Alright, well here is my first story on here. This is something I've built upon in my mind for about a good year now, and I've filled in most of the holes. I'm hoping actually publishing it here will help give me the push I need to finish it. First off, I do want to say a few things: There will be many, many shippings in this story, and many of them either overlap or are one-sided. This story takes place in my own AU (alternate universe) that combines almost every generation of Sonic the Hedgehog, so if you absolutely can't stand the newer or older characters, I'd suggest not to read it... (Yes, this includes the less famous Underground characters, and yes, in their roles as Sonic's blood family). This AU includes a different kind of theory about the Chaos Emeralds and the Sol Emeralds, so if something seems off from the canon, just roll with it and it will be elaborated upon later. There are many fan-characters in this story as well, about half of the 14 Guardians themselves (you'll find out in the story). One last thing, Cream is 18 in this story. The rest as far as age is pretty self-explanatory.
Anyway, read if you want, but keep things polite in the reviews. Critique and flat out hating on something are two completely different things. Trolls and flamers, keep your immaturity elsewhere.
Prologue
Many thoughts raced through the young hedgehog's mind at that moment. He got one last good look at his friends standing before him-Tails and Knuckles. The golden light from the fast approaching dusk bathed the trio in a fiery glow. It was a remarkable scene, one that they would always remember as the end to that chapter of their lives.
"You sure you don't want to tag along, Tails?" Sonic asked. While he knew Knuckles would never stray too far from his island as long as the Master Emerald was there, it came as a shock to Sonic when Tails said that he didn't want to go with Sonic. When he had asked why, Tails responded, "I've got too many projects underway to just leave them behind..." Tails then cautiously went on to tell Sonic, "And I really don't want to leave Cream here... With just Amy, anyway." Sonic had understood. His pal, his, "lil' bro," was growing up; and Tails stood firm on his decision that evening, giving a simple but sincere nod of his head. Sonic smiled softly, rustling the slightly scruffy (and getting scruffier by the day) fur on Tails's head.
Sonic then turned to Knuckles, whose red fur was made somehow even deeper in color by the glow of the setting sun. Sonic gave a half grin, and Knuckles returned the favor. Knuckles, despite his shortsightedness, regarded Sonic's decision to leave with a sort of understanding. He knew what Sonic was after, and he knew why Sonic had to be the one to find it.
Things hadn't been right in Mobius as of late; in fact, things had been flat out eerie. The climate was changing, which is normal-but the rate that it had been happening on Mobius in the past years had been alarming. Wetlands were drying up, the arctic was melting, and snow was falling in deserts. The ocean levels were rising, and the freshwater was drying up, forcing international water regulations. Volcanoes that had been dormant for centuries suddenly began erupting, and earthquakes rocked the planet. In short, the planet was falling into chaos, and something had to be done.
Of course, it was impossible for Sonic and his friends not to notice, but what could they do? It's not like they could manipulate weather. ... But Sonic, with his determined "make-things-right" mindset, knew he had to do something. He just didn't know what, until, that is, he had a dream. In this dream, Sonic stood in a semi-circle with 6 other people. The only other person he recognized was Knuckles, who seemed just as surprised as he was to be there. Others in the circle included an orange tabby cat, a blue lynx-like cat, a panther with strange markings, a green hedgehog (who seemed oddly familiar to Sonic), and a towering Pitt-Bull girl. In the middle of the circle, an iridescent boa woman danced around... She had every aspect of "tribal," from the tattered robes and the intricate, wooden accessories she wore to the strange staff she carried in her hands. She slithered (as she had arms but no legs) through the semi-circle, examining everyone with a watchful eye. Once she had done that, she slithered back to her original position and pointed the staff at none other than Sonic himself.
"Sonic the Hedgehog," she declared, facing him. Sonic was confused-he had never met this woman before. How did she know his name?
"You're fast," the snake explained simply. "You can find the book in reasonable time." She hit the butt of the staff on the ground and the dream vanished in a whirl of smoke.
Sonic had awoken fast that night, and would have put it off as a strange dream if the boa from the dream wasn't standing right if front of him. Before he even had a chance to come to his senses, the snake woman spoke up. "You will find it, won't you?" Sonic blinked a few times, and she held up a projection of the book in question using her staff. "This is what it looks like." Sonic seemed as impressed as his groggy self could muster-the book was leather bound, with almost magical gems lining the edges, and in the middle, there seemed to be half of a crystal ball. Sonic yawned, and then she said, matter-of-factly, "Yes, you will find it." With that, she told him to go back to sleep, which he did (due largely in part to the subtle but instantaneous sleep magic magic she used on him), and then she stepped out of the room. If one had followed her out, they wouldn't have found her anywhere in sight.
Of course, Knuckles had had the same dream from his own perspective. He thought it was just a dream, until Sonic told him what happened that night. It was at that moment that Knuckles understood that something bigger than "just them" was going on, and that Sonic was the only one who was meant to find the book.
Knuckles held out his fist, and Sonic fist-bumped him, avoiding his spikes. "Good luck," Knuckles told him, "with whatever it is you're looking for."
Sonic grinned. "Thanks." After another moment of staring, looking both his friends in the eye, Sonic finally mustered the courage to turn and leave. He glanced back once more and gave a single wave to his friends, which Knuckles returned and Tails was steps ahead of.
Once he was out of eyesight, Sonic broke out into a run and faded into the light of the sunset.