Author's Note: Hey, guys! Happy New Year! To celebrate in entering 2022(though to be honest, I'm fully dreading what this year will bring, but I'll try to be optimistic about it *Sweat drops sheepishly*), I've posted a new chapter, (sorry for the long wait) of this story which is finally here. Happy reading!
I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog. All rights belong to Sega. I only own the OCs.
Chapter 5: Power of the Sun Stone.
A five year old Elise was staring up at the night sky one evening, a few hours after her father wished her good night. But the young Princess just couldn't sleep. All day she'd seen children around her age pay with other children, with mothers and fathers by their side watching over them. She wished she could go outside and play too, to make friends of her own. But the royal advisors, maids and chancellors always rebuffed her behind the Duke's back.
"Princesses don't make friends. You must complete your training if you are to become our queen one day. It is your duty, Princess Elise. Your destiny. By the blessings of the Sun Stone." They would say.
But what is the Sun Stone? Why wasn't she allowed to make friends? Being a Princess wasn't fun at all. So the young five year old girl gazed up at the sky, full moon and the beautiful stars, until she saw the brightest one of all. She gaped in awe and delight. It was a wishing star, just like her father and mother said! Eager to make her wish, Elise clasped her hands together and began to make her wish.
"Starlight, Starbright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might, to have this wish, I wish tonight. Oh beautiful wishing star, please grant me my wish. I wish I could go out and see the world, and to make a friend who wouldn't see me as a princess, but as a normal person." She whispered and smiled.
With that wish chanted, Elise began to feel tired and decided it was time to go to bed. She turned away from her window as the bright wishing star shone...
'Uh...Ugh...W-what happened to me?' Elise's thoughts came, as an early memory from her childhood came to her in a form of a dream. Her recent memories were somewhat vague, as she had no clue on what happened. She felt warm and comfortable in the softness of the bed and pillow underneath her, the silky blanket blanket that covered her body.
Then as she began to regain consciousness, her memories began to return and she began to become quite alarmed; everything that's happened in the last nearly 24 hours, the attack from Julian Fredrick of S.N.A.K.E.S, the blue hedgehog that came to her rescue-
'Sonic!' Sitting up quickly as she thought of the teenage hedgehog who had saved her life, having come to accept her as his friend, volunteering to help her in her quest to find the three pieces of the Sun Stone, and then the last thing she remembered was...absorbing the first piece before passing out, Elise saw that she was in an unfamiliar room which was strangely medieval like. Where was she? Where was Sonic? How did she get here?
A shifting movement of blue caught her attention from her right and saw to her relief and slight amusement, was Sonic who was still seated in the chair with his arms on the edge of the bed, his head laying on top of them on it's side as he had dozed off waiting for her to wake up. The fifteen year old hedgehog was softly snoring, which made Elise giggle, covering her mouth with her hand. The hero of Mobius looked so cute when fast asleep. It was adorable.
Placing the thought of where they were into the back of her mind for the time being, the seventeen year old princess smiled warmly, relieved that he was still by her side and safe. While she had no idea where they were or how they got here, it was clear that they were in a safe place for now. Even though she didn't want to disrupt his beauty sleep as he needed it as much as she did, Elise gently stroked his head and quills, scratching the back of his left ear which made him moan, smiling unconsciously that he began purring.
"That feels...really great, Mom..." Sonic sleepily murmured, apparently having a dream that his mother was caressing him as a young child. "Please don't...stop..."
This time Elise couldn't mute her giggling, which accidentally arose the cobalt Mobian from slumber which prompted her to stop stroking him. Blinking his emerald green eyes open tiredly, Sonic sat up while rubbing them before yawning as he covered his mouth with his left hand.
"I must've fallen asleep. Boy, it's sure been a crazy day." The blue hedgehog said tiredly, rubbing his eyes.
"I'm sorry, Sonic. I didn't mean to wake you." Elise spoke, making the tired hero gaze at her, not yet realizing who he was talking to.
"Ah, it's fine Elise, I was just-HUH!?" Gaping in surprise at who was talking to him and what he just said, Sonic snapped himself fully awake and gazed at the Princess with wide eyes, wondering if he was still dreaming or not. "Elise!?"
"Yes, Sonic. It's me." The Princess of Soleanna nodded.
Relief washing over him to see his friend perfectly fine and finally awake after hours of waiting, Sonic couldn't contain his happiness as he happily yet worriedly gazed at her.
"Elise! You're awake! Are you alright?" Sonic asked immediately and happily, the weight of guilt for not having done something sooner to protect his friend lifting a little, very tiny traces of tears leaking in the corners of his eyes. He held back the urge to cry.
"I am alright, Sonic. Thank you." Elise smiled happily, her own tears forming more bigger than her first friend's.
"What a relief." Sonic sighed with feeling. "Oh man, I was really worried, but I'm really glad that you're okay, Elise. Not sure how long I've been sleeping, but you've been out for at least five hours."
"Five hours?" The Princess asked, shocked and surprised, before asking while looking around. "What happened? The last I remember was the Sun Stone shard somehow passing into my body. And...where are we?"
"Remember that giant rock guy that tried to catch us?" Sonic began, and when his friend nodded, shuddering, he explained. "Apparently he'd been woken up when Julian broke the Sun Stone. His name was Kronah, and he mentioned something about knowing us somehow, how he sensed the Sun Stone. He kinda caught us after you passed out, but he let us go after I explained what happened. Then some guy in a golden coat with magic appeared and brought us here for you to recover. I dunno who he is, but I'd say we'd better be careful with him."
"Really? I...I wasn't aware of that. Why did he bring us here?" Elise asked, stunned that the rock giant had let them go and didn't eat them, and that a stranger in a golden coat, whom which she could tell that Sonic was wiry of, brought them into this place...wherever it was.
"In order for you to survive and complete your quest, your royal highness." An unfamiliar man's voice spoke before Sonic had a chance to answer, causing the two teenagers to look at the doorway to find the mysterious golden cloaked man approach, surprisingly with two small ghostly figures levitating two trays that had food and glasses of water and cups of tea which were carried towards them. "So you have awakened as last, Princess. It is good to see you are alright."
"Um...thank you, sir." The young woman stuttered slightly, feeling uneasy as one of the trays landed gently onto her lap, while another was held out to Sonic who hesitantly took it. The plates had different kinds of fruit, small chunks of block cheese, bread rolls with mint tea.
"Uh, thanks...little guy." The blue hedgehog shrugged, holding the tray while the little ghost that reminded him of the Wisps danced around in mid air before it and the other one flew over back to the man. Where they ghosts? They were the smallest ghosts he had ever seen if they were. He then turned to the man and asked, skeptically. "So, are you gonna tell us who you are, now? I'm still not sure if I could trust ya'."
"I have suspected as much, young hedgehog. Now that Princess Elise III is awake, it is time for you to know who I am." The man in the golden coat nodded. "My name is Angalf, a powerful sorcerer if you will. My ancestors and family including myself have watched over the royal family as well as the Sun Stone from afar for many, many generations, until the time has come for the chosen heir to fufill her quest."
"I am sorry, Mr. Angalf, but I'm afraid I never knew about you or your family." Elise apologetically responded.
"It is quite alright, your highness. I cannot blame you for not knowing, nor do I blame Sonic the Hedgehog for being suspicious of me." Angalf shook his head.
Sonic, while taking a careful bite out of the food which seemed normal, chewed before swallowing and then responded. "Let me guess; you heard about me by hearing other people talk about me, right? How else did you know my name?"
Angalf chuckled. "Young man, anyone would be a fool to not know of your heroic achievements. While this is the first time I have ever laid eyes on you, yes, I have heard of many stories about you and your battles against Dr. Ivo Robotnik. Just because I have been watching over the royal family, does not mean I do not listen to other people. Until the arrival of those men from the deadly organization, there was no need to fear of your arch-enemy's attacks against Soleanna."
"...Fair enough." The teenage blue hedgehog admitted. "Those S.N.A.K.E.S guys are bad enough, I would hate to have Eggman involved considering how many times he tried to control living and powerful beings that can destroy the world and fail miserably. Plus him being able to become immortal...Ugh."
He shuddered over the thought, feeling his skin crawl. "I have enough nightmares as it is, and I still get them even after he died last month."
The golden-cloaked man nodded. "I have heard your conversation, thus I am fully aware you know of what the Princess has told you."
"You mean you were spying on us?" Sonic asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously while Elise softly gasped in shock, also frozen in disbelief. "Why didn't you come and speak to us before we went to that temple? You must've known about Kronah in the first place."
"I can only do as much within my power. For your journey to be accomplished, you must face the trials and dangers without much guidance. You must also prove yourselves to the Solar-Beasts of the Temples once the Sun Stone Shards discard themselves safely in there until one of the royal blood and pure heart locates them." Angalf explained.
"Solar-Beasts? That explains something." Sonic thought, narrowing his eye ridges. If Kronah was one of those Solar-Beasts, what was the connection with all of this? What was the warning the giant rock monster was trying to tell him? Was it because of this guy?
"Is that why we were able to find the first piece in the Temple in the Dusty Desert Ruins?" Elise asked curiously.
"That is correct, child." The powerful sorcerer confirmed. "Through the prayers you have spoken, only you shall be able to restore the Sun Stone and return it as one before Solaris, the Sun God and the Destroyer of Life, returns and possesses the man you call Julian Fredrick. For years it has been hoped that Solaris would never return, as he had attempted to destroy the world once before, yet it was the prayers from the royal family of pure hearts that have sealed his flames and soul away, imprisoning him as he would be known in the early times as the Flames of Disaster."
"...My family always said that the Sun Stone would bring about hope and peace as the Flames of Hope as long as stone itself did not break." Elise muttered, as she and her friend were shocked and becoming horrified beyond belief at what they were hearing which began to make them question of the Sun Stone's real history.
Sonic, feeling his insides spin and turn uncomfortably as he had sensed that the Sun Stone held an aura of complete wrongness, sighed while rubbing his forehead. "I knew there was something wrong with the Sun Stone and the flames when I first saw it, before those guys came. And I felt it again before Elise somehow absorbed the shard. I thought I was being a little bit paranoid."
"It seems you have the ability to sense the auras of good and evil, Sonic the Hedgehog. You have the heart and power to drive away the darkness of anger and hate." The old man remarked as he gazed at the cobalt Mobian. Yet what neither of the teenagers knew was that Angalf held a dark look in his eyes as he secretly glared at the fifteen year old hero.
"Comes with experience. I've faced giant monsters before, so I'm used to stuff like this." The blue hedgehog pointed out with a shrug, still suspicious about Angalf, feeling like there was something wrong with this guy and he couldn't figure out what it was yet.
"What would happen if I do find all of the shards before Solaris is released? Will everything go back to normal?" The seventeen year old girl asked, hesitantly. The more she was hearing about the Sun Stone's past, the more she began to think that maybe her father couldn't tell her more or that everyone in the palace were hiding something from her. Either way, for the sake of the world, she had to do this.
Angalf remained silent for a moment, which raised Sonic's suspicions even further as the hero of Mobius couldn't help but think that maybe the sorcerer really is the one that Kronah had warned him about.
"The answer lies within you, your highness. The journey will not be a simple task." The sorcerer finally responded, gesturing at the two teenagers and the food they were offered. "Eat, drink, and I will at the very least send you both on your way. Stay away from Julian Fredrick and his organization, and be careful of Solaris' powers."
"What's that suppose to-" Sonic didn't get a chance to finish his sentence as Angalf and his little ghostly assistants suddenly vanished in golden sparkle, as did the room all around him and Elise who cried out in alarm. The blue hedgehog gaped in shock as they soon found that everything changed and they...
Found themselves seated on a beautiful grass field valley of sorts, the fields going on for miles, the sky clear blue, the sun bright and warm, and they were both seated on the soft ground, blinking in confusion at the realization they were no longer in the weird man's mysterious home...wherever that was.
"...Mean?" The bewildered blue hedgehog finished, blinking blankly. He and the very confused Elise looked around wondering how they got here before noticing something on their laps and found that the trays of the half-eaten food and half-drank drinks they stared on still there, waiting for them both to finish their meals. "What the?"
"How did...where did Angalf take us?" Elise asked, confused.
"I dunno. That guy's weird." Sonic could only shrug, just as lost as his new friend was. He then decided to worry about that later and said as he began to slowly chow down on the rest of the food, surprised that it was still fresh and tasty. "Well, at least we're a good distance away from the Dusty Desert and hopefully from those Snake guys."
"You're not...worried that we could have been taken somewhere far away?" The Princess asked, genuinely surprised, as she politely began to finish her meal as well.
Puzzled at first by the question, and while he did wonder how far they were to get to the second shard, Sonic then just smiled and answered. "Nah, not really. We're pretty much still on Mobius, and judging from where we've been teleported, I'd say we're still in the region of Soleanna. Should be able to make our way around and find the other pieces."
Seeing how he wasn't even scared of the sudden transport or the fact they could be lost, Elise gazed at the fifteen year old curiously, feeling a little bit better knowing that he wasn't panicking at all. "You know your way around, don't you?"
"'Course I do. I'm an adventurer, after all. It can be a little bit scary if you're lost, but the best thing to do is to remain calm, search your way through, always think about your goal and where you want to go, and think of your surroundings as sight-seeing on an adventure. Because panicking will only make you walk around in circles and become more lost. Or, so I figured." Sonic shrugged sheepishly, "Sorry if my advice isn't really helpful. I just like to see new places."
"There's nothing wrong with your advice at all, Sonic." The princess shook her head, much to his surprise, as she seemed to be rather more reassured than annoyed or frightened. In fact, she looked rather more secure than anything else.
"Really?"
"Yes. I think it's comforting and very helpful. You're very brave wherever you go. To be honest, when I first saw you last night...I...I'm not sure why, but I could sense that you're much like the wind somehow." Elise replied, though she did sound hesitant when she mentioned about what she saw in him at first glance.
Sonic wasn't offended, though. In fact, he felt a bit flattered and embarrassed by the compliment, blushing a little as he looked away in an attempt to hide it. "Thanks. Tails mentioned the similar thing when it comes in finding your way, and yeah, a lot of people did mention that I'm like the wind. Heck, even I believe in that. I just go whenever the wind takes me, because as far as I can see, the wind represents freedom, just like it represents how the planet is feeling sometimes."
"How the planet...is feeling?" The seventeen year old woman asked, curiously.
Before the blue hedgehog could answer, he was surprised when a small blue butterfly landed on his nose. As the teenage Mobian blinked at the slightly unexpected visitor, his curious, surprised and slightly funny crossed-eyed look caught the attention of his new friend who smiled and giggled which made him smile as well. He didn't mind being laughed at as he knew he did probably look a bit silly. The way how the heir of the Soleannan Throne held a more brighter smile and aura made him feel happy. He was really good in cheering people up in many ways and besides King Arthur in the alternate Camelot, Sonic did not expect to even get the chance to cheer up other royalty.
Elise had been so kind, gentle, friendly, polite and caring. How could anybody turn that beautiful personality down? Then again, being a princess, she wouldn't have time to hang out with friends, or enjoy life as a lot people would. So, despite the situation they were both in, the hero of Mobius was glad that he was making her feel better and he promised to try his best to keep her safe, to save the world, and also provide her as much freedom as he could offer until everything was back to normal.
"Almost everything in Mobius breathes in life." Sonic began in his best wise tone, gently, smiling warmly as Elise, amazed by the sight of the little beautiful insect that, surprisingly to him, she may not have experienced much either, carefully reached over with her hand and the butterfly, sensing no danger from the young human girl, hovered off of the hedgehog's nose and gently landed on her extended finger.
The princess smiled warmly before carefully raising her hand which allowed the little creature to fly away and continue on it's journey, free to go wherever it wanted, just like the blue hedgehog only without wings.
"It's not just us, Mobinis or even the insects that are fully alive. When you think about it, trees, flowers and grass, and even the water can fade away, but they can also grow anew again, and fresh water comes from the sky when it rains. As crazy as this may sound, but I like to think of the rain as the planet's tears, and the weather patterns are like how we sometimes feel hot or cold, like sunny days and snow falling. My family once taught me that the planet itself is alive, and it can breathe new life with or without our help as long as we're careful not to ruin the environment." The blue hedgehog continued.
He then shrugged sadly as he thought about the lifestyles they all had. "Then again, not everybody sees that, and yeah we have homes to go back to. What I've always been against are people with evil intentions, like Eggman, or those S.N.A.K.E.S guys, or even the black creatures that almost destroyed the planet almost a year ago."
"You're the first person I've met who share those thoughts." Elise said in surprise and a hint of happiness in her voice.
"Huh?" Sonic looked up at her in confusion. Did he hear right? She actually...agreed and had those same feelings and thoughts as he did about Mobius?
"Everything you said, it...it reminds me of what my mother once told me before she died." The Princess continued, standing up as she stared at the sky as she began to think back of her earliest childhood memories. "When I was about five years old, she would tell me that they would shine like the sun, telling us that the world was happy, and when it rained, the world cried because something happened which made it upset. The best we could do was make our lives as happy as possible. It wouldn't be easy, but it would be worth it."
The blue hedgehog whistled, impressed that it was one thing he heard people have in common, standing up. "Your mom sounds like a great person, 'cause I know that she's right."
"Your family sound very kind and caring too, Sonic." Elise nodded, before she and her friend then noticed sparkles and to their surprise, as they had finished off their food and water, the trays, plates and glasses suddenly disappeared in golden dust.
Staring blankly at the empty spots at first, the two teenagers shared a look before Sonic shrugged cluelessly as he said. "Maybe that's our cue to get going. I have no idea what that Angalf guy is up to."
"He is very strange. Do you think we should trust him?" She asked, a bit worried as she began to walk and the blue hedgehog followed her.
He didn't mind taking a slow jog as he felt a bit guilty for Elise not having the time to really stretch her legs or take it nice and easy. Plus despite what was going on, it was a beautiful day in the fields they were in and it wouldn't be that hard to get lost. They can spot places where they need to get to anyway. They walked over the hills that aren't steep and it was a beautiful place, a great opportunity to explore a new landmark.
"Not sure. There's something about that guy that just gives me the creeps. Plus, I can't help but wonder if he's up to something and I should take Kronah's warning seriously." Sonic responded as he walked side by side with his new human friend.
"What kind of warning?" Elise blinked, beginning to feel like the blue hedgehog was right to not trust the strange elder man.
"Hmmm...Something about being careful and watch out for a man who wants Solaris or maybe even his power." The fifteen year old recalled, folding his arms. "At first I thought he was talking about Julian which was obvious and would make a lot more sense. But...I can't help but feel like that Angalf is up to something. He may be using magic that's light and he did give you a nice, comfy bed to sleep on, but that guy just gives me the goose bumps. Plus, he didn't give out any useful info on how or why the Sun Stone shard would somehow transfer itself into you."
But when he noticed the lack of response and footsteps beside his own, Sonic paused in confusion and concern before turning and found that his new friend had stopped and was now three feet away from where he stood, gazing over the horizon to their right where the land stretched out and the barely visible ocean could be seen from the far distance. But as the hero of Mobius went up to her curiously, he noticed that she seemed to be having other thoughts on her mind and not really admiring the beautiful scenery...not entirely, at least.
"Elise? You okay?" Sonic asked gently. When she didn't answer, he began to worry and wondered if he said something wrong to accidentally upset her. Maybe he talked too much, or maybe he scared her somehow. Was she angry? He shoved that thought aside as he didn't look like she was mad.
"I wish I knew about what was happening." Elise began, almost absently.
"Huh?" The blue hedgehog blinked, confused on what she was talking about.
Realizing that she was only confusing her first friend, the Princess apologetically shook her head and tried to smile, yet there was still sadness hinted within her eyes. "I'm sorry. It's just...I only heard of what my father told me. Even before he died, he told me very little of what I had to do if the Sun Stone shattered and Solaris could return."
"Maybe there was very little information that everybody else knew of to hide the truth?" Sonic suggested, trying not to sound like he blamed the late Duke which he didn't.
"Maybe." Elise nodded in agreement, lowering her gaze as she bend on her knees with a soft sigh, crestfallen. "To be honest, Sonic. When my father told me that if this would ever happen and he would not be here, I would be the only hope, I was only seven years old. When I heard that, I...I was so afraid. Even so, I try hold onto the promise I made him that day; that I would not let my fears or sorrow overcome me, no matter what happens. But...I feel so frightened, I'm not sure if I can repair the Sun Stone. Maybe my heart isn't pure enough."
Now understanding what she was afraid of which reminded him of his own problems he faced and even now he still felt a little bit scared of what he could do, Sonic smiled softly and gently reached over to tilt her chin up until they met each other's gaze.
"It's not easy overcoming your fears, but that doesn't mean you should give up. Everybody gets scared." He reassured her, with a look of kindness, compassion and determination rising in his eyes and heart. "But no matter what happens, I won't let Julian or Solaris or anybody evil out there get to you. As a friend, I'll be by your side and we'll get through this. I promise."
Elise stared at him in awe, seeing how he still treated her like she was a regular person, not of royalty. He barely asked for anything in return; he just wanted her smile, and he risked his life to keep her safe. For some reason, his words of encouragement and understanding really made her not only feel safe...but also free. Around Sonic the Hedgehog, she could finally be free to be who she was, to lower her guard, trusting him enough to be her friend, and her companion. He only spoke the truth, but at the same time he was comforting, caring, and carefree all at once.
She also remembered what he told her hours ago before they entered the Dusty Desert Temple Ruins.
"You shouldn't let your guilt, fear, anger and sorrow overcome you. If you do, you're only letting those negative emotions swallow you whole. That fact is that you did your best, and you still have a chance to set things right."
Nodding, Elise smile became warm and alive once more, much to Sonic's relief as the former replied. "Thank you, Sonic. For everything."
"No problem. It's what I do." Sonic gave his friend a thumbs up and a wink, before holding out his hand to help her up. "Whaddya say we get goin'? Before those S.N.A.K.E.S creeps find us."
But just as the Princess nodded, she noticed something in the distance behind the blue hedgehog and let out a terrified gasp, which a loud metallic like hiss and shriek even from far away made Sonic's ear twitch. That, combined with the terrified gasp and expression, he looked over his shoulder quickly in alarm and let out a horrified and shocked gasp of his own. Flying straight towards them was a giant flying snake-like monster that looked awfully familiar and not friendly even the slightest, heading straight towards them for a dive, it's mouth wide open in an attempt to swallow them both whole alive.
"DUCK!" Sonic shouted, throwing himself over his friend who fell back while doing as he instructed, while the blue hedgehog did his best to shield her as they laid on the grass as low as they could, squeezing their eyes shut while the giant flying Snake-Monster narrowly missed, snapping it's sharp fangs and flew up into the air, it's skin nearly brushing at the blue hedgehog's quills.
The snake monster roared in anger, frustrated that it couldn't get it's targets under Julian's orders to capture the Princess alive and bring Sonic's body to the leader, with the order that it would be fresh. As Sonic and Elise slowly sat back up, they looked up to see that it was about to turn around and their eyes widened in horror when they suddenly realized why this creature looked familiar. Memories of what happened to not just the people of the organization, but also the vehicles when the Sun Stone broke into three pieces.
"It's one of those guys' helicopters!" Sonic exclaimed in disbelief and shock.
"The organization must be spread throughout Soleanna already looking for us!" Elise fearfully remarked.
"Nice of Angalf to leave us out in the open." The blue hedgehog grumbled sarcastically, quickly scooping up his friend into his arms and after telling her to hold on, he made a run for it into the opposite direction in a blue blur, while the Princess held on as long as she could.
The monster in the meantime saw them run away and hissed, flicking it's tongue before it flew to capture the escaping duo, swishing it's tail as it did. While Sonic ran hoping that they were at least half way away from that thing, Elise cried out his name when she looked over her shoulder and when he looked for himself, he couldn't help but yelp when he saw that it was already catching up to them.
"This thing's faster than I thought!" Sonic cried out with a sweat drop. "We gotta find a place to hide and fast!"
He knew that he couldn't fight this thing if Elise was put into further danger and he was worried that if he left her out of his sight as he fought that thing, the other cursed-mutated S.N.A.K.E.S soldiers and former machines could kidnap her, bring her and the Sun Stone shard back to Julian. That the blue hedgehog didn't want one bit.
Sonic then noticed they were heading into the woods up ahead, or a jungle and narrowed his eyes, tightening his grip on his friend and increased his speed, racing straight into the trees in hopes of losing the giant flying Snake-Monster as it was too big to fit through. Yet even as the blue speedster raced through the trees, the giant monster was also part cyborg due to having been original a helicopter with scanners, thus it could detect the teenage Mobian and young Princess through the thick of the trees and roared before giving chase, flying over them to capture it's prey.
"Sonic, look out!" Elise screamed as she looked over the blue hedgehog's left shoulder, prompting Sonic to look over his left shoulder and gasped in horror when he saw through the trees that the Snake monster was still following them.
To make matters worse, the giant snake thing used it's tail to smash through the trees and kept on chasing them. Sonic cried out in alarm at just how dangerously close the thing was while Elise screamed in terror, clinging onto him as she feared that they were about to be captured. The blue hedgehog ducked slightly while making sure his friend was secure before deciding that he had no choice but to risk in using his boost ability in order to escape with the princess.
"I'm gonna go really fast, just hang on, okay?" He instructed, and when she nodded and held on tightly, he focused on his power and grunted. "Here we GO!"
Going into his boost ability, Sonic went even faster with his new friend hanging on for dear life with the giant flying snake roaring in fury and attempted to go after them. The blue hedgehog dodged as many obstacles as he could, swiftly moving past trees and gasped softly when he saw more smaller S.N.A.K.E.S machines that had turned into snake-like monsters that were human-sized and hissing at him with every intention on capturing Elise as well as the Sun Stone shard she has and killing him while taking his body back for Julian.
"No you don't!" The hero of Mobius grunted at the enemies, attempting to make quick work as he got close enough to avoid their claws and knife-like arms before the blue hedgehog jumped and swiftly kicked repeatedly at the heads and chests, knocking them back with great speed and agility while holding onto the completely stunned and amazed seventeen year old human girl as she held on to avoid in falling off.
The monsters squealed in pain upon being hit before they could strike at the teenage hedgehog who kicked another one squarely in the jaw before making a run for it once again while the giant flying snake swiped at it's fallen comrades and more trees, refusing to give up on Sonic and Elise as they continued to make their escape.
"It's even attacked it's fallen comrades!" Elise exclaimed in disbelief, feeling horrified and disgusted. "How could anything do such a thing?"
"Monsters tend to not show any kindness or remorse. Eggman was pretty much like that even with his own robots." Sonic quickly stated, focusing on at least finding a decent place to hide his friend and fight the giant monster that was still chasing after them.
Before they could continue the short-lived conversation, the giant monster roared while launching missile-like darts from it's mouth which was about to hit the duo before the fifteen year old quickly sped up again to try and avoid it. But some managed to quake the ground and had the blue hedgehog and Princess of Soleanna to be thrown forward off the ground as they both screamed having been caught off-guard. Unfortunately this also made Sonic lose his grip on Elise and they both tumbled and rolled on the ground with the hero of Mobius a bit further away and temporarily out of breath.
Just as they both rolled to a stop and not having enough time to get up, Sonic coughed as he struggled to push himself up, gasping in horror to see that the giant snake monster managed to quickly caught up with them due to the other monsters being able to slow him down, much to his chargin, and swooped in to collect the Princess who was slowly trying to get up herself, panting.
"ELISE, BEHIND YOU! RUN!" He screamed loudly, quickly trying to get up only to be forced to stand up and jump out of the way when a smaller missile was shot out of the monster's mouth, creating an impact again which drove him further away from his friend.
Elise saw too late and screamed out Sonic's name when she saw what happened, only to be quickly clasped by the 80-foot long snake-monster's claws that held her tightly. She screamed in fear and panic as she was being lifted into the air, trying to pull herself free while the giant snake began to fly up high to return to Soleanna and deliver her to Julian.
By the time the dust and smoke cleared and hearing the princess's scream, Sonic felt his blood run cold and his eyes widened in dismay, his heart dropping into his stomach when he heard and saw what happened.
"NO!" Sonic shouted, quickly giving chase an attempt to try and save his friend, refusing to let her be handed over to the horrible villain into a forced marriage to rule Mobius.
"Let me go! Let go of me!" Elise yelled, trying in vain to escape the horrible monster's clutches, and gasped in fear when the monster leered it's eyes at her, growling and hissing, flapping it's wings. The young woman never felt so frightened, so helpless, so useless. There wasn't a thing she could do. She was doomed to be forced into marrying Julian as his queen and force Mobius into serving him for all eternity.
She failed. Princess Elise had failed her mission to save the world. Worse, she had put Sonic, her very first friend, into mortal danger in spite of his heroics.
Unbeknownst to the helpless princess, Sonic was speeding up after them and leaped and jumped from one tree branch to another to get higher before he'd end up losing her and the giant snake monster which was slowly but steadily leaving his sights. He had no intention on failing his friend. He blamed himself for not being able to get her away from the terrifying flying creature that used to be a machine, a vessel for carrying passengers and an air-borne weapon for the evil organization. The blue hedgehog had to save her, fast!
'I'm coming, Elise!' Sonic thought to himself, urging himself to go faster until he finally reached to the nearest level and made a mighty leap towards the monster that was close within his range. With a yell, he used his Homing Attack right on the monster's back, his sharpened quills digging into it's skin and causing the massive flying snake beast to hiss and squeal in agony over the unsuspected attack.
Yet despite this, the monster held it's grip on the princess who gasped before she looked over her shoulder as much as possible, while Sonic kept on attacking it before he landed and held on with great difficulty, yelping in alarm while trying not to fall off. The giant snake monster roared in pain over the attack and flew around wildly in an attempt to try and shake off the pain.
"Hey, you overgrown worm! Let my friend go, or you'll be sorry!" The cobalt speedster growled, glaring at the monster who, upon hearing his voice, looked back to see him and hissed in fury, while Elise felt relief and worry to see that her friend had come to her rescue, once again risking his own life to save hers.
The monster ignored his command and instead whipped it's tail straight towards him and at Elise, who manged to see the blue hedgehog, warned him quickly of the incoming attack. Sonic sensed it though and glared it at the tail before he ran up towards the back of the head while the giant flying snake missed him and ended up attacking itself which caused even more damage as it roared in agony and began to lose it's altitude, losing it's grip on it's prey, and the teenage Mobian almost lost his balance which he tried not to fall off.
That didn't stop him from unleashing a series of attacks while making sure that the monster didn't accidentally drop Elise, knowing that she could fall to her death and the blue hedgehog wouldn't be able to save her. He had to at least try and get this thing low enough so that he could catch her if she fell and land safely on the ground. Sonic then raced right to the top of the head and Spin Dashed into between the eyes where it shrieked once more and avoiding it's tail which caused more pain to the snake. Yet as the cobalt speedster held onto the head to avoid in falling off, he glared hard nervously after gasping in horror when the monster attempted to grab him with it's left claws.
"Sonic! You must run! Save yourself! Don't worry about me, I'll be fine!" Elise exclaimed pleadingly, not wanting the hero of Mobius to get killed or captured alongside her. She wanted to put her faith into him rescuing her later or at least get away as far as possible for his life.
But Sonic shook his head and shouted back. "I'm not gonna leave you!"
"Sonic, no!" The seventeen year old princess cried out, her heart aching in pain and guilt. She would never forgive herself if Sonic died, as tears were already forming in her eyes. 'This is all my fault...Everyone who were counting on me to lead, and Sonic, who wanted to protect me as his friend...I failed them all. I've failed...!'
Sonic felt his heart break when he saw that his friend was about to cry, feeling horrible for having put her through this and failing to prevent the princess from being captured, but he couldn't give up. He won't give up. Reacting quickly, he awkwardly stood up and pushed back at the giant palm with his hands with all of his strength while trying not to fall off, but was horrified when the fingers began to slowly curl around to trap him between them and the palm, while the giant monster grinned and gleamed evilly in having caught it's other prey with every intention on eating him.
'Oh no! Nooooo!' Sonic thought in his mind, struggling to hold it back as he squeezed his eyes shut and braced himself to be held captive. He was scared, he didn't want to end like this. How could he have failed so miserably?
"SONIC!" Elise screamed in despair, reaching out for the blue hedgehog, crying and shouted at the giant monster that held her in it's clutches and was about to hold the hero of Mobius as well. "Leave him alone!"
Just then, she felt an intense heat grow inside her chest which then glowed in orange fiery light, catching her off-guard. When the Princess noticed this, she then gasped in alarm when it strangely trailed up into her left arm and all of the sudden she felt the heat flare out from her hand and a beam of fire shot out and into the chest into the monster who roared in agony, letting out a pained wail that was ear-killing. The attack was so sudden that the monster was unable to hold onto it's prey and loosened it's grip around Sonic who opened his eyes and saw what was happening, much to his and Elise's shock.
"Huh!?" Sonic exclaimed, shocked and worried when he saw the flames die down on his friend's body.
"W-what? Did I...Did I do that?" Elise whispered, bewildered as she gazed at her left arm.
"What's going on? Was that the Sun Stone's power?" The blue hedgehog wondered, unable to believe what he just witnessed. Then he gasped in horror when he saw that the grip on his friend was loosening very quickly and they were falling straight towards a large sunflower field towards them.
Seeing how it looked like a decent place to land even at this height, Sonic narrowed his eyes and then quickly punched away the hand that attempted to grasp him and then finished off by Homing Attack the monster right on top of the head with a final yell and bashed it's noggin so hard that the giant snake roared and finally lost consciousness, falling and letting go of Elise who fell and screamed.
"No! Elise!" Sonic screamed as he immediately jumped off and spun quickly to reach her. Holding out his arms, the hero of Mobius reached her before holding her close to his chest and mid-air somersaulted to make a landing within the sunflower field.
The giant snake monster in the meantime, hit too many times by the blue hedgehog's attacks and a surprising fire attack from the Princess of Soleanna, fell further away from them and landed into a lake close by in a huge splash with water splashing out and waves everywhere, the beast defeated and upon on losing to Sonic the Hedgehog and Princess Elise III, it sank and drowned, never to be seen again.
The two teenagers in the meantime cried out as they braced themselves for the rough landing. To their surprise however, their landing was softened as they landed on something a bit rough but also soft and bouncy like a trampoline as the ground beneath them wobbled like a spring upon impact before it slowed to a slight wobble.
"Huh?" Sonic blinked while attempting to keep his balance and hold his grip on his friend. When he and Elise looked around, they both gaped in shock and disbelief as they realized that the sunflower field was bigger than he thought: waaaaaaaay bigger. "What the? Did we just shrink, or did the Sun Stone make these sunflowers grow 'cause of the name?"
These were about the size of a tall building and the disk flower forb was large enough to fit about at least three or four people. Fortunately, these kind of Sunflowers were tilted back facing skyward so they wouldn't have to worry about falling off at the moment.
"It's the Sunflower Paradise." Elise remarked in awe, looking around at the place. "The field where according to legend, the seeds of the giant Sunflowers that were once grown on a lost island known as the Sunrise Island, and the people who went there loved it so much that they took the seeds back with them. The very last time was before the island mysteriously sank beneath the sea 200 years ago."
Realization dawned onto the blue hedgehog as his eyes widened with the familiarity over the name and legend. "Hey, I've heard of this place! My Uncle Chuck told me that when I was a kid. But everybody at home thought it was just a myth."
"I thought so as well, but it was one of my favorite stories my mother would tell me." The Princess nodded in agreement, amazed that such a beautiful place actually existed. "No one really comes here as it was thought to be secret."
"Yeah, I heard rumors that those who did wouldn't tell anybody where it was since they didn't want this place to be destroyed by technology or tourism." Sonic smiled, gazing out at the huge field that held these giant Sunflowers. "Now I know why. It's beautiful."
"It's so wonderful. I used to dream of this field when I was a little girl. I would play in this place in the dream, and play with all of the insects that would come to life and be so gentle and kind to me." The seventeen year old princess smiled warmly. Never in her life she had thought that this field was real.
Sonic smiled at that, thinking that it sounded like a really fun dream, before he frowned in concern and turned to his friend, asking. "Anyway, are you okay? You're not hurt, are ya'?"
Blinking in surprise before realizing what her friend meant, Elise nodded as her smile faded before she muttered. "Sonic, I...I'm-"
"I'm sorry, Elise." Sonic gently cut her off apologetically, also in guilt for failing to keep her safe, surprising the Princess as he lowered his gaze. "I promised I wouldn't let you get captured by those guys or monsters. If I had been more careful, you wouldn't have been caught by that thing."
Guilt and self-disappointment filled his chest, closing his eyes as he felt like he hasn't recovered his style or heroic strength as he thought. Maybe he still wasn't rightly shaped after what happened four months ago, let alone from last month.
"Some friend I make..." The blue hedgehog murmured, only to be startled when he felt his friend's arms wrapped around his shoulders warmly and opened his eyes to find that she was hugging him, her head resting onto his left shoulder, guilt-ridden yet grateful and...supported while trying to be comforting at the same time.
"I'm the one who should apologize, Sonic. Thank you for saving me. I wish I could return the favor." Elise whispered, snuggling gently into the hedgehog's shoulder which made him feel embarrassed as he felt strangely giddy in his chest and stomach, his muzzle turning a dark hue of pink.
Still, knowing that she was safe for the time being made him feel relieved as Sonic then smiled warmly before he nuzzled gently while holding her close as he returned the embrace. "You're welcome. I'd do anything for my friends. Thanks for saving me."
"You're very welcome, my friend." She replied.
Reluctantly and also realizing what they were doing snapping them back to reality, Sonic and Elise parted ways and gazed at each other, blushing a little as the former gently set the latter down onto the huge disk flower forb that felt really soft and comfy.
"Uh, sorry..." Sonic apologized sheepishly, blushing even harder. Not only he went over the top in hugging his new friend, but he had illegially done so with the princess, the sole heir of Soleanna.
"It's alright. I don't mind." The Princess reassured, shaking her head as she smiled. "I...I haven't hugged anyone since my father passed away."
"Right, right..." The blue hedgehog scratched the top of his head. "I'm just really glad that you're okay, Elise."
"And I am relieved you're safe as well, Sonic.
The two then smiled at each other with chuckles, deciding to take a bit of a break and gazed up at the sky, feeling the gentle breeze blow against their skin and in the hedgehog's case, his fur and quills. As the teenage Mobian laid down next to his friend, placing his hands behind his head and had one leg of the other, another thought came into his mind.
"Say, Elise. What do you figure that was all about?" Sonic asked, curiously.
"Excuse me?" Elise asked, confused.
"That fire you shot out at that snake monster. How'd you do that? No offense, but I've never seen a human being that isn't a wizard or a sorcerer do that. It's rare for humans to have abilities like Mobians do and even then only a handful of Mobians like me and some of my friends can do all sorts of crazy but amazing stuff." The blue hedgehog stated.
Realizing what her friend was getting at, the Princess gazed at her hands once more and looked unsettled and nervous. "I...I don't know. I've never done that before. Everyone in my family are all normal humans, just like everyone else. I've never felt this way before."
"Hmmm...If that's the case, then it looks to me like it's a side-effect from the Sun Stone shard you've absorbed, Elise." Sonic hummed in concern, realizing that the shard must've given his friend some sort of fire power. "Since it somehow went into your body, I got a feelin' that it did more than just make you pass out."
"Do you think it's...possible?" Elise asked, now even more worried and becoming increasingly scared. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that he was right. It makes sense since she had been normal up until she absorbed the Sun Stone shard, granting her...she gasped softly in horrified realization. "What if the Sun Stone shard has granted me the power of Solaris?"
Hearing that made the cobalt hedgehog softly gasp, his eyes widening as he remembered what Angalf had briefly warned him and the auburn haired girl before the mysterious man sent them to the field.
"...Be careful of Solaris' powers."
"Uh-oh...I think this could mean big trouble if that is the power of Solaris himself. That would explain why Julian is after it. Not only he thought it would grant him immortality, it probably coulda gave him that power you now have too. Or at least part of it." Sonic now felt even more increasingly worried, realizing the meaning of Angalf's warning. He just hoped that the power of the shard, or rather, the power of the Sun God himself, didn't also have corruption to his friend like it did when the Sun Stone shattered last night.
"I don't know what to do, Sonic...I...I can't let anybody see me like this. What if I accidentally hurt someone with this power? Or I lose control? What if I...what if I become evil? I could never live with myself!" Elise began to panic.
"Don't panic! Calm down." The blue hedgehog quickly told her as he sat up, gently placing his hands onto his friend's shoulders. "Elise, you gotta say calm. We'll figure something out and if there's a cure for all of this, we'll find it. I'll find a way to fix ya' up, and we're gonna save the world. I promise."
Even though she was still panicking, the look in the blue hedgehog's emerald green eyes, the vow and warmth in his voice and the gentle grip made the seventeen year old young woman begin to calm down as she breathed in and out.
"Thank you..." Elise sighed. "Still, I can't help but worry."
"It's going to be alright. You'll see." Sonic reassured. He knew that he had to do something in order to figure out what was going on and why the Sun Stone shard granted Elise the power over fire and if it was the power of Solaris, then it was becoming more and more dangerous.
He and his friend then gazed out over the horizon and found that the sun was starting to set, changing the sky colour to a hue of pink and purple, slowly fading into night.
"It's getting late. Let's find a place to crash for the night, and hopefully away from anymore of those creeps." Sonic declared.
"Agreed." The Princess nodded, feeling rather tired after the excitement and terrifying experience in the last several hours.
Nodding in return, the blue hedgehog gently scooped up his friend and, seeing how the giant Sunflower field would be like racing through a forest to easily get lost, he scanned for an exit for nearby path to find a town to rest for the night, he quickly found one and told Elise to hold on before Sonic leaped down from the giant flower they were resting on and landed safely on the ground. Recalculating his coordinates, the hero of Mobius sped off through the forest of giant flowers to reach the nearest safe spot or perhaps the nearest town.
Hopefully whatever mystery beheld over Elise's new powers were would be solved soon, because Sonic knew from experience that learning certain abilities can be dangerous if one wasn't careful.
A/N: I know that I kind of made Elise like Blaze, but I thought it would make it more interesting to have her have a side-effects over the Sun Stone shard in an attempt to make her not as useless as she was in the original Sonic 06 game(still considered as the worst game in Sonic gaming history apart from the music which was the only thing great about it) and that Sonic wouldn't constantly lose her just after saving her.
I'll try and get back to Sun and Tails in the next chapter as the adventure continues for Sonic and his friends.
See you later!