Chapter 18 – Chaos, Panic, Disorder and Athair.
A/N: Right, this is where things start getting really manic. Hope you enjoy it, and just to reassure some reviewers:
Sonicron – Big, yes, I have plans for him, but not right now; he's not a big player in this fic, but in the continuation from this fic, you'll start to hear more about him and, more importantly, why he's such a good artist and fisherman.
Proplayer – Cinnamon's mentioned in Angel of Darkness and Ice; she's a small cat girl, friends with Shadow and owns a large Akita dog called Akki. It's better explained in AODAI, but I reckon for this story that's all you need to know about her.
R. Wolfsbane – Right, okay; oh look, here are the nice men in sparkly white coats – remember that nice warm jacket they gave you last time, and the soft little white room as well? Just stay cool and this should be relatively painless… (author legs it as tranq gun goes off).
Spectre brought his hand back and knocked again; though by and large he left his fourth-son alone as much as possible, this time he had no choice but to risk dementia by speaking to him in his own doorway. Things needed to be made plain enough for Athair to understand and alone of all the guardians Spectre was the only one who could ensure he'd get the message. The black echidna scowled and knocked again, realising it was unlike the hyper echidna to leave anyone on the doorstep unless he was brewing something really big; the eldest guardian shivered as he recalled the last time no-one had seen Athair for three days. Digging a tunnel to the surface, then causing absolute mayhem in the Silver Sea; Spectre shuddered as he recalled just how much of a meal the press had made of it; not everyday they see a guardian skinny-dipping in broad daylight; he threw himself back into the present and cut off the excruciating memories by knocking a fourth time, raising his voice this time,
"Athair, I know you're in there; I just want to say something". Straining his ears, the elder was relieved to hear his manic fourth-son reply back,
"Sorry fourth-father, just coming". There was a click as the handle turned, Spectre shuffled back, looked up at his flying descendent and was promptly struck blind. Reeling from the explosion of colour in front of him, Spectre covered his traumatised retina cells with one paw and shouted,
"Athair, what are you wearing?"
"Just something I made when I had a little time on my hands", he looked down at his creation, admiring the way the dyes he'd used had run together and stained the boring white material of the shirt into a joyous riot of colour; he scratched his head as his fourth-father appeared not to be able to look at him without his eyes going crossed and watering, "is something wrong – the colours aren't clashing are they?"
"No fourth-son", Spectre was able to answer in perfect truth, "they're waging all-out war; go and take it off then come back". Athair flew back a little way before looking at the black echidna beseechingly,
"But fourth-father…"
"Now!" There's no way I can compromise on that; Spectre shuddered as he imagined what might happen if Athair wore that horror whilst flying – visions of much queasiness and motion sickness flitted in front of him before he shut his mind off. There was a huff, a muffled sound of clothing being removed and then Athair tapped him on the shoulder,
"All done"; thank the Master; Spectre turned around to see his fourth-son now dressed in his normal attire of bangles in his hair and spines. Straightening himself, Spectre addressed his eccentric relative.
"Good, now Athair, you know we're having guests today…" The flying echidna gave a cheer and danced a mid-air jig in celebration, whooping out loud as Spectre tried hard not to blast his fourth-son with his gifts,
"I know, isn't it wonderful fourth-father; I have to look my best", Athair made to head back into his room, calling over his shoulder, "help me pick out what to we…". He never finished that sentence; Spectre's fraying temper ran through and he gripped onto his fourth-son telekinetically, dragging Athair backwards by a couple of his bound spines. As he felt himself come to a stop, the flying echidna inverted his body, allowing him to see Spectre upside-down without putting too much pressure on his captive dreads.
"Some other time maybe?" Spectre smiled deviously as he brought his face very close to Athair's, his voice grating harshly,
"Yes, about these guests; I want you to act like you did yesterday – do not, I repeat do not, embarrass the Brotherhood by acting like you normally do or else". Athair sighed as he recognised this was Spectre immoveable; he didn't have a choice in the matter and, knowing his fourth-father, he could almost guarantee the 'or else' would be much less than pleasant. Still inverted, he crossed his arms and gave a pained smile,
"I'll try fourth-father…"
"No, you'll succeed", Spectre told him; Athair's answering look bordered on mutinous, so the elder echidna decided it was time to bring out the big guns, "or I'll have Locke break out the lead-lined straight-jacket and you won't fly for a month".
"No fourth-father", Athair fell to the floor in shock of the threat and scrabbled over to Spectre, hugging him around the thighs as he bawled, "I'llbegoodI'llbegoodI'llbegood!" Spectre reached down and patted him on the head and, feeling a little twinge of pity after that monumental threat, decided to offer a carrot as well as a stick,
"I know you won't let me down fourth-son; behave well and I'll, er, I'll let you cook a feast when the guests have to go". Athair's fear vanished as Spectre had known it would and he took off again – it was a little unfortunate perhaps that he neglected to let go of Spectre's legs before he did so. There was a resounding clang as the black echidna's helmet impacted on the top of Athair's doorframe.
"Oops, sorry; umm, fourth-father, remember, your blood pressure". A dangerous growl was Spectre's only response.
Minutes later, Sabre threw himself to the side as Athair hurtled down the corridor with Spectre in hot pursuit, screaming for his fourth-son to stand and face him like a man. And he wanted Athair to behave civilised; Sabre sighed and polished his monocle; still, at least if Spectre catches him Athair can't do too much damage in the hospital wing.
XXX
A short while later, Rouge jumped backwards in time to dodge Knuckles' latest punch and threw her hands up before the echidna could press, pointing at the sky and shouting,
"They're here; I can hear the Tornado". Knuckles swept his eyes upwards and, sure enough, there was the familiar silhouette of his fox friend's plane coming in, casting a long shadow from the pale, watery sunlight of the mild winter day. The guardian smiled; soon he'd be able to recite the speech he had prepared in his head and give the rest of his friends the shock of their lives. Standing to the side as it made its final approach run, Knuckles leant over and whispered to Rouge,
"Let me handle this one; I've got a good idea what I want to say".
"Go for it; they're your family after all". Whatever Knuckles' reply was, it was drowned out as the plane landed with the usual thump and disturbance of twigs from leafless tree branches. The guardian stood immobile as the forwards momentum of the small plane was killed off and the landing ramp deployed; to his slight surprise, the first person out, rather than Sonic, was one of the Chaotix; he was almost sure the name was Espio but he couldn't have sworn on it as the rest of the party joined the proceedings, Tails and Cream descending from the cockpit as Shadow made up the last of the numbers on the ground. Walking around stiffly, Sonic massaged some life back into his thighs as he addressed the guardian,
"Hey Knucks; well the gang's all here, where's the party at? And are you wearing a jacket?"
"Yes I am; it's called fashion Sonic, you should check a dictionary some time"; the blue hedgehog grimaced at his saying from Christmas catching him out as Knuckles sniggered at the blue hedgehog's awkward gait, "besides, what happened to you; seatbelt too tight?"
"Not quite" the blue blur grunted, not wanting to get too deep into the intricacies of why his thighs were burning up; of course, Shadow saw this gilt-edge chance and seized it with both hands,
"Due to a lack of seats, some of us were forced to double up and, well, Sonikku drew the short straw".
"I'll bet he enjoyed that" Knuckles managed to say with a straight face as Amy blushed with a grin and Sonic speared daggers from his eyes into Shadow, face beginning to burn again even if, he admitted, the journey hadn't been too bad and the book they'd been jointly reading had held his interest admirably. However, the echidna realised the sooner this was said the better, so without further ado, he clapped his hands and addressed them all again,
"Right, well, I regret to inform you that you've been led here under slightly false pretences", in unison, eight heads snapped up to look at the guardian squarely.
The moon; that was present, but was it a smile then, or a dagger to cut me with? The being felt part of the mist evaporate as the light of the crescent moon shone through. The host seems to know it; I must research her memories when the opportunity arises.
"What you talking about furry – I'm not keen on this talk of false pretences" Vector rumbled, summing up what the others were feeling if not outwardly expressing. The echidna held up his hands, a smile starting to creep across his face as he thought about their reactions were going to plummet in a second.
"Don't sweat it; no-one's in trouble, but there's something we all need to do. Take a seat, believe me you'll need one, and I'll explain"; with several swapped glances and low mutterings, the group sank to the floor as Knuckles set about explaining,
"Right, well things have changed on the island since any of you were here last. It started nearly a week ago; the Master started pulsing and suddenly the island started expanding…"
"Expanding?" Tails cut in, looking at the guardian as though he'd just sprouted wings, "as in, there's more of it than before?"
"Give the foxboy a prize", Knuckles declared, gently mocking but confirming the kit's suspicions with a nod, "but he's right; Angel Island just got a lot bigger".
"How?" asked one or more of the throng; raising his voice and waving them down, Knuckles sought to answer their questions,
"No I'm not joking, I don't know how or why it happened but listen up", gradually, the others fell silent and he spoke again; that hadn't been as bad as he'd expected, but this was where it really all kicked off,
"Right, well as it's my job, myself and Rouge decided to go exploring this new land, and what we found was, a little unexpected". A laugh sounded out from behind the echidna; Rouge pointed at her partner and spoke up,
"A little; by that he means I told him and he nearly passed out on me", there were a few sniggers at this, but mostly there was a pregnant, expecting silence – the guardians had the rest of the Mobians present on the hook and they were all listening intently as the bat dropped the bomb for a second time, "there's now a city on Angel Island; a city populated by echidnas".
Silence.
Still silence.
Then a tiny declaration,
"You're joking?"
"No we're not" Knuckles assured everyone present, deflecting their awed, shocked looks as he spoke again, "somehow, my people have reappeared here, so all those I'll-make-the-echidnas-extinct threats won't work any more" he smiled, looking at Amy especially as the pink hedgehog opened and closed her mouth like a fish, utterly uncomprehending of this news. Of all the things I expected up here; it was Espio's voice that brought most of the others back to Earth as the chameleon recovered from the impact fastest.
"So, so this place now has a population greater than one?"
"Two", Rouge corrected him before nodding in agreement, "and yes, by some method we haven't yet found out, the long lost echidna civilisation somehow got itself unlost. The city's called Echidnopolis, and from what we could tell, the echidnas in it don't yet know the rest of the world exists". Despite the seriousness and shock of the situation, Sonic couldn't help but joke; rolling his eyes and sighing dramatically, the blue hedgehog groaned aloud,
"Oh great, an entire civilisation of blade-fisted hillbillies; yep, sounds like Knucks'll fit right in". Strangely, the normally hot-tempered guardian kept his cool and replied to the witticism with a smirk,
"Actually spiky, only about one in five male echidnas have spurs, and I'd start treating me nicely from now on".
"And why would I do that – you'll call for back-up?"
"Dead right for once Sonic", the blue hedgehog glanced up as Knuckles silently thanked him for the opening to squeeze this in relatively painlessly, "as well as the city, something else came back, something more, personal". Every Mobian regarded their friend, but it was Cream, so used to these expressions and emotions involved, who understood; without a second thought, her hands covered her mouth and she squeaked,
"You, Mr Knuckles…"
"You're right floppy", his eyes were wet as the truth shone through, though there was no mistaking the joy and contentment in his tone, "this is why I sent the call out; I, I found my family, and they want to meet you all".
Knuckles had been prepared for a violent reaction, but even he couldn't have predicted the sheer scale of chaos that ensured from his announcement. Before he was fully aware anyone had moved, a beige blur slammed into him as Cream, yelling in joy, shot forwards and wrapped her arms as far around him as she could manage. He might have been able to survive and regain his balance had a second, heavier impact not crashed into him as Tails was overcome. The two kids bowled him over as a crescendo of cheers and riotous jubilation erupted from the throats of his friends; everyone with the exception of the Chaotix, who didn't know the echidna well enough to get really involved, launched themselves into party mood. Knuckles was assailed from all sides by back-slapping, several hugs from the girls and handshakes all around from his male friends. Amid the confusion, Tails managed to disentangle himself and roar at the top of his lungs,
"Right, everyone in the Tornado now!"
"Hold it!" Knuckles managed to roar equally loudly; this was the one chance he had to both explain things more fully and, much as it may pain him to do so, prevent one of his friends making a possibly terminal faux pas in the future, "just, cool it a sec; I'm not done yet". His friends sat back down, eyes shining and eager for more good news; for a second Knuckles faltered; could he really dash that hope? He quickly checked behind him, but this time Rouge couldn't help; she knew that this was his own choice and only he could make it.
"Well Knucks, what else you gotta say; don't keep us all in the dark". Sonic was nearly buzzing with excitement, missing the darkening of his friend's eyes as Knuckles spoke again,
"Listen, it's not all good news", a large proportion of the excitement drained away not from the words, but more the tone in which they were spoken; the echidna was quiet and his voice was full of dignified suffering as he sought to conquer his recently acquired personal demons, "my mum and dad, well, they, ah, they're divorced now; please, don't ask why, I'll, tell you all, some other time, just not now".
There was a second silence, but this time it was not pleasant; no-one wanted to take this news in. Knuckles lowered his head as the searing fire of having an incomplete family burned into him again. He was gradually aware of movement, a single Mobian stood rose from the silent mass,
"Knucks man", Sonic stepped forwards softly and put his hand on the echidnas shoulder, green eyes mournful as he silently railed at the injustice; Knuckles had been denied a family his whole life and just when he finds it again, though no fault of his own it's broken and bitter; where's the justice in that? Sealing away his internal resentment of the gross unfairness, acting strong for his friend, the hedgehog pressed into the fur reassuringly as he spoke the only words he could find, aware of how pitifully insignificant they sounded even to him.
"I'm sorry".
The guardian chuckled ruefully, aware of the respectful silence that had descended and the sorrowful expressions on the formerly celebratory faces of his friends; gently placing his massive paw atop the hedgehogs, Knuckles heaved a sigh and spoke again,
"Thanks Sonic, that means a lot", the hedgehog nodded, smiled slightly and then retook his place on the ground as Knuckles decided to leave that morsel to the side for now, "but, guys, listen up; this is important – one side of my family is made up entirely of guardians, and they're the reason for me being like I am", noticing the renewed looks of interest, Knuckles pressed on, "the guardians live by a code, and part of that code is that the youngest must fend for themselves. Basically, when we're five or so, the future guardian is abandoned – it sounds barbaric", Knuckles held up a paw, buying himself enough time to finish what he'd started, "but I can understand it; by being alone here so young, we grow up on the island and become almost part of it – it's that growing and adapting to the island and the Master that lets us become guardians".
"But, in that case", Vector scratched the side of his head, looking at the guardian askew, "how'd you get here in the first place; I'm assuming the other guardians, if there are any, weren't here all the time, so where were they in all this?" Knuckles bit his lip as he considered the crocodile's question, trying to think of the best way to answer something he wasn't truly sure of himself. He tried to give the best answer he could,
"Well, for a start the other guardians live in the part of Angel Island that was lost, if you like, but occasionally they can cross over from that part to the rest of it; I never asked how though". That answer pricked Tails' intelligence and with a gasp something huge crystallised in his mind; he shot to his feet and jabbed a finger at Knuckles,
"You never asked; there are other guardians out there?"
"You bet there are"; thanks Tails; the echidna smiled as he realised that question would make the transition from his past to his family's request almost seamless, "and they're all part of my family; they're the ones who want to see you all".
"Why", Shadow pursed his lips as he thought about why the guardians would be interested in them all, "we haven't done anything wrong have we?"
"No, not at all", Knuckles was quick to reassure them all, smiling as he cocked his head, "they just want to make sure of something".
"What?" The echidna laughed at the question from Amy and tapped the side of his nose,
"Not telling, see if you can guess; give you a clue though", he leant forwards as everyone put their thinking caps on, "it's the one thing that you've all done". Charmy leapt to a guess and excitement bubbled in his voice; just for once I beat Esp and Vec to it.
"I know", everyone turned to see the bee flutter into the air, grinning smugly, "the Metal Overlord; we all fought that together right?"
"Okay, it's one of two things you've all done"; Knuckles rephrased his question after confirming that the youngest member of team Chaotix was actually right in that, "not quite though Charmy". The bee sank back to the floor, slightly mollified that he had got at least somewhere but now left without a scooby of an idea. The silence dragged on into seconds; all the Mobians were thinking furiously but coming up with nothing save frustration; Knuckles was about to put them out of their misery but Rouge beat him to it.
"It's the Master Emerald".
Master Emerald! I have heard that name before – the green! The green I was in opposition to; the natural enemy of the red! The host knows the Master Emerald – it is imperative I access this new information as soon as control is mine again; from its concealed position, the being felt more knowledge accumulate and cursed itself for not thinking to research the host memory before now; the only way to know the answer is to draw knowledge from every source – had I forgotten so much as to lose my scientific…wait, I was a scientist, yes I was. As was the other, he of the green; why, why did we fight? What caused it? There was a reason, there must have been, but I do not know!
"You've all seen the Master", the bat continued, moving to stand next to Knuckles as she elaborated, "apparently, when the rest of the island came back some kind of ancient defence mechanism kicked in – from what the other guardians said it'll stop people approaching the shrine, but here's the catch; you eight have already seen the green, so you're sort of immune to it".
"And the other guardians want to check you're all safe to know about it", the echidna finished for her before quickly adding, "don't worry I put in a good word for you, but you know how guardians are".
"Believe me", Amy put in innocently, smiling up as she pointed, "we know exactly how guardians are; well then", she stood up and dusted off her dress, "let's get going; I want to meet these new echidnas". Rouge raised a hand and smiled a little; tempting though it is to throw them all in at the deep end, I don't think it's safe to lat them meet that lot unprepared.
"Hold it Ames, there's still a lot you need to know".
"Such as?" Espio, perhaps better than any of the rest, knew the importance of going into any situation as well informed as possible so prompted, folding his arms as he prepared for the information,
"Well", the bat shared a grin with Knuckles as he rolled his eyes and waved her on; she had always been better able to get the point across than he had, especially in a funny manner "for a start…"
XXX
Locke glanced up, shaking the can of spray paint in his right hand as he admired his handiwork; a large red X now adorned the front of the door to his main laboratory. Since his son and Rouge had left, one of grandfather Spectre's first decrees, after he'd beaten the dent out of his helmet and banished Athair to his room until the guest arrived, had been to border off any of the more dangerous rooms of Haven. Each of the guardians knew that, due to complex layout of Haven and the fact they were going to be outnumbered by the guests, it was a question of when rather than if someone got lost. Therefore, to prevent any accidents apart for Athair, each member of the Brotherhood had been equipped with red spray paint and a mandate to border off any rooms they wanted to remain behind closed doors. Locke shrugged as he realised he was now done; better than Sojourner's suggestion of locking them in their rooms. Holstering his spray, the youngest guardian headed back to the main meeting chamber; he would wait there with the others until the guests arrived. All save Spectre – as tradition dictated, he'd greet all the guests as Knuckles brought them down in the lift.
XXX
Athair hovered in his room, still upset that grandfather Spectre had banished him in here, but more concerned for something else. The flying echidna wracked his brain, trying to recall what it was; he'd done something that Spectre in his current mood really wouldn't approve of, but couldn't remember what it was exactly.
XXX
Not far away and closing, Knuckles was giving directions to Tails in the jeep mode of the Tornado; in the back were Vector, Charmy and Rouge while Sonic and Amy were running to the left of the jeep and Shadow carrying Cream were on the right. However, the nomination for the oddest riding position of all had to go to Espio; as they'd all mounted up to go the chameleon had thrown his gloves to Vector and clambered on top of the Tornado, much to the owner's consternation,
"Umm, Espio, what are you doing?" A golden-horned face poked over the top of the jeep and called back,
"Getting ready to go; don't worry, I've done this before".
"He's right", Vector admitted to disbelieving looks as Charmy nodded, "when we get too crowded with gear, slick-skin goes and hangs on the roof; he can support his body-weight on two toes if he needs to".
"And worst come to worst he can catch the bumper with his tongue and reel in" Charmy put in, causing a few chuckles as the rides had been sorted. As the guardian shot off the last couple of twists the fox needed to make, he felt a tap on the shoulder; turning in his seat, he saw Charmy look at him with a sketch pad held ready,
"Sorry, umm, was it Thunderhawk who was the oldest or Spectre?"
"Spectre's eldest, Thunderhawk's his son", Knuckles said; noting the bee's studious expression, the echidna chortled and added, "just think, in a couple of minutes you'll be talking to Mobians older than all of us combined".
"I know", Vector chipped in, tapping the side of his jaw in thought; he'd analysed everything Knuckles had said about his relations and the fact there were so many of them, as well as the powers they were said to possess and now a thought sprang up in his mind, "just gotta ask though, how are they going to see if we're sound?"
"Well, remember how I said my seventh-father could read minds?"
"What?" The Tornado swerved alarmingly as Tails looked at the echidna agog, "Knucks, not wanting to think ill and that, but I'm not about to let someone go poking about in my head".
"Why's that foxboy; something to hide?" Rouge flicked her eyes out the window to the right and Tails flushed as he realised what she was driving at, "but anyway, don't worry; Spectre's read my mind before and nothing happened to me". Result; the fox leaned back in his seat whilst grinning,
"Nothing in there worth reading I'll bet". Vector winced and licked his finger, pressing it forwards with a hiss at the same time Rouge mouthed 'see you later foxboy' to the smarmy mechanic.
XXX
The Brotherhood convened at the main chamber at Spectre's telepathic command; the black-furred ancient looked over each of his descendents as he spoke, his red eyes his only visible feature as the black robes he wore concealed his outline.
"They will be here shortly; I'm going to the entrance to meet them. You lot", he favoured them each with a prolonged gaze, "wait here for us all, and fourth-son", Athair looked up from where he appeared to have been meditating in mid-air, "remember what I said earlier?" Smiling earnestly, the brown echidna nodded his head until the beads in his dreads rattled,
"Yes grandfather".
"Good – don't forget it". With that, Spectre left the main chamber and headed for the entrance to Haven, preparing his lines in his head; it had been a long time since the Brotherhood had entertained guests and it didn't pay to be rusty in speeches.
"How long do you reckon he'll be gone for?"
"Not sure", Thunderhawk shrugged as he leant his chair back and kicked his feet onto the table, earning disapproving looks from Locke and Sabre, "should be a while though".
"True, and you grandson", Sojourner spoke as Athair's face creased into an expression of annoyance, "what's on your mind – not like you to be so quiet, sad though it is to say". Glancing up, the floating echidna answered his grandfather with, most of those present noticed with concern, a worried look.
"I'm not sure grandfather, but I have a funny feeling that I've forgotten something". That's not good; Thunderhawk took charge as the eldest present; last time Athair forgot something it was while he was making beef flambé – well he got the flambé bit right, as did most of the kitchen.
"Third-son; what might it have been?"
"I'm not sure", Athair gave a smile as he tapped the side of his head, "it'll come to me I'm sure". And that reassures us how?; as the rest of the Brotherhood swapped concerned glances Athair hummed a quiet tune, waiting patiently for his mind to dig up what it had buried like an obedient dog.
XXX
"Well guys, this is it", Knuckles had Tails pull the Tornado to a halt within easy walking distance from Haven and then stepped out, shivering for a second as he realised the wind had picked up. A sneeze for his right and slightly above him reminded him of something and he tapped the top of the Tornado.
"Hop off, we're here".
"Good", with a burst of colour, the rooftop passenger made himself visible and then slid down the roof of the Tornado, shaking all the while due to the naturally cold temperature and wind chill as well,
"Just as well, my tail feels like it's going to drop off". Realising that the reptile would most certainly be feeling the cold more than he was, Knuckles shucked off his jacket and offered it,
"Here, put this on if…" Espio's eyes widened alarmingly and he drew himself away, nodding politely as he shook his head,
"No, my thanks but no; part of my training, I must learn to cope with the cold" he offered as explanation; the echidna shrugged and replaced his clothing before, seeing how everyone was now out of the Tornado, he called out and pointed to the cave in the side of hill,
"Right, everyone up there, into the cave; I know it doesn't look like much, but believe me it's got a spacious interior".
"Right", Sonic looked up dubiously before smiling at the guardian and his partner, "and there was me thinking you two were just house shopping". Another one to add to the hit list; Rouge glowered at the blue hedgehog as the others stifled giggles; fortunately, a combination of two super-speed hedgehogs made getting there easy.
XXX
The sudden snap of a pair of fingers made taut nerves ping; every eye fell to Athair as he remembered as he knew he eventually would,
"Aha, that was it – knew it was in there somewhere".
"What was father?" Sabre pressed, keeping his fingers crossed that his father hadn't done anything too drastically wrong,
"The thing I'd forgotten – I just remembered it". Thunderhawk knew that, unfortunately, violence wouldn't solve this problem so forced himself to stay calm and ask again,
"And what was it you'd remembered third-son?" Athair brightened and spoke again,
"I forgot to tell grandfather Spectre to stay at the end of the corridor when the lift came…hey, where are you going?" With a rush of herd panic, the rest of the Brotherhood took off with a flurry of oaths and recriminations,
"What did I do to deserve such a grandson?"
"No idea, but when you find out let Spectre know; he's asked that for years". Sabre broke up the argument as he put on an extra burst of speed,
"If we don't hurry the only thing grandfather Spectre's going to be asking for is Athair's head on a plate".
"You say that like it's a bad thing". Locke kept level with his father as he grinned painfully,
"Unless you've forgotten, Spectre on the warpath is a danger for us all. He's not particular about who he gets even with when he wants heads to roll".
"Good point"; Thunderhawk recalled what had happened when someone had tripped one of the alarm switches of Haven accidentally and shuddered at the punishments his father had inflicted in his rage; there are some things an echidna should just not be forced to do with his toothbrush.
XXX
Spectre waited patiently at the base of the elevator shaft; one of the benefits of aging was that he now fully appreciated the plus points of the long term view. The black echidna listened as he heard the tell-tale rattle and hum of the elevator, the one way in and out of his ancestral home, unless you happened to be Sojourner. In a melancholy moment, Spectre sighed – what was he going to do with his grandson? He'd asked that question when he'd first seen into the younger echidna's mind at Hawking's request and seen only bitterness, spite and profound yet unexpressed grief.
Sojourner had never mourned, not once had he shed tears for his daughter's passing – either because he had been unable to at the time, or because he thought it unseemly for a guardian to cry. He wouldn't be the first to fall into that trap; Spectre shook himself as the lift seemed to rumble to a halt – now was not the time to dwell on such things; he had to safeguard the Master while his sons both dealt with the newcomers to Haven and tried to solve the mystery their ancestors had left them; time is running out, I can feel it – something big is coming and we don't have long left. Before that train of thought could run any further, the lift arrived and the doors slid open. Taking a step forwards, the black echidna opened his mouth, recognising Knuckles as his seventh-son took a step forwards and extended an arm; unfortunately, the trip-wire used was so fine the guardian never even felt it break against his fur.
XXX
We don't have long left; Sabre forced himself to go faster; of all the Brotherhood he was marginally the fastest and now more than ever he had a need for speed. He wasn't sure what his father had rigged up but, knowing the situation and how excitable Athair was, he could almost guarantee it was going to be big. As he rounded the last corner, his heart froze as there was an audible fanfare and several smaller bangs and pops; he skidded to a halt, turning around to face the others, bracing himself for the explosion as four appalled gazes met,
"We're too late!"
XXX
It was certainly impressive; the flying echidna had been up half the night making sure the guests would get a good impression of the home the guardians jointly shared. As the tripwire snapped, the entire corridor was suddenly filled with pops and colour as hidden party poppers expended their lethal payload and silly string was sprayed from concealed canisters in the roof, criss-crossing in bright displays of light. A computerised fanfare, borrowed from Locke's extensive music files, blared out of a pair of speakers and a large, hand-painted banner unfurled itself and draped down the far wall at the corridor's end, loudly proclaiming the message 'WELCOME TO HAVEN!' A display like that was magical enough to appeal to any sort of person; there was no-one there who could have denied that the seemingly mad echidna's antics had made a positive impression on them.
Unless, of course, it was the person who happened to be stood right in the middle when the foam had started flying.
XXX
The four guardians looked at each other, then at the entrance to the corridor where the noise was coming from. There was no communication, there didn't need to be any; as one, the entire Brotherhood turned tail and ran like living hell back to the main chamber – long experience had taught them all that there were times to try and reason with Spectre and there were times when it was safer to just keep your trap shut, run like the dickens and lock your door at night.
XXX
I have to admit; Spectre's mind replayed the last few seconds in exquisite detail, slowing actions down enough to see the precise location of each popper as it went off; that was some effort he/they put into this. However, though this calm, rational line of thought existed in Spectre's head, it was very much in the minority; most of the black echidna's mind was ablaze with pictures of blame, plotting and violent, gory revenge. He blinked his eyes open and raised an arm to wipe away the goo that was blocking his vision; in the future he was never sure if that was a good idea or not. For two things, it firstly gave him an idea of how bad he now looked; all his midnight robes were streaked with dangling ribbons of paper and there was some form of hardened plastic stuck to his helmet. However, the worst was in front of him; the blood rushed to his face as he realised that he was in the presence of not only Rouge and his seventh-son, but all the other eight guests as well.
Knuckles had leapt backwards at the first sign of trouble, piling into Vector as everyone had wanted out of the cramped conditions of the lift. He back-peddled furiously to fight against the press, not wanting to be out in that blizzard of confetti as it snowed past it the lift entrance. Aside from the odd cheep of bewilderment, there was no comment, no noise as eventually the dust, as well as streamers and foam, settled; Knuckles took a look and immediately turned away, not wanting to embarrass the strange, alien figure standing motionless in front of them all by laughing out loud. That, however, was a lost fight right from the outset,
"Umm, guys", Spectre looked up as his seventh-son's voice wavered, a grin breaking through the mask he had clamped down on his expressions, "I'd, er, lihike to meet my seventh-father, this is Spec, Spectahahaha".
That was it; everyone in the lift had caught a glimpse of the now multi-coloured echidna and Knuckles' laugher had been the drop that broke the floodgates. All eight Mobians, even Espio, collapsed completely, leaning against walls or each other as Knuckles reeled forwards, tears in his eyes as he tried to address the motionless form of his glowering seventh-father,
"Grandfahahther, I", Knuckles was overcome again and collapsed against his ancient relative, body heaving with hysterics; Spectre's eyes flared, the only outwards expression of his slowly building anger, "I'm sorreheehehehe!" The youngest echidna tailed off, falling to his knees as laughter howled out of him unstoppably; every time he raised his gaze to look at Spectre he went off again. Fighting down his rage, the eldest guardian bowed his head slightly, brushed off a few extra streamers dislodged by the action and spoke the ancient lines of greeting, studiously ignoring the blatant gales of laughter and silently swearing violent, bloody vengeance on all his descendents in Haven.
"Welcome guests of the guardians; rest awhile, for you have reached a safe Haven".
XXX
"Remember, no matter what happened, look shocked and appalled"; Thunderhawk whispered to his descendents as the sounds of laughter and footsteps reached their nervous ears from down the corridor. As tradition expected, all five guardians rose from their chairs in some manner at the first sight of movement from the corridor; as soon as the first figure emerged, however, it was immediately obvious that the 'looking shocked and appalled' bit was all to easy. All the guardians goggled unreservedly as Spectre, still trailing remnants of silly string trails from his robes and trying to remove party popper papers from his helmet and shoulders, strode purposely towards them. All the guardians, that is, bar one,
"Oh you lot", Thunderhawk, Sojourner, Sabre and Locke felt icy fingers clutch at their spines as Athair, looking supremely unconcerned at the whole spectacle, folded his arms and shook his head wistfully, "forgot to give Grandfather Spectre the message". Before any of the trembling Brotherhood could protest or plead, its eldest member had rounded the table and smiled forbiddingly at the rest of them,
"Really; I'll be most interested to hear about this message", everyone present winced out of shared sympathy for the Brotherhood; even those who hadn't yet spoken to the black echidna could almost taste the venom dripping off his tongue as they set their bags down, "after, of course, we have all spoken to our guests". Spectre took his seat at the centre of the table, the nervousness flanking him at this stay of execution whetting his appetite for destruction as he spoke to the others once more.
"Welcome friends of Knuckles, to Haven; I understand that my seventh-son has told you something of us, the Brotherhood of Guardians".
"He, ah"; geez, I'm not usually this nervous about meeting people; Sonic licked his lips as the attention fell on him, "he said you needed to see us because we're, sort of, immune to some kind of Master Emerald power, and you want to see if we're all, er, okay for knowing about the jewel itself".
"Quite right; we have to assert your trustworthiness" Sojourner answered before Vector cut across him; he'd been doing some thinking in the car and wanted to be sure of something,
"Yeah, just a question; how you going to do that? Reddy said something about one of you being able to read minds". Spectre nodded solemnly, need for revenge stewing inside him and crushing his ability to smile knowingly as he nodded at the crocodile,
"That is partially true; I can't read minds exactly, but I can draw information from them and, after some thought and examination, make conclusions about the mind's innermost thoughts and desires".
A danger – I can not allow this individual to access the host's memory; the being recoiled from the threat of discovery even as a memory, dim and distant, spoke of others, similar powers being used both for and against in the struggle of red and green. Some of those powers were my own; how did I use them, and to what end? It was stronger now, remembering more information at a higher rate than before, but in its wisdom, that made this threat all the more unwelcome. It could not be baulked so close to its goal, whatever that actually was.
"Right, so you will determine our, worthiness, if you like, from what we are thinking?" Espio put in, casually balancing one of his stars on a fingertip as Spectre nodded again,
"Yes, it is the fairest and most secure way of knowing the truth about someone's actions; no amount of lies and deceit, no matter how well believed by the perpetrator, can be held solid in the mind. Not wishing to think of you as criminals, but we must assure ourselves in our own minds that you are as trustworthy as my seventh-son has said you are".
"Does that mean you'll all read our minds, Mr Spectre?" Praise the Master; some of Spectre's bad mood dissipated as Cream looked up at him in innocent curiosity; a child with manners.
"No child", the other guardians beheld the sight of their grandfather of various generations smile graciously at the rabbit; could this mean he's mellowed out? "only I can delve into the complexities of a mind, and in the Brotherhood, my word is law"; didn't think so; the other echidnas around the table were all smart enough to realised that Spectre letting go of a grudge was about as likely as Athair not getting hammered after that little welcome into Haven.
"I am reasonably sure the journey here has wearied and the last thing you want to get caught up with is a long, tedious round of introductions. Don't worry about getting to know us and vice versa; we'll all bump into each other and mingle around Haven. However", Spectre moved onto his next and most important topic; he wanted this out the way so he could move onto discovering what role his descendents had played in the atrocity that had ravaged his pride for all time, "before we can show you to your quarters, there are a few things that must be said". The eight invited Mobians stood more at ease, beginning to take in their new surroundings as the Spectre stood to address them,
"Primarily, it is our solemn oath that no harm will befall you while you remain within Haven; you are under our protection and we will do all in our power to guard your safety. In doing so, though, we have tried to help you stay safe; as you'll notice, some of the doors of Haven have red crosses on them – don't go in them unless you're accompanied by at least one of us. Some of the material here is dangerous to say the least"; you'll never realise it, but I can guarantee that crossing Athair's door probably spared the sanity of at least one of you.
"That sounds fairly easy", Sonic admitted with a shrug, "don't go in the rooms with crosses, can't get much simpler than that". Rouge smiled over at the hero and smirked; he saw it just before she opened her mouth and realised he'd left himself open for this,
"Just as well, you're about as simple as they come spiky".
"Takes one to know one". Spectre waded in again before this could go too far,
"Right as that may or may not be, there's just one thing left to say", when he was certain he had everyone's attention, he continued, "don't worry about getting lost, my sons and I will be circulating to find you all. If you don't know where you are, simply stand still or go into the nearest safe room and wait; we shouldn't be long. The internal lighting works by sound; simply clap once and it should come one, clap again and the room will darken. Everyone clear with that?" It was all the seventh-father could do to avoid rubbing his hands in glee as everyone nodded; soon, oh so soon, he'd be alone with his sons once more. Keeping his voice level as all around him bar one cringed to await the storm, the black echidna spoke for the last time,
"Well then, I see no reason why you shouldn't get comfortable; Athair", the brown echidna sat up in his seat, eyes shining as Spectre gestured to the guests, "show these people to their rooms, and do not take any short-cuts fourth-son, time is of the essence here".
"Yes fourth-father", Athair sprang out his seat with a salute and ghosted over the top of the table to hover in front of Vector, "well, follow me and we'll all get going", he paused, folding his legs up into a classic lotus position as he took in the large green Mobian's dropped jaw and the way his eyes seemed to be flicking madly from his legs to the floor, "are you alright; you look like you've seen a spook".
"Err", much as he would have liked to speak, the sheer inconceivability of what he was seeing in front of him shocked Vector into speechlessness, "umm, I ah, are you, err…"
"Don't worry", Thunderhawk's voice rolled like thunder as he saw the awed looks most of the others were giving his mad third-son, "the Master alone knows how, but for Athair that's perfectly normal. You'll get used to it".
"Right", Sonic was one of the first to recover his tongue, looking at his younger brother and realising this wasn't the first time he'd seen something like this, "well, lead on then Athair".
"Right away; now come on, stay close and follow me", he hovered close to Amy and offered his hand, "come on, let's form a crocodile and…"
"Athair". The brown echidna glanced over; even covered in a funfair's worth of confetti, Spectre was still capable of portraying a very convincing aura of menace that his fourth-son quickly picked up on.
"…maybe not; come on then"; he waited while the guests, most of them still keeping one eye at least on the echidna somersaulting overhead, gathered up their belongings and began to follow him out a side tunnel.
XXX
As the last hint of flame from the black hedgehog's shoes faded, Sabre was marginally first to react,
"Now fifth-father, it…" He, and the others present, were stunned into silence as Spectre raised his hand, a green flame burning in the palm of his hand; with a barely registered effort on his part, Spectre had it spread. In a few scant seconds, the eldest guardian was consumed in a raging inferno that burned off the last of the clinging paraphernalia; Sojourner, who was closest, felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead as a small roll of paper was shrivelled away to nothing in the heatless fire; something tells me that got away lucky compared to us. The last of the fire died away as suddenly as it had appeared, leaving Spectre's robes and helmet as untouched as the day they'd been sewn. Taking a deep breath an opening his eyes, the black echidna settled back in his seat and steepled his fingers,
"Start talking". As he'd expected, the response was ripped easily from five throats and consisted of pretty much a single word,
"Athair!"
XXX
As the walk dragged on, Rouge noticed that someone was hanging back a bit, moving more slowly that the rest of the group. Curious, the bat dropped her own pace a little; as Cream passed, the ex-spy found herself side by side with Shadow. Immediately, the bat had an inkling as to what was wrong; the hedgehog was walking forwards a few steps, closing his eyes for a short pause, then re-opening them and walking forwards again. As he noticed her scrutiny, the ultimate life-form gave a haggard smile, whispering to her in a quiet, strained tone.
"This place, it seems, like I almost remember; I, know this, Haven". The bat only needed a second to join the dots; he hands flew to her mouth in both joy and surprise; she'd never really noticed it before, but now that Shadow had given her the reminder it struck her with crystal clarity. Haven, with its long, semi-metallic corridors and large open areas looked a little like the ARK, Shadow's first home; the home a lucky blow from the Metal Overlord had robbed from his memories.
"Do, do you remember anything Shadow? Anything at all?" The black hedgehog put a hand to his forehead, massaging it slightly as though to encourage a rush of memories; however, as usual, all he managed was a trickle – he new it was familiar, but not why.
"No, not really; this place, it looks like somewhere I should have been, but I don't know why". Rouge risked a glance behind her and scowled in frustration; the rest were moving on and they couldn't afford to be left behind, but at the same time this could be crucial to the hedgehog who had at one time been her team mate, even if he couldn't remember it. Just as Espio headed around the corner, the compromise was delivered; Rouge snapped her fingers and turned to face Shadow, eyes wide with delight,
"I know; listen, let's get you unpacked, then we'll both go around Haven together. Spectre said it's safe, so if we wander round, maybe something will come back". Shadow's crimson eyes crackled like a gentle flame as he gripped the bat by the shoulder,
"I'll take you up on that Rouge; now come on", she bounced up and supported her weight on his shoulders as he fired up his shoes, "let's catch up now and deal with this later".
XXX
"So, to recap"; Spectre watched the nervous fidgeting his sons were undertaking, squirming as he fixed them each in turn with a basilisk gaze, "Athair tells you that I should not be in the corridor when the lift touches down, correct?"
"Yes father"; this is going to hurt; the fact that Spectre hadn't immediately started ripping them apart once the guests were safely out of earshot had Thunderhawk more alarmed and alert than ever; pain he could deal with, but Spectre in a twisted, vengeful mood was like something out of one of his worst nightmares. Spectre turned his baleful gaze onto his son, waiting until the lavender echidna dropped his gaze before moving on,
"And, upon hearing such news, you all run like headless chickens towards the lift, hoping to get there before it does".
"With, er", Locke faltered for a second as Spectre snapped a gaze like a thermal lance onto him, "with all due respect sixth-father, we had little time and fewer options".
"Not true", Spectre moved that volcanic gaze to the echidna sat next to him, "unless my memory fails me, which, I remind you it has yet to do, one of you has the emerald granted ability to relocate himself and, more importantly, a passenger as well". Sojourner flushed in embarrassment; what Spectre was saying made perfect sense as it would have been simplicity itself to teleport himself and his grandfather to relative safety. He tried to come with a defence though, if only to have a few more seconds before the death blow fell,
"Well, grandfather, what you say is true, but please; I was not thinking clearly and I, er"; I, we all, must sound like such fools; Sojourner licked his lip and finished his sentence, "I thought we'd get there in time".
"Well grandson, you didn't; none of you did", the black-furred elder's voice rose in pitch and volume; every other echidna present braced for impact, "and because of that the name of the Brotherhood, and mine in particular, is mud!"
"Or confetti" Thunderhawk muttered under his breath almost before he'd realised it; Spectre straightened and glared murderously at his offspring as the purple echidna went pale. Standing, Spectre lashed his hand out and caught Thunderhawk by a single dreadlock, shrieking,
"Is something funny son? Please, tell me the joke; Athair just humiliated the lot of us in front of one of our own and a group of complete strangers, I'm dying for the punch-line".
"You just said it", Thunderhawk gasped in pain as his words managed to loosen his father's grip enough to rip his dreadlock free, though not without lots of agony and a dent in his pride, "Athair did it, not us. Why are we getting it in the neck?"
"Because Athair's a complete loony anyway; I thought he'd try something but not on that scale", a final zapping of descendents with death glares ensued as Spectre made his point, "but you lot could have prevented it and made a complete pig's ear out of it – I thought I taught you all how to keep your heads in a crisis, but obviously not. I'll deal with all of you when the guests have gone; now get out before I take each of you over my knee".
There was a stunned silence, followed quickly by a simultaneous squeaking of chairs and a mad stampede out of the room as every echidna took Spectre at his word; laughing at a threat like that was something you only ever did once. The black echidna watched the last tail vanish around the corner before stepping off his own chair. Yes, you four when the guests have gone; an evil glint lit up in the echidna's red eyes and a low chuckle suffused the air; I'll deal with Athair tonight!
XXX
"Hey Athair"; the flying echidna flipped over in the air, now upside down as he moon-walked along the ceiling, listening intently as his third-son smiled broadly, "I take it that, um, celebration in the lift was your idea?" Bound spines rattled together as the brown echidna gave an inverted nod,
"Yes, I wanted everybody to see what a fun place Haven can be, just takes a bit of encouragement to get a laugh out of anyone". Vector, keeping one eye on Athair as he turned around and led them ever onwards, sidled up towards the guardian and whispered out the corner of his not inconsiderable jaws,
"Knucks man, I think your grandfather's cheese slid off his cracker", the red echidna glanced around blankly as Vector rolled his eyes, putting what he want to get across a slightly different way, "he's a couple of olives short of a pizza". Knuckles shrugged and spoke back as though it didn't matter,
"I know, he's completely nuts, but there is a method in at least some of his madness; he dropped me from the roof – and because he did I now know I can glide without wind, and speaking of gliding", Knuckles raised his voice and remembered the treat he had ready for his grandfather, "Tails, Cream, show Athair what you can do". Everyone stopped as the fox and rabbit glanced suspiciously at Knuckles; the red echidna grinned and raised a hand slowly as they finally cottoned on. Tails twisted and ears flapped, two other Mobians lifted into the air and, a second later, a yell of happiness echoed throughout the corridor.
I've been there before – rather them than me; Knuckles smirked as he beheld the spectacle overhead; Athiar had Tails constricted by one arm and Cream by the other, and was now twirling around jubilantly, nearly crying in joy,
"Yippee, more people who can fly…"
"Sonic", Tails managed to twist his face so he wasn't being smothered by Athair's chest and caught a flash of blue in his disorientated vision, "help!"
"Get us down; stop the ride!" Cream agreed as she started to feel a little green around the gills – flight was fine, but these kind of gymnastics were doing a number on her stomach. Sadly their pleas went unheeded as Sonic was currently doubled over in laughter at the ludicrous sight and Athair was far too wrapped up in his own world to react to any kind of command at all.
"…this is going to be so much fun; I'll have to tell grandfather Spectre…" tempting though it was to let Athair have his fun, Knuckles was forced to admit that they needed to get a move on; raising his voice, the guardian shouted and clapped his hands above the celebratory din,
"Athair", Knuckles kept his face serious even as the sight of Tails and Cream dangling from his third-father's arms, each of them looking queasy and ill, "put them down, gently", he added, remembering in the nick of time what had happened last time he'd said that and that neither of the smaller Mobians were as robust as he was.
"Fair enough third-son; grandfather Spectre did say he wanted us to hurry". Athair descended and released his two captives, both tottered forwards as they tried to regain their bearings and Athair floated off down the tunnel as though nothing had happened. As the two began berating the others for their lack of support, Espio smiled dangerously and leant down to Charmy, whispering mischievously,
"Now buzz-boy, what's it worth I don't tell our guide that you can fly as well?" If looks could kill; the chameleon kept his face inquisitive as the bee glared at him and flexed his stinger,
"It's worth me not getting a pair of colour-changing boots out of your miserable hide, how's that for you?" Espio jumped ahead of the others and as though by magic a couple of blunted stars appeared in his fingers,
"Sounds like a challenge".
"Maybe it is, but you forget I've got the advantage", Charmy smiled smugly as he used this advantage, "I can fly". For a split-second, he wondered why Espio was looking so happy before a brown blur sped towards him from the corner of his eye,
"Oh wow, another one"; in the split-second before impact, he heard a single word from his team mate,
"Sucker!"
A short while later, the brown echidna executed an aerial bow and flourish,
"Here we are; pick a room, any room; take your time unpacking and then take a gander around the place. Oh, one thing though", as everyone headed for a room, the third-father pointed out two among their number with a broad smile, "third-son; your room's the last one along – it's got the double bed like you asked for". Knuckles scrunched his eyes shut as hastily smothered chuckles from his friends told him at least one of them had made an immediate connection. Looking up, and realising Rouge was writhing in embarrassment as well, he smiled painfully up at his grandfather and spoke thickly,
"Thank you".
"No problem at all; now I better go and see if grandfather Spectre is ready for anyone yet. See you all later". With that and a wave, Athiar zipped back down the passageway he'd led them down; as soon as he was out of earshot, the guardian whirled and tried to stem the flood before it arrived,
"It's not like that!"
"R,really", Charmy tried to compose himself for the line; pointedly looking Rouge up and down, the bee then turned to Knuckles and asked innocently, "I have to ask; why not?"
For the second time in an hour, the guests of the Brotherhood fell into tears of laughter at the expense of at least one of its members.
XXX
Spectre was in his private sanctuary; the room he had built to Haven when the time had been right for him to do so. The library was a sheer repository of knowledge; texts from before the island had been broken in twain were here, as were other, equally ancient and priceless works. Most of the elder guardian's recent reading and more in-depth studies had been focussed on one particular book, but that had been set aside for now as he prepared for and equally important task. That didn't mean, however, that the primary problem had been ignored, far from it – Spectre's gift was needed to sift through the minds of the eight, but Sabre could carry on the studies of the prophecy with his medicinal mind; maybe he'll see something on the outside of the words I can't see from the inside. Spectre took a deep breath, clearing the last of the residual embarrassment from his fourth-son's mistake from his mind in preparation of the task of drawing information from as tangled a source as another functioning psyche. It was going to be a long day and, as his emerald gifts felt the presence of one of his sons approaching at a speed normally impossible for a land-based Mobian, Spectre groaned as he realised it was about to get longer. Three, two one and…
"Grandfather, grandfather", Spectre had to call on all of his formidable mental fortitude to prevent himself blasting Athair back through the door he'd just thrown open as very recent events involving lots of spraying, sniggering and self-pity, "guessswhatguesswhatguesswhat?"
"Put me out of my misery", can't get away with the jacket this time; what to do, "what is it?" Athair put his hands down on the table in front of him and his wide eyes sparkled,
"Some of the guests, they can fly as well; isn't it wonderful grandfather?" Athair went into a celebratory twist before, noticing the lack of a reply, he paused an turned, "grandfather?"
Wonderful; Spectre put a paw over his face and groaned aloud as this sank in; if he was bad before, he's going to be impossible to control now, but I wonder; a glimmer of hope shone through the cloud of despair and the eldest guardian smiled; this may just work – a way to get some of my work done and get Athair out from under our feet at the same time. Leaning forwards, concealing the way the cogs of his mind were turning, the eldest member of the Brotherhood smiled as though he was genuinely pleased for his fourth-son.
"Really Athair; well that is good news. Which ones could fly?" Athair, cheerful oblivious to Spectre's plotting, settled back in the air as he ticked off on his fingers,
"There was the fox with two tails, I think he's called Tails"; that'd make sense wouldn't it?; Spectre resisted the urge to shake his head with difficulty, "there was Charming Bee and that cute little rabbit as well; all three of them". Spectre tapped the side of his face with a few fingers at though coming to a decision, before nodding and looking seriously at his descendent,
"Very well then; Athair, are you listening, I have a serious job for you".
"Ready, willing and eager ancient one". Cheek; Spectre rumbled off a growl from his throat; I'm not that old yet whippersnapper!
"Yes, well; go and invite the fox and the rabbit to see me when they're ready; I'll deal with them first, they seemed to be the youngest present. When I've done, why don't you give them a little present?" Athair cocked his head curiously as Spectre crossed his fingers under the table and fought to keep his face neutral, "take them to your training room; I'm sure they'd love to train with a flying master such as yourself".
"Right away fourth-father; thank you". With that, the flying menace was gone and Spectre fell back in his seat a little; well, I've got him out the way for a minute, but how to…; it was at that second, with that thought echoing in his head, the Spectre's gaze fell on one of the newest, thickest and most ill-used books in the library; ah, yes, that will do nicely.
A/N: Much as Athair is an extreme example, there's one in every family…you gotta love 'em!