“That doesn’t make sense,” muttered the Doctor as she checked the console. “No planet looks like that.” “What is it, Doctor?” asked Rassilon as she approached the console. “Rassilon, do you know of any planets that look like stars?” quizzed the Doctor. “…N…Not that I know of. Why?” “The coordinates for the fourth segment seem to be indicating that such a planet exists.” The Doctor displayed the coordinates on the scanner, even giving an image of the planet. It was a yellow, five-pointed star with two rings around the planet intersecting in the middle. “…Rather odd,” remarked Rassilon. “What does the TARDIS say it’s called?” “It appears the name of the planet is…Popstar.” “Popstar?!” asked Amy’s voice as she and William entered the console room. “Let me see! Let me see!” She saw the planet on the scanners. “Ooh! I know people from there!” “Amy?” asked the Doctor. “Popstar is home to a place called Dream Land, a kingdom known for peace and quiet!” explained Amy. “It’s the perfect little land if you like that sort of thing! Though, usually, a few warriors from it compete in a tournament Sonic joined called the Smash Brothers Tournament!” “I think I heard about that tournament,” mused Rassilon. “Fighters from various timelines and sub-dimensions compete in a fighting competition.” “I’m usually a spectator in that tournament,” continued Amy, “but I made friends with the fighters from Popstar! Come on! Let’s go see!” “Well, here’s hoping Popstar stays peaceful,” said the Doctor as she set the TARDIS on course for Popstar. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In a grassy landscape, next to a tree, a dome-shaped house sat on a hill. It was a bright, sunny day and inside, the owner of the house was snoozing away. The owner…wasn’t humanoid, for a start. It was a pink ball with flipper arms and big feet, but no legs. Its face was in the center of the ball, two eyes, cheeks, and a mouth. It also identified as male. The pink ball-person snoozed, snoring softly. His sleep was disturbed when the sound of the TARDIS arriving echoed through his house. “Mmm! Poyo?” he mumbled when he woke up. He got out of bed and waddled to the door to look outside. He blinked in surprise when the TARDIS materialized right in his front yard. The TARDIS made its usual thud and opened the door. “Poyo?” quizzed the pink creature. The TARDIS crew then came out. Amy’s face lit up when she saw the creature. “KIRBY!” she said. “Amy?!” asked the creature. “That’s right, Kirby!” replied Amy. “I know it’s not my usual red dress, but-.” “Amy!” cheered the creature happily as it jumped into Amy’s arms. “Whoa! Hey!” laughed Amy. She then turned to her friends. “Everyone, this is Kirby, the hero of Popstar!” “Hiii!” greeted Kirby. “A baby Star Warrior?!” yelped the Doctor. “I thought Star Warriors were myths,” remarked Rassilon. “Kirby’s no myth,” assured Amy. “And neither is his appetite. William, you got that cake I asked for?” “Right here,” replied William as he pulled out a pink cake with strawberries on it. Kirby’s eyes lit up. He then opened his mouth and created a powerful suction! “WHOA! HEY!” yelped William. Kirby then sucked the cake up and ate it, plate and all. Kirby then burped and the plate came out, clean as a whistle. “Still a hungry boy, aren’t you, Kirby?” giggled Amy. “Poyo!” agreed Kirby. “Definitely a baby Star Warrior,” said Rassilon. “But there must be an adult one nearby.” “That would be Meta Knight,” explained Amy. “Although, I wouldn’t say he’s nearby. …Unless…Kirby, do you know where Meta Knight’s ship, the Halberd, is?” “Meta?” asked Kirby. He then thought for a bit, then grinned. “Poyo!” he said with a smile. “You do? Show us!” “Amy, can we really afford to see this Meta Knight?” asked the Doctor. “We still need to look for the Key to Time segment here.” “Don’t worry, Meta Knight can help us find it if he understands the situation,” replied Amy. “Kirby, lead the way!” “Poyoi!” called Kirby as he took off to the east. “Come on, everyone!” called Amy. The group ran after Kirby. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A navy-blue ball person with a mask, glowing yellow eyes, a cape, armored boots, mitt-style gloves, and a golden sword with curved blades jutting out of the main one was on the bridge of his personal warship. He had detected strange readings of a temporal nature and was trying to puzzle them out. He couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching him. As he studied the readings, an orange thing with a face, but no mouth, approached him. This was a Waddle-Dee and this specific one wore a sailor’s hat. “Meta Knight, Sir!” he said. “Hm?” asked the ball-person, Meta Knight. “What is it, Sailor Waddle-Dee?” “Kirby is at the entrance ramp to the Halberd, Sir,” reported Sailor Waddle-Dee. “He has companions with him. One of them looks like Amy Rose from Mobius, but in a rather…goth outfit.” “…Bring them to the bridge,” ordered Meta Knight. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few minutes later, the TARDIS crew and Kirby were brought to the bridge. Meta Knight was still pouring over the readings. “I presume you have business here, visitors,” said Meta Knight. “…Is the black really that out of place for me?” asked Amy. “I normally see you in red,” replied Meta Knight as he turned to face everyone. “So, Miss Rose, you decided to visit Popstar. But I don’t see Sonic, unless he’s out for a run as usual.” “Not this time,” said Amy. “I’m here with my new friends. Meet William from 21st Century Earth and Rassilon and the Doctor of-.” “Rassilon?!” Meta Knight drew his sword. “So, if that’s THE Doctor, then I must surmise that the Time War has begun again! Not here on Popstar! You and the Daleks won’t touch it!” “We can’t restart the Time War anyway,” replied Rassilon. “Gallifrey is no more, Star Warrior.” “Rassilon speaks the truth,” said the Doctor. “Besides, we have more pressing issues.” “Do you now?” hissed Meta Knight. “Meta Knight, I promise, we’re not here to recruit you for any war,” said Amy. “We’re on a quest for the Key to Time,” explained the Doctor. “Have you heard of it?” Meta Knight sheathed his sword. “I’ve heard that bedtime story, yes,” he said. “It’s not a bedtime story, Mr. Meta Knight,” replied William. “We have half the segments already.” “The next one is here on Popstar,” explained Amy. “We have a tracer, but we need to know where on Popstar it is.” “If I can suss out the temporal anomalies my ship is picking up,” said Meta Knight, “perhaps I can help and get the Time Lords off this planet.” “Poyo?” asked Kirby. “Kirby, the Time Lords were dangerous, setting rules upon time itself and keeping other powers from discovering time travel to the extent they reached,” replied Meta Knight. “…The sad thing is, that kind of gate-keeping is one of the reasons I left Gallifrey,” remarked the Doctor. “What temporal anomalies are you getting?” asked Rassilon. “Perhaps you can figure it out,” remarked Meta Knight as he stepped aside to let the Doctor and Rassilon do their work. The two Time Lords checked over the readings. “…That looks like…” said Rassilon. “Potential time energy,” finished the Doctor. “Like someone is dropping people into the past to live out their remaining years.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As the two Time Lords worked, Amy, Kirby, and William followed a Waddle-Dee as he led them on a tour of the Halberd. “King Dedede is very generous with funding this ship,” said the Waddle-Dee. “Though I suspect it comes from the taxes he collects.” “How IS Dedede these days?” asked Amy. “…Looking kind of haggard. Two.” “Haggard?” asked William. “Maybe I should make a house call. You said he’s a king. Where’s his castle?” “Oh, not far from here. Two.” “…Two?” quizzed Amy. “Hm? Two what?” asked the Waddle-Dee. “No, you just said two,” said Amy. “No, I didn’t!” protested the Waddle-Dee. “I’m sure you did.” “I didn’t! Two.” “I heard that,” said William. “You just said two.” “You guys are crazy! I didn’t count!” Just then, the lights flickered. “Oh for-! I just had them fixed! One.” “Amy, something weird’s going on here,” muttered William. “No kidding. Waddle-Dees don’t count absentmindedly,” replied Amy. She then saw something. “Hey, that wasn’t there earlier, was it?” she asked. William turned to see that a statue was there. It looked like an angel in a chiton covering its face as if it were crying. “Huh, interesting art piece,” said William. “Hey, Waddle-Dee, can you-?” he turned to speak to the Waddle-Dee, only he wasn’t there. “Waddle-Dee?” “Huh?” Amy now looked around. “Hey, Waddle-Dee!” called Amy. As she looked, she saw that the statue wasn’t covering its face. “…Um, William…” she said. William looked at the statue and goggled. “That thing was covering its face, right?” he said. The lights flickered. When they were fully on again, the statue had a sadistic smile on its face and moved closer, its arms outstretched, ready to grab the two!