The End of the Story

"Oh my gosh, are you seeing this, mom," Marie Greenwich asked, turning up the TV volume as live footage from Dallas played on the screen.

Mrs. Rachel Greenwich stood in the doorway of the living room, watching a reporter talk about a strange attack near the JFK museum, and an alleged alien sighting in the Reunion Tower. She did not really think that aliens were invading, but something bad was happening, and it scared her.

"Oh my. Thank goodness we didn't go today," she said.

"But isn't Max on his way up here," Marie asked, realizing that her little brother was probably on a bus heading towards the Dallas area.

"Maybe he hasn't left yet," her mother answered, looking around the living room. "I should call him and make sure he's okay. Where's my phone?"

"Kitchen," her daughter answer, focused on the newscast as her mom walked into the adjacent room. Seconds later, she walked out with her phone, stopping next to the couch.

"He didn't answer my earlier text," Mrs. Greenwich muttered, bringing the phone to her ear. Thirty seconds later, she got nothing but voicemail, and tried calling a few more times while getting the same results. "And he's not answering my calls."

"Try tracking his phone," Marie suggested. "Go to the Family app."

Her mom blinked with surprise. "You can do that?"

The younger woman sighed, turning and grinning at her mom. "Feel old yet," she joked.

"Watch it," her mother warned, though she was laughing as well. Going to the app, she saw a button that said 'Track my Family,' and clicked it. A map appeared on the screen, showing three glowing dots on it. Two were practically on top of one another, but the third was some distance away. Zooming in, she saw the two close dots were her and Marie's, and the third was Max's.

"It… Says he's in Dallas right now," Rachel said, a cloud of worry starting to come over her.

"What?" Marie stood up, going over to her mom. "Let me see." Her mom handed her the phone, and she scrolled the map around, trying to make sure it was accurate. "This doesn't make sense…"

"Could his phone be broken," her mom suggested. "Or is mine?"

"I don't think so," Marie answered, starting to feel scared as well. She reloaded the screen, feeling worse when it still showed her brother was in Dallas.

"But… But that can't be possible. Why would Max even be..." Mrs. Greenwich took back her phone, looking at the screen with a worried expression. "What's going on," she wondered aloud.

"Wait, it's moving now," her daughter said, pointing at the screen. Max's dot was indeed moving, now moving across the map at a rapid pace. One second, he was in Dallas, the next, he was ten miles away, heading in their direction.

"What the… Is it a glitch or something," Rachel Greenwich asked.

"Probably; there's no way he could be moving that fast unless he was in a jet plane."

"Well, it says his phone is about to reach us."

"Mom, it's obviously not working right now. Let's just-"

The two women paused as they heard a small noise coming from outside. They strained their ears, trying to figure out what it was. Seconds later, they realized it was the engine of a plane, steadily growing louder. They were used to planes flying overhead, but this one appeared to be getting louder and louder, as if it were just above them.

"Mom!" Marie grabbed her mom's hand, pulling her under the kitchen table in case a plane accidentally crashed into the house. The two of them screamed as the noise became almost deafening, right outside their house. They were holding each others hands tightly, praying for protection and safety from… whatever was outside.

However, the noise slowly started to fade, the engine dying down and quieting. Marie and Rachel slowly got up from under the table, now able to pinpoint that the noise was coming from their backyard. Exchanging confused looks, they walked outside to see what was going on.

The Greenwich's fenced in backyard was just a small fraction of the several acres of land they owned, the rest of it untamed flatland. Their two dogs, Nelson and Jimmie, stood near the back door, barking at the source of the noise. Looking outside, the two women gasped, now clearly seeing what had made that noise.

A large jet plane of some kind sat just outside their fenced portion of land, its engine dying down. It was painted black and red, and towered several feet above the fence. The smell of exhaust was strong, even from a distance, and the two women once again exchanged worried looks before turning back to the plane.

"Do you think they had to do an emergency landing or something," Marie asked her mom, staring at the jet with shock.

"I don't know," Mrs. Greenwich replied. "We should go check t- The door is opening!"

Indeed, the top of the jet engine slid open, and a lone figure poked their head out, looking over at them. They quickly climbed out of the jet, walking onto the wing of the plan and dropping over onto their side of the fence. From what they could see, the person had long red hair, wore a strange outfit with a giant star on the chest, and limped a little as he walked.

Nelson and Jimmie barked louder, running forward to attack the stranger. However, upon reaching him, they stopped, sniffing him as he pet them on the heads. He then looked up, saw them, and briskly walked towards them. It soon broke into a run, and it was not until he had gotten close enough that the two women recognized him.

"... Max?!"

[][][]

"Not now," Max tried to yell out loud, but no sound came from his mouth. He felt himself slipping into his mind, into the memories he tried so hard to ignore, but it was overpowering him. Where were his friends? He needed his friends to help him snap out of it.

They're gone, he remembered, the interior of the Turbokat, the skyline of Dallas, and even the present time vanishing in an instant.

"No," Lonestar muttered, once again finding himself standing in the grass field at the base of the San Jacinto monument. He stood up, looking around for the familiar sight of his family, but found none. Looking back at the monument, it quickly flickered, revealing the Reunion Tower before returning to its original state.

"This is new," the human muttered to himself.

"So it is."

Max whirled around, and found Dr. Viveral Void standing several feet away from him, a calm expression on his face. The evil scientist looked like his regular self, before the mutagen, and his hands were empty. Still the human Swat Kat was instantly on guard, lifting his fists.

"You're not real," Lonestar said. "None of this is… It's all just a figment of my imagination."

"I know it is," the kat replied. "But you're in control of this, not me."

"I need to stay grounded… Focus on the interior of the plane and the setting around me."

"You can try," Void said, "but do you honestly think you'll win in the end? I just died yet my memory is already in your head. And I don't plan on leaving anytime soon."

"Shut up," Max muttered, trying to focus on what his senses were telling him; he could feel the back of the seat, hear the slight hum of the Turbokat, smelled the drying blood on the side of his face-

"You've fought this battle before," the villain said, slowly walking towards him. "You've had these fights with your mind, trying to bury the pain and the remorse and the self-hatred." He stopped in front of the human, his eyes pupil-less and void. "You continue on, even though you know that it will never get any better."

Lonestar grit his teeth, trying to bring himself back to the present moment; he needed to fly away from the Reunion Tower, away from Dallas. He did not have time to deal with another PTSD episode… especially one that dealt with the kat he just killed.

"Don't forget us." Max turned around to see Jake, Chance, Johnny, Anne and Callie standing a few feet away.

"We're here, too," Chance continued.

"Since you're not gonna see us again," Jake said.

"I… I w-w-will," the human promised him.

"Will you," Johnny asked. "Ya sent us away without tellin' us; why would we want to see ya again?"

"I agree," Anne said. "You threw us out."

"Like we were nothing," Callie said.

"Why should we ever forgive you," all five kats said at the same time.

Max more tears in his eyes, and he shut them tightly as he tried to focus on the past. This was just a flashback… it was all in his head… he was going to be fine. Void was dead, and his friends would forgive him… they… they would-

"Forgive me," he muttered, finally opening his eyes, relieved to see that he was still in the cockpit of the Turbokat. The portal to the kat world was now closed, and while the top of the Reunion Tower looked a little worse for wear, it was still intact. Looking around, he saw that the plane was still in the air, and the radio contact with Hackle had gone silent.

"Okay… I gotta get out of here." Max quickly hit a few buttons, giving himself control of plane, bringing it higher into the air. He had not flow the Turbokat in well over a year, and even then he had been shaky at it. Still, he managed to keep the plane level, flipping a switch on the dashboard, scanning the top of the tower for life forms [in case Void somehow survived] and finding none. Then, turning the plane away from the city, he flew away from the tower.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" A voice over the radio tried to reach Lonestar, but he ignored it; Chance had told him briefly that he had made contact with some human Air Force pilots, who were probably still around somewhere. That did not matter to Max; all he wanted was to go home. So, switching off the radio, he turned on the rocket boosters and leaned back as the plane shot through the sky.

He knew how far away his home was from Dallas, and punched in the coordinates so the Turbokat would go directly there. The flight itself would not be as long, since he was going faster than cars on the highway. As he flew, the recent memory of his flashback [was it a flashback?] was still fresh in his mind.

"We will never forgive you," his friends' voices said in his head.

"You'll never win," Void said.

"I will win," Max said out loud, a determined expression on his face. "I've done it before, and I'll do it again." He swallowed the lump in his throat. "And even if they don't forgive me… I… forgive myself." He closed his eyes, pushing away all thoughts of kats and vigilantes and villains and fighting, focused on a singular goal that filled him with a sense of hope and love.

"I'm finally going home."

[][][]

"... Max?!"

His mother barely got to say another word when he ran forward, hugging her so tightly that he nearly cracked her ribs. She did not hug him back, the shocked look on her face matching Marie's.

"Mom," Max said, tears leaking from his eyes as he hugged her, a big grin on his face. It had been so long since he had seen his mom, much less hugged her, and he never wanted to let her go. "I… I've missed you so much."

"Max, I…" Mrs. Greenwich pulled out of the hug, looking him up and down with a stupefied expression. "What are you… You look older and… Is that blood?!"

"What's going on," Marie asked. Max turned to face her, grinning even more as he embraced her.

"Marie! I've missed you," he said, nearly lifting her off the ground before he finally let go. "I forgot you were here! Is Bernadette here?"

"She's still in Austria, but Max," his mother said, gaping at him. "What happened to you? Why are you dressed like that? What happened to your face-"

"And why did you show up in a freaking jet plane," his sister added, pointing at the flying machine.

"It's a long story," he answered, "but… I'm just…" He wiped at his eyes, still smiling at his mom and sister. "I haven't seen you two in forever, and I'm happy to be back."

The two women enhanced confused looks. "It's only been a few weeks," Mrs. Greenwich said. "And I Facetimed you before you went silent for a week."

His expression faltered a little. "I… I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to leave in the first place-"

"Leave? Did you drop out of school," Marie asked.

"No! I mean, I haven't been in nearly two years-"

"Years?"

"Max, you're scaring us," his mom said. "What happened to you? You look like you've been through hell and back."

"I have," he said simply. "And I'll tell you both everything, I promise. What time is it?"

"A little after three," his sister replied, checking her phone.

"They'll be here at five, hopefully," he muttered.

"Who will," Mrs. Greenwich asked. "Max, what's going on?"

"I'll explain it to you," Max promised, taking her hand. "But can we go inside? I could really use a glass of water."

[][][]

Nearly two hours later…

"I know, I know," Max concluded, "the whole thing sounds… insane and impossible, but I'm telling the truth."

Mrs. Greenwich and Marie had sat there during his whole story, shocked expressions on their faces. The crazy story, combined with Max's strange appearance and haggard look frightened them and made them wonder about his mental state. A little over a week ago, he had been living a normal life, going to college and working on his gymnastics. But now… he was a completely different person, and apparently had a jet plane now.

"And… I don't expect either of you to believe me," he continued. "If I were listening to this story, I would probably think it was crazy. But I'm not lying to you; I've really been gone in another world for nearly two years, and I just saved our world from being destroyed by an evil scientist."

"..." Max's mother could not say anything, she was too shocked. However, Marie managed to speak up.

"We saw something on the news about Dallas," she said. "An alien sighting or something at the Reunion Tower… Are you telling us that was you and a group of cat-people from 1997?"

"Yes," he replied. "Again, I know it's crazy-"

"Yes," his mom finally said, speaking for the first time in over an hour. "But… It makes sense, in a way." Her two children looked at her with surprise.

"You believe him," Marie asked, right as Max asked, "You believe me?"

"His story… it makes sense," Mrs. Greenwich explained. "As unbelievable as parts of it sound, it explains why he's so… different."

"Mom," Marie said. "You've got to be kidding me!"

"Marie, he arrived here in a jet plane."

"I know that, but cat people from another world?" She turned to her brother. "I don't know what happened to you in the past week, but there's some things that just aren't possible!"

"I thought all things were possible with God," Max reminded her. "You used to always tell me that growing up."

The two woman looked at each other and Max with shock. They had not heard him mention God or anything related to their Catholic faith since his father had died. It was another surprise revelation for them, and both tried to wrap their heads around everything they had been told.

"So… you're saying these… cat people," his mom started to say.

"My friends," Max agreed.

"Are going to be here at five o'clock?"

"Yes."

I hope, he thought.

"Mom, this is ridiculous," Marie said, standing up and frowning at her brother. "I have no idea how you pulled off that jet stunt, but if you expect us to believe that you've been gone for nearly two years in another world with cat people-"

"How is my hair longer, then," he asked his sister. "And I've grown half an inch."

"I don't know! It could be a wig-"

"Nope, all natural," he replied, pulling on his hair.

Marie threw her hands up in exasperation. "Well it… it can't be real! I'm sorry, but I don't believe you! I don't know if something's not working in your mind, but you might need help."

"That's fine," Max told her. "I didn't expect either of you to believe. Frankly, twenty-four hours ago, I wasn't expecting to be home again." He looked at them, smiling a little. "I really have missed you both. Honest. I never thought I would see either of you or Bernadette again…"

Mrs. Greenwich studied her son's face, and knew with complete certainty that he was telling the truth. She could not explain it; call it motherly intuition, if you will. But she had no doubts that her son had indeed been gone for as long as he had, despite having Facetimed him a little over a week ago.

"It's nearly five," Max said, looking over at the wall clock and standing up. "They'll be here in a bit."

"Because you told them to," Marie asked sarcastically.

"Marie, that's enough," their mother told her.

"Mom, you can't be serious!" Max walked towards the back door, stepping into the backyard. Mrs. Greenwich and Marie both followed, but stayed inside, watching the young man send the dogs inside before walking back towards the plane. "Mom-"

"Honey, I can't explain, but something happened to him," her mom said.

"Yeah, like drugs."

"We don't know that."

"Mom, he just claimed to have been in another universe for nearly two years, despite being at his university a week ago," the younger Greenwich explained. "He also look like he came off worse in a fight, and this jet… whatever is clearly not normal! Something happened to him, something logical, and he needs help!"

"Marie, stop it," Mrs. Greenwich said sharply, staring out the window at her son, who stood in the backyard, staring in the direction of the jet plane [he called it the Turbokat]. "He said-"

"Forget what he said! He's either on drugs or crazy, because there's no such thing as-"

A sudden flash of light from outside cut off their conversation, and the two women gasped, holding up their hands to shield their faces. When the glow dimmed somewhat, they looked back out the window, gasping with surprise and shock.

In front of Max was a floating, glowing, yellow… thing. It gave off a bright light, shimmering and humming with energy. It did not look like anything either of them had ever seen, but Max did not appear to be fazed, taking a few steps back from it.

"... Are you seeing this," Marie asked nervously, sounding very uncertain.

"I… yes," Mrs. Greenwich whispered, staring at the circular glowing thing with surprise. "Do you… think that it's…"

"Those cat people he was talking about," her daughter replied. "I… It could be a mirage…"

But when the two figures stepped out of the glowing light, there was no doubt in either of their minds of what they were seeing.

[][][]

Max gasped a little when the two kats stepped out of the portal, and for a moment, he considered closing his eyes so he could not see them. He did not want to see what they looked like, but he knew that he had to look. So he kept his eyes open as his friends stepped out of the portal.

While telling his mom and sister about Jake and Chance, he had told them about how they had taken him, befriended him, and basically helped him when he struggled with his flashbacks. They had been his best friends, his fellow Swat Kats, and the brothers he never had. And he had sent them back to their world without a word, trapping them there until they reached 2019. He had no idea what they would be like now, or if they would even forgive him, but at the moment, he could only stare at his friends.

Both looked to be in their mid-to-late forties/early fifties, and had grown a little bit taller. Jake's whiskers were already grey, and he had a mustache on his lip now, not unlike Ron Swanson's. He was dressed in a simple button-down and slacks, and the watch on his wrist looked like a high-tech communicator. He gasped a little upon seeing Max, dropping the bag he had been holding.

Chance's blond fur had lost some of its gleam, looking more haggard and dark, with his own whiskers starting to grey. He had put one some weight, and as he walked forward, Max noticed that he had a small limp, as if from an old injury,, and was dressed in a coat and jeans. His expression was stoic and cold, and he stared at the human with an almost angry expression.

The two kats stopped a few feet away from Max, and the three stared at one another for several moments. Max, who had seen them as their younger selves a few hours ago, was shocked by how much they had changed. The two kats, no doubt, were surprised to see him still young after all the years that had passed in their world. No one said anything, but then the human cleared his throat.

"I… I should go first," Max said, starting to grow nervous since the two kats in front of him were not his friends. They looked like them, vaguely, but they were not the joking, young, caring kats he had spent years of his life with. No doubt they had resentments towards him for what he did, and he felt that he needed to get it off his chest.

"I know what I did… was not fair to either of you," the human continued. "When Hackle told me about the whole space-time whatever, I knew that we needed to act fast. Not only to defeat Void, but t-"

"Is he dead," Chance asked in a hollow voice, a frown still on his face. Max was taken aback by the change in voice; the blond kat was the joking, happier of the two, and now he sounded like a hardened veteran.

"Y-Y-Yes," he stammered. "He… He's dead."

"At least ya did somethin' right," the blond kat muttered.

"Chance," Jake hissed, turning to him. "Please."

"Oh, so I'm supposed to act like nothin' happened," Chance demanded, rounding on his friend. "He thinks that after he stuck us in our own world and time without the Turbokat, he can just apologize?!"

"We talked about this," the cinnamon kat replied sternly. "We've talked about this for years. He had no choice; it was either we get stuck in our world or in his, and the city needed us!"

"He told me about the time problem," Chance said, turning back to Max. "You could tell me we had ten minutes to save the world, but you couldn't tell me you didn't have a belt and that you were gonna stay in your world? After everything we've done for you?"
In a moment of deja vu, Max felt like he was back on Halloween night 1995, listening to Chance yell at him for sneaking out into the city and nearly getting himself killed. His hands shook a little, but he was determined not to cry. Not this time.

"What do you think I should have done," the human asked. "I couldn't go back to your world without a belt, and there was no way that I would let any of you be trapped in my world by yourselves."

"We could have figured something out," the blond kat said angrily limping up to him. "We were a team; you did not get to make that decision for us!"

"I'm sorry for doing what I thought was best for you," Max retorted. "You always said I should be less selfish, and I made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that you and everyone else had a chance to not be stuck in a world and time not their own! You needed to be back in Megakat City; I never belonged there!"

"Still, ya just sent us back without askin' or thinkin' about what that would do to us! Did ya think it was fair, lettin' us wait 22 years, wonderin' what had happened to ya?!"

"No, but what choice did I have?!"

"Ya should've let us all been trapped here," Chance yelled, pushing him back a few feet.

"Chance," Jake yelled, running up to his friend and grabbing him by the arm. "Stop this! I thought you forgave him long ago! We all did!"

"Stay out of this," the blond kat snapped, pulling his arm free. "I hope you're happy with the decision ya made!"

"Do I look happy," Max yelled, angry and sorrowful tears streaming down his face. "I didn't want to abandon you two, or any of the others! I wanted to be able to go back to your world, say my goodbyes and make things right before I came back here! Do you think I wanted to see you guys like this, middle-aged and filled with years of bitterness and resentment?!"

"I'm not angry with you," Jake tried to say.

"I was so scared when I ended up your world," the human continued, hugging his arms to keep his hands still. "I was terrified of getting caught, experimented on… all of that! If you ended up here, you probably would have gotten killed or locked up for the rest of your lives! And the time difference alone would have been enough stress on all of us! I made a decision that would ensure that you would get to live your lives in your own world, with your own kind! I was just an intruder in your world, and should have never been there!"

"Max-"

"NO! I get that you're both upset with me; I would be mad if you did that to me! But I'm sorry, okay!" He glared at Chance. "I know you won't forgive me, but I don't care! I'm sorry for sending you back, I'm sorry for not telling you what I had in mind, I'm sorry for leaving you both without a word… I'm sorry!"

"Max!" The two kats looked up to see two humans run out of the house, stopping on the back porch and watching them with nervous expressions. They recognized them from a picture Max had once showed them, and saw that it was his mother and sister.

"Chance," Jake said. "Stop it; you have no right to do this to him."

The blond kat's fists were balled, a few tears in his eyes. "He left us, Jake," he said angrily. "He sent us back… he threw out our friendship like it was nothing!"

"Like it was nothing," Max shouted, now pushing the kat as he continued to cry. "You two are the only true friends I've ever had! If it wasn't for you, I would have died long ago, alone and regretting every decision I had made so far in my life! You gave me another option, another path I could take, and I'm sorry I went on without you! Whether you don't want to be my friend anymore, I still want to be yours!"

Chance suddenly move forward, arms reaching out to grab Max. Thinking he was about to be attacked, the human flinched, raising his arms to protect himself. However, the kat did not attack him, instead grabbing him a tight hug that nearly knocked him to the ground. Chance was crying now, hugging his old friend as Max hugged him back, still crying himself.

"I'm sorry," the kat stammered. "I shouldn't have… I'm a selfish prick, ain't I? I knew ya couldn't have… I'm…" He stopped trying to apologize, simply hugging the human.

"Max, Chance," Jake said, walking up to them and hugging them as well, a few tears in his eyes. The three stayed in this group hug for a minute or two, and while none of them said a word, they all told one another that they were sorry.

For everything.

When they broke away, the three Swat Kats were once again friends, and while they still had tears in their eyes, they had smiles on their faces. All three knew they had much to tell one another, the kats mores'; Jake had married Callie back in 2000, and now had four children with a fifth on the way. Chance had won the lottery back in 2002, using the majority of his winnings to pay off the debt they owed to the Enforcers.

Both of them decided to keep the garage business going, buying out the business from Burke and Mac and sending them packing. Callie had run for mayor in the next term, winning in a landslide. She passed laws and bills that benefited and protected Megakat City, which still had the Swat Kats to protect them. Jake and Callie [and their kids] lived in the mayoral apartment, but Chance stayed in the garage, keeping it running and secretly building a new plane for them to use.

Anne and Johnny had gotten married, and had three children themselves. Anne became the head of the new station, and Johnny the lead producer for most of their programs. They were happy, but still went to the cemetery once a month to visit Felina and Feral. They always brought a bouquet of roses, and had named two of their kids after them. Both their kids and Callie and Jake's kids only knew their 'Uncle Max' from photographs, but were excited to finally meet him in person.

Feral had died in a hospital room, a few months after they came back from the human world. Before he died, two vigilantes showed up to say their goodbyes, and to tell him their biggest secret. He did not say anything right away, simply smiling a little as he gave a hacking laugh.

"I guess… ya can't keep good pilots grounded," he muttered, soon passing onto the great litter box in the sky without telling another soul. Commander Steele took his place following his death, working with the Swat Kats to keep the city safe from the various villains.

Hackle had died a few years later, the kat world losing one of the greatset minds of their time. He notes were left behind for scientists and inventors to use to benefit katkind, and any that could be used as weapons were given directly to the Swat Kats before he died, to ensure that they would not fall into the wrong hands.

They had brought all of Max's stuff with them. His phone, clothes, backpack… they had kept them safe, waiting for September 2019 to come so they could return it to him. However, they had an important question to ask him, since while they both hated to admit it, they were getting old and would be unable to fight before they knew it. Chance had already lost a leg in a nasty battle with Dark Kat, a prosthetic taking its place. And Max would have to decide if he should go back to the kat world and be a hero, or live the rest of his mundane life in the human world.

Max had some idea about his future. He knew that the very next day, he was going to go back to church and make things right with God. Thank Him for bringing him home, for letting his friends forgive him, and for showing him that one of the most important things in life were meaningless without friends and family by your side.

But in that moment, as they stared at one another with smiles on their face, they did not think about any of that. They were just happy to see each other once again, and knew that no matter what the future held, they would remain friends for the rest of their lives.

"Well… I guess we're friends again," Max said, wiping at his eyes. "Thanks for forgiving me."

"Thanks for saving us," Chance said.

"Ditto for me," Jake said, "though I think we have some introductions to make." The three of them turned to Max's family, who watched the touching scene with surprised expressions.

"Come on and meet them," Max said. "You want some sweet tea?"