Chapter 129

The Transfiguration

"We should strike now," Silver repeated for the dozenth time. He stood with his hands pressed onto the dusty table. The faint light of the candle casted a dark shadow over his face. "There will not be a better chance."

Blaze sat in darkness on the far side of the table. Her legs were crossed and her hand laid gently on her lap. Sonic could not see her expression, only the faint glimmer of her yellow eyes. "We cannot take the city. Mesto's hold is too strong, and we do not have the support of the people."

"And we lose more everyday," Rayne pointed out. "Princess, I agree with Silver on this. Decisive action is what we need now, we cannot afford to delay."

"I will not have it said that I broke the peace," Blaze answered coldly. "I came to this city under the flag of diplomacy, I will not use that as a cover to launch an invasion." At these words there was a long pause.

Sonic sat up in his chair and wrung his hands together. His feet drummed anxiously beneath the table. They had convened this meeting in the living room of Priam's condemned house. As Silver had pointed out, the dwelling was cramped for a dozen people, but they would have to make it work. The space was clogged with dust, and that stuffiness contributed greatly to Sonic's increasing sense of claustrophobia.

"Mesto has desecrated our sacred spaces," Roran started cautiously. "I shudder to think what will happen if he is not stopped soon. The judgment…it cannot be delayed much longer."

"We should act while there is still a city to save," Silver reiterated. He turned to Gawain for support. The falcon sat stoically with his wings folded around him. His piercing eyes were locked on Blaze, as if he were trying to look into the princess' mind.

"Mesto's grip on the city is strong," Gawain admitted gravely. "But I do not think his support is beyond breaking. If we were to make a critical move and win an early victory, I do think the tide will turn in our favor."

Blaze considered her counselors thoughtfully. Though she gave each of them plenty of time to make their case, Sonic could tell that her mind was made up. Suddenly, she turned to Sonic. "And what say you Knight of the Wind? Mesto has claimed that the emperor's victory over earth is already cemented. Do you think there is a chance he is lying?"

Sonic coughed to give himself time to collect his thoughts. "The dead man Mesto burned at the start. I think I remember who he is. The largest military on the planet was an organization called GUN and that man was its leader."

"So Eggman has already defeated the human government," Blaze summarized. "But what about your friends, do you think they can still form a resistance against him?"

Sonic's insides squirmed. He had no idea what he really thought. Part of him trusted that Tails and Amy were resourceful and strong enough to fight back. At the same time, Sonic knew his friends' weaknesses. Amy could not fight against armies of trained soldiers, and Sonic wasn't sure that Tails had the maturity to fight a war. If only Sonic could be certain that Knuckles was still alive, and that he had survived GUN's attack on Angel Island. "I can't say…" Sonic mumbled. "But if they have fallen, I am sure Eggman would bring their bodies back and parade them in front of me." His heart seemed to split as he said those words. A burning hatred spiked inside Sonic, mixed with an irrational confidence in his allies. They won't lose.

"Princess, a pronounced campaign in a different world does us little good if we do not seize upon the emperor's absence," Roran said sagely.

"I know that," Blaze answered coldly. Her eyes flashed causing Roran to wilt into his chair. "The moment is not lost on me. Our best chance of winning this conflict through strength of arms is right now, and it is not because of fear that I delay. If we struck Mesto's forces hard then perhaps we could turn this city against them. But you saw what happened tonight, how a people of peace became a people who worshiped blood. More violence will lead to a deeper corruption of our people's spirit. No…" Blaze trailed off, her eyes glinting in the candle light. "We must find another way. A path to victory that will enliven the people, make them whole again, not just puppets to be used by whomever holds power."

No one had any answer to this. Roran nodded meekly, appearing duty bound as a priest to champion such a pious sentiment. Rayne frowned and folded his arms, reassigned to follow whatever command the princess gave. Silver's mouth hung open as he fumbled for some retort. Only Gawain seemed to fully understand what the princess had meant. He looked at her with a smoldering appreciation in his glance, as if something had just connected in his mind, some missing piece of a greater puzzle. Sonic, on the other hand, felt nothing.

It had never been more clear to him that his own interests were not fully aligned with that of the Thirteens. He alone had felt the pain of watching his fellow earthlings beheaded, while its young women were sold into slavery. Earth's battle was merely an ancillary trifle, a distraction that kept the emperor and a majority of the imperial forces at bay.

Blaze stood up suddenly and addressed the room. "Before I decide, there is something I must do. I would ask that my knights accompany me."

Rayne and Gawain immediately rose, crossed their fists over their chests and bowed. Silver seemed reluctant to comply. "You shouldn't venture out into the city so late."

"I am the princess of Soleanna, and I will do as I will in my own home."

Blaze and her knights left the hideout, leaving Roran behind to make the place fit for living. The storm clouds that had blanketed the sky all day had finally broken late into the evening. A moonless night held the world in a deep darkness broken up by the faint sparkle of a few stars.

They all raised their hoods and drifted through the streets. A curfew was in effect so no one moved outside except for imperial guards and sentinels hoping to catch lawbreakers. They were accosted soon after leaving the Hideout, but the imperial soldiers seemed confused as to whether or not Blaze was permitted to break curfew. In the end, the imperials decided to allow Blaze to progress, warning her that she should go indoors as soon as possible.

Fortunately, none of the foreign agents knew the city as well as Blaze. She darted and weaved through side streets and slipped through tiny gaps between buildings where Sonic would never have even imagined to check. This allowed them to bypass most of the patrolls.

Eventually they made their way past the Church of Solaris and towards the northwest edge of the city. Here the great walls of Sol were dwarfed by the face of the adjacent mountains. Sonic could see a path carefully chiseled into the rock just beyond one of the gates. Blaze led them to one of the parapets and into a dense tunnel which brought them to the start of the mountain path.

Here, their progress was halted by a tall red gate flanked by two imperial guards. They appeared to be sleeping on the job, but as the group advanced towards them, one of them woke with a start and leapt to his feet. With a cry the imperial soldier grabbed his spear and held it up. "STOP!" His yell woke his companion who also drew a spear and jabbed it towards Blaze.

The princess raised her hands in a sign of peace. "Peace, brethren. We seek only to visit the Sacred Lamp."

"You want to go in now?" The imperial guard tightened his grip around his weapon and squinted inquisitively at Blaze.

"I want some peace and quiet while I pray," Blaze said simply.

The guard exchanged a confused look with his comrade. The other guard shrugged as he shivered. A deep cold had drifted down from the snowy peaks of the mountain as the last vestiges of winter struggled to assert themselves against the fast approaching spring. Drifts of powdery snow fell upon the guards as they considered whether or not to allow the princess to advance.

"You….you are the princess of the Thirteens?" The second guard asked.

Blaze nodded. "Yes, and my company and I have been given permission by Lord Mesto to go where we please."

"How do we know you're the princess?" The first guard replied. His narrow, wolfish eyes were fixed with suspicion."

"I suppose you cannot really know for sure," Blaze answered casually. "However, if I am telling the truth and I report to Lord Mesto that his underlings were disobeying his orders, how would he feel about that?"

The guard paled and lashed his snout with his tongue. A faint growl issued from his mouth as his hairs stood on end. Sonic instinctively put his hand on Caliburn's hilt. Blaze, however, remained perfectly calm.

"No Thirteens are allowed up the mountain," The first guard said to his companion. "We'll lose our hides if we let them up there and it turns out not to be the princess."

"Call Lord Mesto, if you wish," Blaze said indifferently. "Though he may not appreciate being disturbed at such a late hour."

"There won't be any need for that." The second wolf lowered his weapon and indicated that the other should do the same. They opened up the gate and stood back to let them past.

Blaze did not move. Instead, she indicated the small metal machines that had been added to the more ancient gate. "We are not marked with the persona. You must disable the scanners or the alarms will go off."

One guard looked ready to argue, but the second cut him off. "Just do it," He mouthed. The two guards disabled the alarms and Blaze led them through the gate. They followed the mountain path up for a while before turning to a stairway made of rocks. Sonic sighed, worried that their journey would take them to the very cliffs of the mountain. However, his concerns proved unwarranted, after only about twenty minutes of walking they reached a cleft in the rock. Upon its face stood the spikey mouth of a spacious cave.

However, this was no den of a wild beast. The cave was richly furnished and illuminated with redstone lanterns. Its stone walls were adorned with rich tapestries which displayed coats of arms as well as gigantic mythical monsters.

"What are we doing here?" Silver said now that they were safely out of earshot of the imperials.

"Do you have some kind of weapon hidden here?" Sonic asked hopefully.

Blaze shook her head. "No, there is just something I need to check. I want to make sure of something before I go forward, and I think it is best if you all are with me." Blaze turned and her gray cloak twisted behind her. She strode through the cave and up a second set of rocky steps. Beyond the cave was a twisting passage that led back outside. They now stood on a very narrow height which extended like a pointed finger above Kingdom Valley, the beautiful grotto of waterfalls and ancient ruins that Sonic had seen when we had come to the city with Levi. At the edge of the height was a simple wooden shrine. Carved wooden gates inscribed with painted ruins encircled a fossilized bush.

They walked towards it when suddenly a forcible gust of wind knocked them back. Sonic covered his face and stopped halfway. Blaze alone seemed unaffected by the gale. She walked towards the shrine until she stood right in front of it. The world darkened. Night seemed to swell, as a deep blackness swallowed the world. Sonic could not even see the hand in front of his face. The cold hardened. Sonic's teeth rattled as he started shivering. Ahead of him, he was dimly aware of the vague outline of Blaze's body.

It seemed the darkness would continue to grow until it consumed the world when it was suddenly pierced by a sudden spike of light. Dawn broke over the distance horizon and shone a spark of orange light straight onto Blaze. Her body lit up like an ignited wick. Sonic drew back as the dazzling light blinded him.

The ground trembled. Sonic felt the others stagger as the rockface shook like a withered leaf. Stones dropped from the cliffs above and shattered into pieces. Sonic stopped shivering. Warmth stole over him as he gazed into the brilliant rays encircling Blaze. She was hovering a few inches off the ground. Her gray cloak had dropped into a bundle at her feet. Whoosh! Purple flames exploded into life around Blaze, and spiraled around her in an aura of heat that turned the air to steam.

Sonic watched in awe as she changed before his eyes. Her humble brown tunic burned away, replaced by a vibrant red dress as luminous as the rising sun. Her arms extended gracefully and a ribbon of yellow sparks traced around the hem of her dress. In a moment that seemed to contain the length of several years, Blaze's power and beauty swelled to a point where Sonic's eyes struggled to contain it. Something happened inside him. Watching her compelled a sudden thrill inside him, a rushing surge of relief, joy, and awe. It was like suddenly finding yourself in the shadow of a gigantic mountain, or at the beach of some endless sea, like standing in the field beneath a canopy of twinkling stars. It was the feeling of running down a stretch of flat grass with the wind in his face and adventure on the horizon.

Tears fell down Sonic's face, and he was not alone. Gawain, Rayne and Silver had all dropped to their knees, momentarily stunned by the spectacle in front of them. They heard a deep rumble in the valley below. The sky itself seemed to shake. Sonic felt as if he could hear a voice speaking from above the tumult. A voice which spoke with the authority of the sun and the finality of the grave. "This is my champion, trust her."

As quickly as it had all started, it was over. Blaze returned to the ground, clothed in her humble brown tunic. She picked her gray cloak off the ground and flung it back over her head. The wind stopped. What had seemed like the promise of a bright clear day was quickly shrouded by gray clouds.

Blaze walked over to them. Sonic felt a burning sensation on his face. The whiplash of such intense feeling giving way back to his ordinary experience left him a temporary loss for words. "Princess…" Gawain managed feebly. "What…I don't understand…what was that?"

"Burning Blaze….that was your super form," Silver said breathlessly.

Blaze gazed at her three knights. A subtle change had come over her as if some lingering doubt had been removed. There was a stone fortitude in her expression. A choice she had long agonized over had been decided.

"You've managed to unlock your full power…" Silver continued. "In that form, nothing, not even Infinite can stop you."

Blaze shook her head. "No, I have not become any stronger than I was before. But that was not the point. I know now what must be done."

Silver hung his head in obvious disappointment. "Greater power will not avail us," Blaze said to him. "The desire for it will only play further into our enemies hands."

"But what do we do?" Silver pressed.

"For now, we wait. Events will hasten to their appointed end. When the time of proving comes, we must not give into fear but trust." She turned her head and looked towards the distant sun.

Sonic watched her with a growing sense of disappointment. He had hoped that the Thirteens stored some kind of power or hidden knowledge at the shrine of the Sacred Lamp. Blaze's sudden transformation had all but confirmed that suspension, but now she had returned to normal with no promise of greater power.

"Will you wait for Sonic and I?" Blaze said to the other knights. They agreed and left Sonic alone with Blaze upon the mountain height.

"You are conflicted," Blaze said, reading Sonic's thoughts easily. "Doubt gnaws at you, sapping away at the power you already believe to be insufficient."

"Because I don't know what to do," Sonic answered with more bitterness than he intended to show. "I agreed to come to the city with you, because you asked me, but there is nothing here for me to do. I can't help you negotiate with Mesto." He flung his arms in the air and started walking in a tight circle. "I thought your plan was to fight Eggman, to stop him. Now we find out that Eggman isn't here, that he already made good on his threat to invade the earth, and I-"

"Do you think that Eggman attacked earth solely because he found you here?" Blaze gave him a sharp, piercing look. "Do you honestly believe that Eggman would have called off his forces should you have relented and returned home? Do you think so much of yourself?"

Sonic stopped. He felt an irrational surge of anger towards Blaze. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Eggman's invasion is not your fault. You know in your heart that the emperor would have sought to take over his home to avenge himself against you and the planet he failed to conquer."

"What does it matter? Who cares why he did, or if he would have or not. The fact is I am here, and I cannot help stop him."

"It matters a great deal," Blaze said with cold severity. "By staying here, by trusting your friends you have done exactly what the emperor and those that follow him cannot do; trust others. Your thoughts turn to your friends on earth, your love for them makes it almost impossible for you to endure the idea of their struggle. Yet you trust them. Have you ever considered that your faith has consequences? Perhaps, the earth has a better chance specifically because you are not there?"

"How could I ever think that?" Sonic asked.

"You must believe in something greater than yourself, something beyond your own power. For me, I have complete trust in Solaris. The eternal flame shall never die out, nor will it ever lack for cold hearts to reignite."

Sonic looked at her and saw the earnest conviction in her face. Yet, for him, these were just words. "I don't know how to do that. I'm not like you. I don't know what Solaris or any of that other stuff means. All my life I've trusted my own heart, and my own abilities, and they have never let me down."

Blaze looked at him, her yellow eyes swirling like the heart of a burning furnace. "Tell me Sonic, would not the emperor say the same thing?"

Sonic felt as if she had just slapped him. His first instinct was that of anger. He wanted to snap back at her, to accuse her of cowardice and failure. How could she criticize Sonic? Hadn't he always protected his world, hadn't he managed to defend the earth from Eggman for years, while Blaze had allowed hers to be conquered almost immediately? But before he could speak in anger, his mind recalled the other voices that had made these same comparisons. Hadn't Shadow and Knuckles both told Sonic that he was too similar to Eggman?

Blaze retreated a few steps until she was under the arches of the shrine. "Wash away your doubts, Sonic the Hedgehog. That comparison is only skin deep. It is not all that matters."

"What should I do?" He asked. "I can't just put my faith in things I don't understand."

"Believe in me then." She hovered into the air and floated above the rock face until she was standing above nothing with the deep chasm beneath her feet. In an instant she transformed back into Burning Blaze. Her red dress sparkled and a tremendous warmth flooded Sonic. She held out her hand to him.

Sonic hesitated. His feet were planted firmly on the edge of the rock. Blaze floated a few feet beyond the surface. Her gaze pierced him and he felt a sudden lightening of his heart. Sonic stepped out, heedless of the deep valley below him. Something solid caught his foot. Heavy gusts of wind were supporting him as he walked towards Blaze. Sonic walked over the empty air until he was close enough to touch her hand. When he did, he transformed as well. His fur illuminated with golden light and stood on end. Crackles of blue lighting flashed around him. His feet slacked as he held himself up with his Super Sonic power.

They drew close. The energy emitting from the two of them shook the very mountains. "See?" Blaze said softly. "This is the power that supports us. It is not abusable like the Chaos Emeralds, nor destructive like the machines of the emperor. Neither will it make us more than what we should be like the insanity of Infinite. This is the pure, unassailable power of love, like the wind it blows where it wishes, and comes to those who seek it. Try and master it or bend it to your will and you will lose it. Trust it, and you will never fail."

Sonic was looking directly into Blaze's eyes. He only knew he was in his super form because he could see the golden reflection highlighted in them. Suddenly, Sonic moved his foot searching for solid ground. His eyes darted away from Blaze and a fall of several hundred feet loomed up to seize him. Sonic slipped and started to fall. Blaze seized his arms and held him up. She drifted back over to the rocks. When she landed, she had returned to her usual state.

Sonic had returned to normal as well, or rather, he had not transformed at all. "Why did you doubt?" She asked him.

Sonic didn't answer. He held up his arms and gazed down at his own hands. Fear felt like tangible weight, a load that tethered him to the surface. For the briefest of moments the scene at the temple had faded into the background of his mind. Now it returned with full force. Sonic saw the line of prisoners awaiting execution, only now they were not faceless strangers. He saw Tails and Amy and a dozen more of his friends. Sonic pictured south island burning, the ocean around it boiling in black pitch. The earth he loved was swallowed by a cosmic shadow larger than the sun.

Dawn had finally come by the time they had returned to the estate. Blaze and the others made their final preparations to move to the Hideout. Though this was not done without one last debate. For the ruse to work, Silver felt that they needed to trick Mesto into believing that Blaze was still at the estate. Doing so meant that the princess needed a body double, someone to wear her regal dresses and remain at the estate.

Few women were left in Blaze's company and none of the healers matched her build. The only one left to fill that role was Jasmine. Blaze did not want to put Jasmine in that kind of danger, but Silver felt that they had no other choice. Ultimately, Blaze relented and allowed that, as long as Jasmine volunteered willingly, then she could serve as the body double.

Sonic and Rayne would stay behind to guard the estate while Blaze and her group made a clandestine trip to the Hideout. The early morning hours passed slowly. Sonic had not slept since the day before and he made a half hearted attempt to lie down. However, as soon as he closed his eyes he returned to the dark temple. He saw the faces of the human prisoners flash before him. Sonic sat up and cupped his hands together.

He itched to go out and do something. Never in his life had he felt so stuck. Sonic sighed and drew Caliburn from its sheath. He gazed at the foreign characters inscribed onto the steel. Blaze had told him what the words meant. "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

Could Sonic believe that? Could he believe that things could still end good after so much bad had happened?

"I WON'T HAVE IT!" A bellowing voice drifted out of the room adjacent to Sonic's. The yell put Sonic on alert and he jumped to his feet. A few seconds passed before he heard muffled voices speaking back and forth rapidly. Sonic sheathed Caliburn and stepped quietly out of his room. He stood in an empty hallway flanked by rooms with screen doors. One of the doors was left ajar. Through the crack, Sonic could see Jasmine standing on a stool. One of Blaze's healers was kneeling beside her with several pins in her mouth. Jasmine was wearing one of Blaze's royal dresses. Her hair had been dyed and tied in a ponytail to match the princess.

Priam marched around his daughter, waving his arms violently. "You did not even ask me. I never would have allowed it. You do not know the danger you are putting yourself in!" He hollered. The old boar looked as outraged as he had done the night Sonic had stumbled upon that ceremony in the forest.

"I'm old enough to speak for myself," Jasmine answered stiffly. "I do not need your permission."

Priam shook his head wildly. His eyes bulged with fury that was on the point of boiling over. "You are a child! You do not understand what you are saying. If your mother were here she would say the same thing."

"But she's not here!" Jasmine snapped. "And if I don't do anything then I would have lost her for nothing."

Priam rounded on his daughter. "I will not lose you too."

Sonic hesitated, unsure of whether or not he should continue listening.

"That isn't your choice to make." Jasmine's voice was cold and distant. "I have as much right as any to take this risk."

Priam gaped at her. His mouth opened and closed as he struggled to form a coherent thought. At last he snorted, turned and stormed out of the room. Sonic quickly jumped back into a corner so Priam would not see that he had been listening.

Somewhat disturbed by the episode he had witnessed, Sonic went outside and ventured into the garden. At the center he found an ornate fountain. Its silver base was empty and the outer bowl was heavily tarnished. A dead shrub stood beside it, its black branches flaked away in the wind. Sonic sat upon the rim of the bowel and allowed his feet to dangle. A fresh wind blew across his face, stealing him against the warm day.

Sitting was no more a comfort than resting had been. He drew his sword and jumped to his feet. Sonic decided to make his time worthwhile by practicing the sword forms Levi had taught him. This time his invisible foes had a clear face. Infinite had been the strongest foe Sonic had ever fought. He knew that his business on Arvana would not be resolved without further conflict with lord Mesto's puppet.

Sonic moved through the forms dueling against phantom versions of Infinite. As he fought, Sonic felt something holding him back. He was not moving as fast as he usually did. Every strike was a fraction of a second late. The more he tried to dig into the furthest depths of his speed, the further out of reach they became. After half an hour of nonstop exercise, Sonic stopped.

He was out of breath and more dejected than he had been at the start. Sonic lay Caliburn beside the fountain and sat down. He drew out the oils Levi had given him for cleaning his blade and set to work. Caliburn at least looked as formidable as ever. The steel glinted in the sun, sparkling like a white star. "We have to be ready," Sonic told the sword. "If we meet him again it will take everything we have."

Footsteps echoed up ahead and Sonic looked up to see Jasmine walking towards him. She stopped when she saw Sonic and her expression of concern turned into a smile. "O, it's you. I thought I was alone but then I heard talking." She looked around the fountain. "Are you alone?"

Slightly embarrassed, Sonic nodded. "Yeah, I was just talking to myself."

Jasmine giggled. Now that her disguise had been complete, Jasmine looked very much like Blaze. No imperial agent would be able to tell the difference, yet for Sonic, Jasmine's eyes immediately gave her away. Blaze had narrow feline eyes that were the color of flame and were as hard as flint. Jasmine had large oval eyes full of color and vulnerability. It was very obvious that she was only wearing a costume.

Jasmine walked over to Sonic and sat beside him on the fountain. "I hope I'm not interrupting something," She said nervously.

"No, you're alright."

She blushed faintly and looked down at her dress. "What do you think? Do you like it? I mean, do you think I look like her?"

"Yes," Sonic lied. "I don't think Mesto's agents will know the difference."

Jasmine beamed. "Her clothes are a little stuffy, and I don't know how I feel about wearing a crown," She indicated the golden tiara she wore on her brow which slipped down over her eye as if to indicate that it did not fit properly.

"This is very brave of you," Sonic said seriously. "Your father is right to worry."

Jasmine frowned. "So you heard all that, did you?" She folded her arms together. "My father is always afraid now. He should know better. Everyone is in danger, why should I be protected above the rest?"

"He cares about you," Sonic pointed out. "He just doesn't want to lose anyone else."

Jasmine sighed. "I know…it's just…sometimes…sometimes he makes it seem as if he was the only one that lost somebody. I lost my mother too, and if doing just this one thing can help me get back at those that did it…" She turned to Sonic with tears swimming in her eyes. "I can't fight like you or the others. I feel so useless to everybody. I want to do my part. I know it might be dangerous, but I want to take the risk."

Sonic stared at her and was struck by how many different forms bravery took. It was not always the image of the stalwart knight with blade in hand with an army bearing down upon him. At times it was a daughter standing up to an overprotective father, willing to risk everything for those she loved.

Jasmine blushed beneath Sonic's gaze. She twisted her feet together and rocked back and forth. "Everything changed when you came here," She said softly. "Everyday I lived in fear of the empire and the soldiers. My father and I had survived, but it was as if we weren't really living. No one really hoped to fix things. They just wanted to keep their honor to the end. But now…you've given us hope." She looked at Sonic with a stern, indomitable expression on her face. The tears were gone. "I am not afraid anymore."

In a sudden move, Jasmine leaned forward and kissed Sonic on the cheek. Her face turned bright red as she moved away and her serious demeanor eroded into a fit of girlish giggling. Momentarily stunned, Sonic took a second before he allowed himself a wistful smile.