While many RPG franchises fill themselves to the brim with lore, there aren’t many that go to the same level asKingdom Hearts. Almost every installment in the series adds to its overarching story in some way, includingthe now-offline mobile gameKingdom Hearts Union X. While it was questionable how much a game starring the player as its protagonist could leave an impact on Sora’s story,Union Xended up leaving an important mark.
Union Xis anything but short. While stories in RPG franchises are often on the long side,Union Xin particular featured 979 story quests by the end of the game’s run. Between this length and the mobile nature of the game, many fans are likely put off from finishing it.Kingdom Heartshas been leaning intoUnion Xas a big part of its lore sinceKH3, and the game offers poignant foreshadowing to the series' next arc.
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Kingdom Hearts: The Story of the Keyblade War
ManyKingdom Heartsfans should be familiar withthe Keyblade War.Union Xdives into what led up to the war and reveals it was set to bring an end to the fight between light and darkness once and for all. Darkness itself was said to be almost human once, splitting itself into pieces and losing its will and humanity as it became the Heartless many fans are more familiar with.
to stop the pieces of darkness,the Master of Mastersgave six apprentices roles, secretly knowing that the roles would cause them to doubt one another and grow headstrong in their ways, making them susceptible - yet incorruptible - by darkness. The Keyblade War served to draw out darkness, trap it, and destroy it. However, darkness worked around this and saved itself through the Master of Master’s own contingency plan.
The True Story of Union X
Foreteller Ava’s role was to create the Dandelions, a group of exceptional Keyblade wielders who would go on to live in a Data World and re-create other worlds with the Lux, or light, they’ve gathered throughoutplayingKingdom Hearts Union X. This digital world would be led by new Union leaders chosen by the Master of Masters: Ephemer, Skuld, Brain, Lauriam, and Strelitzia. These Union leaders become recurring characters in the series as a whole.
However, Strelitzia was taken out by the darkness as a way to escape into the Data World that was meant to protect the light. The darkness possessed another Keyblade wielder, Ventus, so he could act as a Trojan Horse. This ended up revealing that Ventus was in possession of a heart of pure light, and he absorbed the darkness as part of himself permanently to save his friends.This darkness would later reform as VanitasfromBirth by Sleep.
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Union X Leads into Kingdom Hearts' Future
Lauriam, Strelitzia’s brother, ends up investigating her death with the help of another Dandelion, Elrena. The Union leaders find out they’ve been lied to by the Foretellers about the true nature of the Data World, and thatan intruding Maleficenttriggered an emergency self-destruct feature. Brain works to making sure they all get out safely.
All the Union leaders make it out safely, but other Keyblade wielders - such as the player character - weren’t so lucky. The Dandelions who didn’t make it out of the Data World get put to sleep as Dream Eaters, implied to be the very same onesSora meets inKingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance. The player’s character in particular decides to remain, reforming into a new heart. The dreams that Xehanort had as a child inDark Roadimply theUnion Xplayers become Xehanort in the end.
Using the same Lifeboats fromKingdom Hearts: Melody of Memoryto escape into different parts of time, Ephemer escapes to build Scala Ad Caelum above the ruins of Daybreak Town; his spirit as a Union leader helps Sora at the Keyblade Graveyard inKingdom Hearts 3. Lauriam and Elrena appear in different Disney worlds, but the two meet again as the nobodiesMarluxia and Larxene in Organization 13later on. Ventus is found at the Keyblade Graveyard, unconscious after absorbing Darkness, and is made an apprentice under Xehanort.
Strelitzia is eventually found at the Final World inMelody of Memory,offering a very important hint to Kairi and Riku. Sora is most likely in a sort of “fictional” world, a world beyond what humans can comprehend, as described by the Master of Masters. In one ofthe final cutscenes forUnion X, the Master tells the darkness a solution to their feud can only be found in a world that light and dark can’t reach, with the implication that it could be Quadratum.
Kingdom Hearts Union Xis available as an offline game on Android and iOS devices.
