Unleashing Sonic: Story Mode
To be honest, I had no idea what to expect. We were sent to investigate strange happenings, but this part of Apotos seemed just as bright and beautiful as the rest of the island. But who was I to judge- anything could pop out from anywhere are any time. I stayed somewhat on the alert- but the tranquility of the city and perfect breeze was too much to neglect to enjoy.
"Have I ever said how cool it is here?" I asked Chip, drifting around a corner and blasting over a Boost Pad. "I just can't get over it!"
"According to the villagers, it IS a high tourist attraction," Chip recalled. "Apparently a lot of people think it's great!"
I couldn't argue with that- the people were nice, the scenery was great…I could rant about it. Speaking of scenery, I had just rocketed through a tunnel , and upon exiting out the other side, there was another gang of robots.
"This HAS to be Eggman's doing…" I groaned, slamming spikes first into the nearest target.
I continued to cruise through the area, taking in my sights. The color scheme appeared to be marble white and cobalt blue, my favorite color. The area around the city was actually fair grassy hills with windmills. No wonder they called it the Windmill Isle.
Tearing right through the town- I loved every moment of it. Weaving through buildings, jetting down stone-paved roads, and stomping over Boost Pads were only a few of the things I experienced. Eventually, I ran onto a scenic bridge, surrounded by a few smaller islands. It oddly led to the top of some buildings, but I didn't care- made it more fun! The moment I ran over the boost pad, I found myself loop-de-looping! It was so sweet! I needed to build up enough momentum to get over it, and I ended up rolling through it! Way past awesome! It shot me into the air, causing me to uncurl…and landing on a rail.
After running and flying, grinding is my favorite thing to do. I mean, come on, I bet you all want to do that without a skateboard too- and I could. Now…well, I think the spikes on my shoes might make me stop and end up falling…but the rush of a rail was only two stars short of flying and running.
It was over the plains of Apotos, a windmill blowing peacefully off to the side. Even if it was a brief grind, I still got a kick out of it. It brought me to another road, where I had to duck once again, sloped down twice, and shoot up the side of a wall. I made contact with a spring, and bounded into the air. After Action Channing a few robots, my feet met up with another rail, this one way more fun than the first. It was as if I was my own rollercoaster with the spin it took! A little ways up ahead was probably my favorite part of the run: the Windmill Ramp. It was a blue spiral that coiled around a windmill, and I booked it on that thing. They didn't call me the Blue blur for nothing, because that was all you could see!
It sent me zipping into the air, freezing for a brief moment. Then, 3 seconds later, I did a trick and took off once more. I ended up on top of double loops, though I kinda wanted to go on them myself. I managed to get some enjoyment from corkscrewing through four rings and a 10-piece though. This took me around a bend and onto this long and awesome rail! I zipped down that thing, grinning like mad, flying past the rocks in the water. This incredibly long rail took me over the water to reach another part of the city, but it was pretty cool! I was going to flip onto a different rail to stop losing speed, but my rail suddenly turned into a corkscrew!
"Yeah! Now THIS is epic!"
I Sonic Boosted onto a narrow bridge-nicely made, by the way, and I found myself grinding again. This set was under a bridge held up by stone arches.
"Wow...they sure put some effort into this city!" Chip gaped as I landed back on solid ground.
Now that I think about it, grinding is sort of like running on air! Without actually running, though...
I spun into a couple more enemies, then through some rings. This part of the route was an archway tunnel that had windows you could look out to see the ocean and all the sailboats on the water. So what if an earthquake shook up the town- this place should've been crammed with tourists! The water was beautiful-and for me, that's saying something! The sun was bright, everything man-made was practically crafted by heaven...it was a pretty cool place.
"I like this little area..." I smiled to myself, looking over the edge as I flew by.
"Me too!"
"So…what's next?" I wondered, skidding around a tight bend.
I'll tell ya- it was like running around the outside of a castle with those huge walls! Man! The Windmills were peaking over the top, and the walls cast a shadow on the road. Cool, yet slightly unsettling at the same time.
Air travel was totally the way to go! Through the rainbow ring, I soared over a gang of robots, not one I had to fight! I laughed in triumph while sneaking a glance at all the windmills I was passing. Once again, suddenly running into the air had me unprepared. Just as I noticed what was going on, I spin dashed at a hovering robot, then another, and then through another rainbow ring. I stylishly went through that, and I was running on asphalt again. I drifted just before having my nose smash against a wall (AGAIN), and gave myself a boost to make up for lost time.
"Dang! This place should be an amusement park!" I exclaimed after going up then suddenly flying down and onto a castle-like structure. I shot past that, only to hear something robotic and mad... following me?
Well, that was certainly interesting, to say in the least.
"Ggg-gah! S-Sonic! Something HUGE is chasing us!" Chip wailed.
"I know!" I called back, trying to outrun it. But no, next thing I knew, two sets of razor blades were at my sides! I cringed, knowing if I were over there I'd be cut. It reeled back, and then came forth once again.
"Ha! If it keeps using that same attack, it can't touch me!" I smirked to myself as I ran across a ramp. This time, I was behind the robot. It was still a bit ahead of me, even though I was going at an excelling speed. I Sonic Boosted forward, striking the robot from behind. I repeated the process, hurting it more and more with each blow. This opportunity didn't last long, because it didn't want to be beaten anymore and returned behind me to attack me some more. Joy. My words came to bite me in the butt as both sets of razors tore down the middle of the road. I could feel the whooshing it made and the soft whirl sound as I quickly stepped to my right.
Another good thing about being insanely fast- being able to make split-second movements!
I had another chance to attack! Now having a battle strategy, I shot like a bullet once again. I made hard contact with the green metal. It returned to attack briefly, but his time was cut short by another ramp.
"Catch ya later!" I mocked, plowing into the machine for the last time. It twirled to look at me, pounding at his sides like a gorilla. Then, he just…fell onto the bridge. It exploded as soon as I ran up to it, no longer a threat. I took off one last ramp. It led me to what seemed like a castle- it looked so fancy, in my opinion. Once landed, I took a moment for a breather. While panting on the ground, I smirked to myself, getting that cocky feeling rush through me.
"Man, I'm good!" I managed to stand up and strike a pose. Chip floated to my side and rolled his eyes, making me grin even bigger. However, as Chip began to celebrate my small victory, I noticed something glittering on the ground. When I picked it up, I realized it was just like the tablet Chip had located to get us deeper in the temple, with a red jewel and everything…except this one was only half of a tablet.
It made me wonder where the other half was…if there really was one.
. . .
By the time Chip and I had reached another section of city, it was dusk. Randomly, I felt something tugging inside of me, begging and clawing to get out. It...hurt?
The feeling felt like it was pounding, fighting to get out. I felt like twitching, but I had to stay composed around Chip.
"Hmm…" he sighed, walking along the road next to me. "Still no luck in finding anyone who knows me."
I tried to reassure him, though I needed some reassuring myself. "Don't worry about it. Maybe your memory will come back on its own." I walked in front of him and stared him in the eyes. "Remember anything yet?"
Chip thought hard for a few moments, then sighed and shook his head. "Mmmm…nope!"
"Oh well…" I lightly frowned, hands on my hips and staring disappointedly at the sky.
I still feel guilty…I think it was my fault I landed on the little guy in the first place, and now we can't seem to get a lead on who he really is…
Things suddenly started to get creepy. The sky slowly morphed from a blazing purple to a shadow black. The windmills stopped blowing, the streetlights were flickering, and my gut feeling wasn't helping me out any. If was as if claws were scraping on a chalkboard, and the stomach was that chalkboard. Then, I suddenly couldn't take it. I buckled over, hands frozen and eyes tight in pain.
"Sonic?" Chip wondered, already worrying. I didn't want him to worry; that's what I was trying to prevent. But…even my massive will power and determination was failing at this point. I started grunting, groaning and moaning, a purple flaming aura emanating from my chest. It was coming…whether I liked it or not!
What the heck was going ON?
Pound, pound, pound….my groans turned to fierce snarls and the flame aura was getting bigger. I was now in a squatting position, trying to force the… force to stop.
The next few seconds were extremely painful.
I bent backward as the purple light surged into me. It was the exact opposite feeling I had when the Were-hog's presence was leaving me…it wasn't pleasant, freeing, and up-lifting- it was horrid, imprisoning, and dreary. Instead of the badness leaving, it was flooding back in. By the time the unbearable metamorphosis was over, and I could open my eyes, I felt sick. I was the Werehog again.
Just as painful as the first time, only less dramatic. My freedom was lost once again, and I was stuck in a cage meant for a wolf.
"But why? Why did it return?" I screamed in my head. "I thought it was only temporary! I thought it was gone…"
"Whoaaaaa….Mister Monster Guy is back!" Chip innocently stated, oblivious to my mental panic.
Ignoring the return of the nickname that upset me, I gaped at my night form as I finally figured out what had managed to trigger the transformation again. "So when the sun goes down…I turn into…this?"
"Are you okay Sonic?" Child had finally noticed my bewildered expression,
I was far from okay after that.
"I'm fine…" I grunted. "I just need to be careful who sees me like this."
That would be… everyone!
Chip suddenly floated away from me, seeming not to notice me looking myself over several times, once again occupied by something else going on behind me.
"Sonic! Sonic, look!" he pointed out.
"What is it?"
The ice cream man. Naturally. But this time, he was sobbing at his stand, rather than his cheerful, positive self like he was this morning.
Sounds like me.
"It's hopeless! The whole planet had split apart! We're doomed!" he blubbered.
"Mister? Hey Mister? Hey, don't cry!" Chip asked, fluttering over to him in a concerned manner. I just stayed away, watching curiously. "Uh…ice cream! How about some of this super-tasty stuff?"
"What good is ice cream at a time like this?"
The sudden negative outburst caused Chip to double-over backward in shock, ice cream in hand. Problem was, the ice cream was the same size as his body. It flew out of its container and dove for the ground.
"Noooooo….ice cream!" moaned Chip in slow motion.
"Whoops!" I gasped, somehow reaching my arm out to catch the frozen treat from the small distance away.
I see how it is! My speed goes to my arms? That's…no. Why me? Why that?
"S-Sonic! Your arm just stretched!" gaped Chip.
"Weird…" I stretched my arm again to place the treat back into its containment. "…but it could be useful!"
Not what I'd like to have, but at least I could take advantage of it…
The ice cream man kept crying away, Chip giving a look as if asking me what we should do. I just gave a sideways shrug- I wasn't sure what was up with him. Besides, I now had the return of my own problems…
I still can't believe this.