Kingdom Hearts III: Trials of the Keyblade



Kingdom Hearts III: Trials of the Keyblade is a fanfiction story written by Darius Almighty on the website www.fanfiction.net. It takes place after Kingdom Hearts II, and involves Sora, Riku, and Kairi's newest quest to gather a crack team of Keybladers to thwart the schemes of the Galactic Empire, all the while being stalked by the mysterious Chasers.

Trials of the Keyblade is notable for mixing in a large number of elements from sources besides Disney and Square, most notably the Star Wars movies. Another main plot-line involves other acting Keybladers besides Sora and Riku. Kairi gets her own Keyblade early on, and, as the story progresses, other heroes from the various worlds join them, including (so far): Mulan, the Beast, Captain Jack Sparrow, Inuyasha, Naruto, Jack Skellington, and Aladdin.

The most visible antagonists in the story are the Galactic Empire, headed by Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader. Early on, the Empire invades Radiant Garden under the guise of benefactors, hoping to recruit Sora for their own dark needs. When they are refused, they drop the charade and take over the world, forcing Sora and Kairi to flee with Leon's team, becoming refugees. Riku stays behind and is captured.

Meanwhile, Maleficent and Pete, having converted the abandoned Castle That Never Was into a mobile fortress, set out on a new expedition to once again capture the Seven Princesses of Heart and gain access into Kingdom Hearts. Besides Sora and his friends, they face opposition from a rival conqueror, the Horned King. With the aid of his Tsivet henchmen, the King sets his eyes on the same goal as Maleficent, even creating a new, more powerful breed of Heartless to further his ends.

But the most dangerous threat is the Chasers, rogue Keybladers of unfathomable power who are killing other Keybladers to steal their weapons for an unknown goal. Early on, the Chasers attack King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy as they are en route to meet Sora. The King is put into a coma from the attack, and Donald and Goofy are lost, their current whereabouts unknown. It doesn't take long for the Chasers to set their eyes on Sora, and nothing will stop them from killing him and his friends to get their precious Keyblades.