This chapter is not the climax. You'll understand the title later.
UPDATE: This chapter has been edited to strengthen the writing. No factual information has been changed.
December 19th, 2011
Dear journal,
I feel like the world is falling on top of me. I thought that if Sonic came back, it would mean…victory or something. It would our nightmare is over. But if the Metarex caught him, broke him…changed him, they can get me easily.
..Miles "Tails" Prower
Tails's fingers twitched and he let the notebook and pencil fall out of his hands and on to the floor. He shook all over, the tremors running just below the surface of his skin. Tears poured soundlessly down his cheeks. He collapsed back on his mattress, tossing and turning so much that his sheets twisted around him. Tails had imagined Sonic coming back a million times, but never could he have imagined a worse fate.
They're going to get me. Tails couldn't keep this thought out of his head. The world spun before his eyes, his stomach churned. His entire world was collapsing because of the so-called "peace-hungry" Metarex. They thought peace was plants and silence, a universe void of any creatures that had blood flowing through his veins. But as far as Tails could tell, it was flesh and blood creatures who went to save the galaxy as the Metarex removed the Planet Eggs, causing the death of all green life. And these were the creatures who captured Sonic, who used him for something Sonic would never stand for.
But if it hadn't been for the Metarex, Tails may have never met Cosmo.
There were just too many realities for Tails to face and interpret; too many good things from the bad and too many emotional paradoxes. Tails's heart threatened to burst from his chest. The emotions were too much for him to handle. He wanted to be strong, just like Sonic had always been, but he couldn't.
Tails heard the whine of his door opening and caugh a glimpse of red before he turned over in bed. He tightened his muscles, squeezing his eyes shut. He didn't want to talk to anyone. "Tails, we need to talk," he heard Knuckles say, "or at least I need to talk, and you need to listen."
Tails said nothing, but Knuckles went on. "Tails, we know you're scared. But you shouldn't be. Well, I mean, I guess you can be scared; it is the Metarex we're dealing with. But you at least you shouldn't let it get to you so much."
Tails eyes flashed open in shocked. Not be so scared? The Metarex wanted Tails dead; if there was a time to be afraid, it was now. Knuckles continued, "The only reason Sonic got captured was because he was cocky. He went after the Metarex alone without the seven Chaos Emeralds. The truth is, Tails, Sonic, as much as he thinks he's immortal, needs his friends to make it through unscathed."
Tails rolled over to stare at Knuckles. Knuckles sat on the edge of the bed, staring at a wall rather than Tails. Tails said nothing as his heart slowed, feeling comfort in a way he couldn't explain. Knuckles hesitated a beat before he began to do the last thing Tails expected him to do. He began to sing:
"If you take my hand,
I'll lead you to a beautiful far away land.
Alone we can't get there
but together we'll fly.
And when you realize you can't breathe
or pass the rocky seas,
remember where it all leads."
Tails couldn't help but smile as he heard the words to "ClimaX." It was an old song, a song Tails had heard many times in his childhood. In a world filled with war, it was no wonder. Many a night, someone sang it to Tails to help him fall asleep. Even Sonic had spent a late night or two singing Tails to sleep. It had always been a beautiful song to Tails, one that reminded him that no matter how bad things got, if they stuck together, they could get through it all. The lyrics had been proven more than true, and, now, so had Knuckles.
Knuckles looked down at Tails and smiled. "You understand?" Knuckles asked.
Tails pushed himself up into a sitting position and nodded. Knuckles, who had always been stubborn and inflexible, had seemed to turn into Sonic, with his smile and his kindness. Sonic, who despite all his jokes, was kinder than anyone Tails knew. Sonic, who could make Tails smile despite anything.
Maybe Sonic wasn't the only one with that superpower.
Knuckles stood up and began to walk out of the room. But just before he reached the door, he hesitated. Knuckles turned around and gave Tails a stern look. "Never make or let me resort to singing again," Knuckles said in a low voice.
Tails nodded and laughed. "Don't worry about it!"
Knuckles smirked and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. The room fell back into darkness, save for the dim light slipping through the window. Tails snatched his notebook and pencil off the floor and began a new entry.
December 19th, 2011
Dear journal,
Knuckles just talked to me and pointed something out: Sonic had been all alone when he'd been captured by the Metarex. Here, I'm surrounded by friends, friends I know would never let anything bad happen to me. Friends that, by the way, include Sonic and Knuckles. Everything might actually be okay. At the very least, I have a fighting chance, which, against the Metarex, is all you can really hope for. Also, Knuckles sang. He's actually pretty good…considering he's Knuckles. It really isn't like him to sing like that. I guess that really shows how much he wanted me to stop being upset. And it worked.
Tails hesitated a moment, not sure how to finish the entry. After a second, he smiled and scribbled one more sentence.
I'm glad I've got friends as good as these.
..Miles "Tails" Prower
A/N: The song lyrics included in this chapter were written by me.
