18 YEARS AGO…
Indigo colored water and lavender foam washed over the remains of a ruined dinghy scattered across the sand at the island's edge. As it did, it lapped over the unconscious body of the person who had been paddling for hours before.
It had been unknown how long the unconscious person had been on the beach, but it was long enough for him to gather sand on his quills. The quills across his body were hidden by a deep red jumpsuit, which covered him from ankle to wrist.
After a second, his hand stirred, fingers sinking into the sand and gently grasping it.
Chuck jolted up onto his arms, propping himself up with a deep gasp and panting. His face, including the mustache-like white quills protruding from under his nose, were both soaked and covered in sand, his cerulean quills flecked with beige from it.
He felt wet, cold and his body hurt like he just got hit by a car. But he didn't care about that right now. There was one thing on his mind.
"The kids."
His hoarse voice spoke for the first time since he entered that (now destroyed) boat. Chuck picked himself up, looking around quickly. He scanned the sandy beach quickly until he found what he was looking for to his left: a fair sized gray capsule made for containing animals.
In a flash of blue, Chuck zipped forwards, slamming into the capsule and grunting as he did- he still wasn't used to that. As he slammed into the capsule, he heard an echo of crying inside of the metal capsule, the crying of two children.
Chuck slammed his fist into the giant yellow button on top of the capsule. There was a hiss, and some steam released from the pressure lock, before the sides popped off to reveal the inside. Swaddled in two red jumpsuits were two toddlers, both crying inside of the now opened capsule. Chuck quickly picked up the magenta and emerald green hoglets and held them in his arms.
"It's alright. It's alright. It's…"
The older hedgehog looked upwards, surprised he didn't see any signs of a sun anywhere. Instead of a sun was a massive spot of blue, surrounded by a halo of gold and orange- the rest of the sky was an abstract painting of pink, violet and bright blue. To anyone with a love for astronomy, they would think they were looking at a planetary nebula close up. However, Chuck didn't know astronomy.
"...alright." He murmured, the kids crying as he stared at the sky in astonishment.
A rustling came from the shrubbery that lined the beach. Chuck immediately looked at the source of the noise, turning his body slightly to try and protect the kids in his arms, who continued to cry.
Chuck took a deep breath, narrowing his eyes at the noise.
Slowly, from the brush, a group of three wolves came out. They weren't just normal wolves, however, they were wolf mobians. Dressed in thick, clearly armored robe-like attire, these wolves all held spears, which were all pointed at Chuck.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" The center wolf said. Their voice sounded feminine.
"Please. You have to help me. I don't know if he followed me, but…"
"Who followed you?" The center wolf barked, interrupting him.
"This mad scientist, he wants to hunt me down. He wants to hurt me and my kids… My brother's kids."
"You led a mad scientist here?" The wolf to the left asked. "How did you even get here?"
"I was paddling my boat away when I… fell in here. I don't know. Please, you have to hide me. Or just the kids. I don't care, just make sure they're okay."
"The only thing you three will be placed in is a cell, until we can decide what to do with you."
"What? No, please, I've been paddling for days. The kids are hungry."
"We'll decide your rations when you're locked up. Now, come with—"
Before the wolves could converge on Chuck, they were blocked and interrupted by the arrival of a brown owl. It was another mobian, one only a bit larger than Chuck was. Her wings were her arms, and she spread them out to block Chuck from the wolves. Though her body was facing Chuck, she turned her head around a full one-hundred-and-eighty degrees to look at the wolves.
"Stand down! This man is clearly hurt. He has children for Gaia's sake!"
"He said he was followed by someone! He could bring danger to this island!"
"He's scared, he's alone, and he's trying to escape someone. We are more than capable of protecting ourselves on this island if need be. Regardless, this man landed on the Green Hill side of the border, he is out of the Wolf Pack's jurisdiction."
"But…"
"Call your girls off, Lupe. Now."
The stern owl's firm statement was enough to sway the fearless center wolf. Chuck watched over one of the wings of the owl as the wolves slowly lowered their spears. After a second, the side wolves turned and left. The center wolf- probably named Lupe- stared at the owl for a moment, then glanced at Chuck, before she turned and disappeared into the shrubbery once again.
A moment or two after they were gone, the owl turned her head back around. Chuck, taken aback, stumbled back a little bit at this, face to face with his savior.
She immediately looked down at the toddlers in Chuck's arms with big, blue-green eyes.
"Oh, poor babies… I know the entry had to be rough…"
The kids had stopped crying, staring up at the owl in shock and amazement. The owl gently reached out to take the kids- Chuck pulled back a little, but after making eye contact with the powerful owl, he soon placed the care of the two in her wings.
She took one at a time. She had on robes, pinned down by a golden pauldron that crossed both shoulders and over her chest, an owl-face like design on the front. She shifted the sashes around to rest the infants in there, letting them be cradled within it across the front of her body.
After giving the second child to the owl, Chuck suddenly became very aware of how tired he was. He ran a hand over his head, a cold sweat growing on his brow, starting to breathe heavy. An arm- or rather a wing- was placed on his back. The owl was looking at him, concerned.
"It must've been difficult for all of you." She said, softly. "Are you alright?"
"I'm okay… I'm alright… I just need… to lay down…"
Chuck leaned against the wings of the owl, who held him gently.
"Yeah, there we go. We have a new record! Though you're the first guy who came through the whirlpool in the last few decades, so I don't recall what the previous record is."
"What… Hoo, boy…"
"Hey, stay with me, friend. If that is your name. I'm not sure what it is, so you'll have to tell me."
"I'm Charles. My friends call me Chuck…" The hedgehog looked up at the owl. "What is this place…? Who are you?"
The owl smiled at him softly. She turned him around, escorting him further inland.
"My name is Longclaw. Welcome to South Island."
Spring was nearly here again.
Three holidays and a new year had passed since the Black Arms' invasion. Station Square had not only survived, but her citizens actively fought back against the aliens who had attempted to take over the world, starting with their city. People more involved in the crisis knew that calling the Black Arms "aliens" was an oversimplification, but they let it slide.
Things were rebuilt. Businesses opened up once again. For once, it seemed that things had returned to a sense of calm and serenity that was present before the Black Arms- before Perfect Chaos, even.
After spending Cupid's Day with… nobody in particular, Sonic had returned to what he had been doing whenever the holidays weren't pulling his attention away: studying the file on Project: M2.
He had taken the news pretty well, all things considered. Sonic was happy he broke down the barriers he had around his emotions by beating the snot out of Shadow (when Shadow was still evil) because he was able to process how he was feeling with Dr. Nanatsuki once he was finally able to get a session with them. Now he was finally able to look at the file without feeling a sharp pain in his stomach!
His holidays had gone well. Day of the Dead, Friendsgiving and Yuletide went by with very little interruption from any kind of supervillain. Yuletide was the one he was least surprised about- he always had a good time then, even getting cards from people he's been at odds with before; The Hooligans, Agent Topaz and each of the Daves.
Even Shadow sent him a card this year! Though it was signed by him and Rouge (Sonic thought it was nice to see they were working together again… or, well, maybe not) so maybe the bat was the one who bought and sent it and just had Shadow scribble his name in as well.
There was even, hidden with a printed label and a plain white envelope, a card from Ivo for Team Sonic that year.
Sonic hadn't seen or heard from Ivo since the Black Arms incident, and the doctor wasn't even in the hot shelter bunker in the Mystic Ruins like he was before. Speaking with the aforesaid therapist Lee Nanatsuki, Sonic had navigated through resentful feelings he had against the doctor for holding the file and not showing him; most likely because the doctor didn't know the contents, as he scribbled on the file's front. Part of Sonic was also regretful that he had the file in his hand- he was holding the M2 file on Prison Island- and gave it away.
But he still wanted to help Ivo, even after everything. And hey, as a bonus, the card Ivo got for him had a gift card inside to get a solid three day's worth of chilidogs. Well, it was probably meant to be a week's worth, but he did give it to Sonic after all.
As he sat on a couch, lost in his thoughts with his chin on his hand, Sonic was looking out the window and down into the street. He saw the streets bustling, people starting to get flowers and some other things for springtime. Some businesses were still closed- like the still under construction "Casino Park" bound to be opened in the next month, now sponsored by the elusive company (Sonic couldn't even find the name of the founders or CEO) known as Breeze Media.
In that same area, another sign was set up, in front of a closed building; one that Sonic had become interested in while running around town to see if anyone needed help. "CLUB SPIN - DROPPING SOON"
Sonic wasn't that big on the club scene, but he did like spinning… and he did like some of the electronic dance and/or house music he's heard on shuffle on his phone anyways.
"Sonic, are you paying attention?"
The blue hedgehog's attention was turned away from the window and back to what was going on in front of him. He wasn't in his apartment, he was somewhere else: Vanilla's apartment, restored after the aforementioned invasion. He was seated on one end of the couch with Tails on the other end, and Amy in the middle.
Cream was standing in front of a corkboard. Cheese was floating beside her, acting as a floating pointer to gesture at the different things his owner had pinned on the board. Chocola, nearby, was holding a tray of refreshments, which they had passed out a moment before.
Tails and Amy looked at Sonic, letting out an"ooooohhhh" like students teasing a fellow pupil called out by their teacher. Sonic rolled his eyes, more amused than annoyed.
"Yes, Cream." He said, smiling a bit.
"Okay, good. Anyways," Cream turned so she could point at the pictures and thread she had hanging up. "The file stated that Mister Uncle Chuck Hedgehog managed to escape the facility after the experiments of Project M2 with his niece and nephew. But he obviously didn't go the same direction that Sonic and Tails' mom did."
"Not to mention, my mom didn't have any vision about Chuck surviving." Amy added. "Whether it be between the time Miss Aleena escaped the facility, to when she left the compound on her own. And from the sounds of it, Chuck escaped M2 when Sonic and his siblings were barely two years old."
"This isn't adding up." Tails continued. "Even if Uncle Chuck set up shop someplace else in the world, he would've found out about Sonic eventually. Even if it took until Perfect Chaos' worldwide news coverage to do so. Did he just… join an Amish community or something?"
"Well, to be fair, Tekno never heard of Sonic either. It's plausible." The psychic tapped her head with a finger, elbow pressing on her leg as she rested her cheek on her hand. "But- and excuse me for inserting me and my family into all of this again- I never had a vision about Chuck either. Not even when I lived on the compound, and touched Miss Aleena or even Sonic. He's a total blind spot to me."
"How far could he even go?" Sonic finally spoke.
Cream turned to the corkboard she set up. She had placed different pictures, documents and sticky notes on there, all connected with red twine that was pinned to each item. There were photos of things like Sonic and Tails, the online-available mugshot of Julian Robotnik, files from Project: Mobius, Project: Miles Per Hour and Project: M2. There was also a stray sticky note at the bottom corner saying "PEPE SILVIA," for some reason.
Her and Cheese made a similar face as they looked closely at a specific document from M2.
"It says Mister Uncle Chuck didn't show any signs of having chaos-imbued superpowers." She said, turning around to look at Sonic. "He couldn't have gone far, probably. It's not like he had those seismic powers your mom had."
"There must be something we're not seeing, then. Something not included. If he didn't go in the direction of my mom's compound… where did he go?"
The question didn't have an answer. Or at least, not one that the others could provide.
Their attention was turned away from the rolling corkboard with the opening and closing of the apartment door. Walking in, carrying a topless box, was Vanilla. Reaching the coffee table that was right between her daughter and Team Sonic, the mother rabbit set the box down on the table with a grunt.
"Alright, here we go." She said. "Here's everything I could find from when I left Aleena's compound. It was buried deep in HEXAeco's storage, but Big, Tekno and I managed to get it all out."
Out of everyone, Vanilla had clearly taken the news that Chuck and Sonic's siblings were alive harder than anyone- even Sonic, probably. It was obvious why: Vanilla knew Chuck personally. She knew Aleena personally. She knew Sonic and the sibs when they were just little babies.
But where Sonic was left shocked and upset, Vanilla was left determined. In all the places where Amy and Tails couldn't help him, Vanilla was there to help Sonic with his search. It was clear that Vanilla wanted to find them just as much as Sonic did, and the hedgehog was incredibly grateful for that.
Team Sonic immediately started rummaging through the box. They found some trinkets, a few loose and broken mechanical pieces, and a variety of intact notebooks and drawings.
Sonic pulled one drawing out immediately. It was made with charcoal, and it seemed to be two mobian rabbits together, though they didn't have faces. The taller one had a kind of hat, almost like a cowboy hat.
Vanilla took it away as soon as Sonic picked it up.
"Don't need to see that. It was during my experiments with art. I can barely draw a straight line, really."
As she rummaged deeper, Amy felt something soft. She pulled it out, finding a rolled up piece of fabric. Amy unrolled it and found it wasn't a piece of fabric- it was a very small onesie with carrots patterned on it.
"Oh. My. God." She said, her face lightening up. "Is this what Cream wore when she was a baby?"
Cream was obviously visibly embarrassed. Vanilla's face lit up too as she took it from Amy, looking over it fondly.
"Yes! I bought this onesie for her when we got to the UF. Oh, she loved this one so much. I used to act like I was eating the carrots off the onesie when she wore it to make her laugh, and one time she laughed so hard she peed herself—"
"Mooo-ooom, stop!" Cream said loudly, stomping her foot. "Don't embarrass me in front of my friends!"
"I'm sorry, Creamy. It's just good memories." Vanilla, still smiling, folded the onesie and put it aside.
Tails picked up a few of the notebooks. A lot of them were empty, strangely enough, except for the bottom one. He wiped off the dust from the front to see the written on title more clearly.
"…'My Travels'?" He looked up at Vanilla, passing the notebook over to her.
"Oh yeah! I was keeping a journal of all the places I went to after I left the compound while I was on my search."
"You never did mention what you were searching for when you've brought it up before." Amy commented.
"Well, I thought it was still tender, since it had a lot to do with Aleena. But, I guess now's as good a time as any."
Vanilla pulled over the recliner to sit across from the trio. Cream sat on the arm of the chair, letting Cheese and Chocola float down to sit on her shoulders.
"Back in the testing facility, a hedgehog named Herb managed to escape." Vanilla said. "He had powers of psychometry, so he used them to find a spot in the routine of Julian and his assistant to escape. He was eventually captured and returned, but when he used his powers on the outside, he sensed something- Mobians. Classical Mobians, ones that have been around for decades. Probably the same ones that inspired Julian and Gerald's little experiments on animals."
"Like Knuckles and the guardians on Angel Island." Sonic added, nodding.
"When Herb came back, he told us about what he saw. Herb was one of the casualties before we all escaped, but… he gave us hope that there was a world out there that could accept us, and help us. Concerns for the children's safety brought the journey's plans to a screeching halt, but once we got the compound settled… I wanted to try and find them. Find the islands Herb said he saw them on."
"That's it! That must be the missing piece!" Tails said. "Chuck didn't head in the direction of the compound because he thought Aleena was on one of those islands!"
"Yeah! Vanilla, where exactly did you go on your travels? Did you meet any Mobians?"
"A few." She replied. "There were some Classical Mobians that resided on this one island- Christmas Island. I stayed with them for a few years. They said there were many more Mobians out there, but they disappeared centuries prior. A few fellow Mobians set off to find them but never returned. The group I was with was looking for them."
"They didn't find any?"
"No. Or at least I don't think so. One of those Classical Mobians was Dr. Caninestein… the founder of HEXAeco. He wanted to go to the UF and start his business, and asked me to be his apprentice."
"So you chose to go to him and not the group?"
"It wasn't an easy choice. The group, the people there besides Albon, were violently obsessed. It was practically tearing them all apart to search for them, they were constantly fighting, and not just with words. Not to mention the fact that I discovered I was pregnant with someone special not too long after Albon asked me to join him…"
Cream gasped. "I have a sibling?!"
"Shut up, you goober." Vanilla chuckled and playfully shoved Cream off the arm of the chair so her daughter hopped to her feet. Cheese and Chocola both fluttered into the air, hovering near Cream.
Sonic took the notebook Vanilla had written in, flipping through the notes and drawings within. He soon closed it again.
"Do you really think I might find Uncle Chuck and my siblings there? With the other Mobians, maybe?"
"Perhaps. Or maybe they actually ended up finding the other Classical Mobians out there." Vanilla said. "Chuck was as smart as a whip. Him and I were the people that were going to look for the islands once we were out, we probably had the same idea of where to go."
"Even if we don't find him, at least we'll have a general direction of where we should look."
"You're right, Tails." The mother rabbit nodded. "But I know you'll find them. When I look at you, Sonny… I see Chuck. In more ways than one. You're a lot like him, and a lot like Aleena. There's some of your father too, but that's mostly your sense of humor. Besides, you have Tails to help you out. He fills in the blanks where your own perception lacks."
"Thanks!" Sonic paused. "Wait a second… Was that a backhanded compliment?"
"Just an observation."
The blue hedgehog snorted. He looked back down at the notebook, flipping through until he got to a page that had a full two-page spread of a map. Sonic recognized the shape of the top and bottom landmasses- it was the south-westerm part of the UF and the north-western corner of Soumerca.
Vanilla had circled the different islands in the sea between the two continents- part of the Caerulea Ocean. These specific islands were placed between the mainland and the archipelago state belonging to the UF, but a lot of the islands sat on the border of the North and South halves of the Caerulea Ocean.
"This is our best bet." He said. "We have to head there."
"I can get the Cyclone up and gassed by tomorrow, Sonic."
"...Let's go the day after, Tails. Just so it's not too immediate."
"Well, regardless of when you go… I wish you luck, Sonny." Vanilla said. "I hope you can come back home with exactly what you were looking for."
"I hope so too. Thank you, Vanilla… for everything."
Sonic stood up, and Vanilla did too. They hugged one another. Though Tails and Cream looked on happily, Amy watched neutrally, clearly thinking to herself.
"There we go."
With a grunt and a toss, Knuckles threw a giant boulder off the runway at the side of Tails' workshop at the Mystic Ruins. Tails hadn't used it since the end of last summer, especially since he had to hide the Cyclone away during their "running from GUN" era. When GUN were after them (they've since had their criminal records expunged after literally saving the world. Again.) the agency had made a complete mess of the little plateau and cliff he had the runway on.
The echidna clapped the dirt off his hands as he walked up beside the Cyclone, joining Team Sonic there. He gave a thumbs up to Tails.
"Thanks, Knuckles. We could've had Amy do that, though. You didn't have to come down."
"I wanted to see you guys off before you flew out to meet your family." Knuckles replied. "The ruins and the caverns around Angel Island can wait. Plus, Amy and I are supposed to get coffee after this."
"I'm getting coffee. You're getting that grape tea drink I told you about."
"It's a limited time item!"
"They have it the entirety of spring, Knuckles. They're just saying that to make you buy it more."
With her hammer purse slung across her body, Amy moved on to approach Tails. With this new endeavor taking the boys away, Amy also changed- literally. She wore a new stylish dress she received on Cupid's Day, a red-violet one, high neck with a heart-shaped open back. It was completed with a white belt and a matching headband. Her gloves, rose gold bracelet and boots were still the same.
She reached out and flipped open the collar on Tails' aviator jacket as she stood before him, as one of the flaps was tucked in. Amy smiled, her hands on the fox's shoulders when she was done.
"Stay safe out there, okay?" She said. "I know you're smart and all, but you can never be too safe. I want both of my best friends back when your vacation's over."
"It's alright, Amy! With my trusty backpack," Tails patted the hardshell yellow bag he had on his back. "I'm literally physically unable to die in the event of a plane crash! It wouldn't let me!"
"How… Morbidly reassuring."
Sonic and Knuckles were before one another. As Sonic approached, Knuckles threw a (very very) light punch that landed in the blue hedgehog's palm, continuing their special handshake.
"Try not to get into trouble out there, Sonic. You don't have the brawn to deal with it without me hanging around."
"Awww, that almost sounded like you'll miss me." Sonic slipped his hands into his jacket pockets. "Don't be too sad, Knuckles. When I find these guys, the first stop I'll take is on Angel Island, so me and all my similar siblings can do nothing but hang around you!"
"Ugh. On second thought, maybe do get into trouble."
The blue hedgehog chuckled, turning away to stroll off. In his place was Tails, who handed the echidna a small device that looked like a much, much smaller smartphone.
"I made this so you can keep in contact with Amy." He said to Knuckles. "In case she needs your help. Or vice versa. Or maybe if you get lonely and the other guardians get on your nerves."
Knuckles took the small device and slipped it into his jacket's inner pocket. He put his hand between Tails' ears, ruffling his head fur with a smile.
"Thanks, little buddy." He said. "I mean, I probably won't use it, but I appreciate it."
Tails punched Knuckles in the side, a hit that was certainly playful- though even with the full strength of a thirteen-year-old, Knuckles would barely be fazed. Knuckles smiled wider at the hit, shoving Tails gently towards the plane to make him get a move on with an amused "get outta here!"
Nearby, Sonic walked up to stand next to Amy. She was standing parallel to the Cyclone, staring out to the runway and the ocean's horizon that was beyond it. Sonic looked at the edge of the sea with her for a few silent seconds, before slightly turning his head to look at her. Sensing him, Amy turned her head to look back at him.
Sonic's expression told her that he knew something was up. He always knew with Amy. It always felt like she could never get anything past him, when he was so oblivious to anybody else- outside their friend circle, at least. Though she still had a few secrets kept to herself that Sonic didn't know.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Sonic."
"No, you're not." He replied. Ever the stoker. "You've been acting weird ever since I started working on finding my uncle and siblings. What's going on?"
"It's nothing. You should focus on finding your family, not what I'm feeling. It's inconsequential."
Amy had looked away from Sonic for a moment to speak, but when she finally looked back, Sonic was still staring at her. His eyebrows were furrowed a bit, a frown on his face, both indicative of worry. It was clear he was going to say something, but knowing Amy, maybe it was best not to prod.
Instead, the pink hedgehog surprised him by speaking anyway, preluded with a deep sigh.
"I can't… see anything. About you."
"What?"
"My visions." Amy replied, turning her body to face him. Sonic turned to match. "I've touched you, Tails, the Cyclone… even Vanilla, her notebook. My psychometry usually kicks in the second I touch… anything, without my gloves on. But I'm seeing nothing."
"Why's that a problem? I thought that got on your nerves."
"Yeah, but…" Amy shook her head, huffing a bit. "I don't know what's going to happen. When Chaos was coming, I was terrified that he would hurt you, but I still had that solace in knowing what the future held. My powers helped me understand Shadow and his motives during the Black Arms Invasion, too, but… for the first time since I took off my gloves, I don't know what's going to happen next. I haven't had dreams since you found that file. Something's wrong."
"Do you think it has to do with my family? Directly?"
"It could. It could mean a bunch of stuff. The point is, I don't know. I can't help you."
"...I don't have those powers."
"I know, Sonic. You're the fastest thing alive."
"No, I mean like… I've never had those powers. I still don't." Sonic continued. "Everything I've done for the last… jeez, nearly five years… even before then, it was all on instinct. I threw myself towards everything and came up with a solution later."
"I know, I know, and it's something… something I really like about you. You're improbability incarnate." Amy replied. "But I'm the psychic. I'm the one who pulls a tarot card, rubs a crystal ball, reads a palm, and gets you the answer you need. This is the most important thing that could happen to you right now, and… I don't know what's going to happen next. I don't know if you'll end up happy."
Amy's hands were tightly gripping her hammer purse's strap, the hedgehog looking down at the ground with knitted eyebrows. Carefully, Sonic's hand reached out and rested on top of one of Amy's clenched fists, bringing her attention back to him.
His eyebrows weren't furrowed anymore, raised slightly, a soft smile on his face. Amy's tenseness faded away, her shoulders slowly lowering.
"You can't dwell on that, Aims." He said. "It's taken me a while to fully realize it, but… if you keep living in the past, and even in the future, you'll never get to live for now. You don't know what's gonna happen in the future, sure, but that's all the more reason to live in the moment. I never know what I'm gonna throw myself at next. So I always make sure to do it at full speed, so it'll be worth it. At least that's what I figure."
Hearing his words, Amy eventually fully eased up, a small smile coming to her face.
"...so since you don't get any visions when people touch your quills anymore," Sonic said. "Does that mean I can get a hug?"
The question was barely finished before Amy lunged in and hugged Sonic. The blue hedgehog hugged back, squeezing her- though not as tightly as Amy was squeezing him with how strong she was. Regardless of the squeeze, the hug was comforting between the strange pair; the guy who lives in the moment and the girl who gazes through time.
"Stay safe out there, Sonny."
"Sure thing, Amelia."
Amy rolled her eyes and snorted as they parted. Tails, already in the Cyclone, was starting it up. Knuckles was standing to the side, his arms crossed as he watched Tails and his plane. Sonic walked ahead, followed by Amy, though she stayed with Knuckles while the blue hedgehog boarded the plane.
While still on the side, Sonic gave one last glance to Knuckles, giving him a two fingered salute. The echidna returned it with a tip of his hat, smiling a bit.
Sonic hopped into the seat right behind Tails', slipping on the headphones used to talk while they were in the air. Tails had on his headphones too, his orange lensed goggles slipped down over his eyes for the flight ahead. Sonic pulled on some clear goggles too in order to keep his eyes safe while they took off.
Soon, the Cyclone lurched forwards. Still solar powered, the plane's thrusters under the wings eased on, growing stronger to make the plane move down the runway.
Knuckles and Amy watched as the Cyclone picked up speed. Eventually, when it reached the end, the mega thruster under the body of the plane turned on, increasing the speed once they hit the airborne velocity. The blue plane raised up into the sky, though Tails had to turn it around in the air to head in the correct direction of the first island.
The wind from the plane made Knuckles and Amy's quills flutter. They watched the Cyclone fly overhead, the fox in the cockpit making it do a barrel roll as they passed, enough for the split group to get one last glance at each other before Tails directed the plane to disappear over the trees of the Mystic Ruins.
Slowly, the sound of the Cyclone's engines died down as the plane left the area. Amy and Knuckles looked at the spot the plane was just in above the foliage, staying still for a moment to make sure they were really, really gone.
"You wanna bring those drinks back here and mess with the inventions Tails left behind?" Knuckles broke the silence, turning his head to look at Amy.
It took her a second to comprehend what was said, but Amy soon replied: "Yeah."
They walked together to climb into Amy's car, the Breeze, and execute their mischievous plans for the day.
The southern Caerulea Ocean was truly beautiful. Sonic would like it more if he wasn't absolutely terrified of possibly falling in. It helped that he was listening to a guided meditation tape, and knew that Tails was a competent enough pilot that Sonic wouldn't touch the water at all.
By thinking that the water wasn't "real" water and was actually some kind of CGI from a film such as the thrilling Chao In Space, Sonic was able to look at it for a few minutes before feeling his lunch in his throat.
Since Station Square was in the southwest of the UF, it would be a few hours shy of a half day until they got to their destination. Most of that time was spent, by Sonic, intently and closely watching movies on his phone or listening to said meditation.
He and Tails had been relatively quiet on the flight over. Tails didn't need to change course much, so it wasn't like he had to focus on the skies too much. It was also supposed to be mostly clear all day around that area.
Maybe they just had a lot on their mind, or at least one thought the other did. It made a lot of sense if they did- this was a monumental moment in their lives. Meeting family that have both been alive and somehow hidden for over two decades isn't something you can search online forums for advice on how to deal with. Right now, the two brothers only really had one another.
"Sonic?"
The first clear words spoken in a while made Sonic's eyebrows go up. He turned off the meditation tape he had on, focusing on the fox in the front.
"What's up, Tails?"
"We're almost to Christmas Island." He replied. "Vanilla said she mainly stayed on there, though there are other islands around it on her map. She never said if they traveled to the other islands."
"Ugh, thank god. If I have to sit still another hour, I'm gonna start running in place."
"Please don't. You'll end up crashing the entire plane, and I don't have the strength to fly you over to the island with my tails."
Sonic chuckled a bit, sitting up straighter in his seat. He suppressed a shiver down his spine as he looked out past Tails and towards their destination. They parted the thin clouds, coming into the clear air above the sea.
Christmas Island sure wasn't winter themed, which Sonic was disappointed by. It was totally green, covered in a lush forest with thin shores outlining its shape. The brush of the trees hid anything that could be inside.
An area of the island with no trees, a small field, was the perfect area for Tails to land. As he landed the Cyclone, he kicked up the floaty seeds of dandelions, creating a cool bit of confetti for their first stop on their journey.
Sonic was out first. He grunted, stretching his legs. Tails had to properly shut down the Cyclone, but he soon joined the hedgehog, pulling his aviator goggles onto his head to see better.
"Feeling better?"
"As long as I don't face the ocean, I should be alright." Sonic said, lunging. "Where do you think we should head first?"
"Let's see…"
Tails reached into his backpack, pulling out Vanilla's notebook and flipping through it. Though it had the map of the location, it didn't really have a clear map of the entire island, so he had to go off on what Vanilla commented about the community.
"…it says they're around trees. Vanilla worries about the wildlife in the area. Maybe they're deep in the forest?"
"Sounds like a good place to start! Let's get moving, before I literally die."
Leaving the Cyclone behind (who would be able to steal it around here?) they began to walk further inland, towards the trees. They followed a dirt path made on the island, passing by a small pile of rocks as they began to pass into the shade of the woods.
"You sure you don't want to run in after sitting for nine hours?"
"I'd love to, but where's the sense of mystery in that?" Sonic said to Tails. "I can always take a few laps around the island when we're done finding out where these guys went to."
"If you're sure, Sonic."
The blue hedgehog eyed another pile of rocks they passed on the trail they trekked on, though didn't make a comment on it. Light peppered the grass and dirt ahead of them, shining in through the gaps in the leaves.
As they traveled further and further in, they started seeing more and more peculiar things. Because the trees blocked a lot of wind travel into the island, that meant that some things in the dirt were still present- like footprints. The prints didn't match any shoe that Sonic knew about, so these must've been makeshift.
The hectic footprints textured the path, creating an erratic and messy pattern, with some footsteps facing to and away from where Sonic and Tails came from. It all came back to one area though- the middle of the island.
Sonic and Tails eventually came across the point of interest they were looking for. The path opened up into a circle, revealing a big circular area still covered in foliage. Half a dozen makeshift shelters were arranged in a semicircle in front of them, with a long forgotten fire pit placed right in the center of the dirt shape.
"Well what do we have here?" Sonic walked slowly into the circle, hands in his jacket pockets. He looked at another pile of rocks at the edge of the living area, but kept moving in closer.
"Do you think anyone's still here?"
"I don't think so, little bro. I'm not getting a vibe."
"What are you, Amy?"
"I mean like…" Sonic made a face to Tails. "You know. Like, look at the fire pit. It's all ash, no coal. It's been a while since a fire's been made here."
"Good point. Wanna take a look around?"
"Way ahead of you."
Splitting to either end of the shelters, Sonic and Tails opened up the shelters to get a peek inside.
There was very little left inside, but was left was a mess. Knocked down tables and chairs, a few scattered pieces of makeshift tools and some clothes, and bed frames left completely bare- though some toppled over.
One could tell they were in the same spot for a long time by both the amount of spider webs and the thick layers of dust all around. Whoever left this behind wasn't thinking about keeping things tidy when they were making their exit.
It was the same for all of the tents. By the time Sonic and Tails met in front of one of the tents, they had both come to similar conclusions.
"It's so weird." Tails said. "Whoever left this place was in a hurry. Did you see those footsteps when we were walking into the area too?"
"I was going to bring that up." Sonic replied, nodding. "The Mobians here clearly rushed out, but there's no indication why. I mean, look at this…"
Sonic pulled open the hanging leaves that blocked the entrance to the tent they were in front of, showing the inside. The bed frame was still in, with the mattress, pillows and blankets neatly placed on it.
"This guy just left his bed intact. They were out quick."
Tails leaned over to look inside and see what Sonic was talking about. As he did, he scanned over the bed, spotting something sticking out from underneath the bed's pillow.
"Sonic, look! There's a note under the pillow!"
The blue hedgehog's eyebrows raised. He zipped in, stopping next to the bed and pulling the letter from underneath. He saw something on the back of the paper, but was mainly focused on the cursive writing in the front.
"What's it say, Sonic?" Tails asked, walking up beside him.
Sonic cleared his throat. "Hey, you. If you're reading this, then I'm glad I left this behind. I'm sorry this area is so messed up, we had to leave after getting a lead on where the others like us could be. We were worried about being followed anyways, which is why we were in such a rush to get out. If you want to find us again, and I hope you do, head west. We're on the island a few miles that direction, we call it Westside Island. I hope you also know that I'm sorry about what happened between us. I hope to apologize to you in person. OXO, your Beau."
The hedgehog scanned over the message again, and quickly flipped to the back for a second to see if there was anything else there.
"And then there's a stain on the back." He said. "I can't ever see the words 'hey you' without thinking about that show with the serial killer."
"I doubt they had streaming services here to make sure it didn't come off strange, Sonic."
"I know, but still. Plus, who says 'OXO' and not 'XOX'? That's weird." Sonic looked over the letter again. "I guess they skedaddled over to another island though. If they were so worried about being followed by someone, why leave the note?"
"Someone was holding out hope, I suppose."
Tails had his Miles Thunderbolt out and unfolded, looking at the map he had up on his extended screen. He zoomed in to show Sonic the area around the island.
"Here." He pointed at another, smaller island west. "That must be what he's talking about. Westside Island."
"Aw man, more flying?"
"Might as well get your running in now, Sonic. If we meet anyone we know, we'll be standing still for a while."
Tails took the note from the hedgehog before he disappeared in a streak of blue out of the area. The fox left the tent, staring down at the letter as he returned to the plane, truly the last visitor of that area… ever.
Westside Island looked weird.
The first thing that Sonic noticed when he hopped off the Cyclone was that the grass was strange under his feet. He wasn't sure how it happened, but the grass was striped. The pattern alternated from dark green to bright green. It reminded Sonic of a football field.
They had seen, while flying above it, that the island was connected to a second island by a bridge. This side was the only one that had a clear spot to land, so they'd have to check on that side later on. If that side wasn't also Westside Island, that is.
"Interesting." Tails said, looking at his tablet while they walked further inland.
"What is?"
"This island. It's giving off an energy signature that the Miles Thunderbolt can't recognize." The fox showed Sonic his screen. "It's really small, and the radiation isn't affecting us… yet. But it's like this island is saturated with energy somehow."
"Huh. That's weird. Any hypo… You know the word."
"Hypothesis; the only thing I can think of is that something was here for a really long time, something that gave off enough weird energy that the island soaked it up like a sponge."
"Maybe that explains the grass. The rocks, too."
"Rocks?"
Sonic put his hand on Tails' shoulder to stop him, the teenager having been distracted by his readings. The hedgehog pointed to something of interest in front of them- a boulder placed on the edge of a path leading into a thin tree forest with tall grass. The boulder itself had a brown and tan checkered pattern on it.
Written with presumably black paint on the side facing the duo was "EMERALD HILL AHEAD" with an arrow pointing into the forest.
"I don't think the writing is natural."
"I figured that much!" Sonic snorted. "I meant how it looks like a checkerboard."
"True. That is interesting. I wonder what kind of conditions would make it look like that."
"I'm just glad that the sign was written in plain English. Good to know Mobians disconnected from the human world can write this well."
"Guess that just means they weren't as disconnected as we thought."
They walked past the boulder, heading into the path going inland. It was less noticeable than the last path on Christmas Island, but the trees were thin, so they could just follow the light and get to the shore if they got lost.
Tails kept looking over the readings on his tablet as they walked, trying to figure out what they were. These readings weren't anything he'd ever seen before. They were similar to the energy signature of the Chaos Emeralds, but only on a wavelength level. That clued the fox in that this radiation was possibly otherworldly.
Once again, Sonic put his hand on Tails' shoulder to stop him in his tracks at some point. The teenager looked up from the Miles Thunderbolt, following Sonic's pointing hand to what was ahead of them: foxes.
It was a pair of foxes, both of them looking at Sonic and Tails with big bright blue eyes. They were a deep mustard brown color. After a few seconds of a stare-down, the foxes scurried away into the woods as fast as they could.
Tails turned his head to watch them disappear between the trees, eyebrows raised in interest. He folded the tablet to close it, returning it to his backpack.
"Huh. I've never seen foxes in the wild before."
"Not even in the Mystic Ruins?"
"No. It's weird actually seeing them."
"Maybe Dr. Robotnik got the foxes that were your parents from Westside Island."
"Heh, maybe. If he didn't delete that file on me, I'd know for sure."
They continued to walk. Even though Sonic was the one who brought it up originally, Sonic felt a sudden pain in his chest when Julian was brought up. Bad memories, and relating those memories to what's happening right then.
He crossed his arms over his stomach, a frown now on his face as they walked. It didn't take Tails long to notice, looking at Sonic as they reached an incline to start going uphill. It was called Emerald Hill after all.
"You alright?"
"Yeah. It's just… I wish my mom could be here." Sonic rubbed his arms. "She should be here. It's not fair that she died before knowing her kids and Uncle Chuck were alive."
"I feel the same way."
"Ugh, and he knew! Julian knew they were alive, and didn't even say anything!"
"If he did, he would've just held it over Aleena's head. It would've just been another thing used to hurt her- that's all Julian does, hurt people."
Sonic sighed. "It doesn't make it right."
"I know, Sonic. I'm sorry." Tails put his hand on Sonic's back as they walked. "But I know that your mom would've wanted you to meet them. It must be a little comforting knowing that even though she's gone, you're doing something she wished for."
"…maybe a bit. But it should've been her fulfilling it." He sighed again. "I"m sorry, I don't mean to be putting all this on you. This is supposed to be a vacation."
"It's not a vacation if you don't feel that well. It's better to work through emotions and feel them than just let them stew under the surface. You're the guy who taught me that."
"Yeah, well… Yeah."
The blue hedgehog left it at that. Honestly, he had been running on a "do as I say, not as I do" scenario for the last few years. He wanted Tails, Amy, Knuckles, all of his friends to not feel overwhelmed about what's been going on around Station Square and the world. But for Sonic, that usually meant carrying that himself.
He wanted to be better, especially for Tails. It was just so hard to get over the hurtle of what happened to his mother. It was still fresh- barely five years had passed since she died at this point- at least to him it was fresh. The regrets were fresh.
He didn't even cry when his mother died, either. At least, not in a full sobbing kind of way. Did that have something to do with it?
Sonic recalled what that vision of Aleena- or what he still hoped was Aleena- said to him after Chaos beat the brakes off of him. He wasn't strong like her, he was stronger. But was he really?
The path soon led to another camping site. It was just like the last one, with a significant difference: the shelters set up in a semi-circle had only four now, instead of six. The fire pit was still full of ash. These little huts were made of sticks this time, since all the foliage was super out of reach up above.
Tails patted Sonic's arm, then pointed to one of the nearby shelters. Sticking on one of the twigs that made up the hut was another piece of parchment, a corner tying it down with some twine.
In a blue streak, Sonic zipped to the hut, gently pulling the paper and twine off of the twig. He undid the string and opened the letter by the time Tails came up beside him to look at the note as well.
"Hey you," Sonic read it. "I had been hoping you'd come back around in the time we lived on Westside, but it seems that didn't come true. But I reckon if you're reading this, you came back around anyway, and I'm happy. Doctor Ellidy said I was crazy for making these notes but I still believe I'll see you again. Him and the others never really accepted you here. Except for Albon and Ian Jr., maybe. But I want to make things right, the things I did to you. You've taught me so much in your time with our group, but it took you (rightfully) leaving me to help me learn how much my pain was hurting you too. I hope to see you again, sugar cream, instead of just seeing you in my dreams. We're moving over to the other island nearby, Cocoa Island. I hope I'll see you then. OXO, your Beau."
The hedgehog flipped it back over. This one had another stain on the back of it.
"It feels weird reading these when it's meant for someone else."
"Whoever is supposed to read these obviously doesn't want to seek this Beau out." Tails replied. "At least we know the next stop those Mobians went on. Maybe we're getting closer to where Chuck ended up."
"I sure hope so." Sonic folded up the paper and handed it to Tails. "This island connects to the next with a bridge, right? We just gotta find that out and cross it."
"Right! I just wonder where to start. I'm sure you don't want to sit in the Cyclone again. Do you want to just run around this part of the island to find the bridge?"
"Don't need to. Look, rocks."
Nearby, behind the tents in the fire circle, was another pile of rocks like the ones on Christmas Island. They were checkered like the others, but stacked from big to small rocks like a form of pyramid.
"Rocks?"
"They're markers. C'mon, don't tell me you didn't figure it out." Sonic chuckled a bit. "I saw them along the path on Christmas Island. If it isn't a random art project, I think it's making out a path for the Mobians to follow."
"Guess I just wasn't paying much attention." Tails scratched his head. "I wonder why they migrated."
"Maybe it's on the next letter? I'm assuming that there will either be Mobians or another note in the other section. What was it called, Cocoa Island?"
"It is! It's a cool name for an island. I'd like to live somewhere named like that."
"In the middle of nowhere? With no technology or wireless internet for miles?"
"…nevermind. I like Station Square."
Sonic snorted and laughed, the pair walking away from the shelter circle.
They followed the rocks back downhill, leaving Emerald Hill. The piles were a bit shorter, but they made a pretty cohesive path down the grassy incline.
Sonic decided not to think about Aleena right now. He'd have to think of her later, especially when Chuck and his siblings asked him where she was, but right now he had to actually find out where they were.
The downhill path ended early, creating a plateau that extended out for a short walk, a few trees peppering this area but mainly staying clear. The cliff created from the area dropped down to a rocky valley between islands, with coves on either side coming in from the ocean.
They could see the rivaling cliff of Cocoa Island a few football fields away from them. Between was the bridge they had seen from above. It was made of wooden planks, suspended with ropes and with ropes acting as handlebars. From how the wood looks, this has been here for a while.
"Wow. This looks impressive." Sonic said, leaning to the side to look over the bridge a bit. "Wonder how they made this. Maybe they had a flying member of their group string the rope over to the other cliff."
"Could be. Maybe they created pressure launchers that shot roped stakes into the other end and worked from there."
"That sounds cooler, I'm going to believe that one."
Tailed used the Miles Thunderbolt, scanning over the bridge.
"The wood's kinda weak." He said. "We're gonna have to be careful going over this bridge so the planks don't break."
Sonic's eyebrows furrowed, his arms crossing again. He tapped his foot as he listened to Tails speak.
"We can do a system to make sure neither of us put too much pressure on certain parts of the rope and wood at the same time. We'll stay two- no, three planks apart. We'll count up from one. Go 'one chilidog, two chilidog' and so on. We'll take one step at a time in unison, traveling over the bridge and getting there in a slow and steady—"
Suddenly, Tails was over the bridge. Before he could finish his statement, Sonic picked up the fox and ran over the wooden bridge at supersonic speed. Tails was positioned long enough to see the bridge swing slightly. One of the planks broke off of the rope and fell down onto the rocks below, but the entire thing still held together.
Tails blinked a few times, feeling the rush come over him.
"Sonic!"
"Sorry, I heard the word 'slow' and blacked out. We're here though! Let's head in!"
The blue hedgehog walked away, patting another stack of rocks as he did. Tails quickly followed, a bit perturbed his plan was interrupted but happy they were over the bridge. Tails wasn't looking forward to walking over that bridge anyway, and he didn't have the energy to fly Sonic over.
Still marked with stones, they followed the path into Cocoa Island. The trees were pretty thick here, so walking further inland made the world a bit dimmer around them, but they could still see the rocks along the way.
Walking further in, they stopped for a moment when the came across something interesting: a contraption made of wood, larger than the Cyclone was. It had two legs, and looked like it used some pulley contraptions for it. As they walked past it in amazement, they saw two wooden tube objects like cannons on the front.
Tails smiled, patting one of the cannons.
"Pressure cannons." He said, looking at Sonic. "They did launch stakes over the ravine. That's how they got over here. I'm guessing this bigger thing lays the planks across the ropes. It's an automatic bridge-making machine!"
"That's so cool. They made it without any of the technology from the cities too. These Mobians must be really smart. Not as smart as you, though."
"Yeah… right."
They walked past the contraption, leaving it there. The rock piles continued to lead the pair through the woods.
"Do you think either of your siblings are really smart?"
"I sure hope so." The hedgehog replied. "Otherwise all three of the triplets got the dumb gene."
"C'mon, be serious." Tails shoved him a bit. "Maybe one of them is a genius like I am."
"I don't think there's anyone on the planet as smart as you are, little bro."
"That's what I'm worried about."
"What, is it lonely at the top for you?"
"No, it's not that. I just… don't want to seem weird to them. Them or your Uncle Chuck." He shrugged. "I knew Aleena, and she was like a mom to me, but… they don't know me. To them, I'm just a random kid who you decided was family."
"They won't treat you different, dude. They won't treat you different because I won't let them." Sonic replied. "You're as much a brother to me as my biological brother is. My mom loved you to death, too. I'm sure she would've adopted you too if she wasn't so busy running the old compound."
"You really think so?"
"Of course, buddy. From everything we've heard about Chuck from Vanilla, he's apparently a lot like Aleena. And if she had the taste to want you as a son, I'm sure he'll be happy to have you as a nephew. Especially if none of the triplets are smart! Then that'll be a bonus!"
Tails chuckled, leaning on the grinning Sonic. Of all the things he was worried about when it came to his newly found family, he had hope that they would like Tails. Like Sonic said, he wouldn't let Tails get treated differently, even if he was happy to see them.
It wasn't too long of a walk until they reached the shelter site. The four shelters were apart from each other now, facing each other in a kind of "X" formation, with the abandoned fire pit right in the middle.
Sonic and Tails paused. The former turned to the latter.
"Can I look for the letter super fast?"
"Yeah, knock yourself out!"
The blue hedgehog rushed between the four shelters, looking for both the letter and anything else of interest. He eventually came to a stop on the other side of Tails than when he began, presenting the folded letter to him.
"Did you time that?"
"No… Wait, was I supposed to?"
"Tails, how am I ever going to get the record for fastest one item scavenger hunt without proof?"
"You're a hedgehog famous for going faster than the speed of sound. I think they'll believe you if you told them, Sonic."
"Yeah, yeah. You read it this time, buddy."
Tails unfolded the letter and cleared his throat.
"Hey you. I'm sorry we moved again. We migrated to this spot because Winniham said the foxes were stealing our supplies, and to prove it wasn't anyone else we decided to travel across the way. Maybe it doesn't make a lick of sense, but I like it over on Cocoa Island anyways. Sitting on the side of the hill here and looking up reminds me of when we used to stargaze together. Those stars were never as beautiful as your eyes were though, sugar cream. I'd do anything to see them again. Your beauty haunts me when I sleep. Every day I regret what I said to you. I knew you were already shunned by the others, and I didn't make it better with what I said that night. To you, I turned my back to you too. I don't blame you for leaving, but I hope I can see you again. If you're reading this note- I hope you are- we moved southeast. We're close to finding where those old anthropomorphic animals were. That's our current lead. We're calling it Bygone Island- you can't miss it. I hope to see you soon. OXO, your Beau."
Tails looked on the back, looking at the stains there. His eyebrows furrowed.
"This guy's really pouring his heart and soul into these letters. And from the looks of the back, he's pouring his coffee onto it too."
"Wait, Sonic, look at this."
Tails reached into his backpack, pulling out the second letter. He held up both letters, flipped over, showing Sonic the shapes made on the back.
"These stains aren't stains. They're the shapes of the islands." Tails said. "The shapes match almost perfectly. The stain on the second one is half of the stain on this new one. If we held it up with the first one, it would complete the picture. It's making the shape of each of the islands: Christmas, Westside and Cocoa."
"So he's making an incomplete map or something? Why?"
"I'm not sure. But I'll bet there's a fourth letter at that Bygone Island that'll give us another clue." Tails folded up the letters and stuck it into his jacket, intent on keeping it for later. "Let's get over there. We're getting close, I just know it."
"Alright then! Let's walk on back!"
Sonic took a few steps, but looked back as Tails didn't move.
"Tails?"
"…I don't really want to walk all the way back. Could you… run us back to the Cyclone? Like you did over the bridge?"
A wide grin came across Sonic's face. In a long ray of blue, the hedgehog picked up Tails and ran from the area, clear back across the island.
WELCOME TO BYGONE ISLAND. POPULATION: 4
Everything was marked and neatly made up on this island. Sonic could only assume that the people who came to this island actually tried to make it look welcoming. They parked the Cyclone in front of the sign out of interest of what it was, so it looked like the sign worked to attract someone in. He wondered why the 5 was scratched out, but he decided that was best to be left unsolved.
The path was lined with stones, pressed into the ground to outline where they should walk. Sonic and Tails didn't wait for another cue to go in, instead walking together down the path.
Honestly, Sonic had to admit, he did like walking instead of rushing through it. Once again, it kept the mystery alive. Plus, he got to spend time with Tails! He loved that little guy.
"The energy signature I was getting from Westside is stronger here. It's off the charts!" Tails was looking at his tablet. "I don't think the radiation would affect us, but I can't be sure. I still have no clue what this kind of energy is."
"If the Mobians from before lived here for an extended period of time without too much trouble, I think we can survive being here for a few minutes. I mean, we're just looking for that last letter here, right?"
"Right! Shouldn't take long. I'm sure we'll find it easily."
They did not find it easily.
The camp that the path led to was demolished. It was like a tornado flew through the area, with the shelters that were created turned to nothing but sticks and leaves. The fire pit was overflowing with ash this time, maybe from parts of the shelters thrown into it.
There seemed to be a few of the rock pile markers nearby, but they were toppled over. From how far the rocks went, it was clearly an intentional thing. A few books that were apparently a part of this camp were torn apart and strewn everywhere.
Sonic and Tails trailed through the wreckage, looking at the destruction before them.
"What happened here?" Tails asked.
"I dunno. But it clearly wasn't anything good."
Continuing to walk through the destroyed shelters, they looked it over in order to find out where the other letter was located.
"You can see the outlines of where the shelters were supposed to go." Tails commented as he shifted through sticks. "They're really used to making these."
"And they tore them all down. Do you think they moved to somewhere else?"
"I don't see any of those rock markers around, and this is the last recorded island in this area. This might be a dead end."
"It can't be. It can't."
Sonic continued to look, a little quicker through the wreckage. Before Tails' very eyes, the hedgehog started moving at superspeeds, stacking and connecting the sticks to make the makeshift huts in their respective areas as best as he could.
Tails felt the wind rush around him, suddenly finding himself in the middle of one of the huts. He looked up and around, watching Sonic construct the other three shelters in no time flat. His desire for answers fueled him, turning him into a one-man construction crew.
"Holy crap." The fox mumbled. He wasn't amazed at the speed, but the willingness of Sonic to find answers so quickly.
He even constructed the cots and a few pieces of random furniture. There was no way to know for sure what was where, so it was obvious that Sonic just constructed anything he could think was there.
Sonic was across the way, standing alone in his hut as well, looking around.
"There's gotta be someplace that Beau guy hid that letter. It can't go all cold here."
Tails nodded. He moved away to look over the surface of the shelter, trying to think of a place somewhere close by that the next letter could be stuffed into.
Then, he tripped on a rock.
It was a large rock- Tails would've seen it before, but it was under rubble. It had a big, noticeable edge jutting up and out, which is what caught the fox's blue sneaker. Before Tails could faceplant into the dirt, Sonic zipped over, catching him and getting him to his feet.
"Ugh. Thanks."
"No prob."
"…why didn't you move that rock out of the way?"
"Hey, it was heavy. What do I look like, Amy? Why, what's the issue?"
"Well it seems really counterintuitive that someone would make a shelter around a rock that is a serious tripping hazard. This shelter is a huff and a puff away from possibly being knocked over, why risk someone crashing into a wall or something?"
"Fair point. Should we try to get it up?"
"Allow me. This is the perfect time for a field test!"
Having worked on his magic hand contraption since the Black Arms Invasion, Tails altered it enough to now handle moderate-to-heavy objects without breaking. He pressed a button on his pack strap, the robotic hand extending upwards from under the pack and curving down to the rock, twisting over to put its "fingers" under the edge of the rock.
It lifted up slowly. The rock had been there for a while, so the reason it was heavy was that dirt and grass had grown over the edges. It was pulled up and over, flipped on its top before the magic hand returned to Tails' backpack.
Under the rock was a hole. Sonic and Tails squat down on either side of the rock.
"Someone must've chiseled out the bottom of the rock."
"And it must be because…"
The anticipation created by Sonic's statement was seen through by him pressing his pinky into the hole, slipping out a rolled up piece of paper. He opened it up, showing Tails the fourth letter left by this Beau person.
"Alright!"
"What's it say, Sonic?"
The hedgehog cleared his throat.
"Hey you. This might be the last letter you get from me. Short answer as to why: we found them. We found the old animals. But even though we got the answers we wanted, this victory is still bittersweet. Ellidy's daughter passed away a few months ago. We'd been here the longest we'd ever been- five years. She was barely in her mid twenties when she passed on, and it was from something she caught from one of these many caves on this island. We buried her at the northern edge of the island if you want to pay respects. The group hasn't really talked to each other since that happened, and finally finding out where the other anthopomorphs are hiding out really set Ellidy off. I had to hide this letter in a little hide-away space you taught me how to make to make sure he didn't destroy this. It's unfair, and I agree with him on that front. Maybe we'll feel better when we find these guys. I can't write much here, and I'm crap at coordinates, but I put in a special way to find the island if you want to come. I'm sure you already figured it out, and I went back and messed with the old letters to make the golden puzzle work. I love you, sugar cream. I hope I see you soon. OXO, your Beau."
"…man, that one's a bit depressing."
"Yeah. But this is the key we're looking for! It's how we find where the other Mobians are! Somehow. Maybe because of the back?"
He flipped over the paper, showing Tails the stain placed on the back- they took some time before to look over the area, so they knew this stain was most definitely shaped like Bygone Island.
Tails took out the other three letters, stacking them on top of each other. Sonic held it up to the light. It was a bit hard to see because of the letters on the front, but the stains did make out the four islands they had visited for the last few hours.
"…this is supposed to be the puzzle for this person Beau left it for?"
"Cut this person some slack, Sonic, they'd obviously be smart enough to figure it out."
"Can you?"
"Give me a second, I'm thinking."
The fox rubbed his chin. Sonic brought the papers in closer, letting Tails look it over. Unfolding the Miles Thunderbolt, Tails held it under the papers to provide light to shine through it.
"It honestly puts into perspective how close together the islands really are."
"Yeah… is there another island we're missing here? The islands almost make a kind of diamond shape."
"We didn't see anything in that direction though. I don't think underwater islands exist. Not in this zone, at least."
Tails kept staring at it, almost hoping that the answer would appear to him.
"Were there any hints in the messages?"
"No, it was just Beau talking about how much he hurt the person meant to read these letters. Then the weird way he said 'XOX' at the end."
"Well it does rhyme. That's probably why he did it in that order."
"Still. It doesn't do much to help us out with this golden puzzle."
"…wait, say that again."
"Golden puzzle. That's what he called it on the last letter. Should've been called the bronze puzzle with how annoying this is…"
"Golden."
Tails pressed his finger onto Christmas Island. Then, he trailed it over Westside Island, then Cocoa Island, and finally Bygone Island. But he continued and made a big curve around the paper.
"Hold the papers for a second."
Taking away the Miles Thunderbolt, Tails went onto the Internet (at least his backpack acted as a mobile hotspot) and pulled up an image. He returned the papers to the top of the screen again, letting the shape shine through dimly.
The shape, a massive spiral, cut through the islands and went out into the ocean around it perfectly.
"That's it! That's what he was saying! It's a golden spiral!"
"A what?"
"A perfectly shaped spiral, one that has the Fibonacci numbers in it. It's a geometrical sequence from ancient mathematics."
"Oh yeah, I think I heard of those numbers before. They were in that Spagonian Code movie, or whatever it was called. About that one artist."
"Ugh, I hated that movie. But Knuckles loved it, weirdly enough."
Tails traced around the shape again, cutting through the islands. As he followed the line over the islands and into the ocean above it, he finally reached a spot towards the edge of the overturned paper.
The line went through numerous words and letters in the note, but at the bottom of every letter was something put in the exact same place on every paper- the OXO. And it just so happened that the golden spiral's line passed right through all four of the 'X' in each of the letters.
"So he wasn't just doing the XO thing weirdly! He was telling us X marks the spot!"
"That area is right southwest of here. I didn't see an island on the GPS, which is totally weird. It's like an island that doesn't exist… they must've hidden it somehow. C'mon, let's get on the Cyclone and get to that island!"
Folding the tablet again, and stuffing the letters into his backpack, Tails spun his tails to rush out of the area. Sonic ran behind, but slowed down to a stop in the middle of the shelter circle.
There was a sinking feeling. One that hadn't hit him until faced with the realization that he was actually going to meet these people- family members that he thought were dead up until this point. His siblings would be awkward, as it was meeting any family member you haven't seen in a while.
But Chuck would be different. It would be someone who knew his mother personally, and someone would be affected by the news that Aleena had passed. Sonic didn't know how to tell him about that.
As selfish as it was, he was scared that telling them what happened would make his uncle and siblings hate him. He also felt that, maybe, his family would be resentful of him for being alive. Or resentful of Tails for getting Aleena's affection, and Sonic's brotherly title for him.
Part of him felt assured that he would protect Tails from possible rudeness from his family or others, but it would still affect him. It would affect Tails too.
He'd been chasing after these people for months. What if this was all for nothing? What if he was just chasing after a fairy tale?
Tails had noticed Sonic stopped. He hovered back over to his friend, lowering down to his feet.
"Sonic? What's wrong?"
"…I dunno, I'm just…" He said. "I don't know who these people are. They've been totally disconnected from us. They could be totally different. Different than us. What if they don't like me? What if they don't like either of us?"
Sonic had been looking down as he spoke, but his gaze went back up when he felt Tails put his hand on Sonic's shoulder. Though the fox was shorter, he could still reach out to him. Man, the fox was really getting taller. He couldn't do this kind of thing a year ago.
"I know you're scared." The teenager said. "And this situation is scary. Right now there's endless possibilities of what your family could be like. But I'm your family too. I'm here to help you out through what's going on, and you're here for me too. That's what family's for. Team Sonic for life."
"…when did you get all grown up?"
"I have my moments. But I'm here for you, Sonic."
"I know you are. Thanks, little bro."
Slowly, Sonic moved in and hugged Tails tightly.
"Besides, if they're evil, we can just kick their butts."
"Ha!" Sonic guffawed. "Great way to cut the mood, buddy."
"Well we gotta get going sometime! I want to see this island as much as you do!"
"Alright, alright. Let's go!"
Sonic sped away from the shelter circle with a boost, accompanied by Tails flying behind him. The boost was strong enough to knock over the shelters again, returning the area to how the pair had found it not too long before.
"Sonic, put your safety harness on."
"I can't, I'm just too excited!"
"Too excited to be safe?"
"What are you, a sky police officer?"
Sonic could hear Tails scoff on the other end of the comms. In all honesty, Sonic did actually forget to put on the harness. What Tails had said to him really got him going, so he didn't think about putting it on before Tails took off.
They were soaring to the southwest. Tails had decided that they would keep flying until they saw an island. If they traveled close to the Northstar Islands, they'd flown too far.
Though Sonic still felt a small pit in his stomach, he was still excited nonetheless. He did like the idea that anything could happen. Not knowing what happened next was something that Sonic feared, yet simultaneously felt was liberating.
He kept his eyes away from the water, though. He didn't like the endless possibilities involving that.
Behind them, the four islands were becoming bumps in the spanning horizon. They were flying pretty far out, with only water in any direction Sonic looked. Which he did not. It was best that he not look.
Part of him nagged in the back of his head that arriving in a plane on an island that had Mobians that didn't know them was probably a bad idea. They could very easily be seen as threats. But then again, Sonic was the fastest thing alive. He could get him and Tails out of that sticky situation.
They had a good winning streak going on. Nothing could stop them now.
Sonic looked down to pull his phone out, starting to get out that guided meditation track to listen to again. In the time it took for him to take his phone out and unlock it, he suddenly found raindrops hitting them.
He looked up. The sky was dark, almost black. That wasn't the color it was just a second ago. He leaned forwards.
"Uh… Tails? Where did this storm come from?"
"I don't know. I blinked, and it was suddenly here. I wouldn't fly into the center of a storm."
There was a crash of thunder, making Tails jump. He started breathing heavily, gripping the yoke super tightly. Sonic knew the fox was deathly afraid of thunder- and now, they were super up close.
Sonic sneezed. That was never a good sign.
"Can we fly out of this?" Sonic asked.
"I… I can't! The yoke isn't moving!"
"What?!"
There was a loud rumbling from deep below, rattling the bottom of the plane. Suddenly, the Cyclone dipped for a second, jostling the pair around. After a moment, it did it again.
"Tails?!"
"I'm not doing that! Is there something below the plane?!"
Sonic held his breath and his lunch as he decided to do the ultimate solid for his little brother. He turned over the edge of the plane, looking below it. It was all clear below the Cyclone, with nothing anywhere near them.
The rumbling happened again, making Sonic look down. He watched as the water shifted below them, the waves crashing against each other. They slowly made a formation, something circular. The waves began to topple over one another, creating a spiral, and soon a massive whirlpool in the ocean below.
The blue hedgehog slapped a hand over his mouth, but soon lost his lunch over the side of the Cyclone anyway. He quickly returned to his normal upright position. He tried reaching for his safety harness, but the Cyclone dipped again, in time with a strike of lightning near them.
Gravity was shifting. The plane turned downwards and curved, almost matching the direction of the swirling whirlpool. Sonic gripped the sides of the plane's opening, feeling himself lifted up from the sudden downwards direction.
Light flooded the duo's faces. They both looked down into the water. The center of the whirlpool opened up, a beam of pure white light coming up and shining into the clouds directly above.
Sonic's hand covered his mouth again to keep it closed. It came off as the plane dipped down further, heading directly to the vortex in a gravitational pull.
The plane soon pointed further downwards, another move that lifted Sonic from his seat. He flew back, but grabbed onto the last seat in an attempt to stay with the plane. Tails felt the weight shift, turning around to look at Sonic.
"Sonic!" The fox reached out to him.
"Tails!"
Another strike of thunder. The plane jerked again, making Sonic lose his grip and flip through the air. He watched (as best as he could) as the Cyclone crashed into the bright opening of the vortex.
Soon enough, Sonic fell into it as well. He felt gravity change, the atmosphere shift, and whiteness completely obscure his vision. After a second, the intensity of his situation overtook him, and Sonic's vision went from white to black.
Indigo colored water and lavender foam washed over the remains of a ruined plane scattered across the sand at the island's edge. As it did, it lapped over the unconscious body of the person who had just crash landed there not too long before.
Sonic jolted up in a gasp as he woke up, absolutely covered in sand. His head was swimming, his vision having to readjust after what just happened. He panted as he got up to his feet, only getting on his hands and tiptoes before stumbling forwards and falling into the sand again.
His body felt like he'd gone through one of those QuickFit exercises without any warmups. He was absolutely exhausted. He'd only really felt like this back when Chaos beat the living daylights out of him.
He powered through the feeling, grunting and moaning through his teeth as he forced himself to his feet again. Luckily all his clothes were still on- and thank goodness his shoes weren't lost in that crazy storm that just happened.
What island was this? Was this Christmas Island, or Bygone Island, or any of the others?
Sonic looked up into the sky. Instead of something familiar, he was met with a weird sight- the skyscape was totally inverted. Sonic had seen a few pictures online of a planetary nebula, and the sky looked pretty much like that. There was no sun, but light was shining down on the shore that Sonic was standing on.
He felt like he wasn't in his normal zone anymore.
"Tails… Tails… Tails?"
Still out of breath, the hedgehog looked around, looking down the shore from side to side. As he looked to his left, he saw the Cyclone nearby.
The plane was overturned, its right wing tilting up in the air as the Cyclone was mostly upside down. The parts of the broken left wing were scattered along the beach.
Sonic quickly moved forwards, stumbling a bit but pushing through to rush towards the plane. He speed walked around the side, looking at the open cockpit. Tails was under there alright, his head and one of his arms only seen as the cockpit had spilled him out. He was knocked out cold, looking like he was asleep.
Getting down on his hands and knees, Sonic reached in and unbuckled his seat belt, letting Tails flop down onto the sand completely. He grabbed Tails' backpack strap, tugging on him but finding he was still stuck from somewhere towards the front of the plane. He leaned to the side- the teenager's twin tails were stuck under the front.
Standing back up, his hands still on Tails' backpack straps, Sonic pressed his shoulder to try and move the Cyclone just a bit to get those tails free. When that didn't work, Sonic leaned back and kicked forwards, pressing his foot against the spot where the plane met the wing.
Adrenaline coursed through Sonic's body. He let out an extended groan, almost a yell as he gave all his strength into his leg. He was the world's greatest runner, and he was going to prove it with the power in his leg.
Sure enough, he tilted the plane up a few inches. When he did, Sonic threw himself back, yanking Tails out of the cockpit and onto his body, tails and all. The Cyclone creaked and returned to its upturned position, its teenage pilot now gone.
Sonic pat Tails' backpack. It withstood the crash, so Tails did a good job making it.
The blue hedgehog gently pushed Tails off of him, rolling over to crawl to the fox's side. He put his ear on the teenager's chest, listening in and hearing a heart beating inside. Slowly, he got to his feet. Maybe he shouldn't have used adrenaline- his legs felt like jelly now. Nevertheless, Sonic pushed through.
He picked Tails up, carrying him in his arms as he got from under the plane. The coast was lined with a forest- if this island was like any of the other ones, he would find some kind of civilization if he headed in long enough.
Slowly trudging with his brother in his arms, Sonic got away from the water and into the grass, planning on heading into the forest.
As he took a few steps into the grass, he heard a familiar tone. His head whipped to the side, looking at the source. A few feet away, a post with a blue ball at the end spun around, the blue ball turning yellow and pointing upright, indicating that it sensed Sonic nearby.
The hedgehog's eyebrows raised. It was just like the motion sensors from his mom's compound. He stared at it for a moment or two in disbelief.
After that moment, he heard a powerful flapping from above him. He looked upwards, spotting something or someone flying ahead. This person landed on the beach, kicking up some sand around them. This person was robed, and using their arms to fly- a bird, clearly.
They looked over at the crashed plane.
"What the heck happened here?" The voice sounded feminine.
Sonic turned around slowly, opening his mouth to speak but instead coughing as he felt his body's injuries finally catch up to him. At the sound, this person's head turned a full one-eighty degrees, revealing her to be an owl.
This robed owl was taken aback from the sight ahead of her. She rushed forwards with a few flap of her wings, standing in front of Sonic.
"Good Gaia, are you alright? Are you…" She trailed off, her head tilting. "You… You look like…"
"Please. Help him." Sonic said, lifting Tails a bit. "We were looking for this island, and…"
The owl took Tails from him, carrying the fox with ease. Sonic assumed that's what happened when you used your arms to fly at super speeds every day, you got pretty strong. She put her hand on Sonic's arm, letting him lean against her.
"You've just gone through something traumatic. Can you tell me your name? Can you tell me his name?"
"My name… is Sonny. He's Tails. He's Miles."
"Sonny?"
"Huh?"
Though he thought she was calling her name, the owl's face got more shocked and confused.
"You look like… And your name… Why were you looking for this island?"
"I needed to find… My Uncle Chuck."
"Chuck. Like Charles… Oh sweet Gaia. You're… but that's…"
"Please… Please help us, lady."
Sonic put more of his weight against her. The owl wrapped her wing around him. Quickly, Sonic found himself wrapped against the owl in a sash on her body. He didn't see it happen- that was probably because his vision was swimming and time was moving differently.
"My name is Longclaw." She said firmly. "And I promise you, I will get you to Charles."
"Thanks, ladyclaw…"
That was the last thing Sonic remembered saying. Feeling the breeze in his quills as the owl took off with both boys tied to her, the hedgehog finally passed out from his injuries and general exhaustion.
The bed Sonic woke up on was very comfy.
He could tell from the decorations, rolling shelf, and how the beds were set up that this was an infirmary. Even if those things were removed, he'd believe it was an infirmary because he definitely needed the medical attention.
Or, rather, he just needed a nap. Because he was rested for an extended period of time, his accelerated healing mended the problems he had when he crash landed on… wherever he was now.
He still had on his shirt and track pants. His shoes had been taken off, so he got them on first. He collected his jacket from the coat stand that was right beside the door. Also on the stand was Tails' aviator jacket, backpack and goggles.
Sonic turned back around. There were two beds in the room, separated with what looked like a sliding shower curtain. Tails was in the other bed, still knocked out, resting peacefully.
The hedgehog came up beside his unconscious brother, his hand coming up to rest on Tails' arm. The teen was still breathing steadily, so Sonic didn't have to worry if he was critically injured or not. He knew the fox had a bit of enhanced healing too, so maybe that was working for him.
He heard a rustling outside, making his ear flick. He turned his head to the door.
Muffled by the wall and the door, two people were talking outside. Sonic could recognize one of the voices- the voice of that Longclaw lady. The other voice was deeper though, and was talking a bit more quickly.
Sonic watched the door as the two voices bickered. As the talk went on, there were a few more pauses between speaking. All the craziness of the start of the convo had died down, and it was now getting a bit more poignant.
Longclaw's voice said one last thing, then it went completely silent.
After a few moments of hesitation, with Sonic's heartbeat flooding his ears, the door opened slowly. The man he had seen on the portrait in his mother's office was standing before him.
Two decades older, the "mustache" of white quills that Chuck had was now larger, mostly obscuring his mouth. White hair was puffing out over his eyes to make bushy eyebrows. He was more of a deep teal than Sonic's cobalt, but his head spikes were pretty identical. In a stark contrast to Sonic's sporty look, Chuck had a red cardigan, a white turtleneck, but a similar pair of sneakers: red with two gold stripes across the top.
His eyebrows were knitted, though it was clear that he was both nervous and freaked out about what was happening. Sonic turned away from Tails fully to face his uncle properly. Chuck was tall, but he was only a few inches taller than Sonic was.
The light coming from the outside was nearly blinding for the still kind of dizzy Sonic, nearly silhouetting Chuck. Seeing the blue hedgehog was covering his face, Chuck closed the door behind him.
It was quiet for a moment. Neither of them knew what to say. Sonic broke the ice.
"Hi, Uncle Chuck."
Maybe not the best move here.
"I don't even… I thought I'd never…" Chuck had his hands up, gesturing vaguely in front of him. "How… You said your name was Sonny? And you're… You're Aleena's son?"
"I am. She raised me, too."
"She did? Good lord…" Chuck's frazzled look didn't change. "I'm sorry, but… Can you please prove it? It's been so long, I thought… I thought you weren't around. Prove you know Aleena to me."
"…there's this book that mom kept in her desk. She said she stole it on an attempt to escape the facility that Julian Robotnik had her in. In it was a bunch of quotes, but there was one she stuck with in particular. Ask not what others can do for you…"
"…but what you can do for others." The older hedgehog finished, his eyebrows raising.
"I have other things too. If you want to hand me that backpack, I have the file on Project M2, which is what Julian was doing to you before you escaped to here, I guess. I can also show you—"
In an arc across the room, Chuck was hugging him. Sonic was amazed at the superspeeds that Chuck was moving at, stumbling back a little in surprise but keeping his footing. He hugged his uncle back, gripping him tightly.
"You look so much like her…" Chuck murmured, gripping the back of Sonic's jacket. "Gaia, you look so much like me. How did you get here, how did you find us? What happened? Where's… Where's your mother?"
"My mother…" Sonic took a second, feeling emotions wash over him. "I'm sorry, Uncle Chuck, but… she died. She died four years ago. I'm so sorry."
Chuck let out a breath, almost like a gasp at the words. He hugged Sonic tighter, his face buried in the top of his nephew's head. He wobbled a bit, his breath hitching as he was getting even more emotional from this already intense reunion.
Sonic kept holding onto his uncle, his eyes closed as he held the heaving man.
"Uncle Chuck?"
Light filled his face again. Sonic opened his eyes to see more figures in the doorway. He covered his face again as Chuck pulled himself off of him. He wiped his eyes with his cardigan sleeve, sniffling to compose himself quickly.
"Close the door, we need it dimmer."
The door closed firmly, allowing Sonic's vision to come back properly. Two more hedgehogs were ahead of him- one magenta, one green.
The magenta one was the tallest, about the same height as Chuck. Her head spikes curved upwards, even going up over her head to almost make a kind of bang over her eye. Sonic immediately noticed her red jumpsuit, super long purple gloves, and brown eyes.
The green one looked a bit more out there. His spikes on the back of his head were short, but there were spikes between his ears to give an appearance of a mohawk. This guy really had to put in the work to give himself that look. Sonic noticed the two gold rings in his left ear, his orange puffy vest, and… a brown fanny pack? He had blue eyes, just like Aleena.
Both of them looked very confused.
"You left the lab with Longclaw in a hurry… who's this guy?" The girl asked.
"Whoa, Uncle Chuck, do you have an identical twin? Or a clone? Please tell me it's a clone." The boy asked, grinning in contrast to his sister's frown.
"It's… Golly." Chuck held a hand to his head. "This is… I dunno how to say this, exactly. You two… already know you're supposed to have a brother. I told you I didn't know where he is."
"Yeah?" The girl replied.
"This… is him. Sonia, Manny, this… is Sonny. He's your twin brother."
Both Sonia and Manny's faces dropped. They looked at Sonic in unison.
He slowly raised a hand to wave at them. "Hey."
"…hey." Sonia and Manny mimicked their brother, right down to raising the same hand.
Chuck let out a long breath, hand still on his head. He leaned on Tails' bed, but since it was on wheels, it jerked back a bit. With the sudden shake, Tails snorted awake, sitting up in his bed and giving everyone but Sonic a scare.
"I'm up!" The fox yelled. He blinked a few times as he processed what was happening. "…aw man, did I miss it?"
"C'mon, c'mon, get up."
Sonic helped Tails up to his feet. The fox dusted himself off, a bit awkwardly.
"We just met in all, but…" Sonic cleared his throat. "Sonia, Manny- this is Miles Prower. Or Tails, I call him Tails. He's… my brother. My mom— our mom, she was like a mother to him too. He's been my best friend for as long as I can remember. He's my brother too."
After a moment of silence, Tails held up his hand and waved a bit with a "hey" too.
Sonia and Manny were a bit surprised. There was a beat before Manny let out a laugh, smiling widely. He soon rushed in, wrapping his arms around Tails' midsection and literally lifting him up, still laughing.
"I'm not the short little brother anymore!" He yelled, marching around with Tails up in his arms. Tails, shocked, quickly became amused and started laughing a bit too.
Sonic looked back at Sonia, who had stepped closer to him.
"Chuck had said a lot about you, but I never though I'd see you here." She said to him. "This is so surreal."
"I know. It was a nightmare getting here. I'm just happy I finally get to meet my siblings—"
As he spoke, Sonic reached out to put his hand on Sonia's arm. When he did, she quickly slapped his hand away. She was much, much stronger than she looked. Sonic's hand stung after that smack.
"Don't touch me. Outside germs."
"Sonia!" Chuck scolded her. "Be nice to your younger brother!"
"I'm the oldest, I get authority. Now he knows not to touch me."
"Well at least I know why you wear those gloves." Sonic grumbled, rubbing his hand.
"Dude, you came from the outside world? That's so awesome!" Manny had let Tails down, pushing past Sonia to get to his brother. Sonia, flabbergasted, quickly walked away to get something to sanitize herself. Manny continued, unbothered. "We haven't heard anything about the outside since the Baron's people came down here! Is it still a horrifying nightmare up there?"
"That depends on what your definition of 'horrifying nightmare' is. It's a subjective term, after all." Sonia replied, spraying disinfectant onto her glove and shoulder.
"In any subjective definition of the term, the answer is yes." Tails said to her, pulling his jacket on.
"So what is this place? It looked nowhere like on Earth outside."
"It's a long story." Chuck said. "I'll tell you at home. I wanna get you two home so I know you boys will be safe. Though I'd like to get the place ready first… Either way. We should get out of here before we stay here overnight. C'mon, let's do it to it."
The four watched Chuck walk to the door. He opened it again, flooding the door with light. Just getting over their wooziness, Sonic and Tails covered their face from the harsh light, but soon put their hands down as their eyes adjusted, showing the world just outside the door.
Chuck smiled and spoke.
"Welcome to South Island."
UP NEXT: Sonny & Miles!
