Author's Note: So, uh, in this chapter, there's this fellow I named Sir Rapier. Actually, when you google image 'kirby star warriors' you can find one or two images of Meta Knight with other warriors from the show. Rapier is actually the little guy all covered in metal with a cool musketeer hat and some cool glasses thingy. He's awesome. Have a good read!

I was in this room again. I never thought I would be back here. This time, there were only two of the Elders of the Council, and the lights were all on. There was no one else around, no generals, not even Sir Arthur.

"You say you were patrolling the halls when you saw that shadow?"

"Yes."

"And it didn't go into Sir Arthur's room by accident? It was heading there on purpose?"

"Yes."

"Despite the darkness, were you able to see how the beast looked like? A silhouette perhaps?"

"Yes. It was a little taller than me. It had wings, and it made no sound to recognize it."

"I see… What kind of weapon did it use?"

"A sword."

They asked me many questions, to get as many details as they could from what had happened two hours ago. I was getting quite tired, but it needed to be done. Now that all knew that there was an assassin, it would surely be found soon enough. A demon on the loose like this couldn't hide… could it? At least not for too long.

When I left the interrogation room, I felt somewhat relieved, but at the same time, there was a constant pressure on my heart that kept me wide awake that night. Every sound would make me jump and my hand would grasp my sword constantly. I could not rest. I knew the demon had seen me. Maybe I would be another target. I visisted Sir Arthur the next day. Making my way again through the halls toward the medical bay, I was on edge the whole time. My wings wrapped themselves around me all by themselves and I wouldn't take my mask off. I knew I needed to calm down, but the demon could have been anywhere… I could hear Sir Arthur's voice from the halls, barking orders, particularly a rather loud:

"By Nova, will you all leave me alone?! I'm fine!"

Figures the Council would have ordered soldiers to guard him after that. I walked past a patrol of soldiers silently and went toward his room. The medical bay was much more lively during the day. Nurses and doctors would run and walk here and there, some to emergencies and others to simple patients. With permission from the doctor, I entered the room. Sir Arthur was standing at the window, his back turned to me, hands meeting in his back. As a soldier to his superior, I saluted, even though he couldn't see me. He briefly turned his head to acknowledge my presence and he spoke first.

"Ah, I was wondering when you would come again. I haven't thanked you for what you did last night." He turned completely, face serious but eyes grateful. "Without you, I would have surely died by that assassin's blade. Now all that remains is to find him, whoever he is."

I nodded and tried to look calm by folding my wings back under my cape. Even here, I felt exposed…

"I did what I needed to, Sir," I said.

What I needed to do… For days, these words repeated themselves in my mind. I had to leave the base soon for an important mission in one of our colonies in the outer rings of a far away system. We were holding tight against Nightmare's forces on that star. Waves after waves of demon-beasts kept coming, one after the other, and the soldiers there needed our help. I was assigned to a group of strong warriors under the command of Sir Galacta, and I felt somewhat better on our way there. While some others looked nervous to go to battle, I was actually able to rest a bit before we landed. Once we were in orbit, Sir Galacta paced in front of us in the ship. I was always amazed by how easily this man could get his wings to flow down his back like a cape… I tried once, but the bones in my own were too fragile to bend them like this. For a moment, I didn't really listen to his speech. As I approached the higher ranks, I was getting used to the rules and the speeches. No, I was focusing on the wings… I had fought alonside Sir Galacta before. He was definitely a strong warrior and was probably holding back. However… I remembered how ferocious he was when fighting. The wings…

"We will send these demons to oblivion!" was his final words as he drew his sword and opened these wings, the soldiers drawing their own weapons for a war cry.

I blinked, and my sword remained in its sheath, and I stood there staring at those wings. Could it be…?

We landed very soon after that, and the second we were out we had to go and help the soldiers around the base. The number of demon-beasts in this place was astonishing, even with my personal experience. The attacks had been going on for so long, now the field was but a wasteland. And I was told that this star was filled with lush forests and lakes… Confident, I fought as best I could, and even forgot about the whole ordeal at the HQ. The fight went rather well, at least for me and most of my comrades. However… there was this one demon-beast, a swordsman, that was very quick on its feet and kept running away from me before I could end it. Frustrated, I couldn't leave it out there to call for its master's help, so I went after it further away in the wasteland. It almost looked like a leaping insect with its large thorax and strangely shaped abdomen as it continued escaping me, and all I could do was run after it.

"Will you just stop!" I finally yelled at it.

It seemed to react to my frustration as it suddenly spun around in mid-air and threw a knife at me. I was quick enough to dodge it, but next thing I knew I was locking swords with the beast. Its red eyes stared right into mine as I pushed it back. It didn't even seem phazed… With one quick move, I disarmed the nameless demon-beast and leaped at it to push it down with my feet. Placing the tip of my blade at its throat, it couldn't move and I looked at it directly in the eye.

"Any last word, demon?"

"…"

…It chuckled.

"Tr… Traitors… Traitors always get what they deserve… You were once my leader… You were once the pride of our master… It's far from over, Star Warrior."

I didn't think this through twice. In the fraction of a second, all life left these eyes, and the demon's head fell back on the ground, mouth slightly opened and mandibles still twitching. I jumped off the beast and wiped my sword in the dirt. I didn't need to listen to it. I put these last words aside and flew back toward the base. It was strangely silent here… No more explosions, not even the growl of a beast or the call of my comrades. Was it over already? My wings brought me to a stop and I hovered there for a moment. Over there, in the distance… the base was on fire. A large column of smoke and fire was rising up to the sky, darkening the air in a fiery hue. Something had gone wrong. Beating the air, I continued on my way, grasping my sword tightly.

The more I approached, the more I knew the base was done for. However… I found the soldiers… Their bodies were all scattered around among dead demon-beasts, many gazing upward, faces frozen and voices silenced… What… did this? They were all fighting here just a while ago! And the base! It looked like something exploded in the main building, the walls were down and the fire rose up to the sky. There wasn't any call for help, no sign of life, and I stood there, confused… until I heard many coughs. I spun and listened. It came from the other side of the base. Grasping my sword, I ran over immediately, ready to see either a demon or the cause of all this. When I turned the corner, I saw someone I recognized, someone that was with my team: Sir Rapier. He was sitting there against the wall, armor pierced and hands holding a wound. His breathing was but wheezing and coughing. I ran over and knelt by his side, and when he gasped I put my hand on his shoulder to keep him calm.

"It's alright, it's just me," I said as calmly as I could. "What happened here?"

He looked up at me, a part of his mask around his eyes falling off. His hand lifted off the ground and he put it on mine, nodding slightly.

"Thank the stars you're alright! For a while there I thought I was- kof! kof! ugh… I thought I was the last one here…"

"What did this? A demon-beast?"

His eyes widened and his grasp on my hand tightened.

"Who is what you mean… It was… kof!... It was Sir Galacta…"

I froze.

"He went on a rampage," he continued, voice quieter and eyes scanning the area. "Blew up a hidden bomb in the base, killed everyone… and he was laughing… Stars, he was laughing…"

I gulped down my nervousness to stop myself from shaking and breathed in deeply before looking around.

"We can't stay here," I almost mumbled.

"I tried to call for back-up," he breathed out. "But the bastard busted the radio tower, we can't contact HQ. Maybe they'll notice they're missing a contact, but I wouldn't get too much hopeful about that…"

"What about the ship we arrived on? Is it still around?"

Sir Rapier looked around, lifting what remained of his precious musketeer hat.

"I think so… I didn't see it leave, and I certainly didn't hear another explosion. It was over there, beyond that large rock structure."

He pointed in the distance, and sure enough, I noticed these rocks, forming like an arch with a hidden secret right behind. It was our ticket out of here. Careful, I helped my friend to stand up and supported him against my shoulder, sliding a wing on his back to support the rest of his limping body. His left foot was badly burnt and he had a stab wound in his side. He needed treatment as soon as possible.

We went there as fast as my friend's wounds let us and the silence made me even more nervous than anything else. Sir Galacta was the assassin… As these words crawled around in my mind, I heard the distinct sound of flapping wings. We were found… A shadow slowly passed right over us and we had to stop.

"Oh crap, you gotta be kidding me," Rapier mumbled as we both looked up.

Sir Galacta was hovering right over us, eyes burning like fiery suns in the sky. He circled above us like a vulture, angel wings stained with ashes, dirt and blood.

"Two little preys, running away," he chanted like a child's song, "two little rabbits, hopping around. Run, run, little preys…"

"He's crazy…," Rapier said almost in disbelief.

Keeping my eyes on the laughing man, I told him:

"You'll need to head over to the ship on your own. I can still fight, I will distract him. Go, now!"

We were always taught not to question these kinds of plans in such a situation. It was always better if one of us survived. As such, I carefully let go of him and Rapier stumbled for a moment before going in a limping sprint. Sword in hand, I looked up at the enemy. He was locked on to Rapier and flying his way. With a sudden flap from my wings, I leaped from the ground as fast as I could, holding my blade in front. The two weapons clashed loudly against each other and, for a moment, everything was a tornado of swords clashing and wings flapping wildly as we spun around trying to hit the other. Our swords locked again and we remained hovering there, each trying to push the other back. I was smaller than he was, but I knew I was fastest. He laughed loudly and his eyes shone with madness, the same light that appeared whenever I saw him fight.

"Heh heh heh! Hahahaha! Now this will be interesting! I was wondering where you've been, Knight! Almost thought you ran away from the battle!"

Knight… Right, he always called me that. He suddenly pushed harder and I had to break the lock with a quick flap to send me backward. I couldn't contain the growl that came out of my mouth.

"Why are you doing this! You're the one who tried to murder to Sir Arthur!"

He laughed once more, spinning around in the air like he was dancing around. He even turned his back on me.

"Hahahaha! Now you catch up!"

Thinking his guard was down, I charged forward, slashing horizontaly, but it was a mistake for he spun around and deflected my blow to counter-attack immediately. My mask blocked the slash for a part, but I felt the tip pass right through the slit of my mask. Blood streamed down between my eyes. The attacks that followed were quick and fierce, faster than I thought he could be, and all I could do was block them, one after the other, taking a blow here and there. My arms were soon covered in gashes, but the adrenaline kept me from feeling any pain. I needed to stay focused and calm. Sir Galacta was one of the strongest member of the Galaxy Soldier Army. But he wasn't invincible, that I was sure of. Finally I saw a gap in one of his attacks and I plunged my sword forward with all my might, stabbing him through his shoulder plate. With a grunt and a flap of his wings, he was already a distance away, hovering in the air with a bloody hole in his armor. His eyes looked at it a short moment, then swayed over to me once more. I had never seen such anger…

"You're always in the way, Knight," he growled. "You were there when I tried to kill Arthur, you miserable demon…" He pointed his sword at me, eyes mad. "Then you'll die a demon's death!"

And with a war cry, he lunged at me wildly without thinking, and I answered with a wave of attack of my own. It felt like this battle went on for hours. Each time one had the advantage, it was broken and switched to the other and we would fly in circles, one always facing the other. It was as if his strength was never-ending, an infinite loop of power. Once again, we were separated from a sword clash and we hovered a few meters from each other. Good, he was breathless… but I was too. I breathed deeply and focused. I needed to be stronger. He stared at me with hatred and his hand clenched his sword tightly. He was shaking.

"You dirty little…"

"Kill him. Prove to me that you are the strongest."

My eyes widened. That voice… it's been so… long… Nightmare… I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I didn't have to prove anything, not to him, not to anyone. Galacta roared out his anger and all I saw next was a sudden explosion and a flash in my eyes. The shock wave that followed pushed me away and I fell to the ground in a painful heap. I was so confused… Face in the dirt, my ears were ringing and my body felt numb. What was that explosion? I slowly lifted my head and looked up. What… was that, over there? There was smoke everywhere… Slowly, my ears caught more and more sounds. I made out the rumbling of an engine… then a call, like it came out of loud speakers.

"Meta! Sorry, you were a bit closer than I thought! You'd better not be dead down there!"

Looking up higher in the sky, I understood everything that happened. Rapier had gotten the ship working and had shot a missile at Galacta. I gathered as much strength as I could and stood up on my feet. The large starship was hovering in the air, its engine lifting up the dust and the ashes. I lifted a hand and waved, signaling that I was alright, and looked down to where Galacta was supposed to be. The fool… All that I could see was a heap of burnt feathers laying down in the mud, flesh black and distorted. Was it… really him? It felt almost too easy… However, I shook my head, feeling my body shaking. Why was I complaining?

"Alright, the hatch is open," Rapier spoke in the speakers. "Come on in, we're going back! Hope you can help me drive this thing, or else we'll crash somewhere."

I opened my wings once more and took to the air. The hatch from which all the soldiers once poured out onto this battlefield was open for me and I slid in without a word. We had to go back to the HQ. There was a lot to explain.

As I helped Rapier steer the ship so we could head upward, I couldn't help staring at the remains of Galacta. He hadn't used his whole strength today. And yet, he managed to destroy our whole team as well as our base, in just a matter of minutes… Once we were in space, we set the course on hyperspace, and I did my best to help Rapier with his serious wounds. Maybe now things would calm down.