Chapter eleven
Warning: the following chapter is confusing in some areas. I will try to make it easier to understand over time.
Luke and Cream walked through the hospital doors to their friends. Vanilla hugged Cream and didn't let her go. Amy ran to Luke and said 'I know you hurt Sonic but…' Amy hugged Luke for a few seconds then let go, half happy and half disappointed for not hugging her. Everyone kept their distance as Vanilla hugged Cream, but went to Luke and thanked him.
Sonic didn't like doing this, but sucked it up and thanked him. After everyone thanked Luke and went to Cream, Blizzard walked up to Luke and asked 'Why did you save her?'
'These people, I feel that if we stay with them, we may reach our goal faster. I stayed with them and I found you, did I not?' Luke replied with a chuckle at the end.
As everyone calmed down and Cream promised never to do anything like that again, Luke motioned to Sonic for them to go and see Tails.
As they walked to the body room, Sonic asked Luke 'When this is over, you and I need to talk'.
'About what?' Luke asked.
'You know what I'm talking about' Sonic replied, leaving Luke confused.
When they got to the room, Luke waited outside, while Sonic went in first. Sonic looked at the body and cried a tiny bit and came out. Luke went inside and looked at the body. In the short time Luke had spent with Tails, they had become friends. Not close friends, but friends.
Luke then thought of something that had escaped his mind completely. Slowly Luke put his fingers to Tails' neck and felt for a pulse. For ten seconds, Luke felt nothing but got a very faint bump. Luke wanted to jump for joy but he had to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Sonic came over to Luke and asked him what he was doing.
'Can you put your fingers here, Sonic?' Luke asked, motioning to where Luke had his fingers.
'Why?' Sonic asked.
'Just give me the benefit of the doubt please' Luke said.
Sonic sighed and put his fingers in the spot for thirty seconds before removing them.
'Did you feel anything?' Luke asked. Sonic looked at him, confused at why would he feel anything from a corpse.
'No, nothing' Sonic replied. Luke put his fingers back in place and waited for a whole minute. In that minute, Luke felt five bumps. Luke walked out of the room, being followed closely by Sonic. When they reached the room, Luke went immediately to Blizzard.
'I felt it' Luke said.
'What?' Blizzard asked. Luke repeated himself. Blizzard gasped and held her hand over her mouth.
'How? Who is it?' Blizzard asked.
'He could be a Reincarnation. And by the looks of it, it might be my bro' Luke answered. Blizzard's gasp attracted the attention of everyone, but no-one knew what they were talking about.
Sonic stood up and firmly said 'I was hoping to do this in private but I can't stand it. You guys are keeping secrets from us and I want to know what they are Flare, if that is even your real name'
'Sonic, what are you talking about?' Luke asked.
'I may not be as smart as Tails, but I do know that you guys are lying to us' Sonic shot back.
'I was going to tell you guys in a few minutes when I was done with Blizzard, but I guess I have to now. Sonic, almost everything I have told you is true. The only part I lied was my name and I had a reason for it' Luke said.
'Then let's hear it' Sonic said rudely. Everyone was watching this verbal battle, both confused and perfectly understanding what they were saying.
'The reason I didn't tell you guys my name was that in the Knights, telling someone outside was a sign of respect and trust. I didn't respect or trust you at the start, but as it went along, I began to trust all of you. Tails knew my real name, but that was only because on the cliff with Brick, Brick said it' Luke said.
'Then what is your real name?' Sonic asked.
'Yeah, what is your real name?' Knuckles asked.
'Luke. My real name is Luke Shepherd' Luke said. 'And Blizzard?' Sonic asked.
'Chloe. Chloe Sentle' Chloe said.
'And what about what you guys were talking about?' Sonic asked. Luke looked at Chloe and she nodded.
'There are two possibilities. Do you remember when I asked you to put your hand on Tails' neck? I was checking something. The first possibility is that I am hallucinating and we all forget about it' Luke started.
'And the second?' Rouge asked.
'This story will explain it. We Knights cannot technically die by normal means. Only if we die under special conditions do we actually die. If one of us dies without one of these conditions in place, our body is destroyed and our mind goes into suspended animation. Over time, our body is reformed but our mind is separated from it. The mind has to go into someone else's body and find their body. The person who is chosen to take the mind to the body is called a Reincarnation. Other Knights can track the dead Knight's body and bring it to the Reincarnation so the mind of the dead Knight can transfer back into the body' Luke started, but stopped to catch his breath.
'So what, you believe Tails is a Reincarnation?' Sonic asked.
'Yeah, basically. But neither Chloe nor I have sensed the body yet' Luke said.
'Is that bad?' Cream asked.
'It means one of two things. The first is that we have to look harder; or, in special cases, the mind might fuse with the Reincarnation, giving the host all of their memories and experiences. This doesn't mean that the host's mind is erased; a more accurate description is that the two minds become one. If one has a question, the other can answer it. If one has to make a decision, the other can help it decide' Luke answered.
'So it's better?' Cream asked.
'Yes, essentially' Luke answered.
'Two things' Sonic started. 'First, how do you know that Tails is a Reincarnation and second, what does this all mean?'
'How we know, simple. Knights can feel pulses no matter what is obstructing them. If they are truly dead, then we don't feel anything. If they are dead, but they are going to come back to life, we feel a pulse depending on when they are going to come back, but everyone else doesn't feel a pulse. And what does this mean? To put it simple, Tails is coming back to life'.
Cheesey, I know but this fits with the whole story.