Zero: Absolution
Chapter 3: A Different Future
From one moment to the next, Blaze the Cat and Silver the hedgehog were back in their own time period: a couple centuries in the future. After having gone back to not only change the past but spend some time there with their newfound friends, they had no idea what would await them now that they were returning to their own time...
But nothing could have prepared them for this.
It was a dark and foggy night. Any view of the sky had been blocked by dark, thick clouds. They felt the bottom of their shoes tap against cold, flat metal. An odd stench of rust and copper hit their noses. The tingling sensations of dust in the air made Silver sneeze.
"What happened here?!" Silver's eyes widened in shock. He couldn't see much in the dark, but he could already tell that things had changed for the worse: had this whole place been leveled flat and lined with metal flooring?
"Hold on," Blaze extended her hand out, and a lively flame burst from it. Now with some light, they could see that the metal floor beneath them only extended outwards some before cutting off, but nothing but a desert wasteland was left behind it.
"I don't understand. Did our actions change nothing?" She asked in confusion. Silver's eyebrows furrowed.
"No. This is different...but it's still wrong." He said before turning and flying back the other way.
"Silver! Wait!" Blaze shouted after him, but he was already gone.
Silver flew over the metal flooring towards a tall metallic border wall that stood where his favorite quiet spot in Green Hill Zone used to be; that is, if they were even standing in the same place, which he honestly couldn't be sure of.
Silver reached the wall and flew upwards towards the top of it. As he did, two large turret guns popped out and aimed downwards at him. Silver maneuvered sideways in a spiral motion to avoid getting hit by the laser cannons. He circled back towards the top and ripped both turret guns out with his telekinesis, angrily throwing them down to the floor.
He took a moment to catch his breath before standing up straight and turning around. What his eyes took in was exactly what he was fearing the most:
The beautiful cliffs, loops, and waterfalls of Green Hill Zone had all been completely torn down and replaced with an unrecognizable, gigantic, mechanized city covered in harsh, unwelcoming artificial lights. The skyscrapers were littered with robots that seemed to be cleaning the sides of the buildings.
Every building and every robot that he could see had the same symbol on it: that of a black diamond.
"No no no, what?!" Silver's anger faded away, replaced by dread and sadness. He was asking the same question that Blaze had asked just moments ago: had everything they'd done been for nothing? This new future was just as unsightly as the one they had come from...
But instead of everything being on fire, it was all covered in metal.
"Silver!" Blaze called out to him, using her fire powers to shoot herself into the air and landing on the wall next to him. She quickly went to him, but as soon as she laid her hands on him, she looked up and saw what he had seen.
"Look at this, Blaze...this isn't what we fought for. I don't even know what I'm looking at. Where are we?" He asked, shaking his head hopelessly. Blaze's eyebrows furrowed. She took in a deep breath before looking down at Silver.
"Let's go find out. We need to get to the bottom of this before we do anything else." She said. Silver swallowed and nodded in agreement before looking back up at her.
"Yeah, you're right. Let's go," He stood up and took a moment to compose himself. "I've got some questions that need answers."
Blaze and Silver jumped down the other side of the wall and hurriedly made their way towards the mysterious metal city. When they arrived, they cautiously walked the city blocks, looking around for any signs of life. They found that people were actually living in these skyscrapers, but no one would come outside.
"It's like they're all afraid of being seen out here." Silver commented.
"Perhaps we should be too." Blaze responded.
"Attention, citizens," Suddenly, 5 robots popped out of a hatch door in the street. They weren't the large, clunky Eggman robots they were used to dealing with. They were smaller and shaped like echidnas.
"You have been spotted out and about past the curfew. Present your identification." The robots demanded in a low, distorted but booming voice.
"More robots. I think I'm starting to figure out what's going on here." Silver said, clenching his fist and glancing sideways at Blaze.
"Present your identification or you will be taken into custody." The robots demanded again.
"Guess they don't remember us."
"Silver..." Blaze gave him a warning look.
"Maybe this will jog your memory!" Silver shouted before extending his hands out, pushing all the robots back and sending them flying. They all tumbled across the street before getting back up.
"Hostile identified. Stand down or you will be fired upon." The robots warned, guns popping out of their arms.
Blaze stepped forward and shot fire out of her palms, engulfing the robots in fire. They started shooting through the fire at them. Silver extended a hand out, creating a shield to stop the bullets. He then gripped the robots with his powers and crushed them against the floor.
"You need to get your emotions in check before you push yourself too far." Blaze warned him.
"I've only got one emotion right now, and I'm managing it just fine." Silver said through gritted teeth.
Silver clenched his fist, but then his attention was diverted by movement in a nearby alley. He immediately flew over, where he found a group of young teenagers running away and climbing into an open window, "Hey!" He called to them, flying up to the window.
"Whoa! What the?! Are you flying?!" One of them exclaimed when he saw Silver's face right in the window.
"Quit talking to him! We'll get in trouble!" Another guy scolded the first. He tried to close the window on Silver, but Silver stopped it with his hand.
"Uh uh. I need to know what's going on here. Where's Eggman Nega?" He questioned. The teens all looked at each other in confusion.
"Who?"
"Eggman's not in charge here?"
"Praxis is in charge...always has been." A girl answered while staring at him suspiciously.
"Praxis...in charge of what? The city?"
"The world."
Silver's eyes furrowed in confusion then widened in surprise. He had so many questions: What had happened to cause this? Who was Praxis? How had he assumed power? What had become of Sonic and his friends?
"I...where do I find him?" Silver asked.
"No one finds Praxis. No one's ever seen Praxis. No one's ever seen you either...are you Project Shadow?" One of the guys asked him.
"Am I what?"
"We're not supposed to say that name, dude!" One of his friends scolded him.
"You saw what he did to those robots out there too, didn't you?" He argued.
"Guys, please. What did you say I was?" Silver asked, redirecting the conversation back.
"Project Shadow – it's an old legend. Some kind of ultimate weapon...they say it was a living thing with extraordinary powers." He explained.
"Oh...I'm not Shadow, but I knew him," Silver answered. "You all should go back home now that it's safe." He said.
"Yeah! Come on, guys. Thank you!" A girl in the group said appreciatively before they all ran off. As Silver watched them go, Blaze walked up behind him.
"This is perplexing. It seems that at some point after our departure, a new threat emerged." Blaze thought aloud.
"We need to find Shadow. He can tell us what happened." Silver said.
"Shadow? It's been so many years. How can he be alive?" Blaze asked.
"Shadow doesn't age...but how do we find him?"
"Through careful search and a little luck." Blaze said with a sigh.
"If that's all we got... There's something else. Apparently some guy named Praxis is in charge here. They say he's in charge of the whole world." He added.
"Praxis...that name really doesn't sound familiar at all."
"Yeah, doesn't ring a bell for me either." He shook his head.
"Hopefully Shadow can tell us about that too. Let's go before more of those robots show up." Blaze said...