Sand Zone

The Sand Zone (砂区 Sunaku) is the third teleporter-only accessible location of Cave Story. Quote is sent to the Sand Zone by Professor Booster, who wants to seek the Red Flowers and destroy them before Doctor obtains them.
== Synopsis ==
Before Quote reaches Arthur's house, Kazuma, Sue and King hear Professor Booster explain the Doctor's plans to create an army of Mimigas using the Red Flowers. At that point, Quote appears in Arthur's house. The Doctor has located the Red Flowers, and Booster tracks this whereabout to the Sand Zone. He pleads Quote to help him and the others by going to the Sand Zone and destroying all the Red Flowers.
Quote teleports to the Sand Zone from Arthur's house, and sees Curly Brace, who retreats to the Sand Zone residence upon seeing him. As he enters her residence, the Colons alert Curly of Quote's arrival, and interpret his presence as hostile based on their past experiences. Curly and the Colons eventually submit to Quote, but find out that he is not the "killer robot" they were expecting him to be. One of the Colons tells Quote that he might be able to find out the location of the Red Flowers by visiting Jenka. The Colon then suggests taking the dog in the small room that's next to the bed.
Quote goes to Jenka's house, where he drops off the first puppy. He is interrupted by Balrog, who suddenly enters and demands the key to the storehouse, where the Red Flowers are kept before leaving. One by one, Quote returns Jenka's lost puppies and asks of the Red Flowers' wearabouts. Jenka refuses to tell him, believing the Red Flowers will incur the same damage they did to the Island ten years ago. As Quote brings back the last puppy, Jenka is attacked by Balrog, who takes the storehouse key. After Balrog leaves, Jenka urges Quote to stop the Doctor before he takes the Red Flowers.
At the storehouse, the Doctor has acquired the Red Flowers, and chooses to test their reaction on a Mimiga. Misery, who is with the Doctor at the time, summons Toroko for testing. Toroko attempts to escape, but is stopped by Balrog, who feeds her a flower by force. King enters the storehouse in an attempt to save Toroko, only to find that he is too late. He tries to take revenge by attacking the Doctor, but is stopped by Misery. Quote soon arrives at the storehouse as the Doctor is about to leave, abandoning the two unconscious Mimiga.
The fight between Toroko kills her, leaving Quote and King the only two in the storehouse. As King dies, he asks Quote to avenge him, leaving behind his Blade. Quote exits the storehouse and is about to exit the Sand Zone when Balrog captures him, and he and Quote are banished to the Labyrinth by Misery.
== Sublocations ==
=== Sand Zone Residence ===
The exterior of this building has a red sign above the door. When Quote first enters, he will see the Colons, along with Curly Brace, who he had seen at the start of the area. Walking farther into the residence will cause some dialogue between the Colons and Curly to occur before the boss battle with them begins. 
Once the battle is over, Quote can enter the Small Room, which has a save disk, one of the puppies and Curly's Panties, found in a hidden passageway along the outside of the room. The player can only pick up the puppy in the residence after talking to the Colon on the far left. 
=== Jenka's House ===
You may be looking for Jenka's House (Cave Story's Secret Santa) instead
Jenka's House is located directly above the teleporter that permitted Quote to enter the Sand Zone. A save disk and Jenka are in this building. The player can return each of Jenka's puppies by talking to Jenka. Quote can only carry one puppy at a time, and must bring back each individual one to proceed with the game. Returning the puppies will increase Quote's maximum health by one each (excluding the first and last puppy) in Cave Story 3D.
=== Deserted House ===
The walls and floors in this house are mostly invisible, with sand covering some places on the ground. A save disk is encountered here, as well as one of Jenka's puppies, who is seen disappearing into the house as Quote approaches it. There is one area of ground that has a skull and some bones sticking out of it, indicating the presence of a sandcroc. The player can use the Map System if they have it to see the passageways that will help them get to the puppy.
=== Warehouse ===
The Warehouse is a building located at the very edge of the Sand Zone. It contains the seeds of the Mimiga-enraging red flowers. Jenka protects the key to it, and Quote will not be granted access until Balrog forcibly opens it. The Warehouse is where Quote fights Rabid Toroko and collects the Blade.
== Gallery ==
 Jenka's House.png | Jenka's House
 Sand Zone Storehouse.png | Warehouse
 Sand Zone Residence.png | Sand Zone Residence
 Small Room.png | Small room inside Sand Zone Residence, where Curly's Panties are located
 Deserted House.png | Deserted House
== Enemies ==
* Sandcrocs - Hide beneath the sand and come out once Quote steps on the surface they are under. This ground is made known by a skull and some bones on the ground.
* Skullheads - Skulls with the capability of hopping along the ground, turning when they hit a wall.
* Skullsteps - Have a similar appearance to skullheads except they have a pair of legs that they walk along the ground with.
* Skeletons - Stays around the same area and hops around when Quote is close to one, attacking him with bones. 
* Crows - Fly around one spot; they pursue Quote when he attacks and does not kill them.
* Armadillos - Creatures with a shell that move along the sand at a slower rate in comparison to the other enemies.
* Polishes - Sun-shaped creatures that often move along all edges, and split into smaller enemies when killed.
** Baby Polishes - Enemies spawned when a polish is killed. Baby polishes require less damage inflicted to kill.
* Flowercubs - These enemies stay fixed to the ground, but hop around from time to time. They can only be found in the storehouse.
=== Bosses ===
* Curly Brace - The first boss encountered in the Sand Zone, Curly Brace is a robot who has become a caregiver to the Colons of the Sand Zone Residence. She mistakes Quote for an intruder, resulting in a battle between Quote and Curly with the Colons. Defeating Curly gives access to the small room, where Quote can pick up the first of Jenka's puppies and increases Quote's maximum health by 2 in Cave Story 3D.
* Omega - The second boss of the Sand Zone, Omega is encountered in an enclosed area that is made up of a thick layer of sand. Omega intercepts the implied battle between Misery and Quote. When defeated, the spell on the Sunstones is lifted, allowing access to Jenka's house, where Quote can drop off the puppies the player collects.
* Rabid Toroko - The ravaged version of Toroko, who has become affected by the red flowers. Toroko's defeat signals her death as well as King's, who leaves his Blade for Quote in the process.
== Items and weaponry ==
* Machine Gun - This gun allows for the continuous fire of bullets by pressing and holding the attack key. The player can obtain this weapon by trading their Polar Star with Curly Brace in the Sand Zone residence.
* Curly's Panties - This item is located in the small room of the Sand Zone by accessing a hidden passageway only visible by map. The panties, in the original PC version, have no function in the game. In the Wii port, they allow the player to unlock Curly's Story.
* Life Pot - The Life Pot can be received from Jenka once Quote returns the last puppy, after Balrog's second interception. It is a one-time use item that restores Quote's health to its maximum amount. She will give Quote another vial after he uses it up if he is able to get to her house.
* Blade - This weapon must be taken before leaving the storehouse. It is left by King after his death. When used, it delivers a higher amount of damage than the Polar Star or Machine Gun in its level 1 form.