Hello and we're back. Now it's time for stage 3.
Stage 3: Float Islands
"Hurry up Kirby!" Lololo called to the pink star warrior. Kirby dashed up to Lololo. "We've got a way to go if we want to go back to Dedede's castle." Lololo continued. "It sucks we couldn't take the shortcut. The Waddle Dees must have caused a cave-in to the tunnel when they ran out of the castle." Lalala complained. "Well, the only other faster way is to cross the lake and the Float Islands." Lololo said firmly. "Poyo." Kirby pointed to a large body of water in front of the trio. In the distance, there were a few lumps of land. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Lalala exclaimed excitedly. The twins began to float towards the island when Kirby stopped them. "What is it?" Lololo asked.
Kirby raised his arms as if he wanted them to carry him. "Oh right. Kirby can't fly or swim for long. But we can't carry him across the entire lake either." Lololo said. Lalala thought for a bit and then her face lit up as she came up with an idea. "We'll just have to stop at every island. Then we'll walk through them." She suggested. Lololo nodded in agreement. "Ready Kirby?" He asked as he took Kirby's stubby arm. Kirby nodded with a joyful smile. Lalala took his other arm and they were off.
Ten minutes went by and the trio made their first stop on a nearby island. Walking through, Lalala admired the beautiful plant life while Lololo and Kirby were busy jumping, or floating in Lololo's case, over fallen tree trunks. Lololo laughed as Kirby tripped over a small branch that jutted out on an old tree trunk. "Kirby are you okay?" Lalala asked, concerned. "Poyo!" Kirby laughed and looked up at her. He got back up in his feet and strolled casually through the jungle.
Soon, the end of the island drew near and the twins had to lift Kirby again. They crossed a small bit of lake when Kirby noticed something was coming out of the water. Splashes of water came at Kirby's face when a large fish stuck his head out of the water. He was an overall blue color with a white belly and fins and big red lips. "Poyo." A damp Kirby complained. "Sorry Kirby! Hi Lololo, Lalala." The fish greeted. "What's up, Kine?" Lololo replied. "I heard that King Dedede stole all the food from Dreamland. Then, I saw you guys from below the water and thought you would know more about the subject. Now, I'm wondering what the get-up is about." Kine explained. "Oh this?" Lalala gestured to themselves.
It was a strange sight to see two floating creatures carrying a bigger, pink creature across a lake. "Our shortcut to Dedede's castle is cut off. The next fastest way is across the lake." Lalala explained. "Well, there is a boat behind the next island you guys will arrive at. Maybe you can hitch a ride with the captain." Kine suggested. "That'll make things a lot easier! Thanks for the tip Kine." Lololo thanked the fish gratefully. "No problem. Make sure to tell Tiff I love her!" Kine reminded as he disappeared into the water. "I don't think anyone can forget." Lalala remarked quietly.
The trio made it to the second island in the lake. Resting on a rock for a bit, Kirby thought about what would happen when he got to Dedede's castle. He wondered where Tiff and Tuff were but shook his mind off when he heard a fluttering noise. Eyes wandering to the sky, Kirby spotted a familiar friend. A large purple owl perched itself on a branch in a nearby tree. "Coo!" Kirby called out in joy. Lololo and Lalala turned their heads to find Coo as well. "Hello Kirby, Lololo and Lalala." She bowed her head in salutation. "Geez, is Rick gonna pop out too?" Lololo muttered under his breath. "What are you three doing here?" Coo asked. "We're on a mission to return all the food to Dreamland!" Lololo said with pride.
Coo hooted and ruffled her feathers nervously. "Well, be careful. Dedede is pretty powerful. He can handle a good fight. Well good luck anyway." And with that she flapped her wings and flew away. The trio looked at each other with uncertainty but got to their feet and continued to venture through the island. The walk was pleasant until the three came upon a large spooky cave entrance. "Isn't there another way around?" Lalala shivered in fear. "Nope, we just gotta go through this cave and the end is on the other side waiting for us." Lololo said. Lalala sighed in defeat as the trio walked into the dark cave.
Light from outside came into the entrance and reflected off the crystals and water on the cave floor, lighting it up enough so one could see where he was going. Audible drops from loose rocks and water dripping onto the stalagmites echoed in the cave. A light growling sound made the trio stop in their tracks. "Kirby, was that you?" Lalala asked nervously. Kirby shrugged. He hadn't eaten in a day so it could have been him but the twins know that Kirby's stomach makes a low growling sound. The sound came once again but closer this time and it sounded more like snoring. The trio looked around them but could not find the source of the sound. "Look!" Lololo pointed out in a hushed voice.
A large sallow bear with a red headband and orange stripes slept heavily on a wide ledge in front of the group. "Don't make any loud noises." Lalala whispered. The twins and Kirby began to walk more slowly and quietly, watching their steps. Then a the same growling sound came again and Kirby realized it wasn't the bear. 4 small round brown creatures with adorable faces and tiny ears floated close behund them. Kirby kept walking on but kept his eyes on the creatures. Their cute happy faces began to grow irritated and angry. Kirby barely blinked when a scary transformation happened.
The two big black eyes turned into one bulging eye. Their small mouths grew twice as large and had four sharp fangs and their skin turned a sick grey. "Poyo!" Kirby shouted in fear. "Kirby!" Lololo exclaimed softly and angry, while he turned to face Kirby. He and Lalala saw the creatures and looked terrified. "Scarfies! Run!" Lalala screamed. The trio sprinted out of the cave at full speed. The bear barely woke up when it too saw the scarfies and scampered off in cowardice.
Hearts pounding against their chest, Kirby, Lololo and Lalala saw the end to the tunnel getting closer. Just a few more feet. The trio burst out of the cave frantically and into . Hope filled their hearts as they saw the sailboat but no one was onboard. "Where's the captain?!" Lololo shouted in panic. "I don't know but we can't just take his boat. We'll have to float again!" Lalala responded authoritvely. The twins grabbed Kirby by his arms again and took off. The scarfies followed them but soon got tired and abandoned the chase. "Whew! That was close." Lololo said thankfully as he looked back at the retreating scarfies.
"D'you think maybe the captain was... eaten by those things?" Lalala said reluctantly. "I wouldn't doubt it or want to find out." Lololo said simply. The trio floated across more water. A small flat peice of rock laid in the distance and beyond that was the end of the lake. They decided to land and rest for a bit once again. Lololo knew he was wearing gloves but the rock felt too smooth to be a rock. Lalala and Kirby knew this as well. Kirby explored on the small rock and found a small hole as wide as himself on the surface. Burning with curiosity, he placed a stubby hand inside the hole. Nothing was inside, as far as he could tell.
Kirby put another hand inside and tried to reach farther but ended up falling face first into the hole, as a result of not holding onto anything. "Oh Kirby! Now's not the time to mess around." Lololo said with bit of annoyance. Kirby flailed his feet in helplessness. Lololo huffed and took one of his feet and pulled. "Sis! Come and help me. Kirby's stuck!" Lololo called to Lalala with strain as he tried to yank Kirby out the hole.
Lalala floated to her brother and helped him in pulling. They slid Kirby out of the hole an inch when the rock rumbled terribly. "Wa-a-it. This a... wha-a-ale!" Lalala shouted in realization. At that moment, Kirby shot out of the hole like a rocket, taking the twins with him, as the water raised him away from the ground and to the clouds.