a/n: Find solace in the finer points. #herewego

Revolutionary Operation, Type Zero

Kinetic Sky

19. The Suns of Liberty, Act 3

Sonic and Amy walked through the underground pathways of Station Square. It had only been a few hours since their arrival, but they wanted to stay clear of conflict until they got an update from the others.

"I remember walking down here a lot," Amy said. She brushed a hand against one of the walls.

"Yeah?"

"Mm-hm. A nice connection to all the shops and I could just take my time going on home. It was pretty good."

"And now you buy stuff online."

"It's so convenient though, isn't it?" she said with a smile. "But I can't spend my whole life doing that; it'd be way too boring. When this is over, I'm gonna go on a shopping date with Rouge. Maybe Kiriko, too."

"She'd probably like that. She was telling me that she wanted to look more feminine and stuff."

"She's fine the way she is. Gosh, she can be cute sometimes, you know? It's like having a little sister!"

"A big happy family, eh?"

"It's what I've always wanted." Amy turned to look at Sonic. "Can we start one of our own? Maybe after everything settles down?"

"If that's your wish, then...yeah. We can."

"I won't ask you to slow down any more than you already have."

"I just gotta be there, right?"

"Yeah. That's right. And I trust you to do that." She stopped and turned to give him a kiss. "You're the best husband ever."

"I try," he said with a smile. She smiled back before skipping ahead.

"Before you can learn anything, we gotta go over the basics."

Sonic was out of the hospital, nearly back to his strong and healthy self. Eggman's attacks had been very few and far in between, so the team took advantage by resting and in some cases, training. Sonic had invited her to join him in a certain location, a grassy plain on the outskirts of Station Square.

"The basics?"

"Yeah. If you're gonna keep up with me like I want, you need to find your own strength. It's right there, but you're closed off from it. I think it'll take a few days at the most for you, Amy."

"What do I need to do?" she asked.

"Discover your second sight."

"My...what?"

"Your second sight. Your alternate way of looking at the world."

"What is that? I mean...I don't quite understand, Sonic."

"It's not something easy to grasp," he said. "But it's something you develop from within. It all has to do with the balance inside of yourself, and drawing out the thing that makes you special. Once you do that, you'll become faster, a lot faster."

"Ah..."

"It's really simple, Amy. I talked to Rouge already about it, and she's giving you a week or two off to complete this. I'll cover whatever needs to be covered."

"You don't need to do that."

"No...but I want to."

She sighed and nodded, finally giving him a smile. "Okay, Coach. What's the regimen?"

"Just relax. Explore the world around you, and pay attention to it. And finally...I want you to go back to the time when you were a kid. Something...a hobby from that time that you felt connected to. Once you can make the connections within your spirit, the rest comes naturally."

"Alright. I'll do all of that."

"You'll know when it happens, Amy. I promise."

"I'll...see you later, then?" she asked.

"Yup. Good luck."

Still feeling slightly confused, she feigned a smile as she waved and walked away.

I'm not even sure what this is gonna help with, but...if Sonic is so sure, then I can trust him. I'll do my best to make this work.

And she did do her best, for the next five days. She took walks and observed the world around her, in the sun and in the rain, in light and in darkness. But still, there was nothing. Though she routinely pushed those feelings out, frustration was starting to settle in. She spent the sixth day lying face down on her couch in her pyjamas.

"This is bogus," she mumbled into a pillow. What was she doing wrong? What wasn't she doing?

She wanted to call him again, but all he did was restate his confidence in her ability. That didn't help much at all, if at all.

Amy sighed and picked herself up from the couch to make breakfast. Today would be a cereal day.

Frosted loops. Exciting.

It pushed her mind towards the other thing he said. Something about a childhood hobby?

"Hm."

She poured milk into her bowl of sugary Os and then carried it with her to her bedroom.

"Hm...where was it? Here? No...maybe here..."

Frowning, she set the bowl down on her nightstand and dug through the drawers below.

"Ah, here you are." She pulled out a small metal case and opened it. Inside was a neatly stacked deck of seventy-eight cards. She smiled contentedly. "It's been a while since I've played with these. I remember...using these the day I met Sonic, at Never Lake. I fell in love with him the moment I saw him, and then he rescued me from Metal Sonic..."

Sitting on her bed, she took the deck of cards into her hands.

"...maybe for old times' sake, eh? It's silly, but..."

She shuffled the deck and started to lay the cards out.

"Just like old times. Hm."

One card after another came from the top of the deck, laid out in the first pattern she had learned. It was called the 'Celtic Cross', a common tarot spread. She remembered the meanings of each of the cards as they fell into their places.

"The Empress," she said softly as she laid the tenth card down. She set the deck to one side and folded her arms. "I've been observing nature...interacting with it...but maybe not understanding. No...that's not it. It's something different."

She stood up and grabbed her keys, leaving the apartment and locking the door. Still in her pyjamas, she walked downstairs and towards the garden at the front of the building. It was modest, nothing like what she had seen on the trips she had taken out of town. An older woman was some distance away, tending to the flowers as she usually did daily.

Amy walked up to the first flower she saw and knelt down into the dirt. She gently cradled the plant in her hand, staring at it curiously.

"Maybe...I've been searching too much. Maybe..."

She could feel a stir.

"I just need to start looking."

A warmth went through her body. She could feel heat, different things coming from different places. The flower became a bright beacon in her eyes, glowing with rich, vivid colour. She gently slipped her hand away and rose from the dirt, looking at the world around her.

And at once, she knew.

This was it.

The connection with herself, her lost self, was restored. Connecting with her subconscious and the spiritual world that she had left behind so long ago. But here she was again, feeling the world turn around her.

Everything was bright.

She closed her eyes and focused, then opened them again.

The world was back to normal.

Amy brushed back some of her hair and smiled, walking back to her apartment.

"Yes, that's right...to be fast. So this is how you move through the world, eh? Hm..."

Well...let's see if I can really keep up, then. I'm in your care, Sonic.

"You hear that?"

"Yeah. Think it's him?"

Amy called her hammer to her hands and held it in front of her. "I don't think it could be anyone else. But..."

"But what?"

"It's...strange. It's like it's him, but...not from earlier. Like he's someone else, now. I don't understand it..."

"Maybe it's his freaky tech doing something..."

"No...no, this is way too different," Amy said.

Down the corridor, they could see the figure come to a stop. Pairs of sharp metal blades glimmered as they extended from metallic fists... much like a pair of knuckles. Green eyes pierced through the darkness.

"Sonic...?" Amy took a step backwards.

"This is the absolute worst time...don't tell me he's the same..."

"If he's not, he's getting there soon..."

"Is there anyone else?"

"No, not that I can sense..."

"Okay. Get moving, then."

"Sonic-"

"Amy. You gotta go."

"..." She hugged him and smothered him with a kiss before running past the robot.

The metal copy whirred briefly before emitting steam from its ports in a display of aggression.

"Still a regular chatterbox, eh..."

The robot known as Metal Knuckles leaned forward in anticipation, red frame shining in the faint artificial light. Sonic smirked and copied the machine's motion, flexing his hands.

"Bring it."

They clashed in an instant, tearing apart the tunnel.