AN: Unbelieveable! I did it again! I was in the process of making corrections to a chapter, and I done goofed up and replaced the wrong chapter's content with another again! It's a lucky thing I keep full copies of the main content of each chapter, but I'm starting to wish I kept copies of the original author's notes I wrote when first posting them as well. Oh well. Guess we'll just have to make do with what's written here now. Sorry again everyone, and apologies that you won't see any of the review answers that may or may not have been here before, but it is what it is. Now roll the disclaimer so we can get to the good stuff!

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

Chapter XVIII

When Xemnas and Ansem had finally been able to see through the light that had erupted from Sora and Kairi, they were greeted with the sight of the two Keybearers both being in their Final Forms. Sora's outfit had turned silvery white and black with symbols on his pants that resembled an eye with a wind pattern, while Kairi's appearance had turned brilliant, shinning gold and purple with the same symbol being on the center of her dress, and instead of holding their Keyblades, they both had their Keyblades hovering behind their backs in a position that slightly seemed like that of floating wings, which was appropriate seeing as neither of the two were standing on the ground, but instead were floating above the ground as their clothes and hair seemed to slowly flow in a light wind. In addition to his Ultima Weapon, Sora also had a Keyblade with a hilt that had an ogre-like face with yellow eyes and fin-like extrusions, a long blade that was red with three, pointed teeth where the Keyblade's teeth normally were, and a token that resembled a jug, while Kairi's additional Keyblade seemed to be made up of thirteen Mushroom Heartless, four in the links and Keychain, two on the handle, and seven on the blade itself, and slightly resembled Sora's Ultima Weapon Keyblade with the heart shape at the tip of the weapon. These Keyblades were known as Guardian Soul and Winner's Proof, respectively, and the Keybearers were fully intent on using them to take down the dark villains that did not belong in this time.

Kairi was the first to move, racing through the air towards Xemnas, and with a few waves of her arms, she sent both of her Keyblades flying at the leader of Organization XIII, unleashing a storm of attacks with ease. She then followed up with a barrage of spells that were much more powerful than they normally were, and ultimately forced Xemnas to do whatever he could just to dodge or even block the attacks as best he could, for what good it was worth, as Kairi's attacks always managed to hit him or get through his blocks just enough for him to be dealt an injury. Ansem was about to try and assist his Nobody counterpart, but he did not get the chance to move close when Sora suddenly swooped in and sent Guardian Soul and Ultima Weapon flying at him at a speed that seemed to just barely exceed that of Kairi's. The Heartless was not all that worried, as he knew full well that the Final Form was better used against Nobodies, but his mood soon changed when Sora's attacks were able to deal a serious amount of damage to him just from grazing him. The two Keybearers then leapt into the air and spun around each other before throwing their arms outwards and sending the four Keyblades towards the ground, unleashing a powerful burst of light as they did, and blasting the two off their feet once more, effectively sending the two flying through the air before they crashed down onto the ground.

Xemnas and Ansem were both completely stunned by the sudden surge of power that the two were now throwing at them, and they took that to be a sure sign that the Keyblade Wielders from the future were no longer holding anything back, which served as all the more reason why they should not do so either. Xemnas then began to glow a bit before his black coat turned white with black stripes, and he immediately charged forward with his Ethereal Blades ready to strike down the two with all he had, but Sora was quick to intercept the Nobody's attack by sending one of his Keyblades into the path of the blade, just as it was coming down, and thus the two were engaged in battle once again while Kairi quickly charged in to take on Ansem and the Guardian he had just summoned. From that point on, the combatants had begun to move and fight at speeds that were so incredible that it would be nothing short of amazing if someone were able to easily keep up with their movements, and even if they could, it would almost seem like they were evenly matched, but to a well trained fighter, it was clear as day that Sora and Kairi were easily holding an advantage over the two dark beings.

Sadly, the same could not be said for Ven as he was forced to pull out all the stops in his fight with the now unmasked Vanitas. Since the fight was now fully one-on-one, the blond was able to keep all his focus on the embodiment of his own darkness, but it was quite clear that the opposite was just as true for Vanitas, as the spiky, black haired boy was fighting him with a ferocity that he had never shown before, even as he cast his dark magic spells at Ven. It honestly surprised Ven that he was able to block the orbs of dark magic that Vanitas fired at him, but he was just thankful he was able to keep Vanitas from gaining an advantage by flying around on any more storms of fallen Keyblades by firing off a Shotlock at Vanitas just as the dark warrior had summoned and jumped onto said storms, and eventually, Ven was able to access the powers of his Fever Pitch Command Style so that he could better keep up with Vanitas, sadly, his good fortune did not last long.

Not a minute after Ven had activated his Fever Pitch, Vanitas immediately began to move much faster than before. Granted it was not enough to match the speed of Ven's Command Style, but it was just enough to evade the blond and even land a number of serious hits on him. Ven was extremely glad that he had his armor on at those times, because he was sure that if that was not the case he would likely have been nearly killed by Vanitas's attacks. Just as Vanitas was about to land another of said types of attacks on him from behind, Ven quickly spun around and intercepted the attack with Wayward Wind, and then pushed Vanitas back before casting a Magnega spell to hold the dark haired boy at bay for a few seconds as he activated his Wingblade Command Style.

Seeing Ven activate his Tier Two Command Style caused Vanitas to give a small smirk in response, even as Ventus charged in and threw his multi-blade attack at the embodiment of the blond's darkness. Vanitas did of course try to either dodge or deflect the attacks, but it was clear that he was not able to do so completely, and he still received a great deal of injury, until he was eventually knocked onto his back. Ven then leapt into the air to unleash his Command Style's finisher, but before he could, a dark aura began to build up around Vanitas and then spread out around them in a small circle. Once the circle had been completely formed, Ven was suddenly pounced on and then pinned down by numerous Unversed.

"So the Unversed do come from you," Ven shouted as he struggled to get free of the monsters holding him down, feeling his Command Style's energy fading away as he did.

"So you're not as stupid as I thought you were," Vanitas chuckled as he manifested more of the different types of Unversed around him. "You see, it happened when you and I were split into two. The negativity took shape as these monsters. They are what I feel; a horde of fledgling emotions under my control. I then released them in all the worlds I could, hoping to lure you away from home and isolate you from your master and precious friends. We needed to make you stronger, and the Unversed were the perfect opponents, and better yet, no matter how many times you and your friends defeated them, their negativity would always flow right back into me. I'll admit that at one point you actually had me a bit worried when you went into hiding both from us and your friends, and also after those two meddlers showed up, but in the end, all my efforts have paid off. You never stood a chance against us Ventus."

"That's what you think," Ven shouted as his Command Style's glow finally died down while he continued trying to break free. "Even if you do manage to win somehow, I'll still stop you. My friends will stop you, and you'll only end up with nothing but the darkness you indulge in as your company in the afterlife."

"Oh please," Vanitas then cackled. "Don't you get it? You've already beaten me, but in the end, it didn't matter. I still won, because now that my body is about to perish, we have no choice but to become one again, and then the χ-blade will finally be forged at last!"

A minute later, Vanitas walked up to Ven, and then seemed to disappear into the blond in a burst of light, and the power that burst released was enough to send out a massive wave of energy that was stronger than any wind any had ever been caught in. Sora and Kairi were lucky that their Final Forms were able to keep them were they were, while the barely conscious forms of Xemnas and Ansem were sent flying away into a large boulder, knocking them both out, and giving the two from the future just the chance they needed to drive one of their Keyblades through both of their chests, destroying both the Heartless and the Nobody in an instant. The two then looked to see that Mickey was struggling to keep Aqua's unconscious form from being thrown even further away from them than it already was, and the two quickly rushed over to protect both the cartoon mouse and the young master as well, hoping that Terra was alright and praying the Ven would be alright as well as they did.

Xehanort had just fallen to one knee, panting hard as he supported himself as best as he could on his Keyblade, while Terra stood over him, victorious at last when a sudden explosion of light up into the sky behind the brunette and into the blue, heart-shaped moon above. When he saw this, Xehanort's face lit up with joy as he pointed towards it and exclaimed, "There, you see?"

Terra immediately spun around to where Xehanort had indicated, and was shocked to see the pillar of light that was racing upwards to the sky. It did not take Terra long to figure out what that power was, as the moment he had laid eyes on the pillar of energy, he could immediately sense a familiar presence coming off of it. "VEN," Terra cried out in horror.

"The χ-blade has been forged," Xehanort exclaimed proudly. "And now, Terra, it is time for the final union!"

Terra immediately turned back to ask what the old man was going on about now, only to freeze in horror once again when he saw Xehanort impale himself with his own Keyblade. Such an act confused Terra at first, but he knew that Xehanort never did anything without a reason, and he immediately summoned forth his armor so that he could at least try and protect himself from whatever the madman had planned.

"At last, our moment is here," Xehanort then revealed as his body began to glow and then fade, until his Keyblade finally vanished, and an orb of light floated out of his chest. "Out with the old and brittle vessel, and in with a younger, stronger new one! I swore I would survive and be there to see what awaited beyond the Keyblade War, and now it is your darkness that shall be the ark that sustains me, Terra!"

Terra immediately raised his Keyblade in response, hoping to defend himself, but it proved futile, as the orb just raced right through the mystical weapon and into his chest. The minute it did, Terra could feel the darkness inside him growing immensely stronger than it had ever been before. He tried his hardest to fight back against it, only to find that it was like trying to stop a train that was moving at its maximum speeds with his bare hands. The last thing that Terra was able to fully register before losing consciousness was Xehanort's now empty body disappearing completely, and the boy then fell into shadows, seemingly lost to the darkness that had now been forced to overpower him.

Terra's armor then fell away as he dropped his Keyblade, revealing his once brown hair and blue eyes had turned stark white and sickly yellow when it did, and he then spoke in a voice that likely belonged to a younger Xehanort as he said, "This heart belongs again to darkness."

He then summoned Xehanort's Keyblade to his hand and began to take his leave, until Terra's discarded armor suddenly came together once again and sprang to life, holding the Ends of the Earth Keyblade tightly in its grasp as it summoned a powerful barrier around the plateau. The boy that was now possessed by Xehanort merely laughed under his breath at how Terra's will was still continuing to fight against him through his lost armor and Keyblade, and then merely dropped into a battle stance, intending to destroy the last remnant of his former existence with this battle.

(The Future)

The battle between Evil Sora and Roxas, Xion, and Riku had now become evenly matched, as it was clear that even with the χ-blade's power now being corrupted, Evil Sora was still able to fight at a very strong level. Riku was just glad that it was a level that he could match with Roxas and Xion's help now as his last burst from his Dark Cannon was now able to inflict a mild amount of injury on the fallen master who had once been his friend in another lifetime. Riku then capitalized on Evil Sora's off-balance state by rushing in and dealing a pair of swift, yet powerful strikes with his Keyblade, and then jumped away before Evil Sora could grab him by the throat in retaliation. He then spun around and fired another barrage from his Dark Cannon at Evil Sora, but this time, since it was being fired at him head on, Sora was able to easily deflect the blasts with a few quick movements and spins of the χ-blade. "Did you really think that would actually hit me while I was expecting it," Evil Sora asked in disbelief.

"As much as I would've liked for it to have, I still have to admit that I wasn't really trying," Riku shrugged as he kept Way to the Dawn trained on Sora. The power hungry madman raised an eyebrow in confusion until a series of Nobody thorns suddenly hit him in the back, and he quickly spun around to see that Xion had been the one responsible for the attack. The girl then used the remaining thorns to fling herself forward like a professional gymnast, and once she was close enough, she immediately brought Two Become One down on Evil Sora with as much strength as she could muster. Riku then charged in to land a few blows of his own before letting Xion jump back in and attack as well, knocking Evil Sora off his guard just in time for Riku to land a powerful attack at dead center.

Evil Sora was soon falling onto his back due to the twos combined efforts, but he immediately scrambled back to his feet and retaliated by summoning a number of Ghost Keyblades, each of which resembling his old Kingdom Key, and then sent them all flying towards the couple with a wave of his free hand. Riku and Xion were both ready to either defend themselves or take the assault head-on, but thankfully, they did not have to, as Roxas had immediately jumped into the path and began spinning Oathkeeper and Oblivion around like crazy, deflecting every single Ghost Keyblade as he did, saving the two from the assault. Roxas then charged in and quickly assaulted Evil Sora with a barrage of fast attacks that one could only achieve by fighting with two swords like Roxas did, and as he continued to do so, even as his opponent blocked many of his blows, something was quickly becoming quite clear to Roxas.

"You're starting to slow down old man. What's the matter? You're age finally starting to catch up to you," Roxas quipped.

"The body's age does not make a difference when one has the power I wield, nor does it when one is about to become the master of time itself," Sora snarled in retort before finally releasing a wave of energy from the χ-blade. He then built up even more energy in the devastating weapon and then charged in to repeatedly swipe and slash down on Roxas. While Roxas was able to deflect most of the attacks, it took all of his concentration and focus with both of his Keyblades in order to do so, and unfortunately, it did not matter in the end, as Sora finished the barrage with a massive shockwave that was released in an x-shaped pattern. Roxas was unable to do anything against such an assault, and he was soon pinned down beneath the χ-blade, with both of his own weapons now beyond his reach after having fallen out of his grasp.

Thankfully, they were not out someone else's reach, and Sora soon found himself attacked by a pair of blows from behind on both his left and right, courtesy of Xion, who had managed to grab the fallen Oathkeeper Keyblade, and Riku, who had done the same with Oblivion. The two then used both their own Keyblades and Roxas's to continue fighting back against Sora, but since they did not normally use two Keyblades to fight like Roxas did, their attacks were rather sloppy and all over the place in comparison. Thankfully it did not matter, as they were able to accomplish what they intended to do by driving Sora away from Roxas, long enough for the blond to recover thanks to a quick swallow of Elixir.

With his full strength now returned, Roxas immediately raced back into the action just at the same moment when Xion and Riku had given his Keyblades a powerful toss, intending to at least damage Sora a little as they sent the weapons back to their wielder. Riku's own attack had just missed Sora by mere inches, but thankfully, Xion's had been able to at least score a small hit on the older, darker version of their friend as it passed by on its trip back to Roxas's hand. As soon as Roxas had both Oblivion and Oathkeeper in hand once again, he immediately dived down with a pair of vertical slashes landing directly against Sora, and he then jumped away to stand between Riku and Xion, who were ready to strike again at a moment's notice. To their surprise though, Sora did not move to attack them, but instead ran directly towards one of the tears in time, which had begun to become much more frequent than before.

The action that Sora had taken was rather confusing to the three, but they quickly discovered why he had done so when he suddenly plunged his free hand into the tear. Instead of beginning to disintegrate, Sora's body had started to glow as his injuries slowly healed and his energy quickly returned to him. "Looks like he's already started to master a bit of time already if he can do something like that," Riku observed with a strong amount of annoyance in the undercurrent of his tone.

"How're we supposed to stop him if he can recover that quickly then," Xion asked.

"He's not recovering that quickly," Roxas pointed out. "All we need to do is force him away from the tear and his little quick fix will be cut off."

"Easy for you to say," Riku muttered as the three charged in and pulled back their Keyblades to strike. Surprisingly, they were all able to hit Sora without any trouble at all, and not only did their attacks blast him out of the tear, they also seemed to deal him an even greater amount of damage than anything they had thrown at him before.

"What just happened," Xion asked. "We've been struggling to deal this kind of damage to him for ages only to just barely do anything, yet when we decide to end his little healing session he suddenly starts feeling like we hit him with our toughest attacks."

"It must be a downside to healing like that," Riku mused. "Not only is he unable to defend himself, but any damage he's dealt while connected to a tear in time is magnified by the tear."

"Oh bravo, Riku," Sora then said in false congratulations. "But don't think that just because you've figured out one little weakness it means that you suddenly have the advantage. Even with that trick you and Yen Sid pulled earlier, I will still emerge victorious from this battle and become the master of all time itself! Do you hear me? Nothing will stop me from achieving my goals, nothing will prevent the perfect world that I will create, and there is nothing any of you fools can do to make your pathetic resistance pay off!"

"He's completely lost it," Xion muttered.

"That just means he'll be more off balance and easier to fight against," Roxas lightly smirked in response. "Let's just hope that whatever Sora and Kairi did in the past to make his sudden freak-out from earlier happen is as big a help to them as it has been to us, because I really don't want to be told that they're not having an easier time than we are."

Riku and Xion both nodded in agreement, and the three then prepared to engage the older, evil version of Sora in battle once more, not knowing that they were doing just as the three warriors from the legend Elsa had told Sora of had done against Sora the Terrible long ago as they did so.

(The Past)

As the explosion that had resulted from Vanitas forcing his fusion with Ventus began to die down, Sora told Kairi to stay with Mickey as the cartoon mouse continued trying to wake up Aqua, and then used all the power of Final Form that was necessary to fly himself up to where Terra had been fighting Xehanort, hoping that he could reach the older boy in time to help him. When Sora got there, he was immediately greeted with a sight that he did not want to see. The first thing he noticed was that the plateau seemed to be enclosed inside of a brownish-gold barrier made of similarly colored chains, and the second was Terra's armor fighting against a now white-haired Terra, who was wielding Xehanort's Keyblade. Seeing this peculiar sight immediately told Sora that he was too late, and Xehanort had already taken over Terra's body, giving rise to the Keyblade Wielder's Lingering Will.

Knowing what the Lingering Will was trying to do by using this apparent barrier and fighting against the one who had taken over its original form's body, Sora immediately made a split decision to swoop in and help, so he immediately righted himself in the air and charged towards the two combatants at full speed, knowing that just moving past them would attack them while he was in his Final Form. Unfortunately, the minute Sora had reached the barrier he was propelled away by said brownish-gold shield, and then ended up spinning uncontrollably through the air before he could right himself again. Sora then raced up to the barrier again and placed one hand against it, only to find that it touched a solid wall. He then commanded his Keyblades towards the barrier, hoping to break through, only to find that none of his attacks made even the smallest scratch, much to his frustration.

After trying and failing to force his way through the barrier one last time, he figured that it would be better to go back to Mickey and Kairi to see if they had managed to rouse Aqua back into consciousness than it would to just float there and watch helplessly as Terra was forced to fight against himself until his form's power finally faded out, and he then turned himself around and quickly rocketed off to where he had left his other friends, only noticing that the pillar of light that had erupted from where Ven and Vanitas were had finally started to die down from the corner of his eye. While he knew that the sight of such a thing should be comforting, Sora could not help but get a bad feeling in his stomach that continued to grow as the light died down and as he got closer to the ground bellow.

When he finally reached Kairi and Mickey, Sora found that he was just in time to see Aqua finally waking up with a start, much to his and the other two's relief. "Gosh, I'm glad you're okay," Mickey told Aqua as she slowly sat up.

"We all are," Kairi then added as Sora floated over to where she was.

Aqua looked towards Sora and Kairi in awe for a minute, having only seen them use their Final Forms once before and yet still finding them amazing all the same, before her eyes landed on where she had previously been fighting Braig and she remembered who else was up there at the time. "Ven," Aqua cried out in worry as she sprang to her feet and began running up the small hill with Mickey, Sora, and Kairi right behind her, and not a minute later, they were all greeted by the sight of said blond still in his armor approaching them, bringing a smile of relief to Aqua's face.

"Oh thank goodness," Aqua sighed as she happily ran over to the blond. "Ven, you're safe!"

As Aqua drew closer to Ven, the other three quickly picked up on something that did not feel right, and that feeling was immediately enforced when they saw what the boy in question was holding in his hand. Everything afterwards happened in a sudden flash, as Ven suddenly raised the sword he was carrying and aimed it right at Aqua, much to her shock, but thankfully, a quick intervention from Mickey saved Aqua from being hit by the surprise attack as the mouse king used Star Seeker to push the blade out of the way and his own body to push Aqua back so that she was now standing right behind Sora and Kairi, who immediately sent one of their Keyblades flying towards the blond so that Mickey could move to safety with them as well.

"What…what just happened," Aqua asked in stunned shock. "Why did Ven…"

"He didn't," Sora replied, much to Aqua's confusion.

"That's not Ven," Mickey then clarified as he held his arms out protectively in front of the three.

Everyone then watched in complete shock as Ven's armor suddenly changed into the body suit that Vanitas always wore, while his eyes seemed to intensify the dark, yellow glow they had now taken on while the blond spoke in a mixture of his and Vanitas's voices saying, "Correct. I am not Ventus. His heart has become a part of mine now." He then raised the blade up for the four to see clear as day as he continued, "This χ-blade will open a door; one that leads to all worlds! Then, Keyblade-bearing warriors will flock here from each and every one of them, to battle for the light within Kingdom Hearts, and just like the legend says, the Keyblade War will begin!"

"Shut up," Kairi shouted. "You may have the χ-blade, but you'll never have Ven's heart, and we'll never let that happen! I've already had to deal with one war between light and darkness, and that's exactly why Sora and I came back from the future; so that we could put an end to it before it ever begins!"

"She's right," Sora agreed. "We promised our friends we wouldn't fail to stop it from happening, including Ven, and we have no intention on breaking that promise because of you or anyone else! If you want to start a war, then you'll have to destroy us first!"

"Personally, I'm sick of your nonsense and all the hell you put me and my friends through," Aqua then shouted as she summoned Stormfall and assumed her battle stance. "Give Ven his heart back now or I will force you to give it back before I end you for good!"

"You're more than welcome to try," Ventus-Vanitas offered as he assumed his own stance in response. "Too bad you'll never succeed and lose your precious Ventus in the process forever, dear Aqua."

That proved to be the straw that broke the camel's back for Aqua, as the normally calm and collected blunette immediately charged in with a roar of anger to unleash a fearsome barrage of slashes and strikes on Ventus-Vanitas. Said monster just smirked at the woman in mockery as he evaded or deflected her strikes effortlessly, until he finally teleported away from Aqua's attack with an afterimage to strike her from behind, unleashing a series of icicles on her as he did. Aqua was able to recover with a quick cartwheel, but she knew that she had made a small error in letting her opponent toy with her emotions like that. Thankfully, it seemed that Kairi was about to make up for her mistake when the redhead rushed in and sent her Keyblades flying with a few swift movements of her arms. A few blows had successfully landed on their target, but unfortunately they seemed to do as much good as the ones that had missed due to Ventus-Vanitas's new found speed, providing the black suited blond with a chance to strike back with a blast of fiery homing balls. Thankfully, Kairi was able to block the attack, but the inferno that they brought still stung a little on her skin, even through her Drive Form's protection.

Sora then took the chance to try and attack alongside Mickey, and used his own Final Form's rapid moving Keyblades to keep the possessed blond busy long enough for Mickey to get in close and land a powerful blow on said blond. This threw Ventus-Vanitas off for a minute, but that was all the time that Sora needed to unleash a barrage of Thunder spells on the blond in rapid succession while moving around as fast as his Drive Form could take him. Mickey then used the smoke that had built up from the magic barrage as a cover to get in close once more and as soon he did, he used a powerful blast of light magic to send Ventus-Vanitas across the ground to the center of the battlefield they were fighting in.

Mickey then looked to Aqua, who immediately nodded in return and ran up to stand back to back with the mouse as they both charged up every bit of light energy they had and unleashed it all at once in a shower of light that covered the battlefield before erupting in a massive burst. Unfortunately, Ventus-Vanitas only deflected the blasts that came close to him with a spin of the χ-blade before he suddenly dashed across the battlefield at an incredible speed. As he continued his fast dash around the area, he lashed out at all four Keyblade Wielders with the χ-blade, dealing them all with a great deal of damage and injury, until Mickey was blown clear of the area with the final burst, after the mouse had tried to save Kairi by jumping into his path.

"Mickey," the remaining three shouted in horror, only to turn and glare at Ventus-Vanitas the next second when they heard him laughing in mockery.

"Well, now that the pest is out of the way, the real fun can begin," Ventus-Vanitas remarked. "Let's see just what three Keyblade Masters can really do, or if they can even survive against this."

Ventus-Vanitas then jumped to the middle of the battlefield once again and quickly gathered up a great deal of energy until he finally unleashed it in a massive, x-shaped burst of light that quickly hurtled towards the three. Sora, Aqua, and Kairi immediately sprinted to get clear, but the energy wave seemed to follow them until they struck each of them head-on. Sora was honestly surprised he was able to stand up again after that attack, and he suddenly found himself wondering what more they could do. He and Kairi had already failed to save Terra, and it looked like they had failed to save Ventus as well, but when he saw Aqua charge up to lock blades with Ventus-Vanitas again, he knew that if the senior master was not going to give up in trying to save their friends then he could not do any less, and he also knew that deep down inside, Ven was still fighting to stop Vanitas as well, even if it cost the blond his own heart.

At that last thought, Sora was suddenly struck with a crazy idea on how he and Kairi could still succeed in their mission, even if it was just partially, and used the moment of their blond opponent's distraction to swiftly move over to the woman he loved so that he could relay his plan to her without any risk of Aqua overhearing it. When he finished explaining said plan, Kairi had to admit that while it was a bit crazy and probably risky as well, it was also one that could likely prove to be just what they needed in order to save the future. She only had one question on the matter. "Are you sure it will work," Kairi asked.

"I'm sure," Sora nodded in reply. "After all, part of this plan had worked once before, so there's no reason why it won't work this time. This is our best shot at changing the future for the better once and for all, so I say we go for it. Are you with me?"

Kairi thought about everything Sora had told her involving his plan until she finally smiled and kissed him on the cheek before saying, "Always."

The two then rose up once more, letting their Final Forms lift them off the ground as soon as they were on their feet, and then charged forward to rejoin Aqua in battle against Ventus-Vanitas once more. Their charge did not take them very far though, as Ventus-Vanitas quickly released a burst of wind with a single swipe of the χ-blade, blowing both them and Aqua away and into a group of boulders. At that point, the three fell into a sitting position against the boulders they had hit, panting heavily and feeling like they barely had anything left to give just as the blond had walked up to stand over them with a triumphant, smug look on his face.

"What's wrong? Giving up already," Ventus-Vanitas gloated. "And I thought that you guys were stronger than that."

"Get real," Sora struggled to say. "You don't seriously think you're winning do you?"

"Well from where I'm standing, it certainly looks that way," Ventus-Vanitas shrugged.

Aqua had to admire Sora for his determination, and Kairi as well when she noticed that the auburn haired girl held that same determination in her eyes, but she found her own resolve weakening a bit as she could barely keep her gaze up on their opponent. Eventually, Aqua found herself pulling out her Wayfinder and whispering, "Terra, Ven, lend me strength."

A minute later, the blue, star-shaped charm seemed to flash with light, Stormfall immediately began to glow brightly in her hand, and somehow, Aqua could just tell that it was her friends feeding her the very strength she needed to end the battle at last. Aqua then glanced to Sora and Kairi, and upon receiving a nod of encouragement in response from them both, she immediately steeled herself for what she was about to do and charged in once more. "You're just wasting your energy," Ventus-Vanitas told Aqua when he saw her coming at him, and soon after, he was immediately clashing the χ-blade against the glowing Stormfall.

The minute the two blades clanged against one and other, a powerful shockwave burst forth across the Keyblade Graveyard, signifying just how much power was behind both the strikes and the Keyblades that were being used in said clash. Ventus-Vanitas only smirked, thinking that he held a strong advantage over the young Keyblade Master, but Aqua did not let her resolve waver for a second and bravely held her ground as she continued to push back against her opponent's weapon. A minute later, the χ-blade suddenly cracked, much to Ventus-Vanitas's shock, and with one last burst of strength, Aqua finally pushed the blond back, sending him hurtling to the ground, and the χ-blade spinning into the air where it then stopped before exploding in a burst of light.

Aqua quickly found herself dismissing her Keyblade so she could use both arms to shield herself from the bursts of energy that had begun surging forth from the χ-blade in rapid succession, and even Sora and Kairi had to push their Final Forms' power to their very limits just to keep themselves from being blown away by the sheer force of the light streams that were flying out from the χ-blade. "What's happening," Kairi shouted over the roar of the explosions that were raging out from the powerful weapon.

"Just what I thought was happening," Sora replied. "Ven was fighting inside the whole time, and he was able to give Aqua just the power and help that she needed to finish this by defeating Vanitas from within, but in doing so, the χ-blade ended up shattered, and now the thing's gone completely crazy! If we don't get away soon the thing will blow us all apart!"

"Wait, what about Aqua and Ven? We can't just leave them," Kairi shouted.

Before anyone could say anything more on the matter, Sora and Kairi both heard Aqua shout out Ven's name, and they immediately looked to see Ventus had reverted back to his old self just before the χ-blade finally shattered, causing the explosions and light bursts to intensify in their dispersal rate. The last thing either of the two saw was a faint glimpse of Aqua chasing after Ven's unconscious form as it was carried into the air before hearing Aqua suddenly cry out in fear, and then everything vanished in a blaze of light.

(The Future)

Riku, Roxas, and Xion were panting heavily, as they had somehow managed to finally drive Sora into a corner after a continuous, combined effort, but at the same time, they felt that they had exhausted their entire energies in order to do so while Sora himself still seemed to have just enough left in him to keep himself standing up straight with the χ-blade held up at the ready, but just barely. Roxas did not know how much longer they could last in this fight, but he did know that it would not be nearly as long as the evil monster in front of them could, and that was enough to tell them they were in a great deal of trouble. At least, it seemed that way, until Evil Sora suddenly jolted in pain once again, and the arm he was holding the χ-blade in suddenly began to shake like it was struggling against something.

"What…what's happening," Sora demanded as he quickly grasped his other hand on the trembling χ-blade, only for it to continue to pull his arms up towards the sky until it finally broke free of his grasp. A minute later, the legendary weapon that was said to be the counterpart of Kingdom Hearts emitted a bright glow and then shattered completely, releasing the great amount of light and darkness within that had once been used to forge it, much to everyone's shock and Sora's horror. "No…it can't…what happened to the χ-blade," Sora stuttered in furious disbelief.

No one answered his question, but Riku did give a different kind of answer. "This is our chance to finish it," Riku shouted to his two comrades, and both Roxas and Xion immediately nodded in agreement as they charged forth once more, landing one last, powerful strike against Sora as soon as they were in range, and finally bringing him to his knees in defeat.

"No," Sora moaned in continued protest. "I can't…I can't fail…Not now…Not when I'm…so close to…saving everything…"

"Are you still going on about that," Roxas asked in annoyance, but before he could continue, Riku had stomped up to the fallen, dark warrior and lifted him up by the back of his shirt so that he could turn the man to face the battle and the chaos around him.

"Look at what you've done, Sora," Riku growled. "LOOK AT THIS! Does any of this look like 'saving' something to you?! You're not saving anyone; you're just forcing them all to suffer for your own selfishness!"

Sora tried to argue with Riku, but when his eyes started to roam over the battlefield that was still raging with fights between the various warriors of light and darkness, combined with the sight of time and reality tearing itself apart at the seams and sometimes even swallowing some of those same warriors into the tears, all arguments died in his throat as a look of sheer horror and shame reached his eyes. "Dear God," Sora finally choked out as tears began to fill his eyes, prompting Riku to release his hold on the spiky haired man. "What…what have I done? I just…all I wanted was to create an existence where none of us had suffered, where we could all be happy, and where she would never have…Why didn't I realize sooner? All I've done…I've only become the very monster that I had sworn to keep from happening. I've broken my promise to her…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…I'm sorry Kairi. I failed you…again."

At that point, Sora just fell to all fours as he openly sobbed, his eyes raining tears like he intended to cry out every last drop of water in his body, and the sight of the one who they had to fight as an enemy yet also knew as a friend honestly made Roxas, Xion, and Riku feel truly sorry for him. They all knew that he had started with good intentions and that if anyone deserved some form of happiness after all that they had been through, it was most definitely Sora, but in the end, they found out just what happened when Sora was finally pushed too far, and the result was now kneeling before them on his hands and knees, sobbing his eyes out in terror, sadness, grief, and pure anguish after finally seeing just how terrible his deeds had been. It was enough to drive Xion to wrap her arms around Riku in sadness, looking for comfort that Riku was happy to give, while even Riku and Roxas found their eyes watering a little at what had happened to this version of their friend.

A minute later, they all felt their eyes widen in shock when they saw what looked like Kairi's spirit suddenly appear in front of Sora with a sad smile, prompting him to lift his head up so that he could see her face. They do not know how it was possible, but they did know that they were able to hear Kairi's voice softly whispering, "I forgive you Sora, and I'm sorry too for causing you so much pain for all these years."

"No Kairi," Sora immediately denied, showing that he had heard her too. "You could never cause me any pain. I love you too much to ever be hurt by you."

"I know you do, Sora," Kairi whispered once again as she began to fade out after giving him a small hug. "That's why I'll always be waiting for you to come back to me. I'll see you soon, okay?"

Sora just nodded in response as his tears started to begin anew when Kairi finally disappeared from sight, but he then steeled himself before slowly rising to his feet and moving forward just as slowly towards one of the recently opened tears. When he finally reached the tear, Sora glanced back at the three with one last, sad look and said, "I'm sorry for everything I did to you guys, to the worlds, and for all the rest of the trouble I ever caused you all."

Riku, Roxas, and Xion could hardly believe what happened next, as the world seemed to slow down around them. As soon as Sora had turned around again, he began to lean forward until he fell right into the tear, instantly being swallowed up and lost to the abyss between time and space for all eternity, much to their horror. At that point, the three realized that there was nothing they could have done for him in the end, and that Sora honestly felt it was better this way for everyone, and that it was the only way he could atone for what he had done.

They honestly thought that it was finally over, but a quick look around at the battles still raging while time and space continued falling apart immediately told them otherwise. "What's going on," Xion asked. "I thought it was over. Why hasn't anything changed?"

Before either of the two boys could answer, a sudden jolt of what appeared to be lightning suddenly lit up the sky and struck the tower, much to their horror, especially when they remembered who was still inside. "Naminé," Roxas whispered before he charged towards the tower and through the door with Riku and Xion both hot on his heels.

They were all extremely glad to find that their friends were all still okay, albeit a bit shaken up after the sudden lightning strike on the tower, but it still prompted Roxas to ask, "What's happening? I thought it was over, why hasn't anything happened?"

"Sora and Kairi are still somewhere in the past," Naminé shouted over the explosions that were now so loud that it was even difficult to hear inside the tower.

"What do you mean 'somewhere' in the past," Riku asked. "Shouldn't you know where they are? I thought that they would've finished their battle in that time by now and things would've been changed."

"I don't know what happened," Naminé admitted. "They did finish the battle, but a minute later, there was some sort of explosion and I lost all trace of them. I have no idea where they are."

"Are they…do you think that they're," Xion hesitantly asked, not wanting to finish asking the question any more than she wanted to hear the answer that none of them wanted to hear.

"No, they're not dead," Naminé immediately dismissed. "If they were then the spell would've stopped working on them on its own. I just don't know where they are or what's happening."

Before anything more could be said, another lightning burst that was most definitely coming from the tears in time and space struck the tower, causing it to shake greatly under its force, and Axel had then summoned his Chakrams before diving in front of Mickey and Yen Sid. A minute after, the redheaded Nobody was also struck by the blast, and then began to disappear into a bizarre smoke, much to everyone's horror. When he heard Xion and Roxas crying out his name in horror, Axel quickly turned to the two and gave his best friends his usual smile while tapping a finger against his head like he always did whenever he said his catchphrase before he finally disappeared completely.

"No," Xion whispered, and it was barely even a second later that she was sobbing into Riku's chest, the silver haired boy unable to do anything more than rub her back soothingly, while Roxas fell to his knees in equal sadness in anguish at the sight of his best friend suddenly perishing before his eyes.

"Master Yen Sid, those storms are getting worse by the minute! What do we do now," Mickey immediately asked as he summoned both Star Seeker and Kingdom Key D to his hands so that he would be ready to stop another burst of lightning like the last one.

Sadly, Yen Sid could only give them an answer that they rarely ever heard from the old sorcerer. "I truly do not know."

Everyone ended up bowing their heads in sorrow for a minute, thinking that this was truly the end for them all, but they all then steeled themselves once again, and decided that if this was going to be where they met their ends, then they would not do so without a fight. With their decision made, they all immediately summoned their weapons and courage so that they could continue to protect their friends in the past or charge back out to rejoin the forces fighting outside, their eyes burning with determination to never give up no matter what. A few moments later though, it did not matter, as they were soon engulfed in a sudden flash of light, and a minute later, everything was quiet and calm, for there was nothing there at all.

(The Past)

She was not entirely sure what had happened or even how long she had been asleep, but it did not take long for Aqua to register that she was most certainly not where she had been before when she finally awoke, and she immediately began to glance around for any sort of clue as to where she currently was. As she sat up, she quickly noticed some familiar, star and moon shaped windows above her, along with a few book cases, and just as she was starting to get an idea of where she was, a familiar voice spoke up, confirming her beliefs on where she was.

"Aqua, you lost consciousness," Yen Sid informed the young master as she turned to face him, having finally realized that she was in the retired Keyblade Master's tower. "Fortunately, Mickey found you and Ventus drifting in the Lanes Between, and brought you back to me to receive proper care."

When she heard the old master mention Ventus, Aqua immediately turned to her left and she was immediately greeted with the sight of said blond, sitting against the wall with his eyes closed as though he were sleeping while Mickey stood next to him. Aqua then looked to Yen Sid once again, but the master had already anticipated her question and informed her, "I am sorry, but there was no sign of Terra."

"I see," Aqua sadly sighed. She then turned her attention back to Ven, and crawled over to him so that she could place a hand on his shoulder and give him a gentle shake as she called out, "Ven…Ventus!"

Sadly, the blond did not even stir a little in response, immediately leading Aqua to fear the worst for her friend until Yen Sid said, "The boy's heart is sleeping."

"When will he wake," Aqua immediately asked, hoping that the answer was soon.

"I could not say," Yen Sid sadly replied, much to Aqua's dismay. "It is almost as though his heart has left. Should it return, he may very well wake, but should it not, then he may sleep like this for all eternity."

"No," Aqua whispered, her eyes already forming tears. As her tears began to slowly fall, only one thought ran through Aqua's mind. It was not fair; it was just not fair. Aqua and her friends had been through so much together; they had played together, trained together, fought together, and even suffered through so many difficult times together both in growing up and in this journey, so why did things have to end this way? Why was it that even after all they had been through, the three of them still had to suffer so greatly?

These thought continued to run through Aqua's mind as she grasped Ven in a tight hug, silently pleading with him to come back, until she finally dried her eyes and looked to the old master and stated, "I'll keep him safe until he wakes. Forever if I have to."

"I will tell you what your friend needs right now," Yen Sid then informed the former pupil of Eraqus. "It is not your protection. He needs you to believe. You see, Ventus's heart hangs in the balance; it sleeps in the place between light and darkness. From all I can perceive, that means he will be looking for a friend, one who believes in him, to show him the way home. Just as long as you love him then Ventus will be able to find you when he wakes. He can follow that love back to where he belongs; the realm of light."

The old master then exchanged a smile with both Aqua and his former apprentice before Mickey looked to his friend and said, "Don't you worry, Aqua. I believe in Ven, too. Gosh, he's been as good a friend to me as anybody, and if both you and me believe in him with all our hearts then he'll have two lights to follow instead of one."

"Five lights," Aqua corrected with a laugh, much to Mickey's confusion. "Terra, Sora, and Kairi too."

"But…Terra's gone. Maybe for good," Mickey then reminded Aqua. He then hesitated for a minute before he softly added, "And Sora and Kairi…"

The king of Disney Town had honestly hoped that he had said that last part soft enough for Aqua to have not heard, but she did, and it was at that point that she realized that the two were not in the room with them and she quickly became worried. "Where are they anyway," Aqua then asked. When neither Mickey or Yen Sid replied, Aqua's worry grew as she asked again, "Where's Sora and Kairi?"

Mickey then sighed, feeling that it was no use to hide anything from Aqua now that she had heard what he had said, and he then pulled something out of his pocket as he said, "We're not sure where they are. I had gone back to look for them after bringing you and Ven here, but all I found were these."

Aqua then looked to the objects that Mickey was holding, and quickly gasped in recognition, for Mickey was holding a pair of Wayfinders that had the same crown symbol that was on Sora's necklace and were colored dark red and bright pink; the very same Wayfinders that she had made and given to Sora and Kairi before their battle in the Keyblade Graveyard had begun. Aqua then slowly reached out to take the two Wayfinders from Mickey's hand, almost as if she were hoping the objects were not real, and as soon as she touched the soft, colored glass of the star-shaped charms before letting them fall into her hands, she immediately realized that they were both very real indeed. Mickey then became worried that Aqua would start crying again in the belief that their two friends from the future had perished, but to his surprise, the young woman actually let a soft, yet still sad smile reach her face.

"They figured that they wouldn't be able to keep these," Aqua then revealed as she enclosed the charms in her hands. "I guess this means that their mission is over and they've gone back to their time, so I'll just have to keep the promise I made to them and hold onto their charms until we meet again in the future. I just hope that the future those two wake up to is a better one than the one they had left. As for Terra, I think I know how to find him."

With that said, Aqua pocketed the two charms that she had received from Mickey, stood up from where she had been sitting, and lifted the sleeping Ventus onto her back, biding both Mickey and Yen Sid farewell for now before she walked out the door, saying that she was going to bring Ven to a place where he would be able to sleep in peace. As soon as Aqua was out the door and the two were both certain that she was no longer able to hear them, Mickey looked to his master and asked, "I hope I don't regret doing what I just did."

"You did the right thing, Mickey," Yen Sid assured his apprentice. "After all, you never were one to go back on a promise that you made to a friend."

When Aqua arrived at the place where Ventus's sleeping form had indicated that he wanted to go, she was shocked to see that they were now back at the ruins of the Land of Departure, but at the same time, she was not all that surprised that the one she loved wanted to return to the place he and his friends had long since known as their home. After glancing around at the darkened ruins of her home once more, Aqua's eyes soon came to rest on the Keyblade lying on the ground which had once belonged to her master, the Master's Defender Keyblade. As she lifted the Keyblade off the ground, gazing at it with a sad look when she did, Aqua could not help but remember the promise she made to Eraqus before she left on the journey she shared with her friends, along with the promise she made to her master regarding what she would do in the event their world was threatened at a point after he had perished, and she then immediately walked into the castle with her master's Keyblade held tightly in her hand.

What Aqua did not know, was that the entire time since she had arrived on her nearly destroyed home, was that she was actually being watched by a pair of figures hiding in the shadows, one of which had to let out a sad sigh when they saw her and Ventus arrive and when she had finally examined her master's fallen Keyblade. These same two figures then continued to watch the castle from the outside, being careful to stay close to it while they did, and soon enough, they were greeted with a bright light suddenly illuminating the entire world until said world changed shape into a massive, brownish-gold, strangely shaped castle. A few minutes after this transformation was complete, they saw Aqua leave the newly formed castle and then look back to gaze at it for a minute before she finally turned towards the path before her and walked off to wherever it lead, only catching the faintest trace of her calling out to Terra as she departed while they did.

When Aqua was finally out of sight, the two stepped out of the shadows to reveal Sora and Kairi, both now in their normal attire, battered, and a little bruised, but still very much alive, well, and still in the time that they had traveled back to. The two looked down the path that Aqua had disappeared into for a few seconds before they brought their attention back to the massive castle that they had once visited before in the future, and which they found was just as they remembered it from the last visit, without the Organization XIII members inhabiting it. "So in the end, this place still came to be what we first knew it as, and it was Aqua who made it this way all so she could protect Ven," Sora noted aloud as he gazed at the familiar castle. "Castle Oblivion."

Kairi nodded in response to Sora's observation and then quickly fell in step behind him as he began to walk towards the great, strangely shaped building. When they entered the building and were greeted by the stark, white entrance hall within, Kairi had to roll her eyes when Sora lightly complained, "You'd think that Aqua would've given this place a little more color inside, but no, she had to go and make every single room in this place the color white. I swear, I consider myself lucky I was able to keep track of what floor we were on the last time I was here given how everything in this place looks so much the same. I mean, really, couldn't she have given this place a little more variety in more than a few rooms?"

"Sora is this really the best time to be asking such questions," Kairi finally asked when the boy she loved had finished his small rant. "Try to keep in mind, the place we're looking for is impossible to find, probably unless you're with Aqua or you're Aqua yourself. Even Xemnas and Organization XIII were never able to find it. How do you think we're supposed to?"

"That's easy. We're going to follow the heart," Sora replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world before he started to move forward again. Kairi was only able to shake her head a little before she had to catch up to Sora, not entirely understanding what he meant by that, and elected to just follow Sora as they moved through the mysterious palace that Aqua had created in order to protect Ven.

As the two walked through Castle Oblivion, they were happy to discover that they did not ever lose a single memory the further in they went, just as Naminé had told them, proving once and for all that all of the memory related problems that Sora encountered on that trip really was due to Naminé's powers. Sora had to let out a sigh of relief when he realized this, much to Kairi's amusement, but he still continued to press on, seemingly knowing where he was going until they finally reached a strange door that was unlike any of the others in the mysterious castle. Kairi was about to ask why they had never heard of anyone finding this doorway before when she immediately stopped short at the sight of a glow coming from Sora's hand before forming a familiar shape in it.

"Sora, why'd you summon your Keyblade," Kairi asked, while glancing around them in worry thinking that he was preparing himself for a fight after sensing some sort of unseen danger, indicating that she was now preparing for such a situation as well.

"I didn't, and this isn't my Keyblade," Sora replied with a smirk as he held up the blade that was now in his hand. When Kairi stopped glancing around for any sign of a threat, she took a moment to get a good look at the Keyblade in Sora's hands, and immediately gasped when she recognized it as Wayward Wind, the Keyblade that Ventus wielded.

Sora then stepped back a little and spun the Keyblade around his hand like he often did before aiming it directly at the door, and the minute he did, the tip lit up with a soft glow, and shot out a beam of light towards the door, which gave a loud click that resembled that of something being unlocked before opening on its own in response. The two then walked into the room to find a large, white throne in the center of a white colored room with what appeared to be glowing chains and the symbol that Terra, Aqua, and Ven all wore decorating the walls. After taking in their new surroundings, they then laid eyes on what, or rather who, they had come there looking for, and smiled in relief seeing Ventus in his coma-like state upon the throne in the center of the room.

Sora then walked towards the blond who had helped make it possible for him to wield a Keyblade, and as soon as he stood in front of Ven, Sora lifted Wayward Wind up so that it was pointed at his chest, and ran the Keyblade through himself, instantly causing Ven's Keyblade to disappear a minute later. Kairi was initially worried for her friend, seeing as the last time he had done something like this it had caused him to be transformed into a Heartless, but her worries quickly disappeared when Sora smiled to her and showed her an orb of light in his hand as he said, "Don't worry, Kairi. I'm alright. It worked just like I thought it would."

"So then…that's," Kairi started to ask.

Sora nodded, still smiling brightly as he said, "This is Ventus's heart, which had been resting inside of me for all these years."

Kairi then smiled at this just as brightly as Sora was, knowing that all their final efforts were paying off. Everything from giving their Wayfinders to Mickey and asking him to tell Aqua that they had disappeared, knowing she would think they had returned to their time as a result, to waiting outside until Aqua returned to transform the Land of Departure into Castle Oblivion was all for this one moment that they were absolutely certain would help change things for an even better future than the one from before this whole adventure started. Kairi continued to gaze at the orb of light that was their friend's heart until she suddenly felt her legs becoming numb, and she looked down to see that she was starting to fade out from existence, which could only mean one thing that they both knew too well.

"Sora, the spell's wearing off," Kairi whispered. "It's almost time for us to go back."

"Okay, I'll make this quick then," Sora nodded as he started to fade away too, and he then turned back to face Ventus once again. Sora walked up to the blond and then smiled a bit as he then said, "I don't know if you can hear me or not, Ven, but I just want you to know that I owe you a lot. Not just you though, but also Aqua and Terra as well. I am who I am because of you guys and the same holds true for all my friends who gained a Keyblade as well, especially Kairi. It's thanks to you that I was able to become worthy to wield a Keyblade and then meet so many amazing people who became my friends. Whether you meant for it to happen or not doesn't matter, I just know that the day your heart came to rest inside of me so long ago is definitely a day that I will never forget or ever change for all the worlds. So I guess all I can really say is this: Thank you Ven…for everything. I hope we see you soon, sometime in the future. We may not remember you when you first meet us, but I know that you'll remember us, and that you'll be glad when we finally do remember you. We'll see you then."

Sora then released Ven's heart and let it flow into the sleeping boy's body, disappearing into the blond as soon as it touched his chest. Sora and Kairi then continued to slowly fade away for a few minutes, not seeing any change in their friend, until Ven's eyes finally, slowly opened, gazing at their vanishing forms for a minute once they did. The last thing that Sora and Kairi saw before they finally vanished from this time was Ventus giving them both a large smile as he finally became fully awake while he mouthed, "Thank you Sora and Kairi. See you soon, sometime in the future."

AN: Whelp, that's that. Everything seems to have wrapped up pretty nicely, huh? Sora and Kairi have accomplished their mission, the older, evil Sora was beaten, and it seems like history is back on track again. Or is it? Looks like our two young time travelers have pulled one last little trick to change things for the better, and now who knows what's going to happen? Oh wait. I do! And you'll get an idea on what all happened in the next chapter. As you'll soon realize upon moving Onto the Preview!...

Sora and Kairi have returned to the present, but just what will they find upon waking up in their proper time? How did their final actions in the past change things? And just what else could have changed due to all this time-travel craziness? The only way you'll find out is by tuning in next time to see where everything has ended up, as the journey reaches its final conclusion...for now at least.

Please read and review, and see ya real soon!