"You really need to stop staring." Whisper said as she rode to the right of Tangle. Both of them were on their Extreme Gear, trailing behind the rest of the group and the Marvelous Queen at the head. "You're already making them feel uncomfortable."
"I know! I know but…. Whisper, come on!" The lemur pointed ahead of them. "That's… those are Sonic's parents! His freakin' parents!"
Honestly, she knew she shouldn't be freaking out at the concepts of Sonic having parents. Like, everyone had parents! She knew how babies were made and had the trauma of that particular health class and that talk with her own parents repressed deep, DEEP down in her mind. Sonic had to have a mom and dad at some point! It's not like he just popped out of thin air!
"But… Why does it feel like he might as well have been?"
It was just… weird to think about. Like it just went against some fundamental truth about how the universe worked.
"Then again, the laws of the universe and reality have been kinda screwy for a while."
"I know." Tangle snapped out of her thoughts and glanced at Whisper, who was frowning at the flying bike and its occupants. Bernadette was still driving while Jules had taken his place in one of the sidecars. Bunnie Rabbot was still completely knocked out in her own sidecar, seemingly oblivious to whatever was going on. "It was a shock for me too."
The lemur let out a sigh. Well, at least she wasn't the only one that found it weird.
MAY I ASK WHY? Nicole asked from Tangle's hip. SURELY SONIC HAS MENTIONED HAVING PARENTS BEFORE.
"I mean… no?" Tangle scratched her cheek. "He doesn't talk about his personal life, like, at all. I heard a rumor that he was born on some place called Christmas Island, but I wouldn't put money on it. Other than that, the only thing I know about him is that he's an orphan."
And she should know! She was a huge fan of Sonic ever since she heard about he kicked Eggman's butt the first time. It was so cool hearing about a kid her age just deciding he didn't like what the evil scientist was doing to the poor animals and going off to kick his butt. He got to go on adventures, kick bad guy and bot butt, fly around in his own plane, went to space, and even went to the floating Angel Island! And that wasn't even touching on how he got all the Chaos Emeralds to go Super!
It was the life the lemur always wanted, and so she asked Jewel to help her look up everything about Sonic just so she could keep up with who he is and how he came to be.
"Kind of like I was trying to follow a real life superhero, now that I think about it."
But then others like Tails, Amy, and Knuckles started to join in his adventures. So Tangle decided that she needed to go off and be a hero herself, which was why she became the protector of her hometown!
She had done a pretty good job at it too! And she got to join in Sonic's adventures! It was like a dream come true!
AN ORPHAN? Nicole whispered, sounding horrified at the prospect. BUT…. WHY? HOW COULD HE BE AN ORPHAN AGAIN…?
Tangle blinked and then shook her head. "No, focus Tangle!" Coughing, she shrugged and said, "I mean, I don't think that's a big deal. It never seemed to bother Sonic or Tails."
TAILS IS AN ORPHAN TOO?!
Okay, maybe she should shut up. She was starting to freak the lynx out.
"That's not the troubling part." Whisper spoke up, causing the lemur to turn to her friend. "If Sonic is an orphan in this world, and Jules and Bernadette are from the old world, then those two…"
Tangle looked back at Bernadette and Jules, frowning as she thought about what her mercenary friend said.
Then it clicked.
"Oh man…"
Then those two… they weren't…
Did they even know?
"We're here, kids!" Bernadette shouted from over her shoulder, causing the lemur to snap out of her thoughts and look past the Marvelous Queen.
The cliffs that Jules had mentioned were up ahead, and so were the houses that were underneath the shade of the rock formation. They were square buildings that looked as if they had been constructed by bricks made of the local clay, while the steps leading to each layer of the ancient housing complex seemed to have been carved out of the cliff's stone. The houses were in various states of disrepair, with portions of the wall collapsed and roofs missing, and all of them seemed to be abandoned. Only black windows and open doors stared back at them, showing the lack of families and people living inside.
"I know it isn't much…" Jules states as his wife parked the Marvelous Queen. "But it's what we're calling home for the time being."
"Don't worry about it, Jules." Sally assured her fellow robian as she and the other teens slowed down and got off their Extreme Gear boards. "The fact you're even inviting us in is enough."
"Chao! Chao!"
The cry of a Chao surprised Tangle and she looked around. What was a Chao doing here? "Isn't this, like, not the greatest environment for one?"
"My word…" Blaze gasped and covered her mouth. "Isn't that an Omachao?"
The lemur then spotted the small form as it flew out of one of the buildings. It did look like an omachao! It had the key on the top of its head and the flushed rivets running down the sides of its body. But…
"It's not a robot!" Whisper's eyes were fully opened as she watched the hug Jules. "It's a… it's Chao!"
She was right, too! Now that she really looked at it, it wasn't made of metal! It was just flesh that looked like it was metal. Even the key looked kind of fleshy.
"Wha… huh…!" Tangle pointed at the little creature. "HOW?!"
Sally and Mina glanced back at them and looked as if they were crazy. As if there was nothing
"…Don't you know?" The chipmunk asked with a raised eyebrow. "Chao take on the traits of the creatures that it's exposed to."
The mongoose nodded. "It's basic Chao biology."
"…" The lemur felt her eye twitch. "…There's nothing basic about a Chao looking like a robot!"
She may not know much about Chao breeding or care, but she was pretty sure Cream the Rabbit would be foaming out of the mouth if she had been here.
Well that or asking Jules a billion questions.
"…Not going to lie, it's still pretty cool."
"What happened to her?"
Whisper kept an eye on Sally as she walked alongside the two hedgehogs with Mina. The chipmunk seemed to be unsure whether she should look at Jules and Bernadette, or the unconscious Hooligan that the robian was carrying.
"I mean… how did she get here?" Sally turned to the lavender-furred hedgehog and asked, "And why were you riding in the Marvelous Queen? The last time I saw Bunnie, she was escaping with Nack, Bean, and Bark." Her eyes widened. "Wait… were the Hooligans working for Geoffrey?"
Bernadette shook her head. "I wouldn't know about that, princess. I was on a supply run when I spotted Bunnie riding on the thing alone and at full-speed into the barrier that Naugus' apprentice put around the area." She glanced at the rabbit and frowned. "I don't know what implants Bunnie got… but the magic must have done something to them. She just slumped over the controls and crashed into a dune. I had to run over and get her because I knew the breach the vibrations would attract that giant caterkiller."
The chipmunk let out a gasp. "Wait, you mean…?!"
"As far as we can tell, she's fine. She's breathing normally and she isn't showing signs of brain damage." Jules' shoulders slumped. "But neither me or Bernie are doctors. We only know field medicine, so we won't know for certain unless she wakes up."
"If she wakes up." Whisper mentally added before glancing at the rooftops of the various buildings. "Plenty of decent sniper positions."
"Hey! Whisper!" Cyan spoke from underneath her cloak. "Should me and the others do some reconnaissance?"
Without saying anything, the mercenary made a slight chopping motion with her right hand. Nobody would notice unless they were paying particularly close attention to her.
"Roger! We'll stay put!"
She sorely wanted to be sure about the lack of any potential enemies around the area, but the wisps would be too noticeable out in the open like this. She would have to be alone and away from the group to send off her partners without anyone noticing.
"You knew about the barrier?" Mina asked, causing the wolf to glance back to the mongoose. The singer's eyes were wide as she stared at the hedgehog pair. "How?! I didn't even know about the thing!"
"Lots of trial and error." Jules walked towards the home where the Omachao Chao had flown out of. "When we found these homes, we noticed some kids on Extreme Gear approaching the edge of the cliffs before turning around. We decided to investigate and I was able to pass by the area those kids turned around in just fine. Then when I turned around and walked back to the homes I was still fine. But when Bernie tried it…"
"I turned around and walked in no particular direction." The hedgehog woman had her hands on her hips and her brow furrowed. "Probably would've just kept walking and died of thirst in the desert if Jules hadn't chased after me and dragged me through it."
The idea made Whisper shiver. Did Bernadette think she was actually walking back home when she went the opposite direction? Would she have kept thinking that despite all evidence on the contrary?
"Magic… It really is a dangerous thing."
"Man…" Silver ran his hand through his quills. "I can't imagine how scary that was… did…" the hedgehog looked from Bernadette to Jules. "…did she try to…?"
"No, she just tried to struggle out of my grip." Jules entered through the door with the Chao and Bernadette. "Tried to scratch me a few times, though."
"Ruined my claws something fierce!" Bernadette joked as she went through the door. "My husband's made of some pretty strong stuff."
"I'd imagine." Blaze commented as she followed Silver, Sally, and Mina inside.
Leaving only Tangle and Whisper outside.
The lemur glanced at her and asked, "What's up? You've been tense since we started walking here."
"…" The wolf took one last scan of the area before shaking her head. "Unfamiliar territory."
Tangle frowned at her. "Whisper, pretty sure we can count on people who raised… raised a… Sonic not to spring a trap on us."
Did she make it that obvious? She thought she was a lot more discrete compared to what happened on the Death Egg.
Still, the lemur did have a bit of a point. Sally seemed to trust the pair and kept walking into potential enemy territory without any real concern.
Was she just being paranoid again?
"Old habits." She admitted with a nod, taking off her mask to stare at the other girl. "Can't help it. Sorry."
The lemur sighed and took Whisper's hand. "I know. But still… just try to be a bit more trusting? These are people Sally knew! And you trust her, don't you?"
Whisper frowned and suppressed the urge to fidget in Tangle's grip. "Yes."
Her friend grinned at her. "Then there you go!"
The wolf sighed at the act. Tangle really had a simple view of the world.
"But… it is refreshing."
"Now come on!" Tangle dragged the wolf inside, and Whisper had to suppress a yelp. "We're going to look rude if we don't go inside ASAP!"
They entered the clay brick home and the mercenary felt relief at the slightly cooler air and the fan that blew on her…
"Wait. Fan?"
She looked around and saw that to the right wall there were various firearms and what looked like homemade bombs propped up against the wall. Stacks of books lined the opposite wall with both a flag that had what Whisper could only assume was the insignia of Sally's kingdom and a marked map next to it. Little marks were made over it, vaguely forming the barrier that Whisper had marked on their own map. Blankets were piled in the corner of the living quarters, possibly where Bernadette and the Chao slept at night. Next to it was a small electric fan which was hooked to a small generator that was blowing semi-cool air throughout the room.
There was a kitchen area, seperated from the rest of the living quarters by a small brick wall. There was a small fire stove that had a cast iron skillet over it. A canister with a spigot was sitting next to it, which Bernadette ran to and took out nine glass cups from a small cupboard that was sitting beside the countertop.
"If you truly have been living here since the beginning of your… arrival…" Blaze glanced at her surroundings with a frown. "How did you survive?"
"I'm kinda curious too." Silver scratched his cheek and Jules carefully laid Bunnie on top of the blankets. "I mean, you just said you had to get supplies from somewhere, right? So how…?"
"Well…" Bernadette rushed back carrying a tray with all the glasses of water on top. "…a lynx occasionally comes to visit, bringing us a lot of supplies from both beyond the barrier and inside the city."
Whisper blinked. That was a surprise. She didn't think anyone knew the two were living here
"Most of them get destroyed on the trip here, though. But what remains is enough for us to live on." Jules took one of the glasses of water while the chao took one for itself, chugging at it greedily while the robian walked back to Bunnie. "Apparently he's one of Sonic's friends. Do you know someone named Larry?"
"Yes!" Nicole appeared next to Sally, grinning from ear to ear. "Larry Lynx! I know him! He's one of the members of the Secret Freedom Fighters!"
"Larry Lynx?" That was seriously his name? Sure, Mina's own name was a bit odd but she brushed it off. "Is it just some sort of odd naming convention in the old world?
"That dude sounds super unlucky." Tangle commented as she took two glasses and handed one to Whisper. Then, she grinned. "Oh! Larry Lynx the Jinx! Now I get it!"
"Wow, you catch on quick!" Silver chuckled as he and Blaze got their own drinks. Mina had her own, but she was busy with chiding Bowie for drinking too quickly. "Though, if my memories are anything to go by, Larry is not just a jinx. He's brave and determined in his own right, ready to help out Sonic and the others any way he can in spite of his condition…"
"He's unlucky enough for it to be called a condition?" Blaze asked incredulously.
Sally sighed and shook her head. "You have no idea."
Well, that was ominous.
"Anyways…" Jules turned his head and glanced at Whisper. "You're a soldier, aren't you?"
Whisper stiffened, and her fingers twitched for her mask and wispon on reflex.
The robian nodded. "I noticed you looking for sniper positions and any locations prime for an ambush. You don't develop habits like that unless you've seen some combat."
No use hiding it. "Not a soldier." She muttered. "Mercenary."
Bernadette's eyes were sympathetic, but they now gained a harder edge. It was like she was reassessing Whisper in real time. "What are you?"
"Sniper."
"Makes sense…" Jules shook his head. "You have the demeanor of one. I've met a few during the Great War who had your same habits."
"Wait, so you fought in that war that Sally was talking about?" Tangle asked, and when Jules nodded she grinned. "That's so cool!"
Whisper nearly spat out her water. Did she seriously just say…?
The lemur's eyes went wide and she covered her mouth, her brain finally catching up to it. "I-I'm so sorry!" She spluttered out. "I didn't mean… it's just that you're a robot… robian I mean… and… And then I got this picture in my head of you clobbering a bunch of humans with rocket fists and laser blasts and…" Tangle's shoulders slumped and she bowed her head. "I'll shut my mouth now."
Surprisingly, Bernadette and Jules chuckled before laughing.
"O-Oh man…!" The female hedgehog wiped away a tear from her eye. "You really are a lot like Sonic!"
Jules shook his head. "My son's mouth is often a lot faster than his brain at times too."
A small smile settled on Sally's face. "Tell me about it."
And those words made the sadness roll into Whisper's head.
The way these two were acting… they really didn't know. Or they simply didn't know the full story.
Would they have to be the ones to tell them?
That their son… wasn't really their son now?
"Bernadette… Jules…" Sally let out a sigh and crossed her arms. "Thank you for bringing us here. But… we have so many questions. Like, what happened when you arrived here. Can you…" She frowned. "Can you tell us…?"
The husband and wife looked at each other, seeming to have a wordless conversation between them, before nodding. Slowly, they sat down and Whisper along with the rest of the group did the same.
Jules sighed. "It all started…"
Jules' vision was filled with static when the world turned white.
It couldn't blind him, because he did not have any eyes to blind. Not organic ones, at the very least. All the static did was obscure his vision, and his inorganic eyes focused on Bernadette.
The color of the world seemed to have drained, turning everything into hues of black and white. But he could recognize the form of his wife. She seemed to be… shifting. As if she were were a picture on a telecrate with a bad signal.
"Jules!" Bernadette shouted, falling out of her chair. He was by her side immediately, taking her hand which she gripped tightly. "Jules, what's happening?! I-I can't see…!"
The color of the world then shifted again. Everything turned into shades of magenta, and the static filling the old soldier's vision grew worse.
"I'm here, honey." He pulled his wife into a hug and held her tightly. She, in turn, seemed to grip him even tighter. "Just focus on me, okay? Just focus on me and only me."
Jules Hedgehgog was scared too. This didn't feel like something related to Eggman. It felt… worse, somehow. Something deep and almost primal was rattling within his very soul, screaming at him to hold onto his wife because this could very well be the last time he would be able.
That was when the world began to turn hues of red and purple, and the Voices began to cry out.
Voices, hundreds upon thousands of voices speaking all at once. They would be deafening if the old soldier still had his organic ears, but because they were artificial he could hear them.
"WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"
"IT BURNS! IT'S BURNING ME!"
"MOMMY!"
"MAKEITSTOPMAKEITSTOPMAKEITSTOP!"
"WHAT IS THAT?! WHAT IS IT?!"
"SOMETHINGSHAPPENINGSOMETHINGSHAPPENINGSOMETHINGSHAPPENING-!"
Screams upon screams comprised of males and females of all ages were layered in a billion alien languages Jules could not recognize. All of them crying out in pain before they were suddenly silenced.
What was this?
What on Mobius was this?!
"Jules! Jules, I can't see!" Bernie shouted, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I can't see! What's happening?! S-Something's wrong! Who's screaming?! Where's Sonic? Where's my baby?!"
Before Jules could answer, his wife let out a cry and began to cover her ears in pain.
That's when he heard it.
I SEE YOU.
A voice that caused everything in the house to vibrate. Cabinets flew open and glasses shattered as It began to speak in a voice that was feminine and masculine and yet neither.
I SEE YOU, PUSS OF A UNIVERSE THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN LITTLE MORE THAN A MEAL.
OF A WORLD THAT MY JAILORS MADE THEIR TOMB.
I SEE YOU, FOOLISH CHILD THAT BELIEVED YOURSELF CHOSEN BY A GOD.
CHOSEN BY A SELF-DELUDED PARASITE.
GAZE UPON ME, MORTAL.
GAZE UPON THAT WHICH SPAT OUT THE WASTE YOU CALLED THE SOURCE OF ALL AT THE BIRTH OF THE MULTIVERSE.
GAZE UPON YOUR ***.
For some reason, the last word uttered by the Voice, which sounded like a screech uttered in a trillion alien tongues, made the robian wince in pain.
He hadn't experienced such a thing in a long time. It was like greeting a terrible friend.
The alien colors shifted for what seemed like hours. Red and purple, magenta, black and white, green, and sometimes the colors would merge into something else entirely. Something that Jules had to shut his eyes to so that he wouldn't go mad.
Then, as quickly as it began, everything stopped.
Color returned to his home. The shaking and vibrating ended, with everything becoming deathly still once more. The static in Jules' vision vanished, and now he could see his wife who was still covering her eyes and weeping.
He was holding her in shaking arms.
"What… Bernadette… that…" He couldn't finish. He couldn't describe what they had just witnessed and what he had just heard.
Jules was a soldier. He'd seen and brought death upon both Overlanders and his fellow mobians during the Great War. He'd seen horrors that would have kept him up at night to this day if he were still organic.
And yet he was now shaking like a frightened child… and feeling a sense of relief as if he'd just avoided seeing the monster underneath his bed. A childish fear that seemed so primal and real back when he was a child.
"J-Jules… I can't… I can't hear!" Bernadette was keeping him close. "I can't hear or see you! Pease… please, baby, please hold me… I'm scared…" She let out a sob. "I'm so scared…"
The robian heard Omochao moaning in fear and pain from the living room, but he did not move. He could not move without frightening his already scared wife.
"I've got you, honey." He knew she couldn't hear him, but he needed to say this. To remind him what's in front of him. To focus on what was truly important and not think about what he had seen and heard just a few seconds ago. "I've got you."
They weren't important.
Bernadette Hedgehog was the light of his life. The thing besides Sonic that kept him going even through the darkest moments.
She was what truly mattered the most within his universe at this very moment.
When he thought about Bernadette and Sonic… the fear and horror that was clouding his mind began to disappear.
Slowly, his wife's breathing began to slow. She was calming down, and was blinking rapidly before looking up at him. "I…" She gulped. "…I think I'm better now."
"Are you sure?" Jules asked, not letting her go. "Can you hear me?"
"Yes." Bernadette nodded before shivering. "Jules, what was that? Those lights… those screams… those horrible screams…"
"I don't know." He shook his head. He might as well be honest with her. "But whatever it was… it couldn't have been good."
That was the understatement of the century.
"Chao?" Omochao flew int the room, his eyes watering with frightened tears. "Chao…"
The veteran motioned the family pet to come in, and the little creature hugged both him and Bernadette. They pet the robotic Chao on his head, calming down even more as they performed the act. Even if he couldn't feel the Chao, it was therapeutic in its own way.
Time passed, and Jules wasn't sure how long. But he noticed that Bernadette seemed to be… sweating? That didn't make sense.
"Are you hot?" He asked her, and his wife nodded.
"Yes. But… I don't understand." She placed her hand on her forehead. "It was fine just a bit ago! And now the air feels so dry and hot…"
They heard a commotion outside, and both turned to each other before nodding. Both of them got up and walked to the door, placing Omochao on the couch before opening it and watching their neighbors looking around blearily while walking down the street.
"What's going on?!" Bernadette shouted at one of them
"Search me!" A fox shouted. "But it's hot as all heck and the king's calling for a meeting at the center of the city!"
Bernadette glanced at Jules, and he only offered a shrug. "It's the only way we're going to get answers."
His wife raised an eyebrow, but did not argue as they walked out the door and followed the crowd to the center of the city.
Practically everyone was gathered there, and he could hear their chatter.
"Did you… did you see that?"
"See it?! I heard it!"
"All that screaming… all that horrible screaming…"
"Is it another plot by Eggman?"
"What, like psychological torture?"
"What else could it be?!"
All the talk was interrupted when a cloud of smoke appeared on top of a small stage that had been hastily constructured. The cloud began to condense and take form, shifting into the body of Geoffrey St. John.
Once considered a noble patriot of the Kingdom of Acorn, now revealed to be the agent of Ixis Naugus since childhood and his apprentice.
His right hand when he helped the wizard claim the kingdom as his own, once the council bowed to the 'will of the people'.
But now… now he carried the staff of his master. But the Chaos Emerald held on the top seemed different. It was cracked, with each crack glowing a strange magenta color, and Nagus' apprentice had a solemn expression on his face.
"Geoffrey St. John!" Hamlin the Pig, member of the Council of Acorn, shouted from the crowd while pointing at the skunk. "Explain yourself! Why are you here instead of the king?! Is he not the one who ordered this meeting without consulting the council first?!"
The skunk opened his eyes and shot Hamlin a glare.
It was a glare one gave to a particularly annoying bug, an expression so unlike the normally confident and cocky soldier.
Then, it smoothed out and he smiled. "Yes. The king did indeed call for this meeting. And all will be explained in due time… mate." He said the last word as if he had been forced out of his throat. "But first… an explanation." He coughed and raised his staff. "All of you are most likely wondering what were the lights and screams that you have just experienced." There were several shoutes of confirmation from the crowd and the skunk nodded. "Well, I am here to tell you that the suspicion you hold on the top of your mind is the correct one. It is indeed the work of Ivo Robotnik… or as some of you call him, Doctor Eggman."
The apprentice waved his staff and to Jules' shock a cloud began to form beside him. The face of the could began to flicker with static as if it were a telecrate before an image began to form.
One of Robotnik shaking the hand of an Overlander with a grey moustache.
"It is the result of a plan my master had uncovered while scrying for threats to his kingdom… the result of the Super Genesis Wave, an event that would reshape all of reality!"
Geoffrey explained it all. Of how Robotnik met with a human from another Zone named Dr. Albert Wily who was just as brilliant and mad as him, and just as sick of a blue mortal enemy that always ruined his plans. How they teamed up and created a pocket dimension called the Skull Egg Zone, where they began to construct the device essential to their plan.
Of how Robotnik and Wily used a Genesis Wave as part of their plot, so that their reality, WIly's, and a Zone called the Sol Zone would be prepared for their plan. Naugus had protected them from the Genesis Wave, apparently, because he could not risk the possibility that it was the Super Genesis Wave.
Robotnik and Wily then gathered the Chaos Emeralds while roboticizing his son's friends, turning them against him and a strange Overlander who fought against his son before they realized they were being duped.
One by one, they freed and deroboticized Sonic's friends before turning their full attention on Robotnik and Wily, who then revealed their true plan of making the Super Genesis Wave. One that would mold reality to their liking.
His son, his frineds, and their new ally fought against the two mad scientists and their forces. Sonic and the Overlander then turned Super and fought against the madmen, beating them.
But…
"So… So what do we do about that?" The strange golden Overlander asked as he floated beside Jules' son. They stared at the encroaching white void, the Super Genesis Wave's new form. "It looks like the Super Genesis Wave is finished. And we're…" His face twisted in anguish as he looked down. "…we're too late."
Sonic's lips pursed and his eyes narrowed. The robian didn't see a look of defeat in those pupils.
He saw determination, and a refusal to give into despair.
"Nothing a little Chaos Control can't fix."
And Jules couldn't be prouder of his son.
Bernadette gripped his hand as they watched his son explain to the Overlander, Mega Man, the mechanics of the technique that bent space and time itself. One that could reverse the effects of the wave and restore their universes to the way they should be. Sonic's voice was clear and full of certainty. There was not a shred of doubt within it. Their son knew they could pull it off, and his words inspired Mega Man to believe that the plan could succeed.
And when the two began to perform the Chaos Control, it looked like things would be alright.
The day would be saved.
But…
"Eggman! Cut it out, ya nut! You're…" Sonic's face twisted in pain and… fear? " Gonna… Mess… Me… Up!"
Ivo Robotnik… Julian Kintobor… Robo-Robotnik… Eggman… the monster with many names snarled out, "if I can't have the universe my way, then you won't have it at all!"
"Aw man…!" Jules' son grit his teeth while holding the green energy. "It's this or nothing…! CHAOS CONTROL!"
The green energy shot out towards the white light, reality itself warping as it approached the Super Genesis Wave.
"No you don't!" Red eyes burned from beneath reflective lenses as Robotnik smashed his fist against a button on his controls. "FIRE!"
Bernie and all the citizens held their breath as the missiles raced and met the blast of Chaos Control, exploding against nothingness before the sound of glass shattering echoed out.
The image showing Sonic and Robotnik began to distort in red and black static. The confident look in Sonic's eyes was now gone, replaced with one of abject horror as he stared at something that nobody but them could see.
"That…" The mad defiance in Robotnik's voice was now gone, replaced by quiet fear. "…that doesn't look right… What is that? Oh." The madman's glasses fell, and in spite of the terrifying black eyes with red pupils the robian saw the look of a very small and scared child. "Oh my stars and garters."
The image began to distort even more until it obscured both the madman and the hedgehog.
But Sonic's voice echoed out for all to hear.
"Ivo… what did you do…?"
Naugus' apprentice waved the staff his master once weld, dispelling the images in a cloud of smoke and pixels.
"What HE did…" The skunk hissed out through clenched teeth. "Was fail. Your hero, the hero of Mobius… he failed! He failed spectacularly!"
"Th… There's no way…" Jules turned his head and saw Mina Mongoose, one of his son's friends, clutching her mother and keeping her upright alongside her boyfriend Ash Mongoose as she stared up to the stage. "He's lying. He has to be! We're here, aren't we? He has to be lying!"
Alarm bells were going off in Jules' head, as they did for Bernadette since she turned her head towards the pop singer and she shushed at the girl.
Geoffrey St. John turned his head in their direction, as if he had heard the girl.
That smile… it had far too many teeth in it.
"My master…" He said smoothly. "…Had laid down a spell around his kingdom, your home, should Sonic the Hedgheog fail. Should be be unable to set right what that madman Ivo Robotnik had set in motion, the spell would pluck out home from space and time and contain it in a pocket dimension. Once reality stabilized, our home would be placed back into the world… or whatever facsimile had taken its place."
The skunk waved his staff, and the strange purple and magenta energy flowed out, creating another screen within a cloud of smoke.
Jules saw unfamiliar cities, ones fully populated by Overlanders or humans talking in strange rectangular devices or bobbing their heads with strange hearing aids in their ears.
In other cities, much to his shock and confusion, he watched as mobians walked beside the Overlanders without a care. A male hedgehog was even in the arms of an Overlander man, kissing him!
"What the…?! What on Mobius is this?!" One of the people within the crowd cried out in disgust.
"That's not Station Square, is it?!"
"Who knows!"
"Why are those mobians just walking next to those filthy hairless apes without a care in the world?!"
"Why is that mobian kissing an Overlander?!"
"Sonic made this?"
More images flickered in the cloud, of strange green hills with checkerboard soil and looks. Of underwater cities containing acquatic mobians that the old soldier had never seen before, swimming or dancing in the water adorned with strange garments in front of a giant statue that shone at seven points. They were overseen that looked like a shark, scowling while a female mobian that looked similar to an orange beta fish smiled with her hands clasped in prayer.
"Sonic the Hedgehog created a distorted facsimile of Mobius, one that allowed our hated enemies to prosper while creating mutated echoes of proper life."
Then, the image changed to show the image of Bunnie D'Coolette. However, this was not the Bunnie that the robian recognized from visits to him home. Her hair was shorter and she had a scar underneath her left eye, and she was toasting a glass of what appeared to be root beer with the three members of the Hooligans. In another image he saw the members of the Wolf Pack, but they were living tents made of tanned leather with painted markings on them. A young teenage girl that looked so much like Lupe Wolf was bounding over a cart, grinning as she looked over her shoulder as two adult wolves chased after her.
"Or completely changing his own friends and comrades to fit into this new distorted reality!" Geoffrey was now screaming as he pointed at the cloud. "Worse yet, Ivo Robotnik still lives!"
Robotnik appeared in the cloud, pointing forward as his Egg Pawns rushed to perform their tasks. More machines were being built with no signs of stopping.
"What?! He's alive?!"
"A new reality, and Sonic couldn't even keep him out of it?"
"He's the one that was messing up that Chaos Control and did that wave thing! Couldn't Sonic make sure he was erased from existence or was never born?!"
The skunk smirked at the reaction he was garnering. "And what does your hero do? Does he remember? Does he contain some inkling that this reality is wrong, with him rushing off to correct this? NO!"
The image changed once more, showing his son running through a field somewhere. He sported a carefree grin, his green eyes shining in excitement for what the day could bring.
"He does not remember you! He never bothered to keep you all in his mind!" Geoffrey clenched his fist in anger. "He abandoned you! He could not save you, so he created this distorted copy of a world where he would still be a hero that fights against Robotnik without any concern for his failure. This kingdom… all of you… they were meaningless to him! It is only through my master's love and preparation that you were all saved!" His eyes closed and tears began to form in the corners of them. "An act of love for this kingdom.. that cost him his life…!"
There was no way that was true.
Jules had met Naugus with his wife. The man tried to put up the front of a kind and concerned ruler, but it was all a front. One that was badly acted and began to fall apart once challenged. He was a two-faced rat that was little better than the very man that roboticized them all.
And a glance at Bernadette told him that the same thoughts were racing through his wife's mind.
But…
"Wait, the king… is dead?"
"How? How could that have happened?!"
"Did he really die casting a spell that saved us all?"
"No way! Have you seen the guy?! There's no way someone with that kind of mug is selfless!"
"Why not?! It's magic! And if anyone's the expert on that kind of stuff it's the literal wizard!"
"Why would Geoffrey lie about it if it wasn't true?"
"The guy is a traitor! He'd lie about anything and everything if it meant he got ahead in life!"
"You shut your mouth!"
"The king died fixing Sonic's screw up!"
Geoffrey raised his hand for silence as he continued. "Yes, it's true! My master, your king, Ixis Naugus… is dead! He died so all of us could live! But fear not, he passed to me his knowledge… a plan to restore things to what they were before…" He grinned toothily as he then shouted, "And his wish… his last wish… for me to be the new king!"
"Jules…" Bernadette whispered, cutting through the gasps and cries of anger or joy that were erupting from the crowd. "We need to go. Now."
"Right." He didn't question it. There was no time. He and his wife turned around and began pushing their way through the crowd. Nobody was paying attention to them, focusing completely on the skunk as he continued his declarations and accusations of Sonic and his friends.
They began walking once they were freed from the crowd. But the moment they were a decent distance away they began to run back to their home.
"All of that crap… how could they just eat it up?!" Bernadette shouted in anger. "Our son was their hero! He saved them time and time again! How could they…?!"
"They're scared and desperate. They don't know what is going on and need something to wrap their heads around." Jules tried to keep the bitterness out of his tone but failed. He understood perfectly what she meant. "Geoffrey just gave them a story, a goal, and a target. Enough people will be eating out of his hand by the time he's done."
It was like a repeat of what had happened to Nicole. Not all the citizens will be convinced of Sonic's failure or what Geoffrey had said, but enough would be that the skunk would have an army behind him.
"Yeah." Bernadette threw open the door. "And considering how we're Sonic's parents and we showed Naugus the door…"
She didn't need to finish.
He knew that they would be the first on the hit list of 'dissidents' Nagus' apprentice was already compiling.
"Chao! Chao!" Omachao shouted as he flew towards them when they entered. He tilted his head when he noticed their expressions. "Chao?"
His wife stopped as she looked around the living room, her lip quivering as she took everything in.
"We… we just made this home…" She muttered and he pulled her into a hug. "I don't want to leave it behind. The memories…"
"I know." Jules held his wife close as she cried on his chest. "I know, Bernie."
Bernadette sniffled as she looked up into his eyes. She reached up and placed her hands on his cheeks. "For Sonic."
"For Sonic."
She kissed him on his cold lips, and a deep well of sadness formed within the robian.
It was times like this where he missed being able to kiss his wife.
He briefly thought about Charles, his brother, as they stuffed the few photos they had with Sonic into a bag alongside dried food and bottles of water for Bernadette.
He hoped his brother was alright. He hoped that he was with Muttski, keeping the dog calm.
He hoped that Mina Mongoose would learn how to navigate through this strange new world and remained loyal to her friends.
He hoped that Rotor Walrus and Sonic's friends that still remained in the city were watching over the still sleeping body of Antoine D'Coolette, ready to defend him at a moment's notice.
For now, he and his wife were leaving.
They needed to make sure they lived.
Sonic had lost them once and grew up without a mother and father's love until he was nearly a man.
They would make sure he wouldn't lose them again.
"And… that's it."
Blaze the Cat suppressed a shudder as Jules Hedgehog, her friend's father from another lifetime, placed his hands on his lap while his wife patted him on his shoulder.
Everything he had told them, of the screams of dying souls now forever silenced from across the multiverse…
"It's a miracle he, his wife, Mina, and the others didn't go completely mad."
"Oh god…" Tangle whispered, the cheer normally in her voice now completely absent. "Mr. Hedgehog… Mrs. Hedgehog… I'm… I'm so sorry…"
"Don't be." Bernadette shook her head. "There was nothing you could do."
Sally was by their sides, pulling the duo into a hug as black tears ran down their cheeks.
"That doesn't change anything!" She shouted in anguish. "You… you shouldn't have needed to flee your home! You should have felt safe! I-I should've been there…!"
Nicole was also crying, hugging herself. Mina was just looking down in shame, petting Bowie who was looking at her worriedly. Blaze didn't need to be a mind reader to imagine the same thoughts were going through the lynx and Mongoose's heads as well.
"Stop!" Bernadette said firmly, gently pushing the princess away and cupping her metal face. "Princess, there was nothing you could do. Don't blame yourself on stuff you can't control." She gave a pointed look to Nicole and Mina. "That goes for the two of you too!"
"But…!"
"No buts." Jules shook his head. "Stop blaming youself. Not everything is your responsibility. You may be a princess, and you may have saved us countless times alongside our son…"
"But you're still kids. Kids that shouldn't have to feel the weight of the world on their shoulders." Bernadette pulled Sally back into a hug. "Sometimes things outside of your control happen, and all we can do is just work with the hand we're dealt."
Blaze closed her eyes as the princess continued to cry on the shoulder of Sonic's mother.
Of the woman who was once his mother.
"Easier said than done."
A life like hers, and even Sally's, was one of duties and responsibilities. Their very nature as princesses and protectors of their people made them feel the pain and anguish of their subjects a thousandfold. A failure, any failure, felt like their own even with the knowledge that things were simply out of their hands.
Sonic helped her understand the need to reach out, to not close herself off from others and find friendship.
She even trusted Marine to guard the Jeweled Scepter and keep her kingdom safe while she was on vacation.
But if something went wrong while she was away?
It would be her failure.
"Just like how all this pain and suffering is my responsibility for not checking…"
"But…" Whisper swallowed. "But what was that voice you heard? The one that came after… the screaming and the lights?" The wolf turned to Blaze. "It said it was here at the birth of the Multiverse."
"I…" The princess of the Sol Dimension winced. "I do not know."
And that was true.
Nothing from her family's records even hinted at an entity which Jules had described.
Something that fed on universes? One jailed by another race, only to be freed by Eggman's interference?
"Just what had been unleashed?"
And what had Sonic done to stop it?
"That's… likely going to be a problem." Silver muttered as he shook his head. "That voice… that entity… it didn't seem all that friendly."
She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the hedgehog's statement. "That's the understatement of a lifetime."
"Whatever it was…" Bernadette smiled at Sally. "Our son stopped it. There's no other explanation. We're here because he saved us all, just like he always has."
Sally's face fell at those words, and Blaze carefully noted the expressions on Nicole, Tangle, and Whisper. The wolf and lemur were glancing at each other, clear apprehension and dread being communicated between them. But it was like simply understanding that bad news was going to be shared, and being worried of the aftermath that was for in in their heads. Nicole had her hand on her mouth, her eyes closed as if she didn't want to speak of a truth she already knew.
"Jules… Bernadette…" Sally placed her hands on the female hedgehog's shoulders and stared into the woman's eyes. "A-About Sonic… he… what Geoffrey said about reality being changed… it was true." She looked down. "Time moved naturally for this new world while we were outside of time… which means the Sonic here isn't the one… he isn't your son." Tears were once again returning to the princess' eyes. "Not really. He… he had a different mom and dad, since you weren't rebooted. He… he's Sonic, and he's like the one we knew but…"
"Damn it…" Blaze's face twisted in anguish. She hadn't even considered Sonic's family! She hadn't considered the society and social practices of her friend's world! "How blind and conceited am I?!"
Blaze's mother and father, the emperor and empress of the Sol Empire, had died while she was young. She grew up under tutors and servants, who were nice enough in their own way but couldn't replace the deep feeling of loneliness in her heart. Over time, she had learned to simply 'deal with it' as Sonic would say.
She barely thought about them nowadays, except as strangers in murals and history books that she would look through for research and pleasure.
Marine herself was an orphan and the captain of her own ship, but the princess saw no issue with this. In fact, it was expected for the people of her Zone to set off on their own at a young age.
She hadn't questioned Cream talking about her own mother back when they had searched for the Sol Emeralds with Amy. After all, she was still of the age where it wasn't uncommon for children to still be under their parent's roof.
How arrogant was she to believe her Zone's rules of family and indendence applied to all Zones?
And now… now she knew that not only was her friend rebooted after the Super Genesis Wave, but that he once had a loving family who he lacked in the new reality.
A family that now existed, despite them not needing to exist in the eyes of the universe since their 'function' was replaced by another pair?!
A humorless chuckle rang through the cat's head. "Some multiversal guardian…" She bowed her head down in shame. "Some friend…"
"It's okay, princess. We know."
Bernadette's quiet admission snapped Blaze out of thoughts and she looked up. The hedgehog mother was frowning, eyes full with understanding and resignation. Even Jules' body language of slumped shoulders and a slightly bowed head conveyed this.
"You… you know?" Mina asked, shock in her voice as she stared at the two. "How? I… I had to meet Sonic to get it! How could you…?"
"My brother explained it to us." Jules stated, the normal cheerfulness and the inner strength usually in his tone was sapped away. It now sounded so hollow, like a true machine. "About the nature of this reboot… about how Sonic's history changed because of it. About how he's an orphan here…"
"But if you knew…" Nicole stepped forward, worry and concern in her eyes as she continued, "Then why are you acting like… like our Sonic is still…?"
Bernadette smiled at them, tears in the corner of her eyes as she said firmly, "Because no matter what, Sonic is still our son. No reboot is ever going to change that."
That conviction… was that something only a parent could have?
Blaze did not know.
Whisper motioned to the weapons. "Then why are you still here? Why are you hoarding these weapons?"
"Because I know my baby." The hedgehog woman nodded. "Sooner or later, he would find out something is happening here. And when he came… we wanted to be ready to fight with him to free our home."
A small smile grew on Blaze's face. "Yes, that certainly sounds like Sonic. A true paragon who will come in the nic of time…"
It seemed that no matter the reality, that core aspect of Sonic's character remained.
Sally stared at Bernadette in astonishment before letting out a small laugh. "You're amazing, Bernadette."
"Comes with being a parent." Sonic's mother wiped the tears in her eyes. "Plus I had to make up for all the time I missed being that when I was roboticized."
"Wait, you were roboticized too?!" Tangle shouted, pointing at her. "But you're… y'know, flesh and blood while he's…" She pointed at Bernadette's husband. "…still a robian! How'd that happen?!"
"It's a long, LONG story." Jules shook his head. "Involving war, political intrigue, betrayal, and aliens."
The lemur gaped at the robian hedgehog before a grin grew on her face. "Oh, this I gotta hear!"
"Maybe in a bit." Bernadette patted Sally before getting up and walking to the sleeping form of Bunnie Rabbot. She leaned down and put her hand on the rabbit's forehead. "Right now we better…"
The Hooligan's eyes snapped open and her right hand shot out, grabbing the hedgehog woman's wrist. Blaze cursed as she got onto her feet, fire already blazing in her hands when the rabbit dragged the woman down while sitting up, putting her mechanical hand's index and middle finger to Bernadette's temple while her thumb remained upright.
"Alright, what's going on?!" Bunnie shouted, her eyes looking around wildly at all the occupants of the house that were getting onto her feet. "Who the heck are all y'all?! Where am ah?!"
"Bunnie!" Sally screamed out, her hands raised in surrender. "Let her go!"
The Hooligan's eyes focused on the robian princess before they narrowed. "Wait… yer that badnik from Studiopolis! What are you… Wait, are you workin' for that lynx witch?!"
"Me?" Nicole asked, pointing at herself.
The rabbit rolled her eyes. "No, not you! Ah'm talkin' about the one that looks like she walked out of one of 'em kung fu movies!"
Blaze decided to file that for later and focused on what was happening in front of her.
"Release her or…!" The princess ordered, only for the rabbit to scoff.
"Or what, you'll fry us both?!" Bunnie sarcastically asked, and the cat resisted the urge to wince. She was right and it stung. "Ah want mah crew, now! That damn witch took Fang, Bark, an' Bean!"
"Bunnie…" Bernadette remained calm, as if she didn't have a literal gun to her head and Blaze couldn't help but admire the woman's strength. "I want you to actually assess the situation here."
"How do you know mah… y'know what, it don't matter! As far as ah can see, ah'm…!"
"You're not stupid, so don't pretend to be." The hedgehog woman interrupted, her voice ice cold. "You're outnumbered seven to one. One of them can move people with his mind. If you do hurt me, you aren't making it out of this room alive."
Bunnie licked her lips, her eyes darting from one occupant to the next. All of them, even Jules, were ready to pounce on the rabbit.
Blaze could see it in her eyes.
The Hooligan knew that Bernadette was right.
"And you don't want to hurt her." Sally interjected, her eyes looking at Bunnie pleadingly. "There's… there's no point. And I don't think you would want to hurt anyone if there's no point."
With a grimace, the Hooligan let Bernadette go. "How many times do ah gotta say it?" She spat out bitterly. "Don't act like ya know me, ya bucket of bolts."
Jules was by his wife's side, helping to bring her away while Bunnie kept her finger gun now switching from target to target. Inwardly, the cat let out a sigh of relief.
"Ah still want answers!" Bunnie demanded. "Who are y'all?! What was all that hooey about some kinda reboot an' junk? And what's this gotta do with me and mah crew?! The heck did we get wrapped up in?!"
Before any of them could even begin to answer that, a low whistle rang out from behind them.
"Hooey. Ah gotta say, it's odd hearin' that talk come out of mah niece."
Blace turned around and blinked at the person leaning against the doorframe. It was a rabbit, a male, wearing the rawhide brown leather of a gunslinger.
However, his right arm was completely replaced with a mechanical one. One that looked as if it could crush anything within its grasp with ease.
In his left was a silver cane.
"Then again…" The male rabbit sighed. "Ah can't exactly blame you. You ain't in yer right mind, after all."
Before any of them could demand answers, Bunnie Rabbit said two words in a voice not unlike that of a small child.
"Uncle Beauregard?"
To Be Continued…
Notes: Well that's f&*king ominous!
Really have to thank both the works of Cosmic Horror by HP Lovecraft, Stephen King, and many others as well as Jordan Peele's NOPE for that scene. While I'm trying to keep at least some of the mystery still going, those of you who have played frontiers know what's I'm hinting at here.
God, I love being vague and hinting at just enough for the existential horror to sink in.
Also have to thank a long flight back to PR for giving me enough time to write out Jules' flashback scene! I was having a lot of trouble with that.
Anyways, hope you all enjoyed it! Please be sure to leave a review and add to the TV Tropes page!
Until next time…