Author's Note: I am deeply sorry for the long delay as writer's block hit, plus trying to write this chapter but daily life got to me so I couldn't find time to even begin it, but finally, it's here and thanks to my friend danielman21 for helping me with ideas which really helped out a lot. While I couldn't use most of them, I managed to use some of them but I may be able to use another idea for the next chapter or afterwards.
Hard to say at this stage and this is the last chapter of 2021, but the story will continue in 2022.
Anyway, let's continue onward!
I do not own any rights to Sonic the Hedgehog or any of the related media. All rights go to Sega.
Chapter 9: Excitement and Music.
"Thanks for letting me buy this, you guys. I'm just really sorry that it was expensive." Chris thanked his friends as he, Sonic, Tails, Amy, Vanilla, Cream and Cheese, Francies and Danny had exited the Electronics Shop and everyone all pulled together to help him buy his own guitar, under Sonic's suggestion, and let him choose on his own.
The one he carried now was similar to Sonic's, only it had more of the 90's style(well, that he knew of since he wasn't sure when these designs were built here in Mobius) with white lightning streaks on the front, the colouring a sky-blue, the strap leather black, and it reminded Chris of his blue hedgehog friend. The Earth-Boy really liked it so much and everybody agreed with his choice, though it was pretty pricey, having costed about at least $130 Mobiums. Thankfully everyone had just enough and the guy at the store gave them a 20% discount(due to being a fan of Sonic).
"It's no problem. Besides, I'd say we were pretty lucky all things considered." Sonic replied, smiling.
"Especially since the guy gave you a discount for being a hero." Francies added.
"Yeah, but you still gave more than the rest of us." Danny pointed out.
The blue hedgehog just shrugged. "What can I say? I'm just helping out that guy a little. I'm not the only hero in the world, you know."
"That's one of the reasons why I love you." Amy said, sighing lovingly. "Always such a sweet and generous guy on the planet. I wish there were more people like you."
That only made the fifteen year old blush a little as he looked away slightly. "It's just, well, I like helping other people. It's more fun giving than taking."
He then rolled his eyes as he added. "With Eggman, he's the total opposite. Only caring about himself and nobody else."
"More like the total opposite to everybody else. He gives me the creeps." Chris shuddered, and the others all nodded in agreement.
"Eggman's always been like that." Tails commented.
"He always likes to cause trouble and I think it's really sad that he's so mean." Cream added with a sigh and Cheese chirped in sad agreement.
"I think it's very sad too." Vanilla agreed with her daughter. "I just hope he doesn't cause any more trouble soon."
Sonic smirked and assured. "Don't worry, Mrs. V. With us around, there's nothing to worry about! In the meantime, let's enjoy ourselves for the weekend."
'I just hope I'll get this right. I really don't want to embarrass myself. Maybe I should practice a bit more.' Chris thought to himself, gazing at his new guitar and smiled a little. This was the first time he ever held one besides burrowing Cream's, let alone get close enough to the cool instruments.
This made him think back to the times when he would have to go with his mother to buy the 'perfect' instrument for him to play with when he was younger. Or rather he attempted to find the right instrument for the school choir one time, which ended in a disaster.
Flash-Back: Four years ago on Earth...
An eight year old Chris was really excited as he joined his class to find instruments for the School Choir for boys. While the school itself was boring and he was told to stay well away from other people and just focus on his studies, the young boy got the chance and was now at the instrument music store in the heart of New York City. While their teacher let the boys pick out the more classic instruments, such as flutes, violins, ect., Chris gazed around in amazement and, seeing how most of the other students lacked in picking out flutes as the choir needed at least two or three flute players and only one did, he decided to go for the flute as well.
"Hmmm...Which flute do I want?" Chris murmured to himself as he went to the display of flutes, some were black, some were white, some were other colours, though most were just in black and white, some were styled differently and there were different types as well.
There were so many, such as the Piccolo Flute, the Alto Flute, bass flute, every kind of flute that was available, he didn't know which one to pick. All of them looked pretty cool, like in those boring concerts his parents forced him to watch and listen to, but if he could play one and join the choir, maybe he could get a career out of being flute player.
Unfortunately, those ideas were almost immediately sent crushing and never to be made a reality.
"Christopher Thorndyke!"
"AH!" Chris yelped in fright over the horribly familiar woman's voice shouting out his name, and he spun around to find, to his dismay, his mother Lindsey who, having come with a couple of her bodyguards and musicians who had arrived here for replacement instruments, had noticed him gazing at the flutes and he knew almost immediately that she was mad at him for some reason. "Oh, um...Hi mom."
That only made Lindsey even more angry as she stomped over to her son and placed her hands on her hips, glaring at the now increasingly frightened child. "No, no, no! Correct your grammer speech, young man! You are supposed to speak like this. "Hello, Mother". The words you just used are not real. It is make believe and incorrect English!"
"I'm-"
"It's I AM!"
"I am sorry, Mom-Mother!" Chris gulped, quickly correcting himself.
"Do better next time! And what on Earth are you doing!?" His mother demanded.
"I was just picking out which flute I want to use for the school choir nex-next week. The school band only has one flute player and-" The eight year old boy was cut off when his mother grabbed him roughly on the upper arm and pulled him away.
"Only musicians are allowed to play when they go to Muscian Schools! But as you are not attending the school and these teachers have made a grave mistake and will be fired and all music lessons will be banned from the schools, you have broken the rules and I am very disappointed in you, Christopher Nelson Thorndyke! You are grounded for three months and will join me for my performance, so there will be singing lessons during that time and there will be no mistakes, or else you will not speak for three weeks! Is that clear!?" Lindsey hissed dangerously, pulling her son along with her to keep away from the instruments.
Chris shivered and winced, whining. "Ow! Mom, that hurts!"
"What did I just say about incorrect English? And you are not to cry. No tears allowed!" His mother hissed darkly, only tightening her grip on the child's arm, pulling him away and purposely ignoring the looks from the other students and the teacher, while her crew had finished buying what they needed as she quickly explained to the confused musicians and security guards. "Forgive my child. He is still learning and needs to learn how to respect rules."
The eight year old boy tried not to cry, knowing that it would only get him into further trouble, though he did accidentally catch the glimpse of the musicians gazing at him with sympathy. Even the shop owner looked sympathetic and the child could only lower his gaze miserably.
Why did he always get himself into unnecessary trouble with his family?
End of Flash-Back:
"Chris? Are you okay?"
"Huh?" Chris blinked out of his thoughts at the sound of Cream's sweet young voice and gazed at her, Cheese, Vanilla, Sonic, Amy, Tails, Francies and Danny who noticed that the Earth-Boy looked to have been thinking about something and all looked worried. "Oh, uh, yeah. I'm fine. Just thinking."
"Is there anything you wanna talk about?" Sonic asked gently, not failing to notice the look of sadness on his human friend's expression. In fact, if the blue hedgehog were to guess, the twelve year old boy was probably remembering some of his memories of his horrible life back on Earth.
"Maybe later, but not here." The young Thorndyke whispered only loud enough for his friends and 'temporarily' care-taker to hear, which they thankfully got the message and nodded.
"I know! Maybe we can all go to my house to hang out?" Cream suggested, surprising her older friends before gazing up to her mother. "Mama, would it be alright if Amy, Sonic, Tails, Francies and Danny come over?"
"Of course they can, Cream. It would be good for Chris to invite friends over like you do to make him more comfortable." Vanilla immediately agreed, much to her daughter's delight.
"You sure it's okay, Mrs. Vanilla?" Chris asked, a bit nervously. As he never had friends before until he ended up in this dimension, no other kid around his age were allowed in his old home.
The kindly rabbit nodded. "Absolutely. Who would ever deny children to see their friends?"
Despite that she didn't intend on having the human boy end up recalling more of his memories, Chris lowered his gaze and whispered. "...My family."
While the others didn't hear him say this even though Vanilla almost immediately felt guilty since she and the rest of the group saw his sad expression, Sonic approached the Earth-Boy and gently patted him on the back, making Chris gaze at the blue hedgehog who smiled softly.
"It's okay, buddy. You've got tons of friends now, like all of us right here." Sonic reassured, wanting to make Chris feel happy even though after weeks of his new friend being here in Mobius, he still wasn't sure if the twelve year old wanted to go back to Earth to see Florida. Either way, he wanted to make sure that even if he does, Chris would be far away from his terrible relatives.
"He's right, Chris. We're all here for ya, if you need it." Tails added, with Amy and the rest of the group sharing their words of comfort to cheer their friend up.
"Thanks, guys." Chris smiled a little, feeling at ease once again. Whenever he hanged out with these guys, they made him feel so safe, so free, so wanted, so...normal. Everything that his parents and grandfather always denied him of for most of his life. In fact, he barely asked any questioned on what he was like as a baby in fear of getting into trouble for that as well, even though it sounded silly. But with Nelson, Lindsey and Professor Thorndyke, they were extremely strict.
The last almost four weeks, which his eyes mentally widened as he realized that he had been here on this planet for almost an entire month now, however, changed his life, possibily for the better. While Chris, Sonic and their friends were admittedly nowhere near closer in gaining knowledge of why the Earth-Boy had the mysterious Chaos power of Healing, so far nothing out of the further ordinary happened. Not even an attack from that Dr. Eggman.
But little did the group know as they were about to board the train to take them back to the Mobians' village, they were being followed by two familiar figures who one of them had a goal in mind; to seek out Sonic the Hedgehog.
By the time the group of nine made it back to the Mobians' village, they were walking along the familiar calm footpath of the beautiful village that was heaven for people like Sonic and his Mobian friends. For Chris, for some reason even though he was currently the only human living here and being under the care of Vanilla and Cream and Cheese, it was much more pleasent than living in New York. It wasn't crowded with people, it was nice and open, there were hundreds if not thousands of trees, it was a place that had always imagined in living in.
"This place is so beautiful. I'd love to live in a town like this." Francies remarked happily as she and Danny gazed around their surroundings. "It reminds me of my Grandma's Farm near Soleanna."
"Really? Your grandma lives near Soleanna?" Amy asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement as the name of the place even interested the kindly family, Tails and Sonic, and especially Chris who had heard parts of it at school in the last few weeks. "I've always wanted to go there."
"Sounds like a cool place to explore. Definitely be adding that on my travel list." Sonic remarked, as the thought of seeing a place he has never been to before excited him. As he knew deep down, Mobius was a huge place and he still has yet to see all of it. For as long as he could remember, it had always been his dream to explore the whole world. He loved exploring, to see new places, greet new people, to try out all of the food of different cultures, and just run around taking in the experience.
"You mean you've never been to Soleanna before, Sonic?" Chris asked, surprised.
The cobalt hedgehog just chuckled. "Nah, not really. You might've not noticed, but the planet's a big place, and I wanna see all of it. Everywhere there are new places to see. Maybe if it weren't for Eggman being around, I probably woulda seen the the whole world by now. And probably keep on adventuring to the places I've been do to check up on them."
Sonic then paused as he gazed up at the bright blue sky which was a perfect sunny day in the early months of Autuum yet the weather was still warm. "Seeing Mobius up in space made me realize just big the world is, and even more so in just how huge the universe is. It's not everyday that people get to experience it."
"Let alone save it more than a few times." Tails piped in, making the others laugh.
"Yeah, that's true." Sonic agreed, smiling just as a lone butterfly flew in and surprised the teenage hedgehog by it landing on his nose, but he didn't mind as he gently held up a finger which had the small violet instect hop onto it and he drew it back slightly, then held it up as it then flew away.
This impressed the human children who gazed at awe at just how gentle and kind he was even towards butterflies.
"But what makes the world more special is the living creatures in it. Us, both humans and Mobians, Mobinis, mother nature, you name it. Everything and everyone that's worth seeing and meeting." He continued.
"That is such a lovely thought you have, Sonic. No one can come up with a better way in describing life than you." Vanilla remarked proudly, which made Sonic blushed a little in embarrassment.
"Well, it's true." Sonic pointed out, scratching the side of his face sheepishly.
'Sonic is so cute and caring whenever he makes speeches like that, and even cuter when he blushes. It makes him so...romantic.' Amy thought to herself, her hands clasped together as she felt her heart leap over his words.
"Man, I wish I could see the whole lot. It sounds like a whole lot of fun." Chris said, as the thought of exploring the entire planet was one of his dreams. At least see how Earth was like, with Florida being the first place if he could.
Sonic didn't miss the thoughtful express on his friend's face, yet he could see the sadness in the boy's eyes even as Danny and Francies then suggested that they would all go since the school would go on field trips to certain parts of the world and the blue hedgehog then realized that the Earth-Boy was most likely even denied in going onto field trips. In Chris' stories of his past, the young Thorndyke ended up getting grounded by going to the library one time which was one of the cruelest things to happen to anybody.
'Poor kid. He really must've missed out on having all kinds of fun. I wonder if he was even allowed to take a quick sight-seeing during his Mom's movie shoots on Earth. It isn't fair that Chris had to do all of the things his family wanted him to do and he isn't even allowed to play music on his own.' The blue hedgehog thought to himself, his heart aching for his human friend's sad and miserable life.
It was sad, really. Sure, Sonic was parentless for as long as he could remember, and so were Tails and Amy, and Knuckles, obviously. But they all managed okay and Vanilla was like a mother to all of them, being a mother to Cream of all things, and now being a care-taker of Chris who, having grown up with parents and even a grandfather, had a miserable life due to how strict and cruel they were. Not even treating the Earth-Boy as a human being, but rather an item or even a pet which the latter thought was sickening. It was complicated enough that Eggman's grandfather went nuts before he died due to how...how Maria was cruely taken away all because he created Shadow.
'Huh. That reminds me. I wonder if Shadow's making up with Eggman's grandpa and Maria in the afterlife? He must've by now.' The thought of the black hedgehog who had gone from a brain-washed would-be world-obliterator to a hero who had given up his life for save them all with the help of Sonic, ached the blue hedgehog's heart once more and he couldn't help but frown in sadness.
He wished he could thank Shadow for having a change of heart and saving his life. Sonic owed him that much. The blue hedgehog then quickly shook those thoughts away as there wasn't a thing he could do now and he had to focus on the present.
So instead, he smirked and said to the young Thorndyke. "Maybe someday you will. I mean, now you can go on field trips and check out all of the cool places."
"Yeah! The field trips are always more fun than being at school." Francies agreed.
"The field trips we have go almost anywhere in the world. Like Spagonia, Apotos, Chun-Nan, you name it!" Danny added excitedly.
That lifted Chris' spirits up as, after being denied in going on field trips back on Earth and as much as he still felt conflicted slightly due to being different, his chances of actually exploring the world, which was another version of his planet, made him really excited.
"I can't wait!" The twelve year old boy cheered which made the Mobians laugh happily over his excitement.
Everyone began talking about the different places as Sonic, Tails, Amy, and even Cream mentioned about showing Chris many of the places they had been to, chatting away more cheerfully while Vanilla watched on with a warm smile. To see her daughter, the three slightly older Mobians who were still children themselves, and the young human children all talk away lively made her heart leap and watching Chris to be more happier and comfortable than when he first came to live in her house made her feel very relieved. He was such a very sweet boy that she would do anything to ensure he was well looked after and happy at the same time. The mother rabbit felt blessed to have a wonderful daughter who had such a pure heart to have such wonderful friends who over time become like children of her own as well and now that included the young twelve year old Thorndyke.
Especialy how Sonic was naturally gifted in cheering people up and making friends by his optimistic personality and heart that shone brighter than gold.
Over the next week, Chris has been practicing with his guitar with the help from Sonic and Cream as they began to rehearsing together to get into the sync. First the twelve year old boy, with some encouragement from his new friends, with some nervousness, performed for them as well as Vanilla who applauded to him for his first attempts to play in front of an audience as it was agreed the young Thorndyke would start off small. The praise he got made him blush happily and also earned a thumbs up and a wink from the blue hedgehog with a smirk.
During that time, the duo and the six year old girl, messing up a bit at first as they couldn't figure out how to play in rhythm, but then came up with an idea and began to focus on taking turns at first before going into a joint-rhythm which made it perfect over the third try and even began singing, which each of them were surprised to have such great singing voices despite that Sonic didn't think he was that great at singing, but Chris and Cream told him that he was amazing, making him embarrassed. Liking the song they made up and more praises from Vanilla, Tails, Amy and Cheese which had Sonic placing a hand behind his head sheepishly, Cream giggling and Chris blushing, they agreed to go with it.
Over time, each of them practiced both as a band and also solo and at school Chris, being told to bring his instrument and kept on training himself with the aid from Danny and Francies, managed to gain more confidence and when he was asked to perform in front of the class, nervous at first, he steeled himself up and did so. Needless to say, everybody at school including the music teacher were very impressed that he got an A+. This made the Earth-Boy even more happy while unbeknownst to him and the class, Sonic and Cream, who asked to come with him, watched and listened from the window and smiled.
Feeling ready to compete at the Music Fair, Chris decided to enter with Cream and Sonic who signed them all in and they kept on practicing until they were ready, and soon the day came; The Annual Music Fair at Twinkle Park at Station Square.
At the set up concert stage which was huge, Sonic, Chris and Cream waited for their turn behind the curtains off-stage as other contestants had their turns, with Tails and Vanilla standing by them, and Amy, Cheese, Danny and Francies with the audience.
"There sure are a lot of people there." Chris whispered as he peered around the corner without being seen before standing back to avoid in messing up. He shuddered slightly as he admitted. "I'm getting a little nervous. Sure hope I don't mess up."
"It'll be okay, Chris. It's all about having fun and doing our best." Cream reassured comfortingly.
"She's right, dear. You don't have to worry about being perfect." Vanilla added, gently placing her hands on the boy's shoulders to calm him down.
"It's okay if you guys don't win. I'm sure that people will still love your performance in the end." Tails agreed reassuringly.
"I hope you're right." The twelve year old boy smiled a little.
"Don't worry, Chris. With us around, the only thing to worry about is how the other guys are doing..." Sonic said, before he and his friends cringed when they heard an awful sound of...
Well, none of them were sure what it was. When the blue hedgehog and the others turned to see what was making that racket, they all sweat dropped when they saw a Mobian Parrot red in colour attempting to sing with a violin, except it sounded more like horrible squawking from the guy's voice and loud screeching that sounded more like a nail scraping at glass of a window. It was so bad that the five of them, and virtually everyone else both on stage and in the audience had to cover their ears, begging for the competitor to stop.
"Like that guy." Sonic lamented, feeling like his ears were ringing. 'How on Earth did he end up getting a spot? If he thinks he can win, that bird's in for a real shock.'
Unbeknownst to the group, behind them was a robot lingering in the shadows, and above them secretly watching and waiting for his chance, was Eggman in his Egg Mobile along with Decoe and Bocoe who, also watching the horrid performance of the parrot, all groaned and covered their ears in agony.
"AAAAH! That's the most horrific sound in the universe! Somebody stop him! He's killing my eardrums!" Eggman wailed, unable to take it anymore.
With Amy, Cheese, Danny and Francies, they all screamed and wailed along with everybody else, with the pink hedgehog crying out. "Who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to let him get on stage!?"
"He's worse than that Justin Beaver guy!" Francies complained.
"You're telling me!" Danny exclaimed, wincing and wishing for the Parrot to stop.
"Chao chao!" Cheese squealed in discomfort.
Not even a minute when the judges and announcers decided that enough was enough and shared a nod before they had someone to yank the 'singer' away with a long stick with a hook with the Parrot squawking in alarm as he was pulled off-stage and everyone both waiting for their turn and in the audience all signed in relief.
"Man, I know that not everybody can sing, but that poor guy can't sing to save his life." Sonic remarked, wiggling his pinky finger into his left ear to clear it out a little.
"I don't think he even practiced at all." Tails rubbed the top of his head.
"Yeah, me neither." Chris agreed, feeling sorry for the Mobian Parrot.
"I feel really sorry for Mr. Parrot." Cream muttered sympathetically.
"The poor dear." Vanilla murmured in agreement.
"Ugh...I've heard bad singers before, but that guy just didn't sing at all." Amy groaned after she and her group uncovered their ears, and the others two groaned and nodded in agreement.
"Chao..." Cheese moaned, feeling his hearing still ring.
After the horrid sound of the Parrot's, erm, 'singing', the host of the Music Fair cleared his throat awkwardly before speaking through the microphone. "Well, uh, let's continue on shall we? Our next performers for the Music Fair is lead by the one who you all know by now. He is known by many with great friends and companions who share the same heart of gold as he does."
"That's us." Sonic whispered, now excited as he turned to Chris and Cream. "You guys ready?"
"I'm really ready!" Cream replied excitedly, as she and her mother made sure that her Chao Guitar was in good condition and Tails was doing the same with both Sonic's and Chris', the human boy of the group a little nervous.
"Yup. Ready when you are." The twelve year old Thorndyke replied, with a small sweat drop.
The blue hedgehog, noticing that the Earth-Boy did look nervous, smiled reassuringly and gave him a thumbs up, saying with encouragement. "Remember, Chris. It's all about having fun and we're here with ya'. Just be yourself, 'kay?"
'Be myself...' Chris thought in his mind, as once again he felt encouraged and smiled with a nod, feeling a little more at ease. "Right, Sonic."
As Sonic grinned with a wink, he and his band turned and stood ready, waiting for their names to be called, all still unaware that Eggman was grinning evilly with a remote in hand and his Rock-N'-Bot about to land and take place.
"Ladies and gentlemen, let us give a big warm applaud for our next contestants. The one and the only-"
Before the announcer could say Sonic's name, suddenly there was a slight gust of wind which forced the guy and everyone else to shield themselves crying out in alarm as some of the instruments and speakers which screeched loudly due to the winds hitting the microphone that nearly killed everyone's hearing for the second time.
"Hey, what's going on!?" Sonic exclaimed as Vanilla held Cream in her arms with the two rabbits screaming.
"Nobody said anything about the weather turning bad today!" Chris cried out.
Tails looked up and gasped in horror. "It's not the wind, guys! It's even worse!"
True to the eight year old fox's words as the winds finally died down, a familiar evil laughter filled everyone's ears which caused them all to look up to see Eggman descending in his Egg Mobile, and the only ones not screaming or shivering in fear were Sonic, Tails, even Chris, Amy, Francies and Danny, while Cream was held more tightly in her mother's arms and Cheese hovered closer to Francies. The evil scientist grinned just as he, Decoe and Bocoe hopped out of the Mobile and stood on the podium.
"That's right, I'm the next contestant to win the Music Fair! DR. EGGMAN!" Eggman declared.
"Again?" Chris groaned, both nervous and completely annoyed that the mad doctor came here of all places. He wasn't sure why Eggman was here, despite sensing that something bad was going to happen.
"It's Eggman. Of course." Sonic and Tails both chorused with exasperated sweat drops, the blue hedgehog shrugging and the two-tailed fox facepalming himself.
"Oh dear..." Vanilla whispered worriedly.
"Oh no..." Cream murmured.
"That guy again?" Danny complained, glaring at Eggman and his robots.
"Of all the times!" Francies added.
"Ooh! The nerve of that man! Just when Sonic, Cream and Chris are about to perform their song!" Amy growled angrily, furious that Eggman attempted to ruin the show.
The rest of the audience were not pleased with Eggman's appearance as they all gave out their displeasure and all shouted and hooted. "BOOOOOO!" This annoyed the evil scientist who frowned at the response he was getting.
"Everybody's a critic. Go figure." Eggman grumbled under his breath.
"Well, after losing to Sonic and causing nothing but trouble, everybody that's not a robot are bound to not like you, doctor." Decoe carefully pointed out with a shrug.
"Be quiet!" The evil doctor snapped which scared both of his creations, before recomposing himself while clearing his throat and announced to the audience. "Now then, I have a special performance for all of you people of Station Square, and to the whole of Mobius in general. You will be loving it and soon you will adore me as your number one music expert and ruler of the planet with my Eggmanland Empire soon to be built with your lovely donations."
"Gimme a break. Does he really think anybody's gonna fall for that lame speech?" Sonic frowned with his arms crossed, while both Tails and Chris glared at Eggman and Vanilla and Cream looked on worriedly.
"And now, here is my instrument you will all enjoy! Come on out, Rock-N'-Bot!" Eggman chanted, and as if on cue, the winds picked up again while everyone heard the sounds of an engine jet running and looked up to see the aforementioned robot itself, about two inches taller than the evil scientist while landing behind him with steam and smoke fading out.
When Rock-N'-Bot made it's entrance, everyone just stared at it in utter confusion with wide eyes of disbelief and huge sweat drops. Sonic just stared blankly while four of his friends with him and Amy's group in the seats just blinked in confusion along with everybody else.
"Is that supposed to be a one-man-band robot?" Chris asked, dumbfounded.
"It sure looks like it." Tails tilted his head slightly with an awkward smile.
Sonic then frowned deeply. "That's the most ridiculous band-set-guy I've ever seen in my whole life!"
"And now for the greatest performance ever..." Eggman began, and with a single swipe while removing his clothes which horrified Sonic's group to the point of screaming and everyone else yelping in fright with Amy and the other girls covering their eyes...it is revealed that the crazy doctor was now actually wearing 1960's like disco clothes resembling to what Chris thought was Elvis' outfit, only without the hair-do. "Let it rip, Rock-N'-Bot! Disco-style!"
A disco ball then lowered itself as the Rock-N'-Bot is about to perform whatever music it had in store while everyone felt creeped out by what they just witnessed.
"That's disturbing." Sonic remarked uneasily.
"This keeps getting worse." Chris groaned.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Tails grumbled.
As feared and predicted, the Rock-N-Bot then began to bang on the drums, blow through a trombone, bang on the cymbals, play with a flute, screech on a violin, play with an accordion, virtually playing with every instrument except for a guitar which it lacked, sounding more like a horrible combination of a game soundtrack from a racing car game or even a dancing game on a console to which Eggman attempted to dance through...and sing with a microphone, singing his own parody theme song which everyone disliked even more.
"Remember when I said about Eggman dressing up for disco that's embarrassing? This is exactly what I meant." Sonic informed Chris while covering his ears, while feeling really creeped out now due to what he and his friends were witnessing.
"This is just horrible!" Tails cried out.
"And totally embarrassing." Chris added in agreement.
"What do we do, Sonic?" Cream asked, worriedly.
"Well, I'm gonna give Eggman and that Noise-bot a big exit since they didn't sign up for the show!" The hero of Mobius declared, stretching his legs and arms to prepare himself to save the day again as he knew that the evil scientist was up to no good as usual and could attack at any moment's notice.
"Now for the best long awaited part! ~OOOOH YEEEEAAAAH!~" Eggman sang which even his two minions cringed while covering their hearing once again and groaned.
Rock-N'-Bot then banged the drums once more which then it opened up the hatch on it's back to reveal two speakers which let out a loud sonic wave that began to wreck the other speakers and set up instruments from the other performers and then shot out cages from missiles through out the entire stage, causing everyone to scream in alarm as most of the audience ran to safety, only to be blocked when the missiles blocked the exits, trapping them. One even flew straight towards Sonic's group as the blue hedgehog was the only one who didn't scream in alarm and fear. More cages and nets flew in and trapped both the previous performers and the performers that would've been after Sonic's band.
"Look out!" Chris cried out, as he and Sonic both quickly pushed Tails, Cream and Vanilla out of the way, narrowly avoiding in getting caught themselves but they were noticed by Eggman who paused and turned to his left to find, much to his annoyance yet expectation, his young enemies having managed to avoid in getting caught.
"Well, it looks like Sonic decided to enter after all. It's too bad he's been kicked off stage before he can perform his own act." Eggman grinned and turned to his robot-musician. "Take out Sonic and his friends, Rock-N'-Bot and keep up with your lovely performance!"
"Is everybody okay?" The cobalt speedster asked once he and the others were hopefully in a safer distance, and was relieved that they were all fine.
"Get them!" The mad doctor ordered, and the Rock-N'-Bot turned and when Cream screamed out 'look out!', Sonic and the others turned to see just in time as the robot fired another missile or two.
However, the speedy hedgehog quickly jumped into the air before he swiftly kicked it back, causing it to fly straight into the other missile where the two collided and exploded. But as his friends and the audience cheered on with the teenage giving the others a thumbs up with a smirk, just then more missiles fired which forced Sonic to try and knock them away but missed two which made him gasp in horror. Thankfully even as Tails and the others managed, the young kit hovered into the air and kicked at one as hard as he could, while Chris spotted a piece of metal that fell from the settings and having an idea, grabbed it before held it tightly like a baseball bat.
"Chris, what are you doing?" Cream exclaimed as she and Vanilla gasped in shock.
"Helping out Sonic and Tails! Stand back, Cream and Mrs. Vanilla!" Chris responded with determination, and with a yell as the missile got closer just as Sonic and Tails found themselves trying to reach their friends but couldn't, the twelve year old boy whacked the small but dangerous rocket back which collided with the one that Sonic kicked, causing another small explosion.
"Alright! Nine to five!" Sonic praised his human friend.
"Nice shot, Chris!" Tails exclaimed with a praise, making Chris wink at the two male Mobians with a thumbs up and Cream cheering all three boys on, as did Amy, Cheese, Francies and Danny and soon everyone else when they saw the blue hedgehog, the two-tailed fox and mostly unfamiliar young boy who most of the audience mistook for as a lucky fan getting a chance to be friends with the hero of Mobius.
"How dare you!? You brats crossed me for the last time, my Rock-N'-Bot will make you all lose your hearing, and because it is strong against not just your attacks, but also all instruments it has been installed, not even music can stop it!" Eggman growled furiously, ordering his robot to attack once more, this time with it's instruments.
"Bring it on, piece of junk! Nobody can stop the REAL music!" Sonic grinned and charged with full speed, going for his Spin Attack just as the Rock-N'-Bot charged by using drumsticks to attack but missed. Instead the blue hedgehog hit it hard in the head and he kicked it and the drums out of place.
But to his shock, the robot's head re-attached itself before tossing one of the drums at him but missed while also throwing a missiles of flutes right at him and his friends who yelped and cried out before Sonic quickly kicked and punched while trying to make sure none hit anybody else. Tails attempted to copy his surrogate brother's moves and even used his tails to help in smacking some away, and Chris whacked as many as he could, even bashing a drum that was rolled towards him like a giant coin. As he did, it rolled towards the robot as Sonic was thankfully out of the way...
Or at first it looked like it was heading towards Rock-N'-Bot. Instead it was heading straight towards Eggman who panicked in fright and both Decoe and Bocoe screamed out to try and save their boss. "LOOK OUT, DR. EGGMAN!"
"AAAAH! OH NO!" The evil scientist screamed as he attempted to run away from the rolling drum.
Even as Eggman tried to run away, his two dumbots tried to stupidly push him aside only to end up being rolled over one by one by the drum and nearly squashed flat while they cried out and groaned. That made not just Sonic and his friends laugh, but also the audience, even Amy who was doing her part in protecting as many people as possible while smashing the traps with her Hammer to help everyone to at least get to safety, laugh as well.
"No, stop!" Eggman pleaded as he ran as fast as he could, but since he was big and round, plus not one to do exercise, the drum was catching up. So he quickly shouted at his fighting robot. "Finish off that hedgehog and his friends with all of the instruments and his speed!"
Rock-N'-Bot did as it was told and pulled out a trombone before blowing into it as Sonic attempted to speed in, but the force of the noise and the winds stopped his Spin Attack in mid-air and he was flown back while Tails and Chris ended up being forced backwards, all three of them crying out in alarm, the twelve year old boy having the metal piece blown right out of his hands. The blue hedgehog in the meantime landed hard onto the ground and grunted while pushing himself up as his friends cried out his name.
"Man, that noisy wind's blownin' really hard on me!" Sonic grunted, glaring at his opponent who continued to play the trombone.
Eggman, who had narrowly avoided getting squashed flat like a pancake as the drum rolled off stage, laughed evilly. "Oh ho ho ho ho ho! That's because Rock-N'-Bot was built to cancel out all attacks and even cause every single instrument I've thought of and installed to break and reflect back!"
But as he was saying this, what the evil scientist didn't realize was that Chris noticed something missing on the Robot Musician's body; every single instrument in existence he learned at school back on Earth that even existed here, except for one...his eyes widened in realization as a crazy idea formed in his mind, before hurrying back to grab both his and Sonic's guitars, as Cream, who also noticed and shared a glance with her mother who, despite her fearful concerns for her daughter and the boy that was currently living with them, knew that Eggman made a mistake, so she nodded and told her child to be careful and the six year old nodded before picking up her Chao Guitar and hurried.
"Guys, what are you doing?" Tails asked as he saw both Chris and Cream hurry over.
"Sonic, let's use these!" Chris cried out as loudly as possible, getting Sonic's attention and when the blue hedgehog saw what was in his new friend's hands, realization formed in his mind and he smirked.
"Okay!" Sonic gave the Earth-Boy a thumbs up and speed over, catching his guitar in mid-air as he leaped when Chris tossed it and the blue hedgehog caught easily before landed on the ground and held it ready, brushing his fingers at a couple of strings that made a sound as his fellow guitarists stood by both sides. "Let's give this robot a real rock-n'-roll!"
The teenage Mobian grinned almost evilly, and even more so when Eggman paled when he saw the guitars, the red and white one being Sonic's, the new blue one being Chris', and Cream having an, admittedly but the evil doctor would never say it out loud, cute Chao-shaped one and it was that the mad scientist remembered too late as his spy robot saw Sonic and his new young friend a week earlier.
"Oh no! If there was one thing I forgot about when it comes to instruments, it's guitars! Rock-N'-Bot doesn't stand a chance even at the worst kind of music those things play!" The egg-shaped man exclaimed, his hands on his head.
"Really, Eggman? Why call it that when guitars are one of the keys of rock music?" Sonic taunted, as he told his two friends. "Hit it, Cream!"
"Yeah!" Cream nodded, and she began to play, first by going for a lovely tune almost like a melody. This was followed by Chris who did a mid-rock-mid-melody tone, followed by Sonic's more trained amazing electro-melody kind of tune and then they all began to sing, at first at solo, then all chorused which sounded very amazing and lovely, perfectly in sync and as though they had done this for years and not a week or two.
Rock-N'-Bot tried to attack but as it didn't have the guitar system in it's construction, it couldn't do a thing as the three guitars were already plugged into the speakers that surprisingly weren't broken. Tails cheered his friends on while Vanilla began clapping along of the song, and soon Amy, Cheese, Francies, Danny, and everybody else in the audience seeing the whole fight began to quickly love the performance Sonic, Chris and Cream were playing while their song and talent began to cause the Rock-N'-Bot to malfunction. Decoe and Bocoe, still damaged by being flattened, blinked in surprise in worry that Eggman was about to lose again, but they had to admit they really liked the new song they never heard of before.
Sonic and his band didn't stop as once they started their song and delayed performance, they intend on finishing it. The more they played and sang, the more Eggman's creation couldn't handle it while everyone was cheering them on for the beautiful and awesome music the trio displayed. By the time the three of them finished their song with an encore with each of them playing the last strings of their guitars, not only the robot was stuck and unable to move, but the crowd went wild for the blue hero having such an amazing skill of playing an instrument as well as a great singing voice, joined by a young six year old girl and a twelve year old boy who both had the same but different talents.
"It looks like Rock-N'-Bot has malfunctioned badly!" Decoe exclaimed worriedly as he and Bocoe joined Eggman by the side while their creator was both furious and devastated.
"How can this be!? I wanted to win the Music Fair and yet you ruined it!" Eggman exclaimed to his young archenemy who just grinned.
"Heh, the show's not ever yet. 'Cause I saved a last minute encore!" Sonic declared, speeding up as he attacked the defenseless robot with his Spin Attack relentlessly, causing it to explode and be destroyed which made everyone cheer even louder for the heroic act as well. The blue hedgehog landed on the stage and rubbed his nose proudly. "Now that was an encore."
He then turned to the evil trio who, realizing that they lost again, quickly began to retreat to the Egg Mobile when suddenly Amy, having had enough of this, shouted. "Where do you think you're going, Eggman!?"
Hearing her voice made Eggman, Decoe and Bocoe flinch in fright, slowly turning to see the angry pink hedgehog joined by her group as they got up stage holding her Hammer in hand as they were joined by Sonic and the others, the blue hedgehog and Tails smirking. The evil trio sweat dropped fearfully as they knew, by the looks of the younger group, they were in big trouble.
"So much for our performance." Bocoe complained with a nervous gulp.
The next thing the bad guys knew, Sonic and Amy combined their attacks by bashing Eggman, Decoe and Bocoe off stage and sent flying into the air screaming where they vanished in a blink in the sky and everyone cheered on happily.
"Well, it looks like they won't be here for the closing act." Chris remarked half-sarcastically.
"Hey, sorry about the stage." Sonic said to the announcer and judges who had approached once things were safe again. "I can help ya' fix it up, if you want."
"That won't be necessary, Sonic. What's important is that you and your friends have not only saved us all, the five of you have put up such an amazing act." The Announcer shook his head kindly, confusing the group slightly.
"Five?" Sonic, Chris, Cream, Tails and Amy asked simultaneously.
"Your opening act, while may not have been as you would have hoped, was protecting us from Dr. Eggman's robot, joined by the wonderful music and spectacular performce of your guitars and singing, and the encore joined by the final combined attack was another act of music and closing part of your part. I have never seen or heard of anything like it." The announcer responded and the judges made their remarks of agreements, praises and approvals of how Sonic and his friends had acted tonight.
"But, Tails and I weren't part of the band." Amy pointed out in a whisper.
"I guess they thought you two guys were the last minute change and added additions to the band." Francies shrugged.
"Maybe us fighting Eggman is like music to these guys' ears." Sonic shrugged with an awkward smile.
"Sure sounds like it." Tails agreed as he and everyone else then laughed.
While the act really didn't go as planned, at least Sonic, Chris and Cream still performed it despite not having their names announced. But since they all appeared and knew who they were now, they supposed there wasn't any need.
An hour later after fixing things up and the last two performers sang, it was time for the announcement on who won this year's Music Fair after the Announcer made sure to bring up Sonic, Chris, Cream and even Tails and Amy's names since they missed out on the opening act so they got a closing act instead. The group didn't expect to win, so they waited for at least being in second or third place. Those who didn't impressed the audience at all were kicked off and not part of the finalists.
"I wonder who won this year's Music Fair?" Cream whispered, this time with Cheese in her arms as he, Amy, Francies and Danny were invited to join Sonic and the others at back-stage.
"I'm sure whoever wins still had such a great time." Vanilla reassured warmly.
"So, besides Eggman trying to ruin things as usual, did you have fun tonight, Chris?" Sonic asked the young Thorndyke.
Chris nodded excitedly despite that he was prepared for not winning, but seeing how everyone didn't get mad at him, he felt relaxed. "Yeah. I was nervous at first, but when we played our and Cream's song, I didn't feel nervous at all. Kinda weird, huh?"
"It's more that you gained confidence and with friends by your side, plus briefly forgetting your nervousness due to what was going on." Tails pointed out smiling.
"It's our friendship that makes us keep going or just having fun in general. Plus, you helped to save the day by coming up with the idea of playing our song to weaken that robot." Sonic added, smiling proudly even though he did feel bad for having his friends being put into danger once again and he wanted to make sure that the next time that happened, they would be out of harms way as much as possible.
"Really? You think so?" The twelve year old boy blushed.
"You bet!" The fifteen year old hedgehog winked.
That made Chris feel even more happy, knowing that his friends really did care about him and he earned praises by thinking of his own to help them out and he had fun at the same time ever since coming here. Things that he never got the chance of gaining back in his world.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the results are in. Tonight's winners of the Music Fair are..." The Announcer paused as the drums rolled before he concluded excitedly. "Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, Chris Thorndyke, Cream the Rabbit, and Amy Rose!"
"HUH!?" Sonic and his friends except for Vanilla exclaimed in shock, while the crowd went wild in cheering once more. They didn't that one coming.
As the spot light shone onto them, the five of them shared glances and with Vanilla, Francies and Danny's encouragement, the blue hedgehog shrugged before gesturing the other four to follow him on stage, where everybody cheered even louder. The five of them, despite both Tails and Amy not having originally been part of the participated group, were given music awards and medals for their great performance and heroic achievements which Sonic's group thanked and the five of them held hands before giving everyone a bow and waves.
Even though Tails and Chris were a little uncomfortable with the attention, they decided to go along with it and smiled while Sonic, Amy and Cream didn't seem to mind and the blue hedgehog instead smiled happily at his friends with another wink and thumbs up, silently congratulating them as well.
After all, they all deserved this as much as he did and the hero of Mobius wasn't one to take all the credit when it comes to days like this.
As this was going on, for the past week unbeknownst to the group, Shadow and Rouge tried to get to Sonic but each time they did, something interrupted them or the blue hedgehog and his friends were out of sight. Again they tried to reach them but when they saw the teenage hero's group on stage and having won the Music Fair, they decided to sit by hidden from the top of a building watching from the large screen TV on another building.
"Looks like Sonic's a great teacher when it comes in music lessons." Rouge remarked slyly, sitting on the edge of the tower. "He and those two kids sure have talent."
Shadow said nothing as, due to all of it being broadcasted live everywhere, the black hedgehog saw Sonic's battle style against the robot; his speed, his fighting skills, the look of determination as well as excitement, and looking out for his friends who also fought, before he, the human boy that he somehow felt held strange feelings within him, and the little rabbit girl played with their guitars which was the Rock-N'-Bot's weakness...
'There's something about that blue hedgehog and that human boy which intrigues me. Why does the so called hero share the same face as I do and...what is his connection to that human?' Shadow thought to himself as he stood beside his companion, his arms crossed with a thoughtful frown on his muzzle.
He had to admit, while the taste in music wasn't his cup of tea, Rouge was right. Sonic and his friends were talented.
'I will get the answers to my memories. If it means seeking out this Sonic right there...so be it.' The ultimate lifeform narrowed his eyes, gazing solely at the teenage blue hedgehog who was celebrating with his friends.
Later that night after the Music Fair, everyone returned to their homes while Chris rejoined Vanilla, Cream and Cheese back to their place he was staying at with the excitement to meet up with his friends again tomorrow for a planned picnic party and hanging out since it was Sunday. Heading off to bed after a warm meal and a bath, the young Thorndyke thought about how things changed drastically for him so for in the past nearly a month.
'I can't believe I actually won a Music Fair with Sonic, Cream and the others.' Chris thought to himself, finding that he just couldn't sleep while looking at his medal of talent and bravery. 'I've never won anything before and been allowed to keep them.'
Thinking about how he had fun today and actually been given an award for performing well with Sonic and the others, plus the encouragement from them made the twelve year old boy think of the times when whenever he would win something at school, instead of getting his parents' approvals, they just threw away all of his hard worked awards in things like art and digital art and instead were disappointed in him for not getting awards in the more 'important' things like Drama Class, Business Class and Science Class.
Flash-Back: One year ago on Earth...
"Mother, Father, Grandfather, look! I have been given awards for Art and Digital Art!" Chris excitedly raced into the mansion to show his family who had been waiting for him impatiently, showing the two awards he received earlier today.
But as he showed the two awards that came with frames and everything, instead of getting proud praises like he hoped for and had even spoke in professional English, the more Nelson, Lindsey and Chuck looked at what he accomplished, the more their faces darkened with furious scowls which made the young boy nervous and worried.
"I-Is there something wrong?" The eleven year old asked, shakily.
"Something wrong? SOMETHING WRONG!? How can you not see that this is a waste of time and effort!" His mother shrieked furiously, pointing at the Art Award. "Art is a make-belief and a waste! It's not realistic!"
"What do you call these!? These are just fake pieces of paper into tricking people into getting their hopes up only to be told they are not to be professinals! Where are your awards for Business!?" Nelson demanded.
"Or for Acting!" Lindsey added.
"Or for science!?" Chuck glared hard, making Chris step back a little in fear.
"You were supposed to be studying for your future, Christopher!" Nelson shouted.
"Did you get a B+ for those again!?" Lindsey demanded.
"You have disobeyed the family laws and instead focused on tasks that are a complete waste and not realistic!" Chuck snarled.
Chris held his hands up in defense, protesting. "Bu-But I did work hard! Honest! Why can't I have other skills like everybody else?"
"BECAUSE THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS HAVING A JOB IN ART! BUSINESS, ACTING AND SCIENCE ARE THE TRUE AND ONLY WORK ON THE PLANET AND YOU HAVE WASTED YOU TIME IN DOING NOTHING BUT WHAT VERY MISBEHAVED CHILDREN HAVE DONE!" Nelson screamed which made his son nearly cry out in fear.
"We are very disappointed in you, Christopher." The elderly Thorndyke grunted, folding his arms. "From now on, you are banned from Art classes and will attend only classes that are most important, like English and Math and especially what you are to be doing in your future. Do I make myself clear?"
Heartbroken that his skills were nothing to his family who still refused to let him see and blend into the outside world the way he wanted, Chris sniffled as he tried not to cry. "Y-Yes, grandfather..."
Lindsey hissed before screaming as she tossed both of Chris' awards aside where the glass shattered onto the floor before pointing to the stairs. "You are grounded for four months! Now go to your room and don't come out! The maid will serve your dinner and you are expected to be treated like a prince! GO!"
Chris nodded shakily and ran as fast as his legs could carry him.
"And you are to march, not run! Running is for acting only!" Nelson grunted, making the younger Thorndyke freeze up before marching upstairs as his family growled angrily before Lindsey broke down crying.
The noise of his mother breaking made the eleven year old shed tears of frustration as he stormed into his room and slammed the door behind him and sat on the edge of his bed, where he cried. It wasn't fair! All of his hard work and his family still hated him for being a free spirit. Everything he did in his own way was not enough. It was never enough. It will never be enough.
So much for being an artist when he grows up...
End of Flash-Back:
The more Chris remembered that horrible day, the more he unconsciously began to form tears in his eyes. Not once did his family praise him for the work he did under his own turf. Instead, they always praised him coldly for doing the work they wanted him to do, which was once or twice. Every other time it was disappointment that they displayed, anger and terror.
A knock on the door brought the twelve year old boy out of his thoughts as was startled, before quickly wiping away his tears and laid down after putting his things onto the beside table, muttering. "Come in."
The door opened to reveal Vanilla, who still held a very warm smile on her face until she noticed that while he smiled back softly, his eyes told a different story.
"Chris? Is there something wrong?" The motherly rabbit asked kindly as she approached her house guest.
"No, I'm okay. Just still can't believe Sonic, Cream, Tails, Amy and I actually won the Music Fair today. I thought for sure that we'd be at least in second or third place, which I wouldn't mind at all." The Earth-Boy replied, though his heart ached over the lie. Cream's mother had been so kind to him that she was all for caring for others. Just like Sonic. Cream and the others, too.
"Well, even if you didn't, I know you would have done your best and I would be happy for you, Cream, Sonic and even Tails and Amy. Just as I am really happy and proud of you even though I was worried for your safeties." Vanilla said as she sat on the edge of the bed.
"Really? You think so?" Chris asked, blinking in surprise.
"I know so, sweetie." She replied warmly, before looking at him in concern. "You know you can tell me anything when you're ready, if you want to. I won't force you."
He could really see why Sonic, Tails and Amy really liked her. Vanilla was definitely a mother type given how Cream really loved her so much and loved her friends like they were her older brothers and sister.
"Thanks, Mrs. Vanilla. You and everybody else have been so great to me. It's kinda...strange that I'm not getting yelled at just because I was doing something I like to do, or even making friends." The young Thorndyke said and admitted.
Vanilla couldn't help but gasp in shock softly, asking. "You were yelled at before you came here? Just for things that children would normally do?"
Realizing that blurted out part of his past before remembering how he mentioned his past a lot to Sonic and realized that keeping secrets from everybody else wouldn't be a good idea, Chris nodded a little in sadness. "Y-Yeah, pretty much. I wasn't allowed to make friends, read fiction books as you know, play music like even a flute as my Mom grounded me for five months for that, or even Art which I got an award for at my old school, but instead of my Mom and Dad and Grandpa being proud of me, they...they would get mad at me, threw away my awards, ground me again and send me up to my room to be treated like I'm a prince. Everything I try to do to be normal instead of being what they want me to be...they would hate me for it and force me to keep on working to be just like them."
The more she listened to Chris' story of his terrible lifestyle, the more Vanilla was horrified and utterly disgusted with the poor boy's relatives. How dare they treat such a sweet child like the young Thorndyke to do what they wanted him to and get him into trouble just for trying to be a normal boy?
Her heart breaking over the trauma the preteen had to go through, the Mobian rabbit mother reached over and gently pulled him into a longing and comforting hug, which surprised him as his eyes widened at such warmth he was feeling right about now.
"I'm so sorry for what you have been going through, dear. I only wish there was more I could do for you." Vanilla whispered, gently rubbing the boy's back to which Chris, feeling a little overwhelmed by the comfort by a person other than Sonic who had shown him the same kindness and support, teared up a little before he returned it, trying hard not to cry.
Vanilla could only just stay where she was and held the human boy in her arms, gently rocking him back and forth as she would with Cream, and had seen Sonic do the same with her daughter as well as his best friend/little brother Tails once or twice. Her heart broke for what Chris had back on Earth and knew that he definitely needed a true mother's care, a normal life he had been denied for too many years.
She even began to dread in him returning to his home world if he wanted to, but at the same time, she couldn't stop him.
Yet...What if his family would find him even if he could escape to Florida? What would the poor boy do then?
As the two hugged and embraced, neither were aware that Chris' heart was glowing a faint glow of Chaos Energy.
Sonic in the meantime, sleeping peacefully despite sensing that something was wrong, having a sixth sense whenever his friends felt down or upset, shifted a little, his eyes twitching despite being closed for he was having a very strange dream.
He had no idea where he was, or how he got here. All Sonic knew that he was in what appeared to be a huge city that was unfamiliar to him. So much so that not only the buildings and the way how they were built so closely together, more so than in Station Square, and finding himself lost and alone, but it appeared that a great disaster happened since the place looked like it was post-apocalyptic. Almost like it was bombed or attacked by robots.
"What is this place? Where am I?" Sonic asked himself, taking a cautious walk as he passed by the destroyed buildings in the middle of the dark, broken debris almost everywhere, cars including taxis everywhere, some piled up, some in half, the rest having broken windows and seemingly abandoned in a panic, signs and windows at stores smashed. "Did Eggman wreck this place or somethin'? I sure hope not."
The blue hedgehog didn't like it one bit. It was devastating. Not a single sign of life were to be seen. The hero of Mobius narrowed his eyes despite feeling nervous.
"I can't believe the looks of this place. This is too awful. It's like out of my worst nightmares." The blue hedgehog muttered.
Suddenly he heard noises coming from ahead and paused in confusion. When Sonic looked up to see what was going on, he saw some kind of aircraft descending to the ground, hatches opening to reveal engines and wings which lowered and landing wheels appearing which created gusts of wind, forcing the teenager to shield his eyes with his arms before he quickly sped to his left and hid behind a large broken piece of a building. Peering with caution without being seen, Sonic saw the hatch open up and saw a group of people walking out wearing space-suits.
"...Our work is done. The planet is in a need to be rebuilt." One of the men muttered, breathing through his helmet like Darth Vadar in the Star Wars movies.
"And our descendants will take over the world should the latest child disobey?" Another man, sounding younger, questioned darkly.
"Yes. These foolish people who call themselves humans, weak and pretending that life is worth everything. We are the true humans...and one day soon, when our task is complete..." The first man began, only for everything to freeze up except for Sonic who blinked in confusion.
Just then the entire scenery shifted and Sonic yelped when he found himself standing on a broken piece of road, the lower part of another city being flooded with huge amounts of water.
"What the?" The blue hedgehog blinked, before looking up and gasped when he saw something huge and dragon-like emerge with large tentacles, a jagged mouth with glowing green eyes, as though it was made out of water, leering down at him. He stared back but glared at it, refusing to show any fear.
The giant monster gave our a terrifying roar before it lunged for an attack and Sonic made to move out of the way even as it's mouth was wide open to swallow him whole...
"AAAAAHH!" Sonic screamed as he jolted upward and snapped his eyes open, panting heavily from the unexpected strange nightmare he experienced. Looking around to realize he was in his room, the blue hedgehog placed a hand to his forehead. "What the heck was that about? Boy, that was some weird nightmare."
First he was some destroyed city with people dressed up as astronauts walking about taking over the world...maybe they were aliens in human disguises or something? He sure hoped not. Then that giant monster, a sea-dragon he guessed, appearing in a flood and was about to eat him alive...he hated to admit it, that scared Sonic a lot.
Still, it was realistic despite that the blue hedgehog attempted to dismiss it as a crazy nightmare. But he couldn't help but wonder...was it some kind of warning? It didn't make any sense.
Little did Sonic and Chris know that in seven different locations on Mobius, the Chaos Emeralds, hidden for weeks since Eggman's failed attempt to use them for his weapon, began to glow faintly.
While on Angel Island as Knuckles slept at the bottom of the stairs of the altar, the Master Emerald began to glow slightly as well, but not enough to awaken even the echidna guardian. Instead, it glowed and he began to have a very strange dream himself.
Opening his eyes as he felt a strange but familiar pulse of Chaos Energy, the sixteen year old echidna found that morning came already and...he could catch the scent of fresh green grass. Blinking in confusion, the guardian of the Master Emerald sat up and was alarmed to find that he wasn't on Angel Island.
He was in some kind of shrine that looked familiar but as though newly built and not in ruins.
"What the?" Knuckles muttered, standing up as he looked around to find the land lush and he was at the bottom of the shrine. "What is this place?"
When he looked up to the shrine, to his great confusion, it was the same altar with the Master Emerald sitting peacefully, yet the pillars were no longer broken, and it had a roof on top of the giant gem.
Just then, he heard a familiar voice, one he didn't recognize but at the same time he did yet he didn't know who the owner was.
"The servers are the 7 Chaos... Chaos is power, power enriched by the heart... the Controler is the one that unifies the Chaos."
"That voice...It's..."
Knuckles was cut off when the Master Emerald suddenly glowed ominously bright and strangely enough he could hear a roar that sounded like a monster as everything turned white and green...
Gasping awake, Knuckles sat up panting before looking around and then realized he was back home on Angel Island, that what he saw was...well, he wasn't sure what it was. The voice...he heard it before. It was a voice that spoke of the same words that helped him request for the Master Emerald's help to stop the Chaos Emeralds from being used to make the ARK crash into Mobius.
"What was that all about? Something strange is going on." Knuckles asked himself, frowning in deep concern before turning his gaze up to the Master Emerald which continued to glow normally, unaware of it's unusual brighter glow.
Something bad was about to happen. He could feel it.
A/N: I am really sorry for the delay of this story, as I struggled to write it and to danielman21, sorry that I couldn't fit in most of the ideas you gave me into this chapter, but hopefully I'll be able to in future chapters and I thank you very much for helping me out. Hope you guys liked this chapter.
I'm not sure when I'll be able to update this story again, but it will be sometime in 2022 so the story is far from over. So, have an early Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year while we prepare ourselves for what is yet to come in the next year.
See you later!