Vincent Harling Memorial Park, Selatapura City
March 1, 2020

It had been a few months since the conclusion of the Lighthouse War which had ravaged the Usean continent and spread chaos around the world. Now that the conflict was over, there was time to begin rebuilding what was destroyed and find healing for those who had lost friends and loved ones. To be honest, those four months passed in a blur for me as my friends and I had been shipped back to Oured to recount our harrowing experience. By all accounts, we were national heroes for ending the war and stopping what would have amounted to a killer drone apocalypse. Between the endless reports and debriefings, the countless interviews, and the medals and praise lauded on us, my mind still drifted back to Usea where there was so much left undone. After a brief visit home to see my own family, I asked to be reassigned back to Usea and be stationed in Selapatura with Count, Tabloid, Avril, and Huxian. We wanted to help volunteer our aid in the relief efforts for the thousands of Usean refugees and victims of the war there. When we weren't doing that, I hoped I could help train the new young Osean pilots who would be tasked with safeguarding the new peace. The OADF was all too happy to oblige my request so I didn't waste any time before returning to the Usean city as soon as possible. There was still something I needed to do there and someone I wanted to see. Avril offered to help arrange a reunion banquet later in the day and I was all too happy to let her sort out that minor detail for me.

On that particular day, I went with my friends to a small park which had recently been created by the people of Selatapura to honor the memory of the late Osean president, Vincent Harling. The small park had a nice view overlooking the ocean and the Lighthouse where he had lost his life during that tragic mission but it seemed his spirit was still here along the peaceful waters of Gunther Bay with the mighty space elevator now reaching to infinity. Despite it being the start of March, the weather was warm and mild with clear skies and lots of sunlight. As I made my way through the park, I made sure I looked presentable in my civilian clothes which I hadn't worn in some time. For the time being, I had traded in my military uniform for a pair of dark jeans, a white collared shirt and a casual navy blue blazer. My companions had also cleaned up and dressed well for the occasion. Tabloid and Avril walked hand in hand wearing some khakis and spring shirts colored in pastel green and orange respectively. Even more surprising to see was the tomboyish Huxian now wearing a feminine yellow skirt and jean jacket while being accompanied by a dressier looking Count. I couldn't tell if it was due to Lin's influence or not, but Count had finally done away with his scruffy whiskers and his mop of hair, now looking much more clean cut.

We finally stopped in front of a memorial marker where a statue of President Harling stood with his patrician features and his steadfast bearing. Huxian offered me the bundle of flowers I had purchased and I gave my friends a nod, "Just give me a few minutes everyone? I promise I won't be long."

They stood back and remained at a distance as I walked forward and stopped in front of the statue. I stood at attention for a moment and saluted before respectfully laying the flowers down at the base of the statue. "Mr. President? I don't know if you remember me or not, but I thought I should come and see you today. I wanted to pay my respects and tell you how much I admired you... and to say that I'm sorry for everything. I know now that it wasn't my fault that you died, but I still think it should be said anyway. I haven't prepared a formal report or anything, but I still think it's important you hear it from me."

I glanced out toward the sunlit waters of the ocean, "The refugees from the war are still being taken care of and Selatapura has become one such safe haven for them. I think you'll be glad to know that it's helped to bring the whole world together on that issue. A humanitarian mission from Yuktobania air dropped some supplies for them again today and thanks to Princess Rosa, the rest of the world has begun pitching in to help too. I know Avril and Tabloid are really looking forward to volunteering here and handing out supplies. I think that'll be a perfect job for them.

I heard Mihaly's granddaughters are helping in the rebuilding efforts too. They've returned to their homeland in Shilage and secured freedom for their people. Not only that, I know Ionela has come into her own and is encouraging their other neighbors to assist in the reconstruction. Mihaly… I wonder if that cranky old geezer is up there right now dancing with the angels. You wouldn't happen to know, would you Mr. President?"

Harling's statue remained silent and I couldn't help but chuckle to myself quietly, "I guess I'll take that as a no."

I cleared my throat, "For his part in all this and the building of those drones, Dr. Schroeder has surrendered himself to the authorities and agreed to accept any sort of punishment they deem fit. I think he feels guilty enough already and that it might even take down Grunder Industries with him. As for Princess Rosa? Well, she's looking to the stars… to the heavens and beyond. And speaking of the heavens, don't worry. I'll still be flying to keep an eye on things here. And who knows... maybe one day I'll see you up there."

I smiled and gave another respectful salute before heading away from the statue to meet with my friends. As I rejoined them, Avril put her phone away in her purse and gave me a smile, "The Shilage girls say they'll meet us at the restaurant. They just flew in this morning and aren't fully settled in yet."

"I've gotta say, I'm really looking forward to seeing Long Caster again and finally trying out this Italian restaurant he found for all of us," Tabloid grinned eagerly.

"I just hope there's going to be food left by the time we get there. You've seen that guy eat, right?" Count quipped earning himself a slap in the arm from Huxian.

"Eugene! Be nice!" she scolded him gently.

I laughed and clapped him on the shoulder, "I'm sure it'll be fine Count. Now let's get going. There's one more important person we need to pick up along the way."

[International Space Elevator, Oceanfront Gardens]

After the Lighthouse War, the grounds around the space elevator had been renovated and restored. Where once it had been a terrible battleground, work was now being done to turn it into a beautiful tourist center and garden. Several sections of the lawn had been restored as flowerbeds and hedges were planted as well to offer a balance between nature and technology. Although the work was half done, it had already become a popular place for locals to come for a stroll or go picnicking. When we arrived via the overland bridge, I made my way across the grounds and took a moment to look around. It was strange seeing the Lighthouse in a completely new light. Not only had it begun to change in its purpose, but I was now seeing it from the ground up during peace time. It was hard to imagine that only several months ago, my friends and I had fought several harrowing air battles here against killer drones and warmongering Eruseans. I hoped those days were now behind us as there was one Erusean in particular that I came to meet here.

I caught sight of that young woman with golden hair in a crown braid, looking just as beautiful as the day I left her to go back home to Oured. I approached quietly and saw Princess Rosa standing by herself. She was dressed back down to some plain civilian clothes, a pair of khaki capris and a dressy white blouse. The princess had her back turned to me and she was preoccupied with looking up toward the space elevator which towered above us. She slowly reached up her hand toward the clear sunlit sky, almost as if she were trying to speak to someone. A warm gentle breeze blew across the grass as she fixed her eyes toward the blue heavens as if in prayer and quietly intoned, "Can you hear me?"

"I can hear you... loud and clear," I answered quietly as I stepped forward.

Rosa turned in surprise and broke out into a bright smile as she rushed over to greet me. The princess threw her arms around my neck and spun us around as she gave me a hug that almost knocked me down. She gave a joyful laugh, "Oh Tom! You're finally here! I've missed you!"

I set her back down and we forgot ourselves for a moment as we exchanged an eager kiss. After a moment, she suddenly pulled back from our embrace and cleared her throat. I blinked in confusion as she tried to smooth out her blouse and retain her royal composure, all while fighting a rising blush in her cheeks.

"Uh, Cossette? Is everything okay?"

"Sorry, I umm... forgot there are some people watching now," she said discretely pointing over toward a nearby park bench where two men in suits and sunglasses sat reading newspapers. No doubt they were royal bodyguards who were trying to pretend they didn't just see that. Laying down beside them on the grass was Rosa's dog Prince, lazily enjoying the warm sunlight in peace.

"Ah, that's okay. They're not the only ones being nosy," I grinned gesturing over to the near distance where my other friends were now waiting. Huxian and Avril both gave waves along with playful smiles while Tabloid and Count seemed to be laughing between themselves about something. I was almost certain they were making fun of me right now, but I didn't really care. "I hope you don't mind taking some time off to have a little reunion party today?"

Rosa shook her head, "No, of course not. We certainly have a lot to catch up on... though, it's hard when I still keep thinking to myself just how much work is left to be done here like caring for the victims of the war, organizing more relief efforts for Usean refugees, and meeting with government officials..."

I gave her a reassuring smile and looked in her eyes, "A world of darkness needs a light to shine so you shouldn't worry. We're here now and we'll all be willing to help that new beacon of light."

Rosa took my hand and gave it a grateful squeeze, "Thank you Tom. I know our own countries will still have a lot of things to sort out too."

At that moment, I heard some music coming from a portable radio that an older woman was listening to as she picnicked on the lawn nearby. It sounded like that song I heard Rosa sing once before, the Erusean song she had called Pensees.

I laughed gently as I continued to hold her hand, "Well there's no reason we can't show that Oseans and Eruseans can get along with each other. It takes two to tango, right?"

"Tom? What are you saying?" she asked curiously.

"I'm asking if you'd care to dance with me right now Princess Rosa," I offered as I gallantly gestured toward the sound of the familiar song in the air.

She gave a gentle laugh and nodded, "I'd be honored Captain Richter."

I held her close and we exchanged another smile before we began to step in time to the stately melody. I knew my friends were waiting, but they could wait a few minutes more. As Princess Rosa and I continued our dance on the lawn swaying to the nostalgic strains of the romantic folk song, I took a moment to glance toward the bright blue heavens above us. The skies were calm and tranquil and I hoped that in time, the people of our world would know the same kind of peace. It was up to us now to live up to this promise of a better future. But I knew that as long as I had Rosa and the rest of my friends beside me, we'd be able to face the challenges of the future which lay beyond that open horizon... beyond the stars above and to Skies Unknown.

Fin

*Roll the credits and follow up Pensees with a reprise of Faceless Soldier*

First off, I just want to say a huge thank you to anyone and everyone who took the time to read this entire series. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, to all my loyal wingmen who favorited and followed, and to all the other nuggets out there who were silently reading along too.

I really do appreciate all of your thoughtful comments, jokes, suggestions, and criticisms along the way and I hope it helped to make this an even better version of AC7's canon story. I wanted to give a salute to the franchise and the fans and I like to think of this as having been a collaborative effort. While I enjoyed the game, I did think it could have been better. I wanted to write this series to tie all the major characters and events together in a much more coherent narrative and to develop them to a greater degree. It's my hope this series succeeded in doing that.

Again, I hope that you all enjoyed this trilogy and that it helps to encourage and inspire other fanfic writers out there. For one, I'd like to give a big shout out to the fic presently running called Three Strikes by Monty Marten. If any of you are interested in reading a version of the AC7 story with a female Trigger and some other old faces too, I'd definitely give it my personal recommendation.

It's been a privilege flying with you all so take care, God bless, and I'll be sure to see you all in the skies. *salute*