Kirby woke up just as the ship
left warp drive, blinking sleepily. He felt much better after a
nap. He hopped down off the chair and toddled over to Meta
Knight.
“We’re going someplace safe,”
Meta Knight told him, turning to look at him. Kirby smiled. It
faded as he saw the bandage on the old knight’s arm, already
soaked through with blood.
“Poyo…”
“Mm? Oh, don’t worry about
that. It’s only a bad cut; I’ll live. Are your injuries
healed now?”
Kirby wiggled his arms a bit.
Nope, no more pain. He felt good as new, really. “Poyo!”
“Good… You’ll have to find
some good armor when you get older, though. You won’t heal as
quickly then.” He gestured to his own arm and Kirby nodded.
There was another warning from
the ship’s computers.
“We’re still being followed,”
Sword said. “Where to now?”
“Straight ahead.”
“But that’s the asteroid
field! We’ll be crushed!”
“That’s an order.”
Sword and Blade exchanged
glances. It was insane, but of course they trusted him.
Silica ran into the room then,
followed by Joe. “What’s going on?”
“Nightmare’s ships are
following us,” Blade explained quickly. “We’re trying to
lose them.”
“Damnit…”
“What the…?” Joe saw the
asteroids looming in front of the ship out the main window. “We
aren’t going there, right?”
“That’s exactly where we’re
going,” Meta Knight said.
“You want to try losing them in
there?!” Silica exclaimed. “This ship can’t maneuver well
enough!”
“We’ll be fine. Trust me.”
Meta Knight’s voice was completely calm.
She frowned, but didn’t say
anything more. A hush fell over the bridge as they entered the
field. Sword opened another screen on the main window, this one
showing the view behind the ship. The enemy craft were close
behind them, spiked and almost insect-like in their design. They
were closing in fast.
Fumu was the last to come in,
having seen the asteroids out the other windows. She didn’t
say anything, eyes wide as she saw what was in front of them.
“Don’t move the ship. Keep a
straight course,” Meta Knight said.
Blade’s hands were shaking on
the controls. “Sir, there are several of them coming right at
us. If we keep on this course…”
“This is an order!”
Everyone watched, holding their
breath as one of the massive stones came hurtling for them…
and suddenly veered off, rebounding off another. Each one that
came close moved away, creating a path for their ship.
They were stunned. Silica shook
her head in disbelief. “How…”
“Shhh. Watch.” Meta Knight
pointed to the view of the other ships.
Just as the asteroids moved away
from them, they sought out the others. Nightmare’s ships
dodged for a few moments, but within seconds two asteroids
crushed one. The other ships hesitated, and then began to turn
to try and escape- only to meet the same fate.
Everyone looked to Meta Knight
for answers- not that he was known for giving them freely.
“You just like messing with
people, don’t you,” Joe accused, trying to sound tough as
normal, though he’d been as scared as the rest of them.
He laughed softly. “If myself
or Kirby weren’t on this ship, the same thing would have
happened to it… Look up ahead. That’s where we’re going.”
The largest asteroid yet loomed
in front of them. There was an opening in front of it, some kind
of cave.
“This is one of many entrances…
This place doesn’t exist in any one spot in the universe, but
there are multiple ways to get in. This was the closest,” he
explained.
“What? What place? What are you
talking about?” Silica asked.
“This…” Meta Knight’s
eyes shimmered blue. “This is a sacred place. Only Star
Warriors are permitted to enter, and anyone else trying to gain
entrance is destroyed. But I can bring my comrades along as
well.”
The light from the stars vanished
as they entered the cave, and all of the view screens showed
inky darkness for several long moments.
“Switch the propulsion to
atmospheric. There’s gravity here.”
Sword and Blade did as he said,
the engines grinding as they transitioned. The ship fell
somewhat but continued on a steady altitude. Finally they saw
light flickering in front of them and a huge cave was revealed.
Everyone but Meta Knight gasped
as they saw two very familiar stone statues standing guard aside
a huge gate, fires burning in pits before them.
“Those are… Kabu!” Fumu
exclaimed.
Meta Knight nodded. “The Kabu
were created to protect the Star Warriors… Sword, Blade, land
the ship in the clearing there.” He gestured to a flat plain
of rock. “We can leave the ship here safely.”
The ship landed heavily a few
moments later. Meta Knight was the first to exit the ship,
followed closely by Kirby.
Kirby stared up at the Kabu. They
were massive, far bigger than the one at Dreamland. He wondered
if they talked too. “Hiii!” he called, waving to the closest
one. It didn’t answer. “Poyo…”
“Sir Meta Knight… what is
this? Some kind of hidden base?” Fumu asked.
He shook his head. “No… it’s
much more than that.” He stood in front of the massive gates.
They were inscribed with many strange characters; the only
familiar one was the five-pointed star at the very top.
“This is the tomb of the Star
Warriors.”
The Kabu’s eyes lit up then and
the door swung open, ancient hinges groaning.
After a short passage, it opened
up into another massive cavern. Everyone else stopped in their
tracks.
Meta Knight had been to this
place before… many times before. But even he was still struck
at the ironic beauty of it.
“It’s amazing…” Fumu said
quietly.
The walls and the sides of the
main paths were covered in shimmering crystals. It wasn’t
clear where the light source was coming from, but it danced
around, casting rainbow lights on every other surface. The
ceiling appeared to be a view of the stars, though some of them
would fall and float to the ground like snowflakes, tiny white
sparks that slowly faded. A complete feeling of serenity
pervaded this place.
In the center of the room was a
huge white fountain, clear water pouring off the top and
traveling in rivulets to a deeper basin around it. Fumu gasped
when she saw in top of it.
“That’s the Star Rod! Kirby
used that against Nightmare!”
Meta Knight looked over at her.
“Yes, only certain Star Warriors are able to wield it… It’s
the strongest weapon our ancestors created and it protects this
place. It’s one of the only things that can defeat Nightmare…”
When Meta Knight looked back, he
found Joe standing in front of him.
“You know you have to explain
more before we go anywhere else,” he said, grinning. “You
said this is a tomb? You mean like bodies?”
He nodded. “This is where all
Star Warriors are placed when they pass on. Even if there is no
body, it’s a place for the soul to rest.”
Fumu came up next to him. “Why
would the soul need to rest? My parents always told me that if
you’re a good person, you go to a paradise when you die.”
She was never very sure on that, but it was a nice story.
“There are… many stories
about us. About the first Star Warriors, millions of years ago.”
He walked as he spoke, down one of the many paths. “They are
said to have created the Kabu, the Star Rod, the Warpstars
themselves. They are our ancestors. But it is also said that the
first Star Warriors made a great sacrifice to protect everyone
else in the universe.”
“What kind of sacrifice?”
Blade asked now. Even after he and Sword had been with him for
so long, he’d never told them about this.
Meta Knight watched the waters of
the fountain. The sound of it was soothing to him.
He took a moment to answer. “They
swore… that their souls and memories would never die. They
would be endlessly reborn, so that there would always be someone
to fight evil like Nightmare. They sacrificed their paradise so
that other would have a chance to live.”
Everyone was quiet, so he went
on. “They created this place so that at the very least the
souls could rest before being reborn. And anyone born with a
Star Warrior’s soul carries the skills of the past life and a
will to fight darkness. It’s fate, a destiny that cannot be
fought. So, there will always be someone to fight.
“Much of the old knowledge has
been lost now. But, considering the other things the first Star
Warriors made, who knows?” He looked at Fumu. “However, it
could explain something you asked me once… how Kirby can know
how to fight without training. It comes naturally to us.”
Kirby mostly understood what Meta
Knight had said. He never really thought of death. He’d seen
it happen, but he never thought about it happening to him. But
then again, if he could see this wonderful place again, it
couldn’t be so bad.
“Only Star Warriors can even
find the tomb. It’s the safest place I know of… Nightmare
probably thinks we were destroyed in the asteroid field.”
Sword took off his helmet to get
a better look at the place, Blade following his example. “This
is incredible… What do we do next, though?”
“We wait for a time… When we
leave we can take an exit that will take us to the other side of
Nightmare’s base. It’s still a good distance from it, but
with any luck they won’t be expecting us from that direction…”
He sighed. “I had wanted to avoid coming here, in case we were
somehow followed. But it was the only thing I could think of on
such short notice.”
He watched as Kirby ran over and
started splashing playfully in the water of the fountain. So
completely carefree.
“Is my father here?” Joe
asked suddenly.
Meta Knight nodded. “He is...”
Or his body, at least. Of course the soul would be long gone.
Silica looked over quickly. “And
my mother too?”
“Yes…” Meta Knight looked
around before pointing down one of the paths. “The Kabu will
guide you there.” Several smaller statues lined the path at
certain points, and eyes of one close to Silica lit up. She
walked over to it, and another lit up. They created a path to
follow down one of the many other exits in the place that led to
the actual tombs.
“And my dad…?” Joe didn’t
see any lighting up near him.
“I know where that one is. They
assume I don’t need a guide,” he said wryly. “Follow me.”
“Um…” Blade hesitated. “I
don’t think we have anyone to see here…”
“You can come as well. He
wouldn’t be upset with more visitors.”
They walked down the path, voices
hushed. It didn’t feel right to speak loudly in a place such
as this. Aside from that, despite it being a tomb, it didn’t
feel like one. It was peaceful, not spooky as one might expect.
Kirby walked between Joe and Meta
Knight, occasionally glancing back at his friend. “Joe okay?”
“Eh? Yeah, just nervous.”
Kirby could mostly understand
that. He had a bounce in his step again, oddly cheerful for
being in a tomb. But then, that was Kirby.
“It should be close,” Meta
Knight said as they walked past numerous rooms and other
pathways, everything bathed in the same soft light. There wasn’t
even any dust- everything appeared completely untouched.
He stopped. “Here.” As Jecra
was one of the more recent to die, his tomb wasn’t far from
the main path. Though he wasn’t sure how this place could
still hope to hold more… He didn’t really question it. Their
ancestors had been capable of things he couldn’t fathom.
Joe went in first. There was a
stone structure almost like a sarcophagus in the room, the walls
lined with more writing and crystals. On top of the stone were
two things- Jecra’s broken sword and shield. Joe walked up
hesitantly, eyes wide.
Sword and Blade moved off to the
side, letting Meta Knight and Fumu pass.
Kirby didn’t enter. He couldn’t.
The moment he came to the room’s
threshold he found himself frozen. Not fear. He couldn’t place
the feeling, but there was something wrong. A low whimper came
from his throat but they didn’t hear him. Something wasn’t
right.
Moments later, Meta Knight
noticed something as well. His voice was low. “Someone else
has been here.”
Joe turned, face awash with
confusion. “Who else could have…?”
“It’s been disturbed. I…
can feel it. Something’s amiss.” Meta Knight normally felt
calm coming here, but this time… He finally looked and saw
Kirby standing at the entrance, eyes wide in distress. “Kirby?
What is it?”
There was suddenly a muffled bang
and a cloud of black smoke appeared over the tomb. Joe leapt
back, landing next to Meta Knight in a defensive posture. “What’s
going on?!”
Cruel laughter filled the room
then, echoing off the carved walls. Meta Knight could barely
make out a figure land on the tomb in the smoke. He pulled out
Galaxia and Sword and Blade readied their weapons as well.
“Show yourself!” he shouted.
The smoke cleared then and he gasped, stepping back as he saw
who stood above them.
“…Yamikage!”
The black shrouded ninja laughed.
“It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Sorry for never coming to
visit again, but what a nice coincidence that we’re both here
at the same time.” His red eyes glinted. “I was just paying
tribute to our dear friend Jecra…”
To their horror they saw then he
was holding something… Something white with wisps of blonde
hair still clinging to it.
Fumu brought her hand to her
mouth, eyes wide. “No…”
Joe stared, fists in front of
him, but he couldn’t bring himself to move.
“You… How dare you
defile this place with your presence, traitor!” Meta Knight’s
voice dripped with rage. None of them had ever heard him speak
like that before. “You have no place here; you betrayed us!”
Yamikage chuckled. “But, I’m
still a Star Warrior. Just one who decided to join the winning
side.” He tossed the skull idly as he spoke. “And I knew you
would choose to come here to find sanctuary. You’re old and
predictable, Meta Knight…”
Meta Knight’s hands were
shaking, anger rising within him. Galaxia glowed brightly.
“I thought it would be
appropriate for you to die here. Then I realized we couldn’t
have you die just yet…” He laughed again. “Surrender to
us, Meta Knight. Perhaps then I’ll have you all killed
quickly. I can be merciful…”
No one moved- except Kirby. He
walked forward, eyes fixated on Yamikage and what he held. He
felt so strange, but he didn’t know why.
Yamikage looked down at him. “Ah
yes, the infant warrior… Don’t expect to beat me so easily
this time.” He chuckled. “Catch.” Kirby couldn’t react
fast enough as the skull was thrown, clattering to the ground in
front of him.
Kirby stared at it for a second,
confused- and then shrank back as his vision seemed to flash in
front of him. Everything started spinning and he saw visions
from his dreams. Things he’d never seen before. His head hurt
and he fell forward, trying to cover his eyes but it didn’t
stop. He saw demons and horrible things, people dying and fires
and… he saw Meta Knight, but it was somewhere else, some place
he’d never been. Sitting together around a roaring fire. He
saw Yamikage again, but he and Meta Knight were speaking like
they were friends.
The dream. The dark figure. He
laughed, taunting him. Pain, so much pain. It wouldn’t end.
Clawed hands descended.
Meta Knight. A setting sun; the
land looked awash with blood. He looked down to see real blood,
on him, the ground, and on Galaxia.
