You experience something new, only to gain forgotten knowledge
He felt amazed and baffled at the same time, as his eyes travelled over every little thing he saw, seeing one new object from the next in the matter of mere seconds. It was another kind of thing, another kind of dimension and something that he would never have expected to see. Croford was much different from this – the city he had looked at every single day was primitive compared to this.
Back there he had seen numerous amounts of people walking and doing their thing, looking into the ground, huddling together in groups as they would speak about something he couldn't even imagining thinking about. People were in their own bubbles and ran their errands as they should. This was different. He raised his hand to cover the sand that was blown into his eyes, a light breeze created by the people he walked by rather than the actual wind. He had never been in a crowd of people before, never mind walking in an actual city. It should be a normal affair, walking along side others, strangers he had never met before and would never meet again, and yet his heart was pounding in his chest with every step.
Rubbing one hand against his other arm, he felt like he stood out too much, observing as the people he passed by looked much different than him. They were Mobians rabbits, bird, dogs and wolfs, different kinds of Mobians he was used to seeing in Croford. They were mostly walking alone, going back and forth on the desert street, some of them having a basket either against their hip or on their head, holding on to it with one hand. A small murmur was all the chatting that was here. It was strange – he had opened the window before to the castle and could easily hear people down from the street, yelling and talking loudly to each other. Here, people spoke in a calm tone, chattering and sometimes laughing but wasn't as deafening as he had heard sometimes.
But even when they were concentrated on listening to their friend or standing and talking to someone, they were still aware of their surroundings, moving a step if someone tried to pass by them, apologizing if someone walked into them or politely asked someone to move if they stood in somebody's way. Some of them wore loose fitting fabrics, clothing that hung from their shoulders to around their hips, a belt keeping it in place around their waste. They varied in sizes and colors, the silver hedgehog not remembering seeing such a variety like he was seeing here.
As his eyes were travelling over the Mobians he passed by, he couldn't avoid looking at the surrounding architecture as well. They were certainly more different than what he was used to from Croford as well. A lot of the houses seemed small, most of them being in one level, made completely out of a light brownish colored brick, wooden doors and windows where some of them didn't have glass in them. Curtains and colorful blankets or fabrics hung from windowsills, strung over the doorways, or hanging from one house to the house across the street. Sand was crawling on the bricks on the bottom layer of the house, though the walls looked sturdy and looked like they could survive a sandstorm. The roofs were completely flat, although he could sometimes spot chairs and tables or small gardens sitting on top of them. How they got up there was a mystery to him.
He leaned his head forward to look at the small hallways that were created between the houses, seeing various of barrels and boxes stored there, leading into the backways of where the homes were. He wondered what was back there, but instead of following his curiosity he bit his lip and looked towards the armadillo he was following.
After he had taken that strange thing that Mighty had called a pill, he had felt a lot better and had fallen back to sleep shortly after. Upon waking up, he had been greeted by Ray once again and was informed that it was the next day, the silver hedgehog having slept more than ten hours. He hadn't believed him at first, before the armadillo had told him the same thing, the two Mobians he had stayed with letting him sleep. He had been encouraged to get out of the bed, getting some breakfast and some more water and then invited him out into the city, and watch Mighty and Ray perform.
At first, he had been confused and asked what that meant, only to observe as the armadillo had winked at his friend and told Silver that he'll have to wait and see. From what he could tell it wasn't a bad thing but being unsure in general made a rock of anxiousness sit in the pit of his stomach. He had followed them since they had left the house, the traveler getting engulfed and overwhelmed with what he had seen in the last ten minutes that they had been walking. The very first thing that had surprised him was the purple color in the sky.
He had to blink and make sure that it wasn't another mirage. It looked like lightning that was in the sky, sporadic and manic, a chaotic pattern that was shaped across what seemed like the entire city. It was transparent but he could see the patterns as the purple color switched between different contrasts and shades. He had to ask Mighty what it was, where he had laughed and said that he didn't know what it was either, but apparently it was a dome that was surrounding the city, invented by some of the best scientists in Shita. He had learned it was the name of the city, one of the only highly advanced but secluded cities that existed on the west side of Mobius.
It was the only one out here in the desert, though Mighty couldn't tell him why it was isolated but suspected that it had something to do with the fact that it was far out in the desert. Silver hadn't doubted him when he said that it was technological advanced, since he could see some odd shapes in the distance, past what seemed like simple houses now. Tall and slender orange and yellowish colored buildings, sleek and somewhat gorgeous towering over the part of town he was walking in. He had explained that it was the inner part of the city, being more advanced than where they were now. This was the poor side of town, but Mighty had quickly explained that this was nothing like Croford, and Silver believed him.
He couldn't tell they were poor, since their houses looked pristine and clean despite the sand, their fabrics not torn or looked overused, ragged, or dirty. Was this how the poor side of Croford looked like? He had wanted to ask but refrained from asking too many questions right now since he was busy with taking in the scenery. Though later, he had planned on talking Mighty's or Ray's ears off.
He had turned his head towards a Mobian woman who was carrying something out of their house and therefore didn't see as the armadillo stopped walking and therefore walked into him. Mighty stood his ground, though turned around towards the silver hedgehog as he brought a hand up to his hurting nose, the shell that was on the former's back being much stronger than he had anticipated.
"Sorry man, but there's a Glider coming," Silver blinked, looking first at Mighty, noticing that other people stopped beside him as he turned his head towards where everyone was looking.
He had noticed that the sudden long row of houses was interrupted by a much wider walkway that came from left to right. He wondered for a couple of seconds why nobody was walking there, when he suddenly saw what was coming towards them.
His eyes widened as it came closer and closer to them, having seen that kind of design before. Although, the last time he had seen it, it had been covered in plants and forest debris, small plants with 'hats' on them hidden underneath, being completely rundown.
This however looked to be in fully working condition, the white color reflecting the sun at it passed them, Silver being absolutely sure that it did not touch the ground as it was practically levitating above it, as it passed.
And as the moment had occurred it stopped again, everyone around him starting to walk as if nothing had happened, however the traveler was awestruck.
"That's what I saw in the forest!" He blurted out without thinking, making the two he was following stop in their track and turn around towards him.
Ray had a raised brow, his tail whipping once as Mighty blinked confused.
"Sorry, what?" Silver looked at the older, suddenly realizing that he had said that out loud, biting his lip.
"I – uhm – passed, something, that looked like that, that – thing – in a forest before I came to the desert. Though, it looked more broken than that one," he calmly explained, turning his head where the floating transportation thing had disappeared off to.
The two friends in front of him looked at each other briefly, before Mighty looked back at Silver.
"You've seen one of those before? We've never seen them, before Ray, and I came to the city. They're called Gliders – only few people own them since they're very expensive. It's how people get around the city," he explained as he began walking again, gesturing a hand towards where the supposed 'Glider' had disappeared off to.
Silver listened intently to the explanation, not being able to look at where it had gone since they had walked over the wide walkway for Gliders, following the other two in their steps. More questions arose from the explanation, taking a couple of quick steps to walk beside the armadillo.
"But why do they need to get around the city? Can't they walk? And how much do those things cost if not everybody can buy one? Then what's the purpose of them if not everyone can get one?" He asked without stopping, gesturing with his hands, not realizing that his questions came like a waterfall.
Mighty blinked from the sudden onslaught of questions, scratching the back of his head with a confused expression,
"Jeez, you really don't know a lot about this do you?" He asked, black irises darting around the silver hedgehog's face. "You said you were from Croford, you know why people can't afford certain stuff. It's there for people with more mobiums than others," he answered, with a certain tone of voice that might as well have told him that the sky was blue.
Silver felt a red blush appear on his cheeks from embarrassment, looking away and coughed awkwardly. He had forgotten that they knew nothing of him – that they didn't know that he knew absolutely nothing of anything. His memory had been wiped, waking up on the street where Blaze had found him and then he had lived in a single castle room ever since. He didn't remember how old he was, but Blaze had estimated him to be around her age, based upon his general physique, which meant that he had lived a life before the amnesia.
What it was he didn't know – and didn't know where to start looking for that matter.
"Did your hit your head or something?" He turned his head back as he looked at the curious yellow squirrel, walking backwards in front of Mighty, looking at the silver hedgehog with a slightly tilted head.
Silver opened his mouth without knowing what to answer him, a part of him thinking that it wasn't the best solution to lie to them. First of all because he felt bad on the pure fact that they had helped him out of kindness and second of all because he was pretty sure that he wouldn't be able to keep up a lie since he knew nothing about the world around him.
"I don't know," came out of his mouth without thinking, biting his lip once more. It made Ray turn his head towards the armadillo, looking slightly alarmed.
Though the older had merely furrowed his brow, before turning his head towards the silver hedgehog, a small smile coming to his lips.
"Tell you what? I'll answer any question you have about this city after the performance. We'll give a bite to eat, and we'll sit down and talk through everything, how does that sound?" he suggested, making the squirrel, who still hadn't turned around and walked normally yet, beam at the hedgehog.
Silver looked back and forth between the both of them, not wanting to be further questioned about his background or where he came from. He knew that it would arise questions from them, and he didn't want them to give them a reason to maybe throw him out. He didn't know why they should do that, they seemed helpful and inviting. Perhaps he would have to tell them later. Either way he had a difficult time to decline since he didn't know where else to go or where he could sleep tonight. Being around them seemed like a good idea.
"Thank you," he accepted, giving the armadillo a smile with a tiny nod.
Mighty smiled back and gave him a small nod, looking back towards the way they were going, before gesturing with his hand to the right.
"We'll hit the market now – it's where we usually perform," he explained, as the small group naturally turned to the right, Silver leaning his head forward to be able to see what he meant with a 'market'.
What he saw made his eyes widen and his heart beating a little faster in his chest from the sight that met his eyes.
The moment he turned, he was met by vivid colors, more people than he could count, being louder and incoherent as his eyes travelled down the cramped and animated square. Despite the amount of people, he was suddenly met with, he could tell that this area was bigger, having houses aligned on either side. The entire area was covered in what looked to be small wooden carts with very different produce, a piece of fabric hanging from the top, shadowing it from the sun. There were more of them than he could count, both from the fact that there were so many of them and because the people around were obscuring his vision too much to be able to count.
They were either aligned or in a half circle, people standing behind them shouting and talking loudly towards other Mobians that stood on the other side of them. They were very different from the ones they had passed on their way here, people talking louder and seemed manic in a sort of way, waving different stuff in the air, pointing at their carts. People were scattered around them, standing in front of them, taking various objects in their hands that looked like fruits or some kind of food item from his viewpoint. The square was filled to the brim with Mobians, making the hedgehog bite his lip and take an extra step closer towards the red armadillo that walked into the mess without a second thought.
He caught sight of something in the middle of the big open area. He squinted his eyes at the strange Mobian that stood there. They were standing on a pedestal of sorts holding a fish in their hands that spewed water into a small pond on top where the pedestal was situated.
He blinked in case he was having another mirage, not understanding why or how the fish had so much water in its stomach that it could continuously spew it into the small pond. And why didn't the water rise? Curiously, he poked Mighty on the shoulder, making the older Mobian turn his head around towards him, with a raised brow.
"Who is that?" Silver asked, nodding towards the Mobian who was standing surprisingly still for a very long time. Could you pass out standing?
"Who is what?" The armadillo blinked confused, turning his head again to catch sight of what the hedgehog was asking.
Silver pointed past Mighty's shoulder, towards the Mobian with the fish, whereas he realized that the latter was surprisingly still as well.
"That Mobian – standing with the fish," he explained, blinking one more time, as he couldn't see if they were breathing or not.
However, every thought in his mind was stopped by the light chuckle that Mighty let out, practically explaining to him that there was something wrong with his observation.
"Silver, it's not alive, it's a fountain," the armadillo explained, shaking his head. "Jeez dude, you really haven't gotten around much, have you?" He chuckled, making the silver hedgehog feel his cheeks heat up with embarrassment.
He looked back at the Mobian, now understanding that it was this thing called a 'fountain'. He figured that it wasn't alive, as the small group passed it, the hedgehog wondering what it was instead if it wasn't a living and breathing being. He didn't have the time to wonder and give himself the answer, as he almost walked into another bird Mobian if Mighty hadn't stood in his way. He turned his head, only to realize that they were in the middle of a crowd of people, seeing some of those carts standing to their right, someone shouting louder than everyone else. His eyes were fixated on the cart, being able to see a Mobian standing behind it, waving what looked to be a round yellow fruit in their hand, practically spitting at another person standing in front of them.
He stood momentarily frozen at the odd exchange, wondering what it all meant before he realized he almost lost sight of the other two, taking a couple of quick steps forward to catch up. More people had gathered around them as they walked, the small crowds that gathered around the carts huddled together, making Silver pull his shoulders to his ears, biting his lip as he concentrated on following Mighty.
The red shell on his back was a clear color through the beige sand on the ground as well as the purple electrical patterned sky, ignoring the Mobians that came closer to him as much as he could. When a shoulder touched his, he pulled back instantly, like he had been burnt, walking almost in the heels of the armadillo. Touch was foreign to him, something that he hadn't accounted for nor thought about when he was going out into the city. Blaze had sometimes taken his hand or put her hand on his shoulder, but that was the only contact he had experienced. Or remembered.
He almost walked into the armadillo once more, as the duo stopped, Silver realizing that they had made it to the end of the square, a couple of houses in front of him shadowing them from the zone. He curiously looked over Mighty's shoulder as he was standing in front of an almost empty cart, small objects that resembled the not-alive Mobian in the fountain displayed. A gray Mobian wolf was standing behind the cart, having some sort of fabric on his head, something he had seen other people in Croford wear, and nodded to the black and white armadillo. He observed as the man standing behind the cart received something that looked golden from Mighty, before he tipped the fabric at him and walked away from the cart.
Silver blinked confused, kept observing as Ray turned towards Mighty, giving him a large grin, a row of teeth showing as he high fived the older. Then he suddenly turned and ran towards the crowd they had just excited. Silver turned his head around to see where he went, though a tap on his shoulder made him look back at Mighty, a grin plastered across his face.
"The performance is about to begin. You should stand with the crowd and watch with them," he explained, giving the silver hedgehog a wink. "You'll see," he explained, courtesy of the confused look that was still plastered across the amnesiac hedgehog's face.
Silver was standing still, completely perplexed and confused as to what was about to happen. Mighty let out a chuckle and started shooing him backwards, the hedgehog stumbling a couple of steps backwards, about to ask him why he was doing that.
Then he heard an exclamation from behind, making him twist his head around to locate the sound. The only thing he saw was a yellow ball of fur, somersaulting across the crowds of people behind him, the yellow ball uncurling to be Ray, suddenly sitting on top of someone's head. He leaned forward and gave the woman he sat on a bright smile, before dashing off her shoulders, spreading out his arms and showed extra skin that was under his armpits.
Amazingly, Silver's mouth was left agape as he watched the squirrel glide to the next person in line, landing on their head before front flipping to land on top of a cart. The conversation pieces that had begun began to become louder, his ears flicking as he heard people exclaim 'that's Swifty!" or 'what's happening?' making the silver hedgehog look at Ray as he bowed low.
"God day to you all! An absolute fantastic and extraordinary performance will be performed by Swifty and Power – right now!" He announced, rising again as a toothy grin was showing on his lips, suddenly jumping from the cart once more, as he spread out his arms and glided across multiple heads of people.
Silver turned around again, feeling his beating heart increase in intensity from the sudden loud noises that appeared all around him, trying to get a visual on what it was. He quickly realized that the loud noise was people slamming their hands together, having grins on their faces as they closed around the small area where Mighty was currently standing.
The hedgehog was blinking confused, but figured that it was a normal event, as he watched the armadillo do the same performance as Ray, bowing to the loud noise that the crowd was making with their hands. Curiously, Silver looked down at his own hands, his gloves slightly dirty from sand as he clapped them together once. It made the same noise that was currently around him, making a smile come to his lips as he clapped once more, and one more time, increasing his speed until he resembled the Mobians around him.
The moment it happened, a familiar feeling started to appear in his heart, suddenly being aware that this action was normal and was something he had done before. When, he didn't know. He had no idea why they did it or why he continued, but merely looked up with the same smile on his face, slowly turning into a grin as Ray suddenly appeared from a Mobians' head, front flipping and landed beside Mighty, at the same time that the former rose from their bow.
"Ladies and gentlemen! May I have your attention please!" The sound of hands clapping together abruptly stopped from Mighty's voice, making Silver the last one still clapping, though stopped after a little while when a Mobian next to him glanced at him weirdly.
"Today's performance will have you ecstatic! Amazed! Astonished! And have you filled with joy! Join the crowd and experience the acrobatic Swifty and the ironlike Power!" The crowd around him suddenly began clapping their hands together again, Silver this time around merely looking and biting his lip, feeling embarrassed about doing it beforehand.
He instead observed as Mighty pulled something out from behind his back, taking a couple of steps forward and placed it on the ground. It was in an oval shape, and had a bended lip around the brim, that resembled some of the stuff that some of the Mobians around him wore on their heads. The minute it touched the ground, people around him moved or took a step forward, putting in what looked like a small round, shiny piece of golden metal, landing and clinking against others of the same variety. They had different sizes but the same color.
He blinked and wondered what they were, but instead looked up as Ray suddenly jumped on top of Mighty's head, sat there while the armadillo was grinning, the squirrel waving at the crowd. Then he planted his hands on Mighty's head and stood on them, being upside down. Silver jumped as Mobians around him let out different exclamations of 'wow' or 'uuh', others gasping and another round of people clapping their hands together began.
Silver observed the strange behavior, wondering why people reacted this way, looking around himself.
They were smiling, grinning with awed surprise and excitement, younger Mobians jumping and older laughing. The intense atmosphere from before, the claustrophobic and concentrated, heavy ambiance that had remained around the small groups of people that were concentrated around the carts, had evaporated. Instead, it had transformed into this joyful and light atmosphere, with people laughing and grinning, looking towards Mighty and Ray as the squirrel stood on his head with arms and legs spread out, still on top of the former's.
Silver didn't notice the wide smile that appeared on his lips.
Ray jumped down from Mighty with a front flip, gesturing towards the armadillo who walked towards the cart where he had given that Mobian that stood behind it something. The crowd beside him became oddly silent, standing and staring with awe as Mighty put both hands underneath the cart. Confusion only managed to settle for two seconds, as he was left in awe as the armadillo, without straining himself or letting out any sound, lifted the cart into the air, holding it in his hands above his head, smirking.
People were now yelling, clapping their hands together and cheering as they observed the armadillo carrying the cart above his head. Silver was too amazed to applaud himself, observing and wondering if he could lift that cart himself. He bit his lip – not now. He didn't want to draw attention to him.
Mighty stood there for a couple of seconds more before he slowly lowered the cart to the ground, letting out a breath and got to his feet, still smirking wide to the audience. Ray suddenly jumped up on the cart that had been in the air seconds beforehand, spreading out his arms and let himself fall, the sudden updraft letting him glide across the air, sailing past the crowd again, landing on various people's heads and shoulders, front flipping and somersaulting, a wide grin on his lips.
Silver had been watching him, before he turned his head back towards Mighty, who had asked a female Mobian if she wanted to join the next act. Power reached out a hand to a red Mobian bird, a beige dress fluttering down her body as the former asked her if she could sit on a rock that had been behind him. Silver could guess what was about to happen, his eyes analyzing the beige colored rock that had been behind the armadillo, making him unable to notice it before now. It looked sturdier and heavier than the cart, especially as the female bird sat down on it, looking slightly confused. Mighty however gave her an encouraging smile as he walked beside the rock and wedged his fingers underneath it to the best of his ability.
This time, Mighty gritted his teeth and let out an exclamation, arms shaking as the rock tilted with the strength. Silver didn't realize that he was holding his breath as Power moved his hands underneath the rock, starting to lift it from the ground. The bird held on to the surface, letting out an exclamation as Mighty pulled it under his head and slowly lifted it into the air.
When his arms stretched above his head, the bird's feet dangling from the stone she was sitting on, the crowd went wild. Silver's own grin widened on his lips, started applauding with the other Mobians around him, listening to the cheering, the joy, and the exclamations. Small kids jumping and shouting, adults laughing, and people awed and amazed at the display of strength and agility, the entire atmosphere light.
He could feel a warmth filling in his heart, throwing his arms into the air and yelled out a cheering sound, feeling light and relieved, feeling joyful! People were enjoying it, engaged and intrigued, smiling and grinning, looking like this was one of the best moments in their life!
He could feel it in his stomach, he could feel how everyone felt, the pure joy that they shared from simply watching two street performers do a couple of tricks. It was amazing!
His mouth was open with joy, staring at Mighty as the former was smirking, and bowing his head, the female bird applauding too.
Until the image in front of him started to slowly spin and blur, could feel the grin on his lips faltering as the noises around him became incoherent.
He let his arms fall, suddenly feeling as heavy as lead, peoples applaud and cheering suddenly sounding deeper and slower, like his head was under water. His breathing was the only clear noise, could feel his heart beating in his chest, his legs shaking and feeling like jelly, slowly planting his hands on his head.
His body was shaking, he could feel his fingers tingling, sporadic breaths leaving his mouth as he squinted his eyes, confused, and panicked at what was happening to him.
The scene disappeared behind closed eyelids, a sudden ring appearing in his head, a flash of light obscuring his vision.
- O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O -
Laughing, cheering, a small crowd of people applauding, as he turned around and smiled at the tall building he had just left. Sleek and metallic, familiar faces nodding and smiling as he presented the next plan. Sand under his shoes, a clear day as he looked over the facades of the town, he was familiar with, letting out a pleasant sigh.
- O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O - O -
"Silver?! … Silver?!"
He gasped, letting his eyes fling open from the sudden panicked sound of his name.
Frantic yellow eyes were staring at the ground, his hands planted on his head as calculated deep breaths left him between intervals. He looked up, almost ramming his head into Mighty's, suddenly realizing that the armadillo was crouched in front of him, his hand placed on his shoulder. Black eyes were frantically looking at him, up and down at his face and body, looking worried and slightly panicked.
"What happened? Are you okay?" He asked rather calmly, despite the frantic exterior. Silver didn't hear his question, instead stared straight at the armadillo even though he was looking through him.
His eyes averted behind Mighty's shoulders, looking at the residential house that was there. And had been there for years.
Because he knew it. He had seen it before. He blinked.
It was familiar. He had been here before.
"Silver?" His name made him return to reality, looking at Mighty, a worried expression plastered across his face.
It only occurred to him now that he was crouched on the ground, his heart still beating in chest and had been unaware of the mumble and the gossip, completely erasing the joyful atmosphere that had resided seconds ago. In his peripheral vision he could see Ray standing beside Mighty, another worried expression on his face that made him look frightened.
"I'm-" he uttered, swallowing something in his throat, not knowing what to say. "I'm. Okay – I think," he explained, only to give them some sort of answer.
The armadillo turned his head towards Ray, their gazes meeting, an unspoken conversation happening as Mighty turned back to him, a determined expression erasing the one from before.
"Let's get out of the crowd," he encouraged, moving his hand from the silver-colored hedgehog's shoulder to his arm, carefully helping him to stand.
His legs were shaking as he got to his feet, Mighty's strength practically carrying him back onto his soles, as the armadillo looked around.
"Uhm, sorry about the interruption. The performance will have an early ending today, thank you for the tips and we'll see you at the next performance," he announced, a brief smile coming to his lips before he gestured to Ray to pick up the fabric where people had been throwing in the golden metallic objects.
The squirrel did as told, while Silver let himself being guided past the mumbling and whispering Mobians, his feet and legs feeling airy and light, trembling under his weight. Mighty kept him standing as he was guided into a side alley, the wide square disappearing behind him, a shadow casting over them from the houses that was surrounding them.
He suddenly stopped once they turned a corner, swaying a little bit on his feet. Both of Mighty's hands landed on either of his shoulders, keeping him standing in place.
"Dude what happened? It looked like you got another heat stroke, are you feeling alright?" The armadillo asked, black eyes analyzing his face and muzzle.
Silver blinked slowly, as he started to regain his balance and his sense of reality, swallowing something in his throat.
"I don't know," he admitted, as one tentative hand ran across his right temple.
"Suddenly I – just couldn't see anything. And then everything was white and I. I remember now," he explained, blinking at the ground. He looked up as Mighty's brow furrowed, shaking his head.
"Remember what? Did you forget something?" He asked, only being aware of Ray's presence since he stood against the armadillo's leg, peering up at Silver. The hedgehog bit his lip, suddenly realizing what he had just told him.
Yellow eyes looked back at Mighty's irises, recalling something he had forgotten.
He didn't remember everything. But he knew where he came from. He came from here. He came from this city.
He didn't know how or why he knew, but whatever had just happened to him had made him remember this.
He couldn't recall everything, but he knew that this was where he had been living before… Before something.
A sigh left him, as he realized that he would have to explain himself and opened his mouth to do so. Instead, Ray suddenly showed him something in his hand, that made him turn his head towards him.
"This fell out when you fell. It was glowing from your spikes," the squirrel innocently explained, holding the yellow gem in one hand, showing it to the silver hedgehog.
Silver's eyes widened when he saw it, not realizing that it had fallen out of his spikes.
"That's mine!" He inquired in a panic tone, snatching the gem from Ray's hand, holding it with both of his own and hugged it to his chest.
A sudden pulse of energy flared from it, he could feel it in his fingers, as they dug into the hard surface of the gem. It throbbed in his veins, making a sudden warmth appear in his stomach.
He only paid attention to it for a second, as he looked at Ray's surprised face, lowering the hand that had been holding the gem previously.
"Sorry. I just picked it up for you," he explained, scratching the back of his head with one hand, the normally moving yellow tail falling to the ground.
Silver felt a pit of guilt appear in his stomach from his expression, letting out a sigh as he held out the gem for the squirrel to see.
"I'm sorry. The gem is just important to me. But I don't know why," he explained afterwards, seeing as Ray's black eyes widened from looking at the yellow gem in his hand, faintly glowing in the sliver hedgehog's palm.
"Where'd you find that?" Silver turned his head from Mighty's sudden question, blinking at the armadillo who was staring at the yellow gem in his palm.
"I found it in the forest. Before the desert," he calmly explained. He was pretty sure that it was a Glider that had it hidden, but he didn't know why it had been there in the first place.
Mighty turned his head back towards Ray, blinked, before returning to Silver, mouth open in surprise.
"Do you know what that is?" He asked suddenly, the surprise still plastered across his face. Silver blinked, looking back down at the gem in his hand, before looking back at Mighty to answer.
The armadillo however pointed towards it with a slightly shaking finger.
"That's a Chaos Emerald. I've seen them before," he said, blinked and looked back at Silver. "I know a guy who's looking for them. He's searching all over the world for them. They can do-" he suddenly stopped his explanation, biting his lip. "Incredible stuff," he lamely informed, looking at Ray again who looked back at him.
Intrigued in the new information, Silver felt a shot of hope erupt in his chest, staring at Mighty with wide eyes.
"Who? Who knows about this?" He asked, clutching the emerald tighter in his hand, feeling a pulse of energy surging through his palm. Both Mighty and Ray looked at him, the former licking his lips.
"His name is Sonic. We travelled with him and another boy from Croford to Kroxburg. They were headed towards the mountains to search for these. I'm not entirely sure why Sonic is looking for them, but it seemed important to him," the armadillo explained, opening his mouth to seemingly say something else but held his tongue. He closed it again, looking at Ray who shrugged his shoulders. Another unspoken conversation.
Silver however, looked at the emerald in his hand, a couple of puzzle pieces suddenly falling into place.
"If he knows about these emeralds," he told, mostly to himself. "Then maybe that guy can tell me about my destiny," he blinked, looking up from his observation of the emerald. Both Mighty and Ray looked confused, but he was confident.
He knew that this emerald had a connection to him. Somehow in some way. He just knew it. Therefore, it made perfect sense that this Sonic guy would know about him too.
Wouldn't it? ... It was worth a try.
"Where can I find him?" The armadillo looked back at him from an unspoken conversation between Ray and him.
"Uhm, I'm not sure. Like I said, him, and the kid who's following, went to the mountains, but they might have returned to Kroxburg to get some more supplies, you might be able to find them there," Mighty explained, still looking confused and perplexed from being asked directions.
Silver's eyes fastened onto Mighty's for a second. He could feel it in his gut – he was right. He was on the right path. He just knew it.
"And where is Kroxburg?" He continued, a detmerined frown setting on his brow. The armadillo turned his head around, planting his hands on his hips as he nodded towards a seemingly random direction.
"Head south west, past the desert and forest, then you should find it," he explained, rather calmly, despite the still perplexed features on his face.
Silver nodded however, looking at the emerald in his hand one more time. He could feel it.
This was the correct answer. Suddenly, his memory had been restored a little bit, he knew where he originally came from.
He was from Shita. And know he needed to get to Kroxburg and look for Sonic. That was a part of his destiny.
Now all he needed to do, was to fulfill the rest of it.