A/N: I had to keep going back to this chapter to redo a certain part over and over again as I was just not satisfied with it. One moment I think it was okay and the next I'm like: No, this will not do it. Meta knight will not change just yet. The part I'm talking about is when the prince (Mov) sends him into his dreamworld, using his power to grant him access to his memories. It was kind of similar to handing a person a skeleton key to their house after they lost the original key or using the backdoor if your trying to sneak in after curfew. Anyways, this is probably the fifth or seventh time I cam back to this chapter and hopefully it's the final time ( minus all the errors that I will have to fix). XD

Special Thanks to: Warriors-of-Iznugia for introducing me to the wonderful playlist called ' NieR ost' that's on youtube. It really helped me capture the mood and I suggest that everyone listening to it as you read this chapter and the ones that follow because it will give you a good reading pace and invokes some strong emotions. I also like to thank everyone how has commented, faved, read, and followed this story. You guys are the shine to my sun. XD

Music:' NieR Soundtrack- His Dream' during first section.' NieR Soundtrack - The Ultimate Weapon' during second section. ' NieR Soundtrack- City of Commerce' during final section. You can also reflect on where certain measures ( or parts of the music ) have a larger impact on your imagination. XD

DISCLAIMER: All Kirby characters belong to their respectful owner(s) of HAL and or Nintendo Company. I do not own any of them, only the plot.

Enjoy! XD

Black Knightmare

Dark Past

The time seemed to pass by slowly, gradually like the slowly turning stars shifting in the atmosphere, changing from midnight to daybreak. The group, that consisted of five demon beasts, moved ever so hour or two, covering each shift with drowsy, sluggish movement. Around the fourth and final shift, Aether and the prince sat side by side against a fallen log. Jasper, who laid comfortably on Aether's lap with closed eyes, was breathing softly sound asleep. It was astounding that the robotic dog could rest without being turned off, considering Az had to shut him down before they took off to Neo Star. Some distance away from them was the dying fire and its embers flaking up into the sky like reversed snowflakes.

They sat in a comfortable silence for most of their time, staring up at the stars throughout the canopy of the tall trees. The midnight sky made the stars shined brightly like never before, making them mesmerizing when gazing upon them. Nothing could really be said as neither the prince or Az wanted to disturb the peacefulness of the forest jungle. It felt like every sense was awakened anew when the darkness was present and everything was quiet, allowing nature and its children to become roused awake.

Every scent that caught his nose was fresh, crisp, and filled Aether with a sense of liveliness. Every time his hands roamed across the jungle ground felt like traveling over a new continent, every spot had its own geography that contrasted with the passing rocks, trigs, and the occasional strange looking insect. He could still taste the remanent of the marshmallow on his tongue, mixing well with all his other senses as it was sweet and just enough to make him content. Prince then decided to start an idle conversation with him.

" If you had the chance to remember everything," began the prince, " Would you take the risk?" breaking the silence that embraced them like a warm blanket. He was startled from the sudden question, wondering what led the prince to such a thought. Nevertheless, Az gave his answer honestly. " Of course I would!" said Az as the drowsy haze that came with the nature's song was cast out of his mind. The response he gave caused Terry and his guardian demon to stir slightly in there rest. Quieting down, he spoke again, " I mean,… I would like to if it was possible".

The prince then sat up fully against the downed log, training his gaze onto Az." I have the power to travel through many different things as long as they contain some type of data or wavelength. This would include opening and closing the pathways of the brain and mind" the prince explained, speaking even softer as he stared down at Az. After all, it was by that power he got all the information in the galaxy from that was useful to him in one way or another.

" I just want to make it up to you" said the prince before standing up on his leather bound feet after sitting and staying immobile for some time. " You deserve your memories as they are what made you and what is left of the true you".

Az was about to reply but stopped himself as the words he heard sounded similar Fofa's before they split up." But I really don't deserve it if they were taken from me for a reason, and maybe it was for a good reason" he said instead, looking at the prince with a small amount of sadness hidden in his moon-colored eyes. " Maybe you are wrong" spoke the prince. " Maybe they were taken because they hated you or didn't want you to exist among us" he explained, gesturing to the other demons when he said ' us' and referring to the unknown as 'they'. " Then I must have been something terrible!" shouted Az before immediately covering his mouth after speaking too loud whole where was slumbering demons not too far off from them.

" There is, however, a chance that you over slept for such a long time that you forgot who you were" spoke the prince as noticed that Az was prone to falling asleep more quickly than the average demon. If it continued, it could develop into something unhealthy or a disorder. " It's better than people hating me" responded Az as he liked that idea a whole lot better than the previous one. " Then do you accept my offer? Do you wish to have your memories back?" questioned the prince.

" …All of them?" asked Az as he hesitated to answer, being afraid of what he would find or what he would remember. " All of them" repeated the prince as his hand rose up to Az's forehead, glowing an array of colors that mixing in the middle of his palm to create a soft white glow. The armored appendage was centimeters away from touching Az's navy blue skin, hovering there with great patience. Will it hurt?" asked Az as he looked up, to the best of his ability, at the hand radiating with mysterious power.

" You will just be put to sleep and when you have recovered all of your memories you will wake" explained the prince simply as the hand finally rested upon Az's brow. Passing the light from his hand to the brain that laid within Az's skull. Soon after withdrawing his hand, the prince caught Az in his arms whose eyes instantly closed from the forced sleep. He deserved his memories back as restoring them could bring Az back to full power, all he had to do until then was wait for him to come back.

The prince turned his gaze towards the stars one last time before turning around and heading back to the campfire with Az in tow.

...

...

...

There was an odd sensation of being stuffed in a tiny little box that made his insides feel as if they were on the verge of imploding from being crammed together so tightly. He could hear millions of voices shouting, whispering, and talking and millions of things clamoring, scrabbling, and crashing all at once like he was in the busiest part of a city. He felt like he was in the center of the universe while his mind traveled a mile a minute. Yet, it was off by a margin as everything he could sense was hard to grasp like a fleeting thought that couldn't be caught. It sped up and slowed down, growing loud when it was silent and growing quiet when it was alive.

Then everything began to tunnle inward like a cave leading deeper into a grotto. He ran after the voices, the things, and possibly the universe itself-eager to see where the information all went and where they would end. In the distance against the insane mixture of the starry landscape and negatize zone was a pinpoint of light. All things seemed to converge there, like all the colors of the rainbow being mixed together to create the color of all colors.

It was calling of him, pulling him, and pushing him toward the point of light that seemed like the answer to all his answer. The place of every bit of information and knowledge went, he had to get to that light in the distance. So he kept on running, wanting to see the source of truth up close and personal. He had to know what it held as it was his only hope of knowing what he needed to know, what he wanted to know, and what he deserved to know.

He could see it growing closer either by it coming to him or him coming to it. He could hear the sounds fade away as he reached out his hands for the light in front of him. He could taste only but faint taste of a tomato he had an hour or so before. And when he was right upon the divine and heavenly ball of light, he could feel his whole being become aware of the fact that he was not in the center of the universe. Rather, he was in the epicenter of his conscious where the voices, the things, and the universe where what his memories and dreams portrayed in and played in an orchestra of chaotic music and noise.

Then everything seemed to just freeze as the light expanded far greater than expected, covering every bit of his mind like a warm blanket. He could feel his body tip to the side as the light embraced him with a spell of deeper slumber.

...

...

...

Aether felt his whole body pulsate as he stood on wobbly feet, swaying slightly as he was hit with vertigo. When it subsided from his forehead and his eyes stopped making the world spin, Aether looked up at his surroundings. Realizing and instantly recognizing that he was back in the meadow. The place that always seemed so warm to him. Where he could let his guard down and relax for as long as he wanted. He was almost tempted to go lay down in the patch of roses off in the distance that laid under the cool canopy of the giant redwood tree… almost…

" So you finally decided to visit me?" stated a voice from behind Aether, causing him to jump in surprise. Turning around quickly, Aether was even more surprised to see a figure standing before him. Mainly because he was staring wide-eyed at himself. A perfect replica. But, something was off about the other him as he looked a lot darker than he remembered himself being. " I wouldn't be surprised if you started asking me questions" said the look-alike as he moved closer, studying Aether like he was a fly on a wall. " But let us not start with that as I know you have come here in search of something".

The way the replica moved and talked was different from the way Aether did as he behaved in a manner much older, calmer, and wiser than him. It started to creep Aether out as his copy stepped even closer, giving no meaning to personal space. Their eyes where probably the only thing that really separated them; Aether's were felled with emotion and were a sparkling white sliver color while the other's were filled with an absence of emotion and were a dull, wary grey.

" I caution you that you have been put into a forced sleep, one that you cannot wake from until the time is right" spoke the copy, stepping away from Aether with his paws flanking his sides lazily. Do you understand everything?" he said with a kind smile despite his darker appearance. " I think so…" replied Aether as he remembered what the prince did to him before he found himself in his dream world again. His copy also reminded him much of his guardian demon only with a much more docile attitude.

" Good" said his copy emotionlessly, turning on his heel. " Follow me if you wish for your memories to return to their rightful place". Aether nodded, even though he knew his copy couldn't see it, finding his dream to be strange as he would always imagine himself in his dreams and not actually seeing another him because he thought that with could only be one him in his dream world.

When Aether went to follow his copy he was surprised to see him sprout a pair of leathery wings , not unlike his own, and take to the skies the moment he took a step forward. They were much bigger than Aether's own as they spread six feet on either side of his copy. They moved with much more power and grace than Aether's could, slicing through the puffy clouds with enough turbulence to dispel them completely upon passing.

Following his copy was easy as they flew relatively at a slow, walking pace. They would flap their wings every couple of minutes before dissolving into a glide, their moving shadows darkening tiny portions of wavy grass. Aether enjoyed the sensation of the wind embracing and keeping him aloft in the air. It was like he was an escaped prisoner, experiencing overwhelming excitement in seeing the clear skies and breathing in the fresh air after so much time had passed by.

" We are here" spoke his copy, landing on one of the many giant branches of the tree. Aether followed suit in a less dignified way as he winded up landing on his head rather than his feet. He hadn't flown in a long time and he still hadn't considering that the sensation of flight wasn't really in the dream world. He could only imagine how terrible he would be in reality.

" This branch is connected to your memories" explained his copy before pointing to a cluster of ripe, red apples. " You must eat them if you wish to regain your memories". Aether didn't think it would be that easy as regaining was a bad thing to whoever or whatever took them away in the first place. " Who even took them away from me in the first place?" inquired Aether as he ventured out to the delicious looking apples.

" I do not know" answered his copy. " The information was never recovered".

The response was slightly disappointing to Aether as he at least wanted to know the person's or thing's name." Well I guess not everything is meant to be remembered" reasoned Aether before realizing just how big the apples really were when he was up close and personal. They were nearly twice Aether's size and attempting to just swallow or eat one of them would surely split him in half." How am I going to eat something like this? they're HUGE!" he said as he swirled around to face his copy. " Inhale them" was his copy's simply reply. " They will be absorbed by you the moment you swallow them whole".

Aether looked ready to faint at his copy's words as he didn't enjoy inhaling his food. He would stretch unnaturally and the wind tunnel of suction it caused would squeeze his lungs too tight. Just thinking about it almost made him want to throw up as all the stuff he would suck in would fight its way back out. Even when he inhaled those four buckets of body parts he had to keep himself from spitting it back out as his stomach outright refused to digest anything apart from sweet things.

" B-But I c-can't" said Aether as he was turning green in the face. He should have never jinxed himself, thinking that he could eat apples like a normal person. It was probably the 'catch' to his whole ordeal. " If you do not wish to then return to the other world without any memories at all" spoke his copy with a serious voice that went well with the level of severity in their current situation. " Even as we speak, there are new memories forming and if you do not consume them they will dry up or worse".

" If all of them are not consumed at this very moment then there is no telling how long they would last at this altitude" explained his copy, pointing to an apple that began to freeze over. Aether gulped down the rising bile halfway up his throat." Okay, fine. But I'm only doing this because I want to know what happened to the real me and hopefully get myself back". His copy didn't say anything as he gestured to the apples waiting to be eaten. " Be my guest".

Aether, still reluctant to inhale, edged his way back to the fruit. Noticing that each one of them were very glossy in appearance, Aether studied them for a moment. They were more like glass an an actual fruit, being as they were his memories and made him wonder: Why were they apples? Then again, he was standing on a giant tree branch and being encouraged by his mirror image to eat the red fruit. Apparently, dreams don't have to make sense of or about everything.

Before he became too close, Aether stopped and opened his mouth as wide as he could. The rush of air soon began to hammer against his body, making him look almost like a rippling pond. The suction constricted his lungs beyond belief as the void in his stomach opened up. Sometimes he would stop to wonder why he wasn't getting sucked into his own inhale as he heard rumors of gluttons eating themselves into oblivion because they couldn't control their hunger.

Maybe that was it, he had some control over himself. But that didn't mean he was used to the effects it brought. It hurt him worse than being struck with Kracko's lighting but not as bad as the second Harena event. All his muscles tensed up as all the apples came flying at him at once, having all released themselves from their stems because of the suction being too much of a strain to stay attached to the giant branch. The apples were hurtled into Aether's mouth with great force as he took a couple steps back as they entered his mouth and went down into the void that resided within him. Before he could even think of spitting them right back out—as they were nowhere near as sweet and a tomato or marshmallow, Aether found himself doubled over in agony.

Something was wrong. Very very wrong.

It shouldn't have felt like his brain was going to explode from the pressure of memories slamming harshly against his mind. Absorbing all the torture, the negativity, the pain of his days in isolation. The moment of seeing Soler Dee fall lifeless into his paws, the hatred that consumed him the the Harena, and the new ones of his forgotten past. Each and every one of them were distorted in the shadows of his mind and filled to the brim with something so gruesome and horrendous it was a wonder why he wasn't screaming bloody murder at the moment.

Then a particular memory flashed across his mind. It was a hazy piece of memory like it happened hundreds of thousands— or even millions, of years ago. He was gazing upon a dark world filled with heavy black smog and the stars surrounding it being extinguished one by one at every passing second. Then a golden mirror phased into view before him. It was clouded by purple clouds with sparked with hidden power. When the clouds parted within it, and the sparks died, it showed his reflection.

Staring back at him was a white spherical being that was god-like in appearance as a halo of light crowned his head. White segmented wings, that kept him afloat in the strange place of the cosmos, looked like burning bones, flanking either side of him in a display similar to a peacock. The most stark contrast between his pure, heavenly form was the red glaring eyes. They bled the blood of the innocent people he killed, the people he slaughtered, and the voices of the people before they died by his hand. Then he heard their voices, ones of hatred. He could hear them so clearly it hurt.

' Demon'

' FREAK!'

It crushed him.

' Monster'

' HELLION!'

It destroyed him.

' Beast'

" MURDERER!"

It broke him.

When Aether couldn't take it no longer he screamed, he wailed, he sobbed. The memories were nothing good but they were the truth, the truth he wished he didn't know. A dark , sinister, evil truth that was his past. He shouted, he yelled, he screeched in pure denial, he cursed his fate with great hatred. His past was who he really was, the past was who was sealed away, and he let it all free. He couldn't… he couldn't accept it. It wasn't him, it couldn't be him.

Yet,… it was and it made him collapse on his front, shedding an unbelievable amount of tears as the voices continued their ruthless rant. Another scream soon followed as his mind went into its own state of shock. His dream world began to fade into a void of oblivion as his copy stood off to the side hunched over like he was experiencing the same pain. The tree, the branch, the leaves, and the rose patch below were warped into shadows of negativity. They were all disappearing at the same pace as his sanity, fleeting from his soul like running water. Then a sudden noise greeted Aether's ears through the haze of misery. Was his copy chuckling?

" Heh, bet you weren't expecting that type of past " said his copy as as he gave him a sympathetic smile." But don't worry, you will get used to it sooner or later". How was he supposed to get used to this? How could anyone endure such a heavy amount of agony? It was unthinkable and yet it had happened to him before as it was his past. " Imagine how it was for me, sitting in this darkness all day and witnessing those memories on replay until you come along and change the channel" spoke his copy as he helped him to his feet. " It's not a very happy life and I know you could agree after what you just saw yourself" his copy continued, to which he nodded in understanding.

" How did you even get here?" Aether questioned, referring to how his copy was created." I was created the moment you felt hatred and witnessed the death of Lady Eliza" answered his copy. " I guess you could say I'm the opposite of your guardian demon- a demon guardian". Aether rose a metaphorical eyebrow at his copy, wondering if that meant his copy was older than his guardian demon who didn't come along until after the two events took place. " I am the type of anima that keeps your negativity in check and alerts your guardian demon whenever a bad emotion becomes too active" explained his copy before he could question the meaning of his existence.

" So does that mean you are older than my guardian demon?" Aether asked, causing a laugh to emit from his copy. " Yes, I am older than him" responded his copy as he found the question so innocent it was amusing. Then Aether though of something else to say to his copy. " You said that there were others, right?" he said. " Yes, they are visible to you in here but not outside, only your guardian demon and myself have that privilege" replied his copy. " So where are they then?" came Aether's next question. " You are just full of those things aren't you?" said his copy, referring to his numerous questions. " I'm aways curious" was Aether's response as it was true.

" I see that, anyways, your emotions are more like wisps than something you can actually see here" his copy explained. " They don't possess enough energy to make a body like me and your guardian demon. They are actually more like spheres of light that correlate with the color of emotion; like how red would be anger, pink is love, and happiness is yellow".

" We can also contain them without ourselves to keep this place fro becoming over-crowded as emotions are never ending. A prime example would be when you doubled over in pain as all those emotions where overwhelming as you were remembering. Luckily for you, you just have to deal with us for now" finished his copy with a smile returning to his face. " That's a relief " said Aether as the surrounding area began to recover its previous scenery.

The first to appear was the sea of grass that seemed to grow like it was on fast-forward. It was soon followed by the spontaneous growth of the red wood and the patch of roses. The sky, that was as black as the void of space, became as blue as it could ever be. The clouds also materialized against the blue sky and was accompanied by the return of the gentle breeze. Everything seemed to recover rather quickly like it had done in the past, granted by his unnaturally fast healing ability in a physically and then mental sense.

" See? This place is nothing without you here" said his copy after witnessing the dreamworld bounce back onto its feet, " And if you really feel up to it, there is someone I want you to meet at the castle" pointing to the looming structure beyond the cookie-coated hills. " If it isn't as bad as my past I think I can handle it" replied Aether as he looked in the direction of where his copy was pointing to. " We have all the time in the world so there is no rush. Plus, they may help you recover something more valuable like your place among the stars" spoke his copy as he took his hand and began walking in the direction of the castle. " We only really need to be careful not to keep your friends waiting for too long".

" Okay, lead the way my demon guardian"

The angelic warrior flew through the shy with the grace of a swan. Slipping in and out of clouds like they were not even there, keeping sight of the large griffon that led the way. The sense of freedom was enjoyable for someone who possessed the gift of flight. The planet seemed to have that effect on everything as it felt so lively. Birds were singing from below from their nest, the bonkers where swinging lazily from one vine to another, and the group of demons as a whole felt like they were born anew.

Fresh air wished passed Locke Dee's face as he ran along side his cousin. Terry was enjoying the breeze of the wing against his feathered winged. Even the prince seemed at home with Az sleeping his head off like he has been doing as of late. But the angelic warrior wasn't worried as it was Aether's way of coping with stress or anything that was negative.

It was a relieving sight that the crystal shard began to glow in his hand the night before as he thought it wouldn't react to him at all. It shone was brightly that he was concerned something was wrong but, as quickly as it appeared, it subsided. Leaving nothing but a comforting warmth behind, the angelic warrior was reminded that he wasn't the only one looking after Aether.

Soon enough, a giant glade surrounded by a small village was spotted from the sky by Terry." Over there" he said as he dived down to land. The prince followed after the angelic warrior who trailed behind the griffon.

The two waddle dee's greeted them upon touching down, allowing for Terry to go first as he was a more familiar sight to the villagers than they were. Many of the inhabitants were ape-like but some were bipedal plants with faces and an array of different forms and colors. They looked up to Terry as he he were a god, parting when he walked toward them. Then again, he was the adoptive son of Twin Woods, the spirit of Neo Star itself.

Terry lead them all the way from the village entrance to the giant tree that loomed before them. Like his name suggested, Twin Woods was actually two trees joined together to create a single deity. Some would claim that there where ruins depicting the tree as two separate saplings in the beginning of the planet's life. They showed that one was evil and one was good, by combining they unique talents together they were able to avoid many catastrophes. How they got along so well was lost to time as the ruins were long gone, being buried under the vast jungle.

" Father" said Terry, addressing the tree with a bow of his head." I have come home and brought aid to you just as you requested".

The wind began to pick up as a face appeared within the bark of the giant tree, twisting and swirling into existence.

" May the stars bless your efforts to save this planet" said the giant tree in its booming voice. Though it was a far cry from Nightmare's voice as it was gentle, warm, and welcoming compared to void, cold, and dark.

" We will succeed without fail" said the prince as he bowed, having shifted Az to his back. The angelic warrior and the two waddles following him in the act of respect.

" Now go, rest your tired souls" spoke the tree, its voice slightly more gruff as it emitted from the tree to the left intend of the previous right.

Terry bowed to the tree before leaving, turning to the group of demons once they were back in the village. " The villagers are very hospitable, they set up spare huts closest to my father" he spoke as a he pointed a a group of huts with a taloned finger.

" S-Sounds n-nice" said Carry Dee, hoping that they also had a a river or small body of water near by so that she wash the grime away from her body. " I will be sleeping around my father just in case there might be an emergency" said Terry as he preferred to sleep in the branches of Twin Woods rather than an oversized doll house. " See you at dinner time" spoke Locke Dee as he grabbed his cousin's hand and headed for the huts Terry gestured to.

" I will go put Az down" asked the prince as he too walked off towards the huts. " And probably get some sleep myself". The angelic warrior didn't say anything as he held up his armored hand in a silent wave of understanding. " You should get some rest" suggested Terry as the angelic warrior seemed like he didm;t get much sleep the night before." No thank you, I will be just fine as I am" responded the angelic warrior causing Terry to look at him with an unconvinced look in his bright eyes. Okay, if you say so…" said the griffon before walking away, retreating back to his father. The angelic warrior watched the demon go before taking his leave as well.

Being completely unaware of the events that would unfold in the coming days.

A/N: With every positive there is a negative but that doesn't mean they are necessarily evil. I believe I am now throughly satisfied with the way this chapter turned out as Dark Meta Knight finally made an appearance as Meta Knight's, not very creative and thoughtful, demon guardian ( the counterpart of the guardian demon who is Galacta Knight). It was a little different as Dark Meta Knight isn't known for being so friendly towards others but to himself I think he could make an exception as they are basically the same person. It gives a new meaning to the saying: Treat others the way you treat yourself. XD