A/N: This little project came to me from a shower thought. Weird, I know. But anyway, I hope you enjoy my new story titled All I Saw was Darkness!
(Note: This whole project, aside from a few excerpts later on, is told from Sonic's POV.)
Chapter 1: What Happened?
"I don't know. I just don't know..."
My mind had been spinning and lazing around as I had no idea where to go at this point. I was pretty much lost like a little kid who got separated from their parents in the supermarket. Without even paying attention to my surroundings, I suddenly found myself sitting on the edge of a giant billboard off the side of a highway. Glancing down, the bumbling cars were like me, going absolutely nowhere considering how packed the roads were. Thank Chaos I didn't have to drive to go anywhere – unless it was the Tornado while flying over a giant ocean. No way was I gonna speed across something humongous like that ever again. The last time it happened, I got knocked out by some rough waters. If it weren't for Tails and my emergency signal, I either would've been gone or struggled to keep my head above the waves.
Albeit it wasn't a tidal wave, a pang of agony struck me from mentioning his name.
Tails...
Before anyone even jumped to conclusions, my little buddy was safe and sound, alive no less. This wasn't The Phantom Ruby War II. He's just... not with me right now, that's all. Tails was alone for a certain reason.
What reason was that? Even I don't know. I mean, I had been repeating this from the start.
In fact, something was wrong. Something definitely went wrong. Yet here I am, not resolving the situation as I let my feet wander all willy-nilly because I wasn't being proactive about it. I was all alone and clueless, not understanding why things were going the way they were.
My gaze shifted toward the twilight sky, the sun glooming behind the buildings as nighttime approached. I didn't feel tired, yet my body said otherwise. I didn't want to go to bed, but my brain wanted me to lie down to get this numbing migraine to go away. All I cared about was rekindling the bond I had with my pal.
To clarify, I was not mad at him, and he's not mad at me. Or, that was what I hoped to be the case.
What I'm trying to explain was that there had been some kind of rift between us – a rift so disturbing in my eyes that I desired to rebuild some bridges, praying I didn't burn them too soon. This was arguably one of the most stressful encounters I've ever had to deal with, and I went through so much torture and trauma over some topics I don't want to resurface.
With me rambling on, I bet you're thinking somewhere along the lines of, "Hey, when are you gonna get straight to the point?"
I had been dreading this from the get-go. However, I might as well tell you how it started.
And before you also try to ask, "How long is this story?" Trust me, it's long.
"Ugh, my head... What's going on? What even happened? Why can't I remember a single thing?"
One second, I was speeding around to wherever my feet led me without a care in the world. The next thing I knew, my head kept burning for some reason. A splitting headache was making it so painful for me to move, let alone open my eyes. Speaking of which, as my eyelids began to flutter, I was already hit with some light that I had to instantly close before holding a hand over my face. Not only did my headache worsen, but I also couldn't make out where I was.
Based on my current position, I was lying down on my back and... Ugh! Why does my back also hurt so bad?! Then again, this bed wasn't the most comfortable for me and my quills. In fact, I- Wait a minute... This doesn't feel like my bed at home. When I reopened my eyes, blocking the bright lights in the room, my vision was slowly coming back to me.
That's when I realized... I wasn't at home.
The top half of my bed was angled slightly with a few guardrails by my side. I was enclosed by a bunch of white walls with various diagrams of charts displaying stuff about the heart and other medical terms. There was a giant, white curtain attached to a ceiling rail that covered my view to the left; really, the only thing I could make out was the window. My ears perked up, picking up some beeps and tones ringing faintly outside of the room.
As I annoyingly sighed out loud, it became pretty obvious to me where I was situated.
I was in the freaking hospital.
An old question resurfaced in my mind... What was I doing here? I had zero clue why I was lying in this bed feeling like dirt. My body was refusing to get up as much as I hated sitting around unless I was feeling lazy or taking a nap. But right now, I wanted to leave this place ASAP and go out for a sprint.
Before I could even try to question myself even further, a knock on the door somewhat startled me. Someone opened it, and the guest entered the room with a cautious approach. It was a tall mallard with a green head, a yellow beak, brown eyes, and a pair of glasses with red accents. He was also wearing a white coat with a blue undershirt, khaki pants, and a tie that matched his glasses.
"Mr. Hedgehog?" he formally asked. "Ah, hello there, sorry to bother you at this time. I know you've been asleep for a while, but I just wanted to check up on you. I must say, I'm very surprised to see you awake at this time."
"Um, who are you?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Dr. Corbin Beaker," he quickly introduced. "I've been monitoring your vitals after you fell into a state of unconsciousness. Despite the predicament, you've been rushed here, and we've been able to look after you during your slow but reassuring recovery."
"Wait, wait, wait..." I immediately stopped him. "I was unconscious? For how long?"
"If I recall, it was a couple of days. Actually, let me look at my clipboard real quick here..." He began flipping through some pages. "Oh, it turns out I stand corrected – badly even. It was about fourteen days ago."
"Fourte- You mean two weeks?! I've been asleep for that long?!" I exclaimed with a mix of shock and disbelief.
"Apparently so. You were admitted very late at night, around 1:08 in the morning. To be fair, you looked like you were beaten up when you first got here. My team and I had to hurry along and get things settled to help you before something drastic occurred," Dr. Beaker explained.
"Hold on, how did I end up here?"
The doc looked very confused. "You're saying you don't remember?"
"Uh, yeah? That's why I'm asking the question?" I urged him to give me a straightforward answer.
"Well, suffice to say, you were admitted to the hospital courtesy of your fox friend, Miles Prower."
My eyes immediately widened. Tails saved my life? But... if he's not in my room right now, then where was he? Had he been waiting this whole time for me to wake up? Of course, I had to ask the former question out loud to the doctor because I was both curious and concerned.
Dr. Beaker was quick to respond. "Yeah, your two-tailed friend is currently outside in our waiting lounge down the hall. He stayed here from the beginning, periodically looking out for you until we had to ask him to leave the ICU to monitor your health. If you want, I can call him over as soon as I'm done with a quick checkup."
"Yeah, definitely. I'm eager to see my bud."
"No problem. Now if you don't mind," Dr. Beaker took out an otoscope, "please look directly into the light."
"Ow. Maybe a bit too bright for my eyes," I groaned.
"Sorry. I kind of figured you would react that way after being asleep for a while."
Dr. Beaker kept checking everything from my head to my shoes. I was surprised to find out I was mostly okay. Keyword, mostly.
Alright, maybe mostly was pushing it.
While I was unconscious, Dr. Beaker's team examined my body with X-rays. From the pictures he showed me, I discovered I had a somewhat fractured tibia in my right leg. Great. My left ankle was also kinda banged up with a sprain. At least it's not broken though. I also experienced symptoms of dead arm syndrome where my right shoulder and upper arm felt very achy. Plus, my wrist was numb; a bruised wrist oughta be the problem. The doctor mentioned a splint would be beneficial for it, hence why there was one on me right now. I got pretty lucky I didn't need a cast.
Overall, I'm injured, exhausted, and unamused. Yet as much as I hate hospitals, I'm grateful my little buddy was able to bring me here. It could've been way worse for sure.
"Okay, Sonic, at this moment, you're currently doing well. Unfortunately, I hate to advise that you will need to take a break from all the running if you want your current wounds to heal up. That, and you'll have to take it easy with your arm and shoulder without exacerbating them."
Sighing heavily, I halfheartedly replied, "Yep, this is gonna suck."
"I think you've waited long enough, but I appreciate your patience and cooperation. Do you want me to bring Tails over now?"
My discontent immediately washed away. "That would be great. Thanks, doc."
He quickly nodded his head and left the room. Man, if there was any silver lining in this situation right here, it was seeing my little bro. He must be worried sick about me. When it came to the two of us, we were like peanut butter and jelly, two peas in a pod, the chili and cheese on a good, ol' steaming hot dog.
We're inseparable was what I'm saying.
Anyway, I probably gave him quite a scare for being unconscious for so long. The last thing he wanted was for something bad to happen to me. I mean, I totally get his reasoning, but it's not easy to save the world and stop Eggman from whatever he's scheming. Plus, he wasn't the only one out there who has tried to plan some kind of evil plot. Whatever stood in my way was something I was willing to take on, with or without my friends. I valued their lives more than anything, and that's a fact.
The sound of the creaking door caught my attention. I looked over and saw Dr. Beaker guiding Tails into my room. I couldn't help but grin from cheek to cheek. It was so relieving to see him alive and well. The two of them barely talked to each other for a moment until the duck left us for some privacy.
"Heya, Tails!" I happily greeted.
He didn't seem to respond very quickly, which honestly surprised me. Normally, I'd expect the little guy to run up and give me a giant fox hug, which I would gladly accept. Yet something was wrong. Tails seemed... I don't know, off? For lack of a better term, he didn't look happy. Secondly, he simply strolled up to me until he was about several feet from my bed. When he finally looked at my face, I saw a small, sheepish smile on his muzzle. Or in my eyes, maybe a very poor attempt at a smile. I pushed my thoughts aside for now when he eventually spoke up.
"Hey, Sonic. Glad to see you're awake."
"I feel the same way, pal. Believe me, the doc gave me all, if not most, of the details. Have I really been asleep for nearly two weeks?"
When I finished my question, I noticed Tails wasn't looking directly at me. His eyes were jaded, trying to focus on anything in the hospital room that wasn't my own two eyes. For now, he seemed entranced about the floor, or the edge of my bed. Whatever he was looking at, he kept his undivided attention away from me for a bit to the point where I grew a little impatient. At the same time, I was kinda troubled about his body language.
"Yo, Mobius to Tails, can you hear me loud and clear?"
An audible gulp escaped as the lump in his throat disappeared. Blinking a few times, the fox slowly brought his eyes up to me again. Call it brotherly intuition or just me being too precautious, but I knew something was bothering him.
Maybe I should be the one to pay more attention.
Not even two seconds later, I glanced down at him. More specifically, at his left leg. I realized he was sporting a black, orthopedic boot on his right foot. How I didn't realize it in the first place was beyond me. I had been worried about Tails' well-being, and now all of my dread came washing down on me knowing that he got injured. Of course, he didn't have it as bad as me; there's no beating around the bush. Still, it didn't sit well with me. I tried my best not to bring it up, at least not at this moment.
"Sorry, Sonic," Tails slowly spoke. "I'm kinda tired, you know? Resting in this hospital isn't the most comfortable thing in the world, especially when your best friend is badly wounded and hasn't opened their eyes for a while."
"Don't worry, bud. I'm A-OK!"
Tails instantly gave me a questionable eyebrow.
"Alright, I know I'm exaggerating here-"
"Like all those other times you got hurt and tried to wave it off? Yeah, Sonic, we've been down this road before. I know it's in your nature to push it aside in an attempt to not make me feel distressed, I get it." He paused for a moment before deeply sighing. "It's just..."
When he trailed off, I asked him, "It's just what?"
As if he was in the middle of a huge speech only to get stage fright, he froze like an icicle, struggling to find the words to continue his last statement. Part of me wanted to know what he was going to say. Yet it was apparent his current behavior had been sticking for a while, likely around the time I was brought to the hospital. The other half of me was wondering how the heck we got here anyway. What kind of dastardly, twisted event did the doctor pull to get me in this mess?
What? Sometimes, the blame game lied squarely on the guy you've been fighting with for the past several years. Who do you think was involved, Godzilla?
"I... I was scared like every other instance. I mean, I felt like I've seen worse out of you, but this could be the pinnacle."
"Do you know what happened to me?"
Tails squirmed, raising his right arm to clutch the opposite and squeezing his elbow. "Even though it wasn't long ago, I don't remember all of the details. My memory has been fuzzy from staying here and thinking about you. What I do know is that out of all the battles you've had against Eggman, I thought it was arguably the worst one given the outcome. He really put up a fight where his Badniks nearly restrained you. I definitely remember you were stuck at one point, and I couldn't save you when I got thrown back. If I recall, there was a loud explosion, and it was the main factor why you've been stuck here in a coma. Although... you could have endured much worse."
Shrugging my shoulders, I responded, "Sure, I guess. But hey, no need to be scared anymore, okay, pal? I'm here and doing well. I'll be totally fine. You can count on that."
I ended with a trusty wink, hoping it would reassure Tails and let his anxiety slide away. He silently nodded at me, but he remained sorrowful based on his current facial expression.
"You wanna hop next to me?" I offered, patting the empty space on the mattress.
While Tails mulled, his namesakes from behind drooped. I could tell by looking behind the boot. Speaking of which...
"Thanks, Sonic, but I don't think I should. I'll probably take up too much space on your bed. Additionally, I'm not in the best condition to walk properly, let alone fly as well."
"Really?"
"Yeah, even from hovering, I can still feel the pain in my foot which hasn't subsided ever since we both got stuck here. It'll react as if a bone was about to fall apart and I'll collapse on the floor. While you were being hooked up with all the equipment and such, they treated my leg, checking it with an MRI. It's mostly the ankle and toes that are banged up, so they provided me with this boot and some painkillers. It honestly hurts just walking to your room and getting up close to you now. The only positive thing is that the doctor said I probably only need to use it for a few weeks at most. I escaped crutches, thankfully."
"That does sound a bit encouraging, except it stinks how you're limited to getting around from place to place."
"Yeah, I'll deal with it though. Same goes for you, too."
"Like I said, I'll be alright. I'm glad you're safe and okay."
Tails was, once again, slow to react to my conversation. While he followed up with another hushed nod, I had an inkling there was more to this story. Considering I hadn't gotten any straight answers as to what transpired before I landed in the hospital, it made me wonder if my buddy was telling the truth or covering up a white lie. Since he explained how an explosion was likely the cause of my battered body, I only took that story with a grain of salt. To be clear, it was believable and made sense to me, yet I can't shake the thought that Tails might be hiding something from me.
It was too late to even interrogate him further for two reasons. Number one, he was already stressed out about the whole situation. I don't blame him at all. Number two, Tails wanted to excuse himself to get some stuff before returning back here. He asked if I wanted some water, and I gladly accepted his offer. He limped his way toward the door and exited my room, leaving me alone for a while.
Falling back onto my pillow, I groaned out loud. I was so ready to get out of this Chaos-forsaken place. It wasn't going to happen anytime soon though.
END OF CHAPTER
This was intended to be a oneshot, but after a ton of drafting, writing, and proofreading, this will be a short, multi-chapter story instead! Also, at the moment, the cover art for this project is a work in progress. I have commissioned the one and only MontyTH! Once they are finished, the new artwork will be posted on FFN. For now though, I'm cool with showing off the sketch. Special thanks to Monty again, and I'll see you next time! Please favorite/follow this story for more chapters, and leave a review if you like! I would greatly appreciate it. Until then, this is TGN signing off.