XIII. Eternal Rule
It was early dawn, and the sun hadn't even started rising yet. Everything was so quiet, except for the cool winds passing by here and there, carrying the sounds of the ocean far below the mountain. The first thing that quickly woke me up was something warm pushing against my lips. My eyes took their time to open, just to meet another set of gorgeous golden eyes looking right at me…
"...Good morning, sleepyhead…"
"...Morning, princess…"
We were lying in a small clearing surrounded by a couple of trees that shaded the sky. Lost in that little corner of the world, until my thoughts took it away.
"...Sleep well?" I mumbled.
"...Hmm... Perhaps..."
"...Hmm?"
"...Of course I did…"
"I'm glad..."
"...What's wrong, my love...?"
"...I love you... So much... I hope you know that."
"I do... I love you too. With everything…"
She looked right at me with loving eyes. But, I couldn't do the same, looking at the grass instead…
"Sonic. I, can tell… Something burdens you… Please... talk to me…"
"…I can't get it out of my thoughts… The things that Silver said, last night…"
"Sonic…"
"...Really bad things might happen… And I just, can't bear the thought of something happening to you…"
"My, you really love me, don't you…?" she whispered, cupping my face with her hand. "...I watch over you. And you watch over me… Just like you've said. Right?"
"...It's just, been messing with me, is all."
"You're not alone… A lot weighs on us, from such an unfortunate time… But... you're still here… And right now, that's all that matters to me."
And as long as I was, she would be okay. I'd make sure of that…
I felt her smile against my chest, and I couldn't help but do the same. We laid there, listening to the wind moving the leaves, hoping that time would stop then and there. But the sun had already started rising, and as much as we wanted to, we couldn't ignore things anymore.
"…I love you?"
"…I love you too, Blaze."
After sharing a warm kiss, we stood up and left the grove hand in hand, ready to take on the day. And after putting on the rest of my gear, we started making our way down the path...
"We, better check on the rest," she said.
"Why don't you go on ahead? I'll meet you guys in a bit."
"Running off already?"
"Don't worry, I'll just do a quick scout and come back."
"Alright. Just, be safe…"
With one last look, I jumped off the cliff and made for the coast. I'm not sure what I was hoping for, but the ocean had nothing but calm waves. The sun started to rise, and I started thinking... What Blaze said kept nagging at me. She felt the gems, out there somewhere... But we climbed a whole mountain, just to spot nothing at all. What was going on? Where was Nega hiding this time? And what was he trying to do now that he had most of the gems with him? I couldn't blame Blaze for being frustrated at this. I was getting pretty worked up on it myself. We needed answers, and sitting there on the sand wasn't getting me anywhere…
"...what the…"
Suddenly, I saw something rise far away from under the water. It was… huge. I quickly stood up, not believing what I was seeing. The water erupted and rose way high up above the surface. And after everything cleared, I saw it. Some sort of, ship. Not just your regular wooden boat. This thing, was a monster. Almost as big as the mountain we just climbed, I thought. With all sorts of weaponry on the side, and a large cannon mounted on the deck. Could take on any fleet if it wanted to... My mind came up with many questions, but all of them had the same answer…
~Blaze the Cat~
"What… is that?!"
"That's Nega alright. No doubt about it."
"It's… massive…"
"Everyone, get ready," I walked in at the sight of the rest staring out at what had to be the doctor's fortress, resting at the horizon.
I was somewhat relieved, although circumstances did not favor us. We continued grabbing what we needed as fast as we could, preparing ourselves for whatever was about to come.
"Silver."
"Blaze," he greeted me. "Glad to see you again. Though I wish things were different. Did Sonic brief you?"
"He did... Silver... I'm, so sorry, for everything you have gone through."
"Don't worry about me. We have to stop Nega's plans right here and now. It's the only way."
"How can we possibly reach such a far distance?" Maia quickly asked.
"Even with a boat, we'll be sitting ducks against that weaponry," Aquilo added.
"Princess…" Maia looked at me. "He, has us cornered… He could fire at us. Or at the kingdom at any moment."
"Princess...?" Aquilo asked. "Your orders...?"
"...Maia, Aquilo, Chiron. Hurry back to the-"
"It rises," Chiron announced.
We turned and stared at it, slowly rising further; we were all stunned. The water from the back of it began to stir violently, and soon, engines would reveal themselves. The sheer power of its thrust was audible from where we stood, and we could see it forcing waves away from itself. That ship, wasn't a ship at all.
"Where is the blue one?" Chiron asked, quickly turning to me.
"…Sonic…? He's… Oh no."
/Sonic the Hedgehog/
The ship started to slowly rise above the surface. Trying to get to it as fast as I could, I ran over the water with everything I had; I was the only one who could reach it in time. And as expected, it started firing at me. I could see the shots coming from far away, and I still had a good distance to go. However, that giant cannon on the deck didn't have its sights on me; it was aimed at the mountain. I had to get there. Fast. From turns to rolls, I did my best to move around and managed to get close to its side. That whole thing was insane. No wonder Nega called out from taking over. He was getting ready for it all this time. Right before it would leave the water, I jumped just in time towards it and held onto a railing on its side.
Slowly, it started taking to the skies. I had to get up to the deck and stop that cannon from firing. Using the edges of the steel wall, I climbed onto a catwalk that would take me upwards, and as soon as I did, strong winds hit me and almost made me lose my balance. But I couldn't stall. It was almost ready to fire, already charging its shot. I dashed fast enough through the deck and cut right through the barrel. Pieces hit the floor hard, crushing the deck below while I slid from a wall back down. Batteries fired at me, and although they almost grazed me, I managed to cut one of the guns down just to move for cover.
"Might as well put this to good use."
I grabbed my sword and zig-zagged from turret to turret, cutting anything in my way, but a blast knocked me off my feet: reinforcements. The only way to get to the bridge was through them, and so, I got up and charged right ahead, sword in hand.
~Blaze the Cat~
We were in disbelief, with what laid in front of us.
"...A flying fortress…" Chiron said.
We didn't know how we could possibly reach such heights.
"S-Silver," Maia inquired, "can't you do that, thing, you did? With Sonic, the night before?"
"I-I can, but-"
"Wait, Silver. That could work," I said, reaching for my inside pocket.
"Wait, hold on! I can carry all of you, but not for that long! I'm sorry but, we'll fall, even before we make it halfway."
The sound of that churned my insides. I hated that idea, with everything I had. But… There was no choice. I had to trust him.
"Then, what about with this?"
"The Sol Emerald… Maybe… But how do I even use it?"
"Do not worry, leave that to me."
Silver stood for a moment, thinking…
"Silver," Aquilo turned to him, "the fortress is on approach toward the kingdom. It is now, or never."
"Please," I pleaded, "Sonic is up there... We have to help him."
"...All right. Let's do it."
We stood close to one another, while Silver held my shoulder. I closed my eyes and held the gem tightly in between my hands, embracing it. Its warmth slowly enveloped me, and soon, Silver too.
"Okay," Silver said while his glow covered us entirely, "I'm ready."
I nodded at him, and with that, we waited for the right moment when the fortress would be close enough, and took off into the skies at an alarming speed. I remained at the front with Silver, while the rest followed right behind us. We could barely see with the violent wind passing through us. Through our flight, I had focused everything on one simple thing; "do not look down". However, my eyes betrayed me.
"S-Silver…! Don't, you dare, let go!"
"Don't worry! Just keep that gem going!"
"C-Could you possibly take us, any faster-?!"
"I'm going as fast as I can!"
"You better-!"
"Incoming!" Aquilo warned us.
The batteries under the ship quickly took their aim, their fire keeping us at bay. Silver flew us away from danger as best he could, evading the rain of steel that covered the skies. Using the clouds as cover, the enemy was confused and began firing at random in an attempt to slow us down. Soon, we were able to arrive under the fortress and fell on a catwalk suspended on its side. We all caught our breaths on the floor, as if we had just endured the most strenuous endeavor.
"...Bless you… Silver…" I said, with all the honesty I could muster.
Afterwards, we got up and followed the catwalk that would lead us to a door hatch. We opened it, and quickly walked inside, where we were met with a spacious maintenance room of sorts. It wasn't very well-lit, but we could make our way through it with no issue. However, we remained alert.
"Must be some sort of, cargo bay," Silver spoke, his voice echoing through the darkness. "Weird… Why is it so… empty?"
"...I'm not so sure," I replied, looking around.
It was strange. But we continued our way through the emptiness, just to reach a set of automated doors that wouldn't open without the right credentials. However, that wouldn't stop Aquilo nor Chiron. Aquilo slid his knife in between the doors and slightly pried them open, just enough for Chiron to take hold and pull them open for us. We turned to face the next room, which was darker than the previous, and stood on a quite long catwalk crossing through the huge room and surrounded by small red blinking lights. Hundreds of them. A door waited for us, dimly lit on the far opposite side. However, this room wasn't empty. At all.
I lit a flame in the palm of my hand to light the way, just to realize…
"Please… don't tell me-"
I stood against the railing in front of us.
"...T-There's so many," Silver said, while levitating above them.
"More than enough for a kingdom… Maybe two…" Aquilo added.
Bombs. Stacked up and racked on rails coming from the ceiling, and aimed at large doors on the floor far below.
"...Fight fire with fire…" Chiron muttered.
"...Chiron, you read my mind," Aquilo said. "I could set this place to blow, and Silver could fly us away in time."
"But then, what about Sonic?" Maia asked.
"Yeah," Silver continued, "he can be anywhere in this thing by now."
"Good plan, Aquilo," I remarked. "But… We don't have the luxury of time on our hands. This ship is headed straight for the kingdom as we speak. Right now, we need to get to the bridge. See if we can, steer it away somewhere else..."
"Right. As we were. On your lead."
/Sonic the Hedgehog/
I hit a wall but quickly moved to the side while shots passed me. I had broken into the bridge from the outside while dealing with trouble on the deck, but all the doors shut on me, leaving me with even more trouble. And to my surprise, Nega wasn't there. Just another one of his mechs giving me a hard time. This one kept on firing at me while I sat behind a desk. Waiting for the right moment, I sent a kick straight at its face. While it was dazed, I took the chance to try and steer this whole thing away. I moved the stick as hard as I could, but it wouldn't budge. The controls were locked from what was said on the screen. I moved just in time, before the machine crushed the desk to pieces. I landed on top of another, and managed to read something on its screen: "BOMBS: ARMED."
"W-What...?"
I slipped away from the machine trying to grab me. This one reminded me of an unfinished version of Metal. I had to take it down, either way-
"##Well if it isn't my dimensional traveler… Sonic, the Hedgehog.##"
An intercom went on… It was him…
"Nega! Stop this now!"
"##After coming so far? I don't think so.##"
"What are you after?! You already have the gems-"
"##Oh, not all of them. You still owe one more. Or should I say, she does?##"
All of the monitors on the desk switched, showing Blaze and the others fighting their way through the halls…
"No... Ngh!"
Distracted, I was pinned down to the floor by Nega's machine…
"##Don't misunderstand. It's nothing, personal… However I'm afraid, I can't let you interfere. That is why I, plan for everything.##"
~Blaze The Cat~
The doctor's pawns continued to block our way…
"Kindly move away, Silver!"
"Woah…! Good shot, Quil!"
Arrows sang through the cold hallways and pierced into our foes, one by one. Tied with an explosive at the tip, they would burst against the metal immediately at contact. Chiron continued taking on the masses while bashing against his batons, single-handedly pushing against the horde that threatened to corner us. With speed and aggression, yet with grace and accuracy, there was no match for the elite. With the palm of my hands, I burned the metal on Maia's blade. With ferocity, she swung her chains, slicing straight into several enemies against the ground.
"Silver!"
"On it!"
Reinforcements arrived from behind us and slowly started to pin us in between. However, they didn't last a second against Silver. They remained still before me, covered in a lively glow. My flames did not hesitate in scorching even the toughest of steel, deforming our enemies into nothing but molten remains.
"They just keep coming!" Silver yelled.
And they did. Another horde of enemies was coming from the other end of the hall.
"Through here!"
Aquilo took a turn into another hallway, and we quickly followed. An elevator awaited us at the end. However, at the speed that we were running, it seemed that we would never make it in time.
"Blaze?!" Maia exclaimed, looking behind her.
"C-Chaos…" Silver turned, continuing to float backward.
Hundreds of the doctors' war machines began filling the corridors, and rapidly began closing the distance.
"Silver, we'll never make it! Can you hold them off?!"
"I'll try!"
He stood his ground and collected all the strength he could muster. Thrusting his arms forward, he froze every single enemy before us, halting their advance.
"Nghh! G-Go! I'll keep them here!"
"Silver! Princess! Aren't you coming?!" Aquilo yelled.
"Go! We'll return shortly."
"But-"
"Let's move, Quil!" Maia yelled.
Knights turned, and quickly continued making their way.
"Blaze? You should go too! I got this."
"Oh please. I taught you to be wise, not reckless. Now, hold them still for me."
"…W-What's, the plan?"
"…A parting gift."
"W-Woah, hold on, don't you think, ngh, that's too much?"
"Just be ready."
"...Alright," he said, unconvinced.
I started charging all the flames I could hold on to in between my palms. But the glow covering our foes before us started to dissipate.
Slowly, one by one, they started to move again...
"T-They're, getting pretty heavy…!"
One of them had their sights on me, and slowly struggled to take aim.
"Blaze?!"
A single shot wildly grazed me, leaving me slightly deafened, and ricocheting against the floor behind me.
"Blaze!"
"Now!"
The moment Silver let go, everything else happened in a fraction of a second. He tightly grabbed my arm and flew us away towards the elevator. With one last charge for good measure, I sent nothing but chaos, in the form of a flaming orb. Once it made contact with its target, everything behind us disappeared into nothing but raging fire and light. The blast was blinding, violently sending us straight to the elevator, and crashing against Maia and the rest. Silver quickly recovered and closed the doors, blocking the flames from coming in. Even the heat could be felt from the other side of the doors...
"Ha… ha ha… What, in the world, was that?" Aquilo asked, catching his breath.
"A-Are you two alright?" Maia asked, while helping me up.
"Yes," I replied, "never, better… We need to continue our push towards the bridge."
"Alright then, going up," Silver said, looking over at Chiron.
Chiron looked over a board on the wall beside him and pressed the button labeled "Bridge" in bolded letters with too much force, sinking his finger far into the panel, and breaking the button in the process. We had noticed the elevator wasn't taking us anywhere while Aquilo looked over at Chiron.
"Chiron," Aquilo slightly complained, "subtlety?"
Chiron grumbled, gently pressing the crippled button, and waited. But, again, nothing. Frustrated, he pressed it again, harder every time while Aquilo couldn't help but worry by the second.
"Eas-Easy there, Chiron," Maia hesitated, but to no avail.
Chiron, having enough, punched right through, sparks and wiring shooting right out of it. Moments after, the lights above us turned from white to red while Chiron continued to inspect his, work.
"Fascinating," Aquilo quietly protested. "Simply, fascina-Chiron, my friend, we've talked about this."
"Actually, hold that thought," said Silver as he closed his eyes.
Suddenly, the elevator began to glow as soon as he extended his hands. Everything started to slightly shake, and screeching emanated from the outside walls.
"Are we stuck?" I asked.
"Looks like they locked us in… Hey, Chiron. I need you to punch something for me," Silver requested as the warrior began to crack his knuckles…
The top hatch was sent flying as Chiron broke through it with ease, giving us access to the elevator shaft. As we stepped on top, Silver opened another door, leading us to the next floor. Through the hallways, we continued our way in search of anything that could lead us in the right direction.
"How far do you think we are from the bridge now, Lady Blaze?" Aquilo asked. "I am all out of arrows."
"I'm, not sure," I responded. It was something I was wondering about myself.
"It seems that we have been traveling through this fortress for ages now," Maia added.
"Ready yourselves!" Chiron yelled from up ahead.
We took a corner only to meet another group of enemies.
"Blaze…!" Maia called, "at this rate, we won't make it in time."
"Allow me," Silver landed in front of us, and extended his hands covered in a glow.
Our enemies halted, and would soon perish in quite an unpleasant way. Every bolt, every cable, and every layer of metal came apart perfectly from each and every single one of them, without damage. Everything flew upwards, until there was nothing left but pieces in perfect condition floating before us. As soon as the wave of enemies behind us turned into our hall, Silver yelled.
"Duck!"
Quickly, we launched ourselves to the floor, as he sent every piece of steel straight through them, cutting them to shreds, shattering into pieces, and crashing them against the floor. Our foes, were no more.
/Sonic the Hedgehog/
"Why are you so bent on taking over?! It's not like they will follow someone like you- Agh!"
Nega's machine was still kicking after the many beatings I gave it. I swiped its legs with a dash, letting it slam against the floor.
"##The people might not, of course… But their heirs will. And the ones after. Slowly, they'll learn. To live under my rule, and serve no one else.##"
"You plan on living that long?!"
I sent a homing attack towards my rival, just for it to move away in time.
"##But of course... Like I said, Sonic. 'Plan for everything…' After so long, I finally understood, the missing piece… Me.##"
I followed it across the room, bouncing off walls as fast as I could.
~Blaze The Cat~
"Princess, look." Maia said to me.
We turned to two large steel doors at the end of the corridor, covered in yellow light at the borders. As soon as we approached them, the Sol Emerald inside my pocket grew warmer, and brighter. I held it in my hand, and felt it pull away from me. That only meant one thing…
"Blaze, wait up!"
I ran through the hallway and towards the doors, which would slide open as soon as I got close. I had found a dark room, lit only by a large monitor on the wall. The room was grand and round at the center, with all kinds of equipment filling the space. But then, I saw them; the gems, placed in slots on the wall. Glowing in between the darkness. A sense of relief coursed… I had finally found them.
"Blaze, what's wrong?" Silver and the others managed to catch up to me.
Soon, they'd also see the gems, and stare in awe as I called them back to me. I raised my gem in the air, while the others would respond right after. They left from where they stood and gently flew towards me, surrounding the one in my hand.
"...That takes care of that, then." Silver said, in relief.
"Well done, Princess Blaze," Aquilo added.
"I, couldn't have done it without all of you... You all have my deepest gratitude. And honor."
"Princess… It's about time we end this, don't you agree?" Maia asked.
"Right."
I closed my eyes, and called to a power I haven't used in years. Fires rose and consumed me, letting them flow through me. A power, filled with many memories, but same sad outcomes…
"Blaze… You okay?"
"Y-Yes, I'm fine, Silver… It has been a while being in this form, is all."
"Right… well. You better get going to the bridge. You can make it there, faster than any of us."
"Silver, please watch over them. Once I manage to clear this ship away, you'll only have a small window of opportunity to fly out of here. I'll find Sonic and-"
"P-Princess," Aquilo quietly stuttered, staring into a corner.
"S-Sol," Maia said after.
Chiron quickly took out his batons, while Maia and Aquilo stared off into a dark corner of the room. With fear on their faces... I quickly turned to where they looked, but I couldn't see well. Silver and I flew over the corner, while the rest slowly followed after. I raised my flames to light up the place, and…
"...w-what…"
It was some sort of, steel bed…
"Blaze…"
…hooked on to a handful of wires…
"...Princess… What is, the meaning of this…"
…carrying on the weight, of a lifeless body…
"…I, d-don't understand…!"
…once belonging, to the doctor…
"Blaze," Silver muttered. "...Go."
/Sonic the Hedgehog/
"##It's just how the saying goes. If you want a job done, better do it yourself… But you must be thinking. 'I'm just an old man…! Aging away through the years… Intending to rule for eternity, when time still consumes whatever little, I have left.'##"
The robot and I clashed against each other, hands clamped tight.
"##You know, I wanted to bury all of you on that mountain with the cannon. If it wasn't for you, that is.##"
I grabbed its arm and threw it against a wall.
"##…I still plan on getting rid of all of you, however…##"
"But why bomb the kingdom?! They haven't done anything!"
"##Who said anything about, bombing…?##"
"…W-What…? But, the bombs… You armed them, I saw-"
"##Correct.##"
I dashed as fast as I could and sent that mech breaking through the glass and falling below. I looked behind me, hearing hissing from the other side of the locked doors. Soon, they'd start to heat up and glow brightly.
"...But-"
"##I do hope you enjoy your stay. And do make yourself comfortable. I am afraid, it will take decades for anyone to dig you back up. By then… you'll be nothing but filth.##"
The doors blew up violently, and smoke filled the whole place. But from it, flew…
"Blaze?!"
"Sonic!"
"Blaze, we have to-Ngh!"
The whole ship started to shake, and I couldn't balance myself anymore. I could feel it in my teeth how, one by one, blasts would go off. She caught me, but the ship would start to roll over itself right after. The floor slowly turned into the wall, and everything began to fly all over. As something hit me on the head, I lost my grip on Blaze, hitting a wall too hard for comfort. And the last thing I remember, was her trying to hold me in her arms…