Yep, finally back. If you want to thank someone, thank the anonymous reviewer that came out of nowhere, with a simple message and a simpler name: A Fan. To that person, who I am obviously unable to respond normally to, I'd like to express my...well, admit the boost in ego, really. The honour of having a reader describe themselves as "a fan". In truth, there are many, many better writers on this site. Many more talented, intriguing, skilled and-perhaps most of all-reliable writers from just I.
But...thank you. And that sparked me to move on, and finally begin to write on this again.
Thank you, as well, to all else who reviewed. This time, my thanks go out to an excellent writer, much like myself, only more talented and likely to update, Kamala11, and though I might be late in saying so, thank you for all of the helpful tips and constructive criticisms.Another thanks goes out, yet again, to Rylum for sticking by the story and continuing to add in his own advice.
Cheers to you both.
Well...onto the story, it seems. I genuinely hope you enjoy reading the chapter.
Chapter 2: Two Hedgehogs and a Bat walk into a room...
Three sets of boots clacked on tiled floor, followed by a grunt. The culprits? Two hedgehogs and a bat. The grunt came from Silver as Rouge and Shadow managed to catch one of his arms each as he fell, losing his balance utterly as they materialized many, many miles away from where they were seconds ago.
"I-I...sorry. You could've given me more warni-" Silver began, his body held up by both Shadow and Rouge as dizziness swamped his body from the sudden change in temperature, lighting and surroundings. He hadn't expected the jolt bringing him back upright by his companions, having subconsciously expected the more gentle stability his psychokinetic powers would have granted him. It had taken him a second to realize it wasn't his own power, but by his two arms that he was being supported. As he was about to finish his sentence, the silver hedgehog stopped suddenly, pulling an arm out of Rouge's grip to rapidly place a hand over his mouth, his body now supported entirely by Shadow.
'Oh shi...shit...now's not the-' "U-urkk!" Silver lost his trail of garbled thought quickly, his entire body crumpling until his knees hit the cold surface of the floor of whatever room they were in, both hands now over his mouth as his throat and stomach spasmed, retching violently.
"U-uk...kk..." a second set of retching quickly followed the first, nothing coming out of his mouth or throat, only the gasps of pain as his stomach flexed again, dry-retching into his gloved hands as his entire body shook, coherent thought lost to him as his body tried futilely to vomit what it just didn't have. He heard the distinct sound of heeled boots running away, opening what sounded like a very-heavy duty door, as a warm hand clasped onto his shoulder, holding the now very pale hedgehog steady.
"Someone get a medic, a stretcher, hell-even a glass of water! Don't just stare at me, go get something!" yelled what Silver recognized through the haze of discomfort and pain as Rouge's voice. He breathed in as the second retches subsided, calming his body enough to let him say he was fine, but as soon as he opened his mouth to say something to that extent...
"U-u...Rrrrk!" another fit or retches, specks of spittle and bile now evident on his normally pristine gloves, took over Silver's body, this time ending with a fit of coughing, irritating his dry throat. As his body shook ferociously from the internal battering, the hand on his shoulder clasped firmer, somewhat comfortingly.
Silver lost track of time as he retched, over and over again, his body losing the little strength it had and left him almost entirely relying upon Shadow's hand to stop him from collapsing undignified onto the floor. Finally, after a short flurry of footsteps and calls, his head was lifted up after another series of coughs until he was looking into the face of Rouge, a glass of water held to his mouth.
"Drink this, the medic's on his way..." the bat advised, slowly tipping the water into Silver's mouth, which he drank thankfully, instantly feeling the irritation start to recede as he grasped the glass himself, drinking voraciously. Silver closed his eyes as he swished the glorious, clean water around in his mouth, before swallowing when the bits of bile he tasted was too much, before jerking slightly, his eyes opening when he felt a cold, damp sensation come over his cheek, opening his eyes to see Rouge sitting there, rubbing a damp cloth over his face slowly.
Silver made a feeble attempt to brush away Rouge's arm, blushing slightly at the treatment he was unused to receiving from anyone besides Blaze, kneeling up slightly as he found himself breathing so much easier.
"Th-thank you...I'm better, I don't need any more help. I was just a bit dizzy, that's all." Silver assured Rouge, pulling himself off the ground as if to prove it, standing up straight almost proudly, before doubling over, falling to his knees again as a sharp cramp took over his abdomen.
"Ah! D-damn it! Cramp..." he made out, frantically trying to soothe the sharp pain as Rouge grinned suddenly in front of him, suddenly realizing.
"Perhaps a chair and a meal might be better for you than a medic at this point. You feeling up to walking, Silver?" Rouge agreed, offering a hand to support the frail hedgehog. Silver chuckled at the words, thankful that his cramp seemed to have disappeared, but remained kneeling for a moment, giving a glance at the state of his gloves, followed by a bashfully thankful smile to Rouge as she knowing offered out the damp cloth she had been using to tend to Silver before. After wiping his gloves as clean as he could from the bile, he took Rouge's offered hand with his own right hand, the cloth held securely in his left.
This time, as Silver regained his footing with the help of Rouge, he finally had a chance to get his bearings on where he was; now he felt more stable on his own legs. They were in a moderately sized dome-shaped room, interestingly carrying no features whatsoever inside of it save a single large icon with a number next to it printed onto one side of the otherwise featureless room: GUN6. The only door was an open, heavy-duty door with a small window in it, leading to a hallway. The entire room appeared to serve no purpose whatsoever.
A gentle tug on his arm by Rouge reminded him where he was, as he realized with a faint blush of embarrassment that he must have been lost in thought for a few seconds there. Rouge smiled at Silver knowingly, answering his unspoken question.
"Teleportation room. Recent changes in some bases have left space for such rooms. No use whatsoever, besides somewhere that he-", Rouge gestured at Shadow, who raised an eyebrow back, but made no other movement, "-can Chaos Control to without accidentally ending up inside someone. The number '6' refers to this particular facility." Rouge explained, gently pulling Silver until he was walking beside her, Shadow following behind, silently. Silver inwardly shuddered at the thought of teleporting inside someone else's body. His mind conjured up images of skin peeling, bone separating...
"So, Silver, what's say you meet our...'boss' over a meal?" Rouge questioned Silver, turning to look at his expression.
'They're...avoiding asking me anything, yet. Unlike Eggman. Thank you, Rouge. Thank you, Shadow.' Silver suddenly registered, as neither had so much as mentioned his re-appearance from nowhere. 'How long was it, since they saw me last? Eggman said it was two weeks, I think.' Silver thought. His fatigue was finally falling away, though hunger remained. He just has to keep his mind busy-
'Blaze...Huh, not thinking about it, about you...it's easier said than done.'
"Silver? You good to meet him? Hello? Maybe you should get some rest, don't want you collapsing on us. Bad career move in GUN, having visitors black out on your boss." Rouge joked when no response was given, bringing Silver once again back to the present.
"Oh, yeah, sure. I mean, I'm good to go." Silver answered, partially distractedly, but determinedly.
'Now is not the time, or the place, to...no. It's not the time to think about it. Not yet.'
"Alright then, if you say so. Shadow? Mind getting the Commander? I'll bring Silver down to the DF." Rouge called back to Shadow. As the last syllable fell, Shadow gave a solitary nod, and was off, causing the fur of both hedgehog and bat to flutter as the black hedgehog sped through the relatively empty corridor. Silver looked over towards the direction Shadow had went, down the long hallway, before being pulled in the opposite direction gently by Rouge. Before silence had a chance to fall between them Silver deliberately started asking the first questions that came to mind.
"'DF'? Dining-something, I guess? Where is this place, anyway...actually, what is this place? Since when did world heroes have a boss?" Silver asked, only realizing how genuinely curious he was after he'd spoken aloud the last questions. Somehow, it didn't seem right that the bat and, in particular, the hedgehog that had made claims about being the "Ultimate Life Form" working in this...strangely well-built facility, whatever it's for. Rouge herself must have seen the absurdity from here Silver must see it, as she nodded, the smile not leaving her face.
"Ah Silver, thought you'd never ask. Dining Facility, not that it's relevant, by the way. We're in Canada, if you know of Twenty-First century nations. If not, we're far up north. This is a GUN base, hence the GUN insignia on everything. The Guardian Units of Nations, that is. They're basically a largely independent, international military force that attempts to protect humans from threats...both externally, and-far more commonly-internally. Politics. Wars. They're here to make sure the planet doesn't blow up, regardless of who's trying to do it, to put it basically." Rouge gave her explanation, adding as an afterthought as a response to Silver's final question; "Oh, and I gotta fill my time with something, eh? Same thing for Shadow, really."
Silver frowned at the final comments as he instinctively took the explanation down to memory, finding it hard to believe that either would do it for the sake of "filling time". But her description of the "G.U.N"...it made him realize how little he knew of this world. Silver knew of the concept of "Nations", "Military" and a basic grasp of "Politics" from old records on salvaged books and computers, but his view of his entire world was a society of less than a thousand people, constantly fighting for survival against the demonic Iblis, with the only person he spoke to on a regular basis being-
'No.'
Silver desperately asked another question, unwilling to let his mind wander.
"So...how far would we be from Soleanna, say? And so...who is your boss?" Rouge laughed aloud at Silver's questions; an unrestrained laughter, which in itself still nonetheless held a note of dignity in it as it echoed through the halls, causing a passing soldier to glance down at the two for a second in surprise, before giving a clumsy salute and hurrying on, leaving Rouge to ignore him.
"Soleanna? Miles. Miles and miles and miles. We aren't even on the same continent, I'm afraid. And you'll meet our boss soon enough, and be respectful. No pressure." Rouge said once her laughter died out, as they neared the end of the hallway, opening out to a far larger room. The room itself was brightly lit, as was the rest of the base, but of the rows and rows of tables and inside the room, only one on the far side was occupied, two men-officers of some kind by the uniform-arguing over some inaudible topic. Food-serving stalls were in the process of having their warming lights switched off and some of the food taken off the shelves and out of the stalls to be packed away for the night, eaten or thrown out.
"Take a seat; I'll see what's left that's edible." Rouge offered, gesturing towards a small, nearby table, before making her way towards one of the stalls. Silver nodded absently, idly gesturing towards a chair next to him, frowning for a second as...nothing happened. He was readying to once again focus his attention inward before remembering he'd just find nothing. No energies. No move whatever you see. No catching yourself when you trip or mentally pushing away what's in front of you or catching a thrown or falling object...
Silver let a sigh escape, perhaps slightly louder than he'd intended, and drew up the chair himself, taking a seat before holding his hands over his head, a headache returning. Withdrawing his hands for a second, his ears pricked up as he realized the two officers on the other side of the room staring at him. He didn't even have the energy to glare back; he just let his head lie on the comfortingly cold and solid surface of the metallic table, clearing his mind of all distractions, all sounds, just resting on the table.
A thunk on the table next to him brought his head up with a jolt, instantly regretting it as another bout of dizziness hit him. In front of him was a plate, knife fork and-
"Salad. Tuna or Potato, didn't know which you liked so I got as much as was left of both. They've packed away or eaten everything else." Rouge described, shrugging apologetically as she sat on a chair on the opposite side of the table, nodding to him as she sat. "Well go on, eat whatever you like."
Silver picked up the fork, experimentally shovelling a mouthful of the tuna salad into his mouth. The only food in any abundance that he was used to was canned products, along with the occasional plastic wrapped cheese, bread or other product that miraculously survived. Blaze had always liked tuna, when they could find it, so he wondered if this was similar...
Silver's eyes almost literally lit up at the first mouthful, suddenly eating at a much faster pace, swallowing each mouthful almost as soon as it entered his mouth, only just keeping a basic hold of table manners in the process. Rouge chuckled politely at his sudden enthusiasm.
"Either you really are hungry, or we happen to accidentally have the best salad in the world, though I suspect the former." she stated, once again refraining from mentioning anything along the lines of 'what he was used to', not wishing to press him for anything, at least not until the Commander got here. Silver simply nodded, managing a small break after his next mouthful to talk.
"It's great! Thanks." he made out, before going straight back to eating, leaving Rouge to laugh quietly to herself. Rouge suddenly looked over Silver's shoulder at something, and Silver could see over her shoulder in turn the two G.U.N officers on the other side of the room scramble to their feet to give hasty, yet practised, salutes to someone behind Silver.
Silver's fur prickled as he guessed the reason, hastily swallowing the wonderfully fresh food in his mouth before deciding to exercise what he knew of manners and stood up, turning to look at the man who walked into the wide room, followed by Shadow, even as his headache protested at the sudden change of gravity by standing up.
Silver wasn't sure what he expected of Rouge and Shadow's "boss", but the Commander wasn't all that far from it. Except older. And with stranger eyes. And taller. And currently looking down directly at him with both eyes, eerily distinct from each other by their blue and amber colours.
Silver was saved by having to think of what to do as the Commander held out a hand once he was close enough, Silver, slightly relieved, grasping it in a shake.
'Well...at least that I know.'
"Silver. It is an honour to finally meet you, something I had not anticipated in my lifetime. I am the Commander of G.U.N. I imagine you're exhausted, so I'll keep this quick and won't keep you from your meal, but we do have to get a few things out of the way." stated the Commander. His neutral tone led Silver to wonder how often any emotion crept into his voice.
"Okay, then...thanks." Silver said as respectfully as he could, nevertheless distracted, unable to help his hand creeping up to cover his aching forehead. Before he could apologize for the state he was in, a surprisingly firm hand pushed on his shoulder, leading Silver back into his chair. Silver muttered a thanks to the black hedgehog responsible as the Commander walked to the other side of the desk, sitting next to Rouge who hadn't stood up yet.
"I know you're not in the best condition right now. I'd offer something to clear your headache, but our painkillers haven't had the best results the last time we tried on non-humans such as yourself or Rouge. Feel free to eat as I speak, I only have a few questions that can't already be filled in by Shadow." The Commander briefly explained, clasping his hands on the table in front of him as he looked at Silver. Silver nodded in response, tenderly taking another mouthful of his meal, finding it too awkward to look into the stony gaze of the human opposite. The commander continued, as Shadow took a seat next to Silver.
"Okay. Two weeks ago you helped Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow subdue and destroy Solaris, at some point I hear you lost your friend Blaze. I'm sorry for your loss. However, can you describe what happened after Solaris was defeated? Where did you go, back to the same future or a different one?"
Silver blinked, having put down his forkful of food as the Commander started to ask his question, looking down and closing his eyes. He ignored his throat closing up, the tears already welling in his eyes, but instead tried his best to remember. Why was it so hard to think? What did happen? He remembers Solaris, and then...
"Nothing. Just...void. Maybe I was unconscious, asleep... But after Solaris, the next solid thing I remember is waking up in Eggman's base a few hours ago. Is Solaris really gone though? Is the world...safe?" Silver asked uncertainly. The very idea of a world without some constant, looming peril was...dizzying.
"Never is the world entirely safe, but Solaris is gone, yes. After what you did for everyone, and everything in stopping it, it was the least the G.U.N could do to bring you out of Eggman's base. For now, with as few answers as we have, though, we have to assume you're here in this present time to stay, and we have to make arrangements. We'll set you up with whatever medical aid is necessary, as well as property, currency and identity in the same manner we arranged for Sonic, Shadow and a few others. But I still have a couple of simple questions for now. Do you have a middle or last name, as trivial as the information might sound. And more importantly, what are your intentions now that you're here? We can offer you work in G.U.N, of course, though I understand you seem to have lost touch with your psychokinetic powers?" the Commander rattled off the facts and questions as if by perfect memory. Silver, reeling with the suddenness of everything, barely got his head around the last few questions, answering as best he could.
"U-uhh. No, no other name. Just Silver the Hedgehog. I don't have any intentions...I just wanna have some time to think, I guess, for now. And I don't know about my powers. They just feel...drained, or out of my reach."
The Commander looked at the youth, frowning briefly before standing up, holding out a hand when Silver scrambled to do the same.
"No, no, you sit down and finish eating. Sorry to disturb you. I'll see what I can arrange, but for now you can talk with agents Shadow and Rouge when you're ready. They'll set you up with somewhere you can rest quietly, unless you need anything else. Sonic and Tails would be happy to see you, or you might be able to arrange something with Amy, if she remembers you. I fear Solaris' destruction affected the minds of those whom haven't been accustomed to similar energies such as those radiating from Chaos Emeralds, and we haven't checked yet how much she recalls what happened. Goodbye for now, I'm sure we'll speak later when you feel up to it." the Commander finished, striding out of the room before Silver had a chance to respond. Somewhat grateful for that to be over, Silver pushed aside his meal to lay his aching head on the table once again, ignoring Rouge and Shadow still sitting nearby, and ignoring the tightness of his throat he felt once again at the thought of Amy not knowing him anymore.
"...Thanks." Silver mumbled, loud enough for them to hear, "So Eggman's your enemy now, huh? And how's Sonic?" Silver finished, glad to be able to ask people he actually knew, however slightly. It was Rouge who responded, quietly, for which Silver was grateful as it didn't irritate his headache.
"Eggman's more or less always been our enemy, Sonic's too. There was a bit of an exception with the Solaris event, you might say. We weren't going to trust him with you, let's put it that way. Sonic's been doing as well as he always has, which is extremely. But now that you're here, know that you're welcome wherever you want to stay. I have a house that I'm almost never at anyway, Sonic would be happy to make space for you. I'd recommend against Knuckles or Amy personally, one because he doesn't have anywhere for you to stay anyway to my knowledge and one because spending time around her is never relaxing." Rouge said kindly, choosing to tactfully ignore the slight blush on Silver's face when she suggested him staying at her place. Silver's head raised off the table, frowning as one major person wasn't mentioned.
"What about Shadow?" Silver questioned out of curiosity, looking between the faces of bat and hedgehog sitting around him, faces he only knew mildly to put it lightly, probably less than a couple of hours in either of their company totalled. Overriding his confusion, though, was a daze of how many people would welcome him so. Silver wasn't used to being so openly welcomed by so many he barely knew. He didn't even notice Rouge look between Shadow's and Silver's faces, cautiously.
"Well...I...guess I didn't really think you would have wanted to stay with him, no offense Shadow. I mean, if he's okay with it it's fine, and I certainly imagine it will be quiet..." Rouge said, taken aback by the suggestion of someone feeling comfortable with staying in the same house as the dark, silent Ultimate Life-Form, conveniently forgetting how little Silver knew Shadow. She looked at Shadow, suddenly curious as to his reaction. Shadow made an almost imperceptible nod, his face unreadable.
"He can stay if he wishes."
Silver breathed out in relief. He wasn't quite at ease at staying with the borderline flirtatious bat, and didn't really feel up to anymore meetings, anymore questions and explanations, yet.
"In that case I'll stay with him, if that's all alright." Silver reasoned, returning to his meal now that such a weight was off his mind. Rouge's incredulous expression spoke volumes.
"Oh. Alright then, I suppose. I'll leave you with him, then. I myself still have a few things to do tonight, but remember to always come to me or the Commander if you need anything, or ask Shadow to bring you to either of us. Also feel free to see Sonic and his friends when you feel ready." Rouge said, standing up. Silver managed a genuine smile up at the bat.
"Thanks, Rouge. I'll see you another time then, I guess." Silver awkwardly farewelled, ducking his head at Rouge's sudden roguish wink before she left the room quickly, gliding near to the floor on wings seemingly far too small to support her.
Silver turned his head to look at Shadow, next, unbothered by his simple stare. If anything, Silver had gotten used to such an expression from Blaze long ago.
"Thanks for letting me stay, by the way. So, er, how are we going to get to your-"
"I'll teleport us both there when you're ready. Finish your meal." Shadow interrupted, crossing his arms, sitting stiffly in his chair. Silver nodded, actually grateful for the short reply as he returned to his meal. Though the salad was probably overall a small meal, by the standards of Silver, used more so to rationing food, it was a feast, and he barely made it through half of it before he pushed the plate away, standing up, glad his headache was finally clearing now that his stomach felt comfortably warm and full.
"Okay, I'm ready. I'll try not to vomit this time." Silver promised, looking at Shadow as he pulled out the bright red Chaos Emerald from somewhere in his fur. The only reply Silver got was in two words.
"Chaos Control!"
Wow. I haven't written anything in a very long time. I've been caught up in so many other things. But I've finally finished another chapter of one of my stories, and I'm proud to have done so. I truly hope you are enjoying the story so far, and please don't hesitate to send in questions, criticisms, mistakes or reactions to this chapter through reviews. And if that "A Fan" is reading this: Get a profile, and I'll respond next time. ^^'
I respond to just about every review I get.
I hope to hear feedback, if you have the time. Even if you don't, thank you so much for reading, expect more to come (in time) and Until Next Time, Farewell!
