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Chapter Text

Kirby skipped across the fresh dew-touched grass of Dreamland. It had rained heavily the day before, causing Kirby to be cooped up in his home with a hot cup of cocoa, but sadly, not much for terms in outside play. The sun was out, the day was new! And since he was inside all of yesterday, there was much fun to catch up on. He pointed out a glimmering rainbow in the sky, giggling happily to himself. 

A mental list was made in his young mind of all those he would visit today. Those he wanted to spend this rainbow-filled day with. Before he dawdled anymore on the subject, over the hill he spotted a patch. From the distance, it was difficult to tell what fruitful goodies were hidden between the thick leaves. Kirby’s mouth watered with hope…so many options it could be. 

He tread closer to the patch, curious to see what his after-breakfast snack would be! Among the leaves, however, laid another. A friend of ocean blue, he must’ve had the same idea as Kirby.

“Hai, Gooey!” Kirby greeted, waving his pink nub high enough to see over the patch.

Gooey turned around the voice and his face brightened. He returned the gesture, licking the air. “Kirby!”

Kirby broke in an excited run, he bolted down the hill, nearly tripping on a stone in his quest. He crossed into the patch and his blue eyes raced for any sign of his snack. He skidded to a stop in front of Gooey.

“Whoa…where is all the…?” Kirby asked.

“Watermelons?” Gooey finished.
“Is that what was here? This is-they're all gone! What happened?”

“Don’t know!” Gooey chirped. “I’ve been looking for them all morning!”

“But there were so many the day before the rain!” 

“Maybe the wind took them away!” 

Kirby let out a quivering sigh. He mourned the watermelon’s loss…what could have happened to them? Gooey nudged Kirby with his tongue, a giggle left the pink puff.

“Maybe it was just the watermelons! Let’s check the other fruit!”

Determined, Kirby and Gooey set off. Along with the state of the other fruit patches, hopefully they would also discover the location of the missing watermelons. 

 As the two orbs bounded down the greenery of Dreamland, their hunt proved mixed results. 

The orange patches and lemon trees were spared. As were the bunches of grapes and strawberry patches. So was there some absurd watermelon theft? Or had Gooey been right and it was simply a matter of yesterday’s gloominess? But that brought on more questions…the rain wasn’t that harsh. Would it really be strong enough to pull all of the watermelons away? And a more important one: where had they gone? 

Kirby began to think it was a personal vendetta against one of his favorite treats, until he and Gooey stopped by the apple trees. A distressed cry had come out from the shrubbery. The two looked at each other with befuddled expressions, before they raced towards the noise.

Bandana Dee frantically paced back and forth. Upon seeing Kirby, he whipped around. 

“They’re all gone!” He practically wailed. 

Indeed, the apples were gone. Apart from a few that were not fully ripe or others that had gone spoiled, the branches were bare. Gooey gave a quizzical hum, the tongue reached up to scratch at his head. Kirby went over to pat a kind nub on his dear friend’s back. 

“Don’t worry, we’ll find the watermelons and apples!” He exclaimed. 

“But why just those fruits? It couldn’t have been the storm…” Gooey murmured, doubt sunk into his original theory.

“They are nowhere to be found too?” Bandana Dee asked, fear heightened.

Kirby and Gooey both nodded. Their friend sulked and he glanced at the beloved apple trees.

“We should head to the castle!” He proclaimed. The tip of the spear pointed to the space of the sky where King Dedede’s castle stood tall like a mountain.

“The King or Meta will know what to do!” Kirby proposed. 

Gooey agreed, and the three, with more vigor than previously, marched towards castle Dedede. As they left the apple trees and out into open land, Bandana Dee and Gooey tossed their own theories out, mostly playing detective and who would have the best motive. Kirby toyed with the idea that King Dedede was the culprit, when one takes into account his track record. However, why steal only two fruits and nothing else? There was no clue that pointed to anymore.

The castle emerged from the sky. When their small posse neared the entrance, they were interrupted by a sharp call, and the squeak of a rubber ball.

Behind them, Marx approached. He rolled on his ball with his face scrunched up in an unhappy glare. He jutted into Kirby’s face, his multi-colored hat swayed with the movement.

“What kind of prank are you playing, pink demon?” Marx sneered.

“Eh…?” Kirby said.

“Someone stole my whole collection of pillows!” 

Bandana Dee stuttered, “pillows?”

Since Marx had chosen to reside in Dreamland, he had built himself a fort, mostly containing his balls and, of course, a horde of pillows. Kirby had seen an impressive collection, only after getting ‘special access.’ 

Marx carried on, “Yes, all of my pillows have vanished!” 

“We didn’t have anything to do with your pillows!”

“As if!”

Gooey gave an annoyed groan, which Kirby couldn’t help but chuckle at. He never heard such a noise coming out the blue blob. It took…much more time and convincing to get it through to Marx that they had nothing to do with the missing pillows. 

With a pout, Marx begrudgingly left them to their original mission. Although, he did swear there would be a larger prank in store for the one who dared to trick him. Shrugging, they carried on. 

The castle door gave a loud groan as it opened for them. Everything seemed normal, Waddle Dees went about their business. Dusting, carrying plates of food for the king. Bandana Dee kept an eye out, seeing to see if anything in the castle had been taken. Nothing in the foyer was touched, nor the main drawing room. Paintings, tapestries, chests even remained. Kirby did a brief check of the bookcase, where King Dedede kept the boardgames. Yup, still there thankfully!

Prior to reaching the King or Meta Knight, they encountered the kitchen and vastly got distracted. Gooey’s tongue wrapped around the fridge’s handle and gave it a tug. 

A shadow loomed across the tile flooring, Kirby glanced up to see Tranaza. The spider used all of his six, floating hands, to pull open cabinets. He gave a quick runover each one, sighed, and all six shut at once in a loud clap. It startled Gooey, who tumbled backwards. Tranaza noticed them then, but went right back to the cabinets.

“Hello, kids.” Taranza greeted dismissively, “have you seen my stash of tissues?”

“Tissues?” Kirby and friends all repeated. 

Kirby and Bandana Dee passed one other a peculiar look. Gooey went back to the fridge. While that one likely had an explanation, it certainly was a pattern. Watermelons, apples, pillows, and now tissues? What kind of thief were they dealing with? Or was this just some insane coincidence.

“Come on, Gooey, we got to see the King.” Kirby said, bumbling over.

Gooey had a fish’s tail sticking out of his mouth. He swallowed it in a single gulp and followed. The King wasn’t in his throne or the dining hall, most surprisingly. 

They heard King Dedede before they saw him.

“Just tell me the truth, Meta! Did you take it again?” He bellowed from down one of the many halls.

“My liege, I would not lie to you.” His loyal knight answered. 

Bandana Dee’s pace quickened, he hurried down the hall, and turned a corner to see the pair, tucked away in a corner of not-so private discussion. He approached King Dedede to grasp onto his ruby-colored robe. 

“What else has gone missing, sire?” He asked.

“Else-?” Meta Knight asked. 

King Dedede let out a frustrated huff. 

“My royal quilt has vanished! I had left it out last night to be washed in the morning. The Dee’s go out to do so-and they can’t find it anywhere.” 

Kirby and Gooey managed to catch the chitting group then. Kirby’s eyes narrowed upon hearing the King’s answer. This was getting weirder and weirder. Meta Knight stepped forward, his armor clunking with his movements.

“Bandana Dee, you said else?” He asked. 

Piping and high-pitched voices filled in Meta Knight on the befuddling day. Each thing they listed off, Meta Knight’s yellow eyes became smaller and smaller slits. Snubbed in intrigue. But then retracted. He held his cloak to himself, composed as always.

“I’m sure there is a logical explanation for the missing items.” Meta Knight reassured.

“But ALL of the watermelons and apples?” Bandana Dee exclaimed.

“Hungry creatures.” 

“And Marx’s pillows?”

“Someone giving the jester a taste of his own medicine.” 

“The tissues?”

King Dedede chuckled, he tried to hide his amusement behind his sleeve. “Well, he does have an act of crying.” 

When laid out all like that, Kirby felt foolish for being curious about something that seemed so obsolete. 

“Then where is everything?” He meekly asked.

The King scooped up Kirby, rubbing his knuckles into Kirby’s brow. He screeched in laughter.

“Don’t worry, they’ll turn up somehow!” King Dedede reassured.

“But who took them? And why?” Bandana Dee pleaded.

All that came was King Dedede’s roaring laughter. He lifted him from the ground too, he held the pair on each shoulder. He and Meta Knight did not seem concerned over the absent things. However, as Bandana Dee questioned, there was no reason as to why? 

Kirby was not persuaded it was all some coincidence. There had to be more…right?

Gooey wasn’t either, but he was not present for the conversation. He had wandered over to the nearby open window. He was oddly calm, as if in deep thought. No smile, no darting tongue. His pupils stared directly up to the sky, to space beyond Planet Popstar. 

The King and his Knight sent the kids back outside to play. Just to reassure them further, King Dedede had sent out some Waddle Dees to go out to search for the missing things.

Meta Knight was stern in his conclusion-there was a logical cause. First Dedede had agreed. It was no big deal. Just some fruit and other odd objects. But as the day went on, the items did not reappear. Truly, he wasn’t too concerned about the quilt. He had plenty of warm comforters, that one just happened to be left out…ripe for stealing.

Quilts and fruit don’t just disappear in thin air. 

As he pondered on the morning and facts of the case more…Dedede found himself with more questions. Though, he would hastily rationalize them with any and all reasons. Round and round he went. This cycle haunted him all throughout the day. 

Even as he and Meta Knight climbed into the royal bed. Dedede ran his wing across the blanket, trying to distract himself with its intimate softness. He probed the ceiling with his eyes, as if searching for the answer to the atypical annoyance. Meta Knight rolled over.

“Mi amor, is something the matter?” He asked. 

Dedede did not look away from the ceiling. “Why would someone come into the castle to steal a quilt?”

That was the thought that racked him the most. If there was a secret thief, they had broken into the castle to steal the quilt. Someone was here without invitation.

Meta Knight gave a resounding sigh. “I’ll get you a new quilt, my liege.”

“This ain’t ‘bout the quilt! Someone was here and they robbed me!” King Dedede exclaimed.

“Are we sure it was not misplaced? The guards never detected an unwanted being here.”

“But what if there was…?” 

This was true, and all of Dedede’s wayward thoughts stopped. Meta Knight sat up a little further and adjusted the heavy blanket around his partner.

“I think Kirby and Bandana Dee have gotten your anxieties raised. I will say again, there is a sensible answer.” He reassured softly, and leaned in close. “And it is my pledge to protect you and the castle. If I am not worried, I do not want you to be.”

Dedede deflated under the velvety voice and calming words. No matter the strangeness of the whole thing, Meta Knight’s logic had a point that was hard to refute with fact.

“Ah, fine.” He admitted. 

After the light was flicked off and goodnight’s shared, nighttime took over Dreamland. All around, its residents were cradled by the chill of night and rested underneath a sea of stars. 

Dedede couldn’t sleep. He stayed awake by the castle's natural noises. A creak here, a shuffle of a Waddle Dee down the hall there. No sound that indicated an interloper was sneaking about. He replayed Meta Knight’s words in his mind. It was okay. Meta Knight wasn’t worried. Why should he be? The items would turn up, and if not, an explanation would at least come to light. 

He hoped these thoughts would lull him to rest. As time went by, the night became deeper, it seemed sleep touched everyone but him. Even worse, his stomach rumbled and an annoyed gaze crossed the king’s face.

Hunger was what ultimately got him up. The bed creaked loudly as he exited. He checked briefly on Meta Knight, who was still fast asleep. He made sure he was tucked in before Dedede carefully crept outside of the master bedroom. Before he left, he caught sight of his hammer beside the closet.

Images of…what if entered his mind once again. No. No. Everything was fine. There was no interloper within the castle walls. He held his head up and marched out of the bedroom. Then he hastily returned to swipe his hammer. It was…just a precaution. 

Down the hall went, his gait cautious yet brisk. A snack, after that, straight back to bed! His guards lounged about pillars. No wonder they reported anything alarming, they weren’t awake to see it! Dedede couldn’t bring himself to be angry, his Waddle Dees worked hard enough. Perhaps, he should get Taranza to form a shift system, so none would be too tired to properly attend to their nightly duties. Dedede clutched his hammer tighter, it was never heavy upon his shoulder.

Just then, he heard a…clatter? It didn’t sound like it came from the kitchen. He knew he wasn’t the only one who charmed the fridge for a midnight snack. It instead sounded like it came from the washroom…Dedede froze, awaiting for…something. A Waddle Dee to show up and explain the noise. Or Taranza still on the hunt for the box of tissues. It was only a minute, yet Dedede could feel his heartbeat quicken at the wait.

Partially scared, while feeling protective of his castle and those within, he pushed on towards the unusual noise. Dedede himself made as little sound as possible, the best scenario is that he would get a glimpse of the thief. 

The washroom’s doors were just ajar, as if someone had not closed it all the way. Clattering continued. Dedede furthered and he opened the door. The torches from the adjusted wall casted an orange glow into the washroom, just enough to see the…the interloper.

It hovered about the medicine cabinet, it did not touch the floor. A bottle of cough syrup tumbled down, slammed into the sink below, and joined a pile of containers of pills, bandages, toothpaste, and mouthwash. Who had their face deep into the cabinet was a circular shadow. Black was coal with orange globes on its side, top, and bottom. Like an ugly blooming flower.  

“Hey!” Dedede exclaimed, his voice cracked, more than he expected.

It whipped around in shock. The eye gawked back. That piercing eye. It was wide as the moon, iris auburn as rust. 

Dedede’s wing slammed down to his stomach, palm gripped his flesh through his nightgown. It all came back to him in an instant. Belly ripped open, brain fogged by blackness. The darkness consuming him in a moment’s time.

Invader and King stood in tense silence, waiting for one to make their move. Dark Matter didn’t express emotion, at least as far Dedede was concerned. For all he knew, it waited to pounce, to attack with its spite. He brandished his hammer high over his head. He would not be possessed again.  

The hammer must’ve caused something to stir in the creature, for it turned around and zoomed towards the washroom’s open window. Dedede hadn’t seen it at first, but he felt the cold night wind quickly. He pursued with a loud call. He would not be prey again, he would be larger and louder. It slipped through the open window and Dedede took a reckless swing, the hammer flogged the air. His hammer did not come close. He leaned on the ledge on the window-and watched.

Once out in the air, the splice of dark rose up. Up and up it went. Past the castle’s highest tower, Meta Knight’s Halberd. It entered the atmosphere, and rapidly disappeared entirely from Dedede’s sight.

Even with it gone, Dedede could not breathe. His heart thumped at what felt like a thousand miles. He clutched his stomach again, his scars throbbed with the memory. He, instead, kept surveillance of the sky. If one Dark Matter was back…where were the others? What were they planning? He had to stay up, in case a swarm was upon them. He would not be prey again.

Chapter Text

“My liege,” Meta Knight reassured, his voice composed, “I cannot express my regret.”

“I saw it! I swear I saw it!” King Dedede prattled on. 

He paced the throne room, still dressed in his pajamas and draped in a heavy robe. A mug of coffee clutched in his wing, which trembled, and spread the drink across the carpet. Dedede didn’t care. 

“And I believe you now!” Meta Knight pleaded. “I know, you would not lie about this!”

“It’s back! It’s…it’s back.” The trembles had spread from his limbs, and now it infected his throat.

It was quite unnerving for Meta Knight. He had known Dedede for years, decades. The fear the king spoke with caused a wave of unease to spread through the knight. He approached his liege and put a gloved hand onto his shoulder. He unfurled his wing and curled around the king’s back.

“Shh, Dedede. Try to breathe. It isn’t happening, you’re safe.” He whispered.

That morning, Meta Knight was not too confused to see Dedede’s spot in the bed was empty. His King getting an early breakfast wasn’t abnormal. What was abnormal…was the Waddle Dees all crowding towards the washroom. Meta Knight, half-asleep, had followed them. 

King Dedede had stayed up all night by the window, even when he was found, he was awake. But no matter what the Waddle Dees said, or how hard of a tug they gave to him, nothing could shake him out of the stupor he was in. Except, Meta Knight’s soft touch to his arm. 

It took a couple minutes, but eventually Dedede once again calmed under Meta Knight’s touch. He took a hearty gulp of it, its warmth straightening out his vocal chords.

“I..I thought the Dark Matter army was destroyed, along with their leader, along with Dark Star.” He mumbled to his knight, almost as if it was a secret.

Meta Knight hadn’t personally faced off the demons Dedede or Kirby had. But once they had, he studied. He knew from them that while most information on the Dark Matter species was a mystery, there were a few, damning facts.

They could possess any creature at will, the victim had no chance of a fight. And second, they were creatures of negativity and suffering. As long as sadness and fear existed in the universe, so did they. Meta Knight didn’t tell any of this to Dedede, it would only terrify him further. 

“You should rest.” He said instead.

“I can’t!” Dedede wailed, “what if they come back?” 

Their conversation was interrupted by the throne room’s door yawning open. Bandana Dee rushed in, and Dedede welcomed him with an extended wing. He needed to comfort his loyal subject. Strolling behind him was Kirby, Gooey, and some of the other Star Allies-Taranza, Susie, Magalor. All of the faces were somewhat stressful, so while Dedede wanted to seem unaffected, the fear made him turn away.

Kirby approached Meta Knight, his pink nubs waved in the air.

“What happened? I heard that someone was spotted in the castle.” Kirby chirped.

“Yes, Dark Matter was seen in the castle.” Meta Knight said.

A collective gasp filled the throne room, and soon the questions came hurling. Every voice had their own worries and ideas how to fix it. Most of their relationship with the foe was Void Termina, but they were an unforeseen enemy. Yes, Dark Matter came from them and they had similarities, but the latter had…cavernous scars on the kingdom.

Kirby was surprisingly quiet. He was focused on Gooey. He, too, was silent. Gooey stared down at the carpet, his tongue lolled out of his mouth and settled on the floor. Kirby hummed. The mention of his birth clan must’ve spooked him. Kirby has never seen him spooked.

“Gooey?”

Gooey perked up and his lopsided grin returned. “I’m here…maybe!” 

“You okay?” 

“Yes! Yes!”

He offered no more. Kirby stayed close. Meta Knight carried on.

“The King observed the splice digging through the medicine cabinet.” He explained.

Susie’s fist rested under her chin. “It did not…attack?”

“No.” Dedede answered from his reserved spot. 

“So what? It was scavenging?” Magalor said.

Scavenging? Dark Matter didn’t scavenge, they were beings of darkness! But as Meta Knight ran through Dedede’s account…it was true, it did not attack the king. The King, who seemed to be their favorite plaything. That is not typical Dark Matter behavior. Why didn’t it? It had all the reasons too, and the perfect opportunity.

“I suppose it was.” He admitted.

“But for what?” Taranza asked, his six hands folded. “It was looking in the medicine cabinet for what exactly?”

“I cannot say…” 

Kirby listened, and reviewed the events of the previous day. It hit him like a lighting bolt. He stood on the tip of his feet. 

“Did they steal the fruit and the pillows and Dedede's quilt?” He cried out. 

The room was quelled into silence. It…it would explain the suddenness of the disappearance. How none of the objects had returned. It would align why the splice was simply rummaging and not attacking.

Dedede stared at Kirby, the gears worked heavily in his brain. Bandana Dee gave an eerie look to his King. He stroked his King’s hand, hoping to calm him.

“Why?” Dedede asked the group. “Why would they be stealing our things? For what?”

And those were the questions- of how and why that no one had an answer for. The voices rose up again, each throwing out their own theories, more like hypotheses, for the scavenging. 

“Stand guard!” Dedede had butted in. “I want all eyes on the skies! I ain’t care much if they are only scavenging, they're still dangerous.”  

Kirby drifted away from the conversation once again. Gooey hadn’t said a thing, not even when Dark Matter was first mentioned. He was propped up against his pink friend, and he felt heavy like a rock. There was a listlessness to his face. His eyelids drooped down with the threat of sleep. His blue body expanded and deflated with each heavy breath that shuddered through. 

It was odd. Kirby touched the space between his eyes, Gooey was warm. And despite that, his friend shivered. 

The splice of Dark Matter fled Castle Dedede. It flew past the castle’s walls, through the little clouds that were there, and into the atmosphere. The wind beat against their eye, and it squinted in discomfort. 

Once among the stars, the splice felt its body throb. A pain somewhere deep within their dark sent thorns all around. It hovered in space, blinking rapidly. It wanted to rest so badly. Just close its giant eye and succumb to sleep, no matter if it's vulnerable position-alone and weak. It was…getting worse. 

It would return empty-handed, even worse, it was spotted. They would not be thrilled. But for the good of their kind, the splice forced itself to continue.

Its travel through space was a slow one, it was as if weights were tied to its darkness. The Dark Matter feelings varied little, exhaustion had been a new, uncomfortable state. Though, once it saw home, the closest thing it could feel to relief came up. It quicked its pace, desperate for solid ground to lay on. 

The reganing Dark Star was a small planet, no. It wasn’t even a planet, it was more akin to a stationary meteor. A thick cloud of smog hovered about the rock, and the splice winked as the smog dug into the crooks of his eye. It swam through like a drowning creature that craved for air. 

Inside, there was a maroon red sky. Where clouds should have been, luminescent and interwinding wheels took their place. It was a dreary place. No trees, no water. The sign of life only being the Dark Matter themselves. Sunlight or moonlight did not reach in either. 

What it did have was some land formations based upon the original rock they rooted in as their base. Mountains, uneven and jagged, had bustled in certain areas, but that was all. It shared similarities with a war-torn area.

Once close enough, the splice simply stopped, and allowed itself to fall the rest of the way. It collapsed onto the granite earth with a slap. It hurt, but the splice was too tired to care. 

It barely had the chance to rest before something else prodded.

“Did you get it?” A discombobulated voice asked. It was like many spoke at once. All with differing cadences, feminine, masculine, gravelly and high-pitched. An untuned chorus.

The Dark Matter splice shook themself, no. 

There was a growl from above and the splice lifted their pupil up to stare. Miracle Matter spun in the air, their many beady eyes trained in on the splice, the scout. The splice’s prediction was right, they were not happy.

“Nothing? Nothing at all! You fly down in risky territory and you return with nothing?” 

Flickers of fire started on their many corners. 

“You were not supposed to be back for some hours-why are you-you were spotted, weren’t you?” Miracle Matter had figured that out quickly. Unless there was something worthy to bring back as soon as possible, there was a strict routine to follow. 

The Dark Matter on the ground gave no confirmation or denial. They were in it for sure now. It closed its eye and prepared to smited. It could hear as Miracle Matter’s flames roared mere inches away. It will be over soon. Rest.

It never came.

Miracle Matter sighed, for them, it was more akin to whistling. The flames went away. 

“Nevermind, you-you fool!” 

They hissed at the splice, before revolving around. The splice was content to lay on the granite. Miracle Matter left, they floated up into their newfound mountains with a hurriedness.

What came with formations, beside the mountains were ledges, and more interesting, a carven. Perfect for some wild animal to find shelter from a storm or privacy to curl up and surrender to their mortal wounds. Within this carven was a being greater than a mere animal. 

Part of the army had already gathered inside. Others returned from their scavenges with more things. Miracle Matter spotted yet another pillow being carried into the cave. When they ordered comfortable items, they hoped the army would have more of an imagination than pillows and a single grand quilt, however Miracle Matter themself wouldn’t know what to do.

There was little purpose in rageful actions. It had wanted to smite the splice, but they needed everyone, even the foolish ones. 

Miracle Matter slipped into the cavern behind another scout, and paused to take in the scene. 

Tucked away in the darkest corner of the cavern was the army’s Lord. Pillows were arranged to form a mattress, large enough to cradle them. The quilt had been tossed atop them. Its end just reached the beginning of the blood-red eye, which had gained a sagginess to it. Zero wasn’t sleeping, the pain kept them up. They didn’t show the agony that ripped through their body, besides the occasional twitch of the eyelid or flap of the wing. Those wings laid leisurely off the makeshift mattress, like dead weight. 

Miracle Matter hadn’t told them to gather food, or fruit as it seemed. They physically couldn’t eat, they did not have the privilege or pleasure of eating. The watermelons were cast aside, inside the cave and randomly dotted about the land. The apples too, some had already rotten. Maybe they thought it would be…a comfort? Maybe they learned that a soft snack could make one feel better. But this wasn’t a tummy ache, not that the Dark Matter could get one. 

The box of tissues proved somewhat useful. Miracle Matter could wipe the dollops of sweat from Zero’s body.

To the Dark Matter it was their Lord, Master, Creator. To Miracle Matter it was their dear sibling. They couldn’t feel love or happiness, it was their greatest weakness. And yet, when Miracle Matter saw Zero, they felt something. A care, perhaps.

Zero had, up to this point, been indifferent, their giant red eye gazed uninterested at the cave’s smooth ceiling. The pupil shifted as Miracle Matter floated over. Just some inches away, they could feel Zero’s blazing warmth.

“You are heating up.” Miracle Matter whispered.

“I am ill.” Zero answered, nonchalantly. The voice was deep, like it was being spoken from down in a hole.

“You should be getting better soon.” 

“We do not even know what is wrong.” 

No, they don’t. It happened so quickly. It was just an average existence, spreading their influence, their darkness. Then, all of a sudden, Zero abruptly left, Miracle Matter hadn’t noticed them leave. Until, it was over, and they sent the army looking.  They all discovered Zero had trudged themself into this cave and crumpled down. And this gloomy corner in the mountain was where Zero had stayed since. 

In the following days, Zero had gotten hot. They had fickle mentions of pain. And they never rose from their spot, only stubbornly shifting once the pillows had come.  

“How are you feeling?” Miracle Matter asked.

“Hurts.” Zero answered blankly. And despite that answer, they did not show it.

“We’ll get you medicine soon.”

More scouts and scavengers slipped into the cave. They floated over and one by one, they fell like stones into the sea, beside Zero. Some landed on his outstretched wings, weight upon the feathers and the raw nerves stirred no response of their Lord. Miracle Matter was about to demand them to move, give their Lord some space-Zero must’ve sensed it.

“They’re fine.” Zero told them.

Behind Miracle Matter, others lay scattered about the cave. Seemingly content, or perhaps too fatigued to make the journey to Zero. But they tried, they sure tried. 

The number of them doing that had increased. Miracle Matter floated away from Zero and peeked out of the cave. Only a few left could sustain themselves in the air, and even then, their eyes were closed in sleep. That splice that returned empty-handed hadn’t moved from their spot.

This was an awful sign. First Zero, and now the entire Dark Matter army were rendered unexplainably weary. Miracle Matter had not a clue why, much less a way to fix it.

Chapter Text

Ships reigned in the sky. Kirby had to stand at an exact angle just to get a glimpse of the bright sun.

Since the discovery of Dark Matter, the skies were on guard, ordered by King Dedede. The Lorstarcutter hovered above Kirby’s house. Daroach’s blimp loomed above the forest. Susie did regular rounds of the land in her mech. The Halberd lingered defensively of Castle Dedede. Meta Knight must’ve felt embarrassment from his prior doubt in Dedede’s worry, for the warship had not moved since the declaration.

Other Dark Matter scouts had been spotted, shuffling through more cabinets, retrieving more but they were quickly shooed away by Dreamland’s residents. Not one had attacked. Or try to possess anyone. Upon being seen, all fled with an alarming unhurriedness. No one had a reason as to why this was, but as long as there wasn’t threat of a swarm, King Dedede had preferred not to involve themselves any further. 

Kirby, however, was rather impartial to the whole affair. It didn’t demand his attention, so he was content to simply let the others around him survey. 

The pink puff was shaken out of his thinking on the ships when he felt a touch onto his side. 

“Tag, you’re it!” Bandana Dee giggled and quickly took off across the grass, blue bandana blew in the wind. 

Kirby chased after his friend, the air full of laughter. They ducked under one of the ship's shadows. Bandana Dee always just seemed to be out of his reach, no matter how hard he pushed his pace. Kirby glanced about as they entered the forest, searching for the third member of their little game. No doubt, Gooey took the chance to hide! 

Kirby’s eyes scanned high above in the trees, down in bushels. But as he chased Bandana Dee, he caught no glimpse of the blue blob. It was suspicious! Gooey wasn’t one to abandon a game without words or reason.

“Have you seen Gooey?” Kirby asked, suddenly he came to a stop.

Bandana Dee stopped too, though he kept a safe distance, in case the question was a trick. “He ran into the forest when he tagged me.” 

Kirby hummed and spun in a circle, looking all about for their friend. Gooey wasn’t an overly skilled hider, and Kirby knew that well, through their many games of hide and seek. He hadn’t forgotten that early morning, when he first felt Gooey’s head and found him warm. Gooey had insisted he was fine, simply tired. Kirby had forgotten about the conversation-until then.

“Kirby?” Bandana Dee asked, still not moving from his spot. 

“Did…Gooey looked okay to you?” Kirby asked.

“He was breathing kinda hard, but I thought that was because we’ve been running around.”

That would make sense. The sun was out, and they had spent the last hour playing outside. Kirby still couldn’t shake the feeling that…maybe something was amiss. He took a step forward, nub near his mouth. That was all it took for Bandana Dee to take off further in the woods. Kirby pursued him at a slower pace as he inspected the forest. 

Thankfully, Gooey didn’t prove to go away very far. Only after minutes of walking and talking a left turn towards the fish pond, Kirby saw the blue among the brown trunks and luscious green leaves. It seemed Gooey had found sanctuary under some narrow branches and wide leaves.

He walked carefully, being mindful of any wayward twigs. Once close enough, Kirby’s pink nub tapped Gooey.

“Tag!” He chirped. 

But Gooey didn’t move. No giggle, no shocked gasp of being found. All that came was a groan. Gooey hardly ever…groaned? Kirby nudged again.

“Gooey?” He asked.

When Gooey didn’t answer again, Kirby rounded the bush to face Gooey head on. As soon as he came into view, Gooey’s bleary eyes snapped open. His usual grin forced itself to turn upright.

“Oh! How long were you here?” He asked.

Kirby was rather speechless. Had he not felt the nudging? Gooey could be forgetful, but this didn’t look to be a case of distraction or heedlessness.

“It was hot, so I found some shade!” Gooey went on.

Now that he had said it, Gooey did have a few beads of sweat on the top of his head. Kirby didn’t know he could sweat. The more he looked, the more unusual Gooey seemed to be these past few days. The tongue that had greeted him soon fell with a plop back onto the grass, too tired to carry it in the air any longer.

“Are you okay?” Kirby asked. 

“Yes! I think so?” Even Gooey didn’t sound so sure. 

“Maybe we should take a break from tag.”

“Tag? Oh, that would be why I’m tired.” 

Gooey came out from underneath the shrubbery, the leaves brushed against one another to make way. His tongue dragged passively behind him. They hadn’t really been playing that long, only around a half an hour. Kirby was perplexed.

Bandana Dee must’ve realized that the game paused, for he had gone looking for his two other playmates. He emerged from behind a tree truck and approached the other two. 

“Are we still playing?” Despite the question, he kept a cautious distance, in case his previous assessment was wrong of course. 

Kirby shrugged, “I tagged Gooey, but-” 

“I’m tagged! I’m it!” 

The announcement prompted Bandana Dee to take off in the opposite direction. Gooey pursued, tongue fritted about in the air. A gut notion that told Kirby that not all was well, that there was something wrong, had him break the single rule of tag. Instead of running away, Kirby stalked behind Gooey, the newfound tagger.

And in the next few minutes, he was glad he did. Over the course of the chase, Gooey’s pace slowed from a sprint, to a slight run, a jog, and finally, he stumbled and fell flat on his face. Kirby cried out in shock and ran over to check.

He could’ve tripped, of course. The thought had dawned on Kirby and was immediately forgotten upon turning Gooey over. He clutched for air like it was a struggle with his mouth turned down in a firm frown. His eyes, however, were trained up. Past Kirby and the trees that loomed above. He stared up into the blue, and ship-scattered sky. 

“Gooey?” Kirby asked.

“What happened?” 

Bandana Dee had come back the way he came once he heard Kirby’s outcry. He hovered over the blue blob, who hadn’t reacted to his presence.

“He just fell over. I think he’s sick, Bandee.” 

Bandanna Dee looked confused. “Sick? He can get sick?”

“I guess. Let’s take him to my place.”

With their joint efforts, Kirby and Bandana Dee helped Gooey get upright, of which he let out a discomforted groan. They trotted back the way they came, past the trees and bushes and small pond. Every once in a while, Gooey would let out another distressed noise. His helpers past one another worried glances.

“Are you in pain?” Bandana Dee asked.

“Aches…” Gooey answered, his tongue darted out to point in between his eyes. 

“He’s hot.” Kirby observed.

“A fever maybe?” 

But how on all of Popstar did Gooey get a fever? He’s lived here for years and never once had this happened before. They pushed on, no matter how weak Gooey got. No matter how much of a trial it was for Gooey to move, his friends were there to keep him upright. 

Lastly, they arrived at Kirby’s house, where Bandana Dee opened the door. They plopped Gooey down into the pink puff’s bed, and the pair could breathe a sigh of relief from the harrowing journey back.

Kirby only gave himself a few seconds before going over to Gooey’s side. He fixed him up against the plush pillows and tucked him into the softer blankets. Bandana Dee had brought Gooey a glass of water and urged him to drink it, even if he spluttered half of the drink across himself and the blankets. 

“I…I think something’s wrong.” Gooey murmured.

Kirby has rarely felt…bad emotions, as King Dedede called them. Homesickness, and perhaps sometimes sadness for those who couldn’t be saved. But never this before. It gripped his chest tight. All he could focus on was Gooey and those labored breaths, the dreadful way he spoke. Gooey had never sounded so weak, so scared. What was this? Pity or fear? Fear over Gooey?

Bandana Dee turned to Kirby, touching his friend with a kind nub to his side.

“Do you think..that the sudden gathering of Dark Matter has anything to do with this?” Bandana Dee’s other nub pointed to Gooey on the bed.

Gooey did come from the Dark Matter Lord, he was a creature born from another that was the embodiment of suffering, or at least that’s how Meta Knight explained it. But whatever was going on with the Dark Matter army, why would it affect Gooey? Neither could say for sure.

“I guess.” Kirby mumbled. “But we won’t know for sure unless we do something.” 

Bandana Dee tilted to the side in confusion. “What?”

Kirby approached the window on the other side of the bed. He opened it, his eyes rose up to the sky. Gooey had been zoning out to the sky, it did not escape Kirby, but before, he simply thought it was a trait of Gooey’s calm nature. 

There was something up there. Something Gooey sensed, even if he wasn’t fully aware of it. Bandana Dee came beside Kirby to gaze out the window as well. A glaze of understanding crossed his face.

“You think they are…back?” He quietly asked, like a secret only between them.

“I’m not sure, but if the Dark Matter is here then that means-” Kirby went on.

“Zero is too.” 

The dreaded name had caused a sense of trepidation to settle over Kirby’s tiny house. That terrifying eye, the gushing blood. It was an unwanted sight. And yet, not one Kirby and his friends hadn’t seen before. Kirby and Gooey had faced Zero, and later, he and Ribbon battled on with the reincarnation, Zero Two. 

“Maybe if we go to…the new Dark Star or wherever they took all the stuff-we can help Gooey.” Bandana Dee muttered. “Maybe the answer lies there.” 

Kirby turned back to Gooey, whose breathing had not gotten better. He used his pink nub to stroke comfort into his friend. He was not one who liked seeing their friends sad, in danger, or in this case, unquestionably ill. 

“Cold.” Gooey whispered, the trembling backed this up, while the sweat and heat contradicted.

Kirby looked over to Bandana Dee. “We’re going there, but I don’t want to leave Gooey alone.”

Bandana Dee agreed and reached behind to pull out his little phone. The star at the end of the antenna twirled and glowed as he made the call. He kept it hushed, quietly explaining that he and Kirby needed the King and his Knight here as soon as possible. 

“No way! Are you kids insane?” Dedede bellowed. 

Kirby didn’t flinch, while Bandana Dee tilted his eyes to the ground, as if the King had gotten caught him snatching from his personal cookie jar. After the situation was explained, and what they were going to do about it, Dedede had made his refusal abundantly clear. 

“No, we are not going up to the lion’s den-not even the den, the mouth!” King Dedede exclaimed, throwing his wings out. 

“I don’t want you to come with me. I want someone to stay with Gooey!” Kirby cried out.

“I don’t want no one goin’ up there! It is dangerous!” 

Meta Knight had stood stoically off. He hadn’t said a word since he arrived, content to let Dedede ask the questions and do most of the talking. But he watched. Watched as Gooey shuddered with each labored breath, how for the first time, tears of discomfort, of confusion, ran down his blue cheeks. Meta Knight gathered a tissue, and stroked Gooey’s head as he wiped him of tears and sweat. Now, he had multiple quilts tucked around his round body, along with a cool rag atop his brow.  

“But we have to do something! Look at Gooey!” Kirby threw out a nub to motion towards the bed. “Have you ever seen Gooey sick?”

Dedede, flustered, sputtered out unfinished words, for he had no arguments to present for that. Gooey was worryingly ill.

“Is going to that wretched planet the way to go about it?” Dedede pleaded.

“He is one of them! Maybe they have answers! Maybe we can figure out why they came back again! I-I can’t just leave him like this.” 

Kirby’s final word bubbled on hopelessness. King Dedede and his pipsqueak rival both knew that Kirby was a determined one, if he wanted to do something he would do it. The King felt his stomach churn at the memory of that eye and the threat they had on Dreamland.

“How do you even know the scavenging and the illness are connected?” Dedede’s voice melted from its previous anger to a near beg. 

“I-” Kirby stammered.

“He won’t know, not unless he does something.” Meta Knight came forward.

“Meta-”

The Knight placed a kind hand on the King’s arm. A sign of understanding. 

“He’s really bad off, Dedede. He can barely speak. He’s lethargic.”

Dedede looked too. One of his subjects, an alien, no matter his origin, that he had welcomed with open arms to his kingdom. Gooey was just a kid. Just a baby. That had escaped the hold of his original nature-of negativity and darkness. Instead, he became a beacon of happiness. 

Dedede approached Gooey’s bedside. Goody’s tongue, now dry with his sore throat, lightly touched Dedede’s wing.

“I’m…what is happening?” He asked. 

He was looking to his king. For an answer, for comfort. Dedede had to fight the lump in his throat. He touched his cheek.

“I don’t know. But it’s gonna get solved. You just rest.” 

Kirby and Bandana Dee brightened. Personally, Kirby would’ve done something with or without approval, but he was still glad to have the King’s support. Meta Knight turned to his student. 

“You are still not going to this new Dark Star empty-handed.”

The cape ruffled, as he dug for underneath. Finally, he revealed a wand. A golden heart at top, the rod made up of yellow and red stripes.

Bandana Dee gasped. “The Love-Love Stick?”

“You never know. If Zero is still around, it’s better to be safe than sorry.” Meta Knight answered, passing it to the Waddle Dee.

“You had that on you?” Dedede exclaimed. 

“I figured you’d come around.”

Kirby wasted no time calling on the help of the warp star.

Zero hated the feeling of sweat on their skin. It was sticky, worse than blood dripping out of his socket. At least that was somewhat normal, something that occurred when they wept, when the forces of light and love attacked. Sweat was uncertain. They didn’t know what it meant.

Since being a prisoner in their own body, confined to this cave and bed of pillows, they’ve had a lot of time to ponder. The obvious main topic of their thoughts was the inner workings of their own body.

Dark Matter had only the two mentioned weaknesses. Light, a broader subject that included crystals and rainbows. And love. Zero hadn’t interacted with either of those things. It’s not like he contracted some plague and gave it to his fledglings either.

Do Gods have body parts? They certainly didn’t have any bones, though, Zero was also sure they had vision, hearing, flight, and a heart of darkness that pumped blood. Blood that kept them moving, and the only thing that set them apart from the littler Dark Matters they produced.

Like lesser life, animals, knights, or kings-they were all the same to Zero-their body has often undeterred function. The hearing of the pulse was one he shared. And movement of-

Oh. That movement hadn’t stirred since this all started. Of course it wouldn’t.How could they produce more Dark Matter babies in this state? What a cruel fate. To go extinct from an unknown illness.

“It’s still.” They whispered to no one.

“What’s still?” Miracle Matter asked, having heard it anyway.

In the coming days, their sibling has gone from hovering to smothering. Constantly asking what they can do for Zero. If they're cold, or hot. Hungry? Miracle Matter must be getting desperate.

“My inner-body.” Zero replied, a softness to their tone.

It was a change compared to their previous blasé demeanor.