Ansem

A king with a thirst for knowledge, Ansem let nothing get in his way as he searched for the meaning of the heart and darkness. His findings have been recorded by his own hand in his reports. They document the course of his experiments and discoveries as he gains more and more knowledge about the true nature of the world.

Ansem had given up his body long before this had ever occurred. He had been using the body of Riku who at first allowed Ansem to do so but eventually abandoned his own body and let the powerful Ansem remain.

Rumors

Ansem' s shell The original body of Ansem retained the soul and became it's own entity, a non-existent one... an unknown. This theory might be supported by the idea that Ansem did not become evil until after he had abandoned his body and even before that, perhaps his heart was the dark side of his being. Therefore, Ansem' s non-existent counterpart could be part of The Gathering

Ansem' s heart Likewise, some say that perhaps Ansem' s heart was not destroyed. The heartless section of The 13 points speaks of one could be Ansem. "We have come for you, my liege." and "You are the source of all heartless" could both be references to his majesty, the seeker of darkness. The Ansem Reports fully describe how Ansem could possibly be the source of all heartless.