Silver's POV

"...And what if this doesn't work at all?" The voice of a light gray, almost white hedgehog quietly asked into the dimly lit room.

"We won't know until we give it a try, Silver." Another voice responded. It sounded a lot older. "Just be thankful that we got this to work finally... This is the moment we've been waiting for."

These words bounced around in the air as the gray hedgehog took in a shaky breath. Silver, who just turned twenty-one stood at a height of three feet and three inches, finally hitting the age where he was considered an adult by most. He looked a lot older than what he looked like due to the intense circumstances he faced daily. Bags underneath his eyes and usually dirty from just daily life. The fur around his neck was a ruffled mess, never kept up or trimmed properly, along with the two large spines that came out of the back of his head, while on the front of his forehead five distinct quills flared up and back, the two final ones covering up most of his ears. He wore a pair of gloves that they were able to scavenge from supply runs. However, something he was rightfully say was his and his to wear were the golden bracelets that had accented marks of cyan. He wore a pair of boots that were like the red gem set within gold. The rest of his boots were navy blue, white, and cyan. He also wore an armband that represented what part of the community he was a part of... Everyone wore an armband, regardless of what species you were. Each color represented a different job, and for Silver. His cyan-colored armband represented the scavengers... He wore a belt that had a matching color set as his boots with a golden buckle on the front. A gift from his parents before he was born.

However, despite his best efforts of trying to look presentable... Silver came from a place of devastation. It was like that before he was even born into this world. It was a harsh, bleak place where everyone was forced to live in enteral darkness. Life was a constant struggle. Nobody knew why they had to fight for survival, they would always keep quiet and just point to the flames that burned below the skyscrapers... Where streets used to be were now rivers of lava and there was no sunlight... Food was scarce and there was extremely limited water. It never rained so there was no chance for crops to be farmed if you were lucky enough to find something to plant...

Silver hated everything about the life he was forced to live through... He had lost everything that he had once held dear to him. His parents and just recently his twin brother... The monsters of the dark overcame him, and he got swept away before Silver could attempt to save him... Silver felt alone and empty on the inside... There was nothing to fight for. To survive against the flames and then the creatures of the night were almost too much to handle. Until rumors went around that someone stumbled across an old, abandoned laboratory, with the answer to fix it all.

"...Time travel?" Silver asks quietly, keeping his voice low and soft so it would not echo through the room and alert any unwelcomed guest.

"It's our only option, kid." The same voice from earlier responds, a gray wolf who looked a lot older than him sighed from besides, eyeing the metal frame that stood looming in front of them. The wolf, whose name was Geronimo. Geronimo was like a second father to Silver, who had raised him ever since his parents both passed away... Taking in the details of his guardian's face for probably the last time, Silver frowned.

"What if the date is wrong?"

"It won't be." Another voice pipes up from behind, a white mouse with a pair of broken glasses that were fixed together with very aged tape, gives an awkward smile before he wipes away the layers of dust that were once covering the large keyboard in front of him. "I did my research, and we should be sending you to the same year before the Day of Disaster happened." The mouse explains. "You'll just be a couple of months early!"

"If you say so, Simon..." Silver replies as his anxiety shot through the roof... He was being used as a guinea pig to go back to the past to change the biggest event in mobian history... He knew that life back then was completely different from what they were used to now. It was glamorous with no survival of the fittest. It was a period with food at your disposal and unlimited security. Did he want to risk going to this unknown place and never come back? Was there a chance of it working? Nobody knew... He had nothing to lose, but he was not sure if he were ready to take that big leap of faith... Would people miss him if he disappeared forever?

He then felt a firm hand on his shoulder, which snapped him back to reality... He glances up at Geronimo, who gave him an encouraging smile. "Everything will be okay, Silver. I have a strong feeling you'll be able to do this kid..." He says gently, trying to reassure the gray hedgehog, who nervously smiles back.

"Do you think so?"

"I know so...~" He responds firmly.

"Alright, guys... In three seconds, our portal should be up and running." Simon lifts a hand, holding up three fingers before he starts the count down. "Three..."

"Two."

"...One!"

With that a surge of power shot through the frame, causing a loud woosh of energy to rush through... Sparks flew, and everyone shielded their eyes... It was blinding at first before Silver slowly lowered his arm, in awe of what was before him. Sure enough, the portal was up and running now.

"It's working!" Simon piped up excitedly, proud of his work as he quickly ran out from behind the keyboard. "I don't know how much longer it'll be up and running but there's no going back now, right?" He asks the gray hedgehog, who nodded nervously.

"...Yeah, no turning back..." Silver echoes, a nervous wreck as he watches Simon throw a pen into the portal to test it... It disappears out of sight and everyone falls silent. "...This is it, huh?" Silver questions.

"For now," Geronimo states, trying to keep the mood light. "But once you fix the future, we will see you again, kid. I do not doubt in my mind~" He then holds out a hand for Silver to shake, only to be met with an awkward embrace from the young hedgehog... Silver was saying goodbye to a world he had only known his entire life... The wolf tensed up from the sudden contact before his face softens, slowly patting Silver on the back to reassure him. "You got this kid..." He says, pulling away to give a firm nod, letting Silver go for one last time.

"Thanks, guys." Silver says with a shakey sigh before he turns his attention to the white mouse, who beams up at Silver proudly.

"We'll see you, Silver... I believe in you!" Simon says before he goes in for a hug, only to stop himself... a look of fear written across his face as he looks past Silver, confused Silver glances over his shoulder and then spots it... A face in the doorway... The portal's glow barely illuminating its empty eye sockets as it creeps into the doorway... The creatures of the dark were here, and they must have heard the portal turn on... The one that the trio saw then opened its mouth... The stench of death lingered in the air as it bellowed a roar, alerting the others that there was food in this building. Silver's heart sank before he felt something grab him.

"Silver GO!" Geronimo hisses, practically tossing the gray hedgehog into the portal. Silver fell backward and his eyes widened in shock as he watched the only exit become crowded... Creatures of black tar and nightmares clawing through the door. "SIMON STAY FOCUSED ON THAT PORTAL!"

"NO, WAIT!" Silver chokes out as he felt his arms tingle. He felt his consciousness fade and he began to feel lightheaded... and he was out... The last thing he could hear is Geronimo barking orders at a panicked mouse... Unsure if they would even make it out alive...

( Unknown Amount Of Time Passes )

Silver awakens in a panic, sitting up from his laying position... He could not help but shield his eyes from the shining light from above. He groans a little as his eyes try to adjust to the new setting. "G-Geronimo?" He croaks. "Simon?" He asks, opening his eyes slowly as he takes in the sounds of chirping birds singing their melodies from above... He was at a loss for words as he took in the surroundings... He was in a large forest that was full of tall and old trees with their network of roots scattered and growing everywhere. The forest was nestled within a mountainous area and there were openings to several caves. Bright and colorful flowers spotted the grass around Silver as he slowly rose to his feet, staring at this new environment with wide eyes and a slightly gaped mouth. It was like nothing he had seen before... The sky was so blue and crystal clear! The sun was warm and welcoming! Silver could feel waves of different emotions rush through him. "...This is unbelievable..." He mutters to himself, in total awe as he spins around to get a layout of the area he was in, his stomach knotting up in excitement as he took a step forward, feeling something underneath his boot. He glances down and notices it... A single pen. The same pen that Simon threw in the portal before Silver entered. Feeling a frown form on his lips as he slowly knelt to pick up the ballpoint pen and sighs. "Don't worry guys... I am going to fix this timeline and make sure you get the future you both deserve... Your sacrifices will not go in vain..."

Silver grips the pen tightly before he heads off in the direction, he could hear laughter and voices... He strode past several large trees and made sure to stay aware of his surroundings... He eventually broke into a small job before he ran out into an open field... Bright green grass flowed out for what looked to be miles ahead... Mountains still surrounded the area, but they seemed to protect this little valley. But then upon surveying the area, he spotted strange things flying in the air... They were made of paper and plastic with ribbons attached to them... They seemed to be tied to long strings... Following the strings with his eyes he then spotted them... Mobians... His heart stopped for a second as he watched the children laugh and fly these strange paper creations... He slowly approached the family that seemed to be enjoying the area and what it had to offer... "What in the world is this place...?" Silver asked himself, finally making it to the group of people before he glanced down at the yellow and orange hedgehog that was seated in a lawn chair nearby. He was busy reading a book and he wore a smile on his face... Silver mustered up the courage to finally speak up and cleared his throat gently.

"Excuse me, sir?"

The stranger looked up at Silver from the bright pages of his novel he was lost in and gave a friendly smile. "Yes? What can I do for ya?" He asks gently, genuinely curious about this interaction.

"...C-can I ask where we are?" Silver asks, feeling more awkward as the seconds go by... The female hedgehog who was tending to her children with the kites glances over her shoulder at her husband with a curious expression. "I'm not from around here, you see... and I'm a little lost to where we're at..."

The stranger cracked into a wider smile, lifting an eye ridge in question. "Well... You're in Windy Valley!" He says with a chuckle. "We're right next to Central City." He then uses his thumb to point to the left. "If you follow the trail pathway between the mountain walls you should come across a large open tunnel, walkthrough and you'll eventually reach the city!" He then leans in a little. "Are you a traveler or something?"

Silver kept the mental notes of these new locations. "In a weird way...Yeah." Silver answers the question before he glances past the other hedgehog, eyeing the trail that disappeared between the trees. "Well... Thank you so much!" He then heads off in that direction, determined to fix the past and save the future.

"...Huh..." The yellow hedgehog watches Silver walk off before he glances over at his wife.

"Who was that?" She asks quietly.

"No idea... kinda weird kid. Not gonna lie." He comments before shrugging, returning to his novel as he sat back in his chair, humming quietly to himself...

Silver balled his fists up as he sped walked down the trail, passing by several careless people as they all traveled to the area he just left with baskets and blankets to have picnics. "I must fight for the future!" Silver thought to himself as he felt determination rush through him... He needed answers. When was the Day of Disaster going to happen and how was he going to put a stop to it? He only knew there was one way to find out and he was going to eventually figure it out... He walked down the path until he finally reached the large tunnel the stranger had mentioned... He frowns as he eyes the dark interior, lights would flicker on and off and he eventually just rolled his eyes, forcing himself to step inside... He kept hearing some strange noises coming from the other side though... Honking and loud busy street noises... Once he reached the opening, he was in total shock... the city was HUGE... large buildings stood where trees must have once stood. Busy streets with cars and busses zooming by. Silver stood back and gawked at everything before him. He could hardly believe that this place in his future did not exist... It was usually overtaken by lava and destruction... But he now understood the charm of the cities of the past. people walking happily past him, talking on strange devices, and talking amongst one another... He eventually followed the sidewalk, taking in this new scenery.

"Whoa..." He muttered softly to himself as he strode past several groups of people who surrounded hot dog stands that smelt amazing...

"GET THE SONIC BLAST SLUSHEE WITH A SIGNATURE CHILI DOG!" The concession stand man hollered out. Silver glanced in his direction a little confused. What are these random things he is screaming about? But then something caught Silver's direction... A loud crash a few blocks away.

Everybody nearby all paused before going into panic mode, dropping everything, and taking off towards the tunnel. "What the..." Silver scowled. "I thought Simon said it wouldn't be until a couple of months until the Day of Disaster... Why now!?" Silver scowled angrily taking off towards the direction, already sealing his fate as the hero of the future...

To Be Continued…