loved the feedback from the prologue, so here we go, chapter one!

"Eternal Night:
Chapter One;
Starting Off"

- With Knuckles

Knuckles stared out from Angel Island, watching the ruins below; the place that used to be home to all of his kind. Yes, the Pachacamac were gone, but he knew there were other echidna clans, and other echidnas, so he, at the least, didn't feel alone anymore. He knew that he could meet his species again, but right now, he just wanted to enjoy the quiet.

It was silent nights like these he could always treasure. GUN not roaming with their assault vehicles, Rouge not showing up to steal the Master Emerald, Eggman staying out of sight, the stars shining, the moon glowing, and only the sound of certain animals that could be heard. Yeah, this was peaceful, and it relaxed him, but the fact he was on duty 24/7 didn't change the fact he had to stay awake, at least somewhat. It's also nights like these he could have an excuse for going to sleep.

These thoughts were forgotten as a loud clang of metal echoed through the ruins, and into his ears. "What the hell...?" Was all he said before standing up, and going to take a look. There was smoke rising from the ruins, and with each clang, it only seemed to have gotten closer. Most sounded the same, however, a lighter one seemed to have hit something into the air, and just as Knuckles watched, he had realized too late that this thing was gonna land on the island.

He followed the UFO until it crash landed on the stairs to the altar, where the Master Emerald, thankfully, still stood. The red echidna watched from the new found crater as something; someone more rather; got up from the spot. It was fairly hard to see the person, but he could see her.

It was a female, he could tell, and he could easily see dreadlocks and her tail covered in armor. Judging by how she was standing, the machinery that covered her body probably didn't leave much muscle room, but enough for her to be comfortable. He couldn't tell if it were gray or black, but he could see the light purple trim, and the mask that only left a long, red plate over her eyes for her to see.

He would have thought her to be a robot if not for the groans and the fact she was holding her head. Obviously a hard blow there that knocked her to where she is, and even more obvious that the mask was hiding her real voice, pretty well. Knuckles went over to her, and decided to say something. "Are you okay?" This caused the girl, on reflex, to grab the male's arm, and plant him face up, right next to her landing spot; one of which also made a large crater, just not as deep as the one next to it.

Knuckles, after regaining his senses, and seeing her, kicked her off him, got up, and into a fighting position. When she was on her feet, she charged at him. Knuckles dodged before throwing in a hook right into an uppercut; both that she had evaded with ease.

She pulled off a few back flips, before returning to fighting stance, as did our guardian. However, as quickly as she realized she was still in a fight, upon seeing him, she slowly lowered her guard. She looked around a bit, before turning to him. "I'm gonna guess this is Angel Island, isn't it?" She questioned, her voice carrying confusion through the masked pitch in her voice, making it appear a bit deep for a girl. The guardian nodded, surprised that she didn't know. The woman in armor sighed, before looking at him, again. "Sorry..."

With that, she raced off before gliding off the floating rock. "Who was that?" Knuckles questioned.

- With Cream

The rabbit and her pet chao were being brought to the park, this lovely, warm, September afternoon, by none other than there favorite babysitter: Shadow the Hedgehog. While the two were excited, Shadow wasn't exactly welcomed to the lovely park, but he went to make the two happy, and to make sure no one would try to do anything to them; this nearly happened, one time, until he got a police officer, who chased the guy off. He didn't see him again, but Shadow knew that there were worse in Westopolis than the pervert he got arrested. He was being extra careful for these reasons.

Now arriving at the park, she got out her favorite red ball, and looked for a kid to play with. She noticed a lot of them were in packs, and that they were making disturbed and disgusted faces towards the swings. Cream was curious as to what was so bad, and turned to look; Cheese alike. Shadow also noticed this, and they both found what was disturbing them.

They saw a young wolf, ten, maybe eleven years old, with navy blue fur, a white muzzle, and blazing green eyes. He wore black sneakers, light blue jeans, a red t-shirt with a black jacket and headband close to his tall ears. The boy was regular, but what really caught their attention more than anything, was a large scar that went over his left eye in an almost circular motion.

Shadow admitted to himself that that was unnatural for a kid his age, and felt real bad for him. Cream didn't like the scar anymore than the other kids, but the young canine looked (and was) very lonely. He was by himself when he just wanted to have fun just like every other kid there, but he was excluded because of a physical feature. This reminded her of her current babysitter, and without a thought, she made her way to him.

Cream crossed the small field of wood chips, and sat herself down on the swing next to the boy. She turned her head towards him, and decided to make her presence known, in case it wasn't, already. "Hi!" She started. The young wolf turned his head, staring at her with slightly confused, and a very shy gaze. "Are you okay?" She asked him. The boy was still speechless, and the shyness in his eyes only continued to swerve in his irises as his confusion swayed off, now realizing why she came by.

"Yeah..." He trailed off in a soft, sad voice, looking away from the rabbit, as if waiting for the verbal abuse. He felt a hand on his, quickly turning to the young rabbit, and finding it to be hers. When he saw her face, he immediately saw the sad smile that was on it. He smiled himself, feeling touched that the girl wasn't messing around, and looking away a bit, feeling embarrassed.

When her smile became happier, he felt a lot better knowing that he didn't upset her. "That's good!" She said cheerfully. The light blue chao fairy cooed at him. The wolf turned and saw it holding a red ball and reaching it out towards him. The boy held out his hands to have it be dropped into his hand and have the cute creature tug on his wrist. "Looks like Cheese wants you to play ball with us." The rabbit proclaimed. He looked at her, dumbfounded, while she only giggled. "Do you wanna play with us?" She asked, politely.

He was shocked to even be asked. Not once had it happened to him; he'd always ask kids his age, but they'd only ignore him, label him, or say yes so they could joke about the scar on his face, later. This time, he was wanted, and he had no suspicion that the girl could even be cruel. He smiled, and nodded, silently. Her smile grew, and the three of them went to play on the grassy field.

Shadow smiled at this. How the girl was so uncaring about most of the people around her, he was so confused by, but the trait was a good one, seeing as how she could accept those the crowd neglected. Shadow found it to be the unique thing in every person, and very few people had the ability to even try. "Almost makes ya wanna change, doesn't it?" A smooth, gravely, feminine voice asked him.

The ebony turned his head with a glare coming out of his eyes, but his eyes soon calmed, and the scowl that nearly formed turned back into a small smile. Here stood a female, around the same age as he (physically), with night blue fur, and her eyes were golden. Her outfit consisted of black trip pants and boots, along with a gray dress shirt, which left her shoulders bare, and her upper arms only covered about a third of the way. Their was a necklace around her neck, which had a thick, silver chain, and a dark purple stone hanging off it.

He chuckled, relaxing his muscles and shaking his head. "I didn't think I'd be seeing you so soon, Malice!" He started off. The girl called malice but only snickered. "I'm gonna guess wolfy's Grazerix, huh?" Shadow more stated than asked, but he still hinted some curiosity. He felt no discomfort talking to the girl, especially socially.

She gave him a strict look that easily challenged the one he had given his comrades, numerous times. "His name is Graze, now, Shadow! He hates his real name, and to be honest, so do I." She briefly explained. "But if you must know, yes, it is." She answered his question, calmly, before he could come up with a smug remark; those discussions always dragged on, and they'd always lose the topic whenever it happened.

Shadow only shrugged. "Just a question, Mali; if he had a problem with the name, I'd understand." He assured her, smirking of amusement out of her reaction. Shadow knew full well that she was protective of the canine's well being, but he would pull out a tease here and there in order to ensure some enjoyment whenever they spoke.

She shook her head. "He's been called that more than his full name, so he saw no point in keeping his name as it was; last name's shortened, now, too! Although, I highly doubt it's of importance, right now." She pressed on, acting serious, and giving him expectant eyes. She had to tell him up front; only way you could really get all of the information you want out of him; that and the fact she preferred seeing him in person.

He only let out one of his famous 'Hns', before leading the female to a bench, where they watched the three children play with the bouncy ball, looking like responsible people compared to the mindless humans who were looking away from their children. "Let me guess, you wanna know what I've got on recent activity of our APG's, right?" He questioned her. Malice nodded at this fact. The ebony sighed, staring out at Cream, Cheese and Graze, his eyes seeming to be distant and disappointed. "I hate to say it, but not much! We have shortened down the perimeter of where they came from, but it's only by a few acres, and we were able to cure everyone, thankfully, without any of them dying; infants and children included." She smiled at this. "But, like the rest of them, none of them seem to have any memory of what happened, or who did it to them; couldn't even remember where the scars and unhealed injuries came from, or the voice or appearance of their aggressors; except for this one kid, but he's younger than Cream, and was saved only recently, so asking him will be a bit of a problem." He informed her. She nodded, closing her eyes as her head went down.

While the two talked, the children laughed and played, still. Cream and Cheese laughed and giggled while playing with the older boy; finding pure happiness. Graze, as he was called, chuckled every now and then, but found himself slightly embarrassed. He loved playing like this, sure, but he felt so odd doing so in front of Malice, and now, more particularly, Shadow. He was having fun, but he didn't want them to think less of him.

"So, what's your name?" The young rabbit asked suddenly, as she suddenly stopped running around, keeping the ball in her hand, and dragging the wolf away from his thoughts, and major insecurities of humiliation. The boy just looked at her in question, as if completely missing the simple words that escaped her mouth. "My name's Cream!" She introduced, slowly walking up to him, and extending one of her gloved hands.

It was only then that he caught what she had asked him, and smiled at her sweetly. She was definitely different from the others, but he wasn't complaining! The girl was being kind, gentle, and sincere before even thinking of judging him; getting to know him, and getting passed his disfigured face; and by all means, trying to be his friend. So, without a second thought, he shook her hand. "I'm Graze, Graze Dek!" He introduced himself, his voice soft and smooth.

Cream's smile only grew as she stared at the male, while his eyes softened, feeling happy for the first time in a long while. With going to school, and moving in, he wasn't exactly given any smiles, let alone get looked at for more than ten seconds until he noticed the person staring at him.

"Graze!" Malice called, her voice melancholic. The wolf turned back and saw a dark and serious face that sent a shiver up his spine; Malice was obviously not happy about something, and judging by the look on the other hedgehog's face, he figured it had to do with what Shadow told her. "It's time to go!" She stated, turning to leave, and walking off.

The wolf waved a quick goodbye to Cream, Cheese, and Shadow, before racing ahead, towards Malice. The rabbit walked up to her babysitter, confused. "Do you know that lady, Mr. Shadow?" She asked him in a sweet voice, practically begging the ebony to tell her the truth. She did this every so often so she could, in some way, keep up with Shadow's personal life, and feel as if she were apart of it.

Shadow, seeing no point in lying to her, leaned forward towards her, his eyes averting towards the two figures that had just walked away from them. "Her name's Malice Grace! She's an acquaintance of mine that I met a few years ago." He admitted to her, standing up, slowly. The rabbit was about to ask more about the woman, but Shadow spoke, first. "If you two want any ice cream, I suggest you keep up, otherwise I'll get it all to myself!" He told them.

And like that, Cream temporarily dropped the subject so that she could keep up with the ebony, and receive one of her favorite treats.

- With Sonic

He couldn't breath.

He was focusing on it, but it was still aggravatingly hard.

As of this day, Sonic was trapped in the clutches of Amy, being forced to go to a double date with her, one of her old friends from her hometown, and his girlfriend. Now, Sonic didn't mind going to meet new people, and if there was another person there, he at least felt a bit more comfortable going somewhere with Amy, but, quite sadly, the pink hedgehog wasn't taking any chances of him running off, and was clinging to his neck to make sure he didn't try to leave; strangling him in the process.

If that weren't bad enough, he figured out that the restaurant they were going to was a high end romance cafe that he was certain would make him gag. He was also very certain that he'd be caught in the middle of a triangle of romance fans, leaving everything uncomfortable, and him wanting to leave even more, no matter what Amy challenged him with.

They arrived after what seemed like an eternity of no air to Sonic. The cafe was a whole bunch of reds, pinks, whites, and purples with hearts, doves, rose petals, candles, and every other lovey-dovey thing that a girl could imagine. It was so rich in the topic, Sonic was already mentally groaning; not doing it aloud due to the lack of oxygen.

Outside the store was the couple whom Amy had spoken of earlier that morning when she dragged the hedgehog out the door. "Hey Lance!" She called. Sonic, somehow still conscious, made out his appearance. He was another hedgehog, with fur and quills that were green, but consisted more of a spring green than the emerald that the other male had. His eyes were a puce color, and his muzzle seemed to be a bit more tan than his. He currently wore designer dress shoes, with a pair of white, flared pants, and a tight black tank top with a brown, leather jacket over it.

The male turned towards her, seeming slightly surprised before smiling fully. "Amelia! So good to see you!" He proclaimed, shaking her free hand. He looked at Sonic for a few brief moments before meeting her gaze. "So this is Sonic! I'm almost jealous, Amelia, he actually looks better than me!" He added afterwords. Amy laughed at the compliment alongside him while Sonic continued to try and free himself.

Lance brought forward the female with him. "This is my girlfriend; my beautiful Excel, but I get to call her Exy!" He introduced for the female, smiling. Said hedgehog with the white fur, a peach muzzle, and maroon eyes was slumped over with her arms crossed, hoping that no one else there knew her well enough to laugh. She was wearing a salmon colored mini-skirt, black ankle boots, and a yellow camisole, with a few gold bracelets around her wrists, looking completely embarrassed.

"I know that look way too well; I feel sorry for her!" Sonic thought, darkness beginning to cloud his eyes. He never thought the term 'hugging to death' could ever be literal, but he soon found out in a matter of seconds.

"Hey, are your alright?" A voice asked him, but it was too late to stop him from knocking out, completely...

- With Tails

The two-tailed fox was currently working on a new design for a project. He imagined that the new plane would do much better than Tornado X, but was still having some schematic issues, along with technological difficulties. It was rather hard to keep up with it all, and he thought he could manage on his own, but from the smoke alarm going off a few weeks beforehand, Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, and Rouge all agreed that unless someone was down there with him, he shouldn't be working. Which is why he got an assistant to help him...

He had to admit it, though; he didn't think he'd find someone his age who was willing to help; a three-tailed fox with light brown fur, and orange eyes, who wore a sky blue tank top, with a pair of jeans, and black sneakers. She was currently helping him work on one of the wings, completely astounded that the fox had developed such advancements, and claiming she had been trying for a few years. The vixen was given a room under his roof, food on his table, and research knowledge, in exchange for her assistance and possible aid should something break; unlikely, but he still needed the hand.

"How are you doing, Laura; everything alright?" He asked her, happily. Honestly, things were boring with no one to talk to, and even when Sonic came to see him, he'd eventually get bored and either leave, or fall asleep out of feeling guilty if he should leave the fox while he was working on an experiment that seemed important, but was unproductive. With her here, he felt more preoccupied, and more focused than usual.

The female looked up at him, smiling to show equal enjoyment. "It's going great, and it appears as though the rockets can fit; I just wish I knew the proper wiring." She admitted, scratching her head, and staring at the interior of only a portion of the new wing; wires of different colors out in many directions just waiting to be put into the proper setting.

Tails chuckled at this. He always found it hysterical when she was lost on something he found so simple. "It's not called trial and error for nothing; when you make something yourself, you need to find the settings yourself; no instruction manual to help with that!" He told her, truthfully. That's when she laughed with him.

The vixen found herself enjoying the topic. Although, in truth, she wasn't as into planes as the fox with her, she found all the knowledge he had fascinating, and payed attention with intent on learning as much as possible. She knew a lot, for the most part, and wasn't a rather big fan of trial and error, simply because she feared easily of something going wrong. And with planes, that's not exactly the best situation...

"I understand!" She said to him, giving him a half smile. The male patted her back, giving her a reassuring smile as if to tell her not to worry. With a small sigh, she returned to work as Tails continued to lecture her on wiring rocket boosters. Each piece of information stored within her mind as he continued to expand her knowledge of them.

sry it took awhile! hope u enjoyed!

~ K. Fang-sama