-Chapter 167-
The Rise of Enerjak, Part 2
All of Mobius was in an uproar as reports of Enerjak played on all screens.
"In recent hours, an entity calling himself Enerjak has made himself known by decimating an entire GUN platoon by himself," Scarlet reported. "Sightings have been reported near the Mystic Ruins, where he appears to be searching for something. All citizens in and around that area are urged to evacuate immediately."
In an undisclosed location, where a stately manor existed, a large, lone Mobian observed the report, fingers lacing together.
"Enerjak…" he mused. "So, you've finally returned."
Station Square
At the Thorndyke Mansion, the Freedom Fighters were working on getting the Sky Patrol up and running, loading up the Master Emerald for good measure. While they did this, Sonic and Shadow had run off to collect the Chaos Emeralds. Some, however, were skeptical of their chances.
"Did you see what he did to the GUN fleet?" Mina let out frantically. "One guy did that. One!"
"We know, Mina," Shorty replied. "We all saw it."
"Not the first god we faced," Bunnie added.
"That was an entire freakin' army!" Sticks chimed in. "The Sky Patrol's just one ship! We're toast!"
"Boy, you really suck at raising morale, don't you?" Johnny said dryly.
"Do not dismiss Miss Badger so quickly, my boy," a new voice cut in. "She's not wrong."
They all perked, turning to see a large, brown-furred Mobian mammoth with dark green eyes. He was donned in a white double-breasted suit and black tie with black shoes. Several of his fingers were adorned with rings, and he carried a cane.
"Who the hell are you?" Rotor demanded.
"I have many names," the mammoth replied. "But you can call me Mammoth Mogul."
Sticks let out a feral hiss, eyes gleaming with wild fury.
"So uncivilized," Mogul said flatly. "I thought Jebediah raised you better, Sophia."
"The name is Sticks!" Sticks snapped.
"Of course it is," Mogul remarked. "I warned your father about letting you indulge in your wild tendencies. When was the last time you took a bath?"
Sticks went to pounce on him, but was quickly intercepted by Kat. The badger was snarling and clawing the air, practically foaming at the mouth.
Locke approached him, eyes narrowed.
"Mogul…" he repeated. "As in Ixis Mogul, founder and leader of the Order of Ixis?"
Mogul smirked. "You've done your homework."
"That can't be," Antoine insisted. "He'd have to be a few hundred years old."
"Ten thousand, actually," Mogul corrected. "And it can be. Allow me to show you."
As they watched, Mogul undid his tie, unbuttoning his shirt and pulling it open to reveal a Chaos Emerald embedded in the dead center of his chest.
"What the hell?!" Bunnie exclaimed.
Amy covered Cream's eyes as Mogul buttoned up his shirt, redoing his tie as he spoke.
"The day the Chaos Emeralds came to this world was the day I was changed forever. One struck me in the chest, but rather than kill me, it became one with my flesh. Unpleasant... but not entirely without benefit."
"Why are you here?" Sally asked. "And how did you even find us?"
"I followed the trail of Chaos Energy, looking for its biggest source," Mogul explained. "I figured there, I'd find something, or someone, working to try and stop Enerjak. And indeed I did."
"So you wanna help stop Enerjak?" Porker questioned.
"I do. Consider this: I wield Chaos power myself, and have had them for centuries. I have experience, and the money and power attained through using those powers. Without me, you will fail, and Mobius will fall before Enerjak's might."
"And what exactly do you want in return?" Locke questioned. "Working with those of the Order of Ixis always comes with a price. For all we know, you seek Enerjak's power for yourself."
"Does it matter?" Mogul questioned. "Unless you truly want you and your son to be the last of the echidnas, you'll let me help."
"You don't mean…" Tekno let out.
"I do," Mogul nodded. "As we speak, Enerjak is in the Mystic Ruins, scouring them for the remainder of your race."
"No!" Kat screamed. "I can't lose another home! Not again!"
Keith pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back as she wept.
"You won't," Knuckles assured, turning to Mogul. "What would you have us do?"
"For starters, I suggest sending the Princess to collect her family heirloom," Mogul said. "I believe you saw it when you battled another of my order."
"The Sword of Acorns…" Chris realized. "But what can it do?"
"Dad used to say it could amplify Chaos and other arcane energies, and act as a superconductor." Sally recalled.
"Precisely," Mogul confirmed. "The sword can drain such energy from others as well. Through the sword, we can take Enerjak's power away, leaving him vulnerable."
"If we use it, Princess Sally will wield it," Locke insisted firmly. "Not you."
While irked, Mogul was clever enough to hide it.
"Very well. If that is your decision."
"I'll go talk to my father," Sally decided, holding out a Warp Ring.
"Make it quick," Knuckles ordered. "Sonic and Shadow should be back any minute."
Mystic Ruins
As he flew around the ruins, a shadow fell over Enerjak's head. He looked up to see the approaching Egg Fleet.
"So more foolish mortals think they can challenge me with their toys?" he questioned.
"Listen and listen good, Enerjak!" Robotnik announced with a loudspeaker. "Mobius is not your planet to conquer! It belongs to me, Dr. Ivo Robotnik! By the time I'm done with you, there won't be enough left to fill a petri dish!"
"So, you're the Dr. Robotnik who managed to enslave my descendant," Enerjak mused. "Let's see if you're truly as powerful as you were made out to be."
"You asked for it! All ships, fire full arsenal!"
Every ship in the fleet took aim at Enerjak, launching a barrage of missiles. He raised a hand.
"STOP!" he bellowed.
The missiles all stopped short of hitting him, before he flicked his wrist. "Return."
Robotnik, Eggatha, and Grimer watched in dumbfounded shock as the missiles were sent back to their sources, blowing the Egg Fleet ships out of the sky. Grimer cleared his throat nervously.
"Doctor... I think it's time we got to the bunker."
"I… I…" Robotnik nodded. "Yes. Good idea."
He scooped up Eggatha in one arm, Grimer in the other, and took off. Lien-Da followed them, but Robotnik blocked her path.
"Sorry, Lien-Da," he told her. "Only enough room for three."
He gave her a solid kick to the gut, then disappeared.
"Bastard!" Lien-Da wheezed as she lay back on the ground.
-X-
As this went on, Team Chaotix was hard at work rounding up all the Echidnas in the jungle, grouping them near the shrine in the heart of the ruins. Charmy and Saffron buzzed around.
"Miss Lara!" Charmy called. "Where are you?"
"Over here!"
Lara was helping some of the older echidnas near the back of the crowd. Charmy and Saffron went to help her do so as Enerjak began the search anew. As one hobbled forward on a walker, and the evil demigod drew nearer, Saffron panicked and grabbed him by the back of the collar, lifting him up as they went.
"Hurry up, old man!" she cried. "You gotta go faster!"
"Be careful, Saffron!" Lara cried out.
From above, Enerjak witnessed the members of Chaotix aiding the Echidna, and how readily Lara-Le addressed them. They felt the pulse of power and rage from where they were standing, and looked to see him hovering overhead.
"Sweet merciful Aurora, he found us!" Espio shouted.
"Alright people, move it, move it!" Vector commanded as he grabbed more than a few Echidnas, rushing them into the temple.
"How dare they allow those lesser beings to touch them and address them so callously!" Enerjak snapped. "The corruption of my people is even deeper than I thought."
As Ray and Mighty rushed to help Vector, Enerjak swooped down only to be intercepted by Julie-Su, proton gun in hand.
"So you insist on helping the lesser beings," he sneered. "Disgraceful."
"The days of Echidna superiority are over, old man!" Julie-Su told him. "Time for you to get a reality check!"
She took aim, firing multiple shots. Enerjak casually deflected each one with his bare hands before the gun was suddenly yanked out of her hands, levitating over to him.
"How disappointing," he remarked as he destroyed the gun. "If the human military and Dr. Robotnik were powerless against me with their entire armies, what do you expect to do with a simple pea-shooter?"
"Nothing really," she admitted, "I was just stalling for the real protector to show up.
That's when a familiar, watery roar echoed through the ruins. A watery arm lashed out through the trees, whipping at Enerjak as their owner emerged.
"Chaos," Enerjak mused. "I spared the Chao on Azure Lake just to keep you off my tail!"
Chaos just gurgled in response, glaring at him.
"I was hoping I wouldn't have to deal with the likes of you. But on the positive side, I've found the one being on this planet who can actually give me a challenge."
Chaos roared and charged at Enerjak, who gladly did the same. This gave the Echidna the time they needed to fully escape. They hunkered down in the temple as the two clashed.
"Sonic better have found the Emeralds by now," Ray remarked nervously. "If Chaos goes down, we're sunk!"
"Easy there, Ray," Mighty soothed. "We'll get through this. Sonic and the others will come through. I know they will."
Station Square
Meanwhile, at the Thorndyke Mansion, Sonic and Shadow returned, carrying the Chaos Emeralds. They approached the others, only to stop short at the sight of Mogul.
"Who's this guy?" Sonic questioned.
Knuckles quickly explained as Sally returned herself, the Sword of Acorns sheathed on her back.
"Are we sure we can trust this guy?" Shadow asked.
"We don't have a choice," Locke replied. "It's either that, or Enerjak destroys all we know."
"Enerjak is in the Mystic Ruins," Hope reported. "And judging by the readings, Chaos is there fighting him."
"Ah yes," Mogul mused. "It only makes sense one of my creations could stand a chance against him."
There was a beat of silence.
"Hold on, back up," Knuckles said. "Did you just say... you created Chaos?"
"He is one of the Ixis Masterworks, seven entities forged and given life by the Chaos Force and Ixian Magic," Mogul explained. "In Chaos' case, he was birthed from a Chao I raised in a makeshift garden brimming with Power Gems and Chaos energy."
"You experimented on a Chao?!" Cream exclaimed.
"No, I merely raised it in a high concentration of Chaos energy," Mogul replied. "I'm a sociopath, not a monster."
"Personally, I don't really see the difference," Keith spat.
"Are you certain you're Laura Kent's son?" Mogul questioned. "In any event, once it was completed, he made his way to the future site of Angel Island, where he became attached to the Chao living there. I left him to his own devices."
"Fascinating," Shadow deadpanned. "Now, we have an evil demigod Echidna to take down, so can we get a move on?"
Mogul looked Shadow up and down, as if assessing him. He said nothing though, and everyone boarded the Sky Patrol. As they flew along, Sonic discussed the plan.
"Okay, here's the plan," he said. "Me and Shadow go super and take on Enerjak. If all else fails, Sally using the Sword of Acorns to drain his powers is Plan B."
"We may need more than just you two going Super," Knuckles pointed out.
"I'm in," Tails decided.
"I'll help as best I can," Kat decided. "The Echidna are my people too."
"And if the sword doesn't work?" Shard offered.
The group was stumped at that.
"Well…" Nicole began nervously, "from there, I suppose we put our heads between our knees and-"
"Kiss our bums goodbye!" Omochao concluded.
"Let's... just cross that bridge if and when we get to it." Sonic decided.
As they flew along, Chris looked down, seeing flashes of power near the shrine.
"I've got them!"
Mystic Ruins
On the ground, Chaos and Enerjak were knocking the trees, parts of the ruins, and each other all over the place.
"Ah, finally!" Enerjak cheered. "It's been too long since I've been properly challenged!"
Chaos roared and lashed out, attempting to drown Enerjak in his watery body. Enerjak burst out with a wave of force, slamming Chaos into a tree. As he approached the prone Chao god, he formed a Chaos Spear.
"Perhaps in your higher forms, you could have defeated me," he mused. "A good fight, Chaos. But this outcome was inevitable."
"HEY!"
Enerjak paused, turning to see the Sky Patrol flying overhead. Standing on the loading bay were Sonic, Shadow, Knuckles, Tails, and Kat.
"You're done, Enerjak!" Knuckles declared.
"This is our world, Dimitri!" Sonic shouted. "And you're gonna take it from us over our dead bodies!"
Enerjak scoffed, then before their eyes, he began to expand, growing to a massive size as he stared down the Sky Patrol.
"That can be arranged." he said before swinging his fist, connecting solidly with the ship and sending it spinning out of control.
"Mayday! Mayday!" Shard screamed. "We're going down!"
"Stabilize us!" Nicole shrieked. "Stabilize us!"
"You cannot hope to best the phenomenal cosmic power of Enerjak!" the demigod boasted. "To try is a death sentence!"
The Sky Patrol went down hard. Everyone was shaken up.
"Ugh…" Sonic groaned. "Anybody get the license plate on that giant echidna?"
They looked up, just in time to see a large foot coming down. Suddenly a watery dome formed over them, trying to stop the foot. A small arch opened, as if to offer them an escape.
"C'mon!" Tails cried. "Everyone out!"
Everyone began rushing out of the arch, Knuckles carrying the Master Emerald as he did.
"Shadow, you better have those Emeralds!" Sonic cried.
"Right here!" Shadow assured.
Once the last person was out, the dome faded, allowing Enerjak to crush the Sky Patrol. Sonic, Shadow, and Tails quickly began focusing on powering up as he loomed over them.
"Little fools…" he scoffed. "Did you truly think you could challenge the most powerful being on Mobius?"
Knuckles and Kat joined in on the power up, Super forms brightening up the dismal landscape.
"Most powerful being?" Sonic scoffed. "Says the guy who was buried alive by a bunch of bugs for four hundred years!"
All six of them rose up, dripping with power as Enerjak shrunk down, glaring at them.
"But this time, we won't settle for burying you," Knuckles swore. "We're gonna end you!"
"You will try, but you won't succeed," Enerjak charged at them. "I am all-powerful! I am invincible!"
He threw a punch, only for Shadow to easily dodge and ram his kneecap into Enerjak's belly, knocking the wind out of him.
"You also telegraph your blows a light year ahead of their coming." the black hedgehog remarked.
"See, that's the problem, Dimitri," Tails added. "You were a scientist first and a warrior never. You may be powerful, but the five of us have more fighting experience, and have seen more action in a week than you have in your entire life."
"And that's why you're gonna fall!" Kat declared.
Enerjak sent out a wave of power. Sonic, Shadow, and Knuckles avoided it easily, but Tails and Kat were too slow.
"You may have experienced battle, but you are novices in the ways of Chaos!" he declared.
He turned his attention to the remaining trio, only for Knuckles to uppercut him and send him back.
"All that power and I'm still surprised at what a glass jaw you have!" he taunted.
"Pathetic," Enerjak scoffed.
He backhanded Knuckles hard, sending him into the crushed remains of the Sky Patrol.
"You may be both strong and skilled as you claim, but your Super forms will only last so long. My power is infinite. It's only a matter of time."
"You'll make a mistake and lose long before that happens, Enerjerk!" Sonic shot back.
Sonic charged at Enerjak, Shadow coming in from the other side. Enerjak rolled his eyes and ducked, the two hedgehogs smashing hard into one another. They reeled back, rubbing their heads as Enerjak laughed.
"Skilled or not, you're still foolish children," he scoffed.
He then felt a tap on his shoulder. Enerjak turned, getting a face full of spiked fist.
"You talk too much," Knuckles spat.
"Yeah!" Sonic added. "If you're going to beat someone, beat them. Don't just stand there talking about it."
Kat, who had recovered from the hit she took, went over to Tails, who had reverted back to normal.
"Tails is down!" she called up. "I think he's unconscious!"
Enerjak snorted. "The fox boy should learn to practice what he preaches. Seems I'm not the only one who prioritized brain over brawn."
Kat snarled, flaring up again as she stood protectively over Tails.
"And you, girl, are little more than a beast," Enerjak went on. "Fighting with no control, no rationale. Just pure, raw power. I may not be much of a physical fighter, but at least I know how to wield the Chaos Force properly."
Kat lashed out, attempting to claw at him. He took a blow to the face, then grabbed her by her throat.
"Pathetic, insignificant pest," he spat.
"Hey!" Sonic shouted. "Pick on someone your own size!"
He charged in, landing a solid kick that knocked Enerjak away. Kat dropped to the ground, coughing and rubbing her throat. Knuckles came over, making sure she was okay before turning to Enerjak in rage.
"Nobody hurts my friend!" he shouted.
He reeled back before punching Enerjak in the face, the blow landing with such force that it produced an explosion on impact and sent him flying through multiple trees.
"Whoa…" Sonic let out. "I am so glad you never used that on me when we were fighting."
"It wasn't enough," Shadow pointed. "Look!"
Enerjak burst from a pile of trees, glowing bright green in rage.
"You merely delay the inevitable!" he roared. "THIS IS MY WORLD! MY WORLD!"
"Damn it, he's not going down!" Sonic let out.
"Worse than that, the Emeralds are wearing off," Knuckles added. "I can feel it."
Recalling what Hope said about his Inhibitor Rings, Shadow steeled himself. He raised his wrists, popping them open and dropping them to the ground. Almost immediately, the power surged, his body gaining a reddish-yellow hue and a flaming red and yellow energy aura.
"Shadow, no!" Hope screamed.
"Intriguing," Enerjak mused. "Your power has doubled. Just what are you?"
"The hedgehog that's going to kick your ass!"
Shadow charged, pummeling him and knocking him around. As the Emerald power began to fade, Shadow grabbed Enerjak by the throat, slamming him into a wall as his aura flared.
"Chaos… BLAST!"
From Shadow's body came a massive explosion of Chaos Energy, engulfing both himself and Enerjak and consuming several acres of the jungle. When the dust settled, both Enerjak and a depowered Shadow were left in a large crater. Enerjak's armor was cracked and his mask split down the middle, half falling away to reveal the enraged face of Dimitri.
"Oh, come on…" Sonic cursed. "Invincible son of a bitch…"
Enerjak grabbed Shadow, tossing him out of the crater. Hope rushed to his side, trying to get his rings back on.
"Princess, I'd get that sword ready," Mogul warned.
"Enough of this!" Enerjak shouted. "You are, all of you, beneath me! I am a god, you dull mortal swine, and I will not allow myself to be bullied by the likes of you any longer!"
He began to grow again. Sonic and Knuckles were unable to dodge a stomp that plowed him into the ground. As they watched, Enerjak grew to an astronomical size, at least as tall as Mobius' diameter, before opening his mouth and screaming a massive beam of Chaos energy that blew the two deep into a crater. When the smoke cleared, Sonic and Knuckles had powered down, battered, bruised, and barely conscious as Enerjak floated above them, back to normal size.
"Now do you see?" he called out. "I am power made flesh. I am the world. Worship me. Give praise unto me. Me, the beautiful, the sublime...Me, the invincible, the almighty and divine... All hail Enerjak!"
"Not in this lifetime!" Sally shouted.
She stepped forward, the Sword of Acorns glowing in her hands. Enerjak blinked at the sight of it.
"That power…" he mused, "The Source of All... So after all these years, the Acorn family is still dependent on it."
"Not quite," Sally shot back. "Both me and my brother rejected the Source. We write our own destinies! Starting with erasing you!"
She charged, slashing at him with the sword. As she fought him, Sonic struggled to pull himself up. Amy came over, helping him as Kat did the same to Knuckles. Shadow was out, Hope just holding him and shaking with terror.
"Damn it…" Sonic grunted, his entire body screaming in pain.
"Don't try and talk," Amy insisted.
"What are we gonna do?" Kat asked.
"Have faith in Sally," Keith decided.
"Misplaced faith," Mogul chimed in. "The little fool… I thought she was connected to the Source. Without it or actual mystic ability, Princess Sally won't be able to truly harness the sword's power."
As if to prove his point, Sally was sent crashing to the ground, the Sword spinning out of her hands and embedding itself in a nearby stone.
"Had you not rejected the Source, you could have succeeded," Enerjak remarked. "Write your own destiny, Princess? Allow me to do it for you."
He began to levitate her, preparing his power.
"I'm going to literally take you apart, molecule by molecule. Enjoy life as a neuron!"
"No!" Sonic screamed. "STOP!"
He shoved Amy away, but didn't make it two steps before collapsing. Just as they felt the weight of despair crushing them, a glow from the Master Emerald nearby caught their attention. Knuckles looked at it, an idea forming.
"Kat…" he began, "get me over to the Master Emerald."
Desperate for even a fraction of an idea, Kat didn't argue, dragging him over to it. Knuckles placed both hands on the gem, focusing with all his might.
"The servers are the seven Chaos," he recited. "Chaos is power, power enriched by the heart. The controller serves to unify the Chaos."
The Master Emerald glowed brilliantly, distracting Enerjak from finishing Sally off as Knuckles turned his head to the heavens.
"Only you can save us now!" he pleaded. "Please, give me the strength I need to save this world!"
Power began flowing into Knuckles like a tidal wave, his red fur turning a brilliant green. Mist began rolling off of him, making him almost appear like he was pure energy itself.
"What the…" Chris let out.
He picked up Tails' Miles Electric, trying to figure out what was going on. The second he turned it on, it overloaded and exploded.
"Those energy readings are off the charts…" Keith gasped. "It's... it's like he's become a living Chaos Emerald!"
"Knuckles...?" Kat let out.
"No," Knuckles' eyes opened, revealing they were the same color green as his fur. "Chaos Knuckles."
He turned to Enerjak. "You… you die now."
He blinked out of existence, then was suddenly right in Enerjak's face, punching him hard in the gut. They watched in awe as Knuckles brutally pummeled Enerjak, destroying his helmet completely and slamming him around. Before long, the demigod had been beaten into submission, laying on the ground.
"No… NO!" Enerjak shrieked, punching the ground. "This isn't how it was supposed to end! I was supposed to have my revenge! I was supposed to rule over Mobius! This was supposed to be my destiny!"
Knuckles yanked him up by the collar.
"You don't deserve the power you have, Dimitri," He placed a hand on his face. "So I'm going to take it."
Enerjak screamed as his power was literally pulled from his body. His armor crumbled to dust, falling to the ground and revealing nothing more than a frail, old Echidna. Age began catching up to him as the glow surrounding Knuckles seemed to get brighter. An ecstatic grin spread across his face as he looked at his hands.
"This strength…" he let out. "This unimaginable STRENGTH! I feel incredible! If I had known that invoking the Master Emerald like that could result in this kind of power, I would have done it years ago! I am INVINCIBLE! No one can stop me now!"
He laughed, a manic tone to it, which was only cut off when he saw the others looking at him in shock and fear, Kat most of all. He looked at them all, seeing everyone just frozen as they stared. He turned to Kat, reaching for her and she yelped, staggering back and falling.
"Stay back!" she screamed.
Knuckles recoiled as Kat crawled backward on all fours. He looked between himself and the wizened Dimitri, then at his hands before clenching them in resolution. He floated up, glowing before throwing out his arms.
"Chaos Control!"
A wave of green energy spread across Mobius, repairing the jungle and the Sky Patrol, healing everyone's wounds, and reverting everything Enerjak did previously. When it was over, his fur returned to its usual red color and he dropped from the sky. Seeing him normal again, Kat recovered and quickly rushed to catch him. Both of them ended up in the dirt as he groaned, opening his eyes.
"Knux…?" Kat let out. "Are you…?"
"I'll live," Knuckles assured. "Sorry to freak you out like that."
Kat sighed in relief, pulling him into a hug. "Don't ever do that again."
As the group watched, Mogul turned to depart. Locke intercepted him, arms crossed.
"Your little scheme didn't work," the older echidna remarked. "Enerjak's power is lost to you."
"When one door closes, another one opens, Locke," Mogul replied calmly. "There will be other opportunities for me to act. I am immortal, after all. I have all the time in the world."
With that, he left, Locke watching him go. Once he vanished from sight, he turned towards where Knuckles and Kat were embracing, walking over.
"Are you alright, son?" he asked.
"I've been better," Knuckles answered. "But we won, so there's that."
The others approached at that.
"Just... what was that form?" Hope asked. "Even when Sonic tapped into the Master Emerald, he just went super. Does being a Guardian offer special privileges or something?"
"No…" Knuckles shook his head. "That was different. It didn't come from the Master Emerald. More like... it just unlocked something inside me, and opened the floodgates to more power than I could have ever imagined."
"It did," Locke sighed. "Son… we need to talk."
As they flew back to Angel Island on the Sky Patrol, Locke began the tale.
"It all began shortly before you were born. In my sleep, I received a prophetic nightmare from the Ancient Walkers, depicting you defending the world from an incredible foe. So persistent were the visions that I sought out the advice of my grandfather Athair, who confirmed it was a vision of the future and that you would only survive if he were made into a superior Guardian to those who had come before. He said to reconcile the past with the present into the next generation. I became my own guinea pig, using long forbidden technologies, including biological enhancements, hoping to make myself this superior Guardian and spare you the burden. While it failed, when Lara-Le conceived, the result was more than just the sum total of our combined genetic structure. Once she laid your egg, I took it to the shrine and subjected it to Chaos energy exposure directly from the Master Emerald. With much anticipation, we waited until you hatched... and I knew from the moment I saw you my efforts had succeeded."
"How so?" Knuckles asked.
Locke displayed his glove, revealing spikes on it identical to Knuckles' own. He removed it, revealing said spikes were only attached to the glove. Knuckles slowly did the same, allowing everyone on the ship to see that unlike his father, he had natural red spikes on his bare hands.
"Hang on…" Sonic perked. "Your spikes are natural?"
"Yeah," Knuckles confirmed. "All this time, I thought it was commonplace... but it's not."
"No, it's not," Locke confirmed. "It is the result of your egg bathing in the Master Emerald's radiation. And it was only the beginning. Your increased strength and intelligence were more signs of the process' success. You are no ordinary Guardian, my son. You are a living Chaos Emerald, your power rivaling even that of the Master Emerald itself."
A moment of silence followed, before Sonic turned to Locke.
"So... let me get this straight. You had a bad dream, and because of that, you decided to turn your own son into a genetic mutant freak?"
"I'm sitting right here," Knuckles said, annoyed.
"Sorry, but you get the point," Sonic replied. "Say, why didn't you just stuff him in a microwave while you were at it?"
"I know now I made a mistake," Locke looked down, sighing. "The power I forced upon my own child… and he would have lost himself to it if not for Kathryn."
He looked them in the eyes.
"I don't blame you for being angry with me, Knuckles. But just know what I did was done with the best intentions."
"We get that," Sally replied. "But some of the worst things imaginable have been done with the best intentions. The road to Hell is paved with them."
"I don't agree with what Locke did," Shadow chimed in. "But if it wasn't for that, Enerjak would have won and we would all be dead."
"Even so, I never want to touch that power again," Knuckles insisted. "It's way too much for one person. It was that kind of power that turned Dimitri into Enerjak. And if we're not careful... I could become his next avatar."
"Not a chance," Kat said firmly.
"We won't let that happen, Knux," Sonic assured. "Enerjak is never going to come back."
"Indeed not," Locke agreed. "Now that Knuckles has unlocked the power, it will require extended training to control."
"Whatever it takes, I'll do it," Knuckles told him.
"I'll join you," Kat decided. "Enerjak was right when he compared me to a beast. I have no control of my own power, and with how unstable my mind is, that's dangerous."
"We'll have to double down on your Chaos training, Kathryn," Locke told her. "Are you sure you're ready for it?"
"I am," Kat nodded.
With that settled, Sally looked out the window in thought, Sonic joining her.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Sonic asked.
Sally turned to him. "Even with his power gone, Dimitri is still alive. Was it really a good idea to leave him behind?"
Sonic scoffed.
"Sal, without Enerjak's power, he's a four hundred-year-old hag. Ten to one says he croaked the minute we left him in the ruins. What's there to worry about?"
Mystic Ruins
Some time later, Dimitri was still laying on the ground where the Freedom Fighters left him. He was about to close his eyes and accept his fate when he heard footsteps, looking to see Lien-Da and several Legionnaires approaching. Beside them floated Robotnik's Egg Drone.
"We've found him, Doctor," she reported. "But refresh my memory. What use could we possibly have for my great-grandfather as he is now?"
"That's my business and mine alone," Robotnik replied. "Now bring him, and be careful. He's quite fragile now. Do whatever it takes to keep him alive."
Lien-Da gathered up Dimitri in her arms.
"Seems we will be serving Robotnik together, Dimitri," she mused. "Death will not come easily."
She carried him away slowly. Despite his situation, Dimitri managed a small smile, realizing perhaps his ambitions would see the light of day after all.
Author's Note:
And there we have it. The Enerjak arc is complete. But Dimitri isn't out yet.
We also got to introduce Mammoth Mogul, from Archie. He'll show up again later on.
Next chapter begins a repeatedly requested arc: a Shadow the Hedgehog adaptation!
Voice cast for this chapter:
* Mogul - Phil Morris (Vandal Savage from Justice League, Morgan Michaels from Spider-Man PS4, Doc Saturday from The Secret Saturdays)
Please R&R. Until next time!