A flat mass of scrap metal tears through the thin, cloudless sky, as if ripping through the fabric of time and space from another dimension. The mass of burning metal takes shape as it speeds towards the ground, and crashes into the field below. Scraps and pieces of earth flying up, and raining back down on top of the smoldering mess.
All is quiet.
Still.
After a few moments, muffled cries for help accompanied by banging within the vessel break the silence.
Gloved fingers spotted with blood wedge through the cracks of the wreckage. The hatch is forced open, and the sobbing gets louder.
Dirt particles forming a cloud around him.
He's covered in blood. Not all of it is his own.
His crying degrades to hyperventilating, and he begins to shakily make his way off in a random direction.
Coughing, he falls to his knees and throws up.
Forces himselve back onto his feet, and notices that the sun is setting.
It's setting in the wrong direction.
The wind blows, taking dirt and leaves with it.
Runs through his blue quills.
He stops and takes a good look around while rhythmically wheezing. He faces the sun and sits.
The wheezing stops.
He lays down.
The sun sets.

How long has it been?

How long have I been here?

This place feels like my tomb.

I don't know where I am. I don't remember exactly why I agreed to do this. Trying to calm myself down.
Isn't easy.

Hands shaking. Trying not to hyperventilate. Don't know how much oxygen I have left.

I never liked enclosed spaces.
What the fuck is wrong with me?

Try to focus on the window. Space. It all looks the same to me. Stars scattered all over the place, as far as the eye can see.

It terrifies me.

Sometimes they're there when I close my eyes.

Slow, steady breaths. The constant static crackling on the radio.

I want to turn it off, I want to shut it up but I can't take that chance.
I can't ever take that chance.

Raise the hand piece to my mouth and speak into the mic.

Hello?
Is anybody there?
Can anybody hear me?

Calls of distress. I need to know someone is there. I need to know someone can help me. I need to hear someone's voice other than my own.

Plead with the silence and listen to the static.

Nothing.
There's nothing. There's nobody.

The hands on my watch are constantly moving in different directions, like a compass going mad. Watching it makes me nauseous.

If it didn't mean so much to me, I would just take it off.

I'm sorry, I was just trying to

You wake up, and you aren't sure how long you've been out. There's no telling when you fell asleep, or what time it is now.

You don't even remember passing out.
Sitting in the same uncomfortable seat, looking out the same window.

You just drift in and out and it all bleeds together.

Constant sense of deja vu.

Starving. All I've had is water, which I've been using sparingly. The levels seem to change, however. Sometimes drastically, sometimes minimally.

I guess my memory isn't all that trustworthy.

"I can take care of myself, Sonic."

Staring out at the stars, whisper-singing old nursery rhymes.

The only songs I could think of.

fists tightening, loosening, tightening.
Fingernails digging into my own flesh.

Palms were sweating. Took my gloves off. didn't want to soak them.

wipe my hands off and put them back on.

I'm vomiting blood into my lap when I first start to hear the whispering.

I can't make out the words, I'm not even sure it's my language, but I know I hear it.

Look up to the window. In the distance, I see a tiny flashing dot.

What the fuck is that?

Suddenly, the static cuts off.

"Hello?"

It doesn't register at first. My eyes stay locked on the blinking light.

"Sonic? Can you hear me?"

That voice...

"Sonic?" the voice calls out from the speaker, breaking through the now inconsistent static. "Please answer me."

Sally.
Hand trembling immensely, I pick up the mic and push the button in with my thumb.
I say the only thing I can manage to squeak out.

I'm sorry.

"Where are you?"
I don't know.
"Are you okay?"
I.. don't know.

I tell her I'm sorry. I tell her I wish I could take it all back. I tell her about the blood, the watch, the changing water levels, the blinking light. I tell her about the voices constantly whispering, the static that drives me to madness, the claustrophobia. I tell her I'm scared, and I want to come home. I'm trying not to cry, but I can't help it.

I release the button and listen for a response to kill the static again.

it doesn't come.

The closer I get to the blinking light, the faster I seem to be going.

Flashing light gets bigger and bigger.

The static, consistent, once again.

Take a sip of water.

Light headed. Vision blurs and doubles.
Cold. Body shaking violently again. Close my eyes and try to ride it out.

Searing headache.

Coughing up more blood.

Breath raspy.

Throat is all kinds of fucked up.
Hurts to swallow.

Holding tightly onto myself, trying to keep myself together.
The whispers get louder and less coherent.

it all bleeds toget

her voice breaks through the static.

Where did you go?
"I'm sorry, Sonic. There was an emergency."
Is everyone okay?
"Yeah, we're.. everything's fine."
Good..
"How are you holding up?"
I'm alive. I think.

Her voice sounds as though someone close to her has died.

She humors me, but I know what's going on..

I like hearing her voice.

Talking to her makes me feel better.

But she's not around much. Always busy. Understandable. She checks in on me every once in awhile to make sure I'm still alive. She says I'll get there okay, and I can come home after that. It'll work itself out.

It has to.

The brightness wakes me up.

I open my eyes and the enormity of what I see hits me so very hard.

I'm closer than I thought.

Before me is what I can only guess is a black hole. Light occasionally flashing through it as if lightening were striking just inside.

I didn't know black holes did that.

Sally, if you can hear this, I just want you to know that I love you. I love you all and I miss you very much.

Pitch black.

Even the lights on the console have gone out.

The radio is off. The static is silenced.

Holding my breath. I wait for something. Anything.

I close my eyes and I see stars passing me by.
I open my eyes, and I see Sally, tilting her head and smiling at me.

I blink just once, and it's all darkness again.

Sometimes things don't go exactly as planned.
I honestly can't say what I expected the outcome of this to be, but for whatever reason, it seemed like the right thing to do.

I didn't think it would end up like this, that's for fucking sure.

inhale.

exhale.

pause.

inhale.

exhale.

pause.

Red.

Red... light?

It's hard to tell what's making it glow in here.

i can barely see anything. very dim.
i can't move. not at all.
i can't even close my eyes.

they creep up on me from my peropherals.
the claws.

i want to scream, but i can't.
they grab for me, digging their nails into my flesh.
tearing it away, dragging it back into the darkness. my own blood, abandoning me at a fast pace.

I would scream if I was physically capable of it, but I'm not.

suddenly the red glow starts to get brighter

and brighter

and hotter

until what's left of my skin is burning.

The hands are gone.
and the light is so bright, i can't really see anything.

it's not real.

none of it makes any sense. why didn't i see this before?

it can't be real..

I'm not.. falling.
I'm not falling through the clouds.

I've had this dream before.
I've had this dream many times before.

I've been living through tiny variations of the same moment over and over again.

All of this has amounted to absolutely nothing.

I get closer and closer to the ground and right before I hit the bottom, I always wake up.

I just need to figure it all out, first, I need to know what it all me

my head hurts.. . .

what..

where am i?

I feel around the darkness, groping and grasping for something.
Anything.

fingers wrap themselves around a handle, and I pull with all the strength that i have left.

I start to panic when the door doesn't budge.

Hyperventilating.

i don't like it here.

Banging on the door, i put all my weight into pushing it open

and suddenly.. .

. ..light.

I fall to my face in the dirt.

Clean air hits me like a ton of gold and rips me a new life.

Puke blood on my hands. Force myself to my feet. Stumble.

It feels like I haven't walked in ages.

However, I feel as though I've been here before. I remember none of this.

I sit. I am tired.

Enjoy this open space.

Gaze drifts to the sunset.
Eyes lock on the sun, which sets a fire in my eyes.

I smile.

I hear approaching footsteps as the big glowing ball disappears.

"What the hell?"
"Are you okay, Mister?"
"What the hell happened here?"

"What are you?"

"He looks like a much older version of Sonic."
"Do you think they could be related, Sal? Are you related to Sonic?"
"Do you know Sonic the hedgehog?"
"He's just staring at us blankly. Maybe he doesn't speak our language."

i understand them, but i have no idea what they're talking about.
Best just say nothing.

Sound approaching. I turn to see the flying light shining down on the darkness of this land.

i stand up to wave at it, but something stops my arm.

"We have to go."

"we have to leave."

"Come on."

the squirrel drags me by the hand into the forest, and we rest behind a tree for a moment.

looking up just in time to see something in the distance fly into the air. it's really hard to see from here, but the fire beneath it makes it just visible enough.

it seems to tear a hole in the sky.

Panic washes over me.

something clicks and my time feels short, all of the sudden.

I turn towards her and shake her shoulder, getting her attention.

She turns to me, her expression unreadable in this light.

Who owns the spaceship?
"Wait, you can talk?"
Who has the spaceship in the city?
"Robotnik...?"

oh god. . .

i remember everything. . .

. . . ..he said i wouldn't but i

Sally...
"How do you know my name?"

I'm sorry, my princess.
I have just betrayed all of you for promises of another world.

light washes over both of us

and her eyes are wide in horror.