PoA: …
Metal: …
Silver: …*sniff*
Tails Doll: … *hugs Metal"
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Releasing the Past
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Waiting at the edge of what might be death, or what could be life, it was to him as if he lay asleep. Staring into what was more or less vast emptiness, the overly vigilant mobian began to fear what might emerge from the surrounding space. If he was dead by one definition, then where did he find himself now? Having never given it ample thought before, he started to question what he expected from the afterlife.
Then, from a firm pressure on his forehead, he felt the blood in his veins burst and surge with vigor. It was similar to the burning he felt before he fell asleep, just as hot and pain inducing. Amidst his sweltering confusion, Espio started to view something of a chronologically scrambled playback of his life. Later events often came first, followed by a smattering of images from the further reaches of his past.
Initially, three figures appeared: One scaly green, one mostly yellow and another shaded red. He knew them and his history with them very well. The scaly one, his friend of sorts, or confidant that he felt indebted to after an incident involving his most horrible, and final, task as an assassin; his old life as a glorified hit man. He saw the unpleasant memory of the red one, sneering at the notion of killing two people, too poor to pay their forced 'benefactors'; the lords of the cruel Underground. He replayed the anger, the spite of the scaly one, who solely blamed the red mobian for the incident. He relived the sorrow of seeing the black and yellow one, a boy, robbed of two irreplaceable people in his life. He eventually came to a truly bygone image of a figure he personally loved and respected, coldly driving him out of her sight. The person in question radiated clear ruthlessness, but with him held a special, maternal link somewhere deep within the reaches of his mind. He lastly saw the very current and cutting loss of one he held affection for. Her image was reduced to a mere haunting memory, like that of his distant family.
Awake with a sudden jolt, Espio leapt into a battle ready stance. On edge, but now perplexed, he saw no blazing blue opponent to face. In the creature's absence, he saw a strange and curiously colorless world. More than monochrome, it seemed dead and withered.
He had little time to consider this, as soon afterwards his static comrades began to rouse as well.
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*With Tails*
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Stepping back from the visions, Tails swore these two struggling debtors inside the chameleon's mind bore a strong resemblance to the young Charmy. The more recent of Espio's memories led Tails to question the ex-criminal's strong opinion of him; the purple mobian's strong emotions illustrated his deep, but unexplained, jealousy and respect for the fox he called his rival.
Taking his hand away, Tails solemnly tipped his head downwards, musing on his rival "You've had a hard life, just like Knuckles, but I always wondered what you had against me." Tails left him to recover with a sigh "It's probably best if I never know."
It naturally followed that Vector would be next. Tails took in a long breath, steeling himself for another torrent of sad memories.
As expected, the crocodile's mind was something of a faint echo of Espio's. Much of this Tails already knew from his time working for the G.U.N.: Vector had committed a number of felonies relating to fraud and piracy. Malicious as these deeds were, his own thoughts showed that Vector was not fond of violence, and often used his rather advanced ‒ albeit unorthodox ‒ intelligence to abuse any situation to his advantage. Unfortunately, his past of pillaging had effectively impoverished many, including a certain family, a family whose death and legacy would come to change Vector for the rest of his life.
Tails, having already seen Espio's side of things, recalled the family by face and cringed at the results. It seemed that this family's demise caused Vector to sink into deep depression, simultaneously blaming himself for the what happened to the couple and hating Knuckles for his hand in the matter. He evidently never realized Espio's role in the incident, and Tails reminded himself to never reveal what he now knew.
"Some things are better left unspoken." He confirmed, leaving the crocodile's side.
Amy, Rouge, Maria, Shadow, soon everyone sat up, all a mess of headaches and dazed stupor. Each asked the other what had happened before Shadow stared about concernedly, asking aloud "Where are Sonic and Miles?"
The fox too blinked in noticeable surprise, both at their failure to notice him, but also in grave realization and concern for the one he had somehow overlooked; one so very important to him, no less.
Having the question shake up his fractured mind, he instinctively hastened towards the shoreline, with Amethyst following steadily behind. Tails felt horrified that he could forget him so easily.
"Sonic, where are you?"
Arriving at the place where he last knew Sonic to be, the fox stood and looked out over the outstretched sea. There seemed to be no limit in either direction, and no indication of Sonic anywhere. With the tide moving well, Tails watched and waited for a moment, hoping he would catch sight of some sign of life, and soon.
Watching the churning abyss that Sonic had fallen into quickly grew tiresome and painful, until Tails blindly stepped into the waves. Seeing that he was prepared to make the treacherous dive, Amethyst hastily grabbed his arm with sharp look on her face "Are you crazy? Just because you have chaos power doesn't mean you can breathe underwater!"
Tails angrily shook her off while shooting back a glare "Don't you dare tell me I have to let Sonic go too!" He hissed, trying hard to keep his face from contorting from a sob.
Realizing his deep angst and frustration, Amethyst calmly remained silent. Waiting for a moment while Tails collected himself, she snuck a few fingers into his drooping hand. Tails' stony expression softened slightly as he curled his hand around hers.
Due to the waves of ashen grey and black water, and the generally poor light travel through the sea, Tails could not make out a faint glow within the murky depths. Worse, all that washed up on shore was three, brilliant cut colorless gemstones.
Little by little, the tide gave up the rest of the Chaos Emeralds. Tails saw them and swallowed back the bubbling acids in his stomach. He only wished to be spared the sight of a waterlogged body washing up next. Boldly, he tried to keep searching, hoping that somehow ‒ by miracles or magic or whatever it took ‒ Sonic would be alive.
At this point ‒ Tails never knew whether the emeralds had heard his heart's desire or not ‒ the stones started to come back to life. Little embers within the gems seemed to burn brighter and brighter until they sparkled with a mighty brilliance. He had never seen the emeralds so blindingly bright, and though it might've been his imagination, he swore they had swollen in size in that stunning moment.
"What in the‒? What's happening?" Tails struggled to say.
"I-I don't know." Amethyst replied, shaking her head.
With time, their power and grown so spectacular that their energy now swirled above; like a whirlwind caught in a spherical prison. The sky too surged and groaned heavily at their power until the violent stormy heights reverted into a still and gentle overcast. Suddenly, in another beaming but silent flash, the sphere of energy tore open and scattered across the globe. In turn, the entire world convulsed and seemed to be waking up, as rich vibrancy started to replace the dark monotone that had come before.
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*With the others*
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"Wowza! Holy shiny rings of power! Would ya look at that?" Vector shouted, eyes bulging in complete disbelief.
Maria, Knuckles and Rouge looked skyward. Each agreed that they were both dazzled and slightly frightened by the marvelous light show on display. Shadow and Espio tried to appear cool and composed, but both were visibly shaking and anticipating combat. Each of the heroes watched the streams of energy strengthen as forest around them started to come to life. Soon even the ruins of the Sable Tower glowed with a sort of mystical might and majesty in the God-light peering through the clouds.
While watching the beautiful scene, Amy had started to cry. When heard, Maria came over to ask what the matter was. Amy replied that she was so happy knowing "Aqua has her family back." Wiping her cheek, Amy added that "They were going to have to go away for a while, but that she wanted to tell everyone 'thank you'."
The little hedgehog then went over to Knuckles' side, grabbing the fearsome echidna's hand, saying "Tikal told me to tell you something too." He in turn nodded awkwardly in anticipation for her to finish.
"She said that "Life is hard for anyone, no matter what kind of a past they've had. But no matter how many people you've lost or how many people you've hurt, you are still free to live the rest of your life however you please. Leave the past behind with the ruins of this island, and work towards building a better future as the person you are now.""
Knuckles, quiet but with a quivering jaw, again nodded, with a look of honest gratefulness "Amy, thank you."
She smiled and gave the muscular mobian a little hug, making him both him and everyone else watching uncomfortable. Pausing after a few seconds, the once cruel echidna patted her on the head, softly thanking both her and Tikal again.
Charmy, not too far away, bounced up and down, and suddenly started yelling uncontrollably "Guys! Guys! Guys! Guys! I found them! I found shiny lady and foxy! Come see! Come see!"
Everyone turned their attention towards the nearby shoreline. There stood the glowing outline of a fox standing next to another, pale purple and white tinted figure. Yet soon after, the unknown light source enveloped the pair, leaving the rest of the team blinded and almost frantic for answers.
"It's too bright!" Rouge proclaimed, hastily shielding her eyes "What's going on?"
Espio replied first "I don't know, but I think we'd better brace ourselves." He secretly sensed a familiar benevolence in the distance, but still stayed battle ready in case of an upcoming fight.
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*With Sonic*
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It was stinging his skin, like swimming in superheated pool of oil. Having breached his sensory threshold, the sensation gave way to numb somnolence. Imprecise thoughts of a clash between himself and another, ominous cerulean creature were present, but steadily losing their place in his mind. Falling down so far, he loosely imagined himself tumbling, adrift in the vastness of outer space. What might have seemed lonely and bleak was in fact a reassuring relief to the tired out teen.
"At least it's quiet down here." He internally moaned, trying hard not to imagine waking up to the maniacal picture of a grim, blue figure looming over him. He briefly worried that the burning sensation on his skin was in fact, his misfortune of being stuck in the corrupted creature's grasp. Opening his eyes hazily; seeing no signs of the monster, he then wondered if this singeing sensation was normal for those on the verge of drowning.
"I'm not choking, or are my lungs already filled with water?" He felt uncertain whether he was alive or not, briefly even considering that it hardly mattered. Having never expected to die in such an appropriate way, Sonic proved he still had air by sputtering out a bubbled laugh.
"Will this count as dying in this world?" Regarding the faces of his old friends, Sonic uncharacteristically began to mourn to himself. Reflecting on the people he knew from his world, he pleaded to himself "I want to go back. I want to see everyone again, just for a moment, so I know they're okay. Please… just one more time."
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*Elsewhere*
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"Should we?"
"His life's flame is almost spent. Why should we intervene?"
"I don't recall her asking the opinion of a senseless rube. What say you, old father time?
"I am not your father, nor am I old (not compared to you, at least), but I agree that removing him should be enough."
"I was merely complementing you, on the grounds your being larger than li‒wait, I beg your pardon? How old do you think I am? Well?"
"Heh…heh-heh! No words, I have… no words."
"Hmph, envious ivy pig."
"Now now, dear brother, have no shame. It's said that true beauty has no age."
"Yes, and supposedly 'absence makes the heart grow fonder', but I still grow ill whenever we gather."
"Aw, don't be so arrogant, Azure. We love you too."
"Guys? Can we kinda stop fighting so we can help him‒I mean, them?"
"The kid's right (but aren't we all the same age?). Besides, I hate outstanding debts.
"You all act as though we could say no if we wanted to."
"..."
"Brother…"
"Do it."
"Mm-hmm… Sonic? Sonic, can you hear me?"
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*With Sonic*
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Then he heard it, a small voice he did not recognize at first. All the same, Sonic felt he had heard it somewhere before.
"Sonic, I do not know how you found your way to us, but your coming has carried this world through a very dark chapter." The voice was well blended and of obscure gender or age, as if comprised of many voices at once "Your unique spirit has impressed the guardians of all dimensions. Your strange, carefree nature is only a mask for the chaotic power you possess. From the grandest spirits above, to the smallest of mere children, all are touched by you. For bringing us together again, we thank you, Sonic the Hedgehog."
The person ‒ who Sonic now recognized as the mysterious Aquamarine ‒ gently kissed his forehead. He soon felt the searing heat dissipate in small but growing doses, until it was entirely replaced by a coldness that could rival space. A small well of memories came over Sonic as he caught a passing glimpse of this world's Tails, Amy, Knuckles, and the rest of his allies from the alternate universe. Then at last, in an even smaller window of time, he thought he saw a mirror; it showed him his years of youth and childish happiness restored. The look-alike image quickly too faded into a sky of pitch darkness ‒ seemingly rising while he was falling ‒ as Sonic sank into a sea of golden light below.
"The people who came to love you…"
"The people who died trusting you…"
"Never forget them."
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*With Tails and Amethyst*
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Though overwhelmed by the amazing sights around them, Tails vaguely caught something in the distant depths of the dark waters. A small, rather insignificant, shape started to form in the dark blue. He never could make it out, but it seemed to split a crease down the center of the waves. Following this image closely, Tails noticed that it rose and rose until it seemed that it would rise out of the water.
Yet it never did. It simply vanished, leaving him all the more confused as he saw trace sparkles of blue dissipate into the thin air. The whole scene, though inexplicable, gave the fox a feeling of longing, much a parting or long expected departure of a friend or relative.
Whatever it was had left him so fixated that he failed to hear Amethyst gasp in astonishment, or notice the voice in the background calling his name, or the faint tugging on one of his tails.
"Hey, hey! Come on, don't ignore me! Whatcha looking at, big brother?"
Finally, the voice smashed into him like a ton of bricks. Tails' eyes and mouth blew wide open as he checked to see where the voice had come from.
With a faltering cocky smirk and a small sniffle, the little hedgehog rubbed his nose and said "I've really, really-really missed you, bro. But I wasn't scared! I remembered what you said and kept my cool the whole time!"
"S-Son…" Tails stammered, looking at the sight so overly welcome that it made his whole being ache to the core "Sonic?"
Cocking his head, the little Sonic made an observation in curiosity "Big guy, have you been crying? I mean, it's okay. I cried too for a long time. B-But I swear I was brave! And‒oh but man, you should've seen it! Me and this other guy that looked like you totally kicked this huge mean machine's butt! By the way, they have this big dude that looks like Robotnik, only he's kinda silly and mean. Oh yeah, and then there's this cute girl that really digs the guy who looks like y‒"
Tails cut him off, picking up the small hedgehog with shout of joy and a smile that outshone the emeralds. Sonic smiled too, a little red in the face as he gave his big brother / father figure a hug "I really thought I wouldn't see you again." The boy admitted, letting a few actual tears crack through his innocent bravado.
"Sonic." Tails said again, this time giving him a full look, absorbing his blessing in its entirety "I'm so sorry I put you in so much danger. I trusted you so much that I failed to take care of you."
"You don't have to!" Sonic chimed in, happy as a child could be "I remembered all those things you taught me, and see? I'm A-okay!" He grinned again, giving a cheesy thumbs up. Tails reluctantly agreed, suddenly less despondent over his mistakes and more proud of how strong his young partner-in-crime had become.
"It's so good to see you again, Sonic!" Amethyst joined in, swallowing the two up in a big group hug.
Sonic, though total agreement, blushed at the gesture, feebly returning his own greeting "Y-Yeah, same here, Miss Amethyst." Tails noted his reaction and laughed, loud and happily without restraint. It felt so good and real, he almost hoped that this storybook ending was made to last."
This was fine, until Sonic, his face now morphed into a look of concern, looked at Amethyst and said "M-Miss Amethyst? You look really, um, pale? Are you… are you okay?" Getting even more worried when she failed to answer, Sonic turned to Tails with his question "Big brother, is she okay?"
"Amethyst?" Tails asked instantly, checking his mate over with renewed fear. He was right; she did seem weaker, frailer somehow. Suddenly, it struck him that she looked to be rapidly growing weaker.
"I think…" She sighed, trying to hold herself together as he spoke "This counts as a happy ending, wouldn't you say?" Laughing distantly, she stepped back, now appearing more faded than ever.
Tails let out a harsh gasp. Reminded of what she meant back at the ruins, he took her hands and said "No, Amethyst, please just…" He pleaded trying to come up with some kind of excuse for his unspoken, and unreasonable request "Sonic just got back, please, it's not time yet."
She shook her head plainly, saying with all honesty "Now is the only time."
Tails, letting Sonic down, turned his attention on to her solely, not as crushed as before but still on the edge of tears "Ame, I‒please… Sonic is back, everyone is safe. It-it's alright now. Everything is alright. So, why? Why do you still have to go? Please… please don't go, please!"
Amethyst once again faced down and clasped his hand, tightly this time. Yet through the kind gesture, Tails felt the loneliness of their imminent separation. It was just like waiting over the deathbed of a wife that had stage 4 cancer, while doctors and nurses waited outside for them to share their final moments together.
He couldn't help crying again. He loved them both so much. More affection just made it harder to let go of what he knew he'd soon be losing. He never seemed to keep one or the other for long enough. One always left when the other returned. Now he'd have to say goodbye in earnest, and there would be no magical return this time.
"Tails…"
"Don't leave me." He sobbed, holding her like she was as fragile as glass. She gave the embrace more life, holding him tightly while shedding tears of her own. Pressing his forehead against hers, the two smiled at each other, in the face of the saddest and happiest goodbye of their lives.
No one said anything for some time, even Sonic just stood back to let the two be.
Holding Tails with sweet and simple affection, Amethyst said softly "Don't let the past spoil this moment." Rubbing her nose against his, she lovingly concluded "I love you, now and forever."
"Now and forever." Tails said firmly as he rubbed his fingers across her back, taking in her scent and touch one last time "I love you too, Amethyst."
The emeralds overhead swirled and orbited the source of their energy, which was all but expended and losing strength fast. Suddenly, becoming frozen in air for all but a second, they sped off in all directions, finally vanishing from sight.
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End of Chapter Fifty-eight
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This is part of the ending I wanted for this little fic. Imperfect and nothing special, but it's how I wanted it to be all the same. I hope you all loved or were touched by parts of this chapter as much as I was.
Until next time.