Notes: I wrote like.. More than I usually write in a chapter. I didn't want
to wait to put the ending of this chapter in another chapter, but I'm
hoping I didn't start losing my touch halfway through. Comment if you feel
the need to, it's much appreciated. John Kelly
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The cold and wet, frozen white powder crushed under the weight of the Red Echidna's feet as he trudged through the snow, cold jets of air blasting rain, sleet and snow into his face. Chilled to the bone, Knuckles groaned loudly; only a soft noise in the howling winds. "Crap... How-Much- More-Can-There-BE!?" Looking around from under his arm, Knuckles peered at the snow-covered plains, bordered on all sides by mountains, capped in white. The black and gray storm clouds where barely visible now from the continuous rain of white snow.
Taking a step forward, Knuckle's eyes widened as he felt the ground give way more than it should. A loud curse and ply to jump back where consumed by the sudden collapse of the earth, and Knuckles found himself falling down a deep icy crevasse, amongst the chaos of broken ice and snow that had once concealed it. His eyes closed as he tumbled downward, Knuckles' stomach sank and he cursed himself. "Is this it..?" The Echidna thought to himself, feeling the air condense as the sides of the crevasse began to close together the farther he fell.
A white figure clad in tight black leather, her gentle blue eyes staring into his mind suddenly flashed, and Knuckle's eyes shot open. Teeth gritted, he threw his body against the spin and sliced out with his massive knuckles, digging them into the ice as his body snapped back up. Suspended against the wall, Knuckles peered down the deep hole, and stared in awe as the walls on either side continued to move in until deep down, there was no more than a foot between them.
Teeth gritted, sweat dripped down Knuckles' face, despite the cold, as he stared in terror. "... I would've been stuck in that..." he muttered. Closing his eyes tightly, he shook his head before looking up with determination. "Time to get the hell out of this thing." Pulling himself up, Knuckles slashed his other pair of knuckles into the ice, before slipping his first pair out and slashing them in above the others. Repeating this process, the Echidna slowly climbed his way up towards the black sky above.
The Blue Hedgehog hrmmed to himself as he slowly walked down the sidewalk, skyscrapers towering above. Smaller buildings where passed by as Sonic made his way to the coastline. "Sydney is pretty big.." Sonic thought, his eyes darting all around, looking for any signs that might lead to the emerald he was after.
Coming across the docks, Sonic peered up and down them, looking around. Noting a large amount of fishing boats, Sonic shrugged to himself. "Guess it's possible it fell in the sea... could always check if anyone's dragged it up." Turning, Sonic made his way towards the boats. Stopping, Sonic arched a brow as his eyes caught the sight of a young boy, his clothes tattered; probably from working on the boat he was currently unloading traps from. Shrugging, Sonic strode up to the boat and rested an arm on the side, leaning forward and placing his weight on the boat. "Yo kid... happen to have seen any-" Sonic's eyes shot open and he fell back as the boy had turned and yelled out.
"You're Finally Back!!" Sonic blinked for a moment before looking around uneasily.
"Uhm.." Sonic muttered, before the Boy's bright expression slipped.
"Wait... you're blue.." The boy blinked, tilting his head and staring at Sonic for a moment. "You're not my friend.."
Sonic forced an odd smile and scratched his head. "Sorry kid... listen, would you of happened to have seen a large blue gem? It would be cut, not just a large hunk of material.."
The boy's eyes widened slightly, and he looked away for a moment before looking at Sonic through the corner of his eye, fear apparent in his eyes. "And why would you want to know...?"
Sonic's mouth curled as he frowned slightly and he narrowed his eyes. "Listen kid... I don't have time to be explaining stuff. I need that gem, have you seen it?"
"What's your name?" the boy asked quickly.
"Sonic" he replied simply.
The boy blinked for a moment, before his face lightened up and he smiled. "You mean you're Sonic The Hedgehog!? I've heard all sorts of stories about you! You saved the world from that thing up in space!!" Jumping over the side of the boat and onto the dock, the boy extended his hand and smiled enthusiastically.
Grinning embarrassedly, Sonic took the boy's hand and gave a quick shake before pulling back. "So... uhm... have you seen it?" The boy blinked for a moment, and Sonic kept himself from slapping his own forehead in frustration. "The large gem." Sonic reminded him.
The boy blinked again for a moment, before seeming to snap back into reality. "Oh yes! We found it a few days ago, really late at night. My friend said it was really important, so he convinced my dad to go out and bring it up! Luckily it wasn't very deep." The boy smiled and nodded towards the boat. "My friend told me not to give it to anyone... but you're Sonic! Obviously you have a good reason to need it."
Sonic felt a bead of sweat drip down his face. "This kid is kind of odd... pretty damned trusting though," he thought to himself. The boy ran into the boat, and Sonic blinked for a moment.
Looking up from the crate he had been sitting on, Sonic's eyes lit up as he saw the boy holding the glowing blue gem. "I'll be damned..." Sonic smirked, jumping up and running over to the boy.
Smiling brightly, the boy turned the emerald in his hands before handing it to Sonic. "My name is Phillip, sorry I didn't introduce myself sooner."
Laughing slightly, Sonic tossed the emerald up and caught it on its way down before shrugging. "It's alright, don't worry about it. Listen, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to get back with this thing... so.." Sonic looked off for a moment before tilting his head and looking back. "Thanks for not giving me any trouble kid."
Phillip nodded and smiled before looking out over the Tasman Sea. Looking out as well, Sonic groaned; he had spent all day wandering the streets of the city, and now he realized by the sunset that it was nearly dark. Looking back to the city, Sonic snorted. "It will be hard to find a way back now that I think about it... I can get a hold of Eggman but it will take him awhile to come for me."
Laughing, Phillip waved a hand in dismissal and tilted his head back, smiling towards the boat. "You can sleep on the boat, or on the dock here for the night if you want! It's very safe, I sleep outdoors all the time!" Grinning broadly, Phillip ran to the boat and grabbed a fairly large amount of netting. Unfolding it, Sonic saw that it was indeed a hammock. As Phillip strung the Hammock up next to the boat, Sonic shrugged before smiling.
"Guess it wouldn't hurt to stay... Sure, why not? Do you have a phone I can use by chance?" Phillip nodded and pointed down the docks to a payphone rigged up on a telephone pole. Waving, Sonic ran down the docks to the phone.
The White Bat let out a long sigh as she slipped her goggles up onto her forehead and closed her eyes, leaning back in the driver's seat of her car. Looking off into the distance, she smiled at the ocean, clad in darkness. "Well, took me long enough, but I finally made it." Yawning, Rouge placed a hand over her mouth before closing her eyes and kicking back. "I'll just take a short nap and then start up in a little while.. Not like we're really in a rush, G.U.A.R.D. still isn't too organized down here on Earth, and there's no one else after the Emeralds..."
"What?" Sonic asked through the receiver, looking off at the now blackened sea.
"We have a serious problem... two extremely dangerous devices are missing from my lab..." Eggman's voice rang out through the speaker into Sonic's ear.
Groaning, Sonic closed his eyes and placed a hand over his forehead. "Did someone steal them?"
"I can't tell, all of the systems are still re-booting from being shut down, and I cannot get a log file or damage reports."
"Well, while that stuff is loading, come out here and get me." Sonic peered over at the hammock set up for him through spread fingers, and he sighed. "I'm not one for hammocks..."
Eggman's voice was silent for a moment before he responded. "Will do, be ready in about five hours. I'll be there then." A click signaled that Eggman had hung up, and Sonic put the phone back down, turning and slowly walking back to the hammock, falling back into it and sighing as he leaned back. "I can't stand these things..." He muttered, before he felt the sudden urge to sleep overtake him.
Bright neon lights blared out, large Television screens suspended in the air played commercials for sodas and clothes as the small figure stood silently in the opening of a dark back-alley. Slowly tilting his head up, the white muzzle of the Orange Fox poked out from under the navy-blue baseball cap, his soft blue eyes reflecting the various lights like pools as he slowly took a step out into the bright lights of the street. Looking up at the pitch-black night sky, Miles was surprised how active the area was. "... sure is a lot going on.." he muttered to himself as he began walking down the street, peering out from under the brim of his hat, looking for clues. "... This... might take awhile.." Miles sighed as he watched all of the people on the street, some appearing slightly tipsy, while others where just out enjoying the nightlife.
Arghing and slapping both hands on his forehead, Miles cursed. "Why'd I pick this place? It's freaking HUGE! And who knows where the hell that thing went..." Blinking, Miles looked up at the large neon sign with a diamond on it. Japanese characters shone in red under the picture as Miles shrugged and placed a hand against the door handle. "Guess this is as good a place as any to start..."
Sonic's eyes shot open, his green oculars reflecting the brilliant dancing of flames. Sonic jumped up, horror-stricken as he viewed the Boat so close to him engulfed in flames. As the body of the boat slowly sank down into the water, Sonic made an ill attempt to run forward, but slid to a stop as the boat sank beneath the black depths, wreckage and some of the surrounding dock the only things still aflame.
His eye twitching, Sonic gripped the Chaos Emerald firmly in his hand before a sinister laugh emitted from above. Looking up, Sonic stumbled backwards, staring in horror as he saw the bright red eyes staring right back at him. The black figure of a hedgehog, almost identical to himself in shape, stood atop one of the telephone poles, thin wisps of smoke trailing from the hand it lowered as he turned to a stance, emitting another chuckle.
Sonic growled, sliding a foot back and preparing to launch himself upward. "You fucking coward... how dare you attack innocent people like that!?"
The black shape of the hedgehog slowly moved an arm forward, and the palm of its hand became engulfed in green flames. Groaning, Sonic made to dodge, but his eyes shot down towards the docks, where a quick blurr of blackness was shooting towards the pole, blood red eyes reflecting the remaining flames as the figure shot up towards the hedgehog atop the pole. Arghing, the hedgehog was knocked from its perch by the figure, and both plummeted into the cold black sea.
Gritting his teeth, Sonic decided, and turned, shooting off down the docks. Looking up into the sky, Sonic heard the loud roar of engines, and he turned out onto a pier. Stopping at the end, Sonic watched as the Egg Hornet lowered itself over the water. The new two-person cockpit Eggman had installed opened up, and Sonic jumped in, the Hornet immediately taking off. The cockpit sliding shut, Eggman hit the thrust and they shot off into the night, just as Sonic looked back to see a large yellow explosion and two black figures battling on the docks.
Turning back over the seat, Eggman groaned. "What, in the HELL, was all That about!?"
Sonic, still staring down at the city as it grew steadily smaller, sighed and closed his eyes. "... I think it's an old friend of yours." Opening his eyes, Sonic turned and stared coldly at Eggman. "So, why don't YOU tell me what the Hell is going on? I thought Shadow was Dead."
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The cold and wet, frozen white powder crushed under the weight of the Red Echidna's feet as he trudged through the snow, cold jets of air blasting rain, sleet and snow into his face. Chilled to the bone, Knuckles groaned loudly; only a soft noise in the howling winds. "Crap... How-Much- More-Can-There-BE!?" Looking around from under his arm, Knuckles peered at the snow-covered plains, bordered on all sides by mountains, capped in white. The black and gray storm clouds where barely visible now from the continuous rain of white snow.
Taking a step forward, Knuckle's eyes widened as he felt the ground give way more than it should. A loud curse and ply to jump back where consumed by the sudden collapse of the earth, and Knuckles found himself falling down a deep icy crevasse, amongst the chaos of broken ice and snow that had once concealed it. His eyes closed as he tumbled downward, Knuckles' stomach sank and he cursed himself. "Is this it..?" The Echidna thought to himself, feeling the air condense as the sides of the crevasse began to close together the farther he fell.
A white figure clad in tight black leather, her gentle blue eyes staring into his mind suddenly flashed, and Knuckle's eyes shot open. Teeth gritted, he threw his body against the spin and sliced out with his massive knuckles, digging them into the ice as his body snapped back up. Suspended against the wall, Knuckles peered down the deep hole, and stared in awe as the walls on either side continued to move in until deep down, there was no more than a foot between them.
Teeth gritted, sweat dripped down Knuckles' face, despite the cold, as he stared in terror. "... I would've been stuck in that..." he muttered. Closing his eyes tightly, he shook his head before looking up with determination. "Time to get the hell out of this thing." Pulling himself up, Knuckles slashed his other pair of knuckles into the ice, before slipping his first pair out and slashing them in above the others. Repeating this process, the Echidna slowly climbed his way up towards the black sky above.
The Blue Hedgehog hrmmed to himself as he slowly walked down the sidewalk, skyscrapers towering above. Smaller buildings where passed by as Sonic made his way to the coastline. "Sydney is pretty big.." Sonic thought, his eyes darting all around, looking for any signs that might lead to the emerald he was after.
Coming across the docks, Sonic peered up and down them, looking around. Noting a large amount of fishing boats, Sonic shrugged to himself. "Guess it's possible it fell in the sea... could always check if anyone's dragged it up." Turning, Sonic made his way towards the boats. Stopping, Sonic arched a brow as his eyes caught the sight of a young boy, his clothes tattered; probably from working on the boat he was currently unloading traps from. Shrugging, Sonic strode up to the boat and rested an arm on the side, leaning forward and placing his weight on the boat. "Yo kid... happen to have seen any-" Sonic's eyes shot open and he fell back as the boy had turned and yelled out.
"You're Finally Back!!" Sonic blinked for a moment before looking around uneasily.
"Uhm.." Sonic muttered, before the Boy's bright expression slipped.
"Wait... you're blue.." The boy blinked, tilting his head and staring at Sonic for a moment. "You're not my friend.."
Sonic forced an odd smile and scratched his head. "Sorry kid... listen, would you of happened to have seen a large blue gem? It would be cut, not just a large hunk of material.."
The boy's eyes widened slightly, and he looked away for a moment before looking at Sonic through the corner of his eye, fear apparent in his eyes. "And why would you want to know...?"
Sonic's mouth curled as he frowned slightly and he narrowed his eyes. "Listen kid... I don't have time to be explaining stuff. I need that gem, have you seen it?"
"What's your name?" the boy asked quickly.
"Sonic" he replied simply.
The boy blinked for a moment, before his face lightened up and he smiled. "You mean you're Sonic The Hedgehog!? I've heard all sorts of stories about you! You saved the world from that thing up in space!!" Jumping over the side of the boat and onto the dock, the boy extended his hand and smiled enthusiastically.
Grinning embarrassedly, Sonic took the boy's hand and gave a quick shake before pulling back. "So... uhm... have you seen it?" The boy blinked for a moment, and Sonic kept himself from slapping his own forehead in frustration. "The large gem." Sonic reminded him.
The boy blinked again for a moment, before seeming to snap back into reality. "Oh yes! We found it a few days ago, really late at night. My friend said it was really important, so he convinced my dad to go out and bring it up! Luckily it wasn't very deep." The boy smiled and nodded towards the boat. "My friend told me not to give it to anyone... but you're Sonic! Obviously you have a good reason to need it."
Sonic felt a bead of sweat drip down his face. "This kid is kind of odd... pretty damned trusting though," he thought to himself. The boy ran into the boat, and Sonic blinked for a moment.
Looking up from the crate he had been sitting on, Sonic's eyes lit up as he saw the boy holding the glowing blue gem. "I'll be damned..." Sonic smirked, jumping up and running over to the boy.
Smiling brightly, the boy turned the emerald in his hands before handing it to Sonic. "My name is Phillip, sorry I didn't introduce myself sooner."
Laughing slightly, Sonic tossed the emerald up and caught it on its way down before shrugging. "It's alright, don't worry about it. Listen, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to get back with this thing... so.." Sonic looked off for a moment before tilting his head and looking back. "Thanks for not giving me any trouble kid."
Phillip nodded and smiled before looking out over the Tasman Sea. Looking out as well, Sonic groaned; he had spent all day wandering the streets of the city, and now he realized by the sunset that it was nearly dark. Looking back to the city, Sonic snorted. "It will be hard to find a way back now that I think about it... I can get a hold of Eggman but it will take him awhile to come for me."
Laughing, Phillip waved a hand in dismissal and tilted his head back, smiling towards the boat. "You can sleep on the boat, or on the dock here for the night if you want! It's very safe, I sleep outdoors all the time!" Grinning broadly, Phillip ran to the boat and grabbed a fairly large amount of netting. Unfolding it, Sonic saw that it was indeed a hammock. As Phillip strung the Hammock up next to the boat, Sonic shrugged before smiling.
"Guess it wouldn't hurt to stay... Sure, why not? Do you have a phone I can use by chance?" Phillip nodded and pointed down the docks to a payphone rigged up on a telephone pole. Waving, Sonic ran down the docks to the phone.
The White Bat let out a long sigh as she slipped her goggles up onto her forehead and closed her eyes, leaning back in the driver's seat of her car. Looking off into the distance, she smiled at the ocean, clad in darkness. "Well, took me long enough, but I finally made it." Yawning, Rouge placed a hand over her mouth before closing her eyes and kicking back. "I'll just take a short nap and then start up in a little while.. Not like we're really in a rush, G.U.A.R.D. still isn't too organized down here on Earth, and there's no one else after the Emeralds..."
"What?" Sonic asked through the receiver, looking off at the now blackened sea.
"We have a serious problem... two extremely dangerous devices are missing from my lab..." Eggman's voice rang out through the speaker into Sonic's ear.
Groaning, Sonic closed his eyes and placed a hand over his forehead. "Did someone steal them?"
"I can't tell, all of the systems are still re-booting from being shut down, and I cannot get a log file or damage reports."
"Well, while that stuff is loading, come out here and get me." Sonic peered over at the hammock set up for him through spread fingers, and he sighed. "I'm not one for hammocks..."
Eggman's voice was silent for a moment before he responded. "Will do, be ready in about five hours. I'll be there then." A click signaled that Eggman had hung up, and Sonic put the phone back down, turning and slowly walking back to the hammock, falling back into it and sighing as he leaned back. "I can't stand these things..." He muttered, before he felt the sudden urge to sleep overtake him.
Bright neon lights blared out, large Television screens suspended in the air played commercials for sodas and clothes as the small figure stood silently in the opening of a dark back-alley. Slowly tilting his head up, the white muzzle of the Orange Fox poked out from under the navy-blue baseball cap, his soft blue eyes reflecting the various lights like pools as he slowly took a step out into the bright lights of the street. Looking up at the pitch-black night sky, Miles was surprised how active the area was. "... sure is a lot going on.." he muttered to himself as he began walking down the street, peering out from under the brim of his hat, looking for clues. "... This... might take awhile.." Miles sighed as he watched all of the people on the street, some appearing slightly tipsy, while others where just out enjoying the nightlife.
Arghing and slapping both hands on his forehead, Miles cursed. "Why'd I pick this place? It's freaking HUGE! And who knows where the hell that thing went..." Blinking, Miles looked up at the large neon sign with a diamond on it. Japanese characters shone in red under the picture as Miles shrugged and placed a hand against the door handle. "Guess this is as good a place as any to start..."
Sonic's eyes shot open, his green oculars reflecting the brilliant dancing of flames. Sonic jumped up, horror-stricken as he viewed the Boat so close to him engulfed in flames. As the body of the boat slowly sank down into the water, Sonic made an ill attempt to run forward, but slid to a stop as the boat sank beneath the black depths, wreckage and some of the surrounding dock the only things still aflame.
His eye twitching, Sonic gripped the Chaos Emerald firmly in his hand before a sinister laugh emitted from above. Looking up, Sonic stumbled backwards, staring in horror as he saw the bright red eyes staring right back at him. The black figure of a hedgehog, almost identical to himself in shape, stood atop one of the telephone poles, thin wisps of smoke trailing from the hand it lowered as he turned to a stance, emitting another chuckle.
Sonic growled, sliding a foot back and preparing to launch himself upward. "You fucking coward... how dare you attack innocent people like that!?"
The black shape of the hedgehog slowly moved an arm forward, and the palm of its hand became engulfed in green flames. Groaning, Sonic made to dodge, but his eyes shot down towards the docks, where a quick blurr of blackness was shooting towards the pole, blood red eyes reflecting the remaining flames as the figure shot up towards the hedgehog atop the pole. Arghing, the hedgehog was knocked from its perch by the figure, and both plummeted into the cold black sea.
Gritting his teeth, Sonic decided, and turned, shooting off down the docks. Looking up into the sky, Sonic heard the loud roar of engines, and he turned out onto a pier. Stopping at the end, Sonic watched as the Egg Hornet lowered itself over the water. The new two-person cockpit Eggman had installed opened up, and Sonic jumped in, the Hornet immediately taking off. The cockpit sliding shut, Eggman hit the thrust and they shot off into the night, just as Sonic looked back to see a large yellow explosion and two black figures battling on the docks.
Turning back over the seat, Eggman groaned. "What, in the HELL, was all That about!?"
Sonic, still staring down at the city as it grew steadily smaller, sighed and closed his eyes. "... I think it's an old friend of yours." Opening his eyes, Sonic turned and stared coldly at Eggman. "So, why don't YOU tell me what the Hell is going on? I thought Shadow was Dead."