Luna made a successful trip to Earth.
And she has found her first victim. Who is it?
Luna jumped up from the asteroid and began to chuckle. She turned to her robotic companion. "Where is Earth?"
LRS – 2 clicked and beeped. Its sensors began to scan the sky. Soon, a big silhouette of the Earth appeared. She viewed upon it with wide eyes and hands open, full of opportunity. The tiny machine had a lot of power. It's no wonder used him during her search-and-destroy missions. It was able to find anything, no matter how far away. The picture zoomed in to show certain people in separate locations. They looked vaguely like the people that she was searching for.
"Hmm, let's see," she thought. "Sonic the Hedgehog on a hot, sandy area, sitting underneath a cooling, umbrella-like device, drinking an acidic beverage; Miles "Tails" Prower at that same sandy area with Sonic; Knuckles the Echidna on what appears to be an island in the sky; Shadow the Hedgehog in an undisclosed location by some steel tracks; Princess Sally working on a computer in a fortress or castle of some sort; Cream the Rabbit at that same sand area with Sonic; Amy Rose at a shopping convention; someone unknown on a floating island similar to Knuckles' island. I see."
The image of the Earth vanished. Luna knew what she had to do: she needed to get to Earth and acquire these people. She pulled out several small red triggers and a switch that said "ACTIVATION." It also had a camouflage The triggers were about the size of a pea, and they could be activated by the switch, but what did they do?
"Come, LRS – 2. Take us to Planet Earth in the faraway Milky Way," she commanded.
She grabbed the little machine, and held it gently in her hand. As she held it, it began to charge energy from inside. Luna could feel it. She could feel the energy from LRS – 2 coursing from its core to her body. She knew that it wasn't going to be long now before she had all that she needed. Her ambitions were high and her pride was never ending. Her dream was soon to come true. Even though she was over 1,000 light years away from this galaxy, it seemed that Earth was only a mere step away. A new army of total devastation would be awaiting her on this planet. The final countdown on her realizations began and it had justified all that she said before. She thought that she wasn't going to find members for a new army like her old one, but that was out of the question now. No more sitting on a lone asteroid in the outer reaches of space just praying that something will happen. No more giving up hope, waiting for someone to save her. No more jotting down her future events into her memories, thinking that it will happen, because it was all happening at this very moment. There was nothing more to fear. FULL POWER INITIATED. COMMENCING TELEPORTATION. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…
WHOOSH! She was gone.
Traveling at light speed, she surpassed all obstacles in her way. The stars turned into distorted comets that strobed into beams of light that couldn't be seen. Black holes, asteroid belts, planets, and millions of galaxies pooled together and mutated to form one giant sphere of light that flew past her eyes. Radioactive space clouds became floating pieces of ash as she collided with them. She could see her destination coming into perspective; a small, light blue planet that appeared to be covered with distinctive mountains, islands, and land markings.
"What a planet. I never thought that it was so small. I thought that it would at least be a bit bigger. What a waste. I am surprised that anyone could live here on this pathetic excuse for a planet. Let's see," she said.
She felt herself zooming into the Earth's atmosphere, making light of the situation if she didn't stop and pause. She could feel the pressure as the teleportation energy from LRS – 2 was wearing down. She forced herself to stop on a mountain before she crash landed on the Earth's ground. The result caused a shockwave that broke off the tip of the mountain. She made it. This was Planet Earth. As she stood on the jagged edge of the mountain, she gazed upon the current condition of the planet. She was intrigued by what she saw.
"Hmm," she said, "This planet isn't so bad. It seems to have a much better vibe to it, and it resonates with my powers more than most of the other planets that I've been to. The air is so clear," she said. She inhaled it deeply. "Now I can see why my soon-to-be victims love to vacation here. It actually does look like a nice vacationing spot. But," she sighed, "something's missing. There's one thing that this planet needs that nobody has done before. Oh, well. That'll have to wait. Let's go find my victims. LRS – 2, where is Knuckles the Echidna?" she asked.
The little spherical machine scanned the area and it had indicated that the region in which the location of the Floating Island is in the southeast, in the sky. "Very well, then. Let's go there right away. I eagerly await my humble encounter with the first member of my soon-to-be army."
The same energy that was used to get them to Earth was once again going to be used to teleport them to the Floating Island where Knuckles the Echidna resided. She commanded that they go right away. Electric energy could be felt flowing through her veins as LRS – 2 charged the energy within itself, and then – SWOOSH!!! – They were gone in a flash. They disappeared bit by bit, molecule by molecule. Every part of them had been removed from sight.
The Floating Island...
Here, among the outer rims of the mountains and valleys, Knuckles the Echidna is lying down guarding the Master Emerald, the ultimate jewel that can control the energy of the Chaos Emeralds and cause any being that has it to be granted total unlimited power. This is why Knuckles guards it: He knows that people will try to steal this mystical jewel of splendor, so he guards it with his life. Also, this emerald is also the source of energy for the Floating Island. The emerald needs to be in its pedestal in order for the energy to channel and keep the island afloat. Knuckles needed to guard this thing with his life, considering what was heading his way.
He felt some strange energy approaching. "What's that energy I feel?" he said. He looked around him in all directions, but nobody was around. "It's dark energy. Very dark energy. It's heading this way. Well, whoever's coming, they're not getting the Master Emerald without a fight!"
The dark energy that he sensed was slowly but surely approaching the home of the Master Emerald. It had to have been Eggman. He always wanted it for his own evil deeds. Maybe he had something or someone with him that had this immense power that made him tremble in fear. He still held his ground, because no matter what had come to take the Master Emerald, they weren't going to get it. He had to defend it no matter what.
"Come on, Eggman! I'm ready for you!" he called. "Don't be a coward! Come on out, Eggman! Show yourself! You know that you're no match for me!" he called out again. Finally, the silhouette of the person that was coming has become clear as they landed softly of the ground of the island. Well, he was right. Someone was coming, but it looked nothing like Eggman. It looked like a girl. She was pretty attractive, but she had this thing about her that seemed to put Knuckles under the impression that this is the one with the dark aura that he sensed.
When Luna landed, she took a moment to glance upon the Floating Island. Pillars, old statues, some shrines were all around. "Hmm. This place is a lot smaller than I thought," she said, unimpressed by what she saw. She continued to watch the skies and scan the land. Knuckles called out to her.
"Hey! Who are you?" he said. His calm speech grew to shouting as she refused to answer. "Hey! Who are you?! What's the big idea just blasting onto my island and ignore me when I'm trying to talk to you?"
She continued to spy the clouds and the land before her. There wasn't mush to see in her eyes. This place is pathetic, she thought. I thought that this place would be a little bit better than this, and from what I heard, this place used to be a wonderful, exotic island in the sky. Many powerful echidnas lived there, including the wise, yet very power-hungry Chief Pachacamac. They were all very proud of their heritage and the legendary power known as the Master Emerald protected by the young guardian, Knuckles the Echidna. This must be that same one from the past.
Knuckles became furious. "HEY! ANSWER ME! How can you just ignore me, while coming onto MY Floating Island, and just stand there without saying anything?! Are you deaf or something?! Well, let me explain. I'm the guardian of the legendary jewel known as the Master Emerald. This special emerald has the power to neutralize the energies of the seven Chaos Emeralds so then that way, they won't overpower themselves, and this emerald provides this island with the energy it needs, so it doesn't plummet into the ocean. So, whoever you are, if you're not here for any reason at all, I suggest that you leave and let me continue my job!" he yelled.
So, this is Knuckles, she thought. My thoughts were correct. He looked familiar, and from what LRS – 2 showed me, he looks like that same Knuckles the Echidna. His place in history speaks for itself.
Knuckles couldn't stand it anymore. This stranger was just standing there, unmoving, unspeaking, and uncaring. He told her, "Hey! Did you hear what I said? Leave this island now, or I will have to use force!"
"I just want to talk, that's all," she said.
"Talk about what?"
"Let's talk about…oh; I don't know…you, for example."
"Me?" he jumped. He thought that she was nuts. "Heh, he chuckled, "and what exactly do you know about me? You don't even know who I am."
"Oh, really? Are you sure?" she said, menacingly. It was time for her to prove him wrong. "Well, where should I start? How about this? Knuckles the Echidna, last of the ancient echidnas and guardian of the "legendary" Master Emerald; Powerful warrior, with punches that can penetrate solid rock. Also, you possess martial arts skills; Legend, known as being a living, breathing Chaos Emerald after intense radiation from the Master Emerald's power during your childhood; Failure, you have let the constant smashing and stealing of the Master Emerald become chronic over the years, even having the shards being lost in space. See?"
Knuckles was stunned. "H-how did you know all that?"
"I've been carefully inspecting you from the heavens. You see, I guess that you could call me a watcher of some sort."
"A watcher?"
"That's right, Knuckles. I keep my eye on you, constantly watching what's going on within the boundaries of the planet. I've been watching everything what's been happening, staring down upon certain people such as yourself, Knuckles. My eye never leaves this planet's sight. Do you understand?"
"No way," he said, rubbing his head. He was scratching his head, completely confused by this whole situation.
"Sure, you don't," she said. She began to walk towards him, hip swaying from side to side.
"Hey, you! Don't you come any closer! I mean it! There's no way I'm letting you get the Master Emerald, so just forget about it!"
"Oh, I don't want the Master Emerald. I want you, Knuckles."
Knuckles thought she was insane. "What did you say?"
"You're so cute."
"What are you talking about?" He thought that she was joking, but the way she said it in that sexual tone like that, it sounded like she really meant what she said. He stood there, paranoid and shaking. He still had to protect the Master Emerald. By the time he looked back up to gather his nerves, she was right there in front of his face, staring at him.
"You're shaking like a leaf, aren't you?" she toyed. "Does that mean you're afraid of me? Yes? No?"
Knuckles really was shaking like a leaf right now because not only did she know who he was, she also knew his past childhood, his powers, and his history. It was like she was some kind of alien from another planet. He wasn't going to have it. He took all of his strength and condensed all of that power into his fists. He was charging up while Luna was standing there right in front of him, smiling a devilish grin. Well, she thought, I think that I have found my first victim. When he was all done charging, he growled at her feverishly and tightened his grip. He arced his hand back and prepared to swing. All of the velocity went in his arm as he prepared to swing with all of his might. Perspiration dripped from his face to the ground, creating a small puddle of sweat beneath his feet. His dreadlocks began to rise and his tail straightened out, pointing straight upward. He was finally ready to strike. With all of the energy in his one fist, he began to swing at Luna, but she quickly countered with her nails as she sliced him hard across the face. The velocity of the scratch pushed him backwards towards the Master Emerald's shrine. He was unconscious and bleeding. That's it? Aww. I thought that you would defend yourself.
Luna analyzed his person and realized that he would most definitely be a very prominent first choice for her upcoming army. "Yes. I like who I have picked. He is very strong, very determined, and well developed. It fits him well. It will also fit me well," she said. "Let's see, where did I leave them?" She search around and picked out one of those little red triggers. She placed one on his forehead and took out the switch that activates them. I can't activate them yet, she thought. I have to find all of my victims, then I can activate them. She decided to camouflage them so that way, they wouldn't feel it, nor would they see it.
"Thank you for cooperating Knuckles. Au revoir.
To be continued…
Chapter 3 to be completed Saturday or Sunday.