Meta Knight's POV:

Well, here I am. The planet where I had to take my best friend during the war's life. I do not know if this planet actually has a name, among the Star Warriors, it is known simply as 'Shi.' Death.

Nothing lives on this planet, it is even worse than Halcandra. There, at least there are still creatures such as Magolor's species and the Halcandran Dees that wander around. But here, there is nothing. The only times there have ever been anything living here were the times when there were battles being fought here. And even then, there was not all that much living going on.

Again, I walk until I am out of sight of the Lor Starcutter. This time, rather than fighting the memories, I simply sit back against a cliff face and close my eyes, allowing them to take me.

***********************************************************************

"Hey, Mety," Falspar laughs as he runs past me in the army base halls, full speed ahead, which is technically against the rules. He only gets away with it because he is one of Sir Arthur's four protégés. I am one, the other two are named Nonsurat and Dragato. "See you later!" he calls back as he continues to run.

"What have you gotten yourself into this time, Falspar?" I sigh as he disappears. Do not get me wrong, I like Falspar, he was one of the first friends I made after joining the army. He's a member of Chivalry clan. I even look up to him, to some extent. I am the youngest of the group, he is next, about five or six years older than me. However, he can be quite a bit arrogant, and he also spends far too much of his time trying to 'find a girlfriend.' This is a war, there is no time for romance. That is my opinion, anyway.

Dragato is light-hearted like Falspar, but not arrogant. He is soft-spoken, of the Heritage clan, and often helps me in keeping Falspar out of trouble. Nonsurat, of Courage clan, is the most aggressive member of the group, and is the one most likely to get himself killed in battle. He spends too much time practicing his offense, and not nearly enough his defense. Strangely enough, even though he is the one with the shortest temper, he is also the only other member of the group aside from me that enjoys reading. Dragato only likes books about the Ancients, while Falspar does not like books at all.

"Hey, kid! Get back here!" I suddenly hear someone yell furiously from behind me. I know that they cannot possibly be talking to me. I have already reached the rank of lieutenant general, even if I have only been here about a year, and I am fairly well known. Nobody would call me 'kid,' I do not care if I am only nineteen, almost twenty years of age.

Still ignoring whoever it is that is yelling, I continue walking, until out of nowhere, someone tackles me with a martial arts move. Struggling out from under them, I draw my steel sword and spin around, eyes probably flashing red. "Just who do you think you are?"

I find myself looking up at someone quite a bit taller than me, with blond hair and purple eyes. Obviously not a Star Warrior, probably one of the recruits from other species. I hate it when people are taller than me. Why, I am not sure, I just know that it bothers me.

"That's what I'm asking you. What did you think you were doing back there, flirting with my- wait, you're not the guy..." he starts, angry at first, then growing confused.

"You are most likely looking for Falspar," I inform him, sheathing my sword and dusting myself off. Now I know why he was running so fast. Typical. "We are commonly mistaken for each other. Why, I do not know. I am blue, he is green. I have a decent, plain mask; he wears a garish red mohawk on his."

"Yeah, well, that's about the only differences between you," he laughs, embarrassed. "Sorry about that. Your buddy was trying (and failing) to flirt with my girlfriend, and I got territorial. He ran off this way, I saw a cloaked blob walking down the hall and assumed it was him. Sorry," he repeats. "Name's Joseph. And you are?"

"Lieutenant General Meta Knight, at your service," I bow respectfully, even if he is technically my inferior. "Falspar is not my 'buddy.' However, I apologize for his immature actions."

"Eh, it's okay," he shrugs. "Like I said, he was completely failing." Suddenly changing the subject, he tells me, "I'm not too worried, anyway. Sometime soon, I'm going to propose."

"Hm," I answer distantly, turning around and walking away. This sort of talk does not interest me at all, as stated above.

"So, Meta Knight, do you have a girlfriend or anything?" he asks.

"No," I answer with a sigh. Why does everyone seem to assume that I have a sweetheart, when I quite obviously do not?

"Huh," he replies with a shrug, continuing to walk alongside me and shooting random questions at me like bullets.

As time went on, he continued to follow me. I began to notice that, when he could, he gave me backup during battle, which I have to admit I appreciated. At first, I acted cold towards him like I did toward everyone else, but he eventually began to get me to come out of my shell, and we became good friends. He actually somehow convinced me to be best man at his and Clara's (his girlfriend from before) wedding. How, I do not know, but he did. That was Joseph for you.

We always had each other's back in battle, decade after decade. When Clara had young Knuckle Joe and left the army, he was sad, but he stayed and continued to fight. He always said that every monster he got rid of was another monster that would never hurt another person ever again.

Even when it started to become more and more obvious that we were never going to win, that Nightmare was just going to annihilate all of us, he never gave up hope. Whenever I would suggest that he go home to his family, so he could spend the last years of freedom with them, he refused. The galaxy was more important than him, he always said.

And then, the awful night came. We were all asleep in camp, when Nightmare's forces attacked out of nowhere. Not expecting the ambush, we lost many good soldiers that night. And Joseph, of course, was taken.

I hoped with all my heart that I would never see him again, as terrible as that sounds. Every soldier knew that when someone was taken by Nightmare, they either came back as a monster, or never at all. So, whenever anyone was taken, we all wished that they met a quick end. That was the best we could hope for.

Yet, that was not how the Fates had planned it. One day in battle, I found myself pitted against my closest friend of all the people in the army. As we fought, I tried to remind him of Clara, of his son, of all of the jokes we shared together. Nothing went through to him. Until finally, when I shouted out in pain as I dealt the nigh-finishing blow, "What would your son think, if he heard his father had become a monster?!?"

Lying there, dying, his deep red eyes faded back to purple. "Joe. Knuckle Joe," he whispered, staring off into space. Out of his shirt, he pulled a locket, which he flipped open and looked at sadly. "My little boy."

Weakly, he turned to me and handed me the locket. "My son. Give this to him," he said, nearly to his last breath. "Tell him... I... was not... a monster."

"You are not a monster," I agreed quietly, trying not to think about how it was my fault he was lying here, my fault that he was going to die. "You are not a monster, Joseph. You are a hero, and my dear friend."

"Friend," he repeated quietly, a hint of a smile in his eyes. And then, for the last time, he closed them.

My heart ached. This time, there was no rage, only sorrow. How many people was I going to have to see ended? How many monsters was I going to have to end, myself? When would this war ever end?

Sadly, I turned to go, trying to ignore the tears running down my cheeks. It is hard to say goodbye to one of the few people who ever truly knew you, ever really got to know the Star Warrior behind the mask. Especially when you are the reason for the goodbye, for the end.

I hoped that I would never be put in that situation again, for I did not think I could bear it a second time. Thank the Star Power, I never have had to since then.

********************************************************************************

Opening my eyes again, I sigh deeply. Another memory over. Another burden off my chest.

Standing back up, I look around me, wondering where the shard could be at. Eventually, I find it inside a bush. That is strange, where is the-

ROOOOOOAAAAARRRRRRR

-monster. I spoke too soon.

Whipping around and simultaneously drawing Galaxia, I see what looks at first to be Landia, hiding in a cliff's shadow. "My dragon friend. What are you doing here?" I ask, holding my hand out to it fondly as it lands not far from me. Out of all the quests I have been on, one of my very favorite moments was riding one-fourth of Landia. I have always liked dragons, even if when I was little it was only because knights slayed dragons. It is funny, ever since fighting Wolfwrath, I have hated dogs, but fighting the dragon as a young man did not make me stop liking dragons.

Landia narrows its eyes at me, stepping closer, and I begin to get a bad feeling. My bad feeling is proven right when it steps out into the light, and is dark black, instead of crimson red. "Landia... What has happened to you?" I ask slowly, a deep frown on my face under the mask.

"Heehee nya," Dark Sakura giggles behind me from on top of the cliff. "That's not the impersonating dragon you're thinking of. This, nya, is the true Landia. Dark Landia."

"Oh, Shotzo," I mutter, leaping out of the way of the first blast of dragonfire. "How many creatures is the Great Mirror going to copy before it can be healed?"

"As many as I tell it to, nya," she purrs in reply, leaping down and landing on her feet, running several steps to wear off the momentum. Then, she stops next to the dragon, affectionately patting it on the nose. It makes a happy noise and rubs against her hand. "The heads of defense need something to help them get around. Why not a Dark dragon, nya?"

"What have you done to Dreamland, so far?" I demand, sword still out.

"Nothing much, yet, nya. We want to be completely ready, first," she answers with a laugh, as she hops up onto the dragon's back. "Well, if I remember correctly, your first solo battle was against a dragon. Wasn't it?"

"I wish you did not know all these things about me," I reply, eyes narrowed. "Having an enemy who knows me this well is quite unnerving."

"Good, nya," she replies, smirking. "Well, shall we begin? I wanted to make sure your midboss was nice and difficult, nya."

"I would never expect anything else," I answer scathingly, taking a defensive pose. "Let us begin."

The battle takes time, but after half an hour or so, I have knocked the dragon out, with only limited injury to myself. Nothing that a snack will not fix. This, of course, ticks Dark Sakura off, who draws Sakura's Darkness-coated sword and leaps at me. Within a few minutes, I knock her sword away.

"You've beaten me this time, nya," she hisses bitterly, using a spell to bring her sword back to her. "But next time, you won't be so lucky."

"I am sure Dark Meta Knight would be pleased to know you are trying to kill me. If I remember correctly, he wishes to finish me himself." Sarcasm, sarcasm, how I love thee.

"I really don't care. As I said before, I don't need him or anyone else, nya," she shrugs flippantly, going over to the dragon and kicking it until it wakes back up with a growl. "Come on, Dark Landia, nya. We don't have time for a catnap, as lovely as that sounds. Maybe when we're somewhere sunny and warm, nya." They vanish, leaving me free to collect the shard.

Like always, I carefully pick it up and begin to tuck it inside my cloak. But then, I notice something strange. It has glowing pink dots all over it. At first I wonder if the mirror has caught some strange variety of chicken pox, (you never know what you're going to run into when you live somewhere as whimsical as Dreamland,) but I quickly recognize it as Sakura's healing Light. Smiling warmly, I take this as a good sign. If she is making her Light, she is well on her way to being herself again. And I am now halfway to bringing her back.

"I miss you, Sakura," I murmur quietly to the shard. "Not the dark, snappy version of you, but the real you. The you that speaks to me about anything and everything, the you that trusts me to always have your back and that I can always trust to have mine, the you that knows me like no one else alive knows me."

I feel that 'maybe someday' feeling again, making me frown a little and quickly tuck the shard into my cloak. Never before have I felt like this about anyone, except for her. I am not sure if I like it. At the same time, I am not sure if I dislike it, either. So, I decide to just push it away for the time being. Just like during the war, I still have no time for romance or anything related to it. I am far too busy with other things.

Quickly, I return to the Lor Starcutter. There is no one in the control room, so I walk over to the intercom and speak into it. "Where are all of you?"

"In the sitting room! Magolor is playing the violin for us," Shadow Kirby squeals back, sounding excited, while a violin indeed plays in the background. "You should come listen with us, even if you don't like Mags."

Grudgingly, I climb down the ladder and join them silently. After he's finished the song he's playing, a Halcandran tune that I don't recognize, he turns to me. "Hey, Mety-Not. Four of eight?"

"Yes," I nod simply.

"Great, we'll have Princess back in no time," he says happily, then grows quieter. "I know you kind of hate me, and trust me, the feeling is pretty much mutual, but what about a duet? I'm sure there's at least one song we both know."

Taken aback, I find myself going over to the piano without resistance, having to push a sleeping Sailor Dee off of the bench and onto the floor to get to it. In typical Sailor Dee fashion, he sleeps through it, just rolling over onto his stomach, sticking his face in the carpet. I have to snort a bit. He could sleep through a typhoon. To tell the truth, he actually has before.

To Magolor, I say, "I... suppose that would not be too disagreeable."

The three children are staring from me to Magolor in disbelief. I do not blame them, I am pretty disbelieving myself.

"Do you know the one piece? 'Going Home,' from 'The New World?'" Magolor asks, pointing his bow at me.

"You know Dvorak?" I reply in surprise, opening the piano. "Of course I know that piece."

"All good musicians do," he shrugs, which I realize is sort of a back-handed compliment. Quite civilized, for him, anyway. "You set the tempo and stuff, I'll join in," he tells me, positioning his violin and getting his bow ready.

"All right," I nod, then take a deep breath, picturing the first sheet of music in my head. And then, I begin to play.

About ten seconds in, Magolor's violin adds its voice to the piece. We actually play quite well together, much to my surprise. When the piece is ended, I nod at him. "That was actually almost enjoyable."

"Maybe once Princess is back, we'll have her do vocals," he jokes, putting the violin back in his case carefully while I close the piano, then turn and leave the room.

"What just happened?" Bandana mutters in confusion as I walk farther away.

"I dunno, but I wouldn't get used to it," Kirby laughs.

"Wait up, Meta-Not," Magolor calls behind me. Well, apparently he has a bit more respect for me now, if he's not calling me 'Mety' anymore. "Where to next?"

"Star World," I answer, drawing my cloak around myself and pausing, not turning to look at him.

"Um, heh heh, I'm kinda-sorta banned from Star World airspace," he informs me, sheepishly.

"There is no one there to enforce that," I tell him, then question suspiciously, "Just why were you banned, may I ask?"

"Well, where did you think I got this ship?" he shrugs with a sigh. "You didn't think I bought it, did you?"

"You stole this ship? From Star World?" I huff, annoyed. Just when I begin to think better of him, he reminds me why I have such low expectations of him.

Glaring at me, he suddenly squawks back, "You don't know the whole story. You don't know where I'm from or what my life was like before I went after the Master Crown. You don't know why I even first wanted to find the Master Crown. You act like such a big know-it-all, but you don't really know anything."

"Well, then educate me," I glare right back. "If you want my sympathy for some fake sob-story, I will tell you now that you will not find it."

"I don't want to tell you, right now," he sighs, crossing his arms and staring out a window. "Whatever, I'll go tell the navi computer to take us to Star World. Home sweet home for you, right?"

Thoughtfully, I agree, "It was, once. A very long time ago."

"This'll be a trip down memory lane, then, huh?" he mutters, flipping a couple of switches.

Smiling sadly to myself, I agree quietly, "You could say that, Magolor. You could say that."