"SO! How do I fly?"
Rizotto sighed at Tangle's exuberance, shaking his head and smiling in exasperation. "Let's dial back first. But I have a question..." he pointed over to Jewel, who stood off to the side. "Why is Jewel here?"
"H-Hey," Jewel sheepishly waved. "Tangle dragged me here--"
The lemur was swift to butt in, sliding up to Jewel's side and pulling the beetle into a side hug. She grinned. "I thought it'd be a good idea if she joined in! That's cool, right?"
"I... suppose." Rizotto mused, blinking. "It'd help if Jewel knew how to defend herself. But only if she's okay with it."
Tangle turned to Jewel with wide, puppy-like eyes. Jewel tried to come up with a response, her gums flapping up and down. Ultimately, the beetle fell victim to the lemur's true weapon. Her adorableness. Jewel sighed and looked at Rizotto with an exasperated face. "Okay..."
The Earthling let out a sharp bark of laughter. It'd been about a week or so after the raid on Spiral Hill. Since then, coupled with helping the village rebuild, Tangle had been badgering Rizotto to teach her ki. Eventually the Earthling relented. He wasn't expecting the girl to bring Jewel along, but he wasn't complaining. More the merrier, he'd say. And besides, what he said was the truth. It wouldn't hurt for the beetle to learn how to defend herself.
That is how the trio found themselves in an open field on the outskirts of Spiral Hill Village. Rizotto let the morning breeze brush past his fur, releasing a calming breath, before taking a seat on the grass and crossing his legs. He eyed Tangle and Jewel silently. Quickly, the two followed his example and sat down. Tangle practically vibrated in her seat. She was eager to learn. It made him smile.
"There is something you both need to know before we start." Rizotto frowned seriously as he glanced between the two. "The art of ki can be seriously dangerous if misused."
"When you bring out your ki, you're going to be naturally stronger than most people. The more you train, the stronger and more powerful your ki grows along with you. While that's good, too much power can be misused. You could kiss the entirety of Spiral Hill and the surrounding area goodbye."
Tangle and Jewel's eyes widened in shock and horror at his words, and the seriousness behind them. Rizotto glanced between the two and closed his eyes with a nod, as he saw them begin to understand the gravity behind learning such a power. He hid the fact that there were beings capable of destroying planets. He didn't want to scare them more than he possibly already had.
"Now, let's get started." Rizotto smiled. "Like I told Tangle before, ki is life energy. The energy of all life in the universe. Planets, plants, animals, human, Islanders, all life possesses ki. Those with high spiritual aptitude and physical conditioning."
"The first thing you want to do, is taking a deep breath, close your eyes and clear your mind."
Tangle and Jewel followed his instructions easily enough. As they closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, Rizotto nodded and smiled. "Once you've done that, focus. Look deep within yourself... find a spark, and grasp it. Once you've done that, ease it out."
As they began to follow his instructions, albeit it slightly vague, Rizotto himself delved deeper into his own meditation. Searching through his ki--his very soul, he took in deep, calming breaths to ease his mind and nerves, and began calling upon his power.
It was slow at first, like droplets of water dripping into a bucket. But it grew, and spilled out. The warmth of ki spread throughout his veins. A welcoming comfort. But he pushed deeper, deeper into his resevoir of power, and pushed. His brows creased slightly, as it rose, and rose... before hitting an invisible wall. Rizotto restrained the urge to grunt, as he 'pushed' against the wall, trying to bust through and call upon the rest of his power, but he couldn't.
The more he did so, the more frustrated he got. To a point where he felt the urge to scream. Sweat rolled down his cheek and eventually, the Earthling found himself sighing. Like he thought. The rest of his power was well and truly cut off from him. He could only get a rough estimate that he was about a quarter of his full power.
Why? Why was his power locked off from him? Did it have something to do with the battle of Demigra? Did he push the Kaioken too far? Was it perhaps that mysterious power he unleashed during the climax of the fight? He recalled feeling an intense backlash, as though his body and soul threatened to tear itself to shreds...
It must have left some kind of impairment on his strength and ki.
That thought made Rizotto frown. If he was cut off from most of his power, who knew what would happen? He was still largely unaware of the threats this world had to offer. He'd only gotten a glimpse of the fighters' of this planet's power from Sonic and Blaze. He could tell both were holding back. And while they were far from the strongest he's felt, it was still surprising that they held so much dormant power within.
It made him curious about the potential of the other warriors this planet had to offer. The thought lifted his moods up. Rizotto was no Saiyan. He didn't live for the thrill of the battle, or the conquest... but he was a martial artist. And a martial artist must always seek to improve themselves.
"Woah!"
Rizotto was snapped out of his thoughts as he turned to Tangle, her eyes sparkling in awe as a ball of ki sparked between her hands before fizzling out. His eyes widened in surprise. He wasn't expecting her to catch on so quickly.
"Was that it?!" Tangle beamed, glancing at Rizotto with wide eyes.
"Uh... yeah." Rizotto mumbled, stupefied.
"Eh... I don't think I'm getting anywhere."
He turned to Jewel, who stared at her hands with a soft frown. The beetle soon sheepishly smiled and laughed softly. "I guess this ki thing isn't for me..."
"Don't say that." Rizotto shook his head, smiling. "You don't have to be discouraged. Like I said, a part of learning ki is having your body physically conditioned to handle it. I guess since Tangle has been fighting so much, with how athletic it is, it came naturally to her."
"Yeah! It was weird at first--but you'll get it, Jewel!" Tangle encouraged her best friend with a gigawatt smile. "Just keep at it and we'll be shooting lasers and flying in no time!"
Jewel blinked and giggled softly with a sigh, nodding her head. "Well, okay. I'll keep trying."
"That's the spirit!"
As Jewel went through the motions again, Rizotto turned towards Tangle and arches a brow. "Think you can bring it out again?"
"Uh--lemme see." Tangle muttered, closing her eyes and sucking in a deep breath. Her brows pinched together and she frowned deeply as a spark of light sputtered in her hands. She grimaced, digging deeper and trying to grab ahold of that feeling again.
After a moment, a small, tiny ball of light appeared in her hands. She blinked, opening her eyes and beaming brightly. "I did it again! I just did ki!"
Rizotto nodded, cupping his chin. "Right. Now all you have to do is hone it. Try making it bigger."
Tangle nodded and looked down at the ball of ki in her hands. She poked her tongue out in focus as the ball shrank and grew sproadically. It expanded again, and sweat matted her brow, before the light sputtered out and she groaned, slumping forward. "Blegh... this is a lot harder than I thought..."
"Don't strain yourself." Rizotto adviced softly, crossing his arms. "Remember. You're manipulating life energy. You need to regulate the amount of energy you use at the start, or you may end up passing out from exhaustion a lot... or worse."
Tangle's eyes widened a fraction, before swiftly sharpening as she nodded her head.
"Oh!"
Both teens turned towards Jewel. The prismatic beetle's eyes wide in surprise as she held a ball of ki in her hands, glowing with several unique colors. The two blinked owlishly, and Rizotto cocked his head to the side in raw confusion.
"... That was quick."
[SAGE]
The clacking of heels echoed through out the cold metal corridors of the Egg-Perial battleship. Several badniks scuttled out of the way as a woman who took on Islander form walked past. She was a fox, with fur as white as snow and sharp dark purple eyes, with a light blue muzzle and matching ear canals. Neatly combed bangs framed the right side of her face, followed by purple lipstick that glistened under the artificial light in the corridor.
She wore a white labcoat that reached down to her knees, the sleeves rolled neatly up and fastened with black buttons. Under the coat was a black and red high-neck mini dress that framed her curvaceous and slender form, with red heels adorning her feet.
Towa smiled enigmatically as the doors slid open with a mechanical hiss to the command room. She stepped through without much trouble, knowing exactly who was inside. Her eyes narrowing deeply at the dark silhouette that stared upon the monitors.
"Towa."
The deep mechanical voice made the disguised demon's ears perk up, red LED lights that operated as eyes honed on her. Stepping forward was a robot that resembled a hedgehog, with cobalt blue metal and jagged white marks adorning the massive spines. A metallic, mouthless muzzle, large black shoulder pauldrons, pointed shoes, razor sharp claws, and black waistcape.
Neo Metal Sonic stared at the woman impassively, before turning towards the monitors again. "Are the preparations nearly complete?"
Towa smiled at the metallic copy of this dimension's hero. The young woman found the partnership with Neo Metal Sonic... interesting. Certainly within her favor. The demoness didn't know how she ended up in this dimension. But after Chronoa's favored Future Warrior destroyed Mira, she'd retreated. Her plans halted until she could restore her greatest creation. However, a larger setback appeared.
She knew not why... but ruptures throughout space-time appeared throughout all of history. She happened to be caught in the epicenter of one, even with her powerful magic capabilities, and found herself thrown into a completely new dimension and... weaker and inferior body.
She was quick to deduce she was in an alternate dimension or possible universe. The reasons as to why were because the history did not align with her own. There was no knowledge of the Dragon Balls, or Saiyan invasions, or any notable events thtoughout the ages. No. This was... a new world. An unknown one.
While initially a setback, Towa found herself. being able to use it to her advantage. While this new body of hers was weaker, and most of her magical abilities locked off, this world had a strong abundance of mystical energy. Most of all, were the existence of mythical gems known as the Chaos Emeralds. Gemstones of godlike power, that when collected, would make one invincible.
Just one emerald, she found out through thorough research through the files in the Empire, was capable of generating near limitless energy that could power entire war fleets and cities. Why, she'd say these emeralds rivaled the Dragon Balls in potency. As of current however, the location of these gems were unknown. She would have to look for them in her own time.
Now however, was a different story.
While accimilating to the new world, Towa had found herself in the midst of the Eggman Empire due to the abundance of resources it had to offer to further her research. With the head of the Empire now MIA, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to steal equipment for her own agenda.
She'd encountered Neo Metal Sonic in the midst of her little escapade.
In her weakened state, even with her magic at her disposal, she was swiftly subdued and brought into custody. She was surprised at the speed at which the badnik was capable of moving. It reminded her of the Androids, and even Mira himself. However. She did not let herself get sidetracked.
While she interogated, the demoness managed to use her silver tongue to strike a partnership with the metal doppleganger. In exchange for her services, she would help him in his little dilemma. Neo was searching for Doctor Eggman, his creator and the true ruler of the Eggman Empire. While Towa used her intellect and magics to help search for the doctor, Neo in exchange would give her the resources and equipment needed for her own research.
And so, that led to now.
"The extractor is at 80% completion. It should be completed by the time we've arrived at Angel Island." Towa smoothly replied. crossing her arms under her chest. Her lips quirked up into a smirk at Neo's terse nod. "My, Neo... you seem tense. What could be the matter?"
Neo did not rise to her bait, spinning on his heel and staring at the past the monitors, and out the window, eyeing the sea of clouds before him. "My loathesome copy... he managed to escape again." he clenched a fist, his eyes burning with animosity. "It will not happen again."
Ah, yes... Sonic the Hedgehog. The famed Savior of Earth. Towa had researched the hedgehog thoroughly, combined with the notes left behind from Doctor Robotnik, and Neo's own assessments, the hedgehog was a fascinating specimen. While beneath her, he possessed speed that rivaled the fastest warriors of her own universe--no, dare say, he could potentially surpass them. There seemed to be no true limit to his speed, or his strength. With every battle, he grew stronger.
It reminded her of that fool Son Goku... and the Future Warrior. Which led a bad taste in her mouth.
The azure hedgehog had invaded their base and had a swift altercation with Neo. Towa stuck to the shadows, using the opportunity to compile her own data on the fighter. And she was impressed. He did not possess the sheer raw power of Universe 7's strongest, but his speed well made up for it. She would need a sample of his dna, figure out the source behind his power...
Ah. She was getting lost in her thougths again. Towa hummed, shifting on her feet and resting her cheek against her palm. Her long white, fluffy tail swaying behind her lazily. "You've copied his bio-data and have grown stronger because of it. Once we reach Angel Island, and obtain what we seek, your power will be unrivaled, and finding the doctor will be smooth sailing..."
She smirked as Neo slowly nodded. For all of the robot's boast of being the better, true Sonic, he still fell victim to one trait so many before him suffered from. Ego. And all she had to do was inflate it, and he was wrapped around her finger... it was simple, really.
"I'll leave you to your... brooding." Towa snarked, turning on her heel and walking out the room. "I must make sure these pieces of scrap do not screw up before we even make it to the island."
Neo watched as Towa went for the door. The vixen paused, and peered over her shoulder, shooting the robot a sharp stare. "... but I should warn you. There is a new warrior on the prowl. That might prove a threat to your little plan. So I would suggest keeping an eye out."
As the doors closed shut, Neo scoffed. Folding his arms over his chest and staring ahead with a blank stare. A new warrior? As if they would match up to him... the woman may have had intelligence that rivaled his Creator, but to have the gall to utter such words wad almost insulting.
... However. If there was such a warrior that could pose a threat as much as his loathesome copy, he welcomed the challenge.
He would crush them, along with Sonic and the rest of his idiotic friends...
And then, he would be the one, true Sonic.
[SAGE]
"Annnnnd, done!"
Rizotto grunted as he set down a large crate of medical supplies down on the counter in Spiral Hill's medical bay. The Earthling dusted his hands off and placed his hands on his hips with a smile. Doctor Bellwood walked forward, checking something off a notepad. The bear sent Rizotto a thankful smile.
"Thank you again, Rizotto. We've gotten a larger hull from Restoration as of late." Bellwood rubbed his beard with a hum. "And good thing, too. There are still a lot of people in recovery from the attack a week ago."
"Yeah..." Rizotto nodded, and turned to the side with a light-hearted stink eye. "Though it would have gotten done a lot quicker if someone pulled their weight."
The two looked over at Tangle, who was juggling a ball of ki in her hands before she noticed two stares boring into her. The lemur blinked and turned to look at the two. She grinned sheepishly and giggled as the ball of energy in her hands fizzled out.
Bellwood arched a brow. "Yes... quite the trick you've developed, Tangle."
""Long story."" Rizotto and Tangle said.
Bellwood let out a soft snort and chuckled. "I see."
"Rizotto! Tangle!"
The two blinked in surprise and turned just as Jewel flew in past the tarp with a look of alarm on her face. "T-The commander of Restoration is here to speak with you!"
Rizotto's brows rose, and Tangle's jaw slackened. ""Huh?""
Jewel shuffled to the side with wide eyes as a hedgehog Islander with pink quills and messy bangs; dressed in a red and white dress, boote, and white gloves with golden cuffs stepped into the room. She looked around the medbay inquisitively before spotting Rizotto and Tangle. She smiled kindly and stepped forward.
"Hi, Rizotto and Tangle? My name is Amy Rose." Amy greeted kindly. She frowned, as a look of seriousness crossed her face. "We could use your help."
...
""HUH?!""