[u][b]Featured In:[/b][/u]
(In chronological order:)

Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep, Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts 358 Over 2 Days, Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts: Coded, and Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

[u][b]Name:[/b][/u]
Riku

[u][b]Age:[/b][/u]
17

[u][b]Gender:[/b][/u]
Male

[u][b]Alignment:[/b][/u]
Good

[u][b]Personality:[/b][/u]
Riku has a competitive side, especially in terms of his friend, Sora. In recent times, this has branched from races to competitions about who can defeat more enemies to even card games with Louis Delgado. Though once jealous of Sora, he has admitted his faults and moved past that feeling.

Though turning away from the darkness of his heart for a time in retaliation against his actions involving the Heartless of Xehanort, he has decided to take a unique path in regard to the forces of Light and Darkness, one advised by Naminé: the road to Dawn. Therefore, while he knows that darkness can be used for evil, he also does not discredit its ability to be used without abandoning the forces of the Realm of Light, which is a major facet of why he has his current status.

He has a large amount of loyalty to his friends, doing anything in his power to help them even if it costs him dearly. This loyalty also extends to strong protectiveness, to the point of allowing injuries to himself in order to protect those people he holds dear. He feel intense regret for his past misdeeds, but will not let that remorse control him. He is also aware of his friends' Kairi and Sora's feelings for one another, and is not afraid to tease the two of them to get an embarrassed reaction.

Although more mature than Sora in some ways, the Dawn Walker still knows how to crack a joke, and kept his old sense of humor. This generally manifests in such joking insults as calling people "saps" or "wise guys," ranging to the occasional jab at someone's intelligence if he knows them well enough for it not to be interpreted the wrong way.

Due to his broken left wrist as a result of his duel with Roxas, Riku's use of that hand is extremely limited. As a result, his fighting style relies on his dominant hand's blade strikes, while his weaker hand is used primarily in his magic, most notably his Dark Aura. However, this limit is removed when in dreams, although he continues to use this fighting style regardless.

Besides their loyalty, Riku seems to be highly protective with his friends, as shown when he didn't want Kairi and Sora to discover about the time he spent in the darkness, fearing the things that could happen to them. He seems to be aware of Sora's romantic feelings toward Kairi and often teases him for liking their friend, such as when he challenges Sora to a race, Sora saying that if he wins, he gets to become captain of the raft they're constructing; Riku ups the ante by saying that if he wins, he gets to share a paopu fruit with Kairi. However, he reveals that he only made that bet to see the reaction on Sora's face, which shows his awareness of Sora's feelings for Kairi and vice versa. He is on a first-name basis with King Mickey Mouse, and often teams up with him if not with Sora. They are also very close friends, making promises that by any means are spoiled.

Although he has been banished from his mind, the temporary inclusion of Xehanort's Heartless within Riku's mind left him capable of hearing counterparts, using a vacant space in his heart where the voice used to be.

[u][b]Powers[/b][/u]
Most of Riku's powers are gleaned from his time with Ansem, Seeker of Darkness residing within his body consciously. He has other darkness-based powers such as shadowy slashes, but does not tend to use them except in the case of Limits. This has changed since Dream Drop Distance since he now uses other abilities besides his darkness abilities (not to be confused with Ansem's DARKNESS). They are as followed:

- Dark Shield: Instantaneous teleportation in front of a target he wishes to protect, projecting a bluish barrier composed of darkness on reappearance to protect against short attacks. Dismisses his Keyblade when this is active.
- Dark Aura: An orb of darkness fired from his palm. Riku can fire three of these in quick succession, and usually does so when using this attack. If used with multiple attacks in a row, this causes the enemy to freeze in place for its duration, akin to a Stop spell. He dismisses his Keyblade when this is activated, but then re-summons it once it is done.
- Darkness Scent: Due to his affinity to darkness, Riku can track being of the darkness by scent, sometimes even able to discern one individual from another (as demonstrated in Chain of Memories). With his closest friends, Riku can even smell similarities among them (as with identical smells between Naminé and Kairi, again in Chain of Memories).
- Reaction Commands: As an even more experienced Keyblader than Sora (albeit with less empathic powers), Riku is fully capable of using the high-speed reflexes of Reaction Commands.
- Darkstrom: A Limit Break that Riku can only undergo when he has taken a significant amount of damage, and so is a last resort. This allows him to dart around the battlefield, his Keyblade infused with darkness, causing far more damage than he would in a normal state. The activating phrase is "I won't give in!" For the Final Limit, the Way to the Dawn becomes infused with light, a few last strikes causing even more damage before the attack completes.

The following are the command abilities he obtained after the events of Dream Drop Distance. However, because he never used them outside the Sleeping Realms, he has to start from scratch.(Magical abilities. Explain where you acquired it/them in as much detail as possible, as well as the extent of those powers.  If the character doesn't have any powers, just list it as "none".)

Movement and defense:
Dark Roll: The user turns their entire body into a shadow, teleporting away from the attack aimed at him, even through the target; short range only.
Dark Barrier: A sphere of dark hexagons appear around the user, blocking attacks from all directions.

Attacks:
- Poison Dive:  The user attacks by leaping up into the air, and then diving downwards, creating a damaging shockwave that has a chance to poison enemies caught in it.
- Drain Dive:  Similar to other Dive attacks, the user creates a shockwave by jumping into the air and slamming their weapon into the ground, emitting a damaging shockwave that will also drain a small amount of HP from enemies caught up in it.
- Spark Dive [LOCKED]: The user jumps and dives down towards the ground, striking it with their weapon and creating an electric shockwave.
- Confusing Strike [LOCKED]: A spinning attack that inflicts confusion on the enemies it hits.
- Gravity Strike [LOCKED]: The user executes a spinning attack that can cause enemies to float helplessly in the air.
- Spark Raid [LOCKED]:  The user throws their weapon at an enemy.  If it hits, the weapon splits into multiple beams of light, which can hit more enemies.
- Circle Raid [LOCKED]: The user throws their weapon, which spins while orbiting them and hitting enemies immediately around the user.
- Icebreaker [LOCKED]: The user spins in direction with ice surrounding their weapon, which has a chance to freeze enemies, then back with fire, which can ignite enemies.
- Shadowbreaker [LOCKED]: Similar to Icebreaker, the user whirls forwards with darkness surrounding their weapon, then back with light.
- Blizzard Edge [LOCKED]: The user leaps and attacks with an arcing overhead strike that causes also causes a stalagmite of ice to pop out beneath the enemy.
- Collision Magnet [LOCKED]: The user pulls an enemy towards them with magnetic power, then slams it into other foes.
- Dark Splicer [LOCKED]: The user inflicts the enemy with a stop effect, then teleports rapidly around them, slashing many times.
- Sacrifice [LOCKED]: The user executes a powerful attack at expense of their own health.  If used immediately before Limit Storm, the attack gains a red hue instead of its blue one.
- Limit Storm [LOCKED]: The user executes a spinning attack that does more damage the lower their health is.  If used immediately after Sacrifice, the attack gains a red coloration instead of its usual blue one.
- Meteor Crash [LOCKED]: The user leaps high into the air, with flame surrounding them, then crashes into the ground, followed my several small meteors.
- Zantetsuken [LOCKED]: Charging power within themselves, the user takes a ready stance, then quickly hits the enemy with an incredibly powerful slash, capable of destroying most minor enemies in a single hit.

Magic:

- Cure: A basic healing spell, which can heal the user or a single target for a small amount of HP.
- Zero Gravity: A spell that causes enemies in a small radius around the user to float in the air helplessly.  Can be upgraded to the -ra, -ga, and -za stages.
- Slow [LOCKED]: A spell that causes enemies in a small radius around the user to move slowly.
- Stop [LOCKED]: A spell that causes enemies in a small radius around the user to stop movement entirely.
- Poison [LOCKED]: A spell that inflicts poison on enemies in a small radius around the user.
- Mini [LOCKED]: A spell that causes enemies in a small radius around the user to shrink.
- Triple Plasma [LOCKED]: The user launches three spheres of electricity from their weapon.
- Vanish [LOCKED]: A spell that allows the user to become invisible for a short time.
- Ice Barrage [LOCKED]: The user creates large ice crystals on the ground that launch enemies into the air.
- Dark Firaga [LOCKED]: The user fires a blast of five dark fireballs.
- Dark Break [LOCKED]: The user leaps into the air and falls on top of enemies multiple times, dealing dark damage with every attack.
- Meteor [LOCKED]: The user creates a large meteor that falls and does a large amount of damage to the enemies in its area of impact.

[u][b]Abilities:[/b][/u]
Growing up in Destiny Islands, Riku had developed a reputation as the strongest fighter, having even faced Tidus, Selphie and Wakka in a 3v1 fight and having won it. As a result, his unarmed skill and reflexes makes him a formidable fighter. Due to his time with a broken wrist, he is an extremely competent fighter with only the use of one hand, often mixing his magic in with his broken one while using his functional one for swordplay. Due to his close affiliation with darkness as a whole, Riku has developed a kind of "immunity" to its negative effects, making him extremely difficult to corrupt, even moreso than Sora.

[u][b]Appearance:[/b][/u]
Riku is a tall and muscular teenager with pale skin, blue-green eyes and silver spiky hair. Although it was once a little past his shoulders, he has cut it as of shortly before his trip into the Sleeping Worlds to end shortly above his neck. He still wears [http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110917020422/kingdomhearts/images/e/e2/KH2-Riku_cg.png]the same clothing he wore in his normal form in "Kingdom Hearts II"[/url], including a white bandage over his left wrist that he had put on after breaking it in his duel with Roxas, and never properly setting it.

[u][b]Weapons:[/b][/u]
[url=http://www.khwiki.net/Way_to_the_Dawn]Way to the Dawn[/url] Keyblade. However, he still calls it the [url=http://www.khwiki.net/Soul_Eater]Soul Eater[/url], its original name before its transformation, and can summon either incarnation, though only the former is a true Keyblade. This weapon is summoned from a swirling dark light. As of the thread "Another Reunion" and Dream Drop Distance, he possesses other keychains he can use.

[list]
[*][url=http://www.khwiki.net/Void_Gear]Void Gear[/url]: The Void Gear's teeth and head are black and possesses a round, cog-like shape. The handle is red and the guard has the same coloration and cog-like shape as the teeth. The shaft is white and sports a black gear in the center, with two intersecting, black chains wrapped around it. Two more chains are wrapped around the base of the shaft in a similar fashion. It also has "eyes of darkness"; one located in the head of the blade and one embedded in the hilt. Its Keychain is comprised of three small, grey gears and ends in a charm resembling two halves of a gear arranged in an S-shape.  This Keyblade specializes in long reach and high strength, dealing stronger attacks if the user hits an enemy's weak point.  Unfortunately, it does not allow the user to play card games.
[*][url=http://www.khwiki.net/Dual_Disc]Dual Disk[/url]: As its name implies, the Dual Disc is comprised of two large discs. The upper disc which forms the teeth is based on an Identity Disk, while the grip bears a resemblance to the baton used to form a Light Cycle. The Keyblade's color scheme is reminiscent of The Grid's overall aesthetic, being a black Keyblade with neon blue accents. The Keychain is a [i]Tron: Legacy[/i]-era Identity Disk attached by a cordlike neon chain.  This Keyblade has a higher than average strength, and allows the user to land critical hits more easily.  Unfortunately, it does [i]not[/i] have the ability to play card games.
[*][url=http://www.khwiki.net/Ocean_Rage]Ocean Rage[/url]: This Keyblade is modeled after aspects of Monstro.  Its blade is mainly waves of water, its teeth is Pinocchio's raft, and the guard is Monstro, although his mouth is a hole and the hilt is the uvula in his mouth, although stretched to connect altogether. The chain is mainly made up of planks of wood and the token is the fish Cleo's bowl.  This Keyblade grants the user stronger magic at the expense of less frequent critical hits.
[*][url=http://www.khwiki.net/Skull_Noise]Skull Noise[/url]: The Skull Noise is predominantly black. Its teeth are in the shape of the skull that appears on the Player Pin from [i]The World Ends With You[/i], the blade is composed of two black metal pieces elongating from the skull to the hilt, between them is a purple line that quavers like a sound wave. The hilt is made up of two pieces of metal protruding from a circular piece that is red inside with the skull that appears on Beat's beanie. The guard is based off Neku Sakuraba's headphones, while the handle is black-gold. The chain is a red lanyard with Mr. Mew, Shiki Mikami's cat doll, as the Keychain.  This Keyblade provides a minimal, yet balanced, boost to both strength and magic.
[/list]

[u][b]Equipment:[/u][/b]
None.

[u][b]Awareness:[/b][/u]
Yes, thanks to Alexander Karsath and Ansem the Wise.

[u][b]History:[/b][/u]
From a very young age, Riku played with his younger friend, Sora, on the smallest of the Destiny Islands with other children, training and pushing each other to be stronger. He has wanted to leave Destiny Islands, he home world, to see others since hearing of another person, a strange teenager with white hair, leaving very long ago to visit other worlds. In order to protect his friends and those he holds dear, the young Riku wants to also leave on his own journey. At the age of five. One day, a tall brown-haired man came to him, someone who he told of his reason to want to leave. That big man did not say why, but he called forth some kind of large golden blade with a light blue handguard, saying some strange words before allowing Riku to hold it for a few seconds. He asked for Riku not to tell anyone about what had happened, and was gone soon after, never seen again.

A blue-haired woman came to the island some time later, who told the younger Sora to protect Riku if he ever lost his way. Though odder, this occurrence and the one with the other man proved to be important a decade later, one more directly than the other.

One one night, there was a meteor shower, and a mysterious girl by the name of Kairi appeared on the islands. Apparently, Kairi was from another, far-off world, but became stuck on the Destiny Islands, with no way to return to her home. Over time, Kairi formed a powerful friendship with the two boys. Soon after her arrival, the two boys came to the island's secret place, a hidden cave they had discovered. While there, the two found a mysterious door, though neither could find any way to open it, though Riku caught a glimpse of a strange keyhole before they left. From that day forth, Riku became obsessed with learning what lay beyond the door, whether it could be a passageway to another world, such as Kairi's.

At the age of fifteeen, Riku appeared to be a cool, collected teenager. He, along with Kairi and Sora, spent their days constructing a raft and gathering supplies to leave the Islands, hoping to see other worlds. He has frequent, good natured contests with Sora, though knowing his friend's habit to be a sore loser and teasing him about Kairi on many occasions.


One night, everything changed. Unable to bring himself to leave the Islands without leaning the truth, Riku opened the door in the secret place, releasing beings of darkness known as the Heartless into the world to seek out the heart of Destiny Islands. He soon met with Sora, who was concerned for his friend's safety in the storm of darkness, but was too obsessed with finally leaving his "prison" to see other worlds to care about him very much at all. Darkness surrounded both of them, and the older boy disappeared into it, leaving Sora behind to receive the Kingdom Key. Eventually, Riku ended up in the world of Hollow Bastion through a Corridor of Darkness, separated from both of his friends. There he found a pale woman in black robes known as Maleficent who offered him shelter and protection.


Although Riku welcomed a place to stay, the woman began to corrupt his mind, convincing him that Sora had replaced his two closest friends with the anthropomorphic animals Donald Duck and Goofy. Due to her deceitful words, he was convinced that the only way for him to save Kairi, who had lost her heart to the darkness on Destiny Islands, was to ally himself with her and her group of villains, abandoning Sora in the process. Riku later met with Sora in Traverse Town, where he briefly held the Kingdom Key Keyblade without it automatically transporting back to Sora. Following that reunion, he agreed with Maleficent, officially beginning his stay and alliance with her, though he doubted the nobility of her motives.

While Sora and Aladdin fought against the villainous Jafar in Agrabah, Riku took the resident Princess of Heart, Jasmine, to Hollow Bastion under Maleficent's orders in exchange for information on the whereabouts of Kairi. However, he found nothing but her body, her heart gone and her form comatose.

As days went by, the misled boy became more and more angry with Sora, convincing himself to hate his old friend. He received a Keyblade known as the Soul Eater and taught himself its use, believing that it would aid him in his search for the heard of his female friend in the wake of the "neglect" shown by Sora.

His mind corrupted by the sorceress, Riku met Sora once again within the giant whale, Monstro, intending to somehow use Pinocchio in order to help him to save Kairi's heart. When the wooden boy was captured by a giant Heartless within the whale's innards called the Parasite Cage, he was forced (somewhat against his own wishes) to team up with Sora, Donald, and Goofy in order to save him. Shortly after, the older boy again kidnapped Pinocchio, and was pursued by Sora, Donald and Goofy to the whale's stomach. There, he asked Sora to join him in order to rescue Kairi, but his friend refused, not wanting any part of Riku's methods. As the Heartless returned, Riku vanished into a Corridor of Darkness.

Later, he appeared at Neverland, traveling on Captain Hook's ship, where he kept Kairi's body. He shows that he has gained the ability to control the Heartless, as power given to him by Maleficent. He came to Sora, showing Kairi's comatose form in his possession. The younger boy warned against the use of the Heartless, saying that they will eventually turn on him to devour his heart. However, Riku, refusing to listen to his former friend, and retreated after the creation of multiple copies of "AntiSora," shadowy reflections of the Keyblader with fake Kingdom Keys, using his dark powers. However, before he returned to Hollow Bastion, he told the captain that Wendy is not one of the seven Princesses of Heart, before recklessly returning to the castle vessel-less with Kairi in tow. This move, straining even his powerful heart, drained him of energy, allowing Maleficent to unlock the last of Riku's power. With this, the boy's heart was plunged into nearly complete darkness.


At Hollow Bastion, Riku was stopped from killing a wounded Beast by Sora, his true target. The older boy told Sora that he, too, was able to wield the Keyblade, telling him that he was only the "delivery boy" to the true Keyblade master. He then, mockingly, left Sora with a wooden toy sword that he used to use to practice fighting on Destiny Islands, departing with the regretful duo of Donald and Goofy, who had been ordered by King Mickey Mouse of Disney Castle to "follow the Key."


The two rivals met again in the foyer of the castle due to Beast aiding Sora, where Riku had taken on a dark new outfit, with blue and black on most of it, a barbless Heartless symbol on his chest, and red arms. Riku almost killed Sora with a single Dark Firaga blast (later known as Dark Aura), but due to the returned aid of Donald and Goofy, Sora survived, his resolve and strength of heart allowing him to reclaim the Kingdom Key. The two fought, Riku escaping through a Corridor of Darkness.

Riku was confused as to how Sora was able to regain his weapon. From the darkness, a mysterious voice contacted him, telling him that the Keyblade could only be claimed by one with a strong heart, Riku himself having a weaker one than that of Sora. The voice to a form, that of a man in a long brown cloak that's hood obscured his face from view, and presented Riku with an irresistible offer: a Keyblade to call his own. Due to his rage at and jealousy of Sora, he agreed to become one with the darkness, only for the voice itself to possess him.

This new Riku presented himself to Maleficent, warning her of the dangers of unlocking the Final Keyhole in the castle. Although she claimed to be unafraid, he showed her a new, dark Keyblade, one known as the Keyblade of People's Hearts, made from hearts of six of the seven Princesses of Heart, all but that of Kairi. Maleficent, knowing whose heart was lacked, headed off to handle Sora and his friends, only to be defeated by them. The possessed Riku appeared with his Keyblade, explaining that, unlike that of Sora, his was capable of unlocking a person's heart, a fact he proved by piercing Maleficent's chest and allowing the immense amount of extracted darkness to overtake her heart, transforming her into an enormous black dragon with a green underbelly. He escaped again, the dragon, though far more powerful, being defeated and killed by the rightful wielder of the Kingdom Key.

Later, Riku, calling himself "Ansem, Seeker of Darkness," confronted and battled Sora in a forced one-on-one duel at the Final Keyhole, hoping to release Kairi's heart from within the good Keyblader to complete his Keyblade and open the Keyhole itself. Though he fails, Sora willingly impales himself on the Keyblade anyway in order to save Kairi. With the absence of the hero, "Ansem" attacked Kairi, Donald, and Goofy, but was stopped by Riku, who used the last of his strength in order to hold back the possessing Heartless leader. Riku lost the ensuing internal struggle caused by the rejection of his possessor, causing Ansem, Seeker of Darkness to gain control of his body completely.

Eventually, Sora, who had been restored from the form of a Shadow Heartless following his sacrifice by Kairi's internal strength, eventually made his way with Donald and Goofy to the End of the World, a world made up of those that had been destroyed by the Heartless, where Ansem, Seeker of Darkness was finally defeated by the combined efforts of themselves and the light at the edge of the Kingdom Hearts Door to Darkness within. With that defeat, Riku was restored, appearing on the dark side of the Door to Darkness to aid Sora in closing it. However, he was unable to pass it, only beings of pure darkness able to pass one way and the other. Thousands upon thousands of Heartless waited to enter the Realm of Light, only causing even further problems between the two friends. Luckily, the aforementioned King Mickey Mouse warded them off with the powerful Kingdom Key D Keyblade, of the Realm of Darkness. With that, the King worked together with Sora in closing the Door, Sora on one side, Mickey on the other with Riku. Before the door closed, Riku made a request for Sora to "take care of [Kairi]," which was met with a simple nod.

Some time later, Riku awakened in the lowest basement of the world known as Castle Oblivion, the same world where Sora was on its ground floor. In the basement, a new disembodied voice presented itself alongside a dark card of some sort. This Voice offered Riku the chance to either sleep and forget both his troubles and the light, or to take the card, starting his part toward the truth. The confident Riku took the card, remarking that "This looks like a boring place to take a nap anyway."

He traveled through a version of Hollow Bastion crafted from his memories upon awakening, as he remembered it, but without anyone within. As he searched, the Voice mocked him repeatedly. Eventually, Riku found Maleficent, who taunted him and his refusal of the darkness. However, he defeated this memory-born version of her, hoping to prove his status above the darkness within his heart.

As he left that memory, Riku finally saw the true form of Castle Oblivion. Upon this revelation, he also learned the identity of the Voice: Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, who aims to control Riku once more. Though the Heartless is powerful, King Mickey manages to use his light from deep within the Realm of Darkness as a projection to aid him. Managing to fend off the possessor for the time being, Riku nonetheless is left with several world cards and the ability to wield his inner darkness as a weapon in his Dark Mode once more.

It is not long after that Riku realized that he was capable of "smelling" darkness. Though he is discouraged by this skill, the King comforted him, giving him the internal strength necessary to ascend the basements of Castle Oblivion in order to rid himself of his corruptive darkness.

Little did he know, the Organization XIII was at work here as well, with numbers four, five, and six aiming to use Riku against number eleven's plans for Sora, pitting darkness against light. Number IV, Vexen, the Chilly Academic, independently appeared to Riku to further these plans, noting that he was following "another Ansem" (the Superior of the In-Between, Xemnas). The two fought, but Vexen, escaping, used the data from the battle to form a Replica of Riku.

It was not long before said Replica attacked the true Riku, mocking him for his fear of his darkness, and suggesting that he embrace it instead. After the battle, the Replica ran off, defeated. Soon after, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness appeared to Riku once more, saying that the Replica was a model of what Riku should be. However, this notion only reaffirms the teen to conquer the darkness within his heart.

After passing through a vast majority of the Castle, Riku finds Number V, Lexaeus, the Silent Hero. Like the others, Lexaeus implores Riku to accept his internal darkness, lest his journey end in their battle. Instead, Riku fights, managing only to wear him down. Before the boy could land the finishing blow, Lexaeus summoned his herculanean strength, knocking Riku unconscious with his "Skysplitter" axe sword. Deciding that he should be eliminated, Lexaeus believed that Riku was too much trouble to be of use. However, before he could follow through, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness possessed Riku. This caught Lexaeus off-guard, the possessed Riku taking the opportunity to kill him. However, though victorious, Riku ended up in a struggle with Ansem that he very nearly lost. Just before he did so, Mickey's light again saved him, managing to bring him out of the darkness.

As Riku came ever closer to the ground floor, a rumbling occurred. Number VI, Zexion, the Cloaked Schemer, arrived on the scene, explaining the rumbling as the defeat of Number XI, Marluxia, the Graceful Assassin, high above to Sora. Riku is surprised by this news, not expecting Sora within the Castle. However, Zexion asked whether or not Riku is even capable of seeing Sora, due to shouldering the darkness for so long with "Ansem" still residing within his heart. Though Riku tries to resist his comments, he is given the world card to Destiny Islands.

In this memory, Riku met all of his home friends, but every one, even Kairi, was silent, disappearing. Zexion threw all of Riku's fears at him simultaneously, telling him both that he is responsible for these disappearances and that he now belongs to the darkness. Finally, he transformed an illusion of himself into a form of the Darkside Heartless, telling Riku that this was what he had become. Though Riku defeated this form, Zexion disguised himself as Sora, telling the teenager that it was time to face the light.

As Riku sank into the light, beginning to fade, the form of Kairi appeared to him, telling him that he cannot fade, since neither light nor darkness can destroy him. Therefore, she surmised, he should accept both in order to drive away his fears. The teen awakened his dark powers once more, admitting them to be part of him, though not evil in and of themselves. He defeated Zexion, who escaped, only to be killed by the Riku Replica elsewhere on order of Number VIII, Axel, the Flurry of the Dancing Flames.

Riku very nearly made his way to the main floor as Ansem, Seeker of Darkness appeared to control him once more. Again, Mickey came to the boy's defense, finally appearing in the flesh. Riku, relieved to finally have a real friend to call his own with him, heard from the King that Mickey had found a card that showed him Riku's heart, a card that he followed back to the boy himself. Riku used the card, ending up in the world of Twilight Town, which he had never previously visited.

Here, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness appeared once more. However, this time Riku told him that he was not "Ansem," as he recognized his scent as something other than darkness. The boy also realized that, rather than "Ansem," this man before him had been the Voice at the start of his journey. Finally revealing his red-wrapped form, the Voice identified itself as "DiZ," telling Riku that he wanted for him to choose between Light and Darkness, seeing as he lay between the two. The decision was to be decided along with someone named Naminé, who Riku begins the search for.

On the way, the Riku Replica managed to find him once more, demanding one last fight for the Replica to prove himself "worthy." Though the Replica intended to kill Riku in order to become real, he failed. However, Riku comforted him in his last moments before vanishing from existence entirely, saying that the Replica's heart would go to the same place as that of the real one.

Finally, Riku met with Naminé, who was with Sora at his memory pod. She explained the situation with his memory, how it was torn apart by and needed to be reconstructed by her. She offers to seal away Ansem and Riku's darkness so that he may forget them, but that he would have to sleep for her to do so. To her satisfaction, he declined, hoping to win out on his own. Before he departs, Riku noted that he knew that she was the "Kairi" who had helped him to defeat Zexion, noting that they smell the same.

Following the meeting with Naminé, DiZ appeared to Riku and the King once more (the latter noting that he seemed familiar). Knowing what Riku's choice was, DiZ gave Riku a card to allow him to draw out Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. After DiZ left, Riku tried to tell King Mickey to destroy him if he failed to stop Ansem, but the King wouldn't have any of it. He said he would only help him to regain control of himself, never harm him, to which Riku conceded.

Riku faced "Ansem" alone in one final battle. The Heartless asked why he still refused him if he accepted his darkness, asking if the boy was still afraid of his power. Riku denied this, merely stating that "I can't stand your foul stench." The last of this Heartless was destroyed, but not before he said that a part of him is still within Riku, as well as that he would eventually return.

After the battle, Riku and Mickey waited at the crossroads. Riku told the mouse that he could not go home yet, since the shadow of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness still lingered within him. However, Mickey replied that the darkness is just a part of him, not inherently evil. Mickey stated that Riku had chosen a road that he himself had never before considered, one that used both the Light and the Darkness. Riku, having formed an equally strong bond to the King as Sora had to Donald and Goofy, called Mickey by his name at the monarch's own request.

Together they left, taking the black Organization coats that DiZ had gifted upon them prior to the final confrontation with Ansem, and DiZ appeared for one final question to Riku: would he take the "road to light" or the "road to darkness". To his surprise, Riku chooses neither, saying that he would take the middle road, the "road to dawn". Teen and mouse made their way out of the plains, separating after Riku realized that he could not completely rid himself of the darkness festering within his heart. Deciding to return to DiZ to offer his help, Riku donned a gray blindfold so that "his eyes couldn't lie" about the darkness within him that he was prepared to use, wishing for Mickey not to witness it firsthand.

Approximately one hundred days after allying himself with DiZ, Riku fought on the bridge of Beast's Castle with the a fourteenth member of the Organization XIII, a teenaged girl known as Xion, soundly defeating her using only his Soul Eater. Taking a look at her face beneath the hood after beating her, he was shocked by her appearance, questioning her ability to use the Keyblade, calling it "a sham" and "worthless". Though she was angered by these insults, the number XIV demanded to know what right he had to say any such thing, attempting to attack him again, only to be knocked back down using one unarmed strike. He told her to "find a new crowd" because the Organization was "bad news." He could not forgive himself for stepping into the darkness, telling Xion that he was "the biggest nobody of them all."

After Xion left the Organization, the two stayed away in Castle Oblivion. As Roxas, number XIII and the Nobody of Sora, and Axel, the pyrokinetic number VIII, continued to search for her around the worlds, they finally made contact in Twilight Town about one hundred twenty days after the duel between Riku and Xion. Xion quickly took her leave, Riku staying behind to distract them in a brief skirmish before leaving as well without ever removing his hood.

On Destiny Islands, Riku found Xion writhing on the ground, in the grips of a terrible nightmare, and cradled her as she slept. During this time, he remembered what Naminé had told him about this "Nobody" (truly a Replica) in the Old Mansion's White Room about what needed to be done for Sora to awaken, that she needed to be reintegrated into Sora, to be destroyed and erased from the memories of all to reassemble the memories of Kairi that she had unknowingly taken upon herself, giving her form. He did not know that, in her nightmare, Xion was constantly changing form, and hearing the speech given by Zexion during Riku's time there. When she finally awoke, Xion expressed curiosity about Sora and "that girl he's always with," to which Riku explained that Kairi was someone who was very special to his best friend. He explained the situation as it had been told to him by the "memory witch," to which Xion was unsure as to what she should do, what the right choice was, as well as where she truly belonged at all. However, he decided to give her some time to think about it, leaving her for the time being. Soon after, he met with DiZ and Naminé in the Old Mansion's Pod Room, where the former told him that he knew what had to be done to awaken the comatose Keyblader, with the flow of his memories completely stopped.

Riku met with King Mickey in the forest outside DiZ's Old Mansion in Twilight Town, where he was in his form as Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. The King nearly fought him, not knowing his true identity, but a transformation once Riku put on a gray blindfold returned him to normal form, to the King's surprise. The Dawn Walker told Mickey that he would soon fight a member of the Organization XIII (Roxas), and forced the King to promise to protect Sora if he did not survive.

DiZ asked Riku to kidnap Roxas, who was having trouble regaining his memories due to the manipulation of Naminé and the destruction of Xion at his hand three days prior. If he and Roxas joined, Sora would likely have been able to reawaken. Entering the Realm of Darkness, Riku cornered Roxas in The World That Never Was at the Memory Skyscraper as he was on his way to attempt to destroy the synthetic Kingdom Hearts in the sky. In their battle, they seemed to reach a stalemate, but the Key of Destiny managed to cripple Riku's left hand. In a moment of tension, Riku heard the voice of Xion, by then a fading memory. "Riku, please! You have to stop him!"

Riku then realized if he was to win in this world in the Realm of Darkness, he had to submerse himself in the same darkness, enhance his dark powers at the expense of a sizable amount of his light. As a result, Riku unleashed his internal darkness, taking on the form of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness as a side effect. Riku easily defeated Roxas, and returned him to DiZ's base underneath the abandoned mansion in Twilight Town, introducing himself as "Ansem". By this point, both he and Roxas had lost any and all memory of Xion, owing to her reintegration into Roxas following her defeat. The mental shout during their duel was instead attributed to a memory of Kairi, perhaps caused by Naminé's memory manipulation. While Riku remembers his last fight with Roxas, he assumes that it was solely to capture the Key of Destiny for Darkness in Zero, rather than as a result of the Organization's manipulation as well. As such, only Naminé herself remembered the true events as they had been.

After the duel, Roxas' memory was erased by DiZ, and he was placed within a simulation of Twilight Town in order to live out his remaining six days until the time came for him to meet Sora. During this time, Riku watched over Roxas, periodically entering the town in order to keep him ignorant of the truth. This included keeping Naminé from saying anything important to Roxas. He also took some of Roxas' important keepsakes during his visits, including a blue marble, a bar of sea-salt ice cream, and a munny pouch that belonged to the data version of Olette.

He also takes some keepsakes of Roxas' during some of his visits. With all these deeds done, Riku finally demanded to know what DiZ's true objective is. Upon hearing that it was merely unspecified revenge, Riku clenched his fist, shocked and disgusted at how DiZ was merely using him and Sora for selfish reasons. During the same conversation, Riku and DiZ discussed a new occurrence: the arrival of one "Alexander" wielding a strange Heartless-marked shield approximately two days prior, from somewhere known as "the real world," one who was assumed to be a threat to the Organization and even Darkness in Zero himself was tempted to kidnap.

Eventually, when the time came for Roxas, Riku made sure to prevent the Nobodies from flooding the town, fighting outside of the Old Mansion Simulation. Soon, the goal Riku had been searching for over an entire year was finally reached: Roxas joined with Sora. Though DiZ ordered him to eliminate Naminé, Riku wanted no part in DiZ's prejudice revenge and handed her to the now-renegade Axel before leaving DiZ.

Not long after, Riku came into contact with King Mickey. He begged for the King not to reveal his whereabouts and condition to Sora, to which the mouse reluctantly agreed. He then left the King the digital versions of Olette's Munny Pouch and Roxas' crystal orb that he had pilfered from four days before Number XIII re-merged with his friend.

Later, Riku rescued Kairi from Axel on Destiny Islands, opening a Corridor of Darkness that would lead her to Twilight Town. Though he saved her, she never revealed his identity to Hayner, Pence, or Olette. He later appeared in an empty realm that Sora and his friends assumed was the Realm of Darkness, though he immediately departed in a swirl of darkness, leaving only a box that contained sea-salt ice cream and a picture of Roxas, Hayner, Pence, and Olette in front of the haunted mansion of the Simulated Twilight Town.

Riku also arrived at the Land of Dragons, trying to warn the Emperor of a Heartless dragon that Number II, Xigbar, the Freeshooter, created. However, he ended up meeting Sora and Alexander, the latter identifying him as his true self, though Riku did not respond to the name before fighting them with his Soul Eater amidst many hundreds of Rapid Thruster Heartless. Riku still went ahead with his mission, warning the Emperor after defeating Captain Li Shang in combat.

Later, in The World That Never Was, Riku saved Kairi and the disappearing Naminé from Number VII, Saïx, the Luna Diviner, his Soul Eater having transformed into the Way to the Dawn. Naminé called him by name before fully integrating into Kairi after the Luna Diviner escaped. Riku tried to follow him through his Corridor of Darkness, but was stopped by Kairi and the King's dog, Pluto. When Kairi removed his hood and saw the face of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, she luckily just took it in stride, knowing who he truly was.

Later, again in The World That Never Was as with the last appearance, Riku saved Kairi from a horde of Shadow Heartless on her way to see Sora, giving her the Destiny's Embrace Keyblade to help her fight. When Sora and Kairi reunited following the fight against Xigbar, Riku attempted to take his leave, but Kairi stopped him, revealing his identity to the game's protagonist. Though Sora was overjoyed to the point of tears, Riku explained that due to his appearance, he did not want to be found, though he had been aiding him. However, they continued onward, killing Number X, Luxord, the Gambler of Fate. Alexander, who had run off after King Mickey during the initial entrance to the Castle That Never Was, had already defeated Saïx. These defeats left only Xemnas, Roxas, and Axel as the surviving members, the second living on in Sora as a counterpart, the last having been saved from his usual demise in Betwix and Between by the Original Interference himself.

Near the top of the Castle on Naught's Approach, the same place where Riku and Kairi had met up, Riku and his group reunited with King Mickey and DiZ (truly the real Ansem the Wise), alongside Alexander Karsath. Ansem was using a machine known as the Kingdom Hearts Encoder to attempt to turn the synthetic Kingdom Hearts created by Sora, Roxas, Alexander, Kairi, and Xion into data and render Xemnas' plan completely halted. The Superior of the In-Between himself came, and he and Ansem traded bitter words. The Encoder detonated violently, unable to handle the process of encoding such a complex structure as this Kingdom Hearts. The explosion had a variety of effects. Ansem was no longer there when the light dissipated. A massive hole was visible in the Kingdom Hearts, many hearts raining from the heart-like moon and creating a vast multitude of Shadows. One of the hearts in Kingdom Hearts had evidently been that of Axel, and so he was returned to a complete Somebody once more, though keeping his name of Axel for that time. As for Riku, the explosion cleansed his heart of the influence of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, restoring him to his normal form and taking away a large amount of his dark powers, though he was still remorseful. With some encouragement from his friends, Riku finally tore off his blindfold and discarded his black cloak, ready to finally fight for the Light and accept his place in the worlds without self-delusion.

On the way up past Ruin and Creation's Passage, Riku and his friends came witness to the mass of Heartless that had come from the detonation of the Encoder. Here, a revived Maleficent, alongside her somewhat incompetent second-in-command Pete decided to hold off the hordes of Heartless and allow the heroes to reach the last loyal Organization member to destroy him, hoping to take this Castle for themselves.

The group confronted Xemnas, collectively refusing his demand to gather more hearts and repair Kingdom Hearts. At this refusal, Riku was shocked to see Xemnas and Alexander disappear. When both reappeared after a duel, Xemnas had reached Kingdom Hearts, and disappeared into it while trying to turn the worlds to nothingness. Following a tough battle with Alexander, Donald, Goofy, Sora, and Riku against Xemnas, Naminé appeared as a ghostly form only visible to those with counterparts (Sora, Kairi, and Alexander) or otherwise empty spaces in their hearts (Riku), creating a Corridor of Darkness when Riku failed to do so. Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Pluto, Axel, and Mickey all ran into the portal, but it closed shortly after Kairi made her way through it following a conversation between Sora, Kairi, Roxas, Naminé, Riku, Alexander, and the latter's dark counterpart, the Lockshield's will known as Joumae.

Though Riku was enraged by Alexander's lack of information about how the portal would close before they could get through it, he put off his anger for another time when Xemnas attacked, riding on a gigantic, robotic dragon that flew across the Castle, slicing off the Altar of Naught that the remaining heroes had been standing on. However, they made their way to a small escape ship, likely made for Xemnas and possibly Xigbar given its make, and fought the dragon and the armored Xemnas at its head. After a long, difficult fight, the battlefield was transferred to a realm of nothingness, where Xemnas donned a new robe signifying both light and darkness. In the final stages of this battle, Xemnas used an extraordinarily powerful attack, summoning thousands upon thousands of red ethereal blades as the battlefield became drenched in shadows before sending every one of them at the Lockshield Master and Keyblade Wielders.

After this final attack from Xemnas, Sora was left open, Riku taking a blow that was intended to finish off his friend. Their situation dire, Riku and Sora were both integrated into Alexander's Final Form along with Joumae, a form that he used to soundly defeat Xemnas one final time before reverting from the Drive in time to allow the two universe natives to see the villain's demise in their own bodies. After the fall of Xemnas, Sora, Alexander, and the injured Riku faced an onslaught of Dusks ready to fulfill their master's final order: eliminate the Keyblade wielders and Interference. However, the Dusks were finally defeated after some time, though not without exhaustion from all present.

Having the time to finally talk, the two friends reconcile with each other, with Alexander as a witness. Alex then came across a letter in a bottle, written by Kairi, and gives it to Sora, knowing him to be the proper recipient. Sora then managed to open the Door to Light, as King Mickey predicted, and the three returned to Destiny Islands, reuniting with their friends. While Sora shared a hug with Donald and Goofy, Riku shares his own moment with King Mickey, Alex just standing by and watching with a smile on his face. Ironically, even though Riku was once jealous of Sora's friendship with Donald and Goofy, he ended up having a similar one with Mickey, and both of them with the Original Interference, although Riku was still getting to truly know him as Sora did.

Some time later, Sora and Riku observed the waves of Destiny Islands, saying that it's a small world but also part of a much bigger one. They knew they would likely play a part in the worlds, both of their series and beyond it, but would welcome that chance as a way to aid others.

It was only three days after Alexander went home that he returned to Destiny Islands, two weeks by his time. The three friends assumed that he was there to celebrate his birthday with them, but he revealed that his intentions were far less joyous. Alex was searching for his sister, who had Interfered in the world of Amestris, in the game Fullmetal Alchemist II: Curse of the Crimson Elixir. He asked that they help him to find and protect her until the conclusion of the game's events, and they all agreed. The events that took place in Amestris are almost never discussed by any of the four, who did not return with the younger Erica, too distressing for one of those involved, though a positive was that the Heartless of Dilan, the man who's Nobody became Number III, Xaldin, the Whirlwind Lancer, was defeated by Alexander. One consequence for Riku, however, was a fear of Major Alex Armstrong, a State Alchemist. After the events of the game, Alex left immediately for his next journey with Edward and Alphonse Elric, the two protagonists of this world, off to defeat another Heartless Apprentice in the world of Chrono Trigger. By the time of Riku and those others in Amestris, only seconds passed, but the journey took place over a full week for the three who came back victorious.

Alexander brought them home once more, telling them of the whole journey, involving his own temporary death and the later (by his perspective) death of Aeleus. Joumae filled in one blank, however: a mutual crush between the 1000 AD Guardia native Lucca Ashtar and Alexander, to the Lockshield wielder's chagrin and Riku's amusement.

A long time passed after Alexander left them once more, Riku staying home, away from adventuring. However, his time eventually came to protect the worlds once more, some time after Sora disappeared from the Islands. A teenager by the name of Louis Delgado, one of an enormous wave of Interferences, came to him, bringing him off on an adventure. While the two became friends, Riku did not even stop to tell Kairi he was leaving. This turned out to be a bad idea, as she eventually left herself for unrelated reasons, and shouted at both of her native friends for a very long time when she caught them in Port Royal alongside Louis' sister, Mary.

The Delgado siblings and Riku traveled together for a long time, about as much time as Sora and Kairi did with Kynthia Usagi (daughter of Yumigami) and Gregory Zivaku. They did separate when Louis became possessed by Zeik and forcefully became Haou the Supreme King. With the help of the others, Louis was released from possession, at the cost of Mary herself who became possessed. With Riku's help, Louis was able to not only save his sister but also the duel spirit Yubel, which he had fused himself with.

A month later after he returned, he faced against both Ronald Cain Rivers and Isaac Zivaku. With the help of a few future Inters, they were able to fend the duo off. With that, the three were reunited. In the Haloverse, the three ran into Greg and Sora's group, and traveled together for a short time. That is until they ran into the Ron and Isaac duo again. It was at that time that Louis separated from the two again and dragged away into the Resistance universe. Both Riku and Mary traveled together a bit longer before Riku made his decision to return to Destiny Islands.

One day, several women of two separate timelines came to him on Destiny Islands, him and Kairi. Two Kynthias, Grace Wangs, and Olette, came with terrible news. Sora had been brutally murdered by Reaper, and they were asked to come say their respects. Though silent and depressed upon arrival at the base for heroes of the then-current War of Heaven and Hell in the Land of Dragons, and unable to bring up anything to say at hero's casket, Riku agreed to finish their fights once and for all against these evil futures in the "Omega" army. In the end, he played a pivotal role in one part of the fighting after all. Through the efforts of himself and Kairi, he managed to defeat the Templars in the army, led by the polite Seneschal Richard Brier, who had augmented himself with many BioShock Plasmids to the point of addiction. With Kairi's aid in her newly unlocked Purity Form, they managed to send Brier to a defeated position, unarmed. Though Kairi could not bring herself to actually kill Brier in cold blood after rendering him defenseless, Riku was able to do the deed, firing a Dark Aura triple shot at the Templar that sent him flying off of the rooftop they stood on, down into a trench far below caused by the parasitic Flood. He lived to the end of the battle, praying to aid the Kynthias in their own fights. After Reaper's demise, the events of the war ceased to have existed. Sora and several more who died in the final battles, among them Greg, were revived by the unmaking of the war, and Riku embarrassed the two Kingdom Hearts "lovebirds" by drawing attention to their near kiss upon the boy of the couple's revival.

Some time after he had returned home, Kairi informed him that her boyfriend (whether or not she admitted it) had left without telling her once again. Having emotionally recovered from Sora's temporally aborted death in the War of Heaven and Hell, she had been ready to leave to the worlds again, and was understandably irritated that Sora would do this once again. Though he did tease her about her relationship (to her eternal embarrassment as always), he noted that Sora was likely wrong to leave so suddenly again. He himself had to know why he would do so again after the emotional distress of the Princess of Heart, even with that letter from Mickey on his mind. And so he was ready to go as well. Only to find Kairi left as well, and without a Gummi ship of his own and incapable of opening Corridors of Darkness, Riku found himself stuck in Destiny Islands for the moment.

Soon enough, he was given a lift by a new Interference and was able to obtain his own Gummi Ship. During his exploration, he found the Mirage Arena and ran into Alex after a long time. He pried him for an explanation of why he reeked of darkness. The Original Interference managed to change the subject by giving him a book called Xehanort's Report. Reading it, Riku came to realize what happened in the past. Not just that but he also remembered a forgotten memory. One where he made a promise with an armored man with brown hair, holding a familiar key-like sword. Wanting to find Sora and Kairi as soon as they could, the two left the Mirage Arena.

Arriving in Traverse Town first, the two ran into both Sora and Kairi. Riku couldn't help but make a jab at his two friends over their feelings with each other when he also noticed Isaac and Greg. Showing them the book, Xehanort's Report and with Alex's help, the truth over Ventus was made after having heard what happened to Sora. Any further discussion was held off as the Vanitas Remnant struck. Even though it was six against one, the group barely held him off. He also escaped through a portal, abducting a surprised Kairi for his scheme. Following him, they had a final showoff in Radiant Garden. Vanitas had taken Namine into himself and made a proto-X-blade in the process. After a grueling battle where reinforcements arrived in the form of the RGRC and the revived Lea, they were able to free Namine who returned back into Kairi and finally destroy him. However, Riku and the others did hear his last, laughing words before he fell apart, the destruction of the X-blade prototype opening the "Cavern of Remembrance" in the side of Hollow Bastion: "It never hurts to have a backup." Riku took the keychain for Void Gear, Vanitas' Keyblade, having taken what the latter said to heart. He would be prepared for the next time something like this happened.

Finding a world to train, Riku ran into the Delgado siblings for the first time in years, at least to them. The three stayed together for a bit, catching up on old times, although the Dawn Walker noticed both Louis and Mary had changed but shrugged it off. Soon after, he received the summons from Yen Sid. Not knowing what it was about, Riku said his goodbyes to the Delgado siblings. But not before Mary insisted (i.e. forcefully) on giving him a haircut.

Once he arrived at Yen Sid's tower, he saw Sora and Kairi were there, along with another Interference. Audrey Jones. He dodged the question about his shorter hair, instead asking why Audrey was there. Learning about her Dream Magic, Yen Sid explained why the three Keyblade Wielders were there. They were to take the Mark of Mastery to prepare for the return of Master Xehanort. Especially after having been told of what happened with the Vanitas Remnant. They were tasked with entering the Realm of Sleep, and unlocking the seven Sleeping Keyholes to free the never before seen worlds within, and bring them back into the Realm of Light where they belonged. However, they were separated after unlocking Destiny Island's Sleeping Keyhole, Sora with Audrey (who had Dropped directly to Traverse Town, as she was unable to travel back in time with the trio) and Kairi with Riku.

The both of them awoke in the Third District of Traverse Town, finding themselves in new clothes with Dream Eater symbols one them. Searching for Sora and Audrey, they instead meet Joshua, who explained the concept of Dream Eaters to them along with a little bit of the Realm's nature. Though initially distrusting him, they agreed to help him find Rhyme. However, they had run into Beat in the Second District, who due to a misunderstanding, sent his Dream Eater attack them. After defeating them, they heard Beat expressing his wish to protect Rhyme and the two suddenly pass out. Upon awakening a few moments later, though expressing their confusion, they found Shiki being chased by Dream Eaters into the First District. Riku showed some discomfort over Shiki calling him a knight and stated he was no such thing. Both girls ended up teasing him as a result. Still, he and Kairi agree to accompany her through the town. Going further into the town, finding two entirely new districts, they arrive in the Fifth District, where they encountered a figure in a familiar black cloak. After the enigmatic tells the two that they will wander in sleep forever, Beat arrives and tells them that the hooded figure had told Shiki he could send her home if she brought him Riku, though it didn't seem he was expecting Kairi at all. The mysterious youth revealed his face, a young man with yellow eyes, tanned skin, and white hair, but no pointy ears like others they'd known, and then summoned a giant Dream Eater, a Hokomonkey, that made its way to the Garden. As the youth disappeared in a Dark Corridor, Kairi and Riku went after the Dream Eater. Upon defeating it, it broke into pieces, and the two Keybladers, Beat, and Shiki saw images of Sora, Audrey, Neku, Rhyme, and Joshua standing around in the middle of the district, the other two Interferences also in new clothes, but with a silver X on them. Joshua then spoke to the two groups across the separation between their two sides (the world having been split into two, with Kairi and Riku in one half, and Sora and Audrey in the other), explaining how he and his friends came to Traverse Town, and his plans to save them. Leaving them with a cryptic message as to who he was, they unlocked the Sleeping Keyhole of the world, Dropping into the next world of their journey.

Arriving in La Cité des Cloches, the world of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", the two proceeded to help Quasimodo, Esmerelda, Captain Phoebus from the mad Judge Frollo's crusade against the gypsies.  They convinced Quasimodo to follow his own heart instead of letting others like Frollo control him, and the two went on to fight the powerful Dream Eater, Wargoyle, that had been summoned by Frollo's darkness.  Though Frollo fell into the fires below, but that wasn't the end of it.  The two were confronted by the mysterious white-haired man, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, and an unknown girl.  The first two taunted Riku for still having darkness within him, and the girl seemed to dislike Kairi for her light.  Riku countered their argument, and the three left, leaving the Dream Eater to the two.  They defeated it, and spoke Quasimodo and the others, who thanked them for their help.  The Riku was uncertain after what Ansem said, they comforted him.  Opening the next Keyhole, they Dove to the next world.

They next appeared in The Grid, immediately noticing their change in attire, Riku wondered if this world was special, and Kairi noted to him the similarities to Space Paranoids.  They were immediately found by some Black Guards, who mistook them for stray programs, and though Kairi wanted to fight back, Riku thought it would be better to learn more about the world by letting themselves be captured.  They met Sam Flynn briefly, who explained where they were, but the two were quickly put on the Game Grid to participate in a deathrace on Light Cycles.  They fought off the Black Guards on the track, as well as the large Dream Eater that appeared and attacked them.  They then managed to escape by blowing a hole in the wall.  Outside, they met up once again with Sam, as well as his father Kevin Flynn and the last ISO Quorra.  They fought the evil CLU, who they learned about from Flynn, as well as the portal that would return Sam with Quorra to their version of the real world.  Fighting their way to said portal, they found CLU had followed them, and he summoned the Dream Eater from before, which was known as the Comantis.  They defeated it and CLU, while Sam and Quorra mad their getaway into the portal.  Kevin Flynn absorbed CLU, disappearing in the process, and Riku and Kairi opened the world's keyhole and moved on.

The next world they arrived on was Prankster's Paradise, the homeworld of Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio, and his father/creator Geppetto.  Instead of the world itself, though, they appeared in the giant whale Monstro, who they learned had swallowed Geppetto and Pinocchio.  They agreed to help Geppetto find his son, and encountered Jiminy deeper in the belly of the whale, who was also searching for Pinocchio.  The conscience told them that Pinocchio had wandered off with a stranger in a black coat,  and they soon encountered them both after searching Monstro's bowels more.  They demanded to know who the man in the cloak was, but were shocked to discover that was some sort of copy of Riku.  The Riku copy escaped into a Dark Corridor without another word.  Unable to give chase, they were about to return Pinocchio to Geppetto when they were distracted by large tremors.  Riku and Kairi went to discover the source, discovering a large Dream Eater, the same that Audrey and Sora had defeated before, but with reverse elemental abilities.  After defeating the Dream Eater, the two returned to Monstro's mouth (which was much more preferable to the other exit), and found father and son reunited.  Knowing that time couldn't move ahead until the world's were awoken, they opened the Keyhold and continued.

The two once again found themselves in Traverse Town, where they met Joshua in the First District.  He explained the Players' new mission was to destroy a new Dream Eater that had been attacking, and that Sora and Audrey were already helping out.  He told them that Beat and Rhyme needed their help in the Fountain Plaza, and also that there was an odd displacement in time between the Traverse Towns that the two groups had visited, and that they were somehow slightly different versions of the same world, saying that it could be some sort of 'dream within a dream', and that it could be very significant for the four heroes to know this.  They found Beat and Rhyme facing down the Dream Eater known as Spellican, but it became angry when they didn't pay attention to it at all, wrapped up in their banter.  Spellican flew off to the Third District in a huff, and Kairi and Riku gave chase, fighting through its summoned minions.  Though managing to corner it, the Dream Eater disappeared to Sora and Audrey's version of Traverse Town. The Players thanked them, but Joshua issued an ominous warning about trusting what dream they were in.  Unlocking the second Keyhole in Traverse Town, the two Dove deeper.

Their next arrival was a world from the King's past, the Country of the Musketeers. Kairi and Riku arrived outside the opera house, spotting a past version of Pete and his then-henchmen, the "Beagle Boys," practicing on a trap they had set up for the past versions of Mickey, Donald, and Goofy. They followed after the henchmen, freeing Princess Minnie along the way, who thanked them and informed them of what was going on. Catching up to the Beagle Boys, who knew that their captive was on the loose, Kairi and Riku tracked them down to get the crank needed to disable the trap. Once taking it back, they were then faced with a Dream Eater known as the Holey Moley, defeating it and succeeding in preventing Pete from using his trap, thus saving Sora, Audrey, and Mickey in their version of the world. Minnie thanked the two for their help, thinking they were as brave as one of the musketeers. They repeated the musketeer's phrase after learning it, "All for one and one for all," before unlocking the Keyhole and freeing the world from its slumber.

The next world they Dropped into was a dream version of the Mysterious Tower, known as the Symphony of Sorcery. Arriving at the Tower Entrance, Kairi and Riku found water rushing down the stairs, this version of Mickey having brought the brooms to life to fetch water in his place which led to this. They find Mickey in the same predicament as Sora and Audrey had within the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" musical score, the then apprentice telepathically informed them that they needed a Sound Idea to break the hold of the darkness that music is emanating from. Being given a new sheet of music to use as an entrance to a musical realm, Kairi and Riku enter the "Nutcracker Suite" to find the Sound Idea.

However, the minute they had done so, they were transported to Bald Mountain, where the silver-haired youth and the mysterious woman appeared before them. The enigmatic man told Riku that he is of no more use to "them," while the woman taunted Kairi that she wouldn't be able to save her dear friends. They left the two to fight Chernabog, who appeared from the flames of Bald Mountain. Afterwards, they return and used the Sound Idea on the possessed sheets of music. At first, it didn't seem to be enough, but, as Kairi and Riku expected at this point, Sora and Audrey's Sound Idea appeared and merged with theirs, producing the same music, "Dearly Beloved," as before. Mickey, freed from the spell, thanked the two for their help, and they mention Sora's name, saying it's hard not to smile around him. With the apprentice saying last that he hoped he could join their team some day, Kairi and Riku assuring that he will, they unlock the Sleeping Keyhole.

---

Eventually, the endeavors had brought them to Drop into The World That Never Was. However, he had separated from Kairi, forcing him to fight on his own once more. He found Sora in a comatose state inside the Castle, his heart having been damaged by Xemnas and the mysterious young man himself. The young man turned out to be an incarnation of Master Xehanort in his youth, who has been traveling to different periods in time to recruit several other incarnations of Xehanort together. Riku attempted to awaken Sora, but the darkness from Sora's nightmare turned into a Nightmare known as the "Anti Black Coat" that engaged Riku. Riku managed to defeat the Anti Black Coat and carried on through the castle, eventually coming face to face with Ansem. Ansem revealed that Riku was actually a Dream Eater, and, over the course of the exam, was purifying Sora's dreams of Nightmares. Ansem attempted to possess Riku once more, but remembering his secret encounter with Terra, Riku resolved to make his inner darkness his own power for good and incorporate Ansem to his light. Then the two battled each other once more, with Riku ultimately victorious. Soon after, he met up with Kairi when she transported from Audrey's heart to Sora's. Kairi told of her own encounter with a villainous entity much like Anti Black Coat was to Riku, but a Nightmare to her own Spirit by the name of Lidia, a dark entity who was the polar opposite to Kairi's own light, and had been trained in the Keyblade by the Vanitas Remnant as his aforementioned "backup".

They came to Where Nothing Gathers in Sora's heart, finding the True Organization XIII, or at least twelve of them. With the help of King Mickey, as well as Roxas and Naminé (who had entered Sora's heart through memory copying to their others), they had battled the younger incarnation of Xehanort to a standstill, finding him to be far more powerful than anyone else they had faced due to his possession by his elder self to bypass an imposed "Stopza" spell from the King. After the fight, they met with the most ancient and elderly of the Xehanorts, Master Xehanort. After revealing his true plans with the X-blade, coupled with the arrival of Donald and Goofy as well, Lea, of all people, showed up and saved Sora's heart from total corruption, helping them to escape the world, but without unlocking it from sleep due to Sora's comatose form.

All but Sora and Audrey had awakened then. On Yen Sid's advice about how to enter a heart to free from sleep with the Keyblade, as learned through the journey and available in the waking world from then on, Kairi and Riku both entered the hearts that they had spent the most time in the journey within, Audrey and Sora respectively. Sora's battle took place on his Station of Awakening, where his body had been encapsulated and possessed by the Keyblade Armor of Ventus, corrupted by a Nightmare after its attempt to protect his heart. Defeating this Keyblade Armor and releasing Sora from sleep, Riku appeared on Destiny Islands, or a segment of Sora's heart that looked like it. Along with the arrived Kairi, he had learned that Xion, Ventus, and Roxas were all still within Sora's heart, along with a data copy of Ansem the Wise, though unreachable, alongside the scientist's research data that he had hidden there. With Riku awakening Sora and getting the data, he and Kairi had awakened after Sora and Audrey, having a party in joy to be alive and awake. After this Kairi and Riku discovered more of Master Xehanort's revelations.

As Audrey and Sora learned, Master Xehanort needed thirteen Seekers of Darkness and seven Guardians of Light to clash in order to make the X-blade, but the original light of the X-blade had been severed into seven pieces, one in each Princess of Heart, causing their purity of heart. Sora was to be the last darkness, but Lea had stopped that, in doing so revealing Isa or Saïx to be another Xehanort, explaining his cruelty, and Xigbar's evident information on previous Keyblade wielders came from his own connections to Xehanort, as Audrey had learned closely. The Seekers would attack the Princesses to plunge the worlds into darkness, so the "Lights" had to fight the "Darknesses" in any case, making the Keyblade War that Xehanort had sought for so long seemingly inevitable, and Audrey in place as a fourteenth member in waiting for them to reach out to for the real world, with Alexander Karsath or his sister's Nobody as a fallback plan if not. However, it seemed as though, due to Kairi not being followed by anyone else aside from Lidia, Xehanort did not expect her at all, and nor did he consider her any sort of threat. Therefore, Yen Sid opted to train her as a true Keyblade Master soon, though she had learned much in this journey so far.

To the others' joy, Riku was named Keyblade Master for his efforts and nigh-incorruptibility by darkness, which Sora himself did not have, hence why he was not accepted at that time. Riku, like everyone else, was also surprised when Lea had revealed himself to be a Keyblade Wielder, though not knowing how to use one reliably yet. Nonetheless, as everyone everyone went their separate ways afterwards, though Riku remained in close contact with Yen Sid for the coming war, and Sora went off to continue his training as much as possible.

Not long after this, however, did Riku find distressing news. Kynthia Usagi, Kairi's once best friend, Greg's girlfriend (and later very temporary wife) and Naito's mother, had been irrevocably killed in her world. Although he was not particularly close to her, he did understand and sympathize with his friends' grief, not knowing what to do to help on his own other than to continue his work and perhaps find and speak to Greg another time about it.

Now a Keyblade Master, Riku now travels the worlds more frequently, determined to help more to live up to his new position as a Keyblade Master as well as prepare for the upcoming battle wit Xehanort and his Darknesses.

[u][b]Sample Post:[/b][/u]
"I was sure we opened all seven of the Sleeping Keyholes." Riku commented as he stared at his surroundings. He had just appeared there after having opened the final keyhole in Symphony of Sorcery. The Dawn Walker had expected to arrive at Yen Sid's tower, waking up in the wizard's room, greeted by the sight of his two closest friends, Sora and Kairi along with Audrey M. Jones. "Kairi!" Remembering the Princess of Heart, Riku searched around for her, not having heard a word she said. But all he found was that he was alone. The walls of the room he was in also looked very familiar.

"Well, standing around isn't going to do anything." Riku began walking ahead. He didn't get far before some Nightmare Dream Eaters appeared. Two Keeba Tigers, three Meow Wows and a Majik Lapin. Bringing out his Keyblade as his Spirits, the Komory Bat he named Bruce and the King Kyroo named Glenn appeared, Riku slashed at the nearest Meow Wow. The Keyblade Wielder was quickly surrounded though and raised his Keyblade, creating a dark barrier that blocked the assault. He quickly blew away the Nightmares with a dark aura. Riku then hit two of the Meow Wows and one of the Keeba Tigers with two spin attacks, the first one using the power of darkness and the second one with the power of light.

He was then hit by the other Keeba Tiger's aura attack and sent to the air. Riku retaliated by launching a dark projectile at it. The Dawn Walker then launched a Dark Firaga, the ball of dark fire hitting the Majik Lapin then split into smaller balls of dark fire that hit the other Meow Wows. Facing one of the Keeba Tigers, Riku took a pose, holding his Keyblade with both hands, the blade facing his left side, cherry blossoms falling around him. In a blur, he dashed past the Nightmare, slashing it for great damage.  Seeing a spell from the Majik Lapin headed straight for him, Riku rolled, melting into the shadows for a moment, in the shape of a black ball and moving out of the range of the Nightmares.

"Bruce! Glenn!" Riku fused with his Spirit Dream Eaters, performing a Dual Style as he was surrounded by light, his Keyblade coated in it. With each swing, his Keyblade grew to giant size, hitting several of the Nightmares at once. After three wide swings, he spun around, bringing the Keyblade down at the Majik Lapin in front of him. After two more combos, the Nightmares in the room he was in were wiped out. Riku didn't stop to celebrate, instead running into the following hallway. "[i]Sora, Kairi, Audrey! I hope you're all right! I've got a bad feeling about this and that hooded man that was with Ans- Xehanort's Heartless is involved.[/i]"