Chapter 1: The Grand Blade
Jackson continued to rush on, passing through the low hanging branches as he went, scratching his face. He didn't care about them, he kept charging towards the direction Eggman went, all the while thinking about his friends. The voices of his friends kept echoing in his head; "You shouldn't do anything by yourself," "You shouldn't do things so recklessly," "What can you actually do, besides swing that toy blade around?" The words went through his mind continuously. They're wrong! thought Jackson, I can do something.
Jackson was so transfixed on these thoughts, he accidentally tripped on a root, making him fall and skid on the ground. He laid there for a while, tears in his eyes. He knew deep down that they were right. He was pretty much useless to them. What can I do to help? he thought, sitting up so he could wipe his tears, I couldn't even save my sister in the Chaos Portal. What good am I to anyone? He just sat there, thinking these sort of thoughts.
Then suddenly, he thought of a moment in the past, where he was kneeling on the ground, his eyes full of tears, and his sister standing above him. "You big crybaby!" she said, "Stop acting so selfishly! If you want to prove to me that you strong, then get up and keep trying!" He saw Amy's face, then Sonic and Tails, "Believe me when I say that if we work together, nothing can stop us!" said Sonic. Jackson removed his hand from his face. "They're right," thought Jackson, "I shouldn't give up just yet. I won't give up on my friends, not now, not ever!" He got onto his feet, preparing to run. "Sonic, Tails, and Amy. Look out, cause I'm coming to help."
He only just took a few steps when out of nowhere, an shock of pain went through Jackson's mind. It was only there for a second, but then it disappeared. Jackson stopped dead, rubbing his head from the pain. "Where'd that come from?" he wondered. But that wasn't the only thing that he was wondering. Something popped into his head, coming from nowhere. He did not know where it came from, but it told him to go to the right of where he was. Jackson turned to his right, looking through the jungle. Off in the distance, Jackson could barely see something. It looked like a huge boulder. Jackson had no idea the significance it brought onto him, but he decided to follow his instincts, as they were rarely wrong in his book.
He dashed towards the boulder, which became clearer and clearer as he got close to it. He stopped just close to it, cause it was no ordinary boulder. He was standing in front of what looked like one of those Aztec pyramids that he had read in one of the books, only there was no entrance to a room above the stairs, but there were four pillars standing in a square, with what looked like archways connecting each of them. The ruins were crumbled and mossy, but mostly intact. Jackson was in amaze as to what he was looking at. He wondered what was up there. Could there be something up there that could help him? he wondered. He ran up the stairs, racing to the top.
When he got there, he noticed that there wasn't anything much up there. Besides the pillars, there was an alter with a long thin hole in it, and a slab of rock. The alter had weird pictures drawn all around it, or were they words? Jackson couldn't understand it. He also noticed that the slab had something written on it as well. He knelt down to wipe away all the dust and moss off of it so he could read it better. He was lucky, for the text was in a language he could understand, and it seemed to be in a form of a poem.
Only a heart who is young and pure
can destiny decide and then allure.
A blade so rough, but made so fine
shall be proven more than just divine.
For believing that unity is better than one
thou truly knows what must be done.
To place the blade to where it must go
and you may stop most any foe.
But be warned, my child, the power is great,
the path you choose shall seal your fate.
Jackson just knelt there, looking at the slab, then at the alter, then at the hole, then back to the slab. Jackson didn't quite get it, but somehow the words seem to impact him deeply. He stood up, continuing to look at the alter as he absentmindedly took out his sword. He held it out straight in front of him. The blade of the sword looked just about the right size to fit into the hole, but was he really the one this slab talked about? He wasn't from this world, how could he be the one? But something compelled him, saying to do it anyway, almost like the thought that brought him here. He walked up to the alter, and stood with the hole right between his feet. He gripped the sword with both of his hands, the tip of the blade pointing directly at the ground. He gave one last thought on what would happen if he wasn't the one, took a deep breath, and plunged the sword into the hole.
For a moment, there was no movement whatsoever, except for wavering of dust as the sword went in, and then a burst of light came shooting out of the alter itself, surrounding Jackson within it. The light was excruciating, he let go of his sword in order to shield his eyes. He first felt a pain within him, as if he was being ripped apart, and then an overwhelming surge of energy, much like the Chaos Emerald's energy, coursing through his body. He felt it tingle inside him, taking shape with his own body. Even his bones were feeling it as well. The energy went along for what felt like minutes, until the burst of light halted its' presence, and everything was silent.
Jackson unshielded his eyes, only to see that he was wearing white fingerless gloves. Then as he looked at them, he slowly looked down to see that his whole feature changed before him. He first noticed his attire was different. He was now wearing a dark yellow shirt with a silver vest. His pants were long, silver as well, with a yellow stripe down each side. His shoes were blue, with two white stripes on each one. Even the texture of the clothes felt different, comfortable, yet somewhat sturdy. He also noticed that his height was different. He got taller, and he also felt more fit than before. He then looks at his sword, which dramatically changed.
It had a long blade, its' sheen was almost multicolored. The metal for which it was made out of was nothing like Jackson ever seen. the hilt was golden yellow, with soft padding where the grip was at. The hand-guard was thick and sturdy as well, and it was black where the blade met the hilt.
Jackson walked towards it, his arm raised out. He grabbed the sword and jerked it straight up. It came cleanly out of the hole without so much as a scratch on it. He held it straight out at first, getting the feel of his sword as he held it in his hand, and then held the blade upward, the sun's rays dancing upon it. He brought it down so to see the sword at eye level. How could this just happen? he wondered, simply amazed at the sword. What in the world just happened anyway?
"I can tell you," said a young woman's voice. Jackson leapt in fright, not knowing where the voice came from, and started to circle around as to see where it came from. "Look no further." said the voice again, "for I am within the Grand Blade itself, and am able to speak to you through your mind." Jackson stopped, his eyes momentarily looking above him, then looked down at the sword. "The Grand Blade?" he asked. "Yes," replied the voice, "though I am surprised that came here so soon. I had no idea you were going to be so young when we would first meet. Fortunately, I was able to age you so you can be prepared for the challenges ahead." "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" exclaimed Jackson, "Age me? Challenges? Would you mind telling me what the deuce is going on here?" The voice didn't say anything for a while, but it then chuckled as it said, "I should've guess that at such a young age, you wouldn't be able to comprehend what is going on with a feeble mind like yours..." "Hey!" barked Jackson. "...But I guess," continued the voice, "you do need a little explanation after all this. Very well, I shall explain."
The voiced paused for a second, then it continued, "The weapon you hold right now is an ancient sword that can only be wield by those who are worthy of it's strength; the Grand Blade." Jackson tilted the sword side to side, not seeing anything that would make it ancient. "The Grand Blade was once wield by a warrior, one who was able to bring courage among others to fight at her side. She fought against the dark, who was equal with her strength, and thus they both destroyed each other. The sword was then sent towards this plinth, where it was placed and vanished from the eyes of the people, only to reveal itself to the one who is worthy."
The voice paused, waiting for a response from Jackson, who was shocked with everything the voice was saying. "You mean me?" he asked the voice. "Yes." it replied, "For you see, your strength has barely awaken. You were born as a descendent of humans with incredible skills. However, you are only a diamond in the rough, and you need to mature in time, in order to truly wield the sword." "Well how do I do that?" asked Jackson. "You will have to train yourself into mastering the sword. If you do that, you will accomplish the first step along your path." Jackson thought to himself for a second. What did that mean, mastering the sword? Does that mean I haven't learned everything there is about swordplay?
He thought for a little while, then the voice said, "Now, don't you have some friends to save?" Jackson gasped. He had completely forgotten about his friends, and who knows how long it has been. He placed the Grand Blade back in its' scabbard, then he charged down the steps and dashed towards the direction he went once before, but now he felt prepared to take on whatever may face him... he hoped.
Chapter 2: Battle at the Base
Jackson pelted through the jungle, leaping over vines and stumps as if they were nothing. "Hey, I feel a lot lighter on my feet." said an excited Jackson. "Your body's natural skill have been improved above the average human." Said the voice, "improving your flexibility, speed, strength, and endurance. It shall prove to be useful as you face enemies." Jackson kept dashing, not even knowing where he was going, but always feeling like he was getting closer.
Sure enough, from over the canopy, Jackson could see something that looks like a humongous fortress. He finally gets to the edge of the forest, where through the shrubs, he was able to see its' highly fortified walls of the place. On the open field, there were several E-Bots just standing about, waiting for any signs of movement.
Jackson made sure he wasn't in sight of these things. "All right," said Jackson, making sure he had his sword ready and the Chaos Emerald in a safe spot, "Time to get my friends back." He was about to leap out, when a pair of hands came out from behind and grabbed him and cover his mouth. The movement was so sudden, and Jackson was instantly toppled onto his back. "What are you nuts?" said a deep, rough voice. Jackson looked up at his imposer. The person that stopped him was a red Mobian echidna. He wore white gloves with spikes on each of them, red and yellow striped shoes, and green cuffs. His eyes were violet, and also angry.
"Do you know where you are, kid?" he asked, pulling Jackson up at the scruff of his shirt, "Your on the edge of the lion's den, Eggman's base." Jackson tries to pull away from the guy's grip as he replied, "Yeah, I realize that. I came here deliberately to save Sonic and Amy!" "Oh yeah?" replied the echidna, "and just who are you anyway?" "My name is Jackson." he replied with conviction. "Wait," said the echidna, "you mean the same Jackson as Tails talks about? The human from a different world?" "Your looking at him." replied Jackson with a smirk on his face. The echidna lets go of Jackson's shirt. Jackson stood up, straightening his shirt while he was at it.
"Who are you anyway?" Jackson asked. "Knuckles," he said, raising his fist, "Sorry to manhandle you like that, but this is no place for a kid like you. You should get out of here." "Oh, I will get out of here," replied Jackson as he picked up his sword, "just as soon as I save Sonic and Amy from this place." "Oh really?" remarked Knuckles, slightly amused by Jackson's comment, "And just how are you gonna get in? Using that?" He pointed towards the sword Jackson was carrying. "You betcha!" said Jackson with a grin.
"Well let me see it for a sec." asked Knuckles, holding out his palm, "It looks pretty interesting." Jackson let Knuckles take a hold of it by the hilt. All of a sudden, the sword let out an electrical surge onto Knuckles, shocking him, and causing him to bellow as he dropped the sword. "What the?" started Jackson, then the voice spoke up. "My apologies," she said, "But this sword can only be held by those who are true swordsman, and only you can truly wield its' strength." "Oops," said Jackson.
Knuckles tilted backwards, slightly paralyzed by the shocked, but recovered almost instantly. "Hey, what was that for?!" shouted Knuckles. "Sorry," apologized Jackson, "I guess only true swordsman can carry it." "Well maybe you should put a warning label on this before I grabbed it!" growled Knuckles, not even remotely keeping cool. "Hey I didn't know either until you grabbed it." remarked Jackson, picking up his sword, "It's not my fault your so..." The canopy parted. An E-Bot came out of nowhere, and almost landed on top of the two if they hadn't dodged it. "Get out of here, Jackson!" Knuckles shouts as he leaps into the air and punches the robot, sending it hurdling to the ground. "Not yet!" yelled Jackson, and he leaps into action.
Jackson pelts towards the fortress without a second thought. Then two more E-Bots suddenly got in his way. Jackson panicked for a second. "Do not worry," said the voice, "I shall help guide the sword with you." "Ok," thought Jackson. He leaps towards the robots, and with one swipe of his blade, he slices the first robot cleanly in half. He then jumps back just as soon as the robot exploded, sending his partner flying. "Oh wow!" exclaimed Jackson. "That was awesome!" "No time to commemorate yourself, young swordsman." said the voice. "Right, gotta keep on fightin'," said Jackson, tightening his grip as he charged towards the oncoming horde of robots.
One by one, they fell at his sword, either unable to move, or they self-destructed. One almost came upon Jackson, but Knuckles came in and tackled the brute down. "Thanks," gasped Jackson. "No problem." smirked Knuckles, "Your actually doin' pretty good yourself. Come on, we got some incoming." Jackson gripped his Grand Blade, Knuckles raised his fist, and both charged at the enemy.
From above, Tails arrived at the scene. He looks down to notice the action. "Hey, is that Jackson?" he said to himself, "How did he get here?" He angled the plane downwards for a better view. "That's strange," he commented, "Those aren't the clothes we got him, and he looks a lot different from before. What's going on here?" He scratched his forehead for a second, but then remembered why he was here. He started to dive-bomb the robots, shooting his laser at them.
Jackson notices the Tornado doing so for a split second, but then notices the whole row of robots coming. Ah, snap! thought Jackson. "Not to worry." said the voice once again, "Just use a sword beam technique." "A sword what?" said Jackson in his head. "Just focus your energy towards the tip of your blade, and then swing it." Jackson nodded, he closed his eyes for a second, centering his focus upon his sword. Then he lifted the sword and, with a movement like a baseball batter, swung his sword, crying out the words "Sword Beam!" And out of his sword came a thin burst of energy, shaping itself into the arch that Jackson shaped. It soared straight through the line robots, leaving a clean cut on every robot that came in contact. One by one, they either fell down or exploded, each one not able to take the damage. Jackson stood amazed at what he just did. Knuckles leapt next to him from out of nowhere. "How did you do that?" gaped Knuckles, emphasizing every syllable as he said it. "Not sure…" Jackson said slowly, then grinned, "But I like it!"
Jackson, Knuckles and Tails kept taking down the robots one by one, Jackson continuing to slice and dice, and only using his sword beam on far off enemies. "Hey Jackson!" cried Knuckles. Jackson turned to see him next to what looked like an entrance to the fortress. "You slice it, I'll smash it." said Knuckles as he pointed towards the door. Jackson smirks, then charges towards the door, dodging an E-Bots fist along the way. He get to the door and slices a big X on the door, and with one punch, Knuckles instantly knocks down the door. They both charged in. A robot was attempting to follow suite, but Tails gunned him down. He looks down at the entrance. "Good luck, you guys." he murmurs as he takes to the sky again.
Chapter 3 The Swordsman's Strike
Inside the computer room of the base, two smaller, but more intellectual robots were typing rapidly on the computer. The entrance door slides open, and there stood Dr. Eggman, looking irritable. "What's all the racket?" he bellowed at the two. "Sir, there seem to be intruders in the building." said one of the robots. "Bring them up on screen." demanded Eggman. The robots type quickly away until they pulled it up. On the screen there was a view of one of the cameras within the building. Upon it, two E-bots were taken down by Knuckles and Jackson. "Well this does seem to be a problem, isn't it?" said Dr. Eggman as he rubbed his chin. "It seems like that brat was more than just talk." He glowered for a second, then changes it into a grin. "Maybe it's about time I prove to him how powerful I really am." He whoops into laughter as he leave the computer room. One robot looks at the other, who shrugged, not knowing what he meant.
Meanwhile, Jackson and Knuckles continued to make progress as they went through the maze, destroying every robot that came their way. "You know where your going?" asked Jackson. "Me?" said Knuckles, "I thought I was following you." They make it to a cross section. "Great." grumbled Knuckles, "Now where do we go?" Jackson thought a minute, and then the voice replied, "They are to your left." "Gotcha," said Jackson, and he dashed towards that direction, Knuckles following behind.
They reach another door, which slid open for them as they got close. They enter into a spacious room. Jackson saw Sonic in the middle of it, still carried within the gravity field. Amy was not far off, hanging on the wall by her arms and legs. They both look to see their saviors at the doorway. "Jackson?" said Sonic, shocked by his presence, "What... How...?" "No time for explanation!" said Jackson abruptly, "Knuckles, get Amy. I got Sonic." Both of them dash towards their targets. Knuckles jumped up and ripped off the cuffs that were holding Amy in place. Jackson jumps up and slices through the machine that was creating the field, sending it toppling down, and releasing Sonic from its' restraints.
"Thanks guys," said Amy, rubbing the parts on her arm where the cuffs were. Sonic turned to Jackson. "Hey, what happened to you, pal?" he said curiously, "You've completely changed from the last time I saw you." Jackson chuckled, and rubbed the back of his head. "Well it's a long story." He started. "A story you'll never hear!" echoed Eggman's voice. They all turn to see Eggman come down in his capsule vehicle, still wearing that grin on his face. Jackson glared up at Eggman, holding his sword up at him. "I may not know how you got so strong, but I think it's time I put an end to your endeavors."
He hovered back towards the wall on the far side of the room. He pressed a button on his control grid, and the wall behind him parts, revealing a humongous robot. It was ten times the size of the other robots, and probably as powerful. It had two giant fists, a pair of heavily armored legs, and armor on its' chest, where it contained a picture of Eggman's face on it. It's head was large, containing two yellow eyes on it, and where its' brain should be, a hole was there. Eggman hovers over the monstrosity, and neatly placed his vehicle within the hole, combining the two. The yellow eyes lit up, and then the machine started to walk towards Jackson and his friends.
Eggman grinned down at the apposing foursome. "Lets see how well you can stand up to this, kid." Then his vehicle is enclosed within a glass dome, protecting Eggman. "Egg-Kong, Attack!" cried Eggman through a speaker. The machine reared its' fist, then slammed it down at the others. Jackson and Sonic barely had time to get out of its' path. They skidded back to where Knuckles and Amy were. "Okay, guys," Sonic said to the team, "Lets teach Eggman not to mess with us!" Jackson gripped his sword even tighter, Sonic prepared to run, Knuckles clenched his fists at the ready, and Amy summoned out a huge hammer from out of nowhere. All at once they attacked.
Sonic was first, and he spin-dashed into the robot, causing it to stutter back. Jackson instantly follows suit, leaping towards the robot with his sword wield over his head, preparing to strike. However, the robot regained balance, and he swung his fist at Jackson, which made contact this time. Jackson's body was instantly smacked by the fist, causing him to fly backwards, then fall down on the floor, groaning in pain. "Jackson!" cried Knuckles as he and Amy went passed him. They both went and attacked the legs, but they proved to be durable. The robot lifted his leg, causing Amy and Knuckles to keel backwards from its' sudden movement. They landed close to Jackson, who was just getting up.
"Guys!" he cried, seeing them fall to the ground. He then leapt to his feet and charged at the giant robot. Its' fist was ready to strike again, but Sonic intervened by attacking it, causing it to lose its' momentum, giving Jackson enough time to leap onto the arm, reach the shoulder, and slice at it. It caused a deep cut within the machine. "Yeah!" cheered Jackson, but the moment was short lived. For out of nowhere, the other fist came to greet Jackson, and it knocked Jackson off, carrying Sonic with him. Jackson falls onto his back again, but Sonic managed to land on his feet.
"You ok, Jackson?" he asked over the machines havoc. "Yeah," replied Jackson, getting up on his feet again, "I think I'm doing alright." He couldn't believe how well he was enduring his attacks. Amy and Knuckles came to Jackson and Sonic's side, making sure they were ready. "Alright, that's it!" cried Amy, "I gonna mess you up so badly for what you did to Sonic and Jackson!" She charges at the robot, screaming at the top of her voice as she charged with her mallet at hand. Jackson, Knuckles and Sonic followed behind, equally determined to take down the beast.
The battle was rough, each of them taking heavy hits from the robot. No matter how much damage they did to the robot, it kept on fighting. After a while, the battering of the machine was starting to get to them. Amy and Knuckles were on the ground with bruises all over them. Sonic was panting slightly, having a hard time keeping on going. Jackson, however, was charging once again at the machine, but it longed out its' fist at the ground, causing Jackson to be blown back with all the rubble. Jackson fell to the ground, his whole entire body ached with pain after the continuous strikes of the machine. He was barely able to stand up. Jackson looked to all of his friends.
"Why," panted Jackson, "why are we unable to take down this guy?" Sonic frowned at Eggman. "It's possible," said Sonic, "but maybe the machine is powered by a Chaos Emerald." "What?!" gasped Jackson. Eggman whooped with laughter once more. "Bravo, my little pin cushion!" says Eggman, "you finally figured it out. My Egg-Kong is indeed carrying an Emerald within it. Now you see there's no way you can stop it." Jackson couldn't believe it. Can a Chaos Emerald be able to power up machines? he thought.
He reaches into his back pocket and pulled out his Chaos Emerald. He stares at it for a while, then stares up at the robot, then at Eggman, who was still wearing a broad grin. He then looks at all of his friends, sees Sonic still panting, unable to move, sees Knuckle helping up Amy onto her feet. The conviction within him seemed to boil over. Slowly and steadily, he walks towards the robot, his sword at one hand, and the Chaos Emerald in the other. He stops dead between the robot and his friends. Eggman loses his grin and stares down at Jackson with a quizzical look.
"So, kid." he asked Jackson from down below, "You finally give up? You gonna give me that Chaos Emerald?" Jackson looks up at Eggman, pants for a while, then smirks. "Ok, sure." he said simply. Sonic, Amy and Knuckles looked surprised at Jackson, thinking he finally admit defeat. Jackson continued, "But your gonna have to grab it from my dead body!" He yelled out the last few words. Eggman looked taken aback at this, Sonic and the others still shown surprised looks, but now from Jackson's conviction. "You think I came all the way here, just to give you the Emerald after all this?" cried Jackson, standing his ground, staring up at Eggman and the monstrous machine, "Sorry to disappoint you, but like it or not, I won't give up, and that's final!"
His willpower seemed to activate something within him. The energy surged into him, and it was as if the bruises weren't there anymore. He then lifts the Chaos Emerald into the air, then balances the point of the Emerald to the tip of his Grand Blade. He slowly brings down the sword, directly pointing it at the chest of the robot, the Emerald still connected with the sword, as if invisible glue seemed to connect the two. The Emerald seemed to light up, its' energy surging as well. The sword began to glow as well, its' radiant energy shown brighter. Sonic and the others were staring open mouthed at this sight, even Eggman was surprised by this performance.
Jackson closed his eyes for only a second, then they lit up. "GRAND BLAST!" he shouted, and the energy shot out in a beam. It hit the machine dead in the chest, where it pierced directly through it, continued to the roof, and blasted through that, too. The blast was so powerful, Jackson even skidded back a bit. Sonic came rushing to his side, and kept him from falling over. Amy and Knuckles did the same, bracing onto Jackson as he continued to send the energy blast through the machine. Eggman panicked, he pressed a button, separating him from the robot, and flew away.
Jackson seized his firing, the Emerald dropped to the ground, his sword back to normal, but Jackson kept his position. The robot, unable to withstand the blast, exploded causing shrapnel to go flying everywhere, along with... "Look!" said Sonic, "The other Chaos Emerald!" It was soaring to them, it's light blue hue almost beaconing them to get it. Sonic jumped up and captured it.
The moment he got back onto the ground, however, the whole building started to shake. Apparently, the battle caused much more damage than they thought. "We have to get out of here!" shouted Jackson, and after picking up his Emerald, they all took off, darting through the collapsing rubble around them. Sonic, although fast, stayed with the group, making sure they got out of there safely. Jackson led the group through the wreckage, slicing and dicing any bits of rubble that got in there way.
Finally, with everyone still together, they found the exit, dashing out of the base just in time, as the building finally gave way, and caved in upon itself. Jackson and the others stopped running when they were far from the flying rubble. Tails's plane could be seen still flying high, looking down at the wreckage. Sonic, bent over from exhaustion, looks up at Jackson, who was standing tall, and only slightly panting. "You saved us, Jackson." said Sonic, looking both happy and amazed by Jackson's courageous effort. Jackson turns to Sonic and says, "Well, I told you I could do it." He smiles at Sonic for a moment, then he starts to sway, then keels over onto the ground, completely drained. The others panicked, telling Jackson to wake up, as Tails came in for a landing. The battle has won.
Chapter 11: The Swordsman's Awakening
Jackson was in an unconscious stasis, not knowing how he came to be so, all he knew was that he was there. He started to open up his eyes, trying to understand what happened. Then he realized where he was. He was in his bed at Tails's house. Somewhere to his left side, he heard Tails's voice cry out, "Jackson, your awake!" With his mind in place, and his eyes wide open, he slowly sat up. He felt a hand behind him, supporting his ascent.
"How do you feel?" said Sonic from somewhere. Jackson looked all around him. Tails was supporting Jackson, with Sonic right next to him. On the other side of the bed, Amy and Knuckles were standing there, watching Jackson. "You sure had us worried there, Jackson." said Knuckles with a grin, "I didn't know you had that power in you." "Huh?" said Jackson, "What power?" "You know," said Sonic, "That blast of energy that came out of your sword, the energy that destroyed Eggman's robot." Jackson felt dazed and confused. "What are you talking about?" The others gave concerned looks at Jackson, then at each other.
"You mean you don't remember?" asked Amy. Jackson rubbed his forehead. "I do remember yelling at Eggman." he said, trying to recollect on what just happened, "but afterwards, I don't know what happened. I kind of blacked out there for a while." "That would be because of me." replied a voice. Jackson flinched. He completely forgotten about the voice coming from the Grand Blade, which was sitting upright next to the night table. "Wait you did this?" he asked out loud. "Who are you talking to?" asked Tails. "That voice." said Jackson, "The voice that came from my blade." "I don't hear anything," said Knuckles, holding out his hand to his ear. "That is because your the only one who can hear me, Jackson." said the voice, "for I am connected with you." "Oh," said Jackson, making sure he said his words out loud, "So I'm the only one who can hear you?" Tails and Sonic looked at each other, worried that Jackson would've gone insane. "Yes, for now," replied the voice, "For you see, when your courage rose, so did your energy, and I assisted you with using that energy. This explains why you don't remember the incident." "Gotcha." said Jackson. "In any case," continued the voice, "It seems like I have used too much of my energy, so I shall depart back to where I once was." "Wait," said Jackson, now speaking to it through his mind, "What about the challenges you spoke of? How can I do them without you?" "Remember, Jackson," replied the voice, "You now have great and strong friends by your side. Have faith in them, as well as in yourself. You will meet others, some will give you joy, some will give sadness, but all the while, your strength will increase as long as you believe. Face the looming darkness with your courage, Jackson, and you shall win." "Ok, I will," thought Jackson, "But I have so many questions. Can you answer them for me?" There was no response. The voice was gone.
"Jackson?" said Tails, bringing Jackson's attention to the outside world, "You sure your ok?" Jackson shook his head into focus, remembering where he was at. "I'm fine," said Jackson, "In fact, I think I should explain things." He then tells them all about what happened in the forest, about finding the alter, the transformation, the Grand Blade, the voice, and her explanation as why Jackson couldn't remember the final attack.
When he concluded, everyone paused for a second, trying to take in everything he said. "Wow." said Sonic, "Sound like you got your work cut out for you." "I'll say." said Knuckles, "From what you just said, it seems like your gonna be facing something fierce in the near future." "Yeah, well," said Jackson, "as long as I learn to truly wield the Grand Blade, I should have no problem."
There was a long pause, then Sonic burst into laughter. Jackson and the others stared at him. "Well, this sounds like a lot of fun, Jackson!" he chuckled, "I can't believe it. One day, we find you lying on the ground totally battered, the next you seem to grow up and become a hero." Jackson eyes lit up. A hero? Me? he thought to himself. He then gave the biggest grin he had ever made. "Yeah, that's cool!" he shouted, "Me, a hero." Jackson burst into laughter. Tails, Amy and Knuckles looked at each other, perplexed by this sudden change of atmosphere, then they smiled at both of them. They acted more like brothers than just friends, despite their different looks. Jackson leapt out of bed. "Guess evil should prepare when we are on the job." said Jackson "They better," agreed Sonic, grinning at Jackson, "Cause evil gonna be faced with the strongest duo of Sonic the Hedgehog..." "And yours truly," replied Jackson, "For I am Jackson. Jackson the Swordsman!" They jumped into the air, and high-fived each other.
I am Jackson. Jackson the Swordsman. And this is where my story begins.