Chapter Nine: Striving on Hope

Silver's eyes fluttered open, his vision momentarily blurred. His head was pulsing in pain but he didn't have a clue why. In fact, he didn't even know where he was or how he got there. Once his vision became clear, he was able to make out his whereabouts. He was in a giant metal room, and… there was an enormous mirror in front of him. Maybe it was best to explore. But when he tried to stand up, he found himself somehow restricted. His arms were cuffed back against the arms of a steel chair. Strange. He tried to pull himself free, but the chains were too strong. Not even any of his powers worked in this room. He tried several times to use some of his levitation or telepathy or even shooting off a wild ball of fire, but nothing worked. Silver's eyes gazed around the room a bit more, scanning to see what was recognizable. The only thing above him was a bright light, and there was nothing next to him on either side, and he couldn't dream to look behind himself even if he wanted to. There was a door in the mirror, but that was all.

So he came to the conclusion that he was in an empty room filled with nothing but himself and that he somehow managed to get inside of the room and that he oddly couldn't use any of his powers to free himself. It was obvious that someone did this to him, but who? Seeing that there was no way out, the only logical thing to do was to sit there until someone arrived. In the meantime, he would do whatever it took to remember how he got there. For starters, his head was hurting, not to mention that he was oddly sore all over his body. He must have been roughhousing too much, but he would never intentionally do it. Silver would have logically fought to protect something, and more than often it's Blaze. Something must have happened to her, and most likely he was able to save her at the risk of his own life. Yes, of course that's what happened! Silver shook his head, knowing that's not what happened. It was something much worse than this. The last thing he could remember was seeing Blaze. And… she was in pain. That's right. They were aboard a ship. And on that ship were a bunch of robots. And Blaze had been at the mercy of a prince. The prince. Prince Rallas!

Silver's eyes lit up in realization, now knowing exactly where he was and why he was there. Rallas captured Blaze to influence Silver to bring the Sol Emeralds, but the hedgehog didn't have them. Luckily, Silver and Blaze managed to escape, but… but they didn't. Silver was captured and Blaze was nowhere to be found. Perhaps she indeed escaped. Without him. Silver took a deep breath. That would be fine if she managed to do so. He only wanted her to be safe, after all. But Blaze wouldn't have left him. She cared about him too much, or so she said. There was no way the princess could ever think to leave the love of her life behind. A sorrowful smile crossed over Silver's lips, recalling all that Blaze said to him. It warmed his heart, and he wished he could relive that moment again just to heart those kind words fall from her lips.

"Blaze?" Silver suddenly asked, falling into a state of panic. He couldn't remember anything after that moment, and now he was desperate to know where she was. His princess wasn't in here. He could feel it. "Blaze, can you hear me?" It was pointless to yell into an empty room, but maybe she was somewhere else. Maybe she could hear him in a different room. "Blaze, if you can hear me please don't panic. I'm right here, alright?" But of course he didn't get a reply, although he still waited for one. His heart raced in fear, dying to know where she was. Blaze could have been anywhere suffering or in torment. What if they were torturing her or worse? Silver pulled with all the force that he could to free himself from the restrictions, but they were far too strong for him to handle. "Blaze, tell me where you are," the hedgehog spoke with a shivering tone. "Maybe if we work together we can get out of here. Just please tell me that you're alright. Please tell me that you're still breathing!" But just like every other time, there was no reply. There was no telling where that feline could be. That only encouraged him all the more to fight his way out to find her. He wasn't going to give up on freeing himself because of a little discouragement.

Rallas watched Silver from the other side of the mirror inside of a dark room. It was a one way window, so Silver couldn't see through it, but Rallas could see the hedgehog. He watched in disgust with a deep scowl on his face as the hero tried to free himself. It would be no use. That animal would never be able to get loose of his restraints. Rallas folded his arms behind his back and turned away from the glass, now setting his eyes on a new target. There sat Blaze chained in a chair in the center of the dark room. She would be able to see him as well once she woke up from her daze. It wasn't long before her eyes fluttered open and she looked about the room as dumbfounded as Silver was. Rallas smirked and tilted his head, amused by the beauty's astonishment. He approached her and stood by her chair, and she suddenly looked up at him in confusion. "Nice of you to join us, Blaze," Rallas hissed through a sly grin.

Blaze narrowed her eyes. It took her a while to remember how she came to be in this room, but she wasn't entirely sure. She snarled at the prince and turned her head away. "I suppose you're just going to sit here and torture me, aren't you? Ha! Go ahead!" She spat, throwing her ears down in frustration.

Rallas raised his eyebrows in amusement. His desire was, since the very beginning, to lay his hands on the Sol Emeralds. If Blaze and Silver weren't going to openly give them to him, then it was time to use new means of force. "I don't plan on harming a pretty strand of fur on your little head," he cooed, directing his gaze to the window.

Blaze followed his gaze in curiosity and gasped once seeing Silver in the opposite room. He sat there dazed and confused just as much as she was, only she could hear his voice. Silver was calling out her name and reassuring her of every little thing possible. It hurt her, honestly, that he cared about her so much and that she couldn't be in there to comfort him. "Silver, I'm here!" She called, trying to pull herself free. "I'm right here! Why won't you listen?!" He wasn't paying attention to her. He talked right over her words as if he hadn't even heard her voice.

"He can't hear you, Blaze," Rallas chuckled. He placed a delicate hand on the back of her chair and casually leaned on it. "He can't even see you. He's in a room all by himself and we're looking at him through a one way window. Your little lover looks lost without you. It's sweet, really. That hedgehog has been blindly calling your name and trying to free himself to save you ever since he woke up. He's practically obsessed with you." He suddenly turned to look down at the princess who still had her eyes locked on Silver. She looked worried and ill, knowing she couldn't do anything to save him in this current state. Rallas couldn't help but snicker as he continued on with his speech. "I still want those emeralds, Blaze, so I'm not going to let either of you go until I get them. But you're not going to give them to me so easily. I should have realized that. However, I expected him to hand them over just as easily as I expected you to. It's obvious now that neither of you are going to willingly handle them over. I want you to tell me where those emeralds are, Blaze. You have exactly three seconds to tell me where they are or else."

"Or else what?" Blaze growled through her teeth, looking up at Rallas and clenching her fists. But before she could even get an answer, the sound of electricity passed through the floor and a piercing scream of utter and sheer pain echoed throughout the aircraft. She jerked her head back to look at Silver in the separate room and her eyes widened in horror. He was being electrocuted! She watched him struggle to pull free as he shrieked and cried out in agony while being shocked. "Stop it," Blaze whispered. She immediately grew in anger and raised her voice to a bellowing command. "Stop it! You're hurting him!"

Rallas immediately pressed a button at this command that dispersed the electrifying bolts. Silver stopped his screaming and he suddenly fell limp once the electricity stopped, his head falling forward into a bow. Blaze silently watched her dear hero in desperation, hoping for him to wake up. She gripped tightly onto the edge of the arms of her chair, waiting for him to wake up. The feline felt relieved once he slightly lifted his head. The hedgehog moved his eyes and he was suddenly looking directly at her, although he couldn't see her. It was plain to be. If he had in fact seen her, then his eyes would have lightened up like they always do when she's in his vision. His eyes right now were dull and filled with defeat. Blaze's heart ached and she felt her body trembling. She was scared and nervous and she couldn't do anything to help the love of her life except watch him suffer.

"Princess," Rallas suddenly spoke, breaking the feline's concentration. "I'm still waiting to know where my emeralds are. Do you want to help your precious lover or not?" But before Blaze could even say a word, he already pressed the button again and Silver was back to gripping onto his seat to endure the electricity, screaming in outrageous pain. Rallas pressed the button once more and again Silver fell limp, breathing and gasping for air.

Blaze's eyes widened once again at this sight. If she didn't confess to the location of the emeralds, then Silver was sure to die. But if she told Rallas where the emeralds were, then her kingdom would be at stake. They would find the emeralds and destroy her beloved kingdom and torment all of the precious people inside. She was stuck in between a rock and a hard place, and there was no way around it. More importantly, she couldn't think clearly. She was so lost in her thoughts about Silver's wellbeing that she couldn't think of a way on how to get out of this situation. There had to be a way out of this somehow. She had to be able to save him without revealing the whereabouts of the Sol Emeralds. She had always been able to think of clever plans in the past, so why couldn't she do it now?

"Blaze?" Silver suddenly weakly whispered in between a cough. Blaze intently lifted her ears and leaned forward in her chair to better listen. "Blaze, are you alright? Or did they kill you…? I don't want to fight to stay alive if you're not even of the living anymore. Please, tell me if you're okay. I want to save you. I'll do whatever I can if you just say something to me. Let me know that you're alive. Please." Visible tears began to stream down his face that Blaze could clearly see from where she was sitting. If anything, that twisted and tore at her heart the most. The dedication he held towards her was absolutely heartwarming. It wasn't fair that he had to go through such pain because of her. And just when Silver was able to catch a bit of rest, Rallas had pressed the button once more and again the hero was screaming out in pain. The look on his face dug deep into Blaze's heart. With every electrocution, he became worse and worse. The energy of the bolt was so strong this time that the hedgehog suddenly stopped screaming all at once. His eyes slowly closed and his body just suddenly fell limp completely.

"Stop!" Blaze cried out. Did he pass out? Was he dead? Blaze couldn't think clearly. She was only thinking on instinct to cry out for help. "Please, stop! Stop!"

"Where are those emeralds, Blaze?!" Rallas yelled.

"In the castle!" Blaze blindly confessed. "Floor three in the left wing of the castle! Room C5; it's by a large window and there's a statue near it! The emeralds! They-they're inside that room. The code is 52874! You'll need a strand of my fur, as well! Please, just please, please, please stop! I'll tell you anything else you want to know! Please, stop!" Constant tears rolled down her red cheeks as she spoke every word and tried to free herself. She couldn't help but to loudly whimper, wondering whether Silver was even alive anymore or not.

Rallas pressed the button again that stopped the jolts from surging through Silver's veins. They were both silent for a moment before Rallas started again. "You don't need to give me any additional information. You've told me all that I needed to know," he sneered. The prince pressed another button and the restraints around Blaze's wrists suddenly released. He watched her immediately stand and race for the window. He didn't care to watch any longer. Rallas turned on his heel and exited the room, leaving the two to their dying romance.

Blaze glued herself to the window, looking desperately inside. He wasn't moving. The princess raced to the door and swung it open. Her legs bolted her to Silver's chair at a rapid pace and noticed that he had been unshackled as well as she had. The princess shook the hedgehog's limp body, trying to awaken him. "Silver, wake up! I'm alive! You don't have to die! I'm here with you!" She wasn't reaching him. He wouldn't wake up. Blaze fell to her knees and pulled him from his chair so that he would fall to his knees in front of her. They loosely sat on the floor together with Blaze's arms throw tightly around his neck. His body leaned heavily on her, having not been awake. She wept into his shoulder, realizing she had made a mistake. She waited too long and he suffered all because of her. When Blaze was in trouble, Silver wasted no time in confessing to save her. He loved her. His devotion to her was impeccable. It was a shame that she couldn't portray such love to him, and because of that lack of devotion, he was gone.

Blaze gently lied him down on his back and looked at his peaceful expression, despite the recent sufferings he had endured for her. "I'm so sorry, Silver," she sobbed, her tears falling onto his chest. She grabbed his hand and put it up to her face, wanting to feel his warm touch again. She also placed her hand against his cheek, stroking it against his soft skin. He was so warm. How she loved the warmth of his gentle touch. Blaze hopelessly buried her face into his chest, feeling the warmth of his skin on her face. Not only could she feel his warmth, but she could feel something deeper. And hear something. It was a thumping sound- the beating of his heart. He was still alive. It was slow, but he was still breathing! He wasn't dead, but he was dying. Blaze gasped and moved away from him, staring at his body with new determination. There was still hope. She could still save him.

Blaze knew exactly what she had to do. She had to perform CPR on him if she ever desired to save his life. Blaze placed her hands on Silver's chest and began pressing down on it as hard as she could, working up the air in his lungs again. She shoved and shoved and shoved on his chest, watching desperately for his eyes to open. It wasn't working. She had to go further. She had to find new means of throwing air into his lungs. But what? The only thing left was to physically blow air into his lungs, and that was by locking her lips to his. Yes, she would do exactly that to save his life. But as she neared his lips, she couldn't think to possibly do such a thing. Her cheeks lit up with the deepest shade of red, her heart racing. She had always wanted to do this, but now that she was about to, she was afraid. She didn't know what she was afraid of, but she was. Maybe too frightened that she would do it wrong or that Silver would wake up and find her disgusting. No, no, no! Silver said he loved her. He wouldn't care how the kiss was like just as long as they loved each other. This wasn't a kiss, anyway. This was saving his life.

Brushing all of that behind her, Blaze tightly closed her eyes and moved forward and glued her lips to his. The embrace was so thrilling that she could've sworn she felt her heart stop. She blew all of the air out of her lungs and into his, and suddenly it didn't feel like she was saving him anymore. She wasn't performing CPR, but she was kissing him. She was presenting a romantic embrace with the love of her life. The princess placed a gentle hand on his cheek, savoring the moment for all it was worth. If this was Silver's last moment among the living, then she wanted him to enjoy it whether he was awake or not. She slowly parted her lips from Silver's and moved away from him, realizing she had failed while looking at his resting face. He hadn't moved a muscle. Perhaps Silver had given up on life long ago, and her efforts had only gone to waste. Blaze, having worked to stay so strong, finally gave up. It was too late to save her kingdom, and it was far too late to save Silver. She failed everyone. All hope was lost. Blaze whimpered once more and let the tears fall easily from her closed eyes, knowing there was nothing else she could do.

"Blaze...?"

Blaze's eyes suddenly shot open and she looked down at the hedgehog. His eyes were barely cracked open and they lit up at the sight of her. Silver was alive. "Silver! Oh, Silver!" It was the only logical thing that Blaze could think of to say as she brought his face up to her chest and hugged him tightly around his back and neck. "Forgive me! I'm so sorry! I thought I lost you!" She loudly wept, uncaring of who heard her.

Silver tightly gripped her around her back and gently stroked her hair, doing all that he could to comfort her. "Blaze… I thought I lost you too," he coughed. He now sat up on his own and brought the princess into a loving hug, taking in the moment as deeply as he could. He couldn't think of anything to say or do except to just bask in the moment. This girl had saved his life. Silver always saved her in the past, and now it had been his turn to be the damsel. Silver let out a silent chuckle and rubbed his forehead against hers. "You saved me. I can't thank you enough. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you," he whispered, holding her cheeks in his hands. He leaned forward and kissed her to the princess' surprise. He didn't care whether or not she pulled away or whether she was offended, because he was happy. There was nothing that could ruin his moment. But she didn't move away. They were so caught up in each other's happiness that they only stayed together, enveloping themselves in the kiss. They never wanted to separate like that again, and now there was nothing to stop them.

Blaze pulled away from him and looked at him sincerely in the eyes. She was no longer crying, for she was filled with utter joy. "Silver, I love you so much. Please don't ever leave me again."

Silver smiled warmly at her and nodded. "I promise, as long as you promise me as well."

"I promise," Blaze chuckled, moving in for another kiss. The taste of his lips was unlike a taste she had ever tasted before. They were unique, and she hoped to taste his lips a million times like this before they ever came to pass their end of time.

A sudden thought crossed Blaze's mind, and she was forced to pull away again. Silver looked at her in confusion, but the princess came to answer his question before the hero could even ask what was wrong. "The Sol Emeralds. I told Rallas where they were and now they're heading in that direction. Silver, we have to stop him."

Silver concentrated on her face for a moment before nodding, and the two of them stood to their feet. Unfortunately, there wasn't any time for them to gorge themselves in such romance. They had responsibilities to ensue. The feline and the hedgehog raced out of the door, knowing what they had to do. They had to get to the castle and reach the Sol Emeralds before Rallas did, or else havoc would surely reign on the innocent kingdom. Now they were stronger than ever, engulfed in their romance. No one could stop them as long as they had each other. Their newfound love was what would encourage them to keep on fighting. They would fight for the sake of the kingdom and they would fight for the sake of each other's safety. The two lovers would never let such harm happen to the other ever again. They would fight until the end of their breath to save the one they loved, even at the risk of their own life. They didn't care what happened as long as their lover was still alive and still breathing.

As Silver and Blaze raced through the halls, they couldn't help but smile. They exchanged their sweet smiles, consumed with heartwarming love. As long as they had each other, they were unstoppable.

I greatly enjoyed writing this chapter. It was way too cute for me. I just hope the rest of my story will be as suspenseful.