Yes, Jack really was seeing just how thick the mist was, and it didn't help that it was in the middle of the night, so there was absolutely no light guiding him. Well, aside from the light emitting around him at the moment, but even that only got him so far. "...nh... so thick..." Narrowing his eyes, he trudged through the mist slowly.
"…oh, having trouble seeing through, are we?"
"...it's just dark." he uttered. "The mist isn't doing anything to me... so I just have to find you."
"…Jack…?"
Suddenly, Jack heard a different voice.
Jack's eyes widened suddenly. "...is that...?"
There was a figure Jack could vaguely see, wandering the mist. "...hello?" Jack called, as he began approaching this figure.
The figure stopped and looked toward him. "Jack, is that you?"
Jack's eyes widened. "...is... is that you...?" He shook his head, and he began running for that figure. "...it couldn't be... could it?"
The closer Jack got to the figure, the more he could distinguish from it…and the more he recognized it. Jack's eyes widened, and he came to a stop once the figure was just out of arm's reach. "...Arsenic..."
The figure turned again, and sure enough, Jack stared upon the face of Arsenic. She looked at him in wonder.
Jack's eyes widened, as he gawked at her. "...I can't believe it..." he uttered with a growing smile. "...wow! The operation's already over with?" He walked up to her. "And you look great! This is awesome, Arsenic!"
"…yeah?" Arsenic smiled too.
"Yeah!" Jack uttered. "Aaw, man, wait until I tell the others..." Then a thought struck him. "...wait..." He looked back at Arsenic. "...how did you get here so quickly?"
"I flew here like I usually would," Arsenic answered.
"...well, yeah, that's a given..." Jack remarked with a small chuckle. "...but... I was just wondering how you figured out where we were..."
"Well, I just flew around to look…and found you guys," Arsenic said with a smile.
"...wow... that's great!" Jack uttered with a smile, before it suddenly fell. "Oh, oh! We can't stay here; there's a Corrupted bully hiding here somewhere!"
"…Oh, really?" Arsenic looked shocked.
"Yeah... and I can't see her anywhere; she's hiding in the fog like a coward!" Jack uttered as he looked around.
"Really?" Arsenic walked up to Jack then.
"...yeah..." Nodding, Jack held a hand out to Arsenic. "C'mon; I can take you to the Gaia Temple. You can wait with the others there while I look for the Corrupted."
Arsenic took his hand with a nod. "Okay…but first, can I do something?"
Jack blinked. "...uh... okay, sure." he nodded. "What is it?"
"This." Arsenic suddenly yanked Jack forward since she was holding his hand, and she planted her lips on his. Jack's eyes widened in absolute surprise; frozen on the spot as if trying to process what was going on. Arsenic didn't pull away, staying there.
Jack blinked somewhat; this just seemed so... strange... would Arsenic really just have kissed him out of the blue? And why when she had been told that a Corrupted was on the loose? Softly, he tried pulling away so he could catch his breath a touch. Arsenic blinked at him. "…you okay?"
"...uh... yeah..." Jack uttered, as he rubbed his neck. "I just... well... isn't now a bit of a bad time...? I mean, the Corrupted could be anywhere, right now..."
"…true…I guess they could be anywhere…" Arsenic muttered.
"…like right in front of you, boy…!"
Suddenly, Arsenic's eyes flashed red and she grew claws that dug into Jack's arm. Jack's eyes widened, and he let out a pained cry as he felt the claws digging into him. Then Arsenic threw him onto the ground, hissing.
Jack groaned as he grabbed where his arm had been stabbed, before he glared up at Arsenic. "...you... you tricked me...!"
"Oh, how naïve you are, you little brat!" Arsenic was talking, but it sounded like the voice belonged to the jellyfish.
Growling, Jack slowly tried getting on his feet. "...how... how'd you know about Arsenic, anyway...?!"
The jellyfish's voice chuckled. "This mist brings out your heart's desire…I'm just going to have to guess that this girl is someone you really care about…"
"...she's... a really good friend of mine..." Jack uttered, as he got on his feet. "...so stop pretending that you're her, you bully!"
Arsenic laughed an evil laugh and jumped back into the mist, disappearing.
Grunting, Jack began running after her. "Get back here, you meanie!"
The jellyfish just continued to laugh while Jack ran.
As he ran, Jack put a hand on where he had been stabbed earlier; noticing that it wasn't hurting anymore. ...is it the green glow doing that...?
"So she's just a really good friend huh?" the jellyfish chuckled. "Just what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
Jack's eyes narrowed, as he looked ahead. "She's someone I won't let you try to imitate; just like with all of my friends!"
"You didn't seem to be too shocked when she kissed you…" the jellyfish mused.
Jack looked up at the mist with narrowed eyes. "...because I love her!" he stated matter-of-factly. "But just because I love her doesn't mean that we're not friends!"
"So where is this girl anyway? How come she isn't here for you, boy?" the jellyfish chuckled.
Jack looked around with a narrowed gaze. "...she's having a heart operation! Her heart's weak, so she's being operated on so she'll get better!"
"Oh, a heart operation? Well, are you so sure she could get better?"
What looked like a mirror suddenly appeared nearby, flashing an image on it. Jack blinked, before he approached the mirror. The mirror was looking into a hospital room, directed at a bed, and in the bed, was weak, sickly looking Arsenic. A monitor was hooked up to her, tracing her heartbeat, and specifying that it was really faint.
Jack's eyes shot wide open, as he grabbed the mirror. "Arsenic?!"
"Yes…just what if, one day…they couldn't help her in time…?"
Arsenic looked like she was wheezing while she was slumbering…and suddenly, the heart monitor went dead, making Arsenic silent.
Jack's eyes were wide open. "...no... NO! No, this isn't real!" He shook his head. "That can't happen! Arsenic can't... she just can't...!"
"But what if it were to happen?" the jellyfish mused.
"...no... no, it can't!" Jack uttered. "I know Arsenic... she's stronger than that... and we promised! We promised that she'd make it back to us when she got better!"
"You have to realize sooner or later that there might be some promises you can't always keep, kid," the jellyfish spoke.
"...but this was a special promise." he uttered, as he glared at the mirror. "...and Arsenic is the kind of person who definitely keeps her promises!"
"Not all promises can be kept, because some things happen that others can't control," the jellyfish specified.
"...but... she's gonna make it!" Jack uttered. "I know she will... I just know it!"
"But what will you do if she doesn't?"
"...I..." Jack looked down. "...I haven't thought about that..."
"…or…perhaps something else would take her…"
Suddenly, the mirror brought up Arsenic again, but a dark mass of Corruption lurked outside of her window.
Jack's eyes widened. "...NO!"
Suddenly, the Corruption burst into the room, engulfing Arsenic, and when she woke up, she screamed out, thrashing as the Corruption swallowed her.
Jack, in desperation, hammered against the mirror. "NO! ARSENIC! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!"
As he yelled out in despair, unbeknownst to him... the Purity surrounding him suddenly reacted to his emotions, as a massive glow began surrounding him; channeled into the mirror itself. Some of that glow surrounded Arsenic, cradling her in the glob of darkness.
"Try as you want to save her, she's eventually going to end up all alone…and forgotten…"
The darkness pushed against the glow harder, making Arsenic cower and hold her head. "...no!" Jack suddenly uttered, as he saw that glow protect her. "...no, she won't! She's not gonna be alone!" As he said that, the glow grew stronger. "I'm gonna be with her... and Striker... and Milo... and Ani... and mom... and everyone else! We're not gonna let anything happen to her!"
"You really think that?" the jellyfish hummed.
"No, I don't..." Jack retorted, as his eyes narrowed. "...I know that!"
The darkness in the mirror pressed even harder, and Arsenic looked ready to cry. "She doesn't seem to think that."
Jack's eyes narrowed, and he began pushing against the mirror more; Purity radiating from him. "...Arsenic... hang in there...!" he called, as if he tried to push himself into the mirror to save her.
Arsenic didn't hear him, feeling the pressure between the two forces get harder and harder.
"...Arsenic...!" Jack just kept trying to push himself into the mirror; focusing even more Purity than he could possibly fathom at this moment whilst trying to reach her.
So much energy built around Arsenic that it started to take shape…and almost look like an identical figure of Jack, just made completely out of Purity energy, and it held Arsenic closely.
Jack saw that, and he nodded. "Yes!"
Arsenic clung to the figure of energy, while the Corruption still continued to press against them.
Jack's eyes narrowed. "...that Corruption isn't going to get you, Arsenic..." he uttered. "...I protected you once... and I can do it again...!"
The energy around the figure got so powerful that it practically exploded out, blasting away the Corruption.
"WHAT?!" screamed the jellyfish.
Jack's smile grew bright. "YES!"
Suddenly, the mirror burst right in front of Jack, and the mist blew aside a moment, revealing the jellyfish who looked as if she had been knocked away.
Seeing the jellyfish, Jack's eyes narrowed, and he rushed right for her. "There you are!"
"Eep!" The jellyfish tried to get back up to get away.
However, Jack grabbed her, and gripped her tightly whilst glaring at her. "You're a big bully!" he yelled in her face. The jellyfish tried to struggle.
"So what do you have to say for yourself?!" Jack called out loudly.
"Whatever you have to do, I can take it!" The jellyfish screamed back.
"That's not what I wanted to hear!" Jack called, as he held a hand to her head, which was brimming with Purity. "I want to hear you say that you're sorry!"
"AAAAAGH!" It caused her pain, and then… "…you want to hear me…apologize?" This baffled the jellyfish.
Jack nodded. "Apologize for being a bully!"
"…I'm not gonna do something stupid like that!" the jellyfish scoffed.
"It's not stupid!" Jack called, as he pushed his hand further against her. "Now apologize!"
"AAAAAGH!" The jellyfish screamed out in pain…
…when finally, "A-alright! ALRIGHT! I'm sorry!"
Jack's eyes narrowed. "...you're sorry for what?"
"…I'm sorry…for being a bully…" the jellyfish grumbled.
"...good."
And with that, Jack actually set the jellyfish down on the ground again. The jellyfish groaned, holding her head from that pain. With that, Jack looked down at her in silence.
The jellyfish then glared at her. "Now what?"
"...I'm thinking..." Jack hummed, as he looked at his hands. "...for some reason, I've felt really weird... and it's all because of this glow... and it can hurt you and repel Corruption..."
Then, he looked down at her. "...so... is this Purity...?"
"You tell me kid," the jellyfish scoffed. "I haven't seen that power before, and the higher ups never told me anything about it."
"...I see..." Jack nodded... and then he looked down at you. "...then... I could purify you... right?"
"…what…?" the jellyfish looked startled at that.
"...I mean... it must hurt, being stuck in a Corrupted body..." Jack remarked. "...even if you don't seem to notice... it's dark, cold... empty... and scary..."
The jellyfish just stared at Jack…and slowly, looked away.
He crouched by her. "...I'm right... aren't I?"
The jellyfish just looked back at him nervously.
"...it's okay." he spoke, before nodding. "...I've been through the same... you can be honest with me."
"…it's not pleasant…" the jellyfish admitted.
Jack nodded. "...even if it tries telling you otherwise... it's just really grimy and nasty..."
"…y-yeah…"
The jellyfish shuddered, holding herself. "…p-please…please heal me…"
With a small smile, Jack simply hugged her. "...there, there... it's gonna be okay..." he uttered gently, as the Purity radiated around him; surging against the jellyfish's body.
The jellyfish shuddered, while the energy absorbed her, and she winced. It was painful. Jack simply closed his eyes. "...it might hurt, but... it'll be over soon... so don't worry..."
Dark smog oozed out from her as she uttered pained grunts, and even the black mist was starting to lift. Still, Jack just held her; making sure that even if it hurt, someone was there to watch over her.
Finally, all of the mist lifted, and so did the darkness on her, leaving a colorful, though weary jellyfish with jewels all over her. She panted, looking about ready to collapse. Jack simply looked at her with a small smile. "...are you... okay, now?"
"…yes…"
And then the jellyfish finally did collapse.
With a small sigh of relief, the glow around Jack finally dispersed...
...and then, he collapsed as well; eyes closed as he had fallen asleep once more. Those hiding in the Gaia temple ran out when they saw this, separating Jack from the jellyfish.
"I can't believe it…" Striker uttered. "He actually purified her!"
"...wow..." Nage's eyes were wide upon seeing that. "...that's... something else..."
"Let's hurry and get them inside," Vanessa suggested.
"...alright..." Nodding, Guts took the task of picking the jellyfish up. "Someone grab Jack!"
Vanessa went and picked him up. "Let's go." With that, the group began heading back to the Gaia Temple.
Milo and Kristine had been waiting for them in there, and once the others got back into the temple, Goddess reset the barrier around it. "Hopefully, we won't have anymore unwelcome guests…" She muttered.
With a small grunt, Johnny simply rubbed his body where he had been stabbed by the stingers; hissing in light pain. "...damn it, that hurts..."
"…alright…I want you to explain to me how my son can use Purity," Vanessa said, walking up to Goddess.
"…not even I expected that he could…to be honest," Goddess spoke.
"And yet, he could," Milo added. "So you were wrong about him not being able to with being Corrupted."
Vanessa just glared at Goddess, and she trembled at that look.
Noticing Jack's body, Johnny hummed. "...let me try to explain..." he hummed to Goddess, as he began approaching the body...
...but as he tried entering it, something was keeping him from getting inside there. "...nh...?!"
Milo noticed that, and his eyes widened. "…you know what? I don't think Johnny can possess Jack now…"
"…wait, where did that come from?" Striker muttered.
"…well, Johnny's in the room with us and…em…" Milo felt like he was on the spotlight for this one…
…until Goddess sighed, and waved her staff. "I will do this once…" When she waved her staff, it was over Johnny, and when some sparkles cascaded down on top of him, it made him appear before the others who couldn't previously see him.
"EEP!" Kristine jumped when she first saw Johnny.
"WHOA!" Nage took a step back from that as well, along with Guts.
"...the hell?!" Johnny looked around, before looking at Goddess. "...what'd you do this for?"
"Clearly, you can't take over Jack to explain anything…so I made you visible so you could," Goddess said.
Ani scratched her head. "You know…I kept forgetting he was following us…"
"…wait…WAIT…he was following us this whole time?!" Kristine uttered.
"…I think it's just making things more awkward, Goddess…" Milo muttered dryly.
"...I'll say." Johnny remarked. "Like, can't you just tell them yourself?"
"…I just see this as a better alternative…" Goddess sighed.
"...because you're scared shitless of having to explain it yourself." Johnny huffed.
Goddess looked away uneasily at that.
"...bullseye." he scoffed.
"...look... I don't care who, but could someone just explain what's going on?" Guts groaned.
"…the way I see it, both Jack and I have been able to use Purity somehow…" Milo muttered.
Striker gawked at Milo. "Wait, you too?!"
Milo held a ball of Purity energy suspended above his hands, making the others gawk in surprise.
"...okay... but... how?" Nage uttered with wide eyes.
"…this temple…" Milo looked up and all around. "One of the murals exploded with light, and both me and Jack had been caught in the blast…and because of that, we can use Purity…"
"…Light Gaia has only been able to work through the Gaia Temples…and these blasts made by him granted you these powers," Goddess added. "Unfortunately, they have also proven to be safe shelter from the Corrupted, and they have been destroying each of the Gaia Temples. None other but this one remains…"
"They're destroying the Gaia Temples?!" Striker uttered. "But that's years and years of history wasted!"
"I don't think the Corrupted care about that Striker," Milo remarked.
"...and if it weren't for Jack... we could've lost this one, too..." Johnny hummed.
"…the reason Johnny was no longer able to possess Jack anymore was because his body was filled with Purity…and well…it repels Johnny for obvious reasons," Goddess added.
"...which means that... I'm not gonna be able to properly help you guys out anymore." Johnny murmured. "...and... it might be better this way, honestly."
Nage blinked. "...wait... Jack was sleeping soundly before, so... either he ran all the way over here..." She gawked at Johnny. "...no way... you let him get hit by the Purity on purpose?!"
"…yep…" Milo answered.
"…wait…so you're telling me…this WHOLE time…this guy could get possessed by him?" Kristine uttered, pointing at Johnny.
"Up until now at least," Ani answered.
"...hm." Johnny simply glanced aside.
"...whoa..." Guts uttered upon hearing that.
"…so…now what?" Ani muttered, sitting back boredly.
Johnny shrugged. "...try asking Goddess."
Goddess was only looking outside of the temple, noticing light peering through from the horizon. It was the sunrise. "…it's morning…" she stated.
"...already, huh...?" Nage hummed.
"…in that case, I suppose we should get ready to head out," Vanessa figured.
Striker looked over at the unconscious jellyfish. "What about her?"
"Leave her to me; I will take care of it," Goddess spoke.
"...if you say so..." Guts hummed with a slight nod.
Goddess waved her staff again, and Johnny was no longer seen by anyone, except Milo of course.
As he went invisible, Johnny sighed. ...you know... this is gonna be weird; not being able to possess Jack anymore...
…does that mean you don't see any reason to follow us anymore? Milo supposed in thought, while Kristine helped him up.
...I'm not sure. I might stick around just in case you need more training... but now that you've got Purity, it's gonna be hazardous for me to get hit by ya.
…if anything, you can make a good scout too… Milo added.
...I hope so... we'll have to see what I can do like this...
"…okay…I think I might have figured out how Callous is going to bring back Spiel…"
Jill was talking to Tails Doll one day, or, well, rather Metal Sonic through Tails Doll. She had already explained the fact that she was meeting with Spiel through dreams under the influence of alcohol, and what Spiel warned her about the Safe Haven attack; something that she was surprised to discover Metal had already known about based on a warning someone had given his group.
"…you remember…our training, right?" Jill spoke. "The training to beat Callous in that battle all those years ago?"
"...it's... a faint memory, but... yes, I do recall it, now that you mention it." Metal spoke through the doll. "Why do you ask?"
"…one of the things we were able to do was tap into the Special Zone with only two emeralds, and we talked to Sonic and his friends," Jill continued. "…what if…I built up enough Unity to break into and access the Special Zone? Infuse it with her Corruption to bring back Spiel?"
She looked away uneasily. "…he's…a very powerful being, and I'm not sure if her power alone can tap into his, or that she might even be able to use Corruption while in my body."
Then she looked back at the doll. "But…I use Unity…and…it's a combination of the three…so technically, she should be able to use Corruption…and the emeralds are at Metropolis, where I can't reach them."
A hum escaped the doll. "...it sounds... like a risky move... are you sure that both of you would be able to handle such a feat without the Emeralds?"
"…it's something to try…" Jill muttered. "…it would be more risky trying to bring back Spiel by ourselves…so it was the only thing I could come up with…"
"...you have a point..." Metal hummed, as the doll nodded a touch. "...still..." He sounded somewhat worried as he spoke.
"…I know…" Jill murmured.
"...can you promise me... to stay safe?"
"…Yes, I can promise that," Jill said with a smile.
A relieved sigh came from the doll. "...great... thank you, Jill..."
"Sure thing," Jill responded.
The doll looked back at her; looking thoughtful. "...though... what of the rest of the island? Even with Spiel on your side... fending off all those Corrupted forces will be no easy task..."
"…no, it isn't…" Jill muttered. "...the only thing I could really do about that is possibly bring back Krieg too…with the two of them working together, we can only hope, but then that's even more I would have to drain from the Special Zone…"
Jill held her head with a sigh. She was really nervous about all of this.
"...I truly wish I could be there... to aid you all..." Metal uttered.
"…I'll be honest…I wish that too…" Jill said.
The doll remained silent, though a small hum of curiosity was audible.
"…how are the rest of you?" Jill asked.
"...they're... hanging in there." Metal spoke.
Jill nodded at that.
"...well..." He hummed a touch, as he looked at Jill. "...what about the others on the island? Are they doing alright...?"
"They're doing fine; a lot of them manage to keep themselves occupied," Jill answered.
Then she sighed.
"…I hope this all ends sooner or later…" Jill muttered. "…either that…or I can finally join you guys. I've struggling with staying in one place and just…waiting."
"...I hope it ends soon as well, Jill..." Metal replied. "...it's been turbulent... but it seems like things are in motion, at the very least..."
Jill nodded. Then she held up her palm for Unity energy to build up. "…and I've been storing as much energy as I can…I'm going to need it…"
The doll nodded. "...I hope it goes well..."
The Unity vanished from Jill's palm and she looked at the doll with a smile, albeit a sad one. "...and I hope you guys stay safe."
"...you stay safe as well..." the doll uttered, before he hugged Jill softly.
"...of course," Jill spoke, hugging the doll back. The doll remained silent as it hugged Jill back.
Jill finally let the doll go and looked down at it. "…talk to you later then…?"
The doll nodded. "...later, Jill..."
And, with that, the doll shook its head. "...man... I really miss big bro..." he murmured now that he was in control once more.
Jill sighed. "Me too Tails Doll..." and she got up from where she sat on the couch, pacing around.
Tails Doll simply looked at her.
"…Jill, help please!"
Jill jumped at that, and ran after that voice into the kitchen. Tails Doll's eyes widened. "Oh no!" he uttered, as he fluttered after Jill.
When they got in there, they saw that Tasha was on the ground and she was having trouble getting up because of her large stomach. Jill hurried over to help her up. "Are you okay?!"
"I-I'm fine…" Tasha muttered. "I-I…just slipped is all…"
"Oh goodness...!" Tails Doll uttered in fear as he looked down at her.
"What were you trying to do?" Jill asked.
"…I was reaching for something that was a bit too high…in the cabinets," Tasha muttered sheepishly.
Jill looked up, and pulled down what was a bag of chips. "These what you wanted?"
Tasha nodded. "Thank you…" and took them.
Jill smiled a little. "Munchies getting to you?"
"…a little…" Tasha admitted embarrassingly.
"...oooh..." Tails Doll hummed with a small nod.
"…just make sure and ask me for help Tasha; you should be more careful," Jill recommended, with a nod coming from Tasha in response.
Tails Doll simply nodded. "...you must be really far along now..."
"About 6-7 months I'd think," Jill added.
"Yes," Tasha agreed, while the three of them walked into the living room.
Then there was a knock on the door.
"I'll get that," Jill said, leaving Tasha to head to the front door and open it.
When she opened it, Sonia stood there with a small smile. "...heya, Jill." she spoke with a nod.
"Oh, hi Sonia," Jill said. "Come in." and she moved aside for her.
Smiling, Sonia entered. "How's it going, hm?"
Jill closed the door behind her. "Not much…"
"...well, around this time of day, nothing much really seems to be going on..." Sonia mused.
"Well then, how about you join me and Tasha for a while? We're not really doing anything but we can chat," Jill said.
"Yeah, I guess we could do that." Sonia mused, as she smiled at Jill. "Might be good to just sit back and chat for now..."
"Yeah..." Jill chuckled, while the two of them headed into the living room.
As they entered the living room, Sonia couldn't help but cast a glance outside the window. "...today's looking to be a peaceful day..."
"Yeah, it is," Tasha agreed, nibbling on chips.
Once Jill sat down, she looked over at Sonia. "Hey Sonia, I'm curious...how's it been going with you and Wiper?"
"...well, that depends. Do you mean just in general, or while he's been out there?" Sonia mused as she took a seat.
"Well, both really," Jill said.
"...well, we've been going steady for a while, as you know." Sonia mused with a smile. "True, he might be busy with GUN, but whenever he has the time to show up... man, do we play a mean game of chess." she added with a giggle.
"You two and chess…" Jill chuckled in amusement.
"What can I say? It's an addictive game when you play opposite him." Sonia remarked with a giggle.
"You're just competitive in general, Sonia…" Jill mused.
Sonia giggled more, as she leaned back to look up at the ceiling. "...as for how it's been with him out there... well, I don't really have a way of talking to him, like you and Tasha do with Metal and King..." she mused, before closing her eyes. "...but... somehow, I get the feeling that even if he's busy with something this big... he's still doing alright."
"He should be," Tasha said with a nod. "He seems like he would be the type to stay well despite the circumstances."
"Yep; that's Wiper for ya." Sonia mused, as she smiled just a bit. "...smart and careful..."
Jill nodded in agreement, and then grew silent after a while. Sonia hummed, as she looked over at Jill.
Jill looked back at Sonia. "…you know what? We need to find a way you can contact him."
Sonia blinked, as she looked at Jill. "...wait, really?"
"Yeah, it's not fair that the two of us can talk to the ones we can and you can't," Jill said. "And he works for gun. Surely there's something Wiper has that allows any emergency contact that GUN would issue him?"
Sonia blinked, as she looked aside. "...huh... you know, I just haven't thought about that possibility..." she remarked, whilst rubbing her chin.
"Though, it wouldn't be for emergencies of course, but it would be a way to just talk to him if you needed to," Jill added.
"…I don't know if GUN would be willing to provide that contact information for her, though, given what's been going on," Tasha remarked.
"...yeah; that'd be kinda hard to get my hands on, all things considered..." Sonia murmured.
"…maybe we'll figure something out," Jill said.
"...right..." Sonia mused, as she sat herself back a bit.
The day was starting to come to a sunset in the horizon. Hunter looked over to see that. "Hey King."
"...hm...?" King looked over as well.
"…we've been gettin' low on supplies, and the day's coming to an end," Hunter said. "We should find a town where we won't be too conspicuous in to stock up on supplies and maybe spend the night."
"I second that idea," Dax remarked.
"...agreed." Queen mused. "Should we scout ahead to see if we can't find such a town?"
King hummed for a moment, before nodding. "...yeah, we should."
"Me n' Dax'll scout ahead then," Crystal offered. "You guys stay behind until we come back and call the coast clear!"
"...alright." King hummed with a light nod. "You guys be careful, though."
"Yeah Crystal; he said we need to be careful," Dax added sternly.
Crystal laughed, ruffling his spikes. "Oh lighten up. Things are gonna be fine," and that was the last they could capture from their dialogue before they disappeared, allowing the rest left behind to just sit and relax.
"...so who's bettin' on them getting in trouble?" Berta hummed as she sat down.
"Don't joke about that..." Miser sighed as the others relaxed.
"Ah, leave her be; she's probably relieved that Crystal won't be around for a bit," Hunter chuckled.
"That's true; they've been bickering for a while, now." Queen remarked.
"Glad they volunteered though; it's nice to rest your legs for a bit…" Hunter continued with a yawn.
"Kekeke... that's true..." Ripper mused.
"…how you holding up King?" Hunter asked, turning to the tiger.
"...I'm... doing alright..." King mused, as he looked up at the sky with a thoughtful hum.
"…'penny for your thoughts,' as Sage would say it?" Hunter hummed.
"...hm." King hummed, as he closed his eyes. "...guess I'm just wondering... how much longer this is gonna last..."
"…I'm sure that's on everyone's mind…some more so than others," Hunter murmured.
"...of course..." King mused, as he sighed. "It's just... how long have we been doing this...?"
"…months…sad to say King, I've lost count of the days," Hunter said.
"...same..." King murmured. "...I'm just... worried, you know... I promised I'd be back before she'd..."
"…she's not there yet, King," Hunter assured him. "It may have been long, but I can tell you that it hasn't been that long."
"...I know." King nodded with a small hum. "But... the clock's still ticking, too..."
"…have either of you thought of any names since you found out it was a boy?" Hunter asked.
"...we've... talked a bit about a possible name..." King mused, as he rubbed his neck a bit.
"Yeah?" Hunter said.
"...I've thought of a few, like... Bolt... Blitz... maybe name him after her or my dad..." King mused, as he rubbed his neck. "...but we haven't decided yet."
"Right…" Hunter said with a nod. "…and no rush…still plenty of time to figure that one out."
"Yeah..." King nodded.
So the group chattered on for the time they had to relax. At first, it was nice…but then it was getting later and later. Soon the sun was fully set and the sky was just starting to fade to darkness.
"…where are they…?" Hunter muttered.
"...they're taking their sweet time." Berta grunted.
"…that'd seem like Crystal at least…" Hunter mused.
"...still... you'd think that Dax could keep her out of trouble enough to get supplies..." Miser mused.
"…Not sure if he could control her to be honest," Hunter chuckled.
Suddenly, Queen's eyes narrowed. "...someone's coming... someone hurt." she uttered.
The air grew tense for the group.
"Queen…can you tell who it is?" Hunter uttered.
Queen's eyes narrowed further.
"...it's Crystal."
Everyone jumped to their feet at that, and just as they did, a figure limped toward them. Looking up at them revealed the face to be, indeed, Crystal. She had been beaten and bruised badly, and when she saw the group, she finally collapsed to the ground.
"...oh my god!" Miser quickly rushed over to Crystal. "Crystal! What happened?!"
When everyone else rushed to her, Crystal tried to get back up, but she was weak.
"…there was a town…but…when Dax and I tried to get in, we were stopped…" Crystal uttered with a few weak coughs. "These ex-mercs have taken over the town and they're running the place…but they're holding the entire town hostage…they haven't told us anything about why…but when we tried to leave, they trounced us…"
"...you gotta be kiddin'..." Berta uttered with wide eyes.
However, that suddenly made King realize something. "...wait... Crystal. Where's Dax?"
Crystal was grit her teeth, trying to hold back some tears. "…they took him, King…they took my best friend as another one of their hostages…just so he could give me the opportunity to come back here and warn you guys about the town…"
And she pounded her fist weakly against the ground. "…we gotta go rescue him…I don't know about the whole town, but we gotta get Dax back…"
King's eyes narrowed...
...and then, he turned to start walking. "...Queen. Hunter. You're with me." he spoke. "Ripper, Miser, Berta... stay with Crystal."
Without a word, Queen slowly rose to her feet, and began walking after King.
"W-wait! King!" Crystal was going to try and get up, but she couldn't, collapsing back down.
"Don't worry Crystal; we'll handle it," Hunter assured her, walking after King as well. "We've done this before."
"...he's right..." Miser mused, as she looked at Crystal. "...you need to rest; you're too hurt to move..."
Crystal grunted in her pain. She was definitely distraught at the fact that Dax had been left behind, and how willing he was to let her go just so she could get back here…she only hoped that he was alright, or at least alive and being treated alright.
Sure, he was alive, but as for being alright, or treated fairly, that wasn't the case.
After getting beaten up, Dax was thrown into a room to lay weakly there, and they closed the door on him, locking it.
"...sheesh... lost one of them hostages because of this kid..." the merc who had tossed him into that room murmured after locking the door; standing guard before it.
"...yeah… now there's no telling if she went to go blab to someone about the town," another merc spoke to him. "…I'm gonna alert the boss about this. You keep guard over him."
"Right..." the merc groaned.
Dax tried to sit himself up against the wall, groaning in agony.
"Oh, and do something with the arm, will ya? It's kinda creepy how he had that thing," one of the mercs uttered, as his footsteps carried him away.
Dax looked at his socket where his robotic arm was with a depressed sigh. Not that it hurt when they pulled it off, but he wasn't sure if he was even going to get it back, and without it, there was no way he could call for help. The only thing he could rely on now was that Crystal would make it back to the group to warn them about these mercs.
"...right... the arm..." With a hum, the other merc walked off as well. "...figure the boss might be interested in it..."
Dax looked around the room he was in. The mercs had snatched the hotel in the town as their headquarters, and were currently keeping the townsfolk in each of the rooms, almost as if the hotel was a makeshift prison. He was just in another one of the ordinary rooms of the hotel.
Looks like they threw him in here by himself too, though he wasn't sure if that would've made any difference opposed to throwing him in with a couple of the other townsfolk. He would've at least liked someone to talk to instead of having to stay put in here to wait…
…it was better than having them beat him though…which they did for a while, demanding where Crystal went. He wiped his lip which had been cut open from all the hitting they did on him. Not that he wasn't used to being beaten up because he used to be picked on before he met Crystal…he just didn't want them to hit so hard. He had to play like he was unconscious just for them to throw him in here.
He was at least able to get a look at their leader though…and he wasn't a pretty sight; some raccoon guy with scars all over his face. He didn't seem to be saying anything when Dax got a glimpse of him though, and he wasn't around when they beat him up. He just only got a passing glance…the only reason he could tell the raccoon was their leader was because they were referring to him as such…
…then suddenly…he heard yelps…
They were coming from outside, out in the middle of town.
Dax perked up at that, and tried to scoot himself toward a window, despite how weak he was.
The instant he tried catching a glimpse out the window, someone suddenly slammed against the glass; groaning in pain. The glass was thick enough not to shatter upon impact, so the guy in question slowly slumped off the glass and onto the ground.
Dax had jumped at that, but he sighed. He had hoped it was the rescue team he was waiting for, but he kept wary of that window.
Downtown, far, far away from the inn, the mercs were on a run for their money. Why? Because a trio of Mobians were currently tearing a path through them, either with pure fisticuffs, psychokinesis, or arcs of electricity. The mercs kept thinking that their guns were going to stop them, but the psychokinesis just blew the bullets back, leaving them open for the other two attacks by the other two Mobians.
"How are we going to find Dax here?" Hunter asked curiously.
"We find someone to interrogate!" King growled.
"Preferably someone we're not knocking far off, then..." Queen murmured, just as she slammed her fist into a merc coming up from behind her.
"…someone closer to whatever their threshold is, I suggest," Hunter said. "They would know more than these guys on the frontlines."
"Right..." King nodded, before giving Queen a nod. "See if you can't find anyone like that."
"I'll be quick about it." Queen hummed, as she proceeded to charge ahead; clenching her hands as she swung away at any thug that tried to hold her up.
Meanwhile, Hunter kept on his and King's defense. "These guys took over a town? I feel really sorry for the people; these guys are hardly putting up much of a fight."
"Feh... they must've been intimidated by these idiots somehow." King scoffed, as he fired more electricity at the thugs coming towards them.
Eventually, they had gone on and on and on with their onslaught, until there was absolutely no more thugs that came after them. The two stayed on their toes, but refrained from their attack for now, moving through the town in hopes to catch up with Queen.
King looked around him with narrowed eyes, as if to see if he could catch any glimpse of either Queen, Dax, or possibly both of them.
"Psst!" A voice suddenly whispered out to them.
King stopped, and looked around. "...you hear that, Hunter?"
"Yeah," Hunter responded.
"Psst! Guys, over here!"
Hunter looked over, and they saw a small boy; a mongoose with messy red hair and freckles on his face with bright blue eyes. He looked young; maybe five or six years old. He looked like he had been in hiding for a while, and possibly watched Hunter, King and Queen fighting, but he didn't look afraid.
In fact, he looked relieved, running up to them. "Are you guys here to save our town?" he asked.
King merely looked down at him. "...well..." He looked around, to see if there was anyone else around them at the moment.
"…we're not sure kid; we're looking for a friend of ours those thugs took," Hunter said.
"They took everybody to the hotel across town," the boy said. "That's where my mom is too…I snuck out of one of the vents to see if I could get anybody to help us, and I was really hoping you guys could help. These mean guys have been bullying us around for a long while now."
"...the hotel, huh...?" King hummed. "...we could go and check that place out..." Then he looked at Hunter. "...first we oughta see if we can't find Queen."
"She's that bear, right?" the mongoose said. "Follow me! I can show you where she went!" and he started running off.
Hunter blinked at that, looked at King with a shrug, and ran after the mongoose. "Kid, wait up!" King simply hummed, before he followed them.
When the mongoose stopped, Hunter looked down at him. "Listen, kid, what's your name?"
"It's Augury," the mongoose replied. "Just climb up this way!" the mongoose boy, Augury, hopped and grabbed to a pipe that went up a building, and started climbing it to the roof. "I'll be able to show you where your friend went!"
Nodding, King swiftly began climbing up after him. "C'mon, Hunter."
Hunter nodded, climbing up the pipe.
Once they got to the roof, Augury looked around.
Finally, he pointed. "There. She went that way."
It was toward a town square where a bunch of military tents were set up, and heavy artillery equipment was placed around.
Seeing that, King narrowed his eyes a touch. "...hrm..."
"…guess that's why they were able to take over the town," Hunter murmured, looking at their artillery.
"…The keys to the inn are in that camp too," Augury said. "I would've tried to grab them…but then they'd catch me."
"…listen, Augury, you're gonna have to go somewhere safer…" Hunter suggested. "…this might get pretty dangerous."
"...yeah..." King murmured. "...and probably not a pretty sight, either..." King murmured, before he looked at Hunter. "...I'll try to look for the keys. You find Queen."
"Got it," Hunter nodded. Then he pointed at Augury sternly. "And most of all, you need to stay out of trouble."
"Yeah, yeah, I know; Mom said that too," Augury groaned. "I'm gonna try and find your friend then," And he climbed down the pipe. "See ya later!"
Seeing him go, King hummed, before glancing at Hunter. "...let's go." With that, he began sneaking into the camp.
Hunter followed closely behind in quiet. As he looked around, King narrowed his eyes with a small frown.
"…what's the matter…?" Hunter whispered.
"...you see anyone around...?" King remarked. "You'd think there'd be more people around here..."
"…did Queen take care of 'em?" Hunter muttered.
"...dunno..." King murmured. "...or... maybe they're hiding." he mused, as he began heading further in.
"…if they try to jump us, I'm ready…" Hunter muttered.
"...right..." King nodded. "...remember; find Queen. I'll get the key..." And he snuck further ahead.
"…we'll split and then we'll meet up at that hotel; sound good?" Hunter asked. King simply nodded in response. With that, Hunter snuck away. King began looking through this camp.
Meanwhile, over in the direction toward the inn…
"...now why would they go in there...?" Queen hummed as she watched some mercs enter the inn; likely worried about the carnage that had gone on moments earlier, only to suddenly cease. She simply observed them in silence from behind a building.
Suddenly, a couple of mercs were shoving someone out, and knocking them to the ground, pointing a gun at their head. "Okay, tell us where your boy is, and we won't have to use force."
The figure, a female, middle-aged mongoose, winced as she looked up at the mercs. "...I wish I knew myself... I swear, I don't know where he is..."
Queen's eyes narrowed. ...what's this about...?
"Then how did he get out?!" the merc demanded, pressing the gun more firmly against her.
"I swear, I don't know!" she uttered, as she closed her eyes.
...they're not going to accept that. Queen mused, as she grit her teeth. At this rate... she'll be killed.
"Somebody better go find that kid, or this woman's not gonna see anything pretty!" the merc demanded.
She just kept her eyes shut. "W-whatever you do to me... just don't hurt my son, please!"
...damn it all... Queen clenched her hand slowly. ...have to intervene...
The mercs scattered out, leaving just the one merc with the gun pointed at the mongoose. He took her by her arms, twisting them behind her back and pinned her to the ground. "They'd better bring her back in one minute, or I'm gonna shoot you and find him myself…" the merc growled at her.
She merely kept her eyes closed; teeth grit in pain...
"...you'll do no such thing, you scum."
And all of a sudden, the merc was punched squarely in the face, with enough force to knock him straight into the inn, no matter where he'd slam into on the building. He ran through the building, no questions asked, knocking him out then and there to collapse on the rubble.
The mongoose blinked a bit to take in what had just happened, before looking up at her savior. "...what...?"
"...you're not safe here." Queen spoke, as she walked directly into the inn. "Go and hide."
"Ah..." the mongoose uttered, as she sighed in relief. "...bless your kind heart..."
"...don't mention it, ma'am." Queen hummed without looking back. "Just stay alive." And she looked around the area she had entered.
So far, the coast was clear thanks to the mercs scattering out, and due to slamming one of the mercs through the wall of the hotel, she had her way inside. Queen simply hummed, as she ventured further into the inn.
Suddenly, from around the corner of one of the buildings, a small figure rushed out and hugged the mother mongoose. "Mom!" uttered Augury.
Her eyes widened, and she clutched to him in a hug. "Augury...!"
"You're okay right?" Augury asked.
"...I'm fine..." she murmured, as she looked down at her son, "...but what about you? You're not hurt, are you?"
"I'm okay," Augury said. "I found some guys that came to town mom; they were fighting those bad guys like it was nothing, and even though they're just looking for their friend that got taken here, I think they can help us beat these bad guys for good!"
"...you... don't say..." she uttered, as she slowly looked back towards the hotel.
"Halt right there!" There had been mercs standing in the hallway when Queen turned a corner, holding what looked like tazers. Seeing them, Queen simply hummed, as she began walking towards them.
"Stop! We're warning you!" The mercs were getting a bit nervous, but they tried to stand their ground as Queen approached.
Queen merely glared at them as she kept walking. "...don't just threaten. Act." she spoke.
They were frozen for a minute, and then finally, they let out yelps as they jumped on her. Queen, however, responded to their charge by simply punching them rapidly, without even looking at them. They were fairly easy to take out, since Queen was incredibly strong with each punch, and it knocked out each of the mercs.
She scoffed as he watched them go down, before she headed further into the hotel.
When she turned down another corner, there was someone standing on the very far other end of the hallway…and it was just them; no other mercs.
With a small hum, Queen began advancing towards them; eyes narrowing as she clenched her hands. The one figure on the other end advanced as well. The figure was wrapped up in black cloth, hiding any facial features, but the curves of the figure told Queen it was a woman Mobian.
Queen simply narrowed her eyes, whilst clenching her hands.
The woman finally threw a punch toward Queen. Queen weaved her head away from the punch, before throwing one of her own; straight at the woman's gut. The woman swerved around the punch, and threw a kick at Queen this time.
Queen swiftly grabbed the kick, as she looked at her opponent. "...you know how to fight..." she mused, before hurling her against a wall. When the woman was thrown against the wall, she landed on the wall by her feet…and stayed there.
"Better than those morons we put up the guard the place, that's for sure," the woman spoke harshly, kicking off the wall to throw a punch at Queen.
Grabbing the incoming fist, Queen narrowed her eyes, as she was forced back from the attack. "...true enough..." With that, she suddenly shot her hand forward to tear off the veil covering her opponent's face.
When Queen did that, she revealed the face of the woman to be a ladybug, and she backed away from Queen. "That curious, hm?" she hummed.
"There must be a reason for you to cover yourself like that." Queen mused in return. "I was simply curious as to what that reason would be." Swiftly, she then threw another punch at the ladybug.
"Would you believe me if I said it was because I was self-conscious?" chuckled the ladybug in amusement, moving around her punch.
"I'd find it plausible." Queen hummed in response, as she swung her fist against the ladybug once more.
The ladybug caught the fist, and then smirked at Queen. "…Oh…I know who you are now…you're from that warrior nation, Safe Haven, aren't you?"
Queen glared back at her. "...and who wants to know?" she mused, before taking the chance to headbutt the ladybug.
When she was hit in the head, the ladybug jumped back again, shaking her head with a wince. It hit hard. Then she smirked at Queen again. "Oh…just someone that considered joining…before that whole blockade that is," she chuckled. "…say…aren't you fugitives again?"
Queen didn't respond, as she merely observed the ladybug; as if studying her movements.
"I suppose I'm gonna take that as a yes, then?" Something ripped through her rabric, which were her wings, and she used them to fly at Queen with another kick.
Queen's eyes widened momentarily, before she weaved her head away from the kick, before proceeding to throw a punch straight at the ladybug's side before she could fly past her. The ladybug, again, jumped away from Queen thanks to her wings, and just laughed at her.
"So what could you possibly be up to?" she hummed.
Queen still didn't say anything, as she simply looked at the ladybug.
"What? Cat got your tongue?" the ladybug muttered. "I think it's polite to answer a lady's question."
"...I don't work well with manners." Queen retorted, as she merely kept observing the ladybug.
"What a shame," the ladybug chuckled, charging at Queen.
Meanwhile, King kept sneaking through the camp set up. He ran into a few mercs that were standing around, but he managed to knock them out before they might've called for any back up.
Still, King remained as silent as he could be; glancing around with a narrowed gaze. "...hrm..."
"…looking for something?"
King's eyes widened, as he looked behind him. Behind him stood a raccoon Mobian that was taller and more muscular than him, with dark ragged clothes and scars all across his face, along with an eyepatch over one of his eyes. He was twirling a bunch of keys on a ring around his finger. Slowly, he turned around whilst looking at this Mobian. The raccoon caught the keys, and then put them in his pocket in his coat.
"What are you doing in a town like this?" the raccoon hummed.
King narrowed his eyes. "...a friend of mine got caught here. I'm gonna take him back."
"Is that so?" the raccoon said.
"Yeah." King nodded, as he narrowed his eyes. "And I think I might need those keys you got."
"How do you know they might even be the right set of keys?" the raccoon said.
"...I got a hunch, is all." King noted, as he clenched his hands. "Now... hand 'em over."
"Not gonna be that easy."
The raccoon pulled out the keys again, and pulled apart the ring, separating the keys. Then he threw them right up into the air.
Black figures quickly grabbed each of the keys, and then they vanished within the buildings before King could even react.
"…gonna have to find them yourself," The raccoon said.
King gawked up at that, before he glared at the raccoon. "...you..."
"…or why do you even need the keys?" the raccoon said. "You look strong enough that you could even break down the doors to find your friend…you just wasted your time."
"...kkh..." King hissed, as he clenched his hands. "...just who are you?"
"My name's Baltimore," the raccoon answered King.
"...Baltimore...?" King blinked a bit. "...where have I heard that name before...?"
"I lead a team of mercenaries," Baltimore spoke. "But ever since Safe Haven started…no one's really talked much about us anymore…"
"...wait a sec..." King looked up at the raccoon again. "...now I remember! Some of your flunkies were hired by GUN after our group was labeled fugitives to bring us in!"
"Precisely," Baltimore said. "Though after your names were cleared, there was no need for us…and then your warrior nation flourished, leaving mercs like us behind in the dust…but since your nation's under a lockdown, I figured we'd act up again maybe to call some attention back to ourselves."
"Unfortunately, the people in this town weren't so fond of the idea."
King's eyes narrowed. "...is that right...?"
"…you know King…" Baltimore soon approached him slowly. "You're lucky that GUN's protecting your island right now…"
King snarled, as he stepped back a small bit.
"I was actually planning to invade your nation," Baltimore continued nonchalantly. "If Metal Sonic hadn't been hiding there, I bet I could've taken it over."
King's eyes widened, before they narrowed considerably; electricity sparking from him. "...you cheeky bastard...!"
"What? I'd still train soldiers…well, more like mercenaries," Baltimore said. "It'd be like a business to me…I'd train mercs that people can just call up and hire…because that's essentially what you're doing, right King? Training others to be able to use those skills in life?"
King hissed, as he slowly clenched his hands together.
"…and if anyone stood in my way to stop me from that, and I mean anyone…" Baltimore spoke coldly. "…I would kill them."
King snarled. "...even... women and children...?!"
Baltimore just laughed. "Just what would children be doing there anyway? You amuse me King…" When he stopped laughing, he turned cold again. "There wouldn't be any point to keep women, children and families there…and if they tried to stop me too, then yes, I would."
King snarled. "...I see... then you're one person I just can't forgive..." he uttered, as more electricity shot off him.
"And why is that?" Baltimore hummed. "…do you have a family there, King?"
"...that's none of your business!" King snarled with a roar.
"Even so, you answered my question," Baltimore said. "Well then…aren't you going to take your anger out on me?"
King snarled...
...and with a roar, he suddenly shot a massive arc of lightning at Baltimore. Baltimore suddenly brought out something, and though the impact was powerful, the lighting hit that instead.
King's eyes widened. "...the hell...?!"
When the lightning was gone, it was emitting off of some steel rod that Baltimore was holding by a rubber handle. "…you see King, I've built this thing years ago, and started to keep this on me if we were to invade your nation…it's a special kind of lightning rod I designed myself…"
Then he jolted the rod forward…shooting the lightning right back at King. Some bolts even ricocheted against some of the tents, making them burst into flames. King's eyes widened, and he thrust his hands forward; generating enough electricity to make the otherwise lethal bolts ricochet off his palms and into two other tents; setting them ablaze as well.
"…just a curious question; why did you allow Metal Sonic to stay there?" Baltimore hummed, not even affected by the flames starting to spread from the tents.
"...none of your business!" King roared, as he charged straight at Baltimore with his fists drawn back.
Baltimore flashed the lightning rod at him again, shooting more lightning. King, however, weaved his way away from that lightning bolt, as he kept charging.
Baltimore's lightning rod ran out of energy, and he withdrew that into his coat, pulling out knives that he threw at King. King managed to dodge the knives, as he eventually got close enough to throw a punch at Baltimore. Baltimore caught the fist, admittedly being pushed back a bit, but he caught it, and pushed King back.
CLIFFHANGER XD
