Author's Note: After another writer's block that was so stubborn, plus the last several weeks been so crazy it left me no time to even write or think,(and the website having a big glitch again) finally a new chapter has officially been launched!
Onward and Starward, fellow readers!
I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog. All rights belong to Sega. I only own the OCs.
Chapter 15: Bundle of Trouble.
Around the same time that Sonic, Knuckles, Sun, Star, Yacker, Lily, the Hammer and Red-Spiky Wisps left to investigate the sightings of a Yeti and locate the second half of the shard, the rest of the heroes now waited anxiously for their friends' return while Tails had reparked the Blue Typhoon into a floating position in the ocean just in case.
Something was nagging at them, as things had gotten from bad to worse. Questions lingered in the air, answers invisible and left floating in the darkness waiting to be called into the light. Amy solmenly gazed through the window in silence, her chin resting in her palms. Nothing brought deep concern more to her than to see her beloved Sonic out there, and even after his miraculous recovery from his turmoil pain of guilt, grief and sorrow, it was still crystal clear the heroic hedgehog wasn't fully back to his normal as one would think.
Was Sonic alright now? What if he was in trouble? He seemed so happy, happier than ever before in the days passing his sixteenth birthday. All of his efforts reduced to nothing, for the linger of Cormain's darkness made him go back to his mis-placed self of sorrowfullness in the time of Dark Gaia's unpredicted and untimely awakening.
'Sonic...Please be okay.' Amy wanted so badly to return to her boyfriend's side.
Why did it have to be this way? Was fate that usually stood by him since the day he was born now turning corrupted against him? What did her sweet, beloved and cheerful hero ever do wrong? All these thoughts and feelings that had Sonic nearly engulfed by the whole thing all lead back to the one man fully responsible in ruining the teenager's life.
Eggman.
Amy's thoughts came to a screeching halt as a movement and sudden appearance of a gloved hand appeared in her point of view, a familiar boy's voice speaking out her name like a distant echo.
She let out a startled yelp, whirling around, eliciting a yelp from a startled Tails who stepped back a little.
"Tails! Don't scare me like that!" Amy scolded, a flustered glare lacing on her face.
"Sorry, Amy. It's just, you were looking pretty distracted you haven't even moved a single inch for the last few minutes." Tails ran his gloved hand behind his furry head, a sheepish smile very much clear.
Amy's mouth fell softly agape, her sorrow filling her eyes as she realized she had indeed zoned out a little too much.
"I was just thinking about Sonic," The pink hedgehog sighed, her gaze returning to the window, the beautiful yet enchanted sight of the Tropical Frost clear as far as the eye could see, icy terrians currently took hold of the once vast ocean-like planet. "Every time he gets back to normal, something else happens and lately it's getting to his emotions too easily."
Tails cocked his head to the side, confusion written on his face. Then, realization dawned, before smiling a little. "I'm sure Sonic will be okay. It was only just a few weeks since he and his counterpart destroyed Cormain, but he's getting better in returning to normal."
At least, he hoped his big bro was. It was really hard to tell these days. Normally Sonic was pretty good in hiding his feelings in every attempt to ensure none of his closest friends and family would worry. But the moment Eggman unleashed Dark Gaia, and unintentionally created both Sun the Hedgehog and the Werehog-Beast, everything changed. The blue blur's normally carefree, charismic and optimistic personally had plummeted to a sheer level.
Even during his recovery from such a traumatic experience, Sonic still felt solely responsible for the mad man's actions.
"Maybe so, but...that's not all that worries me. Cormain's darkness got to Spirit, right? Even if it's just a little bit, it's still enough to make the poor little thing cause the Lunina Comet to shatter. What if...what if Cormain predicted this and the Octosaurs weren't the ones to release that substance? What if he did it himself to revenge on Sonic by using either us or the Wisps for leverage?" Amy sorrowfully stated.
A silence crept between them, Tails opened his mouth, but the reassurances he seemed to be about to give died on his tongue as his eyes met the female hedgehog's. She's right. Time and Space may have been saved and the Multiverse no longer at risk(or so he hoped), there was a possible chance that the evil Space Eater could have done this to exact revenge.
Deep down he was just as worried. Amy's words rang like a tornado only increasing it's destructive strength, deafening one's hearing, tearing the insides like thin pieces of paper, or someone simply blowing a tower of cards down and ruining the hard work in building it. Tails tried not to let his gaze fall, but his heart sank with his own questions now beginning to emerge.
What if Amy was right? If Cormain did predict it, could that mean...there might be a possible chance he could actually make a return and start over his plans in recreating all realities into his image?
'I wish there was a way to talk to Mr. Soloman without going into that scary Prison of Evil. But Sonic wouldn't want to go back there, 'cause it's too dangerous.' Tails thought. The more he did, the more his very pure heart sank and leaped into his throat and back into his stomach, like a pogo stick or a bouncy ball on repeat and not stopping. Or even a yo-yo.
Thinking back to the times when he himself felt utterly useless, helpess, losing faith and afraid, Tails could always rely on Sonic to make him feel better. But then everything changed when Dark Gaia was unleashed, breaking away Sonic's own shield that kept his vulerablility hidden from others, losing faith within himself bit by bit, even during his own recovery.
With not just that, but with anything...especially now with the Wisps which was unfortunately slowly undoing all of the blue heddgehog's hard work of healing and draining away the happiness he regained in the last three weeks.
"I can't get over it, Tails. I tried, and I'm still trying to not let it get to me...But it's a lot harder than I thought."
"Just the very thought of them letting me use their powers is horrible. What if I use too much by accident? I...I can't bear the thought that they're dying because of not just Eggman, but me for making a mistake. It's...It's bad enough about what happened two months ago because of me."
"I should have done something sooner. I should've stopped him when I had the chance, but I had no idea where he was when Dark Gaia sent him flying."
"...I know I can't trust myself anymore."
"...This whole thing is all my fault. If anyone other than Eggman is to blame for what happened back then and now, it's me."
"I'm sorry...! I'm so sorry, little buddy! If only I knew...If only I...If only I haven't been so busy feeling down for myself, I would've...I would've been there for you like I should've been...I should've...been there to help you...to support you...to realize that you've grown up so fast ever since we met...It's all my fault...! I'm...I'm a horrible best friend and big brother..."
"...If anything, I've been a much bigger coward. But it's you and everybody else who keep me going, to keep me on my toes even though it doesn't always work out due to my arrogance and ignorance."
"I...I don't want to make enemies out of everybody I care about and love, especially the sweet and kind and gentle and fun Wisps...All of this mess is because of me...!"
"...I just can't help but feel like the whole peace we've worked so hard for is shattering because of my stupidity. I thought that once Eggman was gone the whole universe would be in peace. But each time I was wrong, and just when I thought things could finally go back to the no-Eggman-normal, like on my birthday, another crisis starts up. Even though things aren't as bad as before, what if-what if it gets worse?"
"This is all my fault. I never should've wasted two whole months in self-pity. I should've gone after Eggman and stopped him from building...from building his stupid Interstellar Amusement Park."
"Even worse, I can't change it because it would only not only bring Eggman back, but make everything in the last three months even worse. Now Spirit's gone down the wrong path just to get to me..."
"...It's because of me that Spirit and the Wisps that are following him are turning against you and everybody else just so he could force me and Tails to stay on Planet Wisp. If I had stayed, none of this would've happened." Sonic pointed out, a few tears silently sliding free as he lowered his gaze a little. "I messed everything up. Maybe I haven't learned my lessons after all..."
It broke Tails' heart in so many ways, it felt as though somebody had put in fireworks inside it, letting it explode and shattering it into pieces. All the reassurances the young fox cub put into restoring his big brother's faith seemed to be all for naught, despite the blue hedgehog bouncing back, his determination being restored. But that was really only temporarily.
Yet, the Mother Wisp was right about one important thing: hero or not, Sonic is still very young himself, only having just turned sixteen and he has put on the heavy weight of being the hero onto his shoulders so much, he felt that Mobius had worshiped him wrongly that he had no choice but to be the hero everybody wanted. However, it was Tails' faith in Sonic, as well as everybody else, their support and their deep love that kept him going, because they would never, ever, abandon him.
In the end, the only way to solve all of this is to find all of the shards, to pass all of Spirit's tests and restore everything back to normal. This includes Sonic's happiness, especially now when he had the best birthday ever, having so many friends and family, and after ten long years, reunited with his beloved uncle whom he thought he lost forever. Tails was so happy to see the cheerful, bright smile again, his usual perky, adventurous and cocky personality, and deep warmth of compassion that radiated like a bright light spreading to many others.
'I have to be stronger, not just for me, but for Sonic and everybody else too. Sonic kept our faiths alive and encouraged us to not give into sadness. Now it's our turn to keep doing so for him!' Tails mentally narrowed his eyes, determination burning deep into his chest, it replaced the sadness and guilt seeking to drown his heart.
And unlike all of their previous adventures, at least this one involved in restoring worlds and saving Spirit from a small linger of darkness. It wasn't easy, but they managed to get one and a half shards thus far. They can do this, no matter what it takes!
"Well, Sonic did stop evil a lot of times before, didn't he?" The young kitsune pointed out, attempting to still remain optimistic about it with a light shrug. "As long as we believe in him, everything will be okay. We're in this together, even in spirit. Plus, this is nothing compared to all of our adventures in the last five months, right?"
That was true, now that Amy thought about it, gazing at her second youngest friend, who thanks to Sonic, had grown so much onto her that like her boyfriend, she saw the adorable little fox cub as a little brother. Thinking back now, despite all of the tough times her dearly beloved had gone through lately, venturing out through each world looking for the comet shards was almost like a cake walk.
So this was far more easier than the previous times, and a lot more fun too, giant mutated monsters created by the shards and being inside a giant whale aside in order to save it's life. Not to mention that the Mischief Five's intentions were not deadly or for domination...more into wanting to create a misguided formation of the universe. But it was Spirit's childish and selfish desires(more darkly influenced by Cormain's darkness) in keeping Sonic and Tails forever was what worried her the most.
Other than that, they were pretty luck so far, and with Knuckles, Sun and Star by his side, Sonic would be safe.
"Yeah...You're right, Tails," Amy finally nodded, a soft, warm and emotional smile litting up her face. Feeling the need to express her gratitude and love, the pink hedgehog reached over to gently wrap her arms around the two-tailed fox who, smiling back happily, didn't hesitate to return the much needed hug. "Living without Sonic or you would've been more distressing. You're one of the sweetest boys I've ever met. I wish you were brought into the family a lot sooner than five years ago."
"Thanks, Amy. But even if that did happen or not, it won't change our friendship. I'm really happy that you and Sonic are finally together. I'll admit it, though, I didn't think it would happen so soon." Tails replied, nuzzling his face onto his friend's shoulder.
The female teen giggled, moving back a little as she playfully pinched her younger friend's cheek. "Well, if you ever find a girl you really like, I hope she'll be as pretty and sweet and right just for you."
"A-Amy!" The nine year old cub giggled in protest, gently moving his friend's hand away from him with the two sharing a laugh. "Anyway, if anybody can solve this problem, it's Sonic, and we're gonna be there for him all the way."
"Right! Plus, without Eggman around to annoy us, we can handle it without any more big problems!" Amy agreed, now feeling much better and beginning to become more determined. Her worries, while still there, began to ease a little as she knew that whenever Sonic did need help, all he had to was ask for it.
Tails nodded, both friends turning back to gaze out of the horizon through the window, their silent prayers for their friends' safe return and that soon enough, like Sweet Mountain, Aquarium Park would be restored to it's original state. But there was one thing that will always continue to grow.
It was their bond for each other, their friends, families and many in their home world, as well as the world of the Wisps.
The icy cavern seemed to stretch on, a maze of ice and crystal in a similar fashion too Eggman's construction site. Except the white, cold ceiling above the four Mobians and little Wisps blocked the view of the ocean blue. Careful with their steps to avoid slipping or even cracking the cavern, the dangers of a flood surreal that the heroes knew they had to insure the safety of the Yeti, the Wisps and themselves, eyes and ears on high alert for any sudden movement of the awol creature, Sonic, Knuckles, Sun, Star and the Wisps marveled more of the transformative frozen ice.
Unfortunately, being inside this place a lot more longer than he had hoped for began to unsettle the hero of Mobius. A sense of unease crawled through his skin, his breathing becoming quite shaky with a nervous glance at the thick white frosty walls, his heart's beat feeling a similar chill his soul and mind held, flashes of drowning should this cave flood and cave in slowly overwhelming his senses.
The windows made of thin but surprisingly thick ice viewing the water outside with sea creatures swimming about didn't ease his fears.
'Oh man...Why does it always have to be underwater? Why can't the Yeti just entered an ice cave that's above it, or that giant castle?' Sonic couldn't help but dread for the worst, memories of his previous visit still lingering in his mind.
For a very odd and gross reason, despite being trapped without any way of viewing the outside world or even a way out even by going through the front 'door' or the blowhole, and quite possibly feeling like it was a mobile prison, the blue hedgehog felt a bit safer being inside the giant whale whenever it could swallow him up whole alive.
He then began to wonder if his gigantic sea friend thought he actually tastes good. The very idea of being licked, the slimy, soft, massive tongue on his skin made it crawl, the creeping chills like a hot, wet, thick and disgusting goo substance with a blizzard chill threatening to form a whimper into his throat. The instant he thought of that horrible, vivid image, however, Sonic quickly shook his head, shooing away such a terrible idea. Nope! Definitely not going through that again! Never again for the rest of his life or the rest of the eternity! Ugh, this place was making his paranoia get even worse. Darn water!
"This place is incredible..." Star breathed out in a softness of awe, amazed by the sights surrounding them. "I wonder if we're already underneath the Ice Palace or perhaps even a tunnel leading to the upper floor."
"I dunno about that, but the upper floor sounds pretty good right about now." Sun on the other hand was having opposite thoughts from his girlfriend. Like Sonic, the former Werehog held concerns should this place actually crack, increasing the dangers of them drowning.
Sure, the orange hedgehog had made an improvement in his swimming lessons, two weeks ago in fact, asking Espio to continue teaching him with an idea in taking the blue hedgehog with next time. One glance at the cobalt teen, however, his violet eyes caught the quivering mass of his brother's unease, and if he didn't know any better, the prickling soft, but audiable sounds of a whimper rose like a knob or a switch turning up the volume of a radio.
"Sure hope we'll find the Yeti soon, 'cause I don't wanna be around when this place caves in or shatters and then floods." Sonic gulped, a sweat drop formed. He fought off the urge to whimper even higher, fighting for control of his arms which twitched and jiggled ever so slightly, his fingers itching to rise for his upper thighs and shoulders.
"You mean like if something causes a sea-quake?" Knuckles, unable to resist in teasing his younger friend, questioned snarkly right before he stomped hard, the floor and walls shaking, the loud boom of the rocking impact with his incredible strength echoing like a giant's footstep or an Earthquake magitude.
Sonic jumped a few feet into the air screaming in fright, his heart frantically beating right before he coiled his arms and legs onto a nearby salamite, a tight grip around the piece of sharp, arrow-like ice while ignoring the super cold pressed against his thin fur and skin, whimpering loudly.
"Knuckles! Don't scare him like that!" Star scolded angrily, hands finding their place firmly on her hips.
"Seriously, that wasn't funny. And what if you do cause this place to collapse?" Even Sun wasn't amused by the echidna's actions, while the Wisps let out startled and surprised squeaks, before Yacker flew over sympathetically to Sonic who had his eyes squeezed shut as though bracing himself for the worst.
Despite feeling a bit guilty for not realizing it sooner, the echidna teen couldn't help but snicker in amusement for Sonic's aquaphobia and reaction like a small child.
"And this is the example why you should get over your fears, Sonic." Knuckles half-teased, a grin smeared on his muzzle.
Sonic let out a soft growl, an annoyed glare cast at his older friend. "Yeah, well, for some reason I still feel a bit safer being inside a giant whale 'cause at least then the big guy can just put me inside his safety storage room without becoming his appetizer. Only downside is that there are no windows, soft beds, couchs or movies."
"(That sounds scary and disgusting.)" Lily remarked, disbelief shining in her eyes.
"I said a bit safer. That doesn't mean I'm all for going through that again," Sonic gave out a sheepish grin, realizing he had unintentionally creeped out the Wisps. "But if I had to choose, whales are a lot harder to break since they're soft both inside and out."
The tangerine former clone was about to agree with his brother, but the faint, odd sounds filled his ears, causing them to twitch with Sun's eyes widening. He turned sharply to his right, brows narrowed in anticipation. The noise was getting louder. It took him a few seconds to conclude that they were not alone, aside the Icy/Snow Monsters looming the colder parts of Tropical Frost.
"Speaking of inside and out, I think we're about to get outta here shortly. We've got company." Sun perked up, pointing to the huge doorway just about ten feet from where they were.
The rest of the group all turned to see that the tangerine hedgehog was right. A large archway shaped entrance to another room was seen with a looming shadow, fast in pace, it's shape no doubt of the Yeti itself, creeping towards where they were. This put them on edge with the cobalt speedster quickly withdrawing from the salamite, getting to his feet with his anxiety over the water forcefully pushed into the back of his mind.
"Get ready, guys. Convincin' the Yeti to come with us won't be easy, and we don't have an abominiable snowman translator." Sonic half-whispered, caution and seriousness in his voice. He prepared himself for possibly a difficult time to reason with the Snow Tribian without the risk of a fight.
But as his friends got ready for the worst, instead of a monstrous roar they were expecting, a unusual squeak-like yell echoed through the icy walls, in a harmless, cheerful and...playful way? Finding themselves baffled while remaining on their guard, the group felt the tensions rise when the sillhouette of the Yeti raced along, the ground shaking by each racing foot steps.
"For a Yeti, it sure sounds like it's a little bit fast..." Knuckles softly remarked, one eye-ridge with confusion growing across his face.
"The Yeti are pretty powerful and masters of climbing and jumpin'." Sonic stated, his heart racing a little and shivering with the mixture of anxiety and the coldness the cave produced.
When the aforementioned snow creature finally emerged from the corner and the Mobians and the Wisps quickly prepared themselves with determination to try and calm things down, what they saw was half-unexpected. The baby Yeti came clapping it's hands happily with a giggle of excitement, dancing along the moment it stopped, bouncing away like a toddler excited for ice cream or a brand new toy.
"Huh!?" Sonic, Sun, Knuckles and Sun gaped, dumbstruck. That was...the Yeti that came here!?
It was no bigger than them! In fact, the Snow Tribian was the exact same size as the three hedgehogs and echidna.
"(Uh...?)" Yacker, Lily, the Hammer and Burst Wisps all sweat dropped at the size of the snow beast and how extremely friendly it was, slow, dumbfounded blinks simulating from each of them. Not to mention quite youung as well. It was no bigger than Sonic!
"What the?" The teenage Guardian blinked, his mind quickly gone blank. "You sure that's a Yeti?"
"Sure is, but I thought he was bigger. Not Korso sized big, but still huge enough to wreck stuff." Even the hero of Mobius, with a perplexed shrug, couldn't comprehend why this Yeti was smaller than the rest of the Snow Tribe besides their King and father being the biggest of them all.
"I think I know why. It's only a baby Yeti." Star, carefully watching the child's movements and her eyes mentally widening in realization, whispered.
"Say what!?" Sonic half-gasped, recoiling while Knuckels and Sun shared incredulously expressions and the Wisps flinched, dumbfounded. "A baby? Are you kidding?"
"Nope. It's a infant. Look at what he's doing," Star gestured at the child Yeti, making the boys take another look and saw it was behaving. "Playful, easily excited, and giggling...Only infants or very small children would behave like this."
Carefully watching the youngster's movements, the baby Yeti twirling around with fascinated glances around it's surroundings of the cave and the windows, giggles escaping the moment it saw more sea creatures in the water, Sonic and the others soon realized that Star was right, realization dawning with everything they have seen earlier.
"Whoa...I've seen the other Yeti being Korso's kids before, but I've never saw one this young and small. Must've been born not so long ago." The cobalt hedgehog's fingers ran along his quills, scratching his scalp. He couldn't believe that the Yeti they had been following was so young.
Suddenly this just became more awkward and complicated. How in the Galaxy were they going to bring this kid back to Mobius?
"Yeah, no wonder the footprints were so small." Sun shrugged, just as awkward as brother was feeling. This...might take a bit longer than they thought. 'Great, now we have to deal with another misbehaving kid.'
"I can't believe we're dealing with a kid of a Yeti...Since when did I join this babysitting service?" Knuckles grunted with his eyes squeezed shut to hold off the urge to scream, quickly irritated that the situation morphed from dangerous to absolutely difficult...and ridiculous.
"You babysit a giant glowing rock 24/7, Knux." Sonic teased, his most evil look glinting in his eyes while nudging his friend's arm. The response he got was the echidna glaring irritatingly back with gritted teeth. Instead of being intimidated, the blue hedgehog just stifled a laugh.
"That's different...!"
"(But what is a baby Yeti doing here?)" Lily gazed at the Mobians, concern already sweeping across her small body, and the rest of the Wisps' expression told her that they all shared the same feeling.
"My guess? The kid wandered off from home and found the portal, so now we gotta get him...er...or her...back before Korso's tribe have a panic attack." Sonic shrugged, sweat dropping worriedly.
"Or go on another rampage a la the Myth Hunting Loser Saga." His former clone deadpanned, his hands firmly on his hips at the reminder.
The memories of how Holoska had suffered a five year treatment of the Yeti attacks due to Kaiser's horrible actions in killing one of their own made the sixteen year old softly gasp, colour draining from his face and his heart freezing cold, worse than the icy temperature of the transformed world they were currently in. Sun was right, if they didn't get the child Yeti back to it's family, history could repeat itself due to a misunderstanding. Worse part is, Sonic could actually see it happening in his mind.
'Ah, great...This is a nightmare gone worse...!' Sonic held back the urge to groan in dismay, let alone face palm himself and sighed. "Well, here goes..."
Deciding to take a careful approach, Sonic began to take slow, careful steps over to the young Yeti who was now pretending it was dancing along with more Dolphins that happened to be swimming back, it's arms spread out, it's feet slightly twisting in a curl in a grace of a child dancing at a birthday party or a play at school.
"Hey, uh...little-big-guy." The blue hedgehog began, awkwardly but in a controlled and calm voice. Thankfully it worked, as the young Yeti blinked in confusion, turning to see that it wasn't alone. Sonic gave the child a soft smile while the others stood by. "You okay? It's alright, we're not gonna hurt you. We're here to help you. We're your friends."
The baby Yeti blinked, curious over the appearance of the Mobians and Wisps. More specfically at the blue hedgehog than anything else, it's head tilting to the side with an adorable, confused blink.
"My name's Sonic: Sonic the Hedgehog." Sonic continued softly, placing a hand to his chest.
While the baby Yeti was still far too young to fully understand the dangers of the world, and not mature enough to gain full memories, it continued to gaze at Sonic before a vivid image in it's mind formed: Dream-like images of it's point of view of the cave of Holoska, with it's family, the Snow Tribe, and the cave drawings carved by rock and dust as they had been showing it stories of the past, including the heroics of a very brave blue hedgehog who made a difference in restoring harmony between humans and the Yeti. One picture in particular was what stood out the most. That of the hedgehog standing on the palm of Korso's hand in a peaceful negotication, the two sharing gazes, shaking hands formalizing a friendship of alliance for many years to come.
"Oooh...Oooh!" The baby Yeti cooed happily all of the sudden, it's mind returning to reality, recognition over the blue hedgehog's very appearance, clapping it's hands in excitement before it ran over to the group who flinched in right.
"Hey, whoa-AH!" Sonic yelped in alarm when he was suddenly grabbed by the child who held him by the waist, it's hands being no bigger than his head, and gave him a great big hug.
"Sonic!" Knuckles, Sun and Star exclaimed, worriedly while the Wisps let out panicked squeals, Lily placing two tentacles on her face in horror.
"Bluey! Bluey! Bluey!" The Yeti cheered, cuddling and snuggling the increasingly uncomfortable and struggling teenage hedgehog, who grunted in discomfort while trying to wriggle and pull himself free, futilessly squeezing his way out of the admittedly strong arms, his legs swinging, his hands pressed into the surprisingly warm fur. But the child had such strength that he was trapped within the kid's grasp.
"H-Hey! Nice for you to give me a nickname, but c-can you please let me go?" Sonic pleaded, strained as known in his voice, air being squeezed out from his lungs and feeling like he was about to get crushed to death.
And he thought Amy's hugs were uncomfortable back before they officially became a couple. To be fair, his girlfriend was smaller, but was far stronger, while the Yeti were huge and powerful. Not to mention this kid wasn't even at most of the Tribian-sizes yet.
Unfortunately, the baby Yeti had no intentions of letting him go, swaying side to side like a cuddly teddy bear, which is what it thought of Sonic as though he was it's new favorite stuffed toy animal, ideas of having every desire to keep him for itself forever radiating it's happiness and no understanding. In it's young mind, Sonic the Hedgehog was a hero and a toy for the child to have lots of fun with. It wanted to bring him home with it.
"Bluey! Bluey, Bluey, Bluey, Bluey, Bluey!" It continued to cheer on, nuzzling it's face onto Sonic's head like a teddy bear while the hedgehog shivered, fearing that he was about to be squashed to death.
"Guys! H-help me!" Sonic exclaimed, reaching out in desperation, one hand in a pleading manner. "Do something, quick!"
"We're coming, Sonic!" Knuckles called out, making to force the Yeti to let go of his friend, but was surprisingly pushed back by Star who quickened her steps first. The force caused him to stumble back and unintentionally slip on the ice clumsily. "Whoa-whoa-whoa-Omph!"
He fell face-first on the floor, his muzzle planted and squashed into the cold, frozen water, groaning before glaring up at the lavender hedgehog. "What was that for!?"
"I know you're worried about Sonic, but this Yeti is just a baby! We have to get him to let our friend go with descipline." The teenage girl hedgehog scolded, hands once more on her hips with a glare of her own.
"She has a point." Sun shrugged in agreement.
"Any time you're ready!" The blue hedgehog screamed in the background, a frantic wave of his arms trying to get his friends' attention, still struggling to avoid in being choked or crushed. "Help! HELP!"
"Bluey! Bluey, Bluey! Bluey, Bluey, Bluey!" It squealed in pure excitement, refusing to let the blue hedgehog go, the softness and warmth of the hedgehog's body set loose a delightful squeak would have the scene more cute if Sonic's life and freedom were not on the line.
"Sonic!" Sun had his hands on his head in frantic panic, horror mounting quickly before turning to his girlfriend and the others. "Any idea how to save him before the kid really gets away!?"
"Here, let me try." Star gently held out her arm, before she approached the young child.
The baby Yeti continued to smother and unintentionally choke the squirming Sonic, but then then stopped when felt a gentle gloved hand belonging to Staria Amantha on it's arm, semblance of a smile had gently flickered onto her lips. It paused in it's cuddling moment with it's new 'toy', gazing at lavender hedgehog, curiosity forming once more.
"Please put our friend down, sweetie. I know you want to play with him, but you need to be more gentle. We'll play with you after we take you back home to your family, okay?" Star whispered, her fingers slowly smoothed through the infant's thick, warm white fur, her voice soft and a bit firm but also motherly.
It tilted it's head to the side, before gazing at Sonic who shrugged as much as he could, his lips quirked into a smile. Pouting before somewhat understanding, the baby Yeti then finally let the blue hedgehog go.
Sonic, now freed and gently put down, wheezed and panted for air, clutching his chest slightly one hand as though he nearly had a heart attack. He then groaned with a sweat drop. "Boy, this kid sure is pretty strong and fast, just like the rest of his family."
"(Are you hurt, Sonic?)" The Hammer Wisp hovered over, deeply concerned as were the rest of the Wisps who floated about their heroic Mobian friend who let out a sigh, quickly recovering.
"Nah, I'm okay. Thanks for askin'." The blue hedgehog reassured, a look of relief washed over his features while he ran the back of his head over his forehead to rid the invisible sweat that perched his fur.
For a while there, he actually thought the baby Yeti really was going to keep him for the rest of his life. Sonic mentally gulped, shuddering with his heart sinking a little while leaping into his throat. It was already bad enough that the younger Wisps, especially under Spirit's direction as well as the influence of Cormain's darkness, wanted to have him and Tails stay on Planet Wisp forever.
'I really need a vacation after all of this. Maybe me and the gang can spend some time with Mom, Dad and Uncle Chuck in Green Hill.' Sonic let out a mental sigh, the hard realization that he really was an influence on people.
Sometimes being a hero had more cons than pros. Especially with crazy fans that just wouldn't give him or his loved ones any privacy.
"Okay, now that we found the kid, any idea how we can get it back to the portal without losing it?" Sun questioned impatiently, the sheer relief that Sonic wasn't taken away by force sweeping across him. That had been far too close for comfort.
Given the upset expression it had, it was pretty clear that the baby Yeti thought it had it's new toy taken away.
"I could carry him, but he'll most likely squirm without holding still." Knuckles grumbled, crossing his arms.
"We could always have it play tag to the where the portal is," Sonic suggested half-sarcastically. "Guess this would be a time to call in Speed, but I wanna have him take a much needed break. So, I'm pretty much stumped."
As the friends spoke, the young Yeti then noticed how Yacker was waving his arm in the usual way, so the infant, still not fully understanding, copied the Wisp. This in turn had the rest of the group let out soft chuckles, except for Knuckles who raised an eye ridge.
"Heh, or we could let him play 'Follow the Leader'." The cobalt speedster jested, his grin perky and bright as it usually was. Sun snorted in amusement while Star stifled her giggles, and Knuckles just gazed skyward, slightly exasperated.
"(Follow the Leader?)" Lily asked, perplexed. The way how she tilted her head slightly to the side, one of her tentacles close to her face had given her the adorable expression of melting the four Mobians' hearts even the teenage echidna wasn't immune to.
"It's a game that's been around since even before our parents were born." Sonic shrugged, a sheepish smile that came with the realization that the Wisps still had a lot to learn about the culture of Mobius, and the way life worked back at home.
Yet an idea bloomed into Star's mind, sparkles glittering in her periwinkle eyes with a soft gasp escaping her mouth. "Follow the Leader...That's it!"
"Huh?" The boys murmured, casting confused looks at the female hedgehog.
"Sonic, the baby sees you as a friend," The lavender hedgehog continued. "If you can get him to play that game, he'll follow you to the portal back to Holoska."
Almost instantly realizing what she meant, Sonic's eyes widened before he chuckled confidently with a playful wink. "Gotcha! Just leave it to me. Thanks, Star!"
He turned to the baby Yeti who was still busy being fascinated by the area around it, before the blue hedgehog gently patted the child on the shoulder to get it's attention. "Hey, kiddo. Wanna play a game?"
The baby Yeti blinked, smiling when Sonic gave it a playful expression. "I know just the game we can play. Ever played follow the leader before?"
"Oh?" The baby Yeti tilted it's head slightly to the side, curiosity as while it couldn't speak yet, it did somehow have a memory of the name of the game before as an vivid image of a young human girl beaming a smile at it, being one of it's friends.
'Okay, I admit it. This kid may be a Yeti, but he's seriously way too cute.' Sonic thought fondly at just how adorable the kid's confused expression was. It reminded him when he first met Tails, and all the times they played together when they were younger in the first several months of their bonding as best friends and brothers for life.
"It's a game where other people follow somebody to do things to have fun," The sixteen year old continued, a smirk growing on his muzzle. "For example, uh...Raise your arm, just like this."
Sonic rose his right arm, high skyward to formiate a demonstration of Follow the Leader game. The Baby Yeti, curious as it already, yet unknowingly, had been playing the game during it's little adventure, rose a left arm to copy the hedgehog's mirror-like movements.
Sonic let out a delight, delicate chuckle of improvement. "See? That's how you play. Either me or my friends make a movement, you do the same, and if say, you're the leader, we follow your movements. Sound good?"
The response he received was the baby Yeti forming a bright, cheerful smile, giggling away happily before throwing it's large arms around the blue hedgehog, who flinched in fright with a yelp escaping seconds later when he found himself back into the strong arms' tightening grip, snuggled like a kid hugging it's favorite toy. Sonic winced, air in his lungs being squeezed out, trying to pry himself free as hard but gentle as he could. To make matters worse, behind him, Knuckles's hand found it's way to cover his mouth to mute his amused snickering, Sun shaking his head, shrugging in exasperation, both of Star's hands covering her own mouth to muffle her giggles, and even the Wisps found themselves admiring at the adorable scene, yet sympathizing Sonic's dilemma.
"If I ever have kids someday, sure hope they don't take after Amy's super-tight hugs...!" Sonic murmured, his helpless gaze cast at the readers/viewers, breaking the fourth wall once more.
This could take a complicated while.
As it turns out, taking care of babies was a lot harder than it looked. Even with playing following the leader, Sonic and his friends, despite having some fun with the infant, found that the child Yeti was easily too entertained with virtually everything it could lay it's eyes upon and even the Burst Wisp was quickly disillusioned by their surroundings as they were making their way back to the entrance in hopes of locating the portal towards Holoska back home.
"Man, looking after Tails, Cream and Cheese were a lot more easier than this," Sonic groaned, one arm shrugging, his free hand resting against his hip, a quirked eye-ridge of disbelief. He and his friends looked over their shoulders to find both the baby Yeti, the Burst Wisp, and the Hammer Wisp playing aronud, flapping their arms, or tentacles, like they were wings of birds taking off in the sky. "Makes ya' wonder how Korso managed to handle these Yeti kids."
"(And I thought looking after my new brothers and sisters was hard enough,)" Yacker shook his head, exasperated. He turned his gaze at his blue hedgehog friend, concern and uncertainty resurfacing in his cute single eye. "(Are you sure you still want to try and look after them if Mama and I take a vacation, Sonic?)"
"Hey, even you guys need a break. I know it won't be easy, but at least it's not as hard as tryin' to take care of a baby Yeti." The cobalt speedster gave his friend a reassuring smile, yet his own concerns and doubt were slowly creeping in.
Maybe taking care of the younger Wisps even for just a little bit in Yacker and the Mother Wisp's absence wasn't such a good idea after all, but the hero of Mobius wanted to help them out, and at least give the baby aliens some sort of pleasure in having him around for at least a week. But the task in carefully lure the child Yeti back to Mobius was proving to be a difficult task and the kid was Mobian size!
"Wait, wait. You're actually volunteering to babysit the Wisps when this is over?" Sun gazed at his brother, perplexed. Knuckles and Star, both twice as baffled with expressions as though Sonic had lost his mind.
"Well, yeah. Me and Yacker talked about it earlier, 'fore our Whale friend showed up," Sonic lightly shrugged, his expression softening upon the bewildered looks his friends held. "I promise that I'll be home when he and his Mom get back from their much needed vacation. How else do ya' think my parents had bit of a less trouble with me before Uncle Chuck got trapped in the Prison of Evil? I only had a babysitter once or twice."
"Do you think Spirit will allow you to go home? Even without Cormain's darkness, he could still attempt to convince you to stay for much longer." Knuckles crossed his arms, not fully trusting this idea.
"Hey, just because the baby Wisps really like me and Tails, even most of them know I can't stay forever. Eventually they'll learn. Besides, it's not like a group of villagers are gonna try and guilt trip me into staying just for being nice." The blue hedgehog pouted, arms crossed with annoyance crossing over.
Silence, besides the squeels of excitement and playfulness from the child Yeti and the younger Wisps with the exception of Lily, echoed through the Icy Cave, Knuckles, Sun and Star only staring at Sonic, deadpanned.
"Well...Maybe not here, but it could be possible in an alternate reality or two," Sonic conceaded, a sheepish grin and a shrug combined over his friends' expressions. "But my point is that everybody needs a break once and a while. Heh, even evil monsters need some sleep, right?"
"Let's talk about this later," Knuckles held up a hand, an exasperated sigh escaping as he wondered what got his friend into thinking such a risky idea. "Our main problem right now is taking this Yeti kid back home to Mobius."
"(Easier said than done, especially with Flame being easily distracted as well.)" Lily groaned, her gaze set upon the aforementioned newly identified Burst Wisp who continued to play Follow the Leader with the Baby Yeti who was bending up and down and the little alien copied the child.
Realization of his friends' concerns weighing down his heart like a heavy sandbag, Sonic lowered his eyes, his ears drooping against his skull, despont. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all, maybe Yacker was right. Rubbing his arms as though feeling more than just the slight chill from the underwater icy cave, discomfort over what the future would bring, the Hero of Mobius shifted his legs ever so slightly, trying to figure out what to do now besides the obvious.
'Maybe I should talk to Yacker's Mom about this and see what she thinks. I hope she's doin' okay. But...why did Cormain's darkness pick Spirit as a host? He's just a kid himself!' The more Sonic thought about this, the more maybe the evil monster thought ahead and really did use the Wisps to his advantage against the blue hedgehog.
Well, if it was the case, at least it was here in this Timeline and not in any of his other counterparts'. Especially Young Sonic and Scourge. If it had been either one, THAT would have been ten times worse.
"You're right. One problem at the time." Sonic finally lamented, shaking away all of those thoughts. He knew that now wasn't the time to think about the ongoing drama of what the future would bring, yet all that continued to make his heart sink deeper and deeper.
Once upon a time, the hero of Mobius always looked forward to what the future would bring, the new day with many new challenges and excitement, the thrills of taking out Eggman's robots or teach a bunch of baddies and bullies a lesson to not pick on others, adventures calling out to him, friends, old and new, to gather around together and have tons of fun.
Now, even with familiar territories he and his friends were venturing into, the changes of the Lunina Comet and the curse of Cormain's darkness have all but made the future very uncertain, the outcome of what could happen next more than enough to bring Sonic the Hedgehog down into fearing the more darker possibilities if nothing was done to sort things out to bring about peace, happiness and harmony once more. How could he have messed up all of this?
'Ugh! I'm doing it again! Snap out of it, Sonic!' The blue hedgehog violently shook his head in a psyhical manner this time, eyes squeezed shut, patting his cheeks to get a grip on himself and reality.
While the teenage Mobians were discussing the situation and how to solve it all, Flame and the Hammer Wisps, curiosity beginning to overcome their senses of logic and watching for danger, glanced around their surroundings while the baby Yeti continued to playfully clap, until a slow movement, a shadowy, giant figure from the corner of it's eye, captured it's attention. Blinking, with the sense of not understanding due to it's age, the young child wandered towards the shadow and the two small aliens who wandered off into the same direction, oblivious to the rumble's echo throughout the cave's walls, low like an trigger of an Earth tremor.
Yet the sound caught the attention of Sonic, Knuckles, Sun, Star, Yacker, and Lily, all of them freezing in their tracks, a collective gasp of wonder, shock and unease rising, their senses raising to the eerie warning of danger coming their way.
"Uh...Do you guys hear something?" Sun questioned, his voice toned down to a half-leveled whisper, briefly swallowing a small lump of dread that formed in his throat.
"I don't like the sound of that." Sonic responded, his heart racing with the intense paranoia seeping in, as though someone had poured either cold, wet, sticky glue, paint or hot, steaming and super salty gravy all over his body.
Oh, Chaos, please let it not be another snow or giant sea monsters...or the cave beginning to crumble that could cause the place to flood and they all drown...
Or worse...An inhabit sea monster or a more, deadly whale or predators get inside and-
"Hey, where are the Yeti kid, the Burst and Hammer Wisps?" Knuckles' concerned voice broke through the blue hedgehog's panicked thoughts like a piece of glass shattering. Unfortunately, the question itself also brought upon another panic through him.
Another gasp escaping, Sonic and the rest of the group whirled around simultaneously, near-half screams echoed along the icy walls with their eyes widening as large as dinner plates. The absence of two Wisps and the Yeti Child in their temporary care made them all realize the ultimate mistake they just made for not paying attention or keeping an eye on them.
"They're gone!" Star gasped, hands flying up to her mouth.
"Hey, Flame! Hammer Wisp! Kid! Where are ya's!?" Sonic exclaimed, his hands surrounding his mouth to increase his voice volume. Just when things couldn't get any worse...!
"(Wait! I can sense them! They're just around the corner!)" Yacker cried out, his Hyper-Go-On senses called upon to feel the missing younger Wisps as he did before.
Not even one second did the cutest little alien announce his words, giggles, faint, soft like a simultaneous melody, echoed close by. Wasting no time, Sonic and Yacker both raced around into the next room neither one knew even existed, quickly followed by the rest of their friends who, while not nearing the same level of speed as the cobalt hero or the adorable Wisps, except for Lily as she caught up with the duo, managed to keep up somewhat. The moment the group entered another large chamber, their throats were nearly squeezed, at the sight before them. More tunnels, some twirled and spun leading into further caverns not underwater, a large pool like a giant lake rested close by, an ice-like tunnel nearly see-through like a ride of an amusement park leading up and downward, and to make things more frightening, more stalamites hung from the ceiling.
Among them all was a massive ice-window sealing away the ocean outside, more sea creatures oblivious to the heroes' presence. Fortunately, the Yeti, Flame and the Hammer Wisp, with another Star-Beam Wisp and a couple of new Wisps neither of the heroes have seen before among them. One was near-pitch black, while the other was similar in colour to Lily, only more floral-like, in a shape like a musical note.
"This reminds me more of Egghead's amusement park attraction in this place, only with everything nearly in ice." Sonic quipped, a light shrug with his left arm following.
"Plus this place having too many stalamites around, and water too close for comfort, I don't think this is a good place to be." Sun agreed, his unease steadily growing worse.
"So...On the scale of "Uh oh" to "Panic Screaming", where are we at?"(1) The hero of Mobius sighed, exasperation and a hint of sarcasm mixed like a sour lemon drop masking the increase of more panic threatening to erupt.
"Sonic, if these stalamites get loose, they will hurt somebody, or kill them, cause this cave to collapse and flood, and if the ice glass shatters it will still flood the whole entire room and while we still have our Sea Masks, the poor baby Tribian will drown!" Star exclaimed, frantically.
Silence hung in the air, hanging heavily upon the shoulders of all those who understood the dire situation.
"Ooookay...Yeah, between the two, it's more like, "Trembling shakes and your whole body freezes up, while your brain goes into error-mode"..." Sonic murmured, resisting the strong urge to swallow the lump threatening to choke him.
"Sonic...!" Knuckles grunted, his gritted teeth clutching tightly with the discomforting sound of crunching as though they would shatter into thousands of tiny flakes.
The blue hedgehog quickly held up his hands in defense. "Just tryin' to lighten the mood here."
"Oh great. Next thing you know, somebody knocks over a stalamite and then brings in the attention of an Orca Whale or something." Sun rolled his eyes, one hand resting on his hip to match the aura of sheer exasperation.
"Well, unless a gentle touch would cause one to shatter and land in the lake here, I doubt even I could do that. It's Flame and the Hammer Wisp that I'm worried about. Not to mention the kid." The red echidna added sarcastically, his larger palm casually but gently resting on a salamite nearby...
Except at the same time the Burst Wisp did the same with a stalamite periously above the water. Unfortunately, due to the increasing heat on it's body, the gentle touch of curiosity echoed like a melodic chime, causing it to shake and wiggle until it began to formate a crack, and Knuckles leaned too hard on the salamite.
The two cringed at the chain reaction, the eyes of Sonic and the rest of the group, except for the baby Yeti who cooed in wonder at the lovely sound the Burst Wisp unintentionally did, all cried out in horror, the realization of what was about to happen next filling their minds.
"Knux, Flame, NO!" Sonic screamed, hands waving, his legs already itching to whirl in supersonic speed to stop his two friends, but it was too late. The stalamite broke free from the ceiling while the salamite fell onto the ice floor, the combined sounds of a splash and shatter echoed along the walls...
And through outside of the cave where an Orca Whale, native to Aquarium Park, stopped in it's swimming tracks in it's own hunt for prey within these frozen waters, his eyes narrowed with a sharp turn of it's vision towards the window just nearby, as well as the entrance through many was. The heroes, hearing the dreadful sound, all simultaneously turned, a collective gasp of horror escaping right before Sonic, Sun, Star, Lily, and even Yacker, all cast dark, irritated glares at the Guardian of the Master Emerald, while the Hammer and Star-Beam Wisps did the same towards Flame who, holding a sheepish twinkle in it's eyes, shrugged.
"Uh...Heh heh heh heh heh...eh?" Knuckles, in a rarity of times like this, chuckled sheepishly himself.
The carnivore whale turned, it's mouth opened with a loud roar for quick meals.
"Aaaaaaaaannnnnnnddddd, this is our cue to go for from uh-oh to making an Eggman-Beeline...!" Sonic's voice rose to a panicked high-pitched squeak, immediately racing over, scooping up the baby Yeti who let out a surprised squeal, then returned to his friends who were already preparing to move. "RUN!"
Legs and levitation powers carrying those who had the common sense to run for their lives, the heroes and the Wisps hurried towards the nearest tunnel in hopes of escaping the now angry and hungry Orca whale who, finding the entrance of one of the tunnels with every intention to break through the ice, it's predatory desires to capture it's prey, followed after the retreating heroes. Sonic made sure to have his friends cling onto him to increase his speed.
"Hang on tight, guys!" Sonic prayed for a miracle for an escape route, yet they were unfortunately heading towards a cliff, a collective gasp once again escaping from the group. The hedgehog grunted, frustration and horror building like a mixed oil. "Dang it!"
"That's just great, now what!?" Knuckles cried out.
"Man, I wish we had our Sea-Masks on right now and the baby was wearing one himself!" Sonic mentally smacked himself for not slipping on the trusty drown-proof device, let alone suggesting it to his friends.
"I wish we had a sledge right now to ride on!" Sun groaned.
If there was one thing that the heroes briefly forgot about, it was that their wishes were about to instantly come true, especially a little detail also slipping from their minds, given the current situation. The Star-Beam Wisp, gazing the terrified expressions on the Mobians, narrowed it's eyes before closing them, focusing on it's powers, it's body glowing in a beautiful golden-light aura. Soon enough before they reached it, the sea-masks on Sonic, Knuckles, Sun and Star began to glow in the same light, slipping themselves over the eyes, and activating, protecting them from any chances of drowning. Light also gathered around the baby Yeti's face, with a new magical protection of a newly created Sea-Mask keeping it safe as well.
Finally, from the little star-shaped Wisp's power, a large platform of sorts, a sledge made out of the most beautiful star-shaped carriage-like board with soft, cushioned yellow seats, materialized right underneath the heroes, waiting for them to climb aboard.
"(Made your wishes come true!)" The Star-Beam Wisp proclaimed, capturing the group's expressions of awe, confusion and soon gratitude.
"Thanks, little guy!" Sonic smirked, before he quickly glanced over his shoulder. "Jump in, guys! Here we...GO!"
With little time to make protests, and the Orca Whale preparing to use nearby lake portals of sorts and threatening to smash the crystal tunnels, everyone, including the Wisps and the baby Yeti, not understanding the seriousness of the danger, all made the daring leap with collective alarmed cries. Maneuvering themselves into a secure position, the group quickly took their seats, holding onto the sides for dear life as they fell down the steep inner slope. The Star-Sledge hit the narrower slope, bouncing once before making the speedy slide downward, Sonic and his friends yelping, their hearts leaping into their throats, taking a corner into a small U-turn further below and thankfully not in water.
Though, that didn't mean it was that soft of a ride.
"Whoa! Ow!" Sonic yelped, hanging on for dear life, casting his gaze upward, another fearful gasp escaping his mouth, with the Orca Whale already beginning to catch up. Terrified whimpers followed, heart beating loudly in his ears like kongo drums performing a dangerous ritual. "Out of all the whales I've seen in my whole live, I really prefer the more friendly, giant bulga type!"
His friends had no way to respond to his panicked thoughts, instead focusing on worrying for their own lives, and the discomfort of the ride that made their bottoms sore. Their saving grace from suffering muscular cramps were the cushions having enough padding.
If that wasn't bad enough, the baby Yeti found itself falling over the edge, close enough to now slide right onto another large ice slide, giggling away in amusement, it's hands waving up in the air while briefly separated from the heroes' ride.
"I think we lost the Orca!" Knuckles glanced over his shoulder, the seemingly absense of the killer Whale was either a blessing or something much worse.
"It's not the only thing we lost!" Sun shouted, glancing around the star-shaped raft with the disappearance of the baby Tribian quickly known, which in turn made Sonic and the rest of the group let out a collective scream of panic.
That is, until Star noticed the slide now above and low towards close to them, the sight of white fur catching her eye. "There he is!" She pointed upward, the rest of the heroes seeing this, mixture of worry and relief sinking in.
"Kid!" Sonic exclaimed, fearful for the little one's safety.
"I'll get him!" Knuckles declared, awkwardly standing before he made a daring leap from the ride and onto the ride, landing just behind the baby Yeti, his larger hands scooping the child up above his head. "Ha! I got ya'! WHOA!"
His moment of triumph was short lived, his cries of alarm simulated as he slipped once more, landing on his back. If things weren't complicated enough for him, not only did the snow kid land onto his stomach that made him grunt in great discomfort, as though he had been punched in the gut, knocking the wind out of him, but one part of the slide was covered in a thicker layer of snow, running through his fur and into his skin in bitter, chilling, yet cold that made Knuckles' comically widen his eyes.
"Whoa-whoa-whoa! WHOA! I-It's freezing!" Knuckles screamed, heart hammering for the desperate wish to return to the ride.
"Hey, Knuckles!" Sonic's voice hollared through the air, his older friend's eyes casting a glance to his right. "We'll catch you! Your track ends next to ours!"
True to the blue hedgehog's words, the teenage Guardian and the baby, innocently confused, gazed up ahead to see another trench coming their way. On top of that, the Orca, eyes keeping every move of the heroes, found it's way through into the trench of water below.
A brief moment of horror followed, right before both the duo and the rest of the heroes' ride sailed through the air, Sonic and Sun both holding their arms out, the former catching the older Mobian in his arms despite being built for speed, while the latter, the stronger hedgehog, caught the baby, yet he fell backwards in his seat with the Yeti now using him as a landing pillow, squashing the former Werehog in great discomfort.
"Omph! W-Wow, you're heavy...!" Sun's voice was muffled, through the soft fur and body of the child, his arms wiggling out from underneath.
"(Look out!)" Yacker shouted, alarming all of his friends to gaze up ahead, their expressions morphing into horror to see another lake with more Snow Monsters blocking their path, their menacing figures and growls to stop and capture them casting the heroes into a near-full panic.
"(I'll take care of them!)" Flame declared all of the sudden, the act of bravery raising in his chest.
"Let me help!" Sonic called up, carefully setting the now very annoyed and embarrassed Knuckles onto the seat beside him, while his instructions were sent to the rest. "Keep a closer eye on the kid!"
"Be careful, Sonic!" Star exclaimed, helping the Yeti Child off, giving Sun a much needed breather, a sharp, gasp for desperation of air heaved from the orange hedgehog, wheezing heavily with his tongue dropped out.
"Here we go!" The blue hedgehog and the Burst Wisp simultaneously leaped away from their ride, high above the lake, the monsters and the emerging Orca Whale with it's jaws wide to engulf them both. The two friends slapped a high-give, fusing into the familiar power of fire.
"BURST!"
In his flaming form, Sonic soared with Flame's powers, bashing them into the air right in front of the whale like a pair of scoccer balls, the two monsters roaring in having been hit the gut as though powerful punches squashing their non-existent lungs, right before they were melted into harmless water and swallowed by the whale, while the rest of the Wisps focused on levitating the star-shaped sledge over the carnivore of the seas, flown safely to the other side, landing and continuing to trend their way towards safety. Sonic and Flame both focused on releasing each other from their bond, softly descending back and landing inside the ride between Sun and Knuckles with the Burst wisp now on the blue hedgehog's lap.
However, as they continued onward to hopefully for a way out, loud crashes of a splashing as though something crushed through a wall caused everyone to glance over their shoulder, and the Mobians and Wisps once more let out another gasp, the more dangerous whale, frustrated for the lack of it's prey, caught sight of them escaping and, deja vu washing over Sonic like a tidal wave, the Orca gave chase in crushing the icy floor.
"Ugh, I hate it when Orcas do that!" The sixteen year old hedgehog grunted, panic gripping his heart in it's iron grip.
Unbeknownst to the heroes attempting to make their daring escape, Whacker flew across the vast and not so desolute land of ice and snow, the sub-zero temperatures sending the freezing chills deep into his skin, like a dark, ghostly aura seeping into his skeletal fracture, his eyes keen on locating the blue hedgehog, the hero of Wisps, intentions to keep him for the Mischief Five itched into his mind...
Or, that was part of it right now.
"Holy snow balls, it's freezing out here!" The former Hammer Wisp cried, all arms wrapped tightly around his body, loud, and violent quivering vibrating him like an over-powered electric recliner chair being on for too long. "Parts I never knew I had are reacting to other parts!"
Just as the Mischief Member ranted on his complaints about the cold, after being over the more warmer half climate of the transformed world for so long, now beginning to feel a tiny twinge of doubt over Spirit's actions and decisions, the faints screams and cries, reaching into his invisible ears, both from his own normal kind and...four Mobians, one being extremely familiar, caught his attention when he turned to glance to the nearly crystal clear ice, thick but visible to see down below. Through there like an open skylight of an attic, Whacker's eyes widened to see Sonic the Hedgehog himself, as well as Brother Yacker, sister Lily, Flame, another Hammer Wisp, a Star-Beam Wisps, and Sonic's Mobian friends, Knuckles, Sun and Star, riding some kind of ride, escaping a black and white carnivorous creature chasing after them.
Shock, disbelief, sense of obsession and determination racing through him like mighty waves of a hurricane, the former Hammer Wisp's eyes narrowed. From that moment, Whacker felt that the Orca wished to claim the hero of Mobius as it's own as well as his kind and other Mobians that he came to really like as well for their own sense and demonstration of bravery.
"HEY! No eating the heroes, you big giant...whatever you are!" Whacker shouted, the urge and need to help raced through it's course.
Illuminating a silverly glow of aura, Whacker began to shape and shift, morphing his stracture into a shape of that of a sledge hammer, never losing his ability. Tilting as far back as possible, and a mighty swing with unbelievable strength, the ice that blocked the heroes' path of freedom shattered like a broken glass, pieces of shards flying everywhere before he returned to his current normal form, flying away to a safe distance.
The shattering echoes swarming within the chamber, Sonic and his friends turned simultaneously to the right, eyes widened with the collective shock, confusion and surprise to see light shine through like a tunnel ascending from the heavens, beckoning a path of freedom in their presence.
"There! Up ahead!" Sonic shouted, pointing quickly at their newly made escape route, making the quick decison to question how it came to be in their needed time later.
"How are we gonna get through there in time?" Sun pointed out, seed of doubt sinking into his stomach.
"(I've got this!)" The Star-Beam Wisp saluted, already transforming it's shape into that of a Rocket Wisp.
Before the heroes and their allies could question what the little alien intended on doing, the Wisp spun while flying to the back of the ride, bursting with the power of smoke and flame, and increasing the ride's speed, sharply turning to the exit, with the Orca Whale, it's roars of frustration and hunger shaking the chamber once more, failing to keep up it's pursuit. Unfortunately for it, just as the heroes were nearing their freedom, a larger, giant tail belonging to another, more gentle and kind whale, the Guardian as Sonic had called it and seeing just in time beneath the icy surface, hit the carnivore like a bat hitting a ball, the loud, thud sound followed by a flying descent with the Orca now crashing into the water, waves of water briefly flooding and engulfing lingering Ice Monsters who, in their moments of last second panic could not escape.
Glancing backwards, the heroes' eyes all widened, the familiar tail almost instantly recognizable and in that moment, the musical, friendly moan echoed, muffled beneath the water's surface but still audible for them to hear, the sense of relief briefly washing over them.
"(The friendly whale saved us!)" Yacker remarked, amazed.
Sonic's muzzled twitched into a grateful smile, feeling safe knowing that his giant sea creature friend really did desire to protect them all and be their friend.
"Thanks, big guy!" Sonic raised one arm for a wave, hoping his words were heard, just as Knuckles quickly reminded him that they were about to exit. Sharply turning his gaze back, a flinch with a sweat drop dropping from the side of his head, the blue hedgehog quickly held on, knowing that they would be hurling into the air...
WHOOSH!
While the events played out behind them afterwards, the burst of the Star-Beam's borrowed form sent it, and all of the heroes and the baby Yeti rocketing out of the hole as though an explosion went off, plumes of icy dust drifting out with Sonic, his friends and the child flying out, loud screams with the heroes and Wisps flailing their arms frantically into the air as they tried to hold on for dear life.
"WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Sonic, Knuckles, Sun and Star all shouted simultaneously, the Wisps letting out panicked and/or excited squeels, and the baby Yeti squeaking away in excitement of it's own.
Even more astonishingly, they soared across the land further than they anticipated, before Yacker and the rest of his kind, realization that they were all about to crash land hard dawning on their expressions, quickly used their powers to slow the descend in a protective shield. For one thing, it did give them a bit of a softer landing, a couple of bumps making it a bit rough at the same time. Yet even as the shield was dissipated, one final bumpy landing was enough for Sonic, Sun and Knuckles to all lose their grip, tumbling over heads and heels, grunts of discomfort on their heads and limps as though someone had tossed them like rag dolls, before finally Sonic landed face first in the snow, legs in the air for a few seconds then flopped over, Knuckles stuck head first, and Sun landing on his back.
As for the rest, while Star, Yacker, Lily, Flame, the Hammer and Star-Beam Wisps, all releasinga collective sigh of relief that the ride was finally over and that they were all out of the under ice cave, the baby Yeti loudly clapped it's hands, having enjoyed the best ride in it's young life so far.
A moment of awkwardness hung in the air, conjoined by the baby Yeti's joyful giggles, the whistling of the icy cold wind drifting in the air, before Sonic, his thankfully spared from the cold and wetness of the snow and ice, tugged a couple of times, quite a bit of a struggle, and finally dislodged his head out. The blue hedgehog groaned, shaking his head to rid the dizziness, gently grasping it with one hand. Near by, Knuckles had a bit more trouble, frustrated grunts causing his temper to comically melt the ice enough to pull free, yet with a loud plop, accidentally and quite literally, threw himself backwards and collapsed onto his back, yelping.
"Man...Talk about a crazy ride," Sonic remarked, shaking his head that ached a little, but thanks to his Sea-Mask, it wasn't as bad as previous times and because it was super-break-proof, Tails' great invention was also spared from dustraction. He turned his attention to his friends, concern etching his features and into his pure heart. "Is everybody alright?"
"I'm fine..." Knuckles groaned, dazed with his eyes and vision swimming.
"Thank Chaos that nightmare of a ride is over." Sun grumbled, slowly sitting up. The coldness melting into his skin through his fur, the chill of discomfort seeping in certainly didn't help his mood.
Once everyone else announced their assurance of no injuries, and the baby Yeti giggling away, the three teenage boys stood, glancing around their surroundings to find they were finally out of the cave. The Tribian Child in the meantime giggled about.
"Okay, so far so good. Now all we gotta do is find the portal and we're good to go in getting this little guy back home." Sonic crossed his arms, his trademark smirk of success covering his muzzle. In truth, he was deeply glad to finally be above water instead of underneath in the freezing, cold cave.
"(Hey, look at that!)" The Hammer Wisp suddenly perked up, his attention caught by an illuminating yellow glow in just a short distance.
Confusion gently ensnaring the heroes and the other Wisps, Sonic and his friends all turned(with Star making sure the baby Yeti didn't go wandering off again), and their eyes widened, gapped in bewilderment as the sight of the portal, very much identical to the one in Sweet Mountain, just a mere few inches from where they stood, glittering it's golden sparkles leading to Holoska in Mobius. For Sonic, Knuckles and Sun, they knew in that instant what it meant.
"Wow...Is that...?" Star breathed, her heart fluttering like butterflies over the magnificent yet eerie pressence.
"It's a portal..." Sun confirmed, in a half-whisper.
"Huh...Well, that was easy." Sonic simply shrugged nonchalantly, uncertain what else to make of their pure luck.
It looks like things were finally starting to look up...At least in getting the Yeti child back home. In spite of all the things that had happened so far in Tropical Frost, they were all finally getting somewhere. Yet that still left one problem, the next stage of their quest Sonic began to slowly dread the most.
The unexpected reunion in Holoska itself.
A/N: I originally intended on ending this chapter in entering Holoska itself, but then I decided against it due to how long just chapter was taking. But the next chapter will definitely take us to Holoska. Again, I'm not certain when I'll be able to update again, but hopefully I won't take too long. It's hard to say at this stage.
Also, I want to give another big thanks to both my friends TU4QU0I53T4IAN6L3 and Assassin's Creed Master for the suggestions and ideas for this story thus far! If you haven't read any of their Sonic stories yet, I advice that you do, because they're all amazing in their own styles and story-telling.
See you later!