Lingering Will

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

Lingering Will is a collection of thoughts and desires of the Keyblade wielder Terra. It took control over Terra's discarded Keyblade Armor after his body was possessed by Xehanort. Along with Terra's heart within the Dark Figure and its master Terra-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 in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep; it made its debut appearance in the Kingdom Hearts series as a secret boss in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix. The Lingering Will's voice in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix is represented by metallic grinding, similar to Xemnas in Kingdom Hearts Final Mix. Design: 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. In Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix and Kingdom 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. Personality: 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's heart and body, 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 the Dark 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: Lingering Will, like Kingdom 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 can Formchange 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's Ultima Cannon Shotlock. 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 a Keyblade 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 use Blizzaga while executing a Sonic Blade-like attack at low HP or when riding its Keyblade Glider. It will also use Magnega 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 of Once More or Second Chance, although Peter Pan's Auto-Life ability will allow him to continue fighting. When playing as Lingering Will during the final battle with Terra-Xehanort at the Keyblade Graveyard in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, it loses Terra's ability to use D-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: 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 of No 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 can Formchange the Ends of the Earth into a myriad of weapons, including Terra's Keyblade Glider, the cannon-like form used in Terra's Ultima Cannon Shotlock, 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 in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, it adopts a different stance in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix.