Chapter Text
Once upon a time, a strange being drifted through space.
One day, it landed in a remote location on Popstar.
It stayed there for a VERY long time, unable to move at all.
Because of this, it only had one dream...one wish...
...It wished to roam free!
Somewhere in a distant part of the Grass Lands, there was a massive city that held different tournaments throughout the year. Up until now, it was exclusive to Puffballs (and Dedede). This time, however, the Air Ride tournaments were open to everyone.
Right now, there was a race being held in the middle of the city. Several riders flew along the race track. There was one in particular who looked like he was struggling, a blue Dark Matter desperately held onto a slippery pink machine. He tried to ram into the pink and blue duo in front of him, but they swiftly escaped on their wagon-like machine.
Maybe he could do a special attack to slow them down? But before he could do anything, the Dark Matter's vehicle hit a stack of tires. To save himself, he used his tongue to throw himself over the tires and bounce on the other side. Two other riders, a Mask Puffball and a cat-like creature flew right by him.
"Gooey!" yelled a voice. A purple owl looked down at the blob with concern. Likewise, a blue fish also looked concerned for him. "Are you OK!?"
"I'm fine!" Gooey yelled as he sat up, he waved his tongue to show that he wasn't injured beyond a few scratches. But of course, it wouldn't hurt to check on the machine he was using, he was out of the race anyway.
"Hey, are you OK?" Gooey asked as he went back to the tires. Thankfully, this machine was still in one piece. It let out a cheerful warbling sound. It seemed like it was used to bumping into things.
"Man...what a crash, huh?" Asked the cat-like creature, Magolor, as he floated towards Gooey. The Masked Puffball, Meta Knight, wasn't too far from him.
"Yeah, but we're OK," Gooey replied.
"Good to hear, Good to hear!" Magolor said cheerfully as he clasped his paws together.
"Lololo and Lalala won if you were wondering," Meta Knight added. The cat lowered his eyelids as he looked away. "Yeah, well...I WOULD'VE won if those two didn't throw that block at me."
"I'm sure you would've."
"Anyway, one wrong move and you would've ended up like your big brother."
Oh, it wasn't that bad. At least the machines Gooey played around with were docile (so far, anyway). But as fun as they all had been, Gooey hadn't found a machine to really "bond" with just yet. They were all so unique to one another, he would have to play around with them some more during his free time.
Later that day, Gooey sat at a cafe table. He was munching on a donut while his brother sat next to him. Unlike Gooey, the purple Dark Matter was in Blade form with a silver mask and a red cloak and a cream scarf wrapped around his neck. Half of his face was covered in road burns. He held a cup of iced tea with a pair of invisible hands. Incidentally, his name also happened to be Blade.
"So how did it go?" Blade asked, sharing his thoughts. "Did you win the City Trial?"
"Nope, I was hopin' the Slick Star would'a helped me win."
"Well then, maybe you should've stuck with the Wheelie Scooter."
"I did, but then Meta Knight destroyed it!"
"Ah..." Blade took a sip of his drink. "Well, I don't know...YOU'RE the one who has a license to ride those things, you probably know those machines better than I do."
"Dun be jealous," Gooey teased.
"I'm not jealous."
Both of Gooey's eyes focused on his brother as if to cast doubt on him, the elder Dark Matter looked away. "Fine...perhaps...perhaps I'm a little jealous."
Gooey let out a sigh. "If it makes you feel better, I still dun have a partner, yet."
"Is there any machine in particular that you like?"
Gooey looked up. He liked all of the ones he raced with so far, each one was unique in one way or another. Some were better for gliding, others were better suited for speed. But at the moment, he couldn't pick one he liked the most.
"Well, what's your favorite machine?" Gooey asked.
"...I like the Wheelie Bikes," Blade told Gooey. The younger Dark Matter raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you fall off a Wheelie Bike?"
"Yeah, but I don't think Dedede's Wheelie likes me very much." Blade said as he looked away. "Can't imagine why."
That is true. Leaving Blade's attack on Popstar aside, Dedede's Wheelie Bike wouldn't let anyone touch it, let alone ride it. And yet, it trusted the king more than anybody else.
Soon, they were accompanied by two other creatures. One was the owl and the other was the blue fish. Their names were Coo and Kine, respectively.
"Hey, we figured you'd be out here," Kine said cheerfully.
"City Trial is about to start up again if you want to join," Coo told Gooey. The young blob shook his head. "I'm done racin' and battlin' for today."
"By the way, where's Rick?" Blade asked. "Wasn't he with you two?"
"He wanted to practice with a Battle Chariot," Kine replied. "He said he found it outside of Fantasy Meadows."
Well it was good to know that everyone was finding their machines, maybe it'll be a matter of time before Gooey found his? But what kind of machine would he team up with? Maybe a Warp Star like Kirby's? Or maybe even a Wheelie Bike like Dedede's.
...Come to think of it, though. He hadn't seen Kirby and Dedede at all. Or at least, not since the tournaments started. Where wee they?
Ah, the Air Ride Tournaments...From the races themselves to the City Trials, they were always a fun time for everyone. And of course, Dedede would partake in these tournaments himself if his Wheelie Bike hadn't insisted that they traveled instead.
He rode along a brown, barren landscape, but he didn't always stick to the road. Occasionally, he would let his Wheelie drive on top of a hill. And when it hopped off, the King would strike a cool pose. This time, he leapt into the air and gave two peace signs as if someone was watching him.
...And of course, somebody WAS watching! Kirby lowered his eyelids as his Warp Star flew next to Dedede's Wheelie.
"Admit it, you thought I looked cool!" Dedede teased.
"Uh-huh," Kirby said sarcastically. His Warp Star warbled in the same sarcastic tone.
"...So whaddaya think's gonna be at the end of the road, anyway?"
"I dunno," Kirby said with a shrug. "Maybe treasure?"
"Yeah, maybe."
Granted, it would be really cool if they DID find treasure at the end of the road. But what kind of treasure would be valuable to a Wheelie Bike? Maybe food? Maybe some patches?
Dedede felt a shiver run down his spine, was something else following him? He looked back, but then he was immediately knocked off of his Wheelie Bike. He tried to get a good look at his attacker, it was...some kind of shadow? Before he could get up, the shadow went back to attack his machine. This time, it exploded.
"Wh-what was that?" Kirby asked nervously, his Warp Star stopped in place. That's what Dedede wanted to know. Unfortunately, the same shadow had attacked Kirby's machine, too. And just like the Wheelie Bike, the Warp Star exploded. Kirby screamed as he flew through the air. Thankfully, Dedede was able to catch him.
"You OK, kid?"
"Yeah...but my Warp Star!"
The duo yelped as the shadow came back. Quickly, it began to take shape. Part of it took the shape of a Wheelie Bike as it slid in front of the penguin, but then the rest of the shadows took another shape...The shape of another penguin...The shape of Dedede! It wore black clothing and it had pipes coming out of where its left eye should be. A grey bandana covered its beak, and shadowy hair flickered on its head like the blue flames that came out of its pipes. A single blue eye stared back at Dedede, it let out a weak growl...Or at least, it sounded like a growl.
"WHAT'D YOU DESTROY OUR MACHINES, FOR!?" Dedede yelled angrily as he let Kirby fall to the ground. The penguin and the Wheelie looked at each other for a moment, but then the penguin glared back at Dedede.
"Turn back!" said a demanding voice
"And why should I!?" Dedede yelled as he pulled out his hammer. Meanwhile, Kirby went back to look through what was left of their machines.
"You should NOT be here," said the voice again. The shadow penguin's Wheelie let out a loud roar. "Turn back now, or there will be consequences!"
"I'LL SHOW YOU, CONSEQUENCES!" Dedede yelled as he swung his hammer at the shadow. Quickly, the Black Wheelie rode behind Dedede. The Shadow Penguin squeezed the Wheelie's handles in frustration.
"Hey, Dedede? Maybe we SHOULD turn back for now," Kirby suggested.
"And let 'em get away with it?"
"No, but I don't think we stand a chance right now!" Kirby told Dedede. "Besides," - He held up what looked like two blue light bulbs with wires on their backs - "I got our machines' cores right here."
Dedede let out a sigh of relief, thank the stars that they were still alive. But still, he rested his hammer over his shoulder and pointed at his shadowy doppelganger. "Don't think this is over, kid! 'Cause next time I see you, I'm kickin' your ass!"
The shadowy penguin let out an annoyed huff, it turned its attention to the road as it sped off with the Black Wheelie. All that could be seen from it was a blue "X" on its back.
...Bah, who did this kid think it was dealing with? It was probably another Dark Matter that wanted to cause trouble, and the way it just took Dedede's look like that. Was it trying to mock him? Or did it need someone to blame its crimes for? Either way, it wasn't going to work!
But right now, he just needed to figure out how he was going to leave this place. There had to be a couple of wild machines willing to give them a ride, right? Assuming the kid didn't destroy those ones too, of course.