Chapter 3: Hell on Earth
I stuttered. She was quite intimidating. Very tall, like in my dream. And I failed to mention the black gloves she had with the fingers cut off. Definitely the rough, rugged type.
"HEY! I asked who wants to know?! I don't have time to read minds!" Rei snapped.
"Just a curious passer-by."
"Your name."
"Dr. Ivo Robotnik..."
"And what are doing hanging around here? Your gonna be killed if you stay here."
"Wait. Can ask you few questions?"
"There is NO time for that! You have to get out of here!"
"Very well."
"Look, you better leave or your gonna get blown to bits. Get as far as you can. Go any where but hang around here."
Without saying anything, I began to walk past her. I was surprised how the time had past since the entire city left. It had already been 4 hours. I wondered if I should just stop and talk to her about the dream. Nah. It couldn't have been that important. I took note that she stayed where she was, as if she was expecting someone or something to arrive. Hmmmmm.
I spotted Sonic and the others hardly 100 feet away. Damn. This was about the last thing I needed right now. They are my enemies. Yet, somehow we had been talking as though we were allies. It was a rather sick thought for me, actually.
The saw me approaching. Again, they looked at me not as an enemy like I knew I was, but as another piece of their little group instead.
"Hey Eggman!" Called Sonic. "Who's that over there?!" He ran to me, stopped, and began to walk beside me.
"Before I answer that, let me ask you something."
"Shoot."
"I thought you all hated me?"
He laughed a bit. "We do. But for now, with this threat approaching, there's not a whole lot of places our bickering is going to get us."
"True. But I'd prefer if you let me be."
"Not 'til I get some answers out of you. So.who IS that?"
"That would be Rei. The third 'angel.'
"You spoke to her."
"If you want to call it that. She wants us outta here as soon as possible. I suggest we take that advice and move the hell out before anything happens."
We finally caught up to Tails, Shadow, Knuckles, and Amy.
Amy immediately ran up to me for a reason that no one will ever figure out. Amy is almost brain dead to the point of genius.
Sonic told everyone what I just said. This was annoying. I wanted to strangle him right there.
"What's Rei like? Is she pretty? Can I talk to her?" Said Amy, in her annoyingly chipper voice.
I glanced around. They were all looking at me like I was supposed to answer the ridiculous questions just thrown at me.
"Let me clear this up. I accidentally ran into her! There were NO relevant words exchanged. She just told me to get out of the city as fast as possible!"
They all just blinked. The message got through to most of them but..
"Yeah. But was she pretty?" Asked Amy, totally oblivious to what I was trying to say. And how was I supposed answer such an unimportant and odd question? So the only thing I could say was:
"That would depend on your definition of 'pretty.'"
"So she's ugly, huh?"
ARG! Who let this girl out of the asylum?
"I never said that."
"So she was pretty?"
WHY? And how the hell does Sonic put up with this? I bent down to her level.
"I have an idea. How about YOU go over there and judge for yourself, hmm?"
"But I could get hurt or die!"
I stood up. I wanted to say 'Exactly.' But instead kept my mouth shut for God knows what reason. I sighed.
"I'm outta here." I began to make my way out of the city. They could stay if they wanted, but I was going to make sure I stayed alive.
"Hey, wait, Eggman!" Knuckles called after me. Damn again. I stopped.
"What is it?" I said, slightly frustrated about being stopped while trying to save my life.
"You said in your dream you knew Rei's past. Spill it."
"No. It's probably not true anyway. I'm just trying forget about the damn thing."
"Ever stopped to think the dream MEANT something?"
"Yeah. But that was dismissed when I saw Rei."
"Why?"
"She looked different in the dream."
"So you just dropped it, huh?"
"Yeah. And what concern is it of yours?"
"You might know something important about this whole thing."
"I doubt it. Now, if you don't mind-"
The ground shook violently and the sky became a deep red color. I almost lost my footing, but managed to stay up. Knuckles was having a hard time, however, which became apparent when he fell down on his stomach. I became too focused on Knuckles than with my own balance and fell as well. Looking back, I saw Tails hovering and Sonic hanging on to his leg, and Amy hanging on to Sonic, and Shadow hanging on to Amy. It was rather humorous, actually.
Buildings collapsed and as the ground continued to shake, the earth opened up beneath several of them and swallowed them up. I got up and staggered along to get myself away, but only got about 10 feet away when the ground in front of me split apart. I attempted to go all other directions, but again, the ground simply wouldn't allow my escape. I was stranded on about 20 feet of land, surrounded by slightly smaller crevasses. I no longer focused on the others' condition. However, Rei caught my eye. I was far away enough that I could not see minor details on her, but close enough to know that she was ready for a fight. What surprised me the most was that she hadn't even moved from the ground she was standing on before. She stood firm in her position. The ground stopped abruptly, and all was still. I had to find a way off this island. Lucky for me, a light post was to the left of me. Now if I could just push it over.
I pressed against it as hard I could. And eventually my efforts succeeded. The pole reached from my ground to the other side. And then..
"Yo, Eggman!" I heard Sonic yell from afar. "Here!"
Sonic and Tails were offering to lend me a hand, it appeared. I'd rather do things for myself, but what the hell. I reached out. But as soon as they were 2 inches from my hand, a column of fire shot from the ground, completely knocking them away from me. My escape was in my hands, now. Sonic and Tails were a distance away from me, now. I went to the pole I had pushed over earlier. I noticed fire was popping up in every direction now. This wasn't going to be easy. The pole was sturdy, no doubt. It was the fire I was concerned about. I figured it was easier to just run across than take my time. Waiting around wasn't going to help me, time isn't on my side.
Without thinking, I ran with blind faith. Strange, before I knew it, I arrived safely across the chasm. I could hardly believe it.
I spotted Rei straight ahead of me, still standing, perfectly focused. A pillar of fire much larger than the ones that preceded it burst up in front of her. She still stood. As the fire cleared, a tall, male figure stood in front of her. He was about as tall as her. I dared to wonder closer to investigate. The fire from the ground stopped, and all was silent.
As I approached, I began to notice the details of the man. He was indeed as tall as Rei. He had long, straight black hair, and wore a long, red trench coat that ran a little below his knees, which were covered by black slacks. He had black shoes. He had a strong face and tanned skin. He wore a black undershirt. His eyes hazel..almost golden. He had a scar on his left eye. His hair, which ran down to about his lower back, was tied near the ends with a red band. He seemed to be in good shape. I dared not wonder closer.
He spoke out in deep voice. "Well, look who we have here. God's new weapon. You do realize you have no chance against me, right?"
I was in shock. This was no man. This was Satan. The source of every negative energy the world had ever felt. Could this be?
"Shut up." Said Rei, in the same, deep womanly voice. "You have no idea who your up against, do you? If you did, you would back down while your head is still attached to its body."
"I can say the same for you, Rei."
I could hardly believe the look on her face. She was so focused...so determined.
"You came sooner than predicted I see." She said. "Anxious to get put in your place, are you?"
He laughed. "Oh? Did I surprise you? I'm sorry, I should be more careful with new fighters."
"No. Actually I figured you'd try something this low."
"Oh? And who is this behind you?" He peered toward me, standing 50 feet behind Rei.
Uh-oh.
"Who?" I saw her turn. She saw me. "I thought I told you to leave! RUN! He's coming right for you!"
I hesitated. Stupid mistake. He teleported right in front of me. Shit.
"And who might you be?"
I refused to answer.
"Not much for words, huh? Tell you what. If you talk to me, I'll give you every pleasure you desire. Right down to the beheaded Sonic."
My dream. It replayed in my head. I sliced Sonic's head off. I was too confused to say anything. Had he actually read that dream? Or worse, created it?
"STOP PLAYING AROUND AND FIGHT ME YOU COWARD! AND YOU! GET OUT OF HERE!" Rei yelled, boldly. I think she probably would have saved my life if my silence continued. He began to walk back to her, but gave me a glance that I knew I would have trouble forgetting. It wasn't right. It was haunting. I heard Sonic and the others approaching.
"Eggman!" He called as he arrived by my side, joined by the others. "Are you alright? I saw you going across that pole, but-"
"I'm fine. Its Rei."
"What? Whose that guy?"
"That's Lucifer."
"Shit. We gotta get out of here."
Get of there. Yeah. I saw Lucifer approach Rei. She stood still with her focus never leaving him for a second. If she blinked, I wasn't aware of it.
"So.."He said, in a calm manner. "How have YOU been?"
"Shut up. Quit playing nice and innocent and FIGHT!" Rei yelled, and went on the attack.
I stuttered. She was quite intimidating. Very tall, like in my dream. And I failed to mention the black gloves she had with the fingers cut off. Definitely the rough, rugged type.
"HEY! I asked who wants to know?! I don't have time to read minds!" Rei snapped.
"Just a curious passer-by."
"Your name."
"Dr. Ivo Robotnik..."
"And what are doing hanging around here? Your gonna be killed if you stay here."
"Wait. Can ask you few questions?"
"There is NO time for that! You have to get out of here!"
"Very well."
"Look, you better leave or your gonna get blown to bits. Get as far as you can. Go any where but hang around here."
Without saying anything, I began to walk past her. I was surprised how the time had past since the entire city left. It had already been 4 hours. I wondered if I should just stop and talk to her about the dream. Nah. It couldn't have been that important. I took note that she stayed where she was, as if she was expecting someone or something to arrive. Hmmmmm.
I spotted Sonic and the others hardly 100 feet away. Damn. This was about the last thing I needed right now. They are my enemies. Yet, somehow we had been talking as though we were allies. It was a rather sick thought for me, actually.
The saw me approaching. Again, they looked at me not as an enemy like I knew I was, but as another piece of their little group instead.
"Hey Eggman!" Called Sonic. "Who's that over there?!" He ran to me, stopped, and began to walk beside me.
"Before I answer that, let me ask you something."
"Shoot."
"I thought you all hated me?"
He laughed a bit. "We do. But for now, with this threat approaching, there's not a whole lot of places our bickering is going to get us."
"True. But I'd prefer if you let me be."
"Not 'til I get some answers out of you. So.who IS that?"
"That would be Rei. The third 'angel.'
"You spoke to her."
"If you want to call it that. She wants us outta here as soon as possible. I suggest we take that advice and move the hell out before anything happens."
We finally caught up to Tails, Shadow, Knuckles, and Amy.
Amy immediately ran up to me for a reason that no one will ever figure out. Amy is almost brain dead to the point of genius.
Sonic told everyone what I just said. This was annoying. I wanted to strangle him right there.
"What's Rei like? Is she pretty? Can I talk to her?" Said Amy, in her annoyingly chipper voice.
I glanced around. They were all looking at me like I was supposed to answer the ridiculous questions just thrown at me.
"Let me clear this up. I accidentally ran into her! There were NO relevant words exchanged. She just told me to get out of the city as fast as possible!"
They all just blinked. The message got through to most of them but..
"Yeah. But was she pretty?" Asked Amy, totally oblivious to what I was trying to say. And how was I supposed answer such an unimportant and odd question? So the only thing I could say was:
"That would depend on your definition of 'pretty.'"
"So she's ugly, huh?"
ARG! Who let this girl out of the asylum?
"I never said that."
"So she was pretty?"
WHY? And how the hell does Sonic put up with this? I bent down to her level.
"I have an idea. How about YOU go over there and judge for yourself, hmm?"
"But I could get hurt or die!"
I stood up. I wanted to say 'Exactly.' But instead kept my mouth shut for God knows what reason. I sighed.
"I'm outta here." I began to make my way out of the city. They could stay if they wanted, but I was going to make sure I stayed alive.
"Hey, wait, Eggman!" Knuckles called after me. Damn again. I stopped.
"What is it?" I said, slightly frustrated about being stopped while trying to save my life.
"You said in your dream you knew Rei's past. Spill it."
"No. It's probably not true anyway. I'm just trying forget about the damn thing."
"Ever stopped to think the dream MEANT something?"
"Yeah. But that was dismissed when I saw Rei."
"Why?"
"She looked different in the dream."
"So you just dropped it, huh?"
"Yeah. And what concern is it of yours?"
"You might know something important about this whole thing."
"I doubt it. Now, if you don't mind-"
The ground shook violently and the sky became a deep red color. I almost lost my footing, but managed to stay up. Knuckles was having a hard time, however, which became apparent when he fell down on his stomach. I became too focused on Knuckles than with my own balance and fell as well. Looking back, I saw Tails hovering and Sonic hanging on to his leg, and Amy hanging on to Sonic, and Shadow hanging on to Amy. It was rather humorous, actually.
Buildings collapsed and as the ground continued to shake, the earth opened up beneath several of them and swallowed them up. I got up and staggered along to get myself away, but only got about 10 feet away when the ground in front of me split apart. I attempted to go all other directions, but again, the ground simply wouldn't allow my escape. I was stranded on about 20 feet of land, surrounded by slightly smaller crevasses. I no longer focused on the others' condition. However, Rei caught my eye. I was far away enough that I could not see minor details on her, but close enough to know that she was ready for a fight. What surprised me the most was that she hadn't even moved from the ground she was standing on before. She stood firm in her position. The ground stopped abruptly, and all was still. I had to find a way off this island. Lucky for me, a light post was to the left of me. Now if I could just push it over.
I pressed against it as hard I could. And eventually my efforts succeeded. The pole reached from my ground to the other side. And then..
"Yo, Eggman!" I heard Sonic yell from afar. "Here!"
Sonic and Tails were offering to lend me a hand, it appeared. I'd rather do things for myself, but what the hell. I reached out. But as soon as they were 2 inches from my hand, a column of fire shot from the ground, completely knocking them away from me. My escape was in my hands, now. Sonic and Tails were a distance away from me, now. I went to the pole I had pushed over earlier. I noticed fire was popping up in every direction now. This wasn't going to be easy. The pole was sturdy, no doubt. It was the fire I was concerned about. I figured it was easier to just run across than take my time. Waiting around wasn't going to help me, time isn't on my side.
Without thinking, I ran with blind faith. Strange, before I knew it, I arrived safely across the chasm. I could hardly believe it.
I spotted Rei straight ahead of me, still standing, perfectly focused. A pillar of fire much larger than the ones that preceded it burst up in front of her. She still stood. As the fire cleared, a tall, male figure stood in front of her. He was about as tall as her. I dared to wonder closer to investigate. The fire from the ground stopped, and all was silent.
As I approached, I began to notice the details of the man. He was indeed as tall as Rei. He had long, straight black hair, and wore a long, red trench coat that ran a little below his knees, which were covered by black slacks. He had black shoes. He had a strong face and tanned skin. He wore a black undershirt. His eyes hazel..almost golden. He had a scar on his left eye. His hair, which ran down to about his lower back, was tied near the ends with a red band. He seemed to be in good shape. I dared not wonder closer.
He spoke out in deep voice. "Well, look who we have here. God's new weapon. You do realize you have no chance against me, right?"
I was in shock. This was no man. This was Satan. The source of every negative energy the world had ever felt. Could this be?
"Shut up." Said Rei, in the same, deep womanly voice. "You have no idea who your up against, do you? If you did, you would back down while your head is still attached to its body."
"I can say the same for you, Rei."
I could hardly believe the look on her face. She was so focused...so determined.
"You came sooner than predicted I see." She said. "Anxious to get put in your place, are you?"
He laughed. "Oh? Did I surprise you? I'm sorry, I should be more careful with new fighters."
"No. Actually I figured you'd try something this low."
"Oh? And who is this behind you?" He peered toward me, standing 50 feet behind Rei.
Uh-oh.
"Who?" I saw her turn. She saw me. "I thought I told you to leave! RUN! He's coming right for you!"
I hesitated. Stupid mistake. He teleported right in front of me. Shit.
"And who might you be?"
I refused to answer.
"Not much for words, huh? Tell you what. If you talk to me, I'll give you every pleasure you desire. Right down to the beheaded Sonic."
My dream. It replayed in my head. I sliced Sonic's head off. I was too confused to say anything. Had he actually read that dream? Or worse, created it?
"STOP PLAYING AROUND AND FIGHT ME YOU COWARD! AND YOU! GET OUT OF HERE!" Rei yelled, boldly. I think she probably would have saved my life if my silence continued. He began to walk back to her, but gave me a glance that I knew I would have trouble forgetting. It wasn't right. It was haunting. I heard Sonic and the others approaching.
"Eggman!" He called as he arrived by my side, joined by the others. "Are you alright? I saw you going across that pole, but-"
"I'm fine. Its Rei."
"What? Whose that guy?"
"That's Lucifer."
"Shit. We gotta get out of here."
Get of there. Yeah. I saw Lucifer approach Rei. She stood still with her focus never leaving him for a second. If she blinked, I wasn't aware of it.
"So.."He said, in a calm manner. "How have YOU been?"
"Shut up. Quit playing nice and innocent and FIGHT!" Rei yelled, and went on the attack.