Silver spent a lot of the last week of the holidays pondering the meaning of Rutan's behaviour in Adder's Lair. What disturbed him most was the satisfied look on Rutan's face as he had left the shop. Nothing that made Rutan look that happy could be good news. To his slight annoyance, however, neither Razor nor Coral seemed quite as curious about Rutan's activities as he was; or at least, they seemed to get bored of discussing it after a few days. Coral especially was getting impatient "Yes, I've already agreed it was fishy, Silver". She was sitting on the windowsill in Silver's room with her feet up on one of the cardboard boxes and had only grudgingly looked up from her new copy of Advanced Rune Translation "But haven't we agreed there could be a lot of explanations?" "Maybe that Flame of Judgement wasn't working anymore" Razor said vaguely, as he polished his board. Silver remembered Rutan's interest in the Flame last time he went to Totem and Pranks, but he didn't buy it "But what about when he said, 'Don't forget to keep that one safe'? That sounded to me like Totem's got another one of the broken objects, and Rutan wants both" "You reckon?" "Yeah, I do. Rutan's father's on Prision Island. Don't you think Rutan'd like revenge?".

Razor looked sceptical "Rutan, revenge? What can he do about it?" "That's my point, I don't know! But he's up to something and I think we should take it seriously. His father's a Nocturnus and…". Silver broke off, his eyes fixed on the window behind Coral, his mouth open. A startling thought had just occurred to him. Coral stared at him "Silver? What's wrong?" "Your head's not hurting again, is it?" Razor asked nervously. Silver just had to say it "He's a Nocturnus". There was a long silence and then Razor erupted in laughter "Rutan? He's sixteen, Silver. You-Know-Who recruit him?". Coral agreed "It does seem unlikely, Silver" "But what about at Sophia's. He kept clenching his hand. What if he's got the Dark Mark. And it was burning" "Or he hurt his hand" Razor suggested. Silver was getting angry now "But he showed it to Totem. That's what scared him" "Or Rutan just threatened him. Like you said, his father is a Nocturnus. He wouldn't need the Dark Mark to scare Totem". Annoyed, but absolutely convinced he was right, Silver snatched up a pile of filthy Sky Chase suit and left the room. Mari-An had been urging them for days not to leave their washing and packing until the last moment. On the landing he bumped into Blaze, who was returning to her room carrying a pile of freshly laundered clothes "I wouldn't go in the kitchen just now. Mina's down there" "I think I'll manage" "Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you". Sure enough, when he entered the kitchen, it was to find Mina sitting at the kitchen table, in full flow about plans for her wedding to Ash, while Mari-An kept watch over a pile of self-peeling sprouts, looking bad-tempered "Ash and I 'ave almost decided on only two bridesmaids, Blaze and Melody will look very sweet togezzer. I am theenking of dressing zem in pale gold. Pink would of course be 'orrible with Blaze's fur". Mari-An sighed in relief when she saw who just entered "Ah, Silver, good, I wanted to explain about the security arrangements for the journey to Soleanna tomorrow. We've got Ministry cars again, and there will be Diamond Cutters waiting at the station". Silver handed her his Sky Chase stuff "Thanks. Is Su going to be there?" "Oh, no, Rob says she's stationed somewhere else. You'd better get on, Silver, I want the trunks ready tonight, if possible, so we don't have the usual last-minute scramble".

Funny enough, departure the following morning was smoother than usual. The Ministry cars glided up to the front of the Deerwood to find them waiting, trunks packed. Aquarius was safely enclosed in his traveling basket. Lily, Crusher and Blaze's new Wisp, Arnold, in cages. "Au revoir, Silver" Mina said throatily, kissing him good-bye. Razor hurried forward, looking hopeful, but Blaze stuck out her foot and Razor fell, sprawling in the dust at Mina's feet. Furious, red-faced, and dirt-spattered, he hurried into the car without saying good-bye.

There was no cheerful Big waiting for them at Radical Train. Instead, two grim-faced, bearded Diamond Cutters in dark Muggle in suits moved forward the moment the cars stopped and, flanking the party, marched them into the station without speaking. "Quick, quick, through the barrier" said Mari-An, who seemed a little flustered by this austere efficiency "Silver had better go first, with…". She looked inquiringly at one of the Diamond Cutters, a large gorilla, who nodded briefly, seized Silver's upper arm, and attempted to steer him toward the barrier between platforms nine and ten "I can walk, thanks". Silver pushed his trolley directly at the solid barrier, ignoring his silent companion, and found himself, a second later, standing on platform nine and three-quarters, where the Soleanna Express stood belching steam over the crowd. Coral and the O'Hedges joined him within seconds. Without waiting to consult his grim-faced Diamond Cutter, Silver motioned to Razor and Coral to follow him up the platform, looking for an empty compartment "We can't, Silver. Razor and I've got to go to the prefects' carriage first and then patrol the corridors for a bit" Coral said apologetically. Silver's face fell "Oh yeah, I forgot". Mari-An hugged them all "You all better hurry. You've only got a few minutes" "Mr O'Hedge, can I have a quick word?" Silver said, making up his mind on the spur of the moment. Rob looked slightly surprised "Of course". He followed Silver out of earshot of the others, nevertheless. Silver had thought it through carefully and come to the conclusion that, if he was to tell anyone, Rob was the right person; firstly, because he worked at the Ministry and was therefore in the best position to make further investigations, and secondly, because he thought that there was not too much risk of Rob exploding with anger. He could see Mari-An and the grim-faced Diamond Cutters casting the pair of them suspicious looks as they moved away "When we were in Diagon Alley-".

Rob crossed his arms "Am I about to discover where you, Razor and Coral disappeared to while you were supposed to be in the back room of the Joke Shop" "How did you-" "Silver, you're talking to the man who raised Mighty and Ray". Silver nervously nodded "Er, yeah, all right, we weren't in the back room" "Very well, then, let's hear the worst" "Well, we followed Rutan. We used my Chaos Emerald". Rob raised an eyebrow "Did you have a reason or was this on a whim?" "Because I thought Rutan was up to something. He'd given his mother the slip and I wanted to know why". Rob sighed "Of course you did. Well, what did you find out?" "He went into Totem and Pranks and started bullying Totem to help him fix something. And he said he wanted Totem to keep something else for him. He made it sound like it was the same kind of thing that needed fixing. Like they were a pair. And…There's something else. When we saw Rutan at Sophia's he kept clenching his fist like it was sore and then he did something that scared Totem. I think he's been branded with the Dark Mark. I think he's replaced his father as a Nocturnus". Rob looked taken a back "Silver, I doubt whether You-Know-Who would allow a sixteen-year-old-" "Does anyone really know what You-Know-Who would or wouldn't do? Mr O'Hedge, I'm sorry, but isn't it worth investigating? If Rutan wants something fixing, and he needs to threaten Totem to get it done, it's probably something Dark or dangerous, isn't it?". Rob spoke calmingly trying not to anger Silver "I doubt it, to be honest. You see, when Clutch was arrested, we raided his house. We took away everything that might have been dangerous" "Maybe you missed something" "Well…Maybe". Silver could tell Rob was just humouring them. They heard the train whistle "You better get going, Silver". They hurried forward, Mari-An and Rob helped him with his trunk and then the former kissed him on the cheek "Now, dear, you're coming to us for Christmas, it's all fixed with Locke, so we'll see you quite soon". Silver closed the door to the train as it started to move "You make sure you look after yourself! STAY SAFE!" Mari-An yelled after him.

Silver waved until the train had turned a corner and the O'Hedges were lost to view, then turned to see where the others had got to. He supposed Razor and Coral were cloistered in the prefects' carriage, but Blaze was a little way along the corridor, chatting to some friends. He made his way toward her, dragging his trunk. People stared shamelessly as he approached. They even pressed their faces against the windows of their compartments to get a look at him. He had expected an upswing in the amount of gaping and gawping he would have to endure this term after all the Chosen One rumours in the Daily Prophet, but he did not enjoy the sensation of standing in a very bright spotlight. He tapped Blaze on the shoulder "Fancy trying to find a compartment?" "Sorry, Silver, I said I'd meet Marcos. See you later" "Oh…Alright". Silver was so used to Blaze being around at Deerwood he completely forgot she didn't normally hang out with him at Soleanna. As Blaze walked away Silver felt a strange twinge of regret but before he could discover the origin of the feeling he realised he was surrounded by a bunch of mesmerised girls "Hi, Silver!". Silver was relived, behind one of the girls was Antione and Marine. Antione looked a bit different than he did before the summer. He was no longer wearing the blue uniform and red cape. Instead he had two white straps across his chest that formed an X. He still had his scabbard for this father's sword which pleased Silver. He managed to get passed the group of girls "How are you guys?" "Not bad" "Very good, thank you". Marine looked the same as she did he first time Silver met her, right down to the magazine she was reading "Lighthouse still selling well" "Oh, yes, circulations way up". The three went into a the first free compartment they could find, Silver was pleased to get away from all the prying eyes. Antione closed the door behind him "They've been staring at us too. Because we're with you" "It's because you were at the Ministry" Silver told him.

After everything that happened, Silver wasn't going to let Antione play down his achievements "Our names were all in the Daily Prophet. You must have seen it" "Yeah. I thought Gran would be fuming because of all the publicity but she was really pleased. Said my Dad would be proud" "And what about your Dad's Talismans? Did they get them fixed?". Antione shrugged "Couldn't save the cape". He removed the sword from the sheath "Managed to keep this but I needed to get a new source. And a Secondary" he gestured to the straps on his chest "Sprite essence". He shook his head in disbelief "I bought it a few hours before Merlin got taken. Can't believe it". There was an awkward silence after that, it was clear Antione and Marine were having trouble adjusting to how everything's changed just as much as Silver. Marine finally said, putting down her magazine "Are we having more L.A meetings this years" "No, point really. Veruca's gone". Antione looked disappointed "Aw. I like the L.A. I learned loads from you". Marine nodded in agreement "I really enjoyed it. It was like having friends". Silver glanced at an equally confused Antione before saying "We are your friends, Marine" "That's nice" Marine said pleasantly before going back to her magazine. Another silence then there was a disturbance outside their compartment door; a group of fourth-year girls were whispering and giggling together on the other side of the glass "You ask him!" "No, you!" "I'll do it!".

Then a bold looking girl came through the door, a brown squirrel with orange hair and a blue tank-top in "Hi, Silver, I'm Tess. Why don't you join us in our compartment? You don't have to sit with them" she added in a stage whisper, indicating to Antione and Marine. Silver narrowed his eyes "They're my friends" "Oh…Okay". She looked surprised and quickly withdrew from the compartment. "People expect you to have cooler friends" Marine said in her usual blunt honesty. Silver gestured to both of them "You guys are cool" "We're not getting called the Chosen One every week. You've been stuck with those Muggles. You should hear how the Wizarding World has been talking about you. My Gran said 'That Silver's got more backbone than the whole Ministry put together'". Marine put her magazine down again "You're lucky you weren't close to other wizards this summer. There's been an outbreak of Wrackspurts". Silver felt like he had to ask "What're Wrackspurts?" "They're invisible. They float in through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy. I thought I felt one zooming around in here". She flapped her hands at thin air, as though beating off large invisible moths. Silver and Antione caught each other's eyes and hastily began to talk of Sky Chase and G. Antione was worried that the won't be able to continue Transfiguration since he only got an acceptable.

The weather beyond the train windows was as patchy as it had been all summer; they passed through stretches of the chilling mist, then out into weak, clear sunlight. It was during one of the clear spells, when the sun was visible almost directly overhead, that Razor and Coral entered the compartment at last "Hi, Ant. Marine" they both said. As they sat down Razor turned to Silver bursting to tell him something "Guess what. Rutan's not a prefect anymore. He's just in the lunch car with a few other Raiju". This got Silver's attention, Rutan was not the type to give up power he can easily abuse, seemed like he had bigger things on his mind "Why would he do that?" "Maybe he just sees it as a downgrade from the Inquisitorial Squad" Coral said. Before Silver could argue the door swung open again. A breathless third year sheep girl came in "Uh, I'm supposed to deliver these to Antione D'Coolette and…Silver the Hedgehog" she faltered and quickly looked at the floor as she held out two pieces of parchment. Silver and Antione were both very confused but took them "Thank you" Silver said. The girl turned scarlet and ran back out of the compartment "What is it?" Razor asked. Silver unrolled the parchment and read the contents "An invitation".

Silver,

I would be delighted if you would join me for a bite of lunch in compartment C.

Sincerely,

Professor Ellidy

"Who's Professor, Ellidy?" Antione asked, stunned by the fact that he received an invitation. "New teacher" Silver told him. Antione looked worried he had already received a detention "But what does he want with me?" "Don't know. But I guess we have to go". Silver partially lied about what Ellidy wanted with them, he had an idea, but it was not yet proven. It was a shame he couldn't use the Emerald in the crowded train cars because the staring was even worse than when he got on the train. Every now and then, students would hurtle out of their compartments to get a better look at Silver. The exception was Amy Rose, who darted into her compartment when she saw Silver coming. As Silver passed the window, he saw her deep in determined conversation with her friend Patty, who was wearing a very thick layer of makeup that did not entirely obscure the odd formation of pimples still etched across her face. Smirking slightly, Silver pushed on. When they reached compartment C, they saw at once that they were not Ellidy's only invitees, although judging by the enthusiasm of Ellidy's welcome, Silver was the most warmly anticipated "Silver, m'boy! Good to see you, good to see you! And you must be Mr D'Coolette!". Antione nodded, looking scared. At a gesture from Ellidy, they sat down opposite each other in the only two empty seats, which were nearest the door. Silver glanced around at their fellow guests. There was a Raiju from their year, a tall weasel boy with pale purple fur and wearing a green vest. There were also two seventh-year boys Silver did not know and, squashed in the corner beside Ellidy and looking as though she was not entirely sure how she had got there was Blaze. Ellidy cheerfully introduced everyone "This is Jeff the Weasel, he's in your years. This one here…".

He gestured to one of the seventh years, a green male shrew "This is Swifty". Swifty nodded to the two new arrivals "And this here is Dave" he gestured to the blue Nutria. He looked very nervous but managed a strained smile. Finally, Ellidy gestured to Blaze "And this charming young lady says she knows you". Blaze smiled at Antione and Silver, but still looked clearly confused. Now that everyone was introduced Ellidy started handing out portions of food he had in his suitcase. Silver thought at first that if he was keeping it in a suitcase, it can't be very good, but he was sorely mistaken. The case clearly had some kind of enchantment on it as the food wasn't in a box it was on a plate without any coverings but despite that it none of it was knocked over, it was prepared like something you'd find in a five-star restaurant. Silver politely took some onto his own plate but didn't eat too much, like most students he was saving space for the start of year feast. As they all spoke Silver learned why the others were here. Ellidy had taught Dave's uncle and apparently nowadays he was famous for inventing Zillbane potion. Unfortunately, Dave admitted that his father and uncle don't get along and Ellidy seemed quite cold to him after that. Swifty's family was good friends with a lot of Ministry members including Saline himself. It was as Silver had suspected. Everyone here seemed to have been invited because they were connected to somebody well known or influential, everyone except Blaze. Jeff, who was interrogated after Swifty, turned out to have a famously beautiful witch for a mother (from what Silver could make out, she had been married seven times, each of her husbands dying mysteriously and leaving her mounds of gold). It was Antione's turn next. This was a very uncomfortable ten minutes as Antione's connection was his parents. At the end of Antione's interview, Silver had the impression that Ellidy was reserving judgment on Antione, yet to see whether he had any of his parents' flair. "And now…" said Ellidy, shifting massively in his seat with the air of a compere introducing his star act "Silver the Hedgehog! Where to begin? I feel I barely scratched the surface when we met over the summer!". He contemplated Silver for a moment as though he was a particularly large and succulent piece of pheasant, then said 'The Chosen One,' they're calling you now!".

Silver said nothing. Dave, Swifty, and Jeff were all staring at him. Ellidy continue "Of course, there have been rumours for years. I remember when, well…After that terrible night…Tikal and Shadow…And you survived. The word was that you must have powers beyond the ordinary". Jeff gave a tiny little cough that was clearly supposed to indicate amused scepticism. An angry voice burst out from behind Ellidy "Yeah, Jeff, because you're so talented!" Blaze said. Ellidy chuckled "Oh dear! You want to be careful, Jeff! I saw this young lady perform the most marvellous Hex as I was passing her carriage! I wouldn't cross her!". Jeff merely looked contemptuous. Ellidy then turned his attention back to Silver "Anyway. Such rumours this summer. Of course, one doesn't know what to believe, the Prophet has been known to print inaccuracies, make mistakes but there seems little doubt, given the number of witnesses, that there was quite a disturbance at the Ministry and that you were there in the thick of it all!". Silver, who could not see any way out of this without flatly lying, nodded but still said nothing. Ellidy beamed at him "So modest, so modest, no wonder Locke is so fond of you. But the rest of the stories, so sensational, of course, one doesn't know quite what to believe. This fabled prophecy, for instance-" "We never heard a prophecy" said Antione, turning geranium pink as he said it. Blaze nodded "That's right. Antione and I were both there too, and all this 'Chosen One' rubbish is just the Prophet making things up as usual" "You were both there too, were you?" said Ellidy with great interest. He looked from Blaze to Antione "Yes, well, it is true that the Prophet often exaggerates, of course" Ellidy said, sounding a little meandered off into a long-winded reminiscence, but Silver had the distinct impression that Ellidy had not finished with him, and that he had not been convinced by Antione and Blaze.

The afternoon wore on with more anecdotes about illustrious wizards Ellidy had taught, all of whom had been delighted to join what he called the "Lynx Club" at Soleanna. Silver could not wait to leave but couldn't see how to do so politely. Finally, the train emerged from yet another long misty stretch into a red sunset, and Ellidy looked around, blinking in the twilight "Good gracious, it's getting dark already! I didn't notice that they'd lit the lamps! You'd better go and get ready. Swifty, you must drop by and borrow that book on Grimomen. Silver, Jeff, any time you're passing. Same goes for you, Miss Blaze. Well, off you go, off you go!". As he pushed past Silver into the darkening corridor, Jeff shot him a filthy look that Silver returned with interest. He, Blaze, and Antione followed Jeff back along the train. Antione sighed in relief "I'm glad that's over. Strange man, isn't he?" "Yeah, he is a bit" said Silver, his eyes on Jeff "How come you ended up in there, Blaze?". Blaze shrugged "He saw me hex Speedy. You remember that idiot from Yagyu who was in the L.A? He kept on and on asking about what happened at the Ministry and in the end, he annoyed me so much I hexed him. When Ellidy came in I thought I was going to get detention, but he just thought it was a really good hex and invited me to lunch! Mad, eh?" "Better reason for inviting someone than because their mother's famous" said Silver, scowling at the back of Jeff's head. Then an idea had just occurred to him, a reckless but potentially wonderful idea. In a minute's time, Jeff was going to re-enter the lunch car. Rutan would be sitting there, thinking himself unheard by anybody except fellow Raiju around his table. If Silver could only enter, unseen, behind him, what might he not see or hear? True, there was little of the journey left.

Spiral Hill Station had to be less than half an hour away, judging by the wildness of the scenery flashing by the windows but nobody else seemed prepared to take Silver's suspicions seriously, so it was down to him to prove them "I'll see you two later" said Silver under his breath. He took out his Chaos Emerlad and disappeared "Wait, what're you-?" asked Antione. Blaze and him stared forward and realised Silver was already gone without explaining anything. Silver darting after Jeff as quietly as possible, though the rattling of the train made such caution almost pointless. The corridors were almost completely empty now. Nearly everyone had returned to their carriages to eat the food they bought off the trolly and pack up their possessions. Though he was as close as he could get to Jeff without touching him, Silver was not quick enough to slip into the next car when Jeff opened the door. Jeff was already sliding it shut when Silver hastily stuck out his foot to prevent it closing "What's wrong with this thing?" Jeff said angrily as he smashed the sliding door repeatedly into Silver's foot. Silver seized the door and pushed it open, hard; Jeff, still clinging on to the handle, toppled over sideways into Tumble's lap, and in the ensuing ruckus, Silver darted into the car, leapt onto Jeff's temporarily empty seat at the table Rutan was sitting at and hoisted himself up into the luggage rack. It was fortunate that Tumble and Jeff were snarling at each other, drawing all eyes onto them, for Silver lost grip on the Chaos Emerald for a moment while he was climbing. He was quite sure that a few of his quills had become visible; indeed, for one horrible moment he thought he saw Rutan's eyes follow his quills as it whipped upward out of sight.

But then Tumble slammed the door shut and flung Jeff off him; Jeff collapsed into his own seat looking ruffled. Rough returned to his comic, and Rutan, sniggering, lay back down across two seats with his head in Cassia's lap. Silver lay curled uncomfortably on the luggage rack and watched Cassia stroke the dreadlocks around Rutan's forehead, smirking as she did so, as though anyone would have loved to have been in her place. The lanterns swinging from the carriage ceiling cast a bright light over the scene. Silver could read every word of Rough's comic directly below him. "So, Jeff, what'd Professor Ellidy want?" Rutan asked lazily. Jeff shrugged "Just trying to make up to well-connected people. Not that he managed to find many". This information did not seem to please Rutan "Who else was invited?". Jeff went down the list, Rutan was aware of the few of them, he predictably rolled his eyes when Silver was mentioned. He let out a short laugh at the last name "D'Coolette was invited?" "Well, I'd assume so since he was there. I think it's because of his parents". Rutan scoffed "And of course Precious Silver was there. The Chosen One. What did he want the O'Hedge girl?" "A lot of boys like her" Cassia said. Sheglanced down at Rutan seeing if he had a reaction and was pleased when he said "I wouldn't touch that blood traitor no matter how she looked. I pity Ellidy's taste. Maybe he's going a bit senile. Shame, my father always said he was a good wizard in his day. My father used to be a bit of a favourite of his. Ellidy probably hasn't heard I'm on the train, or-" "I wouldn't bank on an invitation. He asked me about Falke's father when I first arrived. They used to be old friends, apparently, but when he heard he'd been caught at the Ministry he didn't look happy, and Falke didn't get an invitation, did he? I don't think Ellidy's interested in Nocturnus".

Rutan looked angry, but forced out a singularly humourless laugh "Well, who cares what he's interested in? What is he, when you come down to it? Just some stupid teacher. I mean, I might not even be at Soleanna next year, what's it matter to me if some old has-been likes me or not?". Cassia stopped stroking his hair "What do you mean you won't be coming back?". Rutan smirked "Well, you know, I might be moving on to bigger and better things". Silver's heart stopped, what would Coral and Razor say about this. Even Rough and Tumble were surprised, apparently Rutan hadn't confided in them. Cassia then whispered "Do you mean…Him?". Rutan casually shrugged "Mother wants me to complete my education, but personally, I don't see it as that important these days. I mean, think about it. When the Dark Lord takes over, is he going to care how many Marks anyone's got? Of course, he isn't. It'll be all about the kind of service he received, the level of devotion he was shown". Jeff's the only one who looked sceptical "And you're gonna do that? A sixteen-year-old?" "I've just said, haven't I? Maybe he doesn't care if I'm qualified. Maybe the job he wants me to do isn't something that you need to be qualified for" Rutan said quietly. Rough and Tumble were both sitting with their mouths open like gargoyles. Cassia was gazing down at Rutan as though she had never seen anything so awe-inspiring. As the train got closer to Soleanna the group got ready to leave. Silver was so busy staring at Rutan, he did not notice Tumble reaching up for his trunk; as he swung it down, it hit Silver hard on the side of the head. He let out an involuntary gasp of pain, and Rutan looked up at the luggage rack, frowning. Silver was not afraid of Rutan, but he still did not much like the idea of being discovered hiding by a group of unfriendly Raiju. To his relief, Rutan seemed to decide that he had imagined the noise; he locked his trunk, and as the train slowed to a jerky crawl the others got to their feet. Cassia held out her hand hoping Rutan would take it, but he shook his head "Go on. I want to check something".

A confused Cassia left with the others until Rutan was alone in the train car. He waved his hand and the blinds at the windows came down. Rutan then removed his trunk from the rack and moved placed it down on the table at the end of the car. Silver watched him intently, what was in the trunk that Rutan couldn't reveal in front of anyone "Didn't your Mummy ever teach you it was rude to eavesdrop, Hedgehog?". Silver's eyes widened but before he could do anything "Petrificus Totalus!". A spell shot out of Rutan's hand and hit Silver's stomach. He was paralyzed and fell off the luggage rack and with an agonizing crash hit the ground. The Emerald fell out of his hand revealing his body. Rutan smirked and stood over him "Oh, that's right I forgot. She died before you could wipe the drool of your chin". Silver had a sudden strong urge to strangle Rutan but there was no use, his body was completely immobilised. Rutan looked over to the Emerald which was glowing meaning it was still working. Rutan picked it up and disappeared before Silver. Silver then heard his voice coming from thin air "You didn't hear anything I care about, Hedgehog, but since I have you here…". Silver felt something hard suddenly stamp on his face, breaking his nose, blood spurted everywhere. Silver felt something open the fingers in his right hand. Rutan reappeared "That was for my father. Enjoy your trip back to Knothole". Rutan closed Silver's hand around the Emerald and his body disappeared, Silver couldn't let go off it. Rutan made sure to tread of Silver's fingers as he left him there.