Getting to Glitzville was not too difficult, considering that they could use the Warp Star to get there. Many were interested in going there, while one in particular was stoked to be back here.
"Oh, boy! I can't believe we're finally back in Glitzville! This is SO cool!" Scrub said excitingly. "Say, Contadre… Why don't we go reserve a match for old time's sake?"
"That'd be cool and all... But, there are some more important things we need to do." Chopper reminded. "Though, seeing Jolene isn't a bad idea.
"Jolene? We haven't seen here in a while..." Vivian recalled. "Do you think she'll consider putting our spot back on the roster if we ever want to, well, fight again?"
"I'm pretty sure she would, 'cause we're the champs!" Scrub smirked. "Not even Rawk Hawk could take us down!"
"That sounds cool and all, but you do know we have to get that last Crystal Star," Sonic noted.
Defeated, Scrub pouted and followed his friends into the building ahead. Surprisingly, it didn't appear to be crowded. In fact, it was empty.
"Hopefully Grubba isn't back here again," Vivian hoped. "Though, I'm sure we could defeat him again..."
They walked over to the door to the main hallway, but as usual, it was being blocked by a Security guard.
"Hey, who're you, bub?" asked the Security guard. He got a good look at Chopper before realizing who he was. "…Whoops! I… I didn't mean to say that. My apologies, ex-Champion, the Great Contadre… You too, the Great Gonzales."
"We just want to speak to Jolene," Chopper said. "Well, that is, if she's still here."
"Yeah, she's here. Feel free to go see her." the Security guard stepped out of the way and opened the door. "Head on through the hallway and make a right. You'll see her office labeled, all right?"
"Thanks, dude! Now let's go see Jolene, Contadre!" Scrub suggested.
Chopper shrugged, and they walked through the hallway. They came across Jolene's office, and another Security guard was standing in the way. Chopper decided to give him all the details.
"What's that, bub? You wanna go see Ms. Jolene?" the Security guard stopped for a moment and looked at Chopper and Mario. "Hey... Weren't you two both champions before? Neat! Anyway, yeah, lemme step outta the way for ya."
The Security guard moved out of the way, allowing Chopper and his friends to enter the office.
"All right, Jolene! We're here to-" Scrub paused, seeing no sign of Jolene in the office. "What the heck? Where'd she go?"
"I'm afraid Ms. Jolene is out for the moment, so she cannot be here."
"Who's there?" Chopper asked.
A figure had landed on top of the desk, revealing himself to be a Sir Kibbles. However, there was a major difference between him and another Sir Kibbles. He was in silver armor and had purple feet and black gloves.
"Hey... Are you one of Jolene's assistants?"
"Nope. The name's Kibbler. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Wait... What happened to Jolene then?" Vivian asked. "What'd you do to her?"
"I didn't do anything. She kinda ran off on her own. Then again, she tends to do that a lot, so it's nothing new." Kibbler shrugged. "Anyway, I assume you're here because you got an e-mail sent to you, right?"
"Yeah, we... Wait, how do you know about it?" Chopper gawked. "Did you send those e-mails to us?"
"No, but I went all over the world to put those notes down," Kibbler answered, tossing 500 coins in his hand. "And it was well worth it!"
"Why didn't you just tell us to come here?" Scrub asked.
"That wasn't my idea. The one who wants you told me to do that. Speaking of that, follow me." Kibbler opened the door, and he walked over to the door leading to the arena. Everyone followed him out and met him there. "If you wanna get what you're looking for, head in here."
"OK," Chopper said, he and the others entering the arena. There were no signs of any fighters or audience around, and it was also pretty dark.
"This is definitely foreboding..." Flyer trailed. "And quiet..."
"Hello?! Is anyone there?!" Chopper called out, jumping onto the arena.
"Well, it's about time you show up, Contadre! I've been waiting for this for quite a while!"
A spotlight came down, and on the other side of the arena, Rawk Hawk stood there, arms crossed and wearing his champ's belt.
"Rawk Hawk? I didn't expect to see you again..." Chopper trailed. "Did you give me all of those e-mails?"
"You're darn right I did!" Rawk Hawk grinned, taking out a Mailbox SP and tossing it in front of Chopper's feet. "It took me a while, but I managed to find out how to use those doodle-hickeys. Since you had one of those, I thought about having a rematch with you."
"So you made us travel around the world for nothing? What was the point of that?"
"Oh, don't worry. You didn't come here all for nothing! I have what you need! Hey! Koopinator! Show him the chest!" Rawk Hawk turned to his side, and another spotlight appeared off the arena. At first, they could only see two, glowing red eyes, but the spotlight revealed the Koopinator standing beside a large chest.
"It is right here, Rawk Hawk," the Koopinator assured. "You. Contadre. It has been a while..."
"See that chest, Contadre? That can solve your little problem. I managed to get a hold of those, and after Kibbler told me about you unable to progress, I decided I'd bring you here. Of course, I wanted to give you guys a little warm-up before we got started. After all, it ain't fair if one of us didn't prepare ourselves."
"I think it would've been easier to just tell us to come here..." Bombette deadpanned.
"I'll give you a little deal, Contadre," Rawk Hawk started, ignoring Bombette. "I'll let you have what's in that chest, but only if you manage to beat me in a rematch!"
"What happens if I lose?" Chopper asked.
"If I win, then you must give up your name as champ, and I will be known as the 'True Champ'! There's only one room for the number one spot, and it's me, baby!" Rawk Hawk declared, pointing at the ceiling. "I've been training hard for this moment, so get ready, Contadre, 'cause you're up against a new Rawk Hawk!"
"All right, then," Chopper declared, equipping his Fighter ability and tightening his bandana. "If you want a rematch against us, then I'll accept your challenge! Me and my friends are going to take you down!"
"Harharhar! That's just what I want to hear! All right, Kibbler! Announcement time!"
"Got it!" Kibbler answered, landing in between the fighters with a microphone. "All righty, folks! Here we go! On the left side of the arena… He's fast, he's cute, he wears a red headband… HEEEEEEERE'S THE GREAT CONTADRE!"
The only sound they heard were crickets chirping.
"AND… On the right… He's a chicken!"
"Hey!" Rawk Hawk yelled.
"Oh... Sorry." Kibbler apologized, quickly getting back to the action. "He RAWKS the whole house down, and not to mention he's a REAL champion… Give it up for… RAWK HAWK!"
The sound of a cheering audience could be heard, but they obviously saw Kibbler playing that sound from speakers.
"This is so fake..." Bombette groaned.
"Now, let's try to keep this clean, boys!" Kibbler advised, throwing the speakers aside. "You know the rules in the Glitz Pit! …Oops! There aren't any rules here! Go all out!"
"Heh heh! Now this is more like it!" Sonic grinned.
"Excellent! So… Get ready to… FIIIIIIIIIGHT!"
The sound of a gong being hit echoed, and the battle began. At this point, the fighters got in their fighting stances in preparation.
"So, we finally get to face off once and for all to determine who will be the true champion," Rawk Hawk said. "Well, this time, I'm not going to let you losers get in the way! Listen up, Contadre, 'cause I won't repeat myself again! I will reclaim my fame that had been taken from me by you, and I shall finally be the top dog!"
"Wait, how are you going to get people to believe you if there isn't an audience?" Vivian asked.
"Don't worry, I've got this all on tape," Kibbler said, now holding a camera and filming. "It'll be in top condition, too!"
"Yeah. This film'll be shown by everyone, and then everyone will see how much better I've become! Be warned, Contadre! I ain't holding anything back this time!"
"All right, then," Chopper replied, giving a smirk. "This might be fun!"
Tattle: That's Rawk Hawk. He's the famous champion in the Glitz Pit…though his ego is still pretty big. Max HP is 340, Attack is 16, and Defense is 1. He'll try attacking you with his new punches, kicks, and even his stomp attack. He's got the moves from before, but he's got PLENTY of new moves to help beat you. He can even counter some of your attacks if he tries to defend himself, so don't try attacking him physically then! He was sorta meh before, but I think he's been doing some serious training…
Chopper started off the fight by rushing toward Rawk Hawk and landing a punch on him. Tamber also hit Rawk Hawk with a punch as well, except his was much stronger.
"So, you think you got what it takes to beat me, huh? Well, we'll see about that!" Rawk Hawk grabbed Chopper and swung him around until he let him go. He ended up crashing into Flyer, leaving the two dazed.
"Ooh! Now THAT'S gotta hurt! The Red Bandana'd Fighter just got his butt handed to him by Rawk Hawk! Can he turn it around?" Kibbler watched as Chopper struck Rawk Hawk with a Vulcan Jab. "Oh! He throws in a Vulcan Jab right when the Rawk was gloating! What a move!"
"I guess we have someone commentating..." Vivian sighed and punched Rawk Hawk with her Shade Fist, leaving him with a burn.
"Oh! Did you see that? That's a chick you don't wanna mess with! Especially with those flames! It'll make you hot for sure!" Kibbler exclaimed, soon noticing Rawk Hawk drop kick Chopper. "Oh, what's this? Rawk Hawk managed to drop kick Contadre! Oh, and it was so painful as well! ...And now Contadre's going for-"
"Stop acting like one of those professional commentators at a wrestling match," Flyer shushed. "That stuff's fake anyway."
"Fake? You think these muscles are fake, chump?" Rawk Hawk asked, flexing his muscles and obviously offended.
"The only thing fake is your belt," Chopper said, delivering a kick to Rawk Hawk, followed by Shadower's Shadow Punch.
"Ooog… So you did get a little stronger..." Rawk Hawk mumbled, rubbing his head. "But the Rawk's gotten stronger too! With all the training I got at the gym, I managed to pull THIS off!"
Rawk Hawk took a couple of steps back and began to charge at them with his shoulder in front of him. He managed to hit all eleven of them and even jump back to the other side of the ring flawlessly.
Mario: That reminded me of one of Wario's attacks...
"OK, not bad..." Sonic commented, quickly shaking his head. "I bet you couldn't do this!"
Sonic got in a ball and rammed into Rawk Hawk with a Spin Dash. Chopper immediately followed up, rushing at the yellow chicken with a powerful Rising Break that managed to knock him back and bring him down to 260 HP.
"Now THAT'S a punch you don't want to get hit by!" Kibbler announced. "The Great Contadre's showing off some real moves there! He's going from cute to-"
"Stop with it already!" Berry interjected. "You're interrupting our battle!"
"Sorry..."
"Whew… You've got more moves than I thought, Contadre..." Rawk panted. "You're pretty good… But that won't beat me. How 'bout I start to RAAAAAWK this fight a little more?"
Rawk Hawk grabbed Chopper and performed a suplex on him, leaving him in another daze. "Harharharhar! Now that's a move I always wanted to pull off during this fight!"
"Well, at least you didn't decide to cheat..." Chopper mumbled, slowly getting up. "Of course, don't think you're going to beat us so easily!"
Chopper jumped toward Rawk Hawk and struck him with a Vulcan Jab. Vivian soon followed up by emerging from the shadows in front of the yellow chicken and hitting him with a Shade Fist. Rawk Hawk charged and performed a sliding kick attack that managed to hit Vivian, taking 16 out of her.
"Ooh! It looks like Rawk Hawk missed hitting Contadre and got the shadow chick instead!" Kibbler cringed.
"We get it already!" Tamber yelled angrily, while Chopper kicked Rawk Hawk, and Flyer hit him with a Flying Attack. Rawk Hawk decided to target Flyer and jumped in the air toward Flyer to throw his two feet at him.
"Harhar! How did you like that?" Rawk Hawk grinned.
"Not too bad... Though we faced stronger..." Flyer mumbled.
"What?"
"Well, it's true," Berry agreed, hitting Rawk Hawk with his hammer, with Chopper striking him with a Vulcan Jab afterward.
"Well... I still won't let that intimidate me!" Rawk Hawk jumped off the wall and rammed into Chopper, taking 18 out of him. "Man, pulling off these stunts is making me even more motivated into beating you!"
"OK... Maybe I was wrong about you..." Chopper trailed, unsure of what else to say, so he struck Rawk Hawk with a Vulcan Jab. "But that's not going to stop us!"
Bombette had approached Rawk Hawk, despite appearing unfazed by her. However, her Bomb had covered him in soot, making him throw in a punch and knock back the Bob-omb.
"Don't worry, I'm all right," Bombette assured, quickly shaking herself.
"Unh! Yeah!" Rawk Hawk exclaimed, flexing his muscles. "I still got it in me!"
"Instead of flaunting, perhaps we can get back to our scuffle?" Flyer suggested.
"Fine."
"Poyo! (My turn! My turn!)" Kirby declared happily, striking Rawk Hawk with a Cartwheel, which then followed up with another Rising Break, leaving him with 163 HP. Rawk Hawk decided to curl up in a ball and hit both Chopper and Kirby.
"Oh! He manages to pull off a-" Kibbler was grabbed by Scrub's tongue and turned him into a giant egg. That was when he hit Rawk Hawk with his Mega Egg and took 12 out of him. The result of the egg being broken made Kibbler fall off the arena by the Koopinator. "Ouch..."
"Whoa... That was a surprise, shrimp..." Rawk Hawk gawked, getting hit by Chopper's Vulcan Jab afterward. He decided to target Scrub and throw him across the ring. "Ah! Now that's better! Are you guys getting RAAAAAAAWKED already?"
"Dude, just shut up!" Scrub yelled, hitting Rawk Hawk with another Mega Egg, followed up by Chopper's Rising Break.
"You're not looking too good, Rawk Hawk," Chopper noted, seeing Rawk Hawk exhausted. "Ready to give up?"
"In your dreams, Contadre!" Rawk Hawk grumbled. He looked up at him with a glare, but then he saw Kibbler toss a chair into the ring. "What's this?"
"It's anyone's weapon in this fight!" Kibbler yelled. "But who will get it?"
"I never heard anything about using chairs to fight," the Koopinator said. "But there are no rule here."
"Exactly," Kibbler nodded, tossing another chair. "Here, kid! You can have one too!"
"No way!" Chopper retorted.
"What? Well, your loss..."
Rawk Hawk grinned as he picked up the chair and hit Chopper with it. This, however, made Chopper hit him with a Spring Jump. Add Flyer's Flying Attack, and the champ was down to 91 HP.
Rawk Hawk rubbed his face and then brought the chair down on Chopper's face, leaving a red bruise on his cheek. "How does that make you feel, Contadre?"
"Uhhhh... I don't know..." Chopper trailed, still wincing over the pain. Regardless of that, he hit Rawk Hawk with a Vulcan Jab. Tamber decided to go up next, rushing at Rawk Hawk with his fist glowing green. His Power Punch managed to take 13 out of him and deal some serious damage.
"Argh! Not bad, Contadre!" Rawk Hawk decided to toss the chair aside and perform a body slam on him. When he did get off, Chopper had hit him with his Gravity Jump, and thanks to Mario's hammer, Rawk Hawk was down to 32 HP. "Ugh… Why do I feel so exhausted...?"
"Maybe 'cause you're tasting defeat," Sonic grinned.
"What? Not a chance!" Rawk Hawk charged in Sonic's direction and managed to jump on him, dealing 16 damage. Chopper had fought back by using a Spin Jump to deal 12 damage, and with Scrub's Gulp, he was certainly tasting defeat very soon.
In fact, Kibbler even took notice of this.
"WHOA! Now look at THAT!" Kibbler gaped. "Contadre's already brought the yellow chicken down to 10 HP! Can he make one final blow?"
"All right, here it goes!" Chopper smiled, running toward Rawk Hawk. "Rising Break!"
The uppercut punch not only defeated Rawk Hawk, but the force of the punch had managed to send him flying upward, leaving a hole through the ceiling. At this point, everyone had gawked, seeing Rawk Hawk a mere ant in the sky.
"Uhhhh... I didn't mean to do that." Chopper sweat dropped.
"AAARRGH!" Rawk Hawk cried, now falling back into the ring. When he landed, he fell on his back, defeated. "No… All of this hard work… It went down the drain... I admit defeat, Contadre. You ARE the real champ…"
"Well, it looks like we got ourselves a winner! Give it up for…the GREEEEAT CONTAAAAADRE!" Kibbler raised his arm up in the air, expecting a bunch of people to be cheering. However, since there was no one around, it was all silent.
Chopper decided to break the silence by approaching Rawk Hawk and holding his hand out. "Are you all right?"
"Wait... Why're you helping me up?" Rawk Hawk asked.
"Well... This wasn't a serious fight or anything. It was all fun! Plus, I think it'd be nice to show some good sportsmanship!"
"Ugh... All right, thanks..." the yellow chicken grabbed his hand, and Chopper pulled him up. At least, that's what he thought he'd do. Unfortunately, due to his skinny arms, he required the help of the others to help Rawk Hawk stand up. "I don't understand… How did you…URK…still manage to defeat me after all that…BLUH…training I've done? I worked so hard until my arms were sore!"
"Well... I've been doing a lot of fighting too." Chopper explained. "And who cares about some true champ or whatever? Aren't we champions at something?"
"Yeah, we're all champs in the end," Sonic grinned. "I think it's more about doing your best. That's what I tend to do in a lot of competitions!"
"Hmmmmm... Maybe you're all right..." Rawk Hawk smiled. "Maybe from now on, ol' Rawk Hawk's not going to be thinking about the money, or the title. Naw, most fans and I just want to see what I can pull off! However, Contadre... Don't think I'm going to just give up on fighting you, 'cause I certainly want to be able to beat you and Gonzales! ...But maybe the next time, it won't be for any prize. It'll be just for the heck of it!"
Mario: Oh, yes!
"Since you guys won the fight, you can have the chest. You deserve it."
Everyone smiled, happy to see Rawk Hawk change like this. ...With one exception, of course.
"Wh-What?! You're not going to go all aggressive on him?!" Kibbler gawked.
"That wasn't my idea," Rawk Hawk said, turning to the Sir Kibbles. "All I wanted to do was prove that I was tougher without cheating. Obviously I was the one to get rawked."
"Oh, come on! This isn't what I was promised! ...Bah! Forget you and Chopper! I've got what I need, so I'm outta here!"
Kibbler bolted out of the Glitz Pit, leaving the others to blink.
"Well... At least we won't see that chump again." Scrub pointed out. "...Right?"
"Hey. Contadre." Koopinator said, bringing Chopper's attention to him. "I believe you should take the item in here now. You have some important business to take care of."
"Yeah, I do," Chopper agreed, removing his Fighter ability and jumping out of the ring to approach the chest. He opened it and found a new pair of white gloves with a light glow surrounding them. He gasped in delight as he held them up.
You got the Master Gloves!
"The Master Gloves! Awesome!" Chopper smiled, looking at the gloves that magically appeared on his hands. "This is great!"
As per usual, Toadette approached him when he was transported to a tutorial area.
"Hi there, Chopper! It's me again!" Toadette greeted cheerfully. "Congratulations on getting the Master Gloves! They can create quite a light show! Now you can use light energy!"
"Light energy? It's just like the Diamond Gloves I got two years ago..." Chopper trailed, noticing the yellow glow around them. "So, what can I do with them?"
"That's why I here!" she giggled. "With those gloves, you'll be able to fire a ball of light. Any dark enemies you encounter will be weak to this. Remember that, OK? Now… To use the Master Glove ability, you simply hold the B button like the Diamond Gloves. However, this time, you can charge longer to fire a larger one! Not only that, but you can fire light balls even faster with them! Just remember that a Light Block is what can be destroyed with them."
"Cool! Let me try it out!" Chopper charged up enough light energy to fire a large ball of energy. When a giant Light Block appeared before him, he created another large ball of light energy and threw it at it, destroying it.
"Great! You got it! …Oh, yeah! I forgot something! You can even use the Master Gloves in battle, too! That's how you can pierce through the defense of anything such as Dark Matter! It's also capable of blinding your foes and preventing them from attacking! Pretty neat, right?" Toadette smiled. Chopper nodded in agreement, but he noticed she looked a little sad.
"Huh? What's wrong?"
"Ummmm… This is kind of sad… I think… I think this is the last time I'll ever get to see you, Chopper…" Toadette trailed, slowly backing away and trying to keep a smile on her face. "Definitely save the universe and collect the final Crystal Star. And… And be careful on your quest, OK?"
Before Chopper could respond, she started to turn away and run while crying.
"Oh... She must be really sad..." Chopper trailed, sadly waving goodbye as well. With that, he was taken back to the Glitz Pit, where the others noticed him waving.
"What's wrong, Chopper? Who were you waving to?" Vivian asked.
"I... Wait, huh?" Chopper gawked, looking at his surroundings. "Errr... I guess an old friend... Anyway, we should get going. We need to go to the Halberd!"
Dream Land, in the Halberd-
"Geez... That was no fun..." Sonic mumbled, shaking any water left on him and walking over to Dark Matter. "Well, it's still there."
"Yup, I see it. Sorry, Dark Matter…but you gotta go!" Chopper declared, tossing a light ball at it. At that point, light began to engulf Dark Matter, and it exploded into light.
"Ah! So it did work! Excellent! Now we can continue moving!" Flyer smiled.
Chopper gave a smile too as they approached the door up ahead leading to a few staircases. Taking those stairs led them into a room with silver, metal tiles and a big glass window giving them a view of the ocean.
"Wow. Now THAT'S a sight." Sonic commented, getting a view of the fish and the Rainbow Coral Reef.
"I've seen better," Tamber mumbled. He walked over to the door up ahead, and the others follow. Chopper already had full 185 HP and FP, so there was no need for the Heart Block. However, he did hit the Save Block just in case.
"Gee, I have a feeling there's something coming up..." Berry trailed.
"Well, we'll be able to conquer it no problem!" Chopper assured, running through the open door with his friends.
Next room-
Meta Knight stood on a high platform in the next room, staring at the view of the ocean before him with his caped wrapped around his body. This was something he liked to do while in his ship, whether it be in the sky or sea. Admittedly, he felt bad that his ship had to be over the Rainbow Coral Reef. It was one of the many beautiful areas of Dream Land's sea.
"Sir Meta Knight!" Sword Knight called out, approaching the platform. "We are ready for takeoff!"
"Good. We shan't waste any time in leaving. Getting that Dark Star is very important."
It was then that the door had opened, and revealed to be behind it were the eleven heroes. Blade had spotted them and looked up at his master.
"Sir Meta Knight! Trouble!" Blade Knight warned.
"I had a feeling you would show up, Chopper..." Meta Knight trailed, not even turning around. "You knew that it was only my ship that could help you reach the final Crystal Star."
"Meta Knight…" Chopper started, looking up at the caped warrior. "We need you to do us a little favor... We need-"
"Yes, I am aware of what you need, Chopper," Meta Knight sighed. "Even after the warnings I've given you, you still continue your quest. Why do you still continue?"
"Because there are a lot of people counting on us to protect the universe from this darkness. Heck, my planet got caught in that darkness, and you don't want to know what it's like there."
"Your planet was caught in that darkness... I see..." Meta Knight trailed, his eyes turning green. "Then that means the darkness is getting much closer... We may not have much time."
"Not much time? You mean it's over for us?" Tamber asked impatiently.
"Do you all still wish to search for the last Crystal Star? Regardless of what happens as a result?"
The heroes gave Meta Knight a nod.
"Very well. So it appears I cannot change your minds... You should keep in mind that the Dark Star is supposedly one of the most dangerous Crystal Stars, do you not?"
"We don't care how dangerous it is. We are going to get it, and it requires your ship." Chopper stated boldly.
"You know, Chopper... One of the reasons why I wanted to prepare the Halberd was to find the Dark Star and keep it from falling into your hands. However, I now realize that your map would eventually lead to me, so I could not escape from you forever..." Meta Knight slowly turned around to look down at the group. "So, I guess I have no choice but to help you..."
"Wait... Really?" Sword gawked. "I mean, after all this preparation?!"
"Are you sure?" Chopper asked.
"Yes. However, I only have one wish. I want us to battle one last time in order to see how much stronger you've become. Maybe then you could possibly..."
"Possibly what?"
"I will let you figure that out yourself. For now, draw your sword, Chopper. I want this fight to be our most memorable." Meta Knight drew Galaxia and looked down at his servants. "Sword! Blade! Tell the captain to prepare for liftoff! We are leaving Pop Star immediately."
"Yes, sir!" Sword and Blade saluted before making their exit. Before they knew it, the Halberd was starting to lift off the ocean floor.
"I will make sure I hold nothing back," Chopper smiled, equipping his Sword ability and aiming its point at Meta Knight. "We're ready to fight you!"
"Good. That's what I want to see." Meta Knight said, leaping off the platform and landing in front of the group. "Now show me what you've got!"
Tattle: That's Meta Knight. He's a true warrior and is one of the strongest warrior in the galaxy. Max HP is 350, Attack is 17, and Defense is 2. He's got a couple of other moves up his sleeves now. He can stab the ground with his sword and make an electrical current shock you, or he might even shoot fireballs from Galaxia at you! Looks like he's pulling everything he's got at you now. Don't hold back either, Chopper! You can do this!
"All right, time to test out my new powers!" Chopper smiled, opening the palm of his hand and firing a light ball at Meta Knight. This had actually left him in surprise after getting hit.
"Light energy? Hmph… Very interesting..." Meta Knight mused. "Finding light energy around these parts is rare. Especially one that can destroy Dark Matter."
Kirby decided to attack Meta Knight with his Cartwheel. However, he didn't have time to jump back, and he and the others were hit by Meta Knight's Electric Pulse when he stabbed the ground with Galaxia.
"Whoa… Talk about powerful…" Chopper gawked. He tried to keep that from bugging him and swung at Meta Knight with his sword. "Even if you've got some new moves, so have we!"
While Meta Knight tried to shake off the hit, Shadower had lowered his defense with his Shadow Punch. He decided to swing his sword at Chopper, but the young hero held his sword in front of him and guarded his attack. While not too surprising, Meta Knight prepared to attack again, but he stopped when the ground started to slightly shake.
"What's going on here?" Bombette asked.
Mario noticed that the Halberd was slowly ascending and coming out of the water. Meta Knight looked out the window for a split second before turning back to the group. However, he noticed Chopper was missing.
"Where did he...?" Looking up, Meta Knight saw Chopper's feet make contact with his head, dishing out 30 damage. Tamber had run up to him afterward and struck him with a Power Punch to deal 14. Meta Knight fired a Sword Beam at Tamber, which managed to take 19 out of him.
Chopper had swung his sword at him again, allowing Mario to take his hammer out and bash Meta Knight with it, bringing him down to 258 HP.
Mario: We've already dealt 92 damage to him!
"Ever since you beat me back in those woods, I decided to check on where I went wrong. I finally discovered the answer." Meta Knight said, swinging his sword and shooting a fireball in Chopper's direction, covering him in soot upon being scorched.
Chopper mumbled quietly as he shook off the soot and fired a light ball at Meta Knight. With Vivian's Shade Fist, Meta Knight was left with a burn, which came into effect when Meta Knight used his Galaxia Drill on Chopper, who ended up guarding it. Chopper then pierced through his defense with his D-Down Slash, causing Meta Knight to recoil afterward.
"I guess I'll help out!" Scrub stated, walking over to Meta Knight and attacking him with his Mega Egg.
"You haven't appeared to change that much..." Meta Knight trailed, flying in the air and summoning an electrical wave with his sword, paralyzing Shadower. "However, that does not mean that all is lost."
"Argh! I can't move!" Shadower winced.
"Whoa… That's bad." Flyer looked over at Meta Knight and struck him with a Flying Attack. With another D-Down Slash, they had Meta Knight down to 198 HP.
Meta Knight swung Galaxia again, and a Sword Beam fired at Chopper. Unfortunately, the pale green boy hadn't seen it coming, causing him to tumble back upon getting hit.
"Ouch... This is starting to get annoying..." Chopper grumbled, swinging at Meta Knight with his sword. Mario's Super Jump helped deal 10 damage to him.
"The sky's getting darker and darker as we go up," Tamber noticed.
"That's because as you go up, you leave the planet's orbit," Flyer explained.
"Correct," Meta Knight nodded as he raised Galaxia up, which began to glow. "I suppose I should ready my Mach Tornado. I feel like now is the opportunity!"
"Oh, crud… I gotta take action." Chopper pulled out a Rainbow Master (Master Shroom and Rainbow Juice) and ate it to recover 200 HP and FP. "Ahhhh… That was good."
Vivian grabbed the group and pulled them into the shadows before Meta Knight unleashed his Mach Tornado, which had thankfully missed. Meta Knight didn't appear disappointed, as when the group emerged, he hit Chopper with a sword spin. Chopper decided to use his Spinning Sword on Meta Knight, while Kirby decided to use his Squishiness ability on Chopper, making him dodgy.
"Ooh! Thanks for this, Kirby!" Chopper smiled, deciding not to move as Meta Knight swung at him, which luckily missed. Thankfully, Shadower was no longer paralyzed, allowing him to lower Meta Knight's defense with a Shadow Punch. Chopper than leaped in the air and hit the masked warrior with a Gravity Jump.
Meta Knight quickly shook himself before going in a tornado and knocking Chopper back toward the wall. Thankfully, it was no Mach Tornado, which relieved Chopper.
"Man, you sure like to throw things at us…" wheezed Chopper as he used his Spin Jump on Meta Knight, with Bombette using her Bomb afterward. Meta Knight gripped Galaxia and swung another Sword Beam straight at Tamber. Tamber wanted to attack, but Berry beat him to the punch and hit Meta Knight with her hammer. Chopper then threw a light ball at Meta Knight to bring him down 90 HP.
Meta Knight shook off the damage he took and shot another fireball from Galaxia at Chopper. To his luck, the attack missed, but the dodgy effect had ended up wearing off. It didn't stop Chopper from hitting him with a D-Down Slash, followed by Flyer's Flying Attack.
"Impressive… You've managed to bring me down this far..." Meta Knight trailed, his eyes turning blue for a brief moment. He disappeared using his cape and struck Chopper upon appearing, knocking him to the floor.
"Too bad that Squishiness ability wore off..." Chopper mumbled, slowly standing up.
"Sir Meta Knight!" Sword Knight called out from the door. "We have just left Pop Star's atmosphere and are now up in the cosmos!"
Upon hearing that, everyone looked out the window and spotted a beautiful starry sky. It appeared black, with a pink beam in the background brightening the cosmos.
"Wow… It's beautiful!" Vivian smiled.
"We're still not done with our battle, mind you," Meta Knight reminded.
"Yeah, you're right," Chopper nodded, running up to Meta Knight and swinging his sword at him. Sonic had hit him with a Spin Dash, forcing Meta Knight to knock him back with a kick. However, once Chopper attacked with a light ball, and Mario used a Jump, Meta Knight was down to 40 HP.
"40 HP? So you've brought me this far down already..." Meta Knight trailed, swinging at Chopper, leaving red marks on his face. "If it weren't for your friends, this battle would be much tougher."
"So what? Teamwork is always a good thing!"
"Hmmmm... Yes, you are correct. Working together is important, after all."
He got back in his fighting position as Chopper swung his sword at him. Meta Knight tried to swing at him after he finished his attack, but he dodged and allowed Flyer to hit him with a Flying Attack. Despite Meta Knight hitting Chopper with a fireball, the pale green gumball appeared confident.
"This battle is ours," Chopper declared, piercing through Meta Knight's defense with a D-Down Slash, and, before they knew it, Meta Knight was down to 2 HP after Tamber punched him.
"Ungh... Excellent work, Chopper..." Meta Knight grunted, kneeling in exhaustion. "Perhaps now would be the time to end this fight..."
"I guess you're right," Chopper decided, removing his Sword ability. He had gained enough Star Points to upgrade his BP to 111, thankfully. "So, how was it?"
"You did good, Chopper... I must say, you and your friends have definitely improved. Perhaps you have what it takes..."
"What do you mean?" Bombette asked.
"Sir Meta Knight! Take some medicine!" Blade pulled out some medicine and tossed it to Meta Knight. He gladly accepted it, healing off his injuries and even offering it to the heroes. Once they took care of that, they gazed at the spectacle through the window.
"So… We finally made it. We're finally out in space..." Chopper trailed. "But… I don't know where to go! It's just space and that's it."
"We were planning on heading to Star Path," Meta Knight said, approaching Chopper with his cape wrapped around him. "There are some beings located there that might have an idea of where the Crystal Star is. ...However, I do fear that the way there may not be safe."
"Yeah, we're definitely picking up some evil signs throughout space," Blade mentioned. "Some familiar ones at that..."
"Correct, which is why you must be careful as you travel not only through Star Path, but many areas around."
"Oh..." Chopper trailed. "Well, you can just fly us there to make it easier, right?"
"Since you decided to come here, I think it is for the better that we bring the Halberd back to Dream Land."
"Wait, what?" Berry gawked.
"Hey, don't worry!" Sword assured. "We came up with something that could probably help you guys!"
Ten minutes later-
"Uhhhh... Is this safe?" Chopper asked, he and his friends stuck inside the Halberd's cannon.
"Don't worry, kid! We're experts when it comes to firing a cannon!" Sword assured.
"We'll make sure we fire you to your destination," Blade added.
"I hope so…"
"All right, we're ready to fire in three…two…one…FIRE!" Blade went inside the Halberd and pressed a red button. The cannon fired, sending the eleven heroes flying through space.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"Bye bye…" Sword waved as the group started to appear smaller. He and Blade decided to turn away, but Meta Knight watched them until they were no longer in his sight.
"Perhaps I should start alerting the others..." Meta Knight mumbled.
So, it looks like in the next chapter, things really start to get intense. I mean, it's space. What else can I say about it?