The Arrow of Time

Golden Aurora

Kirby slowly opened his eyes.

The world looked the same as it had when they were closed.

He closed them, then opened them again.

He didn't know where he was.

Could this even be described as a "where?"

What is space?

Is the world still even real?

Has it ever been?

Perhaps not.

Kirby took a step.

Or maybe he didn't.

It wasn't as if he could tell.

He tried to look around.

Is there such a thing as "around" in a place like this?

And... what is that... in the distance?

Is it far away, or just very small?

Kirby tried to go close to it.

He thought he was coming closer, but it seemed more like the thing was approaching him. Twisting, looping, spiraling, it slithered ever closer. The shimmering ray of golden light reached his face, restoring a sense of reality. The surroundings were still pitch dark, but Kirby now at least felt like he still existed, and that was good enough. He had to save his friends. How had he forgotten that? He put his hand on the ray of light. It completely passed through it, because light isn't touchable. Kirby didn't know what he was expecting, in all honesty.

He found that he was, in fact, able to move. He followed the trail of light. Maybe there was something at its source. Maybe he could find his friends. His friends like... um... who were they again? He didn't remember them! His friends, who he valued more than anyone else, and he didn't remember their names, or what they looked like, or how he met them, or anything! How heartless am I? I'm such a terrible friend... That thought made him all the more determined to save them, although he had to admit he wasn't quite sure what he was saving them from.

He wasn't quite sure how long it took to encounter someone. But when he did, he felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity. The person he encountered was very large in stature, and was ferociously chomping his way through a piece of meat on the bone. He turned around and sized up Kirby. "So, you're the rascal who's been running amok in MY castle, are you? You got a name, or are you just a balloon-lookin' nuisance?" Something felt off about that, like it wasn't something he should have been saying. Before Kirby could come up with a response, however, he pulled out a large hammer. "Alright. Let's see if a little walloping can't fix that attitude of yours!" He swung the hammer. And then he was gone. As if he had never existed at all. Something about it filled Kirby with overpowering sadness, though he couldn't tell what it was specifically.

The light continued to guide him, bringing him to yet another encounter with the slightly familiar person from before. This time, he was grabbing him, a desperate look in his eyes. "Listen to me. Please. You don't know what you're doing. Don't put it back in the fountain." Kirby looked back at him to see him shaking his head. Then, he disappeared again.

Kirby contemplated. He knew what he had seen. He'd seen it before, a long time ago. He was there. He knew that guy. His name... what was it? He had to remember. He had to. His name was... Dedede! That was it! There had to be more of them, though, didn't they? He could feel the memories almost returning to his mind.

He saw a few more visions of him before someone different appeared. They stood tall, or at least looked like it at a glance. Upon closer inspection, they weren't much bigger than Kirby. After he said something about dueling Kirby, Kirby remembered his name: Meta Knight. Despite remembering, little by little, who his friends were, he felt no closer to actually saving them. After all, no amount of memories could fix the fact that he was basically nowhere. Or maybe it could. Only one way to find out.