A/N: Sorry. I've been busy. Anyway, this is when Fairy Of The Lily joined up with us. Also, I thought I had been putting deviders in my stories, but it turns out that this site isn't accepting them, so sorry if some of my stories have been confusing in that aspect. Hopeful this fix works... Anyway, enjoy the chapter.

Back at the mansion, Master and Crazy Hand called an emergency meeting in the main hall, much to the chagrin of every Smasher there. About sixty metal chairs formed a 'U' around the room's perimeter, and anxious fighters whispered and muttered their concerns over the utter chaos that had ensued in the Coliseum.

"What happened out there?"

"Will Cloud and Sonic be okay?"

"What was that crazy mist?"

"When's dinner?"

"We've got a real crisis on our hands here…"

"Silence!" Master Hand boomed. He and Crazy Hand studied a swirling blue vortex, but couldn't concentrate on their task with all the noise. "Just give us a quick second to figure this out and we'll try to answer your questions."

The chatter in the hall quieted, but uneasiness still circulated through the room like an electric charge. Kirby and Pikachu huddled close to one another for comfort. Ness wound and unwound the string of his Yo-Yo, and Luigi tapped his feet on the wooden floor.

Others trained their eyes on the front of the room where sat one of the more notable fixtures in the mansion.

A gold statue of two massive hands clutching a super-sized Smash Ball glimmered impressively. Engraved on its base were the words 'United We Stand'. Around the words, each Smasher had engraved his or her mark into the gold; a mushroom, the Tri-force, a sword. It was built to commemorate the victory over Subspace, which by now, all the Smashers had either lived through or heard tales of.

Some of the Smashers, though awed by the past, weren't interested in revisiting old victories right now. Shulk, in particular, was concerned with what the future held. The weapon-specialist sat near the front, fists clenched with nerves. The Monado had been unusually inactive lately, and he wondered If it had something to do with what happened in the stadium that day.

Ever since he made his wish to recreate his universe, he had been okay with not seeing the future. But, now that some of his friends were in potential danger, he wanted to know their fate. Even the slightest glimpse from the Monado would have been welcome, but since the visionary sword wasn't helping, Shulk, like everyone else, looked to the Hands.

Master Hand turned to his brother, who poked a massive white finger through the vortex, which crackled and sparked with the strain.

"Can you find them?"

Crazy Hand swayed from side to side. "Nope! Nope! Not yet!" he cried. "But, I sent in a few items: A Heart Container, a Master Ball, a Smart Bomb-!"

"Ah, good- A Smart Bomb?" Master Hand spluttered, trying to keep his emotions in check. "What were you thinking? Our goal is to help them! Not blow them up!"

"Well, Sor-ry!" Crazy Hand said in exasperation.

Ignoring his brother, Master Hand turned back to the Smashers and the vortex he had been studying vanished. He cleared his throat. "As you may already be aware, two of your fellow tournament participants have gone missing, due to that illegal Assist summoning in the coliseum."

"We get that part," Dark Pit grumbled, his wings twitching in annoyance.

"We're trying to find them," Master Hand explained, "but Crazy Hand and I are having trouble."

"A lot of trouble!" Crazy chimed in, motioning to the spot where their vortex had been.

"But, Master Hand," Link said. "You created this universe. Don't you know the one who took Sonic and Cloud?"

"Link, I don't think it works like that," Shulk said.

"No, Link makes a fair point," Master hand said. "Crazy Hand and I, we did create this universe, but things change, sometimes beyond recognition, and there are some sentients that are beyond our scope of power."

"Wait!" Villager cried out. "Crazy Hand actually helped make something?"

"What matters is," Master Hand cut in before Villager's barb registered with his hyper-active brother, "we have a pretty good idea of where they could have ended up." The crowd listened closer. "Crazy Hand and I have interrogated Ganondorf, we caught him before he could make his escape with the strange assistant he summoned, and we know where we can start looking."

Link and Zelda glanced at one another, wondering what their enemy had to do with all this.

"There is a world…" Master Hand said, hovering the length of the room. "...a world that has existed since the first sentients were created in the universe. It serves as a parallel reality, a sort of failsafe world so that if this dimension were destroyed, we would have a place to flee to and rebuild."

"...And you think Sonic and Cloud might be there?" Roy inquired over the awed whispers of other Smashers. "Why didn't you tell us about that world before?"

"I didn't think you needed to know," Master Hand said. "Other than the unfortunate Subspace incident, there was no danger great enough to need to access that place."

"Well," Marth said thoughtfully, twisting the edge of his cape. "If this other dimension is like our own, then it shouldn't be too hard to find Cloud and Sonic and bring them back, right?"

"That's what Crazy and I thought at first, but that dimension has been corrupted, its very structure uprooted, The whole thing's been turned into a dangerous labyrinth -Ganondorf called it the Mirror Maze-, and Cloud and Sonic are somewhere within it. If left unchecked, I fear the corruption could seep into our world. In fact, the first signs of that have already shown themselves in the Coliseum today."

Whispers and mutters broke out among the Smashers once more. 'Was that what that mist was?' 'What about that weird mage guy in the trophy?' 'What's gonna happen to Sonic and Cloud?'

Finally, Ike couldn't stand it anymore. He stood up from his chair so fast it fell with a noisy clatter, effectively silencing the group. "We have to do something," he said firmly, "We have to get them back and prevent that darkness from returning."

"Yeah!" some of the others chorused.

Zelda looked at Link and nodded her agreement. Kirby and Pikachu cheered, jumping and waving their hands.

The master sighed to himself, his fingers curling in agitation. "You don't know what you ask. I don't know the layout of the maze, or by what power the world has been polluted. There's no telling where you'll end up, or if I'll be able to bring you back. I'm not sure I want you to risk your lives on what is merely speculation."

Some Smashers shuffled uncomfortably. They could tell that Master hand was having doubts, if only for a moment. Even Crazy Hand had stopped cracking jokes and floated ominously beside his brother.

"We've got to do this," Shulk said. "What if you're right, and something does happen to our worlds? I don't want to be the one who didn't act when he had the chance."

"Please. Tell us how we can help," Zelda said.

Master Hand looked at them all. "You'll have to find a way to reverse the corruption within that world. If only I knew who was behind this… Who this Maze Master was."

Everyone was silent, wishing they knew, too. They needed a plan. "Okay," Marth said after a moment. "So, it's a maze, right? There has to be a way to navigate it."

Master Hand nodded. "When each duplicate world was created, we needed a way to connect them, so I set my mark upon potential portal locations." He pointed a finger as if he were drawing in the air. Gold flames trailed from his finger as he drew a circle with a cross, the mark of Smash. "We left these portals on the different worlds, and if I had to guess, they survived the transformation and are scattered throughout the maze, too."

"Then that's what we'll do," Shulk said. "We'll find the portals and get through the maze. With all of us looking, I'm sure one of us will find Cloud and Sonic. Hopefully we can stop the corruption before it's too late."

"Sounds like a plan," Fox said, fingers drumming on his blaster.

"Agreed," Zelda turned her head in Link's direction, "We've done this sort of thing before. But I'll still need your courage, Link."

The Hylian nodded, indicating she would have it.

"Let's do it!" Ike said with finality. "Take us to this Mirror Maze!"

All eyes were locked on Master Hand, and he spoke. "I'll conjure the portal for you… but only if you're absolutely sure you're ready for this."

Kirby walked forward, a spring in his step, and looked up at Master Hand. Pikachu ran up on all fours, shaking his ears. "Pi-ka!" he chimed.

Chairs scraped on the hard floor as other Smashers stood, asserting their willingness to accept this undertaking. They were ready.

"Very well. You don't have much time," Master Hand said, "But, you should prepare as much as possible for this mission. It's not good to jump headfirst into a quest without provisions. Also, while you're at it, each of you should pick a partner."

The Smashers all dispersed to do his bidding, racing to grab weapons, food, and anything else they'd need for a rescue mission in a deadly labyrinth.

'Can't do this on an empty stomach,' Kirby thought as he headed for the kitchen. A crowd had already congregated there, jostling to get what they could. Kirby, only eight inches tall, found it difficult to get through the throng, but once he did, he inhaled the remaining food and sighed with satisfaction.

Meanwhile, Shulk went to his bedroom to grab supplies. He knew he wouldn't be able to carry much, but he managed to fit an extra few blankets just in case. When he finally made it down to the kitchen, only a few cans of vegetables remained. He scowled in annoyance, but beggars couldn't be choosers, so he grabbed the sustenance and added it to his pack, then hurried down to the main hall.

"I hope all of you have picked your partners," Master Hand said when everyone had returned. "Teamwork is essential on this quest."

A few Smashers were already paired up, but most others were too focused on Master Hand's first command to give heed to his second. They scrambled around, looking for partners.

Kirby and Pikachu had already decided on one another, as did Link and Zelda, Ness and Lucas, Marth and Roy…

Shulk scanned the crowd, looking for Lucina. They had become good friends during the tournament, and he wanted to make sure she would be safe. But when he found her, she had joined Robin. He smiled. If anyone could protect her, it was the tactician.

The seer turned back to the group and was about to find someone else when Corrin strode up to him. "Partners?" he asked, slipping a few Elixirs and an Anti-Toxin into his satchel.

Shulk nodded, glad Corrin had thought to pack healing supplies, as that was one thing he couldn't fit very much of in his bulging pack.

Other pairs formed: Yoshi and Charizard, Olimar and Alph, Fox and Ryu.

Once all the fighters were split up, Master Hand snapped his fingers, conjuring another portal like the one he and Crazy Hand had been studying earlier.

"This is the entrance to the Mirror Maze," the master explained, "You obviously can't all enter at once, so…"He spread his fingers, and the portal split into multiple vortexes. "I'll only be able to hold these portals open for a few moments, so there's no time for doubt, or sappy goodbye speeches. Just do me a favor and come back alive."

Pikachu and Kirby looked at one another in determination, and charged forward, jumping head-first into the portal. Zelda and Link chose another vortex. Shulk and Corrin picked a third.

"...Well. Nice knowing them!" Crazy Hand said when the last pair of fighters vanished from the room. Nothing could keep him down for long.

"Crazy!" Master hand scolded at his brother's indifference.

"What? What? They'll be fine!" Crazy Hand cried, and somersaulted in the air to the exit.

Master Hand sighed and stretched his fingers. "I hope you're right… It's up to them now," he mused, and hovered away, lost in thought.

.

At the heart of the labyrinth, Maze Master gazed into a particular crystal ball that showed the happenings at the Smash Mansion. He sneered at the image of Master Hand, but then the first few spheres of light shot from the orb, and his face twisted into a wicked grin.

"Ooohhh! What do we have here? Heeheehee!" he asked knowingly. Many more light spheres shot from the orb and floated around the room like fireflies. "More players to play! What wonderful games of amazement await!"

Maze Master snatched a pair of lights from the air and glimpsed Pikachu and Kirby's screaming forms as the spacial displacement brought them to his twisted dimension.

He flung his captives at a random earthen tunnel path and the light spheres entered a pair of suspended orbs. "I shall enjoy their suffering miserably as I watch in the safety of my not so safe world of horrors. Hahaha! And that's not all!"

He captured a second group of Smashers and pointed to a few more orbs, which glowed with luminescence as the maze gained another wave of occupants. "Poor lost souls! Two by two, two by two. Come see! All are welcomed to my sorrows and tragedies!"

The deity's cackles echoed in the chamber as he continued to disrupt Master Hand's transports. "Where to send you, where to take you? Where, where… Ah! Over there!" He scooped up the remaining lights and launched them to empty orbs around the chamber. "And there! There! There-there-there! The desert! The forest! And even up in the clouds! Hee hee!"

Maze Master clapped his hands and his white eyes shone with delight. For now, he had all the players he wanted, and it didn't matter where in his expansive maze they went. They would never escape his dangerous game.

A/N: So, yeah. Hope this chapter was enjoyable.