2BIT & GeneX at the Olympic Winter Games
Chapter 9 - Maze Madness

Notes: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
Super Mario characters are (c) Nintendo. I'm sure you knew that, too.
GeneX, its related fancharacters, and other original characters in this story are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator).

Author's Note: This chapter features a two-sided story. First, one half of the tale will be told, then the other. The two plots will finally combine at the end. I hope you enjoy this twist and don't find it confusing. XP

The story thus far:
After participating in the Ski Shooting Star Cup in Sparkleton, Copter and friends traveled to Polastraits to check out the events being held there. They soon found themselves dealing with the likes of Wario and a bear named Polar, resulting in 8BIT taking one Chaos Emerald and Copter's group obtaining another. After that, Conquer Corp struck again, and their resident ninja, White, got away with one of the Orbs. However, the group did manage to protect a Power Star from the evil King Boo. Now joined by Gemini, the group journeyed to Cubyrinth, where Copter and Punchy took part in an ice hockey tournament with three Power Stars as the prize. They barely managed to defeat Eggman Nega and the Babylon Rogues in the final round, and shared their prize with their teammates, Silver and Blaze. They next met up with Jimmy, who had found a Chaos Emerald, but their reunion was interrupted by a scream coming from Cubyrinth's maze!
Now, on to the next chapter!


"Jimmy and his companions dashed to the rescue after hearing a distant scream from Jimmy's girlfriend, Melody!" the Narrator said as the group scrambled through the maze trying to find the source of the commotion. "Geez, you don't have to talk like we just tuned in!" Copter said as he continued running. "Don't I?" the Narrator said knowingly. The maze forked in several locations, and parts of the group ended up going the wrong way as they tried to keep up. Copter, Jimmy, and 2BIT were the only ones to reach their destination, where they found a girl with long red hair and a cyan cloak nimbly dodging attacks from a big black gorilla. Copter and Jimmy were both unsure what to make of this. "Uh... Someone shrink King Kong?" Copter muttered. "Don't look at me, I have no clue what's going on..." Jimmy said. The girl did a backflip to get some distance from her attacker and glanced in Jimmy's direction. "If it's not too much trouble, do you think you could actually HELP!? He's trying to get this Orb from me!" she said, holding up a brown orb with a symbol resembling a stone on it. "It was the Orb of Earth." the Narrator explained. Copter nodded. "Yeah, I sorta guessed that..." he said. "Strange..." 2BIT said, "That ape's Killer Kong. He's usually not intelligent enough to consider going after something like an Orb..." The black gorilla glared at 2BIT and beat its chest angrily. "I hear that! You insult me, don't you!? Kong not dumb! Kong strong! I will prove it!" he growled. Jimmy snickered at him. "Are you sure you need my help, Melody?" he joked. Melody scoffed at him. "Fine. I'll handle this..." Suddenly, Punchy could be heard yelling somewhere in the maze. "Gyaaaaaaaaahhh!!!" Everyone looked off in the direction of the shout. "What the hey?" Copter muttered. Killer Kong didn't let himself be distracted long, though. He leapt over to Melody, knocking her down, and wrestled the Orb away from her. "Yes! Power is mine! Kong will see great reward!" he bellowed. Jimmy drew his sword and Copter raised his fists. "Get offa her you big ape!" Jimmy threatened. Suddenly, another gorilla could be heard shouting from atop the wall of the maze! Looking up, everyone could see a brown ape. Donkey Kong! Killer backed off of Melody and growled at DK. "Time to go..." he snorted, running off with the orb! As Melody tried to stand up, Donkey Kong jumped down, barely missing her head as he landed where Killer had just been standing. Without a word, DK took off after the black Kong, fury in his eyes. Jimmy took a moment to help Melody up. "Are you all right?" he asked. Melody elbowed him in the stomach. "Ooof!!" he groaned. "Next time, help me out!" she said before running after the two apes. "With their romantic reunion over, Jimmy and Melody now had to catch those monkeys." the Narrator said. Jimmy started walking slowly. "The rest of you go... I'll catch up... Ouch..." he groaned.

News Brief! > Killer Kong is wild and crazy, and his "evil" goals are typically ridiculous. However, he is immensely dangerous when angered.

Jimmy soon caught up with the others, and they followed Donkey Kong and Killer Kong to a staircase leading to a rooftop. The apes quickly climbed the stairs, but when the others went up after them, they were gone! All that was there was a shivering Shy Guy, apparently spooked. "Huh? What in the world happened?" Copter wondered. Melody glanced at the Shy Guy. "Hey, you! Did you see where those monkeys went?" she asked. The Shy Guy shook its head. "Well, I'm stumped. This makes no sense..." 2BIT said. Jimmy looked upwards. "Any info for us, Florence?" he asked the Narrator. "I'm a Narrator, not a hint... person. And I've told you to refer to me as such!" the Narrator replied. A superior laugh was heard behind the group. "Video Game heroes today... So quick to give up." Everyone turned around to see an old ape with a long, white beard and a cane approaching. "Why, with all yer fancy graphics and motion controllers and H.D. whatchamacallits, you'd think some of you would have half a brain." he said. "A wise old ape named Cranky Kong now arrived to share his wisdom with our young heroes." the Narrator announced. "Well, well! A Narrator! Classy. Hey, do you have to put up with all the same censoring that the bozos at Nintendo have been putting me through since Rare left us? I should have gone with them! They even wanted me to change my name to Grampa Kong, but I busted my cane over the hooligan's head, and they dropped that political correct nonsense!" Cranky passed the confused group and walked over to the Shy Guy. "I take it you kids are following that good-for-nothing Donkey Kong. He's gettin' soft. He let that black ape waltz over and steal his necktie! Once he gets it back, I'm gonna make him find 50 of my old DK coins. That'll whip him into shape!" he said. "He wears a tie? Kinda formal for an ape, isn't it?" Copter snickered. Cranky smacked him on the head with his cane. "Ow!!" he yelped. "Don't interrupt me, whippersnappers! I'll show you how to find the way forward. Consider yourselves lucky I'm not charging you for this!" he said, turning to the Shy Guy. "Hey, you! Open up that secret door that's here. You're the only one here, so you must know where it is!" Cranky said. The Shy Guy shook his head. "No secret here, gramps." he insisted. Cranky frowned. "Yeah? We'll see about that!"

Cranky began arguing with the Shy Guy, convinced that he'd soon get the answer he was seeking. He frequently found himself smacking the Shy Guy on the head with his cane, making the Shy Guy increasingly more dazed. Jimmy looked thoughtful. "Wow, this guy's old Pate in a monkey suit." he muttered. Copter and Melody rolled their eyes. "This'll never work." Melody said. "Might as well just go find Punchy and Rainbow again..." Copter added. Suddenly, a scream was heard overhead! "Aaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!" A pink dinosaur creature with a big mouth was falling from the sky! She crashed through the floor between Cranky and the Shy Guy, revealing a hole that had been boarded up and covered with snow! The boards launched Cranky into the distance as they broke, but the Shy Guy was left unharmed. When the dust settled, everyone stared at the hole with blank expressions. "Aw, nuts..." the Shy Guy groaned, "Now I gotta fix the door to the secret room. How'd this happen?" 2BIT nodded. "Yeah, how DID this happen." he wondered. "Never mind that! Let's go!" said Melody, who was first to jump into the hole. "Thus, Jimmy discovered a secret chamber. By accident, as usual." the Narrator said. "Geez, that voice is annoying." Copter remarked as he, 2BIT, and Jimmy followed Melody down the hole. Inside, they found a room filled with Shy Guys, all backed to the wall while Donkey Kong and Killer Kong were having a brawl. 2BIT, Jimmy, and Copter backed to the wall upon seeing this, too. The strange, pink dinosaur was laying on the floor, its eyes spinning around in a daze. "So, anyone got any ideas?" Jimmy asked nervously. Melody scoffed at the others backed against the wall. "And you're supposed to be men? Fine, I'll break this up!" she said, walking up to the wild gorillas. "Don't do it, Melody!" 2BIT warned, but he was ignored. "Hey! You two! Knock it off!" Melody shouted. Right away, DK and Killer stopped to look at her. "I know you're mad at each other, but this is no way to settle things! Now you two call a truce and start talking this over!" she ordered, standing between them. DK scratched his head in confusion, but Killer remained furious. "You want fight to stop? Then you be hostage!" he yelled, grabbing Melody in his powerful arms! "Hey!! Let go!!" she screamed as Killer Kong carried her out through the only doorway in the room. DK stood shocked for a second, but then ran out after them. Jimmy was next to join the chase. "Put Melody down! You overgrown chimp!!" he shouted. 2BIT hesitated to help up the dinosaur while Copter joined the chase. "Hey, I know who you are..." 2BIT realized...

News Brief! > Melody is a longtime friend of Jimmy's, though the true nature of their relationship is unclear. She was one of the few survivors when Jacklrankda destroyed an entire village in Zronia.

Killer Kong fled upwards upon exiting the cave, he climbed the walls of the maze in an effort to throw his pursuers off his trail. Donkey Kong was just as agile and adept at climbing as Killer, and kept the gorilla in sight as much as possible. Jimmy was mostly unable to pursue them, and grew frustrated as a result. "Where's Zeppo when I need him?" he groaned. "Check the sky." the Narrator suggested. Looking around the sky, Jimmy saw Zeppo and another dragon heading in the Kongs' general direction. "That's nice, but it doesn't help me..." Jimmy complained. Copter spun his tails and started flying up the wall. "I'm not gonna be left out!" he said. "Me neither!" Jimmy decided, grabbing Copter by the legs so he would carry him up. "Whoa!! Cut it out, kid! You're too heavy!!" Copter groaned. "No I'm not! Are you callin' me fat!?" Jimmy snapped. 2BIT and the pink dinosaur emerged from the cave just in time to see Copter and Jimmy fly over the wall. 2BIT snapped his fingers to make his jetpack appear. "We'd better hurry if we want to see how this turns out. You coming?" he asked the dinosaur. It nodded, and the two began to catch up with the others. Ahead, they could see that DK was catching up to Killer Kong, but that didn't mean the chase would be over. As Killer fled, something heavy swung towards him, suspended by a chain. "Is that an anchor?" Jimmy wondered as he and Copter kept up the chase. Indeed it was, and as it approached, Killer shifted Melody under one of his arms so he could grab the chain with the other! "Hey! Where are you taking me!? Don't!!" Melody shouted in her panic. DK grunted angrily as Killer began to climb away. "You lose, Donkey Kong! Graaah ha ha ha ha!!" he laughed. 2BIT looked at the sky to see what the anchor was hanging from, and slowed down. "How in the world did all this happen? Something tells me that there's been more going on in Cubyrinth today than we're aware of..." he reasoned. He didn't have time to wonder just what had been happening, for he had to pick up the pace if he wanted to see the conclusion of this strange adventure.

End of part 1.

Earlier, when the group was trying to find Melody in the maze, they had gotten split up. Punchy, Gemini, and Zeppo quickly got lost in the maze. "I guess I could fly up and see if I can spot anything..." Zeppo offered. Punchy shrugged. "We'd probably miss all the action anyway." he said. Gemini was walking in front of them, and hesitated at a fork in the road. "Hmmm... Which way..." she muttered. Suddenly, a strange creature ran around the corner and nearly bumped into Gemini! "Eeeeek!! Monster!" she yelled, jumping away. The creature resembled a pink dinosaur with a very big, round mouth. It looked around worriedly after Gemini shouted. "Monster? Where?" it asked. Gemini calmed herself and let out a relieved sigh. "Never mind." she said. The creature still looked worried. "No monster? Good, but I still got trouble. Someone stole my bow! No one recognizes me without it! You see, I'm Birdo." she explained. Punchy, Zeppo, and Gemini all exchanged confused looks. "Never heard of you." Punchy said. Birdo sighed in frustration. "You'd think hanging around Mario would get you famous..." she whined. Suddenly, Illusi appeared in a puff of smoke directly in front of Punchy. It happened so quickly and unexpectedly, that Punchy screamed even louder than Gemini had moments before. "GYAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" Illusi backed away from him and covered his ears. "Dark One! Don't be such a baby!" he snapped. Birdo yelped at his sudden appearance as well. "Are YOU the monster?" she asked. Gemini shook her head. "He's a friend. What brings you here, Illusi?" she asked. Illusi uncovered his ears and began to explain. "Well, as Punchy knows, I have been looking for any information I could find regarding the Chaos Emeralds and the Power Stars." he said. "And the Orbs?" Zeppo asked. Illusi scratched his head. "Um... Orbs? What Orbs? Never mind. I believe I've found some Power Stars, but we have to hurry to get them!" he said. "All right! Let's go!" Punchy said, "Copter shouldn't need our help anyway!" As everyone began to follow Illusi away, Birdo slowly started to follow them. "H-hey! What about me? Won't anyone help me?" she stammered before picking up speed. "Come back! Don't ignore me! Waaaaaait!!"

As they followed Illusi, they noticed he seemed to be listening for something. "Um, do you even know where we're going?" Punchy asked. "Shh, Dark One, I think I can hear... Yes, this way!" Illusi said, picking up speed. As they walked, they could hear someone singing off-key. His voice was somewhat squeaky, and ill-suited for music. "Twinkle, twinkle Power Stars! How'd I find out where you... ares!" Zeppo groaned at the song. "I know that singing..." he said. They followed the song, fighting off the urge to cover their ears. "Snatched away by a real smart guy. I'll be getting real nice... stuff... things... What rhymes with guy...?" In a relatively open area of the maze, the group came upon a fairly large man covered from head to toe in the armor of a knight. He was still singing when they arrived, and Zeppo couldn't help himself. "Shut up, Ray!" he shouted. The knight called Ray turned to the intruders and drew a sword, still singing as he prepared to defend himself. "Dragon, it's your unlucky day! Prepare to face the wrath of Conquer Corp's might-y Ray!" Punchy and Gemini were both covering their ears by this point. "Make it stop!" Punchy groaned. "Not even magic can fix his singing!" Gemini added. Illusi sighed. "Unfortunately, he's got the Power Stars." he said. Ray sang in reply. "Yes, that's right! And with this starry light, you'll all fall to Conquer Corp's might!" Zeppo didn't take him too seriously. "Hey, where's Dr. Spizzy? Or Sable? Or White? They didn't honestly trust YOU with a mission by yourself, did they?" he asked. "No, not quite so. With someone else I was meant to go. But I broke away and found my way and now I'm here to say, no dragon or furry animals will stop me today!" As Ray sang these notes, Birdo pushed past the others and shot an egg out of her mouth at Ray, which simply bounced off his armor. "Stop it, you tone-deaf tin man! I'm a bowless Birdo, and I'm in no mood for stupid noise!" she shouted. "Come over here and say that, mouth-nose!" Ray shouted. "All right! Take this! Chaaaaaaarge!!" Birdo yelled, running towards Ray! As she neared him, he panicked and jumped aside. Birdo kept running and ran onto a spring on the ground, which sent her flying into the distance! "Aaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!" she screeched. Gemini pointed her wand at Ray next, while Punchy raised his fists, Zeppo bared his teeth, and Illusi prepared to conjure illusions. "Um... Yikes... Not good..." Ray realized.

News Brief! > Ray is the nephew of Conquer Corp's leader. He is often found singing famous songs, until someone shouts "Shut up, Ray!"

Punchy, Zeppo, Gemini, and Illusi took a couple steps towards Ray. "You're gonna give us those Stars you have right now, or you'll be seeing stars!" Punchy threatened. Ray looked around nervously, slowly backing away. "Four against one? Come on, guys, where's your sense of sportsmanship?" he protested. "We're in a hurry, Ray. Make it easy on yourself and give it up." Zeppo suggested. Ray glanced back at the spring. "Ummm... I'd love to stay and play. But I'm not in the mood today. I'm turned around in this maze. I could be lost for days. But you're not going to catch the clever knight, Ray!" he sang, running for the spring while the others covered their ears in annoyance. He stepped on the spring, but his heavy armor kept it from launching him. "Huh? Hey! I'm not THAT heavy! Work you dumb device!" he said, jumping on top of the spring. With the added force of the jump, the spring launched Ray as far as it could, sending him about half as far as Birdo. "So long, suckers!" Ray shouted. Zeppo began to take flight to chase him, so Punchy jumped on his back. "We can't let him get away! Mush, dragon!" he shouted. "Mush?" Zeppo muttered as he rose into the air. Gemini decided to join the chase as well. "I'll show that off-key knight! Morphicadabra!" She cast her transformation spell, which caused her to grow and change shape. In seconds, she was back in her dragon form again! Illusi jumped on her back in order to travel with her. "Say, Gemini, do you remember how to fly as a dragon?" he asked. "We'll soon find out, won't we?" she replied, shakily taking to the sky! It didn't take long for her to remember, though. "Ha! Like riding a bike! This is the only thing I miss about being a dragon!" she said as she caught up to Zeppo and Punchy. "So, we meet again, dragon breath." Punchy teased. Gemini ignored him and looked down for Ray. "Where'd he land?" she wondered. "There! I see him!" Zeppo said, pointing. Ray was wandering on one of the upper portions of the labyrinth, and jumped with alarm when he spotted the dragons overhead. As he tried to run away, Zeppo picked up speed to fly ahead of him. The two dragons circled Ray as he tried to run, cutting off his escape as they prepared to land. "We've got ya now!" Punchy shouted.

Realizing he was in trouble, Ray sang for help. "Oh, no! I must take flight! Spizzy, Sable and White! Come and help me if you might!" As he finished singing his plea, Cranky Kong approached him and smacked him with his cane! "Horrible! At least warn me so I can turn off my hearing aid before you start singing that terribly!" he shouted angrily. Obviously, the old ape was tougher than he looked, as he appeared perfectly fine despite having been launched into the distance earlier. "Outta the way, old timer! We got a bone to pick with that knight!" Punchy shouted as Zeppo and Gemini were trying to land. However, they were suddenly forced back into the sky, as several cannonballs rocketed towards them from overhead! In the sky above was what appeared to be Dry Bowser's airship from Sparkleton, repaired and upgraded with more advanced technology and armor. Dr. Spizzy glanced down from the side of the ship and hurled an anchor down, suspended by a chain. "Come on, Ray! Get up here so I can YELL AT YOU!" he shouted. Ray grabbed on to the anchor and started to climb, but Cranky began swinging his cane at him as he did. "Hey! I wasn't done talking to you yet! Get down here, you disrespectful punk!" he ordered. "Aw, shut up!" Ray replied, climbing higher. "Why you little! Fine, I'm coming up after you!" Cranky hollered, grabbing the anchor and climbing after Ray. Meanwhile, the airship's cannons were preventing Zeppo and Gemini from getting much closer. "Shoot! All we can do is follow them!" Zeppo realized. Making matters worse, Cranky was getting on Ray's nerves. "Bad monkey! I'm gonna kick you down on your tail!" he said, attempting to rid himself of the cantankerous Kong. Cranky found himself struggling to hand on. Meanwhile, the anchor was swinging into someone else's path as the airship was moving. Killer Kong, with Melody in hand, grabbed the anchor and began climbing up! "Hey! Where are you taking me!? Don't!!" Melody shouted. Donkey Kong, who was following Killer, grunted angrily as he began to climb away. "You lose, Donkey Kong! Graaah ha ha ha ha!!" Killer laughed. DK grunted defiantly, as if to say "I don't think so!" and jumped to grab the anchor. Looking up, he saw Cranky in trouble as well, and grew more determined, but Killer was fed up with him. "I crush you, fool! Then, tie will be mine forever!" he growled.

Seeing this happening, Copter and Jimmy had hesitated for a moment, but now Copter flew off toward the airship without Jimmy. "Hey! Carry me up, too!" Jimmy protested. "No time!" Copter yelled back. "Alas, Jimmy was too chubby for Copter to carry into the sky." the Narrator said. Jimmy took out his Windy Sword and pointed it up. "Come out of your cloud and say that, I dare you!" he yelled. Meanwhile, Zeppo and Gemini decided to fight their way onto the airship. Zeppo blew ice at the cannonballs coming at them, while Gemini knocked them off course with shots from her magic wand. This provided Copter with the cover he needed to reach the ship as well. As they all landed on the deck, Illusi and Punchy jumped off the dragons, and Gemini used her transform spell to turn back into a fennec. "Pull over, whoever's in charge here!" Copter demanded. However, they soon realized that this would not be so easy. Dr. Spizzy was accompanied by Sable, White, and a host of minions in red armor. Spizzy laughed triumphantly as Copter and the others realized they were outnumbered. "HA HA HA HA HA! You FOOLS thought you'd be a match for CONQUER CORP? Point the CANNONS OF DOOM at them, Henchguys!" he shouted. Sable grinned as she pointed her staff at Copter. "I was waiting for my chance to get my revenge!" she said. White drew his katana. "Now YOU shall vanish... Forever!" he threatened. Punchy glanced at Illusi. "Any ideas?" he asked. Illusi nodded, snapped his fingers, and vanished in a puff of smoke. "Coward!! You're USELESS!!" Punchy yelled. Zeppo found himself glancing over at the ship's helm. "Isn't that..." He saw a familiar blue-haired man in an alligator costume steering the ship. Copter spotted him as well. "Who's side is Gator on?" he groaned. The Henchguys had turned the cannons to face the intruders by now, and Spizzy prepared to give the command. "All right, Henchguys! READY! AIM..." While Spizzy was saying this, Zeppo called out to Gator. "Hey, Captain Gator! What are you doing!?" he shouted. Gator glanced down at the scene on the deck. "Hey... Wait a cola-pickin' minute..." he muttered. Just as Spizzy was about to yell "FIRE!” Gator teleported in front of him, startling him. "GYAAA! DON'T DO THAT!!" Spizzy shouted. Gator stomped his foot angrily. "No way! This is payback time! 'Captain,' this is a mutiny!" he growled. "Really? YOU want to stop ME? You and what army?" Spizzy snapped. Sable and White both tapped Spizzy on the shoulder at once. "WHAT IS IT?!" Spizzy yelled. "Hmph... Fine, I mutiny, too. You ask him, White." Sable scoffed. White shrugged. "Fine. Spizzy... Who's flying this airship?" he asked. Everyone glanced over to find the helm unmanned, then let out a panicked scream as the ship began tilting to the left! Meanwhile, DK had climbed up above Killer, and was now busy fighting with both him and Ray while Cranky swung his cane around, holding on to the chain for dear life. As the ship began moving out of control, Killer Kong dropped Melody! "Aaaaahhh!!" she yelled, barely grabbing the chain before she fell. "I'm gonna be sick..." she groaned.

News Brief! > Henchguys are generally very dumb. Female Henchguys are called Henchgals, while elite Henchguys wear purple armor and are called Henchgoons.

Jimmy watched helplessly from below. "Stupid flying boat. I just know this is all Gator's fault somehow!" he whined. 2BIT and Birdo caught up with him and looked up at the ship. "That black ape's the one who stole my bow!" Birdo growled. 2BIT looked puzzled. "Really? Killer's even weirder than I thought..." he said. Birdo looked furiously at the airship. "I'm not gonna let them get away!" she yelled, dashing towards a spring ahead. Jimmy, realizing what Birdo was doing, charged at the spring as well. "Hang on, Melody! I'm gonna save the day!" he shouted. "I won't hold my breath." the Narrator groaned. The spring rocketed Jimmy and Birdo high into the air, higher than Jimmy expected, and soon they landed on the deck of the airship! Jimmy quickly got his bearings and drew his sword. "Aha! Conquer Corp! I know just how to deal with you!" he said, using his Windy Sword to blow the Henchguys around the deck! Birdo joined in by shooting eggs all around the deck. The tilt of the ship suddenly caused the cannons to roll to the lower side of the deck, coming straight at Spizzy, Sable, White, and Gator! "Dern the torpedoes!" Gator yelped, teleporting away while White jumped the cannon and Spizzy and Sable ran! Gator emerged next to Jimmy, and with him out of the line of fire, Zeppo, Copter, Punchy, and Gemini joined in the fight. Meanwhile, Ray climbed onto the deck. "Here comes Ray to save the day!" he sang, but he shut up when Cranky Kong whacked him with his cane. "What did I tell you about singing!?" he yelled. The battle on the deck had gotten rather loud by now, and drew the attention of someone in the captain's cabin. "Cut out that noise! How's a Koopa skeleton supposed to get any sleep!?" Dry Bowser stomped onto the deck, struggling to keep his balance on the wobbly ship. "Get this ship under control!" he shouted, prompting a Dry Bones to run out of the cabin behind him and head for the helm. Looking around, Dry Bowser recognized Copter and Punchy, and quickly grew furious. "The punks who stole my Power Star! It's payback time!! I'll scorch ya!!" he roared. Seeing where most of the heroes were standing, Spizzy tried to stop Dry Bowser. "Don't you FOOL!! You'll KILL us ALL!!!" he yelled, but it was too late. Dry Bowser fired several fireballs at the group, which they rushed to dodge, only to allow the fireballs to smash into the rear of the ship, wrecking several of the propellers keeping the ship aloft in the process! As a result, the ship began falling! "Hey! This ship is losing altitude!" Copter yelped. Gator peeked out over the side of the ship to see where they were going. "Oh, good. We're not gonna crash into the maze. We're gonna miss the island entirely!" he said. Cubyrinth, like Sparkleton, was a floating island. So, the ship would be falling a good distance. "Oh, no... We're done for!!" Ray cried. As the ship passed the edge of the island, 2BIT watched with concern. Rainbow, who had been lost in the maze the whole time, had just found 2BIT. "Hey, what's going on? Where is everyone?" she asked. 2BIT pointed at the airship. "There... And they're going to crash near Icepeak!" he realized. "What? Where? How?" Rainbow asked in concern and confusion. "Come on, let's find the cannon to Icepeak. I'll explain on the way!" 2BIT said, though he had no idea if he really could explain this. With the ship plummeting towards Icepeak, the fate of all on board was not looking good...

To be continued...