Xaldin

Xaldin, the Whirlwind Lancer (旋風の六槍, Senpū no Rokusō' lit. Six Lances of the Whirlwind), is the Nobody of Dilan and is Rank III within Organization XIII. He controls wind, and uses his power over the air to freely manipulate his six lances without holding them directly. He commands the Dragoon Nobodies, and has the second highest throne among the Organization.

Xaldin appears in Kingdom Hearts II as a villain in Beast's Castle, and spends his time in the game attempting to plunge Beast into despair in the hopes of separating his heart from his body. Xaldin is a playable character in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days's Mission Mode.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
Main article: Dilan

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
Xaldin plays a minor role in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. Present when Xion joined Organization XIII, he aided Roxas on various missions, particularly to Beast's Castle. It was on one of these missions that Xaldin witnessed the Beast's power, the quest in Kingdom Hearts II to obtain the Beast's Heartless and Nobody beginning at this point. Xaldin's plan grew during the continuous visits to the castle, as he learned the strong connections between the Beast, his rose, and the only human in the castle, Belle. He deemed that it was a spell that made the Beast what he was, and the rose and Belle were important to the breaking of this spell. Xaldin decided to use this to his advantage and his plan began.

Kingdom Hearts II
Xaldin appears with Xemnas, Saïx, Xigbar, Luxord, and Demyx at Hollow Bastion standing at the right of Xemnas. All he does in the confrontation is laugh emptily with the rest of the group at Xemnas's empty humor.

Xaldin's first major appearance in the game is as a cloaked and hooded figure during Sora's first visit to Beast's Castle. At this time, Xaldin has already drained Beast of much of his hope and kindness by convincing him that Belle is plotting against him. Beast is unresponsive to Sora, Donald and Goofy when they first greet him, despite having met them before in Kingdom Hearts at Hollow Bastion. Xaldin's slippery words cause Beast to lock himself in his chambers and refuse contact with them or Belle.

Sora, fighting his way through the Heartless that have settled into the castle, eventually reaches Beast's bedroom. Xaldin tells Beast that Sora and his party are only there to help Belle against Beast, and that she has sent them to steal the rose symbolizing his curse from him with the intention of eventually taking his life. Beast, still under Xaldin's influence, attacks Sora as Xaldin flees, but Sora is able to bring Beast back to his senses.

When Sora and Beast head downstairs into the ballroom, they encounter the Shadow Stalker Heartless, which attacks them. After being defeated, it evolves into the large Dark Thorn, but that too is no match for Sora, and is destroyed. Xaldin leaves the area without actually fighting them himself, stating that it wasn't over, but continues to lurk in the world until Sora returns.

Xaldin strikes again when Sora returns to Beast's Castle to find Belle and Beast having a private dance party. He captures Beast's rose and flaunts it in front of Beast, who goes into a rage and pursues Xaldin around his castle. Before Xaldin seems to disappear from the world entirely, he mocks Beast, taking off his hood and resolving to separate Beast's heart from him and take control of his Heartless and his Nobody. In Beast's anger, he rages at Belle for insisting on having the party. Despaired over the loss of his rose and his own beastly state, Beast orders Belle to leave the castle.

Belle shuts herself in her room, confining herself to looking out on the balcony. There she finds Beast's rose, and gladly signals to Sora from the balcony. The rose is just a trap, however, and Xaldin appears behind her, kidnapping her as well as retaking the rose. Xaldin flies down in front of Beast in his courtyard, taunting him by saying he can only carry either the rose or Belle along with him, and forcing Beast to choose which one he wants him to leave behind. Before Beast has time to choose, however, Belle elbows Xaldin in the side and grabs the rose, taking the time from Xaldin's surprise to escape his grasp. Beast then attacks Xaldin, who leaps aside and conjures six long spears using his powers over wind. He battles Sora and Beast on the bridge, using his abilities to the fullest, but is eventually defeated, and fades back into the darkness.

Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix
Xaldin appears in some of the additional Organization XIII cutscenes included in Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix. He is present when Axel is ordered to eliminate Roxas after it is clear that Roxas has no intention of returning to the Organization, driving the order home by sending one of his lances into the backrest of Axel's chair, inches from his head. He is also present at a later meeting, breaking up an argument between Xigbar and Demyx, much to Luxord's disappointment.

Day 119: Hearts and Emotion
Author: Xaldin

''Watching that foolish beast flail about only deepens my disdain for humans and their incessant need to be pinned down by feelings. We became Nobodies precisely to avoid the shackles of emotion. It was only later that we realized the scale of that loss: that some things simply cannot be done without a heart. Nonetheless, I see nary a pleasant thing about it.''