AN: And now we come to final page in this grand tale, the final story to be told in this journey of hardship, bonds, love, friendship, and loyalty; and the last chapter in my first completed story that isn't part of the Gundam SEED Prime Series. Not that I have a problem with that series, I'm just really glad I finished one of my stories that wasn't part of that series, ya know? And besides...

Everyone but AN: START THE CHAPTER ALREADY!

AN: Alright, alright. Sheesh! Show people. Anyways, here's the disclaimer, so enjoy...

I do not own anything from the Kingdom Hearts franchise or any other franchise mentioned in this story.

Epilogue

The first thing Sora had picked up on when his sense of consciousness had begun to return was that he was lying on something soft and comforting, and that he was feeling quite drowsy like one often felt on a Monday morning when they do not want to get up even though they know they have to. It actually described Sora's thought process perfectly at the time, but somehow he knew that he had to get up for some reason, and it was only a minute after he started to open his eyes that he finally remembered what that reason was. He and Kairi had been fading out after they found Ventus in Castle Oblivion and he had returned the blonde's heart to him, and as soon as he realized what that meant he immediately sprang up to his feet so that he could find out what had happened afterwards.

The sight that greeted his eyes was that of a room that was clearly in the Mysterious Tower, but upon glancing out of the room, Sora found his eyes widening a bit when he saw that the sky was filled to the brim with brilliantly shinning stars, unlike the nearly starless sky he had grown so used to over the years since he and his friends were swept into the war between light and darkness. Thinking of his friends immediately brought his thoughts to Kairi, his worry for her well-being instantly rising when he saw that she was not in the room with him, and he quickly grabbed his hoodie, only mildly noting how it was black with red lining instead of black and white as he did, and raced to the door, accidentally bumping into someone mere seconds after he was out the door.

"Whoa Sora, are you sure you should be up right now," a familiar voice asked, and when Sora looked up, he was instantly greeted by a person who looked a little too much like a familiar Nobody for his tastes.

"Axel," Sora gasped in shock as he jumped back a little. "What're you…"

"Seriously? Are we still doing this," "Axel" asked as he shook his head in slight irritation. "I've told you, my name's Lea. Get it memorized already. I mean I don't look that much like my Nobody, do I?"

Upon closer inspection, Sora was able to see that the redhead was in fact telling the truth, as he could see some of the small differences that set Lea apart from Axel. The main reason Sora had assumed the redhead was actually his Nobody was due to the fact that he was wearing his old Organization XIII coat at the moment, but the fact he had gotten the two mixed up in the first place was enough to make Sora feel more than a little sheepish as he quickly apologized saying, "Sorry. Guess I'm still waking up a bit."

"I'll say," Lea chuckled. "Considering how you and Kairi had passed out during your last sparring practice session with the rest of us all of a sudden like that though, I'd be a little worried if you weren't a bit confused. Anyway, you should probably…Hey, wait up a second!"

Sora paid the redhead no mind, as the instant he heard that something happened to Kairi, he was racing off like lightning, though to where he was not entirely sure, but he just kept going, allowing his instincts to lead him until he eventually skidded to a halt just a short distance away from a familiar blonde in a black shirt, grey pants, white jacket with a checkered pattern, and a familiar x-shaped crest. Said blonde was leaning against the wall next to an open doorway as though he were waiting for something rather impatiently until he looked up and saw Sora slowly approaching and smiled at the brunette in greeting. "Hey Sora, how're you feeling," the blonde then asked after Sora had finally reached him.

"A little confused to be honest, Roxas," Sora admitted. He then gave the blonde a quick once over and asked, "You are Roxas right?"

"Not unless Riku suddenly became the same height as us, dyed his hair, and suddenly realized that my sense of style is better than his," Roxas joked with a grin, getting a small laugh from Sora in response. The blonde then looked over Sora for a minute before he then added, "Speaking of style, glad to see you're sporting the new look. It really suits you a lot more now than that black, red, and white outfit you used to wear, but I can't help but think that the chain on your necklace looks like it might start choking you considering how short it looks now."

It was at this point that Sora finally took a good look at his outfit and saw that it was indeed much different than what he was used to. The entire outfit was now mostly black with some patches of dark grey in a few areas, with some red lining around the area of his knees on his pants and hoodie, and barely that much white at all. The crown necklace was also on a shorter chain, but not to the point where it was nearly choking him like Roxas had implied it was, and his gloves were replaced with gauntlets that stopped just a little ways short of his elbows while leaving his palms exposed, and were colored two different shades of dark grey with red lining on the ends and yellow straps around the wrist areas. All-in-all, it seemed like a much more matured version of his old outfit, and he was honestly surprised he had not noticed sooner. The only thing that had not really changed that much about his attire was his shoes, which were still mostly black with some yellow, but now seemed to be a bit bigger than they used to be.

Sora eventually stopped admiring his new look as unnoticeably as he could when he remembered why he had rushed over and quickly looked to Roxas and asked, "Never mind that now. Is Kairi okay?"

"Calm down, bro," Roxas told Sora placating. "She's just sleeping now. Naminé and Xion have been looking after her since you two passed out during practice. You know, you two owe me and Riku big time for that since we were certain we'd miss out on our dates with them because of that, so…"

Sora did not pay any further mind to what Roxas was saying as he quickly dashed into the room, offering a quick apology to both Naminé and Xion as he passed them, and kneeled down next to Kairi's sleeping form. After he gave her a couple of shakes, Sora was happy to see that Kairi began to stir before finally opening her eyes and smiling at Sora lovingly. The next thing that any of the others knew, the two were immediately locked together in a kiss, making them all feel a bit awkward until Naminé said, "Well I guess we'll just be going now, Roxas. See you later Sora, Kairi, Xion."

Sora and Kairi then broke apart from their embrace, barely registering Xion telling the blonde couple to not leave her there with them and subsequently being ignored while they tapped into what they could of the D-Link's power to communicate with each other, instantly telling one and other that they both remembered everything that had happened to them in their travels through time. The two then held each other tightly in a loving embrace before their lips met again just as passionately for a few minutes, until someone interrupted with a very rude cough.

"Well since you two seemed to be doing better, you should probably let Master Yen Sid know so that I can finally take Xion out," the person who had coughed told them, and the two immediately broke apart to spin around to the source of the voice, immediately finding that it belonged to exactly who they thought it did.

"Riku," Sora whispered in shock as he stood up and walked over to his friend, pinching and pulling at the older boy's face as soon as he was close enough just to make sure he was real.

"Hey, cut that out! What's with you," Riku exclaimed as he shoved Sora off.

"Please tell me that I'm not dreaming and it's really you," Sora told his best friend since childhood.

"I'd hope so," Riku replied while waving a hand through his hair. "Otherwise someone has some explaining to do, either that or you've both gone crazy in thinking that I'm someone else. You know, I should've known that you two had pulled that little stunt to have a little intimate time together when you should've been practicing. I guess some things really don't ever change; you two as still just as lazy as Kairi accuses you of being, Sora."

Sora and Kairi both brightened up a great deal at hearing Riku's voice, and it was at this point that Sora began to take in Riku's appearance as well. Riku's silver hair no longer reached down to his shoulders just as Sora remembered it did, but instead, was now back to the length it had been before all the insanity with Heartless and Keyblades started, albeit with the back being more spiked up, and that was not the only thing about Riku that was different. Riku's outfit now consisted of a black, hooded jacket that was left unzipped with short sleeves, gold buttons, and a checkered pattern at the hem, which he wore over a white V-neck shirt, blue cropped trousers that were hemmed with a matching checkered pattern, black glovelettes on each hand, and black high-top boots, but all the same, it still seemed like the same old Riku to Sora, and that was more than enough for him, a fact that Kairi happily agreed on.

Speaking of Kairi, it was at this point that Sora and Kairi realized that the auburn haired girl's appearance was also different than they remembered. She still wore a pink battle dress over a white shirt, but now the dress also had some black in it as well. The dress also had a hood that was black on the inside, and had black ruffles on one side of her skirt while the other side had plaid ones. A black belt wrapped around her waist in, while her pockets were lined in black, and while the dress did have a zipper, she left that unzipped, so one could see the white shirt she wore underneath. In the place of her old bracelets, Kairi now wore a silver armband on both wrists, with black running through the middle on her left one, and a small star-charm dangled from her right. Her outfit was completed with a pair of black, thick belted boots, and to finish off the changes in her appearance, the two could also see that Kairi must have recently cut her hair, because it no longer reached her shoulders as it once did. Now, her beautiful auburn hair seemed to be level with her chin, and while she did keep her bangs evenly parted, effectively framing her lovely face, a few in the middle did fall down in between her eyebrows. Either way, to Sora, she still looked incredibly beautiful, and no amount of changes to any of them could make this reunion any less joyful for him or Kairi.

"Seriously, it's great to see you Riku," Sora said as he clapped his best friend on the shoulder as best he could, seeing as the older boy was still reasonably taller than him.

"Yeah…sure," Riku said, quickly feeling more than a bit put-off by that statement. "Are you sure you're feeling okay Sora?"

"We're fine," Kairi said as she stood up, not missing a beat on the fact that she and Sora were clearly the only ones they had seen so far who remembered what had happened before the sudden time shift. "And since we're fine, don't you need to take us to see Master Yen Sid?"

"She's right Riku," Xion then stepped in. "Come on, hurry up! The sooner we do that, the sooner we can go out."

Riku just rolled his eyes at the brunette playfully before waving for Sora and Kairi to follow him, which the two were more than happy to do. A few minutes later, the two felt that they had more than adjusted to the fact that it seemed like everything had changed for the better, as there was no sign anywhere in the tower of anyone fighting in the terrible war that they had gone back to prevent from happening, unlike in that other future where they were always finding some indication of someone calling out to the tower in some way to report on their status or call for help, and they truly felt that they had faced all the surprises that they could expect once they had reached Yen Sid's office and were left there by Riku and Xion a minute later, with Mickey as the only other occupant in the room.

"It is good to see that you are both feeling better now," Yen Sid commented. "But is there any particular reason you were both suddenly overcome with a sudden fatigue?"

"Well…we're not quite sure you would believe us even if we told you, Master Yen Sid," Sora hesitantly replied, effectively admitting that he had not come up with a way to break the news that he and Kairi had just come back from the past to him.

"Whoa, is that hesitation I hear in your voice, Sora? I could've sworn that my apprentice was more confident than that," a new, familiar voice that sounded very similar to Roxas's then called out from behind them, making both Sora and Kairi freeze in shock before they slowly turned around towards the source. When they did, they were immediately greeted by a young man who was now a bit taller than they remembered him being and he also now had a neatly trimmed goatee, but they were still able to recognize his blonde hairstyle that was so similar to Roxas's, the dull green shoulder armor, and silver badge in the center of two, crisscrossing black straps anywhere.

"Ven," Sora gasped in silent disbelief.

Said blonde raised in eyebrow in confusion at Sora before he stated, "What's the matter, Sora? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Maybe he just had one crazy nightmare while he was sleeping," another familiar voice reasoned, and that voice was soon given a face, as another person that Sora and Kairi recognized appeared behind Ven. Unlike the blonde, this person had not changed a bit, but it was clear that Ventus's growth spurt had certainly been great, as he was now noticeably a bit taller than the blue haired woman now standing next to him.

"Aqua…you're here too," Kairi whispered happily.

Aqua then gained her own curious look as she asked, "Well why wouldn't I be, especially after you guys helped save me from the Realm of Darkness?"

"So that's where you disappeared to after you transformed the Land of Departure into Castle Oblivion," Sora then softly commented.

"Gosh, I hope you guys are alright," Mickey then said as he walked over to the four friends. "I mean, you two look like you're being reunited with old friends that you haven't seen in years."

"In a way, we kind of have," Sora then revealed. His statement had caused Yen Sid, Mickey, and both of the senior Keybearers to freeze in astonishment for a minute before they all showed signs of realization dawning on them as Sora continued, "It may have only been a moment to us, but for you guys, it definitely has been years since we last saw you. Especially in the case of you two, Aqua and Ven. After all, the last time we saw you guys, Ven was in a very deep sleep and Aqua had to transform the Land of Departure into Castle Oblivion, but from your perspective, you had last seen us in the Keyblade Graveyard when we fought against Xemnas, Ansem, Vanitas, and Xehanort along with Terra."

"I don't believe it," Ven whispered in astonishment as a brilliant smile slowly formed on his face.

"It's…it's really you guys," Aqua then added, her eyes already starting to shed tears of joy at the same realization that the others had already gained.

"It would seem that you were able to succeed in your mission after all," Yen Sid also softly stated with a small smile.

"Welcome back old pals," Mickey then finally told to the two in a soft voice that was just barely above that of a whisper.

"It's good to be back," Sora said. "But what happened after we left? Namely to Terra and Xehanort? Kairi and I both know that defeating Ansem, Seeker of Darkness and Xemnas would've served as a catalyst for brining Xehanort himself back to life, so what happened when he did?"

"We don't really know," Ven admitted with a shake of his head. "Master Yen Sid and Mickey both searched that area for any sign of Xehanort being reborn from his Heartless and Nobody's destruction for some time without ever finding a trace. At this point, we all think that if it did happen, then it must have been for a split second during that time when the χ-blade was being destroyed and he was caught in the blast, but we can never be sure. That's why Terra's not here right now. He's been out looking for any clues as to what that Xehanort may be planning, or if he's even still out there at the very least. None of us want to deal with that nightmare again for a long time to come, Terra especially, but all the same, we have to be ready. That's part of the reason why all of us Keyblade Wielders and our strongest friends and allies are here training together, so that we can be ready just in case he does return due to that reason."

"Speaking of all of us being here together," Kairi then remembered as she looked to Mickey. "Thanks for helping to make sure that happened."

Mickey smiled in response as he said, "Awe shucks. I didn't really have to do much, but I was happy to do whatever I could to help with that anyways. After all, I did have a promise to keep to some very good friends."

"Speaking of good friends, I believe you'll find something that belonged to you two has already found their ways back to you guys," Aqua then said as she proudly indicated that they should check their pockets for something.

Sora and Kairi immediately did as Aqua indicated they should, and the moment their hands brushed a familiar, metallic object, they quickly pulled said objects out and then smiled upon finding that they were holding the Wayfinders that Aqua had made for them. The couple then smiled at the mouse king for what he said that, truly touched by the fact that he remembered the promise he had made to them all those years ago, and at Aqua and Ven, happy that they were able to return the star-shaped charms that the blue haired woman had made for them so long ago back to them just as they said they would. At the very moment, the two then shared a small look between them before Sora suddenly swept Kairi off her feet and planted his lips on hers once more in a sudden victory kiss, feeling that even if there would still be danger to face, all was right in the worlds in this future.

(Somewhere in the Not-So-Distant Past)

In truth, the defeat of Ansem, Seeker of Darkness and Xemnas did in fact restore the Xehanort of that timeline to his original being, but since he had only begun to reform at a moment when the χ-blade was being destroyed, the resulting energies and explosion had catapulted him into the Realm of Darkness, rendering his powers far weaker than they had ever been before, and reducing him to a hunched over, crippled old man who wore himself out just by attempting to summon his Keyblade. With no way to escape the dark realm, Xehanort was forced to slowly limp through the endless expanse of the Realm of Darkness with a strong branch he had managed to procure from one of the few trees in this realm, in a desperate attempt to regain his powers and prolong his existence for just another moment if he could. His reason for this search actually all tied back to why he had traveled to the past in the way he did, hoping to aid his past self in the first place.

The mere thought of his humiliation and those responsible for it truly infuriated him to no end, igniting a burning anger that served as the only thing to keep him going even when his now weakened body protested against this. Defeated time and time again by the same boy and his wretched friends, a boy who was not even meant to have had the Keyblade in the first place, and yet had somehow managed to prove to the mystical weapon that he had been worthy all along. This simple fact was the main driving force that prompted Xehanort to travel back the days when his plans had first became unveiled, the days of Eraqus's pupils, their journeys, and their battles against him, all so that he could obtain a future that he felt was more suitable to him, but it seemed that even time itself could not prevent that same irritating, insufferable brat from chasing after him and thwarting his plans. Not only that, but this time he had to suffer defeat at the hands of both the boy and his little red haired Princess of Heart that had won the boy's heart as well. Granted the girl had shown in more than one lifetime that she was indeed capable of wielding a Keyblade, but to the sting of this defeat was still great nonetheless.

The memory of that recent defeat now drove Xehanort's anger and desire for revenge, fueled his darkness, and furthered his determination to fulfill his twisted ambition no matter what happened. That was why he continued to press on, wandering the endless expanse of the Realm of Darkness that he was now trapped within, searching for the thing that would allow him to not only fulfill his desires but also achieve his revenge on the boy and all of those precious friends that were closest to him. Xehanort would not deny that he did not know what exactly he was looking for though, but at the same time, he did know that it was somewhere in this realm, and that he was getting close to it.

Soon enough, he came upon a sight that confirmed what he sensed, and when he saw this very sight, he could only cackle hoarsely as he knew that he had finally found what he had sensed and was looking for. "Yes, this is it," Xehanort croaked in a much older and hoarser voice than he had even when he battled Terra, Aqua, and Ventus. "This is the key to my ultimate victory, and my revenge. Enjoy your time in the light while it lasts, fools, for with this, I shall soon be restored to my full power, and then I will possess a power that rivals even the light of Kingdom Hearts, and it all begins here…the Palace of Nightmares!"

Xehanort then began limping towards the massive palace he mentioned, which much to the shock of anyone who had once been to the world, looked very scarily like a dark version of the palace from the world known as the Castle of Dreams, and as the weakened, old master continued to walk towards it, one would be able to see that his limp was already beginning to slowly fade away until he was able to walk a bit more like a normal person, indicating that his powers were indeed beginning to return just by approaching the palace before him. What Xehanort did not know, was that someone had approached this same palace from the opposite side of the end that he was on, and that said person was horrified of the sight of the castle alone.

The person could only stare in continued horror for a few more moments, until she finally lowered her eyes and pulled out a familiar, blue, star-shaped charm and held it close to her chest as she whispered, "Ven…Terra…please do what you can to keep the light safe from where you are. I'll find a way back someday, but for now, I'll do what I can from here for now."

With her silent plea to her friends who were now an entire realm away from her finished, Master Aqua pocketed her Wayfinder and then summoned the Keyblade of her late master to her hand before moving onward to discover just what terrible secrets lay within this dark reflection of the Castle of Dreams, knowing that she would soon have to venture onward from this place to discover what other things or even people were within this dark realm once she had finished.

Donald and Goofy were both as overjoyed as their long-time best friend and king was right at the moment, as Mickey held the Star Seeker Keyblade high with pride. Just a mere moment ago, Mickey had handed over both the Star Shard he had used to travel the worlds and said Keyblade to Yen Sid with his head lowered in sadness and shame, as he had taken the Star Shard without asking and had not even been able to do much in the way of helping to save the worlds from the same threat that Ventus, Aqua, and Terra were fighting against, even with Sora and Kairi's help, but just as Mickey was preparing to leave, he was shocked to find that Yen Sid decided to allow Mickey to keep the Keyblade, believing that the mouse king was now more worthy of it than ever. The small celebration that the three friends had started in Yen Sid's study was then cut short when someone suddenly knocked at the door, prompting Yen Sid to grant them entrance.

When they saw who was at the door, all three of the old friends and even the wizened sorcerer found themselves becoming shocked beyond belief at who it was that was now entering the study while a smile on his face. "Ven? Is that really you," Mickey asked in disbelief.

"Of course. Who else would it have been," Ven asked with a slight shrug. The next thing the blonde knew, he was immediately dog-piled in tight hug by Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, and laughing along with the three friends when they all collapsed onto the ground.

"How're you awake, Ven," Goofy then asked. "I thought that it would have been years before you got your heart back."

"I don't really know what happened," Ven admitted. "The last thing I remember is fighting against Vanitas in my own heart and then the next thing I know, I'm waking up inside a large, white room with the Land of Departure's symbol all over the walls, which was in a massive, weird looking castle. Funny thing is, I could've sworn that I saw Sora and Kairi for a moment as I was waking up, but I was still a bit out of it at the time so it's a little hazy. Forget about me though, where's Aqua and Terra? I thought they would've been here too."

Yen Sid had been smiling a great deal more than one normally saw him doing until Ven had asked about his friends, and he instantly frowned in sadness at having to tell Ven of what had happened to his two friends. Hearing that Terra had apparently been lost to the darkness after Xehanort had taken over his body was of course saddening for Ven, but when he heard that Aqua had thrown herself into the darkness to save Terra from falling there himself after she had managed to defeat him in a battle that Xehanort's influence had forced them into, he felt his legs suddenly start to give out, and he could have sworn that he would start sobbing at any minute. After taking a minute though, Ven's resolve quickly returned to his eyes as he then looked to Yen Sid and said, "Master Yen Sid, I would like for you to finish my training with the Keyblade."

This request had truly seemed to come from out of nowhere for the others in the room, as they had all fallen into silent surprise until Donald asked, "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yeah Ven, I mean after everything that's happened, I'd have thought you'd want to go looking for a way to get Aqua and Terra back, or at least take a break from all this stuff," Goofy agreed with a nod.

"Believe me, I want to go and get my friends back, but right now, Mickey and I are the only Keyblade Wielders left, so we're the only ones who can protect the worlds," Ven reasoned. He then closed his eyes for a minute as he held a hand over his heart before he added, "I know that if either of them were in my position, Terra and Aqua would do the same thing. Whatever it takes, I plan to get stronger so that I can not only protect the worlds in their absence, but so I can also stand with them on equal ground as a true Keyblade Master."

Hearing his reasons and seeing the unwavering resolve that burned in his eyes like a great inferno, Yen Sid could not help giving a small smile as he walked around his desk to sit down in his chair once more as he considered Ven's request. It had only taken him the few minutes that had passed between the trip from where he was standing to his chair to make his decision, and as soon as he had seated himself in the chair he said, "I cannot teach you Ventus. My days as a Keyblade Master have long since passed, but that does not mean I cannot provide you with a master who can teach you. One who has proven himself to be a loyal friend to all those he meets, has unwavering courage and honor in the face of evil, and who possess a heart of such great light that he is almost as invulnerable to darkness as the seven Princesses of Heart. The only question is whether or not he will accept the responsibility in addition to the responsibilities he already holds both to his world and to the other worlds."

As Yen Sid finished speaking, his gaze had immediately fallen upon the master he spoke of, and everyone's gaze immediately turned to that same master, who's eyes had widened a little while his large ears had twitched in recognition of the fact that his master was referring to him. "Wait, you mean me," Mickey asked Yen Sid. "But…I'm not sure that…"

"Mickey, you have long since proven that you are indeed worthy of the Mark of Mastery, and aside from Eraqus, I can think of no better teacher for Ventus than you," Yen Sid told his former apprentice, showing just how strong his faith in the anthropomorphic mouse truly was.

Hearing how strong his master's faith in him was and then turning to see the pleading, yet encouraging look in Ven's eyes quickly allowed Mickey to make his choice, and he then turned to his blonde haired friend and said, "Alright then, Ven. I guess that this means from now on, you and I are gonna be student and master, but don't think I'll go easy on ya just cause we're friends."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Master Mickey," Ven replied with a smile as he shook hands with his friend and now master.

"Gosh, I don't think I'll be able to get used to being called that," Mickey admitted as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "So do me a favor and just call me Mickey, okay?" Ven nodded in reply, his beaming smile never once leaving his face much to Mickey's amusement before the mouse remembered something else. "Ven, there's something that Aqua wanted me to give you in case you woke up before she could get back to you," Mickey then said as he pulled said thing out and handed it to the blonde. "She said that if that did happen, then she would be counting on you to get these back to their rightful owners when you finally met them again one day in the near future."

Ven looked at the objects that Mickey had handed to him, and had to smile a little when he saw that they were the Wayfinders Aqua had made for Sora and Kairi. He then pocketed the two charms and pulled out his own to gaze upon it with great affection and love, silently promising both his brother and the woman he cared so much for that they would meet again someday, just as he knew that he would one day meet their friends from the future again as well, because Ventus knew, probably better than anyone else, that there was always a way for the light to shine through to a brighter tomorrow.

Kingdom Hearts

Keyblades of Future Past

Unleashed

AN: And that's a wrap. In case it was unclear, the outfit I had Sora wearing here at the end was his new look from Kingdom Hearts 3, and Riku's appearance was basically his Kingdom Hearts 3D look with his Kingdom Hearts 2 hairstyle.

Now I want you all to notice that I did not in fact forget about how Xehanort is reborn if Ansem, Seeker of Darkness and Xemnas are destroyed...

Sora: Really?

AN: Okay, fine, so I MIGHT have forget it a little for a minute there, BUT I still managed to show that it did not go forgotten for long, and with this, not only is this story finished, but I've also left you all with a few things to tease your brains with as to what could have possibly happened in this new timeline that the story has spawned, and left it open for me to possibly, maybe do a spin-off series from this story. Admittedly, I was going to leave this story as the only one that was NOT part of a series, but as the idea for it developed more and more, I found myself thinking that I probably could have it lead into something that I do in the future one day, but at the same time leave it so that I could leave it on its own while pursuing other types of Kingdom Hearts stories.

That is not to say that I plan to start on a spin-off series from this story or any other Kingdom Hearts stories now that this one is finished right away though, as I do have other projects that are long overdue for some attention. Starting with the final installment of the Gundam SEED Prime series, which I realize that I haven't touched in at least a month, but rest assured, with this story now finished, I will be bringing my focus back to that story, along with a few of my other stories that I have not updated in sometime, while also starting work on one or two new ideas that I've had brewing up which I know some of you who have seen my profile page are probably dying to see. Hades, do I really have to say that I do not mean literally anymore, or do you just enjoy getting humilated?

Hades: DAMN IT ALL TO ME!

AN: [shakes head at Hades before continuing] Anyways, thanks for sticking with this little masterpiece until the end, and sorry if you don't see any other Kingdom Hearts stories from me as soon as you'd like, but I will get back to working on some Kingdom Hearts related stories in the future. It'll just be sometime after I finish work on some of the other ideas that I've already got running. So for now I shall simply finish up by saying...

AN, Mickey, and Sora: Please read and review, and see ya real soon!

*Important Edit From 1/25/2019: I'm sure you all noticed by now, but I changed up Kairi and Riku's appearances to match the ones they have in Kingdom Hearts 3, mainly because I wanted to make it a little more clear that the future the two arrived in was at a point that was after the events of that game took place in this new timeline, which I've now named as the Keyblades Unleashed Series. Also, I added in the beard Ven grew out in between the events of the tie-in/sequel stories Kingdom Hearts: Dual Keys and Kingdom Hearts: Keyblade Legion. I felt that I had to make sure that was included here since I felt that he needed to keep that change in there. Also, I'm sure you already noticed, but I also added in a mention of why Terra was not present in this chapter, since I may have...accidentally forgotten to mention him when I first wrote this. That's my bad. Hope no one was too confused by any of that, but it really had to be done. Besides, the Destiny Trio looks awesome in their KH3 looks. Thank you for your attention to this notice, and remember, read and review, and see ya real soon!*