The shield dropped.
The fire broke.
And the darkness was let loose.
Light Gaia was on them in an instant, diving for Pretzel with claws outstretched. She knew it was coming but barely dodged the blazing talons all the same. Light Gaia turned on her again, but was distracted by Sonic ramming into it from behind. Realizing it was outnumbered, it pumped its wings, rising into the sky with a gust of hot air. Pretzel flinched away from the heat.
Fight, don't run, she reminded herself, trying to ignore every instinct telling her to just slither in the ocean and let the world burn.
The ocean.
Hmm.
Pushing off the ground, Pretzel rose high enough to get a good view of the island. There was a fair distance from where they were to the ocean, but with them flying and Light Gaia as big as it was…
Sonic, she called. She wasn't sure if she was getting better at telepathy or if it was just because of the transformation. He didn't look at her, but she knew he heard. We need to drive it into the ocean.
Sonic gave the slightest of nods before shooting towards Light Gaia again. It whipped around and slashed at him, but at the second-to-last second (the last would be too late, even for him) Sonic twisted away. Light Gaia's claws grazed his fur as he whirled in midair, gesturing with his arm. A spear of dark violet energy materialized and struck his opponent between two heartbeats.
Sonic blinked, looking taken aback.
Light Gaia took advantage of his confusion to send return fire in a beam of white light. Sonic darted away. Light Gaia's gaze, hotter than the sun burning above them, focused on Pretzel.
She drew the shadows tighter to her and forced herself not to run. Light Gaia charged, and she flung the darkness out in a shield. It lasted only a few seconds under Light Gaia's onslaught, valuable seconds as she dove out of its way. Valuable, but not enough. Light Gaia's back claws caught her tail, and as she writhed, its front talons clasped around her throat. Pain sizzled over her skin, fierce and unrelenting. She couldn't scream, too busy trying not to melt away.
It was as it always had been. The claws digging into her throat, the claws digging into her chest. She scrabbled with her claws, trying to scratch it despite the burning. Nowhere to run. She lashed her tail, slashing through its feathers, but it didn't react, orange eyes burning into hers. It would burn and burn until she gave up, and this time she hadn't even weakened it enough for it to go to the core. She hissed and bit. Light Gaia seemed to laugh. Perhaps it would burn her until it grew tired, and then they would sleep. Her wings beat helplessly. Would the world last that long? Maybe—
A dark blur hit Light Gaia at the speed of sound. It wasn't enough to knock it away, yet it hissed and turned away from her, flattening its ears and swiping at Sonic with one set of talons while keeping the others on Pretzel's throat.
Pretzel stopped struggling. When Sonic didn't attack again, Light Gaia turned its eyes to her, ears pricked curiously. She gave it a minute to revel in its apparent victory before jabbing her tail spike through its two biggest ears. Its scream shattered the sky, and Pretzel slipped from its grip, letting herself drop low to the ground before opening her wings. Her underbelly grazed the grass. She glided towards the pull of the ocean deep and dark, the sun hot on her tail.
Light Gaia surged after her, struggling to stay low with its massive wings. What little plant life remaining on the island was scorched black by its heat. Pretzel winced. She reached the ocean and whirled around, tail trailing into the water. Light Gaia hesitated at the shore, watching her warily. She flared her wings, screeching a challenge.
Before Light Gaia could make up its mind, Sonic slammed into it from behind, and Pretzel grabbed its head—itburneditburnedaaaaaaahitburned—, forcing it into the water.
For once, it was someone else that was sizzling.
Light Gaia screamed, sending waves surging up the shore. It broke free of her grip. Pretzel dove into the water before it could grab her, the cold bringing a temporary relief to her burns. She peered up at Light Gaia, circling Sonic overhead, and heaved a sigh. This could go on for an eternity; she would know. She watched the bubbles rise to the surface. Perfect circles.
She looked up at Light Gaia. Her opposite. It was still lashing out at Sonic, always a heartbeat closer to spearing him. All this fighting, and all they had to show for it was a few missing feathers. Energy couldn't be killed. And Light Gaia wouldn't give up until it was far, far too late.
She looked down at the ocean. Black. Deep. Far, far below the world. Far, far below, where she couldn't hurt anyone. Where they couldn't hurt anyone. Not Light Gaia. Not Dark Gaia. Sleep.
She breathed out again, softly, and marveled at the fact that she didn't really need to breathe at all. Bubbles, perfect circles. Round and unending.
Her heart shuddered in her chest. Over and over again, the earth and the claws and the light choking, choking, choking. Over and over and over and over and over—
She looked up at Sonic, his expression tight and focused on dodging an opponent who for once was nearly as fast as him. She saw Shadow in that face. Tired. It wasn't right. Sonic was meant to be light, not blinding and burning like Light Gaia, but twinkling and warming like the stars. Neither the quiet moon nor the burning sun.
Sonic and Shadow and Rouge and Blaze and Tails and Amy… they deserved choice. They deserved to be all the colors of the spectrum, not washed out black or white. The world belonged to them. Not Light. Not Dark. The Gaias were like children, fighting over something precious and beautiful and breaking it in the process when it wasn't even theirs to have.
She took a moment more to marvel at the intricacies of the ocean's blues before bursting from the water. Light Gaia whipped around to face her, and she held its gaze with broken calm.
Speaking to it was like talking to herself. This will never end.
Surprisingly, it agreed. The little one does not give up. It sounded rather smug about it, how it had brainwashed such a heroic person.
If we fight longer, he will die.
You can give up.
You can give up.
Light Gaia laughed in derision at the very thought of surrender.
Pretzel stilled her own frustration. We will always fight. But he does not have to.
He will not leave me be. He does not understand.
He understands more than either of us, Pretzel snapped. But he is still mortal. Someday, he will die. And then we can fight again. Just… just let him be now. Let them all be. We can continue this in time. We can wait.
Light Gaia considered her, eyes keen as always. At last, it folded its wings to land on the shore, claws uncertain in the sand. We sleep, then.
We sleep.
The cycle resumes.
Yes.
As it should be.
…yes.
Pretzel swam slowly out of the water and crouched on the white sand where Light Gaia's shadow should have been. Of course it wasn't there. She was Light Gaia's shadow.
Inhaling one last time, savoring the salty sea air (hot though it may be), she closed her eyes and focused. She focused on all the shadows that extended from her, the dark trails left in her wake, and called them all to her. Sonic was standing on the beach, looking at the Gaias with wary bewilderment. She called the energy from him. No goodbyes needed to be said. It was better this way.
She didn't see if it hurt and she didn't see him detransform. There was no more time.
It's time to sleep.
As it should be.