All right! Next chapter! It hasn't been too long since the last one, I hope. Anyway, enjoy the chapter- I'm excited about it!

It didn't hurt. That was a good thing. It also wasn't too dark, cold, or terrifying. As a matter of fact, it was almost pleasant, if you ignored the fact that everyone in the room was dead.

Mario hovered in the middle of a vast, empty white light. Nothing could be seen in any direction except for the bright light, no matter how hard Mario looked. He became aware that he was floating in midair, and there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn't move. Through the corner of his eye, he saw the other six Smashers who had died with him. They looked just as confused as he was.

Pit broke the silence. "So, this is the afterlife. Or our version of it, anyway. I always wondered what would happen if something caused us to actually die, rather than turn into a trophy".

Although the Smashers couldn't move, they could still speak. Regardless, silence followed Pit's words.

I'm sorry, everyone. He was too powerful.

Lucario's telepathic voice, once strong and powerful, was as quiet as a thought in the Smasher's minds. He had brought forth every ounce of his Aura power in a failed attempt to stop Crazy Hand.

"Don't beat yourself up," said Ike. "It's not like any of us did any better. Ugh, I wish I could...move, or do something! What's happening out in the world of the living?"

As if on cue, a figure appeared out of nowhere floating silently toward them. They glowed with the light that surrounded all souls. Mario could tell he was looking at another dead Smasher. One who seemed to be able to control their movements in the afterlife.

"Fox?" called Samus. "Marth?"

There was no answer, but as the figure came closer, the Smashers gasped. They knew who it was. Mario would never forget the cold eyes, the three-fingered hands, the long tail, and the face that seemed to radiate darkness. Yet despite these characteristics, Mario knew that this being was a friend, or at least an ally, despite the fact that they hadn't been seen in the World of Trophies for years.

"Mewtwo," he said.

Mewtwo turned to look at him. His eyes narrowed.

So. You're here. What happened out there? What did Crazy Hand do?

Mewtwo's voice was similar to Lucario's, but sterner and angrier. He looked at each of the Smashers, making eye contact for a few seconds with everyone.

You're probably upset that you can't move. Don't worry, it's just a side effect of dying. It'll wear off right about now.

Feeling flooded back into the Smashers' bodies. As they hovered in the endless bright light, they they floated forwards and backwards, trying to get used to this strange new way of moving.

"Mewtwo, what are you doing here? What is this place? You didn't die, so how did you get here?" asked Link.

This isn't exactly the afterlife. Smashers aren't supposed to be able to die. Your souls only came here because there was no other option. This is the realm of the forgotten Smashers.

"Forgotten Smashers?" frowned Sonic. "What forgotten Smashers?"

Out of the light came several more figures. Shock overwhelmed the Smashers, for these were people that they had never thought they would see again. Roy came forward first, followed by Dr. Mario, Pichu, and Young Link.

"Roy?" whispered Link. "What are you doing here?"

Roy grinned. "I bet you thought you'd never see me again, didn't you? A few years ago, we were forgotten by the beings who watch over us. They abandoned us, and now our forgotten spirits have ended up here. We used to be Smashers just like everyone else."

"I'm basically you, Link," added Young Link. "And Dr. Mario is basically Mario. And Pichu is basically Pikachu. We aren't that different than you, so unfortunately the great beings haven't paid us much attention for a long time."

I was too volatile. Too dangerous. I was a pretty good Smasher, but it was probably for the better that I ended up here. If Tabuu had asked me to join him, I don't know what I would have done. I'm honestly shocked you ever beat him at all.

"Thanks," muttered Sonic.

"Speaking of Tabuu, you can see him if you want," added Roy.

"What?!" shrieked Samus. "See Tabuu? Why would we ever want to do that?"

"And where's Marth?" added Ike. "He's here, isn't he? And Fox, Pikachu, and King Dedede?"

They're not here. Why would they be? Crazy Hand didn't kill them. He destroyed their spirits. Their souls will be torn apart if Crazy Hand isn't defeated soon. And as for Tabuu, he died normally, so he's here. He's usually kept imprisoned, but sometimes we let him out for a while...under heavy guard.

Stunned silence followed these revelations. Finally, Mario cleared his throat.

"So our friends might be gone forever?" he said quietly. "Their souls could be lost?"

"What do you think?" Dr. Mario replied. "Crazy Hand wouldn't have killed them. That would be too normal and obvious. He wants to tear you apart emotionally. He wants you to know that you can't fully escape the effects of his destructive power, even in death. And he won't stop with them. You seven Smashers- Mario, Pit, Ike, Samus, Sonic, Link, and Lucario- you didn't technically die by his hand. Yes, he unleashed a wave of power that destroyed the jetpacks and Chaos Emeralds, but that wasn't what killed you. The dark energies of Final Destination killed you."

"He wanted to kill each of you, which would've made you just part of his planned list of victims whose spirits will be destroyed. But he lost control and recklessly caused you to fall. Of course, he was happy at first, with his 'you have been added to the list of those who fell before me' routine. But later, when it was too late, he realized what he had done," added Young Link.

He went on an awful rampage. He realized that we would be able to tell you his plans. After all, we're dead. We see everything that happens in the world. And if by some chance you were able to get back to the real world, you could stop him. The thought of failure was too much. Whatever threads of sanity he had snapped. So many other Smashers fell before him...

"Others?" whispered Sonic. "What others?"

He destroyed whoever crossed his path, their spirits torn apart into oblivion, with any chance of recovering them fading fast. Peach, Zelda, Falco, Kirby, Meta Knight, and Yoshi are gone.

Mario and Link fell to their knees in grief and despair, with the knowledge that their loved ones were gone, most likely forever. Leaving no way, not even death, of seeing them again. The other Smashers staggered, shocked and horrified at Crazy Hand's wrath. He was able to crush several Smashers, trying to doom them to an eternity of nonbeing.

"It's not too late," said Roy. "We can still save them."

"He's right," said Ike quietly, his voice strong despite the fact that he would probably never see Marth, his best friend, ever again.

"We need to talk to Tabuu," sighed Pit. "He was able to defeat Master Hand, and he must've defeated Crazy Hand too, otherwise Crazy Hand would have challenged him for ownership of Subspace and of the Subspace Army."

Link took a deep breath and turned towards the forgotten Smashers. "All right then," he said. "Take us to Tabuu."

This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I decided to split it up into two chapters instead. I'll try and hurry with the next one. As always, thank you for reading, and please review!