DISCLAIMER: I do not own Kirby or the Kirby's Dream Land 2 story line—I'm just elaborating on it. Kirby and pals belong to Nintendo, Hal Laboratories, etc., and I am writing this for entertainment, not profit. Is that all I have to say? Good.

A/N: What? WHAT?! DragnBlak has uploaded a new chapter? It's an apocalyptic sign! O_o;; Um, where was I? Oh, yes. I'm going to try something a little different in this chapter. It has been brought to my attention that perhaps this fic follows the story line a little too closely, and after some deliberation, I agree. Therefore, I'm going to attempt using my imagination (O.O;;;) and try a couple things that don't quite coincide with the plot (hey, gotta start small). I will give one minor example: at one point, Kirby jumps off Rick's shoulders to do something, but Rick is still there when he returns. There is also a much subtler, much more important thing—but you'll have to infer that for yourself. *laughs evilly* Thanks to tim333 (*gasp* a new reviewer!) for his constructive comment. ^__^ This chapter is dedicated to him and all who have reviewed this story—especially DestinyLord7381 who has been there from the very beginning. (^-^) Ok, on with the show!

Battle of a Lifetime

Chapter Nine: Cut to the Chase—Part One

Last time, Kirby and the gang jumped over canyons and met up with more Propeller Bombs than anyone can remember. Along with a few "tender moments," Kirby was able to find and retrieve the fifth Rainbow Drop and enter the Boss room to get the next Warp Star. After defeating the imposters of the moon and sun, Kirby was able to complete his task and proceed to the next island. Now we find him just landing on Cloudy Park: Island of the Sky…

As Kirby hopped off the Warpstar to the puffy ground below, he looked up. Right in the center of the Island was a huge inactive volcano surrounded by clouds. "Whoa…" he whispered to himself in awe. But he could feel something besides wonder...

That ominous sensation… Dark Matter is close, he thought to himself. Entering the first door (I've decided to keep the doors for readers who haven't gotten this far ^-^), he found himself, literally, in the clouds. But this was no dream—Waddle Dee and Bouncy Ty were still on his tail. Fortunately, Kirby still had Burning power, so he just incinerated any enemy or Star Block that got in his way. Of course, since he was in the clouds, he had to watch out for one little thing…

"Whoa!" Kirby yelled as his flame attack nearly propelled him off a cloud and into the open sky, and he inhaled air to start floating and landed lightly back on the cloud. Just as he was about to exhale, he saw a peculiar thing. A Poppy Bro. Jr. was coming right toward him, but instead of rolling its way at him on top of an apple, he was riding a Maxim Tomato!

If I hit that Tomato with my puffball, I'll destroy it before I have a chance to use it! I have an idea…Kirby quickly calculated to himself. He exhaled in another direction and discarded the Burning star (since it probably wasn't a good idea to use that way up here anyway… ^^;). He then turned in Jr.'s direction and swallowed him before the little guy had any idea what was going on. And left there on the fluffy white ground was the Tomato, which Kirby ate to replenish his energy.

Kirby continued on, meeting up with jets of wind that tried to push Kirby into the indestructible Gordos and the ever-annoying Bronto Burts. Kirby managed to maneuver his way around the obstacles and proceeded to the next area.

Kirby was again on solid ground, plateaus to be exact. But they were so high in the air, there were still clouds all around him. But this didn't daunt our hero, and he continued his way from ledge to ledge, avoiding Shotzos and also gaining Cutter power from an unsuspecting Sir Kibble. Soon enough he came to what seemed like a huge cloud. Well, all the other clouds were solid enough for him to walk on, so he didn't give a second thought to just leaping on top. Unfortunately…

"Eeeeeep!" Kirby could feel a part of the cloud disappear from under him, and he grabbed onto the ledge of a plateau just in time before becoming some sixth grader's gravity experiment. Kirby struggled up the ledge (on account of his… well, short limbs) and turned toward the huge cloud. He put a hand out and touched it. Sure enough, another piece of the colossal cumulus disappeared! And as he looked even more closely, Kirby could see that it disintegrated in the shape of—

"A block!" Now Kirby could see that it was a huge cloud made of small, disintegrating cloud blocks.

"Well," Kirby said to himself, "I'll just have to go through the top and float down to see what this thing is most likely hiding." He did just that, and, sure enough, the ball of cloud blocks was concealing a door.

Entering, he came upon another miniboss room. Jumpershoot was the keeper of this one, and he did not look very happy…

"Ha! I was wondering how long it would take your tiny mind to figure out how to get here," he taunted. "Now I finally get the pleasure to destroy you once and for all!" Jumpershoot began his spinning assault on Kirby, but Kirby was able to hit him a few times with his cutters before jumping out of the way.

"How many times do I have to defeat you before your tiny mind realizes that you can never win?" Kirby retorted, which only seemed to make the miniboss even angrier.

"Don't mock me, you pest! Dark Matter was kind enough to give me another chance, and I won't disappoint him!" With that, he used his other attack: he threw his sandal at Kirby.

-.-; "Jeez, are you still using that lame attack? I mean, does anyone really fear your shoe?" And as that raised another notch on Jumpershoot's temper, Kirby laughed inwardly. Soon he'll be too riled up to know what's going on, and that will make it easier to penetrate his spinning attack with my cutters.

"Why, you… stupid… blasted… oh, I can't stand… grr!!" Finally at a loss for words, all he could manage to do was jump up and down in frustration. Kirby knew this was the perfect time to attack. He went right up to the raging enemy and shot cutters at him as hard as he could. Finally, the miniboss could take no more, and he was down.

"So much for not disappointing Matter," Kirby muttered as he destroyed Jumpershoot with a cutter. From a familiar sack beneath a thin floor came none other than our furry friend, Rick. He stretched and jumped up beside Kirby.

"Believe it or not, it's actually starting to get kinda cozy in those bags," Rick mused.

"…"

"What? It is! See for yourself," he said, holding up the bag.

"Um, I think I'll pass, Rick. Can't you feel that evil in the atmosphere?" Kirby turned around, gazing warily around the room. "I think we may be running out of time—we ought to get going."

Rick seemed to make an annoyed face as he tossed the bag aside and Kirby jumped on his shoulders. Kirby didn't notice, however, and our heroes continued on their way.

Leaping from ledge to ledge, the duo persevered in the mission. Rick had a marvelous time with Cutter power, using Kirby as a boomerang to slice and dice the baddies. Soon they came to a bridge made from nothing but cloud blocks. But not only did the miles-high bridge disappear almost as soon as they touched it, but a flock of Brontos started charging straight toward them to try to knock them off balance! Rick, however, was very nimble for being a hamster, and he hopped and dodged his way across the bridge to the door.

Rick and Kirby were relieved to find themselves back on solid cloud again (Kirby: …). This time they realized that the only way to go was up… unless they wanted to fall off the face of Dream Land, of course. Kirby also noticed two strange pipes in front of them. It looked like someone had taken two paper tubes, cut them in half, and then put each pair of halves back together a couple feet apart. Rick, being the curious critter he is, decided to step right through the first one. A stream of air pushed him and Kirby up, almost knocking them into a Flamer awaiting their arrival! But Rick kicked his way out as hard as he could before he had a chance to suffer second-degree burns.

Flamer didn't appreciate having such victory snatched from him, however, and began spinning to power up for a charge. Rick was concentrating so hard on not being hit by him, though, that he didn't notice Sir Kibble taking aim at him from right behind. But Kirby saw him and he got an idea.

"Rick, when I say 'jump,' leap as high as you can into the pipe." Rick nodded as he kept a watchful eye on Flamer.

As soon as Sir Kibble put his arm up to throw the cutter and Flamer paused for a millisecond to start the attack, Kirby yelled the command. Rick jumped into the pipe and rode up as he and Kirby saw Flamer obliterate the cutter and Sir Kibble's desperate but failed attempt to get out of the way of Flamer's high-speed attack. They were still laughing as they rode to the top and got rid of two Bouncys, grabbed a Tomato and left the area through the last door.

In the second area they decided to cover, Rick and Kirby noticed that it was considerable colder than before. Even a few Master Pengys made their home in this particular region.

"Well, if it's going to be cold, maybe it would be a good idea for us to be cold, too," Kirby suggested, pointing to a Pengy a few yards away.

Rick smiled and released the Cutter star to swallow the poor penguin. They kept going across the terrain, discovering bubble-like Power Blocks that broke only under the pressure of Ice Power and gaining an extra life. They used this to their advantage again when they came to the door surrounded by the Ice Power Blocks.

"Jeez, these temperature changes can't be good for us," Rick muttered, for now it was suddenly quite warm. He and Kirby walked up to a familiar-looking pipe and, as expected, were propelled upwards for a short distance to a star piece. Now they could see small platforms forming an arc across a huge gap, each with pipes leading to a treat at the top. The one at the top of the arc led to a 1-Up, but Kirby's keen eyes could see something else…

"Hey! Look! There's a platform underneath the highest one! Don't you see it, Rick?" The orange-and-white rodent began to look uneasy.

"Yeah, I see it…"

"Well, let's go! What's the matter, Rick?"

O_o; "Oh, nothing. I… I'm just afraid that if we try to get to it, we'll miss and fall."

"Aw, it will be a piece of cake for you, Rick. And I'll help you out," Kirby reassured him. Rick gulped.

"Well, okay…"

So they leaped from pipe to pipe until they came to the highest one, avoiding more of the stupid Brontos (A/N: …that I'm starting to hate as much as the Propeller Bombs… ^^;) as they went. Rick landed on the very edge of the platform and looked down.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Kirby?"

"Well, it's better than not looking—the Rainbow Drop could be down there."

Reluctantly, Rick hopped off and landed lightly on the platform below. It contained a door in a pool of water, so, naturally, our heroes went inside.

"Aaaiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeee!!"

Instantly a strong stream of water was hurling them straight into a pair of Gordos! Using his strong legs, Rick pumped himself and Kirby down and out of the current.

"Wow! That is one strong current! I wonder where it's coming from…"

"Kirby, look! A door is right past those Gordos! Wanna check it out?"

"Sure, as soon as I find the source of the water—hey! Star pieces!"

Kirby hopped off Rick's shoulders and swam toward the source of the stream by going underneath it. Unfortunately, a narrow passage appeared that wouldn't allow him to go any further without being impaled. But he did ride the stream back to where Rick was and pick up three star pieces.

"It's too bad Kine isn't here—he could have swum against this current and found out what was there…"

"Well, Kirby, it's probably just a couple pipes causing the current anyway," Rick said, a little quickly. Kirby gave him a skeptical glance.

"I suppose you're right. But I sure wish I could take a look…" Kirby shrugged and climbed back onto Rick's shoulders. Timing carefully, they rode the current past the Gordos and entered a door.

"There you are! Me get you this time!!!"

Awaiting our friends once again was Blocky, and he was back with a vengeance.

"Dark Matter say 'Crush Kirby!' And me say 'No problem,' so, now I crush you!" he cried, proud of his logical (but terribly obvious) statement.

"Kirby, I'm getting de ja vu…" Rick whispered.

"Yes, me, too… and you have to give up the Ice star again."

"Aw, but I like Ice power…" Rick whined.

"So do I, Rick, but it's too dangerous." Rick froze and thought for a second while Blocky powered up.

"I have an idea," he finally said as Blocky charged straight for them. Rick jumped out of the way and Blocky slammed right into the wall. A chunk of rock broke loose from the wall and bounded toward Rick and Kirby. Just before it hit, Rick froze it into an ice cube.

"Wow, I think I understand now," said Kirby. Rick smiled as the box-shaped enemy recovered and charged at them again. But this time Rick kicked the ice cube as hard as he could, making a direct hit at Blocky.

"Ooh… ouchies again," he murmured. Still weary from the last battle, Blocky decided not to go on. "Dark Matter no be happy," he managed to say before he blacked out. Rick froze him and the bag he was guarding opened to reveal their mysterious blob friend.

"Hello Kirby, Rick," he greeted them. "I am here again to restore your energy, but I am also here to warn you about something." Rick and Kirby paled.

"What's wrong? We're not too late, are we?"

"No, but there is a new problem. Dark Matter has found a new way to hinder the mission. I'm not quite sure how yet, but you must be extra careful, now," the helper said.

"Oh, thank you. I'm so glad you're here to help—I don't know how far we could have gotten without you!" Kirby cried. Rick nodded his head vigorously in agreement.

"Just remember, Kirby: you must always watch yourself. The enemy could be just around the corner."

"We'll remember," Kirby assured him. "And thanks again!" With that, the helper restored their energy, and our heroes continued through a door that had appeared after the battle.

They were back at the platform pipes, but on the other side of the chasm. Rick quickly grabbed the star pieces they had missed and then went back to the next door, freezing a Waddle Dee that had tried to hit them from behind.

It was a miniboss room! But… there was no miniboss. Not really, anyway. The sack was wriggling in the center, but guarding it were two Shotzos sitting precariously on Spark Power Blocks.

"Oh, man! Rick, if we could find Spark Power, you could use your Spark beam and get rid of them!"

"Yeah, but there isn't anywhere to find it here," Rick said sadly. "We need to keep going if we're going to find a way to get the Rainbow Drop." He jumped over the bag as Kirby looked back somberly at the friend he could have released. There must be a way, he thought as they entered the next region.

"Jeez, as if water isn't bad enough!" Rick yelled. Kirby couldn't help but agree as a powerful wind began to blow them toward not one pair, but several pairs of Gordos! Using his agility, Rick began ducking and leaping to avoid getting hit and losing the star, but at the very last Gordo, he slipped and was hit. The Ice star was long gone.

"Dang it! Oh well, it was nice while it lasted," Rick sighed. He and Kirby were now being driven into a wall that seemed to be very out of place in this cold, barren area. With all his power, Rick jumped up and over the wall, discovering a door.

"This must be the door to the next area," Kirby concluded. He and Rick entered, ready to keep going.

But what they found was not the next area; it was the next Rainbow Drop! And, like the others, it was shielded by Power Blocks. These particular blocks looked like two marshmallows smashed together on top of each other.

"Hey, I'll bet Cutter power would take care of these," Kirby suggested. "It's the only Power Block we haven't come across yet."

"Yes, but… there haven't been any enemies that have Cutter power around here. And we can't bring it from somewhere else because of the Ice Power Blocks from earlier. I don't think we'll be able to get this one, Kirby." Kirby looked at his friend with wide eyes.

"Rick, you've been acting really weird lately. Are you feeling sick? Remind me to give you a Potion next time we find one," Kirby said.

"Well, I have been feeling… umm, funny lately," Rick replied. Kirby felt his head.

"You don't have a fever or anything… it must just be a bug," Kirby determined.

"Hehe, must be."

"Hmm… but where could we find Cutter power here? There must be a way…" Kirby began pacing around, thinking hard. Rick watched him nervously.

"I got it!" Kirby yelled, nearly causing Rick to jump out of his fur. "It must have been those pipes in that platform! I'll bet there is something more back there! Come on, Rick, we've got to get Kine!" He hopped onto Rick's shoulders, again not noticing the strange look on Rick's face as they left the Rainbow Drop room and went through the final doorway a short distance away.

Back at the volcano, Rick and Kirby were deliberating where it would be fastest to find Kine.

"What about Iceberg? He's the first one you find in the third quadrant," Rick suggested.

"Yeah, but not until you travel for a bit. Hey, I know! How about Red Canyon? All we have to do is beat that puny little Masher guy and he's there."

"That… could work—"

"Well, let's go!"

"But, Kirby, I really don't think it will make a difference," Rick responded. Kirby was beginning to notice a tone that wasn't there before.

"Are you sure it's just a bug, Rick? Maybe you should go back to Grassland and rest—"

"No! No, I'm fine, Kirby. Let's just go," Rick retorted as he started scaling the mountain. Now Kirby was beginning to get worried.

"Well, OK…" he finally said as he followed his hamster friend.

They climbed the volcano and hopped onto the Warpstar that was waiting for them. They rode back to Red Canyon and entered the third area, making sure to enter the watery doorway.

"Back for more, huh? Me an' Rex won't be so easy to beat now! We been practicin'" Masher greeted them. He gave his mace a swing for good measure.

"Uh, Kirby? I can't suck him up. How can I beat him without a power…" Rick trailed off, seemingly lost in thought once more.

"Rick? Yoo hoo," Kirby called, waving his arm in front of Rick's eyes. Masher looked on with confusion for a second, but then just seemed amused. Soon Rick snapped out of his trance and turned to Kirby.

"Since I can't beat him with any powers, why don't you jump down and get him with one of your air puffs?" he whispered. "That ought to take care of him."

"Good idea," Kirby agreed, and he jumped down to do just that. But when Masher swung his mace at Kirby, a net sprung out as well—straight for Kirby! Masher began to laugh as Kirby struggled against the net.

"See? I told ya we was practicin'" he chuckled. But before anyone could do anything, Kirby took a deep breath and began to swell up. The flimsy net was unable to hold Kirby's increasing bulk, and it was ripped to shreds. Kirby floated above Masher for a few seconds before charging and exterminating him with an air puff.

"Oh, Kirby!" Rick suddenly cried. "I was so worried! I was about to tear that net apart, but then you started to do that float thing and—"

"Rick! It's okay, I know. There's nothing I can't handle, right?"

"Right!" Rick answered. Kirby could have sworn he mumbled after that, but just then the bag opened to reveal Kine.

"Hi, guys! Why are you back here?" Kine puzzled.

"Well, we need you to get the sixth Rainbow Drop, and this was the fastest way we could think of doing it," Kirby informed him.

"Also, Kirby," Rick chimed in, "I think I am starting to come down with something… maybe it would be a good idea for me to rest for a while." Kine gasped.

"Rick? You're sick? It must be the work of that Dark Matter! We ought to stay with you and make sure you feel better," he said.

"Uh… alright, but only till we get back to Cloudy Park. But then you have to go on and let me rest by the volcano. I'll be fine, I promise," Rick replied. He smiled to reassure them.

"Well… okay," Kirby said. "But don't stop resting until you're 100% better, got it?"

"Got it."

"Okay, Kine—let's get that Drop!" All three went through the door to return to the Warpstar. When they returned to Cloudy Park, Rick sat on a cloud while Kine and Kirby went to continue the journey.

"Good luck!" he called. "I'll be back as soon as I'm feeling better!" Just then he put his paw on his head as though he were dizzy and almost fell off the cloud. Kirby was just about to help him when Rick came back to his senses and gave them a victory sign. "I'm okay now—just do your best!" And before Kirby could object, he lay down and fell asleep.

"I sure hope Rick gets better," Kine said sadly.

"Me, too," Kirby agreed. They went back to the second area, following all the steps Rick had until they reached the room with the mysterious water current.

"Alright, Kine—can you swim against the current and see what's causing such a force?" Kirby asked.

"Are you kidding? I'm the strongest swimmer in all Dream Land! Nooo sweat."

Kine swam against the current rather easily, and, as Rick had predicted, they found that the stream was caused by a couple of pipes. But what he hadn't predicted was a door right next to them! Kine eagerly swam through and he and Kirby entered another miniboss room. This time, however, the miniboss was none other than Master Green!

"What? What are you doing here? You weren't supposed to make it this far!" the jellyfish yelled. "This wasn't part of the plan…"

"Plan? What plan?" Kirby asked suspiciously.

"That is none of your business! But now that you are here, I get another chance to appease Dark Matter and rid him of you once and for all!" He chucked two of his harpoons at Kine and Kirby, who easily dodged them.

"When will you learn? You can't defeat us! We've done it once, we've done it twice, and we'll do it every time you even challenge us!" Kirby cried. "Kine, release the Ice Star—we're going to need Spark power when we rid ourselves of this pest." Kine did that and Kirby inhaled it. Both opponents stood poised at either end of the room, both ready to shoot stars at the other. As if by some unseen signal (A/N: Wow, doesn't that just scream "cliché"…), Kirby and Green hurled their weapons at the same time—but only one adversary remained standing…

*Sigh* "Did we not tell him we would win?" Kirby asked of Kine.

"Yes, we did—I guess he's not a very good listener." Kirby giggled as he swallowed Master Green and gained Spark power. This time the bag opened to reveal the female helper.

"Hello again, my friends! I am here to present you with an extra life," she proclaimed.

"Oh, thank you so much! You don't know how much we love your help!" Kine told her. She smiled at the young fish.

"The other helper told us that Dark Matter was up to something. Do you have anything else you can tell us?" Kirby asked. She shook her head.

"All I know is that Dark Matter doesn't want you to find the Drops, and that he'll do anything to stop you," she said.

"Thank you, miss. We honestly do appreciate all your help," replied Kirby. With that, the mysterious being gave them the extra life and vanished.

They returned to the sunny plains with pipes, and Kirby began to think. Now, to get rid of those Shotzos, we need Rick's Spark beam… but he's not feeling well, Kirby calculated. I suppose, though, it wouldn't hurt to keep going—maybe we'll find out something else we need to know, he concluded.

"Okay, Kine. *Sigh* We need to go back and fight Blocky again. Perhaps we'll find another secret now that you're here."

"Sounds good to me, Kirby. You've already been here, so you know what's going on."

They returned once again to Blocky's room, and using light bulbs, Kine easily knocked him out. But what really caused a problem was the furry friend who popped out of the sack…

"RICK?!" Kine and Kirby cried in unison.

"Hi guys! I guess I was just tired—a little nap and I was completely restored!"

-.-;; "Rick, I really worry about you sometimes," Kirby sighed. "But since you're feeling better, now we can get rid of those Shotzos guarding the bag."

"Oh, is it Rick's turn now, Kirby?" inquired Kine.

"Yep—we need his Spark beam to free whoever's in the next area," Kirby told him.

"Super! But, Rick, you take it easy, okay?"

"No problem, Kine."

"Alright, see you guys later!" Kine said, and left.

"Ready to go, Rick?" Kirby queried.

"As ready as I'll ever be," he replied.

So the two continued on to the Shotzo room, breaking the Spark Power Blocks and sending the little cannons plummeting to the ground miles below. After a bit of a struggle, Coo finally wiggled out.

"Oh man! I feel as though I've been in there for ages!" he groaned as he ruffled his feathers.

"Hey, this is great! You'll be perfect against the strong winds outside!" Kirby exclaimed. Rick only seemed to look pale again. And then they all heard a stomach growl.

^^;; "Heehee, I guess I'm hungry again," Rick said sheepishly.

o.o;; "Well, if you want to go and try to find some food, I guess you can," Kirby said. "Unless you want to come with Coo and me."

"Nah, I could never keep up with you guys in that wind. I'll just go on my own. Good luck," he answered, and he left through the door to find some food. Coo and Kirby looked after him for a minute.

"Hmm…" Coo pondered.

"You feel it, too?"

"Yes… it seems that Rick is not quite himself."

"He was feeling sick earlier—and I think he still is. He's been having these spells where he just dropped what he was doing and stared into space."

"Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to let him go, then?"

"Do you really think we could have stopped him? He's stubborn as a mule."

"This is true."

"I sure hope he'll be okay," Kirby fretted.

"I'm sure he will be," Coo said, and he flew outside.

The wind surprised Coo at first, but within a few seconds he had control of his flight. And Kirby was able to see something unusual behind them.

"Coo, do you think you could fly that way, against the wind?"

"I'm sure I could," he replied, and he did just that. They came upon a strange structure, underneath which was a door away from the wind. And, of course, they couldn't help but go through it.

"So, we meet again."

It was Waiu, the ninja and Cutter master. Kirby was pretty sure he wasn't quite as tired out as the others, and he knew he could never underestimate an enemy with such poise.

"You weren't supposed to come this far," he stated sinisterly.

"So we've heard," Kirby retorted. "But you all should know better than to underestimate us."

"Yes, I have learned that—and now I shall be more careful," Waiu said. No sooner were the words out of his mouth than he was gone.

"Oh no! It's his Dragonflame attack! Fly up, Coo!" And just as Coo beat his wings to fly vertically, Waiu reappeared with his fiery attack.

"That was close," Coo whispered. "But I have an idea."

Using Spark power, Kirby sent down a bolt of lightning while Coo held on. The bolt hit Waiu dead on, and he jumped out of the way as fast as he could.

"It won't be so easy to defeat me! I don't tire as quickly as the others." He sent a cutter at them, but Kirby annihilated it with the lightning bolt. It was then that Waiu again used his attack, and Coo flew back and forth, waiting for him to reappear. And as soon as he did, Coo and Kirby used all their strength to hit the ninja—which sent him falling to the ground.

"Coo, release the Spark star, please—we're going to need Cutter," Kirby said excitedly. Coo did that and they gained Cutter power.

"Why do we need it so badly, Kirby?"

"You'll see."

They flew back outside, and Coo began thinking. Soon, he expressed his thoughts to Kirby.

"You know, Waiu is a well trained miniboss—don't you think it's a little strange that two hits with Spark power took him down?"

"Well, we used all the strength we had—and he might have been still tired from the last fight…" Kirby suggested.

"I don't know, Kirby," Coo said as he flew over a Gordo. "That was awhile ago, and he should have been able to recover fully almost instantly."

"Maybe this is what the helper meant when he said to be 'extra careful,'" Kirby mused.

"Maybe, but it just doesn't add up…" Coo puzzled as they approached the Rainbow Drop door.

"Oh, so this is why we needed it," Coo realized. He shot three Cutter feathers, breaking all three Power Blocks at one time.

"Yep, and now we can grab this Rainbow Drop and keep going!" Kirby cried. But just before he could even touch it, Kirby and Coo heard a familiar voice behind them.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," it said. Kirby and Coo slowly turned around.

"Oh… oh no…"

And from not too far away, an evil, shadowy figure began to laugh. I TOLD YOU, it said. I TOLD YOU…

To be continued…

Who is this mysterious character? What will it do to Coo and Kirby? Is Kine okay? Is Rick truly over his sickness? You have to read and review to find out!

A/N: AAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Aren't I mean? After all that time, I give you a nasty cliffhanger. ^-^ I'm sorry! I just got this idea and I had to go along with it. :P But I hope you enjoyed it, and as usual, please tell me of any discrepancies. And remember, Venus loves you! Although I've recently discovered that she becomes quite angry with flamers… {VEnusAUR! (^o__~^)}