S. Chensu: No, /you/ put it up late. I had work on Sunday and was knackered by the time I got home. You could have put it up.
Luff: Um, I was too lazy?
S. Chensu: Sigh Never mind. It's up now.
Luff: Phew! Anyway, time for reviewer replies:
crimson-88- Thanks for the review! Gregg won't actually look for them himself; it's mainly Shaylea and Kensa. We're usually a couple of episodes ahead anyway so if we get writer's block, we'll have some backups. This episode is focusing on Rouge. The episode after that is Knuckles! (How did you guess?)
RichaCo- Yep, this story is going to get complicated but when you read some of the later episodes, you can see some connections. Tails, Eggman and Marie will come up in time but for now it's Rouge. As for what happens to Rouge and Knuckles, we can't tell you or it'll spoil the plot!
The sleeping Yugi, Mai and some other Yamis too- Hope Yugi had a nice sleep and that him and Yami didn't get up to anything too naughty! But anyway, thanks for looking at S. Chensu's two Yu-Gi-Oh! stories, she'll put them up when she has chapter six done of Figure 0.9 and part five of the as yet nameless story. Luff will tell you at school when Chen is putting them up.
Dragon Master Naya- Well, I suppose it could have been crickets but worms sounded funnier! And plus, there's this bit on Conker's Bad Fur Day (where Gregg comes from) where you have to dodge these big squirrel eating worms. It sort of comes from that. And as for your request, here you go hands Dragon Master Naya a shiny, black, pretty feather to play with. It's yours to keep (seeing as some of the others have one too) until you need a new one.
S. Chensu: Anyway, don't own the Sonic characters but own the story and the place. And Marie too.Luff: Shut up and let them read!
Episode nineteen: Cliff top missionRouge was so angry and upset over what had happened she never noticed the portal and went straight into it. She was transported to the top of a cliff where she suddenly realised what was happening.
"What? Where am I? It's all his fault, that naïve, insolent…" She fumed as she looked around. On one side was the sea and on the other was an infinite amount of grass. The sky was cloudy and the waves were very foamy. Noticing a light, she looked at it and perceived a tall building. The wind was strong and as she stood there, she thought she heard it say something.
Make for the building… She turned around, trying to find the person but no one was there.
"What was that? Never mind, I suppose going to that place won't hurt…" She said as she walked forward.
No sooner had she moved than something flew down from the sky. Looking up, she saw a seagull heading straight for her and ran out of the way. It squawked in anger as it rose in the air and Rouge slowed down.
"Killer seagulls? And cold weather! I don't think it can get any worse…" Just then, it started to rain. "Now it's raining? Great!" She used her wings as an umbrella and she ran towards a small clump of trees ahead. She entered and shook herself dry. She looked to where the building was and sighed. "It's going to take ages to get there…maybe I can stay here until the rain passes." She sat herself down and stared at the rain coming down. "Look at yourself Rouge, everything was going all right until you met Knuckles…"
As she said this, a bolt of lightning shot through the sky. The rumble came shortly afterwards and Rouge sighed.
"I know what you mean. And now, I'm pompous and a user. Plus I'm caught in a rain storm under some trees." A tear ran down her face as she thought of Knuckles. "Why do I care anyway? He insulted me and deliberately misunderstood me too."
"But did he? I thought he was good at misinterpreting what people said…" A voice said above her.
"Who's there?" She shouted as she jumped up. A shadow stood in the trees but when she tried to fly up there, it disappeared. "I wonder what that was about…" She shrugged her shoulders and sat down again. "Does that person have a point though? He can take things in the wrong way…but that doesn't mean he had to be so hurtful." She took out the shard of the Master Emerald and held it in her hand. She stared at it, not thinking about much in particular. As she sat there, an image suddenly came into her head.
Knuckles stood at the top of a range of mountains. The sun shone brightly in the sky and he held onto the rock as he stared out over the mountains. He held the Master Emerald in his hand and she noticed that he seemed to be staring not at the mountains but the gap in it. He shook his head and put the Emerald away before making his way downwards.
The woods came back to Rouge and she looked around, trying to understand what had just happened.
"What was that all about? That must be where he is now… But he doesn't matter to me anymore. It's all for the best, it must be." She noticed that the rain had stopped now so she put the Emerald away before standing up. She exited the woods and saw that unlike before, the sun was now shining and the sea had grown calm.
She checked the sky for seagulls and after being reassured that there were none, she stood by the edge of the cliff. Looking out, she saw a range of snow-topped mountains.
"Why is he still haunting me? I thought I made it clear that I don't care about him any longer!" She shouted out, although she knew no one was there. She shook her head and now the mountains were gone. Shrugging her shoulders she searched around for the building. She saw the place standing out to sea on top of a cliff. "There it is! Hmm, it would probably be quicker to fly there." She set off into the air and headed for the building.
Nothing happened for some time and she enjoyed the views of the sea. As she neared the building though, she heard the squawking of something she would have been pleased not to see again. But this time, a group of birds flew at her and she couldn't protect herself against them. She covered her face with her arms as she was forced downwards when suddenly, they stopped attacking her.
Looking upwards, she saw a blur of fire burn the seagulls and they flew back to the cliff, screeching in anger. Some of them fell into the sea and Rouge smiled when she crashed into it too. On instinct she kicked as hard as she could and surfaced, coughing. She swam to the shore and sat on the beach to dry herself out.
"What was that fire thing? I would sure like to thank it for what it did." She heard a crackling sound behind her.
"It was my pleasure to help you. Maybe we will meet each other again some time. But for now Rouge, goodbye." A person made out of flames stood in front of her. When it had finished speaking, it flapped its wings and sped off into the sky. The only thing that remained behind was a black feather. Rouge picked it up and kept it, not knowing why.
"I suppose I had better get back up there sometime soon." She stood up and started to climb up the cliff. It was crumbly and so it was hard at some points but she managed it without being attacked by anything. She pulled herself up over the edge and sat on the cliff for a few minutes, getting her breath back. "Maybe I should walk the rest of the way." She commented as she stood up.
She smiled to herself as she walked along, a light breeze in the air. She forgot about her worries and gazed around, looking for the building. She was surprised when she saw how close she was to it and stopped for a moment to take it all in.
The building was similar to an Ancient Greek temple only it was black. The roof was held up by four large pillars and was triangular in shape. The temple stood at the top of a set of stairs, which Rouge started to climb. As she did so, the stairs changed into a slide and she slipped down to the bottom.
"Ouch!" She exclaimed as she crashed at the bottom. "What is going on here?" Yet again she heard crackling behind her and she turned around to be faced by the flame creature.
"Just because a building's there doesn't mean it's going to let you in easily. You have run into a very stubborn place that won't let people in unless they're worthy." It said.
"You mean that building is…alive?" Rouge said astounded.
"Yes, all buildings in this place are. I will help you up there but you must turn around and not look at me."
"But why?"
"Because I cannot risk you seeing who I really am. Please or I won't be able to help you." Rouge sighed and did as the person said. The crackling noise disappeared and was replaced by the sound of a wind. She looked at where the person was but was now met by a wispy white figure. It raised its hands and Rouge felt herself lifted into the air. She kept still and was soon standing by the door. She looked around for the figure but it had disappeared.
"This adventure is getting stranger by the minute…" She muttered to herself before turning to face the door.
The door had a large engraving of a dragon standing on its hind legs, breathing out fire. Looking at the building she also noticed that it had more than one floor. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and entered the mysterious building.
Luff: Short and sweet.
S. Chensu: Crap.
Luff: Don't be like that!
S. Chensu: Anyway, next episode is up on Friday. I'm going bowling with some friends but hopefully Luff will remember to update!
Luff: Whatever. Just review until the update on Friday 2nd March.