"Okay, okay. I get it. I'm quite convinced that one of you posted that comment to prod me to continue this story. Fine. I'll give it another go, but don't expect much until summer. School is tough after all. For those of you with characters in this, its been, what, three-four years (?), perhaps you would like to make some edits to your character. PM me with any changes, and/or if you want to see your original character profile. When I really get back to this, I will post a new story for everything, but in the mean time, here is everything previously posted but heavily edited (my writing has improved some in all this time).

The floorboards creaked as the girl trudged sleepily to her bed. She tugged a hair band out of her brown hair, newly freed curls bouncing onto her shoulders, and pulled on a well-worn Mickey Mouse t-shirt and some sweatpants. Then dropped heavily, as though exhausted, onto her bed.

"Goodnight," came a shout from another room.

"Goodnight, Dad," the girl responded, making a point of loudly snuggling down into her sheets, clicking off her lamp, and generally tying to sound as though she was falling quickly asleep.

The house soon fell still and silent. Light snores could be heard sighing out of one bedroom. No one was awake to hear the faint sound of two feet sneaking from their bed and across the room to the closet or the rustling of someone trying to find a box well concealed by piles of laundry in the dark. Certainly, the muffled "eureka!", and the ensuing snap of elastic and the whirring of zippers went unnoticed. Although, to be honest, sound was the only clue that anything was afoot. A floorboard creaked, seemingly of its own accord, then a step on the staircase. Finally, the door squeaked slightly as it opened, and the front stoop made a scuffing sound, almost as though someone was sneaking across the concrete, but that would be impossible, since no one was there…right?

-Commercial-Break-Line-

"Ooph!" The boy slammed into the floor after being rudely shoved through the door.

"Klutz," hissed a girl wearing a short, red chiton over a black Kevlar shirt and black leggings. She effortlessly stretched out a pair of two white, feathered wings (matching the red wings decorating her mask); then half stepped-half flew over the boy sprawled in front of her.

He was somewhat disappointed all he glimpsed when her short red chiton fluttered up as she landed was legs covered by black leggings, but he was considerably more distraught by the fact that she had planted her boot squarely on his ponytail. "Ouch!" he yelped, "Now who's the klutz?"

"Still you." She glared but moved her foot.

The boy righted his blue domino mask, stood up, and brushed off his blue suit. "Hey! I was pushed!" Then patting his head, "Where's my hat?"

"Is this it?" the girl picked up a blue top hat.

He took the hat and, flipping it onto his head with a bow, dramatically replied, "Thank you."

"Hey, I don't know about you two, but I am just a little curious as to how we got here," another girl questioned as she stepped away from the door. That her speech intelligible was a mildly impressive feat, given that her mouth, along with the rest of her face, was completely covered by a shield-shaped mirror of a mask curved slightly to the shape of her head. -

"I was beginning to wonder the same thing," agreed a white-haired boy from the other side of the room. So pale he nearly blended into the wall, he all but vanished when he pulled his off-white cloak tighter over his light green costume, creating an unnerving appearance as he moved toward the small group.

"Whoa, where is everyone coming from? And wasn't the door over there?" The boy in the top hat indicated behind himself.

A boy wearing a black and red costume, complete with a red-trimmed black hood, tumbled into the room from another wall. "The door could be moving."

A yelp sounded from the other side of the room as a familiar (at least to the reader) girl with slightly curly brown hair, now wearing a black costume complete with a cape and blue mask, landed on the winged girl. "You don't say." She growled, "And you, get off me!"

"Oh, gosh. I am so sorry," The brown haired girl apologized as she stood and quickly backed off. Just as suddenly, two more teenagers were propelled into the room.

One, a girl in a white tunic with a gold eagle emblazoned on her chest, a looked around the room through her mask and asked, "Isn't it a little dark in here?"

The other was a girl in a billowing dark blue costume, clamped tight in places by copious amounts of black ribbon. She looked down at herself and mumbled, "When did I…?" Shook her head glanced around and responded to the other girl, "It seems fine to me."

"How can you tell? Your mask covers your eyes," the girl in the white tunic responded. Sure enough, her companion wore a delicate, but not at all transparent, black piece of fabric over her eyes and tied around the back of her head.

"Just because there is something over my eyes doesn't mean I can't see out of them," she retorted.

The boy in black and red chimed in, "Actually, it usually-," but was cut off as a girl in a vibrant, rainbow costume entered the room.

She angrily demanded, "Who is responsible for this? Where am I? Explain yourselves!"

"I'm fairly certain we all know as much as you do." The ghostly boy raised his hands defensively.

A boy in a black leather jacket walked into the room, with silver headphones brightly glistening at his ears. This time, the door noticeably slid to another wall and a boy dressed in black armor, embellished with silver, flame-shaped plating and a blue stone set in the chest, stepped in. He lingered near the wall, almost like he was trying to fade into the background.

The former of these two looked around at the room and decided to state the obvious. "Wow, there are a lot of people in here."

"How many of us are in here anyway?" Another girl in red and black zipped past him on a pair of red, purple, and white skates. Dark red hair streamed out from under her helmet painted with red rockets on the sides.

"Twelve," the girl with covered eyes immediately responded. "Wait, no, now thirteen, fourteen," she continued as yet another two people entered the room. The first to enter was dressed all in black, with a slash of green cutting across his costume from his left shoulder to above his right hip.

Seeing the roomful of eyes he felt compelled to speak. "Well, this is a bit awkward, but, uh, how did I get here?"

"A lot of people have been asking that," the girl in the mirror mask observed. "We have yet to get any answers."

"Answers to what?" another girl asked as she entered the room. A silver diadem glittered in her white hair. The temperature noticeably dropped as she crossed the room. As she reached the group the floor began to shake. A boy in a sensible bulletproof vest with a less sensible dark blue sleeveless shirt, black fedora, and cargo pants fell into the room just as the door disappeared.

"Fifteen, there are fifteen people here now," the girl with covered eyes finished counting.

A vicious voice filled the room, "Welcome, to all of you. Let's play a little game shall we." It wasn't remotely a question. "Who can survive the longest?" Evil laughter echoed as thick walls slammed down around the assembled group.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The girl in the delicate diadem jumped quickly back as a very heavy, very thick wall slammed down in front of her. Not paying attention, she nearly knocked over the boy backing up behind her.

"So, we're stuck here," the girl said, looking around at the smooth, white walls surrounding them.

"Looks like it," the boy in the blue top hat agreed.

After a moment of slightly uncomfortable silence, the girl exclaimed, with a large smile," I'm Snow Princess! You?"

"The Blue Gentleman," the boy took her outstretched hand, "At your service."

"Well then, that concludes the introductions! Let's get on to the game," the sinister voice again echoed around the room. "The rules are simple. You try to find your way out of my maze," One wall disappeared to reveal a long, corridor, "and try to make it past my traps and puzzles. If you make it out, you win. I will let you leave. But if you lose, well, we'll just leave it at that for the moment… Now get moving!"

A wall began to descend, intent on sealing the two young heroes in the empty room.

"Hurry!" the Blue Gentleman shouted. They both slid under the wall and ran down the hall before them.

After a few minutes, the pair came to two glossy black doors in stark contrast to wall behind.

Snow Princess suggested, "Right?"

"No, left, it looks safer," the Blue Gentleman decided.

"Right"

"Left"

"Right"

"Left!"

"Rock, Paper, Scissors!"

"L- wait, what?" He asked, momentarily thrown off.

Snow Princess answered, "That's how we should decide."

"Fine," he agreed.

They murmured the lines together, "Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!"

"Ha!" Snow princess walked to the door on the right. After all, scissors beat paper. She pulled it open to reveal… an empty room. "I knew I was right!"

Both walked into the room and, abruptly, the door closed behind them. The heroes quickly turned around to see a bomb, counting down from fifteen, appear at their feet.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The girl with slightly curly brown hair froze. One of the thick walls was about to slam down on her head.

"Careful!" A girl wearing a pair of white, red, and purple skates quickly pulled her back, just before the wall slammed into the ground. "That wall would have crushed you."

"Yeah, thanks," the girl brushed some rubble off of her black costume.

The red-haired skater responded, "No problem. My name is Little Miss Rocket. It's not my real name, of course. I did just meet you."

"I'm Moon," the brunette shook the redhead's hand.

The voice from minutes earlier filled the room, "Welcome guests! Who here likes games?" When neither girl responded, the voice sighed then continued, "Well, that's too bad… because you have to play any way! The rules are simple. You try to find your way out of my maze," One wall disappeared to reveal a long, corridor, "and try to make it past my traps and puzzles. If you make it out, you win. I will let you leave. But if you lose, well, we'll just leave it at that. Now get moving! You have twenty-four hours."

Moon spoke, "Let's get going. We don't have much time."

"No kidding," Little Miss Rocket agreed. She bent down to make sure her skates were secure. When she stood up, Moon was hovering a few feet off of the ground. Only slightly startled, the skater continued, "Ready?"

Moon replied, "Ready."

The pair of heroes dashed down the long hallway. One expertly skating on powerful legs, the other flying, arms outstretched.

At the end of the corridor was a metal room. Moon carefully approached the steel doorway and cautiously slid through the metal flame. Nothing happened. Little Miss Rocket followed her in.

"It looks like we hit a dead end," Moon noted.

Little Miss Rocket denied it, "We can't be at a dead end. There isn't anywhere else to go."

Moon started to move towards the ground "Maybe we-"

BAM! She was abruptly cut off when her feet touched the ground, triggering a thick metal door to slam shut behind them. The small room quickly began to fill with water.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The boy in the bulletproof vest watched the walls smash into the ground. "Weeeiiird," he thought, pulling out the word in his head. He turned around, and was startled to see another boy, dressed entirely in red and black standing silently at the other side of the newly created room. "Had to get stuck with the ninja," he muttered through the neck guard that also covered the lower part of his face.

"The 'ninja' has a name, you know," the other boy responded from across the room, much to far for most people to have heard the boy in the bulletproof vest's complaint. "It's Shadow Mist."

"Barrage," he replied carefully scrutinizing Shadow Mist.

"I see you two don't really get along!" the sinister voice cackled. "But conflict will make this all so much more interesting. The rules of my game are simple. You try to find your way out of my maze," One wall disappeared to reveal a long hallway, "and try to make it past my traps and puzzles. If you make it out, you win. You can leave, but if you lose, things get a lot less pleasant. You have twenty-four hours."

Almost before the voice finished, Barrage charged down the hall.

"Wait!" Shadow Mist shouted.

"Do you want to find out what that freak meant by 'less pleasant'?" the other teen yelled back.

"Had to get stuck with the impulsive one," the ninja hissed as he sprinted after Barrage.

Before long, they reached the end of the hallway.

"How was this a maze?" Barrage pointed out. "And what traps?"

Shadow Mist shrugged and they both took a step forward. Within seconds, ropes fastened themselves around both heroes' ankles and turned them upside down. As the ropes pulled the two upward, the floor melted away to reveal… lava. "I really wish you hadn't asked. I hate irony."

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The boy dressed in heavy black armor and the girl with the eagle chest plate stood in the middle of a room.

Just as the walls hit the ground, the boy began to speak, "We have to get out of here. Maybe if we both charge the wall, we can break through. By the way, I'm Ash Fire."

"Oh, right, introductions. I'm Olympia," the girl responded. "The weak points should be-"

Olympia was interrupted as the sinister voice returned, " Trying to escape already?" the voice cackled. "But I haven't even laid out the rules. My game is simple. You try to find your way out of my maze," One wall slid over to reveal a long hallway, "and try to make it past my traps and puzzles. If you make it out, you win. You can leave, but if you lose," the voice laughed, "You have twenty-four hours. I suggest you hurry."

"Where is that voice coming from?" Ash Fire asked. "A hidden speaker?"

"In here, who knows," She looked toward the corridor. "I guess we may as well go that way."

The space around her feet began to glow, and she was lifted off the ground. "Whoa!" Ash Fire stepped back hastily. He composed himself, "Uh, ok. Let's go." The duo started off down the hallway. At the end of the hall, they came across a small doorway.

"This has to be a trap," Ash Fire decided. "I'll go in first."

Olympia argued, "No. I won't allow you to go in by yourself.

"Well, I'm going to."

"No, you aren't. That's how people die. We are going in together." Olympia walked through the door. Ash Fire sighed, then followed her. The two heroes barely made it into the room before the walls started to pull together, intent on erasing the very room, along with its occupants.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The girl in the red tunic jerked her white, feathered wings away from the wall that was slamming down behind her.

"I've had it with this," she kicked the wall, "I walk out a door, and, next thing you know, I get thrown into a room with a bunch of strangers, only to be nearly smushed by a wall." She whirled around to find the boy with the silver headphones backing quickly away from her very quickly with a startled look on his face. "Who are you? Did you do this?" she glared at the boy.

The boy held up his hands, "Hey, uh, calm down. I don't know anything about where we are, and as to who I am, my name is Audio. Who are you?"

The winged girl didn't look as though she believed him, "Nike."

"Like the shoes?"

"Like the Greek goddess of victory," Nike glared at him, "How do I know I can trust you."

"You don't!" the sinister voice interrupted with a laugh, " but you may just have to, if you want to survive." The voice went on to tell them the rules of the 'game'. " You have twenty-four hours. Get ready, get set, go!"

One wall vanished, forming the doorway to a long passageway. Nike raised her wings and shot down the hallway, her long red hair blowing behind her.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Audio shouted as he ran after her.

He finally reached the end of the hall to find an open doorway. Inside was absolute chaos. Nike was stabbing a giant carnivorous plant with a thorn, clearly torn from something in the pile of plant carnage below her hovering feet. "Nike! Look out!" He yelled as a thick, thorny vine, with entirely too much resemblance to a snake, lunged at her from behind.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The boy, a phantom in his pale green and white costume, watched the walls slam down into the floor.

"Um…" a voice coughed behind him.

The boy turned around to find the girl with long, blonde hair and a delicate, black piece of cloth tied over her eyes. "Who are you?" he asked.

The girl slightly tilted her head, "I am Sibyl. Who are you? Is that your natural hair color?" she asked pointing to the white hair poking out from the hood of his cloak. "Yes, of course it is," Sibyl answered her own question.

"I'm Haunt," he replied. "So you can see?"

"Easily, I-," Sibyl was interrupted.

"Easily, huh," the crackling voice snickered, "You can't even see what's right in front of your nose. Do you know what's happening to you?" Sibyl's jaw clenched. "Let me give you a hint," the voice went on to explain his "game." When he had finished, one wall of the room vanished, opening a long corridor.

"I don't guess we can trust who ever is behind this to keep their word, twenty-four hours seems like a very generous deadline for a maze," Haunt said.

"I would guess the 'games' are slightly more lethal than usual, but I don't see anyway around it," Sibyl looked at the smooth white wall. "I can't do anything that could even damage this."

"So we have no choice," Haunt walked towards the passage, "Let's go." He stepped over the threshold. Sybil followed.

In a short while, the hall made a sharp turn to the left. The two teenagers rounded the corner and had just enough time to glimpse a doorway before everything went completely black.

-Commercial-Break-Line-

The girl in the mirror mask flinched as one wall dropped down inches from her nose. She began to back up, her face catching the light and bouncing it onto the walls.

"Stop!" a voice shouted behind her. The girl turned around to see she had almost backed into the girl in a vibrant rainbow costume.

"Oh, sorry. Uh… I'm Reflection. Nice to meet you," Reflection introduced herself and extended her hand.

The girl in rainbow looked at her a moment and said, "I'm Element." Element shook Reflection's hand.

"Would you happen to know what's going on? Or where we are?," Reflection inquired.

"Well, if I did I'd be doing something about it."

"Like what?"

Another voice, threatening and very disembodied joined in, "I'd rather not hear all the ways you would like to kill me." The voice cackled, "that's why I chose not to meet all of you in person, much easier to manipulate you from a distance. Now let me explain my little game." The voice continued, explaining his maze and, of course, the time limit. "Presenting my maze." One wall of the small room vanished and, as with our other characters, a hallway was revealed, a very long hallway.

"Come on!" Element ran off down the hallway.

"Um, okay," Reflection sprinted after her in an attempt to catch up.

They reached the end of the hallway quickly. Reflection was breathing heavily, but Element seemed fine.

"So where do we go from here?" Element asked. The tunnel had grown wider to form a circular room.

Reflection had to take a moment to catch her breath, "I'm not sure. Wait, is that grass?" Small green blades of grass were quickly growing out of the ground, and a clear substance that looked suspiciously like ice was quickly covering the walls, progressing towards the two girls in the middle of the room.