Chapter One: Life in the Fast Lane
Chapter One: Life in the Fast Lane.
There could be no compromise, no negotiation, no second chances, it was a case of success or failure with no room for manoeuvre. The world seemed to slow, almost to a halt, as his foot struck the dirt, sending up clouds of dust behind him. His heart was racing a thousand beats a second, each one a crashing drum, the wind whistled past his ears, a howling tempest, the sun above, a burning inferno. His right foot raised back up from the ground and, for a fraction of a second, no part of his body touched the floor before his left foot crashed down ahead. He'd travelled over a metre in a single foot-fall but it was still not fast enough.
Sonic the Hedgehog stared out, down the stone hillside towards the stone outcrop that curled up at the end, a naturally occurring ramp that he was already running towards at an incredible pace. But beyond it was a vast canyon, at the bottom of which were jagged, razor sharp rocks ready to skewer anyone unfortunate enough to taste their cold wrath. In the distance, the other side, where the dusty desert ended and the lush green vegetation of the Azura Lakes began. He needed to go father.
Sonic leant forward, letting the air blast along his spines, making his body sleek, streamlined, able to move faster still. His feet slammed against the ground and left it again in a blur, invisible to the naked eye, and behind him he created a blizzard of sand and dust. But it wasn't fast enough. He wouldn't make it. He needed to be faster still.
Timing was everything. If he misjudged his next move, he'd end up falling head over heels and possibly even down into the deadly embrace of the rocks below. Sonic never misjudged. Timing his movements, he let both feet leave the ground at the same time, in the exact same moment he leant himself forward, as if going to somersault. Instead, he began to roll, forming a perfectly spherical ball, and, carried forward by the momentum he'd already built up, supported by gravity and unhindered by the smooth slope, he began to gain yet more speed.
Had anyone been watching all they would have witnessed next was a blue streak roll up the rocky outcrop before blasting up into the air, covering the distance of the canyon easily before flying down the other side like a shooting star.
Sonic unrolled himself as he struck the ground and stamped his right foot downwards, skidding a groove into the soil for a full ten metres before coming to a stand still. Using his hand to avoid the glare of the fun, he looked back at the massive space he'd leapt across in a single bound. He grinned, satisfied.
As he continued to watch he saw something appear from above the clouds, coming down towards him. A small, two-person biplane, the Tornado II, built and maintained by Sonics best friend Miles Prower, otherwise known as Tails. Sonic gave an exaggerated thumbs up to his friend, a grin plastered across his face. Tails had insisted that he might as well had flown them both across since he had the room, but Sonic had refused. Tails had probably known he would, Sonic was not one to miss out on a challenge, especially one where the stakes were high, but still the young fox had protested. As the plane came lower, Sonic shouted up to his friend.
"What took you so long, buddy?" Tails circled the plane lower and lower, positioning himself for suitable landing. As he got close enough he shouted down over the roar of the engine.
"You had me worried a moment there Sonic!" he yelled, "I thought you weren't going to get enough speed to make it!" Sonic laughed.
"You kidding Tails? That was childs-play for a super-sonic hedgehog like me." Sonic wasn't one to be modest and he had to admit, at least to himself, that the jump had been a challenge. But that was what life was all about, finding new challenges and new adventures, testing himself to the limits of his capabilities and always pushing to go further. He was Sonic the Hedgehog, after all, and he was the fastest thing alive.
When Tails had finally landed, he leapt down from the plane and approached Sonic, behind him two orange bushy tails sweeping back and forth. It was his additional appendage that gained him his nickname, otherwise he was an ordinary fox boy whose main claim to fame was his excellent mechanical skills that allowed him to build or repair practically anything. In his hand he held a paper map which he examined as he reached Sonic.
"It says the archaeological dig is less than a mile from here," he said in his young yet enthusiastic voice, "We should be able to see it."
The two of them turned and look out across the Azura Lakes. Stretching for miles were a maze of hillsides and vast bodies of water, intermingled with woodlands and all sorts of habitats occupied by endangered species. The Azura Lakes area was a conservation site, protected by the government although it had suffered some damage in a recent alien attack on the planet that they had both helped repel. It was still a beautiful site to behold and, as they looked out, Sonic and Tails noticed what looked like tents set into one of the hillsides, next to one of the larger lakes. Sonic turned to Tails.
"Looks like we found them," he said as a grin began to spread across his face, "Race you to the camp." He half expected the fox to protest or complain, as he usually did, knowing Sonic was faster. Sonic was prepared to goad his friend into competing and so was somewhat taken by surprise when Tails took off straight away.
"See you there Sonic!" the fox called back as he sped off, his two Tails whirling together like a fan and giving him addition speed. Sonic smiled in satisfaction and a little pride at his friend.
"Now that's more like it!" Sonic said as he cracked his knuckles and stretched both his legs before taking off after his friend. As the wind started to once again blow along his spines, Sonic felt that familiar rush of adrenaline come over him and the satisfaction, deep down, in knowing that he was doing what he was born to do.
Cassidy Yates looked down at her notes and sighed. None of the data was adding up, they'd taken several samples from all the artefacts they'd uncovered and, as far as she could tell, they were all from different periods and places with no unifying theme. It was a baffling mystery, but then Cassidy prided herself on being good at mysteries and she wasn't about to let this one get the better of her.
She turned from her make-shift desk, the fold-out wooden variety prone to collapse after a good sneeze, as she heard the doorway to her tent open. Jefferson was standing halfway through the entrance, his clear skin and fair hair covered in muck, but his ocean blue eyes shining brightly all the same.
"What is it Jefferson?" she asked, noting he was out of breath, having obviously run from the dig just moment before. He indicated over his shoulder.
"They're here!" he said before dashing out, leaving Cassidy alone. She allowed herself a small smile as she rose from her seat and straightened the collar on her shirt, slipping her denim jacket on as she headed out.
A light gust of wind blew strands of her long, brown hair across her face as they escaped from the band that tied the rest up in a ponytail. She swept them back and walked away from her tent, one of four set in a square, a large, currently unlit, fire in the centre of them. She stepped between tents and out of their camp to where several of her fellow archaeologists were stood round watching as a blue hedgehog and two-tailed fox strolled towards her. The fox smiled.
"You must be Doctor Yates," he said, holding out his hand. Cassidy took it, returning his warm smile.
"Please, call me Cassidy," shaking Sonics hand next, "You two need no introduction, of course. The world famous Sonic and Tails. It's a pleasure to meet you at last". She noticed Tails looked a bit red, almost nervous, as if wanting to say something.
"Was there something you wanted to ask me?" she coaxed. Tails shook his head.
"Oh no, it's just you seem awful young for a Doctor!" he said, grinning. Cassidy was young, but very talented having finished her first PhD in her mid-twenties and was currently writing another. She had only just turned thirty and, unlike many other people, it didn't bother her in the slightest. Why should it, she was living the life she had always dreamt of.
"I am," she replied, "but then you seem young to have saved the world."
"That's mainly Sonic," Tails said modestly, "I just help if I can". Cassidy shook her head.
"Never sell yourself short, Tails. I was in Station Square when Doctor Eggman launched a missile at it, I owe you my life." Tails went even redder, looking down at his feet. She noticed Sonic glancing around at the dig.
"I suppose you're wondering why I asked for you to come out here?" she asked. Sonic shrugged in response.
"I guess it crossed my mind, what are you doing here anyway?" Sonic seemed genuinely curious which only served to delight Cassidy even more. She had been worried he'd turn out to be always on the move, with no time for others or anything else. But even with his great speed and famous love of adventure, he still cared enough to stop and listen to others. She grinned.
"As you may be aware, this area suffered damage in the recent invasion by the Black Arms," she noticed Tails visibly shudder at the mention of the name, "and when a team came out to survey the damage they found the explosions had exposed what appeared to be a set of ruins as well as fragments of pottery."
"Nothing dangerous I hope," Sonic questioned, knowing too well that when things got dug up they tended to involve some sort of weapon or monster that his nemesis, Eggman, would want to get his grubby little hands on. Cassidy shook her head.
"No, but some very interesting items. If you'd like to follow me I'll show you," she gestured towards the tent closest to the hillside which was pitched at an angle so as to cover the start of the hills slope. The three of them headed towards it.
"So what sort of things have you found?" Tails asked, "and how does it involve us?"
"Well, I understand you've had first hand experience of the ancient echidna race." She held open the entrance to the tent for the pair and then followed them in. The far wall of the tent was missing, with the hillside taking its place. A large, deep hole had been cut away from it, several metres high and equally wide. Two archaeologists were busy digging away at the soil and, sat on a large table to one side, were the fruits of their labours.
Ranging from the tiniest fragments to entire statuettes, the table was covered in worn, and dirtied remains, dug up from the earth. Two notable themes ran across them, that of a twisting serpentine creature and the visage of the echidna race, including a small statue of what appeared to be an echidna clutching a large diamond in its hands. Sonic and Tails both recognised the designs and styles, although the ancients tribes had died long ago, during a recent adventure they had been shown visions of that lost world. Cassidy looked at the collection with pride.
"Judging by the looks on your faces, I'd say you recognise some of this," she said. Tails nodded in response as Sonic wandered over to the table and started looking over the artefacts, somewhat cautiously, she notes.
"We… errr… sort of went to their temple… in the past," Tails stuttered, seemingly confusing himself as he spoke, " only it wasn't really the past but a vision of the past but it was what the real past was like." He paused. "In the past," he finished, clearly losing track of what he'd been saying.
"I understand," she'd experienced a lot of strangeness these last few years, with the destruction of Station Square, alien invasions, not to mention her own research, "Well, I'm writing a thesis on the ancient echidna tribes and since you have the closest to first hand experience, I thought it might be a good idea to talk to the both of you personally."
Sonic was examining the echidna statue thoughtfully. He held it up to Tails and grinned.
"Doesn't it look a lot like Knuckles to you, Tails?" he winked, "only even less attractive, if such a thing is possible." He placed the statue back on the table and approached Cassidy, stretching his arms above his head and cracking his knuckles as he did so. "So, what did you need me for? Tails could probably tell you everything you wanted to know. You asked for the both of us."
"This might not be the only site with such relics and the Azura Lakes are massive. We need someone with a good eye, who knows what he's looking for and…"
"And able to go just about everywhere!" interrupted Sonic, "Well I'm your hedgehog. An Easter egg hunt sounds like fun." Cassidy saw the gleam in his eye, the eagerness, the anticipation of discovering new places, new challenges. It was the very same look she got in her archaeological work, for much the same reasons.
"Fantastic, you don't know how grateful we all are…"
Cassidy never got a chance to finish her sentence as a deafening roar erupted across the Lakes, and the whole ground seemed to shake, knocking her to the floor. Her knees scraped the dirt, leaving deep, red grazes and she was stunned for a second. As she glanced up she saw Tails also in the dirt and Sonic stood by the table, several extremely rare artefacts balanced in both hands and, inexplicably, on his foot. He smiled at her warmly.
"Could do with a hand here." Cassidy rushed over and took them, placing them delicately back on the table, looking at the blue hedgehog in gratitude.
"Thank you so much, they were priceless," she said, glancing at the tent entrance. Tails was already there, opening it up and looking outside.
"Sonic!" called the fox, his gaze not leaving whatever had caught it. Cassidy moved forward with Sonic and past Tails to stare out of the tent. Her mouth opened in a gasp as she looked into the distance where, rising up over a far hillside like a black mushroom, was a cloud of thick smog, red embers burning within at intermittent intervals.
Cassidy was about to say something when a sudden wind whipped her jacket up around her shoulders and, when it settled, the only sign of Sonic was an indent in the dirt leading off towards the explosion and Tails staring after it. He looked up at Cassidy, shrugged, and then, with a small smile, headed off after his friend. Cassidy watched them go and wished them the best of luck with whatever they would find waiting for them.
It didn't take Sonic long to reach the source of the explosion, the land had been fairly flat and, apart from skimming across the surface of a single lake, obstacle free. Tails had caught up with him by flying up to the peak of the hillside on which Sonic now stood, over-looking a massive black crater in the valley below. Surrounded by hills on all sides, it had been a fairly isolated location, full of vegetation and wildlife. Now hedges and trees burnt furiously and Sonic even noticed wild dear running from the crater at the centre of it all, from which the cloud emanated, filling the air with ash which swirled all around. As Sonic focused, he noticed something moving on the edge of the crater. It looked like a person.
"Tails, do you see…" Sonic started but Tails jumped in with a shocked cry.
"It's a young girl, Sonic!" he yelped, "She could be in trouble!"
"That's where we come in, buddy," Sonic said, grabbing his friends hand and taking off into the swirling ash and scorching hazy air, heading down the side of the hill towards the figure.
As he got closer he could see she was wearing an ash-stained white dress, actually a very expensive and elaborate looking one, he noticed. She couldn't be any older than eleven or twelve, although she already had waist-length, raven-black hair which was tied back into a pony-tail. She was coughing, dragging herself away from the crater and looked up as Sonic and Tails approached. Her gaze met Sonics and he saw a look of fear in her eyes, and a pleading, almost desperate hope that this might be help arriving.
Sonic skidded to a halt in front of the young girl as Tails began to swirl his tails around in a fan-like motion, blowing away as much of the thick smoke as possible. Sonic held out his hand to the girl and smiled at her.
"Don't worry, I'm here to help you," he said, sounding as confident as he could. This girl needed hope and he was going to give it to her. She looked nervous but gently reached up and took Sonics hand. He gripped her tightly and helped her up, before sweeping her into his arms.
"Now hod on tight, because this is where the fun really begins," he said as she draped her arms round his neck, clutching his spines, her head buried into his shoulder. With the mysterious girl secure, Sonic ran away from the crater, heading back to the dig, Tails at his side.
As they ran they failed to notice a figure standing on an opposite hillside, staring down at the spot they had just picked the young girl from. He clenched his fists angrily, frustrated that yet again she had slipped through his grasp. And not only had the bomb failed and she escaped, but now she would no doubt be protected, making his task all the more arduous.
Frustrated but as determined as ever, Adrastos began the trek in the director the blue hedgehog had taken her. This time he would make sure she would not escape and nothing nor nobody could stand in his way.