Chapter 10: True Power
Inside the dangerous swirl that was the whirlpool, Sonic felt a massive drain of strength. After a few more whirls and cries, Sonic knew he needed help to get out of here. But he couldn't endanger any of his friends, they would no doubt get stuck in the powerful whirlpool. So, with only one other idea in mind, he gave it a try.
"Guide!" He called out as loud as he could. "Guide, I need you!"
After a few seconds of nothing, Sonic felt ready to give up as his tail began to lose strength. But a sudden flash of green that changed the whole inside of the whirlpool, slowing it to a near halt as the Guide reappeared.
"You called?" The fairy creature asked.
"Yes." The blue hybrid cried as he breathed in relief. "Yes, I need help. Please."
"I will offer you your greatest desire." The smaller male told him as necklace started to glow brightly. "I'll send you back home to Malibu, and your sae fae half will go away; you'll be just a normal teenager, and it will be as if none of this ever happened."
"You can do that?" Sonic gasped as he felt his heart leap.
"It is your greatest desire, if you wish it, it's yours." He confirmed. Home, with his uncle and friends, no powers and no fear of getting caught and dissected on some lab table or locked in an aquarium; but he paused
"But, all of this trouble will still be happening in Atlantica? I just won't be part of it?"
"But you would have your dream come true." The Guide pointed out.
"Yeah, but everyone else would pay for it."
"Will you accept the wish?" He asked.
"No." Sonic said firmly after thinking a few moments. The thought of of his new friends, as well as countless others, being trapped in one of Bernadette's dungeons sent shivers down his spine.
"Whatever I am, I am Sonic, half sea fae prince of Atlantic, and it is my duty to protect my subjects!" He stated as he held his head up proud.
Suddenly there was a bright flash of pure white blinded him and lit up the whirlpool. When his eyes adjusted to the light, Sonic gasped when he saw the final Chaos Emerald floating a few feet in front of him. He quickly looked around and saw that the guide had suddenly vanished when the last emerald had finally appeared.
Just as he reached for the emerald, the other six in his bag suddenly sprung out and all seven started circling him. The glow increased in color, forcing Sonic to close his eyes again. After the glow faded, he was still in the whirlpool, except he wasn't stuck to the side. Looking around, he tried to figure out what happened.
He looked at his arms and gasped when he saw that his fur was a different colour!
His blue fur and scales had changed into a golden colour while his black marks were glowing white! His tail fins where still the same colour yet his emerald green eyes had changed to red. After getting over the initial shock, Sonic began to swim and realised that this new form was much more stronger then before, allowing him to battle the whirlpool.
He grinned before looking to the top of the whirlpool...
"Once again, I've rescued you, my subjects; Aleena's son will never bother us again!" Bernadette called out to the crowd. As everyone murmured to the one next to them, the queen turned to the three teens who had helped Sonic. They were currently being restrained by her guards.
"You all know the penalty for treason." She sneered as her hand glowed with magic. A sudden rumble in the whirlpool caused Bernadette and everyone else to turn around.
With a loud cry, Sonic burst out the top of the swirling whirlpool. As he swam around, everyone gasped.
"Whoa!" Manic cried out with joy. Even Shadow was shocked by the new transformation
"What?! That's impossible!" Bernadette gasped. How did he escape the whirlpool?! Sonic however, smirked and swam so that he was in front of his friends, protecting them from his aunt's glare.
"But how?" Silver asked, still stunned.
"Don't just stand there gawking you fools, get him!" The evil queen snarled as the mantas, along with very reluctant guards, closed in on the hybrid teenager.
"Wait!" He shouted before they reached him. "You don't have to take orders from Bernadette, she isn't the real heir to Atlantica's throne. I am and I can prove it; I have the Celestial Comb!" He called and everyone gasped as he pulled the lost item out of his quills, causing it to flash as its rightful owner raised it up for everyone to see.
"Never mind the comb!" Bernadette snapped at the crowd. "He's half Mobian; he won't be able to spin merillia, if you want the sea to have a chance to survive, you need me!"
As the crowd murmured amongst themselves, Sonic thought about what she had said. True he didn't know how to spin merillia, but his mother could and she was still out there somewhere. As he looked down at Bernadette's protective necklace, still in his hand, a thought suddenly came to him as he turned to the crowd.
"You don't need Bernadette to spin merillia; look!" He exclaimed and threw down the necklace, making it smash against the rocks. As merillia swirled out, Bernadette gasped in distress as a picture of her sister appeared. The crowd however, gasped in shock at seeing their previous ruler.
"Yes; that is my mother, Queen Aleena, right now, spinning merillia." He growled and turned back to his aunt, when he froze. "Spinning merillia?" He muttered before swimming up to her. "You could have destroyed my mother, but you didn't; you needed her to spin merillia 'cause you can't."
The crowd whispered to each other as the queen looked around nervously.
"That's what makes you so angry and jealous, isn't it?" He asked. "You're the only one in the royal family who can't spin merillia. You're different, and you hate it."
"That's ridiculous." She brushed it off. "Mantas, Shadow, someone, seize him!" She snarled. Everyone glanced at each other, but no one moved to grab the prince.
"You've been pretending my Mom's merillia is yours." He glared before turning back to the crowd. "But Aleena isn't happy shut away, that's why her merillia is too weak to keep the ocean healthy."
"This boy lies!" She roared.
"If you let my mother go, I know we can work together." Sonic said firmly, but with kindness in his eyes. "Once she understands how horrible you felt, she'll forgive you. I know she will. And I know what it's like to feel different. I can expla-"
"NO!" Bernadette roared as she lunged at Sonic, forcing him to dodge and swim around the city as fast as he could. As the chase ensued, Sonic dodged her attacks, causing her to smash into a few pots and buildings.
"You can't out swim me." She snarled as she reached for her nephew again. Looking around frantically for an escape, Sonic saw the whirlpool. He escaped it once; maybe he could do it again. Diving down, Sonic went head first into the spinning magic, followed by Bernadette. The crowd gasped and held their breath.
A few seconds later, Sonic shot out of the top, and turned back to look. Bernadette suddenly lunged out, reaching for the prince… only to grab nothing.
"What?" She looked down, and gasped as she was pulled back into her own creation. "No! I am your queen! I am your ruler! I'm-!"
"So last season!" Sonia cheered. Bernadette cried out as the crown fell from her head and floated down to the dark sea floor. The whirlpool began to move out of the city, and Sonic's friends swam up to the prince's side. As he took deep breaths, the golden glow faded away, to reveal his beautiful cobalt blue once more.
"Where is it going?" He asked as Bernadette's screams echoed out of the trap, growing more distant the further it got.
"To the bottom of the deepest trench in the ocean." Shadow responded coldly.
"I don't deserve this!" Bernadette gave a final cry as the whirlpool disappeared from view and the crowd erupted in cheers.
"All hail King Sonic! All hail King Sonic!" They chanted.
"No, no, please!" Sonic exclaimed, cutting them off. "I'm not your ruler, Aleena is, and we have to find her."
"I know where she is." Shadow stated as he glanced towards the palace...
A few minutes later, Sonic was nervously swimming down a tunnel that led to the deepest, darkest dungeon in the whole palace. Shadow silently led the way to a metal grate that resembled coral, and opened it. Sonic swallowed the heavy lump in his throat as he swam inside and saw his mother with her back towards them.
Her hands were moving side to side as more glowing blue tendrils floated past and then down into a basket as they were collected.
"Mom?" he asked as he swam closer.
"Sonic?" Aleena gasped as she turned around, and her face broke into a wide teary smile as she swam forward to greet her long-lost son with a bone crushing hug. "Oh, my baby; you've grown a tail!"
"I know, it's pretty amazing." He smiled as he swished his fins a little. Some chirping caught their attention as Pearl swam into the room with the crown on her nose.
"This ocean belongs to you again." Sonic smiled as he took the crown and gently placed it on his mother's head. Aleena smiled at her son and turned back to her work. Concentrating, powerful tendrils of merillia floated past and out into the city, making the ocean vibrant and healthy again.
"Tell me, how did it happen?" She asked as she turned to her son again,
"I'll tell you everything, I promise." He vowed. "But first, we need to clean out Bernadette's dungeons."...
A few hours later, a large and cheering crowd was gathered in the city after all of the people had been freed from the dungeons. On a platform in front of everyone, Queen Aleena, now wearing the crown, stood with her son. With them were the guards, Shadow, Sapphire and everyone who had helped Sonic in his quest.
As Aleena placed a crown on her son's head, louder cheers were heard from the crowd, much louder than at any Queen Festival.
"Members of the Royal Court, and it perfectly matched my eyes." Sonia smiled happily as she touched the new blue shell necklace with purple highlights she wore before turning to her brother. "Your's matches your tail!"
"I know." Manic grinned as he looked down at his own necklace.
"Who cares?" Shadow glared at the siblings.
"Shut it emo." Manic snapped.
"In your dreams." The ebony sea fae snapped back.
"Thank you your majesty." Silver bowed; his own necklace the same color as the cyan circles on his hands. The others followed suit.
"I should be thanking you." Aleena replied. "All of you helped my son and helped save our home."
"It's great to see the two of you together." Sapphire smiled.
"You could stay with us forever." Sliver grinned at the prince, a hopeful look in his eyes.
"You could even work in the boutique with us." Sonia gushed. "Not that you would need to, being a prince and all, but it would be so much fun."
"It would." Sonic said slowly.
"But there are things you would miss." Aleena finished gently.
"Yeah." He nodded. "I mean, I love it here and everyone I've met. It's beyond amazing. But I want see Malibu again, I want to see all my friends and Sally, I don't want to stay down here forever."
"Sonic." Aleena smiled and the teen turned to her. "My own heart, you will always be a Mobian, just like how you will always be a sea fae. You are both, in equal parts."
"I guess." He said with a small smile. "But it was hard enough to try and fit in when I first got my powers, and that was in a world I'd already known! If I stayed here I'd be a misfit, a freak." He sighed sadly.
"All you have to be is yourself." Her mother said as she pulled him into a hug as the crowd cheered. "I promise, you're not a misfit in either world. Everything in your history lives and breathes in you. You are unique. You are special. And that's what makes you strong."
"I knew this would happen." Sapphire smirked at her son. Silver didn't say anything as he and his own mother shared a hug. Even Manic and Sonia were seizing the moment. Shadow just grunted at the displays of affection.
"Would it be bad if I leave now?" Sonic asked warily. "I just know Uncle Chuck's worried sick."
"Come back soon and visit." She smiled.
"I promise." He nodded as he swam off. "Good bye everyone!"...