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"Aqua, Ven... One day I will set this right."

—Lingering Will

TheLingering Will is a collection of thoughts and desires of theKeyblade wielderTerra. It took control over Terra's discardedKeyblade Armor after hisbody was possessed byXehanort. Along with Terra'sheart within theDark Figure and its masterTerra-Xehanort, it represents Terra's continued consciousness even after his possession and takeover at the hands of Xehanort. Lingering Will is playable for a short time at the end of Terra's scenario inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep; it made its debut appearance in theKingdom Hearts series as a secret boss inKingdom Hearts II Final Mix.

Development[edit]

The Lingering Will's voice inKingdom Hearts II Final Mix is represented by metallic grinding, similar to Xemnas inKingdom Hearts Final Mix.

TheKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX version ofKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix was updated to have the Lingering Will sprout a cape upon victory; this preserves continuity withKingdom Hearts II Final Mix, where it has a cape.

Story[edit]

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep[edit]

Lingering Will rises to fight Terra-Xehanort.

When Master Xehanort extracts hisheart in an attempt to possess Terra, Terra summons hisKeyblade Armor in a desperate attempt to defend himself, but fails due to hisdarkness, allowing Xehanort's heart to take over regardless. The newly bornTerra-Xehanort discards the Keyblade Armor and walks off in triumph, only to become trapped inWill's Cage. Terra-Xehanort turns in shock to see Terra's Keyblade Armor reassembled and standing before him; Terra's rage towards Xehanort and his desire to protect his friends has given life to his discarded armor. Determined to stop Master Xehanort at all costs and get back its body, Terra's "lingering will" challenges Terra-Xehanort to a battle. Angered by Terra's continued resistance, Terra-Xehanort readily engages it.

In the end, Lingering Will is victorious in battle, but although Terra-Xehanort is knocked unconscious, it fails to expel Xehanort from Terra's body. The armored figure plunges itsEnds of the Earth into the ground and slumps down, as Terra-Xehanort is consumed by thelight storm created by the destruction of theχ-blade viaAqua andVentus. The clouds that have masked theKeyblade Graveyard in darkness coverKingdom Hearts in the sky above, and Lingering Will is left alone. It silently promises Aqua and Ventus that someday, it will set things right.

Kingdom Hearts II[edit]

Sora prepares to fight Lingering Will.

Eleven years later, a portal to the Badlands appears inDisney Castle.Sora,Donald, andGoofy enter it and find themselves standing before the kneeling Lingering Will. The animated Keyblade Armor mentions Aqua and Ventus before sensing Sora'sKeyblade, and it mistakes Sora for the one it had chosen,Riku. Realizing its mistake, Lingering Will asks why Sora is not him; it then wonders if Sora is Xehanort, slowly pronouncing the latter's name. Determined to fulfill the promise it made long ago to avenge itself and its friends, Lingering Will rises to its feet and picks up its Keyblade. Sora and friends draw their weapons in preparation for the upcoming fight, and after an intense struggle, they eventually defeat their silent attacker. Upon its loss, Lingering Will senses Ventus's presence within Sora and kneels back down. If Sora returns to battle Lingering Will after this, it accepts his challenge, but it states that it has nothing left to give the young Keyblade wielder other than its contempt for Xehanort.

Kingdom Hearts III[edit]

"As long as Master Xehanort resides withinyou, you're a threat to Aqua and Ven. [...] You must be removed from existence...at all costs."

—The Lingering Will's final words

Lingering Will clashes with Terra-Xehanort one last time.

InThe Final World, Sora encountersNaminé's heart, who tells him she found a connection to Terra's "strong will", and tries to make contact with it.

After returning to the point in time before their defeat in theKeyblade Graveyard, theGuardians of Light are once again confronted byTerra-Xehanort. This time, however, the Lingering Will arrives and fights him, leading both of them away from the group.

During their battle, Terra-Xehanort catches the Lingering Will off guard with theDark Figure. As the Dark Figure prepares to crush the Lingering Will's head, Sora's future self arrives and fends them off. Sora is caught by the Dark Figure, but before Terra-Xehanort can finish Sora off, the Lingering Will intercepts the attack and is destroyed, sacrificing itself to save Sora.

Other appearances[edit]

Kingdom Hearts Re:coded[edit]

In the opening credits ofKingdom Hearts Re:coded, the Lingering Will is seen kneeling down after the defeat of Terra-Xehanort.

Design[edit]

The Lingering Will is an animated suit of Keyblade Armor. Its helmet is mostly gold, except for its black visor, and it sports two red prongs (one on either side of the helmet) that point upwards. The arms, legs, and ribs of the Keyblade Armor are black and have orange patterns decorating them. Its knee guards, gauntlets, breastplate, and armored boots are gold, and there are other, smaller pieces of gold armor on its legs. The Lingering Will wears black pauldrons with gold edges. The front of the armor on its torso is red, as are small pieces of armor on its lower legs and gauntlets. Lingering Will also wears gold anklets with red spikes on the back that curve upward sharply.

InKingdom Hearts II Final Mix andKingdom Hearts III, Lingering Will's armor is much darker in coloration. It also wears a cape that is gold on the outside and dark blue on the inside. This cape was removed from Lingering Will's design inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep in order to avoid framerate issues.^[1] However, it was reintegrated in the cutscene after the Lingering Will defeated Terra-Xehanort at the end of Terra's scenario inKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX.

Personality[edit]

As the Lingering Will is not truly a living being, it cannot feel or possess a personality of its own. It was brought to life by the thoughts and emotions that Terra left behind when Xehanort took his body, so while it feels some connection to Aqua, Ventus, and Riku, its driving focus is to revenge itself on Xehanort. It is able to speak, but due to its single-minded purpose its words are terse, dispassionate, and to-the-point. Despite this, it does feel a desire to protect Aqua and Ventus to the point it is willing to destroy its former body as long as Xehanort's heart inhabits it as it perceives Terra-Xehanort as a threat to Aqua and Ventus.

Despite being physically separate from Terra'sheart andbody, the Lingering Will carries Terra's continued consciousness, as shown when in-game tips refer to Terra-Xehanort's body as "[its] body" and how it refers to Riku as the one "it" chose. Before theDark Figure's reveal as a vessel for Terra's heart,Sora and the other protagonists believe the Lingering Will to be all that remains of Terra's own thoughts and desires, and refer to it by the name of its original self.

Abilities[edit]

Fighting style[edit]

Main article:Game:Lingering Will

The many different forms of Lingering Will's Keyblade.

Lingering Will, likeKingdom Hearts II Final Mix's other secret bosses, is difficult to defeat. Its most basic move is a three-hit Keyblade combo almost identical to Sora's. The difference, however, is that the Lingering Will canFormchange its Keyblade into a drill-like object for the forward thrust that serves as the combo finisher. This is just one of many Formchanges the Lingering Will's Keyblade assumes during the battle against it; another Formchange it can assume is a whip that deals less damage than its blade form in exchange for greater speed and range. Lingering Will can also fly at high speeds and use Terra'sUltima CannonShotlock. Unlike when Terra's Shotlock is used, however, the resulting blast can be deflected via a well-timed Guard to damage the Lingering Will instead. This leaves it vulnerable to further attacks. The Lingering Will can also Formchange its Keyblade into aKeyblade Glider or cog-like object to perform extremely quick attacks.

Lingering Will can also create a large rune on the ground below it as lightning rains down from above. At this point, the Lingering Will enters a berserk state that causes its arm gauntlets and helmet to emit a bright red aura. The Lingering Will gains the ability to split its Keyblade into two, making its combos extremely lethal. After the first two stages of the Lingering Will's rapid combo have been evaded, the last few attacks can be blocked by Sora via a well-timed Guard.

Lingering Will is also quite skilled at wielding magic. It can create an unusual-looking seal that either creates an orange or blue orb. An orange orb prevents Sora from attacking, while a blue orb blocks the use of magic and items. The Lingering Will may sometimes useBlizzaga while executing aSonic Blade-like attack at low HP or when riding its Keyblade Glider. It will also useMagnega while atop its Keyblade Glider if Sora is too far from it. The Lingering Will can conjure drone-like objects which fire lasers at Sora, Donald, and Goofy, as well. It may sometimes transform its Keyblade into a bow and fire arrows that trap Sora in a triangular-shaped seal that drains his health at a fast rate; only a "Release" command can save Sora from it. If the player chooses the wrong command while Sora is trapped, Sora will expire regardless ofOnce More orSecond Chance, althoughPeter Pan'sAuto-Life ability will allow him to continue fighting.

When playing as Lingering Will during the final battle with Terra-Xehanort at the Keyblade Graveyard inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, it loses Terra's ability to useD-Links; the D-Link Gauge is empty and unable to be refilled for the entire battle. The Lingering Will does, however, retain Terra's immense power and has access to any abilities that were equipped to him before the battle begins. Lingering Will also can use Terra's equipped Shotlock and all commands that were placed in his Command Deck. While Terra's Keyblade was able to be equipped with any Keychain of the player's choosing, Lingering Will's Keyblade defaults to the Ends of the Earth.

Weapon[edit]

As Terra's possessed Keyblade Armor, Lingering Will wields his former Keyblade, the Ends of the Earth. When Terra-Xehanort is created, he forsakes the Ends of the Earth in favor ofNo Name. Because Terra's will finds residence within his Keyblade Armor, Lingering Will picks up the Ends of the Earth upon its creation and uses it to conquer its possessed body. The Ends of the Earth remains with Lingering Will during its solitude at the Keyblade Graveyard; the animated Keyblade Armor uses the weapon a second time to battle Sora eleven years after its struggle against Terra-Xehanort.

Lingering Will canFormchange the Ends of the Earth into a myriad of weapons, including Terra'sKeyblade Glider, the cannon-like form used in Terra'sUltima CannonShotlock, a chain whip, a drilling gauntlet, and a harken-like weapon. Save for the Keyblade Glider and Ultima Cannon, these forms are all unique to the Ends of the Earth when it is wielded by Lingering Will. While Lingering Will's battle stance with the Ends of the Earth is identical to Terra's inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, it adopts a different stance inKingdom Hearts II Final Mix.

Notes and references[edit]

• Construct
• Keyblade Graveyard
• Original characters
• Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix characters
• Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep characters
• Kingdom Hearts III characters
• Keyblade Wielders