"Ugnh…where…where am I?" Fang opened his eyes and looked around at where he lay. A vast expanse of emptiness stretched on in all directions. Everything was a pure white. A blinding light suddenly burst out of nowhere and met his gaze, and he shielded his eyes with his hands. "Who's screwing around with the damn lights? Can you tone it down a notch?"
"Most certainly." A feminine whisper echoed back, and the light that had emerged dulled down to a soft glow.
"Thanks." Fang sat up, and turned to the light again. His jaw dropped in astonishment.
A gorgeous pink lady weasel floated in the air above him, smiling. A large tooth hung out of her grin, just like his did. She wore a black tank top, and boots that mirrored the color of her top. She giggled as he stared, and waved at him. Wait a minute. She looked so familiar…
"Hey! I know you!" Fang scrambled to his feet and pointed at her. "You're the weasel from that dream!" He reflected back on the realistic vision he had had of the female weasel when he had arrived at The Hunter's slaughterhouse.
She nodded, and spoke in her Southern accent. "Yes, I do believe I've met you before, hun. Long time no see." A cloud of smoke formed in her hand, and a hat that resembled Fang's appeared in her grasp. She settled it on her head and turned to him again.
"Who exactly are you? Are you a fangirl? A relative? Are you…a STALKER?" Fang emphasized his last guess with a growl.
"No, no. Nothing of the sort, buckaroo!" The lady weasel shook her head. "Even though I know everything about you, that doesn't make me a stalker! See, I'm Aurora!"
"Aurora? The powerful Mobian deity? Riiight. Like I believe that." Fang rolled his eyes. This was probably all just a hallucination.
"Yep! I can prove it to you, too. Take a lil' gander at yer fur, hotshot." The weasel replied.
"What does that have to do with anything? I mean, it's purple, and-" Fang held up his arm, expecting to see his normal purple hue. Instead, he saw that his fur was a deep forest green.
"WHAT THE HELL? WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME, BITCH?" He roared, and tried to rub off the green that was on his fur. Hey, it could be paint, right?
"It's not what I did. It's what you did. All deceased beings bear the green color." The other weasel shrugged.
"Deceased? I'm DEAD?" Fang stared at her like a deer caught in headlights.
"Yeah. Is that enough proof for you?" She winked at Fang.
Fang realized that he had just insulted the mighty Aurora, so he sported an innocent expression. "Ehehe. Sorry about that little outburst. It won't happen again. I just thought you…well, that you didn't really look like a weasel."
"Naw, I'm just how you pictured me to be. I take the form of whatever species people view me as, wether it be a hedgehog or an echidna. You see me as you imagine me." Aurora clarified. "To you, a sexy weasel."
She's got that right. He thought. "But why did you appear to me in my dream? I wasn't dead then." Fang asked, puzzled.
"I was looking after you. I saw yer fate long before it happened and I decided to check things out. Since The Hunter had knocked you out cold, the only logical place I could make contact without physically appearing was in yer unconcious mind." Aurora chuckled. "You had some pretty weird thoughts about me back then. Now I see that you have feelings for that Rouge gal."
"Woah woah woah! Stoppit! I don't like her at all! She just knew where my sister was!" Fang blushed as he rebuttled.
"Uh-huh. Sure. Don't try to change yer feelings. You can't hide anything from me!" Aurora winked at him again.
Fang tried to change the subject. "Can I just go back home now? I don't like being dead."
"Who said anyone liked it? It is what it is.As for reviving you, I'm afraid I can't do that, lil' man." Aurora affirmed.
"Why not? Am I not worthy enough?"
"Exactly. I've viewed yer life story, Fang, and there were only a few instances where you demonstrated the good qualities of yerself." Aurora took out a red leather book from under her hat and started reading it.
"Don't you think sacrificing my life for my sister is a good enough deed? Nic needed me, otherwise she would've ended up here too!" Fang watched as Aurora nodded to herself and closed the book.
"The pages don't lie. You haven't done much in your 22 years of life, have you?" Aurora tucked the book back under her hat, and the two items disappeared in the blink of an eye.
"But I've gotta go back! What'll Nic do? And Rouge?" Fang mentioned the bat again.
"They'll think of something." Aurora turned her back on the weasel, and started to float away.
"Wait! Don't go!" Fang pleaded, and lept for her legs so he could cling onto her. He grabbed a hold of them, but phased right through like the ghost he was now.
"Aurora, you can't just leave my old friend behind like that." A deep voice from behind them made both Fang and Aurora jump.
The faint outline of a midnight black wolf started to take form right before their eyes. The wolf had shining yellow eyes that stood out from the darkness of his fur coat, and below his right eye was a thin red line that marked a scar.
"A-Asher? You're here too?" Fang ran over to greet his canine buddy, who he had recognized right away.
"Of course. I AM dead, right?" Asher gave a hearty laugh, but his smile was soon replaced with a frown. "I didn't think you would die so early, Fang. What happened?"
"I tried to save my sister and a bat. Long story short, I had to face one of Dr. Robotnik's creations that looked exactly like me. It was the strongest thing I had ever faced, and there was only one way to defeat it. I used a bomb someone had given me, and I fastened it onto the robot's back. It blew up, and the last thing I remember were flames coming at me. I felt a burning pain, and then everything went black. Next thing I knew, I ended up here." Fang explained.
"Ah. I'm not sure who this Robotnik guy is, but if he helped kill you, I'm not too fond of meeting him." Asher growled, showing off his pointy teeth. "Anyway, I see you've met Aurora. She's a kind soul. Perhaps she'll let us see each other once in a while."
"I can't stay, Asher! I need to get back on the planet, but she says I'm not worthy of being revived!" Fang looked back at Aurora, who was listening in on the conversation.
The wolf gathered his thoughts for a moment before talking again. "Aurora, can I speak with you? Is there some sort of compromise we can settle on?" Asher waved his paw at her in a beckoning gesture.
Aurora hovered over to the wolf, and both walked away from Fang. They argued for a few minutes before coming to a conclusion and turning to the weasel.
"We've decided. Asher says that you helped the whole slaughterhouse escape when you were trapped there. I saw this in that book I was reading. You saved more lives than just your own. He also says you were a great companion to have in the time you two were there, so I guess that means I can have a reason to put you back into yer old body." Aurora watched as Fang's eyes lit up. "Under one condition…you can't tell anyone about your encounter here, not even your closest of family. If you do, I'll have to take your life the hard way." Fire seemed to dance across her face as she spoke.
"Mum's the word!" Fang made a thumbs-up at Aurora in agreement. "Just one more thing: can Asher come along too?"
Aurora glanced over to Asher, who shook his head. "Fang, I don't need to go back. There isn't anyone else who needs me on land. Your friend and sister need you more than you need me. I'd only intervene. Besides, I'm perfectly happy here with Aurora, and I met this nice she-wolf with glossy white fur."
"Ah, niiiice. Scoring the babes, eh Asher?" Fang smiled, showing off his prominent tooth.
"You bet. Good luck then, Fang. I'll see you in around a few decades." The wolf sat down and watched as Aurora approached his friend.
"Here, let me see your hand." The pink weasel took Fang's hand in hers and recited something in an ancient language. A bright ball of light enveloped him, and he watched as Asher and Aurora slowly disappeared. Everything turned white.
---
He could hear faint voices coming from close by. There were two, and both sounded familiar. Something pressed against his lips, and he could feel air being forced into his lungs. His eyes snapped open.
Wow, this was awkward. Rouge was giving him CPR! Her eyes met his, and they pulled away from each other in disgust.
"Holy shit, what were you thinking, woman!" Fang spat.
"Y-you were dead!" Rouge stuttered.
"Exactly. So if you knew I was dead, couldn't you have just left me alone!" Fang wiped his mouth on his arm, and rolled on his side. It hurt, but he did not care the slightest bit.
Heh, that was one hell of a way to come back. Thanks Aurora.
"Hmph." Rouge stood up and crossed her arms. "I didn't have to try to revive you, y'know."
But oh how I had been waiting to do that…The bat thought.
