Chihiro Hatsuki's Skylanders

by Tilde-Heart

Chihiro Hatsuki is an ordinary Earth kid whose life is turned upside down when the Skylanders, the magical guardians of another world, land in her backyard and promptly tell her that she's a magical portal master! Now, Chihiro must help the Skylanders defeat their archenemy Kaos and restore the Core of Light that protects their world. (Canon-divergent retelling of SSA)

19. Chapter 19

And now for chapter nineteen! Let me tell you all, this chapter definitely gave me a run for my money—it took me all two weeks to get it to where I wanted it to be! But, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out... Now, onto the next arc of the story!

Greenswitch: Glad to hear you enjoyed seeing Double Trouble in action! To be honest, that was part of the reason I decided on a rotating cast, actually—everybody has their favorites among the Skylanders and even the less popular ones have their fans, so I wanted them all to get a chance to shine! Plus, it was fun working out specific dynamics and character interactions, too...

Watch Seeker: Well, first of all I wanted to say that you calling Kaos a pumpkin made me laugh in real life! And as for Chihiro's training, well... You'll see! (Insert wink here)

---

Though the air was chilly and sharp, the atmosphere around Ancient's Peak was more than warm enough as everybody went about their day. Unlike those other days before, the area bustled with life as the Skylanders lingered about and made conversation with the island's non-Skylander residents. For once, things were light enough on crime that they all could finally take the time to relax!

And Spyro was the one who enjoyed it most of all! As he laid down under the shade of a colorful tree and basked in the sun, it seemed as though for once, the weight had finally lifted off his shoulders for good.

"You seem awfully relaxed," Gill Grunt remarked with a smile as he took a seat next to Spyro, "What's got you in such a good mood?"

"Well, what's there not to be happy about?" Spyro asked back as he looked to Gill Grunt, a shimmer of bliss in his golden eyes, "The Core's halfway finished, we've freed two whole kingdoms from Kaos's clutches, and more and more people have been fighting back against him!"—Spyro made a soft chuckle as he watched the clouds—"Which has definitely made our job easier."

"Agreed." Gill Grunt looked back at the bustling hub area and beamed wider, "I can't remember the last time we had a day this peaceful!"

Spyro paused for a moment as the wind brushed against his scales, then lifted his head towards the skies.

"Truth be told, it feels like everything's finally coming together!"

Spyro grinned as he turned back to Gill Grunt, then raised his eyebrows as he heard what sounded like… Something soaring through the skies at astounding speeds right behind him?

"INCOMINGGGGGGGGGG!" Shouted a voice from afar.

Spyro whipped his head around, only to duck as something that vaguely resembled a cyan, magical shuttlecock with eyes whizzed straight towards him! Spyro breathed a sigh of relief as it passed him by… Then grunted as Chihiro jumped onto his back and launched herself into the air!

"Gotcha!" Chihiro exclaimed as she caught the magical shuttlecock and floated back down to the ground, looked at Spyro and grimaced.

"Whoops."

Chihiro released the shuttlecock, then bent down and pulled Spyro back to his paws. "Sorry about that, Golden Boy! Didn't see you there!"

"I'm, fine," Spyro grunted as he shook his head, then glazed over the shuttlecock that laid on the ground, "Just what're you doing with that thing, anyways?"

"Training, of course!" Chihiro's eyes sparkled with fire and she pumped her fist to the skies, "Kaos doesn't rest, so I won't either! Not until I'm strong enough to send him running with his tail between his legs!"

"And that means?…" Spyro tilted his head as he looked back to Chihiro.

"Well, studying of course!"

Chihiro looked down and squeezed her magic shuttlecock as she bit her lip, almost like she was upset about something. But, a shake of her head as she pulled herself back up dismissed it immediately,

"I've spent the past few days doing nothing but studying and practicing new spells! Chain reaction spells, fancier effigies and afflictions…" Chihiro snapped her fingers and watched the shuttlecock fly back into her hand, "Oh, and of course magic minion spells!"

Chihiro twirled around and shook the shuttlecock.

"But, I've still got a long way to go with these guys…" She made a stern frown and sighed, a look of disappointment in her brown eyes, "This one was supposed to be dragon-sized, but I still can't get it bigger than a turtle! And I've been working on them for the past five hours, too…"

"Guess that means it's time for a break?" Spyro suggested, only to frown as Chihiro shook her head.

Chihiro reeled back at the very suggestion, then shook her head and stomped her foot.

"No way!" Chihiro looked up and winced at the surprised looks on Spyro and Gill Grunt's faces, then softened her tone, "I can't take a break, not until I'm strong enough that Kaos isn't an issue!"

"Chihiro!" Hugo called from across the island, "Can you come here?"

"Oh, sounds like I gotta jet!" Chihiro shouted as she turned around, then flashed a peace sign at Spyro and Gill Grunt, "I'll talk to you guys later, alright?"

And with that, Chihiro dashed into the distance, never to be seen… For the next hour or so, probably.

"Seems like that's all Chihiro's been about lately," Gill Grunt remarked with a shrug as he watched her run out of view, "Every time I pass her, all she ever talks about is beating Kaos and training!"

Gill Grunt scratched his chin and cast a gaze to the heavens. "Wonder what caused the change in attitude…"

Spyro only winced and looked aside. He had a feeling he knew exactly what caused Chihiro's sudden fixation on beating Kaos… Her last battle against him was probably still heavy on her mind. After all, it was normal for Chihiro to get fixated and obsessed with things at the drop of a hat, but this didn't seem like one of her usual obsessions. It felt more like compensation, as if she was trying to make up for something that surely racked her brain.

"Hey, Spyro," Gill Grunt asked as he looked down at Spyro, "Do you know why Chihiro's been acting like that lately?"

"Oh, well…"

Spyro scratched his head and bit his lip. He didn't exactly want to bring up that battle… Something in his gut told him that she probably wouldn't want that, and if he was in her shoes he'd feel the same.

Except, at the same time, he didn't really want to lie to Gill Grunt, especially about something as important as Chihiro's own well-being. After all, it was their responsibility not just as Skylanders, but as friends to keep her safe. And besides, if he couldn't even confide his worries about her with Gill Grunt, someone he had considered a close friend since the day he first stepped foot in Skylands, who could he tell?

Spyro went to open his mouth… Then promptly shut it as he heard what sounded like rocketing from the skies above. Wait, rocketing? Like, something flying through the skies? That felt odd, usually the only kind of aircraft they got were flying ships and balloons, and none of them made that kind of noise. Well, unless Flynn had busted his balloon again.

So what could it possibly be?

"Gill, do you hear that?" Spyro asked as he looked towards Gill Grunt and watched Gill Grunt nod his head, "What do you think it is?"

Spyro then looked above and gasped!

Above them was none other than a shooting star, bright and orange and burning as it shot across the skies! Wait, what would a shooting star be doing in broad daylight? And more importantly, why was it drawing closer? Wait, unless…

Spyro watched as the shooting star rocketed towards them then turned backwards. With the path it was following, it would surely hit…

"The Core of Light!" Gill Grunt shouted as he stumbled around and fiddled with his jetpack, "It's gonna crash into the Core!"

Spyro had already begun flying towards the Core, his mind two steps ahead of Gill Grunt. Surely, this had to be Kaos's work! He must have sent some kind of weapon to destroy the Core, but not on Spyro's watch!

When he arrived, Chihiro, Hugo, Flynn, Cali, a handful of the off-duty Skylanders and that totem pole-looking guy that Spyro had forgotten the name of… Arbo? He was pretty sure that was right. All of them had crowded around the half-complete Core, their gazes directed towards its majesty.

"What a remarkable creation!" Hugo praised as he clapped his hands.

"We are all remarkable creations," Arbo chimed in while he held up a mossy finger, his wisdom a bit softened by the fact that his tongue lolled out of his mouth and made him look quite goofy.

"Some more remarkable than others…" Flynn said as he rubbed his fist against his chest, "Like me. BOOM!"

As Flynn struck his signature pose, Cali rolled her eyes and buried her face in her hands.

"Anyways," Hugo said as he coughed into his paw, then beamed towards the Core of Light, "Thanks to this remarkable creation, Kaos's empire is being further diminished by the day!"—Hugo cast a glance towards Chihiro—"And with all that free time, I bet you've been keeping on top of your studies for the next exam!"

"Oh, next exam?" Chihiro repeated as she jolted up and froze like a dragonet in a ship's headlights, then shook her head, "I mean, of course I'm ready, I've been working hard and all that stuff!"

"With all the time you've spent working, I'm sure of it!" Hugo adjusted his jacket and smiled, "Especially since it's coming so soon!"

"Soon? You don't mean..." Chihiro made a few awkward chuckles, "TODAY soon, do you?"

Chihiro froze again and winced, but before she or anybody else could speak again Spyro flew in front of her!

"Everyone, get the shields up, quick!" Spyro exclaimed as his eyes flashed purple, "We've got trouble!"

"TROUBLE?" Chihiro exclaimed as she raced up to Spyro, "Don't tell me, Kaos-level trouble?"

"If you'd call that Kaos-level trouble…" Spyro pointed towards the shooting star, "Then yes!"

That shooting star was near completely engulfed in flames as it dipped out of the skies and crashed towards them! The heat it emitted made it feel more like summer than fall, but Spyro couldn't worry about that right now. He had to protect the Core! While everybody else panicked or got ready to attack, Spyro held out his paws and channeled the magic within him, fully ready to cast a shield… But before he could, a bright cyan flash shot out beside him and engulfed the shooting star in a bright aqua bubble!

Spyro turned to his side and smiled as Chihiro blew off a hand covered in cyan smoke, then the two of them turned and watched the bubble cascade down to the ground.

As the bubble popped, the shooting star's flames completely vanished and revealed that it wasn't a shooting star at all! It was merely a worn, kind of old-fashioned looking space shuttle now covered in singe marks and soot! But, who would send a space shuttle here? Had aliens touched down in Skylands?

Well, it wouldn't be the first time.

Everybody was still on edge, Spyro included, and readied their arms as the space shuttle's door flung open. Whatever was in there, they had to be prepared! Steam and smoke intermingled from the open door while a bulky silhouette rolled down the ramp provided, which only added to the tension. Then, as the smoke cleared…

"Ten hut!" Cried the person, or rather robot, that had emerged from the shuttle, "Someone direct me to who's in charge here!"

Sure enough, a bulky steel robot had emerged from the shuttle! Though their face was a trademark steel silver, the paneling of their body had been painted an olive green and decorated in the style of a military uniform. A metallic military captain hat donned a head with blank black windows for eyes, and in lieu of feet they had twin… Conveyor belts, Spyro had guess? Machinery wasn't exactly his strong suit.

"I'm in charge…" Flynn said as he stepped up to greet the robot, "Of everyone's hearts, that is."

Flynn wiggled an eyebrow at the robot, only for it to bonk him on the head with one of its metallic hands!

"HEY!" Flynn rubbed his head and glared back up at the robot, "What was that for?"

"Stop fooling around, son!" The robot shook its mechanical arm, "I'm talking about a Skylander!"

"Hold up, dude!" Chihiro interrupted as she pushed past Flynn and glared down the robot, "First of all, who are you? And also—"—Chihiro gestured towards the Core of Light—"Do you have any idea what you nearly crashed into?!"

"That information is classified, son," The robot replied as it glared down Chihiro, "I can't spill it to just anyone, especially loud-mouthed civilians!"

"But I'm no civilian!" Chihiro pushed a finger against the robot's mechanical chest, "I'm the portal master guarding this place, and as this place's guardian I demand to know what kind of business you have here!"

"PORTAL MASTER? My apologies, sir! I had no clue!" The robot jumped up, then mechanically bowed, "Designation is General Robot, sir!"

General Robot stood, then made a couple whirring and beeping noises.

"I was created by the Mabu Defense Force to aid them in their feats of heroism, sir!"

"Now that's more like it." Chihiro beamed as she placed her hands on her hips, then giggled and leaned towards Spyro, "He called me sir!"

Spyro only chuckled and rolled his eyes. Even if she wouldn't admit it, Chihiro did really like the respect that came with being a portal master… Neverminding that she was still only an apprentice.

"The MDF sent me to inform you that they have located the Golden Gear and the Green Goo of Primordia, sir!" General Robot proclaimed as he stood rigid and tall, his gaze fixed directly on Chihiro.

"Wait, Golden Gear?" Hugo exclaimed as he pushed through the crowds, "Green Goo of Primordia? Those are the Core of Light's next two components!"

Everybody else in the background cheered and rejoiced.

"Indeed they are, son, now let me speak with the portal master," General Robot affirmed as he faced Hugo.

General Robot then swerved his body and attention back to Chihiro.

"However, we've run into a problem, sir! Kaos has our forces backed into a corner, sir! We've exhausted all our resources trying to take back the components, but to no avail, sir!"

"So…" Chihiro crossed her arms as she drummed her fingers against her forearm, "I presume you've come here to request the Skylanders' help?"

"Indeed, sir." General Robot bowed once more, "If you can spare the aid, sir."

"Of course we can!" Chihiro exclaimed as she turned her attention to the Skylanders, "Right, guys?"

"Yeah!" Cried the Skylanders scattered throughout the crowds as they gathered towards Chihiro.

"General Robot!" Chihiro called as she turned her attention back to General Robot.

"Yes sir!" General Robot exclaimed.

"Where exactly are the gear and goo located?" Chihiro placed her hands back on her hips.

In response, General Robot's eyes flickered, then projected a holographic image of a mechanical warehouse-looking things decked to the nines with troll soldiers.

"The Golden Gear has been located in a troll factory slash warehouse at a westmost outpost, sir!"

"Wait, I know that place!" Cried a hoarse voice with a faint accent of some kind as a green-skinned troll with a bushy orange beard, mechanical gloves and boots and bright red eyes who wore a backpack full of dynamite stepped out of the crowd, "I used to work there when I was in the troll military! Had to make our own weaponry and all..."

"Can we go there, Boomer?" Trigger Happy asked as he skipped up to Boomer, then bounced up and down as he shook Boomer's arm, "Can we, can we, can we?"

Boomer chuckled as he ruffled Trigger Happy's head.

"That's for Chihiro to decide, little buddy!" Boomer raised an eyebrow towards Chihiro and beamed wide when he saw her nod.

"If you know the place already, then I can't think of anyone better to go!" Chihiro said, then giggled as she watched Trigger Happy and Boomer cheer and bounce around uncontrollably.

General Robot blinked, or at least seemed to, and the holographic image changed! Its reflection had become that of a war-torn battlefield covered in worn machinery and trenches with barbed wire, all the front yard to an impressive-looking factory filled with pipes that pumped a glowing green substance.

"And as for the goo," General Robot said as the projection glowed bright, "It has all been stockpiled at a troll factory filled with some of their best technology!"

"Best technology, you say?" Drobot echoed as he whirred out of the crowds.

"The most top-notch tech they've ever come up with." General Robot nodded in affirmation.

"That's perfect for you, Drobot!" Chihiro exclaimed as she pushed through their conversation, "You're all about that techy stuff!"

Chihiro's eyes glazed over the crowds, then pointed towards a red and gold robot hidden among their ranks.

"And Drill Sergeant, you're literally a living robot!" Chihiro ushered the robot forward, "With the two of you together, that goo will be ours in no time!"

"Very well then, sir…" Replied Drill Sergeant as he wheeled out of the crowds, his red and gold armor bright and shiny against the afternoon light.

"Alright then!" Chihiro exclaimed as she clapped her hands together, "If that's the case, then let's get cracking!"

And with that, Chihiro sung another odd earth tune as she lead her chosen Skylanders towards the portal building…

§

"Good luck, everyone!" Chihiro shouted as she watched all four Skylanders get absorbed in the portal's light, "Be sure to kick those trolls' butts extra hard for me!"

Chihiro's smile faded with the portal's light, then with a sigh she brushed a hand against its stone surface. It felt a bit chilly thanks to the cold of autumn, though the recent use had made it a lot warmer than she had expected. But, nevertheless, the feeling of its familiar stone surface eased her heart just a bit…

And yet, that still wasn't enough to quell her worries. After all, Hugo said her next exam was soon to come, and she hadn't the slightest clue what the subject would be!

Then again, she had barely kept up on her studies. After her wake-up call a few days ago, she had devoted every waking moment that wasn't spent working with the Skylanders on training. Practicing spells in the training arena, pouring through spellbooks for new ideas on what to practice, honing her own magical abilities… That was all she could think about, and even then it still felt like she had to do more and more! When would she finally feel like she was strong enough?

"Chihiro!" Called a voice she faintly recognized as Hugo's from a ways away, "Are you ready?"

Oh, that's right. It's probably exam time now, hopefully she'd still find a way to pass. Chihiro lingered on the portals a little more, then drew away from the one she had faced as their light faded.

"Coming, Hugo," Chihiro whispered as she trailed out of the portal room, her walk void of its usual bounce and energy.

Unsurprisingly, Master Eon and Hugo both stood outside the portal room with attentive, expecting eyes. Well, Hugo did anyways, since Master Eon's ghostly form lacked eyes and all that fun stuff.

"Is it time?" Chihiro asked as she tugged on her sweatshirt's shoulder, the one that had been patched up after it got singed by a laser some weeks backs, "Y'know, for the thing?"

"The thing?" Hugo responded as he raised an eyebrow, his mind clearly blank before he shook his head, "Oh, you mean the exam!"—Hugo beamed and clapped his paws—"Indeed it is! Good on you for keeping up with your dates, Chihiro!"

Darn. For a moment she had hoped she got the day wrong and she still had a few more days to prepare, but what's done was done, she supposed. Seems like she'd just have to grin and bear it.

"Young Chihiro, is something troubling you?" Master Eon asked as he floated around Chihiro, his bright light faint and almost troubled, "You seem worried about something."

"Oh, it's nothing!" Chihiro spat out without even thinking as she waved her hand, "Just wondering when the exam starts, that's all!"

Okay, that was a lie. Chihiro didn't exactly feel prepared for her exam, but then again, nobody exactly told her what it was going to be!… Well, in their defense, she had hardly been around Master Eon and Hugo these past few days, or anybody outside the training dummies, really. The most conversation they had was when she relayed mission reports to them at the end of the day!

And now, it had really started to bite her in the butt. Chihiro felt unease grow in her heart as her mind trailed back to the exam she certainly wasn't prepared for, but she couldn't say that right to Master Eon's face! That would be like admitting to your teacher that you hadn't done a single lick of homework all week! It was irresponsible, and she knew he expected better of her.

So, she just stayed quiet as Hugo and Master Eon walked out of the portal room and down the hall, all while they made conversation that was little more than white noise to Chihiro's ears.

Their short trip had lead them over to the portal building's study, which was no cleaner than the last time Chihiro had sneaked in there to borrow books. The wooden floors were still covered by a fine layer of stray papers and bulky novels, more of which hung from the couches and chairs, and the overhead lamps still lit the entire room a somewhat sleepy shade of yellow.

They all took their seats… And nothing happened afterwards. Hugo said nothing as he twiddled his thumbs, nor did Master Eon as he flipped through the pages of a stray paperback.

This, well, did not help Chihiro actually. She was already plenty anxious at the prospect of her oncoming exam, and all this waiting around and doing nothing made her wanna burst! Could something happen already?

"Er… Master Eon?" Chihiro called at last as she clenched her teeth, "Are we going to start the exam now?"

"Just wait a few minutes longer, young Chihiro," Master Eon replied as he dropped the book and flitted over to a wooden grandfather clock.

Chihiro sighed, then her eyes trailed over to the grandfather clock Master Eon was now examining. If she had to guess, it was only about… A minute or so till the next hour? She was never particularly good at reading old-timey clocks. Thankfully, in this instance she was right. With a few ticks more, the clock chimed out an equally old-sounding melody that informed her a new hour had passed!

"Now it is time, young Chihiro!" Master Eon proclaimed as he floated back towards the sofas, "Are you ready to begin your next exam?"

"Yeah," Chihiro replied as she made a wary smile and lowered her voice, "Ready as I'll ever be, I guess."

"Very well then." Master Eon bobbed up and down, "I have a feeling you'll enjoy this next exam. The scavenger hunt is popular with many young apprentices, after all!"

"A scavenger hunt?" Chihiro's eyes glistened as a bit of her fears trickled away. She was always good at those kinds of things when they had them in school oh so many years ago—she could probably ace this one!

"That sounds like fun!" Chihiro jumped off the chair she sat in and bounced up and down, "What am I looking for? Treasures? Trophies? Snacks? All three of them at once?"

Master Eon made a hearty chuckle as he gently bounced up and down on Chihiro's head.

"Not quite, young Chihiro." Master Eon shook back and forth then flew away from Chihiro, "This scavenger hunt will test your knowledge of magical artifacts and devices. Thus, you can guess what you'll be searching for!"

Chihiro stopped short, as if her feet had been glued to the ground out of nowhere. Magical artifacts and devices? Well, she had read about them here and there in a couple of books she had borrowed from the library. She probably knew enough about them to coast through this exam, right? Chihiro rubbed a hand on her chin as she pondered, but not for long as Hugo shoved a worn cloth bag into her arms!

"This bag has all you should need for the exam," Hugo explained as he stepped back, "Take a look!"

Chihiro did as told, and found two scraps of paper within its confines. One was a list with a number of names written in Skylandian lettering, the other a map with a number of red dots on its surface. Now that she looked closer, it kinda looked like… A map of the island? Chihiro put the map aside, glazed over the list and gulped.

Actually, no, she was way under prepared. She didn't recognize a single name on this list! How was she going to pass this exam now? Chihiro gulped again, then shuddered at the prospect of a failed exam and shoved the list back in. Hopefully she'd be able to pick it up as she went along…

"The rules go as follows," Master Eon explained as he swirled around Chihiro. "Replicas of the artifacts on this list and more have been scattered all across the places indicated on the map, and you must bring the correct ones to us before the sun sets today."—Master Eon then jumped back onto the couch—"In addition, you must rely on your own knowledge to finish this exam. In other words, you cannot ask for others' help or resources."

Chihiro gulped and nodded. The anxiety that she thought had disappeared had instead crept up on her and dug its claws into her heart once more. She could already see the disappointed looks on their faces as she majorly failed…

"In addition, and I cannot stress this enough," Hugo added as he stepped up to Chihiro, "You absolutely must NOT use magic on the artifacts! Bad things could happen if you do!"—Hugo stopped short and frowned as he waved his paw in front of Chihiro's face—"Chihiro? Chihiro, did you hear me?"

"YEAH, GOT IT!" Chihiro exclaimed as she slung the bag over her shoulder, "Bring back the right thingies before the day ends, no cheating, no magic! Got it!"

Chihiro sweat buckets as she fumbled through the bag, plucked out the map and list and squeezed them tight. She was sure her panic was obvious to everyone around, but hopefully she could play it off a bit.

"If you're ready, then we will begin at the forest's mouth," Master Eon said, a bit of wariness in his voice as he sat on Chihiro's hands… Or maybe that was just her imagination, who knew.

Hugo laid his paw on Chihiro's hand, then in moments they were teleported out of the study and right before the forest's mouth! Chihiro gulped as she watched then let go, then wrung her bag's strap tight.

Might as well get this over with, I guess, Chihiro thought as she ventured deep into the woods.

"Do you really think she'll be okay, Master Eon?" Asked a voice that Chihiro knew was Hugo's, but it was so faint in the distance that she wasn't sure it was real or just her imagining things.

So, she took one cursory glance back at the entrance, then delved deeper into the forest.

§

With a flash and a BOOM, Trigger Happy and Boomer found themselves within the confines of a large, metallic room filled with all sorts of machinery. Crates overflowing with unlit bombs, barrels of fireworks and guns, hanging lamps with barely-lit light bulbs… But other than that, the only thing to inhabit the room were Boomer and Trigger Happy themselves!

"Helloooooooooo?" Boomer shouted, but he was greeted with nothing but the echoes of his own voice as it reverberated around the room.

"Anybody here?" Trigger Happy yelled as he hopped around the room, "It's the Skylanders!"

"Skylanders?" Repeated a tiny, quivering voice just loud enough to be heard… Well, by another other than Trigger Happy and Boomer, that is.

"Are you Mabu Defense Force guys still here?" Trigger Happy frowned as he received no response, then sat down and toyed with his pistols, "I think they might not be here, Boomy."

"Hello!" The tiny voice called at a slightly heightened level of volume, "I'm over here!"

Boomer's ears twitched as he delved his hands into his backpack, then grasped firmly onto a round bomb… Just in case.

"Who's there?" Boomer called as he looked around the room, ears still twitchy with concern.

He looked right, and left, then right again… Then when he looked in front, a mabu dressed in some kind of mock military getup stood right in front of him!

"Hello!" The mabu said as they waved to Boomer and Trigger Happy.

Boomer yelped and jumped back, then caught a breath and beamed.

"Hah! You caught me by surprise there, kiddo!" Boomer adjusted the straps on his backpack with a hup, "Are you one of those… Uh…"—Boomer frowned and scratched his chin, his beard hairs tickled against his hands—"Mabu something or other force?"

"Mabu Defense Force." The mabu sighed and made a weak smile, but quickly composed himself and made that smile more genuine, "The name's Snuckles!"

Snuckles yanked Boomer's hand away and shook it as fast as he could.

"And I'm glad to work with you!" Snuckles released Boomer then immediately shook Trigger Happy's hand, completely oblivious to how he shook the rest of Trigger Happy with it, "You're the entire reason I joined the force!"

Snuckles giggled and stomped with glee as he released a very dizzy Trigger Happy.

"You see, a few months ago, Kaos tried to take over my home village and released a ton of nasty tornadoes…" Snuckles made a shrill squeal, "But then, the Skylanders came and sent him packing!"—Snuckles clasped his hands—"Ever since I saw them in action, I've always wanted to be a hero just like them!"

Snuckles then pounded a fist against his paw.

"And that's when I decided to join the Mabu Defense Force and become a secret agent!" Snuckles made a few short bounces, "This is my very first mission! And it's a solo one, too! The captain said I could do it alone because 'It's something even you couldn't mess up!'"

Snuckles grabbed Boomer's hands once more and stared him straight in the face!

"Can you believe it?"

Boomer and Trigger Happy, however, seemed less than ecstatic as they cast each other apprehensive, knowing looks.

"Oh, but, enough about me!" Snuckles released Boomer's hands and nodded as he placed a hand on his heart, "It's an honor and a privilege to be working with you today, Skylanders!"
Boomer stood silent for a few moments, his own eyes sparkling as he watched Snuckles, then beamed and patted Snuckles' back.

"Don't worry a fur on your head then, Snuckly boy!" Boomer proclaimed as he patted Snuckles a few more times then spun towards Trigger Happy, "With us on your side, getting this gear back will be a piece of pie!"

"Don't you mean cake?" Snuckles scrunched his eyebrows and frowned.

"Eh, I don't really like cake!" Boomer shook his hand as he faced Trigger Happy, "It's not explosive enough!"

"Well, whatever! I'll lead the way, so just follow me!"

As Snuckles walked into the distance, Boomer turned his attention to Trigger Happy and made the most serious look he could muster.

"We cannot let anything happen to this kid," Boomer whispered as he looked back at Snuckles while Snuckles turned around a map and looked hopelessly confused while doing so, "Look at him, he's precious! He's got that first day saving the world look and everything!"

"Are you sure he'll be alright, though?" Trigger Happy said as he pointed towards Snuckles, "He seems kinda…"

Boomer hastily shushed Trigger Happy, who in turned shushed back.

"Lost?" Trigger Happy whispered as he leaned past Boomer and watched Snuckles fumble with the map some more, "Confused? Ten seconds away from crying and saying he wants to go home?"

"Yeah, but…" Boomer beamed and clasped his hands, "That's just how all rookies are! Give him a little bit and he'll be great, I can feel it in my toes!"

Trigger Happy beamed and made a small chuckle.

"Well, if you say so Boomy!"

Trigger Happy whipped out his pistols and spun them around.

"If any troll, imp, robot, or rabid gigantic hamster tries to touch him…" Trigger Happy held out a pistol and wrapped his finger around the trigger, "I'll give 'em one of these!"

And with a release on the trigger, a gigantic golden coin shot out of the gun, banged against the wall and ricocheted all around the area! Trigger Happy and Boomer both yelped and ducked down as the coin continued to bounce, then watched in land in front of them and giggled.

"So he'll totally be fine!" Trigger Happy shook his pistol and watched smoke emit from the barrel, "As long as he has us!"

"Skylanders!" Snuckles called from across the halls, "Are you coming?"

"Coming!" Boomer and Trigger Happy shouted as they followed Snuckles down the dimly-lit mechanical hallways.

Once the three of them were crowded together, Snuckles straightened out his map and cleared his throat.

"Now, the troll warehouse where the gear is stored is a ways off from where we are now…" Snuckles explained as he presented his map to Trigger Happy and Boomer, "But thankfully, I have a map!"—Snuckles then lowered the map and scratched the side of his head—"Well, I would be thankful for it if I could actually figure out where we are on it…"

Boomer rubbed his chin, then placed a metal finger on the map.

"In my professional observation," Boomer said as he grabbed the map out of Snuckles' hands and turned it around, "I think you have the map upside-down!"

"I do?" Snuckles examined the map again and smiled, "Oh, looks like I did!"—Snuckles retrieved the map from Boomer and presented it once again—"Now, see this X here?"

Snuckles tapped a part of the map marked with a bright red X.

"This is where the Golden Gear's hiding spot is! Marked it myself and everything~" Snuckles rolled up the map and tucked it into his pocket, "Now, if we go straight through these tunnels, they should lead us on the way to the Golden Gear…"
Boomer nodded intently as Snuckles rambled on and on and on, then turned his head a ways towards the right… And gasped!

"DUCK!" Boomer exclaimed as he pointed ahead.

"Duck?" Snuckles turned back to Boomer, "But, why would there be ducks here? This is a factory—OOF!"

Snuckles grunted as both him and Trigger Happy were pushed to the ground by Boomer, then he poked his head up and watched as a round bomb soared over their heads!
The bomb crashed a couple feet away from where they laid and exploded with a loud KA-BOOM!

"Oh, that kind of duck!" Snuckles chuckled to himself, "Heh, my bad!"

"This isn't the time to laugh!" Boomer got back to his feet and withdrew his bombs, "We've got company!"

"Wait, we do?" Snuckles looked up and winced.

Right in front of them, several trolls dressed in armor and armed with lit bombs and dynamite blocked the way ahead! And judging by the scowls on their faces, they didn't exactly look happy to see Skylanders in their outpost…

"SKYLANDERS?" Exclaimed the first troll as they held their bombs tight, "How'd you get here?"

Boomer, however, seemed hardly intimidated as he smiled and walked up to the trolls.

"Portal of course!" Boomer proclaimed as he stroked his beard and looked over the enemy trolls, "Is there any better way to travel when you're a Skylander? I mean, balloon rides are fun and all, but—"

Boomer stopped and gasped as he looked over the highly-decorated troll general leading the charge.

"I KNOW YOU!"

Boomer grinned, then sauntered over to the troll general and laid an arm around the general's shoulders.

"GOOD OL' BOOMINGTON!" Boomer squeeze-hugged the general that was presumably Boomington and grinned even wider, "How've you been, buddy? Last time I saw you, you could barely light a bomb!"

The other trolls snickered, but quickly fell back into silence as Boomington glared them down.

"Don't act all buddy-buddy with me, Boomer!" Boomington exclaimed as he pushed Boomer away, his voice grizzled like a wartorn soldier, "You were the one who abandoned our army to go play hero with the Skylanders!"

"Oh, right!" Boomer scratched his chin and smirked, "I did do that!"

In a flash, Boomer dove his hands into his backpack and whipped out a fine assortment of shiny bombs!

"Guess this is the part where we start fighting!" Boomer paused for a moment to clear his throat, then pushed a fist to the heavens, "CHARGE!"

Boomer's cry of war was all the signal the enemy trolls needed to charge, but Boomer and Trigger Happy were just a quick to fight!

The trolls began launching their bombs, only for Trigger Happy to shoot them all away in one fell swoop with a gigantic pot of gold! The pot not only knocked the bombs out of range, but conked one of the trolls right in the head and knocked them unconscious!

"Pretty… Birdies…" The conked troll sputtered as they stumbled around the battlefield and nearly knocked another troll off their feet!

"Hey, watch where you're going!" The other troll shouted as they shook a fist at their dizzy comrade, "You could've distracted me!"

"I don't know," Boomer remarked as he wound up his arm, "You seem pretty distracted to me!"

The troll grunted and turned around, only for Boomer to punch them right in the face and shoot them right into the factory walls! The impact was so harsh, they only groaned as they slid down.

While Trigger Happy and Boomer fought, Snuckles watched them with shining eyes, but only for a moment. With a fire of determination in his eyes, Snuckles smiled and charged into the fray! He screamed as he ran towards Boomington with arms flailed like he was trying to punch something… But, Boomington managed to stop Snuckles simply by holding up his hand and pushing Snuckles back and forth. As Snuckles charged in place while he tried and failed to overpower Boomington's grip, Boomington only sighed and shook his head.

"Hey kid, can you hold this for me?" Boomington asked as he handed off a lit bomb to Snuckles.

"Oh sure, no problem!" Snuckles replied as he popped out of his ambush and grabbed the bomb from Boomington.

Boomington smiled and ran off, but Snuckles hardly noticed what had happened— he just frowned and twitched his ear.

"Is it just me, or does something sound like it's burning?" Snuckles looked down at his hands, then screamed as he realized just what he was holding!

"A BOMB! A BOMB! GET IT AWAY FROM ME!" Snuckles squealed as he ran back and forth in a panic then finally tossed the bomb away!

However, the bomb's trajectory was set right for Boomer and Trigger Happy's fight, and it's fuse was nearly done for—it would explode at any second!

Snuckles gasped as he watched the bomb draw closer… But then, it was knocked away by a gigantic golden coin and exploded in midair, far away from the battle instead!

"Boom! Boom boom!" Trigger Happy chattered as he bounced from one foot to the other, his guns' barrel decorated with faint smoke.

"Thanks for that, Skylander!" Snuckles beamed, before he screamed and ducked under a round of dynamite, "ACK!"

The trolls shouted in anger as they chased after Snuckles... But while they made chase they hadn't taken noticed to Trigger Happy, who only made a low, ominous chuckle as he whipped out a gigantic, golden machine gun!

Trigger Happy grinned so wide his mouth practically took up half his face as he held his hands tight around the trigger. While he did, the gun's barrel sparkled with a golden shimmer.

"Charging, charging…" Trigger Happy whispered as the trolls chased Snuckles around the Skylanders and right into Trigger Happy's line of sight, oblivious to the machine gun or its bright golden light, "FULL CHARGE!"

Trigger Happy let go of the machine gun's trigger and fell back into Boomer's arms, then watched with glee as a gigantic gold laser beam rocketed out of the gun and slammed straight into the troll soldiers!

It happened so fast, the trolls could only watch in horror as they were caught in the blast!

"CURSE YOU BOOMER!" Boomington cried as he and his soldiers were shot into the distance...

Boomer hummed, then looked up and scratched his chin.

"Y'know, he said that after I beat him at a game of BOOM during the new year's party too," Boomer remarked.

Boomer then turned a gaze to Snuckles, who had fallen on the floor and watched Boomer with wide eyes, then smiled and pulled Snuckles back to his feet.

"Something tells me we won't see those guys again for a while." Boomer lead Snuckles down the pathway, "So, Snucks, where does that map of yours say we need to go?"

Snuckles made a wary smile, then retrieved his map and glazed it over.

"Well," Snuckles whimpered as he squinted his eyes, "First we need to go ten paces north, then take a right at this squiggly line here and dance our way south of the storage plants… Or maybe we need to turn around at the squiggly line and then go west?"

Snuckles sighed and held a paw against his head. "Why do they make these maps so complicated?"

"Can I take a crack at it, then?" Trigger Happy asked as he took a look at the map and smiled.

"You can try…"

Snuckles sighed and handed the map back over to Trigger Happy, who spun it around and hummed. Trigger Happy then laid the map on the ground, flattened out all its creases with surprise detail, and… Folded the map into a hat and popped it on his head?

"Follow me!" Trigger Happy proclaimed as he pointed a finger ahead, only for his map hat to fall right off! With an inconspicuous cough, he grabbed the map hat off the floor and positioned it back onto his head. "Okay, now follow me!"

Snuckles cast a wary look at Boomer, who only shrugged and smiled. So, Snuckles just shrugged and trailed behind Trigger Happy and Boomer while they sung along to jaunty war songs, though he wasn't nearly as carefree about this as they were.

Snuckles' teeth chattered as he looked around the halls, which morphed from generic dimly-lit metal hallways to open areas that reeked of gunpowder and oil, likely from the troll workers who had absorbed themselves in making all sorts of strange weapons and contraptions, and then back again. Snuckles stopped for a moment to gaze over the working trolls, then shuddered as he watched one test a laser gun on itself. As a shrill scream echoed through the glass that bordered off the halls from the testing room, Snuckles' fur stood on end and he ran back down the halls.

"So, Trig…" Boomer's voice just faintly echoed down the metal halls, "How did you say you solved this thing again?"

"Well, last time I just bribed that…" Trigger Happy said, only for his voice to trail off as Snuckles finally ran into their current residence, "Snuckles, there you are!"

Snuckles paused and placed a paw over his heart as he arrived within a room comprised of rust red-colored walls, with more steam and pipe-based technology compared to the more industrial sights of before. The room was surprisingly clean, with only a few tables and chairs set up for decoration. Nobody was there save for Boomer, Trigger Happy, and a tiny lockmaster imp that resided within the keyhole of…

"A lock puzzle!" Snuckles exclaimed as he clasped his paws, "Finally, an area where I can show off my secret agent expertise!"

Snuckles hummed to himself as he grabbed some kind of keychain full of lock-picking tools from his pocket, then his hum grew silent as he ran each and every one through the lock puzzle… But none of them worked! It didn't matter if he jiggled the lock, or toyed with the inner mechanisms, or even poked the lockmaster imp! The lock puzzle just stood firm as ever.

"If none of those worked, then what in Skylands opens this thing?" Snuckles sighed as he slumped against the door.

"I know the trick!" Boomer said in a very scholarly tone.

"You do? What is it?" Snuckles jumped to his feet and watched Boomer pass him by, "A secret lock-picker? A lockmaster imp pest control device? Shaking it really hard? A…"

Snuckles tilted his head and frowned as he watched Boomer place a stick of dynamite in the lock.

"Stick of dynamite?"

"I'd suggest you stand back!" Boomer said as he pulled a lighter out of his backpack.

Trigger Happy and Snuckles both jumped out of the way as Boomer lit the dynamite stick with an excited smile on Trigger Happy's face and a wary frown on Snuckles'.

"That's it!" The lockmaster imp cried as it hopped out of the lock puzzle and waddled away, "I'm taking a vacation!"

"You have fun with that, little guy!" Boomer chirped as he jumped back himself.

Just then… BOOM! The puzzle and its door exploded into a million tiny bits, and in the process the way ahead was opened!

"And there you have it, folks!" Boomer proclaimed as he adjusted his backpack, "How to open a lock puzzle, the troll way!"

Trigger Happy grinned and applauded Boomer as they all walked along, but Snuckles only grimaced and warily followed.

"Just what did I get myself into?" Snuckles asked as he scratched his head.

§

Chihiro rubbed her thumb against the list's crisp, carefully-printed paper as she trekked deeper into the woods. Though she tried to keep her heart steady, it was of no use. No matter what she did or what she told herself, her mind always trailed back to the failure that was surely to be at hand. Of all the rotten luck, why did she have to be tested on the one thing she didn't study? What if she failed?

"Calm down, Chihiro," Chihiro told herself for what was probably the thirtieth time since the exam began, "Even if you didn't study, as long as you try your best, you should at least barely pass!"

Chihiro clenched the list a little tighter in her cold, sweaty grasp.

"And if you don't, what's the worst that could happen? You fail miserably and get exiled for good?" Chihiro shuddered and squeezed the list even tighter, "Yeah, better not think about that right now!"

Chihiro heaved a sigh as the shudders went away, then straightened out her now quite wrinkled list and glazed over its writing. Maybe if she was lucky, she'd recognize a few names! Chihiro squinted and drew the list closer in an attempt to make something out of Hugo's fancy handwriting.

"Wait, hold on a second! A mini-mechanizer?" Chihiro smiled and drew the list back, "I know that one!"—Chihiro stuffed the list back into the bag and marched onward—"This might not be so bad after all~"

Chihiro went further into the forest, then pushed through the leaves of a big bush. Unlike Eon's gardens, which were perfectly maintained by Camo (if not for the ever-growing collection of rock statues), these forest were as wily and vaguely haunting as every other forest there was.

Thanks to this place, Chihiro had begun to understand why all those fairy tale writers were so fascinated with forests!

After all, the leaves filtered the sunbeams just so that they gave the impression of sparkling, glittering magic and still stuck to their branches even though most of the islands' other trees had begun to lose their foliage. The sounds of birds chirping, whistling winds and skittering animals added a bit of wonder to the area, too! It felt peaceful and magical all at once, and if not for her impending exam Chihiro probably would've taken the time to stop and smell the magical roses!

But she did have an exam to take, so she pushed through the branches of a nearby bush and took the beaten path it lead down. The map had said the first artifact should be somewhere around here… But where?

Time felt like it slowed down and nearly stopped altogether as Chihiro walked down the way, her eyes glazed over the scenery for any signs of her targets. At first she was quite attentive… But as the journey grew longer, the sights had started to blend in her tired mind! And who could blame her as she passed near-identical trees, roses so similar they were practically copy-pasted, weird sparkles that came from tree branches…

"Wait, hold up!" Chihiro exclaimed as she whipped around and peeked up at a nearby branch, "What's that thing?"

Chihiro closed the flap of her bag and tightened it enough that nothing would spill out, then rushed up to the tree trunk and leaped onto its first branch. Her balance secured, she scrambled up each branch until she found her target!

It was bright and a reddish orange in color, though most of its body was obscured by the leaves it had nested in… Could this be what she was looking for?

Chihiro shimmied down the branch, then gingerly withdrew the object from the branches and turned it around in her hands. It didn't seem very out of the ordinary, just an orange box with a round button on its front.

"I wonder what this button does?" Chihiro remarked as she pressed the button.

With a friendly click, the top of the box flew open and revealed a miniature, complex mechanical tree of a machine! Its arms flailed about as an insect rendered on its back did, its gears whirred and twirled in perfect synchronization, and the tiny bulb at the top of its tree was a bright star that shone for all to see!

Wait, this seems familiar, Chihiro remarked as she watched the box's lid flip back over and lock again with a click, Didn't they say something about that in the books?

Chihiro hummed and kicked her legs against thin air as she tried to jog her brain. It was only an inkling, but she was certain that she had seen this in one of the books she had read for her studies… But which one? Her mind was completely blank to a title!

"Heh, this thing seems like something Dro would like." Chihiro brushed some stray bark off of the box's top, "But it's prolly nothing compared to the stuff he makes!"

Just then, a memory flashed into Chihiro's mind! It was one of a warm afternoon spent working away in the dustier, unoccupied rooms of the portal building, and more importantly…

"That's it! This was in one of those books I borrowed from Drobot!" Chihiro jostled so fast that the branches beneath her shuddered under her movements, then took a deep breath.

"Mini-mechanizers!" Chihiro's voice was clear and slow as if she was reading from a textbook, "Boxes that contain fully-assembled machines shrunk to travel size with the power of minimizer rays!"—Chihiro opened the flap of her bag and dropped the mini-mechanizer inside—"Trolls invented them to store their wares and other things for long journeys!"

As the mini-mechanizer dropped into the bag, a bright minty glow emitted from the bag's open hole!

Chihiro gasped, then dug out her map and looked it over… To find that one of the markers had gone from red to bright green before it vanished entirely!

"Well, that certainly makes things a lot easier," Chihiro remarked as she closed her bag up and leaned sideways, "Now, time to get out of this—"

Chihiro's hand slipped off of the branch and took her balance with it!

"TREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Chihiro slipped off of the branch and screamed as she crashed face-first back onto the ground!

"Owch." Chihiro popped off of the floor and brushed dirt off of her face with a groan, then pulled herself back to her feet, "I'd better watch those landings next time."

Chihiro hummed a tune to herself as she retrieved her map, then ran a finger across the map. There was another marker not all that far away from where she stood at the present time… Looks like that's gonna be her next target!

Y'know, Chihiro thought as she put the map away and walked on, It's really nice how quiet the forest is here. It's a lot different that being around the 'landers…

"Well, well, if is isn't the Portal Master Imposter, all lost and alone without any of those stupid Skyblunderers to protect her!"

Chihiro felt her heart stop as she whipped her head around. Was that Kaos's voice just now?

"STOP HIDING AND SHOW YOURSELF, KAOS! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE!" Chihiro demanded as she summoned a magic sphere on impulse… Only to release it as the wind blew some stray leaves to a place far beyond now.

"Oh, right, that was just…" Chihiro bit her lip and held her arm, which started to sting with a more recognizable pain, "A memory."

Chihiro's legs shook as she clenched her fist. She felt hot tears sear her eyes as memories of that day, that battle, all flooded back into her mind! She knew she couldn't linger here for long… And yet, it seemed as if every time she tried to press forward, her feet would stick themselves back to the ground. It was like her mind and body both were stuck in those memories, almost! The memories of her own loss, her careless actions, the fact that might not even be standing here had Spyro and Stealth Elf not intervened at the time they did… It was almost too much to bear!

Chihiro clenched her teeth and hand, then shook her head.

"I can't do this right now, brain," Chihiro mumbled as she finally pressed herself to walk a few steps forward, "You can make me sulk another time."

Chihiro's movements were almost forced, mechanical even, as she made a beeline for a nearby bush she was sure she had seen some conspicuous sparkles emit from out the corner her eye. She made a soft, hesitant whine, then dove her hands into the bush!

Chihiro winced and screwed her eyes shut as she felt a sting of pain against her hands—a prick from a thorn, perhaps—then froze entirely as she felt a surging numbness race within her. It wasn't the kind from sickness, but more like a deer in the headlights feeling, like her whole body was completely frozen. In the distance, she could've sworn she heard Kaos's sickening cackles… Then finally, with a racing heart and heavy breaths she pushed her hands further into the bush! She could feel a tingling sort of pain pulsate from her arm, but it was little more than an afterthought as she patted her hand around the bush's inside and yanked out something hard and solid.

With a grunt she pulled her arm back out of the bush… An arm that had its sleeve pushed up and was covered in thin scratches. Dangit, she'd better bandage that up later. But for now, she let her sleeve fall back over her arm as she analyzed her claim.

It was a solid purple object covered in ancient markings that vaguely resembled some kind of animal head… Maybe it was the thing she needed? Chihiro frowned, then went to drop it into the bag.

But when she did, the bag glowed red and spat it on the ground!

Chihiro's mouth twitched into a frown as she knitted her eyebrows, then she yanked the artifact back off the ground and shoved it into the bag. But, still no dice, once again it tossed the artifact back out! So, Chihiro did it a third time… And then fourth, fifth, sixth, all to similar effects as before… Only to finally give up at try number ten.

"Geez, what am I doing wrong?" Chihiro asked as she fished out the list and glazed over it once more. She was sure she had the right one, but her head was in such a haze she could barely focus on reading the list, let alone actually analyzing!

But, she was sure of it! This had to be the second artifact, the Guardifaun! Wait, hold on a second… Chihiro shook her head and looked back down on the list, then slapped her hand against her face.

"That doesn't say faun!" Chihiro exclaimed as she tossed the list back into her bag, "That says found!"—Chihiro cast a scorning glare towards the wrong artifact then kicked it back under the bush—"Hopefully I didn't waste too much time on that…"

Chihiro stood up, then adjusted the strap of her bag and walked along. Nothing seemed of much interest at first until her foot hit something rock solid! She frowned, then knelt down to the thing she kicked and examined it.

It was a solid lump of dirt that had some of its dirt loosened by its kick, which in turn revealed patches of bright purple. Could this be what she was looking for? Chihiro uncovered the dirt to find… A Guardifound! At least, she thought it was a Guardifound, given its body carved in the shape of a bulky soldier with shining gems for eyes and a clenched mouth that bore sharp fangs.

"Bulky body, humanoid shape, gems for eyes…" Chihiro rattled as she turned the object around in her hands, "This has to be a Guardifound! They could turn anything into a living soldier!"

Chihiro bit her lip, then warily withdraws her bag and opened it. She trembled as she dropped the Guardifound inside… And in response, the bag glowed green once more!

Thank goodness. Chihiro breathed a sigh of relief, then pulled out the map from her bag and analyzed its spots, Where to next, trusty map?

Oh geez… All these spots were a good bit away from where she was now.

"Ugh, that's gonna be a lot of walking." Chihiro slunk down and held her head, then immediately lifted it up and snapped her fingers, "I could teleport there, though!"

You absolutely must NOT use magic on the artifacts! Hugo's voice echoed from within the confines of Chihiro's mind, Bad things could happen if you do!

"Oh, that's right. I probably shouldn't while I'm still carrying these things." Chihiro hung her head once more, "Better not waste any time, then."

So Chihiro walked forward once more, but as she walked she felt a strange concerning feeling, as if something bad was just about to happen! She winced as she wrung the strap of her bag while chills crept down her spine at the same rate that cold sweat crept down her forehead…

Just then, a branch snapped!

"WHOEVER YOU ARE, SHOW YOURSELF RIGHT NOW!" Chihiro demanded as she whipped around, her hands bright with magic energy.

But, nobody was there. The only oddity was a broken branch and a purple object that resembled a weird-looking battery. The object made a pale, kind of strange glow as it rested next to the split branch, and a closer inspection showed that there was a small, but firm crack on its surface. Got banged up by the fall, maybe?

"Could this be?…" Chihiro whispered as she picked up the object, then dropped it in the bag and beamed as it was accepted, "It is! That was easy!"

Chihiro peered further inside the bag, then frowned as she examined the glowing artifact. It was hard not to, given that it stuck out like a sore thumb compared to the others…

"It looks a little banged up though." Chihiro sucked her lip, then gently closed her bag back up, "Better be gentle with it."

And so, Chihiro went back to her little scavenger hunt…

§

The trio walked through a series of rusty metal bridges that hung suspended over warm metal floors. The only light came from overhead lamps, bright and red and menacing, and everything felt like kind that felt tense and foreboding feeling as if one was about ready to walk into danger. But, it didn't bother any of them a bit as they went on their merry way…

Though, now that Boomer looked back, Snuckles did seem like he was itching to get out of this place right this second. Must be the excitement from his first mission!

"I'm, I'm going to scout ahead!" Snuckles proclaimed, "With my secret agent skills, I'm sure I can scout out the way in no time!"

Snuckles whimpered a little bit, then pushed past Trigger Happy and bolted down the bridges.

"You want us to come with you?" Boomer asked as he waved towards Snuckles.

"No, no, no! It's, um, it's totally fine!" Snuckles shook like a ruptured bomb, but still made a wide smile, "I can handle it a-ok!"—Snuckles looked aside as he tugged on his collar—"That's what I became a secret agent for…"

Boomer and Trigger Happy watched Snuckles run away with a shrug, then jumped to the next bridge as the prior one began to creak like it was about ready to collapse. They wiped the sweat from their brows in relief, turned around to check on Snuckles, who was bolting down the bridges with frightening (or maybe just frightened?) speed... Then gasped as they saw a fleet of trolls walk out from the doors! And worse yet, the trolls and Snuckles were right on a collision course!

"Snuckles, look out!" Boomer exclaimed as he waved his arms as if trying to send a signal.

"Trolls coming in west of the chicken coop!" Trigger Happy cried as he jumped up and down, "Fly away, fly away!"

And thankfully, it seemed that Snuckles had heeded their warning! For a moment, Snuckles stopped and seemingly caught sight of the oncoming trolls. He stood still at first and seemed to mutter something under his breath, then… He screamed his lungs out and charged head on right at the trolls!

Boomer and Trigger Happy just watched with eyes wide and mouth gaped open in shock, as did the trolls that Snuckles targeted… But then, the two of them cringed as they watched Snuckles bounce off one troll's armor and run back down the bridges sobbing!

"Welp," Boomer said as he stretched his arms then snagged some bombs out of his backpack, "Guess it's time for the pros to take the reins!"

Trigger Happy tittered as he whipped out his pistols and shot off a round of gold coins towards a troll covered in steel armor! However, at the last moment the troll whipped out a shield and used it to bounce those coins right back towards Trigger Happy! Trigger Happy squeaked and ran as his own coins chased after him… Only for them to bean him on the head in rapid succession and knock him on his face.

"Yeah…" Trigger Happy groaned as he stumbled back up with a noticeable metal grid mark now printed on his face, "That didn't work…"

The troll held its head high as it laughed at Trigger Happy's failure, but while it gloated, its shield had fallen down without it even realizing!

Trigger Happy, on the other hand, was more than quick to notice as he jumped back to his feet and conked the troll in the head with a gigantic pot of gold!

"That's what you get for acting all high and mighty!" Trigger Happy proclaimed as he watched the troll stumble about then fall unconscious.

The other trolls in the platoon stampeded over their fallen comrade in some attempt to mow down Trigger Happy, but Trigger Happy just whipped out his guns and shot gigantic golden coins back at them!

"Hey, don't leave me out of the fun!" Boomer exclaimed as he jumped up and clasped his fists tight.

As he fell down, Boomer hit the ground with a mighty pound that shook the floors like an earthquake! The trolls that Trigger Happy had beaten up flew through the air, right in time for Boomer to toss his bombs right at them!

These bombs exploded the moment they were within the trolls' breath, then sent those troll crashing into each other or slamming into the other platforms!

While the trolls slid down walls and fainted, Trigger Happy and Boomer turned towards each other and shared a high five.

But Snuckles, on the other hand, seemed far from relieved as he laid on his knees and clung tight to the bridge. While his whole body shook, his eyes were shut tight in what seemed to be fear…

"Don't worry, kiddo!" Boomer shouted as he turned back and ushered for Snuckles to come forwards, "We took care of those guys!"

"Yeah, they're yesterday's funnies!" Trigger Happy chimed in as he hopped along, "Now come on! We've still gotta find that Golden Gear thingie!"

As he heard this, Snuckles winced and opened his eyes, then breathed a sigh of relief as he caught sight of the unconscious trolls.

"Coming, Skylanders!" Snuckles shouted back. He winced again as he pulled himself back to his feet, then jogged back up to Boomer and Trigger Happy with a small chuckle.

Their party now reunited, the three of them all passed through the door with only a moment of pause taken to push some unconscious trolls out of the door's way. The hallways that followed were devoid of any sort of light, but they seemed straightforward enough that they could just keep walking until the familiar whir of an opening door showed they had reached the end! The door buzzed open to unveil another small, mechanical room full of hissing pipes and stray bombs, with the door to the next way over blocked by yet another lock puzzle!

Boomer immediately made a beeline towards the lock puzzle… But before he could even fish one measly stick of dynamite from his backpack, Snuckles pushed him out of the way.

"I'll take care of this!" Snuckles proclaimed as he dug through his pocket.

"You sure, Snuckles?" Boomer asked as he flicked his ears then made a wide smile, "I could just blow it up real quick!"

"No need!" Snuckles smiled, though the way his legs shook like fresh gelatin made his confidence seem less true, "I shouldn't make you do all the work when this is my mission!"

So, Snuckles hummed as he pulled out an assortment of tools and began sticking them in the lock puzzle's keyhole. But, well…

"Nope," Snuckles remarked as he pulled out one that vaguely looked like a screwdriver, "Not that one!"

Snuckles then grabbed another that resembled a lock picking tool and stuck it in, only to frown as it only jiggled the lock slightly. "Or that one!"

Snuckles fished out a large handful of tools from his pockets as he gritted his teeth, then stared down the lock puzzle with a frustrated glint in his eyes.

But, while he squared off with the lock puzzle, Trigger Happy and Boomer turned their attention to… Other things.

"Nope!"

Boomer precariously stacked several unlit dynamite sticks into an impressive pyramid, only for the pyramid to completely fall apart as Trigger Happy took out one of the bottom sticks.

"Not that one!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy played rock paper scissors, then Boomer groaned as Trigger Happy beat him once again.

"Nada!"

Boomer applauded Trigger Happy as Trigger Happy juggled a bunch of golden coins right as Trigger Happy lost his rhythm and dropped each coin on his head in rapid succession. Finally, they had grown so bored that they were both about ready to fall asleep, yawns and dozing off and all, when the sound of a lock puzzle hitting the ground woke them straight up!

They looked up, and sure enough Snuckles stood proud with some kind of skeleton key-looking thing in his hands and the cracked lock puzzle by the feet, all in front of a wide-open door!

"Hey, good job, Snuckles!" Boomer chirped with a quick clap of his hands, "You finally got it!"

"Oh, it was nothing!" Snuckles chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head.

The gate and its puzzle long forgotten in his mind, Boomer marched up the steel platforms with Trigger Happy and Snuckles close behind him. For some odd reason, he found the metal clanking sounds that the platforms made under his feet quite charming despite the circumstances.

Was it nostalgia, perhaps? Yeah, he was pretty sure that was it—after all, he hadn't been here in quite some time! But man, the place hadn't changed a bit! Well, except for the metallic suspension bridges hoisted above bubbling pools of lava that threatened to bubble or erupt completely at any moment he could see a little ways off. Boomer was pretty sure that was new.

As they watched the magma bubble and pop down below them, Snuckles shuddered once more.

"We should probably make this quick!" Snuckles shouted with a noticeable trill in his voice, "Don't wanna get caught in the lava and all! He, he…"

Trigger Happy and Boomer headed Snuckles' words as they tip-toed across the suspension bridges as fast as they could… Then they all cried out and ducked as a rocket zoomed in their general direction! Their chests pressed against the hot metal, the three of them grunted then pulled themselves up as the sound of cackling echoed throughout the room, mingled with the sound of creaking metal and popping lava bubbles.

There across from them, armed with an over-sized handheld rocket launcher… Was none other than a rocket imp!

"Yeah, they definitely didn't have these things back when I worked here!" Boomer exclaimed with a scowl as he watched the giggling imp.

Boomer rummaged through his backpack and tossed a bomb at the imp, but the imp was quick to intercept it with a pair of twin rockets! Not only did the first one slam straight into the bomb and create an explosion that shook the bridges below it, but the second hurtled straight towards Boomer, Trigger Happy and Snuckles!

They all screamed as they raced next to the bridges' railing and hung on for dear life despite the heat! Even though the rocket had zoomed past them, it still made the bridges swing like playground equipment—and worse yet, nobody could get a good shot in!

Boomer tried launching a few dynamite sticks, but the swinging threw off his aim and tossed them into the lava! The same thing happened to the bombs he had thrown, and the swinging was so intense that he had to practically wrap his entire body around to railing to keep from falling down below!

Trigger Happy, meanwhile, licked his lips as he held a gun in one hand while the other clutched the rails tight… But the moment he clicked the trigger, the bridges veered left and the gun swung out of his hand! It just fired one measly golden coin against the ceiling before it fell into the lava, never to be seen again!

"Dangit!" Trigger Happy exclaimed as he watched his gun sink, but his frustration quickly faded as he ruffled through his fur, "Good thing there's more where that came from—"

Trigger Happy screamed and latched back onto the bridges as they swung again, then turned around and ducked as more rockets came down and shook the bridges.

"This doesn't look good…" Snuckles winced as he flattened himself against the railing and bit his nails, "If even the Skylanders are having trouble, then what are we gonna do?"

Boomer gritted his teeth as he clutched his slowly-boiling metallic hands against the railing, then cast a glance back at Snuckles, who just breathed in and out then gulped. Just what was that kid planning?

"Hopefully, third time's the charm!" Snuckles exclaimed as he let go of the railing and charged down the bridges, his arm swung like windmills the entire time.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Snuckles charged with gusto, impressive given that his eyes were entirely shut! But, the imp seemed less than impressed as it clicked the rocket launcher's trigger and sent a rocket flying towards Snuckles! Snuckles blinked his eyes opened and ducked right before the missile could slam into him. He breathed a sigh of relief as the missile passed over his back… Then screamed as the suspension bridges started swinging and sent him tumbling down towards the lava!

"Snuckles!" Boomer shouted as he raced over and grabbed Snuckles just before he could fall into the lava… Only to tumble backwards himself as the bridge lurched the other way!

This sudden change of direction sent Boomer rolling before it slammed his back right into the railing! Boomer shouted in pain as he lost his grip, then looked up as a scream resonated throughout the room!

There, Snuckles flew in the air alongside several of Boomer's unlit bombs, all while he screamed and flailed like he was trying to swim in the air…

"Wait, now's my chance!" Snuckles exclaimed as he turned himself towards the unlit bombs that flew with him.

Snuckles grabbed a bomb and flung it towards the imp, his eyes narrowed as he watched the bomb soar down with a path set for the imp's head… But before it could conk that stupid imp, it saw the bomb quick enough to use its rocket launcher as a shield! Instead, the bomb just clogged up the mouth of its rocket launcher!

"Aw, rats!" Snuckles moaned as he slammed down on the now-stable bridge's platform face-first, "Double rats…"

The imp smirked as it clicked the trigger of its rocket launcher… But this time, no rockets came! Instead, the rocket launcher just made a bunch of weird noises. The imp scowled as it began patting and pounding on the rocket launcher in some attempt to unclog it, its eyes completely focused on that and nothing more…

"Lucky!" Trigger Happy shouted with sparkling eyes.

While the imp fiddled with its rocket launcher, Trigger Happy whipped out his pistols and shot the imp right into nearby wall with a giant golden coin!

The golden coin peeled off of the wall with a THUNK, and in the process unveiled a very dizzy, completely unarmed imp that was now stuck to a wall like a particularly stubborn pancake.

With their foe completely incapacitated at this point, Trigger Happy, Boomer and Snuckles all dashed across the bridges, then once they were on safe, stable floors they all stopped to catch their breath.

"So much for knocking out that imp…" Snuckles sighed as he slunk against a metal wall, then jolted up as Boomer patted him on the shoulder.

"Good job, Snucks!" Boomer praised.

"I…" Snuckles looked up at Boomer with sparkling eyes, "Did a good job?"

"You bet!" Boomer nodded and beamed, "If it wasn't for your quick thinking, we might not've stopped that imp!"

"Let's give the mabu a round of backpats, everyone!" Trigger Happy shouted as he jumped up and drummed his fists on Snuckles' back.

Snuckles chuckled, then stood tall and proud as he pointed to the path ahead.

"Follow me, Skylanders! I'll lead the way!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy chuckled with each other as well, a smile of genuine glee shared between them, then raced behind Snuckles!

However, this time it was Snuckles who had the lead above them! While they were still trailing their way through the paths, he had already arrived at the gates to an open dirt field in front of a warehouse!

"Could this be…" Snuckles whispered as he pulled out his map then gasped, "It is! This is the place where the Golden Gear is!"

Snuckles stowed away the map and went to run forward, but before he cold get even a mile in a mine popped out of the blue! Snuckles immediately screamed and ran back to safety, then curled up and shuddered as the mine exploded behind him.

"Of course it wouldn't be that easy…" Snuckles bemoaned as he sat back down on the floor.

Snuckles sighed as Boomer and Trigger Happy finally caught up with him, though neither of them seemed particularly discouraged. Rather, Boomer and Trigger Happy seemed fairly contemplative as they examined the fields… Especially Boomer as he made a soft hum.

"Ah, yes, the good old minefield!" Boomer remarked as he examined the field before them, "I remember this from the olden days…"

"You do?" Snuckles prompted as he looked up towards Boomer.

"Yep! They put this baby in here to keep people from getting their most secret wares… And for BOOM parties during the holidays!" Boomer chuckled and rolled his eyes, "But then they forget where the mines were, so they made a map!"

"They did?" Snuckles made a wide smile as he jumped back to his feet.

"Well, yeah, but…" Boomer chuckled and scratched his head, "Then they tore it up and scattered the pieces so nobody could get in, and nobody's found the pieces to this day!"

Snuckles, surprisingly enough, didn't seem discouraged upon hearing this! Instead, he just pumped his fist to the skies.

"Then we'll just have to find them ourselves!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy just beamed and applauded Snuckles' enthusiasm.

"That's what I like to hear!" Boomer proclaimed as he and Trigger Happy huddled after Snuckles…

§

Chihiro's hands trembled further, but she wasn't entirely sure if it was from her nerves or the chilly breezes that flew through the forest every so often. The forest had lightened up a bit here, just enough that it made the winds grow a bit stronger…. And oh how she loathed it.

A light sweater and an equally-light vest were far from ideal cold weather clothing, even if they did provide a bit of insulation. Normally she'd magic herself up a coat and be on her way… But, she wasn't entirely sure if that would fall under no using magic on artifacts, so she refrained. And besides, she was far too unfocused for spellcasting anyways!

All she could think about was how she had run out of luck! She had no idea what the other things on this darn list were, and even if she did she had gotten herself ridiculously lost. Even her own footprints lead her around in circles!

"Why does this happen to me?" Chihiro moaned as she banged her head against the paper map she held in her hand, "I mean, how'd I even end up here in the first place? I'm completely lost, have no idea what I'm doing, and it's all because…"

For a moment, Chihiro thought she had caught a glimpse of Kaos, all flared with magic and ready to kill, right before her eyes… But no, he wasn't here. It was all just her imagination, here to remind her of her failures yet again. So, she had jumped back and nearly stumbled over a rock for nothing, yay!

Why am I so messed up over this, anyways? Chihiro thought as she traced her map's creases, It's not like anything else bad happened after that, we still got the mission done! In the end, my slip-up didn't even matter!

"So why do I care so much that he's so much stronger than I am?"

Chihiro stood silent as she watched the wind blow and take the leaves with it, her grasp on her map slightly looser than before. That was the question that had racked her brain for so long… But still, she found no answer to it.

After all, if strength was the only issue, surely all the training she had done over the past few days would be enough to ease her mind. And yet, no matter how many spells she cast or how strong she got, she still felt that inkling of anxiety and insecurity whenever she thought back to the battle. Was it how he nearly killed her? Well, she had been in her fair share of perilous, near-death situations at this point and after two or three she just shrugged them off. It comes with the territory of being a hero and all that, she had told herself.

So what was it that messed her up? Chihiro stared towards the still bright and blue skies as she pondered, and for a moment it felt like she had completely lost herself in the sights of nature… Then, she yelped and stumbled back as a gust of wind slammed her straight in the face!

"HEY, WATCH IT! I'M TRYING TO THINK HERE!"

Chihiro went to brush the strands of hair that were stuck in front of her hair away, but as she did she felt her hand loosen and then lighten! Chihiro made a soft chirp as she heard the sound of paper fluttering in the wind… Then realized that the wind had taken her map with it!

Wait, her map! She couldn't let it get away! After all, if she was lost with it she would be even more lost without it!

Chihiro frantically closed her bag, then bolted forward and scrambled after the map! When she came in closer view she leaped after it as high as she could… But every time she did, the map fluttered jump out of her reach!

"Hey, come back!" Chihiro demanded as she grappled with a map that kept flying out of her reach! She leaped and bounded across the grassy floors, then frowned and jumped over a rock for extra elevation—or at least, she tried. Instead, she snagged her foot on it and tripped instead.

"OWCH!"

Chihiro bit her lip and rubbed her face as she popped back up, then her hand flared with magic.

"Actually, if you don't wanna come back, then I'll make you!"

Her hands glittered with magical sparkles, then in a short flash a giant sticky hand manifested in her palm! Her grasp on it tightened, Chihiro shot out her arm and sent the sticky hand flying…

"HI-YAH!"

But her air was off by a few inches, and the sticky hand just flew into the air beside the map!

"Hi…" Chihiro clenched her teeth and grimaced, "No?"

The length of its thread reached, the sticky hand rocketed back and slapped Chihiro in the face! Chihiro made a groan as she pulled it off of her face, then tossed it into the air and watched as it vanished with the passing winds.

"I was never good with those things anyways." Chihiro fixed her eyes on the map and dashed off, "Guess I'll have to do this the old-fashioned way!"

Chihiro knelt down, then sprinted down the path and jumped after the map to find minimal success. Every time she jumped even slightly closer to it, the breeze would taunt her by carrying her map higher and higher, further and further away from her grip! Chihiro grunted as her fifth attempt resulted in another failure, then watched as the map fluttered over a stream with a large boulder beside it. Wait, she had an idea! Chihiro raced up to the boulder and scrambled up its craggy surface, only a tiny bit of mind paid to the clinking noises she heard beside her.

Finally, she reached the top and caught sight of her map as it danced in the breeze!

"Try this on for size!" Chihiro exclaimed as she leaped off the boulder and came within inches of grabbing the map… Only for her to fall and crash on the ground instead!

Chihiro winced, then shrugged off the pain as she staggered back up… Only to feel a cold purple light against her face. Chihiro took a look back down at her bag, then gasped as she saw it glow a bright, ominous shade of purple!

"Hey, what's going on with this thing?" Chihiro asked as she held up her glowing bag and got ready to open it… Only to see the map flutter away.

"Actually, nevermind, I can figure that out later!"

Chihiro slid her bag back over her shoulder then ran back down the path. As she ran, she looked up to see a giant tree branch right within her reach, then grabbed onto it and climbed on its top. Once she was situated, she climbed from one branch to the other, then finally leaped right over her map… Then it flew right out of her grasp at the last moment!

"Stupid map!" Chihiro shouted so loud it shook the birds out of their trees, then she looked down and… Oh boy, that was going to be one nasty fall!

Gravity took hold shortly afterward and made Chihiro shoot downwards, the ground closed in tight and ready to give her a very bumpy landing… But before she could fall, she cast a hand out and created a bouncy, magical mushroom cap to land on instead! Chihiro smiled as she hopped on the mushroom, then slid off the cap and made chase once more.

She dodged rocks, leaped over stray branches, jumped, sprinted and climbed all she could, but once again her map continued to stray from her grip.

"Get back here!" Chihiro shouted as her map flipped away from her, only to lose her balance and conk her head on the ground, "Dangit…"

But, Chihiro shook off the pain and leaped across some smooth boulders that acted as a makeshift path across the stream her map had flown over, only to fall to her knees and pant. She hadn't realized just how much she had been running, but now it was really starting to take its toll… As Chihiro caught her breath, she felt a cold breeze against her back and turned around to find—oh no, not now!

The skies had started to dull, their bright blues soon dipping into yellows and pinks that signified the change to sunset. She had wasted so much time chasing this map, she had completely lost track of time! She'd probably never pass at this rate!

"That stupid map…" Chihiro croaked as tears stung her eyes, "If that wind hadn't blown it away, I wouldn't be wasting so much time…"—Chihiro's voice cracked as she tugged on her sweatpants—"No that's not it, I'm the only one to blame here. After all, if I hadn't got so caught up over that battle and actually studied, I wouldn't…"

Chihiro gasped as the sound of warbling paper caught her ears. Could that be? Chihiro looked up, then beamed and shook her head.

Sure enough, it was! Her map had finally stopped its voyage! Now, it was stuck within the branches of a tall, smooth tree and was stuck fast and tight.

"Looks like something's finally working out for me after all!"

Chihiro smiled, then jumped onto a nearby branch and scrambled up the tree, a hard banging sound a constant soundtrack to her climb. But, those noises weren't enough to bug her right now! Despite the odd purple light that surrounded her, Chihiro kept climbing up the tree. Finally, after one last hop she found herself the branch the map was stuck on!

She leaned forward, then frowned as something stopped her as if she was stuck on something. With a few annoyed tugs, however, she quickly broke free!

"Finally!" Chihiro beamed as she grabbed the map and straightened it out, "You caused me a lot of trouble, you know!"

Chihiro hummed to herself as she cleaned the map of leaves and creases, only to grimace as the sound of ripping fabric echoed about.

"Wait, what was that?"

Chihiro looked down and her eyes widened as she saw her collected artifacts zoom down below!

"CRAP!"

Chihiro immediately cast down a blast of magic and watched as the blast of magic rocketed past the artifacts then transformed into a platform! The platform cushioned the artifacts' landing quickly enough, and better yet it gave Chihiro just enough time to magically mend the bag!

"Phew, close one!" Chihiro sighed as she teleported down and watched the platform lower itself to her height, "Any second later and I'd be bringing those things back in pieces!"

Chihiro reached out her hand to collect the artifacts, but hesitantly drew back as she examined at the battery one. Its crack had grown bigger, and its glow was much brighter and more concerning than before, given the odd sparkles that emitted from it…

"What's wrong with this one?"

Chihiro frowned as she gently poked the battery artifact, then jumped back and yelped as it absorbed the platform's magic and glowed even brighter!

As the platform vanished, the other two artifacts dropped down onto the ground, but the glowing one still hovered above… Then it shattered completely and shot out a bunch of magical lightning bolts!

Chihiro screamed as she ducked for cover, then screamed again as another lightning bolt flew right over her.

Thankfully it had avoided singeing her, but it instead slammed right into the Guardifound! Wait, Hugo said that bad things would happen if those artifacts got hit with magic, right? Why on earth was she remembering this now?

The battery artifact's tiny, broken fragments cascaded onto the forest floor, and this time it was the Guardifound that levitated and glowed in the air! As it got absorbed by the glow, she could've sworn she heard it… Growl?

"Yeah, that cant be good," Chihiro gulped as she pressed her back against the floor.

§

"So, where do you think those map pieces are?" Trigger Happy asked as he looked up and down and all around.

"Well, in my professional opinion," Boomer said as he scratched his chin, "I don't know!"

Snuckles and Trigger Happy both faulted on the ground, but Boomer couldn't tell what for! Had they started to grow tired from all this exploring? Yeah, that was probably it.

"I mean, knowing his old coworkers and their smarts..." Boomer shrugged and scratched his scalp then looked aside, "Or lack thereof, they could have scattered those pieces anywhere!"

Boomer then frowned as he glazed over the rest of the outpost. "And this place is pretty big… It'll probably take us a day and a half just the scrounge through the entire thing, and that's based on my memory of it!"

"Well then," Snuckles said as he got up and dusted himself off, "I suppose we'll just have to start looking now!"—Snuckles wandered up to a nearby gate and smiled—"And I think I know where to begin! Look here, Skylanders!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy walked up to where Snuckles stood, then looked over at a metal sign next to the gate.

"'The gate where the minefield map pieces are,'" Boomer read with a small smile, "Oh, right! I forgot about this part!"

Snuckles smiled, then directed his attention across from the side where two identical red buttons stuck out from the rusted metal walls, paired with twin metal plates that had identical, minuscule print engraved on them. In fact, that print was so small it could barely be discerned!

"One of these buttons will probably open this gate…" Snuckles reasoned as he finger bounced back and forth between the two buttons, "But which one?"

Snuckles winced as his eyes bounced between both buttons, all while sweat crept down his forehead, then finally he gulped and hovered his finger over the first glowing red button.

"This one, maybe?" Snuckles bit his lip and hovered his finger back over the second, "But I don't know, this one seems pretty good…"—Snuckles balled his paw into a fist and smacked it against his other one—"I know how to settle this!"

Snuckles then went back to the first button and bounced his finger between the two once more.

"Eenie, meenie, minie, moe, I pick you…" Snuckles smashed his finger against the first button, "Now let's go!"

The moment Snuckles pressed down on the button, the entire area around flashed red while warning sirens blared in the distance! Yeah, something told them all that definitely wasn't the right button!

"INTRUDER ALERT, INTRUDER ALERT!" A mechanical voice blared over the intercoms, "ALL TROLLS TO BATTLE STATIONS!"

The gates receded with a shrieklike hiss, and from them tons of armed and scary-looking troll soldiers piled out and immediately aimed their guns at Boomer, Trigger Happy and Snuckles!

"Oh right, I forgot that too!" Boomer winced as he gazed over the two glowing buttons, "They put the intruder alarm right next to the doorbell!"

"… In my defense, that text was really small," Snuckles whimpered as he buried his face in his furry paws.

They all winced as the trolls shouted and ordered each other around, their voices melded into one as their guns whirred with power… And yet, Boomer seemed perfectly calm!

"Oh, hello! Don't mind us!" Boomer shouted as he dove his hands into his backpack and rummaged around.

While the enemy trolls looked at him in utter confusion, Boomer smiled and wormed a bomb out of his backpack, then gave Snuckles a wink. It was the confident kind of wink, the one that clearly said, "Don't worry, kiddo! I know exactly what I'm doing! Maybe!"

"You see, we're just passing through this lovely factooo—"

Before Boomer could finish his sentence, he yanked his hand out from behind and tossed the bomb right into the crowd of trolls!

"OOOOPSIE!"

The trolls all screamed as the bomb landed in their commander's hands, while the commander tossed it to another troll, then that troll tossed it to yet another troll… Soon enough, they all divulged into chaos as they played a game of hot potato! Or rather, hot BOMB-tato! And better yet, they were so preoccupied with the bomb that they had completely forgotten about little ol' Boomer and friends!

"Quick, before they realize it isn't lit!" Boomer whisper-hissed as he urged Trigger Happy and Snuckles towards the door!

The three of them scrambled through the gates, then Boomer hastily turned to the control panel next to it and pressed a couple buttons.

In response to his input, the gates slunk back up and locked themselves into place! The trolls on the other side pounded and pressed buttons, but it was of little use—those gates were sealed tight, and nothing was gonna bust them open at this point!

They were all safe within the confines of a tiny room filled with desks coated in blueprints, dust, and assorted torn-apart machines. The metal floors were littered with piles of scraps, and the trash bins were filled with all sorts of junk. Whoever was here last certainly didn't clean up after themself!

"Phew, close one," Boomer sighed as he wiped his face and grinned, "Alright boys, get searching!"

"Right, boss!" Trigger Happy exclaimed as he leaped into a pile of spare nuts and bolts then tossed them everywhere—including Snuckles' head!

"Owch!" Snuckles cried out as a stray bolt bonked him and left a nice little bump as a parting gift. Small tears formed in the corners of his eyes as he rubbed his sore head, but nevertheless he pushed himself towards the machinery desks and began searching.

Snuckles frowned as he picked up blueprints, then tossed them aside in rapid succession. "Not this one, or this, or that… Hey, Captain Rizzo would probably like this one, maybe I should take it—"

"TIMBERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Boomer exclaimed as he kicked over a particularly large robot and watched it crash into a pile of scraps on the floor.

Trigger Happy winced as he jumped out of the way, then poked through the now thoroughly damaged machine and frowned.

Snuckles shrieked and practically jumped out of his fur from the noise, then yelled in pain once more as he bumped his elbow on the table behind him. He whimpered as he rubbed his elbow… Then his eyes widened in surprise as he knelt down below that same table!

"Boomy, I think you only say that when you're cutting down trees," Trigger Happy remarked as he yanked the head of the machine off and peered inside, "Nope, no map pieces here!"

"But there is one here!" Snuckles shouted as he wiggled out from under the table and sat back up. With a grunt, Snuckles pulled himself back to his feet, then brandished a scrap of paper in his hands for all to see. "Well, I think it's a map piece?"

Boomer tossed away the mechanical arm he was examining, his eyes now fixed on the paper that Snuckles held.

"Lemme see!" Boomer chirped as he hopped up to Snuckles and snatched the paper from his paws. Boomer hummed as he examined the paper… Then he made a wide gasp as his ears twitched!

"Snuckles, you did it!" Boomer wrapped Snuckles into a hug with one arm while he waved the paper all about with the other, "This is one of those map pieces!"

Boomer then hovered the scrap of paper for all to see—and sure enough, in its corner were big, crudely-scribbled letters that read "Minefield map!"

"That's one down, who knows how many to go!"

Boomer sauntered over to a nearby door and inputted something on a nearby keypad, then drew back and presented the gate as it slid down into the metal floors.

"So come on, time's a'wastin'!"

The three of them hurried through the halls as the gates shot up behind them and frowned as dim light flickered over the halls they had found themselves in.

Several doors flanked the very short part of the halls they were in, all paired with twin panels that held tons of bright red buttons. Each panel was unlabeled, with one on the left and another on the right… But just what did they do?

It seemed like Trigger Happy was the first to try and figure that out as he ran up to the doors, hummed in contemplation… Then begin jumping around and pressing as many buttons as he could!

And while he pressed all those buttons, complete and utter chaos broke out! All around them, the doors began slamming open and closed while the ceiling clapped open and shut! And worse yet, it made a ton of obnoxious, metal grinding and slamming sounds akin to nails on a chalkboard!

"Pardon me, Skylander… But don't do that!" Snuckles warned as he pulled Trigger Happy away from the button he was about the press, "You might alert the guards!"

Trigger Happy yipped as Snuckles lifted him off the ground, then frowned and turned around.

"But the door's locked," Trigger Happy refuted, "Its not like anybody's getting here—"

Trigger Happy then froze as he looked behind them. Somehow in all that button pressing, the door Boomer had locked had unlocked itself again—and more importantly, trolls had already started to file in!

"Hey, what's with all the…" Mumbled a beefed up troll-guard armed with an equally-beefy laser cannon as they prowled through the halls at the pack's helm… Until they caught sight of the Skylanders and froze.

"RACKET!?"

The troll's eyes grew wide as dinner plates, then it gripped its gun tight and went to charge in!

Boomer, Snuckles and Trigger Happy all gasped, then immediately glued themselves to the many buttons as they pressed and prodded! While they tapped and poked all these buttons, the doors slid up and down, clapping machines emerged from the panels and immediately withdrew, gunpowder drifted down from the ceiling… All sorts of effects happened, and yet none of them closed the first gate!

"Come on, come on, close already!" Trigger Happy demanded as he went back to pressing as many buttons as possible for him.

Trigger Happy shuddered as stampeding like an earthquake shook the floor, then turned back to see the trolls were closing in fast! With a squeal, he jumped up and continued to play with those buttons.

"COME ON! SERIOUSLY!"

"We don't have time!" Boomer exclaimed as he grabbed Trigger Happy and Snuckles then pushed them through an open door, "GO, GO, GO! RUN LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!"

And as the trolls stampeded through the halls, that's exactly what they did! They first bolted down the long hallway they had chosen as the trolls followed, but they hit a dead end!

"There!" Boomer pointed towards an open gate on the left and bolted down!

The race lead them down into a ten-point star-shaped hub room with doors at every point! They ran down the bottom-left one, but it just looped them right back to the start!

"Weren't we just here?" Snuckles asked as they stepped foot back into the hub room, only to scream as the trolls stormed in and hollered!

So, they bolted down the middle-right point, which in turn brought them back through the middle-left hall…

"That one!" Trigger Happy shouted as he lead them towards the upper-left one… Which also brought them back to the start.

"Okay, let's try this one!" Snuckles panted as he ran up the top leftmost one… But once again, it brought them back to where they began!

"What's with all these paths?" Snuckles shouted to the ceiling as he paced forward and practically pulled his fur out, "It's like no matter what we do, we're always back—"

Snuckles looked up, then jumped back as he found himself face to face with one of the troll guards.

"RUN AWAY!"

And before they knew it, everything had dissolved into anarchy! The trolls chased them down each and every hall, no matter what they did! Their persistence followed Boomer, Snuckles and Trigger Happy down every hall, and pressing the few button panels available did little to deter those darn trolls.

Gunpowder rained from the ceiling with one button press, but the trolls just shook it off as a particularly large one tried to pound down the Skylanders with its metal club like a living game of whack-a-chompy!

Boomer shouted out as he skidded away from the troll's attack, then his back slammed right into a control panel! He grunted as he pulled himself off of the panel, then his ears twitched as the sound of beeps and chirps echoed out.

"That can't be good," Boomer winced as he looked behind to find the panel's buttons flashed in all sorts of colors… Only to get launched in the air as the tile below his feet sprung up!

All around him, friend and foe alike were tossed into the air, the floor a springy trampoline as its parts bounced up and receded!

The enemy trolls tried to shoot off their guns, but they were either slammed straight into the ceiling before they pulled the trigger or their intended targets fell back down before the ammunition could reach! Rather, it instead ricocheted all around the room! All combat was forgotten as everyone ducked for cover or otherwise tried to seek some shelter from the storm...

And Boomer was quick to notice this as he bolted down one of the bottom paths! He panted as his running turned to stumbles, but the prominent sound of loud footsteps seemed to fill him with new energy as he leaped in the air! Boomer winced as he looked behind and saw a particularly beefy troll in his pursuit, then he turned around and a large panel caught his eye! With his pursuer quickly catching up, Boomer hastily tapped a couple buttons… And with a chirp, a gate jumped out of the floor and blocked Boomer and the other troll from each other's view!

"Phew, good things we finally shook those guys…" Boomer sighed as he wiped the sweat from his brow and looked around, only to frown.

"Snucks? Trigger Happy?"

However, they were nowhere to be found! It was just Boomer, all alone in this cold, metal room.

"Hmm, that's odd…" Boomer frowned and rubbed his chin.

"We must have gotten separated when we were getting chased by those trolls! But when? Was it when we took that one turn, or was it when the ceiling dropped all that gunpowder?" Boomer knocked a fist on his head and groaned. "Darn, I can't remember at all!"

So, Boomer's frown deepened as he pulled out a lighter, then flicked it on and walked down the halls.

"Guess I'll just have to look for them myself!"

§

Snuckles whimpered as he trekked through the very dark, oddly warm, and definitely probably dangerous hallways. He wasn't sure when he got separated from the Skylanders… Two turns and four doors after he escaped from that ammo storm, maybe? Well, either way he was completely alone now, and he hated it! His legs trembled like his mother's weird jelly concoctions and his eyes hurt from all the tears that had flown down. He felt so, so, helpless and weak all on his own, and all this darkness and confusion wasn't helping that feeling.

"I hate this…" Snuckles whimpered as his knees trembled and knocked together without him even realizing, then finally he crumpled into a shuddering ball of a mabu.

"I WANNA GO HOMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Snuckles' sobs resounded through the halls, an echo of his failed resolve as he shuddered and shook… Then finally, those words resounded in his mind once more.

With us on your side, getting this gear back will be a piece of pie!

"That's right, the Skylanders are with me too… Somewhere…" Snuckles whispered as he wiped his tears and shuddered.

Well, he should have felt encouraged by that, but thinking about it just made him even more uneasy. Those two Skylanders, they were nice and all, but also kind of… Weird, he guessed? Well, that was probably the nice way of putting it. Either way, though, he was sure they were working super hard to find this map and get that gear, which meant he had to work hard, too! After all, he couldn't make them do all the work on his first mission! He didn't want to let them down, even if they were a bit strange.

So, Snuckles picked himself up off the ground, fired up his flashlight and trekked down the halls once more. He felt his spirits lift as the sound of mechanical whirring echoed throughout the near identical halls and repeated paths. Perhaps this was a sign he had found something! And indeed, he did! After a few more steps, he found a door with a bright red button that just begged to be pressed! So, he pressed it… But oddly enough, enough, though he heard the familiar sound of an opening door, the door that sat in front of him didn't open?

Snuckles turned his flashlight to the left and found an open passageway. Guess that was what that button unlocked—maybe that one had the switch he was actually looking for? So he walked inside, and the moment he did, his flashlight flickered out!

"Oh come on," Snuckles whimpered as he shook his flashlight, "Turn on, turn on, please!"

Snuckles shook the flashlight a little more, and in response the flashlight decided to fly out of his paws and rolls into the depths of the darkness! Great, just great! Stuck in a dark passageway with no light! Snuckles' legs started to shake as he chased after the sound of his flashlight rolling across the floor, only for him to trip on his own feet and fall flat on his face!

While Snuckles sniffled and rubbed his aching face, the sound of a door opening sounded off behind him… But he definitely hadn't pressed a switch, he would've felt that for sure. Had the Skylanders come back for him?

"WELL, LOOK WHAT WE HAVE HERE!"

As the sound of cackling took the place of the door, Snuckles turned around and found that nope, that wasn't the case. It was the trolls he had shaken earlier!

Though their bodies were barely visible against this harsh darkness, the light from their guns illuminated their faces enough to show that they weren't happy! They all scowled as they readied their weapons, while a bunch of bright red dots appeared on Snuckles' body!

Snuckles wanted to run, he really did, but that sudden fall must have taken more out of him than he thought, because he could barely move a muscle! All he could do was sit and watch in horror as the trolls closed in on him…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

§

Meanwhile, halfway across the maze, Boomer's ears twitched as he poked his head around the corner. Sure enough, he had found himself back in the break room! Even with this labyrinthine maze, he could always count on this to be the one room he'd always find, having spent many an afternoon contemplating life and other things during his meals…

But, now wasn't the time for contemplating, it was the time for action!

Well, it would be if the break room hadn't been filled by trolls and imps who peaceful snoozed away when they were probably supposed to be on high alert. Well, not that anybody ever kept track of that kind of stuff anyways. But, if he didn't want an incredibly explosive and one-sided fight on his hands, he was probably going to have to keep quiet.

So, Boomer shushed himself then tip-toed across the halls…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Boomer's ears twitched while he whipped his head around.

Wait a second, who was screaming? It certainly didn't come from him! Did somebody get their hand stuck in a bomb or something? Whoever's scream it was, it was loud enough that it made everybody in the break room immediately jolt up and man their stations!

"GUARDS, INVESTIGATE THAT NOISE!" Exclaimed one fancily-armored troll who still had sticky papers stuck to their face as they pointed towards the open door!

Boomer yipped and immediately flattened himself against the back wall. He gritted his teeth as the guards all scampered in a big flurry ahead of him, no mind paid to the troll who had his back flat against the wall… Or the paper that fluttered in the breeze behind them!

Boomer grabbed the paper, then smiled as he looked it over! On it was some crudely-scribbled directions, along with part of a faded, clearly disobeyed instruction to not tear this paper under any cost… And the words "Minefield Map." Yep, this had to be the next map piece!

"Man, talk about lucky!" Boomer chuckled as he clutched the map piece tight, "Well, for me anyways, not so much whoever was screaming."

Boomer then hummed a tune as he walked up to the nearby door and opened it with a simple button's touch.

"Hope that person's not in any big trouble…"

The map piece held tight in his mechanical hand, Boomer opened the door before him with a free hand then bounded out to find… None other than an inattentive Trigger Happy!

"Trigger Happy!" Boomer called as he waved towards Trigger Happy, "Good to see you, buddy!"

"Huh?" Trigger Happy's ears twitched, then he turned around and beamed, "Boomy, there you are!"

Trigger Happy giggled as he leaped into Boomer's arms, then he climbed onto Boomer's bald scalp and kicked his stubby little legs. "I thought you got stuck in a box!"

"You bet I'm here! And you won't believe what I found!" Boomer lifted the map piece to Trigger Happy's line of sight and waved it just a bit, "The next map piece!"

Trigger Happy's smile grew even wider as he hopped off of Boomer's head and did a little jig from the sheer glee he surely felt!

"Maps, maps, maps, we're gonna get the maps…" Trigger Happy stopped mid-dance, then frowned and looked around, "Hey, on another note, where's Snuckles?"

Boomer's own smile quickly faded to a frown as he looked around. Now that Trigger Happy mentioned it, Snuckles was still missing! And that kid would probably be dinner bait on his own… Where'd he go?

Trigger Happy frowned as well as he looked at Boomer, then sighed.

"Oh, I'm sure he'll be fine!" Trigger Happy chirped as he caught sight of the concerned frown on Boomer's face, "He probably just took a wrong left or something! He'll find out before you can even say 'honey cream pancakes!'"

"But, still… We did say we'd keep that kid safe." Boomer straightened out his beard and adjusted his backpack, "And with him wandering around all on his lonesome and stuff, who knows what could happen!"

Trigger Happy's own smile faded into a reluctant frown. "I guess you're right, Boomy."

Trigger Happy and Boomer both looked towards the gate they came from. They've been through such a long, winding way, and surely Snuckles had gotten even more lost than they had! Just where was he?

"Maybe we should retrace our steps?" Trigger Happy asked with a shrug, "Who knows, we might've passed him without noticing him or something! That's happened to me lots of times before!"

So, Boomer shrugged, walked up to the gates and opened them once more with a few button presses. With Trigger Happy by his side, he trailed down the long, winding halls, took a few turns right, then skedaddled down left, walked straight down… Wait, did he take the right or the left turn last time?

Did he even take a turn at all?

Boomer moaned and looked behind him, but at this point the halls and corridors had all started to blend together in his mind. Guess he had no choice but to continue walking down the path before him, unfamiliar as it was. It almost felt hard to believe that once upon a time, he knew this place like the back of his hand!

Wait, Boomer thought as he examined the back of his hand and scrunched his brows, I'm prettyyyyyyyyy sure that one circuit is new…

"Hey, Boomy?" Trigger Happy urged as he shook Boomer's shoulder, "I don't wanna freak you out, but…"—Trigger Happy looked left and right then shrugged—"I think we're lost."

Boomer jumped up and make a couple hearty laughs. Silly Trigger Happy, there was no need to worry! That's what he wanted to say, after all, he knew this place so well, there was no way they could be completely lost! Wherever they went, surely he'd…

Wait a second, he didn't remember walking on this railed platform bridge.

"When did we get here?" Boomer asked as he looked around and frowned.

"Five minutes ago?" Trigger Happy shrugged, then he looked right and skipped away as if something had caught his attention.

Stuck between the itty-bitty spaces in the bridge's railing was some kind of… Note maybe? Whatever it was, Trigger Happy yanked it out of the rails, then unfurled it and smoothed out the many creases in its papers.

"Boomy, Boomy! Look!"

Trigger Happy jumped in front and back and all around Boomer in such an excited haze that it made Boomer's head spin just trying to keep up! Boomer groaned as he swayed back and forth, then shook his head right as Trigger Happy shoved the piece of paper in his face!

"It's that next map piece!" Trigger Happy grinned, then his grin faded as he lowered the paper and looked over it himself, "At least, I think it is…"

Boomer took the paper, then grabbed the other two map pieces out of his pocket and compared them against the faint, fluorescent light from overhead. As he moved the pieces closer and closer in, he couldn't help but beam. They matched up perfectly!

"By Troll Bunyan's boots, you've got it, Trigger Happy!" Boomer grinned for a few moments more then stuffed the map pieces away in his pocket, "And better yet, this map's nearly done!"

"So what are we waiting for?" Trigger Happy bounced around Boomer a few more times then ran across the platform, "Let's find the rest of that map!"

Boomer grinned as he followed Trigger Happy down the way, his mind now completely fixed on finding the last bit of the map! But at the same time, a nagging feeling egged on in his brain, as if he had forgotten something important… Was he looking for something?

Oh well, whatever it was he could surely find it after he got this map assembled!

§

As Chihiro stepped back and watched the artifact's glow grow bigger, she couldn't help but wonder… Oh god, what did she just get herself into? As the glow became brighter and brighter, bigger and bigger, it slowly took what appeared to be a solid form—a big, hulking solid form with muscular arms and stocky legs, complete with a tiny head to match.

The form grew more detailed as the light started to fade, now clad in different shades of neon purple that painted translucent bodies carved with intricate line markings. Its face had simple depressions in lieu of eyes and a fanged, almost beak or muzzle like mouth. The appearance seemed so simple, and yet, so horrifying… And worse yet, the Guardifound it was born from was stuck square in its chest, surrounded by fountains of brightly-colored sparkles!

Chihiro winced as she looked over the monster, then her eyes glazed towards the artifact stuck in its chest once more. The chest itself had a decently-sized crack in it, one perhaps born from the crack she had spied in that battery artifact that gave it life. Maybe, just maybe, she could reach in and pull it out?

While the monster made low growls and looked around, Chihiro leaped forward and plunged her hand into its chest… To no avail! Before she could even do anything, the monster grabbed her by the arm and tossed her into a nearby tree! Chihiro screamed in utter pain as she slammed against the tree trunk and slid down.

While she cradled her dizzy head, she staggered back up just in time to see the monster turn itself towards the mini-mechanizer that laid hapless on the floor. It held out one meaty, clawed hand, and from that hand sprung out another bolt of magical lightning! The magic lightning bolt hit the mini-mechanizer, which was surrounded by a bright, this time orange light… Then it growled and emerged a new monster, near-identical to the first save for its floral decorations and orange coloring!

Chihiro gasped as she watched the monster stretch and test out its new limbs, but not for long.

The Guardifound shot a few more bolts into the depths of the woods, and from those came bright bursts of light that stood out well against the darkness of their depths. Soon enough, more of those monster crept out from the woods, each with their own unique colors and traits but no less horrifying.

Not that Chihiro had time to note them all, because before she knew it they had all ganged up on her, ready to attack! Chihiro cast a shield as one sent a punch her way, but the punch just shot right through the shield and shattered it! As the monster leaned forward, she jumped out of its path and teleported out of their circle.

"I know Hugo said not to use magic on you guys…" Chihiro said as she crafted a magic sphere and shot it right towards them, "But I think he'd understand in this case!"

The blast rocketed towards the first Guardifound, but it only grabbed the sphere and cracked it like an egg!

"What the heck?" Chihiro stumbled back and gasped, "It didn't even get a chance to hit the darn thing!"

Before Chihiro could react further, something slammed against her and knocked her into a nearby tree! Chihiro winced as her back burned with pain, but bit her lip to keep the tears from coming. Instead, she looked up and shot another magic sphere at the monster that just attacked her—but the monster simply batted it away like an annoying fly!

"Alright… Magic spheres are out of the question…" Chihiro grunted as she lurched down and felt magic crackle within her body as she held out her hands, "BUT WHAT ABOUT MAGIC HAMMERS?!"

Chihiro summoned a magic hammer, then teleported behind two of the backmost monsters and smacked them right in the back! They were so caught off, they rocketed off into the other monsters like golf balls and slammed them all right into the nearby flora!

"Finally, it hit—" Chihiro's smile turned into wide shock as the Guardifound latched onto her hammer and forced her to release it, "SOMETHING!"

Chihiro jumped back, then ducked as the monster swung her own hammer at her and tossed it at a nearby rock. Though she didn't see the impact, the loud crashing and cracking noises she heard behind her told her enough to know that her hammer was done for!

Crap, looks like they can counter any of my magic attacks! Chihiro thought as she scrambled back, And shields are out of the question, they'll just shatter those too! What do I do?

Chihiro's eyes widened, then she held out her hand as sweat poured down. That's right, looks like it's time to practice those advanced spells I was trying out!

Chihiro narrowed her eyes and gulped again, all while her body shook like crinkled autumn leaves in the breeze. While a sliver of confidence flared in her heart, it was eaten up by the panic and anticipation she felt instead.

Come on, give me a nice, big chain reaction spell! Chihiro had begged, her eyes now closed tight as she tried to focus her shaky heart... Then she shot those eyes wide open as she heard the sound of crackling electricicty!

Turns out, nothing had come out of her hand but a few sparkles! No kind of orb or spell to be seen!

"Come on, come on, now's not the time!" Chihiro exclaimed as she shook her hand and shuddered, "If that's not gonna work, give me a time-stop spell! A magic minion spell! JUST DO SOMETHING!"

But alas, the more spells and requests and pleas Chihiro tossed out, the more her hand sparkled. It was almost like it was laughing at her, mocking her desperate cries to help her get out of this awful, awful situation! With nothing else possible to do and the monsters' growling much louder and more ominous, Chihiro whimpered as the monsters ganged up on her, then looked up to see their menacing faces morphed into… Kaos's face? What was going on here?

"You fool, there's no way someone like you could defeat me! You may think you're some big hero…" The monsters became a mocking chorus of annoying birds while they chided in Kaos's voice, "But in the end, you're nothing more than a helpless child impersonating a warrior!"

Kaos's crooning, stinging laughter echoed all around as the Kaos-faced monsters laughed right in Chihiro's face! And worse yet, Chihiro could do nothing about it. All she could do was sit and watch, frozen in fear as they all mocked her for the pathetic, useless being she was! So weak, so helpless, so completely unable to defend herself or do anything about the mess she made.

"Now, stand there and let me show you what we do to you SO-CALLED HEROES!"

All she could do was curl into a ball and sob as her failures became the death of her… But that death never came! All she heard was groaning that made her open and wipe her teary eyes.

Rather than attacking, the monsters had covered her ears and shook their heads, as if something had hurt their heads… Wait a second!

"My crying throws you off, huh?" Chihiro snarled as she summoned a megaphone and raised it to her lips, "WELL HOW 'BOUT I CRY YOU A RIVER?!"

Chihiro made strangled sobs as she held the microphone down, then raised a face both grief-wrecked and furious at the same time.

"AFTER ALL, I'M AN UTTER FAILURE AS A PORTAL MASTER! I WASN'T STRONG ENOUGH TO BEAT KAOS, I MESSED UP THIS EXAM, AND I CAN'T EVEN STOP YOU GUYS! I KEEP TRYING AND TRYING TO GET STRONGER AND BETTER AND SMARTER BUT, I, I, I, I'LL NEVER BE GOOD ENOUGH TO DO ANYTHING RIGHT EVER AGAIN!"

The monster clamped their hands around their heads even further, though even with them distracted Chihiro hardly felt better. If anything, saying all that stuff out loud made her feel even worse!

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT I'M DOING WRONG, EITHER! I'VE BEEN TRAINING AND FIGHTING SO HARD, BUT NONE OF IT EVEN MATTERED! I COULDN'T LAND A SINGLE THING ON YOU! AND IF I CAN'T CAST A SINGLE, STUPID SPELL AND BEAT YOU GUYS…" Chihiro croaked and gasped for air as hot waterfalls poured down her face, then found herself struck silent as the megaphone slipped out of her hands.

"I'll never be able to beat Kaos."

Chihiro just stared wide-eyed in total shock, while the entire world around her had blurred into a chorus of melded colors and sounds. Soon enough, that strange chorus had warped into the broken, leveled forests of the Fairy Kingdom

No, no, what's happening? This isn't real, I'm not at the Fairy Kingdom, I'm back at Ancient's Peak! And Kaos isn't here, he isn't! Chihiro thought as memories of that battle flashed through her brain, the same battle where she could barely cast a single spell to nail down her worst foe. Once again her whole body locked up as the monsters all morphed into proper reflections of Kaos, with those soul-piercing eyes and those bright, magical flames ready to strike.

"NO, NO, NO!" Chihiro screamed as hard as she could as she backed closer and closer, until she hit something prickly and leafy, "STAY AWAY! STAY AWAY!"

The shrill, terrified tone of Chihiro's finally melted away into something more remorseful and full of sadness as she felt the thing behind her and saw the area morph back into the forests of Ancient's Peak, and the Kaos clones into the monsters she was faced with earlier... But, she could hardly be filled with relief! With whimpering tears, she lurched down and held another hand over her hot, puffy face.

"What's going on? What's wrong with me?"

Just before she could sob some more, one of the monsters swung forward and punched Chihiro in the gut! Chihiro screamed as she flung into the bushes, then grunted and pulled herself up… Only to find that the monsters had closed her in once more!

They lurched towards her like zombies and imposed themselves over her form, so big and lurking compared to her own small body. Out the corner of her eye, she saw the original, purple monster stomp on her megaphone and smash its bits underneath her foot. Great, there went her one chance to stop them!

Chihiro whimpered, then looked up and watched frozen stiff as the monsters completely surrounded her and raised their attacks.

Now she really was finished.

§

Snuckles groaned as his blurry, blurry vision started to clear, while his head still throbbed with searing pain. He could only vaguely remember what had happened beforehand, just the sounds of jeering laughter and whirring guns that poked holes through a blanket of darkness. How had he gotten himself here? Snuckles tried to get up and move around, but it seem like no matter what he tried, something tough and itchy kept him bound to wherever he sat. What was going on here?

"He finally came to, boys!" shouted some blurry orange figure in the distance as a shuffling crowd of multi-color blobs all formed around him… Wait.

Snuckles' vision finally cleared, and he found that those weren't blobs, they were trolls! He vaguely recognized the ones around him as the trolls who had cornered him in that strange hallway maze, but the one in front wasn't in their ranks. And yet, Snuckles recognized him from somewhere… Hold on, wasn't he that Boomington fellow that he and the Skylanders had run into when they first arrived?

Whoever he was, he immediately shone a flashlight in Snuckles' face, a flashlight with a light so bright in almost completely blinded him!

"Well well, looks like the Skylanders' little mabu friend is all alone and helpless…" Boomington crowed as he continued shining the flashlight, "What luck!"

Boomington then slammed a hand on a nearby table, the sound so intense it made Snuckles flinch.

"Alright, tell us!" The light faded and unveiled Boomington's face, which was now fit with a snarl, "What did you and the Skylanders come for?"

"Like I'd tell you! I'm a super secret agent, and that makes my super secrets have to stay super secret!" Snuckles snarled the most intimidating snarl he could make, but it quickly faded as he writhed in his seat, "Now untie me! These ropes are really itchy…"

However, Boomington seemed the furthest thing from intimidated—he simply cackled and raised an eyebrow at Snuckles!

"Super secret huh?" Boomington's smile spread across his thin, chapped lips as he grabbed a bomb from his pocket and tossed it like a baseball, "Maybe, if I blow you to bits, all those super secrets will come out!"

"Never!" Snuckles whimpered and looked aside, "I'm not even sure that's how it works, anyways!"

"What about if we toss ya into the lava pits?" Suggested one troll

"Or send our trollbots to tear you limb from limb?" Asked another.

"Ooh, ooh," Shouted another, smaller troll as they bounced over the crowds, "I say we cook 'em into mabu stew!"

Snuckles winced as the trolls all chatter and threaten him, their eyes seared into him like lasers through metal. He squirmed and struggled as he tried to make himself as small as possible against the large, intimidating crowds, with their gnashing fangs and beady eyes that only glistened as they suggested all those ways to bring about his end… But no matter what he did, he couldn't escape! He could only watch as their threats ganged up on him.

"FRY HIM!"

"BOIL HIM!"

"TURN HIM INTO A ROBOT!"

Their laughter and jeers and haunting, droning voices all ran circles around Snuckles, or maybe that was his head spinning as he broke into a cold, shaky sweat. Snuckles could feel his entire body clam up like that time he got called on during the spelling bee when he was seven, and every piece of him was ready to burst from fear… All of a sudden, he was really starting to reconsider this whole secret agent business.

The trolls practically smelled his fear and only laughed more as they closed closer and closer in on him, then…

He was saved! Well, if you counted a loud, red siren flashing and getting all the trolls attention as being saved, that is!

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDERS HAVE INFILTRATED SECTION V!" Blared some robotic voice as part of the ceiling unfolded and a screen popped out.

The trolls all turned away from Snuckles and fixed their eyes on the screen as it flashed on, and Snuckles did as well from sheer curiosity. There, on its grainy, well, screen, it showed footage…

Of those Skylanders Snuckles was with, Boomer and Trigger Happy, as they examined some kind of pressed button on a platform!

The trolls gasped and snarled, but Boomington seemed perfectly composed as he turned back to Snuckles and sneered.

"Actually, mabu, it's your lucky day!" Boomington proclaimed as he cracked his knuckles, "We've got a little job for ya!"

"What, what are you talking about?" Snuckles questioned as his knees turned to jelly, "I'm not doing anything for you!"

"Didn't say you had a choice!" Boomington grabbed a cloth from the table, then tied it tight around Snuckles' mouth, "Now quit your blabbing and come on!"

And so, the trolls grabbed their weapons and stormed out the room, save for Boomington who simply heaved Snuckles over his shoulder and waltzed right out. His grip was strong and tight—so strong and tight, in fact, that Snuckles couldn't break free no matter which one of his very limited options he tried! He squirmed, kicked, wiggled, but none of that mattered!

"We've got to meet up with our old buddies, the Skylanders!"

§

"Alright, I think that's the fourth door we passed this hour," Boomer panted as he and Trigger Happy ran through the door, then sighed and fell to their feet, "Either my memory's going bad, or they really redid the place after I left!"

While Boomer took a moment to rest, Trigger Happy hopped forward and examined the room around. Once again it was a particularly simple workroom with benches, half-made machines, and metal flooring and metal panel walls that seemed about ready to come out at any moment—they really did not like variety around here, it seemed. The only difference was that the floor seemed to bend under their weight, almost like it was made of rubber rather than metal!

And apparently, somebody had left a scrap of folded paper that had been turned on its back on the floor! Trigger Happy lifted up the paper, then hummed in curiosity for a moment as he tapped his foot against the metal floors.

"Hey, Boomy, I think this is it!" Trigger Happy proclaimed as he turned around and waved the paper at Boomer, "It was just lying on the floor, too, talk about lucky!"

Boomer beamed as he saw the paper on Trigger Happy's hand, but the moment he heard that last bit he frowned.

"Just… Lying there? That sounds a little too easy," Boomer said as he looked over Trigger Happy's shoulder, a cautious eye directed at the paper, "Well, let's see it then."

He frowned as he unfolded it, then turned it around and raised an eyebrow.

"'Psyche!'" Trigger Happy read as he made a confused chirp, "What're they psyching us up for?"

STOMP, STOMP, STOMP!

Trigger Happy and Boomer froze as the sound of massive stomping and pounding noises enveloped them while the paper drifted out of their hands.

Out from opened panels in the walls came trolls soldiers, all dressed to the nines in armor and weaponry! Worse yet, these trolls had blocked off any sort of exit, and they seemingly knew this as they sneered and loaded their arms.

"It was a trap!" Boomer exclaimed with a snarl.

Boomer immediately reached back and went to get his bombs, and Trigger Happy bore a similar frown as he reached for his guns… Only for them to drop their weapons as several trolls parted to form a path around a flashing warp panel.

Trigger Happy gasped and stepped back, but Boomer didn't relent. Instead, Boomer just growled low as he stared at the one who came from the warp panel's light!

"BOOMINGTON!" Boomer called.

Sure enough, Boomington stood tall and smug, with a rope-bound Snuckles laid at his side!

"I wouldn't be so hasty, if I were you…" Boomington remarked as he poked a laser gun at Snuckles' head, "You try any funny business, and the mabu gets it!"

Snuckles said no words—not that could anyways, given that his mouth had been covered by a tightly-tied blindfold—but the guilty, sorrowful look he gave Boomer and Trigger Happy said enough words on its own.

"Oh, kid…" Boomer whispered as he gently folded his hands together, a bit of concern in his eyes… Then finally he shook his head and the rage returned.

"Fine then! What do you want, Boomington?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Boomington lifted the laser gun and waved it around in a circle, "I want you to surrender!"

Boomer winced, then looked back at his pocket where the map pieces he had collected still resided. Finally, he dove a hand into his pocket and sighed.

"Alright, Boomington. You win." Boomer trudged forward with his head hung low, "Just don't hurt the kid, alright?"

Boomington, however, only smirked. "Never thought I'd see the day when you'd lose to me, Boomer!"

Boomer sighed again and held out his hand.

"Let's shake on it, alright?" Boomer asked, a bit of the weariness in his voice receded as Boomington went to shake his hand… But before they could shake, Boomer smirked and tapped something into Boomington's pocket!

"NOT!"

Boomer grinned as Boomington whipped around, then looked down in his pocket and screamed as he found just what Boomer had stuffed in his pocket—a burning stick of dynamite!

"BOOMERRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Boomington cried as he yanked the dynamite stick out of his pocket and frantically juggled it.

"That's my name…" Boomer remarked as he sneaked around and yanked Snuckles by the ropes, "Don't wear it out!"

Boomer dashed back to Trigger Happy, then shoved Snuckles in Trigger Happy's arms and beamed.

"You untie Snuckles!" Boomer smiled and cracked his knuckles, "I'll try and buy us some time!"

After a few more knuckle cracks, Boomer leaped into the air, then slammed forward and pounded into the ground with both fists! The impact from his pounding was so great, it caused the floors to concave and created a makeshift shield out of the rubbery metal paneling!

"Bouncy metal, one of the better additions to the factory if you ask me." Boomer wiped his hands clean of any dust, then turned around and beamed as Trigger Happy untied the cloth around Snuckles' mouth, "How're you doing, Snucks?"

"Oh, oh great Ancients!" Snuckles panted as he looked back to Boomer and Trigger Happy with wide eyes, "I thought I was done for…"

"Nope! We're not letting you go that easy!" Trigger Happy chirped as he patted Snuckles, then went to untie the ropes that kept Snuckles bound tight… Though they wouldn't budge, much to his disdain.

"And neither will these ropes, apparently!" Trigger Happy sniffed the air, then frowned and turned to Boomer, "Is it just me, or do you smell something burning?"

"Yeah, now that you mention it," Boomer said as he frowned and sniffed as well, then twitched his ears. "And I think I hear something burning, too!"

Boomer looked up, then gasped and reached for the inside of his backpack.

"NEVERMIND, I FOUND IT!"

The dynamite stick that he had sneaked into Boomington's pocket was flying towards him, and worse yet, it was about ready to blow! So, Boomer immediately snagged a bomb from his backpack, lit it then threw it right at the dynamite stick!

A gigantic explosion rumbled through the ceiling, and the shockwaves it left behind were so great that it flipped the metal floors back to normal!

All three of them cried in pain as they were flung upwards and hit their heads on the ceiling, then shot back down and hit their heads on the floor. They didn't have time to rest and recover, however, because the moment the floors settled the trolls immediately readied their weapons! So, Boomer and Trigger Happy launched forward and shot off a round of golden pots and burning bombs that sent the trolls flying through the air!

Several of Trigger Happy's pots immediately knocked down a few of the soldiers, though the impact of them hitting the floor was so great it sent shockwaves like tidal waves rippling through the room!

Boomer yelled in surprise as the tide lifted him up, only to snarl as he caught sign of a much less fazed Boomington!

Boomington grabbed his laser gun and immediately pulled the trigger… But before his lasers could hit Boomer, Boomer pounded into the floors and caused a geyser of metal to shoot forth and intercept the lasers!

"WHAT?" Boomington snarled as he took a step forward, "How dare you use our own factory against—"

But, before Boomington could finish his sentence, Boomer punched several of the panels and slapped them straight at Boomington! Boomington cursed out muffled insults as he tried to rip the panels off, only to stumble off of the wave he rode on and tumble down the hill, his muffled curses turned to muffle screams!

Boomer smiled as the metal geyser receded and he got to see Boomington roll down, then he yelped as his own wave collapsed back to normalcy! Though he feel, his fall was at the very least softened by something orange and squishy… Wait. Boomer groaned and rubbed his head, then turned around to find that he fell on another, larger troll's shoulder!

"Whoops, don't mind me!" Boomer chuckled as he jumped off of the troll's shoulder and backed away, "Just kind of landed in the wrong place, no harm meant…"

The troll, however, just growled and wielded a mechanical mace, fully ready to smack Boomer like a ball… But before it could, a gigantic golden pot beaned it on the head and knocked it unconscious, complete with another rippling shockwave!

"EAT GOLD, YOU BIG BOZO!" Trigger Happy shouted as he flew in the skies and shot off his guns, which in turn shot several gold coins right at the ceiling!

These golden coins ricocheted right off the ceiling, then slammed right into the foreheads of the nearby flying trolls and shot them back into the floor!

While Boomer and Trigger Happy fell down to the floor and fought off trolls, complete with the scent of dynamite and soot filtered into the air, Snuckles squirmed away and took sanctuary under one of the few tables that hadn't been overturned in the fight.

"Thank goodness, that was close!" Snuckles sighed as he watched the fighting with worried eyes, then paused as the sound of crinkling paper underneath his foot.

Snuckles fell to his front, then nudged the paper he had found over with his nose… And gasped!

"SKYLANDERS!" Snuckles called as he flipped himself back to full height, "Skylanders, look, I found—"—Snuckles winced as he hit his head on top on the table and slunk down—"Something… Owie…"

Snuckles winced as he examined the raging combat, only for his ears to twitch while a hissing sound resounded beneath him. He looked down… Then screamed and scrambled away as a stray bomb of Boomer's exploded right where he last stood!

Not that Boomer noticed, anyways. After all, so many trolls had swarmed him that he had his hands literally full! He tossed bombs left to right and blew trolls into the walls, all while hot sweat wet his head. Boomer clenched his teeth as he grabbed another bomb, then lit and tossed it…

But when it exploded, he found that it left behind no traditional explosion—but rather a sticky, hot mess of sugar that stuck several trolls right to the spot!

"SUGAR?" Boomer exclaimed as he stepped back and dropped all the bombs he was holding from pure shock, "WHAT THE—"

"Oh, the sugar bombs!" Trigger Happy chirped as he hopped up beside Boomer, "I completely forgot I did that!"

Boomer, however, just whipped his head around and pointed a very accusing finger at Trigger Happy. "So it WAS you!"

Trigger Happy gave a very uncomfortable grin and backed away from Boomer.

"Actually, I just remembered that I have somewhere else I really need to be right now!" Trigger Happy's grin turned more genuine as he whipped out a large, golden machine gun and set it on the floor, "TARGET PRACTICE!"

With a couple clicks of his gun's trigger, golden coins like bullets shot out from the gun and mowed down not just the trolls Boomer had stuck with the sugar bomb, but the rest of them as well! Trolls slammed into the walls and left troll-sized indents as their weapons fell to the ground in a mechanical mess, while others skidded along the floors and mowed their still-standing forces down like bowling pins!

And in the center of it all, Trigger Happy blabbered out gleeful nonsense, his tongue lolled out of his mouth as he spun around his gun with rapid timing!

Boomington finally pulled the metal panels off of his face, then yelled and ducked as a round of coins grazed above his helmet and shot into the walls! He breathed a sigh of relief, but only for a moment before he rolled out the way of several trolls who were less fortunate than he was in the not getting hit department. The look of fear in his eyes showed that he knew he was outmatched, and if that didn't, well…

"That's it, I'm outta here!" Boomington cried as he jumped to his feet and ran, only to slow down as he caught sight of Snuckles trying to make a getaway as well! Boomington smirked, then raced forward and snatched Snuckles by the back of the ropes that kept him bound.

"SEE YA, SUCKERS!"

Boomer gasped as he caught sight of Boomington and Snuckles, then charged forward with all the speed he could muster!

"Let go of him, Boomington!" Boomer demanded… But he was too late.

Before Boomer could even catch up, Boomington had already jumped on a nearby warp panel and was whisked away in a flash of light!

"If you want this mabu back so badly, meet me on the minefields!"

Boomer could only reach out his hand in some fruitless attempt to take back Snuckles, his eyes widened in shock…

"The minefields… Don't tell me…" Boomer whispered as his face fell into a gaped jaw.

However, Trigger Happy seemed less than concerned as he fell to his knees and scrounged around a couple of tables that got upturned during the big fight. He hummed a tune as he pushed past some old chairs… Then gasped with glee as he snagged a scrap of paper from the floor!

"Boomy, Boomy, I found it!" Trigger Happy exclaimed as he hopped up to Boomer, "The last map piece!"

"You did?" Boomer exclaimed as he whipped around and took the paper from Trigger Happy, then his fallen face rose into a smile once more, "You did!"

Boomer laid out all four pieces of the map on the floor and dragged his finger through the less solid remainder of the sugary mess his sugar bomb had left behind. With the sugar used as a makeshift glue, Boomer stuck the map back together piece by piece… And when the sugar glue finally hardened, he smiled and lifted it up for both of them to see!

"That's it!" Boomer rolled the map up and tucked it within his bushy beard, then raced towards the warp panel, "Come on, Trigger Happy! We've got a mabu to save!"

Trigger Happy giggled, then hopped after Boomer. As the two of them drew just inches away from the warp panel, they both nodded and jumped on it simultaneously before they vanished within its bright light…

§

With another flash of light, Boomer and Trigger Happy stepped off the warp panel and found themselves back at the open mouth of the minefield, where Boomington and Snuckles stood square in front of the gate's open mouth. For a rare moment in their entire lives, Trigger Happy and Boomer couldn't find it in them to smile or a crack a joke. All they could do was stare down Boomington as he kept Snuckles held tight.

"So, Boomy…" Trigger Happy asked as he scratched his head and looked up at Boomer, "What exactly is BOOM! Anyways?"

"Well, Trigger Happy," Boomer replied as he stretched his arms to the murky skies, "There's a lot of troll games called BOOM!"—Boomer stretched out his fingers one by one—"There's the one where you make a chompy fetch lit dynamite, the one where you see how long you can juggle lit bombs, the one where you stack up dynamite sticks and see how many you can take out before they all fall and explode—"

"BUT NONE OF THOSE ARE WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE!" Boomington exclaimed as he stomped his foot, "If you wanna free your little buddy here…"

Boomington shook Snuckles for emphasis, then gestured out to the open minefield before them.

"You have to navigate through this minefield and not activate a single mine!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy both gasped, but Boomington wasn't nearly as concerned. He only cackled and toyed a bit with a badge on his chest.

"Good luck!" Boomington sneered as he was engulfed by light, "Not!"

Boomer only scoffed and crossed his arms as he watched Boomington and Snuckles reappear on the other end of the minefield.

"Oh, forget that! If I beat you once, I'll beat you again!" Boomer looked towards Trigger Happy and winked, "Come on, Trigger Happy!"

Trigger Happy frowned a bit at first, but as he saw the wink Boomer gave him he burst into one of his trademark wide smile.

So, the two of them laughed and dove headfirst into the minefield! They giggled as they marched through the fields, joked around and sang jaunty songs to each other… And yet, despite their seeming carelessness they didn't activate a single mine! It was like they knew every inch of it by heart!

"FOR HE'S A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW, FOR HE'S A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW~" Trigger Happy sang as he bounced back and forth in front of Boomer then whipped around in a way that completely covered Boomer's front, "Okay, what direction do we go in now?"

Boomer's eyes glazed over the minefield map for a few seconds, then he quickly shoved it back into his beard.

"We go west!" Boomer whispered, his mouth masked by his gigantic mechanical hands.

The two of them nodded, then carefully trailed down the westmost path… Only to turn around and giggle as they caught sight of Boomington giving them the stink eye.

"ANYWAYS," Trigger Happy chuckled, "Did you see that new comedian's act last night?"

"Comedian? More like Come-dull-ian!" Boomer scoffed, "All his jokes made me wanna fall asleep!"

"I know, right?" Trigger Happy whipped out a pistol and rolled it around like a toy, "The one with the sheep and the bed was so…"

"BAA-ring?" Boomer grinned from ear to ear.

"Yeah!" Trigger Happy made another awful grin, "It made me wanna fall a-sheep!"

Boomington made the loudest groan known to trollkind, then looked away and buried his face in his hands from sheer embarrassment.

"Phew, got him off our tail—old Boomington never did like bad puns," Boomer whispered, then made a soft chuckle as he retrieved the map once more, "Anyways, now we go north until we reach here, then we take a right…"

Boomington sighed and turned around, then raised an eyebrow as he caught sight of Boomer and Trigger Happy deep in conversation.

"What are you two discussing?" Boomington demanded from afar.

Boomer and Trigger Happy both froze in place. Crap! Had he caught on at last?

"OH, NOTHING!" Boomer shouted back as he made a sickeningly wide smile, "Just talking about the superior methods of cooking sheepstew pie, that's all!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Trigger Happy insisted as he bounced up and down, "If you ask me, I think broiling it in a hot pot of soup is the way to go!"

"No, no, you've got it all wrong!" Boomer shook his head as sweat dripped from his brow, "You have to bake in an oven at four hundred degrees…"

Boomer and Trigger Happy looked back at Boomington, those wide grins still plastered on their faces, but he seemed less amused. He only raised an eyebrow and toyed with his flare gun!

"Say, Boomer…" Boomington asked as he cocked his flare gun yet again, "What's that thing in your beard?"

Boomer completely froze, then made a soft chuckle as he toyed with his beard.

"Oh, whoops, seems like I got some crumbs from lunch in my beard!" Boomer chuckled some more as he stroked his beard, "Oh well, it can't be helped, I…"—Boomer's eyes shrank as he saw the map fall out of his beard—"… Guess?"

"Knew it."

Boomington scoffed, then shot the flare gun straight at the map!

As its flare headed straight towards him, Boomer jumped back and shouted on instinct, but in his haste to get away he didn't even think to grab the map! And by then, it was too late. All he could do was watch as his map went up in flames.

"Hah, knew you had some kind of trick to it!" Boomington shouted with a firm scowl, "Is this what you did at the new year's party, too?"

"You're still not over that?" Boomer rolled his eyes, then looked back to the path with a bit more concern.

"What're we gonna do now, Boomy?" Trigger Happy asked as his wide eyes peered towards Boomer with a slight light of fear.

"I wouldn't worry too much about that, Trigger Happy!" Boomer grinned and leaned towards Trigger Happy's ear, "See, there's a secret to these things!"

Trigger Happy and Boomer whispered carefully-kept secrets to each other, then nodded and walked ahead. Even though the map was lost, they still did perfectly!

"You see, they always make a simple, linear path out of these minefield mazes!" Boomer whispered back to Trigger Happy as they took a right turn, "You just gotta figure out what it is!"

"Really?" Trigger Happy asked with sparkling eyes.

"You bet your boots!"

And so, the two of them smiled and carefully walked along the path, absolutely no tension between them… But their happiness didn't reach Boomington, who scowled and tossed Snuckles against the wall of the storage shed behind him.

"They're doing better than I thought! Maybe I was wrong to underestimate my old coworker…" Boomington muttered as he dug into his pockets, "Guess I should crank things up a notch!"

Snuckles winced as he shook his head and looked up. With a groan, he inched himself back up to full height, then leaned over and looked past Boomington's shoulder.

"With one press of this button," Boomington whispered as he waved a remote with a big red button around, "All these mines'll blow at once! There's no way they'll survive that!"

Snuckles made a slow, shocked gasp as his eyes shone with fear.

"No, he can't!" Snuckles whimpered as he turned around and lowered his voice, "I've gotta stop him, but, but how? What do I do? What do I do?"

Snuckles shook his head and waddled back around to where Boomington was just inches away from pressing that button… Then yelled out as he swung forward and headbutted Boomington in the back! Boomington screamed out as he fell on his face, while the remote flew through the skies and landed just inches away from where Snuckles was!

"My remote!" Boomington cried as he pulled his head from the floor with a POP!

"I'll get it, I'll get it!" Snuckles cried as he stampeded over Boomington and charged towards the remote… Only to trip over his own lances and fall flat on his face!

And in the process, the shock from his fall tossed the remote right into the minefield! Snuckles winced as he looked up… Then breathed a sigh of relief as everything stayed stagnant.

"Skylanders!" Snuckles called while Boomer and Trigger Happy looked towards him, "That remote sets off the mines! Quick, stop it!"

Snuckles looked aside and winced as he tugged against his bindings. "I'd do it myself, but I'm a little… Tied up right now."

Boomer and Trigger Happy winced, then looked towards each other and nodded. The two of them gingerly tiptoed through the path, then loomed over the part where the remote was. Unfortunately, none of them had any way of knowing whether it was underneath a mine or not… So, Boomer lifted a stick of dynamite, tied its fuse into a loop then nudged it towards the remote's antenna…

"Steady, steady…" Boomer whispered as he nudged his dynamite stick inches closer to the remote, "Keep her steady…"

But as they carefully tried to grab the antenna, they didn't see Boomington grab a bomb from his pockets and snarl!

"Oh enough of this!" Boomington shouted as he tossed the bomb onto the minefield, "If they won't light up those mines, I'll do it myself!"

The bomb soared through the skies and landed on the remote's button with surprising precision! All around, a symphony of beeps chimed in tune while everybody around gasped as the button's click echoed through the areas… Save for Boomington, who only smirked.

"This is the end, Skylanders! What're you gonna do now, huh?" Boomingtom shouted with utter smugness… But soon enough, his smug smirk turned to confusion as he saw Snuckles out the corner of his eyes.

Snuckles, he didn't seem scared at all! Rather, he leaned forwards, almost as if he was about ready to run right into the field and jump into the fray himself!

"What are you doing?!" Boomington exclaimed as he watched Snuckles storm forwards then leaped in front of Snuckles, "Only a fool would run out into a minefield like that!"

"Yeah?" Snuckles asked as he sprinted forward and headbutted Boomington, "Then I'm the biggest fool there is! And you know what? I DON'T CARE!"

Boomington clenched his teeth as he recovered from the headbutt then slung a punch at Snuckles, but Snuckles just jumped out of the way! Instead, Boomington slid forwards… Only to get kicked in the gut by Snuckles and tossed onto the minefield! Snuckles jumped off of Boomington's chest and looked towards Boomer and Trigger Happy as the last few beeps sounded off.

"I joined the Mabu Defense Force because I wanted to be a hero and help everyone, just like the Skylanders do! And no matter how scary or how dangerous it might be… I won't give up! Just like they didn't give up on me!"

Then, with a grunt he leaped forward and shot himself right between the mine and the Skylanders!

"DON'T WORRY, SKYLANDERS, I'LL PROTECT YOU!"

In that last moment of silence, the final beep sounded off…And explosions blew everywhere! The entire minefield was enveloped in fire and thick, churning black smoke, while the scent of shrapnel and death stank throughout the entire outpost!

"I'LL GET YOU NEXT TIME, BOOMERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Boomington vowed as he blasted off into the distance.

Trigger Happy and Boomer both ducked for cover, then blinked as a green light fell over them. They both poked their heads up, and sure enough a shield of light guarded them from the explosions that had now ceased.

"Phew, that was close!" Boomer remarked as the smoke and shield cleared to reveal a warm field full of craters, "Talk about quick thinking, Snucks!"

But as the shield faded, so did Boomer's smile. "Snucks?… Snucky boy?"

No matter which direction Boomer looked, Snuckles was nowhere to be seen. He wasn't in the craters, not around the little remains of the field… All that could be found was a scrap of his uniform that had been torn by a rock. It couldn't be… Boomer sniffled as he grabbed the scrap of fabric and bit his lip, but finally, a few sniffles turned to choked sobs as he buried his face in his metallic hands.

"I said I'd protect him, but…" Boomer sobbed as Trigger Happy patted him on the shoulder, though it did little to console Boomer, "That kid was the one who protected us…"

Boomer choked out more sobs, then fell to his knees and screamed to the murky, solemn skies.

"SNUCKLES, WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?"

As tears streamed down Boomer's face and ugly wails escaped his mouth, Trigger Happy just went back to quietly consoling Boomer… Even Trigger Happy, normally an unending source of joy and smiles, could only bring himself to quietly rub Boomer's back.

Snuckles, so wide-eyed and excited to save the world, to work alongside people that were surely his heroes, ended up giving his life for the cause! He was so young, too! He had his whole life ahead of him, and it got cut short in one flash. He definitely had family and friends back home too, and his teammates who awaited his return with baited breath...

What would Boomer and Trigger Happy tell them? Neither of them know, so they just consoled each other in silence… Until Trigger Happy caught sight of something that make him shake Boomer's shoulder!

"Boomer, Boomer!" Trigger Happy shouted as he shook Boomer out of mourning then pointed to a nearby crater, "Look, over there!"

Boomer wiped his runny nose, then followed Trigger Happy's pointing hand. There, across from them both, what seemed like a small, furry hand gripped onto the side of the crater…

"Snuckles?…" Boomer whispered.

One furry hand became two, then an entire head… And sure enough, Snuckles groaned and coughed as he struggled to pull himself out of the crater! The ropes that once bound him tight were singed, frayed, and rested around his shoulders like a cape, and his uniform was charred and torn in some places but still intact. It was like seeing a miracle in person!

So Boomer smiled as he knelt down and lifted Snuckles out of the crater.

"Snuckles, my boy, you're alive!" Boomer wailed as he hugged Snuckles tight, then immediately let go as Snuckles broke into a coughing fit.

"Of, of course!" Snuckles panted between coughs, a weak smile on his face, "Underneath this uniform is special, explosion-immune super agent armor!"

To exemplify his point, Snuckles rapped a hand against his chest and beamed as a metallic sound resounded out… Then he coughed again and sighed.

"It doesn't protect from landings though, unfortunately."

"Aw, thank goodness!" Boomer sniffled and wiped tears of relief from his face, "After all, we can't lose a super-special hero like you! You're a diamond in the rough!"

However, Boomer's praise didn't seem to make Snuckles feel any better. Instead of smiling and basking in the praise, Snuckles just frowned and looked aside while he tugged on his collar.

"Thanks I guess, but… I don't think I'm cut out for this hero business after all." Snuckles bit his lip and sniffled. "After all, I messed everything up and got kidnapped and caused you all so much trouble! You guys are the real heroes, I'm just some mabu from the middle of nowhereland…"

"NONSENSE!" Boomer beamed as he slapped a hand on Snuckles' shoulder then began patting it, "Heroes aren't born, kiddo, they're made!"

Boomer's wide, energetic smile became gentle and a little more wiser as he let go of Snuckles, "And with all the courage you showed off today, I'd say you're shaping up to be a great one!"

Though he was still quite weak, Snuckles beamed and wiped a few tears from his face.

"Thank you, Skylanders." Snuckles then hobbled away towards the warehouse, "Anyways, the mission's not over yet! We still need to get that—"

Snuckles winced and fell to his knees, then as he groaned Boomer prodded forwards and wrapped Snuckles' arm around his shoulders. Snuckles looked towards Boomer, then once again tears of joy streamed down his ashy, frazzled face.

Trigger Happy beamed, then hopped up to Snuckles and lifted Snuckles arm onto his head.

"Three cheers for Snuckles, the greatest hero in all Skylands!" Trigger Happy proclaimed, then lowered his voice as he imitated the sounds of a cheering crowd, "Snuckles! Snuckles! Snuckles!"

"Snuckles! Snuckles! Snuckles!" Boomer joined in as he and Trigger Happy carried Snuckles back to the warehouse display.

As soon as their feet hit the warm, slightly singed metal of the warehouse, Boomer and Trigger Happy released Snuckles and urged him towards the Golden Gear.

"Here's the gear, Snuckles!" Trigger Happy giggled as he twitched his ears, "Hey, that rhymed!"

"You know what to do, Snucky boy!" Boomer urged as he nudged Snuckles' shoulder.

Snuckles made a weak smile and nod, then hobbled over to the Gear's control panel and inputted something into its keyboard.

With a friendly chirp, the control panel glowed green, then a panel opened up below the gear and shot a rocket right through the gear's open hole! That same rocket's door slid open, and with a hiss a flight of stairs emerged from its surface.

"Come on everyone!" Snuckles urged as he hopped up the stairs, "It's time for us to finish this mission!"

Boomer and Trigger Happy smiled and nodded towards each other, then raced up the stairs and watched as the rocket closed up behind them. With a lurch and a rumble to tell them that the rocket had blasted off, the three of them laid back in their seats and watched as the troll outpost grew smaller and smaller from their window view…

§

Chihiro winced as she looked up at the monsters, then looked back down at herself. How did she get herself into this mess? These monsters were way too powerful for her to tackle alone, were practically immune to her magic… And worse yet, they had her completely cornered!

Was this the end?

Chihiro could only wince again as she looked down at her trembling hands, then the sound of growling alerted her to the fact that the monsters were ready to strike! As they lunged towards the bushes she rested on, Chihiro yelped and ducked! Thankfully, she moved quick enough that the monsters only slammed into each other rather than her.

Once they whined and reeled back, the monsters glared at each other, then started squawking gibberish! The look on their faces showed they were pretty darn mad… Though Chihiro couldn't understand a word they said, it was pretty clear to her nonetheless that they were too busy arguing!

Now's my chance! Chihiro thought as she watched them argue, I have to get out of here!

Chihiro grimaced as she crawled out of view, then dove into the bushes and peered back out at the battlefield where the other two monsters continued to squabble. She was perfectly safe now… And better yet, she had the perfect opportunity to attack! But, what could she do? She didn't have a single spell that could effectively knock them out! They just no-sold every single thing she had thrown…

Wait a second! That's it! Chihiro snapped her fingers as her eyes glimmered, A no-sell spell! I could try one of those! If it works, then maybe it could knock the magic right out of those guys!

Though it sounded like a good idea, Chihiro didn't exactly feel easy about it. No-sell spells were pretty advanced magic according to the books she had read, and she had never really tried one before. Could she really pull it off?

As the monsters bickered, the Guardifound walked up to them and slapped them both! While they reeled back and rubbed their aching faces, the Guardifound yelled out some gibberish and gestured towards the empty space where Chihiro once rested!

Chihiro squeaked and ducked down. Guess she didn't have a choice now—she had to do something before they found her!

Now, how do I perform a no-sell spell? Chihiro pondered as she rolled her hands around, Maybe…—Chihiro pushed through the leaves and focused her attention on the monsters—Something like this?

Chihiro watched her hands flare with cyan light, then held them towards the hole.

Monsters, lose your magic!

A bolt of cyan lightning shot from Chihiro's hands, slammed against the monsters and exploded with a bright flash! For a moment, it seemed like it had worked… But when the light faded, the monsters still stood tall! The only differences were that they now had cyan sparks crackling off of their bodies and they looked kinda dizzy, too.

Crap! I should've known that wouldn't work! Chihiro inhaled sharply and gritted her teeth as she watched the monsters regain their balance and yell.

With no other options, Chihiro closed her eyes then teleported further in the forest and hopefully far away from those strange monsters. She planted a hand on a tree's sturdy trunk, then slouched down as she caught her breath. This whole day felt like an awful, awful nightmare… Hopefully, maybe it was just a nightmare. Chihiro pinched herself to be sure, but all she felt was a quick surge of pain. Nope, definitely real unfortunately for her.

"Wait a second," Chihiro realized as she stood up and watched the skies, which had started to gray with worrisome clouds, "Didn't that thing send out other lightning bolts? And didn't Master Eon have artifacts scattered all across the island?"

Chihiro paused to pull out her map, then dropped the map to the ground and bolted off without any kind of hesitation!

Unfortunately sure enough, she was right... The map had dots practically all over the island!

Everyone could be in big trouble! Chihiro panicked as she raced through the forest as fast as her legs could carry her, her exhaustion from earlier replaced with a dizzying fear, I gotta find them before—

As the trees parted and Chihiro found herself in the more civilized parts of the island, a bolt of magic hurled straight towards her! Chihiro squeaked and ducked down, then as the bolt passed her by she heard… Screaming? Yes, screaming, not that far from where she stood now!

Chihiro poked her head back up, then gasped at what she saw.

It was exactly as she feared! Those monsters ran rampant all over the island's heart, and they were terrorizing everyone and everything they saw! They started fights, overturned the local flora and caused chaos to their hearts' content! The Skylanders and other residents of the island tried their best to fight the monsters off, but they were outnumbered and outpowered—a more than deadly combination!

"Hugo, Cali!" Chihiro exclaimed as she watched the two of them try to fight off a bright red monster with stones for teeth!

While the monster loomed over Hugo and Cali as it got ready to strike, Chihiro wasted no time either! Her eyes trailed over to a particularly large tree branch, then with a touch of her hand she sent it flying and watched as the branch slammed straight into the monster! As the monster flew into the distance, Chihiro raced out of the forest with heavy breaths. That was a close one! For a minute, she wasn't even entirely sure it would work!

"You guys alright?" Chihiro asked as she ran up to Hugo and Cali and caught her breath.

"Thankfully, yes," Hugo panted as he held a furry hand over his heart, "Just what were these things? They just showed up out of nowhere and—"

"It's a long story!" Chihiro pulled herself back to her full height and whipped her head around,

"You know?" Hugo turned to Chihiro with eyes wide and full of realization paired with scorn, "Wait, Chihiro, don't tell me—"

"We can worry about that later!" Cali exclaimed as she pulled back Hugo, "But for now, we've gotta stop them!"

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Hugo shouted as he bit his nails as he looked over the island, "There has to be at least seventy of them!"

Chihiro winced, but not from Hugo's estimation. Rather, she heard stomping and heavy growling right behind her, so close that it made her hair stand on end! That couldn't be… She almost didn't want to turn around, but nevertheless she did. And when she did, she found that the monster she had knocked away earlier was back and bigger than ever!

Chihiro screamed as the monster slammed a fist into the ground, then grabbed Hugo and Cali's hands! There was no way she'd be able to fight it in its current state, so she had to take the next best option—run!

"Hugo!" Chihiro called as she turned her gaze towards a very panicked Hugo, "What's the strongest building on this island?"

"Why are you asking me that now?" Hugo's teeth chattered with fear, then he screamed as they ducked underneath a flaming rock!

"Because!" Chihiro pointed towards the havoc-wreaking monsters, "That's why!"

"THE MESS HALL!" Hugo blurted out at last as he clung tighter to Chihiro's arm, "It had the strongest reinforcement of all the buildings in this area!"—Hugo made an uneasy chuckle—"Mealtimes get very hectic, you see…"

Chihiro nodded, then channeled all the magic in her body and teleported away! When she opened her eyes she found herself in front of the mess hall's ever-welcoming doors, but she didn't feel any kind of ease as she flung the doors open!

"Hugo, Cali, get in there now!" Chihiro exclaimed as she pushed Hugo and Cali in the mess hall.

"But what about you?" Cali exclaimed as Chihiro went to push the doors, "What're you doing? And how're we gonna stop all these monsters?"

"I'm going to find everyone and bring them to safety!" Chihiro pushed the doors further down, then bit her lip and winced as she lowered her voice.

"… And, I don't know just yet."

As the doors slammed shut, Chihiro turned back to the mess she made and clenched her hands into trembling fists. The whole place looked like something out of a nightmare, or some supervillain's dream with all these monsters running around, terrorizing people and tearing things down! It was so awful she couldn't bear to watch, yet she couldn't turn away either.

"What have I done?"