Snuckles groaned as his blurry, blurry vision started to clear, while his head still throbbed with searing pain. He could only vaguely remember what 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 cornered him in that strange hallway maze, but the one in front wasn't in their ranks. Yet, Snuckles recognized him from somewhere, Hold on, wasn't he that Boomington fellow that he and the Skylanders ran 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 slammed a hand on a nearby table, and the sound was so intense that Snuckles flinched. "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. 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’ entire body clammed 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 one 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, 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 og 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 and tied it tight around Snuckles' mouth. "Now quit your blabbing and come on!"

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, 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!

Apparently, somebody left a scrap of folded paper turned on its back on the floor! Trigger Happy lifted up the paper, and 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, 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 who were all dressed to the nines in armor and weaponry! Worse yet, these trolls 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. But, they dropped their weapons as several trolls parted to form a path around a flashing warp panel. Trigger Happy gasped and stepped back, yet 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 was 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, but 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, and 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, 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, shoved Snuckles in his 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, slammed forward and pounded into the ground with both fists! The impact from his pounding was so great that the floors concaved 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, 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, and 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, 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. Boomer twitched his ears. "I think I hear something burning, too!"

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

"NEVERMIND, I FOUND IT!"

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

Boomer, Trigger Happy, and Snuckles cried as they flung upwards and hit their heads on the ceiling before they shot back down and hit their heads on the floor. They didn't have time to rest and recover, however, for 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 that it sent shockwaves like tidal waves rippling through the room!

Boomer yelled as the tide lifted him up, yet snarled 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 a geyser of metal to shot 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, but stumbled off of the wave he rode on and tumbled down the hill all while his muffled curses turned to muffle screams!

Boomer smiled as the metal geyser receded and Boomington rolled down, but he yelped as his own wave collapsed back to normalcy! Though he fell, his fall was at the very least softened by something orange and squishy… Wait. Boomer groaned, rubbed his head, and 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. 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, 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, 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, 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 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, 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 hold 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 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!

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, 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, but slowed down as he caught sight of Snuckles trying to make a getaway as well! Boomington smirked, 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, and 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 already jumped on a nearby warp panel and 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, and 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 upturned during the big fight. He hummed a tune as he pushed past some old chairs, and 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, and 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 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 as he raced towards the warp panel. "Come on, Trigger Happy! We've got a mabu to save!"

Trigger Happy giggled and 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.