Alone in a small cell in Disney Castle, Pete contemplates how it all went so wrong.

Things had been going so well, all of his careful planning coming together. The Cornerstone useless, his hated enemy demoralized and banished, an army of Heartless at his command… And still everything fell apart, just as it always seems to. Even small victories seem to hover just out of reach, unattainable. Not even the power of the Blot, awesome as it was, could save him.

Or, could it?

And idea hits the fat cat like a freight train, sending his hands frantically searching every nook and cranny of his jumpsuit. The bozos hadn't taken it off him, probably simply because there are no prison uniforms his size. This time, the boat boy king and his cronies are the ones whose oversight will come at dear cost.

Finally, searching beneath the seam of his breast pocket, Pete finds what he's looking for. Checking to make sure no one is watching, he runs his finger underneath. Black goop collects on his gloved finger, not much more than can cover the digit. But perhaps enough…

"Magica!" he hisses to the woman across the hall and two cells over. "Magica, c'mere!"

"What is it?" the witch demands, her face poking out of the bars to regard the fat cat with a fiery glare. Her hair is still in disarray from her cat fight, several feather ruffled and a few even missing entirely. In short, she does not appear to be a woman one should mess with.

"I need a spell," Pete answers, checking again to make sure no guards are listening in. "Just a little one!"

"Well, a 'little on' is all you're going to get," Magica replies, angrily huffing. "They have some kind of dampener set up. It can't contain all my power of course, but I'm not going to be blowing any walls down."

"What are you guys talking about?" Mortimer whines from his own cell, sticking his head out into the hall. "You're leaving me out on purpose!"

"No duh!" Pete calls, turning his head to sneer at the tall mouse. "Some big help you were, going down with one hit from the Keybrat! And don't go bringing up making the Blot again. That stuff didn't do me no good neither!"

"It was your own fault!" he argues, narrowing his eyes. "You let them trick your tiny pea brain. If I had my hands on a fully realized Blot…"

"Would you two knock it off!" Magica screeches, interrupting the argument and drawing attention back to her. "Can't even hear myself think!" Once everything's sufficiently quiet, she turns back to Pete. "Now, what is it that you want me to do?"

"I got a little piece o' the Blot I managed to save," Pete explains, carefully sliding his hand out of the cell bars. "Thought maybe you could work some mojo on it, get it growin'!"

Magica considers the idea for a moment, her beak pursed. "Perhaps. Hold it out, close to me as you can. Can't promise anything, but…" Holding her hand, the witch gathers what power she can. It appears around the outstretched limb as a faint green glow, remarkably similar to the Cornerstone's aura. The glow becomes a finger-thin beam that stretches across the hall, enveloping Pete's finger in its light. Magica grunts, struggling to hold the power there.

Slowly, the tiny bit of Blot on Pete's finger begins to grow, the nanomachinary converted the magical energy into mass. It continues for several second, until the glob is just large enough to cover Pete's entire hand.

But it's all too much for Magica. With a weak grunt of pain and frustration, she's forced to finish her spell. Any longer could have repercussions for her well-being. The witch falls back to the floor, groaning at her growing headache.

Pete examines his hand, feeling the strength the black substance lends to him. It appears none of the Blot's artificial intelligence survived, but still it may prove a useful tool. Somehow. All he needs is to wait for the right moment.

KH-KH-KH

"Do you really think the task worth its risk, my lady?" Gilgamesh asks, frowning at the image of Pete in Maleficent's scrying pool. "The fool thought he could succeed without your aid, and look where it got him. Certainly it is no loss to leave him to his fate?"

"Perhaps not," the warrior's mistress replies, observing the pool with her usual imperious inscrutability. "He has, after all, failed to live up to my plans time and again." She pauses, thoughtful for a moment. "Though his plan was intriguing. Were it not for the betrayal of the king's brother, he may have even succeeded. And he has served my designs loyally, if nothing else." Another pause. "Loyalty to me, personally."

"My lady?" Gilgamesh asks again, unsure of just which side of the debate Maleficent is falling on. "If you wish, I will leave immediately. Surely time is a factor in this operation."

She turns to him, momentarily looking surprised that he even spoke. Then she quickly regains her composed mask, cool and aloof. "Go, then. Deliver him again to me. By then I shall have devised an appropriate punishment."

Gilgamesh inclines his head in acknowledgment, giving Maleficent one last puzzled look before departing the room. She watches him go, sensing his disposition but not concerning herself with it. The important thing is that the warrior did as he was told. He may be without Pete's sense of personal devotion, but at least he can be commanded.

Once her minion is gone off on his errand, she turns to the other figures who have joined her for this conference. They all stand spread apart, eyeing each other warily. With a gathering of individuals as twisted as they, it's a wise policy to show a healthy fear.

"The time draws near," Maleficent announces, looking over each of her allies in turn. "Soon our campaign against the Realm of Light shall begin in earnest. All has come into alignment, and not even the Keybearer can hope to stop us."

"Uh, you can bet he doesn't!" agrees one man, a black cape swishing dramatically behind him. His tall tower of red hair sways atop his head. "This kid may think he's a hotshot, but I know from experience that most so-called 'heroes' are nothing but zeroes!"

"Nothing but a harmless little flea," adds a woman, impossibly skinny and incredibly wrinkled. She chuckles, petting her fluffy purple tail in anticipation. "In fact, why not just turn him into a flea? I know I have just the potion!"

"If we're gonna do that 'put him in a box in a box' thing, I guess I'll have to pick up some stamps," the burly man standing beside her says in a slow, smooth voice. "No problem, I need to go to the market anyway. It's spinach puff night!"

"He is only just another foolish, worthless human," remarks a red-haired woman with scaly skin, wings folded around her body in a makeshift cloak. "I will be glad to eliminate him with all the rest."

"How vicious," compliments another member of the conspiracy. He examines his brown-furred paw, a grin on his muzzle showing sharp teeth. "You have a fire not even the lionesses of my pride show anymore within you. Rest assured, if the boy makes it to my world, he had best be prepared to become prey. I'll deal with him as easily as I did my brother."

"The boy will pose no threat to me, either," agrees the cabal's last member, a young man swathed in dark blue robes. The brown gauntlet on his hand glows briefly with power. "Perhaps I'll add him to my collection of Mamluks. Along with his old friend Aladdin."

"I would not underestimate the boy, were I you," Maleficent warns the group. "As unseemly as he may appear, the Keybearer is a potent adversary indeed. But working as one, surely we shall all bring about his downfall. And with his blade removed from play, the rest of this universe shall certainly fall as well."

The others voice their agreement, smug satisfaction echoing from every corner of the chamber. The jade-skinned witch lets them all have their confidence, their belief in themselves and their own abilities and cunning. As for Maleficent, she feels perfectly content putting her faith in a higher power.

"Higher" being a metaphoric term, of course.

KH-KH-KH

She hears the door to the conference room slide open, but she doesn't look up to see who has entered the room. She knows exactly who's come to see her, just as she knows that any security cameras installed in the room are currently filming an empty table. They've had to be careful in the extreme, for a long time now. Hopefully, that won't soon be the case.

"I assume you've heard that everything's official now," a male voice says, his rich, smoothly accented voice quite conveying pleasure. "You've been cleared of any and all charges that you were somehow complicit in Vinzer Deiling's dictatorial schemes, and allowed to keep your rank and privileges." A pause, and then, smugly, "The polite thing to say here would be 'you're welcome'."

Colonel Jihl Nabaat finally turns to face the man, a sour expression on her face. The guy may be some kind of mastermind, a bastard of truly epic proportions, and her technical "superior", but that doesn't make him any less annoying.

"I never doubted it," she replies, casually pushing her glasses up higher onto the bridge of her nose. "Just like you never doubted that I could plant that video in the servers. I only continue to aid in this scheme because I think it might put Bright Oasis in the position it should have occupied for years now. Were I to end up falling from grace, you can rest assured I would've taken others down along with me."

The man rolls his eyes, casually brushing red-purple hair off his forehead. "Yes, dear, I'm sure you would have. But rest assured, that's only one reason I've elected to elicit your aid in my grand design. Your devotion to this city stands comparable to mine, and your utter ruthlessness insures you take no half-measures. Not even the man who put you where you are today was safe from your ambition."

"Well, don't think I didn't feel bad about it," Jihl says tonelessly, though the upward quirk of her mouth suggests otherwise. "Oh, I almost forgot that congratulations are in order for you as well, Mr. Chancellor."

The man shrugs, waving away the praise with feigned modesty. "I was simply a man in the right place and time to help better my beloved city. You should have heard the things they said when I espoused all the ways the resistance's bravery exceeded my own. For a moment I myself started thinking I was a hero."

Colonel Nabaat allows her smile to come out in full force. "Now now, we both know that isn't true, Ardyn."

The newly appointed Bright Oasis Chancellor of Civilian Affairs smile back at her. "Yes, I suppose we do. A necessary deception, I fear. Heroism may win the day in the now, but it's a rather woefully inadequate proposition in the long term. And so, it falls to the people like us to see that heroes rise and fall on a… proper schedule."

"It still irks me," Jihl Nabaat, clenching her fists so tight the leather of her gloves squeaks, "to see that hapless buffoon elected president by those morons. To have that man even thinking he wields any more power than the head of the local PTA is an affront to leadership itself. Part of me wishes we could have just leaked Radiant Garden. The people still would have demanded action, and I wouldn't have to pretend to take orders from that, that…"

"Be calm, Colonel," Ardyn assures his minion, though she fancies herself a partner. "Fear is a potent force, yes. But it tends to lose said potency once one is allowed to face that fear's object. All the scaremongering in the world couldn't have stirred the populace to follow Vinzer Deiling into a war, one where the opponent was not faceless monsters but people just like them."

Looking up, Jihl can see the slightest hint of something in Ardyn's eyes. She doesn't look long. Not even she has that much resolve.

"No, a man they fear could not spur Bright Oasis to the heights we must have them achieve. But a man they respect, someone the people love… Well, I imagine there would be nothing they could not do to avenge him. So worry not, Colonel. In a month's time, the only bowing you'll be doing to Laguna Loire is at his grave. And what a lovely memorial we'll give him, in the ashes of Radiant Garden."

KH-KH-KH

"It has been long enough," the female says. She stands at the shore's edge, staring out over the dark water. "My strength has returned, and soon yours will as well. The boy is out there, the one with the Key. I'm sure you can sense him just as well as I can."

Her companion nods his armored head, rising to his feet with the aid of a nearby boulder. It still pains him just to do that much, but considering the many months where he could barely speak, it's progress. His companion watches him, inscrutable behind her helmet's black visor and yet somehow conveying concern.

"I agree," he says, slipping his weight off the helpful boulder to stand under his own power. "And I do sense it. But he is not alone. The power has been passed on, and it surrounds him constantly. I fear you aren't yet ready to face it under those circumstances."

The female nods, brisk and abrupt. Like even that small human gesture is clumsy to her. "The Keyblade cannot stay among allies forever. Eventually the wielder will find himself alone. That is when I will strike. Perhaps the corruption hasn't taken hold, but the chance cannot be taken. Even if I have to chase him to the edge of the universe, I will ensure that the Keyblade will never bring another world to ruin. Or another soul."

KH-KH-KH

The hidden cave is quiet, only the sounds of crashing waves outside and gently blowing wind within interrupting Sora's perfect peace. And in truth, those calm and familiar sounds only add to it. He sits back against the wall, his head turned to admire the drawing of he and Kairi exchanging paopu fruit. It's a nice thing to look upon, though Sora rarely finds himself in here anymore. Rotating his gaze more, he looks upon the innocuous door that hides Destiny Island's heart.

The Keybearer sits up straighter, suddenly worried. He did remember to seal the Keyhole upon his return, didn't he? He must have, something so important could not possibly have slipped his mind. Still, just in case, he decides to attempt it once more.

He rises, moving to stand and stare the door down straight-on. Closing his eyes and holding up his hand, Sora reaches for the Keyblade. The familiar sound of its appearance fills his ears a heartbeat later. But he can't feel the weapon in his hand, and the sound had actually come from behind…

Sora whirls, gasping as he comes face-to-face with someone. It's a young man, perhaps around his own age, dressed in a simple blue tunic and black trousers. His hair, a silvery color perhaps two shades darker than Riku's, falls down over his shoulders. His eyes are brown, though strangely flecked with some other, brighter color.

In his hand, he holds Kingdom Key.

Sora stays frozen, unsure of what to do next. Who is this person, and is he friend or foe? Why is he holding the Keyblade, and just how would Sora get it back if he wanted too.

But the stranger just smiles, the corner of his mouth tipping slightly upward. "Here," he says in a pleasant voice. But something dark lurks beneath, a deeper sound. "Allow me."

The Keyblade rises, power gathering at its tip. But what emerges is not the weapon's usual thin beam of light. Instead, pure darkness spews out in a fetid stream of corrupt power.

Sora jolts awake, heart hammering in his chest. It's dark, and he can only make out the vaguest outline of the Disney Castle bedroom he's staying in. All is quiet, except for the sounds of soft breathing beside him.

He looks to the right, calming somewhat at the sight of Kairi's back gently rising and falling with her breath. The Keybearer reaches out to her, rubbing his hand against the soft skin of her shoulder. Beyond a small, mildly pleasant sounding murmur, she does not reply. Still, touching his girlfriend serves as instant stress relief.

But even with that comfort, he can't get the dream out of his head. Who was that, and why did he wield the Keyblade so confidently? What was wrong why his voice? How did that darkness come out.

Sora tries to lay back, tell himself it was just a silly dream. That it means nothing. Unfortunately, he just can't allow himself believe it. But by staying calm and scooting closer to Kairi, the Keybearer manages to get back to sleep.

KH-KH-KH

Deep in the darkness, a place no light has ever been seen, and never will be, it sleeps too. It dreams as well. But not for much longer. And when it finally awakens… That's when the Realm of Light's nightmares will truly begin.

Well, there it is. Life Goes On has finally finished after more than a year. I'm honestly kind of frustrated it took so long to get this done, considering it's less than a week until KH III. But there are other things you have to do in life besides write fanfiction, and this was possibly the greatest test of my creativity and maybe my most personal project ever. At least until the next one.

I'd like to say thank you here, for everyone who read and enjoyed and followed and favorited this story as I wrote it, sticking with me as I veered ever farther from canon. An especially big thanks to everyone who reviewed. On that note, shout out to Nightwing2013 for his great review of the last chapter. It really was the reaction I was going for.

I hope everyone reading this series will continue to enjoy it when the next installment, Kingdom Hearts: Keys to the Kingdom III comes out soon. Thank you again, I hope to see you soon.