Note to readers: I would like to say that I'm sorry that running late with putting up this new chapter to this fic. I mean, it's just that I was a bit too busy with trying to deal with my own problems as well as getting ready for my classes in college. In any case, I would like to let all of you know that I won't be able to get as much time as I want on this fic as I planned to do and it might take a bit longer to deliver a new chapter for this fic. Well, I would like to thank everyone who has been supportive and giving me good reviews for this fic. I would like to thank the group Generation-A for their continued support. I would also like to say to Anime Master Zero to keep up the good work. Well, that's all that I have to say to for this month. I hope that you enjoy this next chapter. Later and I hope to get good and honest reviews!
Part 8
Just as she was playing with her cute little mult-colored friends that are called the five Kuribo Brothers, Mana felt something within her body that she never thought that she would feel again. The energy that she had felt for when she first met the love of her life: Shadow the Hedgehog.
"(Gasp!) This energy that I'm feeling...it's coming from Shadow!" she thought to herself just as she reached into her pocket and took out a emerald-green gemstone and looked at it with a worried look on her face as she saw it glowing with a intense light. "He must've used that space warping technique along with the power of the green gemstone of his in order to get to another world...wherever that might be. The energy that I'm picking up from him is so weak that I could barely sense him from where I am now."
Just before she could have the chance to think more about what she just felt, the young magician girl soon found herself being surrounded by the five Kuribo Brothers as the mult-colored furry creatures that looked at her with worried looks on their eyes. That was when she began to look at her cute little companions with a reassuring smile on her face while saying to them, "I'm sorry, my little friends, but I have to go. You see, my good and dear friend Shadow might be in trouble and I have to go see if he's alright. But I promise that once I come back, I'll play with all of you as much as you want."
That was when Mana heard all five of the Kuribo Brothers beginning to chitter a bit in disappointment at first. But soon they began give out hopeful and happy expressions on their furry faces just as she went over to the cute little group and planted a kiss on each of them. As soon as she was finished, the female magician began to say to each of them, "Consider those kisses promises to each of you that I would make it back home safely, alright?"
In response to her words, Mana soon found herself being tackled and snuggled by the group of furry creatures just before she tried to free herself from their grasps. As soon as she finally got herself freed from her furry friends' grasp, the female magician then waved her hand to them a goodbye gesture just as she walked away towards an open clearing that doesn't have a single trace of any form of life on it.
"It's good that there are no innocent creatures around here or otherwise I'd never forgive myself if anything were to happen to them while I travel to the place where Shadow is," Mana thought to herself just as she looked at her hand with the green gemstone still within her palm. "If I could just get this right, I should be able to teleport to wherever that Shadow is going to. Wherever it is I hope that the place is friendly."
With those thoughts done in her mind, the young female closed her eyes and then began to concentrate on where she wanted to go. At first, finding the source of where her love's own great energy proved to be a bit more difficult than she thought it would be. However, after what appears to be hours of searching for the energy source of Shadow's own green gemstone, Mana was finally able to find the a small speck of what she was looking for.
"Though it's strange that Shadow's power is too weak for me to pick up," the female magician thought to herself just as continued to hold onto her concentration on the energy source that she picked. "But despite it being very weak, it's definitely Shadow's. There's no mistaking it. I'm sure that I would be able to get to where my darling Shadow is with the help of this mystic green gemstone. I just hope that it would have enough power to get me there. Well, here goes nothing."
With those thoughts done in her mind, Mana closed both of her eyes and began to concentrate her mind on the task at hand. As she did so, the female magician began to feel the immense power of the green gemstone flowing within her body just as she felt herself being lifted off of the ground. "Shadow, please be safe for when I get there," she thought to herself just as she soon found herself traveling within a bright tunnel of emerald green light that would take her towards her destination.
Just as he awaited patiently within Net City to find or receive an energy signal coming from the young human named Miguel, Bass suddenly shot both his eyes wide open and scanned his surroundings in order to see what he just sensed.
"Those strong energy readings! They've just appeared from out of nowhere!" the Black Shadow thought to himself just as he settled down for the moment but continued to search throughout the skies of Net City. "Whatever they are, they're emitting a very powerful energy that's almost as great and similiar as that human's. They've must've just barely entered into this world by the same means as he did. This could be a big thorn in my plans.
"They could be here to get that powerful source of energy that I've felt from within that human's, Miguel, body. Wherever world they might be from, I'll be sure that they won't get in the way. I'll search throughout the entire network and find out what they are and why they are doing here in this world. They are both unaware that I can track down where they are by just following their energy trail. I'll be sure that those two won't get in the way of conquering this world. I swear it."
With those thoughts done in his mind, Bass soon entered a link that he created and began scanned the entire network in order to find the whereabouts of the energy sources. As soon as he picked up on where they might be, the cloaked Navi opened up another random link and flew towards where the creatures might originate from.
Just as he saw his tomahawk landing on the hard cement of the abandoned beach grounds, Dingo smiled for when he saw the direction that his weapon's handle was facing. Just as he began to walk towards the direction where his tomahawk was pointing, his Net Navi, TomahawkMan sighed with annoyance just as he saw his NetOp starting to go into the direction where his tomahawk pointed him to go.
"Dingo...is it really necessary to do that everytime that you have a delivery to carry out?" the Indian type Net Navi asked his friend. "This isn't really doing any good for you as a curry delivery boy."
"Trust me, TomahawkMan. I know what I'm doing," Dingo responded to his Navi friend with a confident tone just as he continued to walk towards the direction that his tomahawk had pointed to. "It's not that we're going to be late again this time. Everything would turn out alright for once we get there."
"(Sighs) That's what you said that last time that you've made a delivery," TomahawkMan responded to his NetOp with a sigh of annoyance. "With that, we've ended up going to the other side of the city. Just what are you going to say to Yahoot or any of the others for when they find out that you've made another late delivery...again?"
"Well, we'll just tell them that we've just got lost our map and couldn't find our way around the area," the young boy said to his Navi with a confident tone in his voice just as he gave out a cheerful smile on his face.
"Dingo..." the indian Net Navi spoke out with a defeated sigh just as he saw his NetOp continued along his way.
However, just before either of them could realize what was happening, a sudden burst of emerald-green light appeared out of nowhere and shined throughout the entire area that Dingo was in. There was also a wind that blew so strongly that it almost made him feel like he was in a wind storm during Fall. After what seemed to be like an hour, the light soon began to fade out of sight while leaving the boy a bit dizzy from the blindness that he suffered through intenseness of the light that he just saw. As he tried his best to regain his eyesight, the Indian boy did his best to regain the full use of his sight by rubbing onto his both his eyes.
"Man! What in the world was that!" Dingo thought to himself just as he continued to rub onto his eyes and then blink them together in order to get them focused properly. "What's with this light show that just suddenly came out of nowhere and nearly caused me to go blind? It was nearly strong enough to light up the whole city if it got the chance!"
Just as soon as the boy was finally able to regain full use of his eyesight, he began to hear the voice of his Navi shouting out towards him while at the same time sounding a bit distorted that's filled with static while also sounding worried, "D...Di...Dingo! Are you alright! There was this sudden burst of bright green light that appeared out of nowhere that caused some sort of powerful magnetic field that disrupted the link in the P.E.T.! Even with the P.E.T.'s own advanced upgrades weren't able to block it. Do you saw what was the cause of it?"
"I couldn't get a good at what caused that light show for while it was blinding me, TomahawkMan," Dingo responded to his Navi while at the same time regaining some of his own eyesight back from the bright experience that he encountered. "I couldn't get a good look at what caused that huge amount of light. Not to mention the fact that it almost felt like a hurricane just flew by!"
Just before TomahawkMan could have the chance to reply to his NetOp's words, the sound of someone groaning in pain suddenly came out of nowhere. Just as soon as the Indian boy began to fully regain his eyesight, he turned towards the direction where he heard the sound coming from and began to speak. "Hey, are you alright?" Dingo said to the unseen person just as he turned towards his direction. "If there's anything that I could do for you, then...I...would..."
That was when his speech began to falter a bit for when his eyes landed on the sight before him. What the Indian boy was seeing was a creature that had jet black fur with spikes that are jagged and sharp-looking. They were also colored with both the colors of black mixed with red streaks on them. Not only that, but he could've swear the creature looked almost human with its arms, hands, and feet looking like that of a human being. But he also noticed that the face of the creature in front of him looked like an animal with a sort of menacing edge to it.
What surprised Dingo the most is that the creature that he was looking at also possessed what appeared to be shoes of some kind. He also to noticed that on the strange creature's wrists and ankles were golden rings attached to them as if they were great accessories. For a moment, he could've sworn that they glowed with a sort of eerie light that make them more than just bracelets. From the way that he saw the human-like being lying on the ground, the Indian boy could tell that it was lying unconscious from wherever it came from.
"Hello! Earth to Dingo! Are you listening to me!" he suddenly starting to notice the voice of his Net Navi trying to get his attention with a tone of sarcasism mixed in with annoyance. "Man, just what in the world's gotten into you! I mean, didn't you listen to me for when I told you about all about that magnetic disturbance that just...?"
Just as soon as Dingo brought the screen of his P.E.T. towards the strange creature's direction, he heard TomahawkMan's voice beginning to cease for a moment just before speaking again. "Dingo! Just what in the world is that thing!" the Indian type shouted out with a now surprised and shocked tone. "Is this an alien from another planet or just some guy in a strange costume for some new store!"
"I don't know about this thing as much as you do, TomahawkMan!" the young boy said to his Navi while at the same time continuing to stare at the unconscious strange black creature. "But whatever it is, it appears to be unconscious! Perhaps it's just some kid in a strange porcupine costume that's trying to pull off some prank on me! Yeah, that's probably it! I guess that I could just play along and...!"
Before he could have the chance to finish the rest of his sentence, Dingo's words were suddenly cut short for when another flash of green light began to engulf the entire area within its brilliance. However, unlike the first one that he'd experienced, the one that appeared right in front of him now wasn't as bright and only lasted for a few seconds just before disappearing from sight. As soon as he was able to blink both of his eyes to regain his full sight again, the young Indian boy heard the voice of TomahawkMan saying to him with a sorted discorded voice before returning to normal, "D...Di...Dingo! There it was again! It's that same magnetic field that just disrupted the P.E.T.s internal systems! Only this one just isn't as powerful as the first one. But the strange thing is that no internal damage or any data was lost or corrupted for when they both occurred. What in the world caused this second one!"
"I'm not too sure about it myself!" Dingo responded to his Navi with a confused tone just as he was finally able to get his full eyesight back. "Whatever is causing this sort of thing to happen is going to be sorry for when they find out that they've messed with the wrong guy to pick on!"
"Dingo..." was all that TomahawkMan could say before the young boy started to grip onto his tomahawk's handle and turned to what caused the second phenomenon to appear.
As soon as he faced the direction to where the green light, Dingo suddenly dropped his weapon for when he saw something that he didn't expect to see. What the Indian boy saw was the most prettiest girl that he'd ever seen since his adventures with Lan. She was dressed in a sort of odd-looking costume that looked to be that of a magician's. Only the style was made to accommodate for her cute figure and it was also colored with blue, gold, and pink mixed into it along with a pink skirt. A overly large but pointed hat that possessed the same colors as her outfit is on top of her very head while at the same time covering some of the long blonde hair that went to her shoulders. As he turned his attention towards the pretty girl's face, Dingo could tell by looking at it that she was beautiful. Even the shimmer from her emerald-green eyes makes her look like a movie star of sorts.
Just as he was blushing at the sight before him, the Indian boy began to hear the voice of his Navi shouting out towards him while sounding a bit annoyed for having been ignored for so long, "Dingo! What in the world is going on with you! I mean, you look as though you're seeing the face of a pretty girl. With the way that your face was turning red, you look as though you're seeing both Princess Pride and Maddy in their bathsuits."
Before he could give TomahawkMan a piece of his own mind, all of the embarrassment that the young boy felt was soon forgotten for when he heard a young female voice beginning to shout out, "Shadow! Oh my goodness, are you alright! Don't worry I'm here for you now and I'm not planning on letting go!"
That was when Dingo soon realized that the voice that he heard was coming from the young female magician girl that appeared before him just as he saw her running towards the strange black creature with a worried and horrified look on her face while not noticing his existence at all. The young boy was shocked for when he saw her picking up the mysterious creature with her arms and suddenly began to embrace him tightly as if it were someone very close to her. Not only that, but he also saw the strange girl doing what he never expected her to do: kiss him passionly on the forehead with her lips as if the thing were a boyfriend or a true love.
"No way! A pretty girl like her falling in love with a strange black porcupine like that!" Dingo thought to himself just as he continued to stare at the scene with disblief while at the same time picking up his tomahawk. "I mean, this is perhaps the most weirdest thing that I've ever seen since seeing Net Navis appearing in the real world!"
"Hey, Dingo! Are you even listening to me!" Dingo soon turned his attention away from the scene and looked at the screen of his P.E.T. after finally realizing that TomahawkMan was becoming rather annoyed for when he was ignored again. "Man, what's with this silent treatment that you've been giving me? Don't you realize that I've been trying to get your full attention for the past few moments trying to get you to notice me for when...!"
That was when the Indian type Navi's words were soon cut short for when his NetOp began to turn the screen of the P.E.T. towards the scene and faced it towards the direction where both the girl and the black creature are. TomahawkMan soon found his eyes bulging with surprise at what he just saw. "D-Dingo! Is my memory data being corrupted or am I seeing a pretty girl in a magician's costume hugging that strange black creature in her arms?" the Indian type Navi asked his friend with a shocked and astonished tone as he kept his full attention towards the scene. "If that's what I'm really seeing, then it's no wonder why you were blushing a moment ago."
Just before he could have the chance to give respond to the Navi's smart aleck words, Dingo heard a male voice groaning as if he were in pain. That was when he soon realized that the sound was coming from the black creature that was still within the magician girl's arms. While seeing the strange creature beginning to come out of his unconscious state, the Indian boy said to the two of them in a nervous tone while at the same time not knowing that he was still holding the handle of his weapon in his hand, "H-H-Hey, are the two of you a-a-a-alright? Is t-t-there anything that w-w-we could do for yo...?"
Dingo's words were soon cut short for when he saw the black spiked creature starting to open its eyes slowly just to get a good glimpse of the crimson irises that are shocked to be looking up at the girl that was holding him in her arms. From the way that he saw the life form that was called Shadow looking all around the area, it appears as though it was still not fully conscious enough to see very well. But despite the shape that it was in, the Shadow creature suddenly started to release himself from the young girl's embrace and raised both of his arms in the air just as he shouted out, "Get away from us, assassin! I won't all you to take my love away from me again! Chaos Spear!"
Before he could tell exactly what was happening or have the chance to explain to either of them about the tomahawk in his hand, the Indian boy soon found himself looking to what appears to be like a dozen golden spheres of light surrounding the creature's entire being. That was when he also saw the spheres of golden light transforming into sharp looking spears of energy pointed right towards his direction. Dingo's inner instincts soon took over and began to run for when he realized that the black creature intended to fire them towards his direction in order to rid him of his existence.
Just as he began to ran for his dear life, the young boy felt the impact of numerous but loud explosions that were caused by the energy spears for when they collided with the ground. While forgetting all about the delivery that he was suppose to make in order to survive, Dingo heard the voice of his Net Navi shouting out to him, "Oy, Dingo! What in the world is happening out there! I remember hearing you trying to talk to those strange beings and next thing that I could figure out is that black psycho of an animal is trying to kill us! I told you that throwing that tomahawk of yours like that to get where you needed to go would get you in trouble again!"
"Well, usually the sort of stuff that happens to us usually involve the two of us Cross-Fuse in a dimensional area while fighting Asteroid Navis!" Dingo shouted in response to his Navi friend's words while at the same time still trying to evade the swam of energy spears that came at his way before he noticed that they've finally ceased. "Looks to me that the strange guy has finally stopped his attack but I'm not sticking around to find out why!"
"This is the first sign of rational thinking that you've showned since ever, Dingo!" TomahawkMan said to his NetOp's words with the same terrified tone just has the young boy began to run towards the safety of the building called Number One Curry. "What are we going to tell Yahoot for when he hears about this!"
"This is just not my day today!" Dingo thought to himself just as he continued run back towards the restaurant where he worked while at the same time feeling his lungs taking the pressure of the unexpected jog. "First I encounter both that strange creature named Shadow along with a beautiful girl. Now, I'm being attacked by that black thing as if he were an Asteriod Navi! Yahoot would never believe me for when he sees that I've missed my delivery again! Just what else in this world could happen now!"
Sylphiel continued to stare through the window in awe as she along with Yai, Maylu, Miguel, and the Chaotix were in the huge luxurious vehicle of Yai's that's called a limousine or limo for short. Never had she before experienced the kind of transportation that wealthy people from this world traveled in. From what she could gather by looking on the inside, the shrine maiden was able to see that back seat of the vehicle was much larger than what it needed it to be. From what she could see, the compartment that she and her friends were in was made to be like a second home or room instead.
"They even have an mini refrigerator along with small television set along with a sink of some sorts," Sylphiel thought to herself just as her eyes continued to stare out the window while taking in the view of the city that's their passing through. "The city that I'm looking at right now is just marvelous! It's almost as big as the one Miguel lives in. Only, that this city is a bit more advanced than the one he lives in. I wonder which place is Miss Yai is planning on taking me to get those new cloths that she was talking about?"
The shrine maiden began to blush for the thought of being in another set of beautiful cloths crossed her mind. As if to respond to her question in her thoughts, Sylphiel soon noticed that the vehicle that she and her friends were in began to stop. Before she could have the chance to ask where they are, the young woman heard the voice of Vector saying to the young wealthy girl, "Yo, why are we stoppin' for? This ride here was just getting interesting."
"Well, it just so happens that we were in the middle of DenTech City's shopping district, Mr. Vector," the shrine maiden heard the voice of the polite sentient program named Glyde responding to the crocodile's question in a polite manner like a butler would. "It's the perfect place for people to socialize as well as check out the latest in electronic appliances, clothes, fashions, etc. There's also an arcade and a food court for some of the younger residents to gather and play in as well as eat and socialize. Most of them are far more into Netbattles than anything else in this entire city or even the world."
"Well, that sounds pretty tight, man!" Sylphiel heard Charmy saying to the Navi as she turned to see the young bee continuing to see through the window along with the rest of the Chaotix. "From the way that we've seen this city so far, I'm sure that there's plenty of stuff to do while we search for the last piece of the Chaos Emerald."
"Let's not forget to just blend in with the crowd, Charms," she heard Espio saying to his friend with a serious tone while at the same time letting out a sigh. "As long as we all keep from using our powers and abilities in front of these people, then we'll all be just fine."
"Just be sure to stay focused on the task at hand, you guys," she heard the voice of Miguel saying to the Mobians while at the same time sounding too serious for his own good. "I mean, for all we know, those green pirate ghosts are still out there looking for the last piece of the Chaos Emerald and waiting for the chance to strike this city. Based on what I could tell, these things seem to be able to detect Chaos Energy. It's a good thing that Sylphiel has the emerald with her right now since leaving it at Yai's home safe isn't the safest idea that I could think of."
"Oh, stop worrying about that, Miguel," Sylphiel heard the young girl responding to her friend's words with a playful tone in her voice. "The only thing that you need to worry about is to blend in with the crowd while you guys look for that last piece of the emerald. Meanwhile, Miss Sylphiel, Maylu, and I are going to be checking out the outlet stores. The three of us would see which outfits would be most appropriate for a woman of her figure."
"Um, I still don't think that it would be necessary, Miss Yai," Sylphiel said to the little rich girl while at the same time flustering at the idea of having to go for a new dress at the young girl's account. "I don't like to be a bother to you by having you spend all your money on me and..."
The shrine maiden's words were soon cut short for when the pink-haired girl named Maylu said to her in a low voice while at the same time trying not to let Yai hear it, "I wouldn't worry about having to spend too much of Yai's money, Sylphiel. You see, her family's company makes a lot of money because they have the latest technology that could produce the latest products for Net Navis as well as for their NetOp's P.E.T.s."
"Just how much exactly does this company of hers make anyway?" she heard Mighty asking with a bit of curiosity in his voice.
As if to answer the armadillo's question, Sylphiel heard the voice of the computer program Glyde saying to him just as she saw the Navi's image appearing right on top of Yai's P.E.T. device while also displaying a picture filled with mult-colored graphs of some sort. "As you could see from those charts and graphs that are display right here, Ayano Tech, makes like about 80 of the world's most popular as well as its cutting edge technology as mentioned by Miss Maylu. So, the estimated total for the company would come to around 80 billion dollars or more. However, it comes to second place for when you compare its own stock prices with its top competitor runned by..."
Before the Net Navi could have the chance to finish the rest of his sentence, the shrine maiden suddenly saw Yai starting to become enraged with what her electronic servant was about to say just as she gave him a glare that could mean certain death. "Glyde! Don't you ever mention that jerk's company or even his name ever again! How many times do I have to tell you that!" the little blonde shouted out to Glyde just as she looked at her Navi with a death glare.
Sylphiel, along with everyone else in the huge vehicle were both shocked and frightened for when they've heard Yai's outrage. The shrine maiden saw the polite mannered computer program began quivering in fear just as she saw his image fading out of sight and back into the device that he is housed in. Just before either she or anyone else could have the chance to ask the little girl about what caused her mad outburst, the side door of the limo and sudden heard the voice of a mature male adult saying in a mild polite manner, "Miss Yai, we've arrived. Would you like anything for you and your friends before you head out?"
Then, like a moment later, Sylphiel saw the young girl angry expression turning friendly for when she turned towards the person's direction and spoke in a polite tone just as she rubbed her huge forehead, "I would just like a bottle of imported strawberry milk, James. I've got a headache that I need settled down before I go shopping."
The shrine maiden along with the entire group of friends just sweatdropped and got off of the huge luxerious vehicle just as she looked at the buildings around her. That was when she heard the voice of Vector whispering softly while at same time turning to see him turning his attention towards Maylu, "Yo, what's that girl's prob, guys? It's like she's got a grudge against someone or something like that. I mean, look at the way she puts away all that strawberry milk."
"You've got that right, Vec," she heard Espio adding to his friend's words with the same low tone while at the same time making sure that the young rich girl didn't hear them just as she saw Yai drinking the strawberry flavored milk down in huge gulps. "Whatever must've set her off like that is something really big!"
"Uh, guys? Think that you could let go of me now? I can't breathe," Sylphiel heard the muffled voice of Charmy saying to everyone while at the same time turning to see the young bee being sufficated by the tight grip of three of his friends' arms before finally being released.
"Sorry Charms, but that little girl was scary!" she heard Mighty saying to his friend before seeing the older Mobian blushing with embarrassment while at the same time speaking in a low voice so that he wouldn't be heard by Yai. "I mean, what in the world could've gotten her so angry that much? Even Knux isn't that hotheaded!"
"You guys really don't know her well, do you?" the shrine maiden heard the young girl Maylu saying to all of them while at the same time keeping her voice as low as possible so as to not be heard her young and yet hot-tempered companion. "Well you see, she's sort of got this thing against this guy named Chaud Eugene Blaze who's father owns a huge company that makes a lot more than Gabcom could and ever since the two of them met, well, they've been sort of competing with one another from technology to toys. But as time went by, she's also been competing for his heart with a girl named Annette. Well, you could all guess where it goes from there."
"Well, honestly I don't know how this whole thing started and I really wouldn't want to know," Sylphiel heard Mighty saying to the girl with a low tone while at the same time turning his full attention towards the surrounding area. "Right now, we should just focus on the sights that this city has to offer. I'm in the mood to try out those arcade games that I keep hearing about."
"Yeah, the last thing that we would all want is more problems," she heard the voice of Miguel saying to the group with the same low tone as the rest while trying not to be heard by the small girl. "Let's also not forget the real reason why we're out here. We shouldn't be around just to goof off."
"Oh, take a chill pill, man," Sylphiel heard the voice of Charmy saying to him while at the same time seeing the young bee starting to run up towards one of the store windows and saw a huge display of toys that were neatly arranged in a orderly fashion. "The stores around here look like that they contain interesting stuff here."
"Uh, Charmy don't look now, but I think that people are staring," the shrine maiden heard the voice of Espio saying to his young friend while turning towards the bee's direction and saw what the purple chameleon meant.
What she saw was a group of people staring not only at Charmy but the entire Chaotix group. Some of the children in the crowd were staring at the four Mobians with surprised and impressed expressions on their faces. All the adults looked at the Chaotix with curious and sort of scared expressions on each of their faces while trying to block their own children's view. As for the teens, they seemed to be either shocked or interested by the appearance that the four Mobians are putting on for as they gathered to get a closer look at the visitors from another world.
"Wow! Look at that, mommy!" she heard the voice of a little boy saying to his mother just as he pointed his index finger towards Vector's direction. "That guy in that crocodile costume looks so awesome! Can I have a costume like that one for when I go trick or treating for Halloween, mommy?"
"I don't think that it would be a good idea for you to dress like that, darling," Sylphiel heard the voice of the boy's mother saying to her son with a motherly tone. "But if you were to dress just like that cute and adorable bee person, then I might consider it."
"Whoa! Check out the weirdos in the costumes, dude!" she heard the voice of one of the teenaged boys saying to his friend while at the same time feeling a bit weirded out by the scene. "Those guys almost look like that they've come from a costume store and got the rejects. I bet that they don't have to pay much in order to get them."
Just before she could have the chance to hear Vector probably say something to the boy that spoke about him and his friends, she suddenly heard the voices of one of the teenaged girl shouting out with a squeal of delight just as they said, "Wow! The boy in that bee costume is the cutest thing that I've ever seen! I wish that I could put that sweet thing in my arms and hug him like a teddy bear!"
As soon as she heard that remark, Sylphiel turned towards Charmy's direction to see that his entire face was blushing with a red shade all over his face while at the same time trying to hide behind the back of Mighty for protection in case that any of the girls decided to try to hug the little Mobian. That was when she heard another young female voice saying while turning to see her facing her direction, "Wow! Look at that girl with the dark purple hair! She's so pretty! I bet that she's one of those super models or actresses that I've seen on TV or in the picture of magazines!"
The shrine maiden soon found herself blushing at the compliment that the girl had given her. She soon wondered that this is what the other people of her world would say for whenever she was healing either the sick and the injured. Sylphiel also wondered if this is what Miguel thought of her for when the first time that the two of them first met. She was so distracted with those thoughts that she didn't take the time to notice that a hand was grabbing at her wrist while at the same time dragging her away as if running from a stampede. That was when she soon noticed that the person that was dragging on her wrist strongly was none other than her friend Miguel who, along with all of the others, was running for his very life as if being chased by the Dark Lord Shabranigdo himself.
Before she could have the chance to ask about what was happening, the shrine maiden soon realized what was happening around her for when she turned behind her back to see a huge mob of people chasing after them as if they were criminals or somebody famous. Just then she soon found herself being dragged to what appears to be an alley way of sorts filled with shadows but by luck isn't littered with garbage. The shrine maiden soon found herself breathing in for air for when she realized that she too have been running along with the others.
"Yo...what was all...that about!" she heard the voice of Vector saying to everyone while at the same time hearing him laboring to get oxygen into his lungs. "I was just...starting to like...all the...attention that we...were getting."
"Sorry, but that crowd back there was a bit too close for comfort, Vector!" Sylphiel heard the voice of the young girl Yai saying to the crocodile with an annoyed and sarcastic tone in her voice while still being able to breath properly. "The way that those people were looking at you guys were really starting to get a bit too uncomfortable. I think that they're getting a bit too suspicious."
"For once, I agree with Yai on this one," she heard the voice of Maylu while at the same time turning to see the girl beginning to relax while holding onto a blushing and choking Charmy into her arms. "I mean, one of the kids too curious for while they were looking at poor Charmy and began to tug at his arms and his wings."
"Uh, think that...you could...let go of...me, Maylu?" the shrine maiden heard the young voice of Charmy saying while turnig to see the red-haired girl choking the young bee within her arms. "I need...to breathe."
"Well, now what are we going to do?" she heard the voice of Miguel saying to everyone in the group while at the same time feeling a bit aggitated with the experienced that they've just had. "We can't just go back out into the streets again. I mean, from the way those people were looking at the Chaotix, there's bound to be a mob scene."
"But what about both Miguel and Sylphiel?" Sylphiel heard the voice of Mighty saying to everyone while turning towards the armadillo's direction to see him with a thoughtful expression on his face just as she saw Charmy flying towards his friend after freeing himself from Maylu's grasp. "It seems that the two of them were the only ones that didn't attract the crowd's attention as much as we did."
"That's probably because both Miguel and Sylphiel are human, Mighty," she heard the voice of the cute looking program Roll saying to the Mobian while at the same time turning to see her image hovering above Maylu's P.E.T. device. "From the way that the crowd was looking at you guys because of your appearance, who wouldn't be curious? But don't think that Sylphiel wasn't unnoticeable to the crowd. I've heard one of the girls saying that she looks like a super model. As for the males, they're just usually saying what most guys would say for when they see a pretty girl in their sights."
"Well, that's just great! What are we going to do now?" the shrine maiden heard the voice of Vector shouting out loud while at the same time hearing him kick his foot at a nearby wall. "We can't even set foot on the streets unless we want to attract the crowd's attention without causin' any trouble! What are we going to do?"
"If I may be open to a suggestion to you all," Sylphiel heard the voice of Glyde saying to everyone in the group while she turned towards Yai's direction to see the Navi's image hovering above her own P.E.T. "I think that I may have some solution to our present predicament. You see, since both Miguel and Sylphiel are both human, they would be able to blend in with the people of this world. But since the Chaotix are a different species that come from another planet, they would certainly attract some unwanted attention from the crowd. They could pose as kids in costumes for this coming Halloween, but there would be a chance that someone would bound to notice that they're not from around here. So why not try the arcade near the mall?"
"Glyde, you're a genius! The arcade is the perfect place for the Chaotix to hang out!" the shrine maiden heard Yai saying to her Navi with a excited and happy tone. "I've heard that the arcade is offering a special on kids that comes in with a costume on for this coming Halloween! No one would be able to suspect that you guys are a race from another world there!"
"Then that means that Miguel could be the one to look after them while both me and Yai look for a dress for Miss Sylphiel to wear around here!" she heard Maylu adding to her young rich friend's words with the same excited tone in her voice.
"Whoa! Whoa! Wait a minute! Why do I have to be the one to look after the Chaotix?" the shrine maiden heard the voice of Miguel saying to the two girls just as she turned to see a rather shocked expression on his face.
"I think that it's pretty obvious that you would be the perfect body guard for them," Sylphiel heard Yai responding to her friend's words with a sort of innocent tone in her voice. "I mean, you were able to take down those ghosts with just one attack. So if anything like that were to happen, you would be able take care of it. Plus, from what I've heard in the news this morning, the Net Police were still not able to identify you yet. So you're still perfectly safe. Besides, shopping for clothes is more of a girl thing."
"(Sighs) Well, for when you guys put it that way, I have to agree," the shrine maiden heard Miguel saying to the little girl while at the same time letting out a sigh of defeat for as he saw that he was surrounded and cornered by the group. "Besides, it's obvious that I'm out numbered here. So I guess that I really have no choice."
"I'd knew that you would be able to see things my way, Miguel!" she heard the young rich girl saying to her friend with a chuckle to her voice as she turned to see the girl taking something from within her purse and tossing the two objects towards Miguel's direction while seeing him catch them at the same time. "That card that I've just given you has an unlimited amount of money that I've got in my account. I've got plenty of cards in my purse for in case of emergencies. Now, the arcade that Glyde mentioned is right about two blocks to the left for as soon as you leave this place. You shouldn't miss it. Oh and I've also given you an ID card from my family's company so that when the owner of the arcade asks about the card, you could show it to him without causing any trouble. Well, let's get going Maylu!"
As soon as she saw the images of the Navis Roll and Glyde vanish out of sight before seeing both girls putting their P.E.T.s onto their cases, Sylphiel heard the voice of Maylu saying to her while at the same time feeling her arm being tugged by the pinkish girl's hand, "Come on, Miss Sylphiel! We've got some serious shopping to do if we're going to get that dress of yours for that special guy of yours."
As she was being tugged away towards the exit of the alley, the shrine maiden began to stutter out to both of the girls while feeling flustered at the thought about wearing a dress for the 'special person', "M-Miss Yai! M-Miss Maylu! What in the world are you both talking about and just where are we going? Just what are you two planning?"
"Oh, nothing, Miss Sylphiel. Just a place that I usually go to get my own dresses," she heard the voice of the little wealthy girl answering with a sort of mischievous tone just as she saw that they were in a district filled with stores that sell nice dresses along with jewelry and other sort of beautiful items. "I'm sure that they would have something that would fit that gorgeous figure of yours. They would be able to make one from scratch."
"Um, I'm not sure if that's really a good idea, Miss Yai," Sylphiel said to the little girl with a sort of nervous tone while at the same time still emitting a red but light shade on her face just as she saw that the three of them were entering into a store that filled with all sorts of marvelous dresses and clothing to choose from. "I mean, it's not that I'm not grateful for what you and Miss Maylu are doing for me, but don't you think that this is a little too much? I don't want to sound like a bother to you by having you spend all of your money on me."
"Oh, it won't be a bother to her at all, Miss Sylphiel," she heard the voice of Maylu saying to her with the same tone as her small friend's just as they've made their way to the main register. "She has so many cards and money at her disposal that she could by her own castle."
"Well, that's rather...interesting," the shrine maiden said while at the same time letting out a huge sweatdrop behind her head while trying to get the idea that a young girl her age would be able to buy a large castle to pop into her mind.
"Okay, let's stop chatting already and start searching for the perfect dress for Sylphiel to try on!" she heard Yai saying while at the same time being greeted by a man in a nicely tailored suit with a black tie along with perfectly smooth raven hair. "Hello, Mr. Calvin, it's good to see you again. It's seems that you've got that message that I've sent you."
"Why the pleasure was all mine, Ms. Ayano!" the shrine maiden heard the man saying to the the little girl with a polite and gitting tone while at the same time bowing in order as he took her hand and gave it a kiss as a gentleman would. "It's always been a pleasure for me and my people to give our services to you and your family. Now, what would you like for me to do for you today, Ms. Ayano? Are you here for your usual fitting?"
"Well yes, but that's not all that I've had in mind for today, Calvin," Sylphiel heard the young girl saying to the person with her own polite tone just as she saw Yai pointing her face towards her direction. "What I'm asking for is actually not for me. You see, this young lady over here would like to try some of your latest along with some of your older designs. She's really from out of town and is from an old but great royal family. As an old family friend, I'll be covering for her tab."
Just before she could have the chance to ask Yai quietly about the story that she just told the man, the shrine maiden suddenly felt both of her hands being grabbed by both the gentleman's own as she saw him studying her feature with a thoughtful and yet amazed gaze. "Hmmmmm. This young lady is a perfect example of natural beauty, Miss Ayano. The skin on her face looks so soft and her figure is just so honed and well-shaped! And look at those eyes! They're glittering like precious gems! Just what is this lovely young woman's name?"
"Sylphiel," the former priestess of Sairaag found her self saying to the owner of the store with a nervous tone while still feeling a bit anixous about the lie that Yai told to him. "My name is Sylphiel Nels Lahda and I'm only here because Miss Yai insisted that I get a dress to walk around in since I would be here for a while."
"Well, it seems that, judging from the clothing that you wear, I'd say that you are from another foreign part of the world," the man named Mr. Calvin said to her just as he continued scan her features before looking right at her eyes. "Well! Well! Well! It seems to me that you have somebody in your heart that you would like to impress, young lady! So, who's the lucky young man that fortunate enough to snag a beauty such as yourself?"
Just before that she could have the chance to answer his question while fighting back the embarrassing feeling within her body, the shrine maiden soon heard the voice of Yai beginning to say to him with a rather miffed and impatient tone in her voice, "Calvin, we don't have time for questions like this! All that we could say to you is that this person is very close to her heart since they've first met and that they've been crazy about each other ever since. Now, if we're done with the introductions, both me and Miss Sylphiel along with Miss Sakurai would like to try on some of your best designs that money could buy!"
"Oh, of course, Miss Ayano! Right away!" she heard the man saying to Yai with a sort of busy tone in voice while at the same time hearing him clap his hands together that brought out a line of young ladies with different hair styles and features. "Ladies, these three young women would like to try out some of our best designs and see which would be appropriate for their figure. Now, take them each into a fitting room and take their measurements so that we could help them become belles of the ball!"
"Yes sir!" she heard the young female assistants of the store saying in unison while at the same time found herself being lifted and hoisted into a fitting room along with both Yai and Maylu.
"Ahh! Yai! What are you planning to do with me!" the shrine maiden heard the voice of Maylu saying to her friend while at the same time seeing the pink-haired girl being carried off the same way as both she and Yai were. "I have nothing to do with this!"
"Well it's about time that you should wear a dress that would get Lan's attention for once," was all that Sylphiel heard from the young girl saying to her friend with a mischievious chuckle just before she was in a room filled with young ladies with measuring tapes and all sort of devices that are used to get her measurements.
"Well, at least no one would be able to know about this sort of thing back in my world," the shrine maiden thought to herself while she felt relaxed by the fact that no one that she knew was watching her being measured for her new outfit. "I would just die if Miss Lina or the others would see me like this. Right now, I'm just glad that they're not here. I wonder what Miguel and the Chaotix are doing right now?"
Just as she allowed the young females to take her measurements, Sylphiel suddenly felt a powerful surge of power flowing within her body. It was so strong that it was enough to cause her to shiver as if she were freezing. "(Gasp!) This energy that I'm feeling! It's so strong!" the shrine maiden thought to herself just as she felt the young female assistants doing their best to calm her body down by offering her something warm to drink. "However, it's not strong enough to be either Nightmare Parasite or whatever it is that both me and Miguel felt last night. I hope that he's doing better than I'm doing right now and is able to see or sense where it went."
As soon as he and the Chaotix were out of the alley, Miguel began to scan around the area to see if the huge mob that they were attracting were still out there looking for them. By a stroke of luck, he didn't see a single person that he'd recognized from the mob that were trying to get a better look of the four Mobians that were walking with him.
"At least some of the people around here seemed all too focused on their daily tasks," the teen thought to himself just as he noticed some of the people starting to gaze towards their direction. "Well, most of the folks around here anyway. Some are just starting to get too curious about the Chaotix. Let's just get to that arcade and wait until the girls get back from cloths shopping before people around here start to..."
Miguel's thoughts were then cut short for when he felt a hand on his shoulder. That was when he soon realized that the huge hand of Vector was on his shoulder. "Uh, Miguel, we're here!" the green crocodile said to him while at the same time beginning to notice his existence since he left the alley. "This must be the place that Yai girl was talkin' about. I'm sure that there's plenty of fun games for us to try out! Let's all get the lead out!"
"Vector! Don't you think that we should wait until Miguel could get us the proper clearance from the owner of the place?" Miguel heard the voice of Espio saying to his friend while at the same time seeing the purple chameleon beginning to look at the huge place right in front of them with a surprised expression on his face.
From what the teen could gather, the place that they were standing in front in was a huge building that's nicely painted with a variety of nice colors that's also designed with differents shapes in order to get the crowd's attention. As they all approached towards the entrance of the building and went inside, Miguel was finally able to get a good look on what the arcade was really like. What he saw were numerous amounts of arcade machines as well as a large amount of kids and teens playing on them. Most were wearing a variety of different costume themes while others were in their regular clothing. He could also see a great number of tables as well as chairs near a snack bar that are supposedly used for whenever people were a bit peckish. Not only that, but the teen could clearly see that the place that they were in now was packed and some of the people were starting to notice their presence.
"Well, I suppose that it's time that we get this thing over with," Miguel thought to himself just as he looked around and stopped for when he found the front desk that's supposedly in charge of the place. "At least some of the kids around here are wearing costumes. I just hope that Yai knows what she's doing by giving me one of her credit cards as well as this ID Card. The last thing that we would want is more trouble."
"You guys start lookin' around the place while I deal with the people in charge of the place," the teen said to his four Mobian friends just as he turned to see the group already starting to run towards the large group of arcade machines that are available.
Just as he sighed at the Chaotix for running off, Miguel quickly refocused his attention back towards his task and soon found himself waiting by the arcade's front desk. As he waited for someone to appear at the front desk, the teen soon began to see that some of the people of the arcade were already starting to notice the four Mobian's existence. He saw some of the kids starting to walk over to Vector and watched in awe on how he looked.
Just before he could have time to intervene, Miguel suddenly felt someone tapping on his shoulder and turned to see a young and but older looking woman with long and curled red hair looking at him with a confused expression on her face just before speaking to him, "Uh, excuse me, sir, but is there anything that I could help you with?"
As soon as he heard those words, the teen suddenly took out the credit card that Yai gave him from his pocket and said while pointing his index finger towards the Chaotix that are near one of the arcade machines, "Oh, yes. You see the four kids in the costumes there? Well, the five of us are going to be here for a while and I was wondering if we could purchase some tokens for the machines?"
"Certainly, young man," responded the person in charge just as Miguel saw the female starting to go over to a computer and began to type furiously at the keyboard just before speaking again. "Okay, would you please state your name please so that I would know who the person in charge for watching the group is."
"The name is Miguel Angel Arias, ma'am," the teen responded to the woman in charge with a polite tone in his voice while at the same time looking over at the Chaotix and saw them being crowded by a gang of curious kids looking over them.
Just before he could even have the chance to say something to subdue the crowd, Miguel heard the voice of the young woman at the desk saying to him while speaking with a friendly tone, "Well, you and your friends happened to be in luck. As you could see, we're offering a special on kids who come in dressed in costumes for this upcoming Halloween. Now, how many tokens would you and your friends like to get for each of you?"
"Well, just give out a fifty for each person, please," the teen responded to the woman in charge just as he saw her beginning to type furiously at the keyboard and stopped for when she was finished.
"Would you be paying by cash, check, or credit, young man?" the red-haired woman asked him with another friendly smile just as she waited for his response.
Miguel was a bit hesitate at first for when she was asked that question. But as soon as that thought was set aside, the teen began to pull out the credit card that Yai gave to him and said while handing it out to her, "I'll be paying with credit, ma'am."
"Thank you, sir!" he heard the the woman saying to him with a friendly tone just as she slid the credit card in the reader and began to once again type furiously at the keyboard while at the same time looking at the computer screen. "Well, it seems that the amount that I'm going to ask for you is certainly enough to cover what you're asking. All I have to do is to just get the packs of the number of tokens that you've just requested and you're all set."
"That's good to know, miss. Thank you," was all that Miguel could answer to the woman just as he was handed back the card that Yai gave to him and was given a polite smile by the person in charge just before he saw her entering into what appears to be a store room of sorts.
Just as he waited for the woman to return with the tokens, the teen soon found his attention caught by the sight of Charmy starting to eye two kids in a racing game while both of them wearing both matching sets of twin ninja costumes. He also noticed Espio doing the best as he could to keep the people's attention away from him as best as possible without having to resort to his invisiblity ability. As for Mighty, Miguel saw that the armadillo was having no hard time trying to blend himself with the crowd while speaking to one of the teenaged girls in the arcade dressed up as warrior princesses while at the same time making him blush for the comments they both gave to him. Then when he turned his full attention towards Vector, he saw that the green crocodile was starting to attract most of the teens and kids in the arcade while they gathered around him and started asking him a whole bunch of questions about himself. Some mostly curious about his 'costume' that he was wearing. All and all, the crowd didn't quite go as out of control as the people outside did a while ago.
Just before he could have the chance to go over to his friends to see how they were doing, Miguel suddenly heard the voice of the young woman saying to him with the ever present friendly tone in her voice, "Um, Mr. Arias? Your tokens are all ready for you and your friends to use. Is something the matter?"
As soon as he turned his full attention back towards the attendant's direction, the teen saw that she was holding five clear plastic bags with what appears to be a handful of tokens in each one. He also noticed the look of concern on her face just as she held it towards her direction. That was when he decided to break the long silence by saying to the woman, "No, I'm alright, ma'am. I was just a bit concerned for my friends and the way the people here are reacting to their appearance, that's all."
"I can see what you mean," responded the red-headed woman just as he saw her giving out the bag of tokens to him. "I mean, the way that your friends as able to manipulate their costumes they way that they do, it almost makes them look like that they were real. Though the earphones and gloves along with those other accessories really does go over a bit out of the imagination. I mean, who would believe that a cute little cartoon bee would be a fighter pilot?"
"Y-Yeah! Who would want to believe that? Well, thanks for the tokens and have a nice day!" Miguel responded to the woman with a nervous chuckle in his voice just before he took the plastic bags of tokens from the red-haired female and began to hurriedly marching back towards his Mobian friends while trying to get things moving along as soon as possible. "Hey, guys! I got the tokens for us to play around here for a bit! Each of you take a bag and find a game that you would want to play for a bit!"
As soon as he said those words, the teen saw the four Mobians starting to run up towards him like children eager to get money from their parents. He was even surprised that both Mighty and Espio would be able to react this way for when they got a bag full of tokens for their own amusement. "Well, I guess that these guys are bored with just seeing the other kids and teens playing around." the teen thought to himself just as he looked around the arcade to see the numerous kinds of games that the people of the place have. "I think that I would like to check out some of the games around here as well and..."
Just before he could have the chance to finish the rest of his thoughts, Miguel suddenly felt a powerful force surging throughout his entire body as well as noticing the screens on some of the games of the arcade starting to emit static. "Augh! Again! This is about the third time that something like this happened since yesterday!" he heard the voice of the female attendant in charge saying with a rather annoyed tone as she witnessed whatever he just felt.
As soon as the feeling has passed, the teen soon began to think to himself, "Now what the hell was that? What I've felt just now is a great amount of Chaos Energy. But now it just vanished out of sight without leaving a single trace. I hope that wherever Sylphiel is that she was able to feel it as well. I just pray that it's not one of Nightmare Parasite's minions out there to cause trouble. If it is, then the people of this world could be in a whole lot of danger."
As soon as he felt himself regaining his consciousness, Shadow tried as best as he could to open his eyes in order to see where he is. For when he regained his full eyesight, the Ultimate Life Form saw that he was lying down on something soft enough to be a bed of sorts. Before the black hedgehog could have the chance to even stand on his two feet to see where exactly he was, he felt his entire body becoming weak with fatigue. So weak that he finally decided to give in and just lay back down on the bed.
"I guess that using the power of the Chaos Control took a bit more out of me than I thought," he thought to himself just as felt the soft mattress of the bed touching his back. "Wherever I am now, it seems abandoned."
True to his thoughts, Shadow looked around to see that he was in an abandoned building of sorts that looked as though it had been deserted for years. The walls of the building appeared to be cracked and worned down while the windows were either broken or cracked just enough for the wind outside to enter. Just as soon as he tried to get a better look at the surroundings that he was in, he soon heard the voice of a familiar young female saying to him while at the same time feeling slender but gentle arms starting to wrap themselves around his body, "Shadow! Oh thank goodness that you're awake! I thought that something worst might've come up with something worst since you've been knocked out a while back! I'm so relieved! I don't want to ever let you go!"
As soon as he felt his lungs becoming desperate for air, the black hedgehog suddenly realized that the young woman that was holding onto him was the new love of his life that came from another world. A world where different magical creatures of all kinds existed. A world where the new love in his heart lived. She was a human girl who once lived as a mortal in the days of Ancient Egypt that could use magic and summon monsters. A girl that goes by the name of Mana in her human life but is now know as a creature called the Dark Magician Girl.
As he felt his own lungs in dire need for air, Shadow began to say to Mana while struggling to breathe, "Mana...you can let...go now! I...can't breathe!"
That was when he felt the young woman's arms unwrapping themselves from his body just as soon as he spoke those words. As soon as he landed on the ground, the black hedgehog soon found himself trying to get oxygen back into his lungs while at the same time trying to keep his consciousness. "Oh, I'm so sorry that I did that, Shadow Darling!" he heard Mana saying to him while at the same time keeping himself awake and intact. "It's just that you have me so worried that I just couldn't help but hug you to see if you're alive!"
"Well, I really appreciate all of the concern that you're showing me, Mana. But do you really have to hug me so hard?" Shadow responded to the female magician with a friendly tone as he finally regained his breath and tried to get on his feet again while at the same time feeling like his body has been tenderized. "Just what in the world happened to me while I was out? I mean, the last thing that I've remember is being attacked by a strange monster with a huge weapon and then I had to attack it by using my Chaos Spear on the thing. For that matter, just where in the world are we anyway?"
As he asked that question, the Ultimate Life Form soon began to hear Mana saying to him with a rather flustered and confused tone in her voice, "Well actually, what you've just attacked a while ago was a confused young boy that was holding a weapon. But he didn't mean any harm by walking over to you in order to threaten you with it. Then you suddenly lost all of your energy and began to fall to the ground. I was able to catch you and then teleported us away from the opening seeing that we're in another world that could be your human friend's. Just what in world are you doing trying to warp over here? I was really worried for when I've sensed that your energy was being repressed and I thought that worst has happened to you."
Shadow was feeling a bit embarrassed for when he heard those words come out of the female magician's mouth. The black hedgehog soon heard Mana beginning to giggle cutely at his sudden embarrassment. But the feeling at the moment was soon forgotten for when he suddenly felt a surge of power flowing from within his body. The black hedgehog then heard a surprised gasp coming from the female magician as sign that she too felt the same force as he did.
"Mana, did you feel that energy?" Shadow asked Mana with a tone of seriousness just as he looked all around his surroundings in order to see where the powerful energy source came from. "That energy is coming from a Chaos Emerald! And if I didn't know any better, I'd say that there are two other sources of Chaos Energy within this area."
"I did, Shadow darling," he heard the young female responding with the same seriousness in her voice while turning to see her looking all around the area to see where the power source came from. "Not only that, but I'm also detecting two beings emitting a strong source of that energy that you've mentioned. One of them is sort of familiar to me while the other one remains unknown. I couldn't be certain, but I think that your friend, Miguel, is somewhere nearby."
As soon as he heard that name come out of Mana's mouth, the black hedgehog soon became shocked at what he just heard. He then closed both of his eyes and began to concentrate on the source that he believed to be Miguel's own Chaos Energy. After about a moment of searching, Shadow soon gasped with surprise for when he finally found the source of Chaos Energy that the female magician was talking about.
"This is definitely Miguel's energy signature!" Shadow thought to himself just as he continued to scan for the energy that he was sensing. "As for the other one, it seems familiar and yet...Wait a minute! Whatever it is, it's right near a Chaos Emerald! I'd better get over there and..."
Just before he could have the chance to finish his thoughts, the black hedgehog's concentratioin was soon broken for when he heard the voice of Mana saying to him with a rather stern voice just as he opened his eyes and saw her looking at him with a suspicous expression, "Shadow, I would like to know what's going on that got you into this world to begin with. Does this has something to do with that friend of yours? I want to know the truth and I want to hear nothing but the truth come out of that mouth of yours."
The Ultimate Life Form soon found himself being cornered by the one girl that managed to capture his heart, like a cat would do to a cornered mouse. He let out a defeated sigh for when he knew that there was no way that he could lie to her after all they've been through. "(Sighs) I suppose that I could never hold the truth away from you, Mana. I guess that I have no choice but to tell you what exactly why I'm here. It all began like this..."
That was when the black hedgehog began his explanation to Mana on how he and his friends were able to detect a large amount of Chaos Energy in another world. He also covered the part for when they couldn't detect the energies of both Miguel and Sylphiel from anywhere near their worlds as well as the disappearance of the group called the Chaotix. Shadow also gave the female magician a bit of info regarding the shrine maiden's own history and background as well as to how she came into his male human friend's world to begin with. He chuckled a bit for when he saw the jealous reaction on Mana's face for when he described on how lovely that Sylphiel was for a human.
"I wouldn't worry about having to compete with her, Mana," he said to his jealous love with a genuine smile on his face while at the same time grabbing onto her hand and held it with a gentle touch. "Besides, I've noticed that both she and my friend Miguel have this thing for each other since they've first met. They're both just too shy and nervous to admit it to anyone. They both blush as soon as they look at each other."
As soon as he heard the soft giggling coming from the young female, Shadow began to turn his mind away from the matter and began talking seriously again about his mission, "Mana, I'm afraid that we might have to talk more about this sort of thing later for when we have the time. Right now, we have to try to find Miguel and Sylphiel so that they could help me find the Chaos Emerald as well as the Chaotix. If that emerald were to fall into the wrong hands, just about anything could happen in this world."
"Well, we can't just go out in public either, Shadow darling," he heard Mana saying to him with a rather concerned and worried tone in her voice just as she looked at him with a serious expression. "I mean, the way that you've frightened that child with that attack of yours and scared him off, I almost thought that you were a raving lunatic."
"Sorry. But I was a bit dizzy and confused at the time," Shadow responded to the young female's words with a sort of embarrassed tone just as he did his best to hide the blush that he has on his face. "I wasn't too sure what was in front of me for when that kid walked over to us with that weapon of his. But enough about that, we have more important things to worry about. Right now, we have to find both Miguel and Sylphiel so that we could find the Chaos Emerald that's somewhere in this world."
"But we can't just go out in public the way we are. The people of this world would surely be suspicious," he heard Mana saying to him with a rather serious tone just before he turned to see her face emitting a smile on her face. "I just happened to have the perfect spell for the two of us to blend in with our surroundings. It's something that I've been working while I was training under my master back in Ancient Egypt. I've only been able to use this sort of spell in order for me to blend in to wherever world that I'm in. However, I'm not too sure if I would be able to use it on another being along with myself. But it's your choice if you really want me to do it for you as well."
The black hedgehog began to think about the option that Mana just offered and went over other alternatives that he could think of. "Hmmm. Me being transformed into a human being by Mana's own magic?" he thought to himself just as he looked at the young female's face that's looking at him with a curious and anxious expression on it. "Well, I'm not too sure if me going around this city would be a good idea for when I'm in an unknown world that's different from the one that Miguel comes from. But since going through time and space while appearing in the place where the Chaos Emerald might be found by a heavily army military that could be using its power for their own uses, it's clearly not an option. I guess that I have no choice but to do it."
"Okay Mana, I think that you should do that spell of yours," Shadow said to Mana while at the same time giving her a smile on his face. "We don't want any suspicion coming from the people around here while we're in this world. So why don't you do your magic and help us to get on with this mission of mine?"
As soon as he said those words, the Ultimate Life Form saw a cute smile beginning to form on the female magician's face while he heard her saying to him with cheerful tone, "Why that's all that I've wanted to hear from you, Shadow darling! Now, it's going to take a moment for me to try to remember the words for the spell. As soon as I do, I would be able to change the both of us into alternate forms. So please give me a moment to find the right words so that I could perform the spell correctly, Shadow darling."
The black hedgehog soon found himself chuckling softly for as he saw Mana beginning to think to herself while at the same time speaking in what appears to be Ancient Egyptian. "Shadow darling? Now that's something that I didn't notice during our relationship," Shadow thought to himself while continuing to watch the young and blonde female thinking to herself for the words to her spell. "I guess that considering the fact that the two of us saved each other's lives while getting to know each other in the process, she think that it would be suiting. I guess that it's one of those things that I have to get used to for when it comes to being in a relationship with a girl. Let alone a beautiful one.
"(Sighs) Speaking of which, I wonder just how both Miguel and Sylphiel are doing? Perhaps the two of them found the Chaotix somewhere in this world. But maybe the two of them are just strolling around with one another somewhere in this world like a cute couple. Hee! I'm reading too much into this. But I can't help but shake the feeling that something strange is going to happen. Not to me or Mana, but to someone else. I hope that it's nothing that could bring the downfall of this world."
As soon as he finished with those thoughts, the black hedgehog soon began to hear the voice of the female magician saying to him while feeling a bit excited, "Alright, Shadow darling, I was able to find the words to the spell that I've told you about. Just close both of your eyes for me so that the light wouldn't blind you. Okay, here it goes."
Shadow soon did as he was told and closed both of his crimson eyes so that the light that the spell emitted wouldn't blind him.
End of Part 8