Hello, everybody! The gangs finally meet! But first…

Chapter 18: The Hero of Time

The Fulbright House

Mario carefully jumped Bowser's fireballs as the two held their epic clash upon the bridge above the boiling lava within the castle. Just as Bowser jumped, Mario quickly ran under to try and flip the switch that would make the bridge crumble, leading to Bowser's demise. But it was too late as Bowser came down and squashed the plumber flat, and the screen on the television read GAME OVER.

"Aw, man! I'm never gonna beat Bowser!" Shaunie whined after failing the game. The 5-year-old stopped playing his game for a second, hearing a forceful knock at the door. "AHH!" he screamed when the door blew down, a squad of Stormtroopers marching in.

The boy quaked in fear as the leading Trooper held and read a sheet of paper. "Shaunie Frideric Fulbright: by order of Sith Lord Darth Genious, you are under arrest for assistance with the KND and crimes against evil."

"NO! ! I'M TOO YOUNG TO GO TO JAIL! PLEASE DON'T TAKE ME!" Shaunie begged, weeping on the floor.

"Alright, boys, take him in."

"HEYAH!"

"OOMPH!" The captain was suddenly knocked out by Mushi Sanban, jumping and kicking the back of his head. The other Stormtroopers were about to shoot her, but she flipped and kicked off more of them. Tommy Gilligan also appeared and beat the soldiers with a S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R..

Once they finished, Mushi grabbed Shaunie's arm and yelled, "Come on!", dragging the boy out of there.

"Ohhh…" one of the Stormtroopers groaned. "Seriously, why do we even need this armor? It can't even protect from bratty punches."

"We'll file a complaint to Brain later." The captain said. "For right now, let's go after those brats and-"

"Oh, 'ello, boys!" greeted Mrs. Fulbright, walking in with a tray of steaming chocolate chip cookies. "There's a whole bunch of cookies in the kitchen if you're hungry!"

"Oh boy, cookies!" The Stormtroopers cheered as they ran into the kitchen.

The three children kept running as Mushi dragged Shaunie, stopping as Tommy opened a sewer lid. "In here." Mushi instructed, leading him down the lid.

The three of them made their way to a secret underground hideout, the same one from before the battle against Malladus. There, they found several other kids: Sammy, Jessica, Joey, and, floating at the front of the room, Luvbi. "Ah, finally, thou art here. Taketh thine seats. We hath much to discuss."

Tommy and Mushi smiled and sat on some cardboard boxes, Shaunie doing the same, looking confused.

"Now… ast thou mayhap be wary, our fair world ist being invaded by beings most foul." Luvbi spoke. "Whilst Sector V and many others art on great adventure to yonder, 'tis up to us to provide assistance when needed! We must fighteth off these wicked beings and saveth our world!"

"Excuse me? Ms. Luvbi?" Jessica spoke. "Will we be hurting my daddy? He works for these guys and I'm worried about him."

"If we art fortunate, thy father wilt come out of this unharmed. Our first priority, however, wilt be to infiltrate an enemy stronghold."

"But how're we going to do that?" Tommy asked.

"A baba blaba boo!" Joey gibbered.

"Mmmm. Seemeth young Joey hath a plan." Right away, the baby Beatles led the small group to a secret passageway in the wall, leading down a staircase.

The children walked down the stairs before stopping and hiding as they watched Koopa soldiers throw supplies onto a train, led by Bowser Jr.. "Hurry up, guys! My dad and Kammy need all this junk to power our minions! That mean Mario guy might be here and we need to be ready!"

"What are they up to?" Shaunie asked.

"Some plan most foul." Luvbi guessed. "Let us stowaway in one of their crates. I feel that this train will taketh us further." The team of kids then snuck past the Koopas into a crate of Mushrooms. Two Koopatrols closed the crate and hauled it onto the back of the train.

"Do you think we'll be okay, Sammy?" Jessica asked, worriedly.

"Do not worry, Jessica. As long as we are together, nothing can stop us!" Sammy declared.

"All right! The Tommy is off on another adventure!" Tommy exclaimed.

"YAAAY!" Mushi cheered.

"Ahh, that's the last of 'em." Bowser Jr. sighed, loading the last crate. "Alright, all aboard. Let's shove off. Oh, and when we pass by the Forest of Darkness, no one wet their pants. I just cleaned this thing." With that, a Koopa driver pulled the rope and blew the whistle as Bowser Jr. got on and the train rode off.

Chicago, Indiana

"All right! We did it!" Tails cheered after their victory.

"Hehehe. That was sweet." Sonic said.

"We couldn't have done it without you guys." Nigel said, shaking Sonic's hand. "But would you mind explaining who you are?"

"We come from the Nintendia Galaxy." Blaze replied. "My friends and I hail from Planet Mobius, a world of sentient animals."

"And we come from the Mushroom Kingdom." Peach followed. "Our planets are sort of like neighbors." Mario nodded in agreement.

"Well, I figured you guys were aliens." Nigel said. "We don't have too many talking animals around here."

"Yeah, I can see that. Anyways, I'm Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog!"

"I'm Nigel Uno. Numbuh 1 of the Kids Next Door."

"Huhuhu. Nice shades!"

"Wow, this weapon is incredible!" Tails exclaimed with wonder, holding the S.C.A.M.P.P.. "I've never seen a laser weapon work with this sort of material!"

"Thanks! I got tons others back home! Name's Hoagie Gilligan!" the chubby pilot introduced.

"My name's Miles Prower! But my friends call me by my nickname, Tails!"

"Hey, Tails, you should see my planes sometime."

"I LOVE planes!"

"'ey, Mate! Good fists on ya!" Wally said to Knuckles.

"Thanks." The echidna smiled. "My name is Knuckles. Unlike Sonic, I don't chuckle."

"Ah'm Wally Beatles!" The boy shook Knuckles' hand. "You and me should have a boxing match one day!"

"I won't miss that!"

"Wow! Great hammer!" Kuki said happily to Amy.

"Thank you. My name's Amy. Amy Rose."

"Hiya, Amy! My name's Kuki, but my friends call me Numbuh 3. I like your dress!"

"Thanks! Nice shirt!"

"Hey, girl! Nice boots." Abby said to Rouge.

"Thanks. I'm Rouge the Bat, but… you can call me Rouge."

"Call me Abby. I'm a spy."

"Really? So am I!"

Shadow was turned away as Rachel stood by him, thinking of what to say. "Uh… hey! I'm Rachel! I'm, uh… the KND leader."

"…Hmph. I'm Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog. I am the ultimate life form."

"Cool!"

"Hiya!" Violet greeted Blaze. "My name's Violet McCleary! I'm a werecat!"

"Hm. I am Blaze. Blaze the Cat. Princess and Guardian of the Sol Emeralds."

"Nice vacuum." Fanny said to Luigi. "I'm Fanny."

"Hey, Fanny! I'm Luigi! This is my older, er, more famous brother, Mario."

"Oh ho ho ho." Mario still looked dizzy from the mushroom earlier.

"Poor Mario. My name's Princess Peach." The princess introduced. "And this is Toad."

"Hey!" the mushroom head waved.

"Wow! Nice dino!" Paddy complimented.

"Yoshi!" Yoshi thanked him.

"So, how did you guys get here?" Nigel asked.

"Funny story!" Sonic perked up. "See, we-"

"Ahem." Clockwork coughed. "If I could have your attention… I am here to indulge some important info. First off, the Firstborn Spirit known as Celebi has been found by Nova, her Guardian."

"One of the Eight Firstborn has been found?" Sonya asked. "That's great!"

"Yes. In other news, Grim and Facilier have learned something important. If you would?"

"Ahem, first of all, Grim had to leave 'cause he had Underworld stuff ta do." Facilier spoke. "Said he can't hang around wit' these mortals forever. Anyway, we learn somethin' 'bout Ganondorf. Ages ago, Ganondorf was defeated and sent to the Underworld by a Legendary Hero, who wielded a powerful sword. The Master Sword. A'ight? Anyway, Grim and I learned that the Hero is the ancestor of… the McKenzie Family."

All eyes were now on Rachel, who looked shocked. "Y…You mean me?"

"The blood of the Hero runs within your veins." Clockwork said, changing to an old man. "The power of the Triforce of Courage dwells within you, just as the legendary sword has been in your possession."

"…You mean… Rachel has the Master Sword?" Nigel asked, finding this hard to believe.

"Indeed. In fact, she's been using it all this time."

"What? No I haven't. The only weapon I use is my staff." She said, holding up her Yield Staff.

"Really? And just what did the one who bestowed the staff say about its background?"

"Well… Chad gave it to me. Before I became leader. He said it was a weapon meant to be passed down from leader to leader."

"That's because it's been ordered by the very first leader, who wrote it in the Book of KND. When Numbuh Zero found the book, he read where it was stated. He told his successor, Robert McKenzie, to pass it to the leader after him, and so on. Because the spirits knew, eventually, the one who was descended from the Hero would one day hold the sword. And now that that time has come…" Clockwork held out his glowing right hand, "the sword will recognize its master."

Rachel held and stared at the staff as it started to glow a bright blue. Clockwork waved his hand as the staff flashed, turning into a silver sword with a dark blue hilt and a golden emblem. "Coool." Lee drew out as they all gaped.

"Heh hey! This is pretty awesome!" Rachel said, rubbing the smooth, shiny sword. She then felt the sword start to shake. "Hey. Wh-What- WHOA!" The sword immediately unleashed a glowing light ball that flew around the area before crashing on the ground before Rachel. (Play Fi's Theme from Zelda: Skyward Sword.)

The light formed together, becoming a strange, light-blue female spirit in a purple robe, who seemed to have blank eyes. The strange being stood up to face Rachel. "I have been awaiting your call, Master."

"Uh… who are you?"

"My name is Fi. I am the Spirit of the Master Sword. Eons ago, I assisted the Great Hero in vanquishing the evil demon. When his journey was complete, I was sealed inside the Master Sword. When the kingdom where the sword had been forged was long since forgotten, the sword had taken the form of a Yield sign. After thousands of years of eternal rest, I am finally awake to serve my master's descendent, with the newly revitalized Master Sword."

"So I have my own spirit servant now? Aw, baby!" Rachel cheered.

"Cool!" Wally exclaimed. "Let me have a swing at it!" Wally was about to take the sword when- "AAAAHHHHH!" It gave him a blinding shock. "Uhhh…" he groaned, covered in soot.

"Don't take what isn't yours, Wally!" Angie scolded.

"As you might infer from the short Australian's shock, the sword can only be held by the Hero's descendants."

"'EY! I am not short!"

"I calculate an 80% chance that you are shorter than most 10-year-olds."

"Alright, that's it! I'm gonna-" Wally punched the spirit dead in the stomach, only for his face to freeze from the pain in his knuckles. "….YOOOOOOWWWWWW!"

"I forgot to inquire that my skin is made of 90% pure diamond, so any punching attacks will likely be ineffective."

"Ohhh…" He fainted.

"Moving on, I am quite gifted with intelligence about the world around you. If you should require any helpful hints, I await your call, Master." With that, she jumped back in the sword. (End song.)

"…Hehe… this day's been full of surprises, huh?" Rachel chuckled.

"The Master Sword is the blade of evil's bane." Clockwork said. "Holding it, you hold incredible power in your hands. But, as with all beings, power comes in light and darkness, so you must learn to control it. The power of Darkness can come in any shape and form. Tell me: Did you not see the black shadow that rose from Harvey's form?"

"You mean that black, bald kid?" Sonya asked.

"That was Phantom Gnaa. An evil spirit that makes up Gnaa's Darkness. Phantom Gnaa is the incarnation of Darkness that Gnaa has endured throughout the years, mixed into a body of its own that now serves as Gnaa's only friend."

"Wow… that's kinda sad." Morgan frowned.

Clockwork nodded. "And people who rely on Darkness will only live in Darkness."

"But why does Lord Gnaa need Harvey as his vessel?" Rachel asked.

"Harvey and Lord Gnaa share a similar darkness. They both feel betrayed and mocked by people around them. Gnaa sensed this darkness and was able to mend Harvey's soul with his own when he was thrown into the Well of Shadows. Gnaa was able to take control of Harvey's body, and manipulate him to his will."

"But… what does Morgan have to do with it?" Nigel asked.

"Hmm…" Clockwork smiled, changing to a baby. "All will be revealed… in time."

"Ugh. Figured." Jagar whined.

"Well, can you at least tell us where to go now?" Nigel asked.

"I know one thing: I wanna master our psychic powers." Buddy said.

"Totally." Athena said. "I mean, with all THIS going on… can anyone help?"

"I have a suggestion:" Clockwork spoke. "His name is Mewtwo. He lives on an island called New Island, out in the middle of the ocean. He is an ancient psychicbending master, and the most powerful of all. He will be an excellent teacher for the 4 of you."

"We can take the Old Orleans!" Facilier perked up. "Mah yacht's faster than ANY in the port!"

"Another sea adventure? I'm in!" Eva agreed.

"Aw, that'll be RIPPER, Mate! Cap'n Marine out on another wild adventure!" Marine exclaimed.

"Uh-huh… so, do you guys know Marine?" Nigel asked Sonic.

"Aw, of COURSE they do, Mate!" Marine said, wrapping an arm around Sonic's head. "Me mates, Sonic and Tails 'ere are what got me on my great adventures! Thanks to them, I'm the great adventurer you see today!"

"Ugh… so how do you know her?" Sonic asked.

"Uh, we'll tell you about it later." Nigel replied.

"Right." Morgan nodded. "Let's just get onto Facilier's yacht, go to New Island, and-" She stopped when they felt rumbling, everyone looking around.

"WOOHOOOO! !" The team dodged to the side as a massive black semi-truck, with a large rectangular box; which had a "G" symbol, on the back, flew overhead, landing and turning around, parking beside the team.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Boba Fett exclaimed, popping out of the box, shooting electric ropes at The Quads that stunned and zapped them. Some Cop Cars sped up to them, the police running out as they grabbed and threw the siblings into the crate, shutting it tight.

Driving the huge truck were none other than the Eds themselves. "Forget train driving." Eddy said. "This truck business is where the money is, baby!"

"Um, Eddy, what cargo are we carrying again?" Double D asked.

"Ah, I dunno. They said some animals, I think. Ahem, okay, boys! Let's haul these babies back to GUN H.Q.!"

"I hope we're carrying chickens, guys! Uh hu huah hu!" Ed laughed, and with that, the huge truck sped off.

"Catch you down the open road, kids! Ahh ha ha ha!" Boba laughed, sitting atop the truck and waving.

"They're taking them to their headquarters!" Shadow exclaimed.

"We have to help them!" Nigel yelled.

"Patience." Clockwork spoke, switching to his normal form. "Someone has it covered."

Noah Heart watched from her window as the truck drove away with her friends. She immediately ran downstairs, finding her mom doing taxes at the living room table, seeing her car keys on the counter. She grabbed them and quickly said, "Mom, I'm taking the car to save my friends from the police." before running out.

"Okay, just be back by… wait, what-"

Noah hopped into her baby-blue Camaro, starting the car up, backing out of the driveway, and shouting, "I'M COMING, BUDDY!", as she chased after the truck. (Play the "Classic City Escape" Theme from Sonic Generations!)

Stage 14: City Retreat

Mission: Chase after and rescue The Quads!

Noah Heart chased the massive truck, leaving the outskirts and entering the city. "Oh no you don't!" Boba Fett said, spotting Noah and standing up, trying to shoot the blue car, but Noah swerved and avoided.

"This'll be easy going, boys!" Eddy exclaimed, driving the truck with sunglasses on.

Edd looked in the side mirror, seeing the blue car chasing them. "Um, Eddy… it seems someone doesn't want us to get there."

"Ah, relax. We'll get 'em. Stop it, Ed!"

"I'm an upchuck!" Ed said. He laughed goofily as he dropped things out of the truck, such as a vase, a club, a desk, a piano, but Noah dodged them.

"Ahh… time to ditch it!" With that, Eddy quickly turned the large truck down a corner to the side.

"WHOA!" Boba yelled, nearly falling off from the momentum. Noah only continued straight ahead, looking for a way to ambush the truck. But right away, it came back down another road, getting behind and chasing the Camaro.

"HAHA! This oughta ram ya!" Eddy shouted, smirking.

Noah looked worried as the GUN Truck got closer. She saw the autopilot switch in the car, pressing it, then rolling out, the truck passing by and chasing only the car. "Phew." She sighed, standing and brushing herself. She heard sirens and looked back to see a bunch of Cop Cars coming over. She ran ahead, but some cars were coming from there, too.

The cops stopped and got out of their cars, running to grab the girl. Noah only punched and kicked as she ran from them. They tried to shoot her, but she ducked and kicked them some more. She was encountered by a fat cop with yellow skin, who said, "Alright, little girl, ride's over."

Noah only smirked as she proceeded to crawl under him.

"Ah, aw, no, don't do that." The fat cop said, unable to bend down. "I can't bend down enough to reach-" His pants then slid down. "Aw, noo! My keys…"

Noah kept running down the street to a highway bridge. A voice screamed from the distance, "SLOW DOWN, ED!"

"I don't know how to drive, Eddy!" Noah looked to the left to see the large truck flying over some buildings. The girl immediately ran to the other side of the highway bridge as the truck landed and ran over the whole bridge. When she kept going, some Laser Hunter robots landed and tried shooting her, but she ran and slid under their shields, kicking off their legs.

When she made it to another crossroad, she saw her Camaro speeding down a hill to the left, jumping in when it passed, then driving it herself. She rode over a highway going around, looking to see Boba Fett to the right, standing on the large truck below the highway, firing five missiles at the girl. Noah boosted the car as the missiles gained close behind her, but they ended up bumping sides and exploding themselves, allowing Noah to keep going.

As she continued, the truck came up a hill to the right, chasing after the girl again. She decided to turn on the autopilot again, hopping out right and rolling down a rough hill, finding herself at a construction site. She ran toward the construction tower and got on a steel beam which a crane lifted and stuck onto the building.

"Ed, you don't even know how to drive!" Eddy shouted from the distance.

"I thought YOU were driving, Eddy!" Edd replied.

"Guess not! WHOOAAA!" The huge truck flew over some more buildings and landed at the construction site, speeding and running over the bottom part of the steel building, making it shorter as Noah fell to the ground. She watched as the Eds turned the truck around the building, then around again coming toward it. She saw two vertical beams close together and decided to Wall Jump up them, getting to a higher area before another section was run over, the building sinking.

The truck was making another round, so Noah climbed a rope hanging down, reaching another section before the truck ran over the lower one, sinking the building more. Some floating GUN Beetles made a staircase to the top section, so Noah kicked off the military drones and reached the top of the tower (which was now very shortened).

Just before the truck could ram the rest of it over, Noah grabbed onto a crane's hook, hauling her up and carrying her to a cliff where a skate park was. She saw a skateboard on the ground and jumped on, skating and grinding a rail down some stairs. She rolled into one of the skating ditches, dodging several skateboarders as she went into a tunnel, flying out at the other side, where there she saw tons of stairs going down a hill, several turns along the way.

She landed on the rail and proceeded to grind down the long staircase, ducking any GUN Beetles that flew or shot toward her. After reaching the bottom, she saw her Camaro drive by, jumping off her board and into the driver's seat, driving down another street. (Play the "City Escape Truck Chase" Theme from Generations!)

"YEEEEHAAAWWWW!" Noah looked behind in horror and sped the car even faster as the truck came after her at high speed, with three saws at the front. "Let's see if you can dodge THIS!" Eddy shouted, pressing a button, making the center saw try and slice her, but she moved left. Eddy pressed another button, making the left saw try and slice her.

As Noah avoided the saws, Boba Fett flew over her with a trashcan, dumping various things in front of her which she also had to avoid. She was coming up to a line of Cop Cars, but she drove up a ramp, flying right over, the GUN Truck following close behind.

The large truck then started firing lasers, burning along the ground, following Noah as she drove away from it, while dodging the chainsaws. Boba Fett shot missiles that she narrowly dodged, then proceeded dropping more trash. "Bah." Eddy grumbled, pushing a button and switching on some boost rockets. Noah went at full speed, but the truck came even faster. "End of the line, blondie!"

However, the Eds' expressions turned to pure horror when they saw Boba Fett dump out a banana peel.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" The massive truck slipped on the tiny banana peel, flipping upside down and scraping along the ground. The truck flipped again and started rapidly spinning vertically, with the front and back hitting the ground. As a result, the door on the back of the box forced open, causing The Quads to fall out, landing safely on the ground.

The truck then scraped along its side, sliding over to a towering hotel building. "WAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! ! !" the Eds' screams echoed across the city.

Cleveland Brown, taking a bath in that hotel at the time, looked out the window in horror as the truck approached. "Oh no! Why does this always have to hap-" But before he could finish, the truck collided with the tower, erupting in a massive explosion that took the whole tower down.

"Ssss-oohhh… WELL-P, Ah'm out." Boba Fett admitted defeat, flying away immediately.

"Ohhhhh…" the Eds groaned, dizzy and covered with soot after the explosion.

"Grrrrr!" The Eds gulped at a naked and angry Cleveland Brown, glaring at them.

"AAHHH!"

"COME BACK HERE!" the naked man yelled, chasing the cowering Eds down the streets.

Noah immediately drove over to her friends as they brushed off. "Are you guys okay?"

"Great! Thanks for saving us, Noah!" Buddy thanked.

"No problem! But just one more thing…" she said, getting out of the car and walking to Buddy.

"OW!" he yelped when she slapped him.

"Told you I was gonna beat you!" The girls just laughed as Buddy rubbed his arm. (Stop the music.)

Soon, the rest of the gang ran over and accompanied them. "Nice work, guys!" Tails exclaimed.

"Boy, you kids are somethin'." Knuckles said.

"Hey, what's that?" Sophie pointed to a light-blue glow in the spot where the truck exploded.

Shadow immediately ran to it, finding a light-blue gem. "A Chaos Emerald!" he exclaimed, picking it up.

"Guess GUN had it with them." Rouge figured.

"What are Chaos Emeralds?" Hoagie asked.

"A waste of gems if you ask me." At this, they turned to the time spirits. "Chaos Emeralds are SOO easy to find." Olive said. "It's hard to believe there're only seven."

"But the Chaos Emeralds are magical gems." Amy replied. "They're full of light and make people happy!"

"What she says is true." They turned their attention to Clockwork. "The Chaos Emeralds are a perfect example of using Light or Darkness. For a while now, they have been used for both purposes. And while their power is nothing compared to that of the Firstborn, they are still quite strong."

"Well, aren't YOU the knower of EVERYTHING?" At this voice, they immediately looked to the top of a building, spotting Lehcar, Scar, and Harvey smirking down at them. The three child villains leapt down, landing flat on their feet.

"Harvey!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Harvey's gone. I'm blessed with the awesome power of Negatar Gnaa! Thanks to him, I can be somebody, instead of the kid everybody picks on."

"Well, at least NOW we have a good reason to pick on you." Angie retorted. "OW!" Sonya smacked her.

"Harvey, please. I know we have our struggles sometimes, but you're still our friend. Please come back to us." Sonya pleaded.

"For-get it. Besides: Lehcar makes a MUCH better sister than Rachel ever will."

"You hear that, Rach?" Lehcar smiled proudly. "Your brother likes ME over YOU now. But don't worry. You can have Yevrah."

"Give him back!" Rachel demanded, drawing her Master Sword and aiming at her Negative.

Lehcar gave a loud, shocked gasp. "The Master Sword! But… I thought it was lost forever…"

"Heh. I just found it." Rachel smirked.

"…" Lehcar shook it off. "Heh. No matter. The Dark Master will STILL be victorious."

"And speaking of which, he has a little message for you." Scarlet said. "Oh, Yllaw?"

They all jumped around as Yllaw held and aimed a Darkness Cannon. "Have a little look at your DARK side!" With that, the short boy charged the cannon, aimed at Morgan, and FIRED, hitting the girl clear in the chest, knocking her out.

"MORGAN!" Athena yelled.

"AH HA HA HA!" Yllaw cackled as he went over by Harvey and the girls, running away with them.

"We gotta go after them!" Sonya shouted.

"But what about New Island?" Eva asked.

"We have to split up." Rachel said. "I'll go after my brother."

"That Lehcar seems familiar somehow." Shadow said. "I will accompany you."

"I'm with Shadow." Rouge said.

"I'm with Rachel." Fanny said.

"Fanny." Patton followed.

"We're coming, too." Sonya said, nodding with Sector W.

"Yeah, I mean… it's up to the friends of a jerk to teach the jerk a lesson." Angie remarked.

"The rest of you will take Facilier's boat to New Island." Rachel told them.

"Rachel? Shouldn't we stick together?" Nigel asked.

"There are times when all close friends have no choice but to divide." Clockwork said. "But never fear. Your paths will cross again."

Rachel walked over to Nigel. "It won't be for long, Nigel." And kissed him on the lip. The Brit only blushed.

"Great! Then le's get on wit' the adventure, you lot!" Marine exclaimed. Their ears perked when they heard more sirens.

"And we better move quick." Rachel suggested.

"Your paths have been chosen, and your destinies upon you." Clockwork said. "Good luck." With that, the Time Ghost opened a portal and drifted in.

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Rachel asked.

"You guys go." Jagar said. "I've got my own matters to attend to." With that, he started to walk off.

Misty and Olive exchanged confused glances and followed him. "Um… where are you going?" Misty asked.

"Clockwork said we had to-" Olive tried to say.

"Deliver the Spirit Balls to the Guardians and bring these guys to The Quads, I know. But we only found one of the Guardians, and have no idea who the other ones are. Clockwork is the only one who does, and he won't tell us." Jagar sounded furious. "If he's not gonna help us with our job, I ain't gonna do it. I'm doing my own thing right now. So, are you with me or not?"

The girls just exchanged another glance and decided to follow him.

That's when the Cop Cars arrived and surrounded the kids. "Alright: you're all under arrest." The chief spoke.

"Herrrrrre we GOOOO!" At that instant, Mario and Luigi sped over a ramp in their convertible. The car landed and the two brothers proceeded to attack the cops. Mario took some of their guns and shot at the military robots. "YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE! !"

"Time to go. Good luck, Nigel." Rachel said before she and her group ran in the direction of Harvey.

Violet was about to join Nigel's group, but saw Bruce heading the other way. "Bruce, where are you going? ?"

"I'm going to help Father watch after Natsume." he answered. "I'll call my team in for support. I mean… we can't trust Father, right?" he winked.

Violet sighed, but agreed with his decision. "Oookay…" She ran over to engage in a kiss real quick, and then letting go. "Good luck, Bruce." He nodded as she ran off.

"Come on, help us carry Morgan." Buddy said as they lifted their sister.

Facilier jumped in front of The Quads as the cops surrounded. "RAHH!" the voodoo man threw down a smoke bomb, engulfing the gang in pink smoke. When it cleared, they were long gone.

As the cops searched around confusedly, Natsume and Father stood and watched, alongside Bruce. "Well… it was only a matter of time." the woman said.

"You know what they say about destiny." Benedict replied.

"I knew this was going to happen… I just hope they'll be okay. I mean; they're only just kids."

"In that case, they'll be perfectly fine. Trust me."

"Even HE knows it." Bruce winked at them.

"Hm hm hm. That's a fine nephew you have there." Natsume said. "I trust they're safe with him."

"Well, when you saved the world several times… it's hard not to trust you."

With Lehcar and Scar

At this time, Lehcar, Scar, Harvey, and Yllaw were a good distance away from the city, looking back. "With that Master Sword… Father may be in real danger." Lehcar said. She then noticed Harvey panting. "…Are you okay, Harvey?"

"…I'm fine. Now that Morgan has been hit with the Darkness Cannon… I am even closer to my goal."

"Oh. Very good." Lehcar smiled. "Now let's keep going. We'll cut through the circus Mumbo Jumbo has set up ahead."

"Good. I fear in the presence of his old friends, Harvey may be able to break free. Keep me away from them as MUCH as possible. Let's go!" And with that, the four villains continued off. But it was then Lord Gnaa thought of something: "Where the heck is Rumpel Stiltskin?"

Playground Ruins

Rumpel Stiltskin and his witches were still frozen in time at the Playground Ruins after Olive's little trick, with a floating magic clock counting down. Right when it was at zero… "VRA!" Rumpel finally yelled his Killing Curse and fired at nothing. "What the… CRAP! We got frozen!"

"Geh. Cursed time spirit." A witch complained.

"What'll we do now?" another witch asked.

Rumpel pondered for a moment, then smiled mischievously. "I think it's time to visit an old friend…"

Aye-aye-AYE, this was the longest one YET! Next time, the journey to New Island!... plus other things! Heh heh, see you then!