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Sora, Donald, and Goofy, after completing their second wave of missions from the worlds of San Fransokyo, The Kingdom of Arendelle, Monstropolis, and The Caribbean, Sora finds himself stumped on where to head to next. Despite having been told by Riku and Mickey not to join them in the quest to rescue Aqua, it seems there are no other worlds for the trio to visit, as there has been no indication of worlds like The Pride Lands, Agrabah, or Atlantica to be under attack by Organization 13.

Ienzo didn't seem to make any headway with the data that Hayner, Pence, and Olette sent him concerning Ansem's virtual Twilight Town for Roxas, and it appeared that Kairi and Axel were still training with Merlin. At that thought, part of him yearned to see Kairi again. To be with her and to train with her, after having spent so long apart, would bring him great joy as well as comfort from the fact that he feels helpless, having been "benched" from the rescue effort with Aqua. He was about to suggest the trip to Donald and Goofy when suddenly, recognizable ring-tone erupted in the silence, startling the trio.

Jiminy Cricket, the ever-loyal chronicler, hopped on Sora's shoulder. "Sora, someone's calling us on the Gummiphone!"

Dale's red nose filled the screen, barely allowing the rest of his hysterical face to appear on the tiny monitor. "We've got BAAAD news!"

The trio, or rather, quartet, now expressed mild panic. Before Chip could continue, his more logical and collected counterpart Chip attempts to rip the ruby-nosed chipmunk from the device to elaborate on the situation.

"We've totally lost contact with the King and Riku! They're all on their own in the realm of darkness!"

"WHAAAAAATTT!?" the quartet cried in unison.

"See! I KNEW I should've gone!" Sora exclaimed, but Donald simply ignores him.

"Chip, how do we get to 'em?" screeched the short-tempered duck his notable semi-intelligible voice that Sora has become all too familiar with now. "NOW we can ask?" Sora interjected.

Goofy now decides to chime in, "It's not like we can use that big old door anymore. It's completely gone!" "Yeah, we closed it after beating Ansem" confirmed Sora, reminding the group of their perilous battle with the Heartless aspect of Xehanort on Destiny Islands all those years ago, when the boy began his journey.

"And we certainly can't ask the King or Riku", Jiminy brought up, as if stating the obvious. Sora, growing more irritated, "Cause you wouldn't LET me ask!"

Dale's obnoxious face returns to the screen, wrestling control from Chip. "Ooonly King Mickey can open a door to the realm of darkness." Chip, as if more concerned to steal the scene himself now, shoves Dale away again. "It's because he has a special "Keyblade of Darkness". He figured out how to make it open the way."

Sora couldn't help but let out a sigh, something like THAT would've been useful to learn a while ago, back when he was training with Riku, or when he was fighting the organization, or hell, like right now, since he's essentially done fixing the Organization's mess AGAIN, and can be useful elsewhere!

"Gwarsh, what'll we do then?" Goofy asked helplessly. Sora sat thinking, until his face lit up with an epiphany. "May our heart be our guiding key…. It'll show us the way!" More confident than ever, Sora stood up, summoned his Keyblade, and pointed forward. Goofy, Donald, and Jiminy all stare in anticipation.

The tip of the Keyblade lit up, and in the space beyond, a portal opened up as if on cue. "A gate!" Jiminy exclaimed, while Donald simultaneously yelled out "He did it!".

They keyblade then dematerialized from Sora's hand. "But… where does it lead?" "It doesn't matter", replied Donald, "GO!" Goofy seconded the notion, "Hurry, Sora!"

That's all Sora needed to hear, the support of his two friends who fought and travelled alongside him all these years dispelled any doubts he had. "Hmph, okay!" Sora sat back down on his seat, took hold of the ship's massive wheel, and the Gummiship dashed right into the newly-formed portal.

To their surprise, their destination was a familiar one. A place of nostalgia and comfort, a place of nearly unrivaled beauty in scenery and the epitome of innocence and bliss, where the air smells of sea water and the temperature a constant tepid delight. It was Destiny Islands, Sora's home-world. With the Gummiship parked within orbit, the group beamed onto the island where Sora and his friends spent countless days playing, swimming, and staring at the horizon, and the romantic sunset that acted as their signature day-ending event.

Sora was confused, "Why do you think that gate took us here?" As the group traversed the main beach, adjacent to the pine trees were Sora would sit and gaze at the sunset with his friends, Sora noticed something in the sand. A familiar-looking object, another Keyblade, but one he had never seen before, and the boy had used many keyblades over the years. Sora picked up the ancient-looking sword and inspected it, as if to confirm it was exactly what it looked like. "A Keyblade?"

"It looks so old," Donald noted. So, Sora thought right, it wasn't just a Keyblade, but an old one at that, as if from another era, unlike the newer, more trendy-based keyblades Sora had acquired recently. The design seemed bland, basic, even more so then the standard Keyblade that Sora started out with.

Goofy could only guess. "Hmm…. Maybe it's another guiding key…" Sora had no other ideas, so it sounded plausible, "Sure, but to guide us where?" As if on instinct, without realizing it, Sora pointed the blade in the direction of the world's key-hole, which Sora sealed long ago to ensure it would not be corrupted by Heartless again. But lying in that direction was something more personal for Sora, it was the cave he shared with Kairi, the cave where he all but confessed his feelings for her by drawing himself offering a paopu fruit, a childish tradition which among friends, supposedly ensures that you always run into the one you shared it with, but it can also essentially equate to a asking one's hand in marriage, a thought that was not lost on Sora, or Kairi.

The tip of the ancient Keyblade began to glow, and in place of the small hole that lead into the cave, a door materialized, similar to the one Sora would see in his dreams when he would enter a type of trance and would be exposed to the meta-universe, and hear a mysterious voice that would beckon him embrace his fate and choose the type of warrior he wanted to be, but this one would lead somewhere else. "A door!" Goofy cried out. "Let's go!" Donald asserted. But Sora didn't share their enthusiasm, he knew what he needed to do.

"Not you guys" Sora commanded, much to their surprise. Taking several steps forward, Sora continued, "The realm of darkness – it isn't safe for you."

Donald wouldn't have it, it's as if the stubborn boy forgot who helped him defeat the man who claimed to be "Ansem" on this tiny island. "Forget it, I'm going!" Goofy wasn't letting Sora off lightly either, "Yeah, you can't make a whole pint without us!" Sora turned around, now addressing the Royal Magician and Captain of the Royal Guard directly.

"Come on, guys think about it. Even the King and Riku struggled in the realm of darkness. Someone needs to stay out here just in case. If something happens to the rest of us, you two need to carry on."

But still, the duo wouldn't give in, with Donald defying first, "Sora, stop it!" Goofy, as if letting some paternal instinct take over him, followed up with, "We understand, but we don't want you goin' someplace dangerous on your own."

Sora couldn't help but be touched, and proud of his comrades, all the more reason he couldn't risk them coming along. "Thanks guys. But I'll be fine." With a confident smile, he added, "I'll make sure Riku and the King are safe. Trust me."

The duo, with great reluctance, finally conceded to Sora's wishes, it was clear now he wouldn't budge. Donald then let his own paternal instincts speak for him, and spoke not intending to patronize, but endearingly, as if he was speaking to a child going to a friend's house for the first time, "You promise to be good?" Naturally, Goofy added to Donald's query, "And come home nice and safe?"

Sora, still keeping that confident smile, replied firmly, "Right!" And with that, he turned away, and headed for the door into darkness.

Ω

"Riku, look" warned Mickey, as the little King pointed to the swarm of Heartless about to pounce on the two. Despite both being masters, this mission could not have gone worse for Riku and Mickey. They have fought more heartless than they could count, yet every time they underestimate how much stronger they seem to be in their own domain.

Riku barely managed to dodge the oncoming attack, and couldn't manage to recover. "Riku!" Mickey attempted to aid his friend, but in doing so left himself open to a surprise attack from underneath. The Heartless swarm engulfed the unsuspecting mouse and hurled him skyward, with his high-pitched scream fading from Riku's ears.

Now disarmed, Mickey's blade fell to the ground, while Riku finally managed to gain some strength and attempted to stand up. "Mickey!" But no response, he was gone…. Riku couldn't fathom it, how could this have happened? They're both masters for God's sake, even if the worse happened, they should've been able to bounce back from this! Instead, Riku felt as helpless as he was the day the Heartless took his home from him. No… the day he let them take his home…

Is that what this was? Did his arrogance get the best of him again? And did a king, and most powerful ally, pay the price for what should've been a rookie's mistake? As the swarm became more aggressive in its contorted aerial movements, a black sphere started to materialize, hovering over Riku. A shape then started to take form from the sphere, as if some demonic infant was pressing against the walls of a hellish womb. Then the shape suddenly sprang out from the sphere in an elegant manner. The shape landed gracefully before Riku, then rose and stood at its maximum height to meet the helpless boy's gaze. Behind the shape, from where it sprang from the sphere, Mickey dangled unconsciously, like a trophy. Mickey then managed to open his eyes, and to his horror, he saw Riku unable to stand before the ominous figure, who then proceeded towards Mickey's Keyblade still laying on the ground.

The figure reached for the Keyblade, held it as if reuniting with an old friend. "This keyblade" uttered the figure, in a surprisingly beautiful and enchanting voice, but the words were said with resentment, and a sense of betrayal. It was then when it suddenly dawned on Mickey. That voice, "Is it her?" Mickey gasped.

Riku acknowledged what the King said, but it didn't entirely register to him yet. Then the dark figure started to take a more prominent form, as the dark shroud covering its body finally started to evaporate. What stood before them was a beautiful woman, lean but fit in stature, garbed in sleek but revealing armor partially resembling a dress or cape. Her skin appeared tanned, and her hair a pale-blue color, and when she turned, her eyes glimmered a frightening dark yellow gaze. She then spoke again, "Mickey, you're too late."

Riku then started to recognize her, even now, despite appearing like a corrupted doppleganger, he couldn't help but remember the face of the stunning beauty who appeared before him and Sora when they were but small children. She appeared after the strange man did, the one who imparted onto Riku the power of the Keyblade.

Mickey was then overwhelmed by shame and failure. No, they couldn't be too late, there just had to be a way… "What happened?" the King dared to ask. Aqua's gaze shifted to Mickey, and her expression became more aggressive, as if she was insulted that he would ask such a question. Her rising anger crept into her voice, "You ABANDONED me, that's what. Left me in this shadow prison for more than a decade, knowing what it would do to me…"

Mickey was on the verge of tears. He couldn't believe it let it slip that the young keyblade wielders he met 10 years ago were still out there, alone, imprisoned, and God knows what else. He felt so stupid, how could he have done anything else BEFORE ensuring that these young kids were safe first? He must have thought he was doing the right thing, and that the end, Terra, Aqua, and Ventus would be reunited. But the King couldn't fool himself anymore, and a manner unbefitting of a King, but of a naïve and formerly altruistic musketeer, broke down before Aqua and Riku. "I'm sorry" Mickey managed to utter in between sobs, "it's all my fault."

But Aqua wasn't having it. His tears meant nothing to the years she spent in what she could only describe as hell, this was hell as far as they were all concerned. She turned and faced the beach of this dark world, a somber yet beautiful sight of endless night and eternal loneliness. "I reached this shore after endless wandering", the scorned Keyblade Master hissed to her helpless prey, "Waited forever for help to arrive. But no one ever came. I lost my keyblade. Had no means of fighting my way back through the Heartless. You should've known I was stranded".

Yes, Mickey agreed silently, he should've known, should've focused on saving you first. Instead, after spending years mastering the Keyblade, he defended his home from the Heartless invasion before running into Riku, and eventually, Sora. Was he so selfish to do so? Should he not have first made his home safe, proving he was strong enough, before resuming his quest to rescue Aqua and the others?

Aqua continued, "Do you have ANY idea how lonely it is here? How frightening it is to have no one?" Her words pierced Riku's heart. He does know, he had once been stranded here himself before he was lucky enough to be rescued by Sora, someone Riku had betrayed and lied to, and had no reason to save him, but he did. And yet, Aqua, who had selflessly sacrificed herself for her friends, received no such luck or reward…

Aqua continued again, "All that's left in my heart is misery, and despair… and now," Aqua's pose shifted, she was ready to rain judgement upon them, "YOU CAN SHARE IT!" Riku finally summoned the strength to stand up and face her. He knew what she was going through, and was confident in thinking that if he could come back, so can she. "There's no need," Riku exclaimed, "got my own." Indeed, Riku still had the power of darkness within him, which would mentally manifest as his young self when he was possessed by Xehanort's heartless, "Ansem", only now, Riku was the one in control.

With this realization, Riku summoned his Keyblade "Braveheart", which he received from Master Yen Sid after his previous Keyblade, the "Way to the Dawn", was destroyed the last time he and Mickey ventured into the realm of darkness, unprepared.

It was time, time to face Aqua, and defeat her. He HAD to defeat her, only then could he bring her back, the way Sora brought him back. If he couldn't accomplish this, he would never forgive himself for being weaker than the boy he strove so hard to surpass, not for competition, but to repay him back, a life debt almost.

Aqua, as elegant and stunning as ever, remained absolutely still as Riku made his way to her. He was a master, but so was she, and she was more familiar with the darkness then Riku ever was. She was going to teach Riku what a TRUE master is, what true darkness is like. As if to remind him of her power, she directed his gaze to Mickey before enveloping him in the sphere. But this did not phase Riku, much to Aqua's slight disappointment. Fine then, en garde.

With renewed energy, Riku rushed at her with impressive speed and aggressiveness, only to be met by the swarm. Oh not this time, Riku thought. No longer caring for his well-being, he slashed at the swarm, dodging and blocking its attempts to tackle and consume him. He landed a firaga spell at the swarm, causing it to collapse and dispel on the shore. Riku then soared and cut down any straggling Heartless, he needed to personally cut down a few of them, to make them feel like the helpless ones, before he used Thundaga to clear out the rest.

But then, Aqua quickly teleported behind him, and with graceful movements, tried to cut down her peer on his right side. But Riku managed to block her swing, only for her to twirl around and attack the left instead. Riku barely managed to counter this as well, before jumping back in an attempt to steady himself. Aqua didn't lose sight of him and quickly dashed forward, preventing him ample time to recover.

It was too late for Riku to physically block her again, forcing himself to rely on Reflega to shield her attack and knock her back. He could feel his Magical Power at dangerously low levels, and at this point had used all of his ether. He was hoping he could conserve what was left of his mP until he absolutely needed it, preferably with a Curaga spell, before having to endure the dreaded cool-down that indicated his MP was recharging. Riku figured he could rely on his own strength and speed, what a fool he was. Aqua was a master too, and at this point had embraced – no – surrendered to the darkness, and therefore wasn't as fatigued as he was. She could keep up with his strength and speed, but still, Riku had to fight, for Mickey's sake, for everyone's sake.

Riku charged at her again, and despite her effortless blocks and dodges, Riku persisted, and picked up the pace. She then had to rely to teleporting and after-images, to her surprise. This young boy, who fancied himself a Master, was able to keep up with her, and even push her back. Well then, she was done playing with him.

Riku was ready to take another pounce, and was even prepared to use up the last of his MP to fully recharge his health and finish this fight in one reckless final strike, until a bright portal materialized behind him. The light blinded him and Aqua, and then the light dimmed. Out of the light sphere sprang a recognizable figure who landed right next to Riku. A sight for sore eyes…. Sora. Riku couldn't help but chuckle to himself, the bastard actually came here after all. Well, whether it means he finally got the ability to return one's heart to its original body, the "power of waking", or if his crazy friend used his power of stubbornness to rip a hole in space and time to come to his aid, Riku was glad to see his best friend by his side.

Sora rose to hull height, "I made it", he said in his usual cheerful voice. "H-how… Sora?" Riku tried and failed to hide his amazement. Sora merely grinned and responded by temporarily summoning the ancient keyblade, "I… had a little help". Of course, Riku thought, it's Sora, just don't question it.

Sora then turned and faced Aqua, and couldn't help but feel a slight stabbing sensation in his heart. "Is…is that her?" Sora asked, hoping that Riku wouldn't say so. Riku solemnly responded "Yeah… that's Aqua".

At the sound of her name, Aqua merely scoffed as she took in this new development. "Well, look who ended up with a Keyblade after all", her remark got Sora to gasp in surprise and confusion. "And so much for me trying to spare you, both of you, from all this… this pain, the betrayal, and the lie that with this….thing…." she holds up Mickey's Keyblade and shakes it with contempt, "would bring you new meaning to your life, that you would be performing the most noble of deeds, ensuring that light triumphs over dark…. What a vile and cruel lie that was." She then points her Keyblade at Sora and Riku, prompting them to flinch in reaction. "Now you'll regret rejecting the mercy I gave you."

After a mutual acknowledging nod, Sora summoned his own Keyblade, the Kingdom Key, and the two made their signature battle poses. Amused, Aqua released Mickey from his dark imprisonment, she would need her full power and attention to bring these two down a notch. Riku's attention briefly went towards Mickey's seemingly lifeless body, but sensed that he wasn't dead yet. He'll live, Riku thought, once we take her down, we'll take them both back and heal them. Riku wasn't about to be shown up by Sora, nor was he gonna let his friend fight alone. While part of him resented the fact that he couldn't take Aqua down in time before Sora showed up, he felt it better to at least be of help to Sora instead, for all the times Sora helped Riku without giving up on him.

"Careful" Riku warned, "and remember she's not like the heartless or the Organization. She's a Keyblade Master, so expect her to use all the moves we can, and maybe even some we don't."

"Right" Sora responded instinctively. But Sora didn't lose any confidence, to him, if he was with Riku, or Donald and Goofy, he felt he could take on anyone. And with Riku by his side, not only did he feel they could beat Aqua, but that they could save her too.

Aqua then jumped in the air and flew back, teleporting from their view. This caused the two boys to gasp in shock, before Aqua reappeared behind them, flying in for the kill. Sora and Riku noticed her just in time to perform a dual-block, their Keyblades locking hers in place. The three struggled briefly, before Aqua violently lifted her Keyblade up and out of their lock. Aqua followed with a Thundaga, but Sora and Riku managed to retaliate with a Reflega, causing Riku to use up the last of his MP. Now he could feel that part of himself in a cooldown period, he was on his own now, as far as magic was concerned.

His frustrated expression was noticed by Aqua, who let out a devious grin before point her keyblade at him and releasing three energy balls that homed in on him. Riku did what he could and blocked them with his Keyblade, pushing him back, while Aqua took this time to lunge at Sora. Sora's well-timed block not only caused Aqua to briefly flinch, but allowed him to follow up with a counter. "Not so fast!" Sora yelled mockingly, as he unloaded a barrage of swings and jabs on her, getting her at least 6 times before his final hit knocked her further up in the air.

Noticing his combo was finished, Aqua, bearing the pain, proceeded to recover and attack Sora during the brief window after the end of his combo where he'd need to recover, only for Riku to jump up from behind him and land a combo of his own. Now this one Aqua really felt; unlike Sora, who's moves felt more like someone bashing her with a club or bat, Riku's cuts and slices were more apparent, making the blunt Keyblades feel more like actual swords. It became clear to Aqua that, had she fought Riku at full strength, he would possibly be giving her a run for her money, and now there's Sora to deal with too.

Aqua could only put up with Riku's combo, until he finally finished and she was able to back away with her teleportation move instead. Riku and Sora both landed in the water off the shore. Standing back-to-back, the two waited for Aqua to pounce again.

Sora noticed Riku's wounds and asked "Why aren't you healing?" Riku talked as he gasped for air "I ran out of magic, I'll need a minute for to use Curaga". Sora let out a frustrated sigh, "I take it you don't have any ether on you?" Riku let out a scoff, "I used the last of it trying to deal with all the damn demon-tower heartless. Feel free to lend me one if you got 'em". "Heh, sorry, kinda used all mine in the last world I was in before I headed here, I didn't think it would be this bad", Sora said nervously.

Riku sensed a bit of sarcasm in that comment and turned his head somewhat back to Sora, "What you mean this bad?" he responded playfully, but with a bit of competitiveness and hurt pride. Sora started to reply "I mean- " but then not one, not two, but three Aquas appeared around them, each firing an energy ball at the two. Sora and Riku each managed to deflect one, but the third ball ended up hitting Riku, knocking him down. "Riku!" Sora yelled as he tried to help his friend up, but Aqua took this time to attack Sora, but he reacted too late as Aqua managed to land several blows, separating the two boys.

Sora managed to counter one more blow from Aqua and responded with firaga, "Blaze!" Sora yelled. Aqua took the hit and retreated, and then immediately summoned more clones of herself. The lones all orbited around Sora in a clockwise faction, each rotating in place, dancing like a ballerina, before being enveloped in a miniature whirlwind, with the tips of their Keyblades held upward, and shards of ice appeared from the tips and homed in on Sora.

Sora ducked and dodged as many as he could, but the Aqua clones then all converged on Sora, similar to how the tea-cup attraction causes him, Donald, and Goofy to converge into a target, before proceeding to tear the target to shreds. Sora couldn't help but take the hits that the Aquas dealt on him, shredding his clothes and tearing at his skin. As the clones vanished, Aqua proceeded to cut down the wounded Sora, until she felt a blinding stabbing pain on her left side. Riku had rejoined the fight, and this time he was looking healthier.

Aqua cursed at herself, she underestimated how quick Riku would be able to rejuvenate his MP. As a Master, he would've learned Hastega by now. Sora took this opportunity to cast Curaga on himself while Riku landed another combo, tearing up Aqua's already revealing outfit and wounding her further. Sensing she was about to break out of his combo and counter, Riku quit while he was ahead and retreated back towards Sora, and the two stood side-by-side and got into their battle stances again.

Now Aqua was huffing a little bit, and while her face should frustration, she couldn't help but silently chuckle at these boys and the thought that, for the first time in a long time, she was struggling. Here she thought that she had fought all the hardest battles of her life, including Terra, when he had fallen to the darkness, but now, these two boys are able to pressure her. As if that wasn't enough, Sora then made his Keyblade to activate its transformation, while Riku activates the Blade Charge command style.

Aqua surmises that she won't be able to take them on now, but if she could get them to use up their transformations, she could strike while they're fatigued. Aqua teleports away again, only to teleport back, this time with more clones than she's every summoned. All the clones appear to talk at once, "I wonder the shadows endlessly…now you can share in the dark…"

Sora and Riku both proceed to take out as many of the clones as possible to zero-in on the real Aqua. The real aqua then takes this opportunity to use Waterga, submerging everyone under a massive wave, followed by a Blizzaga to freeze Sora and Riku in place. Aqua then lands on the shore as she looks on at the boys, frozen in place, but glowing, trying to break free of the ice. Once they do so, they both then collapse to one knee, having used most of their power to break free of the ice quickly, but at the price of using up their transformations. Aqua then dashes at both of them, summoning two clones, one side-by-side, and all three shoot energy balls at Sora and Riku, knocking them both back.

Aqua then slowly struts towards them, savoring their last moments before she cuts them down one by one. "I was going to leave one of you alive, to roam the darkness alone, forever, after you watch the other die before your eye…" Aqua leers at both Sora and Riku, a stare that sends chills down both their spines. Suddenly, a massive ball of light hits Aqua from behind, sending her flying past Sora and Riku and into the water. Sora and Riku look back to the shore and see King Mickey, standing and fully healed. The two boys smiled and groaned in relief, as the King rushes towards them.

"Are you too okay?" Mickey asked with concern. "We are now", Riku responded dryly. "Never better", remarked Sora. "I'm sorry, fellas. Didn't mean to leave you two on your own, I'm kinda embarrassed as a Master to say the least, ha-ha…" Mickey's trademark chuckle somewhat hid the shame he felt, but his face showed it. Mickey then walks passed them, and towards Aqua, who is now rising above the water, elevating herself until she can stand on water's surface again.

"You guys take a break, I'll finish this now." Mickey commanded. "But your majesty" Sora rebuked, but Mickey held up his free hand, while his other hand summoned his original golden Keyblade, the Kingdom Key D. "This was something I should've done a long time ago. You two did great, but now, it's only right I finish it."

Aqua let out a scoff. "And what makes you think you can beat me, when you and Riku couldn't even beat a mere Heartless swarm?

"Because now I know exactly what we're dealing with, which means I can go all out, since that's what it'll take to bring you back." Despite his high-pitched voice, all three humans surrounding the mouse couldn't help but feel that the little King was about to raise things up a few notches, with Sora and Riku both gulping in anticipation.

Aqua was about to summon several more swarms to try and distract and overwhelm the King, but the King had already started uttering one of the most powerful spells at his disposal, "Stopza!" And just like that, everything froze in place, and then Mickey speed-blitzes the helpless and unloads Sonic Blade on her, with a series of thrusts knocking out what's left of Aqua's vitality, before the Stopza spell ends, and Sora and Riku watch, dumbfounded as Aqua is seemingly hit by an invisible force of slashes while Mickey stands beside them as if he didn't move at all. And with that, Aqua falls down, defeated.

Mickey then casts Healing Light with what little MP he has left, rejuvenating the two boys. "You really should just start with that spell next time" Riku remarked. "He-he, that spell takes a lot out of me. Even with an Ether, I still have to wait before I can use a bunch of spells again at a time." Sora remains speechless, his mouth open and dumbfounded. "Wow Mickey" Sora finally responded.

"Oh, don't go selling yourselves short fellas. You guys did soften her up for me!" As he said that, they heard Aqua's body being unnaturally submerged in the water. "Aqua!" they scream in unison. They're too late as they rush to her body, Aqua has now been entirely submerged. As their muffled voices are heard, Aqua, now apparently free from the darkness, opens her eyes and looks up at the silhouettes above the water. "So… this is the end?" Aqua asks rhetorically as she closes her eyes again. But then she hears a voice call her name loud and clear. She gasps and opens her eyes. "Sora…" she responds in a dazed tone. A hand reaches out to her, and without hesitation, her arm sluggishly reaches out to it. As soon as she grabs hold, everything turns white.

Ω

By the time she opened her eyes again, Aqua is laying on a beach. Ah, it seems I'm still here, she thought. I'm always here, and will always be here. But despite the fact that she hasn't opened her eyes yet, already she can tell that it's much brighter than it usually is, and warmer too, with a nice and soothing breeze, and the sound of seagulls in the distance.

Aqua struggles to open her eyes, the blinding sunlight overwhelming her lenses as they have not had to adapt to such light in 10 years. When her eyes finally able to focus, she notices two people standing beside her, looking down at her. They appear to be recognizable, both of them say her name, "Aqua!"

Aqua weakly responds with surprise and aching joy, "Ven? Terra?" But her eyes are able to focus further, revealing that it's actually Sora and Riku, both of whom say her name again, "Aqua!", as if they're hoping she'd respond to let them know she's alive. This jarring realization causes Aqua to respond awkwardly, but still with appreciation, "It's you…" She then looks to her right and sees King Mickey standing beside her as well.

In a joyous and relieved expression, Mickey proclaims, "Thank goodness! You're awake!" Noticing he had dried off tears from his face, Aqua acknowledges him as well, "Mickey…." Then Aqua finally realizes her surroundings, and looks around to see that she recognizes this place. "Are these….. the Destiny Islands?"

"That's right" Mickey responded. Aqua's smile quickly faded, as she assumed another world had been taken. "When did they fall to darkness?" she asked regrettably. But Riku merely scoffed and shook his said, smiling. "You're in the realm of light", he said reassuringly. Aqua then stares at him in disbelief and shock. No…that's not possible, she thought. She had already accepted that she would be stuck in darkness forever, never again to see the light, never to see anyone again, to feel their warm touch….to believe as such would only sink her deeper into despair, the only way she could remain strong was adapt and accept the darkness. But…could it be? Am I back? She pondered, and without realizing it, tears started trickling down her face. She proceeded to wipe away the tears, until she saw that her hands, her skin, was its normal complexion again. Fair, smooth, and perfect. Her hair was its sapphire blue color as well.

Sora then let out a friendly chuckle and offered his hand, "you're home". Behind him, two other voices echoed his statement, "You're home!" It was Donald and Goofy, and the two lightly dog-piled on her and embraced her. At this point Aqua didn't even bother wiping away the tears, as she was still processing the fact that she was feeling the warmth of friends again, the warmth of love and happiness, instead of the cold and cruel claws of darkness, violating her once pure body whenever they could…. Sora, Riku, and Mickey joined in the dogpile as well, and as they all embraced Aqua, Sora announced, "We did it!"