by Sleep. He is a Keyblade wielder who is trained by Master Eraqus alongside Aqua and Ventus, developing a strong sibling-like bond and sharing his dream of becoming a Keyblade Master with them; gameplay-wise, he performs slower, heavier-hitting attacks than Aqua and Ventus. During an exam to obtain the Mark of Mastery, Master Xehanort manipulates the trials to stimulate the darkness that resides inside of Terra, for which he is denied the rank. He is thus easily manipulated by Xehanort's encouragements to channel his darkness into power, and becomes Xehanort's first vessel. Terra is ultimately freed from Xehanort's control and restored to normal during the events of Kingdom Hearts III. Ventus , commonly nicknamed , is one of the three playable characters of Birth by Sleep who is later revealed to be a member of the Dandelions who survived the Keyblade War before being displaced from his time to escape the destruction of Daybreak Town. Throughout the plot of Birth by Sleep, Xehanort intended Ventus to recreate χ-blade for his agenda. After Ventus sacrifices his heart to prevent the χ-blade's completion, his comatose body is sealed within Castle Oblivion while his heart takes refuge within Sora's, which factors into the physical appearance of Roxas. In Kingdom Hearts III, Sora becomes aware of Ventus's heart within him and uses the power of waking to send it back to his body, reviving him. Ventus later aids Sora and his allies in the final battle with Xehanort. Aqua is a Keyblade Master who serves as one of the three playable characters of Birth by Sleep, and the sole playable character of A Fragmentary Passage, a direct sequel bundled in Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue. She is also playable during one fight in Kingdom Hearts III. She is a nimble character who specializes in magic attacks while dealing weak physical damage. As the only one among her friends to achieve the rank of Keyblade Master by the start of the game, she is tasked by Master Eraqus to watch over Terra and retrieve Ventus when he runs away from home. While attempting to protect Ventus and save Terra from Xehanort's control, she becomes trapped in the realm of darkness, where she remains suspended in time throughout the series while fending off the endless swarms of Heartless. In Kingdom Hearts III, Sora rescues her from the realm of darkness, and she joins him