Kirby: Right Back at Ya!
Odyssey of Dreams
By: ChronoWeapon
Chapter 35: The Battle for Popstar! Part I
*Tiff's Journal*
"This is terrible I didn't expect Zero to completely turn this whole thing upside down so easily. If it weren't for Kryl, we would be back in Cappy Town enjoying our victory by now. That's what I thought; at first anyway. Then these Rainbow Knights showed up and they even managed to frighten Kryl. The whole thing almost broke Ribbon down but Meta Knight told us that he has a plan, I just hope it works, we don't have many options left."
Tiff
*Rainbow Resort*
Kirby and his party rushed through the city to confront the Rainbow Knights. Ribbon thought quietly to herself, "Oh my, I didn't even ask that Shaman his true name!" she thought as she gazed back at the tower. As she did, she noticed the Crystalkin Fairy was nowhere to be found.
Meta Knight stopped the party, "Hold on, there they are!"
The remaining six Rainbow Knights landed in the Rainbow Resort City Park. Red Knight stood upon the edge of the large fountain and began giving instructions to his fellow knights.
"All right Meta Knight, what's your plan?" Tiff asked curiously with a whisper.
"I have been running this through my mind ever since we fought them before," Meta Knight spoke softly. "These knights attack as group, so our best bet is to split them up. In order to split them up, we need to force them to. We have to give them a reason to break their team apart."
"Uh, how do we do that exactly?" Dedede asked as he gazed nervously at the knights.
"In order to split them apart, we have to split apart as well," Meta Knight claimed. "The difference between us and them is that each of us has better combat skills in one on one combat but they are strong in numbers, a common trait of any Dark Matter soldier."
"How will we get them to chase us?" Waddle Dee asked. "They only want the Dream Stone, and only one of us can carry it!"
"Once we gain their attention, we need to pull off an illusion!" Meta Knight said making a wish of the Diamond Prism. As the wish was made, false Diamond Prism duplicates appeared. "Crystallossus, said this Dream Stone can manipulate time, reality and space. So I made these illusions from small stones. Everyone carry one with you. When you get their attention, draw them in with this false Dream Stone, but don't make it obvious! Then draw the knight into a dark alleyway and give them all you got!"
"Wait, the Dark Matter share a hive minded intellect; won't they all know if we have these false copies just by seeing one of us?" Adeleine added worriedly.
"That's the beauty of this strategy," Meta Knight began as he turned to Adeleine. "I expect them to learn that, but knowing that we have false Dream Stones means they have to come after us to check and see which one is the 'real' one. This will 'force' them apart and chase after us one on one once we spilt far enough from each other."
"That's brilliant Meta Knight!" Ribbon praised. "The old 'Divide and Conquer'; strategy!"
"Exactly," Meta Knight said with assurance. "Now, on three we jump out and confront them! Ready, one…, two…, THREE!"
Kirby's party rushed out to meet the Rainbow Knights, who instantly noticed them. Red Knight pointed towards Kirby's party, "Ha, there you fools are! You made us look horrid in front of the Overlord! Although I have to admit you lasted much longer than I expected… Well either way it does not matter. There is no where left for you to run! This time I am not going to bargain with you over the Dream Stone! Rainbow Knights, attack!"
The Rainbow Knights dashed towards Kirby's party. Kirby's party responded by retreating and quickly separating from each other. Meta Knight purposely, yet vaguely let the Diamond Prism be seen by the approaching Indigo Knight. Indigo Knight turned to Red Knight, "Sir, Meta Knight has the Diamond Prism we should forget his friends and take it from him in one fell swoop!"
Orange Knight retorted, "What are you talking about? The Waddle Dee has the Dream Stone! Attack him!"
"No he doesn't!" said Yellow Knight. "Tiff has it!"
The Rainbow Knights began arguing amongst themselves until Red Knight had had enough, "Silence, I don't know how they did that, but it's obviously an effect of the Dream Stone, they've managed to split it somehow! Everyone split up, pick an opponent and hunt them down!"
As the Rainbow Knights regrouped, Kirby and his friends had already taken differing paths throughout the city. Meta Knight was the last to take to the shadows as he glared at Red Knight, "Come and get me…, are you brave enough to fight us without each others' assistance?" he said vanishing down the alley.
Meta Knight's taunt angered Red Knight, "Everyone head into the city, now! I know what you're doing, this strategy won't benefit you! Just you wait and see!" threatened Red Knight. The Rainbow Knights split up and headed into the crowded city to locate their desired targets.
Yellow Knight navigated the evacuated streets until Tiff emerged from behind him in a basic fighting stance. Tiff shouted, "Hey blockhead, you looking for someone?" she taunted.
Yellow Knight turned to follow the voice as he landed on the ground, his wings becoming a cape once more. "Ah, there you are my pretty little flower," Yellow Knight said vainly. "You are the only one on this planet worthy of battling me!" he finished as he raised his yellow broadsword.
Tiff raised her brow in confusion, "Oh yeah, why's that?"
Yellow Knight laughed quietly, "Oh you'll find out soon enough…," he said eerily.
"Whatever; just prepare yourself for the worst beating of your life!" Tiff claimed as she dashed towards Yellow Knight. With her mother's kickboxing equipment, Tiff's fists were harder than solid steel, literally. Tiff attacked Yellow Knight like a lioness to her kill. Her fists smashed into his yellow armor causing dents and dings. She dodged his sword slashes effortlessly as she moved like a ballerina. Finding little weakness in Tiff's fighting style; Yellow Knight changed his own style to even out the balance between the two combatants. Yellow Knight began using martial arts mixed with his sword strikes as apposed to using only his sword. He slowly began to overtake Tiff as the two continued to fight and with a heavy counterattack, Tiff was shoved to the ground.
Yellow Knight breathed heavily and showed signs of fatigue, "Y-you are fighting for nothing…, I will end your life here and now!" he bellowed. Even though he showed signs of weakening he raised his blade and it gleamed with a yellow glow. "Yellow Sword Beam!" he shouted vigorously as a yellow colored wave of light came from a simple swing of his blade. That attack narrowly missed Tiff but cut deeply into the ground.
"Strange, why's he out of stamina already? His fighting spirit has dropped a bunch after that sword beam attack…," Tiff thought curiously. "Wait…, could it be these guys are still tired out from our last fight? That has to be it, even after fighting us they used up so much more power flying here that they weakened themselves even more."
Yellow Knight leaped into the air ready to bring his broadsword down to execute her, but just as he nearly landed his attack, Tiff blocked with her own silvered broadsword. The force of the swords clashing shattered windows in the nearby buildings. Tiff rose, gleaming with a soft golden light. Yellow Knight regained his composure while gazing in awe at Tiff. Clenching his fist tightly around the hilt of his blade, Yellow Knight rushed Tiff once more. Their blades clashed, sending shockwaves that shook the buildings throughout the city block. Yellow Knight began loosing his ground and began giggling softly. This distracted Tiff long enough for Yellow Knight to deliver another cheap shot, sending Tiff to the ground. "Perhaps you were not the fighter I thought you were!" shouted Yellow Knight as he went in for the kill. As Yellow Knight sent forth a thrust with his blade Tiff did so as well out of pure reflex. Unfortunately for Yellow Knight, this move cost him the fight as Tiff's sword became buried in his chest, and came out his back while his own yellow sword was buried into the concrete in front of Tiff's face.
"Wow, I did it…, I beat him…," Tiff said in awe.
Yellow Knight coughed as he gasped for air, but began to giggle still, "Then again…, you're just…, w-what I had h-hoped…, y-you would…, be…," he finished as his body became engulfed in yellow colored flames. In mere moments, Yellow Knight was reduced to nothing more than a small yellow fireball that departed into the sky. Tiff watched as the sphere took off and decided to find her friends.
Orange Knight calmly flew down the darkened alleyways in search of his prey until finally, standing in the middle of the street, waited Waddle Dee. Orange Knight landed and he continued to approach Waddle Dee, "So comes…," said Orange Knight's Waddle Dee voice. "The fated hour…," finished the voice of the Waddle Doo within him.
"I think you'll find that I'm a lot tougher than I look!" Waddle Dee said bravely as he equipped his Crusader's Hammer and Mace. Waddle Dee gained his red and gold trimmed helmet and mirror shield.
"Interesting…," said the Waddle Doo voice within Orange Knight. "But you did not use this ability in our last duel…," finished the Waddle Dee voice.
"That's because I didn't have it!" Waddle Dee claimed. "But you are right, the time has come. Now for all the life forms that you hurt, I will avenge them!"
"Wonderful…!" said the Waddle Dee voice. "Perhaps he can avenge us too, what do you think brother?!" finished the Waddle Doo voice as Orange Knight dashed towards Waddle Dee with his halberd.
Waddle Dee deflected the halberd with his mace and slammed Orange Knight's helmet with his hammer. Orange Knight stumbled after receiving a nasty dent in his helmet. Waddle Dee followed the weakened knight's vulnerability with a volley of powerful swings and lunges. The attacks landed making Orange Knight's armor plating resemble a demolition derby vehicle. Orange Knight then pulled himself together by deflecting Waddle Dee. "How did you get so good…?" asked the Waddle Doo voice. "Are you reading our moves?" finished the Waddle Dee voice.
"Let's just say that I learned your style of attack from our last fight!" Waddle Dee claimed strongly.
"So you 'can' read our moves can you?" asked the Waddle Dee voice. "Let's say we finish this brother!" finished the Waddle Doo voice. He pulled the orange shield from his back and despite the Dark Matter markings it was reminiscent of a Waddlekin shield. Unlike Waddle Dee however, he was able to effectively wield it. Orange Knight readied his weapon. "Orange Lightning Storm!" bellowed both voices as multiple spear head shaped lightning bolts erupted from his halberd's spear tip. Luckily, Waddle Dee was able to take cover using his mirror shield, effectively sending three of the orange colored bolts back at Orange Knight while the other two missed.
"Hmm, their fighting spirit isn't as high as I though it would, lucky me!" Waddle thought cheerfully as he seemed unharmed from the spear shot. Orange Knight rushed Waddle Dee once more and the two traded blows with most of Waddle Dee's coming in contact with Orange Knight's shield. "Okay, time for plan B, I have to get past that shield!" Waddle Dee thought as he snuck into a nearby ruined building.
Orange Knight followed with zeal but ended up losing sight of his target. "Where did you…?" began the Waddle Doo voice. "Run off too?" finished the Waddle Dee voice.
"Right behind you…," Waddle Dee said softly as he appeared from the shadows and plunged his Shiftblade into Orange Knight's backside. "Not the ability I wanted to finish you with, but it's all the same for you Dark Matter creeps!"
Orange Knight coughed as his body went limp, "What will…, happen to us now brother…?" asked the Waddle Dee voice. "I don't know brother…, but we will be together no matter the outcome…," finished the Waddle Doo voice as Orange Knight's body was engulfed in orange flames. The flames became a sphere and flew off out a window and into the sky. Waddle Dee smiled cheerfully and left the ruined building to reunite with his friends.
Green Knight faced off against Adeleine who wondered in deep thought at what this Halcandrian was and where it came from. "This being is a powerful mage, too bad I have to beat him, I would have liked to know what the Halcandrians are like," Adeleine thought. "Wow, no matter how long I stare at you, you just seem so, graceful!" she complimented.
"Die…," moaned Green Knight apathetically as he formed strange hand signs in the air.
Adeleine painted her face and became her newest form, Gao Gao. "Sorry but I don't have any plans for death in my schedule!" she said sarcastically.
"None do…, human, it is so sad…, you are such a beautiful creature…, I would have loved to know your kind…," Green Knight replied as he attacked her with his super speed.
Adeleine blushed, "Wow, it's too bad you're on the wrong side yourself…," she replied. Adeleine's claws and Green Knight's green bracers clashed as they parried and deflected each others attacks. Finally, the two came to a break as Adeleine began to overtake Green Knight. Green Knight then raised his hands and they gleamed. "Green Pulse Wave!" he chanted as a green colored magic circles emerged from his hands. The magic circles converged and a green beam of light erupted from them. Adeleine dug under ground in a hurry and luckily dodged the attack. Green Knight then searched for her diligently as she rose from beneath him with a powerful claw strike.
Green Knight regained his composure easily and tossed a green magic sphere at Adeleine in return. In a fit of pure reflex, Adeleine smacked the sphere and sent it back to Green Knight and it enveloped him. Adeleine then took the opportunity to impale him with her claws.
"Sorry, but I kinda copied Kirby there for a second, what with sending your attack back at ya and what not!" Adeleine cheered. To her dismay however, Green Knight rose albeit critically injured. "Wow, you took all of that and you still want to go?"
Green Knight took an offensive stance and placed his palms outward. Adeleine caught on and readied her own offensive as well. Within a split second the two attacked one another each flying past each other with one powerful strike. After a moment of waiting, Adeleine stumbled a bit, but Green Knight fell to the ground, "Today is a special day…, two species who…, were unaware of each others existence…, have met today…, too bad it was violence…, perhaps now…, I can get to know you…!" he finished as his green armor was devoured by green flames. The flames formed a sphere and it then took off into the sky. Adeleine gained a mixed feeling of accomplishment and sorrow as she took off to find Kirby.
King Dedede traded powerful attacks with the boisterous Blue Knight. Dedede had to be careful as Blue Knight's Blood Axe could restore him if it cut into his body. As Dedede continued to deliver strong attack after attack it was evident that Blue Knight was running out of steam. Dedede found a break in Blue Knight's offensive and grasped the moment to equip his Icerock Scepter. "Let's see how well your blue armor protects against ice!" Dedede taunted.
"My axe thirsts for your blood and after it's had its fill, I shall satiate my own hunger…," Blue Knight announced eerily. "I must finish you quickly, my stomach moans…"
"Huh, y'know we have somethin' in common!" Dedede laughed.
Blue Knight barreled down on Dedede with his axe and Dedede blocked with his scepter and with every block the scepter released a wave of frost. With each wave released, Blue Knight's armor began to freeze over and he became slower and slower with every failed attack. Finally, Blue Knight had had enough of trying to attack physically, "Blue Blood Siphon!" he announced as Dedede's body was suddenly enveloped by a blue light. Dedede felt pressure on every point of his body until suddenly the blue light began absorbing blood from the cuts across his body. With a jerk, the blue light ripped itself from Dedede's body and he became light headed and his body filled with pain. The blue light entered Blue Knight's body, "Ahh, my hunger relents for now…," Blue Knight moaned.
Dedede pulled himself together, "Ungh… that really smarts! Can't let him do that again…," Dedede thought as he gritted his teeth. Blue Knight lunged once more but Dedede found that he was still relatively easy to dodge. "Odd, he didn't get very much power back from that technique did he? Well it don't matter anyhow, it's time to put this poor sap outta his misery!" Dedede thought as he pointed his scepter at the approaching Blue Knight. "Let's try this, Aurora Ice Beam!" Dedede shouted as his scepter unleashed a wavy beam of light that resembled an aurora. The lights enveloped Blue Knight and he quickly froze over and stopped moving completely. His eyes however, kept following Dedede. Dedede looked around to make sure his attack would not be interrupted by an incoming friend or foe and then when he was sure he was safe he performed his Super Dedede Jump and landed hard on top of Blue Knight, virtually crushing him.
Blue Knight moaned, "You will soon…, suffer from the same…, endless hunger… that I suffer from…!" he finished as he was engulfed in blue flames. The blue flames became a sphere like the others and flew into the sky.
"How could he catch fire if he was covered in ice?" Dedede thought curiously.
All was dead silent between Meta Knight and Indigo Knight as they stared each other down. Despite using up a lot of power from their last encounter, Indigo Knight seemed to be in good spirits. Meta Knight on the other hand was more curious. "Hmm, tell me," he started. "What did you mean when you told me a Kibble was the last warrior to defeat you?"
Indigo Knight moaned, "Why, it wouldn't matter if I told you anyway…"
"I wonder if these knights take the form of whatever manages to defeat them in battle…," Meta Knight thought quietly. "That would imply that no one has ever managed to completely destroy these monsters."
Indigo Knight readied himself as he raised his removed his indigo cutter from his helm, "Dodge this next move if you can, Indigo Cutter Blizzard!" he shouted as he threw his cutter into the heavens. Mere moments later a rain of sharp indigo colored, cutter beams rained down from the sky destroying anything they touched. Luckily, Meta Knight was able to block and dodge all of the blasts and as soon as the attack ended, Indigo Knight assaulted him. The two traded supersonic attacks with their weapons until Meta Knight finally overwhelmed the exhausted Indigo Knight.
Meta Knight cut into Indigo Knight's armored body hundreds of times before unleashing a finishing move of his own. "Now feel my attack, Mach Tornado, behold my power!" he bellowed as two powerful condensed tornadoes descended from the sky. Indigo Knight attempted to attack Meta Knight before he could finish summoning them, but to no avail, Indigo Knight was swept up by the roaring winds.
The Mach Tornado crashed into buildings taking debris with them and became almost blender like. Finally, the two tornadoes crashed into each other and piles of debris littered the streets. Meta Knight scanned the piles of debris until finally a near crippled Indigo Knight emerged from the rubble. Despite his condition he still attempted to fight back, "Fight me, nothing matters anyway, I win, you win, its all for naught…," Indigo Knight claimed.
"Incredible, such apathy for a Kibble…, normally they love battle…," Meta Knight said to himself as he caught Indigo Knight's cutter with just his hand. "Fool, I will put you out of your misery!" Meta Knight claimed, ready to thrust his sword. With one lunge Indigo Knight actually impaled himself on Meta Knight's Galaxia as he attempted to thrust it into his armor. "You're finished Indigo Knight, now tell me what I want to know, now before you expire and head to the next world!" Meta Knight ordered.
Indigo Knight coughed weakly, "Very well…, have you ever heard…, of what the humans call…, a Pyrrhic victory?"
"…?" Meta Knight grunted.
"It's when you…, win the battle…, but loose the war…," Indigo Knight claimed as he coughed simultaneously. "You will soon…, pay for my defeat… that I can…, promise you! Now hopefully I can find something to take joy in and rid my soul of this horrid apathy!" he laughed as he burst into indigo colored flames. Meta Knight withdrew his sword as the flames formed a sphere and flew off into the sky.
"A Pyrrhic victory, huh, why do I have this really bad feeling…, I don't like this," Meta Knight thought as he rushed off to find Kirby.
Red Knight and Kirby clashed as they rushed through the city. They seemed to be evenly matched even in Kirby's normal state. "Vile little brat!" Red Knight shouted furiously. "How dare you trick us with that nasty little game of yours, I will crush you!"
Kirby then transformed into Snare Kirby and taunted Red Knight with the Dream Stone. With a loud grunt of anger, Red Knight rushed Kirby with his red sword ready to pierce his heart. Kirby countered in the blink of an eye by ensnaring Red Knight with his bladed arms. Unlike Kryl, Red Knight drug himself through Kirby's snare in raw rage, despite all the extra damage it was doing to him. Kirby was amazed at Red Knight's persistence. Red Knight kicked up more rage and with one powerful push, he threw Kirby's snare off of him. "Poyo, wow…," Kirby said astonished.
"You are foolish to think that ability can beat me kid!" Red Knight claimed strongly as he gleamed with a red and violet aura. With a roar, Red Knight clashed with Kirby once more and the two hit each other hard. Kirby received minor lacerations while Red Knight was constantly slapped into the ground by Kirby's large blade covered arms. Red Knight's rage grew stronger, "You, you have the real Dream Stone don't you!" he accused strongly. Then suddenly, in the sky came three spheres; a yellow, green and orange sphere of flames descended on Red Knight and enveloped him. His red aura mixed with the colors of the fallen knights.
"Not good…," Kirby moaned.
As Red Knight's rage grew even more, Kirby attempted to ensnare him. Unfortunately, Red Knight countered with extreme aggression. "Red Sword Beam!" he shouted as he swung his sword. Due to the nature of the Snare ability, Kirby was unable to dodge. The sword beam carried Kirby into a building, where he emerged from the rubble without his copy ability, but he seemed safe. Kirby leaped from the rubble still with plenty of fight left in him. He transformed into Grandmaster Kirby and dashed towards Red Knight. Once again, the two warriors fought with power and elegance. Grandmaster Kirby's Smash Kicks and Vulcan Punches were like receiving a hit from a lightning bolt and even made the sound of thunder as they bruised Red Knight's flesh and dented his solid red armor. As Red Knight weakened, Kirby revved up for his special move, the Rising Break. Kirby readied his fist and with a strong blow, he clipped Red Knight in the jaw, distorting his armor and sending him flying into a building.
As the rubble cleared, Red Knight pulled himself from the pile of debris. Then suddenly, two more spheres of fire; a blue sphere and an indigo sphere descended from the sky and engulfed Red Knight. Red Knight flew into another fury as his spiritual aura gleamed with all seven colors of the rainbow. Grandmaster Kirby lunged at Red Knight, who instantly countered, "Red Fairy Flare!" he shouted strongly.
Kirby knew this attack could not be dodged at such a close range, so all he could do was guard. When the fairy flare ended the city block was devastated and Kirby brushed himself off and found he was no longer Grandmaster Kirby. Then, with a shout, Kirby's friends emerged from the city and came to assist him. "Kirby, we did it, I'm so glad you're okay!" Tiff said cheerfully.
"Yeah, we each nailed a Rainbow Knig…, oh, well I guess you already know…," Dedede said catching his own blunder.
"Why is Red Knight still standing?" Waddle Dee said curiously.
"I know look at all the damage he's taken!" Adeleine said with surprise.
"He's a stubborn one," Meta Knight began. "Kirby will you put this poor fool out of his misery and stop torturing him?"
"Just finish him Kirby and we can finish this fight!" Ribbon claimed vigorously.
"Poyo, Kirby win!" he said as he transformed into Superhero Kirby.
Then suddenly, as Red Knight laid eyes upon Superhero Kirby, a twinge of consciousness broke through the fury. "Y-you…, how can I…, be over there…, when I'm…, clearly standing…, before myself…? W-what… is this…, I don't understand…," Red Knight said as he held his head in his hands.
Meta Knight was the only person who was truly thinking about what was happening, "What is he babbling about? He sees himself in Kirby? Did the Dark Matter take one of Kirby's people who preferred the Superhero ability and corrupt him? I wonder if that's what he was before Zero turned him into the Red Knight…"
Kirby performed a powerful Hi-jump and then turned it into a Rocket Dive Kick. Red Knight was nearly defenseless as he was buried into the ground by Kirby's kick. Kirby then picked up Red Knight and threw him into the air and then proceeded to 'juggle' him in midair with midair leaps and super fast physical attacks. Finally, Kirby Hi-jumped above Red Knight and began charging a Star Wave energy blast. With one powerful move, Kirby executed a powerful and large fiery energy wave that crashed into Red Knight and he rode the blast all the way back down to the ground where it exploded.
"Wow that was incredible, that Superhero ability needs to be on Kirby's 'Best Ability' list!" Ribbon claimed cheerfully.
"Is…, is he, you know?" Waddle Dee asked timidly.
"I'm not feeling a threat anymore, but let's not leave anything to chance!" Meta Knight claimed cautiously.
Then suddenly, seven spheres of fire, each a color of the rainbow, emerged from the crater where Red Knight had been defeated. The spheres danced around a bit until they began performing patterns in the sky. Then without warning, the flames clashed together in a bright flash. When it vanished, a bright figure floated in midair until it began to descend to the ground. When it landed, the bright light faded and its details could be made out. A powerful looking knight stood before them garbed with robes and thick black armor with gold trimmings and two black curved edged swords strapped to his back. Unlike the other knights, this one's armor seemed vacant save for the typical Dark Matter eye that had become all too familiar and he had a build not unlike Kirby or Meta Knight, albeit larger. Black spikes like the Dark Matter Warrior that had possessed Meta Knight emerged from the back of his head.
"W-who is this?" Ribbon asked with curious fear.
"I'm not sure, but it's not good…," Meta Knight claimed with his spirits dropping slightly.
This dark knight moaned as he began doing stretches and light exercises. Then he spoke with a deep yet calm voice, "Hmm, I thought I was never going to get a turn, it's been quite sometime since my last fight…," he claimed strongly.
"Who are you and where did you come from all of a sudden?" Tiff asked curiously.
"Hmm, oh, well allow me to introduce myself," he began. "I am the Black Knight, the true Nightterror behind the Rainbow Knight's and Overlord Zero's strongest creation!"
"How can that be, we just beat all the Rainbow Knights, aren't you a little late to save your friends?" Waddle Dee asked in frustration.
"Late…, I see you still don't understand so I'll explain it to you in excruciating detail," Black Knight claimed. "I 'am' the Rainbow Knights. Overlord Zero split me into seven weaker parts because I was too difficult to control. The Rainbow Knights are merely a herald. Once they are all killed in battle their essences reform to recreate me, what they originally were. It's rare though, that I get to show up. I've only fought four times since my creation and never has it been with the very people that ended the rampage of my Rainbow Knight counterparts. So I have high hopes about this fight!"
"So this Black Knight is the true form of the Rainbow Knights?" Meta Knight thought. "I'm starting to wonder about what Indigo Knight told me…"
"So let's get started shall we?" Black Knight said as he vanished into thin air.
Black Knight clashed first with Meta Knight who fought dead even with him. As Meta Knight and Black Knight traded supersonic sword slashes Superhero Kirby interfered before Black Knight could overwhelm Meta Knight. Kirby performed a Rocket Dive Kick and slammed Black Knight in the back of the head throwing him to the ground. Black Knight however, was not even bothered as he rolled forward and back kicked Kirby in the jaw. As Kirby was pushed back, Tiff took his spot and attacked with her massive sword. She traded heavy sword slashes and parries with the ferocious Black Knight as Waddle Dee assisted with his Crusader ability. He managed to hit Black Knight hard with his hammer and mace while Tiff hit him with her sword. However, Black Knight did not seem all that inconvenienced as he shrugged off their attacks and hooked both Tiff and Waddle Dee with his blades and threw them into each other, then batting them away with a simple kick.
Meta Knight flew back to attack Black Knight who parried Meta Knight's Galaxia with both his swords. He then performed a back flip which dodged Dedede's Icerock Scepter. Black Knight landed behind Dedede but before he could strike Dedede, Adeleine interrupted his attack with her claws giving Dedede enough time to turn around. However, Kirby came from the sky with another rocket dive planting him in the concrete. Dedede used the opportunity to use his scepter like a baseball bat and hit Black Knight into the air.
Black Knight transformed his black cape into leathery evil looking wings. He began laughing heartily, "Now this is the fight I have been looking for, can't you feel it! That's the rush of the adrenaline flowing through your veins!"
Black Knight rushed Kirby and his friends again, and for every harsh attack, a stalwart defense was placed following a powerful counter. Kirby's party fought Black Knight diligently as it would seem the battle was at quite a stalemate. "I can't believe this, this is worse than the last fight with Kryl. He can take all of us and has such polished moves. His power isn't as high as I originally believed, but his skill is top notch!" Meta Knight analyzed.
Black Knight withdrew for a moment, "I'm impressed, all of you are so well trained for your ages. Not only that, but your all so polished to be near equal with each other. I'm actually having trouble finding a glaring weakness!"
Black Knight threw himself into battle once more and Kirby's party remained strong, until Kirby made a mistake. Black Knight punished this mistake by making Kirby loose his ability with a harsh attack. Kirby flew across the ground until he ate the dirt below. Kirby picked himself back up and transformed into Shimmering Sword Kirby. "Kirby never give up!" he said strongly.
"Yes, that's it boy!" Black Knight taunted with a deep laugh. "Come at me with everything you got, or you won't survive! I'll show you what it means to face a true Nightterror!" he shouted as he jumped back into the battle. Meta Knight clashed with him and Waddle Dee followed with his hammer and mace. Waddle Dee's attack sent Black Knight to the ground, but he did not stay down long as he pushed himself back up and gave Waddle Dee a head butt with the back of his head. Dedede fired a bolt of ice at Black Knight who deflected it at Tiff. He then grabbed the frozen Tiff and kicked her into Adeleine. Kirby attacked with his shimmering sword and Meta Knight joined in. Many of Kirby's attacks made contact due to the shimmering swords illusion capabilities and Meta Knight took advantage of the openings Kirby forced in Black Knight's defenses.
Black Knight then managed to shove Meta Knight and Kirby away, "Well this is wonderful, well worth the wait! I think I can actually rock the boat a little on this one! Feel my special technique, the Black Scourge!" he said deviously. Suddenly, the entire world went pitch black as a toxic fog filled the air. Every member of Kirby's party felt fear cascade throughout their bodies. In an instant, a burning pain could be felt across random parts of each of their bodies. A powerful sword slash was the origin of the burning pain as Black Knight moved with silence and precision. Black Knight assaulted Kirby the most causing him to loose his Shimmering Sword ability.
As the fog lifted, Kirby's friends were hurt pretty badly, but still determined to fight. Kirby transformed using his last stored ability, the Cleaving Crescent. The Cleaving Crescent gave Kirby almost the exact same weapons as Black Knight. Waddle Dee used his Crusader ability to cast a wide range healing spell, known as Consecration, the same as the Argent Lady's. The party was bathed in a soothing golden light.
Black Knight became ecstatic, "You people are putting up a great fight you are actually bringing a sweat to my brow! You actually survived my Black Scourge! This is EXHILARATING!" he roared with an eerie sense of joy as he charged Kirby's party again.
This time was different, Kirby waited until the last second before wishing upon the Diamond Prism. Black Knight was frozen in time as Kirby attacked with his special attack, the Final Cutter which was a rising sword slash followed by a descending slash that created a sword beam upon hitting the ground. Tiff followed Mystic Sword Beam, which was a very large and wide sword beam; Waddle Dee continued with an attack called Smite, which was a falling sphere of golden light from the heavens; Adeleine added and attack galled Mega Claw, which was a super quick barrage of claw strikes; Dedede used his Aurora Ice Beam, Ribbon attack with True Fairy Flare and Meta Knight ended with his Flames of Galaxia.
Kirby's party stepped back to witness the results of the damage they had dealt. From the rubble that was left behind, Black Knight emerged with heavy damage. Even though he was damaged, he did not move or act as though he was. In fact, Black Knight brushed himself off and began laughing. "Magnificent display, but I'm afraid that's not going to be enough to kill me! You aren't the only ones that can heal…, Black Shadow Mend!" he chanted. Black light enshrouded Black Knight and restored a lot of his damage, but not all of it. After healing himself, Black Knight took to the air and faced Kirby's party, who were in awe. "I just came up with a fun little idea!" said Black Knight with excitement. "In order to do it though, I'll need to shift the balance of this battle…, hmm, oh I know!" he said as he vanished into thin air. With super speed, Black Knight appeared a breath's distance from behind Ribbon.
"W-what?!" Ribbon screeched.
As Ribbon turned to face him, their eyes locked with each other and Ribbon suddenly froze. With a small glint in Black Knight's eye as it opened wide Ribbon turned to stone and Black Knight gathered her up. "Ribbon!" cried everyone.
"Now that's much better, I have something I would like to ask you!" Black Knight proposed. Kirby's party stood silent, "Can you get stronger?"
"What's that supposed to mean?! Just what kind of question is that?!" Tiff asked completely irate.
"You see, I want to see if you can get more powerful, and this little fairy girl will act as insurance!" Black Knight claimed. "You see, during this little odyssey of yours you all made mysterious 'jumps' in power and the Dark Matter is actually in the dark as to how you did this. So I'm asking if you can do it again. Can you get more powerful?"
"Maybe…," Meta Knight said with a bluff.
Black Knight placed his hand under his armored chin. "Ah, now here's an idea!" he began. "Why don't you go and fight the other Nightterrors that Zero sent to this planet? However, you'll need to find something, a new power that can shift the balance between their power and yours. You've already shown you can and have done this; after all, Kirby destroyed Holy Nightmare! I'll give you seven Popstar days! A little deadline I'm adding for pressure! After the days expire, I'll turn this fairy into gravel, then I'll come after you for the Dream Stone and Zero will consume this world!" he claimed as he set his terms.
Kirby's party was distraught, "I guess we don't have a choice…," Meta Knight agreed reluctantly. "Fine, Black Knight we'll play your little game, but when we come back Ribbon had better be unharmed!"
*End of Chapter*