Series 3 - The Runes of Awakening
Episode 10
E-mail the author at shaxr@angelfire.com
Said Paul to the Pharaoh, to convince your stubbourn head,
Behold what I have done to you, your children are all dead.
***
THE PAST, HOW IT BEGINS
"MOVE FORWARD!" the pharaoh screamed. The rocks that were suspended above him, although frightening to everybody else in his army, did not faze him in the least. His mind was flooded with fantasies of power and victory, and the element of danger never once shone through.
"But... sire..." one of his soldiers pleaded.
"WHAT?"
"The guardian... he has power over the stones of the island! His scepter gives him strength! We can never..."
"You are afraid of him?" the pharaoh shrieked, "YOU are AFRAID of HIM? He is merely a MAGICIAN! He creates CHEAP PARLOUR TRICKS! Are you so heartless as to let the echidna who murdered your children ESCAPE? HE MUST DIE, AND HIS PEOPLE MUST DIE! NOW ONWARD, AND DESTROY THEM ALL!"
Without an absence of hesitation, the armies of Sandopolis defied the looming boulders and suspended rocks that hovered above them threateningly, and marched forward, raising their weapons and shouting war cries at the guardian and his people.
When the guardian's people had passed out from underneath the suspended stones, they gathered together, huddled and cowered behind the guardian, who turned to his persuers.
The army of Sandopolis was approaching, charging towards them, through the place where the Red Mountain once was. The guardian watched them approach, his face a hard expression, unblinking.
"Are you going to do something, Paul?" somebody asked him from behind his back, a noticable waver in her voice.
"Yes." the guardian replied, "Soon."
The pharaoh and his army continued to charge, the pharaoh grinning an insane grin and roaring in furious rage. The scarab around his neck, the Charm of Everlife, glowed and throbbed.
The guardian suddenly raised his scepter into the air. At first, the gold and jade staff did nothing, but then it began to glitter and glow, and then spark.
The armies of Sandopolis slowed, some turning back and running in the other direction.
"NO!" the pharaoh screamed, "NO! CHARGE! ONWARD! DO NOT FEAR HIS TRICKERY! I COMMAND YOU! KING ECHIDSHEPSUT OF THE PYRAMIDS OF SANDOPOLIS COMMANDS YOU!!"
The stones fell.
Some of the soldiers who were caught up in the confusion and terror were crushed instantly by the boulders that fell from the sky, returning to their original positions and rebuilding the Red Mountain. Screaming and terrified shouts were drowned out by the avalanche.
The pharaoh managed one final glance at the guardian. He pointed an accusing finger and screamed a warning that the guardian never heard, as it was drowned out by the ensuing cacophony.
"ONE DAY I WILL DESTROY YOU, GUARDIAN!" he screamed, "I WILL DESTROY YOU, AND THIS ISLAND WILL BE MINE!"
THE PRESENT
"So this is the tomb of Echidshepsut."
The cave was illuminated only slightly, but it was enough to see by. The light was produced by an orb on the end of a modest wooden staff - a staff that was very different to that used by the guardian Paul so many years ago. This one was shaped like the crooked talon of some kind of bird, which was what held the orb that produced just enough light to reveal the face of Ashura Yujiheshi.
In his other hand, however, he DID hold the aforementioned guardian's staff, and he now raised it to the same height as his own and inspected it.
"Hurry and show me the location of the charm!" he commanded it, "I wish to be off this infernal island!"
"HEY!" somebody shouted from behind. Ashura, knowing the voice, turned around to view the mouth of the cave, a couple of dozen metres behind him.
The weasil standing there was waving at him. "Somebody still owes me a good amount of moolah for that fancy stick! Hurry up, Larry's getting impatient, and I don't like heights! This whole island is a little too airborne for our liking, and it'd be in all our best interests to just leave, methinks. What do YOU think, Larry?"
"Shut up." Ashura commanded firmly, "You will recieve your pay when I am in posession of the charm. I, too, wish to be gone from this place, but not before I have what I came for. I am too close!"
"Yeah yeah." the weasil mumbled.
Ashura turned back to his activities, and noticed that the guardian's wand was sparking.
"Yes... yes! The Charm of Everlife is near! I can feel it! I can f..."
The scepter was ripped forcibly from the hedgehog's grasp. He wailed in response and spun around, to find himself face-to-face with the Charm of Everlife.
Around the neck of a skeleton.
"Thank you." it snarled, and, though it was only a collection of rotted bones and not much else, its jawbone moved with each word and the skull was caught in a permanant grin.
Ashura was dumbfounded. He stared at the thing which couldn't be, and it stared back at him, before the shaman finally gathered the knowledge to say "Echidshepsut. You live."
"YES!" the skeleton yelled, and threw its arms up. The bones were joined together, and yet, their joining was impossible. Whatever was keeping this ancient entity's spirit inside its body, Ashura decided, must have been intensely powerful magic, and could only have come from the charm around its bony vertebrae neck, the charm he had come to collect.
"Now that you have opened my tomb, I have awakened." Echidshepsut announced, "And look! You have even provided me with the Staff of Paul! This shall complete my reign."
"I have come for the Charm of Everlife!" Ashura announced, and his tone was almost at the point of a whinge.
"The charm is mine." the skeleton replied.
"I have travelled leagues to obtain it!" Ashura said, beginning to yell, "It is MINE! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I NEED IT? I GROW WEAK AND... AND... and... BLAST YOU! BLAST YOU ALL!" He grabbed at the skeleton's neck, one hand latching onto its collarbone and the other reaching for the scarab which hung on the necklace. But the skeleton containing the spirit of Echidshepsut just swatted him away like he was nothing.
Ashura, infuriated beyond description, screamed and raised his scepter. In a moment he was gone, whisps of smoke filling the void where he once was.
"Hey! What's all that yelling going on in there?" the weasil demanded, sticking his head into the cave. He could see nothing but darkness within. "Well gee, Larry.." he said, and he was speaking to his gun, "I reckon he's left us for dead! Ripped us off! That's the last time we sell a precious artifact to someone who can make himself sod off in a puff of..."
The skeleton appeared in front of him and grabbed him by the neck before he could finish his sentence. "You..." it said, "will be the first to give me life..."
The weasil struggled, but the skeletal spirit was exceptionally strong, and the scarab around its neck began to glow.
"WAA-AIT" the weasil choked, "I'll sell you... a watch! Half... price!"
The scarab stopped glowing, and the skeleton dropped the weasil on the ground, flat on his back. "I am weak, as it stands. Prove your worth to me. Bring me someone of flesh to feed on, and I might spare you. But, fail to prove your worth... and I shall find you..."
"Guess I'll be off, then?"
"GO. You have... twelve hours."
---
KIN.
---
Knuckles wore a cast on his left arm. It was all that remained of his injuries after he took a fall off a cliff closer to the beginning of the year, and it was due to come off in a week. Rotor, the only one in New Knothole with medical experience, told him it had healed nicely. He was supposed to be taking it easy, and he was, so to speak. Instead of performing maintainance and labour on his island, which was what he had spent a good amount of his life doing, he was doing a more white-collar line of work, which had come up suddenly and with no warning, almost knocking him over with shock. He was negotiating with nations.
Well, one nation, anyway, but he was given an injection of ego-trip when he was suddenly approached by the Arack Empire, the colony of spiders who had burst from the ruins of Robotropolis. For the first time, perhaps ever, the Floating Island was being classified by somebody on the mainland as a bona-fide nation. And HE, Knuckles the Echidna, was being referred to as a Nation Leader. No matter how revolted he was by the spiders, he found himself liking them, if only a little.
They wanted to negotiate. For what, he didn't know. But there were five of them coming up from Terantulopolis to speak with him. Saddam Spinster, their leader, was not among them.
Knuckles, dancing and singing as he worked, set up a table in the jungle with six chairs, and stood a tarp over the top of it. He wished he had some kind of meeting hall or something, but it would have to do.
"Aw geez..." he said, standing back to look at it, "What am I gonna wear?"
He left the scene to go and monitor the teleporter that they would use to get to the Floating Island. For hours he waited, before the machine burst into life, and as it did, he found himself wondering once more what it was that they wanted to negotiate.
"I hope they aren't hostile." he said to himself, "I wouldn't be able to stop them if they declared war or something. I'm only one echidna, and they are so... many."
THE PAST
"They are many." Echidshepsut said, and he reclined on his throne, clasping his hands together. The Charm of Everlife, the small scarab around his neck, throbbed dully with a luminescent glow.
Sheb was the Pharaoh's chief advisor. A spindly, timid echidna with a long beard and a staff of old, rotting wood. He sniffed and wiped his nose with one finger. "Yes." he said, "They are, sire."
"WELL WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?" Echidshepsut shouted suddenly, thrusting himself forward and slamming his fist on the arm of the throne.
Sheb flinched noticably, shook his head and shrugged.
The pharaoh sighed and leaned back on his throne. "They've all come together." he said, clasping his hands again, "The forest, the glen, the ice caps, the underground. They've all come together as ONE NATION, Sheb. One nation for the entire island. And one RULER for the entire island. A Guardian. Sandopolis is the only nation that has not accepted the rule of this so-called Guardian, and I will see to it that it stays that way."
"Yes, yes, I know all of that already, sire..." Sheb began, but the pharaoh silenced him.
"And yet," Echidshepsut said, "And yet my nation is FULL of people who wish to change! MY NATION IS FULL OF REBELS, AND THEY ARE MANY! And every day they increase in number! I do not wish to be overthrown, Sheb. So tell me. As an advisor... how do we limit them?"
Sheb was about to reply, but he was cut off when one of the Royal Guards bolted into the palace. He kneeled and begged for audience.
"Speak." Echidshepsut grumbled.
"Sire!" the guard announced, "The Guardian Somses is here! He comes to negotiate with Sandopolis for alliance with the Guardianship!"
Echidshepsut cursed under his breath and put his hands to his temples. "The Guardian is here, then. This could not come at a worse time. He will recruit even more of my people." He slammed his hands down again and clawed at his throne, "I can't even KILL him! To do so would see Sandopolis at war with the rest of the island! SOMEBODY BRING ME MY WIFE!"
A couple of guards saluted and vanished down the nearest chamber. Echidshepsut sighed again and motioned Sheb closer. "I know what we're going to do." he said.
"Then give your orders and it shall be done, sire!" Sheb replied.
"We need to cull them." the pharaoh said, "Discreetly, though. Lower their numbers so my nation can grow whole again. Every time an echidna woman ANYWHERE in Sandopolis gives birth, check if her family is alligned to the Pharaoh, or to the Guardian. If it's the Guardian, and if the child is male... kill it."
Sheb gasped, "Do what, Sire?"
"KILL it." the pharaoh rasped, "I don't care if you snap its neck, poison it, drown it or choke it. Just do it, and tell the mother it was stillborn. I can't allow them to survive. If we breed a new generation of men alligned to the Guardian, they will form an army and eventually march against us, don't you agree?"
Before Sheb could reply, the pharaoh threw his head back and screamed out, "WHERE IS SHE? WHERE IS THAT DOG OF A WOMAN I MARRIED?"
"I am here, my Pharaoh." A female echidna, dressed extravagantly, stepped out of a corridor. She was a thin, heavily made up woman, tall and blindingly attractive. She wore a worried expression.
Echidshepsut's charm glowed brighter. "Come here, Melinda."
Melinda, his wife, stepped before him. Immediately, the pharaoh lashed out and backhanded her across the face. She cried out.
"WHEN I CALL FOR YOU, YOU ARRIVE IMMEDIATELY!" He commanded, "Idiot woman. Now listen, the stupid, foolish Guardian Somses has come here, no doubt to attempt to negotiate with me... to make me give up my rule and conform to the Guardianship. I want you to be his guide, give him a tour of the palace, show him his quar... LOOK AT ME WHEN I'M SPEAKING TO YOU, WENCH! Show him his quarters. We will be POLITE to him, because we do not want war with his allies. Get it through your idiot head and begone from my sight!"
Melinda bowed her respect and vanished from the throneroom. Echidshepsut scowled as she left.
"Why do I put up with it, Sheb?"
"Your patience is astounding, sire."
The pharaoh nodded. "And to think.. the Guardian, daring to come here! To Sandopolis! The persistant little idiot. The whole idea of one ruler for the entire island... if it exists, it should at least be me!"
Time passed. Somses arrived at the palace unscathed, with a party of his own followers. He met Echidshepsut, who was hospitable but stubbourn. Finally, he met his guide, Melinda, whom he spent a lot of time with. The pharaoh was too concerned with affairs of state to bother much with either of them.
Now, Echidshepsut had been trying for a long time to father an heir to his throne. So concerned was he with maintaining the government system of Sandopolis independant and in his own bloodline, that a child had become extremely important to him. He had taken five wives previously.. none of them had been able to give him a child. It infuriated him, and he declared each one sterile and had them executed. His sixth wife, Melinda, was nearing the end of the pharaoh's patience.
But, much to his joy, nine months after Somses visited Sandopolis, Melinda gave birth to a healthy baby boy. Echidshepsut named him Amon-Paul, Child of the Pyramids.
Even after the pharaoh's bad luck with previous wives, nobody questioned how the child sprung to life...
THE PRESENT
The teleporter sprung to life. Knuckles stood tall and cleared his throat. When the figure materialised in front of him, the echidna said "I am Knuckles the Echidna, Guardian of the Nation of the Floating Island. I bid you welcome, and ask you to follow me to the place where we will negotiate our business."
The figure on the teleporter scratched his head. "I am Sagittarius the Echidna, mighty Shooter of Arrows. Since when are you a nation, and what business will we be negotiating?"
Knuckles frowned and exhaled a lot of air. "Sage... this isn't a good time."
"Why not?"
It just isn't, okay? And I thought I told you never to come here without asking permission first."
"That's why I'm here... to ask permission! I'm bored as heck, Knux. Come on, whatever you're doing, I can help out... You made me honorary Guardian once, remember?"
Knuckles sighed. "This isn't ordinary guardian work, Sage. It's very, very important, and I really don't have any use for you here."
"Oh come on, what can be so important?"
"If you MUST know, I'm negotiating with dignitaries."
Sage made as if to say something, but hesitated and hoisted an eyebrow. Knuckles rolled his eyes and looked at his feet.
"DIGNITARIES, Knuckles? You mean, like, a United Nations kind of deal? Come on, who can you possibly be negotiating with? Someone's having you on."
"That's not true!" Knuckles protested, this is a very organized meeting!"
The teleporter sprung to life again. Knuckles shrieked and took his position.
"Yeah you just wait," Sage said, "There's going to be a Freedom Fighter standing there, and he's gonna point and laugh at you and tell you what a mug..."
The thing on the teleporter took form. It was much larger than an echidna, even larger than Knuckles had expected, and as it materialized, four arms and four legs came into view. Sage gasped and stepped back in shock. "Knuckles... Knux look out it's a spider it's a SPIDER THEY'VE COME BACK TO THE ISLAND KNUX THEY'VE COME BACK FOR THE EMERALD..."
"I AM KNUCKLES the Echidna, Guardian of the Nation of the Floating Island. I bid you welcome, and ask you to follow me to the place where we will negotiate our business." Knux exclaimed, trying to drown out Sage's frenzied shrieks. The archer was confused and dazzled, but decided to be quiet.
The spider gave what passed for a smile as more of his kind stepped through the rift onto the island. "I am Jax, spokesperson for the Arack Empire. I have four witnesses with me, Ixnekolan, Methuzela, Usamalan and Raxpatela. Also my scribe, Packbell."
Packbell? Knuckles thought to himself, thinking of Robotnik's android commander. Must be a coincidence.
"Who is that?" Jax asked, pointing to the cowering echidna.
Knuckles turned and cleared his throat. "Oh, um. That's MY scribe, Sagittarius. Sage, make yourself useful, will you? Where are your notes?"
Sage coughed and nervously pulled himself to his feet. Well, he thought, you wanted to help out.
The spiders were visibly unimpressed by Knuckles' makeshift meeting table. By the time he led them back to it, leaves had fallen out of the trees and made a mess on it. Knuckles nervously brushed at them and held a chair for Jax. The spider took it thanklessly, and proceeded to open a large box. It was like an enormous briefcase. Knux showed the others to their seats and then seated himself. Sage, unexpected as he was, had to stand. He held one of Knuckles' scrappy notebooks and a bent pencil.
"So, what is it you would like to discuss?" Knuckles asked, to get things started.
"Treaty." Ixnekolan said almost immediately, hesitated, and then said "And what we may share with each other."
"Are you familiar with the city of Terantulopolis, on the mainland?" Jax asked, still fiddling with his briefcase.
All the spiders looked at Knuckles.
"Uh, yeah." Knux replied, "Yes. I've never been there, but I know of it. That's where you all came from."
"By far the eastern-most branch of the Webb." Jax replied. He swung the briefcase around so Knuckles could see inside it. It contained a multitude of electronic equipment, with a screen affixed to the interior of the lid. It flickered, and an image was displayed. Knuckles almost choked on his own shock when he saw the humanoid face of Packbell the Android staring back at him. He looked just like a kindly old man with a tender smile - same as he always had.
"Pack..." Knuckles stammered.
"Hello, Knuckles." Packbell's digital likeness replied, "I know how shocked you must be. Understand that our past alliances should not affect our ability to negotiate peace in the present."
"You mean you work for ARACK, now?" Knux exclaimed.
"Do not talk with him!" Jax insisted, "His job is to take notes. Be silent, Packbell."
Packbell almost seemed to frown, but he kept his composure as much as possible.
"Treaty, then." Knuckles said, with a tremble in his voice, "And what are the terms of this treaty?"
"Until recently we were unaware that this island was inhabited." Jax explained, "You have a great deal of fertile land, and we were hoping to bargain for it.
Sage cleared his throat loudly. When Knuckles glanced at him, he was shaking his head frantically. Knux glared at him and then turned back to his discussion.
"This entire island has... uh, great historical significance. None of this land is for sale."
"Perhaps you just haven't heard the right price yet." Jax mused.
"There's even more land back at the mainland, why come all the way here?"
"Because," the spider replied, "Of particular interest is the latitude that your land is situated at. Needless to say, it is a lot higher than anywhere we could travel on the mainland."
"Why does latitude interest you?"
"What we would like, Mr Echidna, more than anything else, is to construct an outpost somewhere along the rim of the island. I have the plans right here if you would like to see them. This outpost would be used to survey the entire eastern shore of the mainland and relay the intelligence back to Terantulopolis. It would be a small, discreet construction, and we are willing to pay a considerable price."
"And what is that price?"
"Name it, Mr Echidna."
Stalking the jungles of the Floating Island that day was for more than just echidnas and spiders. A fidgety purple weasil stumbled through the undergrowth, muttering and cursing to himself. But, while some people talk to themselves out loud, this one was having what could only be described as a conversation.
"Aah geez, I tell ya Larr, I get meself into situations like this waaaay too easily. I want you to remind me, next time, not to give out anything 'till I've paid for it. Okay? Larry, you hear me? Where are we, anyway? Some kind of island? What was it that bone-brain told me to do? Find 'im someone made of flesh? Gosh, I've been asked to find all sorts o' things, but kidnapping's a little far from my job description, I do reckon."
He batted away a rogue branch with a frustrated grunt, and found that he had come to a clearing. "I'm in way over my head, methinks." he said, as he looked out at the sparse land before him...
THE PAST
As he looked out at the sparse land before him, he was filled with a bizarre feeling of sadness. They were building the largest pyramid Sandopolis had ever seen. It was twice as large as the original construction dubbed "The King's Pyramid", the tomb of Echidshepsut's father. This was to be a tribute to the pharaoh's greatness, and to the greatness of all pharaohs before him. What worried Amon-Paul, the crown prince of Sandopolis, however, was that the entire construction, from bottom to the eventual tip, was being built by women.
"Why must we labour them so?" he asked his father, once.
"Ignorant fool." his father had replied, "We do it to crush their spirits. They are alligned to the stupid and evil Guardianship, it is like a religion for them. Only by rubbing their noses in the greatness of the Sandopolis Kingdom can we hope to show them the light. Lest they will rebel against us."
"And why are only women alligned to the Guardianship, Father?" Amon-Paul had asked.
Echidshepsut only replied, "Because men are smarter than that."
Now the prince descended from the palace via the golden stairs to the courtyard. Burly echidna slavedrivers were walking about, and whenever they saw him they gave the bare minimum of respect required by law - two short nods. Amon-Paul was not popular among the wealthy, but admired among the poor. He was known across Sandopolis for his gentle nature and warm heart. The working class and slaven women of the nation agreed that, if he was to become the next Pharaoh, then he might just be the best one they've ever had.
"Why," he had asked that day, "Is the Guardianship bad?"
"It is bad because it destroys the foundations of our ancestors." Echidshepsut had replied, "It encourages Unity. It encourages the formation of a single nation across the entire island, and a single ruler. One echidna to rule them all!"
"But would unity not lead to a better future for our kind?" Amon-Paul had inquired innocently.
His father did not give him an answer to this. Instead, the pharaoh had become furious with his son and demanded that Amon-Paul leave the palace immediately.
So, here he was now, walking the streets of Sandopolis alone, wondering what it was that he should do for the remains of the day. Perhaps he would stroll to the marketplace. He always recieved enormous bargains, and sometimes even tributes, of the most beautiful artworks on the island. He was extremely interested in art of all kinds, but his father forbade him from trying it himself.
As he walked, he heard a great commotion up ahead. There was nobody around for some distance, except for those who argued up ahead. Amon-Paul, never able to stand listening to such furious misunderstandings, rushed to see what the trouble was. Probably a couple arguing over the ownership of some trivial object, as it usually was.
What the prince came across was actually something considerably more serious. A huge slavedriver was looming over a teenage girl, screaming at her and kicking at her.
"STOP THIS AT ONCE!" the prince commanded.
The slavedriver fell silent and looked down at Amon-Paul. "Your majesty!" he exclaimed.
"Whatever is the matter here?" the prince demanded. He was gazing at the girl, and was for a moment spellbound by her beauty. Although she was ragged, bleeding and dirty, hunched over like a woman five times her age, she had the eyes of a goddess, however full of tears.
"She will not work!" the slavedriver exclaimed, "She claims she needs rest! REST!"
Amon-Paul looked at the pathetic soul with the haunting eyes. "Then, for the sake of the Gods let her rest!" he replied.
"She will not denounce the Guardianship either!" the slavedriver said, "She may only rest if she swears alliegiance with the pharaoh! It is the law!"
"The law is blind and stupid!" Amon-Paul cried, "She is young and weak, she needs rest! And nourishment, by the look of her! You must let her go this instant!"
The slavedriver was amazed, but scowled at the young prince. "Foolish, insolant child!" he exclaimed, "The pharaoh warned of you! She is a rebel, and needs to be taught that the pharaoh is greater than any guardian! You must listen to this wisdom yourself, lest you will rise to the throne stupid and ignorant! Perhaps I should let my whip be your educator!"
The slavedriver rose his whip threateningly.
"You DARE raise a weapon against your prince?" Amon-Paul shouted, "I will see that my father has you stripped of your duty! And then TORTURED like one of your slaves, if you like!"
The slavedriver became suddenly furious, and lunged at the prince. Amon-Paul ducked out of the way, having the advantage of small size and agility. As he evaded, he also tripped the slavedriver, who went tumbling over, his immensity working against his ability to balance. As he fell, he hit his head on a large rock, and fell motionless and silent.
"Are you all right?" the prince asked the girl, who was cowering and trembling.
"Yes m'lord," she replied, "Quite safe now, but what of him?"
Amon-Paul glanced at the fallen slavedriver. He did not move, did not make a sound. The sand around his head was soaked and wet with blood.
"I fear... I fear I have killed him." the prince stammered.
"Quickly, hide his body before you are found and punished!"
So the prince did just that. He dug a hole in the sand large enough to hide the corpse, and covered it up again. It was not difficult, an echidna's hands were specially shaped for digging quickly. When he had finished, he was surprised to notice that the girl was still watching him.
"You will be caught again." Amon-Paul said.
The girl nodded. "I wish I could repay you for your kindness, good prince. I am Tcheba, daughter of Marr."
"You owe me nothing, Tcheba, daughter of Marr." the prince replied, "I owe you your release, and the release of your people. And, when I have power, it shall be done, I promise you this."
THE PRESENT
"I promise you this, if there is any treachery in this offer, it will not be tolerated." Knuckles said, accusingly. No matter the size of his ego, the fact stood that he was wary to trust a spider colony.
"I do not see what makes you think there is treachery." Jax replied, "We have come here with pure intentions, echidna, and if we wanted to be treacherous we would simply take this island from you."
He had practically spat the word 'echidna' out like a wad of phlegm. Knuckles sensed he was treading on egg shells, and called a recess to the meeting. "To think things over." he said.
"So you're thinking of actually doing this?" Sage asked.
Knuckles side-eyed him while he bit into a large apple. "It's my island, kid." he said with his mouth full.
"And they're spiders!" Sage replied.. then, realising that they might be within earshot, lowered his voice to just above a whisper, "Spiders! They'll take over if you let them in! They infest places like this."
"Oh please, Sagittarius, they're perfectly honorable people, they're discussing this like any rational Mobian. We shouldn't deny them their dignity just because they have... too many limbs."
"And too much money." the archer added, crossing his arms, "That's what you've got your eyes on, isn't it. You wouldn't even let me hang around here without asking you, but now you're going to let a colony of disgusting Aracks infest the place 'cause they'll pay you for it."
"They ASKED!" Knux exclaimed, "They came here and politely requested some of my land for an UNMANNED radar outpost! It's more than you do, just turning up on my doorstep whenever you want to! You have a lot to learn, kid."
"Hey! Since when did you start calling me 'kid'?"
"Since you ARE one."
Sage frowned. "It is greed, isn't it. It's finally gotten to you..."
"How DARE you?" the guardian demanded, rising to face the other echidna, "How dare you come to MY island and question MY motives? Even if Sonic the Hedgehog, rest his soul, ever did that, I put him in his place. I am guardian of this island, and through that I am entitled to do with it as I wish."
There was a long silence. Knuckles finished the last of his apple, and then proceeded to pick a long stick off the ground and scratch under his cast with it.
"You're not supposed to do that." Sage commented.
"Oh, you're going to instruct me about my own body now?" Knuckles snapped, "You're my scribe for the day. You wanted to help out, so there you go. Shut up and start taking notes."
Elsewhere, Jax and Ixnekolan spoke. They were eating dead beetles out of a box - dead, but not dried. The juices were important.
"So he seems to be interested." Ixnekolan said, "I did not know persuasion would be this simple."
"Nor did I," Jax replied, "And I imagine he could be swayed to many other things too, once he trusts us. What occupation do you think he would be best at, once he is one with the Arack?"
"He is strong. Agile, muscular, stupid. Construction?"
"Maintainance, I think. In the heating ducts. Regular mechanical tasks."
"Yes, that could be the best idea. But we shall see."
Jax gave the box to Ixnekolan, and turned away. Now the latter spider was left alone amongst the shrubbery. Greedily he scarfed down the remaining beetles, glad to no longer have to share. He looked around himself at the flowers and trees. He decided he did not want to live on the Floating Island. There were too many colours, and the sunlight bleached his black fur. He much preferred the shadows and dark, lumbering constructions of Terantulopolis.
The bushed moved. He turned around, not frightened but curious. There didn't seem to be anything moving around behind the shrubs, but they swayed softly, disturbed.
His eyes feel upon something in the shadows, and he took a closer look. It was a spiral cobweb, and in its centre was a small nonsentiant spider, deathly still.
Ixnekolan dug a small beetle corpse from his own lunchbox and stuck it to the web. The little spider hurried along and began wrapping it in silk.
"Another one joins the Arack." the big spider commented.
Then he was knocked out cold by the butt of Larry Leadspitter.
And so, Ixnekolan was the first.
THE PAST
"Well, this is a first."
"It's true, sire!" Sheb replied, "The guardian's associates... but no guardian among them! They have come to speak to you."
"I thought I made it clear that there was to be no further association between Sandopolis and the Guardianship." Echidshepsut said, not enraged but mildly humoured, "What do they want to speak about?"
"They say they have news from outside our lands, sire. They say nothing more." Sheb shrugged hopelessly.
"Fine, fine. Let them in. But be ready to escort them away."
Sheb nodded at the pharaoh, and then nodded at the guards. The guards nodded back, and proceeded to the back of the throneroom, where they let three strangers enter.
The strangers were the guardian's escorts. They were not elaborately dressed, except for pebble necklaces around their necks signifying their rank. They nodded at the pharaoh, but this was the only respect they paid. All three of them wore an identical expression - they were there out of duty, but did not want to be there any more than Echidshepsut wanted them to be.
"So, outlanders. What is it, exactly, you wish to tell me that your guardian couldn't tell me himself?"
"We bring news from outside your lands." the head escort replied, "The Guardian does not accompany us, because he has passed away after a short battle with cancer of the mind. He grew delirious after adopting a fever, and his condition degraded into death."
"Oh, so he's dead!" Echidshepsut exclaimed with pretend interest. He then reclined, tapping a finger on the arm of his throne. "Why do you assume I care about this news?"
The escorts looked amongst themselves, then back to the pharaoh. "Somses never fathered a child in all his time in the Guardian Palace. This means we need to locate an heir to the Guardianship."
The pharaoh thought about this for a moment, and then burst out laughing. "And you search for your new guardian in MY KINGDOM? What makes you think there is any chance of finding anybody in Sandopolis who thinks ANYTHING of your stupid, faulty system? Why would I help you re-form your chain of fools?"
"We have good reason to be here." the head escort replied, "In all his years, the Guardian Somses fathered a single child. It was seventeen years ago that he came to your lands and created an illegitimate son who continues to live here - the only heir to the Guardianship. We have come for him now."
"Oh? I believe you are mistaken. Nobody... no BOY in this kingdom would prefer Guardianship to death. If the mongrel did have a son... a DOZEN sons here in Sandopolis, they will have been raised under my competant rule."
Echidshepsut grinned, for he was certain that the boy they spoke of was dead. Any male child born to a guardian-alligned family in the year they spoke of was killed. Indeed, the killings continued for several years, crippling the guardian's chances of establishing support from within Sandopolis.
"Nevertheless, we must take him with us." the head escort said, "He is named Amon-Paul."
Echidshepsut's reaction was instantanious. His grin vanished - his mouth visibly snapped back to its default shape, then tightened to a crack. His eyes became empty and seemed to stare through the escorts as if they were transparent. His face actually lost all trace of any expression at all. And the scarab around his neck - the Charm of Everlife - faded from its yellow glow to a complete, total vaccuum of black.
"Get." the pharaoh said after a moment, and then, almost as an afterthought, added "Out."
"We will not leave without what we have come for." the stranger replied.
Echidshepsut seemed to think about this a moment, staring daggers at his guests. All at once, he turned his head and spoke to his guards.
"Execute them. All three of them. Bury them without a mastaba."
The escorts backed away, shock on their faces. The guards were hesitant.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!" the pharaoh screamed. He leaned forward on his throne, and his hands gripped it so hard that his knuckles turned white.
The guards siezed the strangers and dragged them from the palace. The pharaoh reclined back into his throne, burying his face in one hand.
"Sheb." he said.
His advisor nervously crept up to the throne. "Sire?"
"Have Amon-Paul executed also."
There was another long silence. "But sire..." Sheb replied, "Your son?"
"No, not my son. A traitor. A traitor for the guardian."
"Raised by you, Sire! Your only heir..."
He realised he was arguing, and flinched back, prepared for the pharaoh's full wrath. But, instead,
"Sandopolis will fall if he comes to power, Sheb. But... no... no, I will show mercy. Banish him. Banish him from these lands. Forever... but let him live."
"A wise choice."
THE PRESENT
"A wise choice, Mr Echidna."
Knuckles' arms were crossed. "Don't burst your elation ducts just yet, you haven't heard my price."
"Perhaps we should get our parties together again before we continue further." Jax replied. He looked down to address the computer. "Packbell, prepare to record the proceedings."
"Sage, you too." Knux added, glaring only slightly in the other echidna's direction. Sage saluted sarcastically and whipped out his notes.
"ARACK! REGROUP! BREAK IS OVER!" the spider shouted. The other Aracks emerged from the forest all around, having not ventured too far. "Our host has agreed to sell some of his land if we agree to... where is Ixnekolan?"
The other spiders looked at each other, murmuring and shrugging.
"IXNEKOLAN! REGROUP!" Jax shouted.
Only the birds replied, chirping softly in the trees.
"Packbell, where is he?"
The face on the computer screen hitched an eyebrow. "What? I wouldn't have a clue, I'm not a bloody sattelite system."
"Useless... computer..." Jax mumbled, expletives deleted. He picked himself up and wandered back to the place where he had spoken earlier to the missing spider. "IXNEKOLAN!" he shouted. His words echoed through the trees.
Knuckles was confused. He wasn't sure which of them was apparently missing, but then he was having a hard time telling the spiders apart from each other anyway.
"Perhaps he's on his way." Knuckles said. His mouth was dry, and he cleared his throat.
"Perhaps he's dead." Packbell replied, "You know what happens to people who go wandering around in the forest by themselves..."
"I'm going to get some water," Knuckles interrupted, licking his lips with his sandpaper tongue, "Wait here for him, I'd say he'll return any minute."
The echidna stood and picked an empty pitcher off the table, meaning to take it to the stream and refill it. Sage, who didn't wish to be left alone with the spiders, followed. But Knuckles, knowing it, kept a few body lengths ahead of the echidna at all times.
They reached the stream, and Knux took a moment to inhale the refreshing aquatic fragrance that filled the area. Water so clean it was almost invisible trickled past the rocky bank, along with the occasional tadpole. The echidna kneeled and dipped the pitcher in, being careful not to suck any baby frog hatchlings in as well.
Sage almost broke the silence, but thought better of it. Though he knew Knuckles was being foolhardy, fueled and blinded by the ego boost the Arack Empire had granted him, he knew that the guardian thought less and less of him with every word he spoke. So he just shut up and let things take their course.
When Knux had the pitcher filled, he turned around and held eye contact with the archer momentarily. It was, for a second, the same friendly look that Sage knew well, but he immediately looked away and made his face hard again.
The spiders were still looking for their lost comerade when the echidnas returned, but with more urgency.
"If anybody wants a drink, help yourself." Knuckles sang out to them, fetching himself a glass and putting the pitcher down on the table.
Jax turned around, taking his attention momentarily from what he was doing, and looked at them with an expression Knuckles couldn't work out.
"What is that?" he asked.
"Uh, water." the guardian replied, "Right from the stream. I assure you it's clean. Cleanest water on or off Mobius, you might find."
Jax was taken aback, then frowned and glared. "Is that supposed to be a joke, echidna?" Again, spitting the word 'echidna' out like he was naming a disease.
"What?" Knuckles asked, confused, and looked down at the pitcher. He stared at it in shock for several seconds, then blinked hard, stared again, shook his head, stared again. He touched the side of it, delicately as if he expected it to be searing hot. It was cool as it had been when he filled it. But now, he gagged and had to put a hand over his mouth to stifle the possibility of throwing up. There was a smell, not particularly strong, but potent. He looked at Sage in horror. He wasn't dreaming, either - Sage's own expression showed that he saw it too.
---
BLOOD.
---
Nack the Weasil dragged his captive across the countryside of the Floating Island with astounding strength. It occured to him that it was strength he would not otherwise have, but he remembered staring into the Charm of Everlife as it throbbed and glowed, and it did something to him, made him more alert, more able. He felt strong and athletic... and he liked it.
"How's about this, Larry?" he asked the gun as it travelled beside him in its holster, "Feeling fine! Absolutely dandy! And it's all 'cause of that skeleton guy! You know, this might not be such a bad thing after all, I reckon."
The gun was silent, but after a few seconds, Nack burst out laughing as if he was just audience to a teriffic joke, "Yeah, yer darn right, Larr! HA! Ever thought about stand-up comedy?"
They dragged the unconscious spider all the way to Red Mountain, which was outside Sandopolis and above Lava Reef in the geography of the island. He entered the concealed cave, where he had followed Ashura and the Staff of Paul, chasing his payment.
"Have you brought me some energy?" a voice echoed through the cave.
"Well, I brought SOMETHING, I sure hope it's good for ya!" Nack shouted back.
All of a sudden, swift as the wind, the bleached skeleton creature appeared again, its bones rattling as it moved. It bypassed Nack completely, and snatched up the Arack dignitary with surprising ease.
Just then, Ixnekolan awoke, stirring. He moaned and opened his eyes slowly. The first thing he noticed, naturally, was the skeleton who was holding him above his head in an iron grip. But this was only momentary, because the Charm of Everlife was glowing - a bright yellow scarab charm, lit like a bulb and glowing brighter with every breath. The skull above it was caught in a permanant grin, illuminated like a jack-o-lantern. Ixnekolan stared at the charm - it started to burn his retinas, but he stared even still. And soon that light engulfed everything.
Nack watched the whole thing, up until it was too bright to see anything and he had to shield his eyes. But when he was able to look again, the spider was completely gone... absorbed, or burned away, or evaporated, or blown out of existance. The Charm was glowing red, now, and the skeleton's limbs were stretched out, the skull staring up into space. Something started to emerge from the scarab, some kind of smoke, better described as some kind of visible energy. It engulfed the skeleton, which began to grow and thicken. Layers of muscle appeared. When the process was complete, it looked like someone was recreating a creature from its bones like they did in museums - working out the muscle patterns layer by layer. What stood before Nack now was nothing more than bones and muscle, and two huge eyeballs that now stared from the sockets in the thing's head. It grinned, or stretched the muscles that one would stretch in order to grin.
"The first stage is complete." it said.
"Say, who are you?" Nack asked.
"A am the Pharaoh Echidshepsut, king of Sandopolis." the creature replied, "What is the year?"
Nack scratched his head. "What's the year, Larry?" he asked, and then "He says it's 2000. I haven't really been paying attention, ya know, don't have much time for anything but work these days.."
"Two THOUSAND!" Echidshepsut exclaimed, "WELL! It has been a long time! Although I sense... I sense the Guardian. He still lives! How is this possible?"
"What, you mean that echidna guy? Uhh, Ankles the Echidna? Yeah, he's around somewhere, I think we might even be on that island of his. You know, I really didn't know where that teleporter was going when I stepped on it, I just went with... What's that, Larry? Well, that's all good and well, but you coulda told me! Here I was, just wandering around...."
Nack continued to talk in the background, having a conversation with his gun. Echidshepsut ignored him, fiddling with the scarab around his neck and thinking to himself. "He will be destroyed forever... destroyed for what he did to me... and he will suffer the torture of a thousand knives. Yesssss... I bring revenge upon the Guardian... revenge upon the Floating Island! I hold his Staff... I will use his own trickery against him. LET THE PLAGUES RETURN TO THIS ISLAND, AND LET THEM RETURN A HUNDRED FOLD!"
He snatched up the Staff of Paul, the artifact that Nack had sold to Ashura and Ashura had given up to Echidshepsut, and raised it into the air. It began to crackle and fizz, and sparks of power burst out of it. Then something that looked like an upside down stroke of lightning struck the roof of the cave and released tendrils of electricity that slithered down the walls and lit up the gloom like a disco. Nack wasn't paying attention, he continued to converse with his weapon.
"YOU!" Echidshepsut screamed, and he snapped the staff down so it pointed towards the weasil. Another stroke of lightning flashed, and it hit Nack dead in the chest, throwing him against the wall like a rag doll with a pained squawk.
"You will bring me more energy!" the thing that called itself a pharaoh demanded, "And you will bring it quickly! I must exact my revenge upon this guardian!"
Nack sat up. He felt strange, and was filled with even more power. The energy from the staff still swam throughout his body, and made him feel like he was on some kind of drug, light as a feather and able to do anything. His eyes were as wide as saucers. "Yeah! Yeah, yeah, uh, whatever you say!"
"GO!"
Nack scurried out of the cave, almost tripping over a rock as he went.
Echidshepsut watched him go. "I curse you, Guardian." he muttered, "I curse you, I curse your followers, and I curse that crescent upon your chest."
THE PAST
He had a crescent upon his chest, as had his father before him. As strange a birthmark as this was, it served as a marker. The mark of the Guardian.
Now, as he stepped into the nation of Sandopolis, he felt more dedicated to this role than ever before.
The Great Pyramid was almost built. The guardian could see that hordes of echidna women were still being used to build it, and he knew that they wouldn't be set free once they had finished. They would either be set to work again or slaughtered, Echidshepsut would see to it.
He was older now, and he carried a powerful staff that had been left to him by his father, the First Guardian. But as he stepped into the court of the pharaoh, he noticed that the twisted king who raised him was not older at all, not even by a day. It was like walking into a memory.
Echidshepsut scowled down at him and the two escorts he had brought with him.
"Amon-Paul. I see you found your way to the Guardianship after all. This disappoints me."
The guardian nodded. "I am just Paul, now. You have... aged well."
"You changed your name as well." Echidshepsut commented, "And yes, I have aged well, PAUL. The Charm of Everlife... my ancestors were ignorant of its true power. If I wear it always, I can live forever. I don't need an heir after all." He picked up a goblet of water and sipped from it. "I banished you once. I am growing tired of you again. I think you should leave."
"No." Paul replied, forcefully, stepping forward, "I have come here on official business, Echidshepsut. I have come to demand that you release your slave women, and let them follow me back to my lands. You have worked them long enough."
Echidshepsut looked surprised, and then burst out laughing. "My goodness! What a persuasive argument! But, PAUL, if I do that, then however will I finish my pyramid?"
"Hire some workers... what you do is none of my concern. You must release your slaves. The Guardian of the Floating Island commands it."
Echidshepsut's humoured expression turned to one of cold fury. The Charm of Everlife throbbed less brightly. "The Pharaoh of Sandopolis ignores you." he said, "Be gone before I have you executed."
Paul did not stand down. "You leave me no choice." he said, and held up his scepter, "This staff is filled with great power. It was created by the ancient emerald-forgers, and left to me by my father. I can use it to bring great chaos to your lands, pharaoh. I can use it to bring plagues, and only I know how to send them away. If you do not comply with my demands, I will turn all the water in Sandopolis into blood."
"Blood?" Echidshepsut chuckled, "You think that will frighten me?"
"Try me."
The pharaoh nodded, "Very well. You shall see what happens to those who dare threaten me. GUARDS! Execute all of them!"
Paul threw his arms up, aiming the staff directly upward, and a bolt of lightning struck the roof of the palace, shaking the foundations and sending tendrils of blue energy down the walls. The palace guards shouted in terror and shrank back, but Echidshepsut was just infuriated. "Tricks!" he exclaimed, "Guardian trickery! He cannot harm you. Take him!" He flicked his hand, and raised his goblet to his mouth again. As he drank, his eyes flew open and he leaned forward, spewing its contents all over the palace floor. It was thick and red, and dripped out of his mouth into his lap, staining.
He slowly tipped the goblet out. More thick, red liquid splattered on the floor. It looked like wine, but had the consistancy of milk.
"It's... full of blood!"
THE PRESENT
"It's full of blood!" Knuckles exclaimed, "Sage! Do you see that? It's... it's..."
Sage looked as if he was going to hurl. His face went pale and he had both hands clapped over his mouth. He just moaned.
"I must be going insane." Knux muttered, "I remember going... going down to the stream and... and... but what did I do to get THIS?"
He looked up at the spiders, but they'd all disappeared into the forestry, looking for the lost one. Knuckles shook his head and went after them, not wanting another four creeps getting lost on his island.
Jax, the leader, was stomping through flowers and mushrooms with absolutely no regard for the scenery, and each stomp was like a dagger in Knux's chest. "What do you think you're DOING?" he demanded.
The spider looked back at him in anger. "One of my associates got lost in your infernal island, and I'm going to find him!"
"Well, watch where you're... HEY! Stop it! Can't you see there's a path!?"
"Knux!" Sage shouted from behind him, "What about that blood?"
"ARE YOU PLAYING TRICKS ON ME!?" Knuckles demanded, spinning around and confronting the other echidna, "Get out of my way!"
"FINE!" Sage shouted, and stormed off.
Knuckles turned around and saw the spiders stomping and tearing at foliage again. He was suddenly wracked with a slow, throbbing headache, and put his hands on his temples.
It was then that he caught the aroma. It wasn't strong from where he was standing, but it was definately there. Knuckles forgot his stresses and went about following his nose. He knew the smell, but couldn't place it.
Off the path and into the forest he went, sniffing and snorting. The smell got stronger as he went deeper, and it wasn't a pleasant one. Kind of coppery and dull.
"Oh no..." he muttered, and broke into a run.
Past trees, over rocks and stones, he eventually came close to where the crystal waters of the stream ran through. His heart filled with dread when he realised the sweet trickling of water over rocks was replaced by a thick splattering sound, not at all relaxing and rather foreboding.
He came to the stream and gaped, his pupils shrinking to pin points.
The stream was made of blood.
Knuckles lost his lunch.
Nack was practically skipping through the forest. His eyes were as wide as tea saucers, and he blinked rarely. With every leap, he thought he would lift off and start flying, and it was a fantastic feeling.
All of a sudden, something flew past his face, leaving a starry trail. He squeaked in surprise, and looked about himself. There was something floating just in front of him, looking at him intently.
It was Larry.
"Larry? What are you doing?" the weasil asked, seemingly unsurprised.
"What are YOU doing?" Larry snapped back. The gun now had two googly eyes above the barrel, and the hole in the shaft changed shape when it talked. "You've stopped moo-ving, Nack-Nack!"
"Hey, you sound kinda different..." Nack said.
"Of COURSE I don't, you PUTZ!" the gun screamed at him, "Your hearing going funny as well as your eyes? I reckon-reckon we oughta stop the chit-chat and get to getting s'more of those life energies for the Boss!"
"The.. Boss?" Nack asked.
"YEAH the Boss, BRAINIO! I'm talkin' bout E-CHID-SHEPSUT, king o' the sands and soon-to-be ruler of this here ISLAND! We gotta help him git that lil' creepazoid guardian! And to do that, we gotta be snatching up another life force! You get it now?"
"Ohh, right!" Nack replied, "Yeah, he needs us!"
"That's the spirit-spirit, Nackyboy! Let's go!"
Sage was wandering on his own through the forest, in a huff. He was not exactly angry at Knuckles, more concerned than anything, because he knew how the guardian was. Kindly and good humoured most of the time, but under stress he transformed into a red-hot ball of well-vented rage and lashed out at everybody. Sagittarius and Knuckles were typical buddies, inseperable but with more fights between them than you could count.
No, something worse than rivalry was happening on the Floating Island that day. Maybe Knuckles, with his senses usually refined and impeccable, was too stressed to notice. But Sage could sense it, in every bone in his body. Turning a jug full of water into a pint of blood was more than just a parlour trick, especially when neither Sage nor Knuckles had anything to do with it, and Knux was the one holding the pitcher. What was worse, the entire forest smelled like something had died, and messily. It made Sage want to be sick, but he held his guts in and tried to be strong. There was a new presence on the island and, by the smell of it, it wasn't friendly.
The hard part would be convincing Knuckles about it.
THE PAST
The hard part would be convincing him. This Paul knew, because he had never known somebody so stubbourn as Echidshepsut. The pharaoh would not bend to pressure so easily - and, strangely, it seemed that the Charm of Everlife, whatever it was and wherever it came from, had made him harder and more determined. More twisted.
"It's full of blood!" the pharaoh shouted, and threw the goblet down on the floor. It rolled to a stop beside Paul's foot.
"It all has," Paul replied, "Just as I told you. All the water in the land has turned. In the rivers, in the jugs and barrels, in the cups and goblets. The fish are all dead, and the rivers will stink so much that you won't be able to go near them. It will be like this until you agree to let my people go."
"YOUR PEOPLE!" Echidshepsut screamed, "GUARDS, TAKE THAT INFERNAL STICK AWAY FROM HIM!"
The pharaoh's guards advanced on Paul, but he pointed the scepter at them accusingly and, without word of a lie, it turned into a writhing, hissing snake. The echidna held it by the tail as it tried to lash out at the guards, who stumbled over themselves and backed away.
"IDIOTS! I will have you all killed if you insist on being such cowards! I AM MORE DANGEROUS THAN ANY BLASTED SNAKE!" the pharaoh insisted.
"Just try it." Paul said, "And you will see what else I can do." The stick turned back into a stick, and Paul turned back to the pharaoh. "I will return to Sandopolis this time tomorrow. If you agree to release your slaves, I will remove this curse from your lands. If you refuse, however, it will not only remain, but I will add a second plague to your sorrows. Do you wish to test me?"
"GET OUT!" Echidshepsut screamed, "Get out of Sandopolis! Take your friends and your trickery with you!"
"Tomorrow, Echidshepsut." Paul replied, and he and his escorts turned around and left the palace without a hassle from the guards.
As they left, the slaves watched Paul in awe. Those who remembered him as the kindly crown prince of Sandopolis knew that his return to their lands was a good thing. The slavedrivers, however, looked on with contempt.
As the guardian walked, he passed a slave woman who was carrying a block of stone. Her eyes met his, and recognition flooded through his mind.
(I wish I could repay you for your kindness, good prince. I am Tcheba, daughter of Marr.)
Was it the same girl? He turned quickly, but she passed by and showed her back to him. Paul was overjoyed with the idea that she was still alive, and became more determined to release them from the grasp of the pharaoh.
After all, the guardian could be stubbourn, too.
THE PRESENT
The guardian could be stubbourn, that much was painfully obvious about Knuckles' personality. But was he so stubbourn now that he couldn't see - or refused to believe - the changes that were occuring on the Floating Island?
When Sage arrived at the stream, the smell was so rancid that he turned pale and had to kneel to recover his senses. What force in the entire universe could, and WOULD, turn a whole stream into blood? It looked like a giant artery running through the forest. And Sage had a feeling that there was even more to it than that - puddles around the place were pools of thick red, like sites of some bloody sacrifice. His mind wandered to what Hydrocity might look like, should one venture down there... and quickly he forced himself to think of something else.
There was a sobbing sound. Not particularly loud, but it was something to focus his mind on, so he focused on it. It was coming from upstream.
The young echidna followed it, forcing himself to listen to it rather than the disgusting splattering sound of the stream, and eventually he found Knuckles. The guardian was sitting near the rock falls, not exactly crying, but emitting a pained kind of coughing-sobbing sound.
"Knuckles?" Sage asked.
"Losing..." Knux choked, "Losing my... mind..."
"Are you gonna be okay, Knux?"
"BLOOD! Sage, I can see blood... everywhere. It's horrible... The whole stream is blood."
"I know, I can see it too. You're not crazy."
"Help me up, Paul."
Sagittarius held out his hands, and helped the guardian to his feet. Knuckles was shivering, heavily spooked. After the day he'd already had, this seemed to be pushing him dangerously toward the verge of a nervous breakdown.
"Knux, what was it you just called me?"
Knuckles looked at the other echidna, confused, "I what?"
"You called me something... another name. Paul, I think it was."
"I did? Paul?"
"Yeah."
"Oh."
Knuckles held the sides of his head for a long while, trying to get his wits about him. Eventually, he began to walk deeper into the forest, trying to escape the sounds of the stream. Sage followed, and the guardian spoke to him. "Paul... It's just a story I heard, an old echidna fable. See, the Floating Island was once a multitude of... nations. All the echidnas were brought together by the first guardian, Somses Echidna. Legend has it that his son, Paul, the second guardian, had great powers, and he turned all the water in Sandopolis into blood. I don't know if there's any truth to it, the ancients were very metaphorical."
"Sounds pretty similar to what's happened here, if you ask me." Sage replied, "Maybe it warrants looking into."
"I don't know. What I do know is that I have to get those blasted spiders off my island. It's not a good day."
Sage smiled. Knuckles' senses had finally arrived, stage left.
Raxpatela was a short, fat terantula. For three years, he had worked as an architect for the Webb, and he had been responsible for much of the design of Terantulopolis after it was reposessed by the Arack Empire. His job on the Floating Island was to pick out a suitable spot for terrain development, and to design the Arack outpost.
He nervously tread through the forest, searching for signs of the missing Ixnekolan, desperately fearing losing his own way as well. He wasn't good with orientation, and he tended to become disoriented amongst the complex streets and alleys of Terantulopolis, even despite his role in its design.
He stopped and looked about himself. There was a horribly rancid smell drifting through the trees in front of him, and he didn't want to know where it was coming from. He turned, trying to figure out where he had come from. All the trees looked the same, all the paths looked equally familiar. He might as well have been blindfolded and spun around a hundred times.
"HELLO?" he shouted. There was no response. The spider scurried back vaguely in the direction he had come. He wandered past trees that looked increasingly strange and unfamiliar. He looked downward, but the wind was covering his footprints as he made them. He began to grow worried.
"HELLO!?" he shouted again. This time, though, he attracted a response.
"Hooooooooooowdy pardner!"
Shocked, he spun around to search for the owner of the voice. The wind rustled through the leaves. A frog croaked.
"Hello, who's there?"
A long silence... then, from a completely different source, the same voice:
"NOBODY HERE BUT US CHICKENS!"
Raxpatela jerked towards the place he swore the voice had come from, but nothing was there. He looked all about himself, but he was alone as far as he could tell. But, just as he thought this, the idea was banished by the bizarre voice that now seemed to be almost under him.
"MARCO! POLO! MARCO! POLO! Come on, ya freak, I'm right HERE!"
"Who are you?" the spider asked the voice, which seemed to be flying all about the place with such speed that it couldn't be seen.
"NAME'S LARRY! Larry Leadspitter! You seem to be lost, m'friend, which is quite a pity for you, a lot of things that get lost in this place never get found again, ain't that right Nacky-Nack?"
The voice was replied to by another, different voice, chuckling and cackling from somewhere in the woods.
Raxpatela saw this as his cue to get away rather fast. He took off running, four legs galloping and four arms pumping. He didn't know where he was going, and he no longer cared, as long as he could get away from whatever it was that hunted him. As he rushed past tree after tree, he looked back to make sure he wasn't being followed. This proved to be a mistake - the moment he stopped looking where he was going, he ran full-speed into a thick tree trunk and knocked himself out cold.
A while later, a shadow appeared over him.
And that's how Raxpatela became the second.
---
LOCUSTS.
---
Returning to the meeting table, Knuckles and Sage found only Packbell, on the computer screen. All of the spiders had scattered around the island.
"Hello, Knuckles, quite an exciting day this has turned out to be, wouldn't you agree?"
"Can it, iMac." Knuckles snapped, "I don't know what you're doing associating with these spiders, but I'm getting you all off my island right now."
"Oh, what a temper," Packbell said, "Hasn't it ever occurred to you that I'm trying to assist you and this island of yours? I don't care much for spiders, myself. They have a good eye on this land, you know."
"For all I know, you're the last thing that remains of a plot that sought to kill everyone in the world. I don't trust you as far as I could hurl a boulder."
"That's fair enough, echidna, but you know I'd like to see how you expect to get the Aracks off the island before they finish what they've come to do. Especially after you offended them with that pitcher of animal blood. They eat beetles and grubs, but they're not SAVAGES, you know."
"BUT THAT WASN'T..." Knux began, but then he gave up talking to the computer, and wandered in search of the other spiders.
"DON'T YOU JUST LOVE INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS?" Packbell called after him. Sage turned his nose up at the computer and followed the guardian.
Packbell sighed, "I dislike them."
THE PAST
"I dislike them, I really do." Echidshepsut told Sheb, who was now very old and wrinkled, although the pharaoh himself hadn't aged a day.
Sheb nodded, "They are a plague, themselves," he admitted, "And should be eradicated."
"I've known that for better than thirty years!" the pharaoh snapped, "How are we going to do that? He holds that... BLASTED... staff!"
A guard raced into the throne room, out of breath, "Sire! The guardian has arrived!"
"Very well." Echidshepsut replied, "Send him in. We shall see what he has in store for us this time."
The pharaoh clasped his hands together as Paul and his escorts entered. Paul was carrying his staff, and Echidshepsut scowled at it. "Welcome back."
"Have you come to a decision?" Paul asked, his face devoid of expression.
"As a matter of fact, I have not. I shall need more time to think your... proposition over. I think we can come to some agreement."
"The only AGREEMENT would be for you to release your slaves and have the curses lifted from your lands. There is no other way out of this. Do you concede?"
"No."
The echidnas stared daggers at each other for a very long time, until Paul at last broke away and raised his staff into the air. "You leave me no choice, then. Let a second plague be added to your woes."
Again, the inverse lightning struck the ceiling of the palace, sending shock waves down the walls. The 'CRACK' sound was so crisp and loud that several echidnas of the palace flinched back, startled.
Echidshepsut gripped the arms of his throne harder, and his knuckles turned white. "What did you just do?"
"The first doomed your water, and the second has doomed your crops," Paul replied, "Within days, not a plant will exist in all of Sandopolis. Unless, of course, you free your slaves."
The pharaoh frowned, and looked about the place. "I don't believe you."
"Believe it."
"I don't believe you! It's a trick!"
"Believe it, Echidshepsut. I shall give you another twenty-four hours to wallow in your new misery, and then I shall return to either lift these two plages, or add a third. It is your choice."
The guardian and his people turned to leave, but the pharaoh reached out to them in a halting gesture. "WAIT!"
Paul looked back, half expecting the pharaoh to have changed his mind. But no such luck, as Echidshepsut looked slightly entertained, rather than defeated.
"Why travel all the way from your homeland to see me every day? Allow me to give you a room in this palace until we settle this."
Paul shook his head. "I don't trust you."
But one of his escorts tugged on his arm, "Guardian Paul... we are tired. The gods and your staff will protect us."
The guardian thought about it for a moment, and then nodded in agreement, "Very well. We accept."
"GOOD!" Echidshepsut replied, and motioned to his guards to stand to attention, "Give them the best room in the palace! Besides mine, of course. And gather five slave women to serve them during their stay."
"We will not be REQUIRING any slave women, Echidshepsut." Paul snapped.
The guards escorted them out of the throne room. As they did, Sheb wandered slowly up to the pharaoh, nervous. "Sire. You were a lot more hospitable today."
"Baah," Echidshepsut replied, "My patience has run out. I will find a way to lift their trickery, and then I will destroy them, in a most painful way. What is that sound?"
Sheb looked around the place. His hearing wasn't what it used to be, but he could hear a low-key buzzing sound. He couldn't tell where it was coming from - indeed, it seemed to be everywhere at once.
"I do not know, sire."
Something fell out of the air and dropped onto the arm of the throne. Echidshepsut inspected it, the charm on his chest glowing. It was a large insect of some kind, long, thin and green. Another one landed on the floor of the palace some distance away, and then another straight after.
Sheb saw Echidshepsut's wordless glare, and replied to it promptly, "Locusts, sire."
"Locusts. Well, Sheb, stop staring like and idiot, and remove these locusts from my palace."
More insects landed - on the floor, on the furniture, on the walls. They flew about slowly and dumbly, bumping into things and grappling onto whatever their legs caught a hold of. The intense humming grew louder by the second, and the palace grew darker as a great shadow passed over the windows.
"I think this is Paul's doing." Sheb said.
Echidshepsut just nodded and replied, "I see."
THE PRESENT
"I see you have returned..." the voice echoed through the cave.
"We brought MUNCHIES for ya, Boss-boss!" Larry exclaimed, flying circles around Nack's head. The weasil dragged the unconscious spider with great ease with his newfound strength, "We done good, eh Larr? Good as gold!"
"Yeah yeah, just dump 'im, ya big schamoolie!" the gun replied, cartoonish eyes spinning about.
Once again, the creature emerged from the darkness. A walking lump of muscle and bone, the resurrected body of Echidshepsut snatched up the latest victim. All at once, the Charm of Everlife began to again glow as bright as the sun. Nack bounced around excitedly, Larry following him around and leaving a starry trail in the air.
Echidshepsut began to change again, after Raxpatela was completely absorbed. His muscles thickened out, nerves and blood vessels sprouting from inside them and whipping across his body like tentacles. When it was finished, he looked like a stripped carcass. What's more, the bond he now shared with Nack caused the weasil to change, too. He became taller as he bounced around, thinner, more streamlined and athletic. Larry Leadspitter rocketed through the air like a supercharged firework.
Echidshepsut raised the Staff into the air again, causing another surge of power that struck the roof and began creeping down the walls. "ANOTHER PLAGUE UPON THIS ACCURSED ISLAND!" he shouted, "AND ANOTHER LIFE FORCE FOR ME! I must complete myself... I MUST COMPLETE MY REIGN!"
"Jax!" Knuckles called, and then corrected himself, "Mr Jax!" He realied it sounded odd, but he hadn't been granted a last name. He wasn't even sure the Arack naming system worked that way.
The spider wasn't searching anymore. He was together with his smaller companions, Methuzela and Usamalan, and all looked hopeless and infuriated.
"We have lost TWO of our party, Echidna!" Jax exclaimed, "Raxpatela has gone missing! I suggest you help us search. Or are you doing this on purpose?"
"It's not my fault if your people are getting lost in the forest." Knux replied, "I've come to escort you off. I'll send them back later, when I find them, but right now it's too dangerous for you to remain here. Things are... happening."
"WHAT things?" Jax demanded, "STOP them! This is YOUR island, I thought whatever THINGS happened here were under your control!"
"So did I." Knuckles admitted.
Sage was looking around in confusion. "What's that sound?" he asked, at last.
"What sound?" Knux asked, and he listened. There was definately something new in the air. Birds had stopped chirping, crickets had stopped chirping, all in favour of a low humming.
"Probably another reason to get off this island quick-smart," Knuckles replied, "You too, Sage, and no arguments. This is my job."
Sage raised his hands in the air in defeat. Knux was being a bully again, but a smart bully.
"Aracks, come with me, I'll show you to the teleporter," the guardian said.
"WE WILL NOT BE PUSHED AROUND!" Jax shouted, face turning red, "IF OUR PEOPLE ARE NOT RETURNED TO US, WE WILL WAGE WAR ON YOUR PATHETIC ISLAND! Do you think that two echidnas can stand against the armies of Terantulopolis?"
"I'm not trying to incite WAR!" Knuckles insisted, blown away that the spider would even suggest such a thing, "I'm trying to get you off this island for your own safety! Can't you see that? I'm not kidnapping spiders, if that's what you're thinking. I'm on your side."
Jax grunted. "Well then. Lead the way!" he said, sarcastically, "And if you do not return our comrades to us in due time, we will TAKE this infernal place from you. Is that clear?"
"Crystal." Knux murmured, and jerked his thumb to make the Aracks follow him. He led them back to the meeting table. "And take your computer with you."
Jax's eyes lit up with shock, staring at the table. "What is THIS?"
The entire area, the clearing where the table was and on the table itself, was swarming with insects. They buzzed around in the air, landed on things with a 'thump' and then took off again.
Packbell was covered in them, and he was making frustrated sounds as he swatted at his screen. Being two-dimensional, however, his efforts did not faze the bugs at all.
"Uhh, grasshoppers?" Sage asked, in the confusion.
"Locusts." Knuckles replied morbidly, and looked up into the trees. The branches were weighted down by the swarming locusts, their unimaginable number settling in clumps. The humming was shadowed by a quieter but omnipresent munching sound.
"Paul..." the guardian said to himself, "Said Paul to the pharaoh, until you free my kin, locusts are your crops and welts are your skin."
"Say what?" said Sage.
"They made a song out of it," Knux replied, "My ancestors, they left a lot of stories behind, when they vanished. There was this song they used to sing. I dunno what the tune was, but those were some of the words. I can't remember the rest of it."
"So you reckon this all has to do with this Paul fellow?" Sage asked.
"I dunno. Sure looks like it."
"This is not bad!" Methuzela suddenly shouted, "Look, there is food everywhere now! I LOVE locusts!" The spider immediately began to snatch insects out of the air and cram them in his mouth. "Best I've ever tasted!"
"Um, I wouldn't eat those if I were you," Knuckles said, "I'm not sure they're locusts as we know them. I don't even know if they're ALIVE as we know it."
"Quiet, echidna, you've caused enough trouble!" Methuzela replied, and he wandered away from the group, madly consuming the strange locusts.
"Methuzela! METHUZELA!" Jax shouted, but the spider took no notice.
Now, the cloud of locusts, disturbed, was so thick that it was hard to see through them. They blocked out the sun, creating a veil of darkness like a snowstorm at night. Methuzela vanished inside it, only his shape visible, all four arms working to snatch food out of the air.
Suddenly, another dark shape literally dropped from the sky and grabbed the spider, bouncing like a rubber ball and taking its catch with it up into the treetops. It looked like a bird of prey snatching its meal off the ground.
Jax shouted, and began looking upwards, desperately trying to see where they went. "WHAT WAS THAT?" he demanded.
"I... I don't know..." Knuckles replied, "I think we better get going... NOW."
"This island has taken THREE of my people!" Jax shouted, "And I am taking them back! There is not much time!"
With that, Jax, hesitantly followed by Usamalan, vanished into the swarm of flying insects.
"WAIT!" Knux shouted, and then moaned in anger and kicked the leg of the table, "Idiots! We'll never find them in this..."
"Maybe we have more important things to worry about," Sage suggested, "Knux, these things are going to eat everything on the island! I can practically see the trees shrinking before my eyes!"
Knuckles looked up at the treetops, weighted down by masses of locusts. "This is quickly becoming one of the worst days of my life." he said.
"Can you remember any more of that song?"
The guardian thought about it, then shook his head. "If this has something to do with that, then we'd have to go back to Sandopolis to get the full story."
"If we can FIND Sandopolis." Sage added.
Knux nodded, "Let's go, before this island gets any worse for wear."
"You can go." Packbell said, from behind them, "And good luck to you! But I'm E-mailing myself back to Terantulopolis before I get eaten by your monster bugs. Nice to see you again, Knuckles." And, with that, the computer screen went blank.
"Good riddance," Knux said, "Come on."
---
WELTS.
---
"Where are you TAKING me?" Methuzela demanded.
Nack laughed as he carried the spider in his iron grip, although it wasn't a laugh, exactly, more like a wail or a shriek. It hurt Methuzela's ears and he gritted his teeth until it stopped.
"We're going to see Him!" the weasil replied, at last, as if the statement was some kind of self-evident axiom requiring no further elaboration.
"Who?" the spider demanded, "WHO?"
"The Wizard!" came another voice, and the spider turned his head to see that they had a third individual in their party - some kind of pistol with eyes, that floated against the laws of gravity and left a starry trail. It looked like a cartoon character. Indeed, Nack himself was also beginning to look like a cartoon, with his vibrant, almost fluorescently purple fur and exaggerated looks. The floating, talking gun, however, was too much for Methuzela, who tried to scream but only moaned in horror.
"We're off! We're off-off-off!" the gun chanted, "We're off to see the Wizard! The wonderful Wizard of Oz! He lives in a gumdrop house down nigh the Emerald City! And he grants everyone a wish, whatever their heart desires! LOCUSTS AND SPIDERS AND BLOOD! OH MY! OH MY-MY-MY! Isn't it the truth, Nack-Nack?"
"Sure as you say, Larry old pal!" Nack repled, "Sure as you say! He shares his power, you know, and with every soul he munches on, we become a little more like he is!"
"We see through His eyes and He moves in our flesh!" the gun added, "You'll become a part of Him too, Methuuuuuuzela! A BIG part! And together we're all gonna take this island and make it ours!"
"What if I don't WANT the stinking island?" Methuzela demanded.
Larry floated up close to the spider's eyes and spoke softly, "I'm sorry... no deal."
THE PAST
"No deal, Echidshepsut," Paul spat, "My demands are solid."
"You demands are foolish!" Echidshepsut replied, "What use are these filthy women to you? I can offer you so much more. Two square miles of our fertile land to use as you wish. This is my promise to you, as King of Sandopolis.
"How long will you evade the POINT? The people you have enslaved are MY PEOPLE!"
"They are MY people," the pharaoh replied, "They live in my lands, they eat my food, they are mine."
"But they support MY cause and MY system of government!"
"Your system of government is flawed."
Paul opened his mouth to make a retort, but instead emitted a sigh of frustration. It was the same argument, the same debate, as always. The echidna he had once thought of as his father was even more smug and stubbourn than he'd ever been.
"I don't enjoy threatening people," Paul said, "But you must learn defeat. You have no water in Sandopolis, Echidshepsut, and your people are thirsty. You have no crops, either, and your people are starving. The next thing to sacrifice will be your own health, unless you overcome your greed and release my people to save yours."
Echidshepsut leaned in close to Paul, and replied slowly and clearly so that he may be fully understood. "Never."
"Very well," the guardian replied, and he held up his scepter once again, "Then let the third plague begin, and cast its shadow over all of Sandopolis."
THE PRESENT
Sandopolis. It was a vast desert, and yet only an hour and a half's walk from the jungle area of the island, due to the ingenuity of the echidna engineers who terraformed the land. Much of the desert area had been lost when Robotnik destroyed Lava Reef and the Hidden Palace the year before, but the majority of the civilisation's remains were intact, having been built by the river on the western edge.
The pyramids were filled with the stench of blood, as the thick liquid lay stagnant in the aquaducts, fermenting.
Knuckles and Sage hadn't talked much on the way, mainly owing to the loud buzzing sound of the locusts as they devoured the vegetation of the Floating Island. Most of the insects stayed near the forested area, however, and the openness of the Sandopolean desert didn't much attract them. One thing Sage noticed, however, was his thirst was growing, without water to nourish it. Knuckles was badly stirred by the whole ordeal, and only spoke when necessary.
"There," he said, pointing to an enormous, incomplete construction that rose up before them over the dunes, "Echidshepsut's pyramid. It was going to be his tomb, but his body was never placed in the sarcophagus. After he died, Sandopolis joined the Guardianship, and that pyramid was used for annual celebrations of the event."
"Where is his body?" Sage asked, "How did he die?"
"It's part of the story that we're here to look for," Knux replied, "Come on."
The door stood partially open, probably due to Knuckles' previous explorations. As he pulled it out of the way, he murmured something to Sage about watching out for scorpians. Sage was alarmed, but said nothing.
The echidnas spent a considerable time searching through tablets and scrolls on the walls. Sage had a hard time deciphering the heiroglyphs, which were some strange and obscure variant of Ancient Echidnean. Knuckles, however seemed to be able to read them quite easily.
Eventually, Knuckles shouted out an exclaimation, and called the other echidna over. He was looking at a long scroll mounted horizontally across one of the walls, covered in ancient scribblings. Before Sage was even there, Knuckles had begun to read aloud, running his finger across the old paper.
"Paul came to the Pharaoh, he came across the land,
He travelled past the borders, and walked upon the sand,
Said Paul to the Pharaoh, my people are not free,
You cast them into slavery, release them I decree.
"Said the Pharoh to Paul, you cannot take them away,
For they build my sacred tomb, and my word they obey.
Said Paul to the Pharaoh, I will give you time to think,
But blood is your water, and you cannot have a drink.
"Said Paul to the Pharaoh, until you free my kin,
Locusts are your crops and welts are your skin.
Said Paul to the Pharaoh, I will turn your country stale,
I will bring these plagues upon you and then crush it all with hail.
"Said the Pharaoh to Paul, you will never make me kneel,
No matter who you kill and no matter what you steal.
Said Paul to the Pharaoh, to convince your stubbourn head,
Behold what I have done to you, your children are all dead.
"The Pharaoh never did back down, but Paul did get his prize,
For he raised the mountian which became Pharaoh's demise,
And all over the island, the voice of the people heard,
We all sing with one voice of the evil, Paul deterred."
There was a long silence afterwards, as the echidnas contemplated this strange poem. Eventually, Sage made the first comment.
"I don't get it."
Knuckles looked up at him. "Well, don't you see? It talks about the blood, it talks about the locusts... it MUST have something to do with what's going on here!"
"Yeah, but it doesn't say why it's happening. It's cryptic, it doesn't say how this Paul character did any of this, or why it would be happening again! And it doesn't say what happened to the Pharaoh."
"That's true," Knuckles admitted, "And something tells me his resting place is going to hold some secrets about this."
"Well deducted, my dear guardian. It appears you are, indeed, a lot smarter than your actions would serve to... imply."
The echidnas turned around quickly, surprised, to see from whom this last statement had come. Somebody stood near the doorway of the pyramid, the sun behind him too bright to distinguish many features. It was however obvious that he was wearing tattered yet elaborate robes, and holding a long, crooked scepter. He walked slowly towards the echidnas.
Knuckles scrunched his face into a menacing scowl and clenched his fists. "Oh boy, you BETTER NOT be who I think you are, pal. You SO better not be..."
The grinning face came into view. But it was a forced grin, a smug grin. Ashura.
Knux surpressed his immediate urge to beat the living daylights out of the sickly green hedgehog where he stood. "You know, the moment all of this crazy stuff started happening, I should have known you were behind it, you old coot. I should have known from the very beginning..."
"Oh, I'm not behind this," Ashura replied, "You seem to be misdirecting your anger. I don't partake in such time-wasting activities as venegence and wide-scale chaos anymore. Now it's simply an every day struggle to remain alive. I never intended to cross paths with the caretaker of this island."
"Then what are you doing here?" Knuckles demanded, "Bugger off. NOW. I have enough problems here, without you messing everything up as well."
"Maybe I intend to help, this time," Ashura replied, "The reason I came here was simply to retrieve the Charm of Everlife. With it, I would be able to stop wandering this infernal continent. I would never have to absorb another pitiful life."
Knuckles had a good look at the hedgehog. Come to think of it, he thought, Ashura did look unwell. Although his age varied from time to time due to his soul-absorbing activities, he looked about mid-fifties at the moment, and slightly pale and sickly. He tremored slightly, the corner of his mouth twitching now and then.
"The charm of what?" Sage asked, snapping Knux out of his deep thought.
Ashura chuckled a little, "Idiot! Are you to tell me that I know more about echidna culture than you do? The Charm of Everlife, an heirloom passed down from pharaoh to pharaoh from the very beginnings of the Sandopolean civilisation. Nobody knows where it came from, or even if it was actually made by echidnas, but it died with the last pharaoh, Echidshepsut. A kind of kindred spirit of mine, he was. And the charm he held was the real-life fountain of youth."
The hedgehog shaman walked over to a collection of heiroglyphs and pointed one out. It was a picture of an echidna sitting on an elaborate throne, his subjects kneeling before him. On his chest was a drawing of a beetle of some kind, inside a star outline.
"So you came to steal echidna artifacts from my island," Knuckles said.
Ashura grinned a little. "You weren't using it."
Knuckles frowned again, "So, how do you think you could be any help to us, you old demon? Or, more to the point, why?"
"Because, Knuckles, despite my journey here, I still have not acquired the Charm. I will not leave without that Charm, Echidna, and so it seems we have achieved a stalemate in this regard."
"What are you talking about?"
"I will help you stop what is happening to your island, if you allow me the ownership of the Charm of Everlife, once all is said and done."
Knuckles opened his mouth to reply, then closed it again. "Careful, Knux," warned Sage, "If you should be learning anything today, it's that you should think before making deals with people."
The guardian turned to the other echidna, scowling. "Don't try to teach me what to learn, Sage, I'll make my own decisions when it comes to matters of this island."
Here we go again, Sage thought.
"Why should I trust you, Ashura?" the guardian asked, hands on his hips.
Ashura walked closer, his humoured expression disappearing from his face. He approached so that the echidnas could get a good look at his face. Indeed, Knuckles saw, there were wrinkles on that face where there shouldn't have been wrinkles. Creases where there shouldn't have been creases. He appeared mid-fifties, but he was shrivelling up like a prune. His skin was thin and pocked with liver spots. Most of all, the shaman appeared very, very tired.
"I'm dying," he said simply, and narrowed his eyes, "Unless I can find a more efficiant method of sustaining my youth. In other words, Knuckles, I grow desperate. I will not lie to you, I see you as a lowly maggot on the scale of existance. But I am not so close to my pride at times like these that I will not join forces with a maggot, if it leads my sustained existance."
If he hadn't just been called a maggot, Knuckles would have felt sorry for the old soul. But the string of insults, both subtile and blatant, reminded him of who he was dealing with.
"No tricks, Ashura," he said, and watched the hedgehog cringe as he nodded and agreed. Both watched the other intently, as if expecting a sudden attack at any time. Ashura slowly held out his trembling hand, and Sage gulped hard as Knuckles took it and shook it softly. Touching the old hedgehog caused a strange sort of power to flow into him, like static electricity, that embraced him only for an instant before it turned back and retreated to from whence it came.
"The thing you want is yours," Knuckles said softly, "Now, what is it you have to tell me?"
Ashura grinned. "Follow me."
There was a spy amid the pyramids, watching three figures emerge together. Although he had arrived with Ashura, he no longer recognised the hedgehog, or any of the characters. They were foreign to him, foreign strangers who were all the enemy.
"So, what do you reckon, Larry-boy?" Nack asked, "Three little piggies, three little pig-pig-piggies all in a row, plotting their schemes, think the Boss is in any trouble?"
"Shut yer yapper, Nacker!" Larry replied, floating up from nowhere in particular, "The Boss ain't in no trouble, he ain't NEVER in no trouble! I reckon you'd better be stoppin' all this worryin' and yabberin' and git back to work! More SOULS, Nack-Nack, more soul-diddly-ouls!"
"Yeah," Nack replied, "Righto, righto, lets get going then..."
"You really trust this guy?" Sage asked Knuckles, as the two echidnas lagged behind the old shaman Ashura, walking back towards the jungle area.
"Hardly," Knuckles replied, "But that doesn't mean he won't be any help to us. Now shush. I have to save my island, it's my first priority."
As they walked, Sage noticed two figures wandering about, seemingly aimlessly, and immediately realised who they were. He grabbed Knux's bound arm and pointed at them.
"Them again..." the guardian replied, expressionless.
Ashura turned around frustratedly, "What are you fools doing? Stop dawdling!"
"I have to deal with something," Knuckles snapped back, and marched off in the direction of the two figures, who saw him coming and tried to pretend they didn't.
"YOU TWO!" Knux shouted. The figures, Jax and Usamalan, sixteen limbs between them flailing, turned to him. "There is a desert here!" Jax exclaimed.
"Observativeness is a virtue," Knuckles said, "I will not allow you to wander around my island any longer. There are important issues afoot that I have to deal with, and I command you to leave. Now."
"We cannot cross a desert!" Jax complained further, "What are we going to do, Echidna? This is YOUR fault!"
"Who are these people?" Ashura demanded, narrowing his eyes, "Aracks? How does a colony of spiders make its way to this floating island?"
"They're here on business," Knuckles replied, growing more frustrated, "Aracks, everything will be back to normal shortly, but you have to get off this island. Do you understand me?"
"Perhaps they would prefer that I change them into toads," Ashura added, raising his scepter slightly. The orb on top began to glow more brightly."
"No, that won't be necessary," the guardian said.
"I will not leave without my party intact!" Jax protested.
"STOP IT!" Knuckles screamed.
"Knuckles?" Sage began.
"WHAT!?"
The guardian stared at Sage, a look of pure anger in his eyes. Everybody fell silent, as the two echidnas held eye contact for a few moments. It seemed the straw had broken the echidna's back once again.
"Nothing....." Sage replied.
A blur of colour and a blast of wind later, everybody was disoriented and startled, and Sagittarius was the first to notice a difference... there was only one spider in the group. Jax stood alone, bewildered.
Looking around, Knuckles' eyes eventually moved upward, settling on two shapes which were standing among the branches of a nearby tree. He squinted, and suddenly forgot his anger as he realised who they were, or thought he did. Usamalan was one of them, but he was scared and excited, being held by another figure. Another figure, who looked like he might have once been Nack the Weasil. He was a charicature of his former self, however, with features like a cartoon character in-the-flesh. His fur was a fluorescent purple that almost seemed to glow. The oddest thing was, Nack was even lankier than usual, or so it seemed, and yet he held the squirming spider with no trouble at all, barely flinching. He appeared so strong that he might very well have been able to lift a park bench with one finger, and yet light enough that he was alomst floating rather than standing. His eyes were about twice as big as they should have been, and blinked erratically.
"Nack the Wasil?" the bewildered echidna stammered. Nack let out a bizarre, insane chuckle in response. "In the flesh!" he said, "Great to see ya, wouldn't wanna be ya!"
"PUT HIM DOWN!" Jax commanded the weasil, but Nack just chuckled again. In fact, his chuckle seemed to be his response to everything.
"Down, Nack," Knux added, "The party is over. Whatever has happened to you... whyever you're doing this, it's over. It's worn thin."
Nack was almost hysterical with laughter, now. Even still, he kept a firm hold on his captive. It was then that something else emerged, a strange flying creature that began doing loops around the weasil and the spider. It left a starry trail in the air wherever it flew, like some kind of television advertisement mascot. Then it stopped, and they got a good look at it. A gun. A small pistol - Nack's pistol. Somehow, an inanimate object had grown eyes and was flying around right before their eyes.
"Name's LARRY!" it boasted, "Larry Leadspitter! I'm afraid that my wacky lackey Nacky-boy is too STOOPID at the moment to respond! Our good pal isn't a free agent anymore, see? He works for ME, now!"
Knuckles was gaping, not making a sound, wondering how to react in the face of one of the strangest scenes he'd ever observed. Eventually, he gained the courage to speak. "And... what are.... you.. exactly? are YOU behind this?"
"Oh by gosh golly gee gosh golly NO!" Larry spat back, "You'll both tremble under the awesome power of The Boss! This island is his, you know. Boss man is angry! What'cha gonna do when he comes for YOU?"
Knuckles just held his throbbing head and tried to think.
"LET HIM GO, LAUGHING INFIDEL!" Jax demanded, shaking all four fists threateningly.
"No can do, buddy!" Larry replied, "C'mon Nack-Nack, we've got another delivery to make!"
With that, the weasil, the spider and the floating gun disappeared among the trees in a sleek, bouncing motion.
"Tell me that nobody else saw that," Knux pleaded, as the others tried to make sense of the situation, "Tell me that was just a frustration-induced halluscination."
"I.... saw it...." Sage murmured.
Knuckles turned and grabbed a handful of Ashura's robes. "What the HELL was that, Ashura? YOU TELL ME!"
The green hedgehog just sniffed and looked up at the trees. "A familiar," he said, "It appears that the old ghost has acquired himself a familiar from our friend the weasil. I need a familiar... I should have thought of that before."
"WHAT IS A FAMILIAR?" Knuckles demanded, and then he stomped his foot and stood back to address everybody. "That's it. That's IT. This has gone too far. Time to get some things straight. Ashura, lead me to the source of this madness and you can have your stupid charm, but otherwise shut up and keep your magic tricks to yourself. Sage and Jax, you're going to follow and you're going to keep close, and I don't want to hear any arguments from ANYBODY. Have I made myself totally CLEAR?"
Ashura cocked an eyebrow and nodded, but Sage and Jax just stared.
"Now come on," Knuckles said, and motioned for the shaman to lead them. "Actually, wait a second." He squatted down and put his cast against a rock. Then, with the other hand, he gripped the edge of it and used a burst of strength to rip it off his arm. Chunks of plaster fell to the ground, and the echidna flexed his now free arm. "I think it's fixed."
"Is he always like this?" Jax whispered to Sage. The echidna nodded, "Pretty much. Better to just give up and go with it."
THE PAST
"I will not give up my servants," Echidshepsut murmured to Sheb, tapping one finger on the arm of his throne. His face was a solid scowl of revulsion and anger, and he reached idly up to scratch his cheek.
"Of course not, Liege." Sheb replied, "But he has such power over this place! Who will raise their hand against his mighty staff?"
"HIS STAFF IS NOT MIGHTY!" the pharaoh shrieked, "Trickery! All of it trickery! And I will destroy him for it... he will rue the day he returned to Sandopolis. He will rue the day he was born!" He was still scratching his cheek, stopping only to scratch his arm and then his neck. Sheb was also scratching himself, and the view of him fidgeting only infuriated Echidshepsut further. "BLAST IT! These infernal insects have brought allergies to my palace!"
"I don't think this is the misfortune of a simple allergy, sire," Sheb replied, "Behold! Every guard in the palace is scratching like a dog! See my arms!" He pulled up his sleeve so that the pharaoh could see his skin. There was a rash speading across his arm, his skin raw and raising itself into welts. Echidshepsut saw that his own arm was the same.
"And the servants? The women?"
"Not a single rash among them, sire. They are as healthy as they were yesterday."
"WORK THEM HARDER THEN! Double the productivity and halve their rations! They will all see what results of treason in my kingdom. Nobody will stop me with a rash."
THE PRESENT
"Can we stop? I have a rash."
Knuckles side-eyed Sage with a tired look in his eyes. "You want to stop because you have a rash."
"Yeah Knux, it's really bad... I just want to bind it or something, get some aloe vera. It's growing nearby, I saw it."
Knuckles hadn't admitted it aloud, but his own arms were covered in rashes and welts. He'd assumed before now that he'd brushed against some poison ivy, but secretly he was quite sure it was something more ferocious.
"Give me a look," Knuckles said, and stopped to inspect the younger echidna's arm. The same rash was evident all over his skin. "Welts are your skin," he said, "Looks like we're victims of Paul's third plague. I don't think aloe vera is going to be much use to you."
"Welts?" Sage asked, "Eew. I dunno how much longer I'll be able to scratch before I go crazy."
Ashura turned around and thumped his staff on the ground for attention. "Are we still moving? There are worse dangers ahead than an uncomfortable itch."
"How come YOU'RE not affected?" Sage asked the shaman. Ashura just replied snidely, "I am immune to this island's bizarre trickery. I have powers of my own, in no short supply."
"Keep moving," Jax said, hurrying out of nowhere and scratching furiously, "Keep moving!"
So they did keep moving, and Knuckles got to thinking further about the situation. Locusts landed on him every so often, and he batted them away, consciously steaming about the alien insects invading his island and eating his vegetation.
Four kidnapped dignitaries and three plagues. Knuckles got to wondering what the victims were needed for, and the most likely explanation was to fuel the plagues that were swarming over the island.
"Ashura," he said, and the old shaman slowed a little so as to listen, much as he didn't seem to want to. "Is Echidshepsut still alive?"
"There are things in this world that you would never be able to understand completely," Ashura replied, "Things that even I do not understand. There are many worlds, so many more worlds than these. And sometimes the energy from these worlds spills into our own, producing wonders and horrors that our own minds can't even wrap around. This is the best answer I can give for any of the things that you're about to see."
As Ashura spoke, the sunlight around them began to dissipate. Knuckles looked up, seeing the sky fill with dark clouds. It was not the season for rain, Knuckles was usually quite tuned in to the weather and which way it was likely to turn. As he pondered, there was a low rumble of thunder overhead.
"Horrors indeed."
---
HAIL.
---
Nack and Larry, partners in crime, leaped and bounded through the woods, chattering to each other about topics that hardly made more sense than a conversation between a madman and himself.
Brightly coloured in an almost impossible shade of colour, somewhere between purple and some other colour that didn't even exist in the normal spectrum, Nack bounded twenty feet upwards into a tree and squatted easily on a branch, as if he weighed close to nothing, which wasn't far from the truth.
"One more, Nackeroo," Larry said, seemingly appearing from nowhere, "Just one more meal for the Boss, then we can all party under 'is gah-LORIOUS rule!"
"Ya reckon so?" the weasil asked.
"I KNOW so, Nack-Nack! Just one more plump spider, or perr'aps a nice young echidna would satisfy the Master's tastes! But not the Guardian... no, leave him to last. We wants to have a word with him, we does."
"Of course... Of course..."
THE PAST
"Of course you know I will not," Echidshepsut snarled, "You cannot manipulate the King of Sandopolis, no matter whose son you are, or what kind of trickery you use. There will be a compromise, if you wish, but there will be no prisoner release."
Paul sighed and shook his head. "I've just about given the final chance I'm willing to give."
The pharaoh, who was scratching furiously while pretending not to show how badly it bothered him, gave a snide grin and turned to Sheb. The elderly echidna, however, was not as smug and determined as his king. Indeed, everybody in the kingdom of Sandopolis had either given in, or were on the verge.
All except Echidshepsut.
"Do your worst," he said, and narrowed his eyes at the guardian. Both echidnas were caught in a brief standoff, staring at each other without blinking, before Paul broke away.
"I will give you one more chance," he said, "To prove that I am serious. After that, if you still need convincing, I will resort to one final plague. I will force your hand, if necessary."
"Indeed it will be necessary," the Pharaoh responded, "However futile. You have no power over me, Amon-Paul."
"Just Paul. I pray to the Gods that you open your mind this time, so that I won't have to ruin you completely. You might wish to pull your livestock inside, as well as your people."
Before anybody could question the guardian's strange statements, he raised his staff high into the air, creating the loudest crash of thunder so far. The entire palace rattled, and the pharaoh's servants held each other in fear. The electrical effect gathered on the ceiling of the palace, and then condensed itself into a ball of sparks, which lingered for a moment before it broke apart and burst through the windows to escape into the open. The windows smashed to pieces, shards of glass falling to the floor. Paul simply walked back to his chamber, without a single glance towards any of the Sandopolean people.
"He claims that time runs short!" Sheb spluttered, "This palace is barely left standing! He truly has the power to destroy us all!"
In response, however, Echidshepsut waved his hand and told him to spread the word to everybody in the kingdom to seek shelter for themselves and the livestock. Sheb was hesitant, but the pharaoh screamed "GO!", and the elderly echidna was caught in the predicament of deciding who he was more afraid of - Paul, or the King. He made this decision quickly, and scurried off to warn the people.
As Echidshepsut reclined in his throne, scratching idly, he heard a boom of thunder from overhead. Not a furious sound, but more like a kind of confirmation, or a response. An answer to Paul from the heavens for an alliance with the clouds.
The pharaoh continued scratching himself, staring with heavy contempt at nothing in particular, thinking up storm clouds, and it was almost morbidly appropriate when the sun was blocked out and the first pitter-pattering could be heard on the roof of the palace. A deathly cold breeze entered the building from the shattered windows, and the pattering grew steadily and surely louder. Much, much louder.
Thunder clapped.
THE PRESENT
Sage jumped a little at the sound, and then looked fearfully at the sky.
"Somehow I doubt that's a natural phenomenon," he said, "Not today, anyway."
"Ten-four," Knux replied, "I think we need to find shelter, and I think we need to find it right now. Come on."
The echidnas hurried towards a nearby cliff face, which housed a roomy-looking cave. Jax and Ashura (who grew annoyed and impatient whenever he ceased to be the leader of the group) sluggishly followed. It began to rain before they got there, and they were slightly wet upon entering. The water seemed to fall too suddenly, as if nature was in an extreme hurry to turn on the waterworks.
"Where did this come from?" Jax demanded, "You have weather on this island more unpredictable than anywhere else on Mobius!"
"This isn't just rain," Knuckles replied, "I have a feeling we're going to be stuck here for a very long time, unless we can figure out a way to proceed safely.
"SAFELY?" Jax shrieked, "You think this RAIN is going to stop us? I demand to know what you intend to do about returning my associates to me, if you're frightened by a mere downpoar!"
"There's nothing mere about this, Jax..."
"NONSENSE!"
Before he could be stopped, the spider had scurried his way out of the cave, and he was wandering around in the open. Sage almost followed, but Knuckles held him back. "JAX!" the guardian shouted over the noisy downpoar, "COME BACK!"
"NO!" the spider returned, although it was difficult to hear him, "I WILL NOT TAKE ORDERS FROM YOU! I THINK I WILL BE TAKING CHARGE OF THIS PARTY FROM NOW ON! FOR I AM NOT AFRAID OF RAIN!"
"The stupid idiot!" Knuckles exclaimed.
"THIS IS ACTUALLY A GOOD THING!" the spider continued with his speech, "THIS IS WATER! PURE WATER TO QUENCH OUR THIRST, WHEN EVERYTHING ELSE HAS TURNED TO FOUL BLOOD! WE CAN LOOK TO THE HEAVENS AND OPEN OUR MOUTHS TO DRINK FROM THE-"
Boom.
The tides changed on this scene, as if God snapped his fingers and made it immediately so. The veil of rain was suddenly and furiously solidified to such a degree that it was almost impossible to see the spider or hear his words. Thus, nobody saw the expresion on Jax's face when the raincloud gave birth to thousands of solid chunks of ice, each the size of a baseball or larger. They fell like meteorites, breaking apart when they hit the ground, smashing to pieces anything on their collision path. The rain itself, now, was frozen so as to be like tiny spears from the sky, causing further damage. Sage almost ran into it, not thinking, to aid the spider who would have been almost instantaneously doomed. Knuckles held him back again, and sadly pulled himself and the others further into the cave.
"I will bring these plagues upon you and then crush it all with hail," he said.
"That's the end of the Aracks," Sage said, "What are you going to do about the Empire?"
"I can't think about that right now," Knux replied, "What I need to know is whether we can get to our destination safely despite all this hail. I don't think anything we could use as a makeshift umbrella would stand up against it. The rainfall is slanted to the north slightly, so if we stick close to these cliffs we can continue for a while. Ashura, where the heck are we going?"
"The mountains, luckily," the old hedgehog replied, "Assuming these cliffs continue all the way. I believe it's called Red Mountain."
"Red Mountain," Knux repeated, "We're in luck, then. We can keep going."
"Excellent!" exclaimed Sage, "There's no stopping us!"
"Well, there is for you," Knux replied, "You're staying right here, Sagittarius."
"WHAT?"
"No ifs or buts about it. Ashura and I are going to go ahead, but you can stay in this cave until it's over and I come back for you. And don't even think about moving from this spot, even if the rain stops. This is getting far to dangerous, until I say otherwise."
Sage looked blankly at Ashura, who had his arms crossed impatiently. "You're going to let yourself travel alone with this scumbag?"
"Hold your tongue, boy," Ashura snapped, "Or I'll turn you into a toad."
"ENOUGH!" Knuckles shrieked.
"WHAT'S WITH YOU!?" Sage yelled back, "One moment you're commanding us, you've almost got blood vessels bursting out of your neck, and the next moment you're reasonable, calm and clear-headed! What is your PROBLEM, Knuckles?"
"You shouldn't even be here, okay?" the guardian replied, his eyes narrowing, "And every time these demons from the past destroy another part of my island, I get that much more peeved. I'm going to end this thing now, and I don't want you around to meddle with things that are possibly more dangerous than you've encountered."
"I've encountered LOTS of things!"
"I won't argue anymore, Sage. You're staying here."
"FINE."
The younger echidna retreated into the shadows, and Knuckles hastened Ashura out of the cave. The two vanished into the rain while Sagittarius watched and frowned. So much for teamwork, he thought.
The echidna wandered towards the entrance, squinting through the cover of rain. He tried to see if he could pick out what became of Jax, half driven by curiosity but half deterred by fear of a grisly sight. He had an image in his mind of a spider on a table, squashed by a newspaper.
Something moved, and he jerked to see. It wasn't a hail stone, for it had moved horizontally against the fall of the rain. When he tried to focus, however, all he could see was the storm. Just as he was about to look away again, there was another shifting shape. It moved quickly, darting around. Bright, a poorly camoflaged object amidst the rest of the scenery. It was extremely difficult to get a clear look at it.
"What IS that?" he asked himself, and just like that, it disappeared. He searched for it, but there was only rain and hail.
"Weird," Sage said, and then he heard a noise behind him.
THE PAST
Huddled together and sheltered, thousands of poor and over-laboured echidna women shifted their attention when Paul stood before them. Night had fallen, and the rain hadn't let up for five hours since it reached its peak. Although he found it difficult to make himself heard, he shouted as clearly as he could to address his people.
"I AM THE GUARDIAN OF THE FLOATING ISLAND," he declared, "I AM PAUL, SON OF SOMSES. AND I HAVE COME TO SET YOU FREE."
This was met by an enormous cheer from the women. They threw their arms into the air and cried hysterically, some reduced to tears instantaniously. It was a sight that both horrified the guardian and filled him with pride. These people had been put through Hell.
"THE PHARAOH DOES NOT WANT TO LET YOU GO," he continued when the noise of the masses calmed down, "I HAVE BROUGHT FOUR DEVESTATING PLAGUES TO HIS LAND, BUT STILL HE REMAINS STUBBOURN AND ARROGANT, DETERMINED TO KEEP YOU HERE. IT IS ALMOST TIME FOR ME TO BRING THE FIFTH PLAGUE UPON HIM, BUT IT IS A POWERFUL AND DEADLY CURSE THAT REQUIRES YOUR CO-OPERATION. TWENTY-FOUR HOURS FROM NOW, IF YOU ARE STILL IN SANDOPOLIS, YOU MUST CUT YOUR FINGER AND USE THE BLOOD TO MARK YOUR FOREHEAD WITH A CROSS. ANYBODY IN THIS LAND WHO IS NOT MARKED IN THIS WAY WILL SUFFER THE CURSE OF PAUL! AND THE PHARAOH WILL TASTE MY TRUE POWER!"
There was another cheer, and Paul stepped down. It was almost time for him to make his final stand.
Time passed. Morning came. A new day.
The pharaoh returned to his throne, unrested. He had been unable to sleep soundly, due to the constant fall of hail. This time, however, Paul was waiting for him in the throne room.
"Early, aren't you?" Echidshepsut asked, his voice dripping with contempt.
"You have had one final night to reflect upon your choices," Paul said, "I have almost destroyed your kingdom. You can hold onto your arrogance and your slaves if you wish, and I will be forced to drop the final blow and take them anyway. Or, Echidshepsut, you could make it easy on yourself and save what's left of your reign."
The pharaoh sighed and shook his head. The Charm of Everlife glowed dully around his neck, and he fondled it thoughtfully.
"Where did you go awry, Amon-Paul?" he asked.
Paul contemplated the question for a moment. "That's no longer my name," he said, "And I do not understand your question."
"I mean, where did you go wrong? I brought you up to respect the way of the Sandopolean people."
"That was not my way, Echidshepsut. I have Guardian blood in me now. I represent what's good for my people, not what's good for myself, as is your way."
"You know, I never truly believed that you were not my son. I loved you, and raised you as my own. What proof do you have that you are truly in line for this rediculous guardianship, rather than the heir to my magnificent throne?"
Paul looked down for a moment, but then resumed eye contact with the pharaoh. "I know in my heart," he said, "And that's where it counts. Why don't you give them up, Echidshepsut? I know there once was the mind of a great leader inside you, and it must still exist, amid the corruption. Something has corrupted you, be it power, or greed, or even that... that THING you wear around your neck all the time. Why don't you listen to your heart and do the right thing?"
"The right thing? I know what the right thing is, mark my words." The pharaoh grinned his twisted grin, much to Paul's infinite disappointment, and gripped the sides of his throne, "I will not bend to your will."
"Have it your way, then," Paul replied, and began to walk back to his quarters, "I have much to do, then. Let it be known that the reign of Echidshepsut, indeed the kingdom of Sandopolis, comes to an end here. Make the most of this day."
He vanished, and the chattering of the royal guards made it evident that nobody liked the sound of that.
"SILENCE!" the pharaoh commanded, "Where is Sheb? That wretch is rarely prompt these days."
"He has perished!" somebody replied, "A victim of the guardian's rain! And so have many others!"
"Fools. You shall not fear the likes of the guardian. You shall fear ME instead, and fear what I will do to any of you who show such weakness in my presence! Now, go about your duties. Nobody will destroy Sandopolis. Not ever."
---
DARKNESS.
---
The day passed without circumstance. The Sandopoleans went about their daily business, and the pharaoh commanded that the slaves be worked extra hard to complete the pyramid. It was late when they were allowed to retire, and they were exhausted. The pharaoh's guards became curious, even afraid, when they saw what each woman did before she was laid down in the dust.
Confusingly, each slave pricked their finger on something sharp, even their teeth if necessary, and wiped the blood on their forehead. Some guards tried to stop it from happening, but there were too many slaves to prevent from performing this action.
The guards posted to watch over the nation while all others slept were the source of many rumours that came about that night. There were reports of a darkness that crept over the land. A darkness that emerged from the pouring rain and swept through the buildings. A darkness so dark that the rest of the night was almost daylight by comparison. There were stories of children crying all down the street, and then falling eerily silent. The silence was deafening, eventually, for the sound of the rain had accustomed itself to everybody's ears, and nothing else stirred. Absolutely nothing.
Echidshepsut's eyes opened, and darted around the royal bedroom. There was something amiss, something different about his land. It didn't take him long to discover that the difference was the lack of rain. Sunlight filtered through his window, light from a cloudless sky. There were no locusts clinging to the windows, and when he checked himself he noticed that his skin was clear of any rashes.
When the pharaoh emerged from his bed, he immediately noticed all his guards (the number of which he had doubled recently due to circumstances) were asleep, clumped against each other in piles of grunt and armour.
"GET UP!" he shrieked, and they began to stir. Not waiting for them to explain themselves, not even stopping to dress himself in proper pharaoh attire, Echidshepsut stormed into the long hallway to discover that the guards all the way along its length were asleep against each other. The pharaoh pushed past them and emerged in his throne room, not knowing what he should expect.
Three dozen guards, each one entrusted with the protection of the palace against any foe, had fallen asleep where they stood. Each one dozed peacefully, except one single echidna.
Paul sat on the pharaoh's throne, staff in one hand, staring at Echidshepsut with a blank expression.
"GET UP, YOU IDIOTS!! WAKE UP!!" The pharaoh screamed. One by one, the guards stirred and began to pick themselves up off the floor. "Your terrible fifth plague, Guardian? What was it? The plague of sleep?"
"No, Pharaoh," Paul replied, remaining expressionless and sombre, "You will notice soon that your kingdom has been destroyed, just as I threatened."
"My palace still stands," the pharaoh replied, "My buildings still stand, my city still stands, my people still breathe! You have destroyed nothing!"
"Ah, but behold," Paul said, "A great darkness has come over your land during the night. It was my darkness, my fifth and mightiest plague. Everybody was visited, in their sleep. Behold, every Sandopolean who has not yet passed the trials of adulthood is dead. Dead by your hand, for refusing to acknowledge my power. Furthermore, every man and woman who has survived will be without child for the rest of their lives. There will be no heirs, no future generations. The only one unaffected by this curse, disregarding those who I selected personally, my own people, is you. You, Echidshepsut, were unaffected, because you were already quite sterile."
"NO!" the pharaoh screamed in rage, "NOT TRUE!"
"I have destroyed your kingdom," Paul continued, "You cannot deny that it is so. And now that I have displayed my power, I will leave. I will take my people with me, and I expect safe passage from your lands for all of us."
Paul stood and briskly exited the building. The pharaoh just stood, gaping, filled with such unimaginable fury at the concept of having been defeated.
Eventually, a guard approached him nervously. "Shall we give them safe passage, sire?" he asked.
Echidshepsut clenched his fists, and then unclenched them. "Yes," he said at last, "Let them... let them pass. Let them wander for a while, he and his precious harem of slave women. Then... then kill them."
"Sire?" the guard asked, "Sire, KILL them?"
"That's right. Kill them all, every last one of them. Slaughter them. Hack them to pieces. Leave no survivors. Leave not a single, solitary survivor, do you understand?"
"Yes. Yes, I understand."
"Good. Gather the national army. Ready your weapons, I will join you shortly."
The pharaoh's face was devoid of emoton. It had grown calm, almost friendly in expression. But the Charm of Everlife was a different matter entirely. The scarab around his neck was glowing furiously, bright red, throbbing between this red and black and back to red again. When it was red, it was painful to look at, and when it was black it was so black that it looked like a hole in the very fabric of existance. A terrifying sight, and the guards left the palace, partially following the orders of their pharaoh and partially hurrying to be out of sight of his demonic charm.
It was the greatest moment of their entire life; Paul went to his people and told them that they were free. The slaves of Sandopolis crowded around him, touched him, kissed his feet, but he told them to stop and simply to follow him out of the desert. Not a single guard hindered their passage.
Not far from Sandopolis, the ground rose into the enormous rocky mountains that formed the central axis of the Floating Island. Past these mountains was the Palace of the Guardianship, the home of Paul's people. After walking for much of the day, they eventually came across Red Mountain, which they needed to cross in order to make it to safe land. As they approached, however, there was an alarm raised. The group turned to see the pharaoh's army coming up behind them.
In the lead was the pharaoh himself. Echidshepsut rode upon a mighty steed, the charm around his neck glowing like a beacon.
"YOU GRANTED US SAFE PASSAGE!" Paul shouted.
The pharaoh simply laughed in reply. A hysterical, frenzied laugh of victory. Then he raised his sword to ready his men. The group of refugees was trapped between a mountain and the entire army of Sandopolis.
"We'll never make over the mountain in time!" somebody shouted.
Paul frowned at the situation, looking at the mountain, at the army and then down at the staff he still held in his hand. The staff that had belonged to his father, constructed with a power that stemmed from other worlds and other realities, concentrated in a single Mobian made object.
"I have one more trick left," he said, and looked back at the mountain.
Echidshepsut squinted in the light to try and make out what Paul was doing. The guardian stood in deep concentration for a few moments, and then slowly he lifted his staff and pointed it at Red Mountain.
At first, nothing happened. Even when the ground began to rumble, many passed it off as a product of their own fear-filled imagination. But the rumbling grew louder, more furious. The ground literally shook beneath them, making balance difficult. Then, amazingly, a spectacular event unfolded before everybody's eyes.
As Paul held his staff out in front of him, the mountain that blocked their passage seemed to be lifting into the sky.
Boulder by boulder, stone by stone, the enormous rocky outcrop began to defy gravity. Stones as big as buildings lifted themselves into the air and stayed there, hovering, floating like the Island itself floated.
The entire mountain was shifted by the power of Paul's staff. As the armies of Sandopolis watched, a path opened up right through the entire area, a passage that was impossible to traverse only moments earlier. And, even more shockingly, the refugee women began to pass their leader. Stumbling and meandering at first, they eventually broke into a run, crossing the flat path where there had been a mountain a few minutes earlier.
They were almost on the other side when Paul himself joined their passage. It was then that the pharaoh commanded his men.
"Move forward."
Nobody moved. It was doubtful anybody even heard him. So he sliced down sharply with his sword, rose up on his steed and commanded them again.
"MOVE FORWARD!" the pharaoh screamed. The rocks that were suspended above him, although frightening to everybody else in his army, did not faze him in the least. His mind was flooded with fantasies of power and victory, and the element of danger never once shone through.
"But... sire..." one of his soldiers pleaded.
"WHAT?"
"The guardian... he has power over the stones of the island! His scepter gives him strength! We can never..."
"You are afraid of him?" the pharaoh shrieked, "YOU are AFRAID of HIM? He is merely a MAGICIAN! He creates CHEAP PARLOUR TRICKS! Are you so heartless as to let the echidna who murdered your children ESCAPE? HE MUST DIE, AND HIS PEOPLE MUST DIE! NOW ONWARD, AND DESTROY THEM ALL!"
Without an absence of hesitation, the armies of Sandopolis defied the looming boulders and suspended rocks that hovered above them threateningly, and marched forward, raising their weapons and shouting war cries at the guardian and his people.
When the guardian's people had passed out from underneath the suspended stones, they gathered together, huddled and cowered behind the guardian, who turned to his persuers.
The army of Sandopolis was approaching, charging towards them, through the place where the Red Mountain once was. The guardian watched them approach, his face a hard expression, unblinking.
"Are you going to do something, Paul?" somebody asked him from behind his back, a noticable waver in her voice.
"Yes." the guardian replied, "Soon."
The pharaoh and his army continued to charge, the pharaoh grinning an insane grin and roaring in furious rage. The scarab around his neck, the Charm of Everlife, glowed and throbbed.
The guardian suddenly raised his scepter into the air. At first, the gold and jade staff did nothing, but then it began to glitter and glow, and then spark.
The armies of Sandopolis slowed, some turning back and running in the other direction.
"NO!" the pharaoh screamed, "NO! CHARGE! ONWARD! DO NOT FEAR HIS TRICKERY! I COMMAND YOU! KING ECHIDSHEPSUT OF THE PYRAMIDS OF SANDOPOLIS COMMANDS YOU!!"
The stones fell.
Some of the soldiers who were caught up in the confusion and terror were crushed instantly by the boulders that fell from the sky, returning to their original positions and rebuilding the Red Mountain. Screaming and terrified shouts were drowned out by the avalanche.
The pharaoh managed one final glance at the guardian. He pointed an accusing finger and screamed a warning that the guardian never heard, as it was drowned out by the ensuing cacophony.
"ONE DAY I WILL DESTROY YOU, GUARDIAN!" he screamed, "I WILL DESTROY YOU, AND THIS ISLAND WILL BE MINE!"
THE PRESENT
"So this is the tomb of Echidshepsut."
Despite the roaring of the downpour and hail outside, Knuckles and Ashura wandered into a dismal cave, so deep and dark that it was barely illuminated, except by the glowing orb on the end of Ashura's staff.
"That's right," the shaman replied, "This is where he was buried."
"And this is where... I still LIVE!"
This voice came from the shadows, from a tunnel that led to deeper inside the catacombs of the mountain. As Knuckles watched, a figure approached from out those shadows. It was a stranger, and yet it was immediately evident to Knuckles who it was, and the remaining pieces of this puzzle came together.
An echidna, fully attired in the dress of an ancient pharaoh of Sandopolis. He wore gold jewels on his chest, gold bangals in his hair and a wicked smile on his face. Something about his eyes was dead and lifeless, but the rest of him was very much alive.
"Echidshepsut, I presume." Knuckles said dryly.
"Paul," Echidshepsut replied, "You remain the same as ever."
"My name is Knuckles."
"Your name has changed yet again. It changes with the breeze. But your SELF hasn't changed, Paul. Never your self."
"What do you want?" the guardian demanded, gazing at the softly throbbing charm around the ex-pharaoh's neck. It was almost hypnotic.
"The island that is rightfully mine," Echidshepsut replied, "All these lands that should belong to me. Now that I have your powers, it is I who holds the advantage. And I can punish you for your insolance. Finally."
"After all these years," Knuckles said, "You've been alive all this time, haven't you. You never wanted to die. It's that charm, it's kept your soul alive and young and attached to your body even when you were crushed by a mountain. You've just been lying here waiting."
"Yes. And soon, when I have gathered one final meal, I will be complete again. And I will unleash a plague of darkness upon YOU, Paul. A plague so dark that you will spend an eternity in torment, just as I have done. This land will be mine again."
"You're not going to get that final meal, you tyrant." Knux assured him.
"But behold," the walking dead echidna revealed, "It is already upon me!"
Bounding out of the shadows as quick as lightning was the thing that used to be Nack the Weasil, and he came to rest beside Echidshepsut, balancing entirely on his tail. Held firmly in his grasp was Sagittarius Echidna.
"SAGE!" Knuckles shouted. Between him and the twisted creatures in front of him, something zipped about in the air, leaving a trail of stars like something out of a cartoon. It was the gun, Larry, and it's googly eyes spun wildly in its excuse for a head as it laughed and sang a nonsensical song.
"Knuckles, schmuckles, your life is at a close!
We'll churn ya up and spit ya out, we'll keep ya on ya toes!"
"How is any of this possible?" Knuckles asked, "How is that weasil doing this? What's happened to him?"
"It's like I said before," Ashura replied, "He's being fed energy from worlds and realms you don't even know exist. He has become a kind of battery charged with insane powers we cannot even comprehend. That charm is a powerful device... and I want it."
All of a sudden, Larry Leadspitter the handgun flew directly towards Knuckles, screaming "BANG! BANG! BANG!" Comical parodies of bullets zipped through the air, ricocheting off the cave walls. Knuckles ducked in surprise as the gun flew overhead, and then came back for a second run. As it approached, however, Knuckles cocked back his fist and punched it as hard as he could. The gun made a sound halfway between a pop and a splat, and whacked straight into a wall, bouncing again and sliding across the ground. There were no eyes anymore, no strange voices or starry trail. Just cold stainless steel and polished timber. The once inanimate object had returned to its original state.
"LARRY!" Nack screamed suddenly, to everyone's surprise. Sage was thrown backwards into a wall, as the weasil bounded across the room to aid his inanimate friend.
"FOOL!" Echidshepsut shrieked, "GET THE GUARDIAN! SILENCE HIM!"
Nack took one look at his gun, then one look at Knuckles, and attacked the echidna, screaming an incoherent war cry. The weasil was charged with more energy than Knuckles could have possibly imagined - he was like a battery, as Ashura had indeed described.
Sage took his oppertunity to run away from the action and save himself, while he decided what to do about it. Nack seemed to be overpowering Knuckles quite easily. "Don't let him beat you, Knux!" he shouted, "Eye of the tiger!"
The weasil pinned down the echidna, laughing maniacally, and began throwing almost playful punches. As they wrestled, there was a noticable and uncomfortable shifting in the ground beneath them.
Something's gonna give way!" Knuckles warned, "We have to move away from here!"
But it was too late. There was a loud cracking sound, and a portion of the floor gave way to reveal the gaping mouth of a pit so deep that the falling rocks never seemed to hit the bottom. Knuckles just barely managed to grab on to solid ground with the tips of his hands. Nack, however continued falling until he managed, with much shrieking, to grab a hold of Knuckles' tail. The echidna squealed in pain, and then they hung there together, dangling on the edge of disaster.
"Oh no!" Sage shouted, "Hang on Knux! I'll help!" He tried to make his way down to their level, and almost collided with Ashura.
"Oh.. hey man, we've got to help Knux!" he exclaimed.
"Ah yes, poor Knuckles," the old hedgehog replied, and there was a gleam in his eyes that Sage didn't like. "I rather think I'll help myself instead, actually. It's been a nice romp."
Before Sage could scramble away, Ashura had him in a choke-hold, his scepter across the echidna's neck. "Echidshepsut! I implore your attention this way!"
Echidshepsut, who had been watching the wrestling of Knuckles and Nack intently, turned and gazed at Ashura and his prisoner echidna.
"One more meal," the shaman said, "And you will be complete, am I right?"
"Yes, all I need is one last!"
"Then here it is!" Ashura cried, "All the youth and vitality you require... in exchange for a single thing."
"And what might that be?" the ancient echidna asked.
"A pact, of course! We are both very old, Echidshepsut. We both need what only your charm can provide! Together, we can feed each other. Take care of each other. We are kindred!"
"You wish to join me?" Echidshepsut asked, "To join me side by side? I do not know you. But I could destroy you if you become a hinderance."
"Quite easily," Ashura replied, and began to laugh deep in his throat.
"Your first step to proving your alliance will be to share this meal with me," Echidshepsut said, "and we will both grow strong together!"
"NO!" Knuckles shouted, and with a sudden effort to scramble out of the pit, he slipped further. Gathering his senses, he noticed Nack the Hyper-Weasil, still hanging onto his tail for dear life. Knuckles let go with one hand and groped downwards, grabbing Nack who-knows-where. With a sudden dispersal of frenzied strength, he hurled the weasil at Echidshepsut. The two collided and toppled to the ground, the Staff of Paul spinning off in an unknown direction.
With a lot of weight now gone, Knuckles was able to crawl out of the pit and bolt towards Ashura and Sage. The old shaman threw the echidna forward and backed quickly out of the way, hissing in anger.
"Are you okay?" Knuckles asked Sage. The younger echidna gave a thumbs-up in response. "But don't forget Zombie-Pharaoh and Hyper-Weasil over there."
Echidshepsut picked himself up and threw Nack across the cave again. The weasil landed with a thump, much of the energetic colour drained from him, and didn't move.
Both Knuckles' and Echidshepsut's eyes landed on the Staff of Paul at the same time. It had rolled to a stop on the cave floor, and they both dove for it, grasping at it. The undead pharaoh was surprisingly energetic, not unlike Nack had been, and Knuckles struggled to gain the upper hand. He managed to throw himself at the staff, trying for one desperate grab, but instead his hand knocked it away. The gold and jade staff rolled across the ground and fell off the edge of the pit, spinning into oblivion.
"NO!" Echidshepsut shrieked, and stared at the pit, transfixed. Knuckles, who had somehow ended up underneath him, saw the oppertunity to grab the Charm of Everlife and rip it off his neck.
Echidshepsut made a desperate, horrible screaming sound. Knuckles pulled himself up and away, holding the glowing scarab beetle in his hand.
"I got it! I got... OUCH!"
The scarab, now free of its master, suddenly sprung to life. Its wings spread out, and it bit Knux's hand with its golden tusks before flying away.
"It's MINE!" Ashura screamed, and made a grab for the scarab, but it ducked out of his way and zipped off in another direction.
Knuckles picked up a moderately large rock from the cave floor, and gave chase. The insect flew close to a wall, and Knux swiped at it with the rock.
"Don't damage it!" Ashura warned, "Don't you damage it!"
The scarab finally landed on a wall, trying to scurry away, its body glowing and throbbing frantically. Knuckles made a lunge at it and hammered the wall with the rock. The scarab was hit directly. It exploded in a shower of glittering smoke and light, its body crumbling to dust.
The shrieking "NO!" from both Echidshepsut and Ashura was almost harmonious. Echidshepsut tried to pick himself up, but only managed to reach out desperately with his hand before it crumbled into ancient dust, along with the rest of his body.
Knuckles leaned on the wall and slid down into a sitting position, exhausted.
"You fools," Ashura growled, "We'll meet another day. And when that happens, don't expect any alliances." With that, he vanished in his signature puff of smoke. For the first time, Knuckles realised that the rain had stopped.
"Get the heck... off my island."
The teleporter sprung to life again, moments after Knuckles had used it to forcibly remove Nack from the Floating Island. (The weasil had woken up his normal self again, and tried to sell some expensive watches to Knuckles that he claimed he had in storage.) This time, it was an unscheduled visitor.
"Now what?" the guardian demanded, sick of surprises.
The figure who appeared was a spider of the Arack Empire, dressed as a messenger. He didn't speak - he only handed Knuckles a red scroll, and then went about sending himself back to where he came from.
"Busted," said Knux, eying the note suspiciously.
"Looks like the island might take a while to recover," Sage reported, and looked at the trees around him. They had all been ravaged by locusts and crushed by hail. Much of the vegetation had been destroyed.
"The ecosystem is going to suffer, that's for sure," Knux admitted. He sighed and looked at what remained of his island's lush forests. It looked as if a typhoon and a tornado had ripped through everything. "Listen mate... I'm sorry if I came down a bit hard on you there. Uh, a few times."
"That's okay Knux. I'd be dead right now, I suppose, if you hadn't whacked that guy with a weasil boomarang when you did."
Knuckles smiled. "Yeah. I'd just wanna say, though, I guess you're not as much a kid as I thought you were. you'll be a fine warrior some day. Friends?"
"Friends," Sage confirmed, and they shook hands.
And all over the island, the voice of the people heard,
We all sing with one voice of the evil, Paul deterred."
---
~~~A Telegram From the Office of S Spinster of the Webb~~~
Recently, the nation of the Floating Island was host to five emisseries from the council of the Arack. You guaranteed safe passage for them through your lands, but alas, I have since come to recognise the demise of each of them due to hazards that you neglected to warn about, and dangers that you did not move to prevent.
The Empire does not look kindly upon this insolance. All negotiations between our peoples will hereby cease, and our alliance is cancelled.
If the Empire finds it desirable in the future to acquire your vast land, we will take it.
That is all.