Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in these somber scenes… especially for the ones who have so much weighing down upon them.

~保護者~

Hello, MelGamingPlays! Yep, I'm fine, you? Haha, yeah, but in his defense... Sonic didn't have much of another choice... *sweatdrop* Yeah, it's certainly been a long time! But now Locke is back and awesome as ever! XD Yeah, he certainly does need it... even if he doesn't think so in his current state. And yeah, Shadow really does need to be found soon... poor guy. :(

~保護者~

"Picking Up Pieces"

~保護者~

Jet has not returned. Taking this thought into account, Alana hesitated to leave her perch on a deeply charred tree. Her eyes scanned the ruined landscape that stretched out around her, brining back vivid memories of the fires that New Babylon had also suffered on this day. She was desperate to return there and check on the world and the people who resided there. In fact, she felt it was her duty to do so. Her family was in charge, after all. They were responsible for these people and their world. So, in the end, there was no choice, was there?

Resigned, she closed her eyes, took a breath to steady her emotions and clear her mind, then teleported straight to the other planet. She appeared near the palace where she and her family, alongside everyone else, had been fighting to push back the demons. It seemed that the battle here was over now, however, just as she'd hoped. Destruction had been wrought virtually everywhere, but… the demons were gone. Dead. Defeated. Her allies had won here, as they had on Mobius… but… At what cost?

Her heart heavy, she walked across the still-smoking remains of what had once been a vast garden, casting her eyes to the sky as she did so. She spied her father high in the air above her, likely wounded but stubbornly refusing to sit still and rest. The man was devoting all of his attention to the barriers, manipulating them from afar in an effort to begin repairs while simultaneously keeping an eye on the affairs of the people below him. He really should have been resting, she knew. Although, at the same time, the barriers truly did need to be fixed. So, for now, she let him be.

Answers, however, were something she needed. Specifically, she needed to know what all had happened here after the departure of herself, Jet, Wave, and Sein. There were various people whom she could have asked, certainly, but the only person she truly was familiar with in this place (aside from, of course, her father and Azerel) was Li. She sensed him and his Therian companion taking refuge inside the ruined palace. If she was to find the answers she sought in a timely manner and without having to ask too many questions, they would be the best people to speak with. So, with little else to do, she headed their way.

~保護者~

It took far longer than Wave would have liked for her to drive the last of the demons off of Mobius and, indeed, out of the solar system as a whole. She then spent even longer staring at the planet from high above it, noting the immense damage that she could view even from this distance. The scars of war ran long and deep, blackening the surface of the world in places where the flames had been put out… and granting it a haunting glow in areas where the fires still raged. It will take years for Mobius to recover. Perhaps too many of them.

However horrible she felt, she believed she had wasted enough time as it was. She needed to get a move on and begin dealing with the aftermath. Her clones were already busy assisting many of the citizens below, but she thought it best to make even more copies of herself to further aid the Mobian people. As many clones as she could create and actively sustain were sent out in short order once her decision was made, then she gathered up her energies in order to teleport. She needed to return to Hyale… whatever was left of it… and check on everyone still there. That was of the upmost importance.

She reappeared within the village, close to Espio's house. Already, her earlier fear and worry was deepening. Jet's energies couldn't be detected anywhere, meaning… he still hadn't returned. It had been hours by now since the demons had begun their retreat. Had… had he gone off to face Kaden alone? It certainly wouldn't have been the first time, and it wasn't as though he'd truly die as a result of such a fight but, even so… What if something happens to him?

The sound of approaching footsteps drew her out of her thoughts. Sonic was standing before her in a flash, eyes clouded with emotion and aura a restless whirl of anxiety and pain and exhaustion. "What happened here?" she asked him quietly. Clearly something had happened, aside from the attack as a whole, for his emotions to be this turbulent…

A sharp pang of anguish spiked in his aura, along with a note of grief and… denial? But, though his ears lowered and he looked as though he wanted to answer her, he shook his head instead. "I'll… explain later," he mumbled. Then, gathering his resolve, he added with a hint of desperation in his voice, "This is more important. Wave, Shadow's gone. We don't know what happened to him. He's just gone."

Alarmed, Wave demanded, "Gone? What do you mean, gone?"

As sometimes happened when his anxiety got the best of him, Sonic rambled slightly in an effort to explain. She let him, fully aware of the fact that he would simply not be telling her information that wasn't important in some manner or another. "We were on that demonic planet, but obviously we didn't stay," he told her quickly. "He insisted we leave him behind, in this… citadel, I think? Those triplets were in there, too, so he seemed pretty convinced he'd be safe enough from being attacked. It was stupid, but we left him, and when Jet went back there later I followed him. Only, Shadow was gone by then. There wasn't anything left behind, either, no blood or obvious footprints or anything. It's like he fucking vanished. Even D…" He trailed off for a second, hesitating and obviously experiencing another surge of anguish that only deepened Wave's alarm… and her suspicion as to what else had happened on this day. "Even the God seemed confused as to why Shadow wasn't there anymore."

Even Kaden doesn't know what happened? Stunned by the implications, Wave tightened her hands into fists. Shit… there aren't many potential culprits, then. Not just anyone can sneak into any of his territories and escape his notice, even when he's away. Already understanding Sonic's unspoken plea, she met his troubled gaze and quietly declared. "I'm leaving, then, and I will be bringing him with me when I return. Go rest in the meantime. Rest and try to take care of one another. You all need each other's support right now." Searching those emerald eyes, she added even more softly than before, "...Especially you. Don't push anyone away, for your sake. Let them help." Without giving him a chance to refute her assumptions, she turned and teleported away.

Sonic remained behind, standing alone with nothing more than his thoughts to keep him company. Ash fell like snow around him. The silence was heavy and suffocating. His emotions bled away again into that same crippling numbness that he had begun to grow so familiar with already on this day. Teeth nearly chattering (was he… going into shock? Wasn't this a symptom of that?) he turned on his heel and began stiffly walking back toward the house. There was nothing more to do now than wait. Wait and hope for a miracle he somehow couldn't bring himself to believe would come.

~保護者~

Blue eyes glanced between the people left at Espio's home. Steam (the green hedgehog who had fought Kaden briefly, Sein recalled) now sported a large cut from his hip to his shoulder and a stab wound damn near to his heart. He seemed to be holding on fine, at least. Cream was seriously injured in several places on her body. Aku's injuries were spaced over his body, but he luckily seemed to be doing better than some. Sonic's injuries were nothing serious like the other hedgehog, luckily, and Tails seemed completely fine (though Sein's intuition told him that there was some other factor in play for that). Sein felt awful that he couldn't have protected them all more, especially since one of them was missing.

He then forced himself to take stock of his own health. Patches of feathers had been forcefully ripped from his body during the battle on Babylon, and he was sporting a few nasty cuts in several places on his body. The hawk didn't really think that this was something to worry about greatly, and as such left the matter be. To sate his own curiosity, Sein walked over to the fox and sat down with a gentle smile. "You're Tails, yeah?" He asked.

Looking up from the communicator on his wrist, the fox blinked once or twice in mute surprise before relaxing into a smile of his own. "Yeah, I am," he answered.

"Good. Glad to know I got it right." Sein's smile grew somewhat. "I was wondering how you came out of this, well… unscathed, or at least seeming so." The innate curiosity bubbled forth into his eyes, not exactly hidden.

Tails seemed to think about that for a second, head canting to the side in thought. After a moment, he admitted, "Well… I didn't. Not initially, at any rate." He shifted a little on the floor where he sat, seeking a more comfortable position, then randomly appeared to change the subject. "I trust you've noticed my little namesakes?"

Probably some sort of healing or regeneration, Sein thought to himself before chuckling. "Yeah. Kinda hard to miss. Is that common for your race?"

This earned a small shake of the head. "Not at all," Tails replied. "See, it's a mutation I was born with. Everyone, myself included, thought it to be a fluke. A random event, you know? But it turns out that it's not the only mutation I have, and it wasn't because of anything in my DNA or the like. It's… slightly fantastical sounding, if I'm being perfectly honest, but I somehow wound up being born with a radiation power that actively mutates me. It was almost certainly behind my twin tails, and it also mutated my abilities to the point where I now have powers I wouldn't normally. One of those powers is regeneration."

Sein blinked several times before his smile grew even wider. "That's really cool. How well can you control that radiation power?"

"Rather well, for the most part, but I still don't typically risk using it," Tails told him with a shrug. "I don't trust such a volatile energy not to harm others who happen to be in the vicinity. Though, I did build some guns I can safely channel that energy through." He thought for a second or two again. "...Might need to pull those out sometime, actually."

"That sounds extremely interesting and powerful." Sein thought for a moment, then decided to ask, "Can you control how it affects things?"

"Not at all," Tails said. "It's part of why my own mutations wind up being so random."

The hawk nodded for a moment before holding out a hand. "It was nice to finally get to meet you properly, and I wish it could've been under better circumstances than… well, this."

"Feeling's mutual," was the genuine reply. Tails was smiling again as he took the proffered hand. "All things considered, though, given that we're all alive and all that jazz… I think this meeting is just fine."

Sein then stood back up and walked over to Cream, kneeling down by the cot that the bunny was laid on. He cast the younger girl a smile. "Hey, Cream, right?" he asked, wanting to be sure that he wouldn't refer to her incorrectly.

The exhausted bunny looked up at him with silent pain in her eyes, but nevertheless smiled. "Yes," she murmured.

"I can help with the pain somewhat, but I need to make sure you're fine with that first. Is it alright if I do?" he asked softly, watching her eyes carefully.

Something in her eyes softened with relief. "That would be perfectly alright," she said quietly.

Sein's smile softened as he gingerly set a hand on Cream's shoulder, using his fledgling Immortal Healing power to do what he could for the more major wounds. "I couldn't heal it all, but I did what I could."

"Thank you," Cream answered, pushing herself up into a sitting position with slow and careful motions.

"Not a problem," Sein replied easily, pulling his hand back. "So, you've got psychic-based powers, yeah?"

"I do," was the gentle reply. "Aside from the ability to slowly fly using my ears, mental powers are all that I have."

"What can you do with them?"

"There are a wide variety of uses for psychic abilities. One could feasibly control the minds of others, I suppose, read thoughts and mentally communicate, create psionic explosions, shut down or overload the minds of others to induce varying states of unconsciousness, life and manipulate objects, and so on."

Sein's eyes darkened briefly as his thoughts took a concerning turn toward Astra, the woman who had attacked his son. She might have powers similar to that as well... Realising that he was quickly about to go off into a mental tangent, the man pulled himself free of his thoughts and let brightness return to his expression and aura. "That sounds really useful and versatile. Definitely something fierce."

"I suppose so," she answered with a small smile. "I try not to use my abilities for most of those purposes, however. I do not enjoy combat. Though… due to the training my guardian gave me as a child, I do understand why fighting is sometimes required of me and others."

"Yeah, and it's always good to know what you're capable of should you need to fight." Sein replied in kind. "I try to only fight for good reasons, so I get where you're coming from." He took a moment to think, then asked, "You seem to be fond of Espio. Why?"

Cream's smile remained, but turned sad. "He was my guardian," she revealed. "When my mother died, I was only a child. A young one, at that. I knew him, Mister Vector, and Charmy very well, but… I did not want to live at the Detective Agency with Mister Vector. I do not know why. So after Mother died but before everyone came to me to make sure I was taken care of, I slipped away and sought out Mister Espio. I begged him to take me with him on his travels and, for whatever reason… he did."

Sein nodded softly and slowly. He felt somewhat bad for having brought it up, but… this was good to know. Regardless, it was evident in his eyes that it bothered him. "Sorry for asking," he apologized softly, glancing away.

"It is alright," Cream replied honestly. "I do not mind discussing the past. It makes me… happy to recall such easy days."

"I just know that some things can be a bit… much. I try not to draw that kind of stuff out when I can avoid it." His gaze shifted over to Sonic and Steam, while his senses let him know that Aku was close by. "I'm gonna go check in with them. Let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"No, I am fine. Thank you." Despite her words, after a second, Cream asked, "Do you think you could send Steam over here when you are finished? I did need to ask him about something."

Sein nodded softly. "Of course." With that, he stood and began walking over to Sonic. He was quick to sit down by the hedgehog with a smile. "Hey, Sonic."

The blue hedgehog pulled out of his melancholy thoughts with some effort and looked up at Sein. "...Hey," he responded after a moment.

"What's up?" he asked Sonic softly. "Talk to me."

There was no point in lying, so Sonic didn't. His response was a bit short and vague, though. "Just worried. About everything."

"Me too, Sonic. It's really hard to escape fear and worry, especially when things get… rough. Bleak." The hawk sighed softly and leaned up against the wall. "I'm really worried about everything, too. Kath, Jet, Alana, this planet, Babylon, my friends… the list keeps going." Sein stopped speaking long enough to carefully set a hand on Sonic's shoulder, giving it a gentle and reassuring squeeze. "The best thing I've ever learned to do is to let yourself feel this concern, this fear, then do what you can to let it be something that empowers you to do more. I'm sure you can take that and use it in your own way, but I really hope it helps."

Sonic's expression tightened. There's nothing I can do. Thinking it best not to voice that thought, he just nodded and mumbled a, "Yeah." Then, after a small pause, he sighed and added, "...Thanks."

"Just because you can't do something now doesn't mean you won't be able to some other time." Sein pushed himself to his feet and cast the hedgehog a smile. "I'm sure you'll get that chance." Deciding it time to finally try to speak with Steam, the hawk walked over to the green hedgehog. He was met with somewhat cold and agitated eyes, but he managed a smile nonetheless. "Hey, Steam."

Steam frowned faintly and nodded in a greeting. "Whatcha want?"

"I've been curious, since you're obviously not from this timeline and all. Why'd you come here?" Sein asked curiously, sitting down and watching the hedgehog appear to be caught off guard.

"I… just wanted to make sure that what could've happened in my timeline doesn't in another. That's really all there is to it."

Sein fixated his gaze into Steam's eyes, then around the hedgehog's body curiously. That's not what your aura says, kid. "You so sure about that one?"

An annoyed expression found itself onto Steam's face. "Yeah. That's all."

"You seem to be trying to prove something. Maybe… not even to anyone else."

Steam glanced away, a glare pointed nowhere in particular. "Shut the fuck up."

Despite the obvious agitation and anger Sein heard in the other man's voice, Steam's aura showed that at least some part of that was true. "By the way, everyone here should be relatively okay for the time being. Stop soaking yourself in loathing and talk to them. You wanted to protect them, eh?"

"Kath must've had a hell of a time dealing with your annoying ass," Steam muttered snarkily before casting his gaze to the others with a minute smirk.

"All the time. Surprised the man dealt with me and that his daughter even liked me," Sein beamed positively. "Get your ass over here. I'll do what I can for your wounds, too."

Steam begrudgingly pushed himself to his feet and walked over to Sein, taking a seat somewhat near to Sonic as Sein began attempting to heal the wounds. A few moments of silence ensued before the hedgehog glanced over Sein. "You know… you're a bit of a hypocrite, Sein."

The hawk was taken aback, enough so that the healing stopped in its entirety as he moved a foot or so back. "Eh?" he asked quickly, blinking a few times in rapid succession.

An eye roll was the only response given for a short few seconds before Steam finally deigned to speak. "You're going and doing everything you can to fix everyone else's problems. When the hell are you gonna worry about your own?"

"You do seem rather… stressed," Cream hesitantly ventured.

Sein's eyes shifted to a faintly darker shade as his emotions surfaced momentarily. "Yeah. I'm worried. About a lot of things."

Steam resisted the urge to scoff, trying to take into account that this was a serious matter and his own attitude could wait for a few minutes. "Like?" Sonic pulled out of his thoughts again at that point and began listening in while Vector finally stirred from his sleep. Cream and Tails just looked on silently.

If the hawk had been hesitating before, that small nudge seemed to be enough to get him to speak now. "Alana. She's gone back to Babylon, but what if she's been drawn into a trap? Jet, he's off fighting one of the most dangerous evils I've seen, but what if he doesn't make it back? Kath was just revived, but who's to say that he won't be killed off again in some stupid fucking war. And you guys… you matter just as much to me as you do my own son, but what if I can't protect you?" Sein barely managed to hold off his tears, if only because he might break down entirely for some time if he did. Soon…

The green hedgehog pushed himself off the wall and set a hand on the hawk's shoulders, green eyes glancing into blue vaguely. "It's good that you're worried. It's wonderful that you care that much, even about people you know so little about. But in the situation you're in, here and now, are you willing to trust these people you're concerned about to come back, or be fine in the end?"

Sein was quiet. Steam couldn't maintain eye contact, and he understood that. This… this was enough. "I… kinda have to…" A moment of silence ensued before he gave a weak smile. "Jet's my kid after all. I'm sure he can do it."

Steam chuckled faintly before sinking back down into a sitting position. "Just sit down and relax for now, alright? Best we can do is wait."

Sein eventually took the advice, sitting himself down and quietly mulling over a few things. I know he can make it back. There's… no way he won't.

~保護者~

3,764 words this time. Hope ya'll enjoyed! Many thanks as always to Blazing Winds for all his help. Posted (at about 6:20 p.m.) 01-14-20.