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Realm of Darkness
Japanese	闇の世界
Romaji	Yami no Sekai
Games	Kingdom Hearts Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories Kingdom Hearts II Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage- Kingdom Hearts III
KHBBS tracks Field theme -Night in the Dark Dream Battle theme -Night of Tragedy KH0.2 tracks Field theme -Night in the Dark Dream Field theme -The World Within Field theme -Forest of Thorns Battle theme -Night of Tragedy
Other worlds Introduced inKingdom Hearts Dive to the Heart |Destiny Islands |Disney Castle Traverse Town |Wonderland |Olympus Coliseum Deep Jungle |Agrabah |Monstro Atlantica |Halloween Town |Neverland 100 Acre Wood |Hollow Bastion End of the World |Realm of Darkness Introduced inKingdom Hearts Chain of Memories Castle Oblivion |Twilight Town Introduced inKingdom Hearts II Mysterious Tower |Radiant Garden The Land of Dragons |Beast's Castle |Timeless River Port Royal |Pride Lands |Space Paranoids The World That Never Was |End of Sea |Keyblade Graveyard Introduced inKingdom Hearts coded Datascape Introduced inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Land of Departure |Mirage Arena Dwarf Woodlands |Enchanted Dominion |Castle of Dreams Disney Town |Deep Space Introduced inKingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance La Cité des Cloches |The Grid |Symphony of Sorcery Country of the Musketeers |Prankster's Paradise Introduced inKingdom Hearts χ[chi] Daybreak Town Introduced inKingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] Game Central Station |Niceland |Cy-Bug Sector |Candy Kingdom Introduced inKingdom Hearts III The Final World |Secret Forest |Olympus Toy Box |Kingdom of Corona |Monstropolis Arendelle |The Caribbean |San Fransokyo Scala ad Caelum |Quadratum

TheRealm of Darkness (闇の世界, Yami no Sekai^?), also translated asDark World in its playable incarnation inKingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage- andKingdom Hearts III, is a realm made up ofdarkness. It lies opposite to theRealm of Light, and the normal passage of time does not exist there.

The Realm of Darkness is the home of allPureblood Heartless. It is an exceptionally dangerous place, and very few have survived a trip to the Realm of Darkness. The Realm of Darkness is also home to a special type ofKeyblade, Keyblades of darkness; the only known Keyblade of darkness isMickey'sKingdom Key D.

When a world or itsheart falls to darkness, it is swallowed into this realm. The Realm of Darkness also has its own natural landmasses, often stone-like with blue glowing cracks in them. Apart from falling into the darkness oneself, the only ways to reach the Realm of Darkness are by using aCorridor of Darkness or with thepower of waking.

Settings and Areas[edit]

Kingdom Hearts[edit]

The entrance to Realm of Darkness from End of the World.

The Realm of Darkness isn't playable inKingdom Hearts, but can be briefly seen through the doors ofDoor to Darkness located at theFinal Door area deep withinEnd of the World. The doors lead to a cave-like area covered with organic-looking rocks, shaped like cylinders, shooting out from all over the walls. The rocks are often covered with cracks, from which a bright blue light pierces through. At the far back is a white cold light slightly illuminating the area. The cave is also covered with hordes ofHeartless, with twoDarksides arising as well.

Riku can also be briefly seen trapped in another part of the realm, which consists of a narrow, free-hanging grey path, continuing on into the unknown, and surrounded by seemingly endless darkness.

Kingdom Hearts II[edit]

At the furthest reaches of the Realm of Darkness, on the border between it and the Realm Between, is a moonlit shoreline called theDark Margin (闇の海岸, Yami no Kaigan^?). InKingdom Hearts IISora andRiku arrive at this area during the game's ending. Like the caverns, this beach is littered with strange, blue, and almost organic formations of rocks, with several huge arches stretching above and across the sea. The Dark Margin is also a part of the world known asEnd of Sea.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep[edit]

The Upper Zone area's exit.

InKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix the Realm of Darkness appears playable for the first time in the series during the game'sSecret Episode. After defeatingTerra-Xehanort,Aqua awakes within an immense, eerie cavern known simply as theRealm of Darkness (闇の世界, Yami no Sekai^?). Starting at the cavern'sMiddle Zone (中層, Chūsō^?), she ventures through theLower Zone (下層, Kasō^?) andUpper Zone (上層, Jōsō^?) before finally finding a way out. These caves are infested with Heartless and strange rock formations, as well as geysers and barriers formed from pure darkness. The various paths twist and wind and reconnect, and navigating the areas can be a struggle. The Upper Zone consists of many rocks hanging in the air, with risk of falling back down to Lower Zone. Towards the end of the Upper Zone is a path towards a spiraling purple and violet light, further leading out of the cavern and to theValley of the Dark (闇の狭間, Yami no Hazama^?), a twisted and decaying forest drenched in darkness.

After defeating theDark Hide Aqua finds herself arriving from a gloomy forest where she discovers thatCastle of Dreams has fallen to darkness at the area fittingly namedDark Cinderella Castle (闇シンデレラ城, Yami Shinderera Shiro^?).

Kingdom Hearts χ[edit]

One of the Dark Corridor Trails.

InKingdom Hearts χ the Realm of Darkness appears during a few missions in the form ofDark Corridor Trials (闇の回廊トライアル, Yami no Kairō Toraiaru?^?), with each area being simply calledTrial Area (トライアルエリア, Toraiaru Eria?^?). Within these corridors the ground is made of streams of darkness in the color of dark purple and magenta, and there's purple smoke and clouds passing by. Far off in the back is small portal of light, in which the darkness swirls towards. Within the game's files the world is simply known as asDungeon (ダンジョン, Danjon?^?).

Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage-[edit]

Past the valley is theDark Cinderella Castle in the distance, which can be reached through a crumbling forested path sparsely lit with lanterns called theMain Road (街道, Kaidō^?). Surrounding the castle is theCastle Town (城下町, Jōkamachi^?), which is filled with empty houses, business stalls, and a fountain frozen in time in the center. Pieces of buildings float around the area. At the edges of the Castle Town, the remains of the world are crumbling into blue crystals. Beyond that is the remains of the seven Dwarfs' cottage fromDwarf Woodlands, and a mirror leading toThe World Within (鏡の中世界, Kagami no Naka no Sekai^?, lit. "World Within the Mirror") the Magic Mirror, which resembles both the realm of the Spirit of the Magic Mirror and the Queen's dungeon. Past the mirror is theForest of Thorns (茨の森, Ibara no Mori^?), a corruption of the dark forest ofEnchanted Dominion which ends at the Forbidden Mountain. The Forest of Thorns is divided in three parts: theUncertain Path (先の見えない道, Saki no Mienai Michi^?, lit. "Unseen Path Front"), theRocky Path (険しい道, Kewashī Michi^?, lit. "Rugged Path"), and thePath's End (道の果て, Michi no Hate^?). From there, a portal leads to similar cavernous area known as theDepths of Darkness (闇の深部, Yami no Shinbu^?). At the end of the path is a sandy terrain leading into a bright light; it leads toHomecoming, whereKingdom Key D is hidden.

• 

  Castle Town

• 

  The World Within

• 

  Forest of Thorns

• 

  Depths of Darkness

Kingdom Hearts III[edit]

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Story[edit]

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep[edit]

Aqua fighting Heartless in the Realm of Darkness.

While wandering lost through the Realm of Darkness, Aqua is confronted by aDarkside. She prepares to fight it, but three more Darksides join the fight and she loses hope. However, she is rescued by theEarthshaker andWayward Wind Keyblades, which make quick work of the Darksides and renew her hope. She looks at herWayfinder and remembers all the friends she has made throughout her journey across the worlds. Smiling, Aqua vows to escape the Realm of Darkness.

However, as she moves onward, a crack oflight forms in the cavern's roof and a beam of darkness fires through it. Aqua's Wayfinder stops glowing and she senses something is wrong. Aqua ventures deeper in the Realm of Darkness and comes across theHeartless, enemies she does not recognize. As residents of the Realm of Darkness, these enemies prove to be stronger than theUnversed, but Aqua manages to fight her way through them until she reaches theDark Hide. Although the beast is vicious and powerful, Aqua finally emerges victorious after a lengthy battle. Venturing forward, Aqua is horrified when she spots the destroyedCastle of Dreams jutting out of a sea of darkness in the distance.

Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage-[edit]

Aqua continues her journey through the Realm of Darkness, passing through the remains ofCastle of Dreams,Dwarf Woodlands andEnchanted Dominion. Aqua questions what happens to the people who have lost their worlds to darkness, while finding herself thinking back to when she was with her friends. She is eventually confronted byPhantom Aqua, an illusion created from the doubt in her heart by the darkness. Once it is defeated, Aqua finds manifestations ofTerra's andVentus's hearts; Terra is able to converse with her, while Ven remains comatose. However,Xehanort attempts to use this his link toTerra-Xehanort to find out where she hid Ven. Terra fights off Xehanort, who summons theDark Figure to drag Aqua further into darkness.

Aqua is rescued byMickey, who informs that an entire decade has passed since the battle with Xehanort at the Keyblade Graveyard. Mickey informs her they need to findKingdom Key D, to helpSora and Riku seal theDoor to Darkness to keep theHeartless from escaping and destroying the worlds. Upon finding the Keyblade they need, the duo finds aDemon Tide attempting to attack Riku; Aqua tethers it with hermagic, getting pulled into a secluded part of the Dark Realm. Mickey is left to focus on sealing the Door and hoping to find Aqua again. Once she defeats the Heartless, Aqua rests; she is content to wait for her rescue, knowing now that the Realm of Light is safe with Sora and Riku there.

Kingdom Hearts[edit]

WhenRiku continues to resist against his possession,Ansem banishes the boy'sheart to the Realm of Darkness. Riku's heart manifests as his former self, lamenting over his foolishness in abandoning his home and friends all for the sake of dark power. He hears Mickey call out for his help. Mickey lets him know that he has retrieved aKeyblade of darkness, with which they can close theDoor to Darkness. Riku agrees to help, and continues onward to find the door.

Later, after Sora reaches the deepest depths of theEnd of the World, he finds Ansem preparing to open the Door to Darkness, so that he can enter the Realm of Darkness and theKingdom Hearts of Worlds' Hearts laying within it. Though Sora defeats Ansem, the door has already opened and darkness begins spilling out. As Sora and his friends struggle to shut the door, they see Mickey and a restored Riku on the other side, and together, they manage to close the door.

Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories[edit]

Riku awakens from his slumber in the Realm of Darkness when an unseen presence, later revealed to beDiZ, gifts him a magicworld card and asks him to choose between slipping back into sleep, or taking the card and making his way toward the truth. Riku decides that going back to sleep would be boring, and confidently takes the card. He is taken by the card through acorridor of darkness to the lowest basement ofCastle Oblivion. As Riku makes his way through the castle, he is contacted by Mickey, who is still trapped within the Realm of Darkness, but encourages Riku to persevere. As Riku reaches the top of the castle, Mickey finally finds a way out of the Realm of Darkness in the form of another card, which showed him Riku's heart and led him through a corridor of darkness constructed byOrganization XIII.^[1]

Kingdom Hearts II[edit]

When they encounterSaïx at theBattle of the 1000 Heartless, Sora begs Saïx to let him into the Realm of Darkness, but theNobody coldly refuses and prepares to attack.Maleficent begrudgingly rescues Sora and his friends by transporting them to the Realm of Darkness, where they run into a disguisedRiku-Ansem. He leaves them asea-salt ice cream bar and a photo ofRoxas inTwilight Town as clues to get toThe World That Never Was, rescueKairi and destroy Organization XIII. They follow the clues to the Old Mansion, hoping thatThe Other Twilight Town will have another path to the Realm of Darkness.

After defeatingXemnas within his "The World of Nothing", Sora and Riku end up at theRealm Between's side of the Dark Margin.^[2] They patiently wait there untilKairi's Letter washes up on the shore. TheDoor to Light appears as they read it, allowing them to return home to Destiny Islands.

Blank Points[edit]

Eventually, Aqua findsAnsem the Wise sitting on the coast of the side of darkness, having been sent there by the explosion of theKingdom Hearts Encoder, though he is slowly losing his memories again. Aqua and Ansem have a conversation about the worlds and how Ansem came to know Sora. This leads Aqua to shed tears of hope and say Sora's name, knowing that he will save her and her friends.

Kingdom Hearts III[edit]

Later on, Ansem, Seeker of Darkness confronts Aqua and Ansem the Wise at the Dark Margin, seeking Ansem the Wise's hidden work. Aqua tries to defend against Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, but without her Keyblade, she is hit by a glob of darkness and thrown into the seas of the Dark Margin, where she is corrupted intoAnti-Aqua.

King Mickey and Riku arrive shortly afterwards, but are repelled by aDemon Tower that breaks Riku'sWay to the Dawn and damages Mickey's Kingdom Key D; they retreat to better arm themselves. They later return after failing to find other leads, only for Anti-Aqua to imprison Mickey in a Demon Tower and steal hisStar Cluster, planning to trap them in her place. However, Sora is able to use theMaster's Defender to reach them. Destroying the Demon Tower and freeing the King, Sora battles Aqua and liberates her from the darkness. TheKeyblade wielders return to Destiny Islands.

After Xehanort's defeat, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua, each donning theirKeyblade Armor, entered the Realm of Darkness to find Sora, who had disappeared after the battle.

Enemies[edit]

Heartless[edit]

Other[edit]

Trivia[edit]

• According to theDirector's Secret Report XIII, the Dark Margin is the tip of a world in the Realm Between reaching into the Realm of Darkness. TheKingdom Hearts II game files and the officialKingdom Hearts website refer to this world asEnd of Sea (エンド・オブ・シー, Endo obu Shī^?).

Notes and References[edit]

• Kingdom Hearts worlds
• Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories worlds
• Kingdom Hearts II worlds
• Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days worlds
• Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep worlds
• Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage- worlds
• Kingdom Hearts III worlds
• Realm of Darkness

• Articles with section stubs