Very late chapter due to medical issues - still trying to get these done though (still have a bad habit of disappearing for months)
What happened next was a blur. Smoke billowed out of the ground, blurring the lines between each other and the trees. Silver found himself separated from the others, the girl carrying him whimpering as she backed towards a tree. Ivory hands gripped onto the cerulean blue shoulders, the two desperately looking through the mist for the other children.
A light flashed through the dense fog, outlining figures scattered through the woods. Children cried out to each other only for the sound to fall dampened in the horrifically quiet fog. The ground shook, light flashing through the cloud yet again as figures fought each other in complete silence.
Silver screamed out - the girl joining him only for their voices to grow lost in the cold shades of purple and gray. Trembling, the girl gripped onto the tree- watching the ambiguous figures clash in the lights as the shadows of kids ran aimlessly around.
A bolt of energy sliced through the fog and exploded near the base of the tree. With a yelp, the girl jumped; Silver losing his grip on her shoulders and tumbling into the fog. Silently, his body hit the ground; the heavy air weighing down on his shoulders as he tumbled to a stop. With a heavy exhale, he rolled to his feet- golden eyes straining to see where the girl went.
The cloud was consuming. No wonder Shadow didn't want him in here. Silver could hardly hear his own footsteps. The only thing keeping him from being totally lost was the flashing lights and thundering ground outlining silhouettes in the area. Anxiety overtook once again as Silver looked around. Between the flashes, all he could see was two paces of dead grass and leaves around him. Coughing, Silver turned around and around. The air was so thick and heavy…
A hand grabbed his wrist. With a shriek, Silver turned to attack the thing that grabbed him only to see the girl. Her brown eyes filled with tears as she shakingly spoke.
"Don't let go of my hand - we have to stay together."
Her voice was sickeningly quiet in the chilly air. It was a miracle she even made herself known in the horrible place. With a gulp, Silver gripped onto her hand. Beams of light burst through the cloud yet again, revealing the silhouette of a person not far away.
Dread laid heavy in the air as the two cautiously walked in the direction of the figure. The girl swiped her feet in a sweeping motion, looking for rocks and sticks that might trip them in the low visibility landscape. As they picked through the mist, the figure abruptly burst into view.
Without a word, the two teens locked arms, creating a link as they moved onwards. Nausea bloated in Silver's stomach, the cold air making him sick as the smoke shifted around him. There was something off about this fog. Whatever it was made of was not air, and it was making the kids feel dreadful. The more they breathed the more fear grew as Silver shut his eyes and prayed Shadow was winning the fight. Fur brushed his shoulder, and without thinking, Silver grabbed it - finding a young cat attached to it. The yelps of pain quickly faded as the cat clung onto the ivory fur in return, not wanting to be lost in the freezing cloud of malice and hate.
Hate. That was the word Silver had been thinking about for the last ten minutes. The last ten, horrible, sickening minutes. Whatever this cloud was made of, it was made of hate. That was all he could sense. The bitter taste of hate in his mouth and the horrible color of hate in his eyes. It made him afraid. So, terrifyingly afraid. Whatever the cloud demon was, it was made of hate.
Heat blasted over his head as a bolt of energy cut through the mist. The kids screamed as the ground behind them exploded. Silver found his arms jerked as more people had latched onto the link and ran in various directions. With a yelp of pain, he found himself pulled in opposite ways. The squeak was lost in the fog, the deafening silence filling his ears with a horrid ringing sound. How could this place even be so quiet?
Silver looked down the chain. He could see at least two more kids attached on either side, but the pulling on his arms told him more. There were at least fifty kids in his group, but how many were still in the fog? From his place on the chain he could only see four, but there had to be more, right? It was hopeless to find out. There was no way he could tell four from fifteen in the frozen denseness of the hate cloud.
Looking into the deepness only revealed the awful light show. Shadow seemed to be putting up one heck of a fight. The ground was shaking despite the silence and the lights flashed furiously. Silver wondered if the adult would be ok. The kids around him - especially the older ones - seemed absolutely mortified. That told the hoglet that this was a seriously life changing event. Yet, through the fog, Silver couldn't feel anything more than hate. Hatred in his eyes. Hatred in his lungs. And hatred in his mind.
A harsh pull to his left forced a squeak out of his mouth. The kids around him yelped and jerked as the pace picked up around him. Silver found himself drug through the fog, feet helplessly waving in the air as the tension picked him off the ground.
Light and fresh air exploded through his eyes, startling Silver. The dead silence was replaced by loud rumblings and air shattering booms. Shadow. Now that they were out of the fog, Silver could hear the previously dampened noise with clarity.
Shadow was making a racket. The mere sound of the flashing energy was enough to shake the very trees around them. Looking around revealed at least twenty kids. Under half of the original party. Silver found himself tumbled to the ground as the group unlatched from each other, scattering from a line to hide behind the trees. Bolts of light occasionally shot out of the wall of cloud, and none of them fancied getting hit by the earth destroying shots.
Frantically, the kids called out for those still lost in the mist. Yet, there was no way those still in the covered area could even hear those outside. Heck, they couldn't even hear each other in there. Silver dodged a bolt and ducked behind a tree, cowering between the legs of an older boy.
Screeches filled the air as one of the teens broke away from the treeline and headed for the mist. Linking arms, the older kids bolted after him only to get slapped away as he ran into the mist. The others didn't hesitate to pull him out.
Retreating further into the woods, the group of twenty found a hill to hide behind where they would be safer. Pulled along, Silver found himself lumped in the middle of the group along with the other young ones pulled into the circle.
"We have to go back for the others." The runaway teen demanded, slamming his fist against a rock. "We can't leave them there - they could die."
"My brother is in there." Another teen hissed. "I don't dare go after him because he'd kill me for trying to rescue him."
"But the children."
Mumblings filled the air, just barely louder than the cacophonous racket of the demon and the hero. Both sides had a point. There were those who could handle being lost for a few days, and there were helpless kids Silver's age stuck in there.
"We have to get out of here." A teen coughed out. "It's too dangerous to stay."
"My village isn't too far from here." Another one spoke. "They'll take us in and help get us back to our families…"
"But we can't leave them behind!" The first teen demanded. "I can't do it and forgive myself for leaving…"
"Why don't we split up?" Silver piped up. "You go back and get the others while we head back to the village."
"We won't be able to find the village lost in the mist…" A teen pointed out. "We'd be separated for good."
"Well, if you do find villages, they'll help you reconnect eventually." Silver nervously admitted. "It might take a few years, but if you survive you'll meet again."
The teens looked at each other. Silver had a point. Even though it would mean being separated for a bit, it would be better for more people in the end. Silently, the older kids contemplated their choices.
Finally, a teen stood up, taking a large stick in his hand and sticking it in the ground. A second and third stood, linking arms with the first and nodding at the remaining people. Tears welled up as some hugged goodbye, while others prepared for the road. Silver stood, brushing his fur smooth and latching onto the tail of an older cat.
"Kid, you have to go with the others." The teen gently commanded, reaching down to unhook his hands.
"No." Silver snapped. "I have to stay with Shadow - He's all I got…"
"Shadow?" The teen asked questioningly.
Without answering, Silver took the teen's hand and bolted towards the mist, barely giving the others time to link up before they disappeared into the silent clouds once again. With only the lights to guide their way, Silver let one of the teens take the lead. The hawk had good eyesight and could spot out figures in the shadows much easier than he could.
The all consuming silence was just as deafening as before, but this time Silver was ready for it. A teen passed down the line, hooking up at the back while the hawk maintained the lead. Silver coughed, feeling the bitter tasting air re-enter his lungs yet again.
Bolts flew over their heads as the fighting figures outlined in the lights yet again. Silver could see figures small and large scattered through the fog, yet only for brief seconds at a time it could take hours to reach them all…
But they pressed on. More and more kids joining the chain as they stumbled along longer and longer. Silver found exhaustion racking his system. They had been going through constant action for a long time and it seemed like the day would never end. Another kid joined the chain as they stumbled over a hill.
Shadow burst through the mist, hurling over their heads and to the ground as he jumped up a tree. The screams and yelps of surprise that called out were damped by the dense fog as the adult launched off the trunk - tackling at something hidden in the fog. Silver cried out, hoping to be heard by the battling ranger only for his voice to grow lost yet again.
After what seemed like forever, the mist broke, allowing the noise and light to enter Silver's system yet again. Looking at the chain roping out of the wall revealed the thirty or so missing of the group.
Not even stopping to breathe, the kids started bolting away from the wall of cloud, Silver drug with them. Even though they broke the chain, and started running in a crowd instead of a line, many of the elder kids held a firm grip on the younger children and started dragging them along faster than they could run. Silver included.
The bird that latched onto his wrist held on with a firm grip, bringing panic to the young hoglet as he glanced back at the cloud. He couldn't leave Shadow - he just got him back. Silver pulled against the elder boy. His heels dug into the decayed dirt as he pulled against the strong teen. He had to go back.
"Dude come on!" The teen shouted, yanking back. Silver didn't listen. Before the teen could adjust his grip, Silver focused a wave of concentration at the boy's fingers snapping them open with a brief pulse of energy.
As soon as his body hit the ground, Silver bolted back. The teen tried to follow only to be caught by the others, telling him not to bother. Silver didn't care. He had to get back.
The explosions grew louder and louder the closer he ran. The ground exploded from stray bolts, forcing the young hedgehog to take cover at the edge of the mist. Loud roarings and blasts of light echoed through the ground, rippling Silver's ivory fur as the sound raced from the cloud. Light shone in rays through the dense mist as the roaring grew louder and louder. Silver hid his golden eyes, shielding himself from the blinding lights.
With a final roar, the cloud dissipated, the demon circling through the trees as Shadow's hooding figure stood visible in the woods. As the demon charged on final time, the ranger held both his hands out with a loud shout. Light exploded once again as a loud blast knocked Silver off his feet.
Blackness.
Ringing was all the hoglet could hear as he laid on his back. As he opened his eyes the sky was blindingly bright - burning the poor hedgehog's retinas as his eyes failed to adjust to the environment. With a whimper, Silver covered his ears - trying to block the ringing noise with his fingers. Not matter what, it did not fade, nor did the blinding sky dull. Pulling himself to his feet, Silver wobbled against the tree, hoping to catch himself if he fell. The world swayed back and forth beneath his feet, every detail insanely blurry under the pure dizziness he felt.
Slowly, his senses came about - eyes focusing on the cloaked ranger as he stood in the demonless clearing. Shadow had won.