Hi everyone!

Welcome to the final chapter. At six thousand words, this is now my longest work. I actually already split this one in half in the planning stage haha, but when it ended up being super long after I'd written it anyway, I just didn't want to split it again. I like fifty as a nice even number!

Anyways, I hope you enjoy it. And don't forget to read the Epilogue afterwards! It's very important to the story, as this chapter doesn't really "end" the story completely, and it ties up some loose ends!


Chapter 50 – The Final Battle

Riku and I looked over at the Alter of Naught. Xemnas had lowered his arms, and was watching as one-by-one, each Organization member appeared before him. He seemed to be organizing them for something big.

"They're going to bring back Master Xehanort…" I breathed, watching the scene I never thought would happen unfold before me.

"We can't let that happen" said Riku confidently. "DiZ did everything he could to try and stop that monster. Now it's up to us".

"Agreed, we've gotta get over there and stop Xemnas" I said. "Let's go".

Just as Riku and I turned to lead everyone toward the Alter of Naught, Sora walked up to me.

"Genxam, are you alright?" he asked. "What happened back there…".

"Yes, I'm fine now" I said friendlily, stopping and turning to face him fully with a softened expression. "Thank you, Sora. You broke the control they had over me".

Sora almost blushed, jumping back a bit and waving his hands in front of him.

"Oh! No, no, it was nothing!" he said frantically. Then he put his hand up to his face, and began scratching just under his eye with one finger as he took on a nervous expression.

I smiled at him. Typical Sora. So oblivious to his own power, and how much of an impact he's really made. After a moment of awkward silence, we turned and walked with the others up the white pathways heading for the Alter of Naught. It wasn't far, but it wasn't close either. As we arrived onto the platform, I saw Xemnas standing with the other members of the Organization.


Axel looked ahead stoically from his place beside Roxas, among the other members standing in a semi-circle as Genxam arrived with Sora and the others in front of them. A completed Kingdom Hearts loomed brightly in the sky behind the members, the door to darkness to its right. He had been summoned there, but he didn't know for what purpose. Xemnas and Saïx hadn't told them anything.

Himself and Roxas looked at each other through the corner of their eyes in a silent conversation, each trying to learn if the either knew what was going on. They didn't dare move their heads. It would look suspicious if Xemnas or Saïx saw them. They looked ahead silently and watched.


As we came to a stop in front of the thirteen members of Organization XIII, Xemnas stepped forward from his place in the middle of the group and spoke.

"Kingdom Hearts is complete, thanks to your Genxam" he began. "Come, join us! Fulfill your true purpose!".

"Never!" I said defiantly. "I will never become Xehanort's vessel!".

Xemnas looked disappointed as the grin disappeared from his face. He looked back at the door to darkness, and then back at me, changing to a satisfied expression.

"I wonder how long that defiance will last when faced with the true Master Xehanort…?" he said ponderingly.

With a wave of his hand, he opened the door behind him, and darkness began spewing out.

"No!" I yelled, and tried to run up and stop him, but was thwarted.

Some of the darkness had formed into tube-like tendrils and swiped straight across my chest, sending me flying. I landed on the ground, sliding backward until I was just in front of the others.

"Genxam!" yelled Riku with worry.

I sat up, my back to them as they crowded behind me in support. I wasn't looking at them, but at Xemnas with a pained face. He merely looked satisfied at our predicament. In the next moment, he raised up his hand toward Kingdom Hearts behind him, summoning its power.

It began to grow brighter and brighter, until its light encompassed everything, blinding us all. I got up from the ground just in time to raise up my arms and cover my eyes with the others, Kingdom Hearts' brilliant glow blanketing the area. When the light receded a few moments later, what I saw shocked me more than anything else ever had. All of the members of Organization XIII now bore the striking yellow eyes of Xehanort.

I stepped forward a couple paces with one hand out in front as I looked at them in disbelief and desperation. My gaze crossed all the members, stopping at Axel and Roxas near the centre. Their expressions now blank, their eyes were the same yellow as everyone else's. The emerald green and bright blue had completely disappeared. I looked at them for any sign of my friends, but there was none.

"Axel… Roxas…" I said slowly.

My eyes began to well up in tears. It shouldn't have been possible for a Nobody, yet somehow it was. I fell down to my knees, looking down at the ground in shock. Everything they had been was gone… Everything about them had been taken over by Xehanort. I should've done something! I should've been there for them!

Suddenly, a bright flash assaulted the scene in front of us. I was in too much shock to react to it, and simply stared at the ground. Once the flash had disappeared, a figure stood in its place between us and the thirteen members of the Organization. Master Xehanort, in his long, black coat, with a white shirt underneath, and black boots that matched those of the Organization, stood before us. He looked at myself on the ground and the others with a sly grin. Riku walked up beside me and tugged at my arm, trying to get me to stand up.

"Genxam, Genxam!" he said urgently. "You've gotta get up! We've got bigger problems!".

I glanced up at the figure before me, my face going quickly from anger to shock as I jumped back, breaking out of the trance. I had to focus, we weren't out of danger yet. I then took a step back, shock evident on my face as I gasped, registering who it was that was standing in front of us.

"No…" I breathed. "How can this be possible…?". My shock had been replaced by horror. "Your Nobody is standing right there!" I exclaimed. I looked over at Xemnas briefly before focusing back on Master Xehanort.

"The power of my Kingdom Hearts" said Xemnas and Xehanort in unison.

I jumped slightly at their echoing voices, and then gritted my teeth. I wasn't going to show fear.

"Ah ha hah" said Xehanort, solely now, seemingly amused by my reaction. "Many things are possible with the correct ingredients, and you are exactly a case in point". He paused. "An ordinary girl given extraordinary power. Look at what you've become. A perfect vessel for me…".

My eyes grew wide in shock. It was as if he was looking into my soul. I quickly regained myself, looking at him as defiantly as ever, "Never!" I yelled back, the tears now having completely dried up on my face.

He continued as if unbothered by my words, "The Organization pushed you to grow your powers, to achieve your full potential… and you didn't even notice. Just like Terra. Another perfect specimen…" he continued.

"But he wasn't a Nobody" I interjected. "I am".

"All part of the plan" replied Xehanort. "The body of a Nobody is the only thing that can control that power inside you, as I'm sure you saw for yourself when you very nearly fell to darkness".

I clenched my teeth, looking at him defiantly. He knew everything that had happened. Right from the very beginning.

"You shouldn't be able to show emotion, yet on countless occasions you have…" he mused thoughtfully. "Not even I could have predicted such an occurrence…". An evil grin appeared across his face.

I continued to look at him, trying my best not to break down with all the tension welling up inside me. I didn't understand it either, but I wasn't going to let him get to me.

"Do you know why it's called Organization XIII?" said Xehanort after a short silence.

I looked at him defiantly, knowing where this was going from what DiZ had told me.

"Because it is made up of those who are to become my thirteen darknesses" Xehanort continued matter-of-factly. "You were never really a part of it. Everything that has happened, has happened to lead up to this moment… when you will become my vessel!".

Just then, he waved his hand out in front, and then back toward him. An invisible force that felt like a strong wind began forcing me forward from my position toward him, my feet sliding across the ground. I stumbled at first, and tried to fight it, but it was like a wall was pushing me forward from behind. In the next moment, Riku and Mickey grabbed my wrists and pulled me back, running to stand in front, breaking the pull between myself and Xehanort.

"You're not taking her" said Riku decisively. He and Mickey stared down Master Xehanort with as much might as they could muster. Xehanort merely grinned.

Without warning, the members from behind him leaped into action, summoning their weapons, and coming straight at us.

"They're under Xehanort's control!" I yelled from behind Riku and Mickey.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy stood guarding me from behind. We all summoned our weapons as the thirteen members of Organization XIII came in for the attack, bracing for it. Lexaeus was the first to reach us. He brought his heavy weapon down on Soul Eater as Riku struggled under the sheer power of the blow.

Demyx stopped and played his sitar from a short distance back, but it wasn't melodious as it had been before; it was a terrible, loud screeching sound that assaulted our ears, while at the same time unleashing water attacks. We all cowered, covering our ears as the sound hit them. I looked up briefly toward where the sound was coming from just in time to see Larxene leap backward up into the air, sending a wave of knives straight at us.

"Knives! Move!" I yelled to the others.

They looked in the same direction as I was, but there was no way to avoid the attack in time. The knives were inbound to hit all of us. I squeezed my eyes shut and braced in anticipation. Just as the attack was imminent, a figure jumped in front with their shield raised, blocking some of the first knives, and a great transparent barrier appeared around our entire group.

"Reflega!" yelled Donald from behind me.

I tentatively opened my eyes to see the scene before me, staring straight at Goofy's back in disbelief. Larxene's knives had fallen to the ground harmlessly, and the other members stood beyond the barrier. I looked at both of them in exasperation.

"Donald, Goofy, you saved us!" I said incredulously.

They turned around to face me, while the others turned their heads.

"What are friends for?" said Donald.

"You can count on us!" said Goofy.

I couldn't help but smile at their words as my expression softened. Friends. Like what Axel and Roxas had been to me. I looked over at the two of them standing beyond the barrier, their weapons raised and ready to attack us. No expression whatsoever. Xehanort had turned them into his puppets, just like he was trying to do to me. I looked at them solemnly.

"Hate to break up the moment you're having, but we've gotta focus" said Riku of Donald and Goofy's conversation with me. He then noticed me looking out at Axel and Roxas, and put on a solemn expression himself, looking directly at me. "That shield's not gonna last forever".

As if on cue, the barrier dissipated a moment later. The members began their onslaught once again as Neoshadows began appearing out of the door to darkness. Heartless interspersed with Organization members now came in from all sides. We jumped into action against them.

Zexion summoned clones of himself which began attacking from all angles; Xigbar attacked with his Arrowguns from up in the air; Marluxia sent a shockwave from his Scythe on my other side. Riku parried an attack from one of Zexion's clones, while Sora dispersed another attack with his Keyblade. Mickey cast spells at Xigbar to stop his onslaught of weapons' fire, which he did, landing back on the ground.

All thirteen of the members then rose up into a circle around and above us, spinning quickly until they were a blur. A mass of energy formed directly above, right in the centre of our group, and then moved in to attack us.

"Reflega!" yelled Mickey.

The great transparent barrier appeared around us once again as the attack impacted it. Instead of reflecting it however, the mass shattered the barrier into a million pieces on impact, causing a great explosion as we all raised our arms up to protect ourselves. The barrier came down around us as the energy mass dissipated above, the Organization members returning to ground level. Just as the haze from the blast was clearing, the members came in to attack again.

Saïx crossed blades with Riku to my left, and Vexen with Sora to my right. I let out a breath with my arms to the side in a defensive position, my Keyblade summoned. They were coming at us from all angles; we had to be vigilant. Mickey stood behind me watching for any signs of foul play.

Before I had even noticed them come in, a blur impacted my back, sending me stumbling forward out of the circle of protection the others had formed around me. I turned around to see who it was, and tried and get back to everyone to help, but Luxord walked up and blocked my way, his yellow eyes watching me intently. He smirked, snapped his fingers, and large cards surrounded and whisked me away before I could do anything else.

As the cards disappeared in front of me, there was nothing but darkness on the other side. The castle was gone, the others were gone. I quickly moved my body to the left, and then right frantically, looking around cautiously, but saw nothing there. Then I heard a voice behind me.

"Welcome, Genxam" said Xehanort.

I wheeled around to face him, putting on the dirtiest look I could.

"What do you want?" I said challengingly, even though I already knew the answer. Xehanort merely grinned.

"You know what I want" he replied, and then pointed straight at my chest. "You hold something of mine within you. And now you must give it back". He lowered his arm.

I stepped back, taking on a defensive position with my arms out to the sides, and gritting my teeth at him. There was a fire in my eyes.

"You're not getting my body" I said resolutely.

Xehanort merely grinned again, looking at me in amusement.

"I don't see that you have any way to stop me…" he said.

Xehanort waved his right hand ever so slightly at his side, a cloud of darkness appearing around it. Suddenly my feet were glued to the ground; looking down, I couldn't move them from their places. I looked back up at Xehanort in fear, who now summoned his Keyblade, and turned it on his own chest. He grinned triumphantly at me one more time before pushing it in and releasing his heart.

His body disappeared as his heart floated over toward me. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't move my feet, they were locked in place. I struggled desperately, looking on in horror and pulling my chest back as far as I could as the small orb approached. I couldn't pull back any further, and gasped as it arrived in front of me, piercing my chest and disappearing inside. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to fight back, but there was no battle. Everything went black as I lost control of my body, and my consciousness was locked into the inner recesses of my mind.


My eyes opened in the middle of the battle on the Alter of Naught. But they weren't mine anymore, they were yellow; Xehanort had taken control. He balled his new hand into a fist, feeling the power inside.

"Finally... the power is mine..." he said taking a deep breath in and feeling all the power inside.

Hues of green and purple began to appear around his body, encompassing it entirely, the hues becoming larger and more pronounced than they ever had before, as a wide smile crossed his face.

"You had hardly scratched the surface..." said Xehanort to no one in particular. "Much of it has remained untapped... such a wasted potential".

Riku and Mickey looked over at me, their faces changing to shock as they saw the new colour of my eyes.

"Oh no! She's been taken by Xehanort!" yelled Mickey.

Xehanort grinned in victory, summoning his Keyblade. He lowered his arm, grinning at the others, and made to attack. They readied themselves, stepping back into a battle stance. In the next moment, he sent a powerful blast of darkness straight at them with his free hand, striking them all down to the ground at once. I saw it all through my own eyes, but could do nothing to stop it.

Sora and Riku were the first to start getting back up, but they looked like they could barely move. They were battered all over, and it looked like a gust of wind would knock them over.

"Ever the heros" said Xehanort. "Aqua was the same, and she fell into the realm of darkness... You will do the same!".

Xehanort thrust his hand out to send the finishing blow.

"No! I won't let you!" I yelled at the top of my lungs from the darkness in which I was now trapped in inside my own mind.

Xehanort froze; he couldn't move a muscle. He struggled momentarily before appearing across from me in the void I stood in inside.

"You dare defy me, girl?" he said icily, annoyance on his face.

He thrust out one hand, and with barely a motion, I was thrown backward by an invisible force, landing on my side at the other end.

"Ngh!" I cried out, landing roughly on the hard ground.

Xehanort lowered his hand and watched me carefully.

"To think you can put up a fight amuses me. You are no one" he said callously. "Why the power would seek you out instead of anyone else baffles the mind... You, who are so weak you could not do a thing the entire time the Organization held you captive. You will be a prisoner of your own mind for the rest of your life. Just like Terra".

He had regained control on the outside now, and moved to leave when I got up slowly and stood to face him.

"Oh?" he turned around curiously. "Still trying to fight the good fight? There is no winning against me. I am darkness in all its glory...".

"I may not be... the strongest person around... when it comes to speed, strength, or magic..." I said slowly, looking at the ground as I steadied myself. Once I had, I lifted my head to glare at him with passion. "But this is my body. That power is mine and mine alone, no one else's!".

Xehanort turned to face me fully now, his gaze piercing mine.

"You cannot defy me girl" he said calmly, but dangerously. "I hold complete control over you".

"That's what you think" I said confidently. "But I have something Terra didn't". I looked at him as defiantly as ever. "I may not be able to harness all the power I have inside me, but I don't need to to defeat you". I paused. "Something you forget; Kingdom Hearts isn't just darkness, it's also light!".

In the next moment, I summoned the power back to me, tapping into more than I ever had.

"Haaaaaaaah!" I yelled as I sent a shockwave of pure light out toward him.

"What?!" said Xehanort in shock.

He hadn't expected this, and was sent careening backward from the impact, landing on his back. Propping himself up in his arms, he smirked at me briefly before disappearing from my mind. Shortly thereafter, everything went black, and I was back in control of my body on the outside. Xehanort was gone.

I opened my sky blue eyes to see Sora and the others watching me with concern. They had all stood up now, looking worse for wear with bruises all over, but okay otherwise.

"Genxam, are you alright?" Riku asked calmly, noticing the change in my eyes.

"I'm fine" I said seriously, looking past him at where Xehanort had initially materialized. "But Xenanort's not gone. He may have left my body, but he's not gonna give up that easily".

I looked around to see what kind of situation we were dealing with. The members were still surrounding us, but seemed to be waiting for something. Their eyes were still a bright shade of yellow. Then, a moment later, they moved in for more attacks. Riku and the others were hit first, but this time were unable to take much. The direct attacks sent them stumbling backward each time. They had been weakened by Xehanort's blast.

Next it was my turn. Axel and Roxas came in for an attack together, Chakrams and Keyblade raised. Their expressionless faces watched me as their weapons impacted mine together.

"Axel, Roxas, stop this!" I yelled at them desperately. "Wake up!". But it was no use. They couldn't hear me.

I pushed them off with as much strength as I could muster, but there was no way we'd be able to keep this up. The others were already breathing heavily from exhaustion, and I was getting there myself, weakened from the fight with Xehanort. I looked down at the ground, and then out at the members knowing this was a battle that we weren't going to win. Another attack came, which I parried, huffing and puffing as I breathed heavily from the impact. I knelt down on one knee, using my Keyblade to support myself. I had no energy to do anything. Was this it?

Just as I was about to give up, I heard Riku's voice.

"Genxam! The power within you is almost a complete duplicate of Kingdom Hearts! You have the power to change them back!" he said. I lifted my head to look at him incredulously.

"What?!" I exclaimed, not sure I believed him.

"But there's a catch; it may end up destroying you" he continued.

I looked down at my Keyblade, it's black and white swirls looking as prominent as ever. It wasn't going to get us out of this in one piece. There was no choice. Dismissing it and standing up straight, I looked ahead with renewed confidence. I knew what I needed to do. Closing my eyes, I focused the power within out toward the yellow-eyed members. I felt it come alive within me, in a different way this time, with a feeling of warmth accompanying it. When I opened my eyes again, the sight before me surprised me as a calm came over my entire being.

I had expected to unleash a barrage of dark power, but what came out was anything but. Instead of darkness, light emanated from my body as my arms extended out to the sides. It started out small, and then grew to encompass the entire area, including the Heartless. It was similar to the power I had unleashed at Beasts' Castle that had caused me to fall to darkness, and the one at the Land of Dragons, but this one seemed softer somehow. Not one borne of strong emotions, but of hope, of the belief that light and darkness were equals. That one cannot exist without the other.

Slowly but surely, the light enveloped the members, each disappearing completely from existence and returning to their Somebodies. I watched as Axel and Roxas, their blank expressions with yellow eyes fading into nothingness before me, and couldn't help but let a tear fall from my eye. The light enveloped the remaining members, and they all disappeared, save Xemnas who seemed to be immune. He didn't fade as the others did, but smirked floating back slightly and vanishing.

The light receded back into me, and then disappeared completely, leaving a scene without Heartless or Nobodies surrounding us. As the power disappeared inside, I found my legs could no longer support me. They fell out from under me as I collapsed to the ground, beginning to fade.

"Genxam, no!" yelled Sora, running up to catch me mid-fall. He held me there, looking concerned as he watched what was happening to my body. I looked ahead, absentmindedly noticing the wisps of darkness float away.

"I'm… fading?" I said weakly.

I didn't feel worried, or scared, or nervous. I felt resolute. I had saved everyone from Xehanort, both the Nobodies of Organization XIII, as well as Sora and the others. I was content with my choice. The others all watched me, their pained expressions showing that they didn't want it to be this way. Then, just as I thought the end was coming, a golden glow enveloped my body, stopping the fading, and restoring me. I looked up at the others with surprise and renewed strength, and couldn't help but sigh as I smiled weakly.

"Heh. I guess my story's not over yet…" I said.

Sora helped me to stand back up, Riku hovering nearby for support. They all looked relieved that I was alright. I looked around at all of them reassuringly, and then up at Kingdom Hearts and the door to darkness.

"If Xemnas is gone, then why is the door to darkness still open?" I asked aloud.

"I don't know" said Riku walking up to me. "It should've disappeared along with him…".

"That is where you are wrong, warriors of the Keyblade" came Xemnas' voice.

We all tensed up, looking around in anticipation at hearing that all-to-familiar voice. A moment later, Xemnas appeared floating in front of the door to darkness, his back to it as he spoke to us.

"You may have defeated my original for now, but he ensured that I would survive your light before he departed" he continued. "I will not be defeated so easily".

With that, he disappeared inside the door. A transparent pathway appeared leading up to it. I looked at Sora, who watched where he had gone with determination.

"If we don't finish him off now, there's no telling where he'll show up next" he said. "I'm gonna go in there and defeat him once and for all".

No one was going to argue with him. Xemnas had to be stopped.

"We'll keep an eye on things out here" said Riku.

"Go get him" said Kairi.

Sora looked at all of us, and then followed the path to the door. After he had disappeared, the door began spewing out Heartless. Shadows, Neoshadows, and Darksides emerged from its black depths, making their way toward us on the platform. They quickly surrounded our battered group.

I stepped forward, summoning some Shadows to combat the ones that now surrounded us. They took out a few of the enemy ones, but were quickly defeated.

"You can control the Heartless?" asked Riku behind me in surprise.

I looked at him with a weak smile, almost embarrassment that I hadn't told them.

"To be honest, summoning and controlling them makes me nervous..." I said.

"How can you feel anything? You're a Nobody now" said Riku.

"I don't know!" I exclaimed. "I just can! It doesn't happen all the time, and I don't have an explanation for it...".

I called forth more Shadows, and ordered them to take out a few of their own a short distance in front of me. They did, but the those were quickly replaced by Neoshadows, who swooped in and squashed my Shadows with little effort, and then turned toward us.

"Can't you summon anything bigger?" asked Riku.

"I haven't really honed this power" I said. "That's the most I've been able to do so far! Like I said, it makes me nervous!".

The Neoshadows took our distracted conversation as an opportunity. They leaped at us, claws ready for the attack. I quickly summoned my Keyblade, and dispersed them, but more kept coming. After I had dispersed the last batch, another group moved in to surround Riku and I.

"Any bright ideas?" asked Riku, eying them nervously beside me.

"Just one" I said. "I've never been able to summon them, but I was able to send Neoshadows back to the realm of darkness once... I'll try again".

I took a step back, focusing my commanding will out like I had before. My gaze intensified as I exerted my power on the Neoshadows ahead of me. They cowered slightly, and then disappeared back to the realm of darkness, but it only worked on a few.

Another couple leaped at me from the side, breaking my concentration. I brought up my Keyblade to parry their attacks. They landed on it, and I pushed them back.

"Ngh!" I grunted as I pushed them off. Commanding that group to return had taken a lot of strength out of me. I looked over at Riku. "I'm sorry, that's all I can do!" I yelled over to him.

The Heartless began to close in on us, surrounding the entire group.

"You did your best" said Riku. He looked up at the open door to the realm of darkness that was still spewing out Heartless. "We've got to get that door closed if we're going to have any chance at winning. Sora'll never be able to defeat Xemnas so long as it's open".

That sparked an idea in my mind. I looked down at my Keyblade, it's swirls of black and white, light and dark, wrapping around it's shaft. A Keyblade half of the light, and half of the darkness… I thought. Is this what it's meant for?

Closing the door to darkness required a Keyblade of light, and one of darkness. Mine contained both. I looked up at the door and knew what I needed to do.

"Clear a path!" I yelled to Riku and the others.

They defeated the Heartless between myself and the door as I took a step back with my Keyblade, studying it carefully.

"A Keyblade of both light and darkness…" I said to myself.

I raised it up to aim directly at the door. Sora would get out okay. There was always a light in the darkness, and he was the strongest light I knew. A beam emanated from the end of my Keyblade, piercing the darkness within the door. The doors closed, and then disappeared in front of us. The door to darkness had been sealed.

Riku and the others had just finished off the last of the Heartless that had appeared as I turned to face Kingdom Hearts. I stood in front of the large heart-shaped moon in the sky, my Keyblade held diagonally out to the side as I stared out at it. It hung there, brilliantly illuminating The World That Never Was as I walked toward it. As I came to a stop in front of it, the power inside me reacted. I closed my eyes as my entire body glowed a bright gold, brighter than ever before, lighting up the entire area. Kingdom Hearts sensed a power similar to its own as it reacted with mine. It slowly began to shrink and disappear into nothingness, the light dying down, until there was nothing there, as if it had never existed.

I turned to face the others, putting on a weak smile as they stood across from me in disbelief on the alter. In the next moment, space-time rippled, and Riku disappeared.

"Riku!" both Mickey and I shouted in horror, but he was gone. Disappeared without a trace.

Tense minutes went by as I joined the others, waiting on the platform for any sign of Sora or Riku. Then, space-time bent again, and both of them appeared on the ground in the middle of the platform. We all ran over to help.

"Are you guys alright?" said Mickey.

They got up slowly as we crowded around. First up to all fours, and then up to a standing position, helping each other up.

"We're fine" replied Riku.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Xemnas" began Sora. "He pulled us both into the realm of darkness".

"But we defeated him" finished Riku. "He won't be causing us any more trouble".

Relief washed over everyone at the news. After ensuring they were both alright, everyone began chattering about different things. I turned back out toward where Kingdom Hearts had been, looking out at the now-empty sky.

I let my gaze fall from it, looking out ahead of me over the skyline. Riku walked up to my right, Sora to my left as I turned to face them.

"Hey, are you alright?" asked Sora.

"Yeah, I'll be fine" I said.

Naminé and Roxas appeared translucent a short distance behind where we were standing. They walked up to us as we turned around and looked at me. They weren't completely there anymore, but could still speak. Naminé started first.

"Genxam, if you want, I can rearrange your memory, so that you can go back to your old life…" she offered. "You won't remember any of this".

"Xehanort's never going to stop coming after that power inside you, but we can protect you from him" said Riku beside me.

I looked at him for a moment, before looking back at Naminé. She reciprocated with a warm expression. I didn't need to think about it; I knew what I wanted to do.

"No, I want to continue helping you guys" I said, much to the surprise of everyone. "I'll stay, if that's alright".

Everyone let out a sigh of contentedness as Riku spoke.

"Of course" he said, and then added, "It's not gonna be easy though you know". I looked at him with determination.

"I know that, and I'm ready to face whatever comes. I'll continue fighting against Xehanort, even if I am a Nobody" I said. "I'll use this power I have for good".

I looked at Roxas sadly then, knowing his translucent image meant that he was going to return to Sora soon. He saw the pained expression on my face.

"Don't worry, Genxam" he said. "I'll always be around whenever Sora is, so this isn't goodbye. Riiiiight, Sora?". That last question was almost a teasing one.

"Oh, uh, yeah! Of course!" Sora stammered at his Nobody as he straightened up.

"I'm sorry I couldn't save you guys…" I said remorsefully. Roxas let out a breath, looking contentedly at me.

"There's no way you could've known what would happen" he said. "Cheer up! Things'll work out, I'm sure of it!".

I couldn't help but smile weakly at him as Sora and Kairi walked over to their Nobodies. After a brief goodbye, Roxas and Naminé shook hands with Sora and Kairi, disappearing and returning to their originals. Riku walked to the centre of the group.

"I'll open up a Corridor out of here for us" he said.

He raised his hand up into the air, but nothing happened. He looked puzzled.

"You don't belong to the darkness anymore Riku" I said. "Don't worry, I'll create a Corridor for everyone". I smiled weakly at him; he almost looked at me with pity. "It's the least I can do for everything you guys have done for me".

Riku looked like he wanted to say something, but decided against it as I held up my hand and opened a Corridor with little effort. We looked around at everyone else, who all nodded happily. They all walked through save myself, Riku, and Sora. I looked at the two of them on opposite sides of me, who nodded encouragingly, and then looked at the Corridor that would lead away from The Castle That Never Was. We walked through together.


And there you go!

Please let me know what you thought in a review, and don't forgot to continue on and read the Epilogue!

See you there! :)