Chapter 3: Conspiracy

The landscape of Naturi lay before the duo. A desolate, green landscape with no land not covered in fertile land. Wild creatures lived here, ripping any unknown figure into millions of pieces. The morning sunrise lit up the lower parts of the jungle as the two set in.

As Hunter walked to the meeting place, Swift stared at him for a while. Few people have ever actually seen what Hunter really looks like since he always tries to stay in the shadow. He had a red body and dreadlocks, with pieces of dark brown and green fur. His purple wings with black lining were folded back so that he would be blown away. His ears and eyes are bluish-purple resembling Rouge and Knuckles. He was clutching a pendant with a Chaos Emerald on it.

Swift was curious. "How'd you get that Chaos Emerald?"

"This?" Asked Hunter. "Yesterday a person attacked the master emerald shrine and took away all the Chaos Emeralds but Knuckles was able to keep this one."

"How?"

"Don't ask. Anyway, he said that it would help me on my adventure."

" That's preety cool. Ok, various resources indicate that the GrieveR base 'N' is somewhere in here…. "

"Get low get low get low get low, to the windooooows, to the wall!" Swift realized Hunter had brought his "Kings of Crunk" CD. He ripped Hunter's player and threw it unto the ground.

"This is important! Just hurry up, please…"

"Well you don't have yell," mumbled Hunter as he followed Swift into the forest.

The ambiance of the forest was consumed in plants with the amazing sounds of combinations of any animal ever discovered and possibly others. Although it has seemed to be a peaceful place, most adventurers have been eaten by the cannibalistic crocodile tribes. But this was not on Swift's mind. He was focused on relieving his village of the mechanized threat of the GrieveRs. This, however, was on Hunter's mind as he readied his shuriken.

The flames of Fiagra were stronger then anyone had ever seen before. Molten lava flowed between the gaps in the land. Rising flames consumed any flammable substance and disintegrated it. No people have lived here in years due to the unbearable heat and danger of being burned, but some were more daring than others. Some were ready.

A strong base of cemented stone stood in the middle of Lagna Crater. Ditches and defense sentinels are scattered across the landscape. GrieveRs had their revolvers cocked and ready, hidden in the deep trenches. Elites rose their swords into the air, proclaiming their loyalty to their master. The spikes crosswise the walls shone with the dark auras of the possessor's power. Surrounding this monstrous piece of construction is a pure, solid, impenetrable diamond wall with sharp spikes.

"Is the cannon ready yet?" said the black creature.

"I've told you many times, NO!" yelled Hammer. "We've barely had time to work on it because you needed the kid distracted!"

"Hmm. Couldn't you use that nifty bracelet of yours that I gave to you?"

"I'm saving it for the fight."

"I should just slice that thing off your hand right now." As the figure said this it pulled out a knife and cut the strap of the hawk's necklace, making it drop to the floor and bursting the locket into two pieces.

"Hammer wouldn't like that." Said the hawk as they both snickered. "I'm getting tired of this. The feathers are somewhat itchy."

The hawk pressed a few buttons on his bracelet so that a holographic image appeared above it. Turning a dial, he selected a special 'wolf form' and pressed another to make the image disappear. Suddenly, his body broke apart into billions of microscopic partials that danced around the room like a gust of wind, blowing fragile fragments of snow into the air. After a few seconds, the particles came back together not as a hawk, but as a wolf. The wolf's fur was dark purple with stripes of black running down his legs and arms. A green and brown cloak surrounded most of his upper-body, extending down to his ankle. His left arm is made of metal (due to a sniping accident many years before) that held his bracelet, power and infrared light-readings bars, a small scope and claws 1.5 times as large as normal fingers. It was attached to his body by special nerve-readers that attached to the shoulder and spine. His head had long spikes of hair, starched to decrease wind resistance. His blood-red eyes struck a shock in your heart; one that made you freeze in place. One that could kill you even before he even touched you. "I like my original form much better."

"Flashy entrance, Vex. Anyway, you should hunt them before they reach Angel Mesa. That's where Blaze is. If that happens, then we're doomed. She has the power of the Sol emeralds and the fire gem, and take a GrieveR down easily."

"Couldn't I just kill that brat?"

The figure grinned. "That's why you're the leader of the elite squad. Do what you need to do."

"Yes madam." Replied Vex.

He zoomed off into the distance, not even leaving one sign he had been there except for the broken pendent on the floor. The young woman laughed. She couldn't help it.

"This will be so much fun…"

Swift and Hunter had been hiking for hours across Mild Stretch. Due to the seemingly obvious self-explanatory name, the duo traveled across this pathway next to the Nawold River. Ironically, the Mild Stretch was named after the most vicious gator tribe in the jungle in which the chief was named Mild Slaughteco. Swift and Hunter had just come out later, bruised, tired and hungry.

"Why didn't you tell me this was going to happen?" said Hunter grudgingly.

"YOU were the one suggesting we go in there!" shouted Swift, annoyed that this jerk was pushing him for his own mistakes.

"Whatever you stupid… Oh whatever. Just pass me some food."

"You said you were going to bring the food."

As they talked, the dark, foaming clouds overhead started raining uncontrollably on the soft ground. They both sighed. This wonderful adventure was already becoming a nightmare.