not seem to have any cutting ability and are used as bashing weapons, more in the style of a club. The Ethereal Blades can also be used as projectiles and can suspend themselves in midair around a target before firing at them. As a desperation move, Xemnas can surround his enemy in darkness and fire an amazing amount of Ethereal Blades at them.

Playing as Xemnas
In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, Xemnas takes on the role of a playable character rather than a boss, but only in Mission Mode. While controlling Xemnas, the player has the ability to access magic spells, items, abilities, and different weapons via Gears. Xemnas floats rather than walking or running. Xemnas utilizes a basic three-hit combo, attacking with either of his two Ethereal Blades alone, then both left and right together with a short range, and then both together once again in a longer range, creating a possibly devastating combo finisher. His aerial combo is merely repeated left-to-right slashes, each more powerful than the next until a three-hit combo is executed. With certain Gears, he can fire his blades as a combo finisher. Xemnas's Limit Break, All-Vanity, involves Xemnas surrounding himself in a damaging force field. This Limit Break is similar to a damaging tactic used by the Superior that repels enemy attack in his final battle with Sora and Riku in Kingdom Hearts II. His Final Limit version retains the field but now spreads his arms and fires beams of energy, similar to his Final Mix battle. An interesting note is that he is the only playable character able to project an energy based guard, which is the same barrier seen in the boss battles against him.

Quotes
"Good tidings, friends. Today is a momentous day.  I am pleased to announce that a new comrade has been chosen to wear the coat." "I need... more rage... I need more... hearts..." "Hearts are power. Nothingness is eternal!" "Hear me, Kingdom Hearts! It seems we must begin anew. Ah, but know this: I will give to you as many hearts as it takes. Mark my words! You can no more be complete without me than I without you. Heed me, Kingdom Hearts! Lend me your power, so that we may be complete! The power to erase the fools that hinder us." "Heroes from the realm of light, I will not allow it to end this way - not yet. If light and darkness are eternal, surely we nothings are the same! Eternal!" "You accept darkness, yet choose to live in the light. So why is it that you loathe us who teeter on the edge of nothing? We who were turned away by both light and dark - never given a choice?" "Very good. You don't miss a thing. I cannot feel... sorrow... No matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel, or how you exist." "I was wondering who would dare interfere with my Kingdom Hearts. And look—here you all are. How convenient for me. Ansem the Wise... You look pathetic." "Hearts scarred by envy... That fool Ansem said the heart's true nature was beyond his understanding. But it's not beyond mine! Hearts are the source of all power!" "My name is of no importance. What about you? Do you remember your true name?" "So...it seems your hearts have led you to obliteration. Perhaps it doesn't pay to be too loyal to one's heart. I will have to be sure and remember that."

Trivia

 * The names of Xemnas's various Ethereal Blades seem to be references to iron-fisted leadership. Perhaps due to his preeminent power among the Organization, only one of his Ethereal Blades, Infinity, actually grants him a support ability.
 * Roxas' 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. This is mirrored in Sora's battle with Xemnas, with Sora taking Roxas' place and Xemnas taking Riku's.
 * Strangely enough, immediately before the first battle with Xemnas in his armor, we see Kairi and King Mickey locked outside Kingdom Hearts, but that same battle is one of the battles where King Mickey can save Sora if he dies.
 * Xemnas was the first and final Organization member to be fought against.
 * Xemnas, Saïx, and Luxord were the Organization members which Yen Sid showed to Sora.
 * Xemnas is the only member whose title does not have an official English translation. The opening movie of 358/2 Days only lists the members' titles in the Japanese version. Xemnas's title is only mentioned there.

Xemnas