//------------------------------//
// Chapter 20: Grass and Water 
// Story: A Sweetie Dream Land 
// by Lucar 
//------------------------------//

They were traveling in space for some time now, the distance between planets being far greater than a mere trip through an ocean. They were following some trail created by the Fountain of Dreams, probably leading them to the next world. And before long, they could see their destination appearing, Sweetie Belle awing at seeing the new world.

The world that they were approaching was clearly different from Popstar. It was a giant green dome surrounded by a ring covered in green too, all of that on a giant chunk of ground as if someone had taken a giant shovel, had plucked it, and had let it float in the middle of nowhere. As they got closer, they could see that the green on the dome and the ring were plants, revealing that it was a world almost entirely constituted of grasslands and green hills.

When they traversed the atmosphere, they saw that the hills were like big pillars of ground with grass only on the rounded top, some of the grass being white and forming horizontal white lines with white stars between them. Even the clouds were striped, white with blue lines! There were also some actual round hills farther, green, but also blue or pink. And then there were smaller pillar of grounds a little everywhere that actually looked like screws, again only green on the top with a yellow star in the center.

They landed beside a few small trees that looked like green bells with pink fruits, and some pink rocks that were shaped like donuts, even shaping an eight, and they could feel a small spring breeze brush them.

Sweetie looked around her at the beauty of this world so strange, so different, and yet so familiar. It felt almost like Dream Land. Heck, even the animals they could see, a frog and a chicken without legs, looked like the ones from Dream Land. And she could actually see one of those black doors on top of a ladder! So it wasn't just Popstar? Did this world possess the same crazy logic? Food popping everywhere? Yes! She could see a strawberry shortcake not far after the ladder, at the bottom of a tree! Will she still be able to breathe underwater? Walk on clouds?

Kirby poked her on the leg, getting her attention, before pointing toward the door, telling her that they should start searching the Fountain of Dreams of this world.

Right.

So, after Kirby got a quick snack with the strawberry shortcake-he really loved them-, they climbed the ladder and passed the door only to find themselves at the same place. But wait, something was different. The grass was now a darker green, the breeze was not present anymore, and it was hotter and drier. It felt more like Summer now, where before, it had felt like Spring! And was this now a candy at the place where there had been the strawberry shortcake?

And then, Sweetie saw something else that didn't make sense: a Bronto Burt! And he was attacking them! Kirby quickly ate him.

"What?! What is a Bronto Burt doing here? We are not on Popstar!"

"Poyo," Kirby answered, shrugging. He then looked back at the door, wondering something, while Sweetie ate the candy, not letting pass a free candy. Kirby then waved at her and passed the door. Sweetie raised an eyebrow before following him, only to be shocked again once on the other side.

Now it was Autumn! It was clearly Autumn! The plants were now orange, and leaves were falling from the trees! Actually, the one beside them was now cut, only leaving the bottom of the trunk with the roots, with now an ice cream bar beside it. And what was a Plasma Whip doing here?! Well, at least, he gave Kirby an Ability to better defend himself.

They took the door again, and now, it was Winter, the ground and the trees now covered in snow and- "Waaah!" She quickly shot a beam at the mutated Scarfy charging at them, making it explode. "A Bronto Burt! A Plasma Wisp! And now, a Scarfy! And is that a Chilly?" She saw a living snowman made of two snowballs with two round hands floating at his sides, wearing a bucket as a hat, and a bell around his neck. "Yep, it's a Chilly. So earlier, those animals were really a Sir Slippy-" The frog. "-and a Tookey?" The chicken. "So what, that means that this world has the same inhabitants as Popstar?"

Kirby shrugged again, as if saying, "Seems like it."

Sweetie put a hoof on her forehead, sighing. "Well, it doesn't make less sense than the rest..." She jumped from the top of the ladder, landing on the snow. She then smiled, looking at the snow. "At least, we are in Winter! And you know what that means?"

"Poyo?" Kirby asked, landing on the snow behind Sweetie, only to suddenly take a snowball between the eyes, making him fall on his back. "Poyo?!"

"A snowball fight!" she shouted, more snowballs levitating around her. Kirby saw that and smirked at her before giving up the Ability and eating the Chilly, gaining the Ice Ability. Using the Ice, he materialized snowballs in his hands and started to run, getting around the tree, which somehow was not cut anymore. He dodged a snowball from Sweetie and threw one back at her.

Sweetie quickly used her magic to create a wall of snow between her and Kirby who got out of behind the tree to throw another snowball at her only to hit the wall. Seeing that Sweetie built some defense, he used his Ice Ability to build two walls of snow at the left and the right of the tree, making sure to stay hidden. Once the walls were finished, he started to throw snowball after snowball from behind the left one, and Sweetie counterattacked by throwing dozens of them at once.

Some Chillys and other creatures saw what they are doing and approached to get a better view. Kirby saw them and signed to them with a big smile to come help him. They accepted. However, two of them decided to join Sweetie Belle so she was not alone. This got the fight to grow in proportion, the walls quickly becoming small snow fortresses, and getting the attention of more Chillys who joined the battle in either Kirby's army or Sweetie's army.

Before long, the battle became a full blown war between the Fortress of the Crusader on one side, and the Fortress of the Great Tree on the other, the walls now easily two to three times the size of Sweetie with steps to get on them and battlements at the top. On Kirby's side, flying creatures got the idea to go to the top of the tree with a few Chillys to build an ice platform from which they could rain snowballs on their enemies, forcing Sweetie and her Chillys to create a ceiling made of ice.

"Soldiers!" Sweetie shouted at her knights around a round table of ice, now wearing a helmet made of ice. "Because of their platform on the tree, the enemy has the advantage! So, I ask you..." She slammed her hooves on the table. "Do any of you have an idea?"

"I may have one, Captain Crusader!" a Chilly yelled, doing a salute.

"Which is?"

"We are below a door, madam! We could use it to send troops to another season, so they can take another door back to Winter behind the enemy's line!"

"Excellent idea, soldier! Alright, half of the army is gonna take that door and attack the enemy from behind! The other half will cover them and unleash the biggest snowstorm of our life on the enemy's fortress! Now let's start the operation 'Avalanche'! GO GO GO!"

"Yes Captain!" all the soldiers present shouted.

As ordered, half of the army was ready to run toward the door while the other half, Sweetie at their head, prepared hundreds of snowballs to defend them. The second half was the first to start, getting out of the cover of the ceiling to go on the wall and throw everything they had. They were immediately pelted from the platform on the tree that was pelted back by Sweetie. The first half then started their run. The door was not far, but with all the snowballs raining around them, it was as if the door was miles away. More than one of them fell victim, but despite that, they continued, for the glory of the Crusaders!

They reached the ladder under the door!

"They did it! We must continue everyone!" Sweetie yelled as she hit an enemy Chilly right in the head.

Before long, they were all able to pass the door, and Sweetie and the others returned under the cover of the ice ceiling, taking back their breaths. The operation was a success, but they got heavily hit. At least, it will be worth it!

"Captain!" a soldier suddenly shouted. "We have a problem!"

"What is it?"

"Come and look!"

They came in an observation post at the edge of the wall, and Sweetie saw with horror what got her soldier so panicked. On the platform on the tree, the enemy was about to launch a giant snowball! Big enough to crush at least half the fortress, which would render them vulnerable to an assault!

They must stop it! They must...!

Kirby was there, waving at her with a big smile. That little...

Too late.

Sweetie could only watch as the giant ball fell right in the middle of her fortress, destroying a big part of the wall and the ice ceiling and burying many of her soldiers under pounds of snow. Immediately, she heard shouts coming from the enemy fortress, and a great part of their army charged right at them with ice bags full of snowballs!

"Everyone!" she yelled. "Take cover behind whatever you can! We are under attack!"

She hid behind a part of the wall that survived and readied dozens of snowballs in her magic. If she had to go down, she will go down fighting!

What followed was despair, her army separated in small groups behind whatever cover they could find, bombarded from every directions. Seemed like this was it...

But then, she heard it, more shouts, but this time, coming from beyond the enemy fortress, further behind! They were here! And the platform at the top of the tree was suddenly shot down by a giant snowball coming from behind!

"They have a catapult!" she heard an enemy yell. Oh, these clever...

Without the platform, her army could now take more risk without finding itself pelted from the sky. And the enemies in their fortress were forced to flee before the arrival of her soldiers from behind, leaving them open. Another giant snowball fell on their wall, destroying a part of it, and she could start to see her troops coming on the other side.

And thus came chaos. The enemies trapped, they were forced to disperse to find covers while her soldiers took over the enemy fortress. However, a few courageous enemies, including Kirby, remained in the fortress, forcing her troops to fight them. Her troops still in the remains of her fortress used the confusion to also disperse everywhere, forcing the attackers to also disperse. And now, the whole area was a giant pandemonium where her troops and the enemies were fighting each others everywhere, with snowballs flying in anarchy, to the point that nobody was sure anymore who hit who. All of that was worsened by the giant snowballs of the catapult still falling from the sky, hitting friends and foes.

At this point, all notions of armies disappeared only to let place to a giant free for all until the absurdity of the situation got to Sweetie and she started to laugh. Kirby saw her laughing and started laughing too. This was followed by the soldiers around them, and the soldiers around those soldiers, until everyone laughed, ending the Great Snowball Fight.



"So, remember, the door only appears in Autumn, and you will have to fight the guardians," the Chilly said.

"Thank you," Sweetie Belle replied. "And thank you all for this good time."

"No, thank you for giving us a good time. This snowball fight is the most fun I had in my life, and it's certainly the same thing for all the others." Sweetie giggled at that. "Good luck for your journey. You can come back anytime. Goodbye!"

"Goodbye, and thank you!"

And so, Sweetie Belle and Kirby left the Chilly, took a door, and returned in Spring, only to take it again until they were in Autumn. After that, they followed the instructions of the Chilly until they reached the door they searched. They could say that it was this door because there was a big star above it.

Before passing it, Sweetie and Kirby took a deep breath, readying themselves to fight the guardians. Once ready, they went through it. On the other side...

They found themselves between two living trees, like Whispy Woods.

Sweetie gave a deadpan look. "Of course there are living trees in this world!"

The ground suddenly started to shake, and long roots popped out of it, trapping Sweetie and Kirby between the two trees. They could fly above them, but they would have to dodge the attacks of both trees and it would be hard.

Sweetie turned to one of the trees, she will call him N°1, and Kirby turned to the other, N°2. N°2 then puffed air at them, and N°1 made giant apples, worms, and Gordos fall from his branches. Kirby slid below the puffs of air and charged to the bottom of N°2, breathing ice at him, and Sweetie jumped above them before shooting the apples and the worms and avoiding the Gordos, yelling at Kirby to look out for them. She then wrapped her whip around one of the Gordos and sent it right into N°1's left eye, making him yell in pain.

N°2 avenged him by trying to impale her with his roots while N°1 puffed air at Kirby to stop him from attacking his brother. All the while, the two trees made more apples and other projectiles rain on them. While Sweetie rolled around to avoid the roots, shooting a fireball at N°2, Kirby jumped above N°1's puffs of air and froze the apples and the worms, turning them into floating ice blocks. He then kicked them, sending them in the face of the two trees. Once the roots stopped coming, Sweetie turned back toward N°1 and sent fire from her horn, burning him gravely and making him squirm in pain while Kirby returned breathing ice on N°2.

This made N°2 angry, and more roots poked out all over the ground, threatening to impale them. Sweetie and Kirby jumped above the roots and joined together in the air right in the middle of the path between the two trees. With their momentum, they took each other's hand/hoof and spun around sending fire and ice alternatively at them. This made the two trees stop attacking them, crying in pain, giving up the fight.

Victorious, Sweetie high fived Kirby, and the two of them took an apple from the floor as a reward. They weren't as good as Whispy's but they were still good. At the same time, a big black door appeared between the trees, and once the filly and the puffball finished their snack, they passed it, appearing before this world's Fountain of Dreams.

Kirby then closed his eyes and did like on Popstar, and when he made the Warp Star appear, it glowed with two different colors.

"I wonder how many time we will have to do that," Sweetie asked herself.

Finished with this world, they jumped on the Warp Star and went toward the sky. Passing the atmosphere of this world, Sweetie looked back at it.

"We will definitely come back. It will be nice to go there to pass a nice, snowy Winter day in the middle of a hot Summer, or vice versa."

"Poyo," Kirby confirmed, smiling.

They remarked the new trail that had appeared, leading to their next destination, and they followed it.



The next world was... a giant bubble almost full of water, that shined at the center. Well hopefully, Popstar's logic will follow them to this world and they could breathe underwater.

When they approached the surface, it turned out that this world was not just made of water, because they could see many islands with vegetation out of it. But they weren't stopping at one of the islands, instead diving right in the ocean with the Warp Star, ramming a few Blippers and Sir Slippys in the way. The Warp Star eventually disappeared, leaving them beside a door at the bottom of the ocean. And yep, they could breathe.

They passed the door and appeared under the surface of the ocean, beside a small island. Going on it, they avoided an explosive coconut and Kirby ate a hot dog before they looked around them at the world they were in. As far as they could see, there was water with colored stars on it and islands everywhere. The clouds were all spherical, looking like floating giant rock candies.

If only she had a camera.

They went on another, bigger island beside the first one, Sweetie having to be on Kirby's back to reach it. Note for later, learn to self-levitate. Upon landing on the island, Kirby gave up the Ice and ate the Sir Kibble before them, obtaining the Cutter. Once done, they could see further ahead a big wall, meaning they would have either to get around or fly above it. But between them and the wall were three Bomb Blocks with Glunks among them. Two of the blocks did nothing but the middle one destroyed a part of the floor, letting them dive in more water under the island with a few Gordos. Sweetie shot another Bomb Block in a wall, destroying the whole thing and letting them pass under the island where they had to avoid currents. They reached a third island in the way, and on the other side of it, they found a Bomb Block in it. Destroying it caused a door to appear on the island, sadly leading nowhere. Returning, they found some food in the water under some destructible blocks, including a Maxim Tomato that they shared despite Sweetie still being full of the apple of the previous world.

They then reached another part of the same island, with a black cannon like they used to reach Dyna Blade back when they were assaulting the Halberd. Understanding that it may lead them somewhere important, Sweetie used her magic to light the fuse, and they hopped in it. However, it only led them to some food before they went back through a door. After the cannon, they entered another door in a wall.

They appeared in a giant submerged cavern, the water here full of stars and air pockets. They had to swim while avoiding a few Gordos until they reached a tunnel with the water suddenly stopping at the entrance. Fighting a Broom Hatter and a Knuckle Joe in the way, they jumped in a hole, diving in more water that led eventually to another section of the tunnel without water. This led to more water with a biscuit, an ice cream, and a Maxim Tomato. This time, Sweetie only ate the biscuit, trying not to go too far, with their adventure just beginning and Rick not being here so she could ride on him. It was still hard for her to miss a Maxim Tomato.

Above them was another door in a pocket of air. They ended up... What? In space? Water floating in space? With what seemed like the entrance of a palace? A palace not even floating in the water, the water stopping around it! And were these Meta Knight's knights guarding it? What were they doing there?

Just... What?!

Kirby had to tap Sweetie on the head to reboot her brain before they continued, entering the palace, the filly stopping thinking about the impossibilities and scolding herself for not learning after the first couple dozens times. After this whole "the sun and the moon are alive and fighting", she should have stopped asking questions.

On the other side of the door, they had to fight a bunch of Blade Knights before going down by breaking a few blocks in the floor. Seemed like this temple belonged to another order of knights. They jumped above some spikes, Kirby ate a Maxim Tomato in the way, and they reached a big colored window showing the sun and the moon, a Jukid (the creature wearing a white gi like they encountered in the Halberd) waiting to fight them. He sent his hands toward them only to be charged by Sweetie who put her hooves around his waist before bending her back to make him crash head first on the floor.

Darn it, there was nothing in this palace, they lost their time. At least, she could now say to Knuckle Joe that she defeated a Jukid with a belly to belly suplex. He will be proud.

Getting out of the palace, they returned in the water and found another door, this one leading to a room, followed by an hallway going up and down.

"Okay. We have two ways. Up and down, which one do we take?"

"Mmh..." thought Kirby, arms crossed. He then pointed to himself, then pointed down, then pointed to Sweetie, and finally pointed up.

"Ok!" Sweetie shouted, saluting.

So Sweetie went up only to reach a door. When she took it, she got back in the previous room before the hallway. "What?"

Kirby then appeared beside her. "Poyo?"

They looked at each other before they returned in the hallway, this time the two of them going down. Sweetie saw a door at a dead end, but Kirby pointed at it and shook his head. They took the way opposite to the door, then down, then went toward another door, only to end up back in the first room again.

"Oh no... We are in a maze where we probably have to find the right door and all the others lead back at the start." She put a hoof on her forehead. "This will be... Ugh!"

"Poyo..."







After countless ups and downs, lefts and rights, restarting the maze who knew how many times, they tried their luck in a small hallway after a room going down, then right, then up, and they got out of the water in a bigger hallway.

"Oh Celestia... Please... Make it the good one..." Sweetie Belle pleaded.

Kirby then showed her the door at the end of the hallway, after two tomatoes, two plates of pancakes, and two flans. It had a big star above it!

Sweetie looked in awe at it before a smile as big as Pinkie Pie's appeared on her muzzle, and she shouted, "Yay! We found it! Let's get out of here!" She was about to run toward the door but Kirby then pointed at the food with a pleading look.

"Poyo..."

Sweetie bit her lips before sighing. "Alright, let's take a break."

One tomato, plate of pancakes, and flan for each of them later, they FINALLY got out of this Tartarus of a maze! They ended up in a giant caverne half submerged, on a long wooden bridge with some red grass. Looking around, they suddenly heard a big Splash! behind them, and when they looked, they saw a giant pink whale in a sailor suit with a pipe in his mouth jumping toward them!

"Oh... Buck..."

The whale fell in the water beside them, creating a huge tidal wave that swept them out of the bridge, right in the lake. It was followed by numerous rocks falling from the ceiling of the cavern, almost hitting them on the head as they quickly went back on the bridge. The whale then went back beside the bridge, rolling on himself on the surface of the lake trying to hit them with his head. Jumping above it, Sweetie and Kirby hit the whale with blades and ice balls until the whale went back under the water. He then returned only to shoot water from his blowhole, hitting the ceiling and making raining more rocks that Sweetie destroyed with her beams as Kirby cut the whale with more blades.

"Okay. I may have an idea to hurt him really badly. Give me a minute."

Kirby nodded and prepared his blade, looking for the whale.

Sweetie then started to shoot fire from her horn into the water, evaporating some of it. Being in a cavern, the steam eventually accumulated under the ceiling, forming a cloud. She quickly dodged the whale jumping above the bridge, trying to ram them, and shot more fire into the water, getting the cloud bigger. After many minutes of dodging, she stopped and started releasing toward the cloud ice balls and fireballs.

During all these weeks, beside training, she also learned much about Dream Land and its inhabitants. She had been curious about Kracko, and by extension, how the clouds worked. Back in Equestria, they hadn't reached the lessons about how the weather worked, but now, she knew this: a cloud was made of water (duh!) that had been evaporated and compacted. But that cloud right now was not as compact as she wanted, so using her magic while continuing throwing balls, she 'grabbed' the cloud and started to compress it. She smiled as she saw it starting to become black. A giant black cloud.

Kirby, somehow, found himself riding on the whale's back, clinging to him and cutting him with the cutter to force him to not attack Sweetie Belle. He saw the filly create a giant black cloud above their head and sweat appeared on his head. She will not...? Will she? Suddenly, the whale jumped high and fell beside the bridge, Kirby finding himself thrown off from his back.

Sweetie got swept by the tidal wave created by the jump, and quickly went back on the bridge alongside Kirby to continue her work. It was almost over! By compressing the cloud, she caused the droplets of water in it to come closer from each other. Then by sending fireballs and ice balls, she caused the droplets to be heated or cooled. As everyone could feel when they took a bath, hot water goes up, and cold water goes down. When they go up, they get colder and go back down. And when they go down, they are heated and go back up. And because the droplets are so close, they bump into each others. And somehow, through a process about atoms and electrons and negative charges and other advanced scientific stuff that Twilight would better understand...

THIS CREATES LIGHTNING!!!

BRAOOOOOUUUUUM!!!!!

Sweetie quickly formed a shield around herself and Kirby as the cloud rained lightning around them! The electricity spread in the whole lake until the cloud stopped a few seconds later. The cavern then fell into a deep silence until the whale emerged from the water alongside hundreds of Blippers, not moving anymore.

She made the shield disappear, huffing and puffing, her horn hurting. If she knew how to shoot lightning, she wouldn't have needed to do something so overkill, but... Oh well! At least, it did the job, and it was awesome!

Kirby stared at the carnage around him, jaw hitting the floor. "Po... Po... Poyo...?"



They left the water planet behind and started following the trail to the next planet, the Warp Star now glowing with a third color. Kirby still sweated at thinking about the final move of Sweetie Belle, this filly right now sleeping beside him, her energy depleted after what she did. She had sure gone far! Luckily for him, if he ended up fighting her, she would have a hard time getting this attack ready, with him constantly attacking her.

Who knew what other moves she will create in the future, or was actually hiding behind her horn. So far, she showed only controlling fire and ice, without forgetting about her magical beams and her fighting skills, both with her hooves and her whip. When she will learn to control more...

She will be a formidable ally, and also a formidable opponent.