II. An Introduction

"This world has been connected."

A voice speaks from the blackness, an eternal abyss of darkness that blots out even the smallest light. You want to speak, but you can't seem to move, trapped in a stasis as you stare into the void. The deep voice continues, "Or, I should say-- reconnected." No face can be made out, but a figure appears, robed in darkness itself as the silhouette moves closer, more distinct into your vision. "Can you feel it? The worlds calling out to you from across the vast darkness? Yes. That feeling you've had since the day you were born, a yearning to be someplace else; that you don't belong trapped in this... prison." As he spoke, the figure stopped before you, the dark hole where his face would be covered in shadow. "Oh, you know so very little." The voice sounded almost mocking. Golden eyes come into focus in a flash before disappearing. "But--" The voice become thoughtful, "I suppose even the most insignificant of hearts hold some value." The figure turned around and walked away... or were you falling?

"I wonder..." The man paused, his voice smiling where his darkened face could not, "Are you my key?"

* * * * *

Light and darkness exist symbiotically. However, it didn't always used to be this way. The world used to be filled with Light. There was no fighting, there were no monsters, there was no Sin. The world was clean, new. It was from this Light that the first Darkness developed. Out of a desire to control the light and harness it for greater good, man began asking questions. Where did the light come from? What was the light? It was through this research that lead to the discovery of a Door. The Door to the Light. The Door to Kingdom Hearts. It was believed that within Kingdom Hearts was held the secret of unlocking man's true potential. It was this secret that drove man in dark ambition. The people who once resided together in peace began vying for control over the Light, manufacturing Keys that would wield the power to unlock the door. All attempts failed. However, the Keys were not a complete failure. The Keys were created from hearts and thus held a peculiar power over hearts. They were not merely keys, they were weapons. Dubbed Keyblades, their manufacturers used the power to wage war against one another. The war shattered the world into many fragments, separating them across a vast darkness.

Light had been lost. In their attempt to create a better world, their struggle only lead to their own demise. The fragmented light would have been overwhelmed by the encroaching darkness had it not been for one thing. Children. Within the hearts of children, light found refuge, nurturing within them. It was children who pieced the worlds back together, pulling them from the darkness they were almost lost to. It was in this way that the universe was made. Bright lights filled the sky, each light was a world with people. Each light separated by a vast darkness, a darkness that kept everyone blissfully ignorant.

History became legend, legend became myth, myth was lost to time. The knowledge of what had happened in days of old is told of only in fairy tales in bedtime stories. There are few who know the lore and even fewer who think it's anything but a story. The Keyblades were lost as those who created them destroyed themselves in the Keyblade War. Each of the worlds developed in their own unique way, the people who were once unified became different, a unique race on their own. However, everything has changed. Where there were once walls separating the worlds, the walls have been broken, the paths between worlds being opened and the separation of the worlds being compromised.

What sparked the change?

A dream. Those with strong hearts all had one thing in common. They all shared the same vision in their sleep. A man cloaked in darkness speaking to them individually. What did he mean by 'other worlds' or 'are you my key'..? The words spoken by the man in the dream has left questions... but are they questions you wish to know the answer to?

* * * * *

"No." The man's fading voice echoed in the darkness as he seemed to find the idea now ridiculous. "Those who know nothing can understand--" He paused, the echo ceasing as the final word was uttered with distinct clarity as consciousness grabbed hold of you.

"Nothing."