In Times of Crisis

Chapter 3
A Dee and His Duty

(Uploaded on August 23, 2018)
(Updated on April 24, 2022)


Summary: Robots may be tearing across the ruined landscape, but one faithful assistant won't let that stop him from saving as many people as he can.


Notes: This chapter was updated on April 24, 2022 to touch up the writing.


[Bandana Dee]

Overload Ocean
Docks

They say a Dee's work is never done in Dream Land…

…but I don't think they ever accounted for a situation like this.

It's been quite a few days since what Great King has dubbed the 'Robobot crisis' has begun, and in that time, I've been out and about, trying to save as many people as I can from the invaders.

This crisis is even worse than the Dark Matter ones, too. At least Dark Matter had the courtesy not to bother affecting most of everyone on Pop Star.

These guys don't even care! They're killing off our way of life just because they can! They're attacking everyone just because they're in the way!

So the minute I saw the people of Dream Land in danger… I didn't hesitate to go out and protect them the best I can. I may just be a little Waddle Dee with a spear, but that doesn't mean I'm not qualified for taking out robots!

I've been out since then, trying to find as many people as I can – the ones who haven't managed to get away from the Haltmann Works Company (or so they call themselves).

Oh, and I can't forget helping Kirby out as well! I'm really good at encasing spare food in Assist Stars! I know Kirby appreciates it a lot—though they're pretty good for personal use, too.

(Man, can those mid-bosses really hit now!)

I haven't seen him a whole lot, seeing as how I'm on my own little journey—but I know he's been doing a great job saving us all as usual!

Just looking at what's happened to our beautiful land gives me pain, though. Our gorgeous oceans have transformed into an industrial docks with a lot of salvaging operations going on.

It's… It's just not us!

It's not Pop Star.

And I don't know why you would ever want to change that.

Why would these invaders do such a thing to us?

These docks have been relatively free of those in distress, thankfully—but I've still been keeping on the lookout, just in case.

Unfortunately, I can't just walk around wherever I please. I don't have extra Copy Abilities or Miracle Magic to bail me out like Kirby does, so I have to be careful. That's why I've gotta be stealthy!

Only problem is, I'm not very good at that. So every time a big Haltmann guard nearly catches sight of me, I have to scramble to fit behind whatever nearest trash can I can find.

I really do wish I didn't have to, but the world is super dangerous now.

I can't take any chances.

"…it's too quiet here," I muttered to myself, staring ahead at all the shipping boxes on the docks. I haven't encountered a single actual person yet today.

Like, where—where is everyone?

D-Don't tell me the H-Haltmann Works Company g-got to all of them…

N-No, that can't be possible. I gotta keep my spirits up!

J-Just because they're everywhere doesn't mean they can get everyone!

With this thought in mind, I cautiously made my way across the dock area.

There were so many boxes here, and I didn't even know what was in them. What could possibly be so important on Pop Star that you'd need a shipping industry, anyway?

"I don't like the looks of this…" I muttered,

Against my better judgement, I decided to shout a bit.

"Hello!? Is anybody there!? Please answer me!"

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, depending on your perspective), nobody answered my call.

Seeing as I didn't have a lot to do here as a result, I went and got a move on.

"Well, at least no one here is being attacked," I said. "That's a plus, right?"

Of course, the minute I said that, I heard a bunch of loud footsteps suddenly echo right into my ears.

Startled, I ran back into cover—and witnessed a bunch of Haltmann robots and Capsule J3s standing in a militaristic fashion. The former were holding blasters and evil-looking flails; it all made me all kinds of nervous.

I watched the faction of robots make their way through the docks, seemingly set on reaching a destination unknown to me. Wherever it was, though, I couldn't let them wander about without supervision!

Clutching my spear tightly, I started running toward after them.

They were moving at a particularly fast rate, though. While I was able to somewhat keep pace with them, the run was also quickly wearing me out.

"W-Wait… up…" I panted quietly, even though I knew they weren't going to say anything back. "I… I can't… keep up…"

Finally, I heard their synchronized footsteps stop right outside the primary docks area. I stopped nearby to catch my breath for a couple minutes.

Oh boy… I hope Kirby's having an easier time than I am at this.

That Robobot Armor would really come in handy at times like this…

"Wait… Why did they stop?" I asked myself, my breathing slowly getting back to a regular rate.

I looked up from the floor, trying to figure out our location.

What's going on? What could possibly give them cause to—

It was then that I noticed a little village on the outskirts, right in the shadow of the docks. One of those light bulb spires – the ones that had 'patched over' most of Dream Land – was sticking right in the middle of the village, too. From here, I could see a bunch of villagers banded together, their faces noticeably consumed with one of two things: abject fear, or angry defiance.

"Oh no… This is bad, this is very bad!" I realized.

None of them would be able to handle that thing at all!

One of the many Haltmann grunts, piloting another of those Invader Armors, descended from the sky, hovering stationary in front of the miniature army. He pulled out a loudspeaker and held it to his… face, I think.

"Attention, natives of Pop Star," the grunt announced. "You are currently residing in territory that belongs to the Haltmann Works Company. We must ask that you please vacate these premises and allow our expansion work to continue unopposed."

One of the angry-looking villagers—a Bonkers with a big hammer and a mouthguard—defiantly glared back.

"You come to our planet, you mess with our land, and after all of that, you want us out of our own land?" he gruffly stated. "You can take your dumb statements and get out."

"Y-Yeah!" a frightened Parasol Dee agreed. "Th-This is our village, y-you can't j-just kick us o-out!"

To my horror, there was some sort of metallic eye guard over half of his face. Was that a result of the mechanizing spire?

Th-That's terrible!

"We have all the power in the galaxy to," the worker proclaimed. "You natives are merely ants to our mechanical might. We are giving you a generous chance to depart without any major trouble. It would be unwise for you to refuse."

I can't believe what that guy's trying to do right now. He's kicking them out of their homes just because they're in the way! If Great King was here, he'd never agree to that!

Why… Why are they doing this!?

"Generous?" the Bonkers snorted. "Generous would imply there is anything for us to gain. All you want is us out of the way. And we are left in the dust as a result."

"And how is that a problem? It would save many resources for both our company and you."

"Where would we go to live, then!?" a particularly prickly Sparky demanded to know. Her sparks were hovering about vicariously around her. "Do you expect us to just find a new place to stay immediately!? We don't have your type of budget to spend!"

"That is not our problem. Now, we can either finish this job the easy way… or the hard way."

The grunt then proceeded to gesture toward the little army, which outnumbered the villagers three-to-one.

"It's your choice."

The villagers huddled up and discussed for a bit.

I couldn't hear them from here, but it looked pretty tense to me.

My mind whirled at a million miles a minute.

Finally, they turned their attention back toward the Haltmann robots.

"Have you made your decision yet?" the mech rider apathetically asked.

The Bonkers nodded.

"We will not be submitting to your demand," he replied. "This is our village, and—like it or not—it is where we will stay."

He swung his hammer over his shoulder, ready for battle.

"If you disagree… then try and get us out yourself."

"I was hoping you natives would be reasonable… but as I see, you are nothing more than unintelligible savages. Haltworkers! Capsule J3s!"

The lead grunt pointed in the villagers' direction.

"Take them out by force!"

The squadron of baddies began to charge forward, and I watched as the villagers did the same.

A fierce battle soon erupted.

The villagers tried their best to push back with their limited abilities, but it was clear they wouldn't be able to do this alone. Even the Bonkers was having a bit of trouble dealing with the swarm.

But, well… that's why I'm here!

To help!

I aimed my weapon well—and a split second later, a flurry of three spears flew from my grip, striking a particularly troublesome Capsule J3 fighting the Bonkers.

"Huh?" he dumbly stated, watching as his opponent was sent back a fair distance.

I hopped off from my hiding spot and ran into the battlefield, giving a few consecutive stabs to the downed worker.

"Hey, you guys need a hand?" I asked.

The Bonkers looked contemplative for a moment.

"Hmm… This is unexpected," he said, "but good. I have heard word of your exploits from across the land, little Dee. Your assistance is most appreciated."

"Heh heh, you have?" I said, my cheeks blushing. "Thanks!"

"Another unwanted interferer?" the Haltworker noted, a bit of annoyance leaking through its mechanical tone.

His eyes narrowed at me.

"You… Internal data logs tell me you have been a particular source of annoyance for the Haltmann Works Company, alongside that persistent pink native."

Pink native? He must be talking about Kirby!

"We do not have the tolerance for your unwanted interference. Haltworkers! Take care of this bandana-wearing pest!"

A fair amount of Haltworkers, maces and blasters and all, broke off to take care of me. Blaster shots started firing in my direction, forcing me to wildly jump away from them.

A mace was thrown in my direction while I was still in the air, and actually landed a solid hit to my side.

"Yowch!" I yelped, sliding on the floor.

The guy with the mace wound it back and threw it at me again. This time, though, I spun my spear around in an attempt to deflect it.

It worked; the Haltworker was caught off guard. I took the opportunity to rush on in with a flurry of spear strikes, each one doing a considerable amount of damage, before ending it off with a final thrust.

By the time the enemy hit the floor, he was out cold.

"Impressive, little Dee," the Bonkers complimented. "Let us do battle with these invaders!"

He charged into the fray himself, spinning his hammer around and smashing several enemies backward. A stray shot from a blaster Haltworker gave him pause, but he quickly shrugged it off.

Two Capsule J3s approached from my sides, their rockets blasting toward my position. In response, I rapidly spun my spear above my head and flew out of the way, watching as they crashed into each other with a comedic 'TONK!'.

I struck down at them, dazing one of the J3s in the process—but the other J3 wasn't having any of it. He crouched and revved his engines…

…and then, he blasted off at practically light speed!

"W-Whoa!" I shouted, barely sidestepping out of his way. "Hey, w-watch it!"

As soon as he stopped, the J3 turned around and shot off at me again.

This time, I wasn't so lucky.

And let me tell you, being tackled by somebody at that speed kind of hurts! A lot! (I think I'd rather face off against Kirby's hammer!)

"O-Oof! H-Hey, w-what are y-you doing!?" I squeaked.

Though I had already taken a bruise, the J3 wasn't letting go of me. I didn't get his intentions until I looked behind me—he was trying to crash me against a nearby house!

I can't let that happen! Great King's always telling me to limit property damage! I can't go against his word!

Quickly, I grabbed my spear and stabbed his hands, forcing me to release his hold on me. I tumbled onto the ground, but not before following up with a quick spear throw. The tip plunged into his jet, causing it to explode—and he fell to the floor, thoroughly unconscious.

"Phew!" I wiped my forehead.

Thank NOVA for my infinite supply of spears!

I took a glance at some of the other villagers. They were putting up a far better fight now, the Sparky in particular using her electric forcefield to absorb some of the blaster shots.

My appearance must've been enough to renew their determination. It looked like we actually had a chance at winning this now!

"Your performance against these natives is absolutely disappointing!" the armored Haltworker berated his minions. "Mere moments ago we were close to expanding our influence here! Worthless grunts!"

He shook his head.

"No matter. We have one more trump card up our sleeve. A special present for the bandana-clad native here, you could say."

The ground began to rumble, accompanied by loud and obnoxious whirring noises.

"P-Present!?" I squealed, struggling to keep my footing. "W-What are y-you talking about!?"

"We were originally going to save this for the pink native," he continued, "but calculations indicate that now is an opportune time for a latest investment. It will be more than enough to take care of business!

"Now, behold!"

All of a sudden, a giant and purple snake-like robot burst onto the scene. It sported these strange shoulder pads and gigantic golden blocks for hands—which looked very efficient at slamming things.

Electricity flickered around it.

"This is our new, advanced prototype machine: the Gigavolt II!"

Advanced Iron Serpent
Gigavolt II

All of us looked up at the newly-dubbed Gigavolt II in horror.

"You have got to be kidding me!" the Sparky exclaimed, both exasperated and frustrated. "Why is this invasion so freaking unfair!?"

"I see this as perfectly fair," the Haltworker waved her off. "Your venting is just an after-effect of our striving toward infinite prosperity. Simply inconsequential in the grand scheme of events."

Oh, I'd like to show you 'inconsequential'…!

"Now, Gigavolt II. Take out these savage natives by any means necessary!"

The giant robot began to move toward us.

There was only one thing we could do.

"R-R-Runnnnnnnn!" I screamed, grabbing my spear and hightailing it.

Luckily, everyone else had a similar idea, and were all bolting with me as far away as we could from the mechanical behemoth.

I felt utterly flummoxed.

Were they so annoyed at us as to slaughter us wholesale!?

What's their beef!?

The Gigavolt II had far more than just its menacing size to count on though. I briefly looked back at it, and caught a glimpse of the many rocket launchers behind its head.

They promptly began to fire.

Repeatedly.

At us.

And said rockets were big, purple, and definitely deadly.

Oh, that's just great! I internally grumbled.

There's no way we were going to be able to battle this thing like this! You'd need another giant robot on your side to stand any sort of chance!

"W-What the h-h-h-heck!?" the Parasol Dee shrieked as we attempted to maneuver between the incoming missiles. Their explosions were just as massive as the rockets themselves! "A-Are th-they trying to k-kill us!? B-B-But why!?"

"What, did the giant robot there not tell you anything about what they think!?" the Sparky snapped. "Just shut up and keep running! I'd like to live to see tomorrow, thank you!"

"That's right," the flying Haltworker taunted, hovering a little away from us. "Flee all you might; you're only delaying the inevitable."

The scramble away from the Gigavolt II led us right back into the docks. The thing seemed either oblivious or uncaring to all the property damage it was causing, despite both it and the docks belonging to the same company.

Seriously, it was tearing into all the equipment!

"We will not be able to sustain this flight for long," the Bonkers said, running next to me. "We must find a way to turn the tide back around!"

"But how do we do that!?" I replied, deflecting a rocket with my spear. "None of us have the firepower or maneuverability to damage that thing in the slightest!" I hopped over an explosion. "We'd need a miracle to tackle it!"

Then, an unfamiliar voice hit the scene.

"A miracle, you say? If it's a miracle you want… then a miracle you shall have!"

A series of indescribable blurs gathered in front of the Gigavolt II.

They revealed themselves to be mice of varying sizes, too: there was a fat blue one with an eyepatch; a stout yellow one with cool shades; a bunch of little tiny ones reminding me a lot of my fellow Waddle Dees; and a crazy-eyed one in a UFO of all things.

How'd he get his hands on one? Those things are rare!

Finally, the last of the collection of mice hopped in, wearing a red top hat and sporting a really fashionable cape (one that Great King would've liked to wear himself). His claws brought down the rim of his hat, and he looked back at us with smug confidence.

"I believe you desired help, yes?" he asked us.

I recognized him now. He was Daroach; Dedede showed me a picture of him once.

So that meant… this was the infamous Squeak Squad!

"What is this!?" the Haltworker shouted from his lofty throne. "More interlopers!?"

Daroach turned to look at the annoyed pilot.

"Ah, another one of you 'Haltmann' people," he noted. "Let me tell you: you have troubled this part of Pop Star for long enough. It wouldn't do well for us thieves to ignore these villagers and their plights, after all."

The Haltworker growled.

"My internal data logs pin you as Daroach of the Squeak Squad. Your team has similarly been a constant annoyance for our expansion efforts. Is today simply a day for all of the nuisances to band together at once!? Is the pink one going to show up as well!?"

"Hmph! You're speaking of Kirby, I take it? We won't need him to take care of you. Squeak Squad, you know the drill. Take this oversized behemoth down!"

"Yes, sir!"

Without another word, the Squeak Squad all dashed into the fray.

We all stared in awe as they began to utterly thrash the Gigavolt II.

The little Squeaks ran all about as a distraction. The yellow one was throwing shurikens into its arms, puncturing its armor. The UFO guy sat on its head, pulling out the screw atop with a giant screwdriver. And the big fat one, he was slamming into one of the Gigavolt's giant block hands.

And he was denting them!

Before long, another screw was revealed on what used to be a massive hand. The UFO guy tossed the big guy another giant screwdriver to use, and he got to work on it pretty fast.

These guys were just making a joke out of this massive robot.

It was amazing!

"Wow!" the Sparky exclaimed. "Heh, these guys aren't half bad!"

"How fortunate," the Bonkers commented as well. "I suppose we did get a miracle in the end."

"Don't worry, I don't ask for any payment," Daroach chimed in.

He shuffled over to me.

"So… You must be the little Dee that King Dedede holds fondly. Bandana Dee, no?"

"U-Uhh, yes! Yes, th-that's me!" I stammered and saluted. "Bandana Dee, reporting for duty!"

"You're pretty commendable, to have been out here for so long without being caught. Some of the refugees over in my ship speak quite highly of you."

Th-They have?

"Y-You mean, th-the guys I saved… they're alright?" I breathed a sigh of relief that I didn't know I had been holding. "Th-That's great!"

"Indeed," Daroach smiled, "you are certainly as much as an inspiration to them as Kirby is. I must confess, it is nice to see such noble figures doing good during this crisis. It is certainly a lot to be proud about."

The sound of rockets coming down the sky interrupted our little conversation.

"I'd love to let you continue your little talk," the armored Haltworker spat in disgust, "but I have duties to the Haltmann Works Company, and I am getting tired of dealing with you all. If I must take you on myself, then so be it!"

As the Invader Armor charged on toward us, Daroach simply tipped his hat again with a smirk.

"Trying to handle things yourself, eh? Well then, I must warn you…"

Suddenly, he pulled out a cane, topped by a upside down star bell.

"…we're not as easy to take on as you think!"

I aimed my own spear at the armor. "Y-Yeah! W-We'll take you down!"

Daroach swung his cane, and three separate Star Bullets rushed from it and into the armor. The Invader Armor swung its arm and blasted them away, but that wouldn't deter us from continuing our approach.

I dashed in, hopping right over the armor and stabbed several of its parts as I passed.

"Wha—! Hey! You—! Stop that!"

The grunt attempted to swipe at me with his armor's fist, but he was distracted enough to get smacked instead by a particularly big bomb. I took the opportunity to get some distance as Daroach's Fire Bomb went off with a spectacular bang, even making a large pillar of flame in the process!

By the time the dust settled, there were many black blemishes on the Invader Armor's paintjob. Rage adorning his features, the pilot began to repeatedly jump and slam down, making little shockwaves each time he tried to squash us.

Sadly for him, it was much easier to maneuver around him than it was to do the same to the Gigavolt II.

To put it bluntly, he was easy pickings.

"Stay still, you persistent pests!" he demanded angrily.

"A treasure seeker never makes things easy for his rivals, you know," Daroach taunted, shooting a few ice crystals from his cane. "The same holds true even in battle."

"Hmph! Babble on all you want, it won't help you! Not when we still have the Gigavolt II on our side," our enemy spat at us.

He looked back at where the Gigavolt had been. "Gigavolt II! Hurry up and teach these natives a lesson!"

The key word to my earlier statement was 'had,' of course. For where once there stood a towering robot… now, there lay only a disjointed mess of parts.

The other members of the Squeak Squad were laying all over it, joined by the other villagers kicking its remains with a vicious satisfaction.

The Bonkers looked on with faint amusement.

"What!?" the Haltworker cried. "This cannot be! This possibility was not predicted in our calculations!"

"Alright then!" I declared. "You're through here! Your minions are down, and your big robot's scrap now! Leave these villagers alone—or you won't like the consequences!"

I pointed my spear at him, just to drive the point home.

"It would be wise for you to make a strategical retreat now," Daroach advised as well, "lest your company winds up with further damages to pay."

The grunt sizzled for a bit before simmering down.

"Fine," he relented—"but don't think this is the end. The Haltmann Works Company will achieve infinite prosperity—

"—even if we must exterminate all you natives to reach it."

With those ominous words, the Haltworker flew off, his armor smoking and frayed from our battle.

Once he finally left our sights, I sat down on the floor and allowed myself to fall onto the grass.

"We—we did it!" I cheered, feeling sweat pour down from my forehead. Jeez, that was a little tougher than I expected! "Phew, I-I'm feeling pretty tired…"

The Parasol Dee from before waltzed up to me and Daroach.

"W-Wow, you guys really s-saved us!" he excitedly stammered. "Y-You're like heroes!"

"It was nothing, really…" I chuckled lightly, a hand scratching my head.

"I admit," the Sparky began, walking up beside the other Dee, "you guys really helped us out in that pickle. Not that we… needed it… or anything…"

Her eyes shifted about. It was obvious what she actually believed.

"…but now that that's over, what do we do about our village? We can't stay here anymore, even if we don't want to leave."

She's right. The Haltmann Works Company won't let this show of resistance go. If the villagers stayed, the company would only come back again—and they'd definitely have a larger force to bring to arms.

I'd tell them to head to Castle Dedede, but that's pretty far from here. And I can't get in touch with Great King, what with the communications block and all.

Luckily, Daroach had a solution on hand.

"Well, if it's shelter you need, then our airship has plenty of room." He put his claws under his chin. "It will be a slightly bigger strain on our resources, but it's nothing we cannot handle."

"That would be much appreciated," the Bonkers acquiesced. "I do not want to see my friends hurt under those intruders again."

Daroach turned to his crew.

"Hey, Spinni!" he called. "Have you guys finished harvesting all the resources yet?"

The yellow mouse—Spinni—ran on up to his leader.

"The parts of the Gigavolt II has been successfully taken, Boss," he said. "We are currently in the process of transporting the last of the pieces to the airship."

"Very well. Let us return, then, with our new guests."

He gave us a nod.

"It won't be far."


Daroach's Airship
Cockpit

I've never been inside the Squeak Squad's headquarters before. Or even seen it, for that matter.

Even still, I wasn't too surprised to find that the ship looked a lot like Daroach. I mean, Meta Knight does have that whole motif going on with his Halberd—and even Great King's gotten in on it.

I was surprised, though, to find out just how spacious it was!

The villagers we had rescued were currently looking all around, joined by plenty more civilians who had been staying here beforehand. My heart warmed at the sight of everyone. Some of them even went up to thank me for saving them a few days earlier.

"It was nothing, really!" I had replied. "I was just doing what was right."

"It meant something to us," they said.

Oh, did that warm my stomach.

Now, I was just sitting around, watching the little Squeakers operating the interfaces and the villagers playing around without a care in the world.

"It's a pleasant sight, isn't it?" Daroach's voice came into my ears, him sitting down next to me. "I imagine your King Dedede sees a lot of this at his castle, too."

"I hope he has," I quietly replied. "I… I don't want the people I've saved being captured despite my efforts. I don't want them to be hurt by these evil invaders. I—I just want everyone to be happy."

"Mmm… I'm glad you're trying your best. I think both Kirby and King Dedede would be proud of everything you've done."

He looked back at the kids.

"I may be a simple treasure hunter myself, but there's a heart inside me too. It is a shame then, that this Haltmann Works Company can't recognize it."

"Yeah, it is," I acknowledged—"but they won't be here for too long! Kirby will take care of them, I just know it!"

"Ah yes, Kirby. I assume he's been doing his usual, then?" Daroach smiled. "If he can trounce me and my Squeaks, then he can certainly come out on top of this conflict."

"You know it!"

A few moments passed in silence.

"I should really get going," I said. "I mean, I have to make sure I'm there to help Kirby too. That's why I'm making all these Assist Stars, after all."

I pulled out one from my inventory, still housing a freshly-picked pair of cherries.

"Assist Stars, eh? Didn't think you had a talent for making those," he commented. "That type of skill is rare here in Dream Land."

He closed his eyes for a bit, and then he pulled out a few somethings from his cape.

"Here, take this," he said, holding three Maxim Tomatoes fresh in his hand.

My eyes widened.

"W-Whoa, r-really!? Y-You'd… You'd really let me have th-them, just like that?"

Daroach's eyes twinkled.

"Well, I'd be a terrible person not to help a hero like you out during a time like this," he reasoned. "Just make sure to tell Kirby they're a gift from me."

"Th-Th-Thanks, D-Daroach!" I said.

Talk about generous…! Maxim Tomatoes aren't exactly common 'round here. I can't imagine how long it must've taken just to find all of them!

"You can thank me later. So, how about I give you a flight to wherever Kirby is?" he put forward. "Even with those invaders affecting our scanners, I'm sure he's not too far from our current positions."

I beamed.

Sounds good to me!

"If you want to!" I agreed. "Last I checked, he was heading for that big building in the middle of this ocean."

I pointed out the window, where there was this abnormally-shaped skyscraper just sitting out there, visible even over the water's horizon.

"Our best chance of finding him should be close to there. But—But not too close, y-you know?"

He nodded.

"If it's there he's headed, it's there we're heading too. Spinni!"

At the front of the ship, the yellow mouse looked back.

Daroach gave his orders. "Get us as close as you can to that building over there without being spotted. Can you do that?"

Spinni nodded, and got back to driving.

I looked at the Maxim Tomatoes Daroach had given me, and carefully put them in my coveted Assist Stars.

I've fulfilled one goal today… but there's another I still have to take care of.

And I won't cower away from it.

I'll face it with my head held high!

Just like what Great King would want; just like what Adeleine and Ribbon would want.

So Kirby, if you're there…

…don't worry.

Everyone here in Pop Star's doing their best, even if things aren't so hot right now.

We don't have anything to fear, not while we have our friends and allies by my side.

And so long as I'm still here, I'll be there to help you and everyone else!


This chapter was originally supposed to include Kirby in his Robobot Armor, but then I set up the Squeak Squad in Dedede's piece and I couldn't resist including them in here. After all, the Haltmann Works Company's got plenty of valuable material to steal. I couldn't see them not joining in against the company.

And of course, there's Bandana Dee. Since we don't see a lot of him in Planet Robobot, this was the perfect opportunity to show his character as a natural-born 'Helper' (heh heh) assures that. It's not all sunshine and rainbows for him – I mean, just look at all the stuff the HWC can throw at Kirby – but dang it, he's got a duty to do, and he's not stopping for anything!

Also, yes. Gigavolt II. I'm a bit of a jerk, yeah.

You know, I honestly didn't expect this fic to get as long as it did, but I suppose that's the way the cookie crumbles. Ah, well. Here's hoping for more of these fics down the line.

Well, that's all for now – see you around!