Kingdom Hearts II: Sonic Chronicles
OC's © original creators
Chapter Thirty-Five: Treasure Hunt, Part 2
Thankfully, the trip didn't require the amount of time that Link had predicted. At the present moment, the scenery took place in the enclosed woodland of the Faron Providence in the northern section of the area. Epona trotted diligently into the open plain between the Faron Forest and the Forest Temple, which bared striking resemblance to an overgrown tree stump. The young mare was only proud to carry her master back to their homeland, but often snorted in irritancy for the second passenger. Link tugged at Epona's reins in any case she would try to buck off Zant sitting behind him – she was more unforgiving than Zelda. The green-clothed swordsman looked around the forest, listening to the familiar chirps and felt a wave of nostalgia wash over him. But Link was harshly pulled from memory lane by the sweeping roar of engines that was followed by the arrival of the Sonic Team. The Keyblade Master and friends stopped a short distance away, jumping off and tucking their Extreme Gear under their arms.
"Hey, we made it." Sonic grinned cockily, pushing up his sunglasses. "And it only took four hours."
"I'll admit that the technology of your world is impressive." Link nodded interestingly as he hopped down; Epona took the chance to kick off Zant. "In this world, the only way to get around is by horse back or – in the Twili's case – Twilight Portal."
"The good thing about Extreme Gear is that they never wear out." Storm proclaimed knowledgably. "On most worlds, Extreme Gear uses the air as fuel to propel the main turbines and boast the engines for an inexhaustible supply of energy. But for specific transport such as space travel, Queen Wave developed a special Gravity Meter that collects spatial particles and synthesizes them into artificial air."
"How…" Angel spoke slowly, blinking shockingly. "In the world….did you know that?"
"I helped build them with King Jet and Queen Wave four hundred years ago." Storm laughed sheepishly, ruffling his head feathers.
"Did you have any idea what he just said?" Sonic thought amazingly.
"For once, I don't have an answer for that." Dark Sonic replied in awe.
"Strewth, mate!" Marine cheered, waving her arms exaggeratedly. "So that special meter collects space dust and turns it into pretend air to power the Extreme Gears!" The group fell deathly silent and stared at the little girl in amazement. "What? What'd I say?"
"Sure, don't worry about me." The heroes yelped and jumped suddenly; they had completely forgotten about Zant. "Oh, there's no needed to worry about. I was just trampled by a two hundred and fifty pound horse – no problem."
"Heh! Sorry." Link laughed nervously. "But the good news is we're here now."
"So that's it?" Silver asked, narrowing his eyes towards the temple. "That's where the Master Sword is hidden?"
"Uh…not exactly." Link said hesitantly.
The way he said it instantly told Sonic he wasn't going to like what happens next. The Hero of Time gestured for his friends – and Zant – to follow, leaving Epona to guard the Extreme Gear. At first, the Keyblade Master believed that the green-clothed swordsman was leading them up the wooden bridge to the Forest Temple. When will he learn that things are never that easy? Instead, Link shifted directions and stopped just a few feet away from a Deep Gorge that formed to the right of the temple entrance. Marine timidly crawled on the ground and bowed her head over the edge – she shivered when realizing that she couldn't see the bottom. But aside from the bottomless black hole below, Zant was the first to spot a cavern-like platform across the gorge with some shrubbery that stood out from the rest of the surroundings.
"Let me guess." Zant said dryly. "We have to cross this chasm to reach the Sacred Grove?"
"That's the idea." Link answered nonchalantly; the Sonic Team screamed in defiance. "The Sages wanted to make sure that no one could get into the Sacred Grove and take the Master Sword easily. So they made it nearly impossible to enter the Sacred Grove in addition to several guardians along the way."
"So how are we supposed to get across?" Angel questioned curiously. "Is there like some kind of special bridge that pops out or maybe some magic words?"
"Actually, I kinda forgot about that." Link said cluelessly; the Heroes face-faulted. "First time I came here, I was a wolf and Midna used her powers to get us across the Deep Gorge. The second time I came here, Rusl gave me some golden chickens that allowed me to fly across."
"Of course." Zant snorted sarcastically. "I was wondering what we were going to do with these chickens we had lying around."
"Can't we just use the Extreme Gear to cross?" Storm offered hopefully.
"Link is the only one of us capable of pulling the Master Sword." Silver informed dejectedly. "The only problem is that he's too tall and heavy for the weight of the Extreme Gear to carry."
"Hey, I can't be any heavier than this overstuffed turkey!" Link snapped insultingly, pointing to Storm.
"WHAT?" Storm screamed.
And without fail, the Captain of the Guard lost himself in a fiery rampage, which left Silver and Angel to handle damage control. If there was anything that could have made the situation worse, it was Link drawing his own sword ready to fight back against the bulky guard. Zant and Marine of course were the ones pulling the Hylian warrior away. For reasons unknown, Sonic didn't try to stop the fight nor he even notice what was going on. The Keyblade Master was left with a dilemma and this time, he couldn't smash he way through. This puzzle required deep thinking – Sonic was ready to prove that he wasn't as brainless as everyone thought. The Extreme Gears could only carry members of the Sonic Team, which would leave Link out of the equation and render the plan moot. Another option was to have Zant – a Twili – open a Twilight Portal across, but then remembered that all his power came from Ganondorf, who is dead at the moment. A third idea was to climb down the Gorge and climb back up. But Sonic didn't know how long that would take or the possibility of how far the bottom was. The Keyblade Master scratched his quills irritably.
"There's got to be some way around this." Sonic moaned agitatedly. "Some piece that we're missing."
"From what I can tell, the Sages did a good job keeping out any unwanted intruders." Dark Sonic responded thoughtfully. "No alternate entrances, no means of transport, no way in."
"But that can't be right." Sonic stated defiantly. "If the Sages knew the Master Sword's owner would come, they would have given him some chance of crossing."
"Maybe you could go looking for those chickens." Dark Sonic said jokingly. "Or maybe swing on the vines."
"You know..." Sonic said slowly; his grin grew wider. "That's not a bad idea."
"Wait, what?" Dark Sonic shrieked fearfully.
With a playful and cocky grin on his face, the Keyblade Master took a few short steps back before dashing over the edge wildly. That got the team's attention. Shrieking in a flurry of panic, Silver and the other heroes sharply crawled over to the edge of the Deep Gorge, watching their unspoken leader freefall into the chasm. But the hedgehog didn't seem worried – quite the contrary, he looked excited. After spending only six second of gliding into the pit, Sonic swiftly snapped his hand out and captured a hanging vine that was attached to the roots of the Forest Temples. The Keyblade Master used the momentum he collected from the fall and swung around in a high arc, successfully bringing him to the other end of the Deep Gorge. Sonic landed – a Cheshire grin on his muzzle – and threw the strong vine across the gorge, making sure that Link had secured the tether.
"Hurry up, Guys!" Sonic yelled and waved. "That sword isn't going to pull itself!"
"I swear, I'm gonna of a heart attack one of these days." Silver murmured as Marine swung over first.
One by one, each member of the group was able to cross over the Deep Gorge through Sonic's genius – and insane – method of improvising. Although, they made sure for Storm to go last…just in case. Upon entering the Sacred Grove, the cobalt hedgehog felt a little let down. Sonic had expected the unreachable land to be somewhat more impressive, but the Sacred grove looked just like the rest of the forest: clustered and humid. But out of the corner of his eyes Zant thought he saw a shadow move between the branches, which was only confirmed by the strangle rustling that reached only Angel's ears. Someone was watching them. But that was the least of their concerns as the Sonic Team edged closed into the dense woodlands, surprisingly finding a multitude of pathways that most likely led to every area of the grove.
"Which way now, mate?" Marine blinked confused, scratched her head.
"I don't know." Link responded simply; the team face-faulted. "The Sacred Grove is a labyrinth of woodlands, streams, and stone that would take a lifetime to cover. The Sages created this area so that if anyone unworthy entered, they would be lost forever until they died or became a Stalfos."
"Then how are we supposed to find the Master Sword?" Zant exclaimed fearfully.
As if on command, the shadow that had been moving around them dropped from the highest branch and landed on a stump in front of the group, twirling in a flourishing manner. The new character looked to be a child made from dark-grey wood with viciously-red eyes and a wide, sharp-toothed smile stretched across his face – Marine hid her face in Sonic's fur, shivering. The unnatural child wore a bright orange tunic with a wooden necklace holding different colored feather, a musky-brown hat, a pair of wood-brown boots, a leaf-like cape, and carried an oil lantern in one hand and a three-horned trumpet in the other. This beast was clearly a mischief maker. The creepy horn player turned his vivacious eyes on the Sonic Team, which seemed strangely familiar to the group of animals. It wasn't long before the idea struck them.
"Majora!" The Sonic Team screamed simultaneously, summoning their weapons.
"You know him?" Zant blinked.
"He's one of the guys working for Order XIII." Storm explained seriously. "He was causing a lot of trouble in Hell. Except…" He stretched his head in thought; the idea seemed to be shared with the rest of the team. "He wasn't really much of a fighter. Actually, except for that illusion, he was pretty much helpless."
"He's got a point, you know." Dark Sonic shrugged.
"Still we can't take any chances with the Order." Sonic responded.
""Order, hmm…" The wooden child hummed playfully. "I'll take some leeche nuts, cattle tail, and a glass of juice, please."
"Is that…Is that a joke?" Sonic's eyes twitched; the Sonic Team groaned inwardly. "That…that was terrible."
"They live in medieval time." Dark Sonic excused. "They don't understand the modern foundations for a good joke. Then again, you're not much of a comedian yourself."
"At least my jokes as old and rust!" Sonic retorted.
"Fair point." Dark Sonic nodded.
"I think you are all under the wrong impression." Link said collectively, walking closer to the wooden child. "When an adult gets lost in the woods, they become Stalfos. But when a child wanders in and losses himself in the forest, they turn into a Skull Kid – a short, irritable, mischievous imp with no self control." Sonic grabbed the back of Marine's shirt to stop her from running away. "This particular Skull Kid is the guardian of the Sacred Grove and is the only one that knows where the Master Sword is hidden."
"Then he'll take us to the Master Sword?" Angel asked hopefully.
"It's not that simple." Link sighed, ruffling his hair.
"Where's the fun in that?" The Skull Kid giggled gleefully. He performed a graceful back-flip and landed on a thin branch several feet above them. "How 'bout a game of hide-n-seek? Catch me and I'll take you to the shiny sword."
"Hide-n-seek – is he serious?" Silver asked awkwardly.
"Unfortunately, he is." Link replied tiredly.
"Strewth! This is my game, mates!" Marine shouted proudly, pointing to herself. "I once played a game of hide-n-seek and no one found me for three weeks." Most of the adults stared strangely, Sonic shook his head, and Angel muffled her laughter behind her hands. "What? There somethin' in my teeth, mate?"
"I can see why no one found her." Dark Sonic laughed freely.
"Shut up!" Sonic snapped
"Ready – set – GO!" Skull Kid cheered before vanishing into the canopy.
Shortly following his disappearance, the siren sound of a trumpet echoed in a melancholy fashion. And just before it faded out of sight, Link managed to spot a flicking light of an oil lamp down one of the tunnels. Since Link had more experience with this unorthodox creature and his methods, the Sonic Team and Zant simply followed in his footsteps deeper into the forest. The place was unbelievable. Everywhere you turn, the forest looked exactly the same in through each tunnel – it was no wonder people end up getting lost. Left, left, right, straight, right – Sonic pretty much lost track of where they were going from that point. As they wandered deeper into the woods, the effects of the endless forestry seemed to be taking an effect on everyone. Sonic was worried that they would get separated and he'd be unable to protect them. Storm afraid of whatever might be lurking in the shadows, waiting to pounce on them in the blink of an eye. Though Silver seemed more calm and collected than the others, he could not hide the feeling that he was slowly suffocating from the closeness of the trees. Angel was more concerned about finding the exit after retrieving the Master Sword and Marine sincerely hoped she wouldn't become a Skull Kid. The only ones that didn't seem affected by the nature of the Sacred Grove was Link and Zant, who most likely had previous experiences in these types of atmospheres. Times escaped the heroes as Link followed the trail of light up a fallen tree trunk that led to the second story region of the forest. Zant was second to follow the path when he looked down on the animals behind them, taking note of their mixed expressions of fear and doubt.
"Link, maybe you should go on ahead." Zant suggested sympathetically; Link looked back curiously. "It seems that the power of the Sages is affecting their mental state and probing their fears. Perhaps it would be better if they turned back."
"N-n-no." Sonic stammered hesitantly, looking over his shoulder. "We're fine. We've come all this way to help Link get the Master Sword back – there's no way we're leaving him now."
"But you're literally shaking." Zant proclaimed vividly, looking them over. "And the child looks like she's about to pass out."
"I'm no child; I am captain!" Marine exclaimed prideful; the heroes jumped. "No bloody forest is gonna scare off Capt. Marine the Raccoon – greatest captain of the seven seas!" Suddenly, a stick fell from a branch and tapped her shoulder. "AAHH! Don't eat me! I'm too young to die!"
"Well, that was predictable." Dark Sonic commented.
"Marine's little games aside." Silver said seriously; the youngest was clinging to her surrogate brother. "It's our duty to make sure that the Heartless and the Order don't get their hands on the Triforce of Power. And if it means we have to face our fears in the middle of a dark and endless forest, then we'll do it."
Though Link was a kind and gentle soul, he did know when a sense of duty was needed. And if he was to prevent his archenemy from being revived, he didn't need distractions like this. But they were his friends – he couldn't abandon them. The Hero of Hyrule crossed his arms and bowed his head in thought, equally trying to ignore the depressing song being played by the Skull Kid. That's when it hit him. Link slapped his forehead for not thinking of it in the first place before reaching deep into his tunic for an unseen object. The Sonic Team momentarily forgot their fears in place of curiosity as the golden-haired swordsman retrieved a powder-blue ocarina, eerily similar to Majora's. But what good was a musical instrument gonna be at a time like this. The Hylian Hero paid no mind to the stares as he calmly took a seat on a fallen log, gently pressed his lips against the pipe. Link began playing the same melody as the Skull Kid; only this one was more happy and upbeat. From the first note that played, all of their worries and doubts vanished without a trace – Skull Kid's spell had been broken.
"Wow, he's good." Sonic thought impressively. "Who would have thought a simple song would be so powerful."
"It appears that in this world, music has a great power." Dark Sonic stated thoughtfully. "This could be a clue to defeating Majora's magic next time we come across him."
"I'm not too worried about him." Sonic said, his head bobbing to the beat. "But you got to admit, it's a catchy tune."
The others seemed to think so as well. Silver was reclining on a wooden stumped, Zant sat silently and listened to the melody, and Storm, Angel, and Marine were seen dancing - Angel was the only one that had any skills. As Link's song was reaching its climax, Skull Kid suddenly dropped from the canopy and plopped in the middle of the Sonic Team. His scary grin was replaced by a deep frown as he childishly stomped his feet, waving his lantern and flute.
"No fair, no fair, no fair!" Skull Kid whined loudly. "You weren't supposed to break my magic spell! That's cheat! You big green, floppy hat-wearing, meanie!"
The next thing he knew, Skull Kid was surrounded with seven weapons pointed at his face.
"Some one explain to me why the guy hiding just dropped right in front of us." Storm chuckled.
"You're bad at hide-n-seek, mate." Marine giggled.
"Never thought I'd say this, but he make Dark-Chao look smart." Sonic thought.
"Maybe they're related." Dark Sonic suggested.
"Alright, Skull Kid, we played your game." Link said seriously, grabbing the mischievous imp by his collar. "Now take us to the Master Sword."
"Party pooper." Skull Kid pouted. "No cake for you."
Based on the glares he was receiving, the Skull Kid knew he wasn't going to get any laughs out of this group. Muttering darkly under his breath, the wooden imp waved his trumpet in a circle before pointing to a wall of ivy on the far end of the area. The vines and branches came alive and parted down the middle, forming an archway into a lush plain that stood out from the rest of the forest. Thanks to the breaches of sunlight that illuminated the clearing, Link could see his prize waiting for him. The Sonic Team, Zant, and Link left the Skull Kid to return to whatever it is he does, slowly entering the true Sacred Grove. There, standing in the heart of the clearing, was the Master Sword. A blade folded from the finest silver steel – not a speck of dust touched the surface – a blue handle shaped like the wings of an eagle and the proud symbol of the Triforce at the hilt. The Blade of Evil's Bane glimmered brilliantly against the sun's rays as if begging for its master to reclaim it. And since Marine was the only one that has never seen the Master Sword up close, it was only natural for her to be entranced by its first appearance.
"Ooh, shiny." Marine said in awe.
"It's more than shiny, Marine." Angel explained brightly, watching Link tentatively step forward. "The Master Sword is the greatest of all swords in universe – even more than the Keyblade. Only those of pure hearts can touch the Master Sword and all others would burn on contact. The Master Sword is the reason Link is so famous."
"You're wrong, Angel." Sonic smiled, crossing his arms. "It's the other way around."
"It seems Link has had a good influence on you." Dark Sonic said surprisingly.
"What can I say?" Sonic shrugged. "I admire the guy."
With the Hero of Hyrule, Link had taken his final step up the Pedestal of Time, looking down on the weapon that had aided him through many perils. All the times Link had come to draw the Master Sword to defend the kingdom, now he was going to pawn it off to a mask-loving lunatic. It was like betraying a best friend. But deep down, Link knew that if there was anything the Master Sword would do to keep Ganondorf from coming back, it would gladly accept the role. Taking a solemn breath, the green-clothed warrior wrapped his hands around the handle of the legendary blade, ripping it sharply up from the stone that encased it. Then was a small blink of light emitting from the pedestal during its removal, which apparently still radiated within the sword itself. Link lifted the Blade of Evil's Bane to the sky to flash against the breaching light, cherishing the feel of his prized possession returned.
"Well, that was dramatic." Zant commented; Link face-faulted. "Now that we have the Master Sword, we should return to Hyrule immediately. We don't know how long until that unholy man pawns off the necklace."
"What'd we have here?" A demonic growl echoed. "Starting the party without me. Well, I hope you saved time for the barbeque."
Just from the tone voice, he wasn't friendly. The Sonic Team and Zant withdrew their personal weapons while Link removed the shield on his back – he didn't know what to do with the second sword. Unbelievably, Drago had managed to follow the band of seven deep into the Sacred Grove without falling prey to the maze or Skull Kid's magic. The only logical explanation was that he understood quite a bit about magic himself. Black Doom's newest minion stepped lightly into the clearing, shielding his eyes from the light – it was an unnaturally bright.
"Who're you supposed to be?" Storm questioned.
"Once you learn my father's name, you'll know to fear me." Drago cackled confidently. "I am Drago, the son of Shendu!"
The forest fell silent with the exception of the crickets. Sonic and Silver glanced at each other in confusion, Storm tapped his chin thoughtfully, Marine scratched her head, and Zant and Link shrugged to one another.
"Uh…we don't know who that is." Angel stated.
"You don't?" Drago questioned surprisingly, looking very disappointed. "Damn, that ruins my whole introduction."
"What are you doing here in the first place?" Link questioned seriously. "This is sacred ground."
"I was following a scent of power that brought me here." Drago explained lightly. "Back when I was in town, I smell three similar scents: One was in the market, one was in the castle, and one was headed towards this spot."
"You think he smelled the Triforce?" Marine asked curiously. "Do ya think he knows the Happy Mask Salesmen has the Triforce of Power, mate?"
"MARINE!" The group exclaimed; Marine jumped.
"Ganondorf's Triforce is fair game, huh?" Drago sniggered cunningly. "Oh, Black Doom's gonna get a kick out of this."
"Black Doom?" Sonic repeated with his brow raised. "You working for Black Doom now. Man, he's really running out of options, isn't he? First he hires a guy with a giant walrus mustache and now he looking for geckos with zits."
"I'm not a gecko!" Drago flared.
"A newt, maybe?" Sonic suggested tauntingly. The fire demon didn't take too kindly to this insult and opened his jaws, spilling out a column of flames. Link, Zant, and the Sonic Team barely ducked out of the way as the fire pillar flew overhead. "Oh, so he's a dragon. My bad."
"Black Doom always did have low expectations." Dark Sonic proclaimed jokingly.
"Before I make a run for the Triforce…" Drago snarled confidently; his lips coated in fire. "Let's have a cook off."
Fire Demon: Drago
"So, who wants to fry?" Drago growled in a challenging manner.
"I'm not scared of you!" Storm yelled bravely, pounding his chest in emphasis. "For the kingdom and the glory!"
"Any idea what he's talkin' 'bout?" Sonic asked; Angel shrugged.
Despite the various warnings Silver made, the hulking Albatross charged head-on from the dragon teen with his shield pressed in front. Drago's natural counteraction was to throw his signature flame breathe at the overgrown turkey, smirking with satisfactions when the fire connected. His grin was quickly wiped away. Storm's shield effortlessly repelled the flames and Storm continued undisturbed – the Gaia Twin's magic was strong. The Fire Demon growled in frustration and threw out his claws to meet with the face of Storm's shield, effectively halting the albatross's stampede. It was a stalemate between the two fighters as they were both equally matched in terms of strength. But what the Captain of the Guard didn't realize is that dragons don't have a tendency to fight fair. Once coming to terms that his dragon strength wasn't going to be enough, Drago bowed his eyes and narrowed his eyes to the ground, sensing a perfect opportunity. The teenage dragon spat on Storm's shoes, which would normal be considered more disgusting than dangerous if it wasn't for the fact that it was pure lava. It took only a few second for Storm to realize that the material of his shoe was burn and flapped his arms in a panicking motion, trying to throw off his shoe. Perfect. Drago pulled back his fist and slammed into the albatross's beak, throwing him deliberately into the dirt and skidding back a few feet.
"Oh…cheap shot." Storm murmured dizzily.
"I don't play fair." Drago said as he stood over the bird, grabbing the collar of his jacket. "I play to win. And if there's one thing you shouldn't forget, it's that dragons always win."
"You must be the exception then."
The next thing he knew, the Fire Demon was blinded by two pink-furred paws. Drago snarled instinctively and started swinging his claws around randomly, must to the amusement of the pink experiment sitting on his shoulders. Finally collecting himself, the teenaged dragon reached up with hopes of strangling his target. However, his plans were shortly charged as Angel snapped her antenna around Drago's wrist to gain complete control of their movements. And to add insult to injury, the pink experiment proceeded to punch the living daylights of the Fire Demon with his own claws.
"Stop hitting yourself." Angel laughed, forcing Drago to jab his forehead. "Stop hitting yourself. Stop hitting yourself."
"Man, that joke is old!" Drago snapped irritably; he uppercut his own jaw.
"I know, but it's still funny." Angel giggled; Drago poked himself in the eye.
If there was anything that could have hurt Drago's pride more, it was being used as a puppet. With his hands…tied up at the moment, Drago literally fell back on another option. The Fire Demon threw himself bodily backwards, causing Angel to lose her balance and roll away before collecting herself. And not a moment later, the pink experiment was forced to back flip into the trees before a great ball of fire crashed in the spot where she once stood, leaving traces of the heat. His mind still riled by the humiliation he suffered, Drago inhaled deeply to prepare his signature fire blast. Fortunately for the heroes, a geyser of water smacked into the teenaged dragon and threw him to the far end of the clearing. Drago lifted himself by his elbows, glaring at Silver, who was commanded a halo of water floating around him with his scepter. A thick layer of steam breeched through Drago's jagged teeth – his fire breath was extinguished.
"You're all washed up." Silver commented jokingly.
"When did he start using puns?" Sonic blinked surprisingly. "Could use a little work, though."
"What I don't understand is why there has to be puns in every fight." Dark Sonic said exasperated.
"It's an icon." Sonic proclaimed. "You can't have a real hero-villain fight without a few puns being tossed around."
"Higher Powers help us all." Dark Sonic groaned.
"You're gonna pay, shrimp!"Drago roared furiously. "You think you're hot stuff? Let's turn up the heat!"
Dark Sonic moaned inwardly. The Babylon mystic swiped his scepter across the air twice, commanding two fragments of his water ring to lash in Drago's direction. Once again, a dragon's power goes beyond the standard. In addition to his fire breath and dragon strength, the Fire Demon was gifted with advanced speed that he used to dodge Silver's water whips. The teenaged dragon was just a blur of green as he dashed left and right and up, effortlessly avoiding the multitude of attacks sent his way by Silver. Fearing that his tactics were failing, Silver commanded all the water in his reach to form a massive ball of liquid to hover slightly over his head – Drago couldn't avoid this. And apparently, he wasn't going to. Without the Babylon mystic even noticing, the teenaged dragon dashed across the clearing and grappled the hedgehog's face before slamming his head to the ground. The water ball evaporated into the air shortly after Silver lost consciousness. Drago was starting to feel elated – he may have lost his fire, but he had managed to knock out two Babylonians and threw off the pink menace. Who was next? The Fire Demon was soon broken from his thoughts when he started feeling and annoying pounding against his right thigh. Drago looked down and spotted Marine beating her tiny fists against his leg. Was she serious? Without really putting much effort, Drago pressed his palms on Marine's forehead and kept her within arms reach, kneeling down with a bored expression.
"What are you doing?" Drago questioned, ignoring the girls fist flailing close to his face.
"I gonna beat you up, mate!" Marine exclaimed. Drago sighed and pushed the rascally raccoon on her butt. "Ow…that smarts, mate."
"Seriously, you got anything better than that?" Drago asked, resting his chin on his fist.
"Hmm…" Marine hummed, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Oh! I've got this!"
The youngest of the Sonic Team kicked back to her feet and reached deeper into her pocket, whipping out the emerald orb given to her by the Gaia Twins. Drago raised his brow curiously. The Fire Demon did sense and unusual power radiating from the glass sphere and was drawn in by its emerald glow. For one moment, Drago saw his reflection in the surface of the tool. The next moment, he was sent flying into the Pedestal of Time after a glowing flail appeared from the emerald orb and smacked him in the face. Drago lifted himself up and groaned dizzily, rubbing the sore spot on his forehead from where the medieval weapon connected with his skull.
"Ugh, I can't believe I fell for that." Drago sneered.
"Well, Black Doom never did hire the smartest minions." Drago growled and glared at the cobalt hedgehog standing against him. "So what'd ya say we make this yourself? You leave the Triforce of Power alone, get your tail off this world, and tell Doomy he doesn't stand a chance."
"Yep, you're definitely everything Doom said you would be." Drago proclaimed; Sonic grinned pleasingly. "Arrogant, cocky, dimwitted, narrow-minded, and an over inflated ego."
"Ouch. Low blow." Sonic grimaced.
"I think he's got you pegged." Dark Sonic snickered.
"I'm different from egghead." Drago stated confidently, snapped his claws. "Let's turn up the heat!"
"Did you use that one already?" Marine asked distantly.
A throbbing neck could definitely been seen in Drago's forehead. The teenaged dragon lashed his claws twice separately before bringing them together for a combined downwards thrust, all of which were deflected by the Kiryu. Thinking it to be the perfect chance for a counterattack, Sonic ducked to the ground and twirled the Keyblade in a full circle around Drago's ankles. Unfortunately, the teenaged dragon caught wind of the attack and skipped off the ground to evade the strike. With Sonic still recovering from his attack, Drago saw an opening in Sonic's defenses and swiped his claws across the Keyblade Master's face. Much to the Fire Demon's amazement, his claws few found useless as they clashed against a patch of jade-green dragon scales that replace cobalt-blue fur. Drago landed with a stupefied expression – his claws were chipped slightly – and stared as Sonic deactivated Kiryu's Keychain Ability.
"Ok, that's just cheap!" Drago yelled, pointing a finger to Sonic outrageously. "Haven't you ever heard of copyright?"
"Ya think we can avoid a lawsuit." Sonic asked worriedly, scratching his quills. "I'm already in enough trouble with Sega and Square."
"What's he talking about?" Link questioned confused; the others had no idea.
"You are so going down." Drago sneered menacingly. "And after that, you are so sued."
"Great, just what I needed." Sonic thought sarcastically.
Roar in a fashion true to his dragon heritage, Drago jumped forward and threw his right claw ahead for a killer strike. Sonic's original intention was to avoid the assault until he felt a familiar sensation in his heart pulling him towards another method of fighting. The Keyblade instantly recognized this feeling: Reaction Command. Following his heart, Sonic lifted his left foot and avoid Drago's claw, which landed in that previous position. The cobalt hedgehog pressed his foot back down on the teen dragon's wrist, earning a paralyzed scream from the lizard. At the next moment, Sonic raised his right foot to connect with Drago's jaw and flipped himself skyward over the Fire Demon's head. And as gravity took a hold of the spiky-haired swordsman, Sonic grasped the Keyblade with both hands and brought the hilt down to slam against Drago's forehead. The teen demon dropped face first into the ground a remained motionless for several long moments, possibly signaling that he had been knocked out.
"Nap time, lizard lips." Sonic chuckled.
"Please stop the puns!" Dark Sonic pleaded.
Drago: Defeated
"Excellent work, Sonic the Hedgehog." Zant nodded as the group gathered. "I commend you on your skills as a swordsman and a tactician – that vile demon didn't stand a chance."
"But did you have to take him out so quickly." Link asked disappointed, replacing his old blade for the Master Sword. "I just got the Master Sword back and I didn't even get a chance to use it."
"If we don't get Triforce of Power, I have a feeling you'll get that chance soon enough." Angel said unnaturally serious. "We should get back to Castle Town immediately before Black Doom decides to show his ugly mug and take the Triforce himself."
"Ok, let's get out of this forest." Sonic nodded in agreement. He took a few feet back into the forest labyrinth before turning to Link with a sheepish expression. "Um…how do we get out of this forest, anyway?"
"Uh…" Link stammered cluelessly.
The Sonic Team face-faulted for a third time – Link was far from helpful. Coming to agreement that the only way out of the Sacred Grove was to find Skull Kid, the heroes collected Silver and Storm before marching off into the great unknown. Hopefully, the wooden imp was stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice. But as the band of seven journeyed deeper into the dark forest, Drago's claw gripped a large wad of dirt and crushed it furiously. And just above the recovering Fire Demon an unknown figure with a single red eye was reclining in the canopy, watching the scene with amusement.
"My master's power still lives, does it?" The red-eyed character snickered darkly. "This is too good to be true. You will have your comeuppance soon enough, Link."
Success and defeat come in many forms. Will the Sonic Team be able retrieve the Triforce of Power in time? Will Drago manage to steal the Triforce under their noses? And who is this third party that has entered the game? Find out on the next Sonic Chronicles!
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