Well, we left Green Lightning very battered after his battle, several Kintushians (393 to be exact)have already been sent to the gates of heaven to finish their 100-year waiting period so they can return to the land of the living. Green Lightning had his first date ruined by none other than the Black Robe gang (duh!) which is now recovering in prison on Fangor's home planet. Will they ever get out? And if so, will they seek revenge on Green Lightning? I feel kinda sorry for Green Lightning because his first date was ruined, and I feel sorry for Sonic becuase Amy tied him up in his sleep just so she could have a date with him (poor Sonic!). Well, anyways, on to the story! (when will they find Tails! They've been searching for more than 8 years already!)

Chapter 7: The Invasion

Character ages

Fangor: 16- February 18

Green Lightning: 6- February 18

Miles Tails' Prower: 23-January 30 (captured by Robotnik's new henchman)

Sally Acorn (called Aunt Sally' by Tails): 28-may 3

Sonic Hedgehog: 30-August 9

Amy Rose: 28-August 19

Rotor: 29-November 9

Bunny Rabbot: 30-January 8

Anthonie: 29-April 17

Shadow: 30-March 26

Knuckles: 30-June 9

Rouge: 29-June 17

Dr. Quack: 54-April 29

Aleena: 8- October 8

February 18

Green Lightning's POV

I woke up aching all over like I had just been thrown through several walls by a Kintushian. I screamed in pain as I tried to lift myself up to see where I was. Failing in this attempt, I turned to my head to the side, grimacing in pain as I did so. I recognized where I was. The hospital... How long have I been lying here? And why do I hurt so much? I heard the door open and some rapid footsteps as someone ran over to my bed. I turned my head so I could see, groaning in pain. It turned out to be a female lightning Kintushian nurse. " Glad to see you awake, master Tomias. Oops! Sorry, forgot your parents said you prefered Green Lightning." Tomias? Since when did people call me Tomias? I've never heard of that name before... The nurse walked to the door with one stalkeye turned towards me. " Fangor? He is awake now and in excessive pain. I would suggest healing him immediately." Just then Aleena walked in, followed by Fangor, Mom, and Dad. Aleena immediately ran up to the bed and hugged me, nearly making me pass out from the pain. I screamed loud enough to shatter the nearby windows and make everyone jump back. My eyes were watering from the pain that still lingered in my chest area. Fangor came into view, a smile on his face. " You put up a good fight there. Your power nearly rivals that of my own, according to those I talked to on the way here. Well, let's get you fixed up, shall we?" He raised his hands and immediately sparkling blue lights surrounded me. All the pain in my body left me on the spot. I sat up quickly as though someone had sent a jolt of electricity through my back. I turned around and noticed the sheets were stained red. I looked towards Fangor, hoping for an answer. " You took a direct hit from 7 chaos spears... I'm surprised you survived. You didn't notice that gaping holes were in you while you were fighting in battle mode, which kept you from losing. When you passed out, you started spasming, screaming, and crying in pain, simply out of reflex rather than actually being connected with the world. We took you to the hospital wing as quickly as we could, but you lost alot of blood along the way. We were unable to replace it, so we had to sedate you for about a week so your body could recover it's own blood. I was finally able to close your wounds today, allowing the darkness contained within them from the chaos emeralds to drain out. By the way, Amy said that there was something urgent that she needed to see you about at your house. Head there after you rest up. You were put through a very traumatic experience, and deserve a good rest." Aleena started towards the bed, but was stopped by Fangor. " He needs to get to the house and rest. I suggest you stop by the mall for some things." He handed her a sheet of paper, apparently a shopping list. She tried hard to conceal her smirk, but it didn't work well. She left in a hurry, nearly running over Rouge and Knuckles as they entered. " Out." Fangor said as they entered. Both looked disapointed, but obeyed. Mom and Dad followed them. Fangor opened a moongate, then turned around to me, gesturing towards the moongate. " Your room awaits. Have a good sleep." I looked at my watch. 3:30 AM it read. I got up and fell out of the bed. I stood up again, pulled my staff out of it's amulet state, grabbed my cloak hanging next to the bed, and, using my staff for support, sleepily walked through the moongate.

8 hours later...

I slowly opened my eyes and sat up in my bed, feeling very refreshed. I stretched and yawned loudly, rattling the windows. I hopped out of bed and slipped my cloak on, heading downstairs to see what Amy had wanted. I was shocked at what greeted me. " SURPRISE!" everyone yelled when I turned around to go downstairs. I jumped back, hitting the wall. Aleena ran up the stairs, grabbed my hand, and gave me a quick kiss, saying " Happy birthday, Green Lightning, my hero!" I felt myself blush as she dragged me down the stairs. Someone slipped some sort of cone-shaped hat over my head and hugged me from behind. I turned around to see Mom, smiling. " Happy birthday son!" Fangor piped up with his own little remark, " I will take this time to remind you that you have not actually aged bec-" Amy slammed her hammer down where his foot had been a second before. " We're tired of hearing it! 9 years, 9 years straight you've told us! WE GET IT!" Amy returned her hammer to who-knows-where-she-gets-it-from, nearly hitting me in the head with it. Aleena, Amy, and Mom walked into the kitchen, telling everyone to sit down at the table in the dining room. Sonic was the first there, followed by Antonie, Fangor, then myself. Someone knocked at the front door, and I started to get up when someone put a hand on my shoulder. " Stay seated. I'll get it." Sonic said as he dashed to the front door. I heard it open, followed by some panting. " Sorry.. I'm... late... Sonic! I had... to do ... some last minute... shopping!" Came a raspy, out-of-breath voice that could only belong to Leadfoot. " You're right on time! Come on in!" This was followed by a crack of knuckles and then a voice that seemed on the verge of laughing. " Gonna forget us, faker?" Knuckles and Shadow. " Don't call me faker! I have a name!" Shadow appeared next to the table with Knuckles and Sonic following soon afterwards. Another knock at the door brought three new visitors. " Team Chaotix reporting for duty!" Came the voice of a crocodile named Vector from the door when Sonic answered it. " Relax, guys. It's just a birthday party. Nothing to worry about." Then a voice belonging to a hyperactive bee chimed in: " OOhh! Who's birthday is it? Who's birthday is it!" Then an overly calm chamelion named Espio piped up: " Calm down, Charmy. You're going to make everyone nervous." Soon everyone was seated, and Rouge, Amy, Sally, Bunny, Mom, Esna, Tikal, and Aleena came out of the kitchen, carrying an oversized cake with 6 candles stuck in it. Charmy began glancing at each face very rapidly to see who's birthday it was. " Who's birthday is it! Who's birthday is ittttt!" He said, desperately. After the cake was set on the table, my mom turned the bee around to face me. " HIM!" He said, surprised. Mom nodded, smiling. Then everyone except Fangor started singing: " Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Green Lightning! Happy Birthday to you!" I felt myself blush like I did every year when they did that. Charmy began buzzing around my head rapidly, practically shouting: "Happy birthday! Happy birthday!" Espio grabbed him and put him back in his chair. " Calm down before you hurt yourself." Charmy turned a bright shade of red. Mom walked around behind me and whispered in my ear: " Make a wish and blow out the candles, sweety." I thought about it for a moment, and decided on wishing for more new books ( I was already finished with the ones I had!) I breathed in big, and released it, not only extinguishing the flames on the candles, but also blowing them out of the cake. I hung my head, embarrassed. Everyone started clapping and Mom begain cutting the cake.

After eating Fangor hung something called a pinata from the rafters and held onto a rope that caused it to raise or lower depending on whether or not he pulled it. A blindfold was placed around my eyes from behind to keep me from seeing. This is too easy... I thought to myself. I was spun around for what seemed like 3 hours ( actually it was just 1) and I pulled out my staff, stumbling around while trying to keep my footing. " Let's see you hit it on your first try this year!" Shouted Sonic. I walked forwards, nearly fell over sideways, felt something hit me in the face, and brought my staff down on it as hard as I could. I could hear something break, then several people hit the floor, grabbing for the goodies that fell out. As for me, I just tried my best to stay standing and get out of being disoriented. Someone removed my bandana and I nearly puked as I saw the world spinning very fast. I was picked up and sat down in one of the e-z chairs in the living room so I could regain my senses. " Good hit, Green Lightning. I've yet to see you miss! You have the accuracy of a Kintushian haha!" Fangor said, congratulating me. " When will it stop spinning!" I said. " It should stop soon. Don't worry." Fangor walked off to keep the kids from killing each other in their rush for candy. A few minutes later I dozed off, only to be awoken by Aleena. " We're going on a picnic this afternoon, just the two of us. I've got it set up in a secret place where people rarely come! Get some rest, ok?" I nodded and headed up to my room to sleep.

After I woke up, I decided to ask my mom about what the nurse had called me at the hospital that morning. I ran down the stairs and into the living room. All of the kids were playing pin the tail on the donkey now, with Charmy attempting to attach the tail to Fangor's face. Fangor wasn't to ammused, but the others were laughing too hard to try to point him in the right direction. " It won't stick! Why won't it stick!" Charmy kept saying. I walked into the kitchen where my mom and dad were. " Oh! Hello, dear! Did you have a nice nap?" I nodded and jumped into one of the chairs next to them. Dad looked up from reading the newspaper and said, " You need something? You look like something is bothering you. Tell me who it is that is causing you problems! They'll rue the day they messed with-" Mom clapsed a hand over his mouth. " Calm down! You know that you could get arrested for that!" Mom turned back to me. " What's bothering you?" I sighed. " When I was lying on the hospital bed, the nurse called me 'Tomias'. Do you know why that is?" Mom put her elbow on the table and rested her head on her hand. " Sorry we never told you, son." "Told me what?" Fangor appeared from around the corner. " You are Tomias Dimitri, son of Alkinin and Flaura Dimitri, King and Queen of the mystics. Your nick name, which you were given at the age of 1, is 'Green Lightning' because when you run, you look like a green lightning bolt." Mom and Dad looked at him, shocked. " HOW did you learn this? We never told anyone his real name, other than our maids!" Mom said. Fangor shook his head in dismay. " I had a little chat with the 8 Kintushian Sages last night. He came up in it and they told me his true name, along with your names, which you also never told anyone in Knothole." They both turned a light shade of red and nodded, with my dad looking very angry. Mom saw this and wrinkled her forhead, worried. " Alkinin! Calm down!" Immediately he turned a shade darker red and calmed down. " Honestly, you shouldn't be embarassed by your names. All it does is make you hide it from others." " Honestly, I think Tomias is a cute name!" Came a familiar voice from the kitchen door. We all turned to see Aleena wearing a dress with the same design as Amy's, but it was blue instead of red, a red bow in her hair, white gloves with flowers on them, green/gold tie-die shoes, and carrying a package. " Hi Aleena!" I said waving as she ran up to me. She hugged me and said she was sorry about eavesdropping. My mom shrugged it off. " It's alright. I know you didn't have any bad intentions." Mom looked up at the clock above the stove. " By the emeralds! It's already 2:30 PM! Time to open your presents! I'll gather everyone in your room and call them in. " I shook my head. " I don't think it's big enough, mom." " Nonsense! Fangor said he got you the Deluxe Luxury Suit!" " Oh! I thought you meant my room here." She shook her head and headed into the living room. " Aleena, dear? Could you create a moongate to your Suit, please?" Aleena smiled. " I've learned a bit of magic in my spare time, training for 2 hours after class. The instructor said I'm almost ready to try casting the 'earthquake' spell!" I smiled. " That's great!" She stuck her head into the living room. " Just a minute! I've gotta give Tomias enough time to switch into his Tuxedo!" " Please call me Green Lightning." She nodded. " I understand. It's the only name you've known your entire life. Go get ready for our date. I'll meet you at the house."

2 hours laterI was off to my date after opening presents ( 6 thousand new books, a cell phone with unlimited minutes for life, a Kintushian-steel long sword, and Aleena said she was saving one of the presents for during our date.) I wonder what it could be? She said it was very special to her. I shrugged off the thought as we entered a clearing with a single tree at it's center and many flowers around it. They had three large petals about as big as my hand when spread out, grouped around the center that was about as big as my wrist. " Those are blood blossoms, Green Lightning! Fangor told me they only bloom when the blood of a hero is spilt. I wonder whose blood it was... and look at that tree! See all those white flowers that look like gems? This is a 'tree of the hero' according to Fangor. He said it only sprouts when a hero dies, and it sprouts just before he or she dies. I wonder who it was that died here?" I looked around and noticed that I recognized this place. These trees look quite familiar! Could this be the place I died in my previous life? I've lost my memory of it... She set down a blanket and put a picnic basket on it. " Listen! Isn't is so peaceful here? All of your worries, anger, fear, sorrow... they just melt away!" I nodded in agreement. She started setting out the picnic, being careful not to get her dress dirty. I looked in my temporal vortex and found a large table. Hmm... I knew I would need that at some point... I pulled it out and set it on the ground. " Good thinking! Do you have any chairs in that too?" I looked in the temporal vortex again and came out with two fancy chairs for us to use. " Wow, that really comes in handy! Who taught you how to do that?" I shrugged. " Fangor, before we began the semester." She smiled. " You're very lucky to have him as a friend!" I nodded. She finished setting out the food and we began eating. The fruit-based foods quickly vanished ( Pies, bananas, apples, oranges, grapes, etcetera) thanks mostly to me. Then we started on the main course, Peanut butter & jelly sandwhiches. " You know, I've been wondering why they call it peanut butter. It doesn't have any butter in it, so why call it peanut butter? Why not peanut spread?" I shrugged. I had my mouth full of the sandwhich and wasn't going to lose my manners to respond. I swallowed, leaving my mouth and throat sticky.

We finished our picnic and I put up the chairs and table. We walked over to the edge of the clearing, overlooking the ocean and sat down, hand-in-hand with Aleena resting her head on my shoulder. We watched the sun set, casting an orange glow over Emerald Ocean. The moon came up and ths stars came out. We stretched out on the grass with the tops of our heads touching each others'. " The moon sure is beautiful tonight, isn't it, Green Lightning?" " Yes, but it's getting late, isn't it?" She sighed, happily. " Oh! Almost forgot your present!" She stood up and pulled me to my feet. She came around in front of me with her arms behind her back. " Close your eyes, please." I closed my eyes, wondering why I needed to. A few seconds passed and I felt her put something around my neck. " There! You can open your eyes now." I opened them and saw she was now wearing a locket. She opened it and a picture of me sleeping was inside. I blushed, wondering how she had gotten a picture like that without me knowing. She pointed at my chest. I looked down and noticed she had slipped a locket around my neck as well. Inside was a picture of us, that night at the Christmas party. I smiled. " Thank you, Aleena." She smiled and hugged me for a second. She opened her picnic basket and began browsing around inside. " Are you thirsty? I brought along some sodas." I nodded. " Sodas will be fine. Thank you, Aleena." She handed me a bottle of something called '7UP'. It had some sort of green liquid inside. " These look different from the ones we had-" She put a finger to my lips, silencing me. " There is quite a variety of them. Each one tastes different from the others, but they all sort of burn your tongue. Mom said it isn't a good idea to drink too many of them because of the low nutritional value and the high caffine. One every now and then is okay, though, she says. Well, drink up. It's almost time for bed." I nodded and drained my drink. It tasted different than the last, but with the same burning sensation on my tongue. I began to get very drowsy all of a sudden. I stretched and yawned, nearly falling over. " You okay, Green Lightning?" I shook my head. " I feel as sleepy as the last time I drunk one of these..." I suddenly remembered what the doctor had told me: ' Cafine isn't good for you, I've heard. It stunts your growth, I think.' Apparently it just makes me incredibly sleepy. " It's the cafine, Aleena. I think I'm alergic to it in that it makes me very-" I stopped to yawn, nearly falling forward. " Sleepy." I finished. She opened a moongate and picked me up. " Go to sleep, Tomias. Oops! I for-" I waved my hand dismissively. " It's alright. I'll let you call me by my given name." She kissed me on the cheek. " Thank you. Good night. I'll put you in your bed and take care of making sure the front door is locked. I'll also make sure to keep down your caffine intake." I nodded and drifted off to sleep.

February 23

I had gone through several tests in the past few days, all towards my training to become an Elite. I was in the midst of breakfast when there was a knock at the door. Aleena got up to answer it. " Hey, Aleena? Is Green Lightning here?" Leadfoot soon appeared next to the table, holding a newspaper. " Thought you should see this! You made the front page... twice!" He handed me the newspaper and I began reading.

A Rival For Fangor?

The all-odds match that took place in the recent tournament featuring the Guardian of the Forest Versus the Black Robe gang has left many people believing that the Guardian could be a match for Fangor. Furthermore, it is believed that he could be one of the heros spoken of in the prophecy. This is believable because he was able to use one of the Order Emeralds in the fight. We attempted to interview him, but the doctors refused us access to the emergency recovery room. The Guardian goes by the name of Green Lightning and easily stands out because of his green and gold fur and the fact that he has two tails. This is Kaizen Nitur, reporter extroidanair, signing off.

I shook my head in disbelief. " Read below it." Leadfoot said, pointing to the heading below the headline. I glanced down and was even more shocked.

A New Chess Champ For Knothole!

As some of you may already know, Adiel Fintzgittigen, our local 4-year, chess champ, has been defeated by an up-and-running rookie that plays like a professional, Green Lightning. This was at most a week before the anual tournament which left Green Lightning bed-ridden. Only 6 years old, 1 foot eight inches tall, and weighing in at 10 Lbs, he is a heavyweight in the world of Chess. This is Kaizen Nitur, reporter extroidanair, signing off.

I was nearly speechless. " I... I... I didn't know anyone cared..." Leadfoot smirked. " Now you've gotta avoid crazed fangirls and the media! Good luck!" he doubled over, laughing. Aleena looked at the date on it again. " You went to a Chess Tournament the day of our first date!" She looked angry. " I had to pass the time somehow. I couldn't have just sat around doing nothing." She calmed down. " Sorry about that. I didn't know." I shook my head. " It's alright. Everyone makes mistakes." She nodded. Just then Esna came in and dragged Leadfoot out the door saying: " You still need to pick up the junk in your room! I can't even walk through there without tripping over something!" She looked furious. Aleena giggled a little. " Poor Leadfoot. We knew you well." She stopped her giggling. She turned towards me, her face serious. " I heard from mom that there are going to be five other academies opening for the people of Knothole. According to the regulations book, it means a tournament will be held within ten years of the last academy's opening to decide which academy will remain. With the amount of academies opening, the best instructor and the four best students from each academy will be in the tournament in a five-way free-for-all." I nodded. Why should I be concerned? " I'm going for a walk. I'll be back later, Aleena. Think you can keep this place from becoming like the War Zone of the cafeteria?" She nodded, smiling. " Be careful!" I nodded, leaving.

I had been traveling through the forest for a while when I noticed the birds heading in the opposite direction from me. I stopped and heard footsteps following behind me. " Esna, Leadfoot, Aleena, there's no use hiding. I can hear you well enough to strike you in the dark." I heard a bit of giggling as they stopped beside me. Just then, a huge flock of birds began frantically heading in the opposite direction I had been walking. Not soon after I heard despairing voices crying out: " You are not welcome here!" " Leave here at once! We are pained by your presence!" " NOOOO! The forest is under seige! Guardian of the Forest! We need you!" I felt someone hit me in the back of the head. " OW! What was that for?" I turned around and saw Leadfoot with his staff out. " You sorta spaced out, man. You feeling okay?" I turned back where the birds had come from. " Did you hear some voices just now?" Leadfoot got a strange look on his face. " What voices? Are you goin' crazy or somethin'?" I frowned. I closed my eyes and concentrated my mind on feeling the prescenses of others the way Kintushians do. Immediately I doubled over, grabbing my sides in pain. " I have a bad feeling about those birds that flew overhead... I think we should turn back, Green Lightning." Said Esna, looking a little worried. " Something... evil approaches. Get Fangor. Get the academies. Evacuate the village into the underground, Leadfoot and Esna. Aleena? Evacuate the school." They all nodded. " Tomias! What will you do while we are gone?" Aleena asked with tears in her eyes. I turned a grim frown. " I will scout ahead to see what is coming. If I don't get back a communication to you within 30 minutes, prepare for battle." She nodded and they all sped off.

Fangor's POV

I walked into the headmaster's office, knowing what he was going to ask. Why did they have to set up new academies so soon? Do they have any idea what kind of problems this could cause? I sighed as I sat down in one of the large chairs designed to accomodate a Kintushian. " Fangor, I want you to go ahead and decide who will be going with you to the tournament when it occurs. You will need 4 students. Choose." I laid a sheet of paper on the desk in front of him listing 4 names and nothing else. " So... the best students in the academy are Aleena, Leadfoot, Esna, and... well I already knew that! Green Lightning!" He looked up. " You are cer-" I silenced him with a stern look. " I know what I am doing. They are the best we have, even though Leadfoot sleeps through all but the combat parts of his classes so he is failing History of the Sword." He nodded, smirking. Just then the door burst open, sending splinters all over the place. Standing where the door used to be, panting, was Aleena. " Fangor! Green Lightning needs you!" She paused to catch her breath. " He says it's urgent!" She turned and ran. I turned back to the headmaster. " That's coming out of your salary, you know. Dismissed." I turned and ran out of the building, following Green Lightning's presence to the edge of the forest. I saw the enemy slowly approaching, swords drawn, faces frought with anger, rage, happiness, and a burning desire to kill. Columns of white, light blue, black, and brown marched towards the forest. More than five hundred thousand, they outnumbered all that could fight 5 to 1. Green lightning was in a tree above, watching the approaching army, looking angry and with his staff at ready.

Green Lightning's POV

I had flown up into a tree to get a better look at what was coming, not only was I curious, but I was angered by their presence. The forest was in agony from their approach. It was the forest speaking earlier... I looked onward again and saw it would only be about an hour before they reached us. I heard the rustling of bushes behind me as the bulk of the Kintushian army that had come to Knothole showed up, along with most of the students from the school, including Aleena, Leadfoot, and Esna. I heard Fangor draw his sword, saying: " So, the invasion begins... I hope we're ready..."

END OF CHAPTER

Well, so ends another chapter. I wonder what will happen next? Will Knothole survive the approaching army? Or will they be slaughtered where they stand, along with their defenders? And where is Tails? Nobody has seen him for more than 9 years! What happened to him and where could he be? And what does Green Lightning's second amulet do? Some of these questions and more will be answered in the next chapter! Think positive thoughts, and have a nice day!