Jet and the Black Knight
Note: Takes place six months after Sonic Heroes: Series
Sonic Characters © Sonic Team/Sega
Lunar Rogues © Kiba Sniper
Chapter One: The Never-Ending Story
Over six months has passed since Master Nazo met his final defeat at the hands over Heaven Silver. And with the God of Darkness finally put to rest, everyone returned to their normal lives. Well...as normal as they get anyway. Eggman went on a temporary vacation with Rai and his few remaining loyal followers. Sonic returned to South Island to resume his duties as the prince. Tails returned to his homeland with his demon family. Knuckles and Rouge were enjoying the perks of marriage if you know what I mean. And Team Virtex grew at a substantial level due to their new benefactor. But our story is not about them, but a certain flock of thieves.
The scene opens to Megalo Station. After the Meteor Tech was ultimately destroyed, Omega took it upon himself to rebuild the city as the leader of the robots. Given the fact that he was the former ABIS and knew the mechnics of the Meteotech robots, there was no reason to doubt his position. And for the past six months, Megalo Station has grown much farther than anyone had dared to ever dream of. All was well for the city......that was until a group of daredevils shattered their way through one of the more prestigious buildings. From the moment their boards touched the ground, the Babylon Rogues were once again being hunted down by city security.
All lot has changed about the Rogues since the Sonic Heroes disbanded. Jet glided through the street upon the Wind Rider, glancing backwards occasionally between his teammates and the robots. The hawk wore ghostly white/red boots with black straps down the front. He also donned sleeveless silver coat with a green hawk imprinted on the back. He wore both the green Ark and Shahra's ring on his left hand, despite the Ring Genie being set free long ago. But what bugged Jet the most was occasionally stabs of pain he felt from the scar running down the side of his right leg, a memento from his final fight with Erazor.
Storm had changed as well, but not as much as the other two. His fat had severally died down and was replaced by pure muscle and bone. Along with his Rogue tattoo, he gained a dragon tattoo that slithered up his arm and finished with the head at his chest. He wore bright yellow shoes with hard metal soles and black straps running across, a yellow bomber jacket completely unzipped to reveal his bulging abs, and the purple Ark on his right wrist. His favorite possession was the silver snake pendent that once belonged to his uncle; a gift given by Accel.
And of either of the three birds, Wave had changed the most in appearance and personality. She had three long feathers draped down her back and tied into a ponytail and her Rogue tattoo was transformed to pure white as a sign of her true heritage. She wore a pair of the finest silken pants from the center of Arabia, a pair of pure white sandals, a white top with a black crescent moon in the back, and the yellow Master Ark on her left wrist. She still carried the Red Opal, not wanting to make the same mistake twice.
The three riders turned the corner, managing to lose more than half of the security robots. Jet cursed at the remaining robots and looked down at his stolen prize. It was a leather-bound book with runes of an ancient language long forgotten. By the time Jet could look away from the atifact, he was forced to draw upon his signature bansho fans in defense against the persuing robot guards.
"I don't get what the big deal is about some dumb old book!" Jet screamed, turning the corner again.
"I told you, Jet, that's no ordinary book!" Wave shouted back. "That's the journal of Merlin the Wizard! Legends say that anyone who could translate the book would hold limitless power! That's why it is the most valuable book in the world!"
"Yeah, boss!" Storm nodded, punching another robot. "Think of all the loot we could get with this thing!"
"Well, I do like money." Jet grinned deviously as he slid between two defending robots.
"Cannon and the others should be waiting for us at the rendezvous point!" Wave called, kicking back another robot. "Once we're in range, they should be able to take out the rest of these machines!"
"You ok, boss?!" Storm asked, noticing Jet's worried look.
"I just get this feeling that this book is going to cause a lot of trouble!" Jet explained to them. "And knowing my luck, I'm probably right!"
The scene alters to a desolate far from the eyes of the mortal realm. In this world, technology, aliens, and mystical emeralds did not exist in this time and place. Only superstition and the sword ruled these lands. The dark clouds covered the horizon and blocked the sun from its treasure. In the far side plains of this land, birds of prey feasted on the decay of defeated, only to be frightened away by a dark presence. Presiding over the hillside, a lone figure trotted restlessly down the dirt path, pleading for safety.
A human girl clutched the scepter in her hands as she glanced backwards in fright, accidentally allowing her hood to drop. She was exceptionally young and held gleaming-purple hair tied backwards and ending at a golden ring. She wore a glimmering purple robe and wore a golden tiara with a ruby droplet cascading over her forehead. She hesitated a glance backwards at her chasing and gasped in horror.
High above the sky, riding across the clouds upon his dark steed, was a bulking knight crowned in black armor. The majority of his armor was formed upon layers, making him appear more formidable and slightly more fearsome. Five neon banners waved in the back of his armor, covered in ancient symbols unseen by the glowing light. His helmet was made from the strongest steel and formed a tall crown over his head. The Black Knight breathed a cloud of dark mist from his mouth as he stared down upon his prey.
With a silent command, the Black Knights might stead charged forward into a storm of clouds. As the approached, the Black Knight reached for his scabbard and drew his ferocious sword. Unlike the steel on normal blades, the Black Knight's sword appeared to be crafted from scales of a red dragon and the handle was made from the black bone. With a mighty swipe, the Black Knight ripped open a dark mass from within the sky.
It was only seconds before a series of cold and merciless eyes appeared from the fog and began to separate from the mass. Soon enough, the eyes began to take the form of ragged knights and other atrocities that couldn't be described. They formed a closely nit circle around the young female, warding her off from any safety. The female human gasped and attempted to turn backwards, only to be blocked off by the Black Knight.
"It is over, Merlina." The Black Knight stated venomously. "Surrender now and I promise I will offer a swift punishment."
Looking back and forth between the barriers, the woman known as Merlina grew a stern expression. Without thinking of the consequences, Merlina raised her scepter high and stabbed into the ground, summoning a glowing circle around her. The Black Knight and the demon drew backwards as they were caught off guard by Merlina's tactic.
"Iferas Zarac Yuzac!" Merlina chanted. "Iferas Zarac Yuzac! O brave knight, swift as the wind, heed my call!"
And suddenly, the light shot into the sky and burst through the clouds.
The scene returns to the modern world just outside the desert of Crimson Canyon. Under the shadow of Babylon Garden, the Lunar Rogues waited patiently for their partners. Cannon, River, and Sirin had long ago made a pact with the Solar Rogues after the defeat of Rodrigo. Of course, that didn't mean they had to like it. After several minutes of waiting, Jet and his partners arrived upon the scene, panting heavily with exhaustion.
"Took you long enough." Cannon grunted impatiently.
"And just where were you when this was going on?!" Jet snapped.
"You were supposed to be waiting for us at the outer wall!" Wave joined.
"We had other ideas." River smirked. "Cannon got bored, so we all went out for tacos."
"That's treason!" Storm growled, cracking his massive knuckles. "I oughta pound ya to a pulp!"
"Enough of this banter." Sirin said shortly, silently ending the conversation. "Did you obtain the prize?"
"Yeah, we got it." Jet grumbled.
Reaching into his feathers, Jet drew the leather book into view. Storm took the precautionary measure to remain in front once observing River's greedy expression. But just as the exchange was about to be made, the journal was suddenly enveloped by a pale ray of blue light. The team of Rogues jumped backwards in surprise with the exception of Jet, would could not find the strength to release the book. The cover of the journal flew open and the wave of page flipped by, each one draw Jet closer into the treasure. And without warning, the light flashed across the desert winds, blinding the Rogues for a short time. When everyone regained their sight, they spotted the book, but Jet was nowhere to be seen.
"You don't see that everyday." Cannon commented.
"Wanna bet?" Wave challenged.
Back at the medieval realm, Merlina spell had faded, leaving the poor sorceress tired and weary. The Black Knight stared at the hole created in the clouds and patiently watched as the closed once more. After a moment of peace, the Black Knight laughed.
"Such an amusing show." The Black Knight cackled. "But marvelous lights will not dither my heart. Surrender at once, Merlina, before I must resort to drastic measures."
"I don't understand." Merlina whispered. "My spell should have worked."
The armored demons drew close as the Black Knight once again drew his fearsome blade. The young sorceress closed her eyes in fear and waited for the imminent taste as steel. But the silence that crawled over the hushed crowd was soon broken by a piercing scream. Stirred by the sound, the Black Knight and the rest of the group looked back and forth down the road, but spotted no sign of life. They answer was soon made clear as Jet the Hawk suddenly landed in front of Merlina, his beak caught in the tasteless dirt.
"Man, why does this always happen to me?" Jet groaned as he pulled himself back up. Gazing at his surroundings, Jet felt slightly uneasy by the pack of monsters. "Ok, I don't remember any of you guys hanging around."
"Being from the distant world." Merlina said hesitantly. "Please forgive my abrupt summons."
"Shahra?" Jet asked surprisingly. "What's going on here? I thought I set you free a long time ago." He turned his head and scanned his surroundings. "What happened to the Arabian Knights?"
"Arabian Knights?" Merlina repeated hopefully. "Are those another band of protectors? Please, we could use all the help we can get from this point."
The Legendary Wind Hawk drew himself to full height and brushed away the lingering dirt in his feathers. His expression grew solemn and thoughtfully, similar to how he looked whenever battling Erazor. Looking around the sentient monsters surrounding them, there had to be at least twenty to thirty of them, all wearing protective armor. The hawk couldn't help but smirk. Did they really think that a pile of tin was going to protect them? Reaching into his feathers, Jet withdrew his signature bansho fans and waved them threateningly.
"Heh! Just when you think I'm out of the hero business, I'm dragged back in." Jet grinned, turning to the sorceress. "Don't worry, I've got this covered. GRAVITY DIVE!!"
For one spare moment, the green Ark shined brilliantly before the hawk vanished in a trace of green light. Merlina stared in wonderment. Where could the hawk have gone at such a sudden time? Without any of them noticing, a green blur zipped through the line of monsters, creating a powerful aftershock in its place. Merlina snapped her head back at the monsters as they were suddenly put to death and back to Jet, who had appeared once again. Despite his meager appearance, Jet had proven himself to be more than capable of defending against the band of demons. A fact the Black Knight was not too happy to admit.
"That was amazing." Merlina said astonishingly.
"Ah, that was nothing." Jet waved.
"I cannot believe you have returned." The Black Knight growled to Jet. "I had hoped I had rid myself of you."
"Uh, have we met before?" Jet asked confused.
"After today, we will no longer meet again!" The Black Knight proclaimed.
Drawing his sword once more, the Black Knight swung at the air, forming a horizontal blade of energy in its wake. Caught off guard by this sudden attack, Jet raised his arm in defense. As the blade of darkness drew close, Jet's ring suddenly reacted and formed a barrier of light between the attack and its master. The attack may have not made any full contact, but it was enough to send Jet flailing backwards. The Hawk groaned in anguish and slowly slipped from consciousness; the rings light died away. Merlina tried to force the hawk awake, but Jet simply stayed as he was even while the Black Knight stomped closer.
"After centuries of waiting, my vengeance will be taken." The Black Knight proclaimed. "This land obeys my word. And soon, all lands shall fall under my iron will!"
"That will not happen!" Merlina shouted, thrusting her scepter forward. "Greiz Varta!"
The Black Knight staggered backwards as a powerful whirlwind emerged from the ground around Merlina's feet. With the fearsome gale separating him from his targets, the Black Knight could do nothing as the pair disappeared into the wind. Growling slightly, the Black Knight commanded his steed to take to the skies once more. The armored warrior turned to face a jagged cliffside, where three of his mightiest and most proud knights stood firm.
The first of the knights was female, but that did not obstruct from her power. The only visible parts of her were her orange-tinted dreadlocks that hung over the sides of her visor. She wore silver shoes that matched the majority of her armor with the exception of the golden necklace that hung around her neck. Her visor was formed from pearl-white steel and presented a blue sapphire stamped directly over her forehead.
The second of the knights had no visible parts that showed his true character. His armor was made entirely of ocean-blue steel that appeared more thin that his comrades. Upon first inspection, one would mistake this armor to be worthless and easy to pierce. But if one looked close enough, they would noticed the subtle ripples that waved through the armor. The one thing that could be seen was the bulbous emerald eyes shining through his helmet.
The last of the knights was proving to be his most powerful. Beneath his armor lie a patch of purple scales and a curled tail sticking from the end of his chassis. He wore dark-violet armor upon his feet and chest with a pair of metallic gloves complete with hidden compartments. Through the pinnacle of his helmet, a grizzly-yellow horn shined against the few rays of light that were allowed to trespass upon the land.
As the Black Knight drew close, the trio of knight kneeled to their master.
"I will give chase." The Black Knight commanded. "Spread and search for them. Slay them on sight."
And with that, the Black Knight galloped away over the clouds.
"Let's go." The female knight ordered.
"But must we?" The blue knight questioned cautiously. "She is the royal sorceress after all."
"The king's orders are absolute, Gawain." The purple knight responded.
"I know, but..." The knight known as Gawain said hesitantly.
"Without loyalty to the king, we are nothing." The female knight proclaimed. The purple knight nodded and walked away, leaving only Gawain to hear her next choice words. "But still...the king has changed. And so has his kingdom..."
With a look of worry, the female knight turned away with Gawain following shortly behind her. Gawain stopped momentarily and stared out to the valley. As a lone bird of prey flew overhead, a solemn castle stood over the horizon.
A new tale has been opened by the Wind Hawk. Will Jet draw the strength needed to defeat this new evil? Will the three knights accomplish their mission? And how does the Black Knight know Jet? Find out on the next chapter of Jet and the Black Knight!
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