Hey guys. Nothing much said, but I was very busy now that I'm having a harder time with my sister's wedding. Who knew wedding crafting would take this damn long and hard? It might be short, I dunno, but hope this is okay for you all. I'll do my best to get the other's out, but I'm also trying out a story request from JustThatOneFox. It's not a shadamy story for once. lol But a regular Sonic story. It's still in the making...but I'm getting there!
Also, if it looks like it's kinda weird, and/or rushed at the end, or some parts, I was typing this while I had zero sleep, but wanted to get one of the chapters out there. So hope it still works?
Chapter 6. Shadow's Past.
"So...you're saying that Amy is from another world, very different from ours, and she was brought here to find me, the element of light and other's out there?" Alicia asked after getting the most of what the two travelers have told her.
After they had escaped the ruins of the castle and town, Shadow had led both Amy and Alicia out of the forest without any other problems. Alicia was still unconscious in his arms, but felt like she was beginning to wake up very soon. To their shock, once all three had walked out of the forest on the other side, the sun was at it's peak with a bright, golden glow to help them out of the darkness. It seemed that they were there for the whole night and hadn't even realized it. Shadow was able to find a good spot for them to set up a small camp for them. They needed a break from all that hardship, well mostly Amy and Alicia, but he was reluctant to give them time to breathe, and for the wolf to wake up.
In the wide spread of land they were now in, Shadow had found a small pond with a couple trees surrounding the water's edge. A good place to relax for the time being, and the water looked clean enough to drink out of if needed. Amy quickly took off the pack Shadow had and placed it down before he laid the angel wolf down so her head was on his pack for support. They were both confused as to why she collapsed like that so easily when she used magic. From what Shadow had learned and seen, people who used magic don't wear themselves that easily. Alicia must've been a certain type of sorcerous to be so weak after using her ability.
Several minutes of resting later, Alicia was able to slowly come out of her sleep, bringing the two traveler's attention towards her. Amy was quick to bring a small cup of the pond water to her in case she needed a drink. Once she opened her eyes and sat up slowly, the angel wolf took the cup after thanking her, then drank the whole thing before letting out a small breath of air. Now that she was awake, she now had plenty of questions for the two, which was not a good thing for the black knight at all. Funny enough, the three spent almost three hours of explaining to their new companion about their mission and who they were searching for, and what they'll hope to do in the end. The sun was very close to setting, so might've been around five o-clock if Amy was correct on the time.
Right now, Shadow was sitting across from the two girls with his sword out on his lap and using a small handkerchief he had kept in his pack to polish the blade carefully. Amy was beside Alicia with a small apple in her hand as a small dinner for her. Alicia had an apple, too, and was almost finished with the fruit after her first. She had been trapped for a long time so she was definitely hungry. All three were sitting around the small fire that continued to illuminate their surroundings and giving a warm and comforting feeling around as well.
Shadow nodded after Alicia made sure to process everything they had told her. "Pretty much." he answered.
Amy smiled and nudged her new friend with her shoulder. "Funny how you're one of the chosen ones, huh?" she joked hoping to at least bring a little light over the huge news she had been told.
"...Yes. I suppose so." Alicia mumbled under her breath while her wings fluttered slightly out of nervousness. Speaking of which, Amy did want to ask about her wings and possibly her heritage and how she was able to be gifted with them.
"Hey, to change the subject on this surprisingly awkward situation..how come you have angle wings? You're a wolf and I never seen anyone like you before." Amy asked out of the blue.
Shadow looked up at her with a disapproving stare. "Rose, you shouldn't ask people of how they look." he scolded making the pink female glare back.
"It's not like I asked in a rude way, I think it's really cool how she was gifted with wings like that." she argued. Alicia quickly held up her free hand to both of them and spoke.
"Hey, it's okay. I get asked that a lot so you don't have to be upset." she said making the two look at her before she continued with a warm smile to her new friend, "Actually..I'm from a very special place that is hidden from this world, but you can visit easily."
Amy placed her three bitten apple down by her side now focused on her hidden home. "How can you visit a place that's hidden from this world?" she asked making the angel wolf giggle.
"Actually, my home is in the clouds. It's a large kingdom that has been floating in the clouds for six generations. My home, Cerilia."
Shadow placed his sword down after he was done, then crossed his arms and leaned his body back against one of the trees he was sitting next to. "I believe I heard of that kingdom. Some say that those who live there have a very unique way after birth and because of that, they were shunned and scorned because of how they were. The sorcerers had been granted by the royal family to create a land in the sky, and make it their own kingdom to rule and hid from the land underneath."
Alicia nodded with a sad look on her face. "Yes...but after the third king, he decided that the world underneath had not been at all like the ancestors said and decided to open up the gates and allow anyone to leave Cerilia. After that, people above and below began to like each other and have even visited the world above by a gondola ride created by magic." Amy quickly chipped in.
"What did Shadow mean by how they were birthed? Like your wings?" The angle wolf nodded.
"Correct. The kingdom was well known to have those gifted with wings. We don't really understand how and why, but if you were born in the kingdom, you would have been gifted wings, or a certain special ability. Like me, I was gifted with angel wings from birth." she smiled while flapping one of her appendages playfully.
The knight listened closely till he had heard about how they were only possibly gifted with either power, or wings. "If you have been given wings, then why is it that you can also heal?" he asked. That question made the young lady wolf flinch and her eyes widened slightly.
"...Uh...w-well..." she stammered, "It's...a touchy subject, actually...I'm sorry." she answered while looking at him with worry in her eyes.
He was slightly confused about her reaction, but he nodded to let her know that he won't continue. Although, he was very curious as to how she had the ability to fly and use her born power. Amy looked back at him, too with a sly grin on her face. "Who's asking the touchy questions now?" she asked with a little hint of sarcasm in her tone. Shadow glared at her as if telling her to "shut up" with he glare. Amy giggled at his reaction feeling proud to shove his words back at him. Alicia was a little confused at the way the two hedgehogs argue, but she didn't question them. Just being around people like this was a very happy sight for the young girl. Even before she was kidnapped and imprisoned.
As the time went on, so did the color of the sky. Alicia was now laying on her side with her wings wrapped around her body like a makeshift blanket. Amy was still awake and Shadow was, once again, out looking for more firewood. She was still sitting where she was before and was now holding the bow tightly in her hand. She wondered if Shadow would ever say anything about her new treasure she had found, yet he continued to keep quiet. She wondered why, even if he was a baby from what the picture had shown her, but he would still possibly know about where he was born and what his father used to be.
Looking up from the crackling fire before her, she peered out towards the open land seeing the opportunities she, Shadow, and Alicia will have in the morning. They found their first element, so finding the next one shouldn't be so hard this time. Amy looked all the way up to the night sky to see millions of stars. She always felt amazed just from the sight, sometimes hoped she would someday see the milky way if possible. But her main concern was back home. Where there others back home worried about her? Surely, her teachers might've been wondering the couple absences she had. Or was the time here different from her world? If only she had a way to see if anyone even missed her at all. Sure, she didn't have much friends back home, but she did hope at least one person could miss her. Maybe Cell might be looking for her. Or maybe Adran?
"Agh!" Amy growled to herself, forcing her head down and gripping it tightly with her free hand, "No! No! No! Stop thinking about him!"
"Keep quiet!" A quiet, but stern voice quickly shushed the upset girl as she turned around and saw her bodyguard coming back with a smaller stack of branches he had brought. Must've been from the forest they had escaped from.
Amy sighed and nodded slowly. "Sorry, Shadow..just trying to get rid of stupid thoughts from my head." she mumbled.
Shadow said nothing, but nodded an agreement while he stopped right beside her and placed the stack neatly by the fire, but not too close. He sat down on the ground, then kicked up one knee bending it and laying one arm over it. "We should be safe this time. We're out in the open, so I doubt any monsters would show up. They usually hide in the shadows at this time of night." he told her to make her feel a bit safer.
She smiled a bit and nodded. "That's good. We definitely need a break after what had happened earlier. Will there be any of those...were-things?"
"True, but no. We are far away from their home right now. But they might be around some other part of the world. By the way, you did well this time. How did it feel to use a crystal for the first time?" he asked now looking at her with slight amusement.
She shivered slightly while she tried to hide her fears by a small smile. "Well...I wouldn't say it was easy..it was honestly the most terrifying moment of my life.. But using something like that took a lot out of me. Yet the feeling of the power inside the crystals was so weird, yet..tingling kind of feeling. But..s it gonna be difficult to get used to the monsters...?" she wondered.
"Afraid so. Walking out into the world is like a death sentence. But after the defeat of the first evil king, it was actually more safer. From what I have been told." he looked away from her and back to the fire while he continued, "Now that Scourge is in power, there are more monsters out there. Some even attacked villages without warning. Each day, you are told to be ready for anything."
"..Is that how you have been taught?" Amy asked.
"Correct."
The pink female looked back to the fire first, then slowly down at the bow in her hand. It was now, or never. If he wasn't going to say anything, then she might as well bring it up so he wouldn't think she stole it in a bad way. "...Shadow...I-" she was quickly cut off by the said knight.
"I see you have something in your hand that is supposedly mine." he started making her jump in fear. So much, her fur slightly frizzled up just by the mention of the bow. "Rose..I'm not mad that you have taken that. In fact, I knew that it belonged to my father when I saw the symbol up close. I never said anything since I had other things to worry about." he said everything all without looking away from the fire towards her.
Amy slowly eased up at the sound of him not feeling upset towards her. That's one thing down, now his past if he's willing to show. "Then..you know that..that place was your birth home?" she asked quietly.
"Correct, again. I barley have any memories of that place, but I know that it's my first home. I was only a babe when I was taken away by force."
"By...force? What do you mean?"
Shadow took a few seconds to take in a small breath before he slowly released it. Knowing Amy, she probably wouldn't stop pestering him about his past. "When the fight was going on, my father was a respected knight of the king's army. He did his best to rally enough soldiers to fight for our home, but his main priority was his family. My mother was at home making sure the doors were locked tight and I was safe in her arms. My grandparents were a few houses away from us, but they were being evacuated without being allowed to check on their son, daughter-in-law, and grandson."
Amy gripped the bow tighter as she listened. "That's sad.. Did your mother go with them at all?" he shook his head.
"No. She had no way to leave. The path around the house was blocked by fire and crumbled remains of homes around it. Her only hope was to wait for my father to come and safe us. Fortunately, he did have some help in making his way back. But..." his voice slowly trailed off knowing that the next part might be a bit hard for him to explain.
Amy saw his mood change and quickly jumped in saying, "Shadow, it's okay. I won't ask about it if it's hard for you to tell me."
He looked up at her, finally, and waved a hand towards her. Moving it back and forth in a motion to let her know that she was fine. "It's okay, Rose. I've dealt with it my whole life, so it doesn't affect me as much as it did years ago." he explained before looking back towards the fire and putting his hand down at his side, "My father made it to the house with several open wounds and burns, but able to walk and fight as much as he can. He walked in to the house and ushered my mother out. She followed him out while clutching me to her chest as he did his best to lead her out of harms way and towards the exit where the soldiers have taken those away from the fight."
"Your father sounds like he was an amazing person." Amy pointed out making the knight smile a bit at her compliment.
"Heh...it's what my grandfather always said. In fact, he's the one who explained to me of what had happened to both of them and how I survived." Shadow added, looking up at her again to see her reaction.
"Wait...you mean...?" she couldn't say another word knowing well that what he said was what had happened.
"Correct.." he started before looking back towards the fire again. "One of the monsters that spotted them, rushed towards them at full speed. Father used that bow or yours to shoot it down by striking the head. It easily went down, but not before sliding on the ground and smashing into one of the house beside them. The force was enough to break through the wall, having part of the house crumble towards me and mother. In a foolish act of bravery...she dropped to the ground and covered me with her body."
Amy's mouth was covered with her hand as she listened to how his mother had sadly lost her life by saving her only child. No words were used to describe the way she felt feeling enough sympathy towards him since she knew how it felt to lose a parent. Shadow continued without looking up this time, but he could sense the sadness radiating off her body.
"Father did his best to dig out her body, but all he was able to was to fish me out. Mother was sadly gone after several harsh blows towards her head and back, but she was able to use enough of herself to shield me from the attack. Keeping his tears in as hard as he could, my father ran away from the site towards the exit while holding me, now covered a bit in my mother's blood. He was able to make it and find the other solders that were coming back to either fight, or save more people. He handed me to one of the soldiers and demanded them to bring me to his parents while he went back to fight. It was his duty to protect his home and the people as best as he can, but to tell his parents to take care of their grandson for him and mother. After that, he ran back to fight. Some say he fought bravely to save his home, but he was unfortunately struck down mid-fight."
"...So...your grandparents were the ones to retrieve you from the soldier, and learned of what had happened to your father and mother?" Amy finally asked almost in a hushed tone.
"Grandfather was the one to hear about his son's passing and soon his daughter-in-law after the war had finally stopped and her body was recovered. He and my grandmother raised me and told me stories of how father and mother were one of the best kinds of parents I used to have. Father would tell them how he hoped his son will join the knights in the future and mother would care for me with a gentle touch."
Amy smile came back at the last bit of some memories his grandparents had shared to him. "At least you have some stories about them And you also became a night just like he had wanted for you. Is it the main reason you are a knight?"
"More, or less. I did want to be a knight in the beginning, before they have told me what my father wanted me to be. It was a new reason to push myself in order to become a Celedane Knight." Shadow said quite proudly of himself. Amy's smile grew a bit more at that, but it slowly faded when one question popped up.
"...and is that why you occasionally go there? To maybe find some things of yours?"
Shadow shrugged his shoulders. "Yes and no. At first, I returned to see how it looked years later and to maybe find my home. Now, I go there just to see if I can relive a bit of my memory of them before the war. I have taken a few pictures of father and mother, including some other stuff. But I left the rest so they can fade away in time."
"Well..this bow certainly didn't fade away." Amy pointed out as she held the weapon towards him. Shadow looked up at her first, then the bow. He could see that the wood was a bit old, but surprisingly wasn't as bad as some of the things he had seen years later, and the first time he had visited his first home.
"Interesting. Father was very gifted in his craftsmanship in weapons, so it's no surprise that his bow was able to survive these long years." he said.
Taking the bow back, she looked down at the well design weapon once more. "I didn't know if it was okay to take it, but at least I'll have a weapon on hand if needed." Shadow cocked his head a bit to the side.
"So..you know how to use a bow and arrow That certainly is a surprise to me." He quipped making her give him a pretty annoyed look.
"I'm not very good at hand-to-hand combat, or other types, but I used to do a lot of arrow shooting back then. I am out of practice, but after a few shots, I'll be able to hit a bullseye straight on." she announced proudly.
Shadow chuckled quietly while shaking his head at her. "We shall see, Rose. Now you should get some sleep. I'll keep watch for the time being." Amy rolled her eyes at that.
"Yes, dad.." she huffed as she got herself at least comfortable on the ground, now laying on her side with her back turned to him. She used the pack as a makeshift pillow, it wasn't comfy, but it would work for now. She rolled a bit so she can look at the knight and softly spoke. "Shadow..just to let you know...I lost my parents, too. So you're not alone and I'm here if you ever want to talk more about it. Just wanted to throw that out.."
Shadow turned back to her and was about to speak till she rolled back over so her head was facing forward and her back was turned to him again. He wanted to say that he knew she didn't have any parents when she was crying in front of the queen, but seeing how she sounded a bit sad when she told him, it might not've been a good time to tell her. He was slightly thankful that she was polite enough to not press on further with his past, yet she might've felt the same kind of sadness he had felt years ago when he had learned of his parent's passing. Actually, this was possibly the first time he had ever opened up to anyone in a very long time. The first time was when he had been with the certain princess of the kingdom. After that, he kept his feelings to himself for so long, he didn't realize he was telling another his past. What is it that Amy had that would make him open up a little to her?
The next day arrived and the group of now three had settled off to the next part of the their quest. It wasn't a rough night that time, so Shadow had a few hours to rest himself so he can be awake fully again. Alicia and Amy were busy getting more acquainted with each other while their guide was in front of them, leading the two with a stoic look to his face like always. Amy was really glad to have another girl to the group since she had a bit of trouble getting used to the brooding knight. She and the angel wolf had done nothing, but talk and talk about their lives and homes. Alicia was equally amazed at the many wonders Amy had back in her world, just like Shadow, but she showed her amazement more than him.
Shadow wasn't really fond of the talk the girls were having behind him, but he did his best to keep quiet so he didn't ruin their fun. He didn't like being around those that would talk non-stop. But since he was kind of 'stuck' with the two, he had no choice, but to silently endure it. And he certainly did his best to keep himself sane for at least half of they're walk. How is it that those two girls could talk for hours and hours? One topic after another, they just continued. Amy was having a blast since she didn't have much friends back home, not even girlfriends to chat with so she was enjoying each moment with her new friend. She even learned a lot more about Alicia's kingdom and other things about the world she is in now. More than Shadow, surprisingly.
The walk was tough for them, not for the knight of course and Alicia had used her wings to support herself when her feet had grown tired over the bit of walking. Tho, Amy did feel a bit tired herself since she didn't think the many steep hills they were taking could be this much on her poor feet. Luckily for them, a traveling wagon with a mule and a rider had met them halfway on their walk and saw how tired one of them was, and offered a ride for them. The rider was an echidna cloaked in a black hood with only his muzzle showing so he can talk. His eyes were hidden underneath so the three couldn't see what his whole face looked like. The wagon was quite big for at least four people so it was perfect for them to ride in Shadow wanted to tell him no, but he also noticed how tired Amy was feeling. He didn't even think to check if she was fine, or even exhausted since he had done his best to drown out their constant chatting.
He agreed with the traveler and helped the girls up on the wagon before hopping up to sit beside them. Well, Amy and Alicia sat together while he sat across from the two. With the extra help from the friendly traveler, they were able to make it to their destination without any complaints. Shadow had also gave them the rundown of where they were going and how hard it might be this time for the two of them.
Shadow had taken out the map and rolled it out on the wagon floor so he can show the two where they were heading. "The next place will be tough, because it's in a molten volcano. Also known as Ebit Volcano." he described now looking up from the map and to the two girls with a serious look, "It's one of the hottest places in Celdedane. Once you step foot inside the mountain, you are easily burned alive by the massive heat."
Amy was the first to ask questions since she was now beginning to grow nervous for their next mission. "How can we go inside if we will be burned alive?"
Alicia jumped in hoping that what she says might be the trick. "Well, we can get a fire crystal somewhere close. It's not just to use to make fire appear. You can also use it to shield yourself from the flames." she instructed.
"Correct. Even if you touch any flame, you won't get burned if you are protected by the crystal." Shadow agreed.
"But you said we don't have a fire crystal before. Is there any other villages around that might have them?" Amy asked.
The knight looked down at the map, then moved his finger around the drawn out volcano to see if there were any villages, or towns to go to. "Unfortunately, the next town is ten miles from the Ebit Volcano. We're not even close to reaching it since it's on the other side of the mountain. But even then, they might not have a fire crystal."
Amy leaned her head back and let out a tired groan. "Come on...! I love hiking, but this is taking forever...!" she complained.
"Amy, don't be like that. I can maybe fly over to see if I can look for said town. I'm able to fly very far for a whole day without rest." Alicia pointed out with a small smile.
"That's very generous of you, Alicia, but we mustn't stray too far away from each other. You are equally important like Rose. If something happened to you, we might not be able to help you." Shadow debated since he wasn't okay with one of the first of their elements possibly putting herself into danger.
Alicia sighed sadly as her ears folded in embarrassment. "You're right. I'm sorry.." she muttered. Shadow quickly held up his hand, assuring her that she was not much in the wrong like she thinks.
"It's alright, Alicia." he reassured her now lowering his hand down and looking back at the map, "We just can't take any chances right now. But we do need to think of something. The more time we take, the more time Scourge is plotting his attack on us."
"I guess there's no other choice, but to take the freakishly long walk all the way there and back to the Ebit Volcano. Arg..." Amy sighed in an annoyed huff.
As the three continued to talk, the wagon keeper was keeping his eyes on the road, but had his focus on listen into their conversation. The sound of 'fire crystals' was heard making, a small idea had popped into his head, and remained there till he had brought them to their destination. Once the traveling echidna stopped just a couple miles from the mountain. Getting just a tad closer will make it hard to continue just from the heat that is flowing out from the molten lava. The sight before them was honestly amazing. Well, to Amy. Before she ventured off from castle town, she was able to see the tip of the volcano. Along with the swirling smoke spewing out on the top like a donut. But once the four had made it so close to the mountain, the site was astonishing.
She had never seen a volcano in her life, but in pictures in her textbooks. Ebit Volcano was enormous! It was two times as big as the castle from what she can tell. The lava on top of the mountain continued to spew like blood on an open wound, along with a few smaller boulders tumbling out from the top. It definitely wasn't the right place to call a home if the next element was inside. Surly, they would've been burned alive like Shadow had said some time ago. But they had to go in and check no matter what.
Once the wagon had stopped in front of the entrance to the land of fire and lava, Shadow quickly hopped off the wagon first before he helped the two girls off. He then turned to the traveler and said, "Thank you. Your help is greatly appreciated."
The hooded figure nodded. "My pleasure, brave knight. Forgive me, but I couldn't help, but overhear your conversation about fire crystals." he pointed out.
Shadow held out his hand and waved it back and forth. "No need. We'll think of something to get through the volcano. You have helped us enough and we greatly appreciate it." he pressed on ready to turn around to walk away, but was stopped when the echidna cleared his throat.
"But sir knight, I might have something for you that might help." he turned away from the black knight to his side where a small, black pouch was sitting beside him. He grabbed it and turned back holding the pouch carefully to him, "Take this."
"Sir, I don't need anything. I hate to take something that might mean valuable to you." Shadow politely argued and lightly pushed the pack away from him, only for the echinda to push his hand back still holding the pouch to him.
"I insist. It's something I had been keeping for a long time, but I haven't had the need to use it. But I'm sure you and your friends will use them more than me. Please, take them."
Shadow looked at the pouch, then up at the echidna. He still couldn't see his eyes, but something in him felt like he needed to take whatever was in the pouch. This person didn't look too skeptical. He helped them reach this far without any sort of payment from them. Who is this guy and why was he suddenly giving him something that is probably valuable? Either way, he might as well take it so the traveler could go on with his day. He took the pouch carefully and held it with two hands before looking back to the hooded mobian. "Thank you, again.." Shadow faltered, but did his best to hide his skeptic tone.
The hooded echidna nodded, then turned back to the mule and whipped the reigns while he clicked his tongue for the animal to start walking again. Shadow kept his eyes on him for a few minutes just so he can be sure nothing happens if he turned his back away from the path they had taken. He finally moved away and walked over towards the two girls, who were standing at the edge beside a long rope bridge. Shadow hadn't briefed them about the way to get to Ebit Volcano. The gaping pathway to the other side was pretty long, about several feet of bridge length, across a river of molten lava. Just by standing on the edge of the cliff, the three were feeling the immense heat from below. Enough for at least one minute of standing there had made them begin to sweat.
"Holy crap...this is hotter than the summers back home..." Amy gaped as she leaned forward a bit to see the flowing lava slowly move against the current.
Shadow gripped her arm and pulled her back making her squeak in surprise. "Be careful, Rose. That'll lead you to a very painful death if you fall." he warned her.
She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms with a small upset look. "Yeah, I know.. Hey, what's with the bag?" she asked once she eyed the black pouch in her bodyguard's hands.
"The echidna gave me this. He wouldn't take no for an answer, but it must be something interesting if he wanted to get rid of this fast." he answered.
"Be careful when you open it. Who knows what might be inside?" worried Alicia.
Shadow nodded to her, then slowly began to open the pouch while Amy was watching with enthusiasm and Alicia with worry still. Once he pulled the string off and opened it, he reached inside and pulled out three bracelets. But not just any bracelets, they were custom-made with fire crystals! Each tiny crystal bead had a deep red color on the top that faded into white like an ombré look. Both Shadow and Alicia were astonished, but Amy was a bit confused as to why the two looked that way and what the bracelets were for.
"I can't believe it!" Alicia gasped.
"I'm confused..what's with the bracelets?" Amy asked while looking at her traveling partners.
Shadow took one of them and held it up to her. "These are very special kinds of fire crystals. Quite hard to find, but easy it make into jewelry like this." he instructed.
She took the bracelet and placed it on her wrist. The sting whoever made it was stretchy so it fit perfectly. "It looks very pretty, but I don't get how these are more special than like the light crystals?"
Alicia was the first to speak. "The most amazing thing about these is that they don't just make fire, but it protects you from the heat around you." she answered while taking the second jewelry from Shadow and placing it on her wrist. Amy's eyes widened at the realization.
"No way! So any heat, even if its over one-hundred degrees, we still can't feel it?" Shadow nodded.
"Any heat, but the one thing that it can't protect us from is fire and lava, so you need to be careful of where you are and step. Otherwise, if you step into the volcano, or any other heated place, you'll feel nothing, but a cool breeze instead."
Amy smiled wide, now she didn't have to feel afraid if she burned alive inside just a few seconds of entering the volcano. "How long do these crystals last?" she asked.
Shadow looked down at his bracelet, then back to her. "There's several strung up, and fire crystals are more stronger and long lasting so we might have at least a few hours." he guessed.
"Let's hope this will last us longer. They say that Ebit Volcano is a very dangerous and easy place to get lost in." their angle wolf friend chimed in.
"Hey, we have the stone still. That's all we need so we can search for the fire element. We just need to keep our heads up and fight whatever is in our way." Amy proudly declared.
Alicia smiled and nodded to her while Shadow had no emotion to his face, but nodded himself. He was actually taken aback from how brave she was being. Maybe a few days in their world might've been enough for Amy to get a little used to it and possibly grow more courage. But in reality, Amy was honestly worried for this next part of their mission. Just looking at the scenery before them sent chills down her spine. The world looked very large with mountains on each side of the path and plenty of rocks, boulders, and many monsters that might come after them once they step in. The sky was a deep shade of red with a bit of black cloud forming around the entire part of land. They had only a mile, or two to reach the entrance to Ebit Volcano, but just by the looks of it, it was very intimidating than the dilapidated ruins of an old city. For the three, it was going to be a pretty challenging test of both skill and bravery to make it through the mountain of lave and fire.
...
Unbeknownst to three, a lime green hedgehog, cloaked in a black robe with only his eyes and muzzle was showing, was standing in a dark, round room. Candles with sinister, purple flames floated in the air, surrounding a large orb of glass. The room was dark, yet the candles had given enough light to illuminate the walls and floor of the room. The orb was set on a gigantic, monster hand, clutching the glass walls with it's three, grotesque fingers. Inside, a cloud of red floated gracefully around the walls of the orb as it created the image of the three travelers standing before the edge of the land of fire. The mobian smirked a wide grin, showing his piercing fangs as he watched eagerly as the three began their steady walk across the bridge.
"They have found the first element, I see.. Well, sad to say that their journey for the next element will surly be their last once they meet my loyal pet." the evil king smirked as his icy, blue eyes stared longingly on one of the three mobians in particular who was making her way across the bridge with her knight helping her along the way.