"Well, you put up a good fight, I'll give you that." Meta Knight said to Kirby's unconscious body before slinging it over his shoulder. "Hopefully, you'll become better as you age."
Having won his battle against The Newest Star Warrior, Kirby, the knight spread his bat-like wings and flew to the top of a nearby house, looking for something. Tiff, the only other conscious person at the scene (not counting a nearby butterfly), ran up to the house. She was trying to help Kirby, but ended up tripping him in the fight. She had caused him to lose, and it seemed that Meta Knight knew this, too.
"Don't worry, little girl," he seemed to be genuinely trying to be reassuring, "Now, he can train with the best of the best. He's better off without you."
With that hurtful statement, Meta Knight pulled him and Kirby into his cape, vanishing into the unknown.
=====
*Theme Song (Meta Knight Remix) Plays*
=====
Tiff stumbled backwards. Kirby was gone. Just gone. Immediately after that, she turned back to the Royal Guard, who were nursing each other's injuries (Meta Knight actually did break Blade Knight's fingers).
"We gotta go get him," Tiff said to Bandana Dee, who had bruises all over his body, "We can't just let him do this."
"We could talk to Dedede, he might be able to help!" Even though he was sore and hurt, she had to admit, he was dedicated to the king.
"I'll try to fix the buggy," Sailor Dee said, nursing a scratch on her forehead, "Tiff, can you get a spare tire?"
"That, I can do," She said, before walking off to Gus's Garage. Maybe this time, she wouldn't screw everything up.
=====
It was the second time Kirby had woken up in a dark room. At least, in prison, he woke up to a familiar face. Here, it was just a metal box of some kind. It was enough to make him scared, and he let it show to anyone who happened to see.
"Kirby, we are ready to begin. Stop crying." A voice came from the speaker. It took a second for Kirby to realize that it was Meta Knight, and then, the memories of the last three hours finally came back to him. He was not happy to hear his voice. "Alright, because you're just beginning as a Star Warrior, we're gonna run you through a few tests, to figure out how to train you."
One side of the cube opened up to reveal a larger, metal room. Looking down, Kirby saw spikes lining the floor of it. Suddenly, strange blocks began to fly around, creating platforms to stand on, along with some walls that got in the way. In addition to this, some opened up to reveal cannons inside of them!
"This will test your ability to traverse difficult areas, ready to begin?" Kirby looked up to see Meta Knight, along with four other strange beings, varying in shape and size, looking at him through a glass window. Behind them, he could see a large screen, displaying someone who looked like Meta Knight, but he was green and wearing full golden armor.
The puff tried harder to stand, but his injuries from the duel decided that he should stay laying down. Seeing this coming, Meta Knight pressed a button, and a red box came out of the wall next to Kirby. When he tapped it, the box opened, revealing a red tomato with a large "M" plastered on it. Being always ready for a snack, the injured orb inhaled the tomato in one gulp.
He didn't expect a sudden rush of energy as the scratches and bruises on his body faded away. Now he was ready for whatever they threw at him.
Immediately after he recovered, the cannons fired at Kirby, who dodged them by jumping to the nearest platform. Upon landing, he discovered what made this particular challenge so difficult. The platform teetered under his weight, which just made the next cannonballs harder to deal with.
At first glance, it seemed like he couldn't make it to the end, but then Kirby remembered one of the first skills that he learned. Jumping off of the platform, he puffed himself up and began to hover to the end.
Everyone watching (especially Meta Knight) was dumbfounded. Kirby could fly? That was impossible! Puffilia Star Warriors don't gain their wings until at least 700 years of age! And then Kirby showed up and just decided that he was better than genetics and flew anyway. Not even the cannons stopped him from reaching the yellow finish platform.
Meta Knight watched Kirby do a little victory dance and he felt actually impressed.
=====
She shouldn't have gotten caught.
Tiff was going to get a tire for the Royal Guard, but got interrupted by her mother, who was looking for her. And here she was now, being scolded for helping the "Monster" escape punishment. She had spaced out in the middle of one of Lady Like's infamous talks about how "family matters most," and "the rules apply to you".
Tiff was not taking the advice to heart. Instead, she tried to think of a plan.
After about ten minutes, she was sent to her and Tuff's room. He also didn't seem to be taking his punishment very seriously. When he saw his big sister enter the room, he looked outside of the door to make sure that their parents weren't listening. "So, when are we gonna go and see Kirby?" He asked, having no clue what had happened in the last episode.
"That might be difficult." She chuckled, "He's probably in another galaxy by now because of me."
"What happened?"
Tiff then explained everything that happened with Meta Knight. How it turns out that he thought Dreamland was a bad influence on Kirby, and the duel that the two Star Warriors had fought, and even Tiff accidentally causing Kirby to lose said duel. At the end of it all, Tuff sighed. "There's gotta be something that we can do," He stood up, trying to think of a plan.
"Unless you can pull a spaceship out of your backpack, then how would we get to space?" She asked, stumping Tuff completely. Tiff also racked her brain, looking for a solution.
She got it. Running for the bookshelf, Tiff pulled out the Star Warrior book to refresh her memory. Kirby's guardian could summon the warp star, she thought, How do we find them? Looking through the pages, she found something that made the world stop. "'A Star Warrior's guardian is the first intelligent being that they trust'," she read aloud, "And then there's this weird, golden text that I can't read."
Tuff looked over her shoulder, "Aww, I can't see it." He was disappointed until the ramifications of what she said caught up to him. "You're his guardian!?" He said, before Tiff covered his mouth.
"Mom and Dad are already upset at me for helping Kirby, I don't think that they'll be too thrilled to hear about how their daughter is cosmically obligated to help him." She whispered, "Pack your backpack, I have a plan."
=====
When a comedically large claw threw Kirby back into the metal cube, he decided that he didn't want to do this anymore. He didn't want to go and join the Star Warriors, he wanted to go home and play with his friends. His next thought made him shoot up in a panic. Dark Matter. With him gone, there was nothing stopping it from devouring not just Dreamland, but Planet Popstar as well.
He had to get out of here.
Kirby began to slam his nubs against the wall to no avail. He had a glimmer of hope when the wall opened up, but it was just another large room. This time, the floor was level with the cube and safe to walk on. A box came out of the wall, this time with an assortment of weapons. "Welcome to the test of combat." Meta Knight said.
From the floor, a golden robot gleamed as it rose. It had two large claws, equipped with flamethrowers, and a couple of cannons on its back. On the side of it was text, saying Heavy Lobster T. Kirby looked at the weapons, and decided that the right move was to eat a sword, much to the shock of everyone but Meta Knight.
Sword Kirby decided to go all out on this foe, slashing it rapidly with the sword. It had no effect and Kirby was thrown into a wall, dropping his ability. After that, a claw opened up, shooting fire at him before he got the chance to recover. He felt weak as Heavy Lobster readied a charge, shooting ink from the cannons in an attempt to blind Kirby beforehand.
He was ready for it this time, inhaling the ink and jumping out of the way. When Kirby landed, he had a beret with a star and random paint splattered on it. He pulled out a paintbrush, covered with rainbow paint, and Artist Kirby was ready for battle.
Seeing the new recruit choose a paintbrush for battle made Meta Knight sigh. This was humiliating, considering how highly he praised Kirby to Sir Arthur. The golden knight didn't seem upset, but rather curious as to how he would use it. Meanwhile, the rest of the Meta Knights could barely keep themselves from laughing hysterically.
Everyone thought that he was doomed when Artist Kirby began to doodle on the floor. Heavy Lobster charged again, being surprised when a hammer hit the beast's head. Suddenly, between the two of them was a poorly drawn King Dedede (Dedede Coming at Ya), swinging his hammer repeatedly until he was hit with a claw, causing it to explode into paint.
This new revelation caught everyone off guard. It seemed like whatever he drew, came to life. Kirby looked at an air vent on the wall and got an idea.
Heavy Lobster, upset at Kirby for managing to dent it, decided to charge again. Just before it hit, he jumped out of the way, swinging his paintbrush at his mechanical foe. Heavy Lobster roared in alert at the paint covering its eyes.
"What just happened?" Meta Knight shouted as he jumped from his seat.
"Heavy Lobster's blinded!" Axe Knight shouted back.
The blinded machine ran into the wall, getting stuck. This was Kirby's chance. He jumped onto Heavy Lobster's back, and bounced straight at the observation window. With a few strokes, their entire view was covered in rainbow splotches.
"What's going on?" Sword Knight asked, looking at his general. In response to this, Meta Knight stayed quiet to think. Why would Kirby want to cover his view of his progress? Wouldn't he want to be considered a high-value Star Warrior? Wouldn't he want to be a general alongside him and be honored throughout the galaxy? Why would he stop all of that?
Unless Popstar infected him with its lethargy.
After that thought hit him, Meta Knight warped directly into the room. He was not very happy to see the vent torn open. There was also a poorly drawn Kirby in the room, which was destroyed with one swipe of Galaxia.
=====
Once her bag was packed, Tiff grabbed some of the stars that Kirby had dropped along with the abilities. She had decided to call them 'Copy Ability Essence', due to the stars sharing properties with the abilities. Forming a plan, she put them into Kirby's old backpack, carrying it like a suitcase.
Tuff had just finished packing his bag when Tiff opened up the window. Motioning for him to follow, she climbed out. Once they were out, they ran directly for Whispy Woods.
"So," Tuff began, "What is the plan?"
"Kirby has a warp star," She replied, making sure that they were on the right path, "It probably wants to get back to him. If it wants to get back to him, it's going to have to launch into space. I say we join it and get Kirby back."
"Why didn't you tell me that we were going to space?" He was having a bit of trouble keeping up, but still felt the need to gasp out a question. "I would've packed for it."
Ignoring her brother, Tiff kept running until she finally reached her destination. Kabu, the warp star guardian. Tuff came up behind her, still confused about her plan, but Tiff had a pretty good idea.
"Kabu, send Kirby his warp star!" She said, feeling the air shift. That was good, the first part of her plan worked. Now for the hard part. She thought, grabbing her brother's hand. Tuff began to panic as Kabu's mouth opened and he got an idea of her plan.
"Warp Star!" Kabu's voiced boomed as the star shot out of his mouth. Just as Tuff feared, Tiff jumped up and grabbed it as it flew toward Kirby. The next second, the two of them were hanging on for dear life as the Warp Star shot into the stratosphere.
"What now?" Tuff said, clutching both the Warp Star and his sister's hand as tightly as he could.
"I guess that we just fly this up to Kirby," Tiff seemed unsure about her response. She had decided not to tell her brother that she came up with this plan in five minutes, it was the best way to keep him calm.
As the Warp Star left Planet Popstar, Tiff was amazed by the experience. Being in space for the first time, flying at high speeds, the fact that she somehow wasn't suffocating (probably due to the Warp Star's power), it was all breathtaking.
Tuff, not taking the time to analyze the logic, felt a rush of adrenaline. He had been dreaming about going to space one day, just like the Star Warriors in the movies that he snuck into. If his hands weren't practically glued to the Warp Star, he would've jumped for joy right there.
The Warp Star, being free of the burden of gravity, started to move at warp speeds. It wanted to get to Kirby, and Tiff and Tuff were along for the ride.
=====
Kirby felt like an absolute genius. His plan was flawless! Cover up the viewing window with paint would've been one thing, but creating a copy of himself was the icing on the cake! That thought made Kirby hungry. Once he found his way back to Popstar, he was going to eat and sleep the day away.
He had just made it outside of the vent when he heard Meta Knight's voice behind him.
"Maybe next time, don't take the vent that only leads to the immediate hallway." He said, patting Kirby on his beret, "I will say, that was clever! I have a feeling that you will be a great General someday." Meta Knight put his arm around him, envisioning Kirby as a decorated hero, all grown up, waving at adoring masses. Kirby was just wondering what the Star Warrior was looking at.
"What do you say, Popopo? That's your new name, by the way. 'Kirby' just sounds like a regular guy." Meta Knight clarified, "You want to be a legend?"
Kirby looked at Meta Knight like he was insane. The pink puff pushed him away and shook his head. In response, the masked swordsman sighed, "That's a bit too bad. See, we're at war. You've been drafted. Italics add emphasis. You have no choice but to fight! But there are far worse fates than being known for helping the Star Warriors fight the Jambastion. For example, staying on that useless, star-shaped rock with its lazy inhabitants degrading your will, body, and mind. And furthermore..."
Meta Knight seemed really into his monologue, so Kirby quickly and quietly walked away.
=====
King Dedede sat in his throne room, bitterly eating the cake that he and his servants had prepared for Meta Knight. (He wasn't that upset, he got to eat a cake by himself.) Escargoon was eating some of the cookies that were also prepared for the knight. He jumped when he heard a knock at the door. The massive doors opened to reveal the Royal Guard, still heavily injured from the scuffle with the Star Warrior.
"Dedede, Doctor Chemitory said that we need to take the next few days off." Sailor Dee said, using Blade Knight to keep herself steady, "Do we have paid medical leave?"
"SAILOR!" Bandana Dee ran in front of her, but immediately felt something in his foot pop. He turned to Dedede, "So sorry, Your Majesty. We were just coming to tell you some bad news." The Waddle Dee took off his bandana as a sign of respect. "Kirby's gone."
King Dedede tried to hide his relief and joy. He took a deep breath and stood up, "Looks like I'm gonna hafta deal with Dark Matter, then." It was a complete bluff. Now that Kirby was gone, Zero would have no reason to send any more Dark Matter to fight him. Hopefully, things would return to normal soon enough.
"Let me through!" A woman shouted from the hallway. Waddle Doo tried to see who it was, but he had a black eye and could barely see, but Bandana Dee recognized her instantly.
Lady Like.
While she was usually calm and ladylike (is that where her name comes from?), she seemed to be upset at something or someone. She barged into the throne room, trying to compose herself as she approached the King. "I think that pink demon took my children!" She wailed, just as Sir Ebrum had finally caught up to her.
"Well, that can't be true," Bandana Dee stated, "Kirby was taken by Meta Knight, the Star Warrior General! If anything, your children are just trying to get him back. But I don't think that they just have an easy way up to space."
Lady Like went from concerned to furious. "They're doing what?" She seethed, trying in vain to keep calm about the fact that her children were helping a monster again. Dedede and Zero were both thankful that Dreamland had no space program.
=====
The Halberd was just different shades of gray and brown. The hallways were very boring to look at. Artist Kirby actually had tried to paint little stars as decorations, but then they came to life and several almost ripped a hole in the spaceship. After a bit of exploring, he found a room labeled Control Center. Kirby couldn't read, so he walked in.
It looked amazing. There was an enormous window, showing the vastness of space around the ship. There was a large screen with some sort of console underneath it, covered in lights and buttons. The screen had many different planets on it, but Kirby noticed that Popstar was highlighted. Curious, he ran up to the console and pushed a large A button.
A voice, sounding like a robotic woman, said, "Popstar, no data files on this planet. Would you like to go here?" Kirby nodded and pushed the button again, causing the entire screen to be taken up by the image of Popstar. "Changing route to Popstar." The voice said before Kirby felt a massive shift to the right, indicating that the ship had turned around.
After Kirby recovered, he saw a twirling cape, which was then revealed to be Meta Knight. "Wow, you are really just a glutton for punishment, aren't you?" He said, stepping toward Kirby as his cape opened into bat-like wings, "You escape the testing process, you run away from your new General, and you hijack my ship?" Just before Meta Knight unsheathed his sword, the computerized voice rang out an alert.
"Unidentified Warp Star approaching. Proceed with caution."
The two Star Warriors looked at the window to see a Yellow Warp Star crash through it. After the window was breached and the vacuum of space began to suck things out, Meta Knight went to the console and hit a button, blocking off the window with a large metal block. Kirby approached his Warp Star with caution, noticing two distinct figures that nearly made him tear up.
"Kirby!" Tiff said, before running over and hugging him. Kirby hugged her back, he'd thought that he wouldn't see her again.
"Poyo!" Kirby laugh-cried.
Tuff came up to him as well, patting him on the head. And then the two of them noticed the new ability. "Fascinating, it's like you're Artist Kirby or something."
As Artist Kirby showed off his cool paintbrush and beret, Meta Knight watched from a distance. He was livid. That girl from Popstar, was she the one making Kirby lazy? Now that she was back, would he get lazier? He had already been failing at getting Kirby to be a part of the Star Warriors, this would just make it a thousand times worse. What could he even do?
No, he had to nip this problem in the bud. He couldn't afford to lose a Star Warrior this powerful. He had to get Kirby on his side as quickly as possible. How could he stop these kids from being a bad influence?
"I'm guessing that's Meta Knight," Tuff said, pointing at the pondering Star Warrior, "He just looks like an edgy version of Kirby," Meta Knight was appalled by that statement. He warped behind the children, grabbing Kirby.
"Need I explain that you all are in big trouble?" Meta Knight sternly interrogated them, "You two hijacked a Warp Star and damaged my ship, which Popopo had tried to hijack!"
"Who's Popopo?" Tiff asked.
"KIRBY!" The knight shouted before throwing Kirby at the ground, making him drop the Artist ability. "And if you seriously think that I'm about to let him skip out on the draft, then you are sorely mistaken!"
"Kirby, quick!" Tuff shouted, "Throw a heart at him!"
Tiff gasped in shock at what her brother had suggested. Kirby also wasn't fond of the idea of making a Star Warrior General into his servant. Meta Knight was just confused.
"What heart?" He asked, pointing his sword at Kirby. He had to make sure not to underestimate him.
"Tuff!" Tiff scolded her brother for his idea, "We can't just have Kirby use mind control on a Star Warrior! That's morally wrong! He also can't use it in front of Meta Knight because who knows... how he'd... exploit..." Tiff stopped talking, realizing her mistake.
Meanwhile, Meta Knight was processing the ramifications of this discovery. "Kirby has mind control? He can have anyone obey him, regardless of how he treats them?"
"I just royally screwed up, didn't I?" Tiff stammered.
"If Kirby used his 'hearts' on Blade Knight, he would come back and join our cause!" Meta Knight continued, "And why stop there? Traitor Star Warriors, Jambastion cultists, even NME monsters! All united under one general! We could have countless warriors of near infinite variety!"
This wasn't good. Tiff, Tuff, and Kirby all decided to back out of the room slowly. As Tiff pulled out Fire Kirby Essence, Meta Knight flew up to her, snatching her backpack away from her. He looked inside to see many of the stars that came off of Kirby whenever he dropped an ability. Obviously, he wasn't going to let her keep it.
While Meta Knight was playing tug of war with Tiff, Tuff reached into his bag and pulled out a yo-yo. About two seconds later, Galaxia was yanked from the General's sheath. Stunned, Meta Knight looked over to see Kirby, donning a purple cap and a small bandage on his cheek. Yo-yo Kirby was here and had Galaxia being pulled to him.
Tuff caught the golden blade and was unpleasantly surprised to feel lightning burning and shocking him. He dropped the sword and the knight chuckled. "Galaxia can only be wielded by me, child."
Then suddenly, a twinkling noise erupted from behind him, followed by Tiff riding the Warp Star, zooming at Tuff and Yo-yo Kirby. The two of them hopped on, leaving Meta Knight dumbfounded. Thankfully, he had finally come up with a plan.
"Halberd! Full throttle to Popstar!" He shouted at the console. Learning that Kirby had not one, but two Star Warrior Powers was a game-changer. This was a feat unheard of in the eons that Star Warriors had existed! Under no circumstances could Meta Knight just let him go to live his life as a couch potato, probably just eating chips and watching the television all day, becoming morbidly obese. He had to get him to join the cause! He had to!
And he knew just how to do it.
=====
The hallways were like a labyrinth. It had been five minutes and Kirby and his friends still couldn't find a way out. The fact that the hallways were all the same color didn't help, either. It was a good thing that they were on the Warp Star, as that let them explore a lot faster than just running around. It didn't change the fact that looking around was more boring than anything.
That's why they didn't expect Meta Knight to pop out from behind a corner and drive Galaxia through their transportation.
The Warp Star trilled in pain as it crashed through a nearby door, Kirby barely jumping off in time. Tiff and Tuff weren't as lucky. As Meta Knight calmly approached the pink puff, Kirby readied his yo-yo for combat. Galaxia was drawn in a similar fashion, raising the tension in the hallway.
"Popopo, surely you realize how much trouble you're in," The navy-blue orb said, in a demeaning tone, "With everything you've done today alone, I think that it's safe to say that you've had some...bad influences," Meta Knight gestured toward Tiff and Tuff, who were still recovering from the crash.
"I have a proposition for you. See, I think that a war would be healthy for the citizens of Popstar. It would help them get off of their lazy rears and actually put effort into something. But, if you were to join us, maybe we wouldn't even have to fight. You could just 'heart' them. What do you say?" The general outstretched his arm, only for it to be shot with an arrow. Kirby looked back and couldn't believe his eyes.
The hole in the wall seemed to lead to a hidden armory, and the two siblings clearly took advantage of it. Tiff was holding a shortbow (which actually looked normal on her small frame), and Tuff was wearing one of Meta Knight's masks and held a small sword, they were both ready to defend themselves and their planet. So, why would Kirby stop them?
Kirby swung his yo-yo, hitting Meta Knight's mask and leaving him open for Tuff to come in with a sword swing. He clashed with the general, who attempted to disarm him by parrying his strike. This left him open to another yo-yo strike, this one hitting him in the back. That extra bit of force allowing Tuff enough time to grab his sword back.
Meanwhile, Tiff was nowhere to be seen, and that began to worry Meta Knight. It was hard enough to fight Tuff without hurting him seriously, he didn't need to wonder which direction an arrow was going to come from. Kirby and Tuff were getting harder to deal with, Kirby kept up his pressure from a distance and Tuff was surprisingly good with a sword (It turns out spending hundreds of hours in a video game let's you pick up some techniques). Eventually, after a few more strikes, he found an opening.
As Tuff did a descending slash, Meta Knight grabbed him by his suspenders and chucked him back into the armory. Just as he thought, this worried Kirby enough to distract him. The knight slashed Kirby with enough force to send his rubbery body into the wall, making him drop his ability.
"Poyo!" Kirby called out, incomprehensible to everyone except the damaged Warp Star, who could tell exactly what his warrior wanted. Get the two of them to safety. The star picked up Tuff immediately, then left to get Tiff. It was just the two Star Warriors, now.
Kirby went straight for the armory, trying to get an ability that could help him defend his home. He was kicked out of the way by Meta Knight, who then looked around as the ship shook.
"Warning! Power Core unstable! Self-destruction imminent!" The robotic voice said over the speakers. The Star Warriors grabbed onto the nearest wall, with Meta Knight driving Galaxia through it for good measure. The ship began to shake even more violently as equipment from the armory began to rumble about the floor. What caught Kirby's attention was a wheel-looking object that rolled toward him.
He went to inhale the wheel, but the shakiness of the ground wouldn't let him, so he did the next best thing that he could think of and hopped on top of it. Kirby then noticed that he was on some sort of seat, with handlebars similar to the bike that he saw Tiff ride once. Curiously, he pressed a large B button, which made the one-wheeled motorcycle take off with a burst of speed.
The speed was an unexpected experience for Kirby, but a welcome one. It was just as fast as the Warp Star, if not faster, letting the pink puff have a chance to find a way out before the ship exploded. He definitely didn't need what had happened next.
Meta Knight appeared ahead of Kirby, using his Dimensional Cape and wings to stay ahead as he sent sword-beams at the wheel that he was riding. Thankfully, Kirby was fast enough to swerve around the strange laser slashes. It was also helpful that Meta Knight seemed to also be flying out of the ship.
Eventually, the two of them had reached the top deck of the ship. Here, Kirby could see that they were in the sky above Dreamland, and the massive amount of smoke and fire coming off of the Halberd. Suddenly, Meta Knight began to fly further out. Kirby looked behind him to see a massive claw swipe at him. Dodging explosions, a giant claw, and sword-beams, Kirby saw a small rise at the end of the deck that could be used as a ramp.
At this point, Meta Knight had ditched the sword beams in favor of swooping down at Kirby, who dodged with half grace and half flailing the handlebars around. He couldn't really see him, but it didn't matter. The ramp was right there. Just before a rouge cannonball blasted the ramp into a crater, the red, one-wheeled bike leapt off of it, launching Kirby straight towards Castle Dedede.
=====
To say that the Warp Star had a rough landing would be an understatement. There was a massive amount of debris from Castle Dedede's wall piled on top of them. Thankfully, she managed to squeeze her way out.
After Tiff had examined her own body for injuries, she checked her two companions. The Warp Star itself was in horrendous shape, a large gash that emitted stardust. She would definitely have to bring it back to Kabu the first chance she got.
Tuff was luckily in better shape. He didn't even break any bones this time! Tiff sighed in relief. Then she remembered what she did.
Before Kirby had sent them both back on the Warp Star, she had spotted a room that had a large, glowing pillar in the center. Cautiously, she stepped forward, triggering the ship's defenses. Long story short, she got to the pillar and had a laser shot at her. She dodged it, and it hit the pillar instead. Then the alarm went off.
If she had to guess, it was some sort of power core. And if she caused critical damage while Kirby was inside...
Tiff decided to just hope that Kirby made it out alright.
"Tiff? Tuff?"
She looked over and couldn't believe her eyes, it was her father, Sir Ebrum (cerebrum?). Lady Like was right there next to him. She tapped her brother on the shoulder, and the two of them ran at their parents, overjoyed. The four of them shared an embrace that was long overdue.
"I'm so glad you two are okay!" The worried mother said, holding back tears, "You even escaped that pink monster!"
"Good heavens, Tuff!" Sir Ebrum said, getting a good look at his for the first time today, "Is that a sword?!"
"Yeah, do you like it?" Tuff said, showing off some of his skills.
"Give it to me," Lady Like said, as Tuff obeyed, getting ready for a lecture, "If you want to use it properly, I suggest that you get some lessons first." Tuff couldn't believe his ears, his mother was actually supportive of him doing something dangerous. It seemed like going on a space adventure had proved him worthy of it.
Meanwhile, Tiff looked around after hearing a high-pitched squeal that seemed to be getting steadily louder. She looked out of the hole in the wall that they made and saw a shadow descending quickly toward her. Diving out of the way, she had narrowly dodged it.
The shadow was Kirby, who was now just holding a set of handlebars, which was all that was left of his bike after the impact. He jumped up at the sight of his friends, but that joy was cut short as Meta Knight landed in front of him.
"You've got some nerve!" Meta Knight growled, visibly shaking with rage, "You little Shotzo, you could've had it all! Fame, glory, power, and yet you choose to be lazy!" The knight grabbed Kirby by the top of his head, holding him toward Tiff and her family, "Those two brats are the worst influences I have ever seen! You could still have it all, but there is a first step." Meta Knight calmed down, which only made his order all the more chilling, "Heart them!"
Kirby was stunned by the request. The parents cautiously held their children closer as the Royal Guard, Escargoon, and even King Dedede entered the corridor (he didn't like the fact that Kirby broke his castle for a second time). When Kirby hesitated, Meta Knight urged him further.
"HEART THEM!" He shouted, shoving him closer, "Do it, or you'll never be free from their wretched chains!"
Kirby smacked Meta Knight's hand away, shocking everyone in the room, them included. The knight held his sword out threateningly, but Tiff broke the tension. "Wait, I have a proposition!" He had stopped moving and she saw this as a chance to continue, "A duel between you and Kirby. If he wins, you leave him alone. If you win, he goes with you and we don't follow."
Meta Knight thought for a minute, he had every advantage here. He was more experienced, stronger, and had a legendary weapon. What was her play? Actually, Void it! He was itching to fight Kirby after everything he did. "It's a deal!"
Tiff grabbed Tuff's blade and threw it toward Kirby, who was Sword Kirby five seconds later. The two of them were ready for an all or nothing battle.
Meta Knight struck first, with a drilling sword stab that Kirby parried by slamming the sword into the ground. This was followed by a surprise roundhouse kick from the knight that nearly sent Kirby into the wall. Meta Knight warped behind him, but he was ready, doing a quick sword spin before the knight could move his golden blade.
The pink puff opted to dodge an incoming stab instead of trying to challenge it, leading to a game of cat and mouse that constantly reversed the roles. Eventually, Meta Knight had had enough, grabbing Kirby's sword with his bare hands and ripping it away from him as it turned into an Ability Essence. While the puff was shocked, Meta Knight pulled him into his cape, readying his ultimate attack.
"Know my power..."
That was the last thing that anyone heard before the two of them vanished.
=====
Kirby looked around at the void that they had appeared in, flustered. It looked like a purple night sky, but with random yellow platforms floating about. Lightning shot from place to place, adding unnecessary danger to this place. Nothing was familiar here, except for a four-winged Meta Knight, who was currently flying directly at him. Kirby panicked and jumped out of the way, landing on another yellow piece of rock.
The pink puff looked back to see that wherever they were, it seemed to be boosting Meta Knight's power to an absurd degree. The next thing that Kirby felt was a sharp pain in his back. It went away soon enough, but it scared him into trying to find a way out of this place.
Meta Knight was right on top of him, slashing nonstop at the poor puffball as he constantly regenerated the scratches on his body. Just when hope seemed lost, Kirby had an idea! If he could just get an ability back, he might stand a chance!
Luckily, it didn't take long for Kirby to find some Sword Ability Essence. He quickly swallowed it and regained his Sword Ability, spinning Meta Knight away. Then, the lightning gave him an idea. He watched it carefully to see where it was going. Meta Knight constantly felt the need to intervene, slicing at his body, confused as to how Kirby was taking so many hits.
Eventually, the pink puff did an upwards slash, flying through the void with his blade. Lightning hit him, but if he could just focus the energy right, then he might brute force his way out.
Meta Knight, in a furious shout, stabbed his sword upwards, creating many Galaxias, which all flew at Kirby. The knight was surprised to see a lightning bolt flying through them all, and directly at him. In the next moment, they were pushed out of the void in a bolt of lightning.
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In the spectator's perspective, they disappeared for a second before an implosion of lightning seemingly knocked them away. Meta Knight got up, fighting through the pain as he (and everyone else) got a good look at Kirby. He was still Sword Kirby, but his hat was decorated with a silver lightning crown, tinting the hat into a teal color, and his sword had become the shape of a lightning bolt, complete with the actual electricity flowing through it. He was now Zap Sword Kirby.
Meta Knight stumbled up before Kirby came at him, faster than he could react. He tried to warp away, only for Kirby to grab his cape and slash him into a nearby wall. The knight tried in vain to jump at him, but the electric puff dodged it seamlessly, retaliating with a sword combo attack to push him out of the castle wall.
Kirby jumped out to follow the attack with a thrust downward, aimed directly at his foe. Meta Knight tried to move out of the way, but the attack hit him in a matter of nanoseconds, slamming him into the ground several stories below.
The impact left a large crater on Dedede's lawn, sending dirt and rock all over the place. Kirby stood over the knight, expecting his next attack. Meta Knight attempted to stand as one side of his mask began to slide off, but fell down as it shattered completely, revealing his Kirby-like face. Kirby couldn't believe it.
He had won.
After a victory dance (it just felt appropriate), Meta Knight weakly grabbed his mask pieces and sloppily put them against his face. Kirby readied himself for another attack, fearing that his victory dance was a bit preemptive, but to his surprise, Meta Knight drove his sword into the ground, sighing.
"I guess you won, Kirby," He was upset that he lost, but still impressed by his skill, and also angry at Kirby for everything that he did. "I just have one question. Obviously, you have proven that you aren't lazy. So, why would you reject the endless fame and glory of being a Star Warrior? What do you have here that's so valuable?"
Kirby looked up at the hole in the wall, seeing Tiff and Tuff cheer for him as Bandana Dee applauded his victory. Meta Knight chuckled. "You're a sentimental sap, you know that?" Kirby didn't know what those words meant, but he agreed enthusiastically. The knight began to walk away, "Well, seeing as I have no more business here, I'll just get on...my...ship..."
Out in the distance, against the sunset, the Halberd was visibly exploding, as it fell into Popstar's ocean, never to be seen again (The crew's fine, the ship had a life raft). Meta Knight glared at Kirby as he began to walk in the other direction, grumbling "I guess I'm going to be here for a while..."
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Later that night, Dedede went down to his secret basement cautiously. Something about today had confused him. Sensing this, Zero answered before he began.
Like I said, Kirby is a force to be reckoned with. It doesn't surprise me at all that he managed to beat Meta Knight.
"That's not mah question!"
Oh?
"Earlier, Kirbeh could've used his heart things on the children, and Meta Knight said that could help him gain power, fame, and all that jazz. But he didn't. Why?"
Kirby's motives are confusing. Perhaps he just didn't want to share.
"Share?" That single word confused him more than the events of the day.
Share all of that power with the Star Warriors. He doesn't need them. He has the power to take over entire planets!
"He could begin a conquest at any moment!"
I believe that he is still planning, sire...
"In that case, we need to handle this as soon as we can!"
We also need to factor the other three.
"The prophecy, that's right!" Dedede groaned.
We need to find out who they are, and stop them all. If Kirby's planning something, we must be smarter.
Stronger.
Darker.