The world that Mickey's Star Shard led Ventus to is called Radiant Garden. He spots Mickey, so he pursues him until he reaches a castle. Ven tries to enter the castle, but he is stopped by a pair of guards named Dilan and Aeleus. A large Unversed suddenly appears, and the two guards prepare to fight it, but a scientist named Even stops them, telling them that they need to stay and protect the castle. He assures the guards that Ven will be fine before telling them that their master, Ansem the Wise, is looking for them. As Dilan and Aeleus walk away, Even observes that Ven's heart has somehow been completely purged of darkness, making him a pure light.
Ven chases the Unversed to the town square, where he saves Scrooge McDuck from it. Before he can pursue it, Scrooge demands that Ven let him give him a reward for saving him. He reveals that he knows Ven is from another world, because he himself is also from another world. He tells Ven that the wizard Merlin brought him to Radiant Garden. Scrooge gives Ven three passes to Disney Town as thanks for saving him, and Ven runs off to find the Unversed.
While chasing the monster, Ven meets back up with Terra and Aqua, who were also chasing Unversed. The three Unversed come together to form a large one called the Trinity Armor. Together, the three friends manage to destroy it. Ven hands them two of the Disney Town passes to his friends. Terra tells Ven that the masked boy's name is Vanitas, and he orders Ven to let Aqua take him home. He refuses, and Aqua tells Terra that she's seen him doing dark things in the worlds. This confuses Ven, since when Maleficent claimed that Terra stole Aurora's heart Aqua is the one who told him that Terra would never do such a thing. Terra walks away in frustration. Ven tells Aqua that she's got an inflated ego from being made a Master before going to find Terra.
Back in the town square, Ven finds a boy named Ienzo under assault from some Unversed. After dealing with them, Even appears and thanks Ven for his help. He explains that Ienzo is an orphan, and that he and Ansem's other apprentices took him under their care. Even tells Ven that he believes they will meet again before leaving. Ven manages to catch up to Terra, but he says that he needs to go it alone. He tells Ven that he knows he can count on him when he truly needs him.
Ven finds Aqua in the town square and tells her that Terra left. She tells him to go home again before leaving. Ven despairs as he recalls how close he and his friends used to be. While he sits down, two boys named Isa and Lea enter the square. Lea tries to befriend Ven, initially to Isa's annoyance, but he warms up to Ven after a bit. Lea asks Ven to have a play fight, which cheers him up. Ven wins, and shortly afterwards Isa and Lea leave. Ven feels a bit jealous of them because they're so close while he and his friends are fighting. Concerned for Terra, Ven ignores Aqua's orders and presses onward...
Tropes:
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Who would've thought that Zexion and Saïx's human selves used to be this way? Of course, for Isa, there's another reason Saïx is so different...
