Love In The Open: Infinity Rising
Chapter 12: Hope
Sonic, Gazelle and company departed Zootopia, which seemed like a
zealously overloaded planet-sized doomsday preparation shelter, towards the edge of the
galaxy.
Sonic stood outside the ship, gazing at the seemingly vast limitlessness of space. Well, to
everyone else aboard the ship anyway. Everybody on the ship was spread out throughout the
area doing various things. He basically had everything in the world to see. (Well, ok, not really,
because it was only a supersonic, gigantic spaceship; but you get the idea.) Being bored of
waiting; Sonic climbed into the ship from the main hatch, took off his spacesuit, and tried to
check up on everybody. He first saw Knuckles punching a sandbag that was very heavy, (even
for his muscular physique), assumingly to prepare for Infinite. Sonic decided to leave him alone
on that case and see the rest of the ship. He attempted to find where Gazelle was at so that he
could get a better look around the ship, so he set off for the first room he could find, which was
obviously the ship's bathroom. "Nope, nothing here." Sonic thought internally. He then checked
the room to the right of it. Nothing. Just a room that appeared to be a kitchen of sorts. The next
room he hit appeared to be a mini armory that didn't hold as much weaponry as Gazelle's
armory in Zootopia, but it held the weapons that had the more damage-inflicting firepower. Sonic
pretended to grab a gun from one of the racks (knowing that Gazelle didn't get the security
system all set up for him.
"Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang…" Sonic shouted while running
around and peeking through all the rest of the rooms before ending up back at the armory.
"Remember kids," Sonic said, "it's easy for you to carry one of these things around like a toy and
act like it's cool. But if you don't know whether what you find is a real gun or not;
when you pull the trigger, you'll find out in a way that's no good." He sprinted from one end of
the armory to the next and then laid down on the floor to clutch his chest to prove his point. He
then immediately lay prone on the ground, playing a very convincing role of dead (or playing
dead) then he stood up and "recovered" just as quick and said, "So when you find a gun; find an
adult you trust. Like your parents or a policeman. Bullets may not be quick enough to hit me, but
don't be too slow to let that shoot you down." He then bowed down before
sighing.
Life was so much simpler back then. Everybody knew who Sonic was. He was the
Freedom Fighter who never lost a battle and always had what it took. Everything he did really
was a piece of cake to him. Now, he wasn't as sure if he was amazing as he always thought he
was. He was then snapped out of his trance by what felt like someone blowing air into his face.
"Nice acting job, my little hedgehog." Sonic immediately pinned the voice to Gazelle and sure
enough, he saw her right in front of him, smiling happily at him. Sonic immediately shook out of
his trance and looked up at his girlfriend. "Oh, yep. That's me. Sonic the actor." he said,
laughing a little bit. Gazelle looked down, then back towards Sonic in a nervous "tic" sort of
manner. "So; I was wondering if, maybe, I could give you a nice little tour around the ship?" she
asked, in a shy yet flirtatious manner. "Oh yeah, sure." Sonic replied. "I was wanting to find
Silver and Blaze anyway to find out where these Infinity Scrolls are." Gazelle then offered her
hoof for Sonic to take, which he accepted. "Come mi amore, follow me." she said, as the two
went to search for Silver and Blaze.
After some time, the two finally found Silver; but it wasn't Blaze that was with him, but rather,
Judy. Correction: rather, a stressed and nervous Judy trying to keep it together in front of her
fiance. "Ok Judy, you got this girl." she said aloud, pep-talking to herself. "Sure your perfect plan
to get married to your dream love got shot down in flames, but hey. Now we're going on this epic
space adventure together to show the whole universe the power of SilvHopps!" she said,
genuinely enthusiastic. Silver was simply laying down on the top of a luxurious bunk-bed where
Judy was sitting down next to him. "You said it, Judy." he said, pulling in his bunny for a friendly
hug, which she gratefully accepted. Judy then hopped down off of the bunk-bed, landing on her
feet, and then just stared out the window; sighing in admiration. "Silver?" she asked, "Have you
ever taken a look at just the whole vastness of space and just wonder how small we are
compared to all of this?" Silver then levitated off of the bed and towards the window where Judy
was. He looked out the window, gazing at all the different stars and planets out there. He was
used to adventures in time and space before with Sonic and friends before; so his viewpoints on
time and space (especially with him being from the future) were limited, in a way. Even in the
infinite moments of it all. He then decided to slip into Judy's fur for a moment. She had been
through a lot the past year. Realizing her dreams of becoming a very high-profile officer, solving
two of the most famous case in all of Zootopia history, her relationship with Silver and now at
this moment, she found herself realizing how immense and vast the world beyond her truly is for
the first time. He smiled at the thought of his best friend being excited for space. "Yeah, it truly
is, isn't it." Judy bounced up again. "Ooooh, which one of those stars is Mobius?!" Judy asked
excitedly. Silver's look of disappointment said all as she turned to see him look dejectedly at the
floor. "Oh." she said, sympathetically. She got so excited about her trip with Silver that she forgot
that he could still be hurting as well. Silver then turned back to her, "Look, I know you didn't
mean to…" he said, but was interrupted by Judy, "No no, I should've thought about what I was
saying." Judy apologized back. Silver then smiled, "Come here," Silver said, motioning for Judy.
She came to him and he gently patted her head and stroked her long ears. "Judy, I know that
what I've gone through has been pretty challenging; and you already know that I'm from the
future." Judy nodded, her head still nuzzling closely to her fiance's chest. "But that's why I
choose to stay in the moment. And prepare for whatever future comes." Judy broke from her
embrace and smiled, "Well, present or future; I'm very happy to share it all with you." Judy
replied. "You see Sonic, they make a very nice couple." Gazelle said, turning towards Sonic
and then looking towards Judy and Silver. Sonic then looked at Judy and Silver thoughtfully.
He was thinking about how happy his two friends must have been, that before he could notice
what happened, he fell down face-first thud on the ground. "Wow, way to ruin the mood
Sonic." Silver said. Sonic looked up at him, wondering why he was looking up at him from the
floor up. Silver then offered his hand to lift Sonic up, but Sonic got up on his own just fine and
brushed it off. He then saw Judy stare at him with a look that said, "Really?! NOW?!" "Whoa,
what happened there?" Sonic asked, oblivious to his fall. Gazelle chuckled, thinking of her
boyfriend's funny moment. "You just tripped over yourself thinking about how wonderful a
couple we are. Didn't you, Sonic?" she said, in a very flirty tone. Sonic blushed in
embarrassment, " Uh, yes, I mean, for Judy and Blaze… er, I mean Silver and… yeah. Me
and you. Sonic and Gazelle. GazelleSon. Wait, WHAT?!" Sonic babbled like a schoolgirl who
accidentally tied her shoelaces together and tripped flat on her face with the lunch tray spilling
all over her. His friends couldn't help but laugh at the predicement.
A Few Hours Later…
After being shown around the ship, Sonic sat down alone inside his quarters.
Alone. Alone was a strange place for Sonic. He didn't spend too long there, but when he
needed
someplace to recollect his thoughts or that he didn't have anything else to do until he got to
his destination, the isolating world of Alone; the realm that did not exist in reality because
truly, beings were everywhere; but rather the mental space constituted by one's own head. It
was there, he heard a smooth, still voice. "Do you want another hint, Sonic?" the voice asked.
Sonic turned around and saw Infinite in the ship. Sonic then rubbed his eyes. "No, this has
gotta be a dream. Some kind of…" "Illusion?" the figure finished for him. Infinite stood next to
his bedside. "Go ahead, touch me." he taunted. Sonic didn't know what to do or what to say
next. He saw his friends huddled around the control panel before all going their separate
ways. He couldn't quite hear what they were saying, but it didn't matter. He went down to
touch Infinite and sure enough, he was indeed there. "You see, Sonic. I have the power to
adjust my planes of existence after I experienced with what was a rather… well," "Well,
what?!" Sonic asked angrily as his adversary paused. "Never mind." he said, smirking. "It's
all part of the mystery. But I will give you one hint. Just one though." he said, speaking in a
soft evil tone. "You are riding with extra Majority on board." Sonic shook his head in confusion.
He then heard Gazelle quickly walk up. "Oh Sonic, do you need anything at…" at that, he saw
Infinite do a quick shifting. Gazelle then jumped back in shock. "There, now I'm visible to both
of you." he said. Gazelle then turned to Sonic's friends. "Infinite's on board this ship!" The
rest of the crew looked at her in bewilderment. "Uh, Gazelle? Are you ok?" Knuckles asked. "I
don't think Infinite's here." Judy remarked. "That's impossible," Silver complimented, "wouldn't
your ship's sensors have picked him up?" Everyone then went back to work on the ship.
Infinite merely chuckled. "You see, Sonic; I can choose who to be visible and invisible in front
of." he said, with cockiness in his vibe. "But of course, I'm not going to interfere with your
mission. I only came by to drop the hint. Oh, and by the way, I'm going to turn invisible in front
of Gazelle again but remain visible to you." He said. "Sonic, let's go…" Gazelle said, tugging
at her boyfriend's arm. Sonic however, wouldn't budge. To Gazelle, she saw blank space with
her eyes; but she knew that Infinite was there anyway. She knew then that Infinite wasn't quite
done, so she let Sonic be for now. "Don't worry. This will be the last time I'll talk to you, Sonic,
until you solve the riddles. But I'll leave you with one more hint. It will all be clear when you
arrive at Hyluind." Infinite then disappeared out of sight. Sonic then turned back to Gazelle,
indicating that the strange conversation was over.
"Well, Sonic?" Gazelle asked, hoping that Infinite
didn't attempt to get Sonic to believe lies about himself. Sonic then turned away and shook his
head. "Nothing." he replied. Gazelle stamped back towards her boyfriend, getting him to stare
her right in the face. "No, now you listen to me Sonic the Hedgehog! 'Infinite' is nothing but a
liar and a bully, and what he'll say will only come true if you believe it to be true!" Sonic just
scampered back, not expecting Gazelle to come at him like that. "But Gazelle, it's not
about…" Sonic, however, was interrupted as quick as he started. "About what?! I'm pretty
sure you'd know your enemies well enough by now to know that he'll try lying to you again!"
Gazelle shouted, coming at Sonic like a jaguar trying to corner her prey. "He was just giving
me a hint as to where to find one of the scrolls!" Sonic shouted back. He then covered his
mouth in shock. He never meant to get that defensive at anyone before. He scanned Gazelle
for a reaction. She jumped back in surprise, not expecting her hero to react like that. She
understood and sympathized; but at the same time, didn't see an outburst like this coming.
Sonic calmed down and tried again. "He was just giving me a hint, that's all." he said,
breathing heavily in an attempt to calm himself down. Gazelle then knelt down before her
hero, giving him a sympathetic hug. "I love you, Sonic." she said. Four soft, simple words. So
meek, yet so powerful; calmed the anxious hedgehog's heart. Gazelle then released her
embrace. "Feeling better now?" she tenderly asked him. Sonic sighed depressedly. "A little."
He answered honestly with a small smile. "Might take a little longer to recover from this one,
'Zelle." he said with a glimmer of hope in his voice. Gazelle smiled at the fact that hope, no
matter how long it would last, would be rekindled. "Good." she replied, "A little hope each day
would be all we need." "Just promise you won't leave, ok?" Sonic asked. Just then, the ship
finally landed. "Alright team, meeting time in the main hangar." Blaze announced. Sonic and
Gazelle heard the footsteps of their friends in the ship and then went on their way to the main
hangar. As they were on their way, Sonic was hoping in his head and his heart, "When the
rest of the universe leaves, you won't leave me too; would you, Gazelle?"
Alrighty then everyone; so sorry I wasn't as focused on this story, but those of you who have
waited, the patience has finally paid off. So, an update for the next chapter; we're going to be
seeing Sonic and crew search for the first Infinity Scroll.
I'm really glad that I have such a strong fanbase for the LITO Series, and I hope that everyone enjoys
reading them as much (and more) as I enjoy writing them.
As always; Keep Loving, Keep Edifying, Keep LoveandEdifying. See you next time for Chapter 13: Changewinds