This isn't my next project per se. It's not a main story, just something I came up with. A series of shorter story's that may range anywhere from one to three chapters, or may spawn a future story of mine. Without further adieu...

Song: Tabuu _ Brawl

The blue hedgehog was the clear victor of many battles thanks to his incredible speed, but there were many battles he faced where his speed wasn't enough to pull through. This is one of them, and it simply wasn't fair.

The hedgehog jumped back to his friends, and watched as the fat scientist, tall, dark skinned, red-haired man, and the dark-skinned, white-haired man sat back and let their colleague do the work.

He looked to his side and saw that the light-skinned, blonde swordsman in green had suffered a deep wound to his stomach.

On his other side, another blonde swordsman, this time wearing white, was very close to unconsciousness. He looked back and said "Don't worry about me, Sonic. Link's in bad shape."

"We all are, Roxas. This is the first time in a long while I've drained my stamina. And one of these times he'll actually hit my legs." Sonic replied.

Link looked at their opponent. "We can't win." The man was his height, dark skinned and had red hair as well. One would think he was related to the other man. They both also had yellow eyes.

But this one was nimble, a weapons master like himself, and a magician on top of that. It's also rumoured that he's trained for the express purpose of taking on multiple enemies at once. And he's just as good at one-on-one combat, if not better. He was also damaged, like them, but he wasn't showing signs of slowing down.

"We can't, but we know someone who can." Sonic said.

The man they were fighting cracked his knuckles, and put his nunchucks back in favor of a staff with a crystal on top. "This was fun, heroes. But it's time for your capture."

Sonic looked at his companions, who gave him a nod.

Link's hair turned white, he grew taller, and his eyes began to glow, and armor formed on his torso.

Sonic snapped his fingers, and a dark aura formed around him. His eyes also began to glow.

Roxas formed a black cloak around himself and summoned a second 'sword', the first one white, this one dark.

The boy they were facing nodded. "Dark forms for the Heroes of Light. Fitting." The boys eyes began to glow as well, and a sort of rainbow aura formed around him. "But I'm not through either."

The trio ran forwards, as did the boy, and the resulting clash caused the very Earth to shake.

Song: Event - The Base_Sonic Adventure 2

The three brave heroes ended up in a cell. They were at least healed once they were there.

"Man." Sonic said. "I didn't think he had it in 'im."

Link got off the floor. "Ganondorf and Xehanort joined the battle when we were winning. I can't blame them, but why wait till then?"

Roxas tried to unlock the cell with his Keyblade, but it wasn't working. "Maybe it's because Kyle's more powerful than them. Xehanort's strong, but he may have lost if Kyle didn't rough me up first."

Suddenly, they all had a sort of mental snap (I don't think I used that phrase correctly.)

Images came rushing through their heads.

Sonic held his forehead. "Guys… I think I may have met him before."

"Really?" Roxas said. "I think I did too."

Link nodded in agreement. "Me too."

But something was off. "But…" Sonic began. "These memories… they're much different than what I already had… in fact… I remember growing old!"

"I have two sets of memories." Roxas said.

"I have five." Sonic said nervously. They then turned to Link. "What about you?"

Link held up one hand with two fingers.

"Oh… that seems about…" He was interrupted when Link held up another hand with all fingers outstretched, then pulled his fingers back in and extended two of them. "Twenty-seven!?"

Link nodded. Roxas dropped his Keyblade. "How!?"

Just then, Kyle himself walked out of the shadows he watched them from, and smiled. "I was hoping this would happen to you guys eventually."

Sonic walked forwards. "Samuel… what happened to you?"

Kyle smiled. "That's not my name in this world. Nor was it my name in their worlds either."

"Doesn't matter what your name is… You've just told us that you are who we think you are. Now… What happened to you?" Roxas asked.

"In these situations, I tend to keep to whatever my self of the current world aspired to. In this world, I am a villain."

"You were a her…"

"No Sonic. I have never been a hero. In my own world, only one of my four personalities even considered being a hero, the others were neutral at best. In your world, I started out as a boy who just wanted revenge, and then grew to be an anti-hero. A similar pattern continues into the next world, and the next, and the next. Then, when I finally became conscious of the previous lives I have lived, I decided to just go with the flow, and I still have never been a hero."

"Previous lives…" Link repeated.

"Yes, old friend." Kyle said. "Everyone either already has reincarnated, or will reincarnate. Usually, reincarnation is limited to your own world. You should be an expert on that." Kyle chuckled. "But, before I existed, something happened. The laws of Time and Space went out of whack. Some people refer to this as being FUBARed, which means F***ed Up Beyond All Recognition. People could end up in their past lives, and even reincarnate across the dimensional gap, something I do constantly. We are not in control of how, where, or when we reincarnate, or even who we reincarnate as. We can take control of someone elses lives. I once became Axel. It was fun." Kyle looked at Roxas. "Got it memorized?"

Roxas scratched his head. "I think I got it."

"Now… as I mentioned, sometimes you can end up back in a life you once lived. Sometimes, even after you became conscious of your reincarnations, you end up living a whole life without regaining your memories, which has happened to me a few times." Kyle turned at the sound of heavy footsteps. "Here's another conscious person. The only person in this life who has bested me in combat."

Song: Road to Bowser_Super Mario Galaxy 2

A giant turtle creature walked into the room through a door the three heroes hadn't noticed. He had yellow scales and a green spiked shell. His hair was red and his eyes "Welcome to the multiverse, heroes!"

"Lord Bowser, the plumber has yet to arrive." Kyle said.

Bowser looked at the prisoners. "Are these the 'friends' you've told me about?"

"Yes." Kyle said. He turned back to the prisoners. "Apparently, Mario's been conscious before as well, but I have yet to meet him. I was hoping to meet him as a friend. It will be especially bad in this world, as even Lord Bowser hasn't defeated him yet, but I will continue with my course regardless. After all, I'm me, not my past selves. They serve as my guides. Nothing more."

Song: Overworld_Super Mario 3D World

"Let's a go!" A short brown haired man with blue eyes, blue overalls, and a red shirt and cap shouted. He wore brown shoes and white gloves, and had a red M in a white circle on his hat.

A girl followed behind him and mimicked his jumping maneuvers. "Is there anything else I should know about the whole Time-Space thing?" she asked. She had long green hair and purple eyes. She wore grey pants and a red shirt. Her shoes were brown, and she wore a blue pointed cap on her head.

"My main enemy, Bowser, is also conscious, and he's more powerful in this world than he normally is. I am too, but I've always been better than him. Now we're more or less equals." The man said.

"What about our friends, Mario? Are they conscious?"

"As far as I know, no they're not. What about your friend who's normally with you? Have you seen him yet?" Mario asked. He stepped on a Koopa and kicked his shell into a Goomba.

"No. And that's what worries me. I'm not always the best person in these worlds, but he's always been either on the line, or he is the line. He may be one of the villains this time."

"But is he conscious?"

The girl shrugged. "I don't know. He may have been showing signs of being conscious in some iterations, but this is the first time I've been conscious, so I don't know what those signs would be."

Song: Volcano Theme_New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Mario stopped when he saw lava, and pointed. "That's a sign that we're getting close." He jumped over a pit and crossed the lava land with his companion right behind him. "If only Peach weren't captured. In every world, she shows that she's just as capable as I am at least once, but it never keeps her from getting captured." Mario sighed. "Too bad Luigi isn't in this world. Do you ever miss your friends, Jasmine?"

Jasmine shrugged. "I'm new to this. I haven't been able to notice their absence until now… but you're right. Most of the time, it's just me and Samuel. A few times, his friend Lucy would appear as well. Maybe if we re-incarnated in our own world more often we'd see them."

Mario sighed. "I don't have an answer to that." They continued traveling, taking out Bowser's troops as they passed. Jasmine wondered why jumping on them was this effective, but decided against mentioning it.

Song: Ganondorf Theme_Orchestral

The villain who often fought with Link sat at his piano. He was waiting for the plumber, as per Bowser's orders.

Ganondorf looked at his instrument with glazed over eyes. "Have… have I done this before?" He had no time to think on this, as he heard footsteps behind him. "So you've arrived."

He looked above himself to see the hero dangling, almost lifelessly, in chains. "A marvelous transformation he possessed, yet… I triumphed over him. What hope do you two have?"

Mario chuckled. "Who do you think taught him to do it?"

Ganondorf held a hand to his head, for something seemed to be stirring in him. "It… wasn't you…"

"Hmm…" Mario thought, but he was sure he taught Link that.

"He… had it before… I remember… Power."

Mario was confused, but Jasmine figured it out. "He's conscious."

"Huh? You've met him before?"

Jasmine nodded. "Dragmire Ganondorf, the Gerudo King."

Ganondorf felt the memories returning. "You know one of the names I've had, yet I certainly don't remember you."

"I was one of your subjects. A Gerudo, like you." Jasmine stated. "But I guess I was a mere ant to your quest for power."

Ganondorf looked at his hand, but saw nothing there. "Does it not exist in this world?"

Song: Ganon_Four Swords Adventures

Mario ran forward. "It doesn't matter. You have my friend captured." Mario punched, but Ganondorf caught it.

Mario slid underneath him and uppercut him. "Whatever powers you had in another world, you have only yourself here!"

Ganondorf fired a magical projectile at Mario, but he was able to block it with his arms. "Not enough power!"

"I have the upper hand here, Dark Sorcerer!"

Ganondorf used a restraining spell, but it was blocked by a spell of Jasmines.

Mario kicked Ganondorf in the face and he fell back. "You may have defeated me, but this version of me is easily the weakest, even if the others didn't have the Triforce. Next time we meet, it will be in my world. I promise you that!" He watched as Mario and Jasmine walked past him. "You're… not going to kill me!?"

Song: Ancient Hero_Legendary Hero Remix

"No need. I try to refrain from killing…" Mario shuddered as he remembered how many times he actually managed not to kill. "But… Sometimes it happens." He shuddered. "So many Goombas."

"You've taken lives before. Take mine! I'm ready to be reborn with powers more in line with my previous incarnations! I will be the me I was when I fought the Hero of Time!"

Mario shook his head as he woke Link up. "You shall live knowing that you lost."

Link shook his head. "We should kill him now, (cough) before he finds something that could serve as the Triforce of Power in this world."

Mario shook his head as well. "Killing isn't the way." He then did a double take. "You're conscious!?"

Link nodded. "If he get's even just the Triforce of Power, he may be as powerful as Bowser is in this world. Maybe even more."

Ganondorf laughed. "Not this time. This version of me is weak. And you're no more powerful than I am."

Link nodded his head. "We're equals in this world, but even if I was weaker, I would still challenge you for the sake of the land."

Ganondorf nodded. "That courage of yours is amazing. I had it once, as well as the wisdom of the princess. But what happened to you then? I got the Triforce of Courage without realizing it, and you were no where to be found."

"Time travel. I had to go back to being a kid in order to awaken the Sage of Spirits. The world of that time was ruined because I was too big to fit in a whole. What luck." Link chuckled. "But my next incarnation defeated you without a single piece of the Triforce."

"I had degraded due to being trapped for so long. Without the Triforce, I was weak. You defeated me then because I had been sealed for a few thousand years."

Link nodded. "It's in the past. Well… it's not even in this world." He received a Life Mushroom to restore his wounds. "Roxas and Sonic are ahead."

Song: Xehanort_Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep

"In our world, I had to take over Terra's body before I met you. Now I'm actually young And I didn't lose my heart." Xehanort looked at Roxas's sleeping form. "What about you? You look like Ventus, as you did when we met, yet… I can tell. You're no Nobody."

"Xehanort!" Link yelled. He ran forward and attempted to stab him, but Xehanort raised a barrier.

Mario and Jasmine entered the room. "Xehanort. Master of Nothing. A fitting title."

"You're ignorant, and you remind me of that meddlesome King." Xehanort replied. "Will you prove to just barely be on my level, like he was?"

Mario readied a stance, but he saw that Link was ready for a fight. "I'll take him on myself. You wake up Roxas!"

"I will put you in Darkness, and then this world. Darkness is the heart's true essence."

Link shuddered. "I won't need that power to defeat you, but maybe a bit of Darkness won't hurt." Link shrouded himself in dark energy, and he emerged with a black tunic, purple hair, and red eyes. "I will use my own power."

Song: Black Powder_Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep

Xehanort summoned his Keyblade and swung at Link, who blocked it with a slash of his own. He then used their connected shadows to pull Xehanort off of his feet, but the Keyblade Master countered by firing a ball of Darkness at Link's face. "Oh, how this reminds me of how I became young again in my world. But you're darkness is not like Terra's. You're controlling it, as opposed to it controlling you. Let's change that!" Xehanort turned to strike Roxas, but Mario stopped him from moving.

"Focus on your opponent!" Xehanort turned to be stabbed in the arm by Link.

Xehanort fired a laser at Link to push him back. "I already have some of the powers of my old self. Maybe… Guardian!" Nothing happened. "Oh well." He fired many shots of dark energy at Link that he couldn't avoid, but Link got close again and knocked Xehanort over.

Link took out a bow, with an arrow that shined. "We may both have Darkness, but only one of us is evil!" He fired at Xehanort as he got up, and the arrow did more damage than all his previous attacks did.

Xehanort screamed, and then fell back to the ground.

Roxas, now awake, walked up to Link. "Nice job."

Song: Roxas's theme

Link looked back at Roxas. "Lenny…"

Roxas stared at him for a moment, then realized. "Different names in each world. I remember. You're wondering if the Light Arrow will hurt him this much as well, aren't you."

Link nodded.

"Wait…" Jasmine said. "Lenny?"

Roxas nodded. "He told us that he's had different names in each world he appeared in. He appeared to Sonic as Samuel, me as Blyxil (an anagram of Billy with and X inserted), and to Link as Lenny. In this world, he's Kyle, and he's on their side."

Jasmine nodded. "It makes sense. Kyle was the personality that was the most bent on destruction. But… He's our enemy now?"

Roxas nodded.

Mario, the only one who didn't know Kyle, didn't have much input. "Is he conscious?"

Link nodded, and Roxas added "He has this thing where he won't completely take control of his new selves life. His memories only act as guides as opposed to driving his actions."

Link shuddered at a memory, but he didn't tell the others what it was.

"Well… have any of you…"

Roxas shook his head. "This is the first time me, Link and Sonic became conscious."

The group went forwards for their blue friend.

Song: Eggman_06

"I should kill you right now, you blue pest!" Eggman yelled as he spoke to his enemy who seemed to stop him in every world they'd been in.

Sonic smiled. "But you won't. Bowser doesn't care, but Kyle ordered that we be kept alive, and he outranks you, Eggman."

Said doctor rubbed his temples. "You're lucky that this incarnation of me actually chose that name. Two of my predecessors would've killed you on the spot."

The group of heroes that was building up entered the room. Sonic looked at them. "About time, slowpokes. I was getting sleepy!"

"Shut it!" Eggman jumped into his newest mech, a giant… well… him. "If I recall correctly, this is the creation of mine that two of your incarnations had real trouble with, but this incarnation of me happened to have made it so that a few of my other robots functions are in it too. Your friends don't stand a chance."

Sonic looked over the robot, and saw that it was the Death Egg Robot mixed with Big Arm and the Egg Breaker. "Eh. I could beat it, therefore Mario will…" Then he saw Eggman show that this creation was actually kind of fast. "Well I could beat it…" Sonic wasn't sure if Mario had the speed for this fight.

Roxas stepped forward. "I'll cut it down to size." He once again summoned two Keyblades and his cloak.

Sonic looked at his cloak. "I think this one's even darker than the one you summoned when we fought Kyle."

Roxas looked a the cloak. "This… this is the cloak Roxas wore in Sora's heart."

Jasmine looked confused. "You're Roxas, but who's Sora?"

Roxas was about to turn back, but Eggman was ready to attack.

Song: Death Egg Robot

The mech ran forward and launched it's hand at Roxas. Roxas blocked it with both Keyblades, but was pushed back. Roxas then slashed at it, making marks, but not getting much.

The mech jumped and attempted to stomp on him. Roxas turned into a ball of light and zoomed out of the way. "What!?"

Roxas slashed at the back of the robot and knocked it over.

"GRRRRGh! Time for a change of pace!" Eggman moved the mech over to platforms on the side of the room and used his robots extendo arm to attack Roxas.

Roxas jumped out of the way, and then summoned a ball of light above him. He twirled the Keyblades in circles as many more balls of light launched themselves at Eggman.

The mech was visibly breaking, but Roxas seemed to be getting tired too. A light formed around him as his cloak became visibly lighter.

"Not bad." Eggman taunted as the bottom half of the Robot broke off.

Song: Big Arm

The mech now hovered in the air. Being half its former size, and still three times Roxas's size. "Thunder!" Roxas yelled, but his spell missed it's mark.

Roxas jumped into the air to reach it and slash at it. "Roxas, no!" Sonic yelled, but it was too late as the robot grabbed hold of Roxas and threw him to a piece of ground that was separated from the rest of the room.

Roxas picked up his Keyblades from the ground, and jumped as he felt his platform rumbling. "Whoa!" He screamed as he saw Eggman right below him and saw that his robot had spikes on it's head. "Freeze!" Roxas shot a blizzard spell at the robot.

"Ha ha! You're trapped over here, and you don't jump as high as Sonic can! No Emeralds to save you either!"

Roxas hovered in the air, surprising Eggman, and glided back over to the main room.

"Oh no you don't!" Eggman grabbed hold of Roxas again, but this time, Roxas slashed open the robot and fell to the ground with various pieces of metal.

Song: Egg Breaker

Eggman's mech fell to the ground, and Roxas saw that there was a whole nother mech inside the previous one, but it was only twice as tall as Roxas. "Don't let the size fool you!" Eggman showed that this mech was pretty fast by running circles around Roxas and slamming him to the ground with his mace.

Roxas got up and ran around the room. His cloak disappeared as a sign of how tired he was. "Fire!" He yelled, but this time nothing happened.

"Out of juice?" Eggman crashed into him again.

Roxas was completely out of energy, so Mario jumped into the fight.

He leaped into the air and punched the robot backwards. "Can you heal?"

Roxas shook his head. Link pulled him back and gave him a red drink. "You got a green potion in there, too?" Link shook his head. Roxas, though filled with energy, sat back again. "What I wouldn't do for an ether."

Mario and the Egg Breaker ran circles around each other. They were even in speed, and the robot was stronger. Mario needed something.

"Mario!" Jasmine yelled. She through a bell and a metal mushroom his way.

Mario caught them, and turned into a metal cat. "Now you're going to get it!"

Mario ran towards the Egg Breaker, now faster, and whacked it with his tail, and then scratched at it with his claws.

Eggman was caught off guard, and simply sat there in his Egg Mobile as his mech broke. "I've never seen items like those."

Song: Ending_Sonic Adventure 2

Sonic, now freed, walked up to the scientist. "No Electric or Fire Shields here. Just a plumber with alot of things that could catch you off guard." Sonic high fived Mario.

"What do we do about Samuel/Billy/Lenny/Kyle/Max?" Jasmine asked.

"Max? I don't remember him having that name." Roxas said.

Sonic shook his head. "So we fight him. So what? He's still our friend. Maybe not in this world, but in many others, and many others to come. What happens this world isn't as important as the memories we share. I for one will look upon this memory with Samuel and we'll share a laugh. One day."

Mario nodded his head. "If you guys are worried about fighting him, that means he was a good friend. I'll look forward to meeting him again one day. Hopefully as friends."

"I look forward to that day as well." Kyle said as he walked into the room, with Bowser a few feet ahead of him.

Song: World 8_Super Mario 3D World

"Mario! We meet again!" Bowser boomed. "I see you're conscious!"

"And you are too, I assume." Mario said, ready to fight.

Kyle looked at Jasmine and waved. "Before any fighting begins, I have two requests."

Jasmine, Sonic, Link, and Roxas nodded in Kyle's direction.

"I want this to play out as close to how it would if none of us were conscious as possible. That's how I operate in these worlds. Look to your unconscious memories. I was directly linked to everything that's happened in the past year. I'm the reason you're on your quest. I also helped your enemies raise their powers so that they would be a bigger threat. I'm a villain. You are heroes. Don't go easy on me!"

Jasmine nodded. "We will fight in this world as enemies, but in another world, we may be friends again. What's your second request?"

Kyle nodded to Roxas. "In another life, when we're friends again, tell me about your transformations you used in this world."

Roxas nodded. "Sure."

Bowser snapped his fingers, and their villainous allies returned at full power for this final battle.

Everyone who was still hurt healed up first chance they got.

Mario readied his best power-ups, and Bowser had some tricks of his own to use.

Link had his sword ready, and Light Arrows at the top of his pack, and Ganondorf had a sword of his own as well as his spells.

Roxas immediately went to full power, and Xehanort finally managed to summon his Guardian.

Sonic was ready to go Dark, and he had one of every shield to use, while Eggman had a shiny new mech to use.

Kyle and Jasmine stared each other down. "What will the aftermath of this battle be?" Jasmine asked.

Kyle shrugged. "Maybe I'll change my ways. Maybe I'll die. Who knows?"

A tear fell from her eyes, but she readied her weapon anyway, as did Kyle. "Why are you crying? This isn't the first world we've fought in."

"But you're actually a villain this time, and there's nothing troubled about you. Why did you become a villain?"

"Seemed fun." Kyle answered. "And I simply didn't like the world. I was alone, like most of my lives start, but this me enjoyed it. I didn't want to watch the world burn, I wanted to make it burn. This me is this you's enemy. Do right by yourself, and face me."

Jasmine nodded.

Song: Bowser_Super Mario 64

The fight began, and everyone got separated. Bowser purposely teleported him and Mario into another room. Mario ran towards Bowser, avoiding the fireballs he shot at him. Mario activated his wing cap and flew behind Bowser and grabbed his tail, spinning him as they rose into the air, and threw him into the sky.

Bowser looked back at Mario and laughed. "I'm just getting started!" He snapped his fingers and teleported them to another room, where a sphere pulled them in.

Song: King Bowser_Super Mario Galaxy

Bowser ate a Super Mushroom, the one power-up Mario didn't have at the moment, and grew from twice Mario's size to four times his size.

Bowser ran towards Mario and spun in his shell. Mario was flattened, but he got up and knocked Bowser back when he came back around. Bowser fell on his back, but jumped into the air to ground pound Mario.

Mario dodged, and the glass below them broke. Mario jumped to a stable piece as Bowser burned in lava.

"Why use failed strategies again?" Mario asked.

Bowser laughed. "I'm testing you, to see if these strategies work when we're equals. I guess they don't." The teleported once again to a large tower.

Song: Final Bowser Phase two_Super Mario 3D World

Bowser held the Super Bell in his hand, and Mario did the same. Bowser attacked, and Mario jumped back and began climbing the building with Bowser just behind him.

More building came out of the ground. "A digital room? Or another area entirely?" He jumped to another building. Bowser did the same, but he opted to attack Mario while he was in midair. Bowser broke the building, and switched his power up from Cat to Ice. He spit a trail of ice at Mario, which managed to hit.

Mario's ice block hit the ground and broke, and Mario got up to the sight of Cape Bowser.

Mario saw the platform below them collapse and used his own Super Cape to fly. "You've never used this form before!"

Bowser laughed. "I decided to try something new!" Bowser then threw a Metal Cap at Mario, causing him to plummet to the ground. Mario dismissed it, and dodged a ground pound from Bowser.

Song: Bowser_Mario Strikers Charged

"That's not working either. That's it. No power-ups. No tricks! Mano y Mano!"

Mario nodded his head. He remembered one life where he could use the powers of fire without a Fire Flower, one of the power-ups he hasn't seen in this world. He sparked his hands and saw that that was the case in this world too.

Bowser breathed a small amount of fire to taunt Mario in response.

They both took up a stance, and then ran at each other in one last battle.

Does Mario defeat Bowser once and for all? Or does Bowser finally win? And what happens with the others? That, my friends… is up to you. But you may be wondering how this world starts in the first place, and how each group met. That shall be answered in another story. But until then, there are other worlds to explore. Other lives to see being lived, conscious or not. (Stories where none of the characters are conscious may or may not be in this story. I haven't decided yet)

On another note, my profile now has Bio's for my original characters, and overviews of both Darkness Within, and stories I have planned for the future. I will add a section going over guidelines for Fan Characters soon.