Disclaimer: Kirby belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratory.
Vesa and Fecto Elfilis stood outside the throne room of Castle Dedede the following day. The tall warrior mage spent early in the morning doing the research they needed on the Squeaks, even creating a large poster board detailing the situation. The momentary silence broke when the large doors opened and Bandee stepped into the hallway.
"Right this way," Bandee gestured, "Sir Meta Knight isn't here right now. He was pulled away for some kind of urgent personal matter he had to attend to."
"Thank you, Bandee," Vesa smiled.
Vesa and Elfilis followed Bandee into the throne room. They walked along the carpet until they stopped just before Dedede. Vesa gave him a deep bow of respect while Elfilis gave a respectful nod.
"Afternoon, Your Highness," Vesa greeted.
"So why don'tcha both tell me about what this issue is?" Dedede raised an eyebrow, "I don't really have a perfect idea of what we are dealing with here, aside from the fact that Kirby made em' real mad somehow."
Elfilis reached into their pocket dimension and pulled out the large poster board.
"I've taken the liberty of visiting the city myself and taking pictures," Elfilis reported, "as well as getting an idea of both the political situation, economic situation, and the personal reasons of the attacking force."
Elfilis set down the poster board, allowing Dedede to examine the contents.
"Okay, so it's almost like a large slum? No real government other than a buncha hooligans, Mafia and Yakuza types," Dedede commented, "well, calling them Yakuza is probably insulting to Yakuza, if I'm being honest…"
Vesa blinked twice. The moment continued on in silence until Dedede cleared his throat.
"Anyway, I think I have a good understandin' of the situation now," Dedede proclaimed, "we can probably lend some aid and even let them take a few plots of land for themselves out here, open up immigration to em' if they want to move. Send supplies down there. First though, we need to deal with the gang problems. I know their type, they will horde supplies for themselves and make the common folk pay em' for it."
Dedede made a brief glance at the poster board.
"Anything we donate over there is jus' gonna end up feedin' those gangs instead of who we want to help," he continued, "we need Daroach to take charge down there. Maybe give the supplies to him to hand out. But before anything official other than that can get done, someone needs to take control down there."
Vesa nodded in agreement, sharing a glance with Elfilis.
"Elfilis?" Vesa asked, "you have any ideas?"
"My thoughts are that Daroach needs to solve his own problems," Elfilis suggested, "this situation is not something as easy as going in and killing the—"
Elfilis took a moment to pause and collect their thoughts.
"Well, it is that easy, but that wouldn't exactly be the best solution," Elfilis continued, "Daroach needs to take control down there and either become the biggest crime boss there, ensuring that he's effectively the government all on his own. Otherwise, we can go with that first thing, although that wouldn't exactly endear the Squeaks to us at all and would be a large point in tension between us. Killing a few of them? Not a huge deal, but killing the entire gang based society and delicate house of cards they have down there? That wouldn't end well."
Dedede rubbed his chin as he took a moment to think.
"Well, if you end up meeting with Daroach, feel free to offer our services when he decides to take over. He likely has something in mind," Dedede suggested, "if he needs to fight, we'll be ready to lend aid and provide after battle support and medical attention, I won't send any of my people to fight his war, but we'll offer supplies, medicine, doctors and food as needed. We can help support his city in the months afterward as well, but it'll be on loan and we will be expecting payment in return when he can provide it without crippling his city."
Vesa rested a hand on her hip.
"Good to know," she replied.
"Yep," Dedede gestured to Bandee, "we can offer a whole lot in terms of that kind of assistance, but Waddle Dees aren't exac'ly fighters for the most part, with some exceptions."
Bandee stretched his arms.
"Our more capable warriors might not even be in the double digits, if I'm bein' honest," Dedede admitted, "myself, Meta Knight, Kirby, Bandee, Zan, and potentially yourselves if you're feelin' like you have an obligation to assist."
Dedede scratched his head.
"Hmm, there is a few more, but I'm drawin' a blank right now," he added, "our strength as a country is more about the few powerful individuals who live here than a collective strength like most countries. Meta Knight has trained a lot of capable warriors, but they're a drop in the bucket compared to other countries' armies. Dreamland is in an awkward situation with that kinda thing. Luckily, none of the other countries are warlike or interested in invading. Otherwise, we might have a problem—not to mention we're in the very center of everything, landlocked by several other nations."
Vesa tilted her head sideways.
"I suppose that's all we need to know," she shrugged, eyes locked onto Elfilis, "right?"
"I suppose so," Elfilis nodded, "I'll go visit Daroach and let him know the situation. I'll be subtle and he'll be the only one aware I'm there. I'll ensure he knows everything you told me."
"Then that settles that," Dedede proclaimed, "you're dismissed."
Elfilis stashed the poster board before they led Vesa out of the throne room. They meandered their way out into the courtyard. Vesa quickly buttoned up her jacket upon setting foot into the chilly outdoors. To her left, she noticed Zan Partizanne and Fumu just as they began the young girl's magic lesson.
"Is there anything you'd like me to teach you today?" Elfilis asked her.
Vesa took a moment to think.
"I wonder how runes work," Vesa replied.
Elfilis nodded.
"Runes themselves are based on how old the language is and if they were used by a magical society," Elfilis explained, "they are more powerful depending on how long mages have used them. Each rune can be used in different ways depending on their meaning and symbology. They can be chained together into full sentences and grow more complex. Though the fewer you use, the more powerful they can get. The same combination of runes can mean two different things depending on the interpretation and who's reading them."
Vesa and Elfilis sat down on a bench. The tall warrior mage created a large plate of bone.
"Here," they offered, "I'll use this to show you how to inscribe a rune. It's simple to practice, but harder to master."
Elfilis drew a rune on the plate with their finger, not scratching into the surface as they let their magic draw the shape. The light blue energy lingering on the surface quickly caused the bone plate to begin rotting and turning into dust. She felt a chill down her spine. Vesa quickly searched her pocket bangle and pulled out a book on runes. She flipped through the pages until she identified the rune she saw just now: Jera.
"My interpretation of this rune when I activated it was Decay, the completion of the bone plate's cycle. If I used this on a living thing, it would harm them greatly," Elfilis continued, "but, since it would be directly applied to a living creature, it wouldn't be as effective unless they were a willing target. If a person does not want this effect to occur, it might not happen depending on how strong they are compared to you, and how well they understand runes. Your opponents' understanding of the subject matter actually makes your attacks weaker if they don't want them to take effect, and they can even counter the spell outright if they wanted to. We used these before, remember?"
Vesa took a moment to reminisce about the runes she saw when Hyness set up the portal between Dreamland and Waddle Dee Town. She even recalled the circle Hyness created for her when she first awakened her magic. She remembered the ancient mage using runes to create the printing press and even repair the Mirror.
"I remember," Vesa told Elfilis.
Vesa returned her gaze to the book in her hands. Flipping a page, her finger traced the rune Algiz.
"Algiz means protection," Elfilis clarified, "a higher self, divinity, teaching and spiritual connection. It's useful for making enchantments since spiritual connection makes it a good conduit for mana, and it can link certain spells together."
Vesa nodded with a smile.
"I'd like to try this one," she proclaimed.
"Well," Elfilis replied, "its protection aspect allows you to strengthen barriers and physical objects with it, consenting people can even get a measure of protection with it themselves. It would be most effective against non-physical attacks when applied to a person; mostly things that affect the soul or mind."
Vesa took a minute to memorize the symbol before she closed the book.
"For now," Elfilis advised, "you'll need to use solid surfaces. With practice, you'll be able to write the rune on the air itself."
Vesa glanced down at the bench she and Elfilis were sitting on. Concentrating her mana, her finger drew the symbol on the bench.
"Don't mess up the shape of it," Elfilis warned her, "or it may not take effect or could rebound."
Vesa nodded, even if she kept concentrating. Soon enough, she finished drawing the Algiz rune, mesmerized with its glowing light blue energy.
"Seems like you did pretty well for a first attempt," Elfilis commented.
Vesa gazed into her partner's alien eyes.
"Thank you," Vesa smiled.
"I'm more than happy to help."
Almost immediately, Vesa sensed the safe feeling emanating from the rune.
"This bench is certainly safe from being destroyed by certain amounts of physical force," Elfilis remarked, "I'd say probably the equivalent of a large boulder would be needed to break it."
Vesa tilted her head.
"What kind of person would want to break benches, anyway?" she asked.
Elfilis simply shrugged. Vesa glanced over her shoulder. Zan was currently holding out a leather tool belt filled with different interesting objects; most of them covered in runic carvings and made of material Vesa didn't recognize. Fumu studied the runes on one of the objects in her hand while she had a book out. Vesa fixated her eyes on one rune which reminded her of the letter 'r'. She took a moment to flip through her book before she stopped at Laguz, a rune which represented water and symbolized intuition, emotions, flow, renewal, dreams, hopes and fears.
As intrigued as Vesa was, she didn't feel like interrupting the lesson Zan Partizanne was teaching. For now, she went back to studying the pages in her book. Soon enough, her eyes took interest in the rune Kenaz.
"Torch, controlled energy," Vesa recited to herself, "passion, creation and transformation."
"It also means fire, knowledge, and the light within," Elfilis added, "it can be dangerous if used improperly, but it has many useful applications. For example, think of lighting campfires or candles, countering magic based attacks by controlling the energy of your opponents' spells."
"Am I currently able to get some kind of use out of this rune?" Vesa asked.
"It can be used as a source of light, and it is also used a lot in making tools," Elfilis answered, "but countering weaker spells or energy-based attacks shouldn't be something you'd have too much trouble with. You'd need to get used to redirecting that energy, though, and any attacks you direct back at your opponent would likely lose potency."
Upon cue, Vesa stood up from the bench and picked up a nearby rock.
"Maybe we can go look for a room and turn off the lights," Vesa suggested, "you have any ideas?"
"Sounds like a wonderful idea," Elfilis nodded.
Vesa took some time to gather her book while Elfilis stood to their full height, stretching their limbs. The tall space rodent scooped their girlfriend into their arms before they teleported back to the tower courtyard. Stepping back inside, they wandered through the hallway until they found a small room. Elfilis closed the door behind them while Vesa studied the rune, taking some time to memorize the symbol on the page. Minutes later, she closed the book.
"Ok," she told them, "I'm ready."
Upon cue, Elfilis flipped the lights off in the room. Vesa stiffened for a brief moment at the sudden darkness. Still, she held up the rock in her hand and carefully drew the symbol onto it. Her partner watched as the rock started to emit light. She gasped in amazement as the rock illuminated the room. She wanted to cherish the wonder of the discovery she made in mastering her magic. Returning her gaze to Elfilis, she smiled. They smiled back, appreciating her enthusiasm for her achievement.
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