Act I: AWARE
Chapter IX: Lux Aeterna
Central City Holy Cathedral. Saturday 12:01 PM
The funeral for Tikal had arrived.
Sonic rested against his car, fitted with a suit and a hanging cigarette. His bags under his eyes had grown deeper and deeper every passing day.
The case was tiring. Dead ends, wrong turns, you name it - it went wrong.
Passerbys greeted him, solemn "hello's" and "I hope you find out what happened to her". Every time someone asked about the case, Sonic's heart broke a little more.
The funeral was packed. Tikal was no stranger to the vast majority of this city - because even if she started out as a member of the force, her work in philanthropy and politics post-police force were widely acclaimed by the people in the city.
It was almost like a funeral for a president.
Sonic had met up with Tails, shaking hands as they began their trek inside. Their gazes were cast to the ground, the shame unbearable.
Here they were, walking into the funeral of a friend who they still had yet to bring justice too. Was it even RIGHT for them to be here?
The cathedral was massive - beautiful architecture, grand windows, hauntingly brilliant atmospheres. Sonic had been here a few times, but he always took a few moments to marvel at the surroundings.
Amy, Sally and Bunnie were waiting for them, dressed in their black dresses and veils. They exchanged tight hugs, each watching some stray tears fall here and there.
Amy grabbed Sonic's hand, as she squeezed his shoulder.
"You know, you gotta stop beating yourself up. These cases can take a long time, you know that."
Amy walked with Sonic, hand-in-hand, as their friends plodded ahead of them, catching sight of Knuckles with the SWAT leaders.
Sonic sighed, squeezing her hand a little tighter. "Just feels like I could be doin' more."
Amy sighed, a weak smile on her face. "I think you're doing the best you can, given everything."
She cleared her throat, the pair greeting Knuckles with the SWAT members.
"Thank you guys again for coming, my family appreciates it."
"Of course, Knucklehead." Sonic rubbed his shoulder. "She was our friend."
Sonic greeted Vector and the Chaotix, along with Whisper and Tangle.
Tangle ruffled Sonic's quills. "You're gonna get this son of a bitch, Sonic. Perk up."
Sonic chuckled, his laugh feeling odd given the circumstances. "I hope so, Tangle."
Amy turned her gaze to Tikal's mother, who was sitting in the front pew. The sound of the choir singing the requiem filled the air.
It was haunting.
"I'm gonna go pay my respects…"
Amy wandered off, leaving Sonic standing alone as he stared at the large window, the choir's singing filling his ears.
Gaia, if you're up there…
Sonic bit his tongue, pondering on if Gaia is up there, and if she is with them during this.
Surely, Gaia has mercy on someone who's life didn't deserve to be taken.
His trance was cut, as a voice pulled Knuckles aside behind him.
It was Mighty, who glanced around the room nervously.
"Knuckles, uh - District Attorney Spike has been reported missing."
Knuckle's face dropped, his eyes scanning the room, as Sonic listened in.
"Missing? Jesus, no one has heard from him?"
Sonic furrowed his eyebrows, thoughts racing. Tails was next to him, lost in the choir's swelling.
Missing? Who would target a District Attorney? Spike the Porcupine was not always the most ethical - per se, but why him? How deep is this running?
Does this connect to Tikal? There was no proof that it did, but Sonic's gut had a bad feeling.
And as screams were heard outside, Sonic's gut rolled.
He scanned towards the door, the sounds of explosions and screams getting louder. The packed cathedral began to look towards the sound, as all eyes inside focused on the noise.
The choir continued to sing, which only made Sonic's mind darker.
As Sonic looked up at the mezzanine, his eyes met that of a figure - his shadow obscured by the light pouring in. The Mobians uptop were dashing away, but this figure stood there.
Staring. Menacingly.
Sonic's rage began to rise within his entire body, before shooting his eyes towards the SUV that began driving straight through the Cathedral door.
Turning back, Tikal's mother was frozen, and Sonic knew when that SUV pummeled through the doors, she would be right in its path.
Sonic lept, grabbing onto her as the SUV smashed through the doors, as the citizens began running in opposite directions.
The car battered through the setup chairs, it's path curving away from the center stage, as Sonic rolled with Tikal's mother on the ground.
The car slammed into a pillar on the altar, the noise of the crash ringing into Sonic's ears. Smoke rose from underneath the hood, as Sonic stumbled to his feet.
Knuckles, along with the Chaotix, Antoine, and the other officers surrounded the car, guns drawn.
Sonic and Tails just stared, silently, unable to peel their eyes away from the sight.
"Get out and show your hands! Out of the car, now!"
Knuckles's voice rang throughout the cathedral, the car remained still.
Sonic stole a glance to the mezzanine, but the figure had vanished.
Damnit.
As the car began to open, a hand popped out from the sliver. Pushing the door open, the driver began to shakily stepout. Sonic's face dropped when he realized who it was.
Knuckles lowered his gun. "Christ, it's Spike."
"There's a bomb around his neck!"
The crowd shrieked, as the officers took a step back.
Spike was bloodied, duct tape on his mouth which a bomb locked around his neck. In his hand, a cell-phone was taped.
Sonic's rage grew when he realized what the note on Spike's chest read.
"TO THE DETECTIVES. STAY OUT OF THIS."
Spike's eyes were filled with fear, mumbling incoherencies behind the duct tape.
As the phone rang, the crowd screamed. Sonic couldn't peel his eyes away.
Who is calling that phone?
Vector stepped up. "We need to clear this place out. Everyone, get out now!"
The crowd darted from the scene, leaving the police force in front of Spike.
Charmy had set up a defusing set from the van, as Sonic approached.
Knuckles shot a glare towards the hedgehog. "Sonic, that bomb is armed! What are you doing?"
"This is a message for us. Someone has to answer that phone."
Espio hissed. "Sonic, the bomb could be connected to the phone. By answering it, you could set it off."
Sonic swallowed, carefully tearing the phone from Spike's hand.
Answering it, he put the phone on speaker. "Who is this?"
A voice with a filter cut through, a small snicker starting.
"This is how I will reach you. Stay away from areas of which you do not belong. Do not make this more difficult."
"Call off that bomb, then we'll talk."
"A deal is a deal, I suppose. Keep your noses out of all of this, and no one will be hurt."
The phone disconnected, as the collar snapped off. Sonic whipped his gaze to Charmy.
"I didn't do that…"
Sonic's brow furrowed, as the officers began helping Spike out of this makeshift weapon he was in.
15 MINUTES AFTER…
Sonic sat on the steps as Spike was transported to a nearby hospital.
His head was buried in his hands, as Tails skipped pebbles down the stairs.
All of this was about Tikal. If it wasn't about her, her death was certainly involved.
"There was a figure on the mezzanine. Once I had looked back after the car crashed, he was gone."
Tails pursed his lips, a sigh escaping his mouth. "Think that was who was on the phone?"
Sonic sighed. "Positive."
Knuckles and Amy approached, their arms crossed across their chests.
"He's gonna be okay. We're gonna go ahead with the funeral despite this, the family still wants to go ahead with it."
Sonic nodded, as he leapt up and headed inside.
Tails watched him go, shaking his head slightly. "He's been going through it."
Amy sighed, ruffling Tails's hair. "I know, bud. It's gonna be okay. This will all work out."
Tails watched as everyone reentered the cathedral. He was left outside alone, staring at the crater in the door.
He let a few stray tears roll down his cheeks, as he plodded right back inside.
After the Ceremony
Sonic was the last one inside.
Everyone had gone to the reception, but Sonic couldn't will his legs to move.
He stared at the coffin in front of him, alone in his thoughts.
Right in front of him was an empty coffin, where Tikal's body should be.
Or shouldn't be. Because she should still be here.
Sonic buried his head in his hands, his foot tapping against the marble rapidly.
What was he missing? Did he even deserve to be the one to find the person responsible?
Who was this sending a message to him?
Why use Spike of all people to do it? Was it some sort of message to the "elite"?
His mind raced, but everything came back to Tikal.
It wasn't fair. Tikal was strong, optimistic, loving, intelligent, and most of all, a beautiful spirit.
She didn't deserve to be wrapped up in whatever game these people were playing.
And, at the center of it, was Sonic - trying to do the right thing and get his friend justice.
But he wasn't getting his friend justice. He was putting more innocent people in harm's way.
How long did he need to fight for answers? How long was it going to take?
He let a stray tear roll, but wiped it off as quickly as he could.
He can't just give up, not when there's so much at stake.
"I am shocked to see you still here, and alone."
That voice. That voice was familiar, and he hadn't heard it in far too long.
Turning around slowly - his eye caught two people he was praying to see.
"Silver? Blaze?"
Silver and Blaze were right in front of him, hand-in-hand.
"Hi, Sonic." Silver perked up, a weak smile on his muzzle.
Sonic stood up, his legs wobbling, allowing himself to melt in their group hug.
After a minute, he took some steps back, the first smile on his face all day.
"What - what are you guys doing here?"
Blaze glanced at Silver, a sigh escaping her mouth. "We wished to pay our respects to Tikal. However, we heard of the incident that occured before we could arrive."
"We would've intervened, but we were too late." Silver said, his hand rubbing the back of his neck.
Blaze smirked, tightening her squeeze on his hand. "Without our necessary tools, I'm unsure how much of a help we could have been."
Sonic sighed, his eyes peeling to the empty coffin. "It's okay - I'm just so glad to see you both…"
Silver took some steps towards the coffin, his hands resting on the soft wood.
"Seems like yesterday we were putting our daughter in one of these…"
Sonic's heart dropped. There it was. The tragedy that drove them into hiding.
Blaze sighed, a hand on Silver's back as she nuzzled up next to him.
"We lived for her, Silver. We have lived the best we could."
Silver rested his head against hers, the pair as close together as possible.
Sonic carefully approached them, looking down to the coffin with an empty gaze.
"He's on the loose again, yanno?"
Silver grunted, as Blaze squeezed his shoulder. "Relax, Silver."
Silver sighed, his hands tensing up on the coffin's surface. "Of course he is."
Blaze cast a look at Sonic, her hand reaching out to squeeze his. "Do not be hard on yourself, Sonic. All of this will pass. You will succeed."
"How do you know that? Every turn we take, we hit yet another roadblock. I dunno how long I can keep fighting with this."
Silver approached Sonic, his hand tight in Blaze's. "You just fight. You fight everyday, as hard as possible. You don't give up - even if it's rich coming from us…"
They shared a longing look, reminiscing on their days as superhero crime fighters. Sonic grinned, his hands stuffed into his pockets.
"It's never too late to come back. We may need you guys. We - we do need you guys. More than ever…"
They stared into Sonic's emerald eyes, looks of guilt - and even silent agreement, on their faces.
"We were thinking about it. We just - need to keep thinking about it, I guess…"
Silver looked at Blaze, as she nodded with him. "We have been considering it. With the way this city has been going - it may not be a bad idea."
Sonic smiled, an airy laugh leaving his lips. "It's been hell without you two, honestly. We would do anything for you guys to return…"
Silver patted Sonic's shoulder, as Blaze cupped his face.
"Then you can count on us."
With that, Silver grabbed Blaze's hand, as they soared through the doors.
Sonic ran outside, watching the pair fly off into the sky.
His heart leapt inside his chest, the joy of seeing them back in action was immeasurable.
With them on the streets, we might have a chance.
There IS a chance.
For Tikal.
