Tloj: Lalalalala~ Everyone is owned by who owns them!
I hear quiet sobbing as I slowly come to.
I groan, moving an arm around slowly, attempting to feel out.
A small gasp, and then a dainty hand in mine. "Hero? Sweety, can you hear me?"
"Can you hear me?" I murmur.
I hear a sniffle, and then a warm pressure on my lips.
I take as deep of a breath as I can before sensing with my chi.
The person over me has Chi like a gentle breeze over calm water.
"How long was I out?" I murmur.
"An hour," Sarah replies. "I... I was so scared..."
"Good thing Mien-Dee was nearby." I chuckle. "Did I get Spike good enough?"
She rubs my forehead, "Ari-El had to defrost them both so Smoke could fix him... he's pretty beat up about it, hasn't said a word to anyone."
"Am I safe to sit up?"
I feel her hands on my shoulders, helping me upright slowly.
"Wow, that hurt less than I thought it would..." I wince.
She puts some pillows behind my back, "How do you feel?"
I slowly open my eyes, letting the world come to focus. "Like I died and met an angel."
She smiles, and gently hugs me. "I love you so much..."
"I love you more." I grin.
She sits on the bed, and smiles as Aether hops on the bed. He whimpers as he paws at me."
I pet him. "Hey Aether."
He licks my fingers, looking up with big concerned eyes with a whine.
I slowly get out of bed, standing. "I think I'm okay. Let's check on Smoke and Spike."
Sarah twiddles her thumbs, "Smoke is having lunch... Spike is out at the edge of the tribe, messing with his truck."
"We'll check on Spike first." I decide.
She nods, and helps me stand up, "Can you walk?"
"I think so." I take a few steps.
She holds my hand though as we make our way to the crash site. Spike is crouched on a wheel with a focused expression as he looks over parts under the open hood.
"How's it going, Spike?" I ask as we walk over.
He glances at me before going back to his work.
"Talk to me. Say anything." I insist.
He pauses, and sets a part down beside him.
"...I like fighting...I like good...I like pretty girls...You wanna know what I liked a few months ago?"
"Trucks?" I venture.
"Absolutely Chaos-damned nothing," he deadpans. "I wasn't even Mobian. I ate when my body demanded it, slept when my body forced me to, and killed... so many..."
He looks at me with tears in his eyes, "And all this, Cinder had to tell me. I don't even remember it. All I remember id my sword gradually turning red... and always being in danger."
Spike shakes his head, "I don't even remember almost killing you. One second Julie-Su has her gun pointed at me... the next you're in the sand, and I have a Smoke-ka-bob on my sword."
"But you're not that person now." I insist. "If you were, you wouldn't be here."
Spike flexes a fist, "I was still that way when Cinder broke up Poisoned Rose, if it wasn't for Reave..." He shakes his head, "But it's still me, I am a Demon deep inside."
"We all have demons inside of us; it's how we face them that decides our fate."
"And I try to laugh mine off, what's that tell you?"
"That you haven't faced it." I state. "You live with it and you accept it. That's like letting a guy bully you around,"
Spike stands, and hops off the tire, "You really don't get it man, I've killed thousands of people! Most of them were probably innocents, or people just barely scraping a living just like us!"
"Exactly!" I walk up to him and growl, "It's inside of you. You have the power to overcome that side, I've seen it!"
Spike looks himself over, and then summons his sword. "I don't know if you know, but for us that can summon weapons these are literally our souls. That's why they don't break, and only the summoner can use them. Mine is stained with blood... this is who I am Hero, we can't all be good guys."
"But we have the choice." I say simply.
He shakes his head, "I don't, and the only choice you have is whether to still around so you both eventually get gutted, or do the smart thing and ditch me while the going's good."
"Ditching you would only prove your point. Just because you think you don't have a choice doesn't mean I believe it."
"Well that's your choice," Spike counters as he heads back for the tribe.
I sigh. "Well, I tried."
Sarah rubs my arm, "At least you got him talking again."
"I guess. Let's check on Smoke." We walk into the tribe.
We find him in the food hall. He's not wearing his hoodie so his scars are on full display... let's say he wasn't exaggerating earlier when he told me about them. He has a bloodstained bandage over his gut as he munches on a huge sandwich.
I sit next to him. "Hey Smoke. How're you doing?"
He smiles at me, and sets down his lunch, "Peachy, why?"
"From what Spike was saying, I thought you'd be just as silent."
He shakes his head, "Nah, he can feel sorry for himself all he wants. You think I've never been stabbed before?"
"You sure look like you have."
"My point," Smoke winks. "Plus not the first time Spike went AWOL on me."
He taps the bandage tied on his arm, "When he was a kid he took this arm clean off. Cinder if the only one his Demon won't attack."
"How'd you get it back?" I blink.
"We had some money saved from fighting bets, got me to a hospital in time." Smoke shrugs, "Such is life. By the way, Mien-Dee left you a present."
He taps my chest, and I reach down to feel a scar of my own stretching from my elbow to my hip.
"Woah." I blink.
"A little proof you went toe-to-toe with the feared Demon, and survived," Smoke says with a wink.
"Well yeah, but you distracted him." I shrug.
Smoke chuckles, "Cinder did some kind of hypnosis on him long ago. That trick I pulled only works if I do it... though getting stabbed isn't usually a part of it."
He takes a sip of bottled water, "When Spike goes into that mode he's on pure instinct, there's no reasoning with him. Any threat, no matter how small, is dog meat around him. I guess the easiest way to put it is that Cinder took the "Flight" out of his Fight or Flight instinct."
"He needs a girlfriend to give it back to him." I suggest.
"I've been saying that for years," Smoke says casually, and passes me a water bottle.
I accept it and take a sip. "We need someone to help him get one."
Smoke smirks, "After that little display, assuming Knuckles hasn't taken first dibs, a woman like Julie-Su might go for him. Then again there's the list I gave him, and Sonic's sister, right?"
"Right. Antonio's good at hooking people up... I'll get him to help Spike." I say thoughtfully.
"Cheers dude," Smoke toasts his water at me before downing his water. "So, how's your mom taking all this?"
"I haven't talked to her in a while." I say honestly.
"Then I'd suggest you do. Spike just quit having one princess ticked at him, and in my opinion your mom is the worse of two evils."
"Right." I stand. "See you later."
He waves as Sarah puts some sandwiches in a bag for us.
"I wonder where she is now." I muse.
Sarah asks for where mom's tent is, and we decide to try there first.
We walk up, and I call, "Mom, are you in there?"
Sarah looks up at me, and then eyes the tent for a response.
I peek in. "Mom?"
She wasn't there. "Huh. Where else would she be?"
Sarah rubs her neck, "Um... I don't want to sound morbid, but maybe she's looking for Spike?"
"Why?" I blink. "Her sister fought him, I don't know why she'd want to find him."
"Personal vengeance? The mama bear instinct maybe...?"
Oh, right. I almost forgot I almost died.
"Uh-oh. We'd better find him then."
"SON OF A BITCH, WHEREVER YOU ARE CALL HER OFF!"
Sarah jumps, "Three guesses..."
"And two are nearby." I run in the direction of Spike's voice.
I see him dodging a whip of lightning.
"DAMMIT WOMAN, I HAD NO CONTROL!"
"Which means you need to be put down before you hurt someone else you know!" She growls.
"You seriously think I haven't tried?!" Spike tosses his sword in the air to act like a lightning rod as he puts some distance between them. "Every single time something almost kills me, or is a real threat to kill me I change! Now knock it off before you make Hero and orphan again!"
"Mom, stop! I'm fine!" I call.
Spike glances at me, and in the process fails to dodge. "ARGH!"
"Gotcha!" She growls triumphantly.
Spike twitches on the ground, eyes shut, "Yeah, you got me, now stop!"
"Mom, leave him alone." I call.
She glares at him before running over and pulling me into a bear hug.
Spike twitches as he shakily gets to his feet, "Owie... Um... None of you guys around here heard any of that, right?"
"Just the part where you were calling for me." I state.
"No, I mean..." He carefully makes his way over, "You think anyone in the tribe heard about... you two?"
I pause. Uh-oh.
Spike glances between us, "...Silence is not a good sign..."
I look around slowly.
There doesn't appear to be anyone nearby, a miracle if there ever was one.
I sigh with relief. "Too close."
Spike gives my mother a flat look, "Yeah."
She returns it.
They keep this up for a few minutes before I decide to break them up.
"All right, enough. Both of you, drop it."
Spike just sighs, and hobbles off.
"Mom, don't try to kill him. I'm fine, really." I say.
She doesn't look convinced, but nods.
Reave joins us a few seconds later, "Are we under attack?"
"Spike was." I nod at Mom.
He nods in understanding. "I see... While I applaud your maternal instincts Princess, allow me to remind you that he is a valuable member of this team. He hasn't had an episode like that in nearly a year now."
"He'd better not have another when my son is around." She hisses.
Reave touches her shoulder, "As far as I can tell it only occurs when he's so emotionally strained that he retreats within his mind, or his life is in serious danger."
"Well then, we need to make sure we don't hit a breaking point." I say.
Reave nods, and sighs. "So with the clans almost united, what's our next move?"
"Well... We need to find Fear and defeat him somehow. And I'm somewhat concerned about just freezing Robert Knux." I say thoughtfully.
Reave nods, and crosses his arms. "So princess, what's the situation with Knuckles?"
"Everything's floating so far. Sis is a bit skeptical, but I know she has a thing for the Guardian." She answers.
"Oh?" Reave raises an eyebrow with a smirk.
"When we were really young, she insisted that she was his soulmate." She giggles.
I laugh, "Seriously?"
"Yep." She confirms. "I was thirteen and she was five, I would remember something like that."
Reave chuckles too.
"Ah, it's like it was yesterday." She sighs.
Sarah smiles, and Aether hops onto my head with a happy bark.
I laugh and pet him, saying, "You seem to like your sister a lot."
"I do... I really don't know why we argue." She sighs.
Aether sniffs at my mom before hopping on her shoulder.
She giggles and pets him. "I wish we could get along..."
"Who says you cannot," Reave reasons. "Soon you will share a husband, yes?"
"True... But she won't listen to me. We need someone to help us sort this out."
"I will assist," Reave offers. "And I am sure Shade will help too."
"Okay. Hero, can you come too?" She looks at me.
"Of course. C'mon Sarah." I take her hand.
We follow my mother to a tent towards the center of the tribe.
She calls, "Julie! I would like to talk to you."
She opens the tent door. "What do you all want?"
"Parlay," Reave replies.
She blinks. "What?"
Sarah clears her throat, "He means we want to help you two stop fighting."
"So now you need outsiders to talk with me, Sis?" She gives a harsh laugh.
"Let's take this inside." I state.
She opens the tent flap wider hesitantly, but lets us in.
Reave stands by the door, ears pointed back to see if anyone is trying to listen in.
"Julie, this is my son, Hero." Mom introduces.
I nod. "Hi."
Julie-Su blinks before laughing. "This is a joke, right?"
"Afraid not," Reave says.
I raise my C.E.A. and replay the message.
"Wait. So that hedgehog you met years ago-" Julie-Su starts.
"Yes. He's my husband and Hero's father." Mom nods.
"Have you told the Guardian?"
"He knows." She nods.
Sarah smiles, "So now you know you have a nephew!'
"Wow." She stares at me. "So, do you share your mother's temper?"
"Not really." I blink.
"I like him." She nods.
Reave raises an eyebrow, "I noted you have a temper yourself, Princess. A family trait, or a racial one?"
She glares at him.
"Probably racial. Every echidna I've seen so far has one." I state.
"Hey!" Both Mom and Julie-Su protest.
"Except Shade," Reave notes with a raised finger. "Then again with her father I doubt she has had much a chance to express her temper."
"Or she expresses it in private. Enerjak seems like he'd have a temper on him." I add.
"The point is, we let our tempers get the best of us. We're sisters, Julie. Why can't we be closer?" Mom asks.
Reave raises a hand, "A possible explanation is simply that you two enjoy fighting so much you allow it to leak into your bond."
"Yeah! I can live with that." Julie-Su bops Mom's shoulder.
Mom laughs. "I guess that's as close as we're gonna get."
Reave shakes his head, "I know the Echidnas are notorious for warmongering, but your bond can be fully remedied."
"How?"
"Simply put effort into not fighting with one another."
"Okay. I'll try if you will." Mom offers.
"...Okay. Just because I like my new nephew."
"That's the spirit," I laugh.
They both give me a hug. "So you've told me that Knuckles is uniting the tribes... but you never specified why." Julie-Su says.
"Some prophecy," I reply. "He's supposed to unite the tribes to face a great threat."
"Like what?" She tilts her head.
"We're not sure, but I think it's a general named Fear." I say.
"Fear? Wasn't he your general?" She looks at Mom.
"He was." She confirms.
Reave frowns, "So you did have affiliations in the Dark Egg Legion?"
"We still do. Fear made my tribe join Eggman." Mom explains.
Sarah looks sad, "Then we have to help you... get free, right?"
"Right." Mom nods.
Reave uncrosses his arms, "Then we have a target, Ivo Robotnik. If we aim for him then we'll find our other targets soon enough."
"Right." We nod.
Reave smirks, "So I propose you allow us assassins to do what we do best. The Nightshades are without purpose as of late, it will do Crystal some good to put her skills to use."
"Do you want pay? I can pay you." Mom offers.
Reave turns his arm over, and eyes the blade on his wrist. "...Or perhaps you can help us another way. With the Echidnas becoming one again, will there be a place for assassins among you?"
"Most likely. An advanced scouting force would help for an army." Julie-Su nods.
Reave smirks, "Then there will be a haven for our rebirth, and naturally the echidnas would assist with the destruction of the Nage?"
"Yes." They nod.
Reave smiles, and puts out a hand, "Then as the only son of the Nightshades, our blades are yours."
Mom shakes his hand with a smile. "So how will we infiltrate?" She asks.
Reave adjusts his blades, "First we need to know where we will attack, and devise a plan from there. If we cross-reference Legion activity with Nage activity then we should find our target."
"Right. I'll see what my troops can dig up." Mom leaves the tent.
Sarah takes my hand, and hugs me.
"Well, things are going to get exciting again real soon." I state, hugging her back.
She smiles, and looks down at her ring. "And this time I'm ready."
Reave looks to Juilie-Su, "Where is Knuckles?"
"With Shade. I think they're shopping." She responds.
Reave nods, and leaves the room.
Aether jumps up on Julie-Su, climbing up on her head.
Julie-Sa smiles. "This little guy's an active one, isn't he?"
Aether starts licking her face.
She giggles and pets him.
Sarah smiles, and leans into me. "What now?"
I check my watch. "It's almost dinner time. I say we eat something and turn in."
She nods, and collects Aether before we head out.
I pull her close and smile.
She looks up at me, "You know... I think meeting Smoke was the best decision either of us made. Just look at everything that's happened since then."
"Yeah. I would've never had met you or Mom. I'd probably be dead right now if it weren't for him. And you." I kiss her cheek.
She purrs, "Me too... Having Millie around was the only thing that kept me from..." She shudders, unwilling to finish that sentence.
"I know. But we have each other now. I won't let anything bad happen to you ever again." I promise.
She take my hand gently, "I know... I know..."
"Just want to make sure." I chuckle.
We eventually make our way back to the food hall, and I see Crystal sitting on one of the tables... smiling, especially when she spots me.
We walk over. "Hey Crystal, what's up?" I greet.
He gives me the traditional Echidna salute. "As I understand it my brother, and I are being welcomed into the new empire your mother is building."
"Yeah." I nod.
Crystal hugs me, "Then I have a place in this world again. I could not be happier."
"You're welcome?" I smile.
She nods, and steps aside. I spot Spike across the room who waves with a smile. He trots over, and hugs me, "I love you man! Soon we'll be bros-!"
He wisely chooses to back off when Crystal puts a blade to his nose.
"What do you mean by that?" I tilt my head.
Spike has his hands up in surrender, "W-well... here pretty soon everyone's gonna be one big clan, right? Well that includes Cinder. Blood or no she did raise me."
Reave looks up from a scroll he's reading. "I've actually studied this society, and in the Old Empire it wasn't uncommon for families to adopt non-echidnas."
"Cool. Now all we need is to get you a girl!"
Spike thumps his chest with a fist, "You kidding? After having all three Princesses shaking in their boots, plus possibly Knuckles, what girls here won't be going for this handsome hedgehog?"
"They'll look far and wide for you, all right; getting them to stick around once they get to know you is the challenge." I smile.
"Hey!" He socks me in the arm with the side of his fist, "I dare ya to say that again!"
Reave goes back to his scroll, "Let us not forget you gave the resident princess some battle scars, though if they affect her reproductive organs there will be problems."
"Oh yeah, check it!" Spike takes off his shirt so I can see the scars from his battle with Julie-Su. "First the eye, now this! Up till I met you no one was able to lay a scratch on me! Thanks for making it fun dude."
"You stabbed me." I deadpan. "A better thanks would've been to not do that."
"No I didn't," Spike taps the side of his fist. "See? No spikes there- Oh... Right, well technically that was a slash, not a stab." He pokes me in the chest.
"It's hard to tell when you're flatlining."
Spike folds his ears back, "Well at least you're still here to bitch about it..."
"That, I am." I punch his arm. "Hopefully, you'll attack the opponent next time instead of an ally."
"Eh, it kinda depends on who's stupid enough to move, or make a sound." Spike rubs his head, "Or better yet I can just fight like I am now, and just NOT go Demon!"
"Let's do that." I agree.
He smiles, and then slinks off to raid the buffet.
Mien-Dee trots over, and salutes me. "I'm glad to see you're well again. Ari-El, and I have been watching the border as best we can for Legion activity, and left a few traps for them."
"Sweet, thanks!" I smile.
She smiles back, "Can I get you anything else?"
"Nummy-nummy!" Smoke holds a roasted scorpion on a stick in front of my face.
"No, thanks!" I smile.
"Suit yourself," Smoke crunches on it, and I swear Sarah goes green in the face.
"C'mon. Let's get dinner." I lead her into the buffet line.
She groans, "Please no bugs..."
"I promise." I snicker.
She shakes her head to ward off the sickness before we get to the buffet. Looks like the cooks have an Asian theme tonight.
I grab some rice and eggrolls before sitting down and eating.
She has some Chao Mien with General Tsao chicken.
After our meal, we check out the shops again before going to our tent.
She stretches, and starts folding her clothes into the new suitcase she bought. She smiles when she picks up her outfit from the Amazon Tribe, but just packs it away.
I walk up from behind and wrap her in a hug, kissing her cheek and purring, "I have to be the luckiest guy in the world..."
She purrs right back as she leans into me. "I think you have it backwards."
"Do I?" I nuzzle my cheek against hers.
"Mm-hm..." she turns in my arms, and pulls me down for a kiss.
I laugh and sit down on our bed, placing her in my lap and kissing her on the lips.
She purrs, and rubs my chest, "I love you Hero."
I smile. "There's only the two of us here... Why don't you prove it?"
She smiles, and gently pushes me onto my back, crawling over the top of me...
Tloj: No lemons! :3
