Time for another story, and this time a shorter one focusing on little Sonia, the Chameleon girl of Mutopia.
As you'll see shortly, this takes place roughly two years after Cursed and Blessed, when the Geckoling twins were born.
Sonia's Trial
Chapter 1
Something to Prove
In the mutant sanctuary of Mutopia, hidden deep underground, beneath Chicago, Tyroth the Dragon stood by the exit together with his fellow crime-fighters, the Chicago Knights, as they readied themselves for the patrol of the night. In his arms, he held his two children, the Geckoling twins Freya and Loki, now just over two years old, both clinging to their father, but their eyes lingering on their mother, Sephie the Gecko.
"Good luck on the patrol, guys." Tyroth said. "And remember, don't hesitate to call me if you need my help."
"Don't worry, boss." said Jack the Wolf, second in command of the Knights. "We'll be careful."
"Yeah, you just focus on your little angels there." said Heather the Dragonfly.
"Are you sure that you don't want me to stay with you, love?" Sephie asked.
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't, dear, and I know that you would want to as well. But we got a responsibility towards the city, and there is safety in numbers. Plus, I also need to take care of these two."
"Any of us could do that, big brother." said Amber the Marine Iguana. "Just say the word and we will pitch in."
"I know that, sis, but it's my turn, and I want to spend some time with my children as well." said Tyroth. Shortly after, Loki let out a for him big yawn, which caused Freya to do the same. "Though, it seems like it's time for a nap for them. I'll go and tuck them in as soon as you're on your way."
The mutants nodded in understanding and double-checked their equipment just to be sure. Sephie took the time to give both of her children a soft kiss on their cheeks.
"Bye, my little gems. Mommy won't be long."
"...bye… Mommy…" Freya said through another yawn.
"Bye bye…" Loki said in a lower voice.
"Oh, I'm gonna miss you all so much. Remember that I love you, and be nice to Daddy, okay?" The twins nodded slightly at their mother's request.
As the mutants left, Sephie turned around and waved to her family an extra time before closing the hidden doors, and her children waved back with their tiny hands.
With the other Knights away, Tyroth made his way back to the twin's room, where he tucked them in in their crib, making sure that their blanket covered both of them. It didn't take long before both of them had fallen asleep, but not before they hugged their favourite stuffed toys, a teddy bear and a red dragon, each being held closely.
Tyroth smiled as he watched his son and daughter snuggle up together, and he hoped that they would remain close throughout their lives. After ten minutes, being certain that they were fast asleep, he set the baby monitor and quietly made his way out of the room, gently closing the door behind him.
They would probably sleep for an hour or two, which meant that he could have gone with the others on patrol had he wanted to, but he wanted to be there for his children, and with them sleeping and the others away, he would have ample time to think and plan for the future of the twin, as they would have very different lives compared to other children, even those of their friends in New York.
Time seemed to fly by so fast. It had already been a little over two years since the twins were born, and they were growing well. They were already almost as big as their adoptive cousin Pandora, who was now close to her fifth year, while their adoptive human cousin Kemeko, just under two years, was still a bit on the smaller side. Still, all of the children were healthy and growing, and they all got along well whenever they met, and that was what mattered.
"Uncle Tyroth!" a voice called out, snapping Tyroth out of his thoughts. Looking to his left, he saw the owner of the voice hurrying up to him.
It was Sonia the Chameleon, his adoptive niece, and for the longest time, the only child in Mutopia, now the oldest child in the sanctuary, at ten and a half year. She was wearing black sweatpants with a short blue skirt over them, and a bright purple tee, her shoulder long blonde hair was tied up in two low pigtails, and her skin was a bright purple.
"Uncle Tyroth. Oh, are the twins sleeping?" she said once she stood next to the dragon, who nodded in response, to which Sonia lowered her voice. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Tyroth said in a low voice after listening by the door for a moment, feeling relieved that the Geckolings seemed to still be sleeping.
Leading Sonia aside so that they could speak without worry.
"So, what did you want, Sonia?" he asked as they sat down on a bench.
"I wanted to talk to you, Uncle Tyroth."
"I gathered that much, but about what?"
"I want to be a Chicago Knight!" Sonia declared proudly, but Tyroth wasn't pleasantly surprised.
"You want to be a Chicago Knight?"
"Yes, just like I said! Just like you, Aunt Sephie, and the others too! Aren't you happy?"
"Honestly, not very much, no." Tyroth answered, and Sonia's face fell and her skin turned blue.
"Why not?" she asked. "I thought you would be happy."
"Why do you want to be a Knight anyway?"
"Because you are one, and Aunt Sephie too, and I want to help you all."
"Listen, Sonia. Being a Knight is a huge thing, and it's very dangerous. There have been several times where we've been lucky to escape with only injuries. Not to mention all the training that comes with it to stay in shape."
"But why can't I?" Sonia asked, her skin turning more red as she started to get a little angry. "I heard Uncle Raph and Leo talk about training Pandora and Kemeko once they're older. And I've heard you and Aunt Sephie talking about doing the same with the Geckolings. I'm older than all of them, so why can't I train too?"
"Look, I understand your reasoning, but there are different circumstances for the other kids." Tyroth explained calmly. "They got the Foot over in New York, which are probably our most dangerous enemies, and thus Pandora and Kemeko need to know how to defend themselves when they get older. Compared to New York, Chicago is pretty safe."
"But what about Freya and Loki then?"
"They are part dragon, and dragons used to be the guardians of humankind. I have no doubt that they, just like me, will try their hardest to protect people simply because it's in their blood. And on top of that, they both possess magic, which has to be mastered and tempered with special training. I constantly try to figure out how and when to implement it in their lives."
"Okay, fine, I can understand that, but it still don't explain why I can't."
"Because you don't have to. You don't have to fight crime and evil, and quite frankly, I don't want you too. I wouldn't be able to bear it if you got hurt."
"Uncle, I'm not a little girl any more."
"You'll always be my little girl." Tyroth chuckled, gently ruffling Sonia's hair and making her entire body turn light pink as she blushed at the compliment. "But I understand that you won't let this go, and you are growing up whether I want it or not. Give me about… fifteen minutes to get ready, then meet me in the dojo, and we'll see."
"Really?! Yay!"
A little later, Sonia ran into the dojo, eager to get started with whatever Tyroth had in mind for her, her skin coloured orange to match her excitement. She enjoyed coming to the dojo, especially when the others were training so that she could watch them, but she would also sneak in on her own every now and then, checking what equipment the Knights had used, seeing if she could do something similar once they would let her.
The dojo was filled with weights, skipping ropes, various objects such as boards and tires that could be set up as obstacle courses, large mats that people could spar on, and a more recent addition, hooks in the cave ceiling that they could set up climbing ropes and hoops in.
As she entered, she saw Tyroth setting up something that included a small set of blocks and pulleys hanging from a hook in the ceiling and some on the floor as well, a fishing line, a belt and a… candy bar?
"I'm here, Uncle Tyroth." Sonia announced, looking curiously at what he was doing.
"Right on time too. You really are eager for this."
"Yep! So, when do we start?"
"Slow down, little one. First, there's a little test that you need to clear before we'll think about actually training you as a Knight."
"What is it? Come on, bring it on, I can do it!" she said, barely able to stand still.
"First, let's see just how high you can jump."
"Jump? Just jump? Seriously?"
"Yes, as high as you can. Give it your all."
Sonia didn't understand what jumping would prove, but it seemed easy enough so she did as asked. Really giving it her all, she managed to jump as high as Tyroth was tall, over two metres, which was very impressive for a ten year-old.
But that wasn't the test, instead Tyroth used it as a measurement as he began making adjustments to the setup he had assembled, specifically to the length of the fishing line running through the blocks and pulleys. Once he was done, he instructed Sonia to stand directly underneath, then wrapped the belt around her waist with one end of the fishing line tied to it, and in the other end hung the wrapped candy bar.
"There, that should do it."
"So, what am I supposed to do?"
"It's quite simple really." Tyroth explained. "I've put the candy bar at the very edge of your reach, and all you have to do is to get it, without doing anything to the setup I've fixed here."
"That's it? Sounds easy. And when I get the candy, you'll start training me, right?"
"One thing at a time, sweetie. First you have to clear this."
Sonia smiled, thinking that she had it all in a bag, but as she jumped, the line tied to her belt was pulled through the system of blocks and pulleys, and thus the candy bar stayed the same distance from her, and would remain there no matter how high she jumped. Not that she gave up because of that, she gave it several more tries, really pushing herself to her limits.
"This is stupid! I can't reach that! It's impossible!" she cried out when she stopped, having turned more and more red with every failed attempt. "Every time I jump, it's pulled away! How am I supposed to reach it?"
"That's for you to figure out. It's part of the test."
"But how? How am I going to do it? Please, tell me!"
"Sorry, Sonia, but that's not the exercise. If I were to tell you how to do it, then that's all you would learn. I want you to learn why you need to do it."
"What do you mean?"
"See it like this; if I tell you that two times three equals six, then you know that. But if I ask you what two times three is, and you solve it, then you know not only that, but also why the answer is six. It's the why of this test that you need to learn."
"So you won't let me train then?" Sonia asked, her skin a darker blue to match her disappointment from failing and not understanding.
"Not yet at least, but spend some time thinking about this test, and what I said, and when you think you know the answer, you can do the test again."
Sonia pouted slightly at the answer, but at least Tyroth didn't say that she wouldn't be allowed to train at all.
"No need to be upset, Sonia. This is a good way to see if you're ready for what you want, and I'm certain that you'll figure it out eventually."
"But I wanted to join you guys now."
"All in due time, little one. Now, chin up, 'cause we'll be having guests tomorrow."
"Guests? Do you mean the New Yorkers?" Sonia asked, changing to yellow as her curiosity grew and then to orange when Tyroth nodded in response.
Suddenly, cries could be heard from the baby monitor that Tyroth carried with him.
"Looks like someone didn't want to sleep any longer." the dragon chuckled. "We'll continue this discussion another time, Sonia. Right now, I have somewhere I need to be."
As Tyroth hurried off to take care of his children, Sonia stayed behind a while, thinking of what he had said. No matter how hard she thought about it, she just didn't understand what she was supposed to do to clear the test, nor what it was she was meant to learn from it, and it frustrated her.
The thought would continue to linger in the back of her mind, even though she tried to put it aside. But she wanted so badly to join the others as crime-fighters, as a Chicago Knight, and she would find a way to prove to the adults that she could do it.
First chapter done, as if you couldn't tell. Jokes aside, Sonia clearly ain't happy about Tyroth not wanting her to be a crime fighter like him and the others, and feels left out, which I understand, but I can also agree with Tyroth. If you don't have to fight, you should't seek to fight.
Still, things are just getting started, so let's see where they end up.