Whoop, I'm back. And I have decided to lift the '1 OC each rule' from the advice of Empireofshadow. Go nuts, honestly. I have received a few cool OCs and can't wait to write more. NOW REMEMBER! If your OC aint in this chapter, don't fret. There was only a little bit of room on the team. The people I have told about their OCs have definitely reserved a spot. Once the next OCs have been introduced we will have three more orientation chapters so you can get used to the characters. The games start as soon as they land on Takihutu.
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Espio, Tails, Shadow and Cream were walking towards the Takihutu studio with a composed and rational expression on each of their faces (except Cream, she looked scared stiff.)
"Huh, I am surprised; I thought all of our orientations were on different days but Rouge said everyone else's was today as well. My hacking must have been wrong, they must have done something to the entrance code, but that wouldn't change the facts, unless…" Tails mumbled.
"Unless you were on the wrong site." Cream chimed, taking all the boys by surprise.
"Yes! That makes perfect sense! Nice job Cream." Cream smiled and flushed at the attention.
Espio, however, was a bit less than enthusiastic about the revelation. "these people are shifty, watch your back guys. This is getting strange."
Soon they had reached one of the studios. The guards at the entrance regarded them all with cold eyes and one of them pulled out a small plastic clipboard.
"names." He asked in a monotone voice.
"Espio" Answered Espio gruffly and he crossed his arms. Tick.
"Shadow" Mumbled the black and crimson hedgehog. Tick.
"Uh, Tails?" The yellow fox piped in a confused tone. Tick. He hadn't been expecting security, maybe they were trying to keep priers out… Or contestants in.
"C-Cream." Cream stuttered and blushed, looking down at her tiny orange suitcase and purse clutched tightly in her gloved hands. The security guard cocked an eyebrow at her nervousness and ticked the box beside her name slowly and deliberately. He eyed her suspiciously as she gulped.
"Can we go in, or are we just going to stand around admiring the scenery?" Shadow growled, crossing his arms across his chest and glaring at the security. They blanched. Nobody ever talked to them like that, they were giants! But in the end they reluctantly stepped aside from the door and let the four pass.
"You can leave your luggage at the gate." A Russian voice boomed, and they obeyed.
"Whew, thanks Mr. Shadow. I was scared for a second there." Cream sighed, giving a grateful glance in Shadow's direction. He nodded in acknowledgement.
Then, they all gasped.
Inside the studio was a big stage, surrounded on all sides by velvet-covered red chairs. The room itself was massive and the chairs reached to every wall, it took the group no time to find that the room wasn't exactly empty.
Cream skipped excitedly to the stage and put her purse down on the corner of the big stage, adamant that with the amount of security nobody would steal it. She twirled in the bright lights, enjoying the feel of the cool air pocket of breeze that was swirling across the timber floors. Another girl was on the stage and Creams stopped spinning, although she was slightly dizzy from the motion and stumbled a bit.
She was a white lion, roughly fourteen or fifteen years old. She was wearing a black sleeveless shirt and a white sleeveless vest over the top that ended at her abs. Cream noticed a hood of black fur from her vest hanging down her neck. She was also wearing 3-quarter black leather pants and her heelless grey boots were kicked out lazily in front of her. She had her long white hair tied back with a grey ribbon and her reddish-pink eyes were fixed curiously on Cream. She was also grasping the frail invitation to Takihutu in her hands and looked nervous, more nervous than Cream. And that was saying something.
"H-hi! I'm Katrina, nice to meet you." She said with a small stutter. She then smiled cutely and extended her hand. Cream shook it and sat down opposite her.
"I'm Cream. So you're going to, huh?" She pipped. Katrina nodded and sighed, resting her tanned muzzle into her hands.
"Yeah, and I'm glad you came. The only other person who was here was some weird girl. But she didn't talk to me." She sighed again. Cream gave her a sympathetic look and rested her hand on Katrina's shoulder. Katrina smiled at her again and got up off the floor.
"Well, no use complaining. The worst possible scenario would probably being hated by everyone, and knowing my luck, that's probably the best outcome." She said sheepishly. Cream looked shocked and one hand flew to her mouth.
"I sure don't hate you, and I'm positive that Mr. Shadow, Mr. Espio and Mr. Tails would do no such thing either." She assured the ivory lion. But Katrina's shoulders sagged and her face didn't look hopeful.
"We'll see… Sometimes I think my father is the only person who cares. Although he is a bit… controlling." She said and nervously rubbed behind her head.
Cream rolled her eyes and snorted. "Katrina, don't even get me started on parents."
With Espio and Tails.
"Espio, calm down"
"Prower I will not calm down. Those were my personal belongings. I had weapons in there. You hear me? WEAPONS! It's bad enough they're dodgy and they've got us detained in this monstrous room with no exits but they also seem to have taken our only salvation as well!" Espio fumed quietly, reminding tails of an active volcano.
"Espio, I'm sure we're fine…" Tails began in a desperate attempt to soothe the angry chameleon.
"FINE! Look around us Tails! They have managed to secure and separate the Sonic Team! Not to mention that girl over there with Cream. She may look harmless but my senses are screaming, I have no doubt she is strong in combat and has a distinctive knowledge about pressure points. Not to mention the other two, I can feel both of them here, so they must be doing a pretty good job at hiding. Why did I agree to this stupid trip?!" Espio whined, he and Tails were sitting on random seats in the huge hall with a clear view of Cream making friends with the strange white lion.
"I'm sure they can't hurt us…" Tails was sweat-dropping now at Espio's twitchy mood.
"Oh, I know they can't hurt us Prower. Think about it, you're meant to be the genius. They have seven good fighters contained in a room. Coincidence? They're trying to capture us!"
"God. You, my friend, need to chill." Laughed a voice from behind them, Tails and Espio turned in shock at the newcomer
Standing there was an orange and black striped tiger with an enormous set of muscles that set the nervous Espio on edge. He was wearing a sleeveless white T-shirt on his torso and baggy black pants. On his wrists, elbows and feet (although they left his toes out in the open) were loosely tied Muay Thai bandages. He had weird silver eyes and from Tails' angle he could see a claw-shaped scar arching across his back. The tiger's demeanor was intimidating, but he had a friendly smile and a trustworthy glint in his eyes, so Tails trusted him.
Espio, apparently, did not.
"Who are you? Why did you sneak up on us?" He hissed. The tiger raised his hands defensively and his expression was ironic.
"Whoa, dude, chill. You really should calm down, as for my name? I'm Alexander, Alexander Sol." He stated proudly, pointing to his chest with his thumb. But he shifted his eyes to Espio and his smile faltered.
"Hey, fox-boy, what's up with him?" He asked, gesturing to the seething purple chameleon. Tails shrugged and held out his hand.
"Miles Prower, but my friends call me Tails." Tails quoted. Alexander smiled.
"So I can call you that too, right?" Tails beamed and nodded.
"THAT'S IT! I am so out of here, if you guys wanna play 'happy family' and pretend there's nothing going on here, be my guest. But I am not letting this drop." He exclaimed and marched in the other direction. Tails looked embarrassed for his friend.
"Hey, the real reason I came over here…" Alexander started, "…Who is that girl?" He asked, pointing to the white Lion with Cream on the stage.
"Dunno, but I could ask Cream if you want, they seem to be friends." Tails suggested. Alexander smiled gave a positive little thumbs up. Tails, jumping onto the seat, set his tails into a whirring motion and flew down to the girls on the stage. From his point in the seats Alexander could see Tails land neatly and make his way towards the girls, he said something to the bunny named Cream, who smiled politely and said something back, and nodded to the white lion. The lion pointed to herself and said something back. Tails waved goodbye and, setting his tails into a spin, jumped off the stage and towards Alexander.
"So, what'd she say?"
"Katrina Luna" Tails said with a shrug, he plonked himself down onto a chair and pressed two buttons on his watch. A virtual hologram of poker jumped out of the screen.
"Huh, Katrina, nice ring to it." Alexander said with a smirk.
"You wanna play?" Tails challenged, the hover game flickered.
"Your on, fox-boy" Alexander grinned, sliding in two virtual chips with his fingertips.
Shadow
Shadow didn't try to mingle, that was pointless. He was going to have to spend 8 weeks with them anyway, so what was the point? He found a seat close to the corner, where he could watch over the other contestants and still have some peace and quiet.
He observed the idiots with a bemused expression. Espio seemed to be having a nervous breakdown, ooh, weird, some guy just popped out of nowhere. Better keep an eye on him. On the stage Cream and a strange (and attractive) white lion were talking like they were the best of friends. But one was missing, another contestant he hadn't seen yet. He frowned and observed the room again, he couldn't see anyone else…
"I-I don't believe it! Shadow?!" A female voice called from behind him. He turned to see who it was.
She was a brown hedgehog with a brown forelock over one eye which were slit like a cats. They were an eerie amber color. A black streak ran from the forelock over the middle quill and to her neck. She had black streaks like the one on her head on her elbows over her wrist and to her middle finger, there was also another on her knees which went to her big toe and to her heel. There was a pink scar on her stomach and back, reaching from her hip to her shoulder while making her look frail and if not impaired. She was wearing a light green knee-high dress with a zip going up front and sandals. On her face was a distinctive pair of blue framed glasses. But that wasn't what stuck out to Shadow the most.
What stuck out the most was the dark blue bracelet tightly tied around her wrist.
"Re-Rebecca?!"
Flashback
"But Daddy!" Maria begged, eyes bulging with tears. "Shadow needs to be with other kids! He's so cooped up here!"
"No buts, Maria. Remember that Shadow is the ultimate life form. I can't afford to lose him."
"Like a kid might lose a new toy?" Maria said accusingly, glaring.
"Maria Robotnik! I have never heard such cheek!" But the reason was coming to Robotnik, and he was once again falling under his precious daughters spell.
"One time, Maria. One time only, I refuse to let the fruit of my labor die by tripping over a tree root."
"Oh, thank you daddy!" Maria squealed, planting a kiss on her father's cheek. She then skipped gleefully off to find the young Shadow and tell him about their excursion to the mainland. He would be happy; she was sure, to be able to make friends with the other children. This was a good experience, whether daddy liked it or not.
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Mainland
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"Shadow, relax! I didn't fight with my father for a good half hour to have you guard me from threats. If you want to do that you can go back on the ARK." Maria scorned the alert hedgehog. Shadow's frame didn't slacken.
"Shadow. T. Hedgehog. Go play with friends. Now." Maria commanded, strengthening her girly voice to its extent. Shadow cocked an eyebrow.
"That's an order, Mr." Maria ordered and she scanned the meadow for somebody. "Oooh, see that girl over there? Go play with her!" Maria gestured excitedly to a little hedgehog girl slumped over by a tree, playing with sticks. The young Shadow sighed dramatically and walked over to the girl, dragging his feet.
"Hello" he mumbled. The girl didn't look up.
"Go away." She said. Shadow blinked and began to walk away when he saw Maria, hiding in the bushes, throwing her arms around wildly to get Shadow to get back. He shrugged and turned around to the brown hedgehog again.
"What're you doing?" He asked. The girl's hands stopped moving and he heard her give a little sigh.
"Building a fire to burn down the forest." She exclaimed with her back to him still.
"Oh. Can I help?" Shadow said, a little more interested.
"Fine, but you have to do what I tell you to do." She said, spinning around in her little green smock to see him. Shadow nodded and sat down next to her, picking up two twigs from the pile she had and began breaking them up into smaller pieces with his childish hands. She stopped him.
"No, no. You're doing it wrong. Those pieces are too small, see." The girl said, taking the remainder of the stick Shadow had picked up and snapped it in two. She then picked up another twig and gave it to him. He broke it into three pieces and looked up to the girl hopefully. She smiled, nodding.
"Nice job, my name's Rebecca B. Hedgehog." She said with an extended hand.
Shadow shook it with a smile. "Mine's Shadow." And so both hedgehogs became friends.
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"What are you doing here?!" Shadow asked with a high pitch.
"I could ask the same thing. But I guessed you were coming when the letter said some of your closest friends." Rebecca said.
Shadow snickered. "Yeah, I was wondering why they invited Sonic. It's nice to see you again."
"You too." Rebecca said and sat down next to him. They began telling each other what had happened recently and filling in the gaps of their stories.
"Hello everyone!" Yelled a voice from the front entrance, seven faces snapped around to see the newcomer.
He was a white Bengal tiger with black stripes with light blue eyes. He was wearing boots like Silver the Hedgehog used to wear, black gloves with silver knuckles and silver rings on his wrists. He strode confidently between the aisles and towards the massive stage.
"Ladies and gentleman, can I please get you in the front row seats? Thank you." He said, taking two steps at a time onto the timber stage.
"Okay, welcome to our studio! I'm sure you've met your other team members?" He asked, everyone nodded except Espio.
"I am Specter, one of your hosts! I am here to brief you on the game, and basically what hasn't been explained in your letter. These next 8 weeks will certainly be a new experience for you, and Takihutu studios take no responsibility if you come to any physical harm over the next two months…" The contestants turned to each other with worried looks. "…Your team name is the Hornets, you'll have to fight for your team color though."
Espio's composure cracked and he stood up suddenly. "What do you want from us!?" He yelled. Specter looked amused.
"To steal your sooouuuls" He said, fluttering his fingers and making an 'ooooooooh' noise. Espio screamed and launched himself up onto the stage, but to no avail, as he passed right through Specter.
"What the hell!?" He yelled.
"A hologram!" Tails said, jumping up.
"Nope, see?" He said and hit Espio's forehead with the palm of his hand. Espio cursed and rubbed his head tenderly. Tails looked confused, but Alexander understood.
"He's a Phaser, he can let things walk right through him." He explained, everyone looked impressed except for Rebecca.
"Honestly pinkie, don't go throwing yourself at our host. He's our executer for the next 8 weeks so I wouldn't do anything rash like trying to kill him from now on, kay?" She sighed and Specter smiled, drawing a line across his throat with his index finger. Espio growled.
"I'm not PINK!"
"Your plane should be here soon. Any second now…" Specter said, looking at an imaginary watch on his wrist. One second later a loud cracking sound erupted from the roof and chunks of the ceiling fell on the stage, a few fell on (or through) Specter. Through the gap in the roof a small plane landed, it was red with a green stripe saying 'Takihutu' on it. It landed softly on the stage and a gust of wind blew across the contestants. Katrina put her arm up to protect her face from the breeze.
"We're flying to the island?"
"No, you'll be flying to the dock where you'll meet up with your friends. Then you'll take a boat to the island as one group." Specter said. He looked a bit eerie with a slab of concrete sticking up through his body and Tails seemed queasy seeing it.
Everyone loaded onto the plane and sat down in the luxurious beige leather seats, somewhat prepared for the journey ahead. Katrina was nervous, Cream was exited, Espio was twitching, Alexander was playing virtual solitaire with Tails and Shadow and Rebecca were sitting patiently, talking occasionally.
Nobody thought twice about the luggage, which was being loaded onto a delivery truck as they boarded.
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Bwahahaha. Can you see where this story is going? The evilness of the studios surfaces! Bwahahaha.
Acknowledgements:
Rebecca B. Hedgehog belongs to Hedgehog B. Rebecca
Specter belongs to EmpireofShadow
Alexander and Katrina belong to Kyuubihikari
(Dear OC creators, if I missed anything feel free to alert me and I can fix it up. Cheers)
