Braig

Braig
(ブライグ, Buraigu?)
Biographical information
Homeworld	Radiant Garden
Weapon	Arrowguns
Physical description
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Behind the scenes
English VA	James Patrick Stuart
Japanese VA	Hōchū Ōtsuka

For a Keyblade Master, you're not very—what's the word—good?

Braig to Terra

Braig, mis-romanized as Bleig, was one of six apprentices of Ansem the Wise, the original persona of Xigbar, and the vessel of Luxu along with his Nobody. He serves as a supporting antagonist in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep.

Personality

Since Braig is the original persona of Xigbar, he possesses some of Xigbar's personality. He is shown to have a laid-back, cocky attitude, and doesn't often take things seriously. Braig can also be cold and merciless at times, seen once when he kidnaps Master Xehanort and tries to eliminate Terra for his Keyblade (although this was later revealed to be staged by Master Xehanort), and again when he tries to destroy Aqua and Ventus to get Terra to fall to darkness and cruelly asking who wants to go first. He often refers to Master Xehanort as an "old coot", and like Xigbar, very frequently says "As if".

Physical Appearance

During Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, Braig wears a guard's uniform with a dark slate grey jacket, silver highlights, and two rows of gold buttons on the front. He wears a black belt and white gloves adorned with a silver, curled heart symbol. His jacket bears some resemblance to Xigbar's Black Coat, sporting the same pointed shoulders. He also wears black, knee-high boots and a tattered, red scarf. In terms of facial features, Braig sports brown eyes, though they turn gold upon his acceptance of the darkness, upturned eyebrows, and dark, shoulder-length hair that he wears slicked back. After his fight against Terra, he loses his right eye and receives a jagged scar over his left cheek, making him and Master Eraqus the only two characters that are seen receiving scars during the story. Once he is able to take the bandages off, Braig wears an eyepatch to cover his lost eye.

Braig wields two ranged weapons called Arrowguns. His first set are crossbow-shaped and colored in shades of silver and a faded, metallic purple and adorned with the same curled heart symbol as his gloves. His second set are the Sharpshooter.

Story

Before Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

Having seen the Keyblade War unfold, Luxu continued to carry out the role the Master of Masters had given him. He eventually bequeathed The Gazing Eye to one of the five new Union leaders, and watched as they were sent into another worldline. This however, left him without a Keyblade of his own, and in order to fulfil his final task, Luxu had to cast his own body aside and use different vessels in order to survive.

After many lives, watching as his Keyblade was successfully passed down from master to apprentice, Luxu decided to intervene as The Gazing Eye was bequeathed to Master Xehanort, a Keyblade Master fascinated with both the darkness and the Keyblade War. With a new body and identity - Braig - he assumed the role of a fool who desired the power of the Keyblade.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

Oh, so this kiddo thinks he's a full-fledged Keyblade wielder? He's got the angry look down.

Braig to Ventus

Prior to Master Eraqus's students arriving to Radiant Garden, Master Xehanort offered Braig the ability to use a Keyblade in return for his help in convincing Terra to use the powers of darkness. Confronting Terra after he parted ways with Aqua and Ventus, Braig leads the skeptical Keyblade user to Xehanort, whom he took prisoner. Braig then engages Terra in a duel, intent on eliminating him and taking his Keyblade. Terra is reluctant to fight back out of fear of succumbing to the darkness and endangering Xehanort, until the latter screams for him to use the Keyblade and avoid shaming Eraqus. Terra fights back and eventually defeats Braig by using the power of darkness, in the process scarring Braig's face and permanently damaging his eye. After Terra left, a furious Braig attempts to shoot Xehanort from behind for his injuries. But Braig is put in his place as Xehanort tells him they need to make Terra succumb to the darkness while performing his end of their pact.

Braig taunts Aqua and Ventus.

Braig later appears in the Keyblade Graveyard, having been infused with part of Xehanort's heart as indicated by his remaining eye becoming yellow and his ears becoming pointed. He appears in front of Aqua and Ventus, attempting to get them to attack Terra and kill him for his role in the death of Eraqus, but they refuse to forsake their friend. After paying particular attention to and mocking the angry glare Ventus gives him, Aqua battles Braig for trying to turn them against their friend and defeats him. But having actually been a diversion, Braig takes his leave with Aqua unable to pursue him as he returns to Radiant Garden.

Later, back at the Radiant Garden, Braig leads Dilan and Ansem to Xehanort, now within the vessel that was originally Terra's body, smiling discreetly but triumphantly to himself that his benefactor's plan apparently worked. However, Braig later approaches the new Xehanort, now an apprentice under Ansem, and is dismayed to find that the new Xehanort does not recognize him, and Braig's attempts to help Xehanort remember prove only to annoy him. Braig, at one point, questions if this new Xehanort is actually Terra, but Xehanort still does not respond, much to Braig's relief. Braig nevertheless says in a friendly manner that he's got Xehanort's back, having been entrusted with Master Xehanort's back-up plan.

Between Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep and Kingdom Hearts

Braig becomes one of six apprentices to Ansem the Wise, the ruler and scientist of Radiant Garden, alongside Dilan, Even, Aeleus, Ienzo, and Xehanort. After Ansem began performing tests on Xehanort's heart, Braig convinces the other apprentices to aid him and Xehanort in conducting inhumane experiments on the human heart and the darkness within it. Though it was intended to be a means to destroy a person's sense of self, the experimentation leads to the mass creation of Heartless within the Realm of Light. Around this time, Xehanort came to find "Subject X", an amnesiac girl who, like Xehanort, had no memories of her past. Xehanort planned to use her in his experiments, although Ansem the Wise discovered this and ordered to release of all his subjects. While Xehanort assumed Ansem was responsible for relocating Subject X, it was in fact Braig.

Braig's heart is released.

One day, after being advised to review their research data by King Mickey, Ansem found that the effects of their experiments had become irreversible. Sometime soon after, Braig arrived to the lab to see Xehanort attacking the others with The Gazing Eye. Asking if he is really Master Xehanort with his memories restored, Braig is impaled by his attacker as he calls himself "Ansem". However, having a strong will, Braig's Nobody Xigbar came into being after he lost his heart. Along with the other apprentices' Nobodies and Xemnas, Braig became one of the founding members of Organization XIII and banished Ansem the Wise to the Realm of Darkness. However, like his Somebody, Xigbar knew of Xehanort's true intentions with the Organization, although he never disclosed this information with the other members.

Kingdom Hearts Re:coded

Braig is restored.

Following the destruction of his Heartless and Xigbar, Braig is restored back to his original self. At one point, Braig has a conversation with young Xehanort in Radiant Garden and questions the identity of the thirteenth chosen vessel, to which Xehanort replies with an "S".

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Braig does not reappear in Radiant Garden with Dilan, Even, Aeleus, Ienzo and Lea, which prompts Lea to venture out to search for him and Isa.

Later, in The World That Never Was it is revealed that Braig had turned himself back into Xigbar and reveals to Sora his pact with Xehanort and his nature as a "half-Xehanort" being.

Abilities

You better start running!

Braig, during his battle with Terra

The Japanese release on the left, English on the right.

Braig, like his Nobody Xigbar, wields twin Arrowguns in battle, using them to fire a variety of quick shots. He uses a telescopic view in battle and is able to teleport, warp his bullets, and levitate upside-down via space distortion. Like his Nobody's, Braig's HUD display has a silhouette of his Arrowguns in each of the four cardinal directions.

The shots Braig fires when he is sniping are violet like Xigbar's, but they seem to have explosive properties to them. He can also combine his two weapons into one in order to fire powerful shots in rapid succession. Braig is also very agile, able to make high leaps into the air, and quickly run around opponents while leaving after-images of himself.

In the Western and Final Mix releases of Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, his targeting reticule was changed drastically, much like it was for his Nobody, Xigbar. Instead of the crosshair-shaped reticule used when fighting Terra, the American, European, and Final Mix versions simply showed three violet dots, vaguely showing Braig's aim.

Gallery