"Beyond both light and dark he dwells, where war was waged upon the fells."
—The Magic Mirror to Terra.

The Keyblade Graveyard is a world that appears in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix and Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep. It was first revealed in Kingdom Hearts II's secret ending, The Gathering. Before its formal introduction as a world, the Keyblade Graveyard is known as "The Badlands" (謎の荒野 Nazo no Areno?, lit. "The Mysterious Wasteland").

Settings and Areas

The Keyblade Graveyard is made up of unending, rocky badlands, scarred by the battles of the Keyblade War. Early on, Terra and Ventus investigate the world at the Badlands (荒野 Areno?, lit. "Wasteland"), where they run into Master Xehanort and Vanitas, respectively. Later, the Vanitas Remnant and Lingering Will appear here, where they challenge intruders to battle.

Each of the heroes eventually enter the true battlegrounds of the world at the Seat of War (古戦場 Kosenjou?, lit. "Ancient Battlefield"), a small outcropping of rock overlooking the shattered vista below. It leads into the Twister Trench (砂嵐の道 Suna-arashi no Michi?, lit. "Sandstorm Road"), where literal storms of raw emotion roam freely. Within the Eye of the Storm (嵐の中 Arashi no Naka?, lit. "Within the Storm") inside each twister, Unversed lurk, ready to attack all who are captured by the maelstrom. Past the storms is the Fissure (峡谷 Kyōkoku?), a small ravine containing a save point and a Moogle Shop. The final area, the titular Keyblade Graveyard (キーブレード墓場 Kīburēdo Hakaba?) are two crossroads, covered by the Keyblades of the wielders who fell during the Keyblade War. During his battle with the heroes, Master Xehanort creates a pillar of rock from the graveyard, and summons Kingdom Hearts to shine down upon it.

After Master Xehanort steals Terra's body and is reborn as Terra-Xehanort, Terra's soul animates his armor as the Lingering Will, locks them both within the Will's Cage (思念の檻 Shinen no Ori?), and forces him into a final battle. Meanwhile, Ventus and Vanitas have reunited into Ventus-Vanitas, and Ventus is forced to fight off Vanitas's control within Ventus's Mind (ヴェントゥスの精神世界 Ventusu no Seishin Sekai?, lit. "Ventus's Soul World"). Both of these areas vanish after the battle ends.

Story

Kingdom Hearts χ

Before Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

After defeating the Spirit of the Magic Mirror, Terra is informed that Master Xehanort dwells "where war was waged upon the fells", referring to the Keyblade Graveyard, but does not understand the riddle. However, as part of his plot to lead Terra astray, Master Xehanort himself calls Terra to the Badlands, then sends him to Radiant Garden to confront Vanitas. Shortly afterward, Vanitas leads Ventus to the Badlands and attacks him, but Ventus is rescued by Mickey's timely arrival.

Shortly before Ventus arrives at Neverland, Vanitas finds Mickey there and abducts him to the Badlands, leaving behind his Star Shard. Ventus finds the shard and is whisked away to the home of Mickey's mentor, Yen Sid, who is able to locate Mickey. When Ventus arrives to rescue his friend, Xehanort intercepts him and reveals his plans to use Ventus to create a new χ-blade, then casts him back to the Lanes Between while mockingly advising him to question Master Eraqus. He then calls Terra back to his side and manipulates him into following Ventus and fighting Eraqus.

After Ventus reaches Eraqus, Terra intercepts him and casts him through the Lanes Between to Destiny Islands, where Vanitas tracks him down and reveals that he was created from Ventus's extract darkness by Master Xehanort at the Keyblade Graveyard. At the same time, Master Xehanort kills Eraqus, destroys the Land of Departure, and tells the shocked Terra to come find him at the graveyard, while Aqua learns of these events from Yen Sid's divinations.

Now aware that the Badlands were, in fact, the legendary battlefield of the Keyblade War, all three make their way there and find Master Xehanort, Vanitas, and their co-conspirator Braig. Master Xehanort sends Vanitas and his ally Braig to attempt to kill Aqua and to force Ventus to fight Vanitas, thus fusing the two and creating the χ-blade; once the fusion is successful, Master Xehanort unlocks his own heart and possesses Terra's body, being reborn as Terra-Xehanort. However, the plan backfires when Terra's anger animates his discarded armor as the Lingering Will, who knocks out Xehanort, while Aqua and Ventus shatter the χ-blade in the ravine below. The lightstorm created by the χ-blade's destruction rips apart the landscape and casts away everyone but the Lingering Will, who goes into hibernation while vowing to one day correct the wrongs committed by Xehanort.

Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix

Eleven years later, a portal to the Keyblade Graveyard opens in the Hall of the Cornerstone under Disney Castle. Per Queen Minnie's request, Sora, Donald and Goofy pass through it and meet the Lingering Will. It attempts to identify Sora but ends up mistaking him for Xehanort. However, after a long and grueling battle, the Will ends the fight as it can sense Ventus's heart inside Sora, and acknowledges Sora as a Keyblade Master.

Other appearances

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

The Keyblade Graveyard appears in the game's opening FMV, in which Master Xehanort battles Sora, Riku, Terra, Ventus, Aqua, Roxas, Donald, Goofy, and King Mickey at night. Template:Section-stub

Characters

Enemies

Heartless

Unversed

Other

Treasures

Trivia

  • The capital letters in the logo for the Keyblade Graveyard slightly resemble the protagonists' Keyblades. The "K" bears resemblance to the teeth of the Earthshaker, the "E" resembles the teeth of the Wayward Wind, the "G" bears similarity to the guard of the Rainfell, and the final "D" resembles the guard of the Kingdom Key complete with the Keychain, albeit featuring Sora's Crown Pendant rather than a Mickey Head.
  • The "teeth" of Oblivion, Oathkeeper, Sleeping Lion, Follow the Wind, Circle of Life, and Fenrir, as well as the Keychain of Master Xehanort's Keyblade, can been seen coming out of the bottom of the World icon.
  • Each Eye of the Storm contains Unversed inflicted with either Slow, Haste, or an unnamed status that enlarges them.

Notes and references

  1. ^ Mickey is an ally to Ventus during his first fight with Vanitas and to Aqua during her fight against Ventus-Vanitas

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