.
Do it for your people, do it for your pride
How're you ever gonna know, if you never even try
Do it for your country, do it for your name
Cause there's gonna be a day when you're standing in the hall of fame
Chapter Four: Daughter of Saladiel
Violett kept her cool … somehow. Sonic the hedgehog, he called himself. Sonic the hero, she'd heard others refer to him. Sonic the insufferable was more accurate. Even when actually fulfilling her mission of retrieving the Sword of Acorns, he simply refused to let her be. She was perfectly capable of walking to Castle Acorn by herself, thank you very much.
"... so yeah, that's how the Sword of Acorns came into existence."
"Of course it is", Violett answered flatly.
Legends always have a true core. Sometimes that core is bigger, sometimes it's smaller. In this particular case, it was smaller. At the very least, Violett got to learn a bit about the lore of this kingdom and learning was something she always enjoyed.
"Are you mad at me or something?"
"No."
Mad, not so much. Annoyed, definitely. But he already seemed to have a good idea about that anyway. In a few hours, she'd be gone and would not have to deal with Sonic the Hedgehog for a long time.
"You sure?"
"Yes."
She hoped, at least, prayed, she wouldn't have to deal with him for a long time. At least he was silent for a bit, with emphasis on the 'bit'.
"You know, I couldn't help but notice you and Tails getting along well yesterday."
Ah, so that's what this was about. Violett could feel herself soften almost immediately. Once she was gone, he'd be left to tend to Tails and it appeared that so far, he hadn't gotten through to the young fox. Sonic was sticking to Violett because her presence was good for Tails. He wanted everyone to come along for her ride because it would distract them from the recent tragedy. If Sonic was constantly surrounded by adventure, a new adventure would put some normalcy into everyone's lives. It would satisfy Sonic's taste for action, it would give all of his friends a distraction, but most importantly, it would heal his little brother. The magician frowned. How had she not figured this out earlier? Was there anything else she had somehow missed?
"You two are close?" she asked and Sonic seemed delighted to finally have her engage in conversation.
"We're brothers, him and I,'' he grinned.
Violett raised an eyebrow.
"Well, not blood brothers. I told you yesterday, we don't know anything about our families, if we even have one at all. But Tails and I, we've always been together, going on mad adventures and watching each others backs. We're brothers in heart!"
Violett hummed in response. She had noticed that the two were closer than your average best friends, now she knew the extent of their relationship. From the side of her eye, she could see the face of the blur drop and she sharpened her ears. This was about to get important.
"How much did he tell you?" she didn't have to ask about what.
"Enough to have an idea on what happened."
"Do you know her name?"
Violett shook her head.
"It was Cosmo. I'm pretty sure she was his first love."
Violett knew that she had been more than that, but the workings behind the concept of soulmates was not something Sonic understood quite yet, so she kept quiet.
"When she died, I was there, fighting on the frontlines. I should have saved her. I knew I could have if I'd tried a little harder .. but I didn't. And I let him down. I failed him."
So it happened in a battle. Well, there were always casualties in a war, a fact Violett was painfully aware of. Not that this made it any easier on anyone.
"Tails blames me. Of course he does, I was supposed to be his hero", he was spouting bullocks now, that much she knew. Sadly, he seemed to believe it. "That's why he won't open up or talk to me. But you! He talks to you, he opens up to you, he comes to you for comfort. I have no idea how you did it, but you can't just go and leave him behind now!"
That was exactly what she was going to do. Not that she was looking forward to it, she liked the little kitsune. But no matter what she did, he would never be the same again. Her staying or leaving only made a difference in his possible recovery time.
"Tails built a spaceship!"
"What?" Violett stopped in her tracks. She was certain she hadn't heard right.
"You heard me!" Sonic stared her down, his gaze strong and unyielding. There had been no mistake in his words. He was determined not to let her leave without them, a fact she would have easily picked up on if her mind could wrap itself around the fact that Tails had built an entire spaceship.
"How old did you say he was?" Violett asked.
"He just turned nine a few days ago."
There was a moment of silence that Violett apparently needed to digest this information. He gave it to her, patiently awaiting her response. When she finally answered, her voice was quiet and seemed a lot more … mortal.
"He's a natural", she said.
"Sure is. But right now, he refuses …"
"... to touch his machines. All because he fired the shot."
"That's pretty much how it is."
After another short moment, Violett composed herself again and continued walking. Castle Acorn was already in sight.
"So will you help him? If you can get him to fix up his spaceship a bit, we have the solution you want."
As ever so often, Violett didn't answer. She didn't have to. If there was ever a facial expression that embodied the word 'no', Violett currently wore it. All Sonic could do was smile and shake his head, before looking up at the clouds. What did he have to do to convince that hedgehog?
Acorn castle was an impressive castle only to Mobius, where buildings were small and homey and nature was largely untouched. Having been to Earth, Sonic and his friends had seen far more impressive buildings, and so had Violett. With it's three stories (albeit each one being rather high), it's green terrasses and the waterfalls comin from its first floor, it fit perfectly into the kingdom it represented. The two hedgehogs approached the front door leisurely, only to be stopped by two castle guards blocking the entrance. Sonic raised an eyebrow. Violett did nothing.
"State your name and your purpose", one of the guards bellowed. He was a skunk. Sonic already didn't like him. The guy reminded him too much of a certain other skunk he knew.
"I am Violett Ocean of the Hedgehog Empire. I came to talk to the royal family."
"The entire family?" the other guard, this one a rat barely out of her adolescence, asked surprised.
"If you wish to see the King, you must request an audience first", the skunk said, not waiting on Violett's response.
"Tell him I am of the Hedgehog Empire. That will render all formalities unnecessary. If he asks for proof, tell him I showed you this."
She stretched out her hand and out of the ring on her finger, the diadem from the previous day appeared. Sonic didn't get to look at it properly the first time, but now that he saw it close up, he was downright entranced by it. It was golden, looked almost mechanical in it's built, yet it's form was sleek and slender, the front decoration reminding a bit of three leaves. There was a beautiful white diamond on the center leaf. It was as if that one diadem represented the best of the technological, the natural and the mystical. And for just a moment, it seemed to call for Sonic. The moment, however, was gone when it disappeared back into Violett's ring.
The skunk seemed unsure of what to do. The rat, obviously the skunks junior, even more so. And Violett was not amused. Sonic had seen what happened when she ran out of patience only once, and Eggman would not have come out of it unscathed had Violett had decided differently. She did that thing again, where nothing about her changed, yet somehow, the air around her seemed to cool down. Sonic decided to step in.
"It's all cool", he said, stepping in front of Violett, whether to protect her from the guards or vice versa, he wasn't certain. "Look guys, she's with me. We're just here to visit Sally, maybe say hello to Elias and their folks, and then we're out. No need to get hostile."
That apparently didn't work, as the skunk decided to hold his lance to Sonic's throat.
"You dare address the princess so casually?" he demanded.
Sonic could feel the air behind him getting chillier. With an angry Violett at his back and a spear at his throat, he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
"Lower your spear, guard", a voice appeared from seemingly nowhere.
Right in front of the doors to the castle, a lynx with dark hair and a purple dress manifested out of nowhere. Violett's eyes widened and fixated themselves on the lynx.
"Lady Nicole!" The skunk obeyed immediately and retracted his spear. Sonic let out a deep breath he hadn't known he was holding. The lynx turned to the hedgehog pair.
"Forgive them, Sonic. They haven't been on duty for very long and it's been a while since you visited."
"S'all good. Thanks for the rescue, Nicole."
He gave her a thumbs up and she responded with a tight hug that caught the speedster off guard.
"Sally will be so happy to see you. And you brought a friend! I'll introduce myself in a bit, let me just take care of the guards real quick."
So she turned around to face said guards, telling them all about how the person they had threatened was the legendary hero of Mobius, childhood friend of Princess Sally and was on her orders always welcomed in the castle. Sonic watched impatiently while Violett continued to stare at the Lynx skeptically.
The guards stepped aside, the doors opened and Nicole motioned them both inside. And as they walked, Nicole finally introduced herself to Violett.
"Forgive my rudeness, dear visitor, I should have come earlier."
Violett continued to stare.
"Ah, this body is made out of nanites. They are everywhere in this castle, so I can appear anywhere within and slightly outside its boundaries."
"So you are a computer?" the magician asked.
"An A.I. yes. I belong to Princess Sally, though she prefers to refer to me as a friend, rather than a possession. And I very much enjoy being her friend."
"I see."
And with that the conversation between the two was over. Nicole shot Sonic a confused look and he just shrugged his shoulders helplessly as an answer.
"I'll ... go tell Sally you're here. Why don't you wait here in the gardens. I know you've always enjoyed the outside more than a house."
"Thanks!." Sonic grinned
The lynx vanished and Violett narrowed her eyes, not even making an attempt at hiding her skepticism . It was basically radiating off in waves, impossible for Sonic to ignore.
"You don't like her?" he asked.
"It's not 'her' that I don't like", Violett answered.
That was all Sonic managed to get out of her. He wasn't even entirely sure what she was referring to with her answer, but every other question he asked to clarify was completely blocked off, so when Sally stormed out of the building, Sonic knew he'd have to wait for Violett to feel like talking.
"SONIC!", Sally yelled, poking Sonic's chest roughly. Yep, she was mad. "How long do you think it's been? You promised to come visit me regularly! Once in a blue moon is NOT regularly. You've been to another planet and through space, and didn't think about telling me your adventures even once! What do you have to say for yourself?"
She crossed her arms and glared at the blue hedgehog, who rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. She was wearing a floor length, baby blue dress, with a circlet on her head, an attire she would only ever wear inside the castle walls. She was beautiful as ever.
"Yeah, sorry about that."Sonic answered. "I'll tell all about what happened the last few months before I leave."
This got her attention. All her fury seemed to melt away in an instant.
"Leave? Leave where? Didn't you just get back?" she inquired.
"I'll let her explain that to you,'' he answered, gesturing to Violett, who had observed the entire thing quietly.
For the first time, Sally noticed the purple hedgehog and immediately, her composure changed. She straightened up, her face turned calm and serene and a small graceful smile grew on it. Her entire vibe changed to one of confidence, composure and control. Only her cheeks turned just a tidbit red from the embarrassment of having a stranger witness her outburst.
"Ahem", she cleared her throat, as if that were enough to wipe the table clean. "Forgive my outburst and allow me to introduce myself; I am Sally Acorn, crown-princess of Mobius. Who may you be and what may I assist you with." A small twinkle appeared in her eyes, "and maybe you can tell me how you managed to drag this slacker back in here."
Violett seemed unimpressed by Sally's change of demeanor and Sonic began to wonder how much control Sally really had of the situation and whether or not she was aware of that.
"I am Violett Ocean, of the Hedgehog Empire", the hedgehog introduced herself with her usual small curtsy.
Sally's composure vanished immediately. Her eyes went wide, her cheeks flushed an even darker shade of pink and Sonic could actually see her breath hitching in her throat. Then, she did something Sonic, in all of his years of knowing her, had never done before; she lowered her head and curtsied as deep as she possibly could.
"Your majesty!" Sally exclaimed, still not daring to look up. "Esteemed daughter of Reganiel, I deeply apologize for my behaviour. My rudeness is unacceptable and I shall gracefully accept any punishment you wish bestow upon me."
Sonic was flabbergasted to say the least. It was unheard of for Sally to be submissive towards anyone, not even her own parents. It was unheard of for anyone coming from her family, all who were naturally proud and aware of their skills in leadership, to be submissive at all. For her to bow this deep to Violett, to willingly put herself beneath her, even putting justice into her hands … Sonic would not have believed it had he not seen it himself.
"Raise your head, Princess of Acorn. There is no daughter of Reganiel here, merely one of Saladiel."
Sally did as she was told and straightened up, though her face was solemn and her eyes would still not dare to meet Violett's.
"Of course", Sally answered. "Forgive the mistake, daughter of Saladiel. In my excitement, I failed to pay attention to your words. It shall not happen again."
Violett acknowledged Sally's apology with a small nod, then fell silent. Sally shot Sonic a helpless look, but he was so bewildered by everything that was happening that he failed to come up with anything, not even one of his famous one-liners.
"May I ask - and please forgive if this is out of line - may I ask the reason behind such an exceptionally rare visit? Surely you haven't come to sightsee such a humble castle when yours must be much, much more grand."
"You speak the truth, Princess of Acorn. I've come to ask for the sword that chose you as successor."
Sally completely froze.
"You don't have the right to do that,'' she whispered, thoughts of potential consequences of her rebuttal evident on her face.
"I don't have the right to take it,'' Violett corrected patiently. "But you have the right to give it to me. The decision is yours to make."
Sally's face dropped. Sonic could see each and every thought and emotion on her face so clearly, it seemed almost comical. There was incredulous disbelief at first, then her pride showed itself for a split second, before being replaced by just a brief glimpse of fear. There were several more things showing on her face, before she finally made up her mind. Once more she looked to the ground, not daring to meet Violett's eyes."
"Then gather them. I shall wait."
Sally curtsied once more and called for Nicole, who made her head appear next to Sally immediately.
"I heard everything," the lynx said. "Will 'a daughter of Saladiel is requesting an audience' do?"
"Yes. Thank you Nicole."
And just like that, Nicole disappeared again, while Sally turned back to Sonic and Violett.
"Please, follow me."
Sally led the duo through the castle into the conference room, a large room with Jury-esque pedestal in the shape of a half-circle in it. Sally asked for Violett to sit, before turning tail and basically running out of the room. There were a few moments of silence, apparently, something that Sonic needed to gather himself.
"What on Mobius was THAT?" he finally exploded.
Violett answered with a pointed look that Sonic willfully ignored.
"I mean, this is Sally we're talking about. An Acorn. She was bowing to you and she never bows. She's proud and stubborn and …"
"I'm well aware of the traits passed down in the Acorn family", Violett interrupted him.
"Then explain … well … that! Her! You! EVERYTHING!"
The magician sighed deeply, deciding to give in to Sonic's downright panicked demands.
"I come from a Kingdom much older, bigger and mightier than hers. That Kingdom is the Hedgehog Empire. When Acorn Kingdom was born, we were already considered ancient. To an Acorn, meeting a princess of the Hedgehog Empire must be akin to encountering a god."
Sonic whistled. Kingdom Acorn had been around for several millennia. If it was young in comparison to this Hedgehog Empire, just how much of a history did it have?
"Wait a minute! Didn't you keep saying you're not a princess yesterday?"
"I'm not. She mistook me for one."
Understandable. Him and his friends had done the same mistake and while this did provide an explanation, Sonic was still skeptical. His guts told him there was more to the story than she was letting on, but for now, his head was busy wrapping itself around everything that was happening and not all his questions had been answered yet. That even just a court magician from the Hedgehog Empire could be treated with so much respect was… a lot to take in. Eventually he settled on his biggest question-.
"She called you a daughter of Ragiel?" he asked.
"Reganiel", Violett corrected. "The very first queen of the Hedgehog Kingdom, long before it could call itself an empire. Amongst other royals, her descendants are generally referred to as Daughters of Reganiel."
"Which you are not. Instead you are a Daughter of …?"
"Saladiel, one of the first magicians who served Reganiel. Her descendants are generally referred to as …"
"...Daughters of Saladiel, I get the drift. So if meeting a daughter of Reganiel is like meeting a god, then meeting you must be like meeting a demigod."
"Perhaps", Violett said, looking thoroughly unimpressed with Sonic's association.
He let out a very deep sigh and closed his eyes. This was complicated and was making his head swim. And what's more, everything that Violett was explaining was probably only the tip of the iceberg. He thought of the diadem she had shown earlier. It had three tips, perhaps for the royal family, their magicians and their … knights? He didn't know how the thought of knights had sprung into his mind, but it seemed right, somehow. If only he could have another look at the diadem , maybe touch it …
The door slammed open, ripping Sonic out of his thoughts and he straightened up in his seat. There were the entire royal family, King Maximilian, Queen Alicia, Prince Elias and Princess Sally, standing all together at the entrance to the room. Sonic swallowed. If there were any people who ever managed to command him, hold authority over him, they were Maximilian and Sally. Both were present right now. Both looked very serious. Sonic did not like the sight of that.
"Wise daughter of Saladiel", King Max bowed deeply. His son followed immediately, while Sally and Alicia fell into a deep curtsy. "We humbly welcome you to our Kingdom."
Violett looked pleased with their entrance. "Raise your heads, Rulers of Acorn, and hear my plea."
The family did as they were told and straightened back up. While being absolutely respectful and probably following protocol in every way, Sonic could still clearly see the hostility in Maximilian's eyes. His daughter must have informed him of Violett's agenda. Apparently, Violett could, too. She made no attempt at hiding her tenseness and he knew she was ready to strike at any given moment. Sonic only hoped she would limit herself to verbal strikes.
"I've come to ask for your Barrier Key."
Maximilian closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, readying himself for the confrontation that was sure to come. He took another deep bow and spoke.
"Even if a Daughter of Saladiel is asking, I fear we cannot comply with this request. The Sword of Acorns is sacred in this Kingdom. It must be protected and never given to anyone it has not chosen of its own accord."
"Unless …" Violett narrowed her eyes, leaving that word hanging. It was a clear indicator that Maximilians speech was not over and he was to continue. So he did.
"... unless we are no longer capable of protecting it."
Once again pleased, Violett ordered Maximilian to raise his head. He did, and for the first time, stared directly into Violett's eyes. He did not budge, despite the intensity Sonic knew he could find in them. He was impressed.
"You are implying that we are not." Maximilian said. It was not a question.
"An offense on my part, I am aware. There is no emergency, no order from the dragons, nothing that would imply you were no longer able to protect your most sacred heirloom, lest I accuse you of incompetency. Allow me to assure you that I am not."
She gracefully jumped over the table and walked straight up the family. Sonic decided to lean back in his chair and observe. Just as he had suspected, there was more to all of this than Violett had told him.
"I take it in your studies, you all have learned of the Unhinged War?"
The four acorns shared uncertain looks, but all nodded eventually.
"In that war", Violett continued, "there was a threat as great as Ira himself; his shadow, the head of all the dirty, underground work that allowed him to gather the masses to his ideals with little resistance, his deadly counterpart, as beautiful as she was ruthless, as loyal as she was cruel, dedicated to Ira and Ira only."
"Lupa", Queen Alicia said solemnly.
"Lupa", Violett confirmed.
"With all due respect, wise Mistress, the Unhinged War was centuries ago. What does any of it have to do with us no longer being able to protect our Barrier Key?" Maximilian almost shouted.
"Would you be able to protect it from her?" Violett asked.
The King fell silent and looked back to the ground. The other three royal members too, shuffled in their shoes, uncertain of how to best convey the answer. They didn't have to. Their silence was answer enough.
"Lupa is alive", Violett declared. "And not only that, she has barely aged since she was last seen and is more powerful than ever." Violett pointed straight at Sally, who nearly jumped out of her skin. "She is also after your Barrier Key!"
King Maximilian went white, his eyes wide, his lips trembling. He was afraid, terrified even. He opened his mouth a few times, only to close it again, fishing for the words that needed to be said and the questions that needed to be asked.
"If … if this is true … why aren't the dragons on the case?"
"They are", Violett answered. "That is why I am here. Who do you think is better to go up against a magician than another one? Her tribe? Abandon her they might, but they will never turn against one of their own."
Again there was a long moment of silence in which Maximilian was contemplating everything that was said and everything that was to be said from here.
"I need proof." He demanded.
"I have none."
"Then we cannot give you the sword."
Knowing this would be their answer, Violett released a deep sigh and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she continued.
"The Servants of Chaos only had their Key stolen less than a week ago. I was there by chance, I saw her, in all her mighty terror. I managed to protect only the young ones, children younger than your daughter who now carry a kingdom on their shoulders. Everyone else was brutally slaughtered." For such dark words, Violett's voice was disturbingly calm. "You think I would wait for word to get to all the Kingdoms? For an ambassador to arrive in each one? For an official document telling of my agenda? By the time any of this happened, several of the great Kingdoms may already be wiped out."
Again, King Maximilian looked to the floor, more emotions mixing on his face than Sonic could make out.
"The way I see, King of Acorns, you have two choices. You give me your Key and I will make sure to keep it safe. Or you do not and hope for dear life that the dragons arrive before Lupa does. If you're lucky, they might actually be able to keep you alive. The fate of the Barrier Key on the other hand … that's a different question altogether.."
"Can ..." Sally spoke up, finally meeting Violett's eyes. "Can you stop her?"
Ironically, it was Violett who avoided the Acorn princess' gaze. She looked down, knowing she would have to be truthful.
"Nobody can stop her for certain", she said. "If anything, I have the best cards in a very bad deal."
All faces in the room fell … all except for one. Sonic alone, dared to grin.
"It'll be fine", he said.
He jumped from his seat and leisurely walked over to Violett, carrying all the confidence in his stride that the others had lost. The royal family watched on, scandalized by the informality of his air against the more regal and clearly annoyed Daughter of Saladiel.
"I'll fight alongside her", he grinned, putting a hand on her shoulder, making Sally visibly flinch, much to his amusement, "And so will the others"
"Is this true, Daughter of Saladiel?" Maximilian asked, his eyes turned to Violett.
The magician in question gave no sign of surprise, not even a hint of her constant rebuttals at Sonic's proposals on joining her in her quest. What she did do, was blush, more so in anger than embarrassment, and grit her teeth so hard, Sonic could practically hear them grinding
"They talked me into it", she managed to press through her teeth..
There was a moment of stunned silence. Then, all four members of the royal family burst into laughter, making Violett's eyes twitch and her face go even redder. Even Sonic couldn't help but chuckle, impressed at how well she was going along with his little white lie.
"To think Sonic managed to talk a daughter of the Hedgehog Empire into something", Elias choked out between laughs.
"Goodness", Sally was already crying. "If anyone could have, it would have been him."
"To be expected of the Hero of Mobius", Alicia giggled.
"A hedgehog's gotta do what a hedgehog's gotta do", Sonic grinned.
"You said it, son", Maximilian managed to choke out.
Violett stood rigid until the laughter died down, which took quite a while. But as it slowly faded, even she relaxed, realizing that Sonic had successfully managed to deescalate the situation. He was a lot smarter and a lot slyer than he made himself out to be. Violett had to give Sonic credit for that. Then finally, the Acorn King's giggles died down, though the smile remained on his face.
"Forgive this little outburst", he said, wiping a tear away. "It's good to know you have Sonic by your side. He somehow always manages to surprise us with his ridiculous ability to pull through."
"I shall keep that in mind", Violett answered dryly.
"What do you think?" the King turned to his wife and son, both of them giving their consent to give the sword to Violett. "Sally, you are the current wielder of the sword. Ultimately, the choice is yours. What do you say?"
The chipmunk in question glanced at Sonic, who gave a short, encouraging nod. After taking another deep breath she stepped forward to stand face to face with Violett and only now did Sonic see that she actually stood taller than the purple hedgehog.
"Will you take good care of it?" she asked.
"To the best of my abilities."
"Will you return it?"
"If I am capable of holding on to it until the end."
"And …", Sally stole a quick glance at Sonic, "will you protect my friends."
Violett's eyes suddenly got a lot fiercer and Sally had to pull together all her self control to not flinch back. "I cannot control them or their actions, but so far as my control reaches, I'd rather get tortured for a century by Lupa's hand than to let a single strand of fur on their bodies get damaged."
The intensity of her words surprised everyone, including Sonic and for another moment, there was a stunned silence that filled the room. Then, Sally broke it.
"Follow me."
She took a big breath and turned on her heels, striding out of the hall. Sonic and Violett exchanged a quick, triumphant glance before following suit. The end of the line was built by the rest of the royal family. Together, they walked into the center of the castle, taking stairway after stairway until they were deep underground. There, on the other side of the door, was a high, cylindrical room with a pool of glowing orange liquid in its center. Violett raised an eyebrow at the sight of it.
"Hiding the Barrier Key in your source of all?" She commented. "I must admit, that's smart."
She stepped forward until she had reached the small set of steps of stairs that led down into the pool. There, she stood for a few seconds, before turning around.
"You may want to leave this room."
"I will stay!" Sally declared. "The Sword of Acorns is my responsibility, so I will see this through until it's safely delivered."
Violett's eyes wandered to Sonic.
"I'm with Sally", he said lazily. "Besides, why wouldn't I want to see some cool magic voodoo?"
Still with no comment, Violett looked at the rest of Sally's family. The King, Queen and Prince all exchanged looks, before King Max declared that they too, would stay.
"Suit yourself", Violett answered and turned back to the pool. "But do know that everything that happens from here on out is out of my control"
She closed her eyes and took one deep breath. That breath, she held for several seconds until slowly, almost meditavely, she released it. Then, she opened her eyes, the focus in them sharp enough to cut down anything in its way. She opened her mouth and said a single word.
Sonic was never quite able to make out that word. All he knew was that there was more to it than just air vibrations. It echoed across the room, each echo resounding in a different voice and each voice charged with something … different. Something … not quite mortal.
And that was just the word itself. The effect it had was a completely different story. Winds picked up in the room out of nowhere, many of them, going in all sorts of directions. They themselves were filled with voices, whispering wondrous and dangerous promises. One wind stopped right in front of Sonic, turning in on itself to create a figure that Sonic was barely able to make out. But it was there and whatever it was, it shook Sonic to his very core. He couldn't move, couldn't talk, couldn't breathe. He was certain the wind was saying something, but the terror shook him so deeply, he could barely focus on it. Only one word reached him and that one word was so absolute, he could not help but obey; "Kneel!"
Sonic didn't bow to anybody. The moment he did, he would recognize a master and Sonic the Hedgehog had no master. He was as free as the winds that blew through Green Hill. But that thing in front of him overpowered him. No matter how much he struggled, he could not resist the weight of that one command. So slowly, he was forced down on one knee. For the first time ever, Sonic kneeled to someone.
The wind seemed satisfied and lost its form, deciding instead to roam around the rooms with the rest of its kin. And still, Sonic could not get back to his feet. He looked at Sally and her family, who weren't just on on their knees, but were downright groveling on the ground, terrified of what was happening, judging by the looks on their faces. He looked at Violett, who was still standing where she stood, patiently waiting for the Sword of Acorns, hovering in midair, to come to her. Orange liquid was still dripping from it, indicating it had just left the Source of All. Slowly, more slowly than what Sonic was comfortable with, it moved toward Violett. When it was finally, finally in her hand, the winds disappeared and with them, the pressure. Sonic fell to his hands and feet, gasping for breath, only now realizing he had barely been able to breathe in the presence of … them. Whatever they were. Violett held out her right hand, where her ring was shining brightly, sucking in the sword of acorns until it entirely disappeared within it. Then, she turned around, walking to Sonic first. She hovered a hand above his head and as it began to glow green, Sonic found his strength returning. She did the same thing to all the others in the her own expense, Sonic found, as her breathing became ragged and her walk a little unstable. The results of this little event were six animas in one room, out of breath and undoubtedly shaken. So much so, that nobody even dared to ask about the sentient winds. Not even Sonic.
"I gotta admit, I was surprised at how easily the sword accepted you. I always thought it only allowed its chosen heir to wield it", Sonic thought out loud.
"There are exceptions", Violett simply answered.
At this point, Sonic understood her well enough to know that the tone of voice she was currently using meant this topic was over with. He looked back towards the castle they had left minutes ago, his mind drifting to all the exchanges that happened. There was still so much he didn't know, so many questions that had been raised. He'd leave it be for now. The winds, he may even let be forever. He couldn't help but to feel like they were a force he did not want to get involved in. One interaction however, did have to be elaborated on and Sonic couldn't help the sly grin that creeped onto his features when he thought of it.
"So has the wise daughter of Saladiel finally given in to my humble request? Wilst thou tolerate our companionship and ease the pain of the esteemed Sir Prower?" he mocked.
Violett closed her eyes as a response. She knew this wouldn't be done, not after he had put her on the spot the way he did back in the castle.
"I'll see what I can do."
It was enough of a confirmation to make Sonic jump up excitedly. He had finally broken the mage's icy exterior and all it took was being a little sly. But his celebration was cut short when he felt something pointy at his throat. Violett had a new staff, different from the one she used to conjure up barriers, this one holding a dangerously pointed end.
"However", she started, her eyes narrowing, "never forget that I am the sole magician of the Hedgehog Empress. As such, I have my pride and my values. Pull a move like that on me again and I will make sure to engrave those values onto your body!"
Sonic gulped heavily, standing rigid until Violett turned her staff back into her ring. Only then did he dare to exhale. She hadn't done the 'air getting cold thing' so she might not have been serious, but with this lady, Sonic would really rather not take his chances.
Knuckles had been right; Violett really wasn't the most pleasant of people.
So, from the looks of it I can get out around four chapters a year. That's actually pretty okay, considering my crazy schedule. I'm cool with this.
Come January, I'm gonng start my Bachelor movie, so I won't have much time for anything else. The deadline for it is in April, so around that time is when you can expect the next chapter. Chapter 11 is in the works and chapter five will be reviewed after the Baachelor movie is finished. As always, if you want to know what happens next, go on my profile and read "Dimensional Travels", the original version of Limits (it's very bad though).
Thank you to NeckBreak for reviewing, as well as for all the hits and favorites. Thanks as well to Alysa, my beta-reader who has to chew me out more often than I'd like to admit. Please leave a comment, they're a writers lifeline. Constructive criticism is especially welcome, questions will be answered next chapter and flames will be ignored. Thank you so much for tuning in and I'll see you all next chapter.
Preview:
It was her footsteps that tore Tails out of his trance. They echoed in the hall and ripped through the silence like a spear