Taranza was booking it down the volcano before he even gave it a second thought. If Magolor was down there, he'd be in danger. Taranza couldn't stand to even think about that. He felt his eyesight blurring. Falling behind from running on the uneven terrain, Daroach tried to catch up to him before he was seriously hurt in one of the explosions. He failed to catch up, but the explosions near where Taranza was going were over before he got near them. "Wait up! It won't help to be so frantic!"

Taranza slowed down and looked back. "I don't see him."

"Okay, okay, just calm down." Daroach placed a hand on Taranza's back.

The landscape was smoking craters as far as the eye could see. "I just need to focus."

"You're spiraling. I can tell. I'll look for him, you just collect your thoughts."

Taranza closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing. "Okay. Go ahead."

Daroach roamed the significantly more uneven surface of the planet. In the craters there was shrapnel from the explosions. Some were still going off in the distance.

Star Allies

Daroach: Alright gang we got a situation

Daroach: You know that guy in the videos who announces in his intros that he's in some weird place

Daroach: Like 'I am a half mile underground'

Daroach: I'm like that rn

Bandana Waddle Dee: wdym

Bandana Waddle Dee: where are you

Daroach: hold on

Taranza: DAROACH I CAN SEE YOU

Taranza: THIS IS SERIOUS WHAT ARE YOU DOING

Marx: ?

Daroach: 4

King Dedede: ?

Daroach: Anyway Magolor might be dead

Taranza: You are not helping my nerves.

Meta Knight: What happened.

Daroach: He stole my ship, flew it to Halcandra, Taranza and I took the Lor Starcutter to follow him, and when we were near the top of the volcano everything started exploding

Gooey: ot jas tp ne mome

Marx: thank you gooey

Daroach: hold on i think i found him

Daroach approached the largest of the craters that he'd seen, and looked down at the charred cloak, worn by Magolor. He lay face down on the ground, not moving. He approached, and saw the slight, yet steady rise and fall of breathing. Daroach breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't dead. Not yet, at least. Even though Magolor'd probably be upset about knowing it happened, Daroach lifted him off the ground and started carrying him over to Taranza. "He's breathing."

Taranza let out a sigh of relief that sounded almost identical to the one Daroach had earlier. "I knew he wouldn't die that easily."

Star Allies

Daroach: Good news

Daroach: He is alive

Daroach: For now

Daroach: He's conked out in his bed rn and Taranza's keeping an eye on him

Bandana Waddle Dee: Do you have any ideea what happened?

Marx: hehehehehehehe

Marx: ideea

Daroach: Well, he was in the factory when it started exploding

Daroach: That's all I got

King Dedede: NO TELL ME HOW THE WHOLE ENORMOUS FACTORY JUST BLEW UP

Daroach: dont know

Meta Knight: Someone will need to grill him when he wakes up

Taranza: That's going a bit far, I think

Taranza: I was thinking I'd just ask him some questions

Meta Knight: Did no one teach him what grilling means in this context?

Marx: we're going to cook and eat him

Kirby: no!

King Dedede: Daroach get your minions under control one of them just stole my soldering iron

"It will take some time for me to fully understand the damage. Daroach, you should get your ship and fly it back to Popstar. Taranza, you stay here." The Lor spoke as though it was a routine occurrence. Daroach bowed his head and left.

Taranza lifted Magolor onto the bed that the Lor had moved into the main room. He drew the duvet over the unconscious mage, and caught himself staring after a few moments. "I'm sorry." He apologized, despite the intended recipient not being able to hear him. He scarcely even noticed the Lor taking off for Popstar.

Naturally, they got there before Daroach did. She landed in a clearing, near Castle Dedede. Taranza notified everyone of where they were, and everyone showed up to see what was going on. Well, everyone except Susie, who was more interested in rebuilding her security force robots (The ones she had on standby exploded for no discernable reason). Even the Mage sisters were there, and they barely even knew him. "Lor, around when will you be able to give us a diagnosis?"

"I have it right now, actually. His injuries are major, but he should be good as new within a month. As for when he'll wake up, that could take anywhere between two days and a week."

A sigh of relief washed over the room. He would be alright. Magolor, of course, didn't respond to this. He was still unconscious, after all. Taranza looked down at him, and smiled, albeit inadvertently. Soon after, everyone dispersed, going their separate ways. Before he knew it, Taranza found his way to his room in Castle Dedede. Even though it was the middle of the afternoon, he felt exhausted. Instinctively, he sent Magolor a message that said "Good night", and went to bed.

-.. .. .- -. -. - ... . -.. / .- .. - ... / - .-

Before he knew it, he was on his way back to the Lor Starcutter. The moon was out. I know it's pointless, but I might as well check on him. The door slid open. To Taranza's surprise, the first thing he lay eyes on upon entering was the faint glow of Magolor's eyes. "You're awake?"

Magolor gave him a slight smile. "I could ask you the same thing. It's four in the morning."

"You really are something else."

"So I've been told. I woke up almost fifty hours before I was supposed to. It hurts a lot, actually. I wish I was still asleep."

Taranza went a little closer to the bet Magolor lay in. "I'm sorry to hear that, do you need anything?"

"No, that's okay. I think I'd rather we just talk for a bit. Even though I saw you the day before I went to Halcandra, I've missed you a lot."

He tried to ignore his quickening heartbeat. "You have?"

Magolor looked away for a moment. "Yeah… actually, I know it sounds ridiculous, but…"

"But what?"

"I was pretty disappointed when I woke up and you weren't here."

Those words hit Taranza like a meteor. "Does that mean what I think it means?" Before Magolor could answer, the scene faded.

- -.- / - .- -. / -.- - ..- / .- .-. . / -.. - .- -. / -.-. .- - .- -.-. .-.. -.- ... - .. -.-.

The room felt so much emptier when he woke up. These dreams about Magolor were getting more and more common, and felt more and more real every time it happened. Just to make sure it didn't foreshadow anything, he went to the Lor. Naturally, Magolor was still asleep. In an attempt to clear his mind, Taranza went to Castle Dedede's garden, where he worked. His mind drifted back to Sectonia, and by now he had sorted out his thoughts on what happened to her. The guilt of her death weighed heavily on his mind, and the remnants of feelings he'd once held tugged at the corners of his heart. Still, he knew that it'd be best for his own health to move on, even if only partially. The issue was, he had no way of knowing if Magolor liked him back or not. There were some hints, but nothing conclusive.

Taranza stopped by the Lor to check on his recovery every so often. It had been six days by this point. He should be waking up within the next twenty four hours. He didn't wake up before, or during the checkups Taranza had given during that day. Really keeping me in suspense, are you. Typical, I suppose. He woke up about three hours after Magolor should have woken up. He knocked on the door to the Starcutter. No response. The door slid open, and Taranza saw Magolor lying out cold in the bed. "Lor?"

The ship's voice sounded almost panicked. "I don't know! I can't find anything! He should be awake! He HAS to be awake!"

Taranza lay one hand on Magolor and gently shook him. Nothing. A wave of sickening dread washed over him. Something was wrong. Something was very, very, wrong. And whatever it was, no one could see it.