Storm
"Ya know, with Buttnik gone, I thought I'd get bored PDQ, but Mobius sure is full of surprises."
"PDQ?"
"Pretty darn quick."
As Sonic and Bunnie chatted behind her, Sally examined the strange ruins. The cobblestone paths and rounded, colorful architecture made of an unknown earthy material implied a grand society had once lived on the premises. Although seemingly ancient, fresh flowers had grown on the cut grass. Most curiously, the civilization floated hundreds of miles above the desert; even its rocky debris levitated as if pulled inward.
Sally hummed and scratched her chin. She approached one of the buildings, noticing a hand-carved inscription on its wall. With the others trailing behind her, the gloomy clouds rippling overhead, she removed Nicole from her pocket "Nicole, can you translate this passage? There might be something about this language in your database."
Nicole went to work immediately. Her screen flitted with short flashes of teal blue light. Symbols flashed, then formed three neat lines. "It's analyzed and deciphered, Sally," she said.
As Sonic and Bunnie crowded her, Sally read, "To the children of Babylon, remember your journey. We will return to the skies and ride the wind. Your home will await when the cosmos creates the lightless black once again."
Sonic scratched behind his ear. "And what the heck does this mumbo-jumbo mysticism mean?"
"Well, I'm not entirely sure. The word 'cosmos' could mean-" Sally looked up, furrowing her brow and lowering her voice. "-outer space?"
Bunnie gasped, clasping her chest. "Oh, my stars. Are we dealin' with aliens? Is this some sort of - some sort of special societal spacecraft?"
Sally pursed her lips. When Nicole alerted the Freedom Fighters of the strange structure suddenly emerging and floating in the Mobian desert, Sally was initially blindsided. As she mulled over its meanings, she recalled her studies. Her eyes snapped back to a single word. When she was younger, her father had taught her bygone tales about Mobius, and one story, infused with a history like no other, sprung to mind.
"My gosh, my father told me about this tragedy," she whispered, pivoting around to face them.
"So, what'd he say? Where are we?" Sonic impatiently inquired.
"We're standing in Babylon Garden, their home. Centuries ago, the Babylonians came to Mobius and could never leave. No one knows why." She peered in the distance where the sand met the darkening horizon. "Eventually, my father told me Babylon Garden became unsustainable, so they spread out across Mobius. Babylon Garden became lost to time, but their descendants are still searching for this place." She threw her arms out, a disbelieving laugh escaping her. "You guys, we're standing in a perfectly preserved time capsule!"
Bunnie breathed out of her bewilderment as Sonic whistled. They had uncovered one of Mobius' mysteries, a genuine relic from beyond the atmosphere. But as quickly as her elation came, it was followed by confusion. Nicole had said Babylon Garden erupted from the ground, implying something must have been the trigger for its return.
Sonic's ears suddenly twitched. He whipped his head over his shoulder, raising his finger to his lips. Sally and Bunnie huddled beside him behind the building, exchanging a look. Sonic didn't explain himself, and he leaned against the wall, slowly peeking out. Neither questioned him.
Sally's eyes widened. A buzzing hiss hit her ears, growing louder with every second. She gripped Sonic's shoulder, leaning into him to observe as well.
Before she could see anything, three lights blinded her. Emerald green, stunning violet, and hazy gray shot down the path. She blinked, her hair flipping in the sharp wind, and she rubbed her eyes to recover faster. She felt Sonic tense under her grip, and when her vision returned, he was already off with a boom, clipping in front of the lights, halting them.
Bunnie steadied her. She grabbed Sally's hand and hurried after Sonic. Sally stowed Nicole in her pocket for safekeeping, keeping an even pace with her friend as they rounded Sonic's side, taking in the newcomers.
They were birds. The first was a shorter green hawk with drooping head fathers. He reminded her of Sonic, his demeanor arrogant and flashy. The second was a lanky purple swallow, lifting her lopsided sunglasses to leer at them. And the final member was a stout gray albatross, his bulky frame reminding Sally of Rotor.
To her surprise, they stood on hoverboards. It wasn't like she hadn't seen them before; the Freedom Fighters had used many vehicles in their war against Robotnik. But as they whirred, they seemed to run on air, the realization stupefying Sally as Sonic crossed his arms, demanding to know their names.
"You don't know about us?" the hawk jeered, his voice scratchy.
"Can't say that I do, pigeon," Sonic retorted, tapping his foot. "I try to steer clear of slowpokes like you."
As the hawk scowled, the albatross cracked his knuckles. "H-hey! No one talks down to the boss like that! He's the Legendary Wind Master!"
The swallow flipped through her long feathers. "Don't try to step with us, landlubbers. You might become roadkill," she warned, an edge in her voice that Sally vehemently disliked.
"Oh!" Sonic brightened considerably. He flashed his teeth in a wide smirk. "Oh, we're really doin' this! I haven't had a decent challenge since we kicked Robuttnik to the curb. Tell me, featherhead, you guys got names, or do I need to ask for a third time?"
As they argued, Sally noticed their wrists. Tattooed flames stretched up to their elbows. She gasped, her fingers racing toward her mouth, Bunnie asking what was wrong.
"You three," she whispered, "I know those symbols from my history books. The flames represent the descendants of Babylon."
"The Babylon Rogues, to be precise," the hawk sneered, gripping his hips. "So glad somebody has a brain in your trio. Name's Jet, he's Storm, and she's Wave." He pointed to Wave, and she reached into her pocket, depositing a peculiar teal box decorated in Babylonian symbols. "Now, move aside. We got our destiny to face."
Sonic's foot tapping quickened. "And I just gotta keep dragging it out because you won't spill the beans, huh? Tell us what you three plan on doing with Babylon Garden."
Wave and Storm looked to Jet for approval. Their leader evenly met Sonic's gaze, his arrogance like a stench. He tossed the cube in his hand, remarking, "Well, spitting facts won't hurt. We're going to take our ride home. This is the key to bringing back the lightless black that swallowed up Babylon Garden centuries ago. Once this bad boy slips into the engine hidden around here, Babylon Garden will warp-" He cackled. "-if you get my drift."
His wording caught Sally off guard. It sounded as if the Babylonians had been taken to Mobius by force. But pondering further, there was the chance it was also accidental, completely out of their power. And in outer space, where nothing was controllable, she could only think of one phenomenon that had such a consequential impact.
"Lightless black," she whispered, the stars beginning to twinkle in the dusk. Lifting her gaze skyward, the pieces fell into place. The plaque, the Rogues, the key, Babylon Garden itself.
She covered her mouth, her shoulders hitching. "Oh, my gosh," she blurted, taking an involuntary step forward.
Wave smirked at her. "It seems you figured it out."
Bunnie leaned around her, crying out, "What's goin' on, Sally? These guys are givin' me the creeps."
She shook her head. Incredulity threatened to crush her. She and her fellow Freedom Fighters had fought tirelessly to protect Mobius. They had finally won, but now, the Babylon Rogues threatened to undo over a decade of their struggle.
"Please, I understand that you want to go home, but listen to me. There must be another way. Another spaceship, the Deep Power Stones, anything," she entreated, throwing her hands out.
Storm barked out a laugh. "Nuh-uh! We waited forever for this moment. You can't take it from us."
"Well, you can't take Mobius from us!" she cried out, furiously shaking her head.
Exasperated, Sonic interjected, "Sally, what's the problem? What're they trying to do?"
She whipped her head to Sonic, Bunnie fidgeting next to her. She stressed every word. "If they use their key to ignite this hidden engine, Babylon Garden will become enveloped in a black hole. It can destroy Mobius!"
Their gasps said it all. All of their strife and hardship would have been for nothing. Their efforts over the years would have been decimated along with the planet they loved. The sharp, scathing anger storming over Sonic's features, and Bunnie's full body bristle, however, only earned laughter from the Babylon Rogues.
Sonic snapped, "Mondo uncool! Destroying our world just so you can hitch a ride to your old one? I ain't lettin' that happen under my watch!"
"As if we care about this dirtball of a planet," Wave retorted, crossing her arms, "and it's not like one pesky rodent and his entourage can stop us."
"I'd like to see you try, ya buzzard!" Bunnie shouted back. She shot in the air, her legs extending, but to Sally's shock, Sonic told her to wait.
Sonic faced Jet. They locked eyes. Wave and Storm made no moves to react, appearing to wait for Jet's orders. Sally felt a bead of sweat trickling down her face, her heart hammering, as she thought about how to handle three speedsters on hoverboards. Sonic could chase one, but if the others broke into different directions, then it created a steep problem.
Sonic honed in on Storm. "The big lug said you're the Legendary Wind Master, huh? Even though I've never heard of you."
Jet's nostrils flared, his beak curving into a frown. "I'm more of an underground racer. If Robotnik hadn't taken over-"
"Excuses, excuses, so, prove it!" Sonic snatched the top of Jet's hoverboard, dragging the hawk closer. "Let's race! Three times around Babylon Garden. Whoever wins gets to control the fate of Mobius!"
Shrieks erupted from Storm and Wave. Their beaks dropped, their composure utterly lost. Jet, however, simply stared at Sonic, his arrogance hardly slipping.
But Sally snatched Sonic's hand. She dragged him toward her and Bunnie, ignoring his yelp. As Jet turned to his comrades, she seized his shoulders, Bunnie sharing in her displeasure.
"Sonic, this isn't like when you raced that cheetah robot. You're putting Mobius at stake," she growled, narrowing her glare.
Sonic cupped her hands, stiffing up his lower lip. "I know that, but I can beat 'im."
Bunnie glanced at the Babylon Rogues, caught eyes with Storm, and immediately looked away. She managed a grim smile. "We know you're faster than a vulture divin' toward a meal, Sonic, but Sally's right. If any of those creeps hightail it to the engine, Sally and I won't be able to stop 'em. We gotta put them in their place right here and now."
Sonic scratched through his quills. Sally sensed his stubbornness, knowing he hadn't had a decent race since Robotnik's defeat. But when she looked into his eyes, there was something else. While Jet's pride was callous, Sonic maintained a dignity that no other could match, even if she detected a hint of conceit.
"I get where you two are coming from, I really do, but trust me. A guy like Jet won't say no to a race. He wants to be the best quickster in all of Mobius, so if I'm a threat to his title, he's gotta take me on to keep it," he explained. He took her hands off his shoulders and held them. "Besides, Sal, you've felt my speed firsthand. Think I'm gonna lose to a nobody like him?"
No.
She agreed as soon as he asked. Sonic was the fastest thing alive, one half of a powerful duo that had raced to banish Robotnik for good. She knew and experienced his speed, remembering the wind and weightlessness. If there was anything that Sally fully trusted, it was Sonic's promise.
She sighed, though her nerves were still fried. "Alright."
Bunnie balked. "What a darn second. Did ya up and lose yer mind, Sally? Sonic is fast, but this the world we're talkin' 'bout."
A tired smile crossed her face. "I know, Bunnie, but let's put our faith in Sonic." She cleared her throat and raised her voice. "Besides, no green ripoff is faster than him."
Jet immediately jerked around on his hoverboard. He looked simply deranged, his eyes wide at the acidic insult. Wave and Storm crowded him, glowering at the princess, but he nudged them off.
"Well, well, I guess you do have some bark, girly," he jeered, and he flew around the Freedom Fighters toward a dark blue line painted across the cobblestone. "In any case, I accept! So, hurry up, hedgehog! I'll make sure you eat my dust!"
Tossing the key to Wave, Jet shot off like a rocket. Sonic flashed Bunnie and Sally a smirk before revving up in a spin and launching off after the hawk. They were twin spirals of azure and emerald, occasionally clashing before vanishing, their colorful lines growing thinner the farther they ran around Babylon Garden.
Once they were out of sight, Storm bellowed, "The boss is faster! You're gonna be sorry for messin' with him when he makes that hedgehog kiss the dirt!"
Without meeting his eyes, Sally said, "Then, you clearly don't know Sonic."
Wave snickered derisively. "Sure, sure, Sonic might be your hero, sweetie, but to us, Jet is the Legendary Wind Master. No pincushion can take him down."
At her provocation, Sally glanced at Wave. "Oh, you expect Sonic will lose to someone like Jet? That's cute."
Bunnie joined in her amusement. She looped her arm around Sally's shoulder, her gesture comforting. "I'm reckonin' these folks have no idea who we are, and that's why they dunno why our sugah-hog has earned his title," she suggested, and Sally nodded.
Sonic raced past them, but Sally and Bunnie remained still. As Wave and Storm yelped, spinning in place on their boards, Jet rushed after him. Sally caught his eyes, exhaustive and enraged, as he struggled to keep pace with Sonic.
Storm was gobsmacked. "Wh-wh-what the - what the - how the heck is the boss losing?"
"It's…it's impossible," Wave spluttered, gnashing her teeth. "That Sonic guy - he must be using some kind of trick. He's cheating!"
Their dismay broadened her smirk. She turned to them, both Wave and Storm downright horrified. She straightened her shoulders and back, presenting herself with the true grace of a princess.
"We've been fighting for this world since we were children," she said, realization slowly dawning on them. "To fill you in, we're the Freedom Fighters who took down Robotnik. And Sonic?"
Sonic winked at her as he ran. Jet screamed in frustration as he trailed inches behind. They were in the last lap, and the victor was obvious.
"He's not just my hero, but yours as well, even if you don't know it. Without his speed, Robotnik would have won years ago. He tried to doom us all, but together, with Sonic's boundless speed, we banished that tyrant from this planet we love," Sally said, her smile calm, feeling the forgotten exhilaration when she ran by his side. "So, if there's one thing Sonic hates, it's oppression. He's fought for this world, and he won't let your selfish desires destroy Mobius."
Wave and Storm snarled at her. Bunnie clenched her robotic fist, gearing up for a fight. Sally coolly observed, anticipating their strikes. A pincer maneuver seemed most likely as Storm crept to the side, Sally crouching slightly in his direction. If he bolted, she was ready to jump and drag him off his board.
But catching their attention were the azure and emerald lightning bolts. They seemed neck-in-neck. Twisting and weaving in and out of each other, occasionally snipping one another with a feathery fan or spin, Sonic and Jet hurried for the finish line. Everyone lunged out of the way, Sally swallowing, thinking only his name.
And then, they came to an abrupt stop. They didn't reach the end. Sonic and Jet halted in front of the others. Blinking, Sally thought she was hallucinating their grins.
Sonic cackled and hitched his thumb at Jet. "Sal, Bunnie, you have no idea what a riot this dude is! He told me he swept up ol' Buttnik in a tornado on his board, and that's how they escaped roboticization! And they got a cool zeppelin parked right below this joint!
Jet gestured at Sonic with his fan. "Wave, Storm, I was wrong about this 'hog! He banished Robotnik off the face of Mobius with his extreme speed! He's almost as rad as me!"
Sonic immediately held up his fingers. "Number one, Jet, I'm radder. Two, I wasn't alone." He grinned at Sally. "I had Sal helpin' me hand-in-hand."
Silence washed over the onlookers. Bunnie and Storm held their stare at their teammate. Sally struggled to find the right words to say, stupefied by their comments.
Wave, however, exploded.
"Jet! What are you doing? You don't fraternize with the enemy! He's in direct conflict with our goal, which, by the way, is in plain sight! We've sought Babylon Garden for years, and your sudden friendship with this hedgehog can't get in the way at this crucial moment!" Her voice only increased in pitch, her cheeks burning and blazing. Poor Bunnie had to cover her sensitive ears. Wave trembled as she tightened her grip on the key, digging her heel into her board. "If you want to abandon your leadership duties and act like a child, I'll-!"
Sally's hand whipped out in a clean chop. She struck Wave's wrist, the swallow's cry pleasantly painful. She snatched the key and held it to her chest, smirking as she said, "Oh, no, you don't. If these two came to a peaceful agreement, then we should all be happy with it." She clicked her tongue. "And if you try again to put Mobius in imminent danger, I'll be the one kicking you to the curb, Wave."
Cradling her aching wrist, Wave seethed. But at Jet's nod, Storm held her forearm. She sighed, brow furrowing as she accepted her loss. She raised her hands, acknowledging Jet's decision, even if she grumbled about her woes.
"How'd y'all come to peace anyhow?" Bunnie asked, Storm grinning with her.
Sonic chuckled. "While we ran, we exchanged a few stories. I was telling Jet all about our time fighting Robotnik."
"Robotnik tried capturing us Rogues so many times that we had to go into hiding in the skies on our zeppelin. We were pretty desperate to get off this planet, but since Robotnik is gone, Sonic said I should explore this world," Jet informed, and he hopped off his board. "Living in the dark skies for so long, I totally forgot what the land was like." He turned to Sally. "I'm done with trying to get Babylon Garden off to space. Instead, it's time we Rogues start protecting our heritage and clean up Babylon Garden."
When he offered his hand, Sally accepted it. "Thank you, Jet. I'm glad we could see eye-to-eye. With Robotnik gone, I'm sure you and your friends will love Mobius just as much as we do."
"Oh! Oh, boss!" Storm exclaimed like a kid in a candy store. "Can we really check out this place? We didn't have any time to look around."
"I'm sure a tour around such a pretty place would be a great way to end the day for us all," Bunnie piped up. "What do ya think, Wave?"
She shrugged, her tone curt. "Yeah, sure. Whatever. Jet's the leader and all that."
As the Babylon Rogues deactivated their hoverboards and began walking with Bunnie toward a few buildings, Sally tapped Sonic's cheek. When he turned, she kissed him. It was a reward, typical of her appreciation for him. A dopey grin spread across his face, his pleasant surprise tangible as he took her hand when she parted.
"Good job, Sonic. Looks like you're a hedgehog of speed and words," she whispered, walking behind the group.
"Well, I guess I took a diplomatic page out of your Freedom Fighting handbook," he replied, "especially when I realized we have one thing in common."
"And what's that?"
"Well, a need for speed, o' course."
She nodded with a subdued giggle. Again, Mobius was protected. Their conflict was over before it had risen to a disastrous proportion. For that, Sally was pleased, but she was also grateful to Sonic for reaching out when he could've easily crushed Jet's spirit with his superior agility.
"So," Sonic began, peering at the sky, "aliens, huh?"
"Well, there are wizards and cannibalistic cats on Mobius. Aliens aren't that strange," she playfully countered.
"Yeah, ya got me there, but Jet told me there was something about them descendin' from genies, too, so their backstory got pretty weird on the rebound."
"In that case, yeah, it's peculiar."
Sharing a snicker with Sonic, Sally took his hand, eager to explore Babylon Garden's historical beauty with their new allies.