Chapter 37 is up!
I promised some violence last time and I now deliver!
Political intrigue, veiled threats and a good ol' fashioned punch-up.
Enjoy.
Shade marched half a pace behind the GUN officer, who was still holding his nose, along a brown carpeted hallway with two of her scouts, Losis and Imrain close behind her. She had left Scouts Kalimbre and Ranaile under the command of Tilus, watching over the incapacitated guards. As they marched along, it was clear from the worn down strips of the carpet that this particular hallway was rarely traversed.
Upon reaching the end of the hallway they turned into a small reception area dominated by a large dark wood door with a single desk and chair situated to one side.
"He's through there." Muttered the broken nosed officer pointing at the door. He cautiously walked up to the door and knocked. "Sir?"
The muffled voices beyond the door stopped abruptly.
"I gave an order not to be disturbed unless it was something of utmost importance!" Boomed an enraged voice, deep and resonating. The officer flinched back.
"I'm sorry Sir, but this is of utmost importance." A moment of silence followed before what sounded like a muffled apology.
"Come!" The GUN officer hesitated slightly before gripping the door handle and pushing open the heavy wooden door.
As soon as she was able, Shade strode past the GUN officer and straight up to stand before the wide desk, behind which sat a grey haired human with a stern expression and a piercing gaze. He sat up straighter when the three strangely armoured anthro marched into his office, glancing at each of them before focussing on the one which was obviously the leader.
"What is the meaning of this?" He demanded. At some unheard signal all three of them removed their helmets, two by simply unclasping them and lifting them off their heads, while the one in the lead pressed the symbol on their forehead causing the helmet to slide together, interlocking back into a thick headband.
"I am High Praetorian Shade of the Nocturnus." The leader said. "And I have a warning for you."
Both the GUN officer and the Commander were speechless for a moment as three previously believed extinct echidnas reviled themselves. The Commander quickly shook himself out of his stupor.
"Leave us." He said in a dark voice which sent the GUN officer scrambling away as quickly as he could. Leaning forwards he eyed the three echidnas. "What is this warning High Praetorian Shade?"
Shade was slightly taken aback by how quickly the human recovered. "A-as you probably know, the echidnas have been returned to Mobius. We are here to warn you that the Nocturnus military leader may well be planning an assault against you."
"So you decided to betray your people and warn me." The Commander said suddenly, striking Shade silent. The other two echidnas glanced worriedly at their commander. "How can I trust that what you say is true? This could all be a ruse to distract me from the real threat."
The Commander leaned back in his high-backed chair and rubbed the light stubble on his chin thoughtfully. "There have been some interesting turns of events recently but yes, I do know about Angel Islands recent, expansion. What troubles me is how this event has come about. And what exactly it means for the rest of Mobius."
"It means you must prepare yourself. Even as we speak the forces of Nocturne could be preparing to march down upon you. We are but the initial scout force, there will undoubtedly be more."
"You speak as if your people have seen nought but war." The Commander interjected in a calm and controlled voice.
"With respects, that is all we have known. But there are those amongst my clansmen that wish for a simple life, away from combat and military regime." Shade explained. "I come to you with this information in hopes that you can help make that wish a reality."
"Well now, that does change things somewhat. Some of your people wish to seek asylum from a harsh regime, which I believe the Mayor would gladly give, but what exactly do you believe I can do to help facilitate this?"
Shade was lost for an answer. She had only led her scouts here because it appeared to be the seat of power and leadership in the city, but now this Commander had spoken of a Mayor, perhaps this man sat before her wasn't the one she needed to speak with.
"I am the Commander of the Guardian Unit of Nations, a military police force to uphold peace and to combat threats to that peace." The human said, as if he could tell what she was thinking. "If these Nocturne leaders are a threat then they shall be dealt with. For matters of the people, it is the Mayor of Station Square who takes action. All I am prepared to do is observe how this situation changes, and take action accordingly."
"But what if the Imperator marches Nocturne troops into your land?" Shade said, barely keeping her voice level, although everyone in that small room heard the tiny quaver of panic in her voice. The Commander's expression turned dark and serious.
"Prey that he doesn't."
-0-
Mighty slid into the cover of a low black stone wall just as a flurry of bright blue energy bolts peppered the ground where he had been just moments before.
Guardian Hawking's distraction force had pushed much further that initially expected, catching the Nocturnus flatfooted and off guard. But now that a number of officers, Praetorians and High Praetorians according to Guardian Thunderhawk had arrived, their unprecedented advance had stagnated and they were now getting bogged down by tenacious defenders and increasingly accurate fire.
Mighty couldn't believe the fighting skill of his comrades, nor their stubborn reluctance to simply give up. He had seen a warrior take three of four energy blasts, only to stagger back to his feet and continue the fight, and the accuracy of the Brotherhood archers and gunners was simply uncanny.
The purple furred Guardian slid in next to the armadillo wearing a calculating expression. Silently, Thunderhawk pulled a small device from one of the pouches on his belt and threw it over their piece of cover. The sound of surging electricity reached Mighty's ears and the Nocturnus fire ceased, giving three nearby warriors the chance to break out from cover and move forward.
"Tell me Mighty." Thunderhawk shouted over the thunderous sounds of battle. "Have you ever fought in a battle like this before?"
The armadillo flinched as a new fusillade of energy blasts ricocheted from the black stone wall they hid behind.
"A couple of times against Dr. Robotnik, and once against some coyotes when I was in Downunda." He winced as a blast sent a small shower of stone chips flying in all directions.
"Then I shall consider it an honour to fight by your side." As soon as those words had left his mouth, Thunderhawk leapt over the wall and charged. Mighty took a moment to register what had just happened before charging after the purple echidna.
In moments they reached the embattled line of Nocturne and Brotherhood with Thunderhawk leaping straight into the fight and before he knew it Mighty was fighting toe-to-toe against an armoured warrior wielding a wickedly sharp curved blade.
Reacting purely on instinct, Mighty dodged the wide sweep of the blade and drove his fists, one after the other into the warriors chest, crumpling armour and cracking ribs. Grabbing the stricken warrior around the waist he charged, using the added weight as a battering ram to plough through the next few warriors.
He began striking out at the Nocturne that surrounded him, feeling blows strike his back, his sides, a few to his head but he kept on fighting. Suddenly something struck his face with such a force that sent flying back off his feet.
Looking up groggily he saw several brown bipedal robots advancing swiftly on the Brotherhood, who instead of facing this new threat, grabbed the injured and unconscious and began to fall back. Thunderhawk and another echidna grabbed Mighty by the shoulders and began retreating, dragging the armadillo with them.
The Nocturnus swiftly gave chase, blasting at the retreating Brotherhood with gusto as the strange robotic war machines advanced indomitably towards them.
Looking around Mighty saw and counted eleven echidnas including Thunderhawk and the warrior at his shoulder. Where were Guardian Hawking and the others?
-0-
Julie-Su and Espio rounded the corner into another deserted corridor. Whatever Guardian Hawking was doing, the distraction was working extremely well. Although they had yet to find Guardian Spectre. The alarm was still blaring and the sounds of battle filtered through the thick obsidian walls.
"Might I suggest that we focus on locating and freeing Knuckles, and not wasting time in pursuing Guardian Spectre?" Espio stated rather flatly. Julie-Su had to agree with him, partially because she was glad to be rid of that creepy Guardian but mainly because she wanted to find that crimson echidna she had promised to look after.
"You're right. But it's not going to be easy. When I left him, Knuckles was locked in one of our high security cells protected by some of Dr. Zachary's most advance shielding. There's no way he could've-"
She was suddenly interrupted by the spattering of blaster fire striking the wall at the end of the corridor where it cornered towards the dungeons and robotics laboratories. Around which rushed the last person either of them were expecting to see, Knuckles the echidna.
"Knuckles! How did you-"
"No time! Run!"
Not needing any more advice, the three of them bolted away from the sizable hoard of Nocturne and Gizoids which were pursuing the red furred echidna.
Lashings of blaster fire flew past them, smacking into the walls, the ceiling and around their feet as they ran. Knuckles grunted and stumbled as a bolt of energy struck him in the shoulder but he was instantly back up and running. Espio spun in mid-step and flung a pair of kunai at their pursuers, striking one in the leg sending him tumbling to the floor and one of the robots in the chest which just carried on completely oblivious to the knife now stuck in its chassis.
"We're almost at the exit! We can lose them in the jungle!" Julie-Su shouted, as they sped round the corner.
They skidded to a stop at the clicks of weapons being cocked as a half dozen Nocturne levelled weapons on them. At the lead was High Praetorian Remington, and he pointed his solid-slug firing heavy pistol at the pink furred echidna.
"Velite Julie-Su. I should've known you'd be the one to turn traitor." The pursuing Nocturne caught up and trapped the trio between two walls of weapons. Knuckles and Espio were both weighing up their chances and were not liking the odds. Julie-Su looked at Remington pleadingly.
"Remington, please…" The brown furred High Praetorian glared at her, the barrel of his weapon un-moving.
"I am very disappointed in you Velite Julie-Su." All of a sudden his finger squeezed the trigger and the loud shot boomed around them. Everything was still, and for that brief moment Julie-Su thought she could she the solid round making ripples through the air as it sped towards its target. The round struck home, right through the forehead of the Gizoid on her left hand side.
Time suddenly sped back to the norm as the Nocturnus warriors with Remington gunned down the other Gizoids and took the weapons from the other warriors. Julie-Su, Espio and Knuckles stood dumbfounded as Guardian Spectre stepped out of the shadows. Remington smiled.
"I can't believe you didn't try to contact me." Unable to contain herself, Julie-Su leapt forward and hugged him out of sheer relief. His cheeks turning a deep shade of red, Remington glanced at the warriors behind him, some of whom were sniggering under their breaths.
"Spare your celebrations for later." Spectre's dark voice brought Julie-Su back to earth and she quickly stepped away from the embarrassed High Praetorian. "Hawking's attack is being pushed back and Athair is preparing to cover his retreat even as we waste time here!"
"You're right Guardian Spectre." Said Remington before turning back to the trio still attempting to figure out what was happening. "After we spoke Julie-Su, I began gathering together those who shared in our longing, and frankly I was surprised at how many there were. These warriors with me are but a few, many more await us in the billets."
Giving a quick hand signal to his warriors, who took up positions around the prisoners, Remington, Spectre and the others began jogging towards the exit. Spectre came to Knuckles' side.
"You are the one who all this is happening for?" Knuckles glanced sidelong at the black furred echidna, feeling like he was being critically examined.
"I guess. Who are you?" Spectre remained silent for a moment.
"You have power in you. Perhaps this wasn't a wasted effort after all." A flush of anger surged through the crimson echidna.
"What does that mean!" Spectre smiled, but from where Knuckles was standing that smile looked decidedly sinister.
"All in due time." Knuckles growled as the black clad Guardian sped up to run near the head of the pack, while Espio dropped back to his side.
"Who is that guy?" Knuckles demanded.
"Spectre of the Brotherhood of Guardians. And it was on Julie-Su's suggestion that we sought their aid." Answered his long-term friend and ally. "Without them, rescuing you would have proved problematic."
"I was doing fine on my own." Knuckles muttered.
"No doubt you were and you can tell us about it once we are safe." The distinctly larger group burst from the long obsidian corridors and out into the starlit night, where they stopped as Remington rallied together dozens of Nocturne, both armoured and cloaked. The prisoners were herded into one of the deserted houses and placed under guard while Julie-Su and Spectre followed Remington.
"Where are the others?" Knuckles asked his chameleon friend.
"Charmy stands with Guardian Athair with a secondary force of warriors and Vector was sent as escort to a group of Nocturnus civilians to ensure Athair and his forces did not engage them. As for Mighty-"
"Mighty's here?" Knuckles exclaimed in shock.
"Indeed. As for Mighty, he is assisting Guardians Thunderhawk and Hawking in the distraction assault."
Knuckles was silent for several minutes, feeling truly humbled by the help his friends had given and were still giving, and by how swiftly they had come to his aid. He grinned and looked at his friend.
"Once a Chaotix, always a Chaotix eh?"
"Chaotix getsumatsu made." Espio answered, and although he kept his features neutral, Knuckles couldn't help but notice the glimmer of amusement in the corner of his eye.
They stood in silence for several minutes, watching as their new Nocturne allies rushed around preparing to leave the obsidian fortress behind when a thought occurred to the once lone echidna.
"The world's changing, Espio." The chameleon glanced at Knuckles before returning his gaze to the rush before them.
"Indeed it is. However, the question is: is the world prepared for this change, and if not, how will it adapt?"
Translation:
Getsumatsu made – Till the end
Yes, Espio does speak Japanese.
Well that was fun to write.
Next update might be delayed for a while as a holiday in the countryside beckons.
Till next time!
-Corrupt TE-