-Chapter 165-

The Curse of South Island

Knothole

It was nighttime in Knothole Village, about three days after the Eggman Nega incident. In Sonic's personal shack, Muttski was curled up on his bed, and Sonic had finished cooking up a chili dog with extra cheese as a bedtime snack. He was just about to sit down and eat it when he heard someone knocking on the door.

"Huh?" he let out, standing up. "Kinda late for someone to be up and about."

He went to the door, opening it to find no one there.

"Did I seriously just get ding dong ditched?"

He stepped forward to look around, then heard the sound of paper beneath his sneaker. Sonic lifted up his foot to see a note, marked with an ominous-looking skull. He picked it up, going inside and looking it over

"Okay, not your regular mail. Late night fan-mail, maybe?" He opened the envelope, reading the contents aloud. "Twice be spoken, these written words, to enact Embalma's curse. Rip away the Emerald power, be this isle's final verse."

He blinked before looking out of the door, seeing several similar notes before everyone's houses as an ominous wind blew.

"I've got a bad feeling about this…"

Robotropolis

At Citadel Robotnik, the good doctor was discussing things with the Badnik Horde, Grimer by his side.

"As I'm sure you know, our track record for spreading evil and conquering Mobius is, well…" Robotnik sighed, "How do I put it…"

"Nonexistent?" Orbot offered bluntly. "Pathetic?"

"Heavily reliant on idiots and madmen?" Cubot questioned.

"Disappointing... shall we say," Robotnik decided.

"It's not our fault, Doctor!" Decoe cried. "The hedgehog is to blame!"

"And your own bumbling, but why split hairs?" Robotnik began pacing. "I will not let anything stand in the way of our evil empire, especially not a caffeine-addled spiky blue rat! Sonic must be eliminated!"

"With all due respect, Doctor, need I remind you that Sonic always finds a way to defeat us?" Bocoe offered. "Maybe he's just too good for us."

That just got a wrench thrown at his head.

"SILENCE!" Robotnik screamed. "I don't want to hear excuses! We need to come up with one good plan, or else!"

"Or else what?" Cubot questioned.

"Or else... It's recycling day," Robotnik threatened.

Scratch, Grounder, and Coconuts stepped forward at that, a billboard behind them.

"This had better be good." Robotnik told them.

"Simply put, Your Wickedness, we have devised a foolproof plan to take out Sonic and get our hands on the Chaos Emeralds!" Scratch bragged.

"It's sinister!" Grounder bragged. "It's diabolical!"

"Well, let's hear it then."

That took the wind out of their sails. Coconuts chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's, uh... in code. "

They stepped away to reveal a paper tacked to the board that, to everyone in the room, seemed to be nothing but gibberish.

"Do I even want to know why it's in code?" Robotnik deadpanned.

"So no one could steal it," Scratch replied.

"Then decode it," Robotnik demanded through gritted teeth.

"We... can't," Grounder confessed. "We forgot the code."

Robotnik seethed. "So you can't decipher your own code?!"

"W-we can figure it out, Dr. Robotnik, sir," Scratch stammered. "We just need a little time."

They turned to it, looking it over.

"Let's see…" Coconuts mused. "A could stand for ambush. Could be the first stage of operation."

"It also stands for alligator," Grounder added. "Maybe it was dropping Sonic in a gator pit?"

As they mulled it over, Robotnik slumped in his chair, facepalming.

"Doctor, you know I've always got your back," Grimer began. "But I just need to ask: how do you expect to rule Mobius with these idiots working for you?"

"I've asked myself that question many times, Grimer."

"Hey Uncle!" Eggatha cut in. "We've got mail!"

He turned to see his niece walking in, holding a red envelope.

"I found it on the front balcony," she explained.

Robotnik took it, opening it and looking it over.

"Hmmm…" he mused. "If I had to hazard a guess, this appears to be a magic spell. Some kind of curse. I spent enough time as Julian around Ixis Naugus to know one when I see it."

"Is it dangerous?" Eggatha asked nervously.

"If these words are to be believed, very much so," Robotnik replied. "We'll need to look into this before we do anything else."

"Doctor, we have no actual books on magic and its effects here." Grimer pointed out.

"Then we'll have to get some," Robotnik stroked his mustache in thought. "Perhaps Ebony's cafe in Metropolis. I'm sure she can spare a spellbook or two."

Knothole

The next morning, Sonic called a meeting of all the Freedom Fighters. Each and every one that had been sleeping in Knothole had one of the letters.

"So you got one of these too?" Sonic asked.

"We all did," Sally replied.

"Even I did, and I don't even get mail!" Sticks chimed in.

"The letter mentions something about a curse," Tails remarked. "Think Naugus is involved?"

"Maybe," Sonic answered. "But the curse itself seems to belong to someone named Embalma."

"Cryptic name," Rotor remarked.

"We'll have to ask that Ebony lady what's up, then," Amy decided. "Where's her coffee shop?"

Sally was running a search on Nicole, typing in the words Groovy Train.

"I found a match," she said at last. "The Groovy Train coffee shop in Metropolis."

"I've been there," Hope said, pulling out a Warp Ring. "It's where Uncle Julian's old house and lab is. Or at least used to be."

Metropolis

They quickly warped to Metropolis, where Nicole's map function led them into a district simply called "The Neighborhood," a highly peaceful and progressive section of the city which featured things like train bridges and cozy cafes. It didn't take long for them to find the Groovy Train, a 3170s-style (1) cafe with jazz music playing on a jukebox.

"Yeah... this is definitely a place Mom, Dad, and Uncle Chuck would like," Sonic remarked.

They approached a female sheepdog at the counter.

"Hello," she greeted. "I'm Pyjamas, co-owner of the Groovy Train. How can I help you?"

"We need to talk to Ebony," Sonic told her. "It's important."

"She's up in her apartment, looking for something. I'm sure we can spare a few minutes."

She led them up to an apartment above the cafe. The room was a mess, Ebony frantically searching for something.

"I know it's here," she muttered. "It has to be…"

"What has to be, Ebony?" Pyjamas asked.

Ebony jumped with a yowl, turning to see her.

"Pyjamas?! Can't you see I'm in the middle of a cataclysmic disaster here?!"

Sonic looked around. "Well, you could use a maid service."

"My housekeeping isn't the problem. This is!"

Ebony held up a letter identical to the ones the Knothole group received last night. One by one, the group held up their letters.

"That's why we're here," Sally told her.

"Damn…" Ebony cursed. "This is bad."

Before they could ask why, Ebony dug around a bit more, finding a book titled "Ancient Curses and Legends". She opened it, reading on.

"Legend says that every one hundred years, the ghost of the Ixian bokor (2) and necromancer Ixis Embalma rises from her watery grave to deliver a curse unto the inhabitants of South Island." She snapped the book shut. "You didn't read your copies, did you?"

"Uh…" Sonic chuckled awkwardly, "I read mine."

A dead silence followed as they turned to him.

"What?" Sonic defended. "I didn't know what it was!"

Ebony sighed. "Then that explains it."

She opened a case revealing a Chaos Emerald she had stashed. It was flickering between red and black, seemingly losing power.

"It's losing its power?" Tails asked.

"Yes, because Sonic read the letter. And Embalma's curse is a double curse. If it's read a second time…"

Amy gulped. "The Chaos Emeralds go out?"

Ebony snapped the case shut dramatically. "And we all sink with South Island to the bottom of the ocean, just as Ixis Embalma's ship did one thousand years ago!"

"Yikes…" Sonic let out. "Okay, no reading aloud ancient curses. Got it."

Keith perked, realizing something.

"Guys…" he began, "If we got letters, and Ebony got one as well…"

Chris gasped. "There's a good chance everyone on the island has a copy of the curse!"

"Then we don't have a moment to lose!" Sonic sped off in an instant.

"Sonic has the letters handled," said Sally. "The rest of us need to start evacuating the island right away."

"While you handle those, I'll get in contact with my master Lazaar," Ebony decided. "Hopefully he has some suggestions."

Robotropolis

Meanwhile, at the Citadel, Robotnik was sitting bored, with his head in his hand as Scratch, Grounder, and Coconuts continued decoding their plan.

"So... any further along with your clever plan?"

"We're... making headway, sir," Coconuts replied.

"So far, we've managed to decode 'assault,' 'like lightning,' 'night raid,' 'no prisoners,' and 'running shoe.'" Scratch added.

Robotnik raised an eyebrow. "Running shoe?"

"Uh, now, it might be 'rooster,' but that would change everything we've got so far." Grounder said.

Finally, Robotnik stood up, at his wit's end.

"Just forget it," he snapped. "I want to establish the Robotnik Empire, but not this badly. Not with the half-assed plan of a bunch of dumbbots who can't tell their skidplates from a hole in the ground."

"Then perhaps this will make you feel better."

Robotnik turned, just as a puff of smoke erupted in the center of the room. From it emerged a feminine robot in a purple ninja outfit.

"Ah, the Lady Ninja," he greeted. "I trust your mission was a success?"

The Lady Ninja smirked before depositing the book in Robotnik's hands.

"But what about our plan?" Scratch whined.

Without even looking, Robotnik blasted the coded paper with his laser finger before turning to the book.

"Now, let's see... Embalma…" he perked. "Ah, here we are. This letter contains Ixis Embalma's double curse."

"Double curse?" Grimer repeated.

"An ancient curse made by a witch doctor from Naugus' order. If read twice, all of South Island will sink into the sea."

Already, the gears were turning in Robotnik's head.

"I believe we have a plan."

"You're going to sink the island?" Grimer exclaimed.

"Of course not. The important thing is Sonic thinks I'm going to."

Metropolis

Meanwhile, on her bed, Ebony was meditating, getting in touch with her master. Eventually, her surroundings faded into black, and she found herself faced with an older human man with bushy grey hair and eyebrows, and a long beard that almost reached the ground. He also had a long crooked nose and elf-like ears. For attire, he wore a maroon colored robe and a yellow and green belt around his waist.

"Master Lazaar, I bring dire news," she reported. "Ixis Embalma's double curse threatens South Island."

Lazaar stroked his beard, letting out a worried grimace.

"A mad sorceress, Embalma was. But still, foolish she was not. She had the foresight to create a counter-curse. "

"That's great! Where is it?"

"In your book of spells, it should be."

Ebony's ears drooped.

"I... must have misplaced it. I've turned my apartment upside down three times looking for it."

"Lost, it is not. Taken, it was, by the man with two names."

After a moment, Ebony got it

"Dr. Robotnik stole my spell book? But he's a scientist. What use could he possibly have for it?"

"Be warned. These letters, received them, many have. Both good... and vile."

Ebony perked in realization.

"Then Robotnik got one as well... He must have taken my book to study it, or worse!"

Lazaar nodded.

"I need to tell Sonic and his friends before he triggers the curse!"

-X-

Some time later, Sonic and his friends returned to the Groovy Train. Sonic threw the gathered letters into Ebony's fireplace.

"No more letters, no more curse," he bragged. "We got them all."

"Except one," Ebony cut in.

Sonic slumped. "Don't tell me…"

Ebony nodded.

"Eggman. And that's not all. What I was looking for earlier was my spell book. He stole it last night to study the curse and find out what he was dealing with."

A dead silence followed, only broken by Kat.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," she insisted. "Something doesn't add up. How can Eggman just break into your shop and steal one of your books right out from under your nose? You're magic!"

"I'm an apprentice," Ebony pointed out. "And even magic isn't infallible. We can debate this after we stop him from triggering the curse."

"Where is he now?" Tails asked.

"The old Scrap Brain Zone. I used a locator spell to find him not long before you arrived."

"Let's get moving then," Sonic said. "No time to lose."

Scrap Brain Zone

Robotnik stood patiently with the 6-S, book and letter in hand when Ebony suddenly appeared as an astral projection.

"That book belongs to me." she told him.

"Not anymore," Robotnik scoffed. "Besides, you're just a hologram. What can you even hope to do to me?"

Ebony smirked. "Your mother was a broken down tub of junk with more gentlemen callers than the operator."

There was a collection of gasps, and several oohs and snorts. Robotnik looked so angry, steam practically came out of his ears.

"When disco ruled, then I was queen. But unlike your title and empire, it actually meant something."

Now several members were laughing. Robotnik scowled.

"Now, I've made my point, Robotnik," Ebony said. "Ixis Embalma's curse will sink South Island if it's read twice, and it's already been read once."

"How about a trade?" Robotnik offered. "I won't read it, as long as Sonic and his friends hand over the Chaos Emeralds."

"You fool!" Ebony hissed. "If you read it again, you'll sink with the rest of us!"

Robotnik shrugged, unconcerned. "That's the cost of doing business."

"Well, you're bad at that too! You do that, and you'll kill everyone! including yourself! Besides, the Chaos Emeralds don't work anymore with the curse underway!"

"She's telling the truth!"

They turned to see Sonic and co. running in.

"About time you all showed up," Ebony grumbled. "I can't distract him all day."

Robotnik scowled, raising the letter"

"Twice be spoken, these written words, to enact Embalma's curse."

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Ebony shrieked.

"Give me the Chaos Emeralds or else!" Robotnik snapped before going back to reading. "Rip away the Emerald power, be this isle's final verse."

He blinked, turning it back and forth. "Where's the rest of it?"

"That's all of it, you-!" Ebony snarled.

The Chaos Emeralds across the island flickered on and off, turning black and dead, and they felt a low, ominous quake. Sonic sighed.

"Eggman... you do know that that curse will sink all of South Island and everyone on it, right?"

"Yes, and what of it?" Robotnik questioned.

Sonic's eye twitched. "And where are you standing right this minute?"

Robotnik looked around, cringing and sucking in air through his teeth as it finally sunk in that he'd doomed himself along with the island.

"...I see the problem," he managed.

"Oh, do ya?!" Sonic screamed

Kat laughed mirthlessly.

"Y'know, Eggman," she began, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were an IDIOT!"

Her hair and eyes flared up at the last word.

"Damn it!" Ebony cursed. "Give me my book! I need to find the counter-curse now!"

Robotnik did so without hesitation. Ebony became solid, seemingly teleporting there as she frantically flipped through pages. As she got to the back, she shook her head.

"No... no, no, no! It's not here! My master said it should be here!"

"What do you mean it's not there?!" Sonic shouted.

"Exactly what I said! It's not there!"

She threw the book across the room.

"So now what?!" Sonic demanded.

Amy brandished her hammer. "Spend what time we have left beating the living manshit out of Eggman for dooming us all with his stupidity?"

"The only other place it could be is Ixis Embalma's old hut," Ebony said quickly. "It should be somewhere on the island."

"I'll call in backup." Robotnik began inputting commands into his glove controller.

"Just who are you calling?" Sonic asked.

"Like I said, backup."

-X-

In record time, said backup arrived. Everyone's jaws dropped at the sight of Metal landing, depositing Eggatha on the ground.

"METAL?!" everyone screamed.

"We'll talk about it later," Eggatha insisted. "What's going on?"

Robotnik quickly explained the situation. Eggatha took off her glasses to rub her eyes.

"So let me get this straight. You wanted the Chaos Emeralds so badly that you decided to read an Order of Ixis curse to doom the entire island and everyone on it, including yourself, just to get your hands on them?"

"The plan had holes!" Robotnik defended.

"The holes have holes!" Eggatha snapped. "Seriously, Uncle Ivo! Just how many times do I have to tell you to actually think things through and plan for the long-term before you get the hint?"

"Um, hold on," Knuckles pointed at Metal. "What is that doing in one piece?!"

"Are you really gonna waste time questioning why Metal's here when the entire freaking island is sinking?" Eggatha demanded.

Kat was just frozen in place, shaking as she stared at her former torturer.

"After what he did to Kat, you bet his metal ass I am!" Knuckles snapped.

"Eggatha's right," Sonic cut in. "We need to find that counter-curse. We'll worry about Metal Sonic after we save the island."

Knuckles slumped. "Fine…"

"Now, according to my master's notes, Ixis Embalma set up shop in the Mystic Jungle before she died," Ebony told them. "Her hut, and the counter-curse, is most likely there."

"Then that's our best bet," Sonic decided.

"Hang on, Sonic," Sally cut in. "We need to be more concerned about getting everyone off the island."

"We can't do both at once, Sal! Get everyone off the island or find the counter-curse!"

"Metal and I can do the counter-curse," Eggatha insisted. "We can fly, so it'll be faster, and you can focus on evacuations"

"Not a chance!" Knuckles snapped.

"Knuckles, get over yourself!" Hope cut in. "The island is at stake! We don't have time for this!"

"Hope's right. We have to put our feelings about Metal aside for now

"Sally…" Kat let out, finally finding her words. "It's Metal…"

Sally lost her patience, whirling on everyone.

"Would you rather we sit around bickering and let the island sink and everyone DIE?!"

That ended Kat's argument in an instant, as well as any further debate on letting Metal help.

"Look, Kat can come with us," Eggatha decided. "Aurora knows she won't hesitate to smash Metal if he tries anything."

"I'm coming too." Hope insisted.

Mystic Jungle

With that, they headed off, Hope taking Kat's hand. As they went, Hope whirled on her cousin, letting loose.

"Aggie, have you completely lost your mind?!" she demanded. "After all the horrible things Metal did during the Overlord fiasco, how could you even THINK of bringing him back?!"

"He's not the same anymore," Eggatha insisted. "Look, Hope, it's our fault he spiraled out of control so bad. Uncle Ivo and I made Metal too powerful too quickly. We gave him the equivalent of a super form without the mentality to actually control it."

"That doesn't excuse anything he did!" Hope shouted. "You didn't see what he did to Kat! She died! Shadow barely managed to restart her heart! He would've put Chao through the Chaos Syphon if Kat hadn't offered herself up either! And let's not forget that while he was putting Kat through the Syphon, he recorded her screams and played them to us at the Ocean Palace!"

"Wait, you what?!" Eggatha turned to Metal, who looked down in shame.

"It was to cause Sonic and Knuckles to snap so I could copy their full power bio-data. Agatha, please... I wasn't myself."

Hope just glared at the bot.

"You broke my friend," she hissed as she gripped Kat's hand, who had remained unusually silent this entire time. "You're a monster, Metal Sonic. A demon. And all of Mobius would've been better off if you had just stayed dead."

"Let us save everyone," Metal insisted. "Then we can discuss my execution."

"...Fine." Hope decided.

As they went along, Eggatha sighed.

"Uncle Ivo was against it as well," she confessed. "And I already took precautions. Most of Metal's combat functions have been disabled until he earns them, and I installed a kill switch. If he spirals again, an EMP will fry his circuits for good."

"I'm not pleased with my actions during that crisis either, Hope, and they will not happen again if I can help it," Metal insisted. "I will gladly fight you and yours and even, in fair battle, kill you, but I am no longer a torturer."

"I don't believe you…" Kat muttered.

"I know," Metal admitted. "But whatever drove me to hate you so much has been removed from my memory. Instead, all I feel is remorse."

Kat and Hope blinked, exchanging looks, but they didn't have time to question it before they arrived at what was undoubtedly Ixis Embalma's hut in the heart of the jungle. What was before them was an ominous-looking building shaped like a skull, with several makeshift graves dotting the area around it and a fog on the ground.

"The evil voodoo necromancer lived in a giant skull with her own personal cemetery," Hope muttered. "So much for subtlety."

"Looks like something out of an old video game," Kat mused.

They busted inside, recoiling in shock at the sight of voodoo accessories such as shrunken heads, but quickly pulled together before searching through the hut, tearing through book after book. Eventually, Hope found a secret compartment marked with a pentagram. She tugged at it frantically, but it was stuck solid.

"Kat!" she cried. "I need some muscle!"

Kat came over, smashing through it easily.

"Thanks." Hope reached in and pulled out an old book, flipping through it frantically before perking. "I got it!"

She cleared her throat before reading.

"Twice be spoken the dreaded words, but all is not yet lost. Read aloud this final verse to end this holocaust!"

They paused, looking around.

"Is that it?" Kat asked.

More rumbling sounded, followed by more quakes.

"Guess not," Eggatha remarked.

"But why?!" Hope cried. "We found the book, we read the counter-curse!"

"May I?" Kat took the book. "Oh, I see the problem. It has to be read by the person who activated the curse."

Hope perked. "Then Sonic's the only one who can save the island. He was the one who read his letter first."

They hurried out, Hope activating the com.

"Guys! We found the counter-curse, but it didn't work! Sonic's the only one who can trigger it!"

"Me?" Sonic asked. "Why me?"

"Because you activated Embalma's curse in the first place! Those are the rules!"

"What?!" Sonic let out. "Eggman's the one who triggered the damn curse, not me!"

"No, he merely completed it," Kat clarified. "You read the lines first. You started the chain of events."

"So I'm the only one who can end this," Sonic sighed. "Alright, get to Ebony's place ASAP. I'll meet you there."

Metropolis

By the time they got to the Groovy Train, the rumbles were intensifying. Sonic practically busted the door off its hinges as he ran toward Hope.

"Quick!" he shouted. "Gimme the book!"

He quickly snatched the book up, taking a deep breath before reciting the spell calmly.

"Twice be spoken the dreaded words, but all is not yet lost. Read aloud this final verse to end this holocaust."

As he spoke, the tremors slowly ceased. Ebony opened her Chaos Emerald case, seeing color and power returning to the gem within as everyone sighed in relief.

"Yahoo!" Tails cheered, forming two V-signs with both hands. "Sonic the Hedgehog saves the day!"

Sonic snapped the book shut. "Like there was ever any doubt."

When they headed out, they saw no sign of Robotnik, Eggatha, or Metal.

"Of course," Sonic sighed. "The doc and his pals gave us the slip while we were focusing on the book."

"Damn…" Knuckles cursed.

"Are we even surprised?" Sally asked.

Scattered murmurs of "no" and "not really" were her response.

"Eh, we'll get 'em some other time. For now, crisis averted." Sonic checked his watch. "Next episode of Sonic Man should be starting soon. I believe we've earned some TV time."

With that, they headed home to watch their show.

Author's Note:

(1): Mobius' equivalent to the 1970s.

(2): Voodoo practitioner.

Yeah, this was meant to pull off some more worldbuilding, dip into the supernatural side of the street. Ixis Embalma is my OC, whereas Lazaar is from SatAM and rhe Lady Ninja is from SatAM. The basis of this chapter is taken from an episode of the old Donkey Kong Country CGI cartoon episode "The Curse of Kongo Bongo," with some of the plot of Sonic Chaos mixed in.

Voice cast for this chapter:

* Lady Ninja - Kathleen Delaney (Rouge in Sonic X, Kanna Bismarch in Shaman King)

* Lazaar - Tom Kane (Yoda in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Mr. Herriman from Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends)

Please R&R. Until next time!