Adventures Through Emerald Eyes

Chapter 2: Hammer Time!

"Hiii-ya!" Amy yelled, glaring intently into the blood-colored path of her Piko Piko Hammer as it exploded through the side of another heartless foe. Hundreds of jagged, blue-gray fragments filled the air as they flew around the pink hedgehog's head. Red and white tennis shoes hit the ground, as Amy's right-leg went out and her body sank low, sliding across a patch of dirt in an orange cloud of dust. She was dressed in black, spandex shorts and a crimson tank top, along with her trademark golden bracelets and scarlet headband.

The sound of earth-filled rain rang in the sky, as particles of rock and debris came sprinkling down. With her right hand on the club, slung over her shoulder, and the left balancing her body against the land, Amy let out a shallow breath, eyeing up her next sorry victim. She was standing at a clearing in the forest, where the trees gave way to patches of grass and rust-colored clay beneath the view of an ancient volcano. From the volcano's last fury, there remained a deposit of imposing, gray stones, each as big as herself, scattered about in a clustered formation that resembled one of Dr. Eggman's robot hordes.

They made for perfect target practice.

Sucking in a lungful of free air, the pink hedgehog lunged forth, leaping up and tucking her legs in as she front-flipped above another rock and brought her weapon down with both hands. A ghostly-white light burst from the impact, and the ground trembled with thunder, as the boulder ruptured into oblivion, causing several dead trees nearby to topple over in fright. Jumping onto her left foot, Amy took the hammer in her right hand and twirled about, crashing through yet another stone on her right flank.

She peered with emerald eyes through the fog of destruction, breathing heavily, as she kept the Piko Piko Hammer slanted across the front part of her body. Through the dust, she could see a cluster of three more doomed rocks, and the pink hedgehog charged at them, holding the weapon out like a spear and using it as a battering-ram to thrust through her center target with ferocious precision. With a quick snap of her wrist, she brought the mystical club up, then down, then up and down again, simultaneously obliterating the remaining stones on either side of herself in rapid succession.

In a move to escape the thick clouds in front, the pink hedgehog threw herself up once more, leaping backwards this time, into another flip that hurled her body several feet behind the carnage.

Amy raked the hammer across the ground as she landed and slid back, grinding herself to a halt as bits of dirt shot past. Her shoulders rose and fell steadily, as she watched a plume of charcoal-colored smoke slinking high into the blue sky, aware that her own heartbeats were becoming louder than the sound of falling debris. "This is...tougher than I thought," her mind uttered, "but then again...I've gotta' admit that it feels pretty good to get out and move like this on my own free-will instead of at the mercy of Sonic's..." As her head moved side to side, a smile filled her lips. "And just look at the work that I'm doing! Sonic would have to be proud of me if he ever saw that my abilities with my Piko Piko Hammer have increased by this much!" The pink hedgehog's eyes briskly shut as her teeth shone in a full-fledged grin, then snapped open as the expression fell. "Which is why I can't stop now! For him, and for all of the other creatures on this planet," she began, bringing her left fist up to glance at it, "as well as...for myself and my own awesomeness...I will not stop!"

Rising from the ashes, Amy held the weapon low in her right hand and softly spoke, "I will get better." Her eyes snapped to the left, and she whipped the hammer from her right hand and sent it hurtling into another helpless rock. Displaying a slight smirk, she then brought her left palm up and summoned another Piko Piko Hammer into existence, spinning right to launch it at a second boulder on the opposite side of the field. The pink hedgehog lowered her head with a grin as the earthen shards settled down, then spoke slow with a whisper, "Okay, Amy, let's get deadly."

Flicking both wrists, Amy called up two Piko Piko Hammers at once, albeit slightly smaller than the previous ones, into each hand. She then sped towards the edge of the clearing and ran up the trunk of a nearby tree, catapulting herself into a back-flip as she crashed both weapons through another pair of foes and then slammed them together into a third in the middle. The pink hedgehog roared as she threw both arms out and propelled the hammers away at boulders on either side. Summoning forth a replacement duo of weapons, Amy soared high into the air and began to spin, creating a pink-walled cyclone that shot up and curled back down into a cluster of stones.

A series of cataclysmic eruptions quaked throughout the valley, as boulder after boulder thunder-cracked into pieces with each savage encounter from another one of her Piko-induced blasts.

"Whoa, lookout!" a blue hedgehog shouted, jumping to evade a falling tree. His feet could feel the vibrations up ahead as a deafening boom of bomb-like detonations echoed ever louder throughout his mind. In shock, his body was tossed from the ground, and a pressure-wave filled with blinding, white light raced through the forest, sending him crashing onto his back. "What in the world is she doing!?" the blue hedgehog exclaimed, lurching forward as he darted frantically to the edge of the clearing.

The pink hedgehog was lost in a frenzy, thrashing both arms about in madness. She turned and spun, wailing about, crushing rock into shards, into fragments and dust. Though the effort should have been exhausting, her heart pulled her on. "I won't stop!" she coughed, holding both eyes shut behind gritted teeth. "I won't stop! I won't stop! I won't stooop!"It was her time to shine, her time to sparkle! How dare anyone accuse her of being weak and defenseless, and worst of all, 'boring!' She was 'Amy Rose,' and the world would notice her! The pink hedgehog's olive orbs violently flashed open.

"Amyyy!" the blue hedgehog called, standing at the edge of the woods.

Her body instantly went stiff, left hand up, right hand down, each still gripping a hammer, as she stared at her companion with an ever-enlarging sweat-drop at the back of her head. Bits of broken rock continued to rain upon the ground. It was him! He was here! More than that, even, he was here to see her! Amy's knees began to quiver as the counterbalance on her left arm caused the pink hedgehog to tumble forward into the dirt. Dropping the hammers, Amy caught herself and breathed heavily, staring into her shadow as pockets of perspiration dripped forth onto the soil, turning amber into dull brown. Her eyes suddenly blinked and looked right as a pair of familiar red and white tennis shoes blurred into existence at her side.

"Amy," the blue hedgehog spoke.

Her head tilted up to him as she continued to pant. This was the moment for which she had hoped. For once, for what seemed like the first time that the young, rosette little hedgehog could remember, he had been the one to come and seek her out! Okay, so it was true, he had done so before, and had done so with regard to one special occasion in particular that would forever remain in her heart. Each time, however, was a cherished embrace, just to hear his cool voice and look upon his sweet face. Sonic could be anywhere in the world at any time he pleased, but by some miracle, here he was, and they were together again.

"That was...crazy..." he uttered, gazing down at her form. There was a lack of color in his face as his lower jaw sat ajar. Was it true, were his emerald eyes deceiving him, or had the cute, innocent Amy Rose just done what he'd saw?

Amy smiled, remembering part of the reason why she was out there in the first place, and of a collection of times in the past when he'd said that. "Yeah," she replied, closing her eyes briefly as her lips continued to curl, "Well, I guess I just...needed to get that out of my system today...and besides, the rocks can take it!" she said. She hopped up, placing both fists on her hips. "Or not, haha! I guess it's just the price of my abilities getting better, huh?"

"I'll say!" the blue hedgehog replied. His emerald eyes scanned the area, where a few, last, outlying clusters of stones wept over the sea of their fragmented families. The green irises of his stare widened as he spotted the various impact craters and what appeared to be charred patches of ground at the locations where her weapons had struck. "Amy, you really are becoming a force to be reckoned with when you have that hammer!" he said.

Amy's cheeks flushed ruby with warmth. "Don't go soft!...Don't get mushy!...Not yet!" she told herself. Veiling her gaze briskly once more, the pink hedgehog looked away, smiling. "Thank you, Sonic."

"Sure!" he replied, putting both fists on his hips, "I mean every word..."

Amy's eyes grew wide at the sincerity in his voice. "You do!?" her mind squealed. Just yesterday, she would've thrown herself at him for saying such a thing. It was as if he was testing her willpower! Yet, it would all be for nothing, the pink hedgehog knew, if she crumbled in now. Amy cleared her throat, placing both hands behind her back as she rocked on the heels of her shoes and briefly turned away from him to hide her reddening cheeks. "So, Sonic...Umm...What brings you out here?" she smiled.

"You, of course!" Sonic said.

Her orbs flashed with life. "Really!?" she chirped, cupping both hands together under her chin. A million colored hearts of varying sizes were unleashed in the back of her thoughts. "He sought me out! He really, really did! Oh, I could just-...just..." Amy shook her head, swallowing as she turned to him. A wide smile and closed eyes faced her companion as a bead of sweat appeared on her brow. "I-I mean, wow. That's...nice."

"Well, sure!" Sonic beamed, "I mean, it's been a couple'a days since my last visit, and I'm dying for one of your home-cooked meals!" The blue hedgehog smirked, rubbing his stomach with his right hand.

Slumping over, the pink hedgehog sighed, releasing a hot, steady stream of air from her lungs. "Of course...you are..."

"Yeah! Then I read the note that you left on the door saying you'd be out training for awhile, so I figured I'd just...come see if I could find you! ...It really wasn't that hard with all of the commotion you were making," the blue hedgehog added.

Amy stared for a few moments at her indigo-colored companion, then folder both arms with a smirk. "Oh, I see. So you decided to come out here so you could force me to go home and cook for you, huh?"

Blinking vastly, the blue hedgehog took a step back. "What? N-No! I just," he swallowed, "wanted to come see how you were training..."

"Uh, huh," Amy replied, closing her eyes and turning from him.

"And I did!" Sonic went on. A drop of sweat appeared and rolled down the back of his own crown. "And it was awesome, Amy! You...uh...really know how to...put the 'smack' on," he said. His eyes blinked uneasily at the ground as a tingling sensation rattled throughout his body.

"Again, thank you," Amy replied, opening her eyes once more, "Well, I guess I'm all done out here for the day, anyway. So, I guess I could make you something if you want."

"Really!?" Sonic uttered, perking up, "Oh, Amy, that'd be the best. I've had nothing to eat but apples, nuts, berries, and whatever else I could find outside for the past few days!" He turned from her, motioning with his head. "Jump onto my back and let's go!"

You sure did put the 'smack' on, Amy! But will your food impress sonic as much as your hammering did? I guess it already has! Don't give up, girl! I think the blue guy likes you!

xx

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STAY TUNED for Chapter 3: Two for the Ride ...Coming SOON! (Progress updates on my profile!)

- Epic Awaken

"Awaken Your Epic Dreams"