Sonic paced back and forth around the cabin, restless. Amy watched him from the edge of her bed. Neither of them were happy at all.
The sun outside was slowly sinking into the sea coast, illuminating the golden sand and glistening on the sea surface. The water was restless, like Sonic's insides. He bit his lip and his shoes clattered loudly on the wooden floor.
"Sonic, calm down. You know Tails is very capable-"
"NO, Amy. He's not capable. He's an eight-year-old kid on a huge island full of strangers who've never seen him before. He managed to gain respect in our area by saving Station Square long before anyone could even notice that he had two of those. People here are isolated like in the rainforest. It's like they're not part of this world at all. I wouldn't be surprised if someone massacred him by now."
"SONIC!" Amy jumped out of bed, clutching the duvet violently in frustration. Amy always had to have some anti-stress therapy on hand when she was upset.
"Do you hear yourself? And what you say? Is there even a crumb of positivity in you? Faith? That some people are just kind? The people of Station Square didn't ignore that Tails was different, they accepted it. And since they accepted, we never had to hide him again. He was welcomed as a hero on South Island. Any doubts we ever had were blown away. No one treated Tails as badly as we thought they would.
We spent so much time imagining the worst possible scenarios about something that isn't even that important! Don't you understand? People love Tails and have accepted him! After all, after he saved Station Square, how can you even call him incapable?"
Sonic stopped moving around the cabin and froze. He turned to Amy.
"First and foremost" he said raising his index finger to eye level, "I've had to save BOTH worlds countless times. Just because Tails saved one little Station Square doesn't make him a hero and-"
Sonic cut himself off mid-sentence. Amy's eyes widened before him. What did he just say? That sounded so wrong.
The words sounded much softer in his head than now when he brought them to the surface.
He couldn't believe himself.
You idiot.
He just said of his friend that he is not a hero. He said Station Square doesn't make him a hero. He had just thrown away all six years that Tails had spent with him. As if he denied them. Turned into an insignificant nothing.
It's like he turned Tails into nobody and nothing.
"I didn't… mean it that way." He looked down.
Shame, shame, shame. A rush of unbearable, suffocating shame.
"It's just… I'm really worried about him, Amy."
Amy let out a short sigh and dropped the comforter. She leaned over to hug him, stretched out her arms, but he stopped her. "Don't start," he told her.
He gently pushed her away from him.
"I've called him three times already. Not once has he answered. If only you'd let me go before-"
"Please," Amy looked at him meaningfully, "you don't start it. I wouldn't let you run around looking for him like a maniac when I know there's a good chance you'll do something stupid and we're all in trouble. It's not a very smart thing to do riots on an unknown island."
Unknown. Sure. If only it was unknown.
"So you admit that there is a possibility that he got into trouble, and that I would have to beat someone up for that!?" Sonic countered to a desperate Amy who reflexively stepped back blocking the door in fear of Sonic running through it in the heat of the moment.
Sonic was very crystal clear as to the reason for this, causing him to just scowl at her.
"All I'm saying is, if there really is a problem, and there shouldn't be, we should call for help. Someone who can smooth everything out calmly-"
"I AM calm, Amy."
"No, you're not. Look, I understand you're worried about Tails because he's like your little brother after all—"
"Stop it now" - Sonic cut her off. "Stop it. You're crazy with your emotional and angsty theories in your head. And you're talking nonsense.
He's not my BROTHER."
"THEN WHAT IS HE TO YOU!?"
Nothing.
Sonic froze. This time he stepped back.
He didn't see this fiery of a reaction coming from Amy.
He realized, in fact, that he does not know how to answer that question.
Stillness. More silence.
Too long moments of too quiet silence.
Seconds stretched into minutes, hours, days, as he stood in front of Amy and realized that he didn't know how to continue the discussion.
Why does everything have to be so complicated!?
Amy looked at him in disbelief. Worse, she looked at him with disappointment. A look that said "I can't believe it."
Sonic was looking at the smallest details in the small room, as if he hadn't noticed them before, and was doing practically anything to avoid having to look into Amy's eyes again.
Amy was looking at the floor. Her eyes seemed to be in a fog.
She clasped her hands together and let her hair fall over her bowed face for a while. After which she looked up at him despite him still not answering her, and in a voice that sounded like she was choking she quietly suppressed:
"Then what am I to you?"
No replies.
"What is anyone to you? Of all the friends you have, who means what to you?"
No replies.
"So many people. Not so long ago, we all thought you were dead. Does that mean anything to you?"
No replies.
Amy shook her head, snorted and then even gave a crooked smile.
A sad smile.
"The great Sonic the Hedgehog takes for granted - "
And at that moment, he brushed past her.
At the speed of sound.
Blue blur, all anyone would see at that moment.
He ran through and flew out the door into the unknown. Or known.
It was as if he had never been here.
Tails stared blankly at Abel wordlessly as the light and drawings on the damp stone wall slowly died. He felt as if he was slowly waking up from a trance.
Then he stared somewhere into space, with his sapphire blue eyes, his jaw slightly open. The air suddenly felt heavier and sticky and it was harder to breathe.
But why?
He shouldn't have taken it so deadly seriously right away.
Abel is still Abel, the cave Mobian woman, who literally lived under a rock all these years, and even if someone really wrote all these things here, it was certainly not Owls, but some kind of children or pranksters who are long gone.
He is no Chosen One, and the fact that Abel is very dear does not change the fact that she is crazy. And yet...
A small part of him, a glimmer of his subconscious, insanely and for no reason wanted it.
To be someone. To be important, as much as Sonic was important to the whole world.
Even in this twisted way, a part of him wanted to believe, to believe in everything she told him now.
But that other part, the rational part, so to speak, said to that part of his personality, which, despite everything, was still the typical personality of an eight-year-old:
"Shut up. Don't even imagine. Are you completely off track?"
"I understand that all this is probably very difficult for you to digest now..." Abel began softly, but she was met by a sharp interruption:
"No. You're wrong. It's not hard at all. Because it's not true. It's all nonsense."
Abel stared at him in confusion.
Tails stared at the floor, grimly, and began to slowly look up. He looked at Abel from below, his chin lowered, his eyebrows straight, without saying a word he cut her off and measured her.
"Look, I know you don't have the best impression of me, and I understand that. But you have to know that I'm dead serious."
"The only thing dead here is your sanity" Tails snarled, startled once he heard those words leave his mouth.
What's going on with him? This place seems to bring out only the worst in him. It's like he hasn't been himself since he came.
"I..." he began, and then suddenly got a sharp headache.
He quickly grabs behind his ears and clenches his teeth. He didn't know how he could have gotten such a headache all of a sudden.
Abel immediately rushed to him, but he pushed her away and bent down.
"Don't be so stubborn and let me help you" Abel held out his hand again and Tails held out his to stop her and reflexively caught her while she was still coming down towards him.
Suddenly, they were just standing there, staring at each other, his hand clasping hers above their heads.
Suddenly, when they realized that, the grip turned into just a touch, and the looks they gave each other in a sudden rush of irritation softened a little, stabilized. It was as if the peace they had until recently returned to them for a while.
Tails was becoming confused in the confrontation interrupted by another awkward silence, and a new rush of pain in his head forced him to break it off. He scowled at her once more and hissed,
"I don't need your help. I need you to leave me alone."
Abel paled, and the expression on her face seemed to have lost its color. She was staring at him, almost worried, you could say. Tails noticed it too. Now he just got even more tense. He looked at her expectantly, as it seemed as if she wanted to say something.
"Tails, your eyes..."
This only made him madder. Now what about the eyes? He directed that question at her with a look, he didn't want to say anything more.
Abel bent down to the floor, where he picked up a large piece of broken glass, which Tails hadn't noticed until now. Without a word she handed it to him and Tails looked at his reflection in it.
His eyes glowed with an unsettling purple-red glow and he winced once upon realizing it. He stared in disbelief at a tiny part of his own reflection and let the braids crawl across his forehead. He swallowed the lump in his throat. Something was wrong with him, and he didn't like it at all.
The eyes, in fact, became the least of the problems once he realized what kind of things and threats Abel had said, not only now but also earlier, when he had a breakdown. That was not at all like him in any situation, he knew that. He was completely terrified of himself.
His hands were shaking, and the piece of glass along with them.
"W-what's wrong with me…" he shuddered, and that was a second before he was cut again by a terrible pain in his head, the worst yet, once he looked at the reflection of his eyes again.
He screamed in pain and clutched his head, and the glass fell out and shattered on the floor into countless shards. He fell to his knees and continued to scream, because the pain did not subside. Abel looked at him in terror and seemed completely discouraged and helpless. She dropped the flashlight, it fell and broke and stopped shining.
They remained in pitch darkness.
Tails was still completely blocked by the pain, but he heard Abel's voice as she lowered herself to his level.
"Oh my God... No, no, no, no, no. What should I do? I don't know what to do."
She put her hand on his shoulder. "Miles?"
His name rang in his ears and a new round of pain hit him. He clenched his closed eyes and teeth and shook violently. "D-don't call me… that…" He felt like he was going to pass out from the pain, for the second time today.
As if reading his mind, Abel commented firmly, "No. I won't allow that. Not on my shift."
Something in Tails, a small part of him, couldn't help but laugh at that. But the smile did not appear on his face.
Abel caught him under the shoulders, lifted him up and leaned against her. "We have to get you out of this chamber," he said. "I think she's affecting you. I'll explain later."
Tails didn't even have the strength to nod, so he just let Abel lead him out. It was still dark, so it was difficult for them to find their way around. He was still shaking violently, but she was now completely calm and composed.
They returned to Vortex's base. It was beautifully lit in a bluish color and a flash of light hit their eyes and they stumbled. Abel sat Tails down on one of the chairs. While he sat and tried to compose himself, Abel watched him tensely.
In those brief moments when he was still tormented by a new flash of pain, it seemed to him that his entire life was flashing before his eyes - from Cocoa Island to this moment. However, the pain seemed to be starting to subside.
"Are you better?" Abel asked, visibly concerned.
"Yeah...I guess."
They stared at each other again.
Tails opened his mouth to say something, but Abel held out her palm, signaling him not to start.
"I know you want to say you're sorry. But there's no need. It's not your fault, and I didn't care." she quoted him importantly. "After all, I owe you an explanation as to why this happened to you."
Tails guessed that was somewhat true. He was also quite impressed by Abel's confidence. He hasn't said anything, and she already assumed he was going to apologize.
"The energy inside that chamber. You know, The Hall of Legends. Inside it seems to still radiate, kitsune power and all. You're the Last and the Chosen, so you can feel that power, you can practically feel the tenko spirits flowing through those walls where it's written The Promise.
For example, I, for one, can't feel it, but you can. But even for you, it's too much to bear because you're still not fully one of them."
Abel pointed to his two tails.
"And in appropriate situations, we are overcome by different emotions and energies. Basic philosophy. After I told you the Legend, you were probably overcome with fear. The fear summoned the spirit of one of the seven tenko - the one that was the Nogitsune.
And in a way, it possessed you. That's why you eyes glowed with the same glow as the nogitsune's, purple-red, and you also took on their typical repulsive and sullen attitude and fiery temper. This gave you a headache. It shouldn't normally be dangerous for you, but I have to admit it looked pretty bad. That's why I took you out of there, so that energy doesn't reach you anymore.
However, I can't guarantee you anything. Sooner or later you will have to accept the truth - that you are the Last Kitsune and that at some point you will have to do something that is your duty.
Dealing with any potential problems along the way is one of those duties."
Tails sat watching her from below. He admired her eloquence when it came to recounting something he assumed was part of the Legend, which she seemed to have memorized all this time.
Abel leaned slightly towards him.
"I hope you don't think I have no compassion..."
"It's okay" Tails stammered. He still wasn't convinced that he was the Last One or anything, but so far he couldn't find a better explanation for his headache than what Abel had just told him.
Abel, again, seemed to have sensors to sense his suspicions. She moved very close to him.
She got in his face.
Tails' jaw dropped in confusion and the pupils within his once again sky blue eyes narrowed.
Abel quietly asked him just one question, staring at him determined:
"Why don't you allow yourself to believe in yourself?"
Tails froze.
If there was even the slightest chance that his pupils would narrow even more, they probably would.
Not only that, but his tails became stiff as if they were made of concrete. He put his hands on his knees as Abel moved away from him, trying to figure out why the question had caught him so off guard.
Why don't you allow yourself to believe in yourself?
Did he know how to answer?
And, more importantly, did Abel even expect an answer?
She turned her back on him - it seemed as if she even deigned to give him some time to think about the question.
Why didn't he allow himself to believe in himself?
Did she ask him that because he didn't believe her that he was the Last?
Or because of something else she knew?
Whatever it was, Abel knew exactly the right choice of words to catch someone off guard.
When Sonic lost his faith in Tails, Tails lost his faith in himself.
Why?
Because all his previous successes and victories, his desires for better, Tails built on nothing more and nothing less than brotherly trust, something he considered Sonic's support.
Tails is who he is today because Sonic was there to set an example for him. When Tails convinced himself that he was on par with Sonic, that was enough for him to believe in himself.
But everything collapsed. Just like that, as if nothing had ever happened.
"SONIC!"
Amy had already been frantically running for four full hours through towns, groves and meadows all over Christmas Island, because she didn't know any better.
She was losing breath in her lungs, panting and cursing herself for not bringing a bottle of water. She called the hedgehog's name wherever she went. Over time, she lost the strength to shout, slowed her pace and continued walking aimlessly.
The search for Sonic was pointless, but right now Amy was starting to hope more that she would miraculously find Tails soon and know that at least he was okay, more than she wanted to find the runaway Sonic.
She realized that Sonic's outburst was nothing to worry about and that the priority now was to find their fox friend as soon as possible. She would have been glad even if Sonic had managed to find Tails while running around the island and return to the cabin with him.
If that was the case, it seems he didn't even deign to call her.
Amy never saw Tails as a burden.
She never thought of him as a "child" to look after, and she had good reason for that.
She remembered like it was yesterday the day she was on South Island, anxiously waiting for Sonic, who had gone on a mission to West Side Island, because he had received a warning signal that Doctor Robotnik had attacked there.
Amy didn't doubt for a moment, despite the tension, that Sonic would make his triumphant return, just like always, so a fair and heroic welcome had to be prepared. So she started preparing a bunch of chili dogs, hoping they would eat them together. However, as time wore on, Amy became slightly worried, as there was no news of either Sonic or Eggman in the daily report, and the weather forecast indicated a major storm around West Side Island.
Confused by this knowledge, Amy couldn't relax anymore until Sonic returned. She didn't want to call him because she wasn't sure if he was on the flight. If he was truly caught in a storm, the last thing he needed right now was her call. After all, that would probably only irritate him.
The sun was already starting to set and Amy came to stop sobbing with worry, when in the distance, in the fire-lit sky, she saw a plane.
The stone fell from her heart and a smile lit up her face, she was already ready to wave happily.
But the closer the plane got, the more clearly she could see smoke coming from its right wing. If it really was hit or something, it was going way too fast for a damaged plane.
It became quite clear to Amy that she had to move as far as possible because the plane was going straight down, banked and it was obvious that it was going to crash.
She rushed down the hill as fast as she could, following the plane with her eyes, and at the last moment she sat down and, not even knowing why, closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears, waiting for the Tornado biplane to hit the ground.
She heard a muffled sound at the moment of the crash.
When everything calmed down, she opened her eyes and heard the soft crackling of fire.
She panicked and quickly made her way up the hill. She had something to see.
The plane blackens, burns, and Sonic tries to force his way out of the pilot's seat. Amy squeals and runs and reaches for Sonic's arm so she can pull him out.
It seemed that he was not badly hurt and that nothing was wrong with him, at least on the outside. He coughed and took off his pilot's glasses and looked at her, uttering the words in a flash:
"I'm fine. Let me go. Look from behind. Help him." In a rush of confusion, but also adrenaline, Amy glanced at the back seat, and could not suppress a gasp of shock when she saw there a small ball of blackened ash fur, which showed no signs of movement.
She didn't hesitate, she quickly devoted herself to unbuckling the unknown creature's seatbelt, then quickly lifted it from the wrecked plane and laid it further in the grass.
Then she realized that it was a small fox. She didn't know who he was, she had never seen him before in her life, but one look at the little kid was enough to make her heart burst with grief.
She turned back to exchange a look with Sonic, who had already found a way to crawl out of the burning plane.
Only after the locals came to help put out the fire, Amy realized that the devastated biplane, despite its remaining blackness, was not the same color as it was when it left the island this morning. For a moment she wondered if it was the same plane at all.
Amy wanted to ask Sonic a lot, but he beat her to the punch and only said "Please take care of him. I brought him all the way here because I knew you would be able to help him.
You have to do it fast. Right now.
Already he has been like this for a very long time and has not been conscious."
Amy didn't need to be told twice. Questions can be asked later, help must be provided now.
She quickly took the child to her house and went to get first aid. As she examined him, she was horrified at all the old and new wounds he had and it became clear to her that Sonic would have to explain a lot more to her than the plane.
She bandaged and cleaned his wounds, applied plasters, smeared him with various creams, but it became clear to her that the child was in a rather bad condition and that she might not be able to help him enough.
Sonic came after a while to scout the situation. Amy was very upset.
"Sonic, what happened to this kid?! This couldn't just be from the plane crash. He's been like this for a long time... Maybe...
Maybe I won't be able to help him...
Sonic, he needs to go to the hospital."
Sonic winced at the mere mention.
"No. We can't do that. Not to the hospital. We have to help him here. Now."
"But Sonic— !"
"Amy! You don't understand." Sonic placed a hand on her shoulder. Amy flinched. As far as her memory goes, he has never done that before.
"He needs you. I need you to help him now."
Those words had such a strong and important impact on Amy that she couldn't hold back the tears that began to slide down her cheeks by themselves.
I need you to help him now.
Those words gave her a surge of motivation that she had never felt before.
For the first time, Sonic was the one who needed her for something.
He needed her.
This child needed her.
And she won't blow it.
It took the child a full week to fully regain consciousness.
Until then, Sonic and how he got to Amy explained in detail what exactly happened on that island.
He told her everything. The whole story.
It took Amy a good half hour to have a fair cry so that she could continue to function. She had never heard anything worse in her life. She remembered that at that moment she was completely taken aback and it was all incomprehensible to her, because she herself didn't pay much attention to Tails' birth defect while she was treating him.
Now she also understood why Sonic didn't want him to be taken to the hospital.
A week after Sonic's return, Sonic and Amy briefly left the house.
They were both still quite worried because the child was still not waking up.
None of the locals knew about Sonic's companion who had already been living in Amy's house for a week.
Sonic was coming to visit them both regularly now. Every day, whether it was to fight Eggman (who they figured, since he didn't launch an invasion of South Island in Sonic's absence, didn't launch a false alarm on West Side Island after all) or was just an ordinary, quiet day, Sonic kept coming to him and Amy to wait for the child to wake up.
Amy made him tea regularly, expecting him every day, knowing that he would always come. She understood that the recovery of that child was very important to him. That child is very important to him in general.
Amy felt a change in Sonic.
It wasn't a drastic change, but something did change.
She wasn't sure if it was the way Sonic looked at that child every day when he came expecting a miracle, or if it was just the fact that it was that child that made him come every day.
One thing was for sure: since that day when the plane was struck by lightning in the South Island, Sonic has not been the same. He somehow became calmer inside, softer, more considerate.
Amy knew that the little fox had to be the reason. That something in him. It's like that something broke something else in Sonic.
Or, nevertheless, brought it together.
Everyone was deep in their own thoughts during the reconnaissance, when returning home Sonic and Amy didn't talk too much, but they had something to see when they got home and went to check on the patient as usual.
They were both completely shocked when they saw that the bed was completely empty.
All kinds of thoughts ran through both of their heads.
Maybe he woke up and panicked in an unfamiliar environment and ran away, maybe someone broke in and kidnapped him... They were overcome by fears because of the horrors they had woven into their dark thoughts, and Amy was already on the verge of breaking down, becauseshe couldn't possibly forgive this to herself.
That's when sounds were heard from the garage.
Cling. Clang. Tsssssss.
Sonic and Amy exchanged glances, but it didn't take long for them both to rush to the garage.
When they entered, they had reason to freak out.
The little two-tailed fox devoted himself to repairing the plane that had been languishing in that garage for the last week, still all black and in pretty bad shape.
He hadn't noticed them yet because the wing of the plane separated them from his view, but they knew he was there.
Amy was too shocked to say anything, just eyeing Sonic. He had already told her about when he met the little boy for the first time and how it all looked - probably very similar to this incident now. But she couldn't help it - seeing it retold, but live, was even more amazing than the narration itself by Sonic.
A three-year-old child. And the plane.
Dustin the Canine's red biplane.
Now, given that the kit is repairing it for the second time, persistently, and after the second massacre of the biplane, it could be said quite justifiably that the plane is now largely the work of his hands.
Incredibly.
Amy was thrilled and couldn't help it. Seeing a child who had been lying weakly in bed for a whole week suddenly working meticulously and dedicatedly on something that clearly pleased him and for which he was clearly mastering prompted her to smile widely and sincerely from the heart.
Sonic saw it. The smile. On her face. And then he smiled too.
Amy remembered all those good old times with joy and nostalgia, unconsciously still walking forward.
She remembered the huge shock on Eggman's distraught face after seeing Tails as Sonic's new companion for the first time, the first time the two-tailed fox and the egghead had met, with a roar of laughter.
She also remembered how Sonic would always be there for Tails to calm him down every time a storm started and lightning flashed, without question, letting him crawl into bed with him or snuggle up to him until the storm passed.
She thought back to all the times Sonic would visit Tails in his workshop out of the blue and just watch him do his smart stuff, only to end up reminding him every day with the words:
"You really are amazing, kid."
Such moments, with the years and the new challenges they regularly faced, were fewer and fewer.
That really saddened Amy.
That day, when she and Sonic found Tails in the garage, Sonic asked him what his name was, even though he already knew it, and told Amy, as Tails had signed his full name to his copy of The Art of Repair.
Tails didn't answer that it was his name.
Tails barely spoke, in fact.
He said his name was Tails.
And they all just kind of went with it.
Sonic and Amy exchanged looks after this answer knowing the truth but not wanting to force it.
That's why, from then on, Miles remained Tails to them. If he wanted to be called that, and not to be called by his real name, who are they to contradict?
At that moment, when Tails said his fake name, Amy could feel Sonic radiating the desire to hug him.
But he didn't do it. And no one has ever called a fox "Miles" ever since.
It broke Amy's heart that the only reason Sonic is so afraid of Tails is that after all these years, he still sees him as a scared child that he found in a dead end among dumpsters and needs to be protected from everything.
Amy has been looking at Tails as their equal for a long time now, but Sonic never fully entered that phase and Amy couldn't fathom why. And even less could she fathom why Sonic wouldn't embrace Tails as his family, or at least accept that they could be like one.
With that, it seems as if he has been regressing their relationship unnecessarily. Or, worse.
Kept it in one place, motionless.
Tails changed Sonic. At first it was better. But Sonic began to change himself, in turn. Amy wasn't sure who he was trying to protect, Tails or himself.
But Tails also had his flaws. There were times when he desperately sought Sonic's approval when all he needed was his own approval.
And then he jumped from such moments to those in which he did not allow himself to rely on anyone because he wanted to prove himself (Sonic and Tails R reference).
It was one of the burdens that Tails put on his own shoulders himself - he planted the thought in his head that he was too useless and since then he has not let go of that thought and constantly has an insane need to prove himself to others, even if he doesn't know how.
Sonic and Tails are actually both very complicated.
Lost in a flood of thoughts, Amy jerked suddenly when she felt something kick lightly under her feet.
She bent down curiously and ran her fingers over the grasses, feeling something solid in the process.
Picked it up.
And at the same moment, dropped it out of shock.
Tails' deformed Miles Electric, reduced to the remains of the remains, tumbled into the muddy ground, shattered screens and loose handles.
Amy covered her face with her hands as it slowly dawned on her. Oh no. Oh no. Ooooooh, no. Not good.
She turned around and only now found out what kind of environment she found herself in.
Black, wet, muddy ground, burnt trees, scattered arrows and other weapons everywhere.
This is where the real crash and fracture happened.
And Tails was there.
And whatever happened here has something to do with him.
Which means they had reason to worry. And the broken Miles Electric justifies his failure to answer calls.
How will I tell Sonic?
Someone was here with Tails. Because of Tails.
And whatever happened, it's not good.
Eventually, not far from herself, Amy noticed that not far from her, dark figures with helmets were crawling on the ground. Three of them.
They helped each other up, as if they had only recently regained consciousness. When they looked back at Amy, they hesitated for a moment, but then grabbed some of the remaining weapons.
It didn't take long for Amy to arrange everything. These guys, whoever they are, have something to do with what happened here, and not a good one.
If she overpowers them, she can get them to tell her where Tails is and what they did with him.
But can he overcome them?
Along with Amy's suspicions, one of the helmeted assailants hissed in the ears of the other two,
"She's with the Kitsune. And the hedgehog. I saw all three of them together in town."
"Then we better at least solve this," says the other in a deep, husky voice. Then he muttered, "I'm not going to let a girl beat me for the second time today..."
"That wasn't just any girl. That was Abel," said the third, a little louder than the leader expected.
"Shut up!" this one will say sharply.
Then he shifted his gaze back to Amy. "But you're right about one thing. That was Abel, and this is the most ordinary foreigner. Alone. And unarmed."
Amy's knees trembled at those words that managed to reach her, but in the next moment she dispelled her fear with a wide, knowing smile. (Ian Flynn reference lol)
"Alone? Check. You're right there. Unarmed? Well, not really..." She said and with a smooth movement pulled out her gigantic piko - hammer from nowhere.
"Let's dance, boys."
In the first half hour of his run, Sonic finally stopped, in a grove not far from the entrance to Metro City, when the sun had already set. He was already too disgusted with that city for today and he didn't want to come any closer to it because, after all, that city along with its citizens was the only reason why Tails wasn't with him now.
He stopped to take a short rest, but that plan quickly failed. After catching his breath, Sonic heard footsteps echoing in the distance and giving the impression of getting closer.
Without hesitation, he jumped behind a nearby bush and stopped moving. Sonic wasn't the type to hide from anyone, but in this place it was probably a smarter decision (just like on Scrapnik Island).
In time, the owners echoing footsteps passed his bush. It seemed like a whole column or horde of mobians - stirred, muttering or commenting loudly and indistinctly. In the distance they were guided by the glow of a torch (on such an isolated island, flashlights were a luxury or only those who could make them themselves, like Abel, had them).
Eventually they all stopped together with the light source not far from Sonic's bush. For a while there was still a loud discussion or unmuffled whispering. They didn't even try to be quiet.
Until, of course, the person carrying the torch yelled,
"SILENCE!"
Sudden silence. (Obviously.)
The leader of the horde, apparently and by voice an older Mobian, clears his throat and begins very loudly:
"As you all know, the so-called infamous Kitsune was seen in our town this morning by a large number of fellow citizens."
Gasps and sounds of disgust from the audience.
"I'm deeply convinced that I don't even need to remind you how our forefathers tormented members of this species many years ago, because after all, they possessed... power. Great power. Magic. Sorcery. (Visible distress to said crowd.)
And to make matters worse, they created the greatest evil to ever befall this world... The Miracle Gems."
The elder said it with such disgust that Sonic couldn't help the rush of confusion and feeling lost in the concept that washed over him, even though he didn't really know The Chaos Emeralds by any other name but - well, The Chaos Emeralds. The Miracle Gems were a foreign concept to him.
The crowd unanimously agreed with disgust. They were shouting battle cries, hooting and stomping on the gravel, and Sonic was trying to make sense of everything he'd heard so far.
He did not succeed.
"However, I have an important message for you: FEAR NOT. Stay calm. For tonight, we are finally putting an end to this.
We will no longer live in constant fear of the ones that think they can manipulate us and spin us around their little finger.
Now, while we still have the opportunity with our enemy delivering themselves to us, let us go, my brothers, and finish what should have been finished long ago!
The kitsune dynasty, fake or not, must be gone forever!"
Shouts of enthusiasm and support.
Cheers, hands in the air, torches lit, applause, the earth rumbled as a horde of truly determined islanders raced down the hill on a path deeper into the forest without further hesitation.
Sonic looked after them as the lights of their torches slowly died in the pitch darkness of the forest. They were heading towards Eastern Lake.
Sonic pops out of his hiding place.
"Well, I just realized two things. First and foremost: these people are maniacs and totally out of their minds.
Second: this whole story has something to do with Tails."
While he was talking to himself like that, he would probably seem quite sure to someone else, but in fact he was actually very worried. The intentions of these people are NOT good.
He rubs his nose, listens briefly, then rushes in the opposite direction so that later he can turn around and wait to see where these people will go and cut their path without being seen first.
At best, it might lead him to Tails along the way.
"Do you have enough energy?"
"Huh?"
"I'm asking you if you have enough energy." Abel pushed back, packing some of her most revered water weapons into his huge backpack. She looked very serious. "We can't stay here forever or wait for the Chaos Emeralds to magically summon themselves, can we? We have to get them. You've been keeping them on Angel Island for a long time now, haven't you?"
Tails gave up on trying to figure out how Abel knew all this. After all, it was true.
Since they defeated Infinite and Eggman's forces, they almost didn't have to use the Chaos Emeralds anymore and stored them in a special chest that, together with Knuckles, volunteers from Amy's Resistance Movement kept on Angel Island.
It was assumed that it was high time to solve all the problems, including that the emeralds could be found by a malicious user, so when Eggman became the benevolent Mr Tinker (IDW), there was no reason why the emeralds themselves should not finally be changed stored somewhere permanently, instead of constantly looking for them everywhere just in case of emergency or collecting them only when Eggman himself decides to go hunting for them and has to compete with him.
Moreover, saving the emeralds somewhere was Tails' idea.
"Yes," he replied.
"Great. So we just need to get to Angel Island from here somehow. And as quickly as possible. A bunch of people saw you in town this morning. Esmeray is probably already planning something."
Tails looked up. "Esmeray?"
Abel nodded, pressed a few buttons on the rim of her smart glasses and lifted them significantly from her nose.
An image is projected from the screen of the glasses onto the stone wall of the cave.
"Esmeray the Lynx. That's him. The leader of all the rebel inhabitants of this island, and there are a lot of them. In short, a bunch of people who want to erase you from the face of Mobius." she said, way too calmly.
"One of the main reasons he brought them together was to make preparations in case that famous Last Kitsune ever appeared. I personally believe that he never believed in the Legend, but he wanted to be ready.
Or he was just taking advantage of the fear that other people had because of the legend and the reappearance of the kitsune because he wanted to be someone's leader because in kindergarten, poor thing, they never gave him access to any club" said Abel mockingly and turned off the projection of Esmeray's picture. "Old man. Way too old."
Tails was confused. "Why are there movements against me if I am supposed to save everyone?"
"I already told you," said Abel wisely. "People are afraid of everything that is different. You should at least know that from experience. And they've been afraid of kitsunes for a very long time. It is simply in our nature to fear what is unknown to us, what we do not understand, or what is more powerful than-"
From above, from the ceiling of the cave, a rumble seemed to be heard, causing Abel to stop her wisecracks.
Gradually the rumbling grew louder and closer. Voices were also heard. The ceiling was shaking, the stones on the floor of the cave were bouncing.
Abel made her jaw drop. Within seconds she seemed to have a panic attack. Shaking her head as if she wanted it to fall off, she ran from one side of the room to the other, grabbing all of her things that she could get her hands on. The roar grew menacing.
"What is happening!?" - and Tails got infected with panic too.
"Nothing good..." Abel blurted out. "They're here. Here. They shouldn't be here... How did they find me... No... no... no..."
Tails was overcome with intense anxiety just watching Abel this upset.
"Who is it!?"
"Oh, you know... Nothing special... Just some guys about to beat us up and probably do some nasty things to you if we don't..."
As if her strength was running out, she turned to him, pointing at her bag, only to say: "Vortex. Quick. Now. Otherwise - "
...before a thunderous bang was heard from the entrance hall. Someone used dynamite to break the rock blocking the entrance.
The horde surged through a tiny opening in the stone.
They were in a cave.
"RUN! RUN! RUN!" was all she said to him before giving up herself.
"Forget the Vortex! There's no time for that! They'll blow us apart until we get it going! Just follow me to the emergency exit!"
Tails didn't need to be told twice. The horde had already gathered in the main room with their torches emitting such an amount of light that Tails could see all the stars. Wolves, koalas, turtles, dingoes, ferrets, walruses and weasels - all led by the lynx, black fur with white stripes and, although hunched over, with terrifyingly sharp teeth.
As Tails and Abel had already entered the dark corridor now without lighting, the horde noticed them and began to follow, with numerous slurred battle cries and threats. As they all crowded into the corridor, the entire path in front of Abel and Tails was illuminated by the light of all their powerful torches, despite the distance.
The light engulfed the dark and damp walls of the cave like fire. When the corridor widened and they found themselves in Abel's chamber of honor for weapons, they began to use their torches to break down the barriers in which they were so carefully guarded, as well as the weapons themselves.
When Abel looked back to see where the sounds of breaking glass were coming from, she stopped running.
She paused for a few seconds.
Too long.
Tails understood that Abel was probably desperate to see how callously these savages were destroying her works that she had worked so hard on until now, but he also understood that they were screwed.
Unless they keep moving.
They have to keep moving.
One of the club-wielding coyotes, the fastest of the attacking pack, swung his tool overhead, charging at Abel, who didn't even move.
"ABEL!" Tails rushed towards her, grabbed her by the waist and shoved her forward to the side just in time for the club to crush her.
"GO! GO! GO!" And she was going, but Tails felt the coyote from behind pull him by the tail with a firm grip.
He caught him. Tails yelled, and Abel looked back.
She turned her head and noticed a barrier with a water laser within the capsule next to her.
This time she didn't hesitate.
She broke the glass barrier with her own fist, grabbed the laser and aimed it at the coyote's eye.
The rebel shouted and dropped Tails, so Tails rejoined Abel and they continued to run as fast as their legs could carry them as they had already lost enough time.
The good thing was that they were bought time by the visible fact that the horde led by Esmeray was clearly enjoying the passionate destruction of Abel's belongings.
With time, the chase continued at an even pace as Abel and Tails tried to fight their way to that emergency exit.
"Dude," Abel comments, gasping, "this is worse than when I was chased by a pack of angry Mobians after I accidentally set off a false alarm for Eggman on West Side Island when I was a kid!"
Tails, already slowly losing his pace like someone who isn't a fan of running, only managed to turn his head towards her and hiss
"WHAT!?"