Chapter Text
Meta Knight remembered wearily opening his eyes, finding himself in an unfamiliar bunk in an unfamiliar room.
“Hm?” He had mumbled, still dazed from his long fall, still sore from his confrontation with Nightmare. An especially sharp pain radiated across his back, a scathing reminder that he no longer had his wings. Meta was battered and maimed, but he had escaped with his life, and for that he was grateful.
Despite his injuries, Meta felt surprisingly comfortable in the bunk. The mattress and pillow were both very soft, cushioning his aching body, and whoever had put him there had tucked him under a warm red blanket. He almost didn’t want to leave this cozy resting place, but he knew that he should try to muster up the strength to survey his surroundings. He needed to figure out where he was. Meta glanced to his side and noticed that his sword had been carefully propped up against his bunk, within his sight and within his reach. Whoever had placed him here evidently did not consider him a danger. Meta wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or a bad sign. It was an indication that the person or people who had taken charge of him either trusted him not to attack, or trusted that they could overpower him if he did.
“Wa-wa! Wa-wa!” Meta heard a noise. It sounded like a whine or a cry, the type of sound that a baby or a small animal would make.
“Don’t cry, little one!” A gentle voice spoke. “Mama’s here!” The voice did not have any discernible accent to it, but Meta recognized the language as Galactic Standard. Galactic Standard was the most common language spoken in Gamble Galaxy, and most residents of the galaxy spoke at least a little bit of Standard even if it was not their primary language. With this knowledge, Meta determined that he was likely still somewhere within the galaxy, but he was unable to pinpoint anything further about his current location.
Quietly, Meta rose from his bunk and looked around. He could see now that he was on a ship, and that there were two people standing before him. They had their backs to him, and they didn’t seem to notice that he had awoken. One of these people was a Waddle Dee, although Meta didn’t know what a Waddle Dee was at the time. She was holding a much smaller Waddle Dee, and the smaller one was fussing and whining. At the Waddle Dee’s side stood a bird-like fellow, who had his beak buried in an ancient-looking book. Meta wasn’t sure what to make of these two strangers. Could he trust them? Did they harbor any ill will towards him? He knew, rationally, that if they had wanted to harm him, they could have done so when he was unconscious. Still, Meta couldn’t help but question their intentions. Ever since he was a child, he had been taught to assume the worst of others. Nightmare had spent years instilling into him the idea that Gamble Galaxy was an unkind place, and was full of very unkind people.
The dark being had told Meta that to survive in such a place, one had to be powerful, one had to be feared, one had to conquer or be conquered, and always be on guard. Meta had believed that mantra wholeheartedly, Meta had never questioned his “father” or his guidance. But now, after having been beaten so viciously by the “father” that had claimed to care for him, Meta was starting to doubt everything that he had been taught. Perhaps the galaxy was not such a cruel, unforgiving place. Perhaps the people that resided in it, people like the ones standing before him now, were genuinely good.
“…Am I being held as your prisoner?” Meta asked them in Galactic Standard, drawing their attention toward him. It had been a while since he had last spoken in Standard. Even though Nightmare had spoken both Standard and Lengua Oscura with him, Meta was much more accustomed to speaking Oscura, and he was aware that his Standard had a noticeable Oscuran accent to it. The Waddle Dee and the bird-like fellow didn’t seem to have any trouble understanding him, though. They turned to greet him with friendly smiles. Well, the bird-like fellow was smiling, at least. The Waddle Dee didn’t have a mouth, but she seemed to “smile” with her eyes instead. She had very kind eyes; they held a warm shine.
“Course not, lad! You’re our guest!” The bird-like man assured Meta, speaking in Galactic Standard as well, though with a slight accent that Meta couldn’t quite place. “You crashed into our deck, so the lass and I have been looking after you. Welcome to Dream Land!”
“I hope my baby didn’t wake you!” The Waddle Dee worried, gesturing to the baby Dee-no longer crying, fortunately-that she held snug against her body. “Did you sleep well?” Meta was somewhat surprised by the Waddle Dee’s question. He had never been asked that before. Nightmare had never thought to ask him that.
“Hm… I think so.” He answered. It was definitely better than any rest he had gotten while living with his “father”, although his back still ached terribly from the loss of his wings. Meta had a sinking feeling that it would take much more than a good rest in a comfortable bed to remedy that particular ailment. But he had more pressing concerns at the moment. “Who are you? What is this ‘Dream Land’?”
“The name’s Vul! And I’m the finest lieutenant the Dream Land Navy’s ever seen!” The bird-like man exclaimed, proudly puffing out his chest as he cracked a smile and winked. Then, his smile faded a bit, and he gave a nervous laugh as he added, “…I’m also the only lieutenant the Dream Land Navy’s ever seen…”
“Dream Land’s the kingdom that we live in!” Said the Waddle Dee. “I’m Ensign Waddle Dee, and this is my baby!” She motioned to the tiny, baby Dee again. The baby Dee let out a happy “wa!” in response. “What’s your name?”
“I am called Meta.” Meta introduced himself. “What planet is Dream Land on? Or is Dream Land the planet itself?”
“Nice to meet you, Meta!” Ensign Dee beamed, still bearing that friendly shine in her eyes. “Dream Land is just the kingdom, our planet’s called Popstar. Did you come here from another planet?”
“I don’t think he’s from any planet at all, lass!” Vul cut in before Meta could respond. He handed Meta the ancient book that he’d been examining. “Here, Meta. I’ve been reading this old book that Ensign and I found during our last expedition to the Great Cave. It’s told me a few things about you. It might tell you a little about yourself too. Have a look at it while we fix dinner.” Meta nodded and opened the book. He sat down by his bunk to read it while Vul and Ensign hurried off to the galley to make some food.
“As Vul and Ensign prepared a meal for all of us, I started to look through the ancient book that Vul had given me. I learned many things that I had not known about myself and my species. Most importantly, I learned that I was not one of Nightmare’s dark creations.” Meta Knight remembered flipping through the book’s old, weathered pages, absorbing all of the information contained within, discovering more about himself and about the workings of the universe as a whole.
“The book was written by scientists from one of the first intelligent civilizations to arise on Popstar. They were the first to discover that all living beings contain the elements of Dream, Dark, Soul, and Heart.” Meta Knight pictured one of the illustrations he’d seen in the book. It was a depiction of the four elements, drawn over a looping set of rings connecting them together. A yellow and green star represented the element of Dream, a black and purple circle represented the element of Dark, an orange spiked shape with a pale core represented the element of Soul, and a pink heart shape very fittingly represented the element of Heart.
“These elements can take on different forms and properties depending upon the concentration of each element present within a living being and the type of energy that the elements are imbued with.” Meta Knight envisioned his younger self flipping to another page in the old book. This page contained a diagram, showing several different lifeforms native to Popstar and their theorized elemental concentrations. At the time, since he had just arrived on the planet, Meta was not familiar with the lifeforms depicted. But now, he recognized the silhouettes of a Waddle Dee, Waddle Doo, Bronto Burt, and Scarfy. Each silhouette was filled in with colorful gradients to indicate the different concentrations of each element within each creature. No two were the same, each lifeform had their own special blend of elements that made them one of a kind.
“This leads to infinite diversity in infinite combinations, resulting in the endless array of unique lifeforms that we see here on Popstar and throughout Gamble Galaxy.” Meta Knight recalled another set of illustrations that he’d seen as he’d neared the end of the book. These illustrations, spread out across two pages, told him about his own unique combination of elements, his own creation. The first page showed a grand display of many clouds and whisps, all in the different colors of the elements. The clouds and whisps were shown melding together, coalescing into a single glowing point in space, enveloped in bright white light.
“Sometimes in space, in stellar nurseries, these elements are combined together with immensely powerful energy. This leads to the birth of a very special lifeform…” The second page showed the results of this process, the being that the glowing point had manifested into as its final form. It had become a colorful orb-like creature, much like Meta Knight and Kirby. “…A lifeform that the first people of Popstar refer to as a ‘Star Warrior’, a creature of great strength, born of the stars, like Kirby and I both were.” And, Meta Knight thought to himself, like another certain knight. While the Star Warrior that he had seen in the book looked quite similar to him and to Kirby, he possessed some very distinct traits that neither of them had. This Star Warrior was drawn with golden horns, and a pair of angelic feathered wings. He appeared to be an infant version of Galacta Knight, the former greatest warrior in the galaxy.
That title belonged to Meta Knight now, as he had bested the other knight in combat. He remembered the encounter well. He had been on a quest to test himself and grow stronger, and, having exhausted all challenges available to him on Popstar, had traveled to other worlds to test himself there. Along the way, he collected seven magical stars from seven planets, and he used them to summon Galactic Nova, a strange, clockwork comet capable of granting wishes. Meta Knight had wished to fight the greatest warrior in Gamble Galaxy, the ultimate test of his strength. Galactic Nova granted his wish, and brought forth Galacta Knight from his crystal prison.
Meta Knight knew next to nothing about this strange, ancient warrior. Galactic Nova had mentioned that the other knight had been sealed away for fear that his power was too great, but had not gone into any further detail. And if Galacta Knight knew the reason for his imprisonment, he had chosen not to disclose that to Meta Knight. Few words had been exchanged between them during their brief meeting. They had introduced themselves, stating their names and titles, and then the battle had begun. Meta Knight emerged as the victor, and Galacta Knight was sealed away once more.
Ever since their battle, Meta Knight had been curious about the other Star Warrior. Who was he? Where had he come from? Why had he been imprisoned, and who had imprisoned him? Perhaps at some point in the future Meta Knight would cross paths with Galacta Knight again and would learn more about him. But for now, he pushed all of his questions aside and turned to Kirby. He smiled, and despite his face being hidden behind his mask, Kirby seemed to be able to tell from his eyes that he was smiling.
“So, Kirby,” He addressed the boy, “When people call you ‘Kirby of the Stars’, you quite literally are ‘of the stars’!” Kirby, Bandana, and Sailor’s eyes shone with wonder.
“Wow!” Kirby exclaimed, pressing his hands to his cheeks in awe. For the entire time that he had known Meta Knight, he had been aware that the two of them were the same species. Kirby had started to suspect it after their first battle, when he had challenged Meta Knight for his piece of the Star Rod and shattered his mask. Meta Knight had fled immediately after his face had been exposed, so there had been no time for Kirby to speak with him then. But later on, after Nightmare was defeated, the knight confirmed to him that they were indeed the same species. He couldn’t exactly deny it at that point even if he had wanted to, since Kirby had seen what he looked like. But even though he knew that they were both Star Warriors, Kirby had never thought to ask about where exactly he and Meta Knight had come from.
He had been living such a happy life on Popstar that it had never occurred to him to wonder about his origins. Now, though, vague memories surfaced in Kirby’s mind of his awakening in space, nestled cozily atop his Warp Star in a cluster of colorful matter and twinkling stars-his very own stellar nursery. Kirby felt an even stronger bond with Meta Knight now that he knew they had both begun their lives this way. Meta Knight was the only other Star Warrior that Kirby was acquainted with-if you didn’t count their mirror counterparts, Shadow Kirby and Dark Meta Knight-and because of this, he had always felt a connection to the knight that was unique among the many relationships he had with his many friends. Kirby didn’t call him “Dad”, but Meta Knight was the closest thing to a father that he had. He looked up to and loved the knight as any child would look up to and love their father.
Meta Knight, ever the serious, disciplined warrior, had a tendency to be quite reserved with his feelings. Kirby was one of the few people that had managed to crack through that stoic exterior, to soften the knight’s heart and draw out his gentler side. That side was something Meta Knight only showed to the most important people in his life, people he trusted, people he loved, people he cared deeply for. Kirby knew that Meta Knight loved him and cared for him, as if they really were father and son. And now that Meta Knight and Dedede were married, Kirby decided that this meant that Dedede was sort of like his father too. Kirby smiled to himself, wondering how the king would react if he started to call him his “Dede-Dad”.
“I was relieved to learn that I had no relation to Nightmare.” Meta Knight continued. “I decided then that I would remain on Popstar so that I could learn more about myself and so that I could grow stronger with my new friends by my side.” The knight pictured his younger self enjoying his first dinner with Vul and Ensign. The weather had been nice, and the two naval officers had spread a picnic blanket out across the upper deck of their ship so that they could eat under the clear orange skies. Meta had never had such a leisurely meal during his time residing with Nightmare. Back then, food was just a necessity for survival. The meals that Nightmare had given him had tasted fine enough, but they were always something to be devoured quickly for energy before combat training resumed, not something to be savored. Nightmare also never shared mealtimes with him. The dark being would always set out some food for Meta, order him to get back to work as soon as he was finished eating, and would then return to whatever nefarious business required his attention.
Eating without the expectation of having to train afterwards and eating in the company of others was a new experience for Meta, but not an unwelcome one. It was nice to have others to talk to, and it was nice to listen to them describe all of the unfamiliar foods that they were enjoying. Vul explained that he was eating some omurice, a type of rice stuffed egg dish drizzled in a ketchup sauce, while Ensign had fixed herself a plate of nikuman, which were soft, fluffy buns stuffed with pork and vegetables.
Ensign’s baby sat at her side with their own little meal. The tiny Dee happily munched on a bowl of apple slices that Ensign had cut up into manageable pieces for them. Meta sat down with his own plate, which was full of something that Ensign had called onigiri. Ensign and Vul had offered to make him something extravagant for his first dinner on Popstar, but he hadn’t wanted to impose, and had insisted that he would be happy with whatever they served him, no matter how quick and simple it was. Ensign had come up with the idea to make onigiri for Meta, since in her words it was something that was both simple and delicious. It was made from seaweed wrapped rice that had been shaped into little triangles, and it was stuffed with salted salmon. Just as Ensign had said, it was quite tasty, and Meta gladly accepted a second plate when it was offered to him.
In the present, Meta Knight’s stomach growled. Thinking about the food was starting to make him feel hungry. He decided that later in the evening, when he returned to Castle Dedede to eat dinner with his king, he would ask the castle chefs to prepare some onigiri for the two of them.
“I wanted to use my powers for good, not evil. I told Vul and Ensign about my past and my plans for my future, and they were both in full support of me. I spent the rest of my time on Orange Ocean training in friendly spars with the two of them.” Meta Knight’s thoughts shifted away from the food and to the first time he had practiced his combat skills against Ensign and Vul. They were out on the deck together, and he remembered wielding his sword, watching Ensign as she leapt into the air and then dove toward him with her parasol. Ensign’s baby clung tightly to her back, unbothered by the fight that their mother was engaged in. Meta dodged Ensign’s attack while Vul, who had not had enough time to move out of her way, raised his daggers to parry her.
“I wanted to train as much as I could before we reached land, where newer, stronger opponents awaited me.” Meta Knight explained. “To put my strength to the ultimate test, I planned to fight the king of Dream Land and everyone who had challenged him for the throne.” Kirby, Bandana, and Sailor all grew wide-eyed and looked toward Dedede. The king grinned; it amused him to see how excited they were at him finally being mentioned in the knight’s story. Meta Knight couldn’t help but grin as well. The kids already knew of the king’s past-Dedede had spoken to them about it before, and it wasn’t as fraught as Meta Knight’s own past was-but he decided that he would tell them about it anyway, as it had been told to him so long ago.
“Ensign and Vul had told me that Dream Land did not have a ruler at first. That all changed when His Majesty decided to declare himself king. He faced three mighty opponents who challenged him for the throne, and he bested every single one in combat.” Meta Knight pictured a much younger Dedede, looking proud and determined as he prepared to face off against the others that sought to rule the kingdom. The first challenger was a large tree that Meta Knight would later come to know as Whispy Woods, guardian of the forests of Green Greens. The second opponent was actually not one opponent at all, but two: a pair of colorful little orb-like creatures, Lololo and Lalala, who resided in Castle Lololo on the Float Islands. And the final one was the curmudgeonly cloud Kracko, lord of the Waddle Doos, who could appear anywhere and everywhere a sky existed, but preferred to spend most of his time in Bubbly Clouds, high above Dream Land. Dedede had beaten each of them with ease, securing his title and his throne.
“The king then built a grand castle atop a mountain, where he now resided with all of the Waddle Dees who served him.” Meta Knight pictured the castle as it had been at the time, newly constructed, standing tall atop Mt. Dedede. Then, he looked out across the deck of the Halberd, out into the distance, where he could see the castle in its present state. It was a bit older and weathered now, and had required minor repairs here and there-most notably due to the damage Kirby had caused during his and Dedede’s first battle, when the boy had sent the king flying through the roof-but the castle was still standing tall on the mountaintop.
“The king was not a Waddle Dee, but he had lived among the Dees his whole life, having been found by a group of Dees when he was a baby and raised by them as one of their own.” After they had gotten to know each other well enough, Dedede had shown Meta Knight some photos from his younger years, photos taken by his Waddle Dee carers. It always surprised Meta Knight to see how tiny the future king had been; as a baby he was so much smaller than the adult Waddle Dees that constantly surrounded him and doted upon him. In every photo from his infancy, a tiny, baby Waddle Dee was always present at the future king’s side. She remained there as they both got older, as they went from children to teenagers, and finally entered adulthood. This Dee had a special relationship with His Majesty, and she had an even more special relationship with Ensign.
“He had grown up alongside Ensign’s wife, who was his childhood best friend. Now that they were adults, she had taken on a new role.” Meta Knight pictured the pair standing side by side in the castle’s throne room; Dedede wielded his trusty hammer while the Waddle Dee brandished a spear. The Waddle Dee also carried a baby Dee on her back, just as Ensign did. This was Ensign’s other child, the twin to the baby Dee that she had with her on the ship. “Ensign’s wife, Lady Dee, was the king’s right-hand Dee, his chief assistant and closest confidant.”
Meta Knight remembered being told all of this by Ensign as the ship neared land. Vul was in the wheelhouse, steering toward port so they could dock, and Meta and Ensign stood on the deck together, watching the coastline grow closer and closer. Ever the master of multi-tasking, Ensign had been doing her makeup during their conversation. She held a compact mirror in one hand and a stick of eyeliner in the other, gracefully sweeping the eyeliner across her face to create elegant wings on each eye as she went on and on about how beautiful, kind, funny, smart, and strong her beloved Lady Dee was. She spoke so highly of her wife, the love and adoration in her voice was unmistakable. Meta took charge of Ensign’s baby while she did her eyeliner. He had never been around babies before, and he wasn’t exactly sure how to look after them, but the baby Dee seemed happy enough in his care. Meta listened intently as Ensign spoke of her little family, gently rocking the baby Dee as they slept peacefully in his embrace and made soft little snoring noises.
“I can’t wait for you to meet Lady and my other baby!” Ensign beamed. She snapped her compact mirror shut, finally finished with her makeup routine. “After you fight Dedede you should see if Lady wants to duel you. She’s very skilled with her spear!” Meta handed her baby back to her, and she told him more about the little Dee and their twin. Meta learned that even though they were twins, each of Ensign’s babies had their own quirks and personalities. The baby Dee that Ensign had with her on the ship loved to be out on the water with her, but her other baby would cry and refuse to settle down whenever they were out at sea. That, combined with Lady Dee having a tendency to get severely seasick, led to Lady deciding to stay on land in Castle Dedede with one of the twins while Ensign brought the other twin along with her when she was out working on the ocean. It was hard for Ensign to be away from her wife and her other child, but it made her returns to Dream Land all that much sweeter. There was no greater feeling than being welcomed home by people who loved you.
Meta started to wonder if one day he would find someone special to come home to, someone on Popstar who would love him and long for him just as Lady loved and longed for Ensign. He had never been in love before-being isolated by Nightmare for all of his life had afforded him no opportunity for romance-but now that he was free, now that he was living for himself and no longer being used as a pawn of evil, he decided that it might be nice to seek out a partner. Maybe he would have a little family of his own one day, would have a spouse and a child. Little did he know, the very king that he was preparing to battle would one day become his husband, and Kirby would end up becoming the closest thing he had to a son. That would happen much, much later, though. Meta Knight’s younger self was much more concerned with combat than with courtship.
“While I had my weapon of choice-my sword-I still needed to obtain some armor before I faced His Majesty. Once we reached the shores of Orange Ocean, Ensign and Vul brought me to an old tower.” After Vul had brought the ship into port, they had all disembarked, and Vul and Ensign led Meta into one of the little towns by the coast. A tall, golden tower loomed over the town, shining bright against the orange sky. Meta wondered what-or who-awaited him within. “They said that I would be able to find some armor here. However, armor was not the only thing that I found…” The group entered the tower, where they were met by four mysterious armored figures.