New Age: Dark Pages of a Fox
Second Chapter
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing in this story, including the basic concept and plot, which is owned by hitobito. SEGA owns Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Robotnik, and Tikal. What are you reading this for?
BEE'S NOTE: Hello, again. I have just a few things to say. Robotnik is executed in the first chapter of hitobito's story; however, it does not take place in mine because of Tikal's introduction. It seems that when there is just too much in a first chapter, the mind becomes saturated with facts, actions, and characters. In turn, readers come to lose interest. So I ended Chapter One with the end of the first day. I will put his execution in this chapter. But the good thing is Robotnik is defeated! Bwah ha ha ha hah!
Okay. Note's finished.
On with the story!
********************
Chapter 2 -
The Invention
"Sonic. How do you feel?" asks a happily relieved Tails, who is skipping toward him, shielding his eyes from the rising sun. Even after staying awake all the night before, keeping an eye on the pridefully angry Robotnik--quite a task--the little kit is fully awake and happy, as if he had gotten a full night's rest.
Sonic smiles, cheered by the fox, and nods encouragingly, "I'm fine. I only need a cane."
Tails bobs around his hero, laughing.
The two walk over to where Knuckles is working. They see he has almost completed preparing the grounds for Robotnik's public execution. "I heard you stayed awake with Tails last night." The Guardian says when he hears his friends approach.
"Well, I felt safer with Tails around," Sonic chuckles.
Tails pipes up, "You didn't have to, you know!"
"I know."
********************
The warm sun and a playful breeze frolic gently along the pathways leading to the area of execution. Swirls of leaves play along the ground as the time arrives. Now, being about a quarter to nine, the beginnings of a crowd begin to gather along the linking roads.
The citizens of Mystic Ruins expand from several directions along the paths. They seem to be invigorated by the warm sun and the long-awaited event. As they pass along the paths leading to the public grounds, they all become united in a mood of relief and happiness. Robotnik's threat has come to an end; there is finally peace. The quiet of the area gradually becomes filled with the spirited sounds of its natives.
Laughter of children fills the air. Some children skip happily alongside their parents. Others come to gather together, playfully reenacting the events of the day before, filling the air with the sounds of energetic arguing over who gets to play Tails, Sonic, or Knuckles; no one wants to play Robotnik.
Their parents carry blankets, pillows, food, and other knickknacks needed for the approaching festivities. They add to the buzz in the air with the hum of talk. They speak together about the surprise they felt when finding out about what had happened last night in the dark. The adults converse together, mutually agreeing about their ease of knowing the three heroes are fellow citizens of their hometown, Mystic Ruins. They utter their regret that Sonic is still in pain, and how Knuckles's fur is still matted with guck. They all pass along amidst themselves the same energy their children possess as they near their goal: a good place to sit and watch.
Different comments are expressed to Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Tikal as the people pass along them: "Wow, Tails. You're my hero!" "Hi, Amy! Aren't you just so proud of Sonic?" "I didn't know you were so lucky!" "Sonic, you still fought bravely." "Oh, Knuckles! Are you okay? I'm afraid of heights; I'd hate to be trapped up in a tall tree like that!" "Your name is Tikal? You look lovely today. You must be pleased with your friends." And so forth. Each received the compliments gratefully.
The crowd continues to grow and grow. Tails decides to leave quietly when he sees that the crowd has grown too large.
As Sonic and Knuckles notice together that Tails is gone, Sonic comments that Tails will miss the ceremony.
"He's probably overwhelmed. Give him some slack," Knuckles responds as the sound of the crowd dies down. They turn to the crowd finally.
The air becomes totally silent; the time has come.
********************
Because Tails did not attend the ceremony, he had become quite busy working in his hut. That morning, he was awarded a Chaos Emerald and was named "Hero of All". With mild amusement, the clever kit watches his own hands nimbly put different components together, seemingly at random. Wishing, as always, to give his creations function, he seems to desire this more so now than ever. He now seeks to use the emerald in his invention.
His mind races and whirls as he works. His thoughts swirl over his whole life:
He is Miles "Tails" Prower, a small, orange two-tailed fox, who has been living a tragedy almost his whole life. Since birth, he had been taunted and pitied because of his tails, up until he taught himself to fly. By spinning his tails like a helicopter rotor, he earned a small bit of respect. Then a huge, horrible man named Robotnik struck Tails' hometown and burned it to the ground; Tails never saw his parents again. Most believe they were killed; but some think they were roboticized by the Eggman. One thing was certain, though: Tails was an orphan. Then he met Sonic, and he found he was never alone or hurt again.
Before he was discovered, Tails became something of a lonely hermit. He had wandered from Hill Top to Green Hill and eventually found himself lost in the Mystic Ruin Jungle. That is where Sonic found him. He was there responding to a report he received of a concentrated amount of Badniks ordered to the area. Desiring to protect him, he took Tails home, to the safety of Mystic Ruins. Tails became attached to Sonic instantly.
As time passed Tails developed a passion for creation. Through this fancy, the kit refined his knack at building machines, and had developed his own plane, the Tornado, that, to Tails's delight, was fast enough to keep up with Sonic. He developed the Tornado 2 at a desperate time; by then, his skills had progressed quite impressively.
********************
The execution had been finished by Sonic, who cast the final stone. It was now the afternoon--about four--and Sonic is now looking for his little friend.
"Knuckles, have you seen Tails?" Sonic asks when he sees Knuckles conversing quietly with Tikal.
"I think I saw Tails leave when the busy crowd became too restless," Knuckles answers, his mind mostly focused on the girl he is talking to.
"Thanks," Sonic says as he speeds off in the direction of Tails's hut. Poor kid, he thinks. His thoughts are interrupted when he hears a series of sudden noises erupt from Tails's workshop.
Sonic is somewhat concerned. He has never heard such loud noises coming from Tails's place, aside from the time he made the new engine for the Tornado. The racing hedgehog smiles, recalling that happy event. When Sonic arrives, he knocks on the door, and the sounds immediately die down.
Tails, answering the door, is found holding a black box. Tails smiles. "Hi Sonic!" Tails says cheerfully.
"What in the world is that?" asks Sonic.
"Oh, this? It's a new invention I'm workin' on that uses the energy of Chaos Emeralds!"
"But what is it?" Sonic reiterates.
"A power converter. I hope it will one day replace those polluting power plants."
Sonic chuckles. "You sure like playing the hero, don't you? First, you defeat Robotnik, and now you're out to save the environment the very next day!"
Tails smiles, and then continues, pointing to a very pointy-looking protrusion on the side of the box. "See this little knob here? This is a power-transfer node."
"I see." Sonic says, a little mystified.
Tails then holds up a very thick wire. He goes on, "It connects to this wire."
"Wow, it's about the thickness of my arm." Sonic observes lightly.
"The wire then splits out and spreads over a city, powering it," Tails resumes. "The plant would only be about the size of my hut." He sets the box down behind him. He points to a Sonic-sized fan over by the window. "I hooked the converter up to this fan. It revolved really fast."
"It works then," Sonic perceives.
"I'll say," the kit says as he picks up a plate and holds it up for Sonic to see. On the plate lay very thin, orange disks. The kit smiles, delighted, and says, "It spun so quickly that it cleanly sliced these carrots. I'm still not sure how to implement that though."
Sonic chimes in, "Uhhh... maybe an efficient, new way to implement food-slicing technology?"
Tails gives him a stern look. He then smiles and places the plate down on his desk. "Can I help you with something, Sonic?"
Sonic waves his hand passively and says he was just curious as to what Tails was doing when he heard those noises.
Tails looks at him, touched. "I'll work on this later," he decides as he slides the box under his bed. "But for now, I'm gonna get me somethin' to eat." He leaves Sonic behind to think, and he exits the hut.
Sonic retrieves the box out from underneath the bed, and takes a closer look at it. He notices that the emerald-shaped slot is empty. "Strange. Where is his Chaos Emerald?" Feeling little uneasy, he puts the box back under Tails's bed. Dismissing the feeling as a mere fleeting thought, Sonic speeds out of the hut.
Back at the mess hall, Knuckles, Amy, Tikal and other lingering citizens of the Ruins are gathered, waiting. They are sitting in somewhat close proximity to one another, discussing the reconstruction of Metropolis.
An older resident continues throwing in his two cents, "...and we must remember that the city is all of ours."
"That's right," Knuckles concurs, "Metropolis was a booming capital before Robotnik got control of it and polluted everything."
"...and I would that we should do our best to help rebuild it. The Oil Ocean is an outright disgrace to our planet," the older man continues as Tails walks in.
The entire room erupts into applause to Tails. Amy and Tikal each give him a hug and a kiss. Sonic, who had entered the room as well, moves that Tails is the "greatest hero of all our generation".
"Here, here!" many of the people say immediately, holding up their glasses.
"Hence the title, 'Hero of All'," adds Tikal.
A delightfully large cake is then brought in by Amy, who places it right in front of Tails. After making a few finishing touches to the beautiful delicacy, she turns to the kit, and almost sings, "You are now given the honor of cutting the first piece!"
Tails does so very carefully. Just as he turns to give the piece to Sonic, the latter holds up his hand and tells him he gets to keep it. Tails smiles, and everyone happily pariticipates in the party.
Little did they know that something would soon occur that would change the life of every being in Mystic Ruins and on the planet.
********************
End Second Chapter
BEE'S COMMENTS:
lilkoisuru: Whoo... Long chapter this time.
Sonic: Zzzzzzzzz... *snort* Huh? Oh, yeah! Ah-hah-hah-hah...hah...
Tails: ::laughs:: hitobito would be proud.
lilkoisuru: You like it, Tails?
Tails: For another sketch, I'll answer your question!
lilkoisuru: Too bad. ::sticks out her tongue.::
Sonic: Zzzzzzzzz...
Second Chapter
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing in this story, including the basic concept and plot, which is owned by hitobito. SEGA owns Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Robotnik, and Tikal. What are you reading this for?
BEE'S NOTE: Hello, again. I have just a few things to say. Robotnik is executed in the first chapter of hitobito's story; however, it does not take place in mine because of Tikal's introduction. It seems that when there is just too much in a first chapter, the mind becomes saturated with facts, actions, and characters. In turn, readers come to lose interest. So I ended Chapter One with the end of the first day. I will put his execution in this chapter. But the good thing is Robotnik is defeated! Bwah ha ha ha hah!
Okay. Note's finished.
On with the story!
********************
Chapter 2 -
The Invention
"Sonic. How do you feel?" asks a happily relieved Tails, who is skipping toward him, shielding his eyes from the rising sun. Even after staying awake all the night before, keeping an eye on the pridefully angry Robotnik--quite a task--the little kit is fully awake and happy, as if he had gotten a full night's rest.
Sonic smiles, cheered by the fox, and nods encouragingly, "I'm fine. I only need a cane."
Tails bobs around his hero, laughing.
The two walk over to where Knuckles is working. They see he has almost completed preparing the grounds for Robotnik's public execution. "I heard you stayed awake with Tails last night." The Guardian says when he hears his friends approach.
"Well, I felt safer with Tails around," Sonic chuckles.
Tails pipes up, "You didn't have to, you know!"
"I know."
********************
The warm sun and a playful breeze frolic gently along the pathways leading to the area of execution. Swirls of leaves play along the ground as the time arrives. Now, being about a quarter to nine, the beginnings of a crowd begin to gather along the linking roads.
The citizens of Mystic Ruins expand from several directions along the paths. They seem to be invigorated by the warm sun and the long-awaited event. As they pass along the paths leading to the public grounds, they all become united in a mood of relief and happiness. Robotnik's threat has come to an end; there is finally peace. The quiet of the area gradually becomes filled with the spirited sounds of its natives.
Laughter of children fills the air. Some children skip happily alongside their parents. Others come to gather together, playfully reenacting the events of the day before, filling the air with the sounds of energetic arguing over who gets to play Tails, Sonic, or Knuckles; no one wants to play Robotnik.
Their parents carry blankets, pillows, food, and other knickknacks needed for the approaching festivities. They add to the buzz in the air with the hum of talk. They speak together about the surprise they felt when finding out about what had happened last night in the dark. The adults converse together, mutually agreeing about their ease of knowing the three heroes are fellow citizens of their hometown, Mystic Ruins. They utter their regret that Sonic is still in pain, and how Knuckles's fur is still matted with guck. They all pass along amidst themselves the same energy their children possess as they near their goal: a good place to sit and watch.
Different comments are expressed to Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Tikal as the people pass along them: "Wow, Tails. You're my hero!" "Hi, Amy! Aren't you just so proud of Sonic?" "I didn't know you were so lucky!" "Sonic, you still fought bravely." "Oh, Knuckles! Are you okay? I'm afraid of heights; I'd hate to be trapped up in a tall tree like that!" "Your name is Tikal? You look lovely today. You must be pleased with your friends." And so forth. Each received the compliments gratefully.
The crowd continues to grow and grow. Tails decides to leave quietly when he sees that the crowd has grown too large.
As Sonic and Knuckles notice together that Tails is gone, Sonic comments that Tails will miss the ceremony.
"He's probably overwhelmed. Give him some slack," Knuckles responds as the sound of the crowd dies down. They turn to the crowd finally.
The air becomes totally silent; the time has come.
********************
Because Tails did not attend the ceremony, he had become quite busy working in his hut. That morning, he was awarded a Chaos Emerald and was named "Hero of All". With mild amusement, the clever kit watches his own hands nimbly put different components together, seemingly at random. Wishing, as always, to give his creations function, he seems to desire this more so now than ever. He now seeks to use the emerald in his invention.
His mind races and whirls as he works. His thoughts swirl over his whole life:
He is Miles "Tails" Prower, a small, orange two-tailed fox, who has been living a tragedy almost his whole life. Since birth, he had been taunted and pitied because of his tails, up until he taught himself to fly. By spinning his tails like a helicopter rotor, he earned a small bit of respect. Then a huge, horrible man named Robotnik struck Tails' hometown and burned it to the ground; Tails never saw his parents again. Most believe they were killed; but some think they were roboticized by the Eggman. One thing was certain, though: Tails was an orphan. Then he met Sonic, and he found he was never alone or hurt again.
Before he was discovered, Tails became something of a lonely hermit. He had wandered from Hill Top to Green Hill and eventually found himself lost in the Mystic Ruin Jungle. That is where Sonic found him. He was there responding to a report he received of a concentrated amount of Badniks ordered to the area. Desiring to protect him, he took Tails home, to the safety of Mystic Ruins. Tails became attached to Sonic instantly.
As time passed Tails developed a passion for creation. Through this fancy, the kit refined his knack at building machines, and had developed his own plane, the Tornado, that, to Tails's delight, was fast enough to keep up with Sonic. He developed the Tornado 2 at a desperate time; by then, his skills had progressed quite impressively.
********************
The execution had been finished by Sonic, who cast the final stone. It was now the afternoon--about four--and Sonic is now looking for his little friend.
"Knuckles, have you seen Tails?" Sonic asks when he sees Knuckles conversing quietly with Tikal.
"I think I saw Tails leave when the busy crowd became too restless," Knuckles answers, his mind mostly focused on the girl he is talking to.
"Thanks," Sonic says as he speeds off in the direction of Tails's hut. Poor kid, he thinks. His thoughts are interrupted when he hears a series of sudden noises erupt from Tails's workshop.
Sonic is somewhat concerned. He has never heard such loud noises coming from Tails's place, aside from the time he made the new engine for the Tornado. The racing hedgehog smiles, recalling that happy event. When Sonic arrives, he knocks on the door, and the sounds immediately die down.
Tails, answering the door, is found holding a black box. Tails smiles. "Hi Sonic!" Tails says cheerfully.
"What in the world is that?" asks Sonic.
"Oh, this? It's a new invention I'm workin' on that uses the energy of Chaos Emeralds!"
"But what is it?" Sonic reiterates.
"A power converter. I hope it will one day replace those polluting power plants."
Sonic chuckles. "You sure like playing the hero, don't you? First, you defeat Robotnik, and now you're out to save the environment the very next day!"
Tails smiles, and then continues, pointing to a very pointy-looking protrusion on the side of the box. "See this little knob here? This is a power-transfer node."
"I see." Sonic says, a little mystified.
Tails then holds up a very thick wire. He goes on, "It connects to this wire."
"Wow, it's about the thickness of my arm." Sonic observes lightly.
"The wire then splits out and spreads over a city, powering it," Tails resumes. "The plant would only be about the size of my hut." He sets the box down behind him. He points to a Sonic-sized fan over by the window. "I hooked the converter up to this fan. It revolved really fast."
"It works then," Sonic perceives.
"I'll say," the kit says as he picks up a plate and holds it up for Sonic to see. On the plate lay very thin, orange disks. The kit smiles, delighted, and says, "It spun so quickly that it cleanly sliced these carrots. I'm still not sure how to implement that though."
Sonic chimes in, "Uhhh... maybe an efficient, new way to implement food-slicing technology?"
Tails gives him a stern look. He then smiles and places the plate down on his desk. "Can I help you with something, Sonic?"
Sonic waves his hand passively and says he was just curious as to what Tails was doing when he heard those noises.
Tails looks at him, touched. "I'll work on this later," he decides as he slides the box under his bed. "But for now, I'm gonna get me somethin' to eat." He leaves Sonic behind to think, and he exits the hut.
Sonic retrieves the box out from underneath the bed, and takes a closer look at it. He notices that the emerald-shaped slot is empty. "Strange. Where is his Chaos Emerald?" Feeling little uneasy, he puts the box back under Tails's bed. Dismissing the feeling as a mere fleeting thought, Sonic speeds out of the hut.
Back at the mess hall, Knuckles, Amy, Tikal and other lingering citizens of the Ruins are gathered, waiting. They are sitting in somewhat close proximity to one another, discussing the reconstruction of Metropolis.
An older resident continues throwing in his two cents, "...and we must remember that the city is all of ours."
"That's right," Knuckles concurs, "Metropolis was a booming capital before Robotnik got control of it and polluted everything."
"...and I would that we should do our best to help rebuild it. The Oil Ocean is an outright disgrace to our planet," the older man continues as Tails walks in.
The entire room erupts into applause to Tails. Amy and Tikal each give him a hug and a kiss. Sonic, who had entered the room as well, moves that Tails is the "greatest hero of all our generation".
"Here, here!" many of the people say immediately, holding up their glasses.
"Hence the title, 'Hero of All'," adds Tikal.
A delightfully large cake is then brought in by Amy, who places it right in front of Tails. After making a few finishing touches to the beautiful delicacy, she turns to the kit, and almost sings, "You are now given the honor of cutting the first piece!"
Tails does so very carefully. Just as he turns to give the piece to Sonic, the latter holds up his hand and tells him he gets to keep it. Tails smiles, and everyone happily pariticipates in the party.
Little did they know that something would soon occur that would change the life of every being in Mystic Ruins and on the planet.
********************
End Second Chapter
BEE'S COMMENTS:
lilkoisuru: Whoo... Long chapter this time.
Sonic: Zzzzzzzzz... *snort* Huh? Oh, yeah! Ah-hah-hah-hah...hah...
Tails: ::laughs:: hitobito would be proud.
lilkoisuru: You like it, Tails?
Tails: For another sketch, I'll answer your question!
lilkoisuru: Too bad. ::sticks out her tongue.::
Sonic: Zzzzzzzzz...