Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this conflict… especially for the one who still has some catching up to do.

~保護者~

"Darkness Falls"

~保護者~

"I can't believe this is happening."

Sonic sighed and draped a comforting arm over his son's shoulders. "I know."

"I can't even wrap my mind around the fact that Gramps is…" Silver trailed off, dismayed, and shook his head.

At a loss for words himself, Sonic repeated more softly, "I know."

There was a period of quiet. Silver twisted around to look into his father's face. "How are you doing, Dad? I mean… dealing with all of this… it's gotta be… I dunno. Awful."

A second sigh escaped Sonic but, for the first time, he gave vent to his emotions… just a bit. "That doesn't even begin to describe it, kiddo. It's… god, I don't even know."

More silence. Silver turned back around to resume his earlier sitting position, then seemed to make a decision. "Let's… change the subject for a while, okay?"

Sonic offered a decidedly weak shrug. "Sure."

"I actually have some questions, if that's okay." When Sonic nodded, Silver continued. "This stuff happening with Espio… Why's it so bad? Like, I thought he was the definition of control and stuff, right?"

"Well… yeah, but this… this is something different. It's like…" Sonic paused, gathering his thoughts, then said, "Okay, let's look at it this way. Remember that incident when Jet's storm powers first awakened?"

Silver perked up. "Yeah, absolutely. I saw the city afterward, and man it was trashed. He knocked over buildings and tore up roads and all kinds of crazy stuff."

"Right. But do you remember why that happened?" Sonic pressed.

His son thought about that. Then his ears straightened. "He lost control."

"Big time," Sonic confirmed. "The key reason why is because he had no knowledge of his own power. He was never trained to control it. When it awakened, it did so in response to volatile emotions like anger and a powerful desire for self-protection. All these things together caused him to be, in a sense, overcome by his power and sort of… controlled by it, I guess you could say, as opposed to the other way around."

"A lot like what happens with Gramps when his Darkness gets to be too much," Silver rightly assumed. "Only, from what Gramma told me, he mostly lost control because he can't always handle his emotions, not because of any of that other stuff."

"Yeah. That's true. And all of these things are at play in Espio's situation." Sonic settled back against the wall, eyes drifting upward to one of the holes in the ceiling. "Given his upbringing and his own natural demeanor… he's never been especially adept at deciphering his own emotions when they rise up, with some exceptions such as when he's pissed over something. That leads in to difficulties dealing with those emotions. These things, coupled with the other crap I mentioned… it's a hell of a mess to be trapped in, and there's jack-all we can do about it."

Silver honestly looked dismayed. "Why would his folks never teach him how to control his Darkness? Surely they knew he had it, right?"

"From what I understand, all chameleons have Darkness," Sonic explained. "Remember that place Dad one time mentioned to us, where the Realm of Darkness physically connects with this realm?"

"Uh… yeah. Zur or Zee or… something?" Silver scratched his head a little, sheepish.

Sonic managed a chuckle. "Close, but no cigar. It's called Zyr, for the record."

"Hush," Silver laughed.

Stifling further amusement, Sonic continued. "Anyway… their whole race originates from there. Turns out, they're one of the oldest races ever. They're likewise among the very first beings of Darkness ever to exist. So, like I said, all chameleons have Darkness in them. But, since coming here… I don't know, it's gone dormant in most of them, I guess. Or, at least, most of them stopped actively using it."

"You think that has something to do with why they're all so neutral now?" Silver asked. "I mean, if their Darkness is that evil but they all stopped using it for one reason or another…"

"I have no idea," Sonic shrugged. "It's possible." His arm was growing uncomfortable, so he removed it from Silver's shoulders and resituated. "Back to your original question, I don't know what his parents might have known about their race's origins, their innate Darkness, or any of that stuff. I don't know what they ever told Espio about it, if anything. Regardless of any of that, whatever they may or may not have said to him, he doesn't remember it. It doesn't seem like he was directly taught anything, though. When it comes to fighting, his ability to physically retain memories of techniques and stuff is… insane. But he's not shown any signs of remembering any actions related to this crap, so I personally doubt he was trained."

Silver pursed his lips together for a few moments before saying, "You said he's learning really fast, though, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Sonic agreed. "...For better or for worse."

The pair fell silent again, both shifting their focus to their thoughts. Eventually, however, Silver spoke back up. "...All that stuff you said about why Uncle Shadow's not feeling well… were you serious?"

Sonic sighed heavily. "Why would I lie about it?" he asked in turn. Then he added, "It's hard for me to believe sometimes, too, but the signs of him having an addiction in the past were there even before this mess. Smoking, barely having an appetite… you know, that sort of thing. It's all just… worse now. And symptoms he's not had to suffer in a lot of years are back again and he's obviously not doing so hot because of it."

After some consideration, Silver switched gears a little bit. "You did mention something about him having changed in some good ways, didn't you?" he asked. "Like, not being so grumpy all the time."

"Trust me, he has his moments," Sonic smirked. "But, mostly, yeah. He's a lot more… grown up, in a way. He's definitely adopted the calmer demeanor Dad always had. Mom, too, but… you know, he's not related to her."

Silver nodded slowly, then questioned, "Why'd you say it like that?"

Emerald eyes blinked. "Say… what?"

"That he's more grown up," Silver answered, visibly confused. "He's, like, barely any younger than you."

"Oh. Right. Um… So, this is gonna be a bit crazy sounding, but hear me out." Silver tilted his head and Sonic quickly continued. "I don't know how much you were ever actually told about Shadow's past, but the gist of it is that he was created and not born. Specifically, Ivo's grandfather, a dude named Gerald, created Shadow as a weapon to fight and kill me. I was… sort of a thorn in the guy's side."

"I believe that," Silver laughed, trying to keep the mood light despite the seriousness of the conversation.

Though Sonic appreciated his efforts, he didn't share in Silver's laughter at this moment. "Anyway, because I was already ten at the time when Gerald made him, Shadow was way too small and young to hurt me. Couldn't exactly kick my ass like Gerald wanted. So he did his experiments and whatever he wanted to do to Shadow to make him the perfect 'weapon', then accelerated his growth to match my age. Only, his mind couldn't grow along with his body, meaning he was a lot younger inside than out."

Sonic frowned to himself at his next words. "I'm fuzzy on the details at this point mostly because Shadow can't remember and the data Tails and I later dredged up is… limited, but it seems that some other relative of Gerald's lived on the Space Colony ARK with the two of them. She objected to what Gerald was doing and tried to protect Shadow over the years, and both she and Shadow were often punished for it. This all apparently came to a head one day and as a result of some sort of fight, Maria trapped Shadow in an escape pod rocketing toward Mobius, and she later wound up dead. Whatever happened to Shadow after that, I have no idea."

"How does this-" Silver started to ask, but Sonic cut him off.

"Getting to that, relax." Sonic resituated again to get comfortable before continuing. "Ivo's records indicate that he later found Shadow in that escape pod years later. There was evidence that he'd been out of it previously, so why he was sealed back inside is unknown, not to mention how. He was in some sort of stasis, too, one where he was sort of… frozen in time. Not growing, not aging, nothing. But he had aged at some point before that, to somewhere in his teen years.

Silver's eyes were wide. "That's crazy."

With a nod, Sonic forged ahead. "Ivo apparently knew exactly what - or rather who - he'd found based on his own past readings of Gerald's crap, so he took Shadow's pod and all back to… wherever the hell he was at the time. Then he set about continuing exactly what Gerald once did: getting Shadow ready to fight and kill me. This involved more experiments, more testing, and more accelerated physical aging."

Now Silver started to understand. "But because of the way that works, he still had the mind of a teenager."

"And all the mood swings and everything else that goes along with that time in people's lives," Sonic confirmed with another nod.

"That makes so much sense," Silver breathed. Then he asked, "Wait, does Uncle Shadow know about all of this?"

"He has a vague idea, but he doesn't remember any of it," Sonic told him. "Based on what he's said, his first real memories after the last couple of things he recalls on board the ARK are from somewhere around the time he started defying Ivo and regularly travelling with Rouge and Omega." Sonic shrugged, bothered by all of this even so many years later. "His mind was a real mess back then, and so was his life. Part of me is happy he's not burdened with the memories of all the shit he went through. What things he does recall are terrible enough on their own."

Once again, silence settled around the pair. This time it was heavy and unhappy. But Silver, being Silver, soon went out of his way to lift the tension and change it into something happier. He was good at that, as Sonic was starting to recall. "Okay, new question." He twisted back around to face Sonic again, prompting Sonic to mirror his son's movements. Those golden eyes were alight with excitement and awe. "Is Wave really that badass now?"

Without meaning to, Sonic let out a short laugh. "Oh, absolutely. Man, you should've seen her and Jet spar a while back, and in the big fight here. She was amazing. You remember her dad, Han? We met him a couple of times years back. Anyway, he's a Hexan as you may recall, and they're a race of magical beings. Well, Wave inherited magic out the ass."

This final comment caused Silver to burst out into a short fit of his own laughter, but that note of awe remained in his tone. "Man, that's awesome!"

"It really is," Sonic smiled.

Silver grinned at him. "What about Uncle Jet?" he demanded, suddenly all cheery.

"You'll have to wait until he gets back," Sonic responded, sticking his tongue out briefly. "Seeing it for yourself is easier than me trying to explain it."

"You suck," Silver joked.

Sonic lightly shoved Silver's arm. "Nuh-uh, not me," he replied, mock offended. "Never." Their shared laughter quickly proved to be just the medicine Sonic needed right now, in light of all that he had been dealing with.

If only these good feelings could last for longer than this.

~保護者~

Some time had passed since Silver's conversation with his father, and many of the topics left him thinking and processing. There was so much to focus on, but he didn't have much longer to do so as Rose slowly and quietly approached him. She gave a gentle smile and sat down by him before saying, "It is nice to formally meet you, Silver."

The aptly-named silver-furred hedgehog perked up in surprise and looked up at her. "Huh? Oh- Right. Nice to meet you, too. You're Rose, right?" Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Cream and Vector still playing with the baby across the room while murmuring softly to one another about various things. Sonic wasn't back from checking on Shadow and Tails yet, Espio and Armaris were outside, and Kial was who-knew-where, so the room was quiet overall.

A light nod served as the initial response, alongside a warm smile. "Yes, indeed. And you are Sonic's son, yes?"

"Well, one of 'em," Silver smiled. "But, yeah, I am."

"He is a lovely person, as are you. I can certainly see that you have retained a few pleasant traits without fail," Rose said warmly, still smiling.

"I dunno that I'd call him 'lovely'," Silver laughed. "Have you seen him when he gets mad? Man can he hit hard. He's thunked me pretty hard on the head a few times over the years. Not that I didn't deserve it, but still."

There was the faintest hint of sadness in her eyes, but it was soon quelled. "Despite such, you are both genuinely good people. I consider that to be something I could qualify as 'lovely'. Regardless, however, there is something I wished to discuss with you."

Golden eyes blinked. "Sure. What's up?"

"I am aware that you have Light, but I do not know how extensive your training has been with it. I wished to inquire about that, as I am willing to help with such if you would like," Rose explained.

Silver's ears lowered a degree, and he grew quiet. After a long moment he said, "My Gramma… she was amazing. You know, really powerful, really kind, really intelligent… all that stuff. She taught me some stuff, but then life sort of got in the way. I got married, wound up having kids, and I just didn't have the same kind of time that I used to." He shrugged a little. "I always kinda regretted not finishing that training, though. Might've saved a lot of lives down the road. Plus I always got the sense that she wanted someone to be able to take her place one day if it came down to it. But that never really happened."

"May… I ask who your grandmother is?" Rose inquired softly, her curiosity piqued.

"Her name's Analia," Silver answered. "Dunno if you would've ever heard of her or not. I have no idea if she ever really left our planet and got involved in things or whatever."

Rose paused at hearing the name, her eyes widening briefly. "Analia…?" She almost whispered. Silver nodded once. "That is… incredible. I feel like I should have been able to tell from the potential you and your father's Light has." Some excitement managed to enter her voice, this revelation absolutely catching her off guard. "Are… you aware of who she is, outside of your relation to her?"

"I mean…" Silver scratched at his head a little, thinking. "I know she was someone really important to her tribe in ancient times. They regarded her as some kind of a princess or something. And I know she used to be in charge of safeguarding some Immortal artifacts a really, really long time ago. She never really talked about much beyond that."

"Your grandmother- Analia… she is an essential person. The current living embodiment of Light, and this explains precisely why she is important. Her Light capabilities are exceeded by only Eona herself."

He perked up at that. "She was the first being of Light ever, wasn't she?" he asked.

"Yes, and Analia's direct ancestor. That is the reason her powers are so great, and why they are so potent." Rose closed her eyes briefly. "I have always aspired to be like them."

"That's… legitimately awesome," Silver eventually said, grinning. Then he actually thought about what she said and grew more serious. "Wait… so, is the opposite true of Gramps, then? Is he descended from the first being of Darkness, too? 'Cause he's wicked powerful and stuff like she is, just… you know, with Darkness and not Light."

Rose took a moment before nodding slowly. "Yes. He is the direct descendant of Zenith. Though… I am not aware of much more than that. Information regarding them both is rather sparse."

Silver was again quiet for a time. "Can… I ask you something, Rose? You don't have to know anything for sure, I just… kinda want an opinion, I guess."

"Do not be afraid to ask questions, Silver," She responded, giving a soft nod and smile.

He pursed his lips together, tense and uncertain, before letting out a breath and forging ahead. "With… everything that's going on… and that's already happened, I guess… Do you think Gramps even can be saved?" He looked down, ears lowering substantially in response to his current upset. "Dad mentioned that Tails and Uncle Jet have talked about doing that, but… I dunno. If he's really so far gone that he'd do everything he's done…" He trailed off, utterly dismayed.

Rose was silent for some time, her arms crossing as she thought. "If there is a chance that he can, it will be slight. His corruption is deep, not only by his own doing, but from the being that corrupted him, Amnikaribah. However, I deeply hope that it is possible to save him, for his own sake and the good of many people. As well as for those of you that care deeply for him," she murmured. If he can be saved… so might my sister.

"Dad said he was corrupted by a God of Demons," Silver murmured, "and that it happened a very long time ago. If that's true, then the corruption was serious right from the get-go, and it's had tons of time to fester and grow. How in the world could there be any hope of saving him, given that?"

Her gaze turned away momentarily, contemplating. "Corruption is… complicated and dangerous. To be corrupted makes it hard to turn back, especially on your own. The reason I say that there is still a chance is that there might still be a piece of him left that is holding on and refusing to turn away from who he used to be. I am not wholly aware of that situation, as I do not know him as well as Jet or Wave may. However…" Rose turned to face him, a faint smile on her face. "If someone such as Jet holds onto the hope of saving Kaden, then there must still be a chance in his eyes."

Silver managed a wan smile. "Gramps always was the type to be stubborn 'til the end of days… so, I guess, maybe you're right. And if anyone could have a chance of making this happen… I suppose it'd have to be Uncle Jet. He's pretty awesome, you know."

"I am certainly aware of his… 'awesomeness'. I have seen his fighting in the past, and bore witness to it some years ago. He is also an interesting individual, if not mildly agitating in refusing help," Rose giggled.

This finally earned another laugh from Silver. "Yep, that sounds like him." Just about as soon as the words were out of his mouth, he sat straight up, then looked confused. "...That was hella weird." Across the room, Cream's attention had also been caught, and she was looking around a bit in the same state of confusion.

Rose stood quickly, confused yet concerned. "What is the issue?" she asked quickly.

Silver pushed himself up as well. "We were just talking about him and, for a second, I swear sensed his mind nearby. But it was gone so fast…" He turned to Cream. "Tell me I'm not crazy," he pleaded.

The bunny blinked a few times, then slowly shook her head. "You are not crazy," she confirmed. "I sensed it as well. But you are mistaken on one thing. That was not truly near us."

Now he was totally confused and lost. "Huh?"

Vector piped up. "Uh… yer not talkin' sense, Cream."

"Patience please, I was getting to that." With a vaguely amused huff, she continued. "Since being here, I have felt reality fracture once. That happened as I was revived, in fact, though I am not sure why. That fracture released a barely traceable energy signature. Or, at least, for us mortals it is such."

Silver caught on. "You think reality fractured for a second? Why?"

"There is a possibility," Rose murmured, a tension rolling over her body. "An energy known as the Void."

The other three present in the room traded perplexed looks. "The what now?" Vector soon asked.

"It is another of the existential energies that exists. Void, Chaos, Darkness, Light, and Aura are the energies that currently sustain existence as we know it. You are all likely familiar with the last four, but the Void is something that 'appeared' recently in existential terms."

"I didn't know something like that could just happen," Silver breathed, eyes wide.

Cream was visibly thoughtful now. "...Mister Kaden used to let me read his collection of ancient books in his library when I was a child," she said slowly. "I remember one book talked about the four existential energies, but the author also mentioned these discussions they had with an ancient goddess. Supposedly, this goddess was convinced that there were always meant to be seven as opposed to four. Much the same as how beings such as her consider there to be only seven 'main' timelines amongst the truly innumerable ones that actually exist."

"It is certainly possible for such to be true. As it is now, the Void poses a threat to existence by the intentions it seems to hold. I am not yet aware of how it reacts to other energies, nor am I privy to what, if anything, it consists of. It is something that concerns many people, such as Jet and Wave. That alone is able to worry me, since such a thing isn't… common, per se."

"Wait, concerns them how?" Vector demanded to know. "As in it makes them worried, too, or they're involved somehow?"

"They're worried, and involved in Jet's case. I am not sure of the exact details regarding his involvement, however," Rose explained.

The other three traded looks… but then it happened again. Another fracture, another brief sense that Jet was there, then gone again. Only this time, for a split second, Silver saw the hawk. He'd been leaping backward, sword in hand, and there'd been some sort of a bright light rocketing toward him. Then nothing at all. Mouth agape, Silver pointed. "I'm not the only one who saw that. Tell me I'm not the only one who saw that."

Rose was immediately tempted to create a clone and send it off before realizing the potential danger of doing so. I cannot endanger them in such a way. She bit her lip softly before nodding. "I saw it as well, Silver. This is… concerning."

No one had a chance to reply before the sun outside began to flare up with painful brightness. Silver shielded his eyes and immediately complained, "Now what's happening?" Cream was quick to shield Sako's face before turning her back to the light to protect her own vision. Vector sort of stared dumbly before cluing in and also turning away and closing his eyes. Rose was fast to teleport herself outside, holding a hand over her eyes to filter away some of the brightness. She knew exactly what was happening at the moment.

Seconds passed, then when the light and heat reached their peaks, a figure emerged, dragging along a second person by the shoulder. When everything died down, Locke was standing on the porch and unceremoniously plopped Steam down onto his rear. "I told you it would be hot in there. But here, now you can try to walk without burning yourself."

"Fuck off, fuck-ass," he huffed, brushed himself off, and stood. "Asshole."

Violet eyes rolled to the heavens, then Locke gave Steam a light shove. "Go yell at a tree if you've got that much swearing to do. Honestly."

Steam grumbled something about what tree he'd even yell at since most were dead, but didn't audibly vocalize this procession. "Ass."

Clearly having had enough of this bickering, Aku suddenly dropped his usual camouflage (having, as per usual, disguised himself as one of the large branches that Espio's house resided within) and snarled at them both before whacking them both his tail… hard enough to send them both flying. Locke landed on his feet just shy of the hut where Shadow and Tails had been staying, but Steam plowed right through it. There was immediately a flurry of swearing from Sonic and short cry of surprise from Tails, then everything was momentarily silent as the ruins of the tiny home settled around them.

Steam seemed to ignore this in favor of throwing himself from the ruins in an attempt to get back at Aku, only to be stopped simultaneously by Armaris, Espio, and Rose. Espio in particular had a dagger in his hand and warned with narrowed eyes, "You will not touch him."

Vector, who had stepped outside to witness the commotion, tried to placate the lot of them - but mostly his own friend. "Easy, now. There's no need to fight here." Espio's eyes narrowed further, but he didn't say anything more.

There was a faint growl of agitation before Steam decided to teleport away some distance to cool off and wait for Jet's arrival. Rose was quiet and watched everyone for a moment before frowning. Meanwhile, Sonic pushed a wall up off of himself and Tails, then helped his friend to stand. More rubble shifted and fell away elsewhere as Shadow freed himself and also stood, irritably dusting himself off as he did so. Locke turned to face the three of them, arms loosely crossed. "You guys alright?"

Tails waved him off idly. "Yeah, we're fine. Can't say the same for this poor house, though… jeez."

"That's not important," Locke answered dismissively. "So long as nobody's hurt."

Sonic kicked a little piece of rubble. "This wood's not heavy. We're fine." As he spoke, Espio teleported his dagger away and jumped back into the part of the tree he'd been sitting in before, clearly prepared to ignore them all if he was given the choice.

Rose would have spoken, but Armaris piped in with a similar question. Just more vulgar. "The fuck is wrong with him?" she asked Locke, crossing her arms.

Locke shrugged and sighed. "Not sure, specifically, but being on that world or even just in that realm really messes people up. Beyond that, I have no idea. I don't know him well enough to say."

"Maybe it's something to do with what he is, then," Armaris shrugged before vanishing into her shadow and apparently attaching herself to Sonic for the time being.

Sonic twisted around and frowned at the sight of this, then huffed and looked away. Cream walked out of the house right about then with Sako in her arms, but she didn't say anything to anyone just yet. Silver, meanwhile, appeared right beside Sonic and Tails. As Sonic expected, the two were rather exuberant at the sight of one another, given their status as best friends. Cue the happy reunion. He smirked a little, but the look faded as he took note of who was missing. Turning his attention back to Locke he dared to ask, "Where's Jet?" And where's my mom?

Silver suddenly raised a hand. "And, uh, was he in a fight or something?"

Locke glanced at Silver. "No, he was fine. He's just taking Analia to a safer place. He didn't think that this place is totally out of the woods yet, and he didn't want her to be in any danger because of that."

Worry clouded Sonic's eyes, though he did his best to hide it. "How… How is she?"

The echidna sighed heavily. "...Not well, Sonic. The trap she was in… it really did a number on her. She only kept herself alive via her Light, but even that… it was fading. She has so little left in her that we could barely sense it at all."

Rose frowned deeply at this, idly gripping her left arm. That thought was concerning, if nothing else. "Do you know where he is taking her?"

"To Cere and Finis." Taking stock of the people around him, Locke felt the need to elaborate. "Cere, the Goddess of Judgement, and Finish, the God of Night. They're two of the oldest beings in existence, two of the oldest Gods and Goddesses in existence, and also two of the most powerful in existence. They're extremely important people, who he trusts implicitly. She'll be safe with them."

His assurances of Jet's trust for these people had Sonic relaxing before he even was aware of being tense. If Jet trusts them so much… then we can all trust them. Which means… Mom really will be safe with them. Having reassured himself as much as he could, he took a steadying breath and tried to relax further.

A flash of Light appeared around Rose's body, followed by a clone appearing beside her and teleporting away almost as soon as it arrived. "Thank you, Locke."

Locke nodded, then said mostly to her and Sonic, "By the way… when he does get back, someone might need to deal with him. He was bruising up his arms again. There wasn't much of a point trying to get him to stop while we were still there, but it does need to be addressed. I'm just not the right person to do it."

More worry filled Sonic. Of all the times for you to be missing in action, Wave… He let out a heavy sigh. "He was doing that earlier, too. It's only gonna escalate if he keeps being put under stress. We should keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn't start hitting his head on anything."

Silver immediately looked concerned as well. "He still does that?"

Finally, Cream spoke up. "That is not always the sort of thing that people can grow out of," she said, lightly rocking the baby in her arms. "Especially people in his situation, who have not received any professional care or other forms of 'proper' aid."

"Oh. I guess that makes sense." Silver thought about that for a second, then made the connection. "Kinda like how Gramps used to kinda bite on his hands and fingers sometimes when he got stressed out."

"Yeah," Sonic agreed. "Just like that."

"I am more than willing to try and aid with Jet, though…" Rose's attention fell on Sonic. "You may be better suited with handling his anxiety and stress. I can accompany you in doing so, or do my best to help on my own should you choose either scenario."

Tails looked over at Sonic. "He definitely trusts you. Aside from Wave, you're the person he trusts more than anyone. We'll of course help out where needed, but you really are our best bet of handling this situation."

Sonic nodded. "Yeah," he agreed quietly. "I know. And, thanks."

Silver soon distracted the pair by hurrying over the rubble pile right to Shadow… and boldly giving the older hedgehog a hug. "It's great to see you, Uncle Shads."

Crimson eyes rolled, and Shadow huffed. But much to Sonic's utter amazement, his brother put a gentle hand on his nephew's back for a few moments before just as gently tugging himself out of the embrace. "I seem to recall telling you not to call me that."

"Maybe you did, maybe you didn't," Silver responded, sticking his tongue out like the playful brat he was. Tails laughed.

Picking his way over the shattered wood, Sonic moved over to his brother and, while everyone else was distracted by their own conversations and whatnot he asked, "How are you feeling right now?"

Though he looked subtly annoyed at the show of concern, Shadow just crossed his arms. "I'm fine."

It was hard to say whether or not that was true, but Sonic decided not to press him right now. Best not to trigger any mood swings. They happen often enough on their own. Around this time, Kial walked over to the small group of people to investigate what had happened. His attention momentarily fell on Locke before he turned himself and walked to Rose to get some sort of explanation about the current situation.

Sein suddenly appeared on the ground not too far from the collapsed hut, his confused gaze glancing over the whole group before beginning to walk over. This was quickly interrupted by Novei landing on him and walking off in some random direction before he had a chance to take more than a single step. Li landed nearby to him, but seemed more worried about where Novei was heading and rushed off after her. Seconds later, Alana arrived by her husband's side and looked down at him. After blinking once, she simply said, "Do not lay in the ash, Sein."

"Not my choice," he muttered, pushing himself up and onto his feet. "Novei oh-so-kindly dropped down on me. Probably on purpose."

"Regardless, you could have dodged her," Alana huffed. As she spoke, Kath arrived with Calypso in turn.

Silver, in true fashion, immediately leaned in to Tails and whispered, "What in the world is she?"

When Tails hesitated to answer, almost seeming uncertain, Sonic answered, "Ever heard of a Therian?"

Golden eyes went wide. "O-o-oh, those guys. ...Wait, she's one of them?" Understandably, he had tensed up at the idea, only to relax again with a confused look on his face. "But, I don't get it. They're supposed to be evil, but she doesn't give off any of those vibes at all. She doesn't even feel entirely neutral."

Alana, having taken note of their conversation, patiently explained, "Calypso is an old ally, and a friend. She has never taken part in the evil ways of her kind, and we trust her. You need not fear harm by her hand." Calypso looked over at the hedgehog but didn't say anything herself.

"If you guys trust her, that's good enough for me," Tails helpfully cut in. Then, offering a smile, he turned to Calypso. "Nice to meet you, by the way." She inclined her head slowly.

Armaris poked her head out of Sonic's shadow and faintly glared at nothing in particular. There were way too many people here for her liking, and as such she felt perfectly content to keep hiding within the shadows. Why the hell did we let so many people come here? In a silent display of his own agitation, Espio idly toyed with a knife between his fingers as he watched events unfold down below his perch.

Sein took another look around and noticed that Steam was indeed back, and that Locke was here. He quickly moved over to the echidna and smiled. "Hey. How are you?"

Said echidna blinked once or twice before carefully asking, "Sorry, have we met?"

The hawk briefly paused and his shoulders dropped, seeming heavily disappointed in himself. "Ah, damn. Sorry. I met you, Kaden, and Analia a long time ago in my timeline, not this one. I kinda forgot that I… well… didn't meet you."

Now able to understand what was going on, the normally stoic (at least as of late) Locke relaxed into one of the easygoing smiles that Sonic had so missed seeing from the man. "You don't need to apologize. I understand. I've had similar experiences a time or two in my life. It definitely isn't easy."

Sein smiled brightly. "Glad to know I'm not alone in that." His attention inevitably fell on Steam, and he managed a small frown. "He okay?"

Locke lifted a shoulder in a half-assed shrug. "Pissy, but otherwise fine. He's not hurt or anything."

"He wasn't doing too well earlier," Sein said with a shrug. "That's why I'm worried. Regardless, though, you went on that mission with him and Jet, right?" This pulled Alana's attention from whatever she'd been focused on and she started paying more attention to them.

That earned a small nod. "I did, yeah. We recovered Analia, and she's been taken to a safer place while she rests."

"How was Jet doing? Did he seem to be doing okay?"

"Not… especially, no. I already told this lot," Locke gestured vaguely at Sonic and those nearest to him, "but he started digging his fingertips into his arms again. I didn't see any point in trying to stop him while we were still there, and he was soon distracted with Analia anyway, but I'm honestly surprised he wasn't drawing blood at the time."

"I see…" Sein seemed worried by this, but tried not to let it show too strongly. "I hope that Kath being here can help."

Violet eyes glanced at the hawk in question, who was quietly conversing with Calypso. "In theory, it should. He always seemed really close with Kath. I never personally saw them together that I can recall, but from what I heard from other people, Jet really bonded with the guy. And vice versa, actually. He even started calling Kath 'Kaicha', which is apparently some sort of affectionate familial term."

Her interest sufficiently caught, Alana murmured, "Grandfather. Kaicha means grandfather. It is meant in a warm and loving sort of way, as you suggested." If he and the other Kath had such a relationship without knowing they were truly related… perhaps he and our Kath will be able to establish the same sort of bond.

"That's… really good." Sein smiled brightly. "I hope that it'll end up similarly in this situation."

"Where is Jet now?" Alana asked.

"He was the one taking Analia to Cere and Finis," Locke explained. Then he glanced up at the sun's position in the sky. "...Given his speed, he probably should've been back by now. Kid's always had a knack for getting roped into one serious situation after another, though. No telling what he's up to."

Rose chose this moment to enter the conversation, stepping over. "I sent a clone to ensure Analia's safety. I will mention if I see him anywhere." She thought for a moment, then added, "Though… we saw something that was unusual. I believe that we saw his clone being attacked through a reality fracture."

The surprise that Jet was even maintaining a clone right now was immediately overshadowed by concern. Alana looked at Sein. "A fracture in reality? How is this possible?"

Sein motioned for Rose to speak, almost impatiently. She obliged, giving him a short nod. "My belief is that it is due to the Void. I worry that it has performed some action to have caused the fractures."

It was about that time that Calypso finally chose to speak. "T'at energy be more t'an capable of such a t'ing," she remarked. "It motive are a mystery to even I, but 'tis clearly ready and able to begin actin' out. It lie waitin' and bidin' it time for so long, we should have known t'is would be comin'."

Kath caught on to the implications of her words quicker than anyone else. "You believe it will escalate soon," he stated.

"Why only soon?" she retorted. "Who say it not be doin' so now, eh?"

"If it is doing so now, we must ready ourselves for the consequences that such actions may bring," Rose murmured softly. "If more fractures like that occur…" She shook her head, not liking the implications.

Silver slowly raised a hand. "Uh… what, exactly, might happen?"

Alana shot him a dire look. "Reality itself is in danger," she told him frankly. "Fractures such as this can threaten entire timelines. With too many holes, one could entirely collapse. Depending on how deeply linked it is to other timelines, it could cause a domino effect that destroys other timelines as well. A timeline as important as this one… we cannot let it fall."

"Then what do you propose we do?" Kial asked, stepping closer to join in. "If I can play any part in preventing that, I want to."

"I do not know," Alana admitted. She turned to Kath. "Father…?" Kath merely shook his head. Even he was at a loss, by his own silent admission, and that only furthered her concern.

"We must wait for word from Jet or the Gods and Goddesses aware of the situation as of now," Rose murmured. "That is all I can think to do, besides preparing ourselves to be ready for anything to come ou-" Her attention snapped in the direction of Steam, immediately recognizing a familiar magic and teleporting after the source. Shortly following this was a wave of demons and highly focused beams of magic that forced several people to dodge amidst a mass forced teleport on anyone incapable of or not reacting in time to resist it. Those that were teleported away were sent several miles out from where everyone else was while a temporary no-power zone formed around anyone left, followed by a powerful barrier that encased them all.

"If you're able to come to Mobius in the next few minutes, it would be good because I have several threats isolated where they can't protect themselves, Kaden," Astra called out briefly before landing in front of a trapped Steam and a poised to fight Rose. Her hand waved to send Shei and Aniko along after Espio (who reacted without thinking by vanishing safely into the distance before he could be caught) while a swarm of her mind-controlled chameleons appeared and promptly vanished into the area surrounding them. "So, it seems like I've finally got my chance to kill you both. I think I'll capitalize on that right now," she said to Rose and Steam, smirking. "And you won't be having any of your allies help you, either."Rose quickly readied her sword, only to have her balance thrown off by one of the many chameleons Astra controlled, followed by several other brief slashes to various parts of her body that left her bleeding (albeit lightly). Her only response in the moment was to summon a set of armor onto her body as she quickly set into firing blades of pure Light at her corrupted sister. She had to stall long enough for Steam to free himself, or somehow manage to get him out of the trap amidst all this chaos.

Luckily, she didn't have to wait too long. Steam broke free from the magic with his hands glowing with his own golden magic before grabbing a chameleon poised to attack him out of the air and throwing them roughly through a tree. Astra briefly realized that, despite their capabilities, she didn't know exactly how to capitalize on them being… ninja. She briefly shrugged before preparing a spell to quickly end this fight while the hedgehog and other cat were busy. Steam ferociously powered his way through the various mind-controlled ninja with pure instinct and brute force while Rose clashed stoicly with the various enemies thrown her way.

Astra was forced to dodge out of the way of a magic-infused pillar of flames, idly throwing a wave of spikes with her free hand that Steam could only teleport to avoid. Though, when he reappeared, the various magic spikes rapidly drained away at his stamina, leaving him only the option to take to the air. He quickly called out a warning to Rose that she needed to do the same as the spikes began aiming toward her.

A strong jump and a quick spinning kick dispatched two more chameleons following Rose, leaving her enough time to take off in pursuit of her sister. Metal and magic clashed briefly and a shockwave exploded forth, throwing all parties back some distance. Astra was the slowest to recover, but she made up for this with several magic traps that targeted and tore through the armor Rose was wearing as well as the meager defense Steam was able to conjure up while viciously cutting into his limbs.

Steam felt a blade stab into his side and he grabbed the handle, as well as the ninja responsible for this offense, to rip the blade free and throw both the weapon and it's owner aside. He raised a hand and fired a beam of Light that was answered with a magic circle to nullify the energy and send a spike straight through his hand and shoulder. Rose broke the spell before it could cause any further damage with her limited magic capabilities, then powerfully slashed through a chameleon's sword and bashed the ninja with the hilt of her sword in the abdomen before throwing herself back into direct combat with Astra.

Light and corrupted magic collided dangerously, the effects of various spells causing the air around the sources of these powers to seemingly contract. Rose was unable to react outside of forming a cocoon of Light around herself when the air viciously exploded with this magic, temporarily out of breath from the pure force of the attack. She felt something tear through her cocoon and subsequently her stomach, gritting her teeth in pain before blasting it with so much Light that Astra was forced to back away and the magic weapon vanished.

Astra gritted her teeth as she quickly inspected the practically seared skin of her right hand. Whether Rose had meant to use so much Light certainly wasn't known to the corrupted woman, but the fact it had happened only left her far more enraged. Her hand raised and she chanted in another language as her hand began to glow with her dark grey magic. She watched in satisfaction as Rose's cocoon dropped and the being of Light dropped to the ground. Good to know she's still just as easily manipulated. Astra dropped to the ground and readied a blade of Black Magic to stab it into Rose, only to suddenly be forced to whip around and drive it into Steam's chest when he suddenly appeared, brimming with Light.

To Steam, this pain was a minor setback (though it burned with an agony he hadn't felt in a while) knowing that he'd protected Rose temporarily. He tried to move his arm to blast Astra away, but couldn't manage to move either. The magic had already moved through his body and constricted his muscles to the point he wasn't capable of movement. His body dropped when she ripped the blade free and flicked blood off of it, moving to finish off her primary target until she was forced to clash blades once more.

In Astra's brief moment of distraction, Rose had managed enough control of herself to wrench herself out of the mental influence her sister had on her. She unleashed a barrage of Light channeled strikes against the Black Magic, intent on tearing through it and knocking her sister out. She wasn't able to accomplish either goal, but her continued attack pressed her opponent back slowly. It wasn't much, and she knew it.

Magic poured from Astra's body as she activated the spell she'd been preparing this entire fight, deadly spires flying out of the ground and from a magic circle in the sky that made Rose teleport away and take Steam with her. A cocoon formed around the two, and Astra was quick to begin rapidly tearing away at it with various magic attacks, intent on finishing them both off before Rose could do much.

Steam grunted at the sudden movement, and briefly grimaced when he realized Rose was holding him close and doing her very best to heal him quickly. Much to his pleasure, however, he was aware that her efforts made it possible for him to move again, quickly standing and unsheathing his sword while channeling Light into it and rapidly slashing away at the various incoming attacks.

Rose was doing her best to heal the hedgehog as he moved, but realized that doing so was merely gaining no progress and instead pushed herself up to fight as well with her own blade in hand. She lowered the cocoon and shot forward in a burst of Light, the pulse of her innate energy breaking through the barrage of attacks long enough for Steam to proceed alongside her.

"Enough!" Astra yelled, magic exploding outward and viciously tearing into and snatching her targets off the ground. "You're both nuisances and nothing more than pests." She violently slammed the two into the ground with enough force to grant some satisfying snaps. Her attention was torn from them as a Therian suddenly appeared and brutally slammed a fist through her natural barrier. Astra teleported away quickly and made sure to pin Steam and Rose to the ground with a spike to their stomachs as the God of the Forge ran up.

"Novei, what th-" Li's eyes widened and he summoned a long sword in hand, flames erupting around it. "Get out of here, Astra. Now." His demanding tone was enough to briefly gain Novei's attention, but no comments for once.

Novei materialized a sword in her own hand that was far larger than she, viciously swinging it down at the other woman only for it to be deflected. "Li doesn't want you here. Leave." Her words were practically venomous, enough so to elicit a faint shiver from the aforementioned wolf.

Astra rolled her eyes and waved two fingers at Novei, intent on lifting her into the air and throwing her away from the fight. Much to her surprise, however, the Therian didn't budge. A deep shade of purple surrounded the physically built Novei which gained Astra's attention. When Li lunged forward to launch an attack, she was fast to catch him in the air and begin rapidly closing her magic grasp around his throat. "How about we strike a little deal here. I won't kill your friend, and you give me your magic."

"Leave," Novei practically hissed, stepping forward. She only halted her movements when she saw that the grip was on the verge of crushing his throat, a momentary frown on her face. Despite every motion and expression Li made saying not to go through with this, she seemed to accept. "Fine. You can have it." Her magic manifested in front of Astra and very brutally tore through every defense the woman had prepared for this fight, even going as far as to tear through her already tattered clothes and ripping a sizable gash in the cat's chest.

A gasp was all that managed to escape Astra as she dropped to the ground, shortly followed by Li. Her focus went into repairing her defenses and stitching together the damage that had been wrought on her body. She prepared enough of a defense to protect herself from a vicious kick that launched her into the air and the subsequent fist that slammed against her temple. Though dazed, Astra recovered by turning into a large white wolf with a flowing strands of black stained fur. She bit down on Li's sword and poured magic through her fangs to remove all of the flames while simultaneously slamming her front paws against Novei's shoulders to dig her claws in and throw the other back at the same time.

Li managed to roll away from Astra with a hand clutching at his throat, summoning a katana in hand as Astra promptly threw the other one far off into the distance. He slashed out with tremendous speed, intending on tearing into her neck but to no avail. The blade bounced off her fur and the flat of it nearly slammed into his side, if not for his quick reaction to let go before teleporting it back into his hand. He couldn't call out to Novei in time to prevent her from swinging her oversized weapon, only able to watch as the Therian was violently thrown back by her own sword suddenly slamming into her body. A spell that reflects physical damage. Fuck.

In that moment, there was a violent blast of raw Darkness that utterly destroyed the ground and sent everyone flying. It even tore apart Astra's barrier and spell, rendering them both useless as the attack poured over all those present. The only people who were mostly spared were Sonic, Shadow, and Silver. Father and son were quick to do their best to shield themselves and whoever else they could, only for their defenses to topple almost instantly. Soon, other barriers and the like rose up via other people's powers, but by then the attack was already dying down. When it fully dissipated, Kaden was standing there with his favored sword Saika in hand. He currently had the tip of his blade pressed to Astra's throat hard enough to draw blood, fangs bared in a silent snarl as he muttered, "Two seconds to tell me why you interrupted me."

"I thought you would want the chance to take out your biggest enemies," Astra bit out, teeth gritting as she transformed back into her normal body. This reaction wasn't something she had fully expected in this moment, but it didn't truly surprise her. She wasn't exactly scared either, if only because she was confident he would see the opportunity and kill the others instead of her.

He twisted Saika a bit, drawing more blood in his agitation, but then pulled the blade away. His gaze swept over the haggard group as they picked themselves up, some already looking ready to fight. Others were so badly wounded they couldn't stand. The sight they made earned a slight scoff, and he immediately allowed another torrent of Darkness to rage over the lot of them. Sein was fast to launch out a barrier as powerful as he could muster in such a short time with his aura, trying to hold off the attack long enough to think of a proper plan.

Eyes narrowing with hate, Kaden walked over to the group with more Darkness gathering in the palm of his free hand. The chance had been presented to kill them all where they stood… and he would be damned if he didn't take it.

~保護者~

9,346 words this time. Many thanks to Blazing Winds for all of his help and support! He wrote virtually all of that fight scene, given that it mostly involved his own characters. :) Posted (at about 10:35 p.m.) 03-30-20.