"Between Worlds: Conversations Unveiled" - Prologue

Somehow, the Amalgamation that appeared in front of our protagonist established a connection to communicate with him.

As the Amalgamation suddenly appeared in front of our protagonist, he came back to his senses. He tried to question himself about why his dream was so weird today and when he even went to sleep to be dreaming about something so strange.

Seeing the protagonist not acknowledging his reality and continuing to deem it as a simple yet weird dream, the Amalgamation couldn't take it anymore. It decided to communicate with him.

The Amalgamation spoke first and said, "First of all, this isn't a dream. And secondly, without you even asking, 'Yes, I certainly can read your mind.' So your thoughts are pretty much bare naked in front of me."

When the protagonist heard it, he gave a reasonable retort, "That further confirms my conjecture that I most certainly am dreaming, because there is no other way for you to read my mind unless you are just a fragment of my dreams and imagination."

The Amalgamation replied, "That's why I dislike people like you who think they know everything."

The protagonist said, "Well, I don't believe myself to be someone who knows everything, so that means you most definitely are not my imagination."

"But then again, if you are not a fragment of my imagination, then what unfortunate incident happened to me and how did I end up here? Because if I remember correctly, I don't seem to have died yet, at least not in any ways I can think of."

Seeing the protagonist going down the Infinite Perpetual Paradoxical Imagination, the Amalgamation decided to halt his Infinitesimal Probable Loop.

"Sigh~"

"The most annoying individuals are those who know they are in the wrong but are never willing to acknowledge it."

With this simple yet complicated paragraph, the Amalgamation succeeded in capturing the protagonist's attention.

The protagonist, upon hearing those words, said, "Oh, that's philosophical."

The Amalgamation replied, "Now that your awareness is here, let's talk about who I am and why you are here."

The protagonist, finally paying attention to the being in front of him, said in a calm voice, "Please do tell."

With a peculiar expression, the Amalgamation said, "First of all, I am you, not the 'You' you, but an alternative 'You,' and yes, there are an infinite amount of 'Us' out there."

The protagonist, after hearing the Amalgamation, questioned, "That much was expected, but my question is, why are we interacting and interfering with each other?"

With a defeated look, the Amalgamation answered, "Well, it's because the prime/original had the vision of 'Us' enjoying our lives and doing whatever we want to do. Now, because of that, he decided to write about our adventures and started interfering with every reality and fictionality. And guess who he started writing about?"

As the Amalgamation finished explaining, they both heaved a sigh and said at the same time, "Himself," and later continued to sigh afterwards.

After that, the protagonist began to contemplate what to do next.

When the Amalgamation saw the protagonist lost in thought, he said, "To be honest, you are not the only one here against your will. I am also in the same situation. Well, at least my situation is less miserable than yours."

The protagonist, after contemplating, sighed and said, "Since you are already here, a little bit of explanation would be very much appreciated."

After thinking about it, the Amalgamation eventually said, "Well, I am not totally aware of what this situation is all about, but let me try to explain it.

So, 'I' am here to send 'myself' to an MCU'ish somewhere in I.C.U while the original 'me' is writing about the adventures of 'his' alternate selves.

Not complicated at all, right?"

The protagonist asked, "Since it's me you are explaining it to, I know where you are going, but what about the possible reader? He might have one at some point. Would they be able to understand it?"

The Amalgamation replied, "Let's just hope they would be able to understand it."

The protagonist nodded and said, "Let's hope so. Now, let's talk about the cheats I would be having."

The Amalgamation responded, "Although it's already decided what you would be having, let's still give the readers some details about your wishes."

The protagonist sighed and said, "Sigh~ It really is how I thought it would be. So, 3 wishes, huh?"

The Amalgamation replied, "Yup, 3 wishes with an extra added bonus."

The protagonist asked, "And no choosing the world?"

Amalgamation responded, "I don't think so because 'He' already has decided the title of this fan-fic."

The protagonist inquired, "So MCU it is, but what is this ICU all about? Is he gonna send me in a vegetative state?"

Amalgamation replied, "I don't know, and we could only hope that 'He' doesn't actually do that. Enough chit-chat, let's get on with it."

The protagonist asked, "Just one last question, Which one of 'Us' are you? As in which world did you start at?"

Amalgamation chuckled and said, "That, in itself, is a long story, and if I started explaining in detail, this fan-fic might become my fan-fic, so I better not."

The protagonist stated, "Anyways, being fully aware of my personality, 'I' will definitely try to make my life more miserable than it already is, so tell me what is the catch with the wishes."

Amalgamation grinned and replied, "Ah, there's always a catch, isn't there? Well, in exchange for these wishes, 'He' gets to choose one thing from your life that he can mess with. It could be a memory, a relationship, or even a fundamental aspect of who you are. It's a gamble."

Amalgamation continued, "Sigh~ Seems like we are getting to the serious business. So the three wishes cannot be about the great 'OM', and also that you cannot ask for the original 'Three' as in 'Creation', 'Destruction', and 'Preservation'. Except for those, you can wish for almost everything. Also, in the time frame when 'He' wrote this chapter, something happened which totally diverted him from his original manuscript, so it might also reflect on your thought process and mentality. So, in a sense, you are not the one who is wishing for these wishes, but 'He' is."

The protagonist fell into a momentary silence before asking, "Then what's the point of us both having this conversation?"

Amalgamation responded, "It is most probably due to him trying to write some more words to make this story a little bit longer, or another reason might be to portray a part of his Will in this story. And I can only hope that it's the former and not the latter, because if it's the latter, 'our' characters might get overly influenced due to the influx of information."

With that, they both continued their discussion, aware of the complex dynamics at play in this unique narrative.

The protagonist nodded and said, "Let's just hope it ain't the latter. Well anyways, my first wish is to have the powers of Protégé."

Amalgamation nodded in acknowledgment and replied, "Well, that wish can be granted, but with a limitation."

The protagonist grinned and said, "Let me guess, limitations because 'He' doesn't want me to become instantly OP and wants to see me grind before the eventual OPness."

Amalgamation chuckled and replied, "Now just try to imagine how much more difficult it was for me, who didn't even get any cheat ability during my 'event'... Although infinite resurrections can still be considered as a cheat, but still."

After hearing the Amalgamation's tone, the protagonist couldn't even imagine what the Amalgamation went through and what he himself might go through. Since the mumble after the Amalgamation said 'event' wasn't audible, the protagonist decided to ignore it for now.

With a sense of determination, the protagonist asked, "Alright, what's the limitation on the Protégé powers?"

As the protagonist was lost in imagining the most horrendous limitations, the Amalgamation swiftly recovered from his endless despair and said, "The limitation 'He' is imposing on this ability is that you can't simply mimic every ability with your eyes by just seeing it. If you want to mimic any ability, you have to physically touch the ability holder/s, and only then will you be able to acquire their abilities."

Just as the Amalgamation finished speaking, he heard a barely audible 'TCH,' which he didn't even have to think about and already knew where it came from. Who else was there in this unimaginable and unexplainable place except the both of them?

Amalgamation chuckled and replied, "Did you seriously expect 'Him' not to notice what you were thinking about after getting Protégé's powers? Did you forget that we are figments of the same individual, and our soul ingrained nature/character is almost the same across every reality and fictionalities?"

The protagonist shrugged and said, "What's the harm in trying? Anyways, my second wish is to have Superman Prime's Kryptonian Physiology without any weaknesses at all."

Amalgamation explained, "That can be done, but... no OPness. Since you also want it without any weaknesses, there can only be one solution for that, which is you will only get his physiology, not his powers."

The protagonist was clearly frustrated and exclaimed, "What the Hell!! If I can't even have Superman's powers, which are associated with Kryptonian Physiology, then what's the point in even having that!?!"

After shouting his frustration for a while, the protagonist regained his composure and said, taking deep breaths, "Okay. I can manage it without its abilities because I can always just go and get them."

Amalgamation cleared his throat and asked, "Finally, you get it. I mean Cough Cough What is your third and final wish?"

Upon hearing that it was his final wish, the protagonist wasn't particularly excited. Instead, he felt worried and anxious about his parents, from whom he was going to be separated.

Although he knew that it was almost impossible for his other selves not to have considered his parents, he still felt somewhat concerned about them.

Despite the protagonist not being particularly a good individual for anyone to have as a child, he was extremely filial towards his parents. They had given him all their love and care unconditionally, even though he knew he didn't deserve it. Despite being a selfish individual, he was selfless when it came to his parents. This selflessness showed in how much he hesitated about making his last wish.

Seeing that the protagonist was stuck in a dilemma, the Amalgamation realized why he was feeling that way. In a calm voice, he said, "Do you remember I said that you had an extra bonus? Actually, 'we' of every reality realize how important our parents are to 'us.' Due to that, the committee of 'us' was established, which will help every parent of 'us' during our adventures. So you don't have to worry about them."

After hearing the Amalgamation's explanation, the protagonist was finally relieved and began to contemplate his last wish.

After a few seconds, minutes, or perhaps hours of contemplation, the protagonist finally made his decision.

Protagonist: "My final wish is to have Armando Munõz aka Darwin's Reactive Evolution ability, but only if it doesn't change my physical appearance."

Amalgamation smiled and said, "Be at ease, even I don't want neither you nor anyone else having their appearance get changed and they become another amalgamation like me. So your wish is happily granted."

After the Amalgamation acknowledged and granted all of the protagonist's wishes, the reincarnation/transmigration process began. In the next instant, the protagonist disappeared from the Amalgamation's sight, embarking on a new journey across realities and fictional worlds.

***

[A.N. This whole story is solely my imaginative property, and I do not own anything from the big wigs, only my own ideas, some of the plot, OG characters, or similar elements. Please don't confuse them.

As for my original stories, they are also a work in progress, so please keep me in your thoughts and hope that I won't lose interest in continuing them.]