I am Arazlam Durai, a scholar of world history. My research does not just concern the history of my world, Ivalice, but of all worlds as well. Have you ever heard of the "Keyblade War"? Many years ago, everyone lived in a golden age known as the "Age of Fairy Tales". It was called this, because much of this time's recorded history was lost and almost all that was known from it were tales of castles, enchantments, princesses, and heroes. The only surviving documents are scattered across many worlds and hidden in the farthest corners where the light touches. It wasn't easy, but I did some searching and found one such record in the libraries of Gariland.
It was a dusty old tome that was left in a vault, far below the library's main hall. It was bound in brown leather with a mother of pearl heart inserted in the front cover. When I found it, its pages were torn and some of the ink was blurred from a liquid spill, causing it to be more difficult to read. From what I could decipher from it, much of the book's contents became subjects of controversy and debate of how much of it is valid to history. This was because it contained elements that may have been embellished for storytelling and philosophical reasons. The pages tell of a time when all the worlds were one and everyone was living in an age of peace and prosperity. Much of the old kingdoms were benign to one another and trades were uninhibited with few walls in the way. For centuries, this golden age was brought through a blessing from a sacred realm, known now as "Kingdom Hearts". No one knew exactly what the realm was at the time. Its nature was left shrouded in mystery and rumor. Some say it is a well of great power, others say it is the very first heart in existence, and few say it is the remains of a bygone deity that created everything we know. Whatever it was, the people saw it as a gift that has brought happiness and wonder. It was only a matter of time that it would all end.
With everything we scholars have learned of the powers that be in this world, we know all to well that the brightest light creates the deepest shadow. Under Kingdom Heart's brilliance, those that it shined upon had the shadows of pride, avarice, envy, and lust. The potential power of the realm called to the thousands that desired it. Rumors and legends spread of how, if anybody were to obtain it, every desire in their heart would be granted and the holder would have the power of the gods. However, there was a security measure made to prevent this.
High above Mount Olympus, the gods feared the power Kingdom Hearts would give to mortal men. Zeus, the king of the gods and lord of the united worlds, commissioned his blacksmith, Hephaestus, to forge a lock and key that would prevent anybody from taking the power easily. Hephaestus made many attempts to forge the key with almost all of them being failures. Even with the powers of a god, almost all of his creations were too weak to contain the energy within the realm. So, when he forged the twenty-second key, the smith poured in all his heart, soul, blood, sweat, and tears as he worked tirelessly to make his final try. Once it was finished, he crafted a key that was strong enough to lock away Kingdom Hearts from the mortals. Different stories have been told of this "key" and each one is inconsistent on what it really is. Some say it is a gemstone or an actual key, but most say that Hephaestus crafted it into a weapon.
The stories claim it is a sword of immeasurable strength, called the Chi-Blade. In certain worlds, the letter, "Chi (X)", represents the two bands that form the souls of each world that cross each other. In others, it is the twenty-second letter in their alphabet and this was Hephaestus' twenty-second blade forged. Whatever the significance of the name, the key or Chi-Blade became a treasure that the gods would keep secret for all eternity, or so they thought.
Legends tell of the patron god of man, Prometheus, who gave mortals the gift of the gods' fire. What many people have forgotten was that there was another gift to go with it. Curious of the latent power inside the hearts of mortals, Prometheus gave man the secret to forging swords similar to the Chi-Blade that could tap into this energy and make his people more significant in the eyes of the immortals. In the glow of the fire and the clash of hammers on iron, thousands of these weapons were made and an elite class of warriors appeared. The wielders called their implements, "keyblades" for their key-shaped appearances. Using these weapons, the keyblade wielders brought the Age of Fairy Tales into a time of enlightenment and, sadly, its sudden end.
Simply having a small taste of power was enough to make the people crave more. As more knowledge of the keyblades and hearts grew, so did knowledge of the original Chi-Blade. The shadows or their greed and wantonness grew so deep, that they could no longer be held back. The promise of both the Chi-Blade and Kingdom Hearts' blessings led them to take up arms and fight. The tome and folk tales called it the "Keyblade War", which left the land where they clashed broken and scarred. Because of the chaos that was wrought as the battle raged on, the gods were furious at Prometheus, blaming his curiosity for the doom of all worlds. As punishment, he was chained to a giant stone in a far away land, where he suffers to this day in isolation and torture.
Eventually, as the war continued, all the greed, hatred, rage, and death brought an end to everyone who fought. The brilliant light that once covered the world faded away. Kingdom Hearts and the world that it provided for slipped into darkness and any further knowledge to record was lost. Beyond this book, there are only stories that keep changing with each person telling them. The most common story I have heard is that a new world was made from the last remaining glimmers of light. However it became fragmented and divided into the universe we know today.
Since then, peace had returned, but only from ignorance of the existence of other worlds and the keyblades that were once so much more common in the past. The few wielders that remained, trained and fought in secret with a new reason to exist. To keep the new world from falling into the dark again, they made a vow to protect what little light there was left and to keep peace and order between the scattered worlds. Still, there were many who were suspicious that there would be another Keyblade War and they were right.
Where and when it began exactly is not certain, but there are plenty of documents telling of how it ended. It was, in fact, recent. About a decade ago, many young men and women who wielded keyblades of their own stood up to the call of duty and faced the next threat to the light. However, no one remembers who they were or what happened to them once Kingdom Hearts returned from the dark. I have made it my mission to leave Ivalice for the outside world and seek out the truth of these heroes' true identities. Perhaps you would like to join me on my search? My journey begins at dawn. An airship will be waiting to take me to where this lost piece of history began. It is an academy, where three wielders discovered a plot that would send the worlds in turmoil once more.