The throne room was in ruins. Tables were overturned, food and wine stained the floors, and two opponents continued to circle each other like predators. Both had slowed down in pace, indicating their growing fatigue. Meta Knight had not expected the jester to be so ferocious, and Marx had not expected new injuries on top of what he obtained from traveling in such haste. Still, he showed the knight no fear. He needed to buy Magolor as much time as possible to get clear of the castle and far enough away to hide. He better be smart enough by now to do at least that. Marx kept a steady gaze on the knight, purple eyes matching yellow.

"You cannot defeat me," Meta Knight growled through his teeth. "You might as well skulk back to the forest. Give up, heathen. I'm not letting the likes of you stop me when I'm this close."

Marx weighed his options. He couldn't fight Meta Knight much longer. He doubted he could out run him long, either. A thought struck the jester. I can't beat him. That's just it... so I won't. Marx spun on his heel and ran down the hall opposite of the one Magolor took. Meta Knight was hot on his heels, preparing to slice him in half. He led the knight up a staircase and dove into an empty guest room. Using his foot and his teeth, he pried the window open, revealing the courtyard far below.

"End of the line, jester."

Meta Knight was getting closer, closing in for the kill. Marx could see the excitement in his eyes. He stared right back, feeling a bit of nervous excitement as well.

"You're right. I can't beat a guy like you. But you know what I can do? I can take every secret, every bit of knowledge I have to the grave and out of your reach."

With a wink, Marx let himself fall back. He caught a brief glimpse of a shocked expression before everything went blank. Marx did not continue right away. No, he had to wait for just the right moment. Meanwhile, Meta Knight glanced through the window, trying to comprehend the meaning behind the now flattened corpse below. Marx's body did not move. Meta Knight turned away from the sight and left the room. Well, that's one down. With that business done, the knight decided to move on to other priorities. The foreigners were no doubt escaping. Trying, at least. His cape swished as he tightly turned a corner. He met a dead end with no sign of his targets and headed back to the throne room, briefly stepping into the guest room again to see if the jester was truly dead.

There was no body.

Marx counted his lucky stars that the knight had reentered, and reset, the room he fell out of. He awoke standing in the doorway and ran for it, heading back to the throne room as quickly as possible. Marx hoped the knight wouldn't figure out the whole "continuing" thing too quickly. He counted on it too often to get out of sticky situations. The jester breezed through the throne room at top speed and followed the hallway Magolor went through. Breathless, he continued to run while peering into doorways just in case the Halcandran hid himself nearby. One door was cracked open, and Marx carefully peeked inside. Naturally he was irritated that Kirby still had Magolor here, and he kicked open the door fully.

"Mag, what are you still doing here?! You were supposed to run!"

Magolor turned around, holding a glowing object that gave off ominous vibes. "Marx, look! We opened the case from the Lor! It's a magic artifact, isn't it?"

"Looks like those toy crowns they make for kids playing pretend. Now, let's go before captain Tin-can shows up with help."

Taranza frowned and gestured to the object. "But if this is magic, we can use it to stop Meta Knight! Why don't we try it?"

"No way!" Marx growled. "Stuff like this can build you up or tear you to pieces in an instant. We can't risk it now. Let's just leave while we have a chance!"

He turned to Magolor, cringing at his broken expression. "But... what about the king? We can't let something happen to him..."

Marx sighed and briefly bit into his lower lip. "Sometimes you have to be selfish, Magolor. For your own sake. You can't help everyone. You can start being a hero when you can actually take care of yourself. You look like you lived in a dumpster for a year. Let's go!"

Magolor said nothing, knowing that, as awful as it sounded, Marx was right. Even with magic, he doubted he could win such a fight. He did not know anything about magic. Magolor tucked the artifact into his worn out bag, and his friends headed towards the door. Kirby, who had been silent for a while, tugged on Magolor's hand.

"Do you really have to leave? I don't have anyone to play with. Daddy never plays games with me. He just works all day... I thought having a kitty would be fun. I promise I'll be nice. I'll even share toys with you! Please stay! I'll get Daddy to forgive you! It works every time!"

Magolor felt the strain on his heartstrings, moved by the plight of a lonely child. Taranza of course began to tear up and rub his eyes to clear them. Marx stared blankly, once again with a note of fear in his gaze. Magolor understood that gaze now. Wherever Kirby was, Meta Knight was somewhere in the shadows. They would get nowhere taking Kirby with them. Magolor patted him on the head and spoke quietly.

"I'm sorry."

Kirby held back tears as the three opened the door to leave his room. However, they advanced no farther. A Sword Knight and Blade Knight were waiting patiently for them, weapons drawn. Marx cursed under his breath and looked for a way to escape, but they were basically trapped in the child's room. Damn it! So close! We took too long! Now we're in for it! If Mag wasn't my friend, I'd kill him. I still might kill him.

-

In their exhausted state, the three put up little resistance as the knights herded them towards the throne room, where a certain knight was waiting for them. Meta Knight was leaning against the throne, eyeing them with a scarcely hidden look of triumph. After seeing that Marx had somehow faked his death (some typical court jester trick, no doubt), he had not bothered to chase him down. It would be much easier to call for rested, battle-ready knights to do it for him. Meta Knight might had been fooled, but he was by no means a fool himself.

"Found them in Kirby's room, sir," stated Sword Knight. "Kidnappers, I bet."

Blade Knight added quickly, "Shall we take them to the dungeons, sir?"

He made eye contact with each of them. Taranza had the usual look of fear about him, though he did not stare at the floor as he had before. His company must have given him the smallest amount of confidence. Marx met his gaze openly, glaring daggers into his soul. The jester was small, but clearly braver and more troublesome. However, it was refreshing to meet a challenge again after so long of being the strongest in the area. Then there was "Mark." Meta doubted it was his real name. He was not the best liar. The foreigner met his gaze, fearful yet questioning. The knight could read him like a book. Hopeless with the tiniest glimmer of potential. He may be useful for his future plans.

"You have all made quite a fuss today, and ruined his Majesty's banquet for the poor. Something so lowly must be punished. Don't you agree? Send the jester to the dungeon. Dispose of him later. Taranza is to clean up this mess without assistance. I want this whole castle spotless in an hour. Mark, you will come with me."

The knights proceeded to to pick up Marx, who paid them no mind. The jester was wide-eyed and staring at Magolor, whose fate was unnamed.

"Run, Magolor! Don't let them take you! Forget all them! Save yourself!"

The Halcandran called out to his friend as he was dragged away. "W-wait! You can't do this! Punishments should be part of the king's job! Where is he?!"

"The king had to be taken away for his safety, as procedure during a crisis. He will be back shortly. Though you three will be out of sight when he returns."

Meta Knight ended the conversation and began to leave the room. Magolor huffed indignantly when he noticed that the knight did not even bother to check if he was following; he expected absolute obedience. Given that he was tired, he decided to swallow his pride and proceed with caution. Magolor remained silent and focused on the movements of the cape ahead of him, watching it swish about and wave as they ascended a few flights of stairs. After a period of time, the distraction lost its hold on him, and he began to worry about how long they had been climbing. Where is he taking me? Do I want to know? Kind of? Meta Knight paused a moment when they arrived at a glass door leaded to the balconies. At some point night had fallen. The air was pleasantly cool, and the sky was dusted with countless stars. As they stepped out, Meta Knight pointed to a ladder next to the door leading to the roof. Magolor hesitated to act, so the knight ascended first. Now a touch curious, Magolor flew to the top (he did not really need a ladder for such a short distance).

Magolor took in the view of the night sky, temporarily frozen in awe at the endless cosmos. The moon was full, illuminating the two of them where they stood a few paces away from each other. The gentle breeze carried the scent of fresh air with a hint of smoke as the residence of the castle started up a few fireplaces to warm up before bed. It was so peaceful. Had he been in a different situation, he would have loved to stay.

"Alright, whatever your name is," the knight finally began, sounding irritated. "If you want to be spared, and if you want your friends to be spared, you will tell me the truth. If you lie to me again, I won't hesitate to send you face first into the court yard. Start talking."

Magolor sighed, wanting to delay the inevitable. "I want information, too. Are you really planning to kill the king?"

A surprisingly warm chuckle answered him. "No, but the king needs to be replaced. Temporarily. I need to change some rules, and I need more workers. Then again, I might not if you start telling me the truth."

The knight sat down, gazing up at the stars wistfully. Something about the image looked sad, though Magolor could not piece everything together yet. He sat down near (but not close) to the knight before responding.

"Why do I matter? What could I possible do for you?"

"Do you have a ship or not?"

The sudden question surprised him, but he answered honestly. "No, not anymore. Why?"

There was a short pause. "Do you know where it is?"

"Not a clue. Part of me would rather not see it again..."

The knight's gaze fell the the grounds below them, barely visible in the moonlight. He looked so... disappointed. Finally the images clicked in Magolor's mind, and everything fell into place.

"You... You and Kirby aren't from here, are you? You go out searching for people in hopes of finding their ships... You're just trying to leave, too..."

Meta Knight gave a tired sigh. "I've been away from home for a long time. I would sacrifice anything to get off this backwoods rock. My home... My true home is out there somewhere. If I can just find a ship to get me there... I came here with Kirby long ago. Now we're stuck without transportation. I wanted to find you so that I could use your ship. Or at least get you to help me build one."

Magolor felt sorry for him. He was stuck here, too. They all were. After looking at the stars in silence for a while, Magolor relented and told his story once more. He too was far from home, as was Taranza. Marx was hard to predict, but he did not seem too attached to Popstar either. In turn, Meta Knight gave him a few details on his own plans. He was in the process of building a massive battleship. Such a vessel would easily take a hit and protect Kirby and himself as they travel to their home planet, one that he refused to name. Unfortunately, materials were hard to find, mechanics even more so. Meta Knight scoured the land for anyone with a hint of intelligence to help him build it. He roughed them up "a little" when things did not work as intended. Meta Knight did not tell the whole truth on that last note, but there was no need to let Magolor know everything just yet. The Halcandran took in the story, almost forgetting his previous cruel treatment. Almost.

"You know, maybe if we all worked together, we could all go home. B-but you can't treat us like you have been! You can't hurt us or the king! I can deal with ship maintenance, but you have to uphold your end of the bargain, too!"

Meta Knight laughed, smiling under his mask. "Well... I suppose I could play nice in return for your help."

Magolor stared into his eyes, looking for anything suspicious. The knight was hard to read, given that his face was covered. He simply offered his hand to shake. Magolor felt some hope begin to form as he accepted the hand and shook it firmly. Maybe this won't be so bad. He was not sure how long a standard agreement-handshake took, so he simply let Meta Knight hold his hand until he wanted to let go. The knight showed no sign of getting tired of the exchange, and looked a touch amused at Magolor's growing confusion. He's making fun of me now. Right after agreeing to be nicer! A full minute of silence passed by with neither moving a muscle.

"Uh... I-I should probably go."

"Probably."

"Can you... let go, please?"

"Only because you were polite. I need to inform the knights of the jester's release anyway."

They finally separated. Meta Knight gave him directions to an empty guest room where he could live and informed him that his friends would be sent to him shortly. Magolor nodded and left without a word. This Meta Knight is completely different from the one that I met in Bubbly Clouds... I hope this is a good idea. I suppose we could try to sneak away, but... what if he is telling the truth? If I'm planning to leave and find my home anyway, I might as well help someone doing the same. I did agree to help Taranza, after all. Maybe some lives will be spared this way. With Meta Knight gone, Popstar would be peaceful... but what about where I'd be sending him to?

-

By the time Marx entered the room, Taranza was passed out in one of the three beds, thoroughly whipped out from cleaning up the messy throne room. Magolor was occupying a spot in front of the fireplace, warming his fur and studying his artifact. He turned to look at the jester, who stared back with a familiar glare. I figured we would have an argument about this...

"Marx, I know you probably hate me for this..."

Marx sat next to him and huffed, "Damn right."

"But I think we can work with this! With someone like Meta Knight on our side, we don't have to worry about getting into trouble with knights anymore! We can travel any time of day or night. Besides, he promised not to hurt us or the king while we work together."

"And you believe that? Ha! You can't buy every excuse you get, Mags. There's this thing called lying that people do when they want to trick you. I don't trust this guy, and you shouldn't either."

"I don't trust him, but he's already building a ship. If he leaves the planet, we can go, too. It's an opportunity that we might not have again. It's the best plan we have... until I can figure out how to work this thing."

Magolor turned the crown over in his hands, trying to figure out what purpose it could serve. Marx glanced at it, too, comparing it to what he knew of magical artifacts. Most available on Popstar looked nothing like this. This golden crown truly looked like nothing but a household decoration. However, Marx could sense the magic in it. Anyone could tell that there was something different about it. Marx just could not decide if is was a "good" different or not. But I guess in the hands of someone as innocent and clueless as Magolor it couldn't cause that much trouble.

"... I guess I don't have a choice other than to roll with your stupid plan." Marx finally admitted. "Just remember it's temporary. Priority number one is not helping some metal coo-coo clock ravage the galaxy. You wanted to find out about you, remember? As for the artifact... have you tried talking to it yet? I'm not sure how you're supposed to activate it."

"Um... I guess I could try it." He blushed a little, feeling ridiculous talking to an object. "Uh... Hi. I'm Magol-"

"Don't introduce yourself, you idiot! Tell it to activate or something!"

"R-right! Sorry! Uh... Crown, activate! ... Please?"

Nothing happened. The two sighed with disappointment. Marx yawned and headed over to his bed, decidedly done for the day.

"I guess we'll put it off for now. Maybe it's just somebody's old junk."

Magolor was not convinced of that. The Lor must have given it to him for a reason. Why give him a useless trinket? He mindlessly traced the edges of the artifact, noting its three sharp spikes. Wouldn't that be uncomfortable? Why would anyone make a design like this? Getting scratched would be no fun, and a child could get hurt by it. Maybe it really is just a decoration... There was one way to test it. Magolor gently placed the crown on top of his hood, finding it to be a perfect fit. The light weight was barely noticeable. He jumped when Marx whistled from his bed.

"Hey, hey, hey. Looks like the king has returned. Sharp as ever."

Magolor laughed at the pun, grateful for the jester's humor. I reminded him that he had come a long way since he first embarked on his own. There was a long way to go still, but he felt confident that they could get through it together. Magolor decided to put the artifact away and get some much needed rest. Just as he started to lift the crown, the spikes clamped down. He paused for a moment, thinking that it was his exhausted imagination
and pulled harder. Magolor gasped when the vice grip bore into his skin, threatening to go deeper.

"M-m-marx? I-I can't take it off!"

Marx shot out of bed and ran to his side. He examined the object in confusion. The artifact clamped down in his skull. Marx knew he had to think fast.

"Alright, alright. Get into bed and don't move a muscle, understand? Don't even twitch, and don't pull at it anymore."

The panicked voices had caused Taranza to wake. He was sluggish at first, until he saw Magolor shivering in bed. Before he could respond, Marx started giving orders.

"Go get bandages, towels, and hot water. And something sweet for him to drink."

The spider hesitated only a moment before obeying. He returned with a cart loaded with the requested items and more. Since he was the one with hands, he tended to Magolor, at Marx's instruction. He made sure the new wounds were clean and that his patient was in a comfortable position. Taranza gave him some fruit juice to hopefully calm him down.

"Isn't there anyway to take it off, Marx?"

"Apparently not without cracking open his melon. This is why you don't play with magic."

"Don't say things like that! You'll make him uncomfortable!"

Magolor almost laughed. "I-I'm already uncomfortable."

Marx felt a stab at his heart and gave his companion a goofy grin. "Just try to relax and maybe get some sleep. Popstar has plenty of magic-users. Someone will be able to get that thing off your head. I'll go get help tomorrow. We don't want you-know-who finding out about this."

Taranza and Marx stayed up with Magolor for three more hours, talking about anything to distract him from his discomfort and growing headache. Marx finally briefed Magolor on the concept of continuing, which Taranza was surprisingly familiar with. He also told Magolor about different parts of Popstar, which turned into a hilarious tale about the time Marx got his tongue stuck on an icicle while being surrounded by angry Chilly. Never kick off their heads, no matter what. Magolor eventually managed to sleep, as did Taranza. Marx kept watch for a while, just in case anything changed while the Halcandran was sleeping. All was peaceful for the moment, and before he knew it, all three were snuggled up together, put to sleep by the comfort of company.

-

Magolor finally stirred late in the morning, awakened by the sunlight filtering through the window. His previous pains had vanished, much to his relief. He yawned and stretched, careful not to stir his still resting companions. I can't believe how much better I feel. I actually feel really good! The crown was still on his head, though its presence was hardly noticeable. He gave it an experimental tug. It did not hurt, but neither did it budge. It was as if it were part of his body. Curious and concerned, Magolor sought for something he could see his reflection in, to get a better look. He managed to find a small mirror after rummaging through the drawers of an end table.

The instant he looked at his reflection, he screeched, dropping and shattering the glass on the floor. Marx and Taranza were up in an instant, ready to help Magolor through another episode. What they saw stopped them in their tracks. Something about Magolor had changed. All was normal but his eyes. Those timid yellow eyes now had the black and red thickness of fresh blood. Combined with the spiked crown, his usual cute appearance now had a slight demonic quality. In contrast, he shook in fear, unable to understand the horror he witnessed.

"W-What happened? What happened to me?"

END CHAPTER ONE

Meanwhile...

In the far reaches of space...

HIDE

His children heard the call, though they did not understand why. The rhythm echoed through space, bouncing from one being to another. This was a frightening song. They did not want to go away. They did not want leave their creator's presence, always keeping them safe. Why leave?

HIDE BEFORE THEY COME

This was a command. Soon they could feel it. Each hundred and million felt it. Something unlike them was near. It had different energy. Its thoughts did not sing from one to another. How did it communicate? Could they not think? They could not understand the world outside of theirs.

They fled, breaking away from their bonds and becoming singular. One singularity fled as far as it could, trusting that it would be called back when it was safe. It flew through spaces, unrelenting until it began to exhaust. With its energy spent, it descended upon an unfamiliar star. Its collective knowledge had never known it. It was unpleasantly bright, but for now, it would be a resting place. It would wait as long as was commanded. Waiting patiently under the sun and moon of planet Popstar, it would rest until commanded to rise again.