The basic rule of all magic stems from one thing: the concept of Faith. In order to understand magic, you must be able to believe in it, pure and simple.
From thereon out, pure willpower and the elements around you are what bring out the best in Magic. The problem with magic is that you can only do so much with it and only if you follow it's rules. Life Magic is the most sacred of all, and for those who are not "chosen" to be given free rein over it, the consequences for attempting it...
Can leave eternal scars.
Episode One:
Sonic and Miles: Destiny Calls!
ソニックとマイル: 運命を呼び出し！
The thing was not even remotely human. It was not an animal. It was not a "person". At least...it didn't LOOK like one. What you saw was what you got...this was a machine. Looking at it, you thought "chicken". Its body was short and round, its head not much more than a flat panel on top. It had two moveable "eyes" that were more like camera lens, with a small laser situated on it's head. It's entire chest was painted red, and there was a headlight situated to the left of it's body. It's right arm was built up of hydraulic sections which formed a three-digited hand, and the other arm held a plasma cannon with a long, thick blue shaft.
And, like I said, you thought "chicken" because it's long, black legs bended backwards like a bird, with long black feet that had wheels on the back. It was clunky, had skinny legs...and, to top it off, at one point it had been a small bird...a GIRL bird of the "Flicky" type.
And now it had a new purpose in life. It sat within an alley at Central City as the last of it's denizens went to sleep. There were no more windows alit, only streetlamps and some traffic lights. The sky was oddly clear...peaceful, even. And a gentle, calming wind blew. But Gamma...the being that had once been a Flicky, felt it not. It could feel nothing anymore.
"It would be best to get this over with." It spoke in a voice that had a decidedly metal ring to it and was no longer remotely feminine. It held up it's hand, and a light blue ring sparkled, situated around it's wrist. "There is no more time I can waste. Eggman is wrong. Eggman must be destroyed."
It looked down the alley, gazing for a moment at the highway far off in the distance. Then it slammed it's hand into the ground, the light blue ring around it's wrist shining in the night.
"Gamma?" Shadow inquired, frowning slightly.
"Yes, the Flicky once named Nina has snuck into Central City." Dr. Eggman said, whacking a pointer stick at a large map of the city, pointing near the Library. "He was seen last at Central Library, but we think he KNOWS he was seen. Point is, he's going to make his move, whatever it is, quite soon. Shadow the Hedgehog, I am putting you in charge of capturing him."
"I'm honored, sir!" Shadow said, nodding his head.
"I'm sure you'll do perfectly, as always." Dr. Eggman told Shadow the Hedgehog, nodding his head firmly, his moustache bouncing. "By the way, the cocky one is here in Central City too. He WAS going to take the train, but apparently, all of THIS..." The dictatorial ruler of the Eggman Autocracy gestured at the map and the picture of Gamma which was clipped to the wall. "Made him change his mind."
"...the cocky one? You mean..." Shadow's eyes narrowed slightly, a small smile spreading.
"Yes. Sonic the Hedgehog, the State Metallurgist. The Blue Blur himself." Eggman agreed.
"Man, this stinks. We'd already bought our tickets to Knothole and now we have to buy all new ones cuz this jerk's makin' us miss the train." Sonic told his brother, Miles.
"Well, I guess it can't be helped." Miles said as they sat atop the roof of the library, looking down through the glass at the enormous T-Rex skeleton that was kept in the floor far, far below. "Let's just get going." He told his brother, looking down at his hands.
Even though an illusionary spell was set in place thanks to the rings on the fox's wrists and legs, there was still something clearly "wrong" to him. Looking at Miles, you had the faint feeling that you were seeing nothing more than an image on a screen, that if you turned your head, he'd turn into some monster. His form seemed to be a mirage.
"Fine by me." Sonic said, cracking his knuckles. "It's time to show them what Sonic the Hedgehog's capable of!"
...
...
...
... "There he goes!" Some guards yelled, chasing after Gamma as the robot raced through an alley. They stood in his way, holding up rifles. "Don't come any closer, or we'll shoot!" The wombats demanded.
"Hmm." Gamma muttered, holding his hand up. The icy blue ring atop his wrist twinkled and two huge trails of icicles raced out from his arms, knocking the wombats through the air. Gamma rushed out of the alley, turning and heading down the street into another alley, trying to-
"HOLD!" ANOTHER wombat guard. He had a gun right in Gamma's face, but Gamma grabbed ahold of the man's arm with his "normal" hand, and the icy blue ring around his wrist sparkled. The wombat gasped in horror as ice spread from his hand to his arm, and his partner gaped in fear, dropping the gun and falling on his butt in terror. He watched as his partner was turned into a popsicle...
And Gamma then cracked the man's arm off, making the rest of him fall down and shatter into a thousand pieces.
"No...no, please..." The other guard begged as Gamma's held up his blaster, the blue muzzle placing itself within his mouth. Gamma pulled the trigger as burning, boiling water filled the wombat's lungs...
There was a horrid, sizzling, popping sound and the wombat fell to the ground, now a darkened sort of fleshy husk, looking like popcorn that had been left too long in the microwave. "Boiling AND freezing. The harsher techniques of water. And I HATE water." A young voice called out.
"Know your enemy." Gamma remarked, watching calmly as a person stepped out of the shadows nearby to face him. "What I am doing is harsh. But one must be harsh and cruel sometimes to accomplish great things. That is how you change the world."
"Like HELL it is!" Sonic growled, his body suddenly glowing bright yellow, a red tint coming to his eyes. Gamma blinked.
"You didn't even make a ring design to create a transformation..."
"You don't have time to stop and admire!" A voice called from behind Gamma. Gamma barely dodged in time to avoid two tails which almost sliced his head clean off. He jumped backwards, spinning through the air, then landing deftly and holding up his blaster at the two, looking them over.
"...I can see through the illusion." He said, looking Tails over. "Your trick doesn't fool me. But that transformation...hmm. Could it be...YOU'RE Sonic the Hedgehog?" Gamma asked, turning to look at the teenage hedgehog.
"You got it in one, pal." Sonic said, nodding firmly as he and Tails stood together in battle positions.
"I'm his younger brother, Miles."
"...this blue RAT is the famous "Blue Blur" I've been hearing so much about? I thought you'd be...taller...stronger..." Gamma remarked, looking a bit unimpressed.
"OY!" Sonic snapped.
WHACKA-WHACKA-WHACKA! He delivered a series of harsh, supersonic punches to Gamma's face, knocking the robot through the air. Tails then caught him, and quickly slapped a pair of handcuffs on him from a pouch on the belt he wore. "Ugh." Gamma muttered. "To think YOU'RE the one they always talk about."
As it was, the guards were soon quick to show up. One of them bowed his head deeply as Sonic stood by Miles, the others leading Gamma away. "Thank you once again, great Metallurgist." He told Sonic.
"Hey, no sweat." Sonic insisted, grinning broadly. "It's what I do."
"...what smells like wet dog?" The guard asked.
"The whole ALLEY smells like wet dog." Miles told the wombat as the guards let Gamma out of the alley towards a large "Brinks-style" security car. "People need to work on cleaning the sewers, it's flooding out of the drains and into the alleys."
"...indeed. Hardly very PLEASANT means by which to escape...but still..." Gamma thought to himself.
If he could have, he would have grinned. He suddenly fell over and his hand grabbed ahold of the dirty sewer water pooling out from the nearby drain.
SCHA-FSSSSHHHH!
Steam filled the air and everyone began coughing madly. "CRAP! He's smart. REAL smart." Sonic muttered.
"I can't see him! Where'd he go?" One of the guards yelled out.
Eventually, the steam faded away. But when it did...
Gamma was gone. Miles folded his arms. "Shadow's gonna rub this in our faces, isn't he?"
...
...
...
... "You really, really underestimated him, didn't you?" Shadow asked, rubbing it in their faces as Sonic scowled.
"Okay, okay, I'm...SORRY." Sonic muttered out
"You shoulda been more careful. Anyhow, how much do you honestly know about this "Gamma"?" Shadow wanted Sonic and Miles to know as they sat in his office, with Rouge standing nearby.
"Only his name, really." Sonic told him.
Shadow held up a folder and tossed it to Sonic, who caught it in one hand and looked through the pictures of a Flicky who was working with several others alongside Metallurgists. "She was a former State Metallurgist until went AWOL and turned herself into THIS."
"Why would she do that?" Miles remarked, frowning slightly.
"Search me." Shadow told him before going on. "She took part in the Shanazaran Extermination Campaign. But then...after the war...she vanished. Furthermore, Nina, as she used to be called, began to send threatening messages to Central...usually with the heads of those sent to capture her...him...ugh." Shadow threw his hands in the air and walked over to a nearby window, placing his hands behind his back as he sighed.
"...we might have to kill him, huh?" Sonic asked quietly.
"Yes." Shadow admitted.
"I don't want to kill anyone." Sonic remarked.
"Suit yourself. All we care about is your performance." Shadow commented. "And by the way...heard any leads on how to get your bodies back?" He asked, a flicker of a smile passing over his face.
"OY!" Sonic snapped angrily. "I see that smirk, you faker!"
"What up?" A voice called out, opening the door. They turned to see an armadillo with a red shell and a pair of blue eyes walk in. "So where are the famous brothers I've been hearin'-AH." He turned to look at the teenagers. "You must be them. Hi." Mighty shook Miles's hand. "Miles Prower, correct? And the shorty over there must be y'all brother? He's the youngest Metallurgist in State History!"
Sonic growled angrily, then grinned proudly, feeling both honored AND insulted.
"Anyhow, you guys ain't got no place to stay, right? Luckily for you...I've got a place you can hang 'round." The armadillo told them, eyes glinting. His hand shot back behind his body, digging into something hidden in his shell and they gasped...
Then he pulled out a small picture of a pretty little armadillo and a very lovely looking female armadillo. "My wife, Willie Mae and my daughter, Dee Milo. Ain't they the cutest?" He asked happily, blushing with pride.
"Uh..."
FIVE MINUTES LATER...
"Ohhh, you just the cutest little thing I ever, every time I see you wanna just pick you up and SQUEEEEEZE ya!" Mighty said, hugging his daughter close to him.
"Daddy, careful, you're huggin' too tight." His 6-year-old daughter laughed, nuzzling his head as he hugged her. Sonic let out a long, deep sigh and Miles's face scrunched up slightly.
"These are our guests, Sonic the Hedgehog and Miles Prower." Mighty said, letting go of his daughter and introducing them to his wife, who took the sunglasses off her nose and shook their hands eagerly.
"Very nice to meet you." She said in a very cultured tone.
"Wow, you're so blue." The little one told Sonic. "...but wait." She looked Miles over. "How can you two be brothers?"
"Well, see, when a daddy and a mommy love each other very much-"
Miles slapped a hand over Sonic's mouth as Mighty shouted. "OKAY, I'M HUNGRY, LET'S EAT!" very loudly.
And dinner...well...
"...chiiiiliiiii..." Sonic whispered, eyes widening and growing starry as he looked down at the chili before him.
"This is my wife's special recipe." Mighty told Sonic as they sat around a table. There were several large cupboards with ornate-looking cups and china behind Mighty, and paintings of the family tree hanging on the wall. "You should come 'round on Mardi Gras. The gumbo is fantastic."
"Some paprika, a couple hits of Tabasco sauce and a bit of heart makes it the bee's knees." Willie Mae told Sonic as he eagerly dug into the Chili, with Miles sitting nearby.
"C'mon, eat up." Mighty told Miles, grinning. "It's delish."
"I'd like to, but..." The fox gulped slightly, looking embarrassed. "See, I'm in the middle of a strict training regiement and I don't want to ruin it by eating when I'm not supposed to be eating. I'm to cut out several meals a week and do lots of sit ups and the like."
"Too bad, it's DELICOUS." Sonic admitted.
"..." Miles hung his head, groaning deeply.
...
...
...
... "Heh-heh-heh. That's funny."
"What's funny about it?" Gamma inquired, eyes narrowing slightly as he looked into the dark and lonely cell of an all-too-familiar face. He folded his arms, almost frowning.
"The two of us team up? You, Nina of the Freezing Winds...and me, the Dynamite himself? I think that's really funny."
"...believe me...I'd rather not be asking you. I find you...distasteful, Bean." Gamma told the green-feathered duck. Bean the Dynamite had rings around his gloves too, but his hands were encased in metal "holds" that didn't allow for much breathing. His legs were kept apart and the tuft of green feathers atop his head was hanging limply as he looked Gamma over. The guards looking after Bean had been frozen alive...nobody could stop the two from leaving. Bean had sky blue eyes and a red scarf around his neck, and those eyes stared deep into Gamma.
"We'll destroy Eggman and make this autocracy crumble." Gamma offered.
"You must have seen the Hell that took place in Shanazar. You KNOW what Eggman made us all do. That's why you killed your fellow officers at the end of the campaign, correct?"
"...heh...heh-heh...HAHAHAHAHA!" Bean began to laugh maniacally. "DON'T misunderstand me, please! I ain't no sophisticated laureate of knowledge. I just WANTED them to die. That's all."
"...that's too bad. Really...too...bad." Gamma spoke softly, leaving the room and knocking over the frozen-alive guard that was placed near Bean's cell, locking the door behind him. One single guard was still left, pointing a gun at him, eyes wide with fear.
"...well. You escaped when the others didn't? Not bad." Gamma admitted. "I'll reward you with a swift end." He promised, hand snapping forward and grabbing the guard's neck.
A snap echoed through the air and Bean began to laugh...and laugh...and laugh.
...
...
...
... "Hello?"
"What's wrong, honey? Why can't you sleep?" Willie Mae asked her husband as she walked into the living room. Mighty was sitting alone by a lamp. "Lemme guess. It's about those two?"
"...State Metallurgists are called the lowest of low." Mighty commented quietly. "To think they'd take on that label at such a young age..." He sighed and smiled slightly. "They've got balls." He told his wife as she sat next to him, snuggling up to him.
"Brother? You awake?" Miles asked.
"Yep." Sonic said as he looked up from the blue-sheeted bed he was in, seeing his brother sit on the bed nearby.
"Was Willie Mae's chili really good?"
"Deeeelish." Sonic agreed.
"I'll add it to the list of things I'll want to eat when I get my old body back, then!" Miles said, pulling out a small notepad from his belt and writing furiously upon it.
"Yeah, good idea."
"...you know...I really wanna get our old bodies back soon." Miles murmured quietly.
"...I know." Sonic muttered, looking out the window at the moon as it hung low in the night sky.
Meanwhile, Gamma placed his hand upon the ground, his ringed wrist glowing. An icy blue seal suddenly shone the ground and he nodded firmly.
"One more...one more and Eggman is sent to the lowest pit of Cocytus with all the other traitors." Gamma murmured.
...
...
...
... "Listen well and good." Shadow said as he walked down the hallways of Central City's High Command Center, past large, open windows on his left and pictures of the various high-ranking officers to his right. His brow was furrowed in thought, his stride filled with a purpose. "Gamma snuck into Central last night. It's absolutely essential we find him and NOW. Close of all the roads. Look in every spot. And if you see him...shoot him dead. That's an order from Lord Eggman himself." Shadow told Rouge to relay to the other heads of the platoons at Central.
"And you?" She asked.
Shadow held up his hands and clenched them into fists, and the red rings on his wrists glowed brightly. "I'm goin' after him too." He whispered.
"MAN DOWN!" A guard yelled out.
"There's FIVE men down. All dead." Another sighed sadly as the medics examined the horribly slaughtered bodies of five guards.
"How awful to die in a steam explosion." Miles murmured as he stood by his brother in the street.
"He raised the temperature of the water in their body so high they shriveled up like prunes. And since our bodies are 70% water..."
"Let's keep looking." Miles said, and they headed down the street.
Gamma was hiding in another alley, hand raised up, about to place another seal. Suddenly he heard a sparkling, crackling sound and jumped to the side, barely dodging an attack.
"You dodged. I'm impressed. And I don't impress easily." A voice told him.
"...that tone. That voice. Knuckles?" Gamma inquired, stepping back as a figure emerged from out of the shadows, holding his fist up.
There stood before the robot a red echidna with dreadlocks that hung down low and thick. He had deep, purple eyes and wore red sneakers with yellow and green markings on them, with a v-shaped patch of white fur on his chest. He had a pair of white gloves on his hands with brown and grey rings wrapped around his wrists, symbols of Loyalty and Fortitude, and he slammed his fists together, showing off sharp, spiked knuckles that were part of the gloves he wore.
"Correct." Knuckles said. "It IS I, Knuckles the Echidna, proud guardian of the law, the Stone Fist Metallurgist!"
"Can't you pronounce "Law" in a fashion that DOESN'T sound like the right side of your jaw is welded shut?" Gamma muttered as he held up his blaster and fired off an icicle at Knuckles, who ducked his head to the side, avoiding it.
"Hmm. Not bad...but high-pressure water can cut through ANYTHING!" Gamma told him, his blue ring blazing. He flung his arm out and water surged forward at high speed, roaring like an ocean wave.
"It's powerless before my FISTS!" Knuckles roared out, holding his fist up as it glowed brightly with explosive energy.
SCHA-THWOOOOMBAH!
The water was sent spiraling all through the air, and Miles and Sonic saw splashes of it erupt from out of the alley along with an enormous cloud of dust. They raced into the alley, blocking off Gamma from getting out that way. "Oh! Knuckles!" Sonic called out.
"Hello, Sonic." Knuckles said amiably.
"You again?" Gamma asked, slightly annoyed. He suddenly whipped around, tossing a canister from his blaster through the air, and his blue ring flashed. The water coming out of the can turned into red-hot steam, and Miles quickly jumped forward, holding his ringed arms up.
"HAH!" He called out, whipping around and making his tails spiral around and around. The steam was blasted straight up, keeping it from hitting them, but Gamma rushed by them in the confusion.
"Thanks for the save, Miles!" Sonic told his brother as the two of them raced after Gamma with Knuckles. But they lost him once again within the city...and night was soon falling...
...
...
...
... "It's been a long time, hasn't it...Nina?" A voice spoke up as Gamma turned around after looking over the city from a rooftop. "I'm impressed you've managed to hide from us so long. No more."
"...Shadow the Hedgehog. The Burning Metallurgist." Gamma spoke, looking Shadow over as he stood near the edge of the warehouse he'd taken shelter at, with guards on either side of shadow, heavy pulse rifles aimed at the robot.
"It's too bad having to fight against a once noble warrior." Shadow said. "You defended our platoons bravely in the desert campaign."
"Don't play the War Buddy card." Gamma mumbled. "...I have no more "friends". Only regrets. There were only innocents and the monstrous dogs of the military that SLAUGHTERED them in that war!" Gamma hissed.
Shadow snapped his fingers and a burning, fiery blast shot forward. Gamma gasped, then jumped up. The blast instead struck...
A water pipe...at the top of the warehouse. Gamma grinned and clapped his hands. Instantly water shot out from the pipe that wound itself around the roof, rising into the air and soaking Shadow and the guards as a look of deep depression/fury covered the black hedgehog's face.
"Water beats fire." Gamma said calmly, racing along the roof. "So long!" He laughed, racing along an icy bridge to another roof, then leaping down into a dark alley.
He slunk through the alleys, reaching the spot he'd been at before, holding his hand up to put down another seal when-
"That's enough." Sonic called out sharply. Gamma turned his head to see the blue hedgehog standing there, eyes filled with conviction. "What're you up to, hanging around in these alleys?"
"And don't think about runnin'." Miles said, appearing at the other end of the alley. "There's no escaping us both! You've got no more canisters to throw."
"Heh-heh-heh." Gamma's laughter was fake and mechanical, a pathetic imitation of a happy act, which made it all the more terrifying. "I do not need...to escape." He told them. "...watch." He explained calmly. He slammed his fist down into the ground.
SHA-BOOOM. A burning, icy blue/white shot of light erupted up from the seal he formed in the ground, and dozens of other shots of light began to rise up into the air across the city.
"Oh no." Sonic gasped. "It's one big magic seal, set all around the city..."
"Impossible..." Miles whispered.
"Is he trying to create a-" Sonic began.
"Sonic!" Gamma spoke up firmly as the area around them began to become frosted over with ice and snow. "You took up the mantle of being a "Military Grunt", you who became a State Metallurgist at such a young age. Little one, don't you understand the horror that you serve?" He asked angrily, and Sonic could see pain and hurt behind those lenses, a deep sorrow and horrible rage that needed to be expressed.
"...what are you talking about?" Sonic asked quietly, head lowered, voice becoming almost a whisper.
"Don't you know what this country is trying to do?"
"Who cares?"
"YOU should! If you did, you'd support what I'm trying to do!" Gamma growled.
"SHUT UP!" Sonic roared angrily, shaking his fists, and suddenly Miles shot forward, kicking Gamma out of the alley and over Sonic's head. The two of them raced forward as people looked at the two Metallurgists facing down the robot. "Now start talking! I want to know how you're doing all this!"
"There's no use in me telling you." Gamma spoke, voice becoming dead, taking on a terrifying new tone. "...you will not be alive much longer." He held his hand up and to the side, and before their eyes enormous ice structures began to rise up through the roads of central from the pipe system below, taking Gamma up into the sky.
"I've got this!" Knuckles roared out. "Behold!" He cried, clenching his fists tightly. "The powerful arts of the Knuckles clan!"
His fist glowed bright white and he slammed it into the front of the oncoming icicle storm, stopping it. "HA-HA!" He laughed as a huge sprays of ice went flying everywhere, the assault halted.
Then it turned, going to the left. "What the?!" He exclaimed.
"Nice goin', KNUCKLEHEAD!!!" Sonic roared angrily. "You just made it switch directions!"
"Watch it, blue britches!" Knuckles snapped back, shaking his fist at Sonic as the enormous iciles shot through the city, tearing through dozens of roads and buildings, the cries of the wounded and dying filling the air.
"The ice walls are all connecting..."
"He's...oh my God...he's freezing everything over!" Miles realized. "Knuckles, those bolts of light that are shooting into the sky...you've got to destroy the seals below them!"
"And we'll go after the head honcho himself." Sonic said, jabbing his thumb at his chest.
"You got it." Knuckles told them, slamming his fist into his chest and running off as they headed in the direction Gamma had gone.
Gamma rode atop a large ice wall, looking firm and resolute as he folded his arms. "Dr. Eggman...you will be buried in a prison of deepest ice for all Eternity!" He roared out.
"You've gone far enough!" Sonic roared.
Gamma turned his head to see Sonic was being carried into the air by Miles, who's tails were spiraling around rapidly above his head, allowing him to fly. They whizzed through the air, landing atop the icy wave that Gamma was riding and stood there, looking at the robot.
"Back off!" Gamma snarled, holding his fists up as Sonic stood there. Then he noticed the rings on Sonic's legs. REALLY noticed them.
"...wait a minute. Rings on your legs...AND wrists?...and your brother's form...I see." Gamma's tone became almost diabolical. "You committed the unpardonable sin! You tried to perform Life Magic, didn't you? Was it "Bios"? Or maybe you tried to go for "Zoe" itself?" Gamma wanted to know as Sonic's green eyes turned to slits.
"You have no idea...the pain we went through..." Sonic muttered, clenching his fists. "Yes, we did commit a sin...but you...you've taken your first step into HELL!" He roared.
He suddenly shot forward, his body briefly glowing yellow and before Gamma could strike him, his blaster arm was struck...ripped in half. Then he was suddenly kicked off the icy flow and tumbled down, hitting the ground and moaning in pain. He desperately staggered to his feet, looking at his ripped-off arm...and saw his other wrist...now had a cracked ring.
"You have no idea...what this country...is up to..." Gamma murmured.
"You can't do magic anymore." Sonic told him, eyes narrowing. "One ring's ripped off, the other cracked through."
"There's not much magic left, I admit...and no sources nearby." Gamma whispered darkly. "...save for the fact...that my body...needs some OIL to run!"
Gamma's hand ripped into his chest and he suddenly ripped it open slightly as a harsh spike of oily, reddish liquid rushed forward, and Sonic was struck in the shoulder. Miles pulled him away as Gamma ran off into an alley, oil dripping down from his body as he staggered off.
Meanwhile, Shadow approached one of the icy walls that was blocking a path to one of the seals as Rouge stepped away from him, having finished drying off his gloves with a hair-dryer. He snapped his fingers and an enormous burning blast of fire obliterated the icy wall. "Don't you underestimate my ultimate power!" He howled into the air.
"That's much better." Rouge said. "Now you can go back to only being useless on rainy days." She said cheerfully, making a small "tic" mark appear on Shadow's head.
Gamma stumbled through the alley as his life slowly drained away from him. But then...he saw HIM in his path.
"...Eggmaaaan..." Gamma murmured hatefully, eyes narrowing. "If I have to go to Hell for this, so be it...but I won't...die...until...YOU'RE dead." He snarled. "I don't care! I...DON'T..."
He held his fist up as the last vestiges of oil swirled around his hand and formed an enormous, dripping lance. "CAAAAARE!" He screamed, rushing forward at full speed as Eggman calmly lowered his goggles over his eyes.
SCWHIP.
Gamma blinked, standing still for a moment...and then his eyes turned dull, his body becoming totally grey as his form hit the ground. For a brief instant, the faint, final chirp of a bird was heard, and then...silence. Eggman calmly lowered the metal glove he wore, placing it back in his pocket and adjusting his goggles to the top of his head once again.
"Now!" Shadow called out, stepping to the side, allowing the last of the seals to be exposed.
"You got it!" Knuckles roared, as the true gift of the Knuckles Clan, the glory that was "The Pink" covered his entire body and he burned fiercely, jumping into the air and slamming his fist into the seal. The ground shattered, the seal obliterated as beautiful white sparkles twirled around the echidna's transformed, now pink-furred body.
And with that...the ice faded away. The darkness that had covered the city...gone.
Somewhere...a pair of dark eyes glinted with satisfaction.
...
...
...
... "Dr. Eggman." Sonic remarked, surprised to see the doctor standing near the corpse of Gamma as guards stood nearby, a sheet placed over the body.
"Glad to see you're alright." The doctor said, nodding his head firmly and smiling benignly. "In fact, both of you did excellent work. I was happy to help you out here. This will make an EXCELLENT story for my son."
The next morning, Shadow sneezed heavily into a kleenex as Mighty stood in the doorway, arms folded over his chest. "Caught a cold, huh? Careful, you'll spread the emo around."
"I do not angst THAT often." Shadow mumbled. "...stupid water magic soaking my fur and getting into my gloves, sonofa-"
"Eggman's the one who brought down Gamma. All Shadow did was help destroy the magic seal." Rogue said, standing by Shadow.
"Yes, but you're the one getting the credit. What, aren'tcha happy?" Mighty asked, rubbing the back of his head.
"...happy is a...strong word." Shadow muttered, sighing slightly.
"How are the brothers doing?" Mighty asked.
Indeed. How WERE they doing? Both were sitting together in the hospital wing, being treated for their wounds.
"Well, we never DID find out if he had a Chaos Emerald on him." Miles remarked, sighing slightly.
"I guess we'll just have to wait for the military to report on their examining of the body?" Sonic wanted to know.
"Yeah, I...wait...do you smell...grapes?" Miles asked, tilting his head to the side slightly.
They turned their heads around to see...Knuckles was there, holding onto a big plate and beaming happily. On the plate...was a buttload of fruit.
"I brought you fruit!" He said. "You should eat more fresh fruit. Does you loads of good! And one day..." He rubbed his chin. "You may acquire a "Pink" as fine as my family line has." He told the two of them.
"...uhhhhhhh..." They both remarked, sweat-dropping as Knuckles put down the fruit on a nearby table.
"I must say, you certainly put those tails of yours to good work." Knuckles added to Miles. "...in fact, I think I'm going to call you that from now on. Tails!" He decided, nodding his head firmly. "It's a good nickname, wouldn't you say?"
"This from a member of a species that are almost all named after body parts..." Sonic thought to himself, sighing. "Actually, considering the subject matter...this is STILL pretty creative for an echidna."
"I like it." Tails said, nodding his head and grinning. "Tails it is!"
"Where will you be headed next?" Knuckles wanted to know.
"We've got a train to catch." Sonic told him, holding up a finger. "Knothole awaits!"
...
...
...
... "So...Nina went and got herself offed, did she?" A voice spoke up, distinctly feminine, it's owner holding onto a phone. "Such a shame...she would have made a good sacrifice. So...what was it you wanted to know about? Oh, the Chaos Emerald we had?"
A response over the phone caused a big smile to spread over her face as she grinned broadly. "Yes, yes, we gave it to him." The woman whispered, nodding her head as thick pink hair fell around her light purple-furred face as a the temperature of the room rose, a figure with piercing green eyes entering the room. "Things are going to get very, very interesting in Knothole..." She informed her other associate as her closer "comrade" stepped near her, sucking on a chunk of meat attached to a bone, licking his scaly lips.
"Very, very soon..."
Well, I'm having a LOT of fun writing this story. Please, feel free to review! It really makes my day knowing people have taken the time to look at my work and enjoy it. And if you have any suggestions as to how I can improve, be sure to tell me, it's the only way I'll learn. Just don't be really nitpicky or a total flamer. That's not helpful to me, nor does it make you look refined.