Werewolf99: Cool, thanks for sending the info in. Oh boy... Um, my OC's deepest fears would probably have to be... Losing everyone she loves (Her family, Sonic, the Herd) and being by herself in both the real world and the nightmare worlds.

Chapter 11: Seductive Butterfly

Well it's safe to say that after the attack, we were all fine. I decided to stay a little longer to get to know Buck and Flynn. I also told the animals about my quest and just like I suspected, they were in to help. But unfortunately, I had to go back into the hole. The Herd were completely okay with this, and I thought to myself: 'Heh, maybe I might see them again.'

Anything can happen...

"Okay..." I said after I woke up in my apartment and pulled myself to my feet. I decided to give myself a little routine; as soon as I wake up, check on Sonic, gather some weapons and that's it. Bam! Done. Kneeling down in front of the small hole in the wall, I peeked in.

Unfortunately, Sonic wasn't in his room; presumably he was still out with Amy. But instead, a twenty-eight year old Knuckles and a twenty-four year old Shadow were in the room. The red echidna was pacing around the room, whilst the black-red hedgehog had his arms folded and red-brown eyes shut, prehaps thinking about a past adventure or his friend Maria.

Let me get this straight; all of the Sonic characters are real. So, if they somehow end up in the nightmare world with me and my new friends, then the quest is going to be pretty hectic, I tell ya.

"So you think Sonic's alright?" Knuckles asked, with concern lacing his tone. Usually him and my idol bickered and argued a lot, but at least they were on good terms.

Hearing this, Shadow opened his eyes and gave the echidna a strange look. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you know, I just discovered this hole in the storeroom which happens to be blocked. Do you think before it got blocked up, Sonic could have gone in?" Knuckles seemed confused, as he was trying to figure out what the hole's purpose was.

Much to my growing annoyance. They really need to talk to Sonic about it when he comes back from the date with Amy.

I'll tell you this, the hole's purpose is to lead you to a series of nightmare worlds presumably controlled by a maniac who is lurking in the shadows, AND TRAP YOU IN THEM!

Realising what I just did, I smacked my head and cursed myself for mentally screaming my thoughts at Sonic's friend. I didn't actually mean to do it, it's just that...whenever I get extremely annoyed, it would sometimes lead to an outburst. During my teenage years, I've learnt to control them as I didn't want to hurt my family and leave them damaged. But during my childhood, I was unable to control and prevent the outbursts from occurring.

"I think we need to have a chat with Faker when he gets back." Shadow said, dreading that he would soon have to put up with Sonic and the constant name calling.

Knuckles nodded, got up and gestured for him to follow him. "Yeah, you're right."

Yes!

And with that, they both left the room. I pulled myself up to my feet and went over to grab my firearms. After quickly reloading my hunting rifle and pistol, I stored them into my backpack and threw open my bedroom door.

Once again, without hesitation, I crawled into the hole.

"Kid...Kid...KID!"

My eyes snapped open as I was startled awake. I couldn't find any words to describe the place I was in now, but the only thing I could describe, was the temperature.

It's so damn cold...

"Kid, get up."

I did as the male said, recognising his voice instantly. Towering over me, was a large mammoth coated in dark brown fur, a steel glare creasing his cheeks. Manny.

My eyes widened slightly. "What are you doing here...? I thought you were still in Switchback Cove..."

The mammoth just gestured behind him, and the rest of the Herd were here too; Ellie, Peaches, Diego, Shira. Even Buck and Flynn were here.

WHAT...?!

"We can go to different worlds too." Manny said, still glaring at me. "Come on."

Muttering under my breath, I followed the mammoth and went to join the massive group formed in the centre. Feeling more annoyed, I decided to take in our surroundings and figure out where we were. Buildings of all sizes were dotted here and there, the radio was faintly blurring into life with static and all we could see, was thick grey fog.

"Just where are we?" Buck asked, with confusion overwhelming him. Flynn was just as confused as he was. "Doesn't seem very welcoming, this place." He put in.

Oh, how I agree...

"Alright guys, we need to stick together and find out where we are. Let's go and take a look around." Ellie said. Truth be told, it was a good thing that she was one of the leaders because, since Manny hated me, I could always go to Ellie if I needed something.

But right now, we had more important things to be thinking about.

I followed the Herd as they took off, reaching for my pistol, just in case if any monsters decided to jump out and attack us. The town had a REALLY wide space, so it would have been easier if we just avoided any incoming attacks. We sprinted down the roads, just narrowly running past the monsters as the radio blurred with full static, alerting us to where our enemies were.

Turning a right corner, I managed to overtake everyone else as we ran, clutching my weapons tightly. A little behind us, I heard Buck's cowboy yell as he rammed his knife into a nearby lying figure, killing it with one strike.

Eventually, the radio's static began to die down and we all stopped to catch our breath. As I looked up, I noticed someone walking towards us in the fog and slowly began to realise that this wasn't a monster; she was just a regular human being.

"Who is that?" Peaches pondered, moving cautiously to stand next to Ellie. "Mom?"

"It's okay, I'm sure she wants to help us." The older female mammoth reassured her. "Megan, are you gonna talk to her?"

"Yep. I'll be right back." I said to everyone, before going to investigate. As the stranger got closer, she broke into a full sprint. Not sure about the whole thing, I cautiously aimed my pistol, placing my finger on the trigger. Soon, we both reached each other and she threw herself onto me, keeping her arms latched firmly around my neck. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Lady, calm down, take a breather..."

She eventually let go, giving me the chance to get a good look at her. Her ice blue eyes were filled with negativity which told me that she went through a hard time. Her outfit was bright and revealing; a red long-sleeved top unbuttoned half-way, a darkish pink choker and skirt with a back leopard print sprayed everywhere. To add to the finishing touch, her blond hair looked fine but had several pink locks at the bottom. Clearly, she looked as though she wanted to find someone. And I was about to see whether this woman was trustworthy or not.

"You're not James." She said, studying me with curiosity.

I lowered my pistol and stared at her. "Who are you?"

"Who are your little friends?" She asked back, pointing at my idols who stood a bit far behind, filled with fear and suspicion. "By the way, my name...is Maria."

Well, at least you answered my question.

"My friends are a group of animals from the ice age." I answered, honestly. "You said you were looking for someone?"

The woman sighed. "Yes, yes, I did. His name's James and I met him a few years back, in this very town. He was...looking for his dead wife, Mary, as she sent him a letter, beckoning him here. I offered to help, despite him always telling me that I look a lot like her."

Three words: What. The. F*ck.

"Did this dude let you?" I asked, slowly growing uncomfortable. Now I'll tell you something; Maria seemed very strange and mysterious. The Herd looked as though they didn't particularly want her to join our group, but I wouldn't let that stop me from what I was about to say. "I mean...we can help you, if you'd like."

Hearing this, the anger in her blue eyes faded and my new friend smirked with a mixture of happiness and mischief. "Thanks. He didn't want to at first, but I managed to coax him into it."

Manny clearly had enough and stormed over to the pair of us; filled with rage and fury. My only guess was that he thought the number of members in the herd was enough. "Hey lady, look for your friend on your own. We don't need any more members, eleven is enough."

Argh, stop making everyone feel down!

"C'mon man, can't you see that Maria needs help?!" I demanded.

"Yes, I can. But I don't want her with us in case she harms my family." The mammoth then advanced on her. "Leave, now."

I initially thought my new friend was going to be nervous, and she was a little. But the good thing was that she wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. "Look, this young lady just offered to help me with my search, and I really appreciate it. But if she is, then you're gonna have to play nice aswell."

I had never seen Manny this angry before, so to see him like this personally, it really frightened me. But like I stated before, he only behaved this way because of new people. Even humans. I looked at him and decided to calm things down. "Please...She really needs help."

There was a moment of silence. The rest of the Herd were now agreeing with me, as they too wanted to aid my new friend. I actually thought Manny was going to reconsider and let her join us.

But then, the response came.

"No. That human is not coming with us. Kid, you're the only human we need."

He wrapped his trunk around my wrist and pulled me back to the rest of my idols, with me struggling and squirming to break free. "Come on guys, let's get out of here."

Quickly managing to sneak a glance back at Maria, I (along with Ellie, Peaches and everyone else) gave her an apologetic look and murmured three words, low enough that the mammoth wouldn't hear. "We're sorry..."

And we all genuinely meant that...