There was still plenty of daylight left when they'd returned from the Fountain of Dreams to find eNeMeE. Tiff had directed Gryll to circle high above the land to see if they could make anything out from there, but evidently, that hadn't done them any good. Wherever eNeMeE was, he was probably the same size they saw him inside the castle.

"From what I know about eNeMeE," Gryll tapped their chin, "well, it's been a while since demonic studies, but.. With him in particular, he's got a thing where he can grow bigger relative to how much magic is in his body, or something like that. He's probably choosing how big he wants to be right now so he can lay low."

Tiff nodded her head quietly. Gryll was the magic expert, and she wasn't about to question them on it. That seemed to make sense, anyway. Tiff recalled the recent events of two years ago when she had been in the grip of eNeMeE, being dragged all over the place whilst Kirby had chased after.

"How much magic do you think the Noddys will give him, if he eats all of them?" Tiff wondered.

"A hundred feet, maybe more." Gryll answered grimly.

She'd watched and felt as his size shifted through the tightness of his grip, and she was more than sure he'd shrunk more than a dozen times to even allow the chase to happen in the first place. He'd been big enough to dwarf the Halberd when she first saw him.

He'd had to have been over a hundred feet in that instance. The thought gave her anxious chills. If Kirby could beat him when he was like that, though, he more than certainly could do it again. The circumstances had changed very drastically.

It was in their favor, Tiff reminded herself, and so long as eNeMeE was stuck, it was going to stay that way.

Their search continued. They had no idea what to look for, and that was one of the bad parts of not going after Barby as soon as possible. They didn't even know what direction to start. Sure, Dreamland was on a peninsula, but there was still a lot of ground to cover if they had to check every nook and cranny.

First, they checked the town. Nothing, everyone seemed to be perfectly fine— now just cleaning up from yesterday's festival as if the castle didn't get literally attacked. Tiff figured that perhaps, eNeMeE wanted to go somewhere dramatic, and they checked Kabu Canyon. Nothing. They checked the beach, the forest, the caves, anywhere that was brought to mind. When they were circling back from Dynablade's mountain, Tiff had spotted something.

A strange construction had been erected a fair distance aways from the volcano. It looked like some sort of giant lamp, and it was pointed right at the volcano's side. Since it was about mid-day, it didn't matter that the spotlight was so huge; the sun was far more powerful.

It wasn't there the previous day so it was worth checking out. The timing was too suspicious to just be happenstance.

The closer they got, the more right their suspicions got. The Noddy army came into view, as did their creator. Though just as they had caught sight of eNeMeE, so did he catch sight of them. The Noddy army stopped their sacrifice to him, and began launching themselves at Gryll once more. However, this time, it seems like they'd developed a brand new technique; spring out like one huge limb.

Rather than just throwing each other one at a time, they'd decided using their mass numbers to form one huge flood of bodies would be far more effective. Gryll had panicked and tried to fly away, but the three were swallowed whole by the deluge of soft and cushy monsters.

In any normal circumstance, that would've been the end of them. However, Kirby literally had their bane in his little hands— the Star Rod. The monsters dissipated into glowing dust upon a single touch, and Kirby quickly went to work freeing himself and his two friends.

The Noddys caught on quickly, and to avoid having most of their mass slaughtered and their gift to their creator shrunk, they'd fled as fast as they had tried to suffocate. Grounded now, they tried to recuperate. Kirby was the first to get up, still poised for a fight.

"The Star Rod!" eNeMeE gasped. "Of course , that's why you didn't follow me!"

Tiff stumbled to her feet, and though eNeMeE caught the majority of her attention, she saw a purple blob in her peripheral. Turning her head, she'd hoped to catch Barby, but instead it was.. Escargoon?

She'd mouthed her confusion to him, and he stepped back. He'd grabbed the Dedede rifle that was near to him, and scampered off in the direction of the lamp's platform.

"Never take your eyes off your enemy. I'm not about to let you ignore me." eNeMeE moved where Escargoon had once been, blocking their immediate path.

"You're right." Tiff narrowed her eyes. "Whatever you're plotting, eNeMeE, we're here to put a stop to it!"

"I'm not going to underestimate you this time. Your cards are all out on the table, child. No pulling the Star Rod out of nowhere this time." He sounded haggard and looked just as dishevelled.

On top of that, he was so.. Small. He seemed smaller than Dedede, actually. Tiff would've thought that as soon as he was threatened, he would've grown ten sizes by now. Part of it gave her hope and security, but the more rational side of her told her to not think that she'd gotten any sort of advantage until eNeMeE had been beaten until he couldn't move.

eNeMeE flashed those sharkish, melting teeth of his as Gryll had begun shivering helplessly beside Tiff. Though they had narrowed their eyes and bit on their lip, they were holding much too tightly to their broom.

eNeMeE ran his tongue across the front of his canines, clearly enjoying Gryll's disgust and fright. He had the bright idea of going after the weakest link first, and nearly pounced on them. He would've, had Tiff not tackled them out of the way.

Kirby flew into action, jabbing the Star Rod into eNeMeE's side. The demon screeched in agony, his essence rippling and burning like paper from a match.

Having separated Tiff and Gryll from Kirby, he swerved around and focused now on Kirby. Despite being stabbed, and despite Kirby plunging it deeper into him by eNeMeE encircling him, the demon forged forward.

Kirby continued to stab him, this time more ferociously. eNeMeE held back any more inignancy with relative success in spite of his growing number of injuries. eNeMeE swirled more and more around Kirby, until Meta Knight had knocked into the pink puff.

The Star Rod knocked from Kirby's hands as he'd tripped and fell.

Then Kirby himself disappeared into the depths of eNeMeE's grime; swallowed whole. Kirby had yelled out in sharp alarm as eNeMeE dragged him in. Tiff scrambled to try to swiftly take up the mantle, but basically ran straight to her doom. eNeMeE allowed history to repeat itself and wasted no time in pulling Tiff straight into the thick of the oil.

All that was left was Gryll now, who looked like a deer in headlights as they'd watched the galaxy's greatest defenders be defeated in seconds.

"If you want to run," eNeMeE wheezed, "I'd let you… I'm not the sort to shoot messengers."

eNeMeE shifted like he were some heavy, large dragon, peering down at his tiny little knight that'd come to save the fair princess. Gryll's eyes flicked between him and the Star Rod. Run, like Tiff had said, or die?

"Go. Tell the GSA." eNeMeE snarled. They got on their broom and they shot off.

Kirby floated in an endless expanse. Far in the distance, twinkling stars and empty space. He blinked once, twice, and readjusted himself to the lack of gravity. Was he dead? He hoped not, that'd be a big inconvenience.

Kirby held onto the tips of his feet with his little nubs as he looked around for a way out. He'd just been fighting the wizard a few seconds ago, then he tripped, now he's here..

He'd felt like he was in goo for a bit, so he'd closed his eyes. He'd felt so heavy, like he was being pressed down on Dedede, but all the pressure was gone now. Was there anything to do here? Was there a way to go out? Was there some stuff to eat?

Oh, look! An apple! How did he not see it before? Kirby swam over to it, paddling against the thin emptiness of space. The gargantuan apple shone brightly, its crispness and crimson skin just begging for Kirby to come and devour it whole— core, stem, and all.

As soon as he touched the apple, it rotted. The darkness and white fluff of rot spreading out from his nub to the rest of the apple. It shrivelled so quickly that it had turned to dust faster than Kirby could 'poyo' in confusion.

He looked around, trying to find the apple. He spotted another, but it had rotted right before he touched it. Same with the one after that, and the one after that. So many apples had gone to waste, and now just looking at them caused the spontaneous spoil.

"Kirby?" Tiff called.

Kirby looked at her. That was enough. She'd become dust in seconds, right before his eyes. Kirby blinked, and he swam over to where she'd been. He tried to find where she went, but tears had flooded his eyes. He curled up into himself, and he'd begun to cry.

Would Tiff go away?

Tiff jangled on the door's handle. She'd banged on the main part of it, kicked and punched at the hinges, yet it still wouldn't budge. What was she meant to do, just sit there and wait for something to happen?

eNeMeE had caught her, that much she knew, and now she'd been transported here. Ugh, if only she'd kept her eyes open when she was in that goo, maybe she would've seen where exactly she got into this room from. But it'd been so thick, stung her eyes so badly, and weighed down on her body so much that she thought she'd be crushed.

Here, it was like all the pressure of existence had drifted out of her reach. She had to remind herself of her task over and over again— get the Star Rod, get Kirby. Whichever she could do first is the one she'd do, because it'd more than likely lead to the other.

If Kirby was also in this strange facility, she was certainly going to have to go for Kirby first. Then, they'd fight their way out together tooth and nail. They'd save Meta Knight, they'd imprison eNeMeE, and they'd all talk to their therapists about this later.

A panel unfolded in the wall to reveal a television. Tiff snapped her head to it as it was tuned to static that filled the whole grey, featureless rectangular room. If it had been one of those televisions that Dedede had in his throne room Tiff would've tried to get out through it, but unfortunately this one was flush with the wall.

The channel flicked to something other than static. It was Cappy Town. It'd looked drastically changed, like it had been when Haltmann came over and roboticized the planet.

Monsters patrolled the streets, and she saw as Cappys were forced from their old homes to make way for the skyscrapers that were to replace them. It was all architecture she'd seen before. The same sort of stuff she'd seen on eNeMeE's fortress on the very surface.

The channel switched. Her parents, they'd been arrested. They were marching in time with some of Kirby's other friends. Adeleine, Ribbon, the animals friends.. Their shackles had eNeMeE's dark silhouette implanted on them. The camera shifted to see where they were going; straight towards a Wolfwrath, whose jaws flared with fire.

Tiff had gone at the door with renewed vigor. She heard things from the television, but she dared not look. She needed to save her family, her home! Before it was too late! It was too late- no it wasn't! She kicked and punched, she'd did everything she could, but still, the door refused to budge an inch. It hollowly banged.

Her fists didn't hurt, neither did her feet, so she kept it up. She needed to get out, no matter the cost to herself. The television's noise blurred in the back of her mind. It was probably some horrific manner of audio that no person— much less tween— should ever hear. She didn't hear it, she didn't see it, she was too focused. She had to be. People needed her to be strong, and she was letting them down, being trapped here.

Was there security in helplessness like this? Was it her fault if she couldn't get out? No. She wouldn't be able to live with herself. She knew she couldn't give up. She knew it would be her fault if she couldn't save them. It was her fault, it's always going to be her fault if she fails.

She is crying, because the noise and the imagery her mind gave her was too much. The punching and kicking helped. She couldn't stop moving, or she might crumble to pieces from the pressure.

It's already happening. It was so fast, just because she faltered. This was her fault. Hers alone, obviously. Crabs in a bucket pull each other down when trying to escape, and that's what she was doing to herself. It was just a message of people's nature towards one another, or perhaps people towards themselves.

Crabs do not naturally occur inside buckets. They have to be put in. Someone put her in here. eNeMeE put her in here; this was her bucket. He gave her this door for some illusion of freedom.

She'd been trying to bust through a steel door. Why didn't her hands hurt? Why weren't her feet sore, screaming at her to stop abusing them? Why couldn't she feel the texture under her palm, why could she only have distorted thoughts that cycled through simple emotions?

How did eNeMeE get all this done so quickly?

"Dream. I'm dreaming." Tiff said out loud.

She willed her punch, now, consciously, and it crumpled the door like paper. She willed it, and it happened. It's a dream, and it was hers. Not eNeMeE's. It was her mind. She forced a Star Rod into existence, into her palm, and held it aloft. Its blinding light swallowed everything. The television, the room, and even her.

When she saw through the white, she was back out in the real world.

She was covered in sludge, on top of a metal floor. eNeMeE— the horrible thing he was— was laid on his side and looked like some gutted fish. Within, rather than guts or meat, were people. Sword, Blade, Kirby, Barby, all covered in the same blackness she was.

Before eNeMeE sealed back up, Tiff ripped Kirby from eNeMeE's bowels. The demon yowled and scrambled away shortly after, skittering vertically up a long pole like a cockroach. Meta Knight banged after him, smacking against the metal platforms above as well as the pole eNeMeE climbed.

They were on a spiral staircase with multiple platforms, which lead up to one bigger platform. Tiff brushed the muck off of Kirby the best she could, cleaning it from his eyes. Kirby woke up instantly and jumped to his feet. He shook off the rest like a dog would shake off water. He blinked. Then, a relieved smile widened across his face. He took Tiff's hands in his nubs, and began jumping up and down.

"I'm glad to see you too, Kirby." Tiff wiped her face. "Do you know where the Star Rod is?"

Kirby shook his head, and let go of Tiff's hands. She looked down off the staircase, holding onto the rail. The Star Rod had a certain glow about it that was easy to see regardless of what time it was out. However, she became especially more aware of the large glare in her eye. She turned her head to the west to properly acknowledge the setting sun. How- she was out for that long!? It was already getting dark— the volcano was on the eastmost part of the peninsula.

The land was draped in harsh oranges that would soon become deep midnight blues. Yet, still, she couldn't see the Star Rod. She was sure of it; Escargoon had probably taken it. eNeMeE couldn't touch the thing without getting hurt.

"It must be up there somewhere." Tiff hoped , anyways.

Tiff and Kirby took off running up the metal stairs. As they ascended, they heard the loud thooming of electricity filling machinery as the sun continued to set. The lamp began to power up, and Tiff knew she had to stop it. She didn't know precisely why, but eNeMeE clearly had interest in the thing.

When they'd reached the top, they were rushed by multiple Waddle Dees. All of which Tiff easily dispatched by throwing them off the platform to the grass below. She knew they'd been through much worse falls than that, and rested easy knowing they'd just be a bit bruised.

Escargoon aimed his rifle at the two, mittens over the trigger.

"Kirby! Suck up that gun!" Tiff cried.

Kirby wasted no time, and within seconds, the gun had been thrown into Kirby's jowls and Escargoon was left defenseless. Kirby gained a little headband and scope indicative of the 'laser' ability.

eNeMeE was nowhere to be seen, but she was more than sure he was up here somewhere.

"Turn it on!" eNeMeE yelled from across the way.

He was at the end of the lamp. Escargoon looked at Tiff. He was right beside the switch, and he had his hand on it.

"Escargoon." Tiff held her hands out to show she was no threat. "You don't have to do this. You don't know who you're helping. Please. I don't want to hurt you."

Escargoon glowered, and pulled the switch down.

The light came on right as darkness had begun to invade the mountains, making a bright yellow circle upon their relatively consistent surface. In the same moment the switch had gone on, eNeMeE disappeared off the top of the lamp.

Meta Knight's shadow was put onto the volcano alongside the lights. It was huge, a black blotch amongst the light. It foamed and bubbled like hot water, peaking like a rumbling and disturbed ocean.

Then, it burst like one huge bubble, as eNeMeE pulled himself from the darkness. His hands smashed against the rock as his material form struggled with the new height. His goo fell away as he laughed loud enough to wake people on the other side of the planet. He'd burned away any sludge left, as he turned into a phantom-esque force of destruction. He covered the sky itself with a blanket of black and blue smog.

He glowed ethereally, in a horrible, ghastly way. His sheer scale now had brought him to be castle-sized. His glasses and teeth had a of backglow of purple, making sure everyone knew just how delighted he was.