Disclaimer: Kirby belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratory.
"My," Hyness commented as he examined Elfilis, "this is interesting. It seems like they've actually achieved their primary goal. They apparently defeated some form of Dark Matter. They'll likely still seek out more should it appear, but for now, it seems they've satisfied those conditions. And…you might want to take a look at this."
With a flick of his hand, Hyness made the spell visible to everyone in the area in the form of magical symbols surrounding their body. In the center was a large butterfly-shaped brand on their chest.
"Quick question," Vesa asked, pointing at the brand, "were they born with that or did someone give it to them?"
"Well, we suspect it was given to them by an odd knight Kirby encountered and fought," Hyness answered, "originally, they suspected that Elfilis was killed by the strange warrior, but instead they bonded to them somehow. It's likely that they're still out there somehow, but for some reason they granted Elfilis great power and attempted to have them cause large amounts of chaos and destruction, by driving them even further insane."
"Poyo," Kirby sighed.
From there, Vesa couldn't help but worry about Elfilis.
"You don't think," Vesa paused, "whoever did this…might come after them again, do you?"
"Well, that's debatable, I'm not sure what their plan is with Elfilis. So far, it seems to have just unlocked their Soul form. Heck, we could probably remove the mark and they would still be able to access it. The issue is, I don't know if there are any fail-safes on this brand, and what would happen if it was removed. There doesn't seem to be anything I can see. It just looks like the enchantment is made to unlock that form and not much else. It's simple, however, due to how simple it looks I'm a bit worried it might be a trap. Or maybe this warrior doesn't have much magical knowledge," Hyness explained, "and before you ask, the Soul form of a creature is…well, it's a state that forces your magical energy into overdrive. This typically causes you to become more durable, more powerful, and your magic is stronger. However, without fail, it always induces major aggression, and is typically unlocked when someone becomes so mad at an individual, they have a mental break and their power skyrockets. Typically, this involves a single-minded need for revenge."
Vesa sighed and placed her hand on Elfilis's head.
"Whatever it is," she said, "I bet whoever that being is doesn't have good intentions."
"Presumably not," Hyness agreed with a sigh, "especially since the creature is half Galacta Knight, the being who destroyed our planet."
Silence continued to pass over the course of a few minutes until Elfilin flew into the foyer.
"Hey, Kirby!" Elfilin called over, waving his paw.
Kirby glanced up and waved back.
"Poyo!"
Elfilin flew down the stairs and hovered above his brother. The small chinchilla shuddered at the sight of Elfilis's soaked fur.
"It's," Vesa clarified, "it's been a long morning so far."
Elfilin shifted his gaze to Vesa.
"Kirby," Vesa asked, "do you remember the name of that knight?"
"Poyo! Poyo poyo!"
"Morpho…Knight?" Elfilin paused.
Vesa huffed and stood to her feet.
"Hey," Vesa requested, "if it's not too much to ask, can we at least keep an eye out for Morpho Knight? Whatever information we can get out of it would help greatly."
Vesa made a brief glance at Elfilis.
"Especially for their sake," she added.
The next thing she knew, Elfilis opened their eyes and let out a soft hiss. Using telekinesis, they removed the water from their fur. They opened a window and floated the water outside onto the ground. Soon enough, Vesa, Elfilin, Kirby, Dedede and Hyness focused their gaze onto them.
"Poyo!" Kirby chirped.
"Are you ok?" Vesa asked.
"Yes and no," Elfilis admitted with a sigh, "I feel better in some way I cannot describe and yet I'm also feeling depressed…something to do with my memories coming back in the heat of the moment."
Elfilin perched on top of his sibling's head. Vesa gave Elfilis a gentle embrace. The ultimate life-form sighed as they wrapped one arm around her back.
"So," Elfilin asked, "when will you be ready to finish setting up that ward stone?"
"I'd like to finish what I started at the fountain," Elfilis replied, "but that can wait."
Vesa released her grip as Elfilis sat up. The small chinchilla hopped off and perched on Dedede's head. The ultimate life-form made their way back to the basement to work on the ward stone, setting in a feature to target malicious intent. They concentrated in writing new protections and runes.
They completed the enchantments within a couple of hours. For anyone else, this might've taken a couple of weeks. With their work done, they ascended from the basement. Upon returning to the foyer, Dedede had already left. Elfilin was chattering with Kirby. Elfilis sat down on the couch, only to notice Vesa sitting at the other end reading a map of Popstar. She made a brief glance at them, giving a smile and closing her eyes for a few seconds. The angelic lancer returned their gaze, wondering if they should confide in someone about what they were dealing with.
"Hey, Elfilis?" Vesa said.
"Yes?"
Elfilis's tail wagged a little as Vesa scooted closer to them. She placed the map in her hands on her thigh.
"It would be nice to visit these many places here," she explained, "I just can't seem to decide which one to go to first."
"I'm sure there are plenty of magical items left behind by my father's people here on this planet," Elfilis replied, "it's shaped like a star. The amount of Dream and purified energy needed for that to happen would be…anyway, I'm not entirely certain this planet would even be able to have this shape naturally."
Vesa noticed Kirby and Elfilin made a brief glance at her and Elfilis, the pink star warrior waving his arm.
"Kirby," Vesa asked, "which place would you recommend?"
Vesa held out the map, allowing the pink star warrior to examine it. After less than a minute, Kirby pointed to a spot at the forest near the drawing of a lake.
"Poyo!" Kirby suggested.
"Whispy…Woods?" Elfilin tilted his head sideways.
Kirby shifted his gaze back to Elfilin.
"Poyo!" Kirby nodded happily.
Elfilis perked up their feelers.
"I believe I know what species of forest you're referring to," they replied, "they have many offshoot species and are all over the place."
Vesa smiled and stood up.
"Then let's get ready to go!"
That early afternoon, Vesa, Elfilis, Kirby and Elfilin went outside the tower. The pink star warrior led the way on the dirt path, passing by a Bronto Burt at times. As Elfilis followed close behind, Vesa stayed as close to them as possible. The path they took led straight to the lush forest ahead of them.
When they stepped into the forest, Elfilis took some samples from the local flora, realizing the entire forest happened to be named Whispy Woods, not just a solitary tree. Vesa took a few steps ahead of them and examined the woodland creatures simply going about their lives. A Gip perched on a tree trunk while a Tookey pecked at the forest floor.
Kirby walked along the path while Elfilin floated above the ground. The small chinchilla waved his paw at a nearby Sir Kibble. As the four continued their stroll through the woods, Vesa offered her hand to Elfilis. The ultimate life-form blushed as they took her hand. Stopping at a fork in the road, Kirby picked the center path. When the others followed the pink star warrior down the center path, they arrived in a large forest clearing. Vesa stared in awe at the sight of a large tree with a face.
While Elfilis tilted their head sideways and examined the tree representing Whispy Woods, Kirby walked up to the tree and waved his arm.
"Poyo!" he chirped.
Whispy Woods blinked and stared down at the pink star warrior.
"Afternoon, Kirby," Whispy Woods replied.
Vesa exchanged a blank stare with Elfilis.
"I didn't know trees can talk," Vesa commented quietly.
"Well," Elfilis sighed, "most can't. Most plants don't have intelligence. However, through the use of magic, many odd and fantastical things not possible through biology alone can occur."
Whispy Woods shifted its gaze towards Elfilis.
"I see you brought along some interesting friends," Whispy Woods said.
Elfilin tilted his head sideways. With his limited speech and assorted body language, Kirby explained to the sentient tree why he brought along Elfilin, Vesa and Elfilis.
"Well, then," Whispy Woods nodded, "it's nice to meet you three."
Vesa felt a chill down her spine, yet she returned her nod.
"Uhh," she stammered, "same for you."
The small chinchilla placed his paw behind his head.
"Thanks for your warm welcome!" Elfilin chirped.
Elfilin floated towards Whispy Woods, perching on its nose. Elfilis relaxed and remained quiet while they relished in the atmosphere the forest created.
"So," Elfilin asked, "what's your favorite season?"
"I enjoy the fall and the spring, one is a season of rest where I start to sleep for the year, leaves fall from my branches and I rest. The spring is when I wake and life returns to the forest. Trying to pick between the two would be impossible since I enjoy them equally."
Elfilin blushed cutely.
"I kinda like all the seasons," Elfilin said, "each of them has something that makes them all wonderful."
"Well, you aren't wrong," Whispy Woods agreed with a smile, "but I tend to miss the winter season as that's when I rest."
Elfilin floated over to Kirby.
"Poyo?" Kirby waved his arms eagerly.
Elfilis meandered to a sunny opening in the forest clearing, letting the sunlight warm up their fur.
"I suppose I have a game for the four of you," Whispy Woods answered.
"Really?" Elfilin chirped.
Elfilin perched on top of Kirby's head as the four listened in.
"For this game," Whispy Woods explained, "you four will split into groups of two. You'll be searching for machinery parts that have been scattered into this forest."
"A scavenger hunt?" Vesa blinked twice.
Even Elfilis found themself intrigued. They wouldn't mind it as it would be a nice change of pace for them.
"Of course, Miss Vesa," Whispy Woods nodded, "the team who finds seven machine parts and comes back here first…"
Whispy Woods sprouted five Maxim Tomatoes from within the leaves. Kirby smiled as his eyes sparkled.
"Poyo!" Kirby chirped.
"Will win five Maxim Tomatoes!" Whispy Woods continued.
"Maxim…Tomatoes?" Vesa paused.
Elfilis perked up their feelers, intrigued by the details Whispy Woods provided.
"I guess Maxim Tomatoes count as a neat prize," Elfilin replied.
"Maybe gardening would be a good hobby," Elfilis pondered, "with my powers, I could easily hybridize plants."
Kirby and Elfilin exchanged glances. The pink star warrior offered his arm and the small chinchilla happily did a back flip.
"Well," Vesa shrugged, "I'm not sure why machine parts would be in a forest, but…"
Vesa shifted her gaze towards Elfilis.
"Elfilis," Vesa asked, "wanna team up with me?"
"Of course," Elfilis nodded.
Whispy Woods remained still as Elfilis, Vesa, Kirby and Elfilin gathered at the center of the clearing.
"So you've already chosen your teammates?" it asked.
"Yes," Vesa nodded, "we're ready!"
Whispy Woods closed its eyes for a brief moment as it retracted the Maxim Tomatoes back into its leaves.
"Well then, don't forget to play fair," it announced, "now, let us begin!"
Upon cue, Kirby and Elfilin sprinted down one dirt path while Vesa and Elfilis turned to face another forest path. They set foot down the path and began their search through the woods. While they suspected Kirby might be a creature of luck, Elfilis could count on their enhanced eyesight to find anything made of metal.
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