Across the slate cliffs Kirby's bunch went, Nem and Magolor behaving themselves with Kirby there beside them (even if some winks and mischievous smirks were exchanged when the other two weren't looking). Only a handful of Buccies showed themselves the further away from Capp'n's nest they got, all of them similarly riled up at seeing outsiders but seeming to stand down whenever Kirby waved his sabre, which was reminiscent of the roost's ruler, at them. The Sandrans and Flotzos didn't care one way or another whether their company looked like a big boss bird or not, and those were dealt with either by a thrust of Bandana Waddle Dee's spear, Magolor hitting them with magic spheres, or Nem giving a swing of her axe. They were headed towards the next egg fragment, to be sure, but it became apparent that it had likely landed someplace in the water for how they still had some distance to go before reaching it but the cliffs came to an abrupt drop-off after a little while more of venturing. Where the water's surface met the cliffs was a small sandy beach, some pieces of broken wooden boards and a few seashells scattered along it, but stretching out further was water with only a few small scattered islands.

Kirby gave a glance at the radar and said, "Well, it looks like we're doing some more swimming. These eggs sure did end up everywhere-…"

He paused, getting an odd look and eyeing the radar screen intently for a moment. It was a dot indicating an egg that he looked at, alright, but that dot seemed to… move. Slightly to the west, then back east it went, holding still for a second before moving north and back south. He, and the entourage themselves, certainly weren't moving, thus it must have been the egg itself moving or, if all else failed, the device not working properly. He shook it slightly, giving it a funny look, and the dot held still.

"Kirby?" Bandana Waddle Dee asked, edging closer and likewise looking at the screen.

"It was moving," Kirby replied, still studying the screen. "That's a little weird."

"Maybe you just need to show the device who's boss," Nem mused, her intact eye narrowing on the radar. "If it wants to act up, it gets beat up."

"'Show the device who's boss?'" Magolor inquired, giving her an inquisitive look. "Do you think it's trying to be devious like your hat? That it's intentionally moving the dot around just to mess with us?"

"You never know," Nem replied.

That seemed far less likely than most other possibilities, and the magician stifled a few giggles behind his cloak.

"Maybe the egg is stuck in a whirlpool!" Bandana Waddle Dee proposed. "Or got caught in a big current!"

"Or maybe one of its siblings is there moving it around," Magolor mused.

Kirby stowed the device back on his side, declaring, "Let's keep going. We can't let it get away."

"Oh, it won't," Nem said simply, taking a big leap off the edge of the cliff with a few flaps of her wings for extra height.

With a big splash, she plummeted into the sea, sending water droplets everywhere and sinking below the surface. Kirby giggled, jumping off with less gusto and landing on the sand rather than directly in the water, but he too wasn't going to waste any time. Bandana Waddle Dee and Magolor trailed close behind, the former twirling his spear overhead like a helicopter's blades so as to land softly on the sand.

"I hope this one's not underwater," Magolor mused, hovering over the water's edge. "I'd really rather not get completely soaked…"

"Well, if it is, you can leave it to us," Kirby replied, getting his feet wet. "Between me, Waddle Dee, and Nem, we can probably swim back to the surface with it just fine."

"You can make sure the coast is clear for when we come back up," Bandana Waddle Dee added. "You know, no dragons or anything waiting to swallow us."

The magician giggled. "Oh, I wouldn't let that happen.~"

At that moment, though, Nem emerged with her lower half still in the water but her upper half peeking out, both of her hands held up high with two snapping green Barracus gripped in them by their tails. They clearly weren't comfortable being held out of the water, but more than that, they thrashed while trying to break free and crunch their jagged teeth down on the armored lass holding them.

"Hostile?" Nem called, not fazed at all as one set of teeth grazed the side of her head.

"They just think you're food," Kirby called back, wading into the water. "Be careful!"

"Yes, hostile," Magolor, on the other hand, called too.

Either way, Nem gave a quick motion with her hands to slap the Barracus together with a thud, knocking both of them out before she dropped them back in the water. "Not anymore!"

"Well, that's one way to do it," Bandana Waddle Dee mused, likewise wading in.

With a poof, Kirby had a small wooden raft that he jumped on and sprawled out on his back contentedly, while Bandana Waddle Dee paddled along with his spear in front of him. Nem floated along with her wings flapping behind her for momentum, and Magolor floated along too, albeit in the air above the water's surface.

"It must be nice to be a cloud," Kirby mused, looking up at them with a smile. "All light and fluffy, just drifting along and watching the world…"

Bandana Waddle Dee cast a glance upwards too. "If Kracko's in a good mood the next time we see him, let's ask."

Magolor giggled. "If you were a cloud, do you think you'd watch all the people below like people watch clouds? You know, like instead of 'that cloud looks like Magolor,' you'd say 'that Waddle Dee looks like a cloud?'"

The Waddle Dee in the entourage perked up a bit. "Do I look like a cloud?" he asked.

"Only the right one, and if you squint a little," Magolor replied. "You could qualify as soft and puffy, but you've got a shape that's defined instead of flowing around all the time."

Kirby thought for a second. "I guess that would make me more like a cloud, since I use a bunch of different Copy Abilities that change how I look." He looked over to Nem. "And you're the least soft out of us… Maybe you're big and kinda round, but that doesn't really make you puffy, does it?"

The robot laughed. "Doesn't being puffy and being soft go hand in hand? Like, if I threw a rock at you, it'd indent your body, but if you threw one at me, well… you'd have to throw it really, really hard to indent mine." She got a mischievous look. "And that's just a statement, not a challenge.~"

Magolor giggled, getting a mischievous look himself. "I wasn't gonna try it out, for the record!"

Kirby, though, glanced back over to Nem and inquired, "Nem, have you ever watched the clouds?"

"Sure I have," Nem replied without missing a beat. "Nothing says 'shut up forever' like a giant mushroom cloud. I've watched my fair share." She glanced upwards at her hat, her pearl-filled socket narrowing as she fussed, "Oh, yeah, they were pretty, alright, but you can shut up forever too, you worthless object! Don't you try and sway me!"

Magolor instantly perked up, and Bandana Waddle Dee looked a bit taken aback at the mention, while Kirby seemed a bit stumped.

"Mushroom clouds?" Kirby asked, studying her. "What do clouds that look like mushrooms have to do with someone shutting up?"

"You mean the kinds that happen after a giant explosion?" Bandana Waddle Dee replied, eyeing her with hapless concern.

At the clarification, Kirby got an awkwardly flustered expression. "Wait, no! I mean the clouds in the sky, not giant explosions!" he exclaimed before calming down. "But I guess those do look like mushrooms when you think about it…"

Magolor too eyed her, instead inquiring amiably but on the sly side, "Just where are you from where that's a normal thing, Nem?"

"A god-forsaken hellhole in the middle of heaven-knows-where," Nem replied without missing a beat. "Seriously. There is nothing good out there."

"Well, if you haven't really watched clouds," Kirby, though, cut in jovially, "maybe you should try it while we have an easy time doing it! A lot of them look like cotton candy, but sometimes they come in really cool shapes!"

Nem eyed him, then said to herself, "So that's how it is…" before floating on her back with her feet kicking to keep the rest of her moving. One of her hands held her hat in place and the other rested on her axe's staff. "I get it, we're not at war, but for a scouting mission, you guys sure are relaxed about it."

"Well, it's not like we're slacking off," Bandana Waddle Dee said simply. He likewise turned to float on his back, holding his spear with one hand and using the other, along with his feet, to keep going. "We're just enjoying ourselves while we're scouting."

"And not everything is a mission, you know," Kirby added, looking upwards with the radar device situated on his belly for easy glancing. "There's nothing wrong with watching clouds while we're heading towards the next egg! We'll get there at the same time either way, so we may as well have fun!"

"That's right!" Magolor concurred. "And if you guys are gonna watch clouds, you're not leaving me out!" He floated closer to Nem and gave her belly a gentle tap, glancing at her. "May I? You've got the most room."

"Go ahead," Nem replied.

The magician perched himself on Nem's belly, sprawling out slightly and likewise looking up at the clouds. There was plenty of puffiness to be seen overhead with a few wispy cirrus clouds mixed in amongst them, drifting a bit faster on account of their smaller size. Some of them did indeed fit Kirby's description of "cotton candy" albeit without the pastel colors that usually dyed the sugar strands, but some morphed into shapes that one could reasonably call out with a bit of imagination- a saucer, a baby bird, a slightly fluffy Grizzo. Some of the clouds were oddly shaped as a giant conglomeration of suspended water droplets was prone to be, and while Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee were content to call them "a blob" or "an amoeba" or the like, Magolor and Nem had… other ideas.

"Oooh! Look at that one!" Kirby exclaimed, pointing up at a generally amorphous one with his sabre. "It looks like a… pile of powdered sugar! Maybe it'll turn into a cake cloud!"

"Or a pile of snow!" Bandana Waddle Dee concurred. "Good for a cloud-snowman!"

Magolor giggled. "Volcanoes are pile-shaped, too! It could be a perilous volcano with lava flowing down its sides! One that only the bravest cloud-people climb!"

"Yes!" Nem concurred. "And there's a pissed off cloud-heretic just waiting under the lava to start the cloud apocalypse!"

Kirby and Bandana Waddle Dee both gave her a funny look, while Magolor just giggled some more.

"That's a little… weird to come up with, don't you think?" the spear-toting one mused.

"Not really, no," Nem brushed him off.

Kirby, however, had other ideas. "Cloud-heretics?" he asked. "What does that mean?"

"Someone who holds some pretty crazy beliefs that most people would not agree with," Magolor explained. "Like saying Popstar is flat and you'd fall off if you walked far enough, or that Dark Matter did only good things for the planet, things like that."

"Oh!" Kirby acknowledged, looking back up. "Yeah, that is pretty crazy! I guess hiding under the cloud-lava is a good place for a cloud-someone like that!"

Back to looking at clouds they went, occasionally getting interrupted by snapping Barracus that were dealt with either by Kirby waving his sabre, Bandana Waddle Dee giving a thrust of his spear to fend them off, Nem swinging her axe (to which Magolor went back to flying with a shield in front to keep from getting splashed), or Magolor shooting a magic sphere into the water. A Walf or two ventured close, which Kirby, the spear-toting one, and the magician waved at and Nem studied as if debating whether to attack or not. The shapes of the clouds had plenty of ways to be interpreted- snowballs, hearts, boats, robot armies, deadly fireballs, a smashed head- and doing so was quite relaxing, even if some of the bunch was puzzled at what the others would come up with. A quick glance at the radar kept them going in the right direction, but again, Kirby had to do a double-take as he checked the location once more.

"It's moving again!" the pink puffball exclaimed, giving it another shake. "The other ones didn't do this!"

Without missing a beat, Nem looked over to him, eyeing the device and saying, "Hey, radar device, from one mechanical entity to another, you better behave or I'll drag you to hell. Cut that shit out, right now." She clutched her hat tighter with her hand behind her head, muttering, "And you cut that shit out too, why don't you?! You can just fuck all the way-!"

"Hey," Bandana Waddle Dee said, shooting her a glance.

The armored lass shut up, her face contorting for a moment but no words leaving her mouth.

Kirby was sure the device wasn't literally making a choice to be difficult, but got up and carefully clutched it with his back slightly turned to Nem, just in case she actually tried to 'drag it to hell.' They were headed the right direction, but the dot was moving slightly again, upwards just a bit and then to the right, then back down. Magolor floated off of the armored one's belly and over to him, edging up next to him and studying it too.

"Can I have a look?" the magician asked. "I didn't build it, but I can probably figure it out if it's actually the device."

Kirby handed it over to him, and the magician looked it over for a second, holding it to one of his ears and giving it a slight shake before examining it some more. He felt of the antenna, gently traced the joints in the shell where its pieces had been fitted together, and held the screen up to one eye while one glowing hand illuminated it. Kirby, nor anyone else, knew exactly what he was doing, but Nem was certainly watching him intently, her intact eye practically staring holes through him. The pink puffball and the bandana-wearing one looked slightly panicked for a second when Magolor's hands sparked and the device followed suit, but that stopped after just a few moments, and the device didn't appear to be fried afterwards.

Nem, though, started to smirk after the sparks. "Show it who's boss!" she cheered, turning loose of her axe for a moment to shake one fist in the air. "Listen to the magician, device, or I'll-!"

"It looks like it's working fine," Magolor noted simply, cutting her off. "Its parts are in place, it's transmitting signals, and it's fully charged. If the dot is moving, it's because the egg is moving."

Kirby took the device back in his own hands, watching the dot as they got close to it. It was sure to be underwater, seeing as there were no islands in the vicinity the dot was in, but as he studied it, it started to move again. To the right, back to the left, staying still again… and something had to be making it move. Depending on the murkiness, visibility in the water might not have been perfect, but maybe he could catch a glimpse of whatever was making it move.

"Hold it for a second," the pink puffball said, practically shoving it back into Magolor's hands before leaping into the water.

"Ah-!" the magician exclaimed in surprise.

Under the water Kirby went, his raft vanishing with a poof.

"He's not doing recon without me!" Nem exclaimed. "Brace yourselves, hostile creatures!"

Under the water Nem went too, clutching her hat down with one hand as she vanished and taking her axe off her back and into the other hand. Bandana Waddle Dee and Magolor both shared a hapless look, staying on (or, in the case of the latter, slightly above) the surface.

"Well, I guess that puts you in charge for now," Bandana Waddle Dee mused, giving a glance to the radar he held.

Magolor gave a wink as he replied, "I'll try not to lead us astray.~"

Kirby, though, was glancing ahead under the water, trying to focus on what might possibly make a giant dragon egg move. There were patches of seaweed with Glunks making their homes among them, swimming Blippers that darted away from snapping Barracus, a Coner or two traipsing along the rocks and sand, and pretty shells and big clams that were scattered across the bottom. Off in the distance, it did appear the water was more disturbed, and big grey slate pieces that didn't quite reach the surface appeared to be more plentiful, like smaller and submerged versions of the cliffs they had been at before. A quick tap on his side grabbed his attention for a second, and a quick glance revealed Nem close behind, her axe in hand. She gave a nod, and he returned the gesture, swimming the same direction they'd been heading and beckoning her along.

Some of the Glunks noticed that they were not alone and started blowing bubbles, but Nem swung her axe and Kirby used his sabre to pop them, though one managed to slip past and hit Nem's armor, making the armored lass giggle as it burst against her. Some Blippers studied them, one trying to nibble on Kirby, but a whack from his sabre sent the fish swimming off. The murkiness didn't exactly become clearer as they swam, but it did appear that something big was swimming around in it the closer they got, for a large fish-like figure occasionally became just barely visible before moving. It didn't exactly look draconic, like a rowdy sibling watching over its younger kin, but even if it wasn't, it probably was something to be concerned about… at least, a few minutes later or so when they inevitably reached it.

As the two of them came upon a slate piece, a large hole in it caught Kirby and Nem's eyes both, and immediately it became obvious that something was stirring within it from the sudden shift in the water they felt. Kirby knew good and well what the likely culprit was, and try though he might to swim out of the way, the gaping mouth of a Barbar was quickly staring right back at him, but not for long. Nem had taken notice too and gave a flap of her wings and a hard kick to shove Kirby out of the way, but quickly, the Barbar's mouth was closing on her. He pointed the cannon on his other arm and fired at the Barbar, but it didn't faze the giant fish, and it was withdrawing back into its hole with Nem dragged along too.

Back on the surface, though, Magolor and Bandana Waddle Dee were none the wiser, the former floating along in the air and watching the radar while the latter floated in the water and enjoyed the sun's rays.

"No way!" Bandana Waddle Dee exclaimed, giving the magician a surprised look. "So you actually think pineapple belongs on a pizza?"

"Why not?" Magolor replied. "I mean, pizza's supposed to taste good, right? Do you not like pineapple?"

"I do, but…" the spear-toting one's voice trailed off. "It's a fruit! You don't put fruit on a pizza- that's just wrong!"

"But you typically use tomato sauce over the dough," the magician noted, giving him a glance.

Bandana Waddle Dee eyed him, getting a funny look. "And so what?"

"Tomatoes are fruits. You literally put a fruit sauce as the base."

At that, Bandana Waddle Dee's eyes went wide. "Wait, they are?!"

However, at that moment, the spear-toting one felt the water become disturbed, his body shifting around in a sudden wave. Magolor noticed it too, getting closer to the water and looking down into it, then glancing to the radar and back again.

"I felt something," Bandana Waddle Dee noted, clutching his spear a bit tighter.

"Well, we're close to the egg, but-!" Magolor started.

A sudden Barbar practically erupting out of the water caught their attention, a certain axe-toting lass accompanying it with a disgruntled look on her face. Such a large, typically untouchable creature being completely out of its habitat was already surprising, but someone being daring enough to apparently throw it around was certainly unexpected too. As unenjoyable as it was to wind up in a Barbar's mouth, the ones watching it couldn't help but to wish the fish the best of luck.

"You wanna know what destruction tastes like?!" Nem hollered, charging up her axe for a second. "Gyaaaaah-!"

Sploosh!

Back towards the water the Barbar fell, Nem lingering overhead for just a moment before diving down after it with her axe drawn back, embers dancing around the edge of its blades. A little cloud of steam lingered on the surface for a second, but quickly, the water was turning a different color- red.

Bandana Waddle Dee took note, immediately getting panicked movements. "Ew, ew, ewwwww!" he cried, holding his spear over his head. "I don't wanna bathe in Barbar blood! That's nasty!"

Magolor hurriedly reached down and grabbed one of his hands with his free one, pulling him out before the red could reach him. "She really just did that!" the magician exclaimed, watching it spread.

Kirby and Nem both popped out on the surface again, the former looking disgruntled and the latter looking perfectly content. The red lingered around on them for a second, flowing easier off of Nem's metallic surface but some droplets collecting on Kirby's not quite as slick skin.

"Look, I appreciate you saving me, but…" the pink puffball's voice trailed off, "did you have to behead the thing?"

Nem looked amused. "It was gonna eat you!" she exclaimed. "Was I supposed to just let it?!"

"No, but that was just unnecessary," Kirby replied, giving her a look somewhere between concern and sternness. "You would've sent it running after you wrestled it out of its hole- Barbars don't leave their holes. You didn't have to chop its head off."

The armored one threw her hands out to the side, still clutching her axe in one. "As if I'm just supposed to know that! I didn't kill those snapping green ones, I didn't kill the Slashies in the forest, I didn't kill Capp'n, but that one seemed like a real threat, clear as day! How in the hell was I supposed to act?!"

Kirby's face fell and he said, sounding flustered and slightly downtrodden, "Nem, do I really have to tell you to be nice? Yes, that Barbar was a threat, but killing something or someone… That's really serious. It's like you always think you're in a fight… and you're not, Nem."

She blinked for a second, then disappeared below the surface again for a moment. The water stirred and they could hear the muffled sounds of yelling from under it, but what she was saying, they had no idea.

"You know, it's good to have a strong friend, but this is kinda crazy," Bandana Waddle Dee mused.

"She didn't have to, but it's good to know she can," Magolor noted, giving Kirby a glance. "Give her some time. If she comes from a place as awful as she makes it sound, she's probably having culture shock."

Kirby watched the stirring water, bobbing around slightly for a moment until he summoned another raft with a poof to jump on. "Well, friends tell each other when they're not acting nice," he said simply. "I just thought she needed to know."

Moments later, Nem peeked out of the water again, looking at Kirby as she said quickly, "I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was that bad."

The pink puffball smiled. "We're good.~ If things get bad, you can do what you need to do, but until then, just try to relax, okay?"

She nodded.

Kirby giggled, looking over to Magolor and Bandana Waddle Dee. "Well, it seems like there's a big fish up ahead that's making it move. This one is probably gonna be underwater."

"Good thing I like to swim!" Bandana Waddle Dee piped up.

"Fine by me," Nem said simply.

"I'll keep the surface nice and clear for you guys!" Magolor declared, then taking a glance at the radar, "I should give this back to you if you're-!" He paused for a moment. "Hold on! It's coming this way!"

He tossed it back to Kirby, who caught it and took a look at the screen, where indeed, the dot was approaching them rather quickly. He looked to the water, and a large fin emerged that parted the surface as it moved- maybe a shark moving in for an easy meal. Nem clutched her axe and Kirby pointed his cannon while Magolor put up a magic barrier, but the creature didn't jump out to attack them. Rather, a black and white whale leaped high out of the water, two halves of a golden eggshell balanced just perfectly on his snout.

"Acro!" Kirby exclaimed, watching him jump.

"There's our egg!" Bandana Waddle Dee exclaimed, waving his spear.

Magolor, on the other hand, dropped his barrier and turned loose of Bandana Waddle Dee, eliciting a disconcerted "Waaaah!" as the spear-toting one fell back into the reddened water. Instead, he summoned a black hole in the path of the whale's jump, one that would've swallowed up the egg and probably Acro along with it had the whale not done a flip that batted the eggshell into the water with his tail as he turned. A big red splash resulted, and another followed as Acro seemed to completely change directions in the air before diving straight down after his shiny find. A hapless cry from Bandana Waddle Dee and Magolor alike followed as they were splashed with the red, the egg and the one moving it disappearing into it.

"Nooo!" Magolor fussed, trying to shake himself off. "I was already trying not to get wet, but now I'm soaked in blood water!"

"Why did you drop me?!" Bandana Waddle Dee cried, twirling his spear over his head to rise out of the sea.

Kirby looked at the radar, and away the dot was moving again. He glanced to the water and cried, "We have to chase Acro! C'mon, guys!"

In moments, he was jumping off his raft and it was vanishing again with a poof, Nem too vanishing below the water shortly therafter. Bandana Waddle Dee, though not thrilled at getting back in the tainted water, nonetheless stopped twirling his spear and dropped into it again.

Magolor gave a chuckle, trying to wring the liquid out of his cloak and saying, "Good luck, guys! I'll be here when you-! Goddammit, Nem!"

Any hopes the magician had of not getting completely soaked were dashed when a certain armored lass jumped back out right below him, grabbed the edge of his cloak, and pulled him in along with her. All four of them were in the water shortly, Kirby already darting off towards Acro's quickly swimming figure with Bandana Waddle Dee trying his best to keep up. Nem turned loose of Magolor, and the magician immediately shot a magic sphere at her which made her smirk wildly, though when she reached for her axe, she didn't point it at him like he would've anticipated. She gave a wink with her pearl-filled eye and nestled her hat back into its place snugly, then took off after Kirby too. Maybe the pink puffball himself was fine with Magolor staying above the surface, but it appeared that clearly Nem wasn't going to let him when all three others weren't above it too, and if he'd been soaked already, there wasn't much point going back.

The golden shell glittered on Acro's snout, and the whale was clearly having the time of his life playing with it. He likely wasn't going to part with it so easily, but again Magolor tried to obtain it the best way they could reasonably try at the time- with another black hole. One opened up in the water directly in front of Acro, but yet again, it was no use as the whale suddenly changed directions and curved straight upwards. Even more complicated were the slate pieces that the whale swam through- some of them had big holes in them, but the Barbars apparently weren't leaving to try and swallow Acro.

No, the Barbars were instead trying to swallow their smaller visitors, one emerging from its hole and going for Bandana Waddle Dee, but as the spear-toting one swam away from its gaping mouth, Nem put herself directly in it and grabbed the big fish's jaws. The Barbar suddenly found itself unable to close its mouth and instead shook its head to try and fend off Nem, but the armored lass was letting go not long after, pushing herself out of the way as its jaws shut. Back into its hole the Barbar went, looking rather shy at its armored company who looked it straight in the eye as she held her middle finger up on one hand.

Kirby, though, couldn't react fast enough when one lurched out at him, his eyes locked on Acro and not noticing a big fish trying to swallow him until it was too late to move. Nem hurried towards him, reaching one hand out, but the Barbar's mouth shut before he could grab it. At the very least, he knew where the fish's mouth opened and could ram it to get out, but the darkness of being inside a creature's mouth that was trying to swallow him just wasn't particularly welcoming.

On the outside, though, Nem motioned Magolor and Bandana Waddle Dee to keep on going, which the two of them did so, albeit with the latter giving a concerned glance back where his pink friend was. Nem wasn't going to leave him alone, that much was for sure- she grabbed the Barbar by the side of the mouth with one hand to stay close as it tried to retreat back into its hole, but with her other hand, she grabbed her axe and bashed it upside the head with the broad side. That stunned the Barbar enough to pause, and as it did, she forced its jaws open again, to which Kirby swam out, albeit having to grab his pirate hat before the fish could swallow it. Nem practically shoved the Barbar back into its hole, and it didn't come back out. She and Kirby shared a glance, and the pink puffball gave her a smile and a nod before beckoning her along again.

Magolor and Bandana Waddle Dee, though, certainly weren't free of the undersea citizens causing them concern. A Barracu made a beeline for them, and Bandana Waddle Dee gave it a thrust of his spear to keep it at bay. Another black hole opened, and yet again Acro evaded it- the whale dove downwards and turned sharply upwards, swimming in an almost perfect U-shape around the black hole. At that moment, though, a Barbar lurched out at them, and the magician quickly grabbed Bandana Waddle Dee's hand as he distorted the space around them. It certainly surprised the spear-toting one when their bodies vanished entirely, for though the Barbar's mouth closed, they were perfectly safe. When they reappeared, it was several meters away, and the big fish certainly didn't make a catch. (The spear-toting one would've exclaimed a "Wow!" or the like, but in the water, it certainly wasn't going to be audible.)

Some slate pieces that seemed to reach above the water in front of them were getting closer, but Acro, on the other hand, didn't swim around them- no, he dove straight down and temporarily out of sight. Bandana Waddle Dee and Magolor followed, the latter making them vanish for a second to escape another Barbar's mouth, but they weren't losing track of Acro. The whale had simply ducked into the mouth of an undersea cavern, one with slate walls and seaweed making the opening hard to notice for anyone not actively looking for it… or anyone with a big aquatic creature right in front of them using it as a hiding place. Acros's larger figure brushed past the flora easily, though the ones pursuing him had to shove some of the leaves aside.

It wasn't a small cavern to them, but to Acro, it probably wasn't big- the whale could swim laps around it like running around the room of a house, but not much more. Inside, however, were some other objects- anchors, boulders, the broken remnants of stone statues, and a few wooden crates that had seen better days. It wasn't a house, but more like a hideout, decorated with a bunch of objects that the whale apparently took a fancy to. The golden egg was undoubtedly another piece to add to the collection, a very shiny toy… and Acro probably wasn't going to part with it so easily if their attempts up to that point meant anything.

Acro still had the golden shell halves on his snout, but flipped to orient himself to look at them and hold the golden pieces on one flipper. Magolor and Bandana Waddle Dee looked to each other and nodded, and at that moment, Nem and Kirby came swimming in too, joining up with them fairly quickly. They all exchanged glances, then looked to Acro, who seemed to give a nod of his own and turned to a pile of objects behind him while catching the curve of an anchor with his free flipper. In moments, that anchor was getting launched at them, the four of them scattering as it clattered against the wall with a hard thump that they easily felt for the force rippling through the water.

Maybe Acro was just trying to play, maybe Acro knew what they were after… but either way, they clearly weren't going to have any easy time getting what they sought.

. . . . .

On the beach, though, things were beautiful- maybe the sudden arrival of the Buccies out of thin air had thrown a wrench in things, but those had been dealt with, mostly by King Dedede while Daroach simply chased them out of his airship for ease of checking on his valuables. The king went right back to sunbathing on the Lor's deck while munching on some toaster pastries, but Daroach, on the other hand, was basking in the sun for much different purposes.

The head Squeak perched himself on a beach chair with a mound of gems next to him, one held up towards the sun and the stone itself- a lovely red ruby- seemingly absorbing its light for how lovely it shined. Daroach shifted it around a bit, and it scattered red reflections across the sand like a tiny mirror ball, which he smiled at.

"Such high quality, such value…~" Daroach cooed, narrowing one eye to admire it better.

At that moment, though, it seemed the space above him peeled back and opened up into a black hole, one he wasn't expecting to see, and he jumped slightly. However, he eased up just as quick when he thought of who was likely its caster and why he would be opening one. It must've been Magolor, about to drop one of those beautiful golden eggshells to be stowed away in a safe space, and Daroach certainly welcomed such. He scurried aside and tugged his beach chair out of the way, for surely the sand would break its fall better than a chair would (and likely avoid any unnecessary scratches, no less), watching with a happy glint in his eyes… but that glint quickly faded when a deluge of seawater came out instead.

"What-!"

Fwoosh!

The water washed over him and his pile of gems alike, scattering the latter and soaking him in the process too. And just like that, the black hole closed, no treasure at all coming out of it. Daroach hissed a bit in frustration, shaking himself off and scurrying to his gems to gather them again.

"That cheeky little…" he muttered under his breath.

King Dedede peeked down from the Lor's deck, calling, "Are you okay?! Sounded like you were having a bad time!"

"I'm fine!" Daroach called back, taking his hat off and wringing it out. "Our other wizard tore a hole in space and a bunch of seawater came out! I thought he was dropping treasure!"

King Dedede studied him for just a moment, taking note of the damp sand around him and the head Squeak's cloak practically sticking to him… then burst out with hearty laughter. "Oh, he did?!" the king cackled. "He got you good!"

More laughter followed, and Daroach busted out his Triple Star cane, brandishing it with a disgruntled look. "Oh, you think something juvenile like that is funny, do you?! Why don't we-! Ahhh!"

Another hole opened, and another deluge of seawater followed that soaked Daroach even more. King Dedede simply couldn't help the laughter, struggling to catch his breath as the head Squeak was waterlogged all over again. Onto the deck he fell, clutching his sides and howling with glee.

Daroach still wasn't amused. He let out a heavy sigh and said, softly but forcefully, "Oh, don't worry, I'll be a gentleman about it, Magolor… and challenge you to a duel to the death in front of everyone when they get back!"

King Dedede laughed and Daroach silently fumed as he gathered his gems, but whatever the case, another sweater deluge didn't come.

Author's note: My friend, the oft-mentioned saver of dragons, might kick me for this, but… apparently he didn't know that Acro and Fatty Whale were different characters and only realized such after I preliminarily sent him this chapter. I have given him much flak for it because that's just what Azakael does to her friends.