Chapter 4: Under Pressure
It's been hours since Sonic and others were able to escape from the clutches of Queen Blaze and her firefly army. They were still sailing on the boat that was provided to them by a mysterious masked stranger who seemed to know what's going on. The masked stranger was left behind to give Sonic and others time to escape into the sea, not before giving them a map where to sail to.
Everyone was curious to know who the masked stranger was and why he helped them. Tails was the one sailing the boat manually as he looked at the map to make sure they were heading in the right directions. Despite what he was feeling at the moment, right now Tails' only goal is to get everyone to the location on the map. While the young fox was sailing the boat, everyone had the same depressing feeling after what happened.
Knuckles was on the side of the boat just with an angry face seeing how much the Queen had the advantage over everyone. His only thoughts were that he wanted to punch the Queen in the face so hard after trying to burn down the village and what she did to Sonic and Blaze. Right now he wanted to punch something to let out his anger to calm himself.
Blaze was standing on the back side of the ship trying to collect her thoughts. She looked at her hand and a quick flashback of Queen Blaze came to her where her face was about to be ripped off by the Queen before Sonic saved her. Just the thought made her right hand shake uncontrollably and tried to stop it by grabbing hold of it with her hand.
Sonic and Honey were sitting next to each other. Honey was using a first aid kit to patch Sonic from his wounds and cuts. Out of everyone, Sonic took the most damage for he took an explosive hit from Queen Blaze's Ms. Fire attack moves that had no weaknesses from what they saw. Not only that, Sonic stayed behind to fight Queen Blaze on his own to make sure his friends made it out alive.
He made it out alive thanks to the Chaos Emerald he was holding in his hand. He was able to use Chaos Control to stop time that counterattacked against the Queen's time rewind, which was a huge problem for them. Though he could stop time with Chaos Control, he couldn't do it consistently and requires a lot of energy to do so. Just some downsides that the hedgehog has to remember when using Chaos Control.
Honey was scared to death at the thought of leaving Sonic behind to fight the Queen when things got serious. She couldn't help but shed a tear seeing how badly her brother was wounded like never before. Sonic quickly gave Honey a soft smile letting her know he's okay and has nothing to worry about right now for they were all together and safe from any harm.
The yellow cat looked over to see Blaze who was alone and decided to give Sonic some space to heal as she got and walked over to Blaze for a talk. The lavender cat was trying really hard to make her hand stop trembling. Blaze spotted Honey walking towards which made her look away. Honey knew what Blaze was feeling and stood next to her as the two looked down the ocean water to see their reflection.
"Blaze, we know that ain't you back there." Honey said, still looking at the water.
"I know Honey, but it still disturbs me, you know." Blaze said, frowning.
"I actually do know." Honey answered, feeling uncomfortable for what she's about to say.
"You do?" Blaze said, raising an eye at the cat.
Honey nodded, "Yes I know what it is like to see someone with the same face and voice do things you never imagine yourself doing." The cat replied.
"Did something happen to you?" Blaze said, a bit curious.
The yellow cat took a deep breath and looked straight at the ocean. "A while back, I had to deal with an evil being that took my name and identity. She called herself Mirror Honey, an evil mirror image of myself. A cat in the mirror." Honey said, recalling the event.
"Mirror Honey?" Blaze said, a bit surprised.
"With my name and looks she was messing with my mind and friends. She trapped me in a mirror world and tried to take Mighty away from me." Honey said.
Blaze could see how much this Mirror Honey caused trouble to Honey. She looked down to Honey's hands and saw how hard she was clenching her fist. Blaze noticed how angry Honey was looking at her reflection, almost like she was staring at Mirror Honey at the moment. It was like that for a moment until Honey calmed herself.
"What happened? How did you escape the mirror world?" Blaze asked, interested in the story.
Honey then reached underneath her outfits and pulled a ruby heart necklace she was wearing with her. Blaze remembered seeing the necklace for Honey was showing it off to everyone at her birthday. It was a gift from her boyfriend Mighty the Armadillo that gave her that necklace that day. Blaze saw the loving look Honey was giving the necklace for it was giving peace thoughts of Mighty who was still back in her dimension.
"It was thanks to Mighty and the others that helped expose Mirror Honey. It's because of them I was able to defeat Mirror Honey in a fight." Honey said, still smiling at the necklace.
Honey gave one last look to the necklace before placing back underneath her red dress, keeping it nice and safe from any damage. The yellow feline turned her head and looked at Blaze, with a more positive look.
"I just want to let you know Blaze, you're not alone on this. Together we'll beat that Queen version of you." Honey said, placing a hand on Blaze's shoulder.
"Thank you Honey, you really are a good friend." Blaze said, smiling.
"I'm not just your friend. I'm your cat pal." Honey said, making herself and Blaze chuckled.
After Honey was done talking to Blaze, she walked back and sat next to Sonic to check on his condition. Sonic looked back at the blue Chaos Emerald in his hand. Thinking about his battle against the Queen, remembering her tone and body language during their fight. Sonic then looked to his left as he saw Blaze walking towards him. She looked at the Chaos Emerald in Sonic's hand with a curious expression.
"It saved us didn't it?" Sonic asked, looking up at Blaze.
"What did?" Blaze said, confused by what Sonic said.
"The Chaos Emerald, it saved us." He said, looking back at the emerald.
"What exactly did the Chaos Emerald do? You were a distance away from Blaze and the Queen and then suddenly you just appeared out of nowhere to punch the Queen in the face." Honey said, curious.
Sonic couldn't help chuckle at the question and took a deep breath. "Like I said, I stopped time." He answered.
"Stop time?" Blaze said, both surprised and intrigued.
"Like I said before, using the Chaos Emerald allows me to control time and space. I can warp and stop time for a bit." Sonic explained. "It's how I was able to wrap myself away from the Queen to escape from her."
"And you could have used it all this time?" Honey asked.
Sonic nodded his head, "No, not at all the time. I was just lucky that I was able to harness the emerald's power to use Chaos Control when I needed it the most." He said.
"Just how long were you able to stop time? I'm sure there's a limit." Blaze said, trying to imagine the emerald's power could do.
"From what I counted, it seems I can stop time for 20 seconds. I may not be able to use it consistently but at least it pays off in the end haha." Sonic laughed.
"Definitely, it seems like stopping time was enough to counter the Queen's time rewind." Honey said, looking at the emerald.
Sonic then looked at Blaze with a curious look, "If the Queen was using the Sol Emerald she had with her to use Sol Control to rewind time. Blaze, you can do the same with the Sol Emeralds?" He asked the cat.
Blaze took out her version of the purple Sol Emerald from her hammer space and glanced at it. "I'm not sure, I've been guarding these emeralds almost my whole life and I never knew such a thing was possible." She said, staring at the Sol Emerald.
"Sol Control huh?" Honey said, thinking.
"Well it's no shocker that the Sol Emerald has the same type of ability that controls time. Both Chaos and Sol Emeralds are similar in their own ways." Sonic said, looking at his Chaos Emerald on his hand and the Sol Emerald on Blaze's hand.
"I should probably find a way to use Sol Control, it could give us a chance to fight against the Queen when we fight her next time. We would have a better chance if the two of us can control time together." Blaze said, looking at Sonic.
Sonic smiled and nodded at his princess friend, as the two looked determined to beat the Queen and set the people of the world free from her reign. The hedgehog then let out a little grunt of pain for his body was still badly damaged from his fight from the Queen.
Honey helped by gently helping Sonic back down on his seat to rest. "Sonic you gotta be more careful." His sister Honey told him.
"I'll be fine, I've been in much worse conditions you know." Sonic said, couldn't help but teased his friends.
Sonic rested his body as he sat and looked over at his young fox brother who was still sailing the boat. "Yo buddy! Are we getting any closer to our destination?" He asked.
"We should be according to the map, I'm going carefully and slowly while we're sailing through this fog. We don't want the ship to hit some rocks and sink us." The young fox answered.
"The ocean is the last thing we need to deal with. We already have a Killer Queen after us." Sonic said, jokingly .
"Don't worry, I'll punch any incoming rocks that get in our way." Knuckles said.
"Who was that masked man and why did he help us?" Honey said out loud, thinking.
"Beats me? It seems like he knows about us in some way." Sonic said, trying to think.
"Just what is this location that he wants us to meet?" Said Knuckles, scratching his head.
Tails looked over at his friends, "We're about to find out. I'm starting to see an island of sorts in the distance." He said.
Everyone walked towards the front end and looked in the direction the boat was sailing. Honey helped Sonic get up to his feet to help him see with the others. Indeed they saw an island of some sort but it was too far from everyone's views to fully identify the landscape.
Sonic couldn't help but feel relief finally able to set foot on land and get off the ocean floors. "About time! I was starting to worry we would never get to land. I ain't an Ocean Man." He said, with his usual smile.
"I'll make the boat go a bit faster so we can reach it sooner." Said the young fox, pulling a lever to make the boat faster.
Sonic and the others watched the island as it got close to them with every passing minute. They felt the soft winds of the sea hit their faces as they sailed, wondering what lies in front of them. As the island got more visible, the eyes of Sonic, Blaze, and Tails were taken by surprise as they saw the island. Knuckles and Honey were left confused, wondering why the others looked surprised by the island. Tails looked over at Sonic and Blaze with a concerned look. Both Sonic and Blaze nodded telling him to keep going.
"What's with the faces?" Honey said, confused.
"You guys know this place?" Knuckles said, curious.
Blaze nodded, "Yes, it's a place called Southern Island. It's where Marine lives, but it looks different." She said, examining the island.
"Oh Marine! The raccoon girl that beat Tails in the science fair that one time." Honey said, remembering the young raccoon.
"Don't remind me." Tails said, a bit salty.
"This is the island me and Tails stayed for a while after being transported to Blaze's dimension in our previous adventures." Sonic said, remembering his time on the island.
"I'm worried about Marine. I'm too scared to think that the Queen might…"
Tails was cut off by Blaze. "Don't say that Tails. I don't see why the Queen would do such a thing to her if she never met her. But still…." She said, saddened at the thought of Marine never becoming friends with her.
"Everyone get ready, we'll be there in a few minutes." Tails informed everyone.
The gang went back to their stations as they waited for the ship to dock near the island. Honey went on to continue to patch her brother up some more before they could leave the ship. A few minutes have passed as the ship finally docked. Tails pressed a button that made a staircase appear from the side of the ship. Everyone began to set foot in the sandy shores of Seagull Beach. Everyone thanks and praises the young fox for his piloting skills for getting them safely to the land.
Their first plan was to visit Windmill Village and check out the whereabouts of their friend Marine the Raccoon and wait patiently for the masked stranger to come to them. Before they could head out, Tails suddenly realized something and quickly ran back to the ship to get something.
When he came back, he had a cloak that was almost similar to the one the masked stranger was wearing. The young fox handed it over to Blaze who was confused by the fox's offer.
"What's this for?" Blaze said, looking at the cloak.
"I think it's best if you wear this Blaze. The people of Windmill Village are gonna mistake you for the Queen. We don't want to cause a panic for them and bring attention to the actual Queen." Tails explained.
"Good thinking buddy." Sonic praised his little brother.
"I suppose you're right, Tails. I don't want things to get out of hand." Blaze said to the fox.
The purple feline grabbed the cloak and put it over her body making sure her appearance was hidden underneath. Blaze nodded as she was ready to go. The gang then began walking towards the Windmill Village.
Reaching the village much to their surprise was almost the same as they first encountered it. It looks like the place hasn't been affected by the Queen's wrath all too much. Probably because the Queen doesn't visit places like these too often. The place mostly consists of koala bears with a few different species living there together in Windmill Village.
As the gang walked, they did get strange looks at them much like the village they visited before. Most eyes were mostly on Blaze for she tried to look down to prevent anyone from seeing her face. Sonic and the others would also step forward to block people's view on Blaze as they continued to walk.
The gang finally reached the house of Marine. Tails stepped forward, he took a deep breath for he was quite nervous to see the state of his raccoon friend, the same goes for Sonic and Blaze. After building enough confidence, Tails gave three hard knocks on the door. The gang waited patiently until Tails decided to knock again on the door. They began to worry until they heard something inside being knocked down and a voice.
"Crockey! Give me a minute will ya!"
The door suddenly slowly opened as some smoke was coming out from the building. The gang quickly tried to fan away the smoke with their hands and soon in front of them was the young raccoon herself wearing a pair of goggles on her eyes for she seems to be working on something.
She gently took off her goggles to reveal her blue eyes as she looked at everyone. The young raccoon looked curious and confused as to why these groups of individuals had come to her home on such short notice.
"Who the devils are you?!" She said, looking at them.
"Marine!" Both Sonic and Tails yelled happily while Blaze softly smiled in the back of the group, happy to see the young raccoon was safe and unharmed.
Both Sonic and Tails wanted to give Marine a hug but were immediately pushed back away by her. Marine had this uncomfortable look seeing two random strangers wanting to hug her. Honey then leaned in on both the hedgehog and fox.
"You guys do remember this isn't the same Marine we know right?" Honey quietly said to them.
"Oh right." Tails said, feeling embarrassed as his cheeks went red.
"Tell me who you blokes are and why do you know my name!? Tell me or I'll call for some help to get rid of you." The raccoon said, threaten them.
"Marine, this might sound crazy. But we're from a dimension where you, me and Tails are friends." Sonic said, trying to explain.
Marine just slammed the door in front of everyone hearing what Sonic said was just nonsense. At the same time, they get where Marine is coming from having to hear that beings from a dimension are her friends who show up at the door.
"That didn't go well." Knuckles mocked Sonic.
The hedgehog then knocked on the door again. Marine didn't answer the door but instead poked her head out from her house window with an annoyed face. "Stop it! Look, maybe you got the wrong raccoon. I don't have time to deal with you and your nonsense right now!" Marine yelled, very annoyed.
Tails stepped forward, "Is it because you're currently working on the SS Marine?" He said.
Marine stood frozen hearing what Tails said. He just said the name of the water bike that she was currently working on that nobody knows but her. Just hearing someone hear the name of her water bike was enough to get her attention.
She looked back at the fox with a curious look. "H-how did you know about my SS Marine? I never told anyone about it nor the name." She said, wondering.
"You've been working on it for a while and I know you had trouble trying to maneuver it in the sea but it will always crash before you can really use it." Tails said, trying to remember what the original Marine said to him.
"And once you finish it. You plan to visit the islands nearby and explore. You have wanted to since you were younger." Said Sonic, smiling softly.
Marine couldn't believe what she was hearing from the fox and hedgehog and how they were able to know her backstory. She was still hesitant but the more she looked at Sonic and Tails was telling her that they were telling the truth.
"Okay maybe you're telling the truth, but I'm still not convinced." Marine said, still giving a cautious look.
"You wish to have your crew and you become our captain when set for sailing." Sonic said.
Marine's ears perked up when she heard the word 'captain' and quickly opened the door to let everyone in her house. "Please come right in." She said to the gang.
"I knew that would work." Sonic said to Tails who smiled and rolled his eyes.
They entered the house to see it was much the same. Still having the magenta rug in the floor, baby blue color wood floor, green windows, white walls, and the toolbox in back on the upper left of the house. As they entered, Marine stood in front of Sonic and Tails with her eyes sparkling and hands shaking excitedly. "Tell me! Was I an awesome captain in your dimension?" She said, trying to hold in her excitement.
Sonic leaned down on one knee, "You were the best captain we had. Though you were a bit clumsy and got kidnapped by Captain Whiskers." He couldn't help but tease her.
Hearing the name of Captain Whiskers, Marine couldn't help but frown and looked away. The gang took notice of Marine's sudden mood change. "Marine, is something the matter?" Tails asked.
"It's just when you mentioned Captain Whiskers. A bad memory appeared in my head." Marine answered."
"What bad memory? Did Captain Whiskers do anything to you and this village?" Sonic said, getting angry.
"No it's not that. I think it's best I show you. Follow me." Marine said, feeling uncomfortable.
Everyone followed the young raccoon through the door on the right side of her home. They went through a storage unit where Marine salvage materials that would wash on the island for her to use. The storage unit had a door that led to the back of her home and a pathway to the beach of the island. They followed Marine up to the beach until she stopped dead in her tracks. She gave one sad frown at the gang before looking and pointing at the sea of the beach in front of them.
"He's right over there mates." Marine said, sadly.
Sonic and the others looked at the direction where Marine was pointing. What they saw horrified them and sent chills down their spines. Right there in front of them was the head of Captain Whiskers stabbed on a wooden pike alongside the rest of his pirate crew. Mini, Mum, and Johnny their heads also stabbed on the pike.
The head of Captain Whiskers had some rust and barnacles on it for it's been a long time since these events happened to him. Him and his crew all did. Everyone was horrified but Marine who just looked down and frowned. Sonic, Tails, and Blaze knew that Captain Whiskers was a bad guy but even he didn't deserve this as his fate as well the rest of his crew. Blaze couldn't help but stand next to the young raccoon she stared at Captain Whiskers and his crew.
"Who did this?" Blaze said, trying to hide her face as she looked at Marine.
"The Queen did." Marine answered softly.
"Why? What did they do?" Honey said, a bit frightened to know.
Marine couldn't help clench her fist as the memory of Captain Whiskers' demise was coming back to her. "Long ago, Captain Whiskers gained knowledge of something called the Jeweled Scepter. With it he was hoping to overthrow the Queen and become the next powerful ruler." She said, thinking back.
The young raccoon looked at the head Captain Whiskers. "It didn't take long for the Queen to know what Captain Whiskers was up to and quickly ended his plans and this was his punishment." She said, shaking.
"Oh no." Blaze said, looking at Captain Whiskers and his crew.
Marine had tears coming out from her eyes. "She did this to them in front of everyone on the island as a message to those trying to go against her ruling. She forced everyone to watch for her amusement. I remember hearing Captain Whiskers begging for the life of his crew mates rather than his life. Just to make it cruel, she killed each of his crew mates in front of him as they asked for his help before taking his life. I can't get the sound of the Queen's laughter and Captain Whiskers' cries out of my head since that day." She cried, trying to wipe the tears away.
Blaze couldn't help but shake her fist, she was ready to burst out but Sonic quickly calmed her down by putting a hand on her shoulder. She looked at Sonic knowing now is not the time to get angry on what's been done. The clouds from the sky began to let some rain drop, slowly making everyone get wet.
"Let's get back, it's starting to rain." Sonic said, making everyone agree to leave except for Blaze who stood still and took one last look at Captain Whiskers and his crew.
"I'm sorry." She said before leaving the area.
A few hours have passed since they returned back to Marine's house after seeing what happened to Captain Whiskers and his crew. The gang were making themselves comfortable as they sat on chairs and drank some hot coco Blaze made with the ingredients from Marine's kitchen. Tails was with Marine at her work studies, hoping to make her feel better after what they encountered on the beach. Marine decided to let the gang stay with for a bit until this masked stranger finally shows up.
Tails was telling Marine some of the adventures they had together and would give advice to help improve her water bike and other inventions. It was making Marine feel better knowing that she could share some knowledge of what she knows than most people on the island.
While Tails was talking to Marine, the rest of the gang were in the living room just waiting patiently for about a few hours resting their bodies and trying to find a way to beat the Queen. Both Sonic and Honey were both getting impatient, having to wait when there's people in the world that needed their help.
"How much longer do we have to wait for this masked person?" Sonic said, swinging left leg as he sat.
"I agree with Sonic, I just want to go fight against the Queen again. I won't lose this time." Honey said, looking at her fist.
"Be patient you two, I'm sure this masked person whoever it is is on his way here right now." Knuckles said, with his arms and eyes closed as he relaxed.
"Easy for you to say. You spent most of your time sitting in one place guarding the Master Emerald." Sonic teased.
"Yeah it helps build up my patience unlike a sorta hedgehog." Knuckles teased back.
"Oh yeah well…."
*knock*knock*knock*
The three knocks on the door made Sonic stop talking. Marine then showed up to the living room with Tails following her and being the owner of the building was the one to open the door. She slightly opened the door carefully in case it was someone dangerous. To her surprise she had a scared look and turned back to look at the others.
"Um…I believe it's for you guys." Marine said, stepping away from the door.
Blaze walked towards the door and opened it to reveal none other than the masked stranger from before. He stood there standing tall and mighty as he looked at everyone. It wasn't long until he started to collapse due to how tired he was. Blaze managed to catch the mask fellow in her arms. He looked at Blaze's shining amber eyes that he could see underneath Blaze's cloak, instantly recognizing her.
"Thank you ... .you're highness." He said weakly.
Marine could help make her eyes widen to hear what the mask guy said. "Wait?! You're highness?" She said, getting confused and got more curious about Blaze who was still hiding her appearance.
Blaze helped the masked man over to sit on a chair. Once he sat down, he took out his sword that was still sheathed and dropped it on the ground making a loud metal banging noise. He was breathing heavily but stopped when he saw everyone looking at him. He couldn't help but laugh a little seeing how they wanted some answers.
"I'm surprised you were able to make it." Blaze said.
"I can handle it on my own, can't I? I can beat a couple of those fireflies." He said playfully.
"How did you know we were here in this building?" Honey asked.
"Easy, I just asked the locals that I know if they saw any weird characters lately. They said you were in this building." The mask man said before looking at Tails. "Good job getting everyone to this location, young fox."
"Thanks but it was your map and boat that got us here." Tails respond back.
"Would you mind telling us who you are?" Blaze asked, wanting to know.
"How about you show yourself first? It sounds like your host here doesn't know who you are." The masked man said, looking at Marine.
Blaze looked at Marine and she was curious to know who she was. The masked man was right that Marine had the right to know who she was since she was staying at her home. She turned her whole body towards the young raccoon, giving her a good view. Blaze grabbed the hoodie part of her cloak and slowly took it off. She reveals herself to Marine showing her lavender color fur and amber color eyes.
Everyone looked at Marine who just had the most horroried face they saw her do. Marine just took a few steps away from Blaze who was trying to comfort her. She kept taking steps back from Blaze until she hit the wall, not caring for the vase she accidently knocked down. Having nowhere to run, she got on her knees and bowed to Blaze making sure her face was on the ground, seeing this made Blaze very uncomfortable.
"Marine." Blaze said, softly.
"Please…..please don't hurt me, my Queen. I didn't know it was you." Marine said, shaking.
Sonic and others could see how badly Marine was trembling and shaking her body non stop. It was like she was staring at death. Sonic and Tails have never seen Marine get this scared before, not even when she got kidnapped by Captain Whiskers for she always kept her bravery and spunk in check. It was very disheartening for Sonic, Tails, and Blaze to see Marine act like this due to the Queen's ruling.
"Please I beg you! Don't burn down the island like you did with the others!" Marine cried as tears started to come out her eyes.
Before Marine could say anything else, Blaze couldn't take it anymore and rushed and pulled in Marine for a tight hug. "I'm so sorry Marine! I don't like seeing you like this. Please forgive my actions of my other self. Just stop bowing down to me!" Blaze cried.
The raccoon girl was at a loss of words, the most dangerous being on the planet was hugging her and asking her forgiveness. What also caught her attention is what Blaze said by "other self". Marine looked at Sonic and others realizing that the Blaze that was hugging her was not the same one she knows as the Killer Queen. Otherwise, the rest of the gang wouldn't be here seeing how Queen only works with her personal army.
"You're not the….Queen?" Marine asked, wanting to be sure.
Blaze let go and gave a caring look at the raccoon's blue eyes. "No and yes. Yes, we share the same look and voice, but we don't have the same personality. In my dimension, I remained a princess and helped maintain peace in my world." She said, wiping the tears of her eyes.
The cat then placed a hand on Marine's shoulder. "In my dimension, you and I are good friends. You're a great inventor, friend, and captain." She said.
Marine looked at Tails who smiled and nodded at her letting her know it was the truth. "She's right, you are a great inventor." Tails said to the raccoon.
"Yeah so great that you beat Tails here at the science fair with one of your inventions." Sonic said, teasing the young fox as he and Honey couldn't help chuckle at the memory. Tails with a small grumpy look just rolled his eyes at the hedgehog and cat.
Marine took a moment to put her thoughts together, trying to make herself calm. "I'm…..sorry for freaking out like that, your highness." She made out, looking down at the ground.
"Please don't call me highness or princess. Just call me Blaze, I hate that formality where I'm from." Blaze said.
The young raccoon couldn't help but smile hearing this, she was definitely different to the Queen due to her soft and caring nature for others. "Yes, Blaze." She answered.
Everyone looked at the masked stranger where under the mask they could actually see a tear coming down from it. He wiped the tear off his face as he stood up straightly. Without no warning, the masked stranger slowly took off his mask and revealed his face to the gang. He let go of the mask as it just landed on the floor. Everyone was just stunned as they looked at the face. Blaze was the most shocked by the appearance of being in front of her.
"Gardon!?"
There stood Gardon in the flesh, Blaze's personal guard that swore to protect Blaze's life since she was little. The koala bear smiled softly at Blaze as the two looked eye to eye. He just took a deep breath before looking at everyone.
"I believe an explanation is needed." He spoke.
Moments after the masked stranger reveal to be Gardon. Everyone sat down comfortably as they gave Gardon their attention. Everyone was surprised that Gardon was still alive and helping them seeing he serves the Queen, but is also working against her in secret. But it also made sense why he made the gang come to Southern Island to meet up after they escape.
Gardon spoke up, "First you'll probably wonder how all of you got here." He said.
"Yeah, the Sol Emeralds in my dimension were acting weird lately and until Sonic here brought a Chaos Emerald to help investigate." Blaze said, looking at Sonic.
"Chaos Emerald?" Gardon said, confused.
Sonic then pulled the blue Chaos Emerald from his hammer space. Gardon was amazed by the sight of the jewel that reminded him of the Sol Emeralds.
"Doing so I actually activated Chaos Control by accident. It took us here." Sonic said, looking at the Chaos Emerald.
Gardon placed a hand on his chin and began to think. "I see, so it was that emerald's power that was needed." He said, thinking out loud.
"What do you mean?" Tails asked.
Gardon looked at the group, "I was the one who brought you to this world." He answered.
"You brought us here?! How?" Honey asked.
"The past several months I've been studying how to harness the power of the Sol Emeralds. I was using them as a beacon to get any outside help." He answered.
"To get help?" Knuckles questioned the koala bear.
"Yes, help to stop the Queen's ruling." Gardon kept answering.
"And you went as far to get other people from other worlds to get help?" Blaze asked, raising an eye.
Gardon looked down feeling ashamed, "I had no choice. Everyone in this world has tried to take down the Queen but they ended up burned alive or torture. The Queen needs to be stopped. It's been over a year since the start of her ruling and the world is already in a poor state. I'm afraid there won't be a world to live on in a few years and she'll try to rule another world. Perhaps yours once she knows how to travel to another dimension." He explained.
The koala bear bowed to Blaze, "I know I brought you here and this isn't your world and problem to begin with. But I beg you for your assistance. I saw how all of you stood your ground against the Queen, seeing you guys fight gave me hope there's a chance. That's why I helped you guys escape." He said, pleading.
Blaze stood silently unsure how to answer but looked at Sonic and others who nodded at her. She looked at the koala bear and thought about the things the Queen version of herself has said and done to the world that was identical to hers.
"I'll help." She answered
Gardon was surprised once again by Blaze's response. Sonic stepped up with a smile as well as the others. All of them looked determined and ready for action.
"And you count us in! There's no way we're leaving people behind who are in desperate need of help. Right guys?" Sonic said, cheerfully asking his friends.
"Yeah that's not how we roll." Honey said, clench her fist and smiled.
"As long as I get another shot at the Queen. Consider me." Knuckles smirked.
"And when we beat the Queen, I'll teach Marine here how to improve the world with some inventions." Tails said, looking at the raccoon girl who smiled at him.
Blaze smiled, "Thank you everyone." She said, giving them a bow.
"Thank you all." Gardon spoke up. "Because of you, I feel like this world could have something it lost long ago.
"And what's that?" Tails said,
"A miracle." Gardon said, before looking at the rainy storm outside. "It's a miracle we need. A miracle."
"If every leaf on every tree could tell a story that would be a miracle. If every child on every street had clothes to wear and food to eat. That's a miracle." Gardon said, thinking of the rest of the world affected by the Queen's wrath.
Hearing Gardon's wish for the world to have a miracle gave them more determination to defeat the Queen and bring Gardon's wish to come to life. Before anything else could happen. Blaze walked towards Gardon with a curious look that the koala bear knew she had something in her mind.
"Is there something bothering you?" Gardon asked, curious to know if the princess had a frown.
Blaze nodded, "Before we do anything. I just want to know how….I ended up becoming the Killer Queen?" She said, curious.
Everyone in the room was surprised by Blaze's request but they too were also curious to know how this version of Blaze ended up different from the one they know. Gardon frowned but he knew he was gonna get this question from Blaze sooner or later. It seems now was the best time since they were sheltered at Marine's home during a rainy storm. They are safe from the Queen's chase for a while before they start anything.
He looked at the purple feline with a concerned face. "You really want to know? What I'm about to tell you is probably something you and friends don't want to hear." Gardon said, making sure this is what Blaze wants to hear.
"Yes, I need to know what happened. I want the whole story. Was I always like this?" Blaze said, as her friends agreed to hear the story.
"Very well as you wish and no you weren't always like this before." Gardon said, sitting down on a chair.
The rest grabbed a seat or laid on the floor as they began to listen to the words coming from the koala's mouth. Gardon closed his eyes and began to think back on what happened that fateful day. It was a day he would never forget for the rest of his life but wished he could for it was something so cruel. He began to talk just before a loud thunder noise was heard outside.
"It was over a year ago before the Queen spread her fire."
Over a year ago
It was just a normal day at the royal castle. The castle stood proudly in its place for all to see in the valley. The royal guards were walking around keeping the place safe from intruders. Other royal guards were in the training grounds sharpening their weapons and skills for any future threats. The castle workers were doing their best to keep the place clean and the chefs were preparing food for the day. On the top floor level of the castle was a fancy looking door with a fire symbol on it.
Just outside of the door was Gardon, who was walking past it as he was heading over to his workplace for the day. He paused his walk and looked at the door with a worried look. He was hoping today his plan would make the royal princess feel relaxed. For the past year she has been working hard to keep the kingdom and world safe from any evil threats while doing her duty as the guardian of the Sol Emeralds. Working every bone in her body. Gardon looked away and continued to walk towards his workstation.
Inside the door with the fire symbol, the room was completely covered in darkness for the curtains of the room were preventing any light coming in the room. There was no noise either until the sound of something shuffling and the bed squeaking was heard.
A mysterious figure slowly stood up from the bed and let out a deep breath before coughing. They yawn and stretch their arms out as it gets off from its fancy queen size bed. The mysterious figure couldn't help but stare down at the ground and tried to collect its thoughts for a moment.
With more energy, the figure finally got out of bed and stood on its two feet. The figure let out a yawn and walked towards the curtain of the dark room. With a tight grip on the curtain, they were pulled apart as a huge beam of the sun's light came though the room, lighting it up and revealed the mysterious figure.
It was Blaze the Cat, the princess and protector of the world. She was soaking in all the sun's light as she kept her eyes closed, wanting to enjoy the sun's heat hitting her body. After enough of absorbing the sunlight, Blaze walked towards her dresser, sat down, and looked at the mirror to see her reflection.
She was not happy at the slightest, just tired and overworked. Over the past year, Blaze has been working hard to protect the Sol Emeralds much like how her family had for generations. But lately her arch enemy, Eggman Nega has been going nonstop to steal the Sol Emeralds from her. To the point, Blaze couldn't get a full 8 or even 5 hours of sleep.
Not only that, each attempt of Eggman Nega tried to get the Sol Emeralds was getting more deadly than the last. Giving Blaze major scars and wounds on her body. Blaze was getting to the point that she can handle it all on her own just to show to Eggman Nega she wasn't weak or to be messed with.
Princess Blaze felt she was stuck, her duty to protect the Sol Emeralds and her kingdom was pretty much what she's been doing since she was a kitten when her pyrotechnics powers kicked in. She hadn't had time to make friends or socialize with others. At the same, she sees no reason for people to just treat her all formal due to her princess status rather than an equal.
Blaze looked at herself and frowned as she spoke to herself in the mirror seeing she's all alone. "Each morning I get up. I die a little. Can barely stand on my feet." She said to her reflection.
The cat looked at the mirror to see a tear coming down from her eye, the time she could cry softly. She quickly wiped off the tear and before looking back at the mirror. "Lord, what are you doing to me? I just can't get any relief." She said, to herself.
After a moment to herself, Blaze quickly shook off these sad feelings and kept her usual strong face. The very face she wants everyone to see when she walks out her room to show her strong independence look. Blaze quickly stood up and began to dress up in her usual clothes before walking out the door to start her day as the princess.
After moments of waking up, Blaze stepped out of her room looking like her usual self. She began walking down the hallway of her castle looking straight forward. While she was walking, she encountered a few royal guards who saluted and bowed to her. Princess Blaze didn't greet them back; she kept walking and looked straight ahead.
"You're highness!" A voice called her out.
Princess Blaze didn't bother turning around to the name. Secretly she hates being called "highness" but had no choice to let people call her that for her status to keep looking important. Walking slightly close behind her was Gardon, Blaze's personal royal guard who swore to protect her since she was a child.
He too gave a bow and salute to the princess and continued to walk slightly behind her wanting to give her space. Blaze sighed, she had no choice but let Gardon be with her. Gardon was the only few people Blaze would consider as a friend but that's only because he was given the task by the nobles to do so.
"Gardon, are things looking all right in the castle?" Princess Blaze asked.
"Yes, princess. Everyone is off doing their best for the castle and kingdom." Gardon happily replied.
"I see." Princess Blaze blankly said.
Gardon frowned seeing that Blaze wasn't slightly happy and just wanted to get her work done. "I suppose I'll head over to my workplace and check on some paperwork." Princess Blaze said.
"You're highness, please wait a moment." Gardon asked.
Princess Blaze looked at Gardon with a odd look, "Yes, what is it you want to say." She said, giving him her attention.
"You're highness, lately you've been getting stressful with these recent Eggman Nega encounters and I couldn't help but notice it's been taking quite the hit on you." He said, looking down at the ground.
Princess Blaze was surprised by this, but her surprise felt inside as she kept her normal face on. "And what's your point? It's not like he's holding back." She said, coldly.
"Well today, I assembled an event you and the rest of the people of the kingdom can enjoy. A Night at the Opera." He said.
"A Night at the Opera?" Princess Blaze said, confused.
"Yes, I gathered some of the best musicians and singers this world has to offer to perform just for your pleasure." Gardon said, bowing to Blaze. "I gained permission from a few noble people to help assemble this event for they too were interested in the idea. They like the fine art of music."
Princess Blaze looked down with a frown, "I'm not sure about this." She said, unsure what to think.
"A little music can help release some of that stress away. Music has a way to heal in its own way." The koala bear said, trying to convince the princess.
"I can't just leave the Sol Emeralds unguarded, what if Eggman Nega tries to steal it?" Blaze said.
Gardon nodded his head, "I wouldn't worry about that. I hired some extra guards protecting the emeralds while you're at the music event." He answered.
"You really went far for this?" Blaze asked, a bit outstanded by Gardon's efforts.
"Yes, you're highness. I just want to feel happy and relaxed for once. Even if it's for one day." Gardon explained.
Blaze then thought about it for a moment, indeed she has been stressed out lately about Eggman Nega and it would probably get worse in the coming times. She then thought how much effort Gardon had put together to make this event happen and it would probably make him feel less if she rejected going.
"Very well, I shall go to this event today." Blaze accepted going.
"You won't regret this, your highness." Gardon said, giving a small bow once more.
Blaze nodded as she and Gardon, continued their walk through the castle. For the rest of the day things went on normally as Blaze finished her paperwork and listened to visitors from other parts of the world who wished to speak to her. Much to Blaze's surprise, Eggman Nega hasn't struck yet to get the Sol Emeralds and a part of that made her feel at ease for the moment.
Soon the night came to fill the sky with its pitch black view with stars. A large theater building was present where a lot of people were entering to enjoy tonight's performance. Many were wearing suits and dresses wanting to look respectable for Blaze who was going to be in the same building as them.
The stage was huge as well for the audience seats to sit. The place has a rich history of having multiple performances over the years, some even dating back to Blaze's ancestors from a hundred years ago. The decor was beautiful and well crafted with symbols on the sun and moon on the wall. A large red curtain was used to hide the performances from the audience. There were levels of balconies where people were able to see the show from the top.
Blaze and Gardon were on the way back to the very top balcony. Being able to see the whole show perfectly and not be disturbed by anyone. Gardon watched the people down below and at the balcony of the theater sitting down on their seats getting excited for the show.
Gardon looked over at Blaze who had this uncomfortable look being surrounded by a lot of people who might be looking at her due to her royal status. She has never been to one place where a bunch of people are together. She had small royal meetings at the castle but they were nowhere near as big as the one she is now.
That nervousness went away once the first group of performers came up to the stage and started preparing themselves as the audience turned to look at them. Blaze saw they were a group violinist as they prepared their music for her starting off the event.
The music event had many different musicians and singers performing that night. Musicians played their flutes, horns, cello, viola, double bass, and string instruments. There were some that sang their opera-like songs out loud showing off the range of their voices that even people watching from the top balcony could hear. The audience was loving performances of everyone on stage.
While everyone was enjoying the performances, Blaze seemed to be the only one who didn't look amused. While the performances were great, nothing seems to leave an impression on her. They all felt similar with this formal tone they all had. At this point, Blaze just wanted this event to end and get some rest for tomorrow.
The performers on the stage stopped with their music for they were done. The audience clapped for their performance as they bowed and went backstage, allowing the next group to take over and take the stage. The curtain of the stage then closed up, allowing the next group to set up their things giving a small intermission to the audience to rest their ears.
Gardon looked over at Blaze who had a bored expression on her. "Are you enjoying the show, your highness?" He asked.
Blaze frowned, "Unfortunately I can't say I'm having a good time. I'm sorry, Gardon. I know you're trying to help feel more relaxed but this ain't working." She confessed.
Gardon frowned inside but kept his smile. "Thanks for your honesty princess. It was at least a nice try." He said.
"I really appreciate it, but I think it's best we get going." Blaze said, getting up from her seat.
"Your highness, If I may. Maybe stick around just a bit longer. There is still one performance left to show. You don't want to show any disrespect to these performances seeing that you left after watching everyone else perform." Gardon said, trying to convince the princess.
Princess Blaze sighs but sees what Gardon meant. There was only one performance left and she didn't want to be rude by leaving them. "Very well, if this is the last performance then I will remain." She said, sitting back on her seat.
Gardon smiled as he and Blaze looked straight ahead at the stage. The curtains of the stage shuffled around until they slowly started to spread out. On stage was a group of four individual men, each of them with their instruments. What was shocking and different from the previous performances that caught Blaze's eyes was the type of instruments they were using. One was using a set of drums, electric guitar, bass guitar, and a piano with a microphone attached on the top of it.
Before the performance, the man sat on his seat near the piano and spoke on the mic. "This song goes out for our royal princess who has been working to keep our world safe. We love you darling." He said, smiling at where Blaze was.
The princess couldn't help but feel a bit relaxed hearing the man's voice. She watched as the man started off by playing a few small notes on the piano to get things warmed up. Blaze's ear perked up slightly to hear the piano notes. The man smiled with his eyes closed and began singing on the mic alongside his band members who also started playing their instruments.
"I can dim the lights and sing you songs full of sad things, we can do the tango just for two." The man softly sang.
Blaze had her eyes glued to the man singing and playing the piano as he kept on singing to his heart content. "I can serenade and gently play on your heart strings, be your Valentino just for you." The man kept singing.
Soon the rest of the band members started harmonizing with the song as they played their instruments. The way they sing and play together was something. She was in love with the drum sticks making the beat give off an up beat feeling, love the electric flying feel from the electric guitar, love the bass guitar hitting the deep notes, but most importantly she was in love with the piano piece that was soothing her soul. Blaze had never heard before. Even the crowd was amazed by this performance as they looked at each other. The way the band worked together mixing classical, opera, and rock music was astounding.
Even Gardon was surprised by the band's performance and he was the one who made the event. The Koala bear was tapping his foot to the music until he looked over and saw Blaze who was actually having a good time.
He was shocked by seeing her foot tapping to the rhythm of the music. Blaze had her eyes closed trying to focus on the music enjoying it. She had a hand on her heart feeling relaxed and even motivated to keep going as the royal princess to protect the world if they had such talented people like the ones on the stage. Gardon also took notice how Blaze was tapping her fingers on her seat trying to match the rhythm of the piano that the man was singing.
Gardon couldn't help smiling, finally able to see the princess in a calm state after all this time. "I guess she really likes that piano piece." Gardon thought to himself before looking back at the performance. "How very Queen of her haha."
"I'd like for you and I to go romancing. Say the word, your wish is my command!" The man sang with his heavenly voice.
"Gardon?" Blaze spoke up while keeping her eyes on the band.
"Oh? Yes, your highness?" Gardon answers back.
"Is there a way I can talk to these four individuals after the show? I would like to applaud them personally." Blaze said, a bit shyly.
"Oh I'm sure they would be delighted to know that the princess wants to see them." Gardon replied with a chuckle.
"Oh and Gardon." Blaze kept talking and looked at the koala bear. "Please just call me Blaze."
Gardon couldn't help smiling hearing that she's finally opened up a bit. It was a small progress but a huge improvement. "Yes, you're high…or I mean Blaze." He said, trying to get used to saying that.
Blaze and Gardon looked back at the four musicians as their performance was coming to end. The singer of the group sang the last part of the song, singing in the mic as if this last part was meant for Blaze to hear. "Everything's all right! Just hold on tight! That's because I'm a good old fashioned lover boy!" He sang happily to the mic.
Once the singer hit the last key on the piano, everyone got up from their seats and began clapping for them. To show their appreciation, flowers were thrown to them for their performance. Blaze even stood up from her seat and clapped, smiling at the four musicians before looking at Gardon.
"May I ask? Does this band have a name?" Blaze asked.
Gardon scratched his head and rubbed his chin trying to remember what the band's name was, "Funny enough, I do believe the name of the band is called….."
Just before Gardon couldn't finish answering, the place of the theater began to rumble violently, making everyone stop what they were doing. The audience were holding on to their seats as some fell off to the ground. Parts of the theater started crumbling, hitting the head of some of the crowds. The shaking got more violent until it came to a full stop. Everyone felt dizzy and scared as some went to check on the injured people. Blaze and Gardon were on the ground but got up.
"What happened?" Blaze asked.
"An earthquake? A powerful one at that." Gardon said, running his body.
Near where the performers were at, a cracked open hole appeared on top of them. What caused the cracked hole was a giant metal robotic hand bursting through. The giant hand grabbed the four band members and pulled them out as it made the crack hole even bigger.
What everyone saw was a giant humanoid robot whose face appeared from the hole of the ceiling. What caught everyone's attention was how the face looked. It had metallic lips, nose, ears, and most notably its eyes which were red and looked sad as it had a frown. The very top of the head of the giant killer robot opens up and is revealed to be none other than Dr. Eggman Nega controlling it.
The mad scientists have a sadistic looking grin as he plays with his white bushy mustache and let out his laugh Blaze was clenching her fist violently seeing the mad doctor. That calmness she was having was now all gone once she laid her eyes on him.
"Eggman Nega! What are you doing!?" Blaze asked, angrily.
Eggman Nega grinned, "Why it's my daily invasion of becoming the supreme ruler of this world. Can't let you have a moment of peace while I'm around." He mocked.
"Then why bother to attack this place? The Sol Emeralds aren't even here!?" Blaze yelled.
"Ho ho ho ho! That's where you're wrong princess! The Sol Emeralds are closer than they appear." Eggman Nega said, rubbing his hands.
Eggman Nega pressed a button on his control panel. Small door slid down from the giant killer robot's chest. There, the Sol Emeralds were being shown to power up the large machinery. Blaze was surprised by this seeing the mad doctor managed to get the Sol Emeralds.
"They were being protected by some of our best royal guards! How did you get them!?" Gardon yelled.
"Royal guards? Do you mean these?" Eggman Nega teased.
The mad doctor used his machine to use its other hand to go through the ceiling. It was in the form of a tight fist. The giant killer robot undid its fist and out dropped a large handful of Blaze's royal guards, all badly wounded or possibly killed in a huge pile. This caused more panic in the theater as the audience screamed at the sight of the fallen soldiers.
Gardon couldn't believe what he saw, some of the best royal soldiers were beaten by the chaotic mind of the mad doctor. It was hard to watch for he could hear them moan for help as they laid there. Blaze too was angry that her army was so easily defeated by Eggman Nega, but right now all she cares about is getting the Sol Emeralds back.
"Well you got the Emeralds, what more can you possibly want to attack here?" Blaze asked.
Eggman Nega smirked, "I may have the Emeralds but you're still a major problem for me for world domination! With the Sol Emeralds powers, I will beat you once and for all. Once I do, I will be the News of the World that I, the great Dr. Eggman Nega! Have defeated the royal princess and dethrone her!" He said proudly.
"You will pay for your crimes, doctor! You're really pushing my boundaries today!" Blaze threatened her enemy.
"Oh ho! I guess I'll push it even further. It's really fun making you mad!" Eggman Nega shot back as he prepared to pilot his machine.
Before Blaze could spring to action, Gardon quickly stopped her from going. "Blaze, right now we gotta get the people out here and make sure they'll be safe." Gardon suggested.
Blaze gritted her teeth and harshly broke free from Gardon's grip, "There's no time, Eggman Nega has the Sol Emeralds. I need to stop him right now or even more people will get hurt." She said, not wanting to stick around
The purple cat jumped off the balcony and ran towards the huge machine. Eggman Nega's machine was playing around by grabbing a hand of full screaming and terrified people trying to escape, throwing them at Blaze. The feline charged up her fire aura and kicked back the machine's hand, making the giant killer robot let go of the people he was holding.
Blaze fired up her powers and gave herself a burst to go through the hole that the giant robot made on the ceiling. She was now on the rooftop of the building as she stood against the giant killer robot on her own. Blaze's eyes only focus on the robot's chest where the Sol Emeralds were.
The giant robot looked down at Blaze with his disturbing sad red color human-like eyes at her. The robot then went to punch at the feline. Blaze did a front flip and landed on the robot's arm. The robot looked at his arm to see Blaze running on it. Blaze would hold on as the robot tried to shake her off its robot arm.
The machine would also try to slam Blaze with its other hand like trying to squish a bug. Blaze would timely adjust herself to between the robot's fingers to avoid getting squished. The cat made her way to the top near the head where Eggman Nega was inside. She jumped in the air and did a flaming kick at the side of the robot's head. The machine reacted as it moved its head feeling the pain as Blaze was falling to the ground.
The robot quickly reacted and got the chance to slam the feline down with its hand as she was falling. Blaze screamed in pain but kept on her feet not wanting to throw in the towel. She looked up to see the robot's eyes were starting to glow as it was looking at her.
Out came a deadly red beam from the robot's eyes. Blaze dodge rolls from the attack as the robot zapped around the area destroying multiple homes and buildings. Blaze looked back at the damage it caused to see people badly wounded but quickly dismissed them for she only focused on wanting to stop Eggman Nega and his giant machine.
The battle went on as Blaze tried to attack the it's arms and legs to weaken it. The robot put out a deadly fight as it was giving Blaze a hard time to make it hit for it was moving around unpredictably. There was no one to help the princess for the area was mostly blocked in rumble caused by the destruction of their fight.
Blaze was getting all tucker out for she was ready to fall on her knees. The robot, while badly damaged by Blaze hitting it, was still ready to fight more. Seeing that was still trying to catch her breath, the giant killer robot thought it was a good idea to end Blaze's life by stomping on her with his humongous feet.
The robot lifted his foot over the princess and began to lower its foot to stomp. As Blaze watched the giant metallic foot come at her, her whole body bursted out in a great flame as she yelled in great anger, making the nearby people hear her scream. Blaze, while her whole body heated up in her fire aura, jumped towards the machine's foot.
Due to how hot her flames on her body were, she managed to melt her way through the machine's foot and got inside its metallic body. The giant was trying to figure out where Blaze went but soon felt something as he rubbed his body. He could feel Blaze running inside his circuitry body.
Inside the robot's body, Blaze was burning and ripping through its circuits as she went all over. Parts of the body of the giant robot started to explode inside because Blaze lit up the oil that was spilling inside. The robot panicked as it tried tackling itself to make Blaze stop but only for a brief moment. It didn't work because Blaze managed to reach the chest area of the machine where the Sol Emeralds were being held.
She quickly ripped them off from the robot's chest and as she held them in her hands. Blaze fired up and bursted out from the chest area of the machine, making the robot panic feeling as if his heart was torn out. The feline was quickly able to land on her feet, but her body immediately gave out as she fell on her knees and accidentally let go of the Sol Emeralds surrounding her.
Blaze watched as the giant robot was falling with a huge hole on its chest, no longer powered up by the Sol Emeralds. Even the robot's glowing red eyes were starting to dim. The feline thought it was the end for her as the robot was falling down near her. But by luck, the robot barely missed crushing Blaze on impact as it landed on its side of the body in defeat. Blaze was literally near the robot's face as she stared at it.
Blaze looked to see the eyes of the killer robot were now completely dead, no longer able to glow. The head of the robot began to open and out pop Eggman Nega who was crawling out and coughing non stop from all the dust that was around him. From the distance from where Blaze and Eggman Nega was at was Gardon watching them. He very slowly made his way towards them at because he got injured on the leg from a building collapse on him from the robot's death beam earlier.
Eggman Nega was badly wounded due to the impact of his machine falling as he kept coughing and crawling away. Before he could get on his feet to make his getaway with his Eggmobile, he was immediately grabbed on the neck by Blaze furiously, slowly choking the air out of him. Blaze was not happy at all. Lots of negative thoughts and feelings were going through the feline's head. Eggman Nega just kept his usual smirk as he looked at the princess.
"So you finally caught me?" He teased the cat. "You have me at the grip of your hand."
"Just stop." Blaze said, trying her best to keep herself control
Eggman Nega gave a small laugh, "You may have won princess, but would you say you really did? Just look around you?" He said.
Blaze turned to look at the area around them. Many homes were destroyed making a lot of people homeless, shops and businesses were no longer standing destroying the owner's life work. Many lifeless and injured people could see as many cried and wept for their loved ones. Blaze even spotted the body of those four musicians she was loving during the performance, their lives are now no longer on the living world as they laid on ground all dead.
"No." Blaze sadly said, breathing heavily.
"Ho ho ho ho! Well I guess this is where you lock me up heh? It won't matter either way, I'll just find a way to escape and we can do this all over again with much more chaos and destruction from our battles! I promise you that!" Eggman Nega said, making a promise.
Blaze wasn't looking at the doctor as he spoke. She was breathing uncontrollably as her heart started to beat rapidly so that she could hear it. Her emotions were a lot of things, anger, fear, sadness and regret all of which was growing by the passing minutes. She was being put Under Pressure by all this and it was weighing a lot on her by a ton.
Eggman Nega smiled seeing how much all this was affecting Blaze so harshly. "Just imagine more of our future battles, perhaps even more casualties. After all, why stop here? I'm gonna make sure each attempt is more deadly than the last! This is gonna be so much fun! I-"
*Snap*
Ringing sound could be heard inside Blaze's head as she looked at Eggman Nega whose arms just went flat and lifeless as her eyes widened and shook. Blaze has just snapped the neck of her long time nemesis without a second thought. She was shaking uncontrollably as well as making some small gibberish noise. She didn't know what to say properly as she let go of Eggman Nega's neck as his lifeless body fell on the ground in front of her.
Blaze looked at the sky for a moment and let out a cry so loud as tears were coming out. She hasn't ever cried this badly; it's as if these tears that have been stored inside her years are finally coming out. She couldn't believe what she had done and there was no undoing it. Blaze just took away a life with her own bare hand, something she thought she would never do as guardian. Nobody but her made this choice and she had to live with it.
Gardon who finally managed to reach Blaze after limping his way with his injured leg. Gardon was surprised to see Blaze crying out loud but soon saw the reason when he saw Eggman Nega's body on the ground not moving at all.
The koala bear saw Blaze covering her face with her hands. He also caught the glimpse of the Sol Emeralds around Blaze giving out a strange glow the more Blaze reacted. Blaze's crying lowered as she quietly cried on her hand not wanting anyone to see her face.
Gardon stood watching until Blaze stopped making noises. He looked over to see the back of Blaze, still on her knees and had one hand covering her face. It was quiet until she started to make some noise. At first, Gardon thought Blaze was crying more but as he got close it started to sound a lot different.
He could hear Blaze's crying slowly turn into laughter as she covered face. She was slowly forming a smile on her face for she finally got rid of the problem that caused her pain and suffering. Gardon started to get worried as the laughter started to get louder and crazier as she snickered. "Blaze, are you okay?" He asked the feline.
Hearing the koala bear spoke and still having her back against him. Blaze took her hands off her face and continued to laugh out loud like never before. It was starting to get scary the way Blaze was laughing, something very uncharacteristic of her doing, it sent chills down to everyone to hear her laugh. One thing for sure: something is about to change for the worse for everyone on the whole planet. Something that nobody was prepared for as Blaze's mind finally snapped and she was very happy about it for she was now set free from her invisible chains that were holding her back.
Blaze finally stopped her sinister like laughing and took a deep breath. "Oh Gardon." She finally spoke, still not turning around as she looked at Eggman Nega's dead body in front of her with a smirk and set it on fire with her powers. Gardon was shocked seeing what Blaze just did as she smiled seeing the body of Eggman Nega burn slowly into a corpse.
The feline turned around in a creepy way, looking at Gardon. The koala bear stepped a few backs away from the princess, afraid by what he saw. Blaze was looking at Gardon with a unholy and deadly look combined with a big sinister like a Cheshire Cat. She tilted her head in a disturbing way before speaking while tears were still dripping out from her now red color eyes. No longer tears of sadness, but tears of joy.
"I never felt so alive!"
End of chapter 4