Chapter One: Vacation in the Vine Valley

Diddy and Dixie Kong stared at the view over the Vine Valley. It looked just as Diddy remembered it, except of course that there was no huge pile of bananas on the island in the Viney Lake, as he and Donkey Kong had returned those bananas to the banana hoard. A wide jungle that hid a town of Kongs covered half the Vine Valley, while the other half consisted of the Viney Lake and some mysterious temples on the other shore of it. The Viney Lake was the Kongs' destination.

Dixie sighed. "You were right: it is pretty. This will be a great place for our vacation."

Diddy was glad she liked the Vine Valley. "I've wanted to come back here ever since Donkey Kong and I travelled through it when K. Rool stole the banana hoard. You wouldn't believe how many fish we saw when we swam through the lake."

"Speaking of which: I'll bet I can catch more fish than you when we get there." Dixie said with a mischievous grin.

"Why don't we get to the lake first, and then I'll be happy to defeat you in any activity you choose when we get there."

"We'll just see about that."

They walked down the hill into the jungle, holding hands. Diddy was really looking forward to just spending a couple of weeks relaxing by the lakeside with Dixie, just swimming and fishing and surfing.

"Can you even remember the last time we did anything together? Apart from eating lunch, I mean." he asked Dixie.

Dixie thought for a while. Then she seemed to answer, but stopped to think again. Finally she answered. "I think it was when Donkey Kong got kidnapped by K. Rool and we had to rescue him."

"No way, that was more than a year ago! Surely we must've done something together since then?" Diddy said, but he couldn't think of anything himself.

"I don't think so... Let me see: first you went on vacation and got yourself kidnapped by K. Rool."

Diddy still felt rather embarrassed about that incident. "We were ambushed! There were hundreds of them and they surrounded us! We were asleep and the Sun shone into my eyes! The bananas we ate had artificial ingredients! I bet there was a conspriracy."

Dixie smiled sceptically. "Sure, sure, but you still got kidnapped and I saved you pretty much single-handedly."

"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?" Diddy sighed, "Besides, you weren't alone, your cousin Kiddie helped too."

"Kiddie's just a toddler."

"A toddler larger and stronger than elephants I've met." Diddy replied.

"But still just a toddler."

"You know, that begs the question: why did you figure it was a good idea to bring a toddler on a dangerous adventure in the first place?"

"I didn't at first, but Funky convinced me."

"He did?"

"Yeah. I arrived at his boat rental place in the Northern Kremisphere to get a boat, as I didn't want to have to swim all over the place, and he said "I have someone here who can help ya on your quest, Dixie-dude!""

Diddy chuckled at her imitation of Funky's voice. "So he presented Kiddie to me, and I asked "What is it?"

He looked at me weirdly and said "It's your li'l cousin Kiddie, dudette."

So I rolled my eyes and said "I know it's my 'little' cousin Kiddie. I meant "What can he do to help me on my quest?""

And he said "Well, dudette, I figure ya can just take him along and he can help ya fight Kremlings an' stuff. He's radically strong."

I could hardly believe he was suggesting I take a toddler on a dangerous adventure and replied, "Funky, I'm an adventuress, not a babysitter."

So he told Kiddie to pick me up and throw me onto the roof of the shop. After I floated down and gave Funky a pretty angry look, he said "Look Dixie-dude, sorry about that, but I had ta give ya a demonstrification. You may have the wit to save your buddies, but ya are not very strong on yer own. But Kiddie's a real strong dude, and it'll be better ta have someone at yer back anyway. Ye'll be the brains and the brawn, and that uncool KAOS-dude will beg ye for mercy before long.""

"And that convinced you to bring him along?" Diddy asked.

"After I'd thrown some objects lying around in the store at Funky and calmed down, yes."

"So let me think, what happened after that little incident..." Diddy smiled as he realised it was his turn to tease Dixie. "Oh yeah, then you got kidnapped by K. Rool."

Dixie rolled her eyes. "Give me a break, we all got kidnapped, except for DK and Cranky. You were just lucky that K. Rool locked you up practically on DK's doorstep, while I was locked up in his plane."

"I still got out earlier than you."

"Yeah, but you were rescued by Donkey Kong, while I got out on my own, didn't I?"

Remembering that particular detail, Diddy said, "You were too late, though. We were already fighting K. Rool in that weird boxing match."

"Okay, so I was too late to help, but I shut up that annoying commenter and nicked his microphone, didn't I?"

Diddy chuckled at the memory. "Yeah, I loved your commentary. Especially when you described K. Rool as a "disgusting green bucket of lard with the intelligence, charisma, and appeal of a spoilt carrot" and started to sing that song about him."

Dixie hummed a few notes of the song. "Anyway, after that Lanky convinced me to join his circus to show people I can float using my hair. And then you guys went on an adventure without me. Again. Even though you would've had to wait only four days until I returned to the island." she pouted.

"Hey, I wanted to wait for you to come back, but DK really wanted to go after those Tikis immediately. You know how he gets when someone steals his banana hoard."

"Yeah, sometimes I think that's the only thing that can get him off his lazy arse."

Diddy giggled. While Donkey Kong was one of his best friends, he had to admit that the ape was rather lazy. "You're beginning to sound like Cranky."

Dixie pretended to be angry, though she didn't manage to hide her smile. "No, I'm not. Cranky is cranky at everyone, while I'm only cranky at those who deserve it. That's mainly you."

Both of them laughed. "You know," Diddy said, "I think you're right: the last time we really did something together was when we rescued DK. I guess that's why I'm looking forward to this vacation so much: just you and me, relaxing, sunning, swimming, fishing, and doing nothing at all, with no one to disturb us and no adventures anywhere near."

"Good afternoon. You are Diddy and Dixie Kong, I presume?" a sly voice spoke behind them. The Kongs turned around startled and saw a thin lizard in a black suit standing there. He was a bit taller than either of the Kongs.

"Wh-who are you, and why did you sneak up on us like that?" Diddy asked startled.

The lizard held up his hands in a gesture of apology. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. My name is Kunning, and it's a good thing I ran into you, as I need your help and you need mine."

"What do you mean?" Diddy asked.

"Did you know that K. Rool is building another blast-o-matic machine to destroy this island?"

"Again?" Diddy said, "You've got to admire his stick-to-it-iveness, but I thought it would be impossible for him to build another one without Snide's help after we destroyed his island-machine."

Diddy noticed a thin white scar on Kunning's right cheek. It was very easy to miss on his scaly skin. "I'm afraid K. Rool has commissioned a brilliant technician who is much more intelligent than that amateur Snide, and he's building an improved blast-o-matic device for K. Rool. It will be finished in a week."

"How do you know all this?" Dixie said with some suspicion in her voice.

"Because I am this brilliant technician." Kunning said with some pride.

"You?"

"Yes, me. K. Rool paid me a high price to build him a blast-o-matic machine. When I learned it was going to be used to destroy an island, I decided K. Rool had to be stopped before my invention killed thousands."

"Why did you wait until the last week for your change of heart?" Dixie asked angrily.

"Because I didn't know what it was going to be used for before."

"What did you think a giant laser was going to be used for?" Dixie asked in a tone that made it clear she was doubting Kunning's sanity.

"Mining." Kunning responded. "With the right settings, that laser can carve a hole through a mountain like it's butter, instead of vaporising it, making mining a lot easier. Or ice-breaking. I guarantee that a ship armed with my blast-o-matic could sail through the Arctic Ocean without a problem. But, no, K. Rool has to use my invention to kill people. I hate the idea of so many dying for no good reason, so I decided K. Rool had to be stopped. With your help, I can prevent the destruction of your island and rid you of K. Rool once and for all in one mighty blow."

Diddy wanted to hear more, though he wasn't sure he liked or trusted the Kremling. "How are you going to do that?"

"With some careful adjustments, I will make the blast-o-matic fire a focused beam backwards, instead of a wide beam forwards, hitting a point right behind the machine. To be precise, about fifty centimetres above K. Rool's throne." he grinned, "Can you imagine the moment? K. Rool thinks he has won and is about to destroy his greatest enemies, and the next moment only a rather nasty mess will be left of him. I don't have the deaths of thousands of innocents on my conscience, you are not blown up, everyone wins. Well, except for K. Rool of course."

"So... What do you need our help for?" Diddy asked, sensing it wouldn't be as easy as the Kremling implied.

"Well, the blast-o-matic wasn't designed to fire backwards, making it do that will require some rather advanced tinkering with it. While I can do it, I'll need a pentagon-head schnorzel and a conductive red isoglitchbouncer that is green to do so. Unfortunately both of those parts are hardly used at all and very difficult to find. I tried to track them down, but the only records of their use that I could find indicated they were used in certain machines in the KremKroc Industries, Inc. factories."

"KremKroc? I have some bad news for you: Donkey Kong and I 'shut down' KremKroc almost two years ago."

"I know, but it doesn't matter. Most machines should still be intact, so the parts I need should still be in there. I managed to sneak away from Crocodile Island and flew here using an invention of mine, the portable helicopter." He showed a long metal stick with a propeller at the end of it, "Unfortunately I never tested it for it's performance on such a long flight, and it broke down just before reaching my destination. I managed to land in the Viney Lake. So now I must get to KremKroc on foot, but unfortunately I'm not much of an adventurer or fighter, and this is where you come in. I will need the help of two experienced adventurers like you to cross the Gorilla Glacier, to protect me from whatever may inhabit the derelict factories of KremKroc, and to make sure that none of my fellow Kremlings that may be lurking on this island see me and report to K. Rool. I couldn't help your island much if I was executed the moment I set foot on Crocodile Island again, after all."

"So if we agreed to this," Diddy wasn't sure he would, but wanted to hear what Kunning had to say, "we would basically be your bodyguards?"

"I wouldn't call it that. I prefer the term 'escorts' myself. The fact is, I need your help. I will never get over the Gorilla Glacier by myself, and if I run into any of my fellow Kremlings I wouldn't be able to defend myself very well. I did some fencing in my youth, but I'm not nearly good enough to defend myself properly. Your island is at stake here, so I implore you to help me."

Diddy wasn't sure that this wasn't some kind of trap. "I... I'm not sure. I don't know if we can trust you."

"You trusted Snide, didn't you?"

"In a way, I suppose."

"And yet, all Snide had a problem with was that K. Rool didn't want to sign his paycheck. I know the man personally, and let me assure you that he would've happily stood by while K. Rool blew up your island as long as he got paid. And yet you were willing to work with him, but not me. Is it because I am a reptile?"

Diddy hadn't expected that. "No, I don't think so." he said rather unsure.

"Ah, but your voice tells me it is. The fact that I'm a reptile does matter to you. I suppose I can't blame you, after all my kin has put you through, but remember that thousands of lifes at stake here. Does it really matter that my skin is scaly and that I hatched from an egg with that in mind?"

Diddy, rather ashamedly, realised Kunning was right, that he had harboured some mistrust against him for being a reptile. "Sorry Kunning, you're right. I guess we-"

Dixie interrupted him. "Kunning, can I speak to Diddy in private for a moment?"

"Of course. It is important to decide something as important as this together. I'll be over there if you need me." he walked away.

"I'm sure we'll find the time for a vacation later." Diddy said to Dixie.

Dixie made sure Kunning was out of earshot before answering. "That's not my problem, Diddy. I think we should be careful with trusting that guy."

"So you don't think we can trust him?" Diddy asked.

"That's not what I said. I think we should think it over carefully instead of just trusting his word. He's a Kremling, after all."

"That doesn't have to mean he's evil. He seems like a nice guy, and he doesn't want K. Rool to destroy DK Isle, so he's on our side."

Dixie sighed. "Look, Diddy, I like you, but you are a bit... naïve."

"Naïve? Me?"

"Remember how the last Kremling you trusted thanked you for saving his life? He tried to decapitate us and send our heads to K. Rool!"

"I suppose, but-"

"And before that, when we were on the Gangplank Galleon, you trusted a Kremling to keep his word not to tell the others we were on the ship, but he called for them to attack us the moment we were out of reach."

"You never told me you disagreed with me there."

"That's because I was very nervous and figured you'd know better, being a more experienced adventurer and all."

"All right, so the Kremlings we've met in the past were not very trustworthy, but that doesn't mean all of them are. It's like he said: what does it matter that he has scaly skin and hatched from an egg if our island is in danger?"

"I don't care that he's a reptile, I care that he's worked for K. Rool in the past and may still do so. Besides, listen to the guy's name. 'Kunning' doesn't sound like a name that bodes very well."

"It's not as if he chose that name himself. Blame his mother, or his father, or whoever named him."

"Okay, you're right, that was a bad point, but it doesn't change the fact that this may be a trap."

"Look at it this way: if it isn't a trap, and we don't help him, the island gets blown up. If it is a trap and we help him, what's the worst that could happen? I guess it would be that we ended up dead, but that would happen anyway if the island were blown up."

"Would K. Rool really try to do the exact same thing that went wrong last time? Actually, scratch that. That sounds exactly like the kind of thing that K. Rool does all the time. But I still think we should be careful about trusting Kunning."

"Okay, msybe you have a point that we can't be sure Kunning is trustworthy. But it's a long way to KremKroc. I think we should agree to help him get there, but we keep a close eye on him on the way there, and especially in KremKroc itself to see if he can be trusted."

"That sounds like a good plan. I just wanted to make sure you didn't just blindly trust him."

Diddy felt slightly insulted. "Hey, what do you think I am, stupid?"

"No, but you are rather naïve. You were completely ready to trust him before I stopped you."

"No, I wasn't!" Diddy lied.

"Anyway, let's not talk about this while Kunning can hear us."

Kunning was sitting against a tree trunk. He stood up when the Kongs approached. "Have you decided?"

"Yes," Diddy said, "we decided to help you get to KremKroc."

"Excellent!" Kunning smiled, "Believe me, your grandchildren will thank you for this decision later."

"Let's just focus on saving this generation first." Diddy said.