A/N: Hey hey and welcome to the very first installment of the Tribute to Chao series!
This is a very rare kind of story because it is technically a Sonic / Star Wars crossover as it has many different type of chao in it from the Sonic game "Sonic Adventure 2: Battle" and also a few characters from Star Wars sneak their way in.
This is the first actual chapter of the story of many. There will be around 12-15 chapters in all but I do not quite know yet because I have not quite finished writing the series yet. My intent on posting the Prologue and Chapter 1 right away is to see if I can catch anyone's attention. If people like it, obviously that will motivate me to continue writing and continue posting. So please PM me, comment on here, favorite, whatever it is to let me know.
So this story has a lot of OC's in it, but hopefully that doesn't scare you off. They are just personalities given to a bunch of different chao actually based off the save file my co-writer and I had on the Gamecube game.
So read away and enjoy!
Co-author: Power9987
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Tribute to Chao
Chapter 1: The Meeting
~Normal Age Chao Country, Chao World~
Today starts off as a day like any other. All chao gardens are doing their usual tasks and getting their own work done for the day. It is during the middle of the day, around 3:30pm, that Dark, president of Dark Garden and president overall of Normal Age Chao Country, is heard on the loud speaker to make an announcement to all of Normal Age Chao Country.
"Attention! I would like to make a very important announcement. We are now commencing the inter-garden presidential meeting. All presidents and vice presidents are to report to the Grand Meeting Hall in the Normal Age Chao Lobby… and Dark FR put down my presidential scepter!" Dark looks to his great-grandson a little bit distracted from the announcement he was just giving.
"I'm sorry great-grandpa!" Dark FR says apologetically as he puts the scepter down and takes a couple steps back out of Dark's way.
Anyone who knows the black and red colored elite president knows that he can be intimidating at times. He takes his job as president very seriously and does not like to be distracted. He always has a lot to do with limited time on his hands so distractions are the last things he needs when doing his job. But past that, Dark can also be a really loving and compassionate chao.
"That's ok," Dark accepts the apology as he then turns back to be fully heard in the loud speaker again. "Anyways, that concludes this announcement. I expect to see the presidents and vice-presidents in the Grand Meeting Hall in no later than five minutes, no exceptions. That is all."
Dark turns the speaker off as he grabs his papers he had printed from the Black House and heads off next door to the Grand Meeting Hall where he expects to meet the other garden presidents and vice presidents as well as his daughter, Dark JR, the vice president of Dark Garden.
~Chao Garden~
The president of Chao Garden, Iustan, has just heard Dark's announcement as he stops where he was in his work. He paper clips a few things together and writes himself a quick reminder of where he left off, putting it on hold until after the meeting. He steps out of his office in the Blue House and then looks for Iustan II, his son and vice president of Chao Garden.
"Hey there you are, Iustan II," he greets, spotting his son walking up to him. He smiles as the gray chao approaches. "We should get going. But just give me one minute." Iustan walks over by Arnold, the third in command overall in Chao Garden. "Arnold… ARNOLD, WAKE UP!" Iustan shakes him a bit to get his attention.
Arnold, a shiny yellow chao who was sleeping, is startled awake. "Ahh! Huh?" He looks up at Iustan wondering what is going on.
"Arnold, Iustan II and I are going to a meeting called by Dark. You need to watch the garden while we're gone alright? You are in charge until we get back," Iustan explains to his sleepy friend.
Arnold yawns and nods to Iustan. "Yeah, sure, okay." He yawns again only to lie back down and fall back asleep.
Iustan rolls his eyes. Does this guy ever not sleep? Anytime he goes over by him it seems like Arnold is busy sleeping. Well whatever, he doesn't want to get too involved in it right now. That's not how this white and blue colored president is. He is a very laid back sort of guy, yet takes his job very seriously, which is one aspect that makes him a great president. He is fair to those in his garden treating them with the utmost respect, and at the same time balances his garden with just the right amount of rules and discipline to still keep his garden under control.
"Whatever, I know you got this covered." Iustan nods to his son and they head to the Grand Meeting Hall.
~Hero Garden~
At the same time in Hero Garden, both the president, Ace, and his wife the vice president, Sunny, have just heard the announcement and are getting ready to leave the White House as well to find out what this meeting is being called for.
"Come on Sunny, let's get going," Ace tells his wife as he too puts his work on hold so he can get going to the meeting. "Hero will be taking over while we are gone."
"Yay, meetings!" she cheers, excited about getting together with everyone else again. "I'm coming Ace, boy I really love going to these meetings!" she squeaks out the last word as she manages to trip over herself, falling in the process. She stands back up and rubs her leg. "Oww, I fell again. *sigh* I have a problem right? Just admit it, I'm a klutz!"
Ace chuckles lightly at his clumsy wife who he loves dearly. He and Sunny are a rare couple as far as chao go. Both have multiple children, but they are unique because they only have mated with each other. They have a special connection that they share with no one else. Their love is strong and permanent, passionate and enduring.
"Oh silly Sunny, you have no problem," Ace chuckles, amused by his wife's never failing clumsiness. He however remembers that they have somewhere to go, so he contains his amusement. "Now seriously, let's get going. Dark won't wait all day. You know how he gets when he's irritated, we don't need that."
Sunny nods, knowing that Dark can indeed get grouchy and bitter when he gets irritated. "I know. I'm coming. But really I think falling is like my trade mark move," Sunny lets out a small chuckle.
The sky blue chao shakes his head knowing all too well the truth of her statement. "Yes, yes, now really, let's get a move on it Sunny old chap!"
The pure yellow vice president argues back a bit. "Hey! I'm not old! But wait maybe I–"
"Let's go!" Ace cuts her off becoming a bit impatient himself from her distractions. While he is a very punctual and productive chao himself, and would prefer not to be late, Dark takes it to a whole new level, and he would rather not have to deal with an irritated Dark today. As much as he loves his good friend, the President of Normal Age can be very difficult to deal with when in a bad mood.
Sunny frowns at this and apologizes a bit sadly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to let you and Dark down…" Almost as soon as her apologetic tone appears, it vanishes as she suddenly perks up and takes Ace's hand. She tends to be a happy-go-lucky optimistic chao. It was one of the reasons she was named "Sunny."
"Well, no time to waste!" She quickly starts to lead him towards the meeting.
~Grand Meeting Hall inside Normal Age Chao Lobby~
All of the presidents and vice presidents start to make their way to the Grand Meeting Hall and take their seats around the table and pull out pens and papers in case they need them for note taking purposes.
Dark looks around at everyone. "Okay is everyone here?" He pauses as he sees a seat missing. "Wait! Where's Dark JR?" he asks with annoyance clear in his voice as he rubs his forehead, notably displeased. "Just give me one moment."
Dark walks back over to the loud speaker where he clears his throat, turns it on and yells furiously into the speaker. "Dark JR! Get up here RIGHT NOW or prepare to be disciplined accordingly!" Dark turns off the speaker and walks back to the group in the Grand Meeting Hall, who is currently staying quiet after hearing him yell.
A couple minutes later Dark JR rushes into the Grand Meeting Hall. "Sorry I'm late!" She turns to look up at her father. "I thought you said the meeting was at 5:00, dad."
Dark gives her a stern look. "You were two minutes late, that means when we get back, that's two hours at the discipline stone."
The discipline stone. This is the name given to the large stone in the back of each garden that is isolated from everything else. It is seen as the perfect place to give chao sort of a "time out" for wrong doings. Though for being tardy by two minutes?
The red hybrid chao nods at her father looking slightly embarrassed for irritating him like that. "Yes, I know and I'm sorry. I know the consequences for being late. In case Iustan and Ace don't, in Dark Garden it's one hour of punishment for every minute you're late."
Both Ace and Iustan, along with their respective garden's vice presidents look shocked that Dark would have such harsh consequences for just being tardy to a meeting by one minute. A whole hour? That seems almost ridiculous to them. Everyone gives small glances back and forth showing subtle hints that they are all thinking the same thing.
"Wow, in Hero Garden, it's only 15 minutes of punishment for every 15 late…" Ace says as he looks up at Dark still surprised by his rules.
Iustan almost seems astounded as he decides he should speak up next on behalf of his garden. "Gees… am I not strict enough? In Chao Garden, the first time you are late is just a warning, the second time is a talk with me, and the third time is 10-30 minutes at the discipline stone depending on how late the chao was. Then any other time just doubles from there…"
Dark looks to both Ace and Iustan with a serious expression. "And that is what this meeting is for: to discuss any problems with the rule system and then make the necessary changes, no matter how minute they may be." Dark clearly finds this necessary after hearing how both Ace and Iustan handle the situations in their respective gardens. "Anyone have a matter we should start for discussion?"
Iustan motions that he would like to speak first. "How strict should you be on taking chao fruit when it is not yours to take? I am more strict on that than tardiness."
Dark nods liking the start of this conversation. "Yes that is a great topic to start with. Now this may be too lenient, but my policy is for every bite you take, it's three hours at the discipline stone. What about you?" he looks at Iustan with a curious yet still stern look taking this matter completely seriously.
Iustan again can't help but think Dark is over doing his discipline and is shocked to hear not only that it's three hours per bite, but that he sees this as perhaps, too lenient!? Did he hear that right? "Oh my! Three hours? I thought I was strict! I do 30 minutes per bite taken away, so a whole fruit is two hours. Gees Dark, you really want discipline to be your top priority."
Dark seems almost insulted by this. Do they really not see how big of a deal this is? And Iustan of all chao! He was the one cheated out of his chao fruit the most out of any chao he knows! It is because of this that Iustan is not up to his full skill and health potential. To not get the right amount of fruit in the right period of time before transformation occurs will lead to permanent effects on the chao that almost disable them from their maximum potential.
This is a particularly sensitive topic for Dark. Iustan is his all-time best friend. When the Chao Garden President was hatched from his egg, Dark had just undergone his first metamorphosis. At that time, Iustan was still fragile, innocent... vulnerable, with no one to look after him. After seeing him for the first time, Dark made a commitment to Iustan.
He would look over him. Dark took it upon himself to look out for the little guy.
In many ways, Dark sees Iustan as his younger brother. Even though they aren't related by blood, Dark still feels a sense of responsibility when it comes to Iustan.
This is why he is so strict on this matter. Iustan, his younger brother who he promised that he'd personally look out for, was a victim of this crime. Not only that, but he was the worst victim on record. Even though Dark knows that it isn't his fault, he still feels a wave of anger at the thought that his best friend, his little brother, was cheated.
The fact that no one else in the room sees the seriousness of this situation makes him angry. Iustan was cheated! He could be so much better off, but because of this crime, he can't reach his full potential. And everyone is saying that he is too strict!?
It is then that Dark slams his fist down on the desk grabbing the attention of everyone in the room as he stands up.
"You can't have everyone running around all over the area and being a nuisance to everyone! Stealing chao fruit is a serious crime and must be dealt with accordingly! You can't let chao think it's alright to swipe chao fruit from others when it's not their turn!"
Dark's voice starts to escalate a bit louder as talking about this just makes him even more livid. "What if someone transformed before they got to ability level 99?! Ask Uxeee! That happened to him! And YOU!" he looks directly at Iustan. "What if YOU would have gotten to level 99 before you transformed for your last time?! You would be able to beat me in races by a whole lot more!"
Everyone in the room is actually a bit frightened of Dark right now by the way he is raising his voice and by the dark, formidable look in his eyes. The vice presidents, Sunny and Iustan II, are even starting to slide down in their chairs a bit not sure how to react to Dark's anger.
If it were even possible, Dark's tone starts to turn even more bitter as he now yells with nothing but rage seen emanating off his body from how unbelievably upset he is from the consequences of this issue.
"THIS IS A SERIOUS MATTER AND NEEDS TO BE STOPPED! YOU HAVE TO DISCIPLINE YOUR CHAO ENOUGH SO THEY WON'T DO IT AGAIN! IT'S-"
Dark is interrupted by Iustan as he quickly goes over by Dark and puts a hand on his shoulder trying to calm him down a little. "Dark! Dark please… my damage was already done… I forgive the chao who did the damage to me… but Iustan II is my son! And he's here! Still alive! I can't help it… he reminds me too much of Noname."
Iustan looks down to the ground having difficulties thinking back to his past. Iustan II looks almost exactly like his mother… like Iustan's wife:
His deceased wife.
Iustan II is the only family he has left without Noname by his side. It wasn't entirely his son's fault either. With his wife being dead after a transformation gone wrong, Iustan became depressed and had a hard time forcing himself to eat enough of the chao fruit to be at where he should be, so when Iustan II started taking his fruit, he didn't so much as even raise a finger to scold him. He just watched his son with the thought of Noname. This is who he has left to keep the memories of Noname.
The last one who carries a piece of her inside of him.
It is uncanny how similar he looks to his mother… the same gray fur, the same eye color…
He takes in a deep breath and holds it as he tries to rid himself of the sadness he's feeling of her loss to this Chao World. He should be happy for the times he had with Noname, but it is impossible not to think about the difficulties he struggled when she died. The depression he suffered. Secretly, Iustan II was the only one who kept him going. He is the sole reason he knew he had to keep pushing through the pain and move on. He knew he had a commitment to raise and look after his son, no matter the consequences. And thus, it was important that Iustan kept strong for his son and show him that everything will be alright. Iustan II looked up to him in that time, and still does.
Iustan regains his composure and lets out a sigh. "I miss her and I couldn't not let him. It's… it's kind of hard to explain my state of mind during that time, but I do see your point. I will make it 45 minutes per bite instead for now. Dark…" Iustan starts as his voice drops a little bit as he tries to hold himself together. "Please don't punish your chao that much; it's just not right."
Out of anyone in the room, Iustan would think Dark would understand his state of mind best. Dark's first wife too was victim to a transformation gone wrong. Maybe he should tell Dark about it later so he fully understands. Perhaps it just isn't as clear to Dark what he went through because unlike Dark, he never remarried. He hasn't even been able to tell anyone what he went through and though Dark is probably his closest friend, it will still be hard to tell him.
Iustan II is shocked as he sees his dad in so much pain. Usually his dad is one of the most calm and collected guys who has ever walked this Chao World. To see him so hurt… so… vulnerable just hurts him inside. He didn't realize just how much it pained his father to think about his mother. He guesses every other time he talked to Iustan about his mother, it was always something positive to remember. This just didn't sit right with his dad and he quick wipes away a few oncoming tears as he feels shame and regret.
"Daddy… I'm sorry. I miss Mommy too and… and I wish I wouldn't have caused you to be down farther than you should be. It's my fault…" Iustan II wipes away a few more tears not realizing how much affect he had on his father's life wishing he could take it back.
Dark looks between both Iustan and Iustan II with a small hint of sympathy for the trauma that they are reliving. He didn't want to open up old wounds, but he wants to make his point on how serious this matter is. "Sorry to cause a family dispute but it is an issue that needs to be taken seriously. I personally still think my discipline is too lenient, but if I make my discipline more lenient, it would cause a derividential steady increase in the amount of that particular crime in my garden. I know you think it's too harsh but that's because your discipline is more diverse."
Ace nods in agreement as he listens to Dark's explanations. "Yes, I agree with Dark. I'm raising my disciplinary actions to two hours per bite instead of one!"
"Ace! That's crazy!" his wife speaks up as soon as he makes the suggestion, now sitting more upright in her chair. "How do you think everyone would react to that?" She looks at Ace with concern laced on her face.
"No worries Sunny. I'll just let them vote between that plan and Dark's and see which wins." A slight chuckle is heard in Ace's voice knowing what the outcome would be then.
Again this just evokes Dark. It's almost like Ace sees this as a joke!
"No! Don't do that! That will only encourage them more! If they see that my disciplinary actions are less lenient, they will tell my chao, and then my chao will rebel! Think about it. If word got out that my discipline is harder than yours, they will demand more lenient laws, which will result in an exponential growth in crime rates because they know the consequences will be weaker! You cannot let that happen!" Dark keeps his stern look as he explains his point.
Iustan just listens in on the conversation between the two and takes some notes on how he can start enforcing a bit more strict laws, knowing this is an important subject matter.
Ace nods as he thinks over Dark's argument. "Fine, but then I can only make a small change. I'll just have to increase it little by little over a longer period of time so that no one rebels."
Dark gives Ace a half smile now as he starts to lighten up. "Now you are using that giant cranium of yours. Okay, on to our next topic of discussion. I-"
Dark gets interrupted by his phone going off as he sighs and looks at the caller id. It's Dark SO. She is currently in charge down in Dark Garden but what could possibly be important enough for her to interrupt his meeting for?
"Sorry everyone… I need to quick take this call." Dark answers his phone. "Hello? Dark SO?"
Everyone is staying quiet as Dark talks on the phone. Why would Dark SO need to interrupt? What is going on?
It doesn't take long to find out, however.
~Black House, Dark Garden~
Dark SO is currently attempting to show her son, Dark FR, some of the finer points of being an interim president in the garden.
"Your responsibilities are vastly different in this situation," she starts, making sure that her son is listening to her. The kid is a genius, aceing every test that she could throw at him, but he has little experience, and tends to have a very short attention span. "In the current situation, you know that you are only going to hold office for a short period of time, so your main responsibilities are going to be just enforcement of the current laws rather than trying to create new ones."
Dark FR sighs. He knew that already. "Yes, Mommy," he answers, bored. He never really liked all of this political mumbo jumbo. He is more into martial arts and sports, and knowing his physical abilities, that's no surprise. He looks at his mother pleadingly. "Mom, I know all of this already! Can I go outside and play with Hero FR?"
Dark SO rolls her eyes. She figured her son would ask that as soon as he opened his mouth. Her son is best friends with Hero FR. She is one of the only other chao that can compete with him. Though Hero FR is no genius, she has a very similar personality to that of Dark FR making them a great fit for being best friends. "No Dark FR, this is important. Besides, as of right now, you are the Vice President of Dark Garden so your responsibility is here until your grandma and great-grandfather get back."
The youngest of the Dark elites gives another exasperated sigh. "Alright, fine." he replies, clearly not happy with the arrangement. He'd much rather go against his best friend in a race or a spar, but he knows better than to argue with his mother. Like his great-grandfather, she can be strict if she wants to be and Dark FR doesn't want to evoke her wrath.
So Dark SO continues to show her son the ropes of the Black House and what it means to be the interim Vice President. Dark FR tries his best to pay attention, but finds himself looking at the clock about every two seconds. Finally though, he looks at the clock and sees that it's almost noon, the thought making him sigh in relief.
"Hey Mom," he interrupts his mother, who was in the middle of an explanation of how to properly monitor the updated teleportation devices that Iustan just installed, "It's noon. Can we watch Blackie's report?"
Dark SO looks over at her son and can't help but smile. She can tell that Dark FR isn't just using Blackie's news report on NACC (Normal Age Chao Country) TV as a distraction from her lesson. She can see how her son's eyes light up whenever the pure black chao is mentioned, and she knows that he loves her dearly. Even though the two of them have been married for five years already, she can see that her son still finds his wife as appealing as he did when he first saw her, perhaps even more so.
Her expression softens. "Alright Dark FR, we can watch Blackie's report," she answers, making Dark FR light up like a Christmas tree. He grins and quickly turns on the TV since they were conveniently in the break room.
The news program seems to be in the middle of a breaking report. A black, dark type elite is standing in front of what looks like a giant crater of some sort and seems to be discussing what it could possibly be. This is something that definitely catches both Darks SO's and FR's attention.
"I'm not sure what this could be. Witnesses say that it was a humanoid figure that seemed to be falling out of the sky, but that sounds highly exaggerated. Maybe it co-"
Her commentary is interrupted by a figure jumping out of the crater. Blackie turns towards it, shocked at the sudden appearance.
A man is standing right on the edge of the crater. He is wearing a death black cloak, which covers the entirety of his body. Even his face is hidden under a hood that is cascading over his face. What can be seen of his skin is ghostly pale, showing that he either never gets any natural light, or is extremely aged. Despite the fact that he apparently fell thousands of feet, he doesn't appear to have a scratch on him.
Something seems off about him.
Blackie meanwhile, being the friendly chao that she is, greets the strange man with the usual chao greeting, which is a bow and a friendly hello. Startled by the gesture, the man in the cloak reacts defensively, throwing a punch at the poor chao.
The strike catches Blackie completely off guard. The punch catches her in low point of her bow, hitting her in her jaw and giving her a concussion, in turn knocking her out. The cloaked man, seeming to want to get rid of the evidence, picks up the knocked out chao and puts her in a bag, fleeing from the scene which was abandoned as soon as he landed.
Both Dark SO and Dark FR look on at the scene wide eyed. The younger of them is in shock, still processing what is going on. The elder meanwhile quickly leaves the room and makes a phone call, wanting to let her grandfather know about this as soon as possible.
"Hello Grandpa!?" she shrieks. Despite the fact that she is known for keeping her cool in stressful situations, this is a different story. Her daughter-in-law just got kidnapped. She has every right to be freaking out. "You have to get back! Blackie just got kidnapped!"
As soon as she gets her message out, she hangs up and gets ready to deal with her son, who she knows will be absolutely livid. He will be hurt the most by this situation and he needs the support of his mother through this.
~Grand Meeting Hall, Chao Lobby~
Dark's eyes widen significantly as his fists clench and the vein on his forehead starts to pop out a little bit. His facial expression turns into a bitter scowl. He just got news of Blackie's situation and he can't believe what he just heard.
"WHAT?" Dark hangs up his phone and shoves it angrily in his pocket as he turns to look at everyone around the table. "This meeting is postponed until further notice!" Dark grits his teeth together. "Some thief just kidnapped Blackie! **** him!
Now everyone in the room has mixed emotions of pure shock, fear, horror, and to some extent rage. Blackie was stolen? Oh this will not go well… especially for Dark FR. Blackie is his wife and if there is one thing Dark FR has retained from his great-grandfather, it's his sense of rage.
Dark continues in an authoritative voice, "All presidents report back to your gardens! From this moment on we are in a chao country lockdown! Vice presidents can stay here and continue to discuss. I'll get the word out immediately!"
Dark makes his way back to the room with the loud speaker while both Ace and Iustan make an effort to return to their gardens as fast as possible. The vice presidents stay where they are with their jaws all wide open. Never in the history of the chao country has something like this ever occurred!
"Attention all gardens!" Dark pauses and hisses, "Arnold, wake up!" He is not about to have anyone sleep through this announcement.
Dark turns on the code red alarm noise to wake up and warn all chao of the matter at hand.
"Attention all gardens! Due to unforeseen circumstances we are currently in a chao country lockdown! I have shut off the portal to other chao countries until further notice! We need Arnold, Chao JR, Hero SO, Hero FR, and Darks SO and FR to report to the Black House immediately! A very serious threat is occurring and we need the entire disciplinary staff, except for the presidents who will be returning to their corresponding gardens, so we can track down the criminal and discipline them justly!
"I repeat, we are in a chao country lockdown! Anyone who tries to contact any other country without their president's consent, which will be double checked by me as well as mine double checked by them, will serve two months at their discipline stone! This policy will be enforced in all gardens no matter who you are! Contact with another country that is unjustified could mean you are trying to contact the criminal; and therefore, would be a threat to the chao country security! I repeat, we are currently in a chao country lockdown! All disciplinary staff except presidents report to the Black House for further instructions! That is all!"
All that can be heard now is the siren of the alarm and the panic of chao in all of the gardens.