The Carnival Nights Casino was heavily themed as a circus. What I mistook for a circus tent was actually a gigantic casino in the shape of a tent, big enough to hold five floors of games, bars, and all you can eat buffets, as well as an impressively large amusement park. Think Circus Circus in Las Vegas, but even bigger and showier than that. Search lights wobbled and spun around the "tent," lighting up the night and casting bright circles on the roof of the Casinopolis dome. Sonic held open the entrance door and I felt a blast of cool air as I walked into the interior of the casino. The inside was less eccentric, and more what you'd expect from a fancy casino, carpeted floors, dim lights, staff dressed very sharply in red vests and white dress shirts... but that's not to say that there wasn't a carnival theme, it was just used in a tasteful way... mostly. I stared at a floor to ceiling painting of a clown juggling for a moment, shivers running down my spine, before catching back up with Sonic as he walked up to the front desk.
"So who are these friends of yours?" I asked, as Sonic quickly scanned a directory.
"Well... sorta friends..." Sonic said distractedly, before tapping a name on the list and giving a polite wave to the staff member at the front desk. "Have any of the games ever mentioned the Chaotix?"
"The name sounds familiar..." I said, "But I couldn't tell you anything about him. Or her. It?"
"They are actually a detective agency, their office is in the casino," Sonic explained, guiding me over to an elevator and pressing the button.
"A detective agency in a casino?" I asked, looking around. "...A circus themed casino?"
"I think it was Charmy's idea," Sonic said, chuckling a bit. He stared up at the floor indicator, tapping his foot somewhat impatiently as the number slowly counted down. "I think this is one of the only casinos that lets kids go up to the elevators. Vector has a soft spot for helping a sad kid."
"Aw, that's sweet!" I chuckled as the doors opened. We stepped in, and Sonic pressed the button for the thirteenth floor. "...not very superstitious, are you guys..."
"Superstitious about what?" Sonic asked as the doors closed. "The thirteenth floor? Nah. Some people believe that, but others don't. Not me anyway," He grinned down at me, snickering and nudging me. "You scared?"
"Who me?" I said. "I mean... not usually, but like... don't wanna take chances..."
"You're really nervous?" Sonic's voice lost all sense of teasing. I nodded. "Hey, like I said, it's gonna be ok. You're with me!" He thumped his chest. "You got nothing to worry about!" The doors opened. The floor was... actually pretty empty. Glass doors and brick walls everywhere, but not a business to fill them with. Even Sonic seemed pretty surprised. "...They said they got the place cheap... I guess people don't want to risk the bad luck either..."
"It's kinda creepy..." I said quietly, peering through a window into one of the many empty business shells. "It's like it's been abandoned or something..."
"...Welp, try not to think about it too much!" Sonic said cheerfully, walking forward and looking down the branching hallways for something, before snapping and pointing. "They're down here!" He called over to me, before hurrying down the hall.
"W-Wait, Sonic!" I hurried forward, running over to the hallway Sonic disappeared down. I took a quick look down the other way, just to satisfy my curiosity... and stopped, seeing something that made my heart skip a beat.
A warm, red glow. I felt my mouth go a bit dry as I looked back down the hall Sonic dashed down. "H-Hey, I-I think I found the Emerald!" I called out. No response. I turned back to the shimmering glow. No way it could be this easy... could it? I walked down the hallway slowly, tracing the glow to a slightly ajar door. I took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
It was a dim hotel room, mostly barren aside from a bed, a side table, a closet, and a large entertainment center devoid of anything entertaining. Dust floated in the reddish glow of the room, but I couldn't pinpoint any specific source the light was coming from. I searched every inch of the room (which wasn't hard) and found nothing... the place was empty... so the red glow was coming from...
I stared at the thick curtains on the other end of the room, leading out to what I assumed was a balcony. I quickly crossed the room and tore the curtains open, sliding open the glass door and stepping out onto the balcony...
I came face to face with a bright red light. From a lightbulb on the roof of a carousel. I watched the light start to circle away as calliope music began to play from below me. I watched a parade of white lights spin past me, interrupted by a red light every now and then. I felt myself deflate a bit as I leaned against the railing in front of me. I guess I should have known the Chaos Emerald probably wasn't just going to just be laying around somewhere... but it still hurt a bit...
I took a moment to examine the view before me. The theme park, as I said before, was surprisingly big, especially for an indoor one. The theme itself seemed to be "oversized," each ride a cartoonishly overdone version of itself. The carousel had 13 floors, the roller coaster was wide enough to fit at least 10 people to a row (it was moving too fast to get an accurate count), the launch tower extended out a hole in the roof... they seemed to be trying to pack as much fun as they could into the space. There was no need to... but they did. Everything was big, and I do mean everything; Food, games, even the bathrooms! Each thing was, in some way or another, bigger or grander. For a moment, I wanted to go down, to look around... but I had a mission. Play time would have to wait. I turned, going back into the room, shutting the sliding door and curtains behind me.
My heart pounded.
My palms began to sweat.
I swiftly turned, staring at the closed curtain again. I heard something... or someone... land on the balcony. I felt the blood drain from my face, and instinct took over any reasoning... I needed to hide. I scrambled into the closet, shutting the door and sitting in a corner, trying to make myself as small as possible.
Someone parted the curtains and stepped into the room. They walked quietly across the floor... and opened the closet.
Fu-
"You're not in trouble you know. You don't gotta hide." It was hard to make out the owner of the voice from where I was sitting with the bright light illuminating them from the back, but they were male. Younger than Sonic judging by the voice, almost sounding like he could be a senior in high school. He held a hand out to me. "C'mon, let's get you out of there." Cautiously, I took the stranger's hand and let him pull me up. I got a better look at him now, a black bat with two studs in one of his ears, a grey tank top, and skinny jeans. His eyes glowed a golden yellow in the slight darkness. He had an easy smile that took away a lot of my uneasiness. He took a sip from a coffee cup he was holding, taking a minute to take me in.
"Never seen something quite like you before..." He remarked. "You a monkey that shaved all your fur or something?"
"Er... n-no, I'm..." Was I going to have to explain this to everyone? I didn't have time for this... "I'm not from here..."
"Hm..." The bat looked me up and down one more time, taking another sip. "Well 'not-from-here,' why are you hiding in a dusty closet in an abandoned hotel room on the haunted thirteenth floor?"
Haunted? Zoinks...
"I... I was just... looking for something…" I replied quietly.
"And didja find it?" The bat asked, walking me to the door.
"...no..." I replied, feeling my heart sink a bit. I glanced down at my ring... the color was almost gone...
"Hm... well I'm sorry..." The bat closed the door behind us once we were both out of the room. In the light of the hall, I could make him out better. Nothing much new to report, He looked like a bat, black wings, grey, fingerless gloves, he had a bit of hair he spiked up in the front, slight fangs poking out of the corners of his mouth, decently muscular for his age, handsome... I think? I don't know how beauty or anything is gauged on Mobius, I'm really just guessing.
"...so what about you?" I asked. "Are you like... following me or something?"
"Following you?" The bat laughed. "What makes you say that?"
"Well I'm assuming you flew up from the theme park and entered in the room when you saw me there," I said.
"Well, you're not wrong," The bat scratched an ear, "But I'm not following you specifically, people have been coming up here a bunch recently. Something's printed wrong in the directory or something, so people get lost."
"Doesn't explain how you knew I was up here," I stopped, crossing my arms, "Unless you were already keeping an eye on me."
"An eye on the room!" The bat mirrored my actions, crossing his arms. "Ever since I saw someone come up here the first time, I've been keeping an eye on the rooms up on this floor to make sure no one else gets lost."
"And you just so happened to be in the park as I was in the room?"
"Well, yeah... I work there." The bat reached into his pocket and pulled out a small plastic card, marked "EMPLOYEE," with his picture on it, and underneath it, "Blitz the Bat."
"...That's your name?" I asked, pointing to the card. "Blitz?" He nodded.
"And what about you?" He asked. "Or do want me to keep calling you 'not-from-here?'"
Do I trust him? I mean... I felt Creeped out when he came in. But... I wasn't feeling Creeped anymore... Sometimes my Creepy Senses overreacted to people.
"Josh," I finally replied, holding out a hand. "Nice to meet you stalker."
"A pleasure Not-From-Here." Blitz game me a reassuring smirk before looking away. "And... um... sorry for the... interrogation." He replied quieter. "I've just been... um..." He paused, pressing his lips together for a bit.
"...stressed?" I suggested.
"Yeah, you could say that." Blitz nodded.
"It's ok... it didn't even seem like you were interrogating me, you seemed... pretty chill!" I shrugged. And it was true, he never really raised his voice or sounded angry. A bit cold, but nothing too cruel. He seemed like a really relaxed guy. Not quite laid back, just relaxed. "I was probably more rude about it than you were."
"Calling me a stalker was a little harsh, but I'll let it slide," Blitz smirked at me.
"I-I didn't say you were a stalker!" I said, now feeling guilty because, yeah, I kinda did call him a stalker. He didn't push the issue, opting to laugh it off with a quiet chuckle.
"So, really, what brings you up here, Josh?" Blitz asked, walking me back down the hall to the main corridor with the elevator.
"I'm here with a friend, we're going to talk to the... um... chaotic detectives?" I knew that wasn't the right name... but I couldn't remember, for the life of me, what the actual name was.
"There are detectives up here?" Blitz asked, looking around. I pointed down the hall Sonic went down.
"My friend said they're that way, but I kinda got... distracted," I said, motioning to the hotel room.
"Is your friend with the detectives now?" Blitz asked, walking down the hall a bit.
"I'd imagine so...!" I said, catching up with him.
"Let's go find him then," Blitz nodded, hurrying forward. "What's your friend's name by the way?"
"Oh, it's Sonic," I said, hurrying down the hall, looking for an occupied area.
"Hey, like Sonic the Hedgehog, that's cool," Blitz smiled, following behind me. "That a nickname or were his parents big fans?"
"Er... no, it's... he's actually-"
"There you are dude!" I looked up to see Sonic poking his head out from a door. "I was worried you got lost or something! Who's that?" I heard Blitz gasp a bit, stopping dead in his tracks.
"Sonic, I want you to meet Blitz the Bat," I said, not bothering to hide my amusement, "Blitz... Sonic the Hedgehog."
I watched as Blitz' face changed with each thought that crossed his mind. Amazement, confusion, amazement again, confusion again, before going back to his calm demeanor. "You have quite the taste in friends Josh."
Sonic apologized for leaving me behind, I apologized for wandering off, and we walked into... what could barely be called an office. Bare concrete walls, bare concrete floor, four plain Jane desks with four different lamps on them, and papers and photos scattered on the desks, walls, and floor. And in the middle of the room was one of the biggest people I had ever seen in my life, at least a head taller than Sonic, and built like a tank. A crocodile (or alligator? I can't tell the difference...) wearing a pair of headphones and a gold chain smiled as warmly as a crocodile (or alligator) could.
"Welcome!" He held out his hand, "Glad you could find your way."
"Er, sorry, I got a bit distracted by something," I replied, taking it. "Josh."
"Vector," The crocodile shook, his grip surprisingly gentle, "Welcome to the Chaotix Detective Agency."
"Excuse me, Vector, right?" Blitz walked up to the crocodile. "Do you run this detective agency?"
"Me and my four partners. We co-founded it," Vector crossed his arms, his large chest puffing out proudly.
"And where are those partners?" Blitz asked, leaning on a desk.
"The other two are out checking something for me and Sonic," Vector explained. Sonic, Blitz, and I all simultaneously squinted in confusion.
"...Other two?" I looked around for another room or another person... but we seemed to be alone... "Who else is here?" I asked.
"I am." A voice came from behind us, making us all jump and turn. A purple lizard of some kind, with a horned nose and spiked wrist cuffs was leaning on a wall, arms crossed, eyes closed. Where did he come from?
"Espio...!" Sonic chuckled a bit, placing a hand on his chest. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough to hear your request," Espio replied, opening his eyes and looking up at us. "And see you leave and come in again with these two."
"So basically the whole time?" Blitz suggested, still looking a bit frazzled, smoothing out his tank top.
"Oh... uh..." Sonic shrugged. "Sorry? What can I say, you're a good ninja I guess."
"A ninja? Like... an actual ninja?" I asked, more to Espio than Sonic. The reptile nodded. "That's so cool...! So can you like... disappear in a puff of smoke and stuff like that?" Espio nodded again, closing his eyes... and vanishing. I felt my eyes go wide. "...cool..." Espio appeared a few moments later, sitting on a desk, one leg crossed over the other. He nodded appreciatively at me, a small smile on his face.
"So, why do you need detectives Sonic?" Blitz asked.
"We're trying to get this guy home," Sonic replied, pointing at me. "He used Chaos Control to get here, we're hoping to use the Chaos Emeralds so we can get him back. We think the red one might be here in Casinopolis," Blitz nodded slowly, his ears perking up a bit.
"...and... what exactly does this Chaos Emerald looks like?" He pressed, starting to sound a bit… worried?
"You don't know?" I asked back, looking over at him.
"Not a lot of people have actually seen or heard of a Chaos Emerald aside from me and a few of my friends," Sonic answered before looking at Blitz. "It's like a big red gem, kinda looks like a cut diamond. Why?" Blitz looked even more bothered, frowning slightly.
"I think I saw something like-"
"We're back boss!" A young voice yelled from the door. A bee in an aviators hood with goggles on his head hovered in, waving a rolled up tube of paper at Vector. "Toldja I knew where it was!"
"He's been blabbing about it non-stop, Vec," Another voice sighed, more adult, closer to Sonic's age and level of cockyness. An armadillo with a red shell walked through the door, rubbing his temples like had a headache, his eyes closed. "I think we should think about docking his-" He paused as he opened his eyes, staring at me for a moment, before a joyful smile appeared on his face. He crossed the room, kneeling in front of me. "You must be Josh, Sonic told us all about you," He said, a caring gentleness in his voice. He extended a hand out. "I'm Mighty," I shook his hand. His grip was firm, nothing painful, but it held me in place as we shook for a moment. He placed his other hand on top of mine. "And don't you worry... you're in good hands, we'll get you back home. Promise."
"O-Oh, um, er… t-thanks…"
That was abrupt, not even Claudio had been that friendly and touchy-feely with his introduction.
Mighty's my new favorite.
He stood up, giving my hair a quick tousle, before yanking the poster away from the now dancing bee. "Thank you, Charmy..."
"Hey!"
"Here you go Vec..." Mighty rolled out the poster, using a lamp to hold down one of the ends. "Charmy was right..." Vector put his hands on the table, leaning over the poster as he read it, sighing quietly. Sonic and I exchanged a worried glance before joining the crocodile (I'm just gonna go with crocodile). Sonic read the poster out loud.
"High Stakes Hold 'Em, Big Bucks, Big Wins… and the grand prize…"
My ring suddenly began to shake as the last of the color drained from it.
"A pure, red ruby."
A bright flash briefly lit up the room, and I felt my hand slam down on the poster. Everyone looked at me, startled, while I stared down at my hand, slowly, shakily, lifting it up.
Underneath it was a picture of the Red Chaos Emerald.
Sonic and I stood out in the hallway… I was feeling a bit funny after what had happened, a little drained, similar to how I felt after I used Chaos Blast. I leaned on a wall, staring down at the ring. It had changed again. It was studded with clear, glass spikes along the top, nothing sharp enough to prick you, but they hurt if you pushed hard enough. We listened as the group inside talked, their voices muffled by the thick, brick walls.
"...so, maybe I was right?" Sonic asked. "When the color runs out, we find the Chaos Emerald?"
"Seeing a picture of it in the poster hardly counts," I countered, finally looking back up at him. "But… it seems like too much of a coincidence that we finally get our first clue the moment the color went away… and the ring didn't go back to normal either…" I waved it around for emphasis. No color change, just clear.
"We must be doing something right," Sonic moved next to me, leaning and crossing his legs. "Odd looking shape though, isn't it?"
"Yeah, it looks so…" I paused, blinking for a moment as I remembered something. "Angry. Eggman supercharged the Emeralds with the emotion that corresponded to them, the red one was anger."
"More confirmation we're on the right track," Sonic replied, smiling confidently.
"But there's still no guarantee we'll get the Emerald…" I said, looking down at my shoes, tapping the toes together. "That poker game complicates things, and from what Blitz said, the manager of the place won't be willing to just hand it over, even if you're a big time hero."
"...Are you always this down?" Sonic asked, nudging me. "You gotta lighten up dude! Like, I can count on one hand how much I've seen you smile since you've been here."
Not a lot in your life to smile about huh?
Shut up.
"Just been stressed, you know?" I replied.
"Well, de-stress," Sonic said, raising a finger, "there's only so much worrying will do for you."
"I mean… I know…" I sighed a bit. "Just… Jacob's all I got, you know? I worry about him like… all the time…" I laughed a bit, shaking my head. "...without him then… I'd be all alone, you know? I mean that sounds selfish, but… I need him… and he needs me… neither of us want to end up without anyone to look up to…" I turned to Sonic, looking up at him, to continue my thought, when I saw that look on his face again, this time, in clear view. I still couldn't tell what he was thinking… he looked so serious. He turned his head a bit to look at the ground behind me for a moment, sighing quietly, before looking back at me.
"Josh... are you-"
"Hey guys...?" Mighty poked his head out the door. "Sorry for interrupting, but we gotta talk."