Chapter 110: The Iblis Trigger - Part 1

Soleanna is often referred to as the 'City of Flames', worshipping a deity under the name Solaris. Once every ten years, a festival is held in Solaris' name, where the current heir to the throne must light the burning passion of Soleanna. A truly exciting festival.

Starring:

Sally Acorn - Princess of Acorn
Blaze the Cat - Princess of Sol
Agatha the Cat - Ageless Witch Feline
Silver the Hedgehog - Future Freedom Fighter
Gold the Tenrec - Future Freedom Fighter
Princess Elise - Princess of Soleanna

Train Heading to Soleanna

Silver: "Does that pamphlet really say all that?"

Agatha: "Pretty much."

*Sally and her friends were all seated on a train leading to Soleanna, Agatha holding a pamphlet that describes Soleanna and some of its notable features.*

Gold: "So you and the princess know each other, your highness?"

Sally: "Sally is fine, Gold. And yes. Back when me and Elise were much younger, our dads would often meet to do business. During these meetings, I'd often find time to play with Elise. When her father passed away though, we just stopped seeing each other..."

Agatha: "Hmm... Any ideas what happened to the Duke of Soleanna?"

Sally: "They say it was natural causes, but I'm not so sure... Anyway, this will be first time to Soleanna in years. And its during the festival too! I'm so excited!"

Silver: "And Blaze?"

Blaze: "The name... 'Soleanna'... And the deity 'Solaris'... They both sound familiar to me. As if I had heard about those names in passing in my dimension. And... Well... I guess I did want to meet this princess too..."

Gold: "Are we going to meet the princess too, Master?"

Agatha: "What have I told you about calling me 'Master'? Anyway, we certainly have to. Especially if we are to find out about Iblis."

*Silver and Gold get reminded of their initial mission...and the loss of Bronze. Some revenge and closure on that, finally. But then they turn to Agatha, who gives them a silent 'no'.*

Agatha: "If this Iblis is as evil as you say, then we'll need to find him quickly. But we shouldn't be hasty. Jumping too fast will only make the fall that much harder."

*The intercom sounded, alerting the group.*

Intercom: "Attention, passengers. We will be arriving in Soleanna in...ten minutes."

*The group looked out the window and saw the beautiful city of flames in the distance. Sally was certainly smiling, but everyone else felt butterflies in their stomach.*

Soleanna; Train Station

*The train came to a hissing stop, allowing the passengers to leave and others to board. This prompts Blaze to ask...*

Blaze: "Sally? Did you let Elise know you'd be in town?"

Sally: "Well... I did send a formal letter to the kingdom of Soleanna, hoping that'd help get an audience with Elise. Whether she got it though is to be seen..."

Agatha: "Oh boy... The troubles of being royalty... Good thing I was born a commoner..."

Sally: "Aggy!"

*The cat witch just laughs in response to Sally's annoyance. The group approach a guard, Sally showing her proof of royalty to him.*

Guard: "Apologies, but a meeting with the princess is currently prohibited."

Sally: "Wha? Why?"

Guard: "There have been unusual activity happening as of late and we cannot risk the livelihood of the princess. Please do not hold it against us... Please do enjoy your stay otherwise."

*The guard moves aside, allowing the group to enter the city.*

Sally: "Great... My plans got botched in an instant..."

Silver: "Well, we still got the festival. Maybe we'll see her then."

Voice: "Oh, I don't know if you'd want to wait that long."

*The group turn to a commoner looking human girl with red hair reading a magazine while sitting on bench just outside the train station. Dressed so casually that she'd blend into any crowd. The girl lowered her magazine, revealing a beautiful face wearing sunglasses underneath.*

Elise: "Long time no see, Sal!"

Sally: "Oh! Hey! Uh..."

Elise: "Oliga will do."

Sally: "Oliga! What are you doing here?"

Agatha: "Oh I see. Too stuffy at home?"

Elise: "That's putting it mildly."

*Elise darts her eyes at the guard before motioning that they should disappear before he notices.*

Soleanna; Cafe

*The group, with Elise now with them, get situated at the local cafe, they each getting a drink.*

Elise: "It's so good to see you, Sally. It has been WAY too long."

Sally: "Oh come on. A few years at most?"

*The two girls share a laugh with the others staring.*

Sally: "O-Oh right! Ahem... Sorry, guys. Elise. These are my friends and fellow Freedom Fighters. Blaze the Cat, princess from the Sol Dimension."

Blaze: "Greetings."

Sally: "Agatha the Cat Witch, my head scholar and researcher."

*Agatha lifts her hat and bows respectfully.*

Sally: "Silver the Hedgehog and Gold the Tenrec, more recent members who...uh..."

Gold: "We're here to learn about something important that pertains to this location."

Elise: "Important?"

Silver: "Yeah. To save the future of Mobius!"

*The table grows quiet as Silver just...looks around himself awkwardly. Maybe just a bit too dramatic and over the top.*

Elise: "A...rather excitable friend, isn't he?"

*Elise smiles and laughs to herself.*

Elise: "Ahem. I won't speak too loudly over who I am. But... I am Princess Elise the Third, current heir to the Soleanna throne. Let's just say it can get pretty rough sometimes, especially at such an early age..."

Silver: "I'll say. Is that why you hide in a crowd?"

Elise: "Oh gosh no. It is less I hide and more I wish to bond closer to my people. I only hide from my guardsmen because they...do get a bit overprotective of me. But to the others? Far from true."

Sally: "That's no big deal. But Elise... What's this about strange happenings we heard about?"

Elise: "I don't have the full details, but according to what I know... There have been some strange people who tend to gather in very shady places. The Soleanna Guard have been quick to disband these meetings and so far the individuals have been cooperative but then... There were a few incidents in the castle. One in particular happened to one of my maids."

Agatha: "Oh my... What happened?"

Elise: "There was a kind of paralyzing agent in my tea the other day. Nothing lethal but it was effective enough to leave the person who drank it, my maid in this case, unable to move for a solid twenty four hours. The one who made the tea was arrested and taken in for questioning, but nothing came of it..."

Blaze: "Hmm... Looks like someone is not a fan of you, Elise."

Silver: "But why would anyone want to hurt Elise?"

Agatha: "Typically, in royalty, it is because of a jealous relative who wishes to have the riches that the heir holds. Or because another country doesn't agree to the terms presented by the leading figure. Sometimes, it is just an act to start a war."

Silver: "That's just disgusting!"

Elise: "I cannot say it is any of those reasons yet."

*Elise crosses her arms as she began to think.*

Elise: "To start a war though... I haven't done anything major to really do that. Still... The guards have issued a state of emergency to G.U.N. with they responding by sending one of their best field agents as my body guard."

Sally: "G.U.N. is sending an agent to help? I sure hope its not Omega... I feel like he'd make things worse."

Agatha: "Hmm..."

Gold: "Mas- I mean, Agatha?"

Agatha: "Sorry, Gold. Just something I'm thinking about. Anyway. Princess Elise, there is something I wish to ask for. It is in regards to something called 'Iblis'. You wouldn't happen to know what that is, would you?"

*Elise freezes at the mention of Iblis before looking at Agatha.*

Elise: I...do not... I have never heard of such a name before... Sorry..."

Agatha: "...I see. Then may we have access to any classified files that may help in our research on it then?"

Elise: "I...could give you royalty permissions, but I need to have a reason first."

Agatha: "...Despite Silver's crazy introduction earlier... He is not wrong about saving the future. Of which I can vouch for him."

*Elise stares intently at Agatha before looking over to Silver and Gold. After a moment, Elise sighs before giving Agatha a written permission to look through the Soleanna Personal Documents.*

Elise: "Please do not get into trouble, you three."

Agatha: "Trouble tends to find us, you'll learn. Silver! Gold! We're moving out."

Silver: "Right!"

Agatha: "We shall be back once we found out anything, Sally. In the meantime, try not to miss us too much."

*Agatha, Silver, and Gold leave on their own towards the library, leaving Sally and Blaze with Elise.*

Sally: "Sorry about her. She's...very out there."

Elise: "It is fine. She means well as far as I can tell."

Blaze: "So what shall we do?"

Elise: "Would you be willing to join me to the Temple of Solaris? I could use the company."

Sally: "Of course. I could use a little tour around the city. It looks like a lot has changed since I was a kid."

Elise: "Then, let me show you around."

*The three leave in the opposite direction of Agatha and her group. However, someone from a nearby table was listening in. The figure pulls out a walkie talkie before speaking.*

Stranger: "Subject has left the cafe with two others. One of them being that pesky Freedom Fighter Acorn. Advise."

Walkie Talkie: "Continue to observe. No sudden moves until status changes."

Stranger: "Also, three subjects have left for the library. One of them is confirmed... The Forbidden One."

Walkie Talkie: "... Pursue...and kill."

Stranger: "Affirmative."

Soleanna; Catacombs

*Deep underground, beneath Soleanna, a large gathering of robed figures, all being Mobian, were chanting something. It seemed to be a prayer of another language, but one name was recognizable... 'Ixis'. One robed figure entered a chamber where a figure sat on a throne.*

Robed Figure: "We have confirmed reportsss... The Iblisss Trigger isss with two othersss... Plansss to attack are underway, mighty one... What isss your order?"

Figure on Throne: "Continue to standby. I want that princess alive at all costs..."

Robed Figure: "Yesss... Lord Mephilesss."

*The figure is revealed to a crystaline Echidna, greatly resembling Finitevus in appearance, but with sharp crystal-like spikes on various parts of his body. Devilish red eyes with line green sclera glare on at the robed figures. A memory then appears in his mind, back at Albion...*

Albion; Dark Master Emerald Chamber

*The Master Emerald had just been corrupted by Finitevus, a swirl of darkness causing immense destruction across the city, much to the horror of the Chaotix and Luna who were present at the time.*

Finitevus: "Observe, Lady Luna... As I am now the Controller... The Controller of Chaos!"

*As he claims this, his shadow stretches out and leaves him as a blob of darkness slithers away. Once away, the darkness takes shape, becoming Mephiles' current form. But as soon as he was formed, he collapsed onto a knee, growling to himself angrily.*

Mephiles: "...That damned mortal... Wasting my power on such...trivial things..."

Elsewhere; A Day Later...

*Slithering in the shadows, Mephiles finds himself in some old ruins far from Albion. The ruins were nowhere recorded on any map, making it truly hard to pinpoint where he was or how long he had traveled...that is until he found a gathering of Mobians in robes, led by a cobra Mobian also in a robe but with his hood off.*

Cobra: "Brothersss and Sissstersss! Our massster hasss fallen to the traitor called the 'Forbidden One'. She who shall not be named destroyed our massster Mogul and took him away from usss. Our lord isss gone, but hisss legacy livesss on in usss! We shall destroy what isss precious to she!"

Mephiles: "Petty revenge? Is that truly the path you wish to take? What foolish mortals."

*The Mobians turn in shock at the voice, seeing Mephiles' crystaline form. The cobra hisses at the new arrival.*

Cobra: "Who daresss disturbsss the Children of Ixisss!?"

Mephiles: "I mean no disrespect when I say this, but you are going far too big and with such a small minority of people."

Cobra: "Who are you!?"

*Mephiles bows, motioning his mouth to smile despite the lack of a mouth.*

Mephiles: "My name is Mephiles the Dark. And if you wish vegence upon the world for taking away your master... Why do it in a way to make it...faster?"

*Mephiles steps toward the gathered Mobians before creating an orb in his hand... A projection of the future, showing Mogul ruling the world. As if the future had yet to be changed at all. The Children begin to look at this awe and hope, but the Cobra still seemed skeptical.*

Cobra: "You show usss a vision of only a possibility... Not a guarantee. Our massster isss dead!"

Mephiles: "Perhaps. But who says he has to be gone?"

*Mephiles steps around the crowd, pacing around them as if to keep them in a slowly shrinking circle.*

Mephiles: "Children of Ixis, was it? Hear me now. I can revive your master to his former glory. This I can promise you. But only if I am at my peak. As of current, my power has drained greatly after years of my imprisonment. But there is something I seek... Something I wish to gain back that I have lost. Something that will give me back my true power. Iblis, the Flames of Disaster. With that back, I can promise you... Your master's revival!"

*The Cobra hisses before smiling, walking up to Mephiles.*

Cobra: "Very well, Mephilesss. You ssstrike up an interesssting ssspeech. You help revive our massster, and we'll find your Iblisss. My name is Ixisss Ssscorn."

*The two shake on their arrangement though with the thought of betraying each other later.*

Soleanna Catacombs; Present

Mephiles: 'What fools. I care not for Mogul or their wishes. They are but mere pawns to me. All playing...by my rules...'

*Outside of Mephiles' domain, Scorn was explaining to a fellow Child of Ixis of a mission.*

Scorn: "That traitor, the 'Forbidden One' isss here in Soleanna. That meansss we have to get rid of her sssoon."

Child: "But what of the Iblis Trigger?"

Scorn: "Thisss will work in our favor. Dessstroy the traitor...we weaken the enemy greatly. And we target...her friendsss firssst."

*Images of Silver and Gold are given to the Child, he dismissing himself once he had his mission. Scorn flicks his tongue before he smiles a toothy grin, walking through an open portal towards Dusty Desert.*

To be continued...