#but at the beginning Sonic would be called by Tails for one thing while None tries to tell his theories

[000marie198]

Hypothetically speaking, if Sonic does manage to keep Tails, Nine, Sails and Mangey alive, do you think Nine will get jealous when Sonic hangs out with Tails, Sails or Mangey?

The better question would be, how much will he get jealous compared to the other three?

Ever been an eldest cousin or sibling stuck amongst excited little ones with each of them grabbing your attention to show you something and you keep getting pulled into all directions? That's Sonic

All little brothers would be pettily jealous of each other when they want Sonic's attention

[chicohungers24-7]

Some parallels between Spinel and Nine (in no particular order)

(forgive me I haven't seen the movie in a while)

1. Have a less jaded version of themself that they believe the protagonist prefers

Mostly self explanatory. Spinel outright states that she thinks Steven prefers the older her that's "innocent, loving," and "stupid." We know this isn't the case because Steven is repeatedly shown to be uncomfortable around her because he's focused on fixing his friends and preventing the planet earth from. Dying. (I'm not condemning Steven here. This entire plot point spawns from the misunderstanding)

With Sonic and Nine, it's a bit more complicated. Sonic repeatedly calls Nine "Tails" (or "Tails Nine" to Thorn Rose) but also tells Shadow that Nine is real and is offended on his belief when Shadow says that none of the shattered versions are real. But Nine doesn't see Sonic come to his defense and only sees the slip ups. So when he finally sees the ghost hill version of Tails, with his one repeat line that reeks of endless optimism, Nine rejects any similarities they may have.

2. Idolize the protagonist

Steven is kind of set up from the start with him being Spinel's diamond. After he uses the rejuvenator on her, she is programmed to put him on a pedestal. Spinel is only Pink Diamond's plaything, after all. But after Drift Away and Found, the present Spinel falsely believes that Steven is the person that will help her recover from her abandonment when Steven was speaking generally that someone will help her.

While it takes some time for Nine to warm up to Sonic, all it took was Sonic being the first person to kind towards Nine for him to become loyal to Sonic (it also helps that Sonic used his "last words" in S1E2 to address Nine). He pretends to be bitter when coming back to Sonic leads to him being captured by the Chaos Council, but he still expresses his support for Sonic, Insisting that anything the council throws at him will not be enough. Nine risks it all to play prisoner and watch as most of the shards end up in the council's hands just so he has the chance to create the perfect world for him and Sonic and it's not until the very last second that he realizes that Sonic's goal and priority is not the Grim. It's getting back to Tails (and the others!)

3. The protagonist breaks this view and it leads to conflict

This actually is the point that made me think of making a whole post out of this. "Well what now? I did what you wanted, that's it?" vs "What did you think would happen to me when you brought your friends back?"

They both have to fix something for the heroes. For Spinel, it's removing the injector and for Nine it's putting the shards back together. But once that is done, they realize that they don't have the same goal in mind as the hero.

I find it interesting that Steven wants to go back to his happy ending and that ending does not include Spinel, which is what causes her to spiral. This contrasts Sonic's hope that he can bring back Green Hill as well as keep being friends with Nine, but Nine is the one the says that can't happen. They can't have Green Hill and the Grim at the same time.

4. World Ending Giant Crystal Tower

Okay the Citadel technically isn't the thing ending the world like how the injector is (not to mention Nine isn't ending the world he's ending the multiverse), but it is the center piece of the entire idea.

They both use their towers to stand above the hero(es) and the fighting that takes place on the top are the most important. It's where Spinel has her final breakdown and where Nine becomes his most murderous.

Most notably between the two, is that damaging the tower is when the deescalation of the conflict begins. Spinel destroys the injector during her breakdown and they break through Nine's Citadel to get into his lab, where he realizes just how far he's pushed everything.

5. They just wanted to be friends

Not a lot of words for this one. Spinel says it herself and while Nine doesn't have to say it, we already know it's true. He wanted Sonic to be in the Grim with him.

Thanks for coming to my tedtalk

[hadesknockedupintheunderworld]

Sonine Prime ... Part 2

Hi, everyone and welcome back to Sonine Prime! The part of the show when I come out and talk about Sonine (and a bit of Sontails) in Sonic Prime!

I unfortunately had to end part 1 a bit prematurely due to tumblr's video limit, so we didn't get very far into it. Right now we're about halfway into Sonic Prime Season 1 Episode 1, and (as promised) we're going to start part 2 tackling the scene that begins with Sonic and Nine's first meeting, and ends with them recounting Tails' and Nine's backstories.

So, without further ado, let's begin

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<< Part 1 | Part 3 >>

(Essay/thoughts/analysis under the cut)

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As I said in part 1, there is a lot going on here, and a lot to tackle.

We'll start with Sonic's side.

Now, it's important to mention that at this time, Sonic just believes Nine to be Tails who lost his memories/doesn't remember him. So most of this scene is Sonic calling Nine "Tails" and trying to appeal to him by talking about old times. While this will initially tell us more about how he feels about Tails than it does Nine (once again interesting that Tails specifically gets this focus as the best bud, a focus on "making things okay again" that is only later matched by Sonic's treatment of Thorn when he also believes that Amy is deep down inside her, because he initially believes them both to be a friend who has just forgot Sonic and themselves. Tails and Amy parallels in relation to Sonic: IIII), this is the basis upon which Sonic will build his relationship with Nine on, even though he will later consider Nine as a separate different person in relation to Tails.

Now, this scene is meant to call back to the flashback scene from earlier. Sonic punches in the code to Tails' lab and hopes it still works ("Tails you crafty fox"???🧐), and just as with Tails in the flashback, Sonic turns Nine's chair to make him face him.

"Tails, it's me!"

From Sonic's pov here, he can’t understand why Nine is fighting him or really what's happening. "Tails" was the nickname that Tails' bullies used when they were picking on him, but after meeting Sonic he was able to reclaim that nickname for himself. So to Sonic, he can’t understand why saying this name continues to make Nine angry and insist that his name is something else, just as he's put off that "Tails" would attack him and act like he doesn't know him.

He also spends a good chuck of the fight looking very hurt

"Tails, stop! We're buds, amigos...best friends!"

...

"Snap out of it, we go way back!"

...

"All my best memories of Green Hill have you in 'em. And you're not punching me!"

...

"Don't you wanna go home? Blue skies? Sunny beaches? Palm trees?"

And after spending most of the fight defending himself and dodging in favor of trying to appeal to who he thinks is Tails, trying to summon up memories of them being best friends, Sonic throws himself into the path of the other train to save Nine from getting hit.

"I've been trying to tell you that we are friends."

"Fabricated stories won't keep me from beating you back, intruder."

"Stop, just. Stop... We're friends—best friends. This has to ring a bell?"

Sonic just can't wrap his head around it—a world in which his best friend doesn't remember him, calls their times together "fabricated stories", fights him no matter how he tries to explain that they’re friends. None of this makes sense to him, and so he tries to explain how they met, because surely then "Tails" will remember him, right?

"From the moment we first met..." (interesting choice of words, considering what often follows this is the impression the character saying it got from the other or how they have always felt about the other)

But "Tails" only expresses surprise in how much Sonic knows, despite the fact that Nine has never met him before now, and explains a different, much darker version of Tails' backstory

One that doesn't include Sonic.

And again Sonic is having his hard time wrapping his head around this. That "Tails" is here, and yet doesn't "remember" him. That this "Tails" seems to have a similar backstory, but never met him. "Tails...but not. Here, but...gone?"

But he doesn't get too long to examine this before Nine asks "So, what else did we do?"

And this pretty much immediately perks Sonic up after he gets a look at Nine's face, like he really is curious what he could be missing.

And then of course that face comes back

And...it makes Sonic so visually happy and excited to talk about the Tornado, mention how they've gone on so many adventures and busted Eggman so many times...

"Look. We've had our share of ups and downs, but when we stick together? We never lose. And when all's said and done, there's no better reward than sharing a chili dog with your best pal. And that's just the tip of the iceberg! We've got a lifetime of adventures and memories together."

Even though Sonic doesn't yet consider Nine his own person, this entire scene is incredibly telling as to who Tails is to him (best friend, partner, amigo, forever companion), and sets up a basis for his relationship to Nine.

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Now for Nine's side. For him, the bulk of the fight is him being aggressive and reacting due to his trauma. "Tails" was the name he was called as he was bullied and assaulted for years, and a name he came to associate with said traumatic experiences. The name he claimed for himself, symbolic of how he saved himself with his own power, is "Nine". Thus, when this strange hedgehog intrudes in his lab, interrupts his work, and calls him "Tails", boy does that set him off.

"Who sent you?!"

He's afraid and angry. Who else could this stranger be but one of those bullies or someone else to just call him a freak, intruding in his space.

And then the strange hedgehog calls them best friends? Continues to call him "Tails" despite Nine's clear aversion, and yet is trying to appeal to him emotionally?

But then the hedgehog puts himself in danger to save him. And that's really strange.

Because no one has friends here, right? Why would anyone save him? No one cares about anyone else, no one would just save someone at the expense of their own life, this hedgehog acts like he knows him and yet doesn't seem to know anything about him.

"Fabricated stories won't keep me from beating you back, intruder."

That's what it has to be, right? Maybe it's connected to why the hedgehog broke into his base. He saved him only because he needed him, right?

But the hedgehog makes it clear he never wanted a fight, the two rest on safe ground in the scareport. And then he tells another story to appeal to him.

The story of a two tailed fox who was picked on for being different, who was saved by Sonic, the very hedgehog before him.

And although that story is not quite right, the resemblance surprises Nine, catching his interest. Even if his past didn't happen that way, how could Sonic get those details (him being himself, getting picked on by jerks for having an extra Tail) right without Nine having never met him before? The way Nine reacts even implies his story is highly personal, and one he'd never told anyone.

And perhaps he feels a bit jealous, then.

Because this "Tails" that Sonic keeps talking about? He had someone there for him, someone who protected him when he was being bullied and picked on. But Nine? He took a beating for years. No one showed up to protect him, much less save him. He learned that he was alone, learned that these selfless people who would protect the weak don't exist, and so he finally saved himself.

Is that the kind of person Sonic is—the kind of person who would save a victim who's hurting, someone he'd never met, even if it doesn't benefit him? Just like how Sonic had saved him from being hit by that train?

"You weren't there"

And so what if Nine lets himself pretend for a moment that what Sonic is saying is true? What does it feel like to be Sonic's best friend, that person he'd stuck his neck out for and saved back then, someone who goes on adventures and kicks butt with him, who shares a meal with him, someone with whom they're both happy?

The way he begins to smile as Sonic talks about his times with Tails.

"But when we stick together, we never lose"

The way he frowns (touch adverse as he is) when Sonic puts a hand on his shoulder, but relaxes into it and gives this stranger a smile, and the way he perks up with the cutest, even bigger smile when Sonic pokes his heart.

"And when all's said and done? There's no better reward than sharing a chili dog with your best pal"

And then...Nine frowns again when Sonic says "best pal".

Because no matter how great that idea of home sounds, to Nine, none of that happened. None of this is really about him, no matter what Sonic says.

But, this is the beginning of the end for Nine. In just five in show minutes, he goes from trying to get answers out of Sonic, killing him, beating him back, to becoming interested in his "fabricated stories" and willing to help him with his little problem. He invites him into his lab this time and helps distribute the energy coming from him evenly on his body, even though he complains: "The only thing I hate more than people in my space is whiners."

Or the entire next scene. Sonic calls him amazing for his creation of the extra metal tails (which doesn't end up hitting Nine as intented), corrects himself after calling Nine "Tails" on accident, and then Sonic just speeds off, only for Nine to say "No– Wait, you dope! It's not safe!" and run after him.

While this is during an early period of the show where you can easily argue that Nine only cares about what he could use Sonic for and his current interest in the energy he exhibits, it still says a lot that he actually begins to show care in another person's wellbeing. And it also tells us a lot about Sonic that he'd transitioned from calling him "Tails" to "Nine" so quickly, even if he has to correct himself.

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Now, as we move on to Nine and Sonic's capture by the Chaos Council, this brief scene of them outside before their capture also shows us once more just how quickly Sonic is jumping to "normalcy", starting with getting "Tails" back as his adventuring buddy. Although he wasn't incredibly concerned before, he brushes off Nine's concerns about the Chaos Council, instead acting like everything will be fine ("Wanna run up the walls?"). And we can see that Sonic still believes Nine is just Tails, absent his memories of Sonic and their friends.

"When you get your memory back, you'll remember that 'low profile' isn't my thing"

Nine: I told you to keep a low profile!

Sonic: No you didn't.

Nine: Yes I did.

Sonic: You didn't.

Nine: Yes I did.

Sonic: Nooo, you didn't.

Nine: Are you sure we were "best friends".

Ahjsjsj well. Nine says that, but he'll come to realize that he likes Sonic even when he finds him frustrating or annoying (just like Tails and, frankly, his other friends do😂). He already has been helping Sonic out and allowing him to be in his space, even if he doesn't understand Sonic.

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And as I have hit the tumblr post picture limit, that's it for part 2! For part 3, we'll be beginning with Sonic and Nine's confinement in The Chaos Council's base, and perhaps I'll finally get to move on to Episode 2😂

[pico-digital-studios]

Into, Across and Beyond! Cast: Superstars Amy

Origin: Sonic Superstars Replaces: Anna-May Parker / Spiderling

"It doesn't matter what challenges they try to slow me down with, for I'm ready to give it my all to save any dimension! You can count on me to do it right!"

Another iteration of Amy Rose herself, this time from a familiar voyage to the North Star Islands. Though of course, it stretches quite past that.

Her tale begins just as you'd expect; while enjoying time over at Green Hill Zone, she caught sight of Sonic and Tails flying by in the Tornado after Fang the Hunter, and knew this was the call for another adventure. She followed them straight to Bridge Island, where she discovered the usual heinous plan on Robotnik's part to enslave the island's critters.

Things went just as you'd expect for the first couple of zones, with Fang and Trip trying to interfere with the team's actions while they sent ol' Eggy up and packing each time. However, when they got to Sky Temple Zone, the team had to split up to cover more ground in the huge area, which soon led to Amy getting pulled into a portal generated by Hellsin.

She found herself in an altered version of Hill Top Zone, where Hellsin attempted to kill her using the lava within the mountain, alongside his own attempts to make her fall. However, thanks to a unique ring she found, she could neutralise him long enough to make her first escape.

As it happened, she wasn't alone in having been pulled into this world. She was also joined by five other girls; the Sonic X counterpart of Cream, Sally Acorn from Sonic SatAM, Tiara's Sonic X-Treme self, the Honey the Cat native to the universe, and OMT!Mina. All six of them had the common goal of getting back to their home universes and stopping Hellsin to ensure he couldn't continue his reign of terror.

(X!Cream sprite by FroggyMudd, SAT!Sally sprite by E-122-Psi, XT!Tiara sprite by AkumaTh, and DΩ!Honey sprite by Xeric)

However, when they reached the depths of Hidden Palace Zone, Hellsin caught them by surprise and warped them all to differing realms he had summoned, each with their own themes that they had to escape from.

X!Cream wound up in a sub-universe known as Asymmetry Acres Zone, a land based on all the crazy memes that are abound in the Sonic community. Compared to the other girls, she got it off easiest.

SAT!Sally found herself in Deception Depths Zone, a world reflecting some of the more classic Sonic creepypastas outside of Sonic.exe. With some of the cases, like Cyber City and A Frozen Trap, she found herself sympathising for the victims of those troubles.

DΩ!Honey uncovered Fearful Folly Zone, a land with iterations of the more classic Sonic.exe entities that she had to survive.

OMT!Mina ended up in the Crazy Creations Zone, with numerous YouTube-based Sonic works showing up in those lands. Some goofy, like the Hues of Metal or Scamic, and some an absolute mess, like Secret History Tails.

XT!Tiara fell into Analog Abyss Zone, also known as the world where Sonath resided. It took her wits and a little help from a replica of James (the victim of Lost Cartridge's first season) to escape.

And finally, SS!Amy was in Terror Towers Zone, based on the more recent Sonic creepypastas and horrorbrews from the New 20s; examples including Fatal Error (who's still so big a threat that a mass protection system is keeping him out of Sonic worlds until there's a definitive way to stop him), Eclipse and a new iteration of 2017 X.

Of course, one of her encounters before she escaped would change a lot later on. Whilst traversing through a parallel Hidden Palace Zone, she encountered an alternate Sonic standing on one of the crystals, who soon revealed himself to be none other than Crimtake before smashing through the crystal into the tube below.

SS!Amy pursued the killer hedgehog, knowing she had to fight off at least one of those freaks before her escape was available. She eventually cornered Crimtake in an altered Wing Fortress Zone, and the two engaged in direct combat. Needless to say, she lasted MUCH longer than the Amy who perished to Crimtake beforehand did.

Eventually, Crimtake was forced to retreat, making a leap out of the airship to continue his killing spree off-screen whilst Amy left. And after the six girls banded together to overpower Hellsin and restore the world he tarnished, they all returned home safely.

That said, the whole multiverse crossover did set off Lost Memory Sonic's ire, since it now left opportunities open for foes from different universes to end up in the wrong universe, and he felt angry at having to be part of cleaning up the mess before, in his words, "time and space collapsed".

Once Amy returned home, she arrived at Lagoon City Zone, which was full of giant fruits to get past with her hammer. She even retrieved a small apple from her entry, holding onto it for a little later on if she needed it.

During her trek through, she found Trip sobbing alone in the tunnels, having fallen into one of her own traps just a few minutes prior. Amy was really quick to sympathise with her and offered to carry her back out. Once they were out, Amy shared her apple with Trip, fully accenting that this was just the beginning of a beautiful friendship! Trip even cleared a special route for Amy to take where the rest of Team Sonic couldn't access.

Once Team Sonic got to Golden Capital, Fang decided to steal all of the Chaos Emeralds for his uses, but was soon cornered by the team and Trip, who had finally had enough of his constant abuse. Once Fang's mech fell, Amy and Trip well and truly accented themselves as besties, and Trip could now call herself a member of Team Sonic, though she was shy on the first introduction.

With that, the five heroes worked together to continue after Robotnik and take down his space station, and a few hours after, they banded together to take on the Dark Dragon, who awoke of its own volition, and seal it inside a special gem found in Bridge Island, well and truly saving the day.

Over the next few days, Trip's feelings began to grow for her new friends. She was most comfortable around Amy and Tails, and felt hilariously embarrassed by her universe's Mighty giving her lots of gifts and flirting with her. Amy was most happy to help guide Trip on a potential love life while they remained simply friends for now.

Some time later were the events of Into the Sonic-verse, when Trip ended up being pulled from the Superstars universe. This worried Amy immensely, which made her more relieved once she came back safe and sound, thanks to the efforts of the Blur Gang and a few Sonics from other worlds.

After sorting out Robotnik again in Press Factory, everyone had to flee before Dr. Finitevus erased the Superstars universe outright. Fortunately, they escaped safely, though Amy was deeply saddened at losing the home she loved. Fortunately, her friends were there to comfort her, and she made sure it was personal for Finitevus during the final encounter.

Once Finitevus was defeated, and the other villains gave themselves up (save for Scourge, who needed another pummelling), Superstars Team Sonic were welcome to stay in Dimension EV-2019, and both Amy and Trip were especially happy to have this as a new home for them both. They were essentially a non-timeline-damaging version of the classic cast. Errorverse Eggman must've had a headache from having another version of himself present all the time, though. XD

Trip felt very comfortable around her new Blur Gang friends and decided to stick around with them as the eighteenth member, whilst SS!Amy applied to be a member of the Quill Society to gain some new friends. She enjoyed hanging out with other Amys, and felt comfortable in the company of Milly, though her relationship with LM!Sonic was rough from the get-go, especially since him insulting Trip just earned him her frustrated scoffing and refusal to associate with him.

When Crimtake's threat returned in Many More Heroes, after the Chimera Virus broke loose from containment in Nega's base's destruction and corrupted a Powerless counterpart of Fleetway Sonic, LM!Amy and OMT!Mina were both dispatched to go after him and aim to capture him the second his power wore down. Whilst OMT!Mina spent some time with OMT!Tails, SS!Amy surprise-ambushed Crimtake, but just couldn't stop him from building his mini-energiser and increasing his strength.

The two continued their pursuit after Crimtake, arriving at Dimension BK-2009 while OMT!Tails secretly followed behind, knowing the hedgehog still had beef with him. They did their best to stop Crimtake, with a little help from BK!Amy and Pana Der Hejhog, but just couldn't stop his power boost in time, his energy levels now off the scales. While he escaped, the five worked together with BK!Sonic to help keep the surrounding area safe and avert what would've been BK!Amy's canon event.

Once they got back to Gust Planet, they began their tour of the place, which included a small visit to Sector 16; the prison area, where villains being prepared for a trip back to their dimensions were temporarily being held. Pana and SS!Amy had worked together to catch Speedy, being one of the interdimensional Emerl threats, who apparently tripped, if Speedy's comment is anything to go by.

After the tour, and OMT!Tails and Barry working together to rat out LM!Sonic, SS!Amy met them at the meeting hall in Sector 3, where LM!Sonic was forced to reveal the reality of his canon event theory, AND the fact that OMT!Cream was scheduled to die at Crimtake's hands in the next 12 hours. SS!Amy was one of the first to jump on the call to stop this from happening, and accompanied OMT!Tails the whole way to the Transport Hub while evading LM!Sonic's insane fury.

Once they made it through, they got to where Crimtake currently was; Dimension ZONE-ANTI-1994, or Moebius, where OMT!Tails had been prior. The two took some time to breathe after the kid was under a lot of stress, and hugged it out to show they had each other's support. Alicia Acorn and Anti-Miles were on the scene as well, and both agreed to help stop Crimtake, the former out of sympathy for Tails's losses, and the latter reluctantly.

Once they got to the depths of the tower that Crimtake was at, OMT!Tails and SS!Amy began their combined assault to stop the now-very powerful monster before he could escape again. And here, the Anti-counterparts of Sally and Tails sealed the chamber to stop Crimtake from slipping out, meaning he HAD to take them on.

In this final encounter, Crimtake's fatal flaw came through; his belief that everybody was predictable. When he dared Tails to take the Chaos Emerald from the podium, he didn't expect him to refuse, as he had sworn an oath to NEVER use a Chaos Emerald to his advantage again. And Crimtake's bigger mistake was taunting SS!Amy about Trip, which got him a full-on battering from the business end of her hammer, which happened to be enough to burn out all that excess power.

Unfortunately, Crimtake was NOT planning to come quietly.

He started overclocking his body as a self-destructive approach to finish the two young heroes once and for all, and while they survived, the attacks were enough to send OMT!Tails flying to Dimension BL-2017, whilst SS!Amy watched as Crimtake's body dissolved into nothing, his threat gone for good.

She returned back to Gust Planet where LM!Sonic was apprehended and banned from ever coming back to the Quill Society, and mentioned about what happened to EV!Sonic, alongside Trip, SS!Tails and SS!Mighty. You gotta hear what she said about Crimtake's fate, though:

SS!Amy: Sir, I did not murder Crimtake for insulting Trip like that. I simply healed him, but in reverse. UvU SS!Mighty (baffled): Amy, that's NOT helping! It's making Trip even more scared! SS!Amy (annoyed at Mighty): Well, what other way am I to explain it?! Trip (simply trying to defuse the argument while smiling sheepishly): Er, guys... SS!Mighty: Healing in reverse is basically saying you've got rid of his energy source! Trip (smiling): Erm... How about we have pancakes? SS!Amy (smiling too): Oh, sure! SS!Mighty: Hmph, fine. But make them strawberry-flavoured, because it really fits your pretty face~. ;) (Trip hides her face with her helmet in embarrassment) SS!Tails (snarking): Wow, what a real charmer you are there, Mighty. SS!Mighty: Save the sarcasm for later kid, I'm starving like a very hungry caterpillar. Trip: Don't worry, I'm on it! SS!Mighty: Make it snappy! I'm dying to bite into something sweet! Unless I'd like to do that with those precious lips of yours~. SS!Tails: (faceplams, finding that really corny) Oh, brother...

Afterwards, Trip made it a promise to help the Blur Gang track down OMT!Tails and bring him back to Gust Planet for safety, which SS!Amy was happy about. She also giggled when hearing about the side bet Mini Sonic and Mr. Needlemouse made during that time. Once OMT!Tails returned in Cosmic Discoveries, she learned about the early signs of him catching some of Crimtake's DNA and got him quickly cured to keep him from being corrupted like Powerless Sonic was.

Once that was sorted, they got a picnic sorted out in the gardens in Sector 24, where OMT!Tails and Blitz!Tails introduced Skye and Melody to the team and SS!Amy. SS!Amy was happy to meet them both, while SS!Tails was surprised at the thought of a version of himself being a dad. The last act I can recall SS!Amy doing for now is lending OMT!Tails one of her spare hammers to help him out against LM!Sonic in the finale, and the two have gone their separate ways for the time being.

[sonicasura]

You got no idea Sonic. And at least in this au this fact won't be forgotten as easy as there are plenty of incidents that will remind everyone of this for years to come.

And while this is going on, they are still going through a lot of files thye have stolen from the organization. And one of these files as a list of the newest targets to be 'picked up' in a few years. Which ends up in Keiji, Gen, Eiji and several platoon leaders having to physcially restrain and hold down a now very enraged Isao who found out Kikoru's name is on that list.

So is the rest of every canon Third Division rookie as well for that matter. Things would have gone bad for the kids if it had not been for the fact the organization fate is sealed when No 9 gets to know of them.

But over to our suffering himbo hm? The second and third month is when the special tests, tasks and even the beginning of Kafka's training starts. It all strats slow though as none is willing to hurry up on this. They want accurate info and don't want to have to do this more times than necessary as none want Kafka to have an episode from the stress and whatnot.

It is also here where they finally begin to see Kafka's older self showing up more. Slowly becoming the lovely goof we know he his. His manchild behavior will also start to show as well once the fourth or fifth month comes by. And despite his vocal cords still being damaged somewhat by this point, Kafka will try to communicate more with Mina at first, then with Soshiro and Okonogi as well.

They also learn by the second month that it is best for those who are scientists, doctors and whoever else wear similare grabs of lab coats, scrubs and what else to wear something more casual when near Kafka. And learns to hide their instruments and equipment in bags and such when Kafka start to allow them taking blood samples and stuff instead of Mina doing it. Granted, none of them dare doing any of that without the woman being present. And any of the more daring ones gets little chance in trying as such.

Speaking of the swordman and the operation leader, both Soshiro and Okonogi has quite the experiance when it comes to Kafka. The Kafka they are seeing now and the one Mina will tell them about late into the night, is so vastly different it gives the two whip lash.

However, they come to like Kafka. Both of who he was before and even the one he currently is. Despite all that has happened to him, some of his old self remain and he still has his way in charming into peoples hearts without issue. As well as still being Soshiro's favorite target to tease at. Though in this au, Soshiro is a lot more conscious and careful in how to do that.

He also the one who ends up training Kafka on how to properly control his kaijus strangth, combatability, the seven tail blades and much more. Though he and Mina has to call the captain and vice-captain in for some help in this matter.

First thing first though. By the half-way mark of the third month its finally time for some brain scans and boy due they show clear sign of various forms of brain damaged that Kafka has suffered. Luckyly it seems to be finally healing. But it is still bad enough experts are called in to make sure theres the equimpent and data is not messing with them. And ends up with them somehow managing to find someone who is willing to become Kafka's therapist to help him properly heal.

Isao would go scorch earth if something like that happened to Kikoru. Although this might have made him how much of a dick he's been to her ever since Hikari died. The fact she's a target alone means they are more aware about Kikoru's schedule and life than he is, enough to make her vulnerable.

Kafka would give someone whiplash by comparing his past/present behaviors. It is a good sign though that he is mentally recovering. Nobody still wants to poke the kaiju in fear of a relapse or episode. This is a very very delicate situation. Even moreso with the brain damage now being known knowledge.

I can only imagine the therapy sessions with him being so awkward.

[skaruresonic]

The thing about multiverses is that the streams inherently have to cross. The intersecting dimensions/worlds/isekai/whatever must overlap at some point.

And, well. Modern Sonic has met his Classic self, which makes sense since both iterations originate from the games, but not his X self. Or his OVA self. Or his Boom self. Or his IDW self. Or his Archie self. Or his SatAM self. Or his Underground self. Or his AoSTH self. Or his Dash and Spin self. Or his films self. Or...

You can't really call if it a multiverse if it doesn't perform the function a multiverse is designed for, right? Like, if this is supposed to be some grand cross-media multiverse, then it absolutely sucks at being one. None of Sonic's offshoot media have made it into the games with very few and very scattered possible exceptions, and those exceptions are so negligible that you'd have to squint to count them.

It's been going on three decades and still no Sally in the games. It's been 11 years since X was last broadcast, and Tails seems to be doing just fine without having mentioned Cosmo even once. You'd think if these canons were so integral to the games like people say, the games would mention them once in a while, but this deafening tide of radio silence very much begs to differ.

In addition, I have to say I think Iizuka's idea to unify the canons, whatever that means, is at best misguided (though understandable, given how adamant fans are that the games be anything except themselves) and at worst will wreck the games canon.

The games are not as inconsistent as people make them out to be. Half the time, this sense of inconsistency arises from folks' expectations that the games to abide by offshoot canon, even though the games have never agreed to that to begin with. (The other half coming from illiteracy and the refusal to see the games' lore as worth proper analysis.) Forcing square pegs into round holes will only stunt what is actually there and break what wasn't broken.

There's also a lot to be said about not writing to appease an audience that refuses to meet you halfway. You see the popularity lies with offshoot media because they're Not The Games and therefore Automatically Better(tm), but will it really matter in ten years when they inevitably move onto something else?

Ultimately, it's a good thing that none of these media are canon to the games. The games are the only canon that have a solid grip on its characters. (Note I'm not saying they're perfect; just more structurally sound.) If you have to contort them to fit some other mold, you'll just cause unnecessary confusion.

[midnightshard06]

Flufftober Day 28

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50489362/chapters/129336673

Summary: Super's found out that he sort of enjoys physical touch, at least from some people. Now if only he actually knew how to ask for it.

Pairing: None

Warnings: None

Word Count: ~850 words

AN: Set in my Chaos Uncontrolled AU (also this was finished yesterday I just was unable to post it here yesterday)

@flufftober

Super was slowly starting to come to the realization that he sort of liked physical touch. Not from a lot of people, but from a few he trusted. Maybe that small list would expand over time, but he wasn’t in any sort of rush. He still wasn’t really sure why. Maybe it didn’t matter why. 

Tails was the one he enjoyed some sort of physical affection from the most though. Even before he’d struck a deal with Sonic and Tails he’d felt sort of… pulled to the fox? More at ease at least. At first he’d blamed it on some sort of influence from Sonic but he’d learned that while Sonic did have some sway over his own personality, he was very much his own person and there was plenty that was different about him. Whatever the case may be, Tails had quickly become his favorite person. Not that he’d admit that out loud, but Super was pretty sure Tails and Sonic were already well aware.

Of course this newfound realization came with its own set of complications. He had no idea how to really express when he was ok with someone hugging him or something. He was still worried about initiating anything himself because he was worried about hurting someone. Despite his training with Shadow going well he was still worried about accidentally hurting someone. It still felt like the core of his person was that angry creature that wanted nothing more than to hurt and destroy. With Tails it was different though.

Somehow Tails had managed to calm him down multiple times when he was out of control. Through his words, but more importantly some sort of physical contact like a hug. It somehow never failed to calm Super down, or at least snap him out of whatever was going on so he could get himself back under control. Maybe it was because he really didn’t want to hurt Tails. He didn’t want to hurt any of the people he called friends, some more tentatively than others, but even in the beginning he’d been hesitant to do anything to the fox.

Sure he’d gone after Tails during their first meeting but he never actually laid a hand on him. He might have had Knuckles not stepped in, but Super could have easily caught Tails before the echidna stepped in. After that? Well he hadn’t even tried to go after Tails; his attention focused more on people like Shadow. Maybe some sort of influence from Sonic really was to blame for that, but Super found he didn’t mind even if that was the case. It put him slightly more at ease knowing that there was someone else who could reliably pull him back from the brink.

One night he decided to try something. Sonic encouraged him enough to actually get him to try, but thankfully quieted down as Super tried to nonchalantly approach the couch Tails was sitting on. It was the weekly movie night that Sonic and Tails tried to keep up. Of course sometimes things got in the way, but they were fairly consistent. Super had always just kept himself back seated for these nights, watching through Sonic’s eyes. Tonight though, tonight he was trying something different.

Super awkwardly set down the popcorn he’d had Sonic prepare before sitting down stiffly. Of course he tried to make the action look far more natural, and maybe it did with the dimmer lighting. If Tails noticed he didn’t say anything, just smiling at Super. “So… why the sudden switch up? I’m pretty Sure Sonic was the one who went into the kitchen to make popcorn.”

“Yeaaah.” Super flicked an ear. “I just wanted to try out this whole movie night thing from a different perspective?” 

Tails chuckled. “Are you asking that?” Super just huffed and looked away. “It’s ok if you want to try things Super. I was just asking.” Tails scooted a bit closer and pat his arm.

Super relaxed a bit at the touch and did his best to settle in for the movie. Sonic helped calm him down further by keeping a running commentary on the movie. While normally he might be annoyed by the constant talking, right now it actually helped keep him focused on the movie. He became so focused in fact that he nearly jumped when he felt Tails settle into his side.

Once Super realized what was happening he felt himself relax entirely. As usual the fox had succeeded in calming him down without a single word. Admittedly Super had wanted this but still. It was more of a struggle to focus on the movie now but he didn't really care. All he cared about was the fox currently snuggled into his side. 

Slowly he reached up a hand and placed it on Tails' head. When Tails showed no negative reaction to the move, Super began to carefully run his claws through Tails' fur. Super smiled to himself as the fox leaned into the touch. Yeah this was nice. Hopefully he could actually figure out how to ask to do this more often. For now though? Now he'd just enjoy the moment.

[the-era-of-shadow]

The Musings of Doctor Ellidy

Written by Ash Rose & Rai Rose (@theshootingraistar) Cover Art by Ash Rose

THIS STORY CONTAINS: Swearing, themes of government conspiracy, descriptions of body horror, implied off screen character death, mentions of vomit

Author's Note: Well, have you heard of it? I bet you have~ ;]

“It's kinda crazy how much things can change just a year after repairing the entire world…” Sally Acorn quietly lamented to herself staring out one of the Sky Patrol’s many windows - looking upon a world that was once again in immense turmoil.

The sight reminded her of a time two years past in the worst of ways. In the last days of September 2007 going into October, Sally and the rest of the Freedom Fighters had been working on infiltrating the Robotnik Empire, trying to find answers to Doctor Ivo Robotnik’s plans, the only pieces they knew was that he was once again building a spacecraft and that Sonic, Tails, Amy and Cream had mysteriously gone M.I.A at the beginning of the month - something that Sally was certain at the time that Robotnik had something to do with. 

But just as the four of them turned back up, Doctor Robotnik’s plan revealed itself to them right then and there in an event that would go down in history as the “Shattered World Crisis”.

Between finding the Chaos Emeralds, locating the Gaia Temples, and all the incidents in between that came about as the Freedom Fighters raced to fix things, it had taken them a year and a month to get the world back together.

After such a scenario, part of Sally had expected to get to have a break of sorts from the responsibilities of heroism. But as Sally now stood in a mostly empty Sky Patrol in the second to final month of the year 2009, she knew that they did not in fact get her way.

The troubles began rather mundanely at the start, at least compared to what things would become. In late February it was brought to the Freedom Fighters’ attentions that after years of tight companionship and seemingly no sign of conflict, one of their allies; Team Dark, had suddenly broken up, leaving Rouge still working for G.U.N while Shadow and Omega left to go to a place Rouge never told the Freedom Fighters of. She had claimed that she wasn't told herself, but Sally gleaned from how tortured Rouge looked in the following weeks and months that she must have known more than she was confessing to.

However, things wouldn't become disastrous until June - echoing the lead up to the Shattered World Crisis with yet another disappearance. This time it was Knuckles who disappeared, apparently kidnapped by a long lost Echidna tribe called the Nocturnus in an act of revenge for events of long ago. The conflict resulted in most of the Freedom Fighters having to travel out to a distant galaxy where in which existed the pocket dimension-like prison where the rest of the Nocturnus were located - The Twilight Cage. 

What none of the Freedom Fighters would know then, however, was that with the most of them gone, and with any current projects of theirs left unguarded, the Robotnik Empire was given the opportunity to strike once again. In a ransacking of Tails’ personal workshop in the Mystic Ruins, the Empire had found a shard of the mysterious Phantom Ruby that Tails had been studying before they had left, and using the Ruby’s powers, Doctor Robotnik once again took the world by storm.

Effectively, the Freedom Fighters were back at square one. It made Sally feel insufficient - inadequate for the duty that had been put on her. Especially now, with most of the Freedom Fighters off in another galaxy.

Staring out at the abysmal state of the world that she had promised to protect, having to stare out at many different abysmal states of the world that came and went over the years, it pushed Sally nearly to the point of breaking down and crying. She felt like such a failure.

But she didn't have the time to wallow in her own despair. As much as it started to burn her out into a crisp, she had a world that was relying on her. And friends! Friends that were relying on them too!

Sally figured she would try to check up on the Freedom Fighters that were away from home as a form of bringing herself some comfort. They hadn't thought of it before, as she had assumed that with the others so far away, there would be no way to pick up a signal of any kind. But thinking about it, the traveling Freedom Fighters did indeed take some of Tails’ electronic communicators with them just in case. So Sally figured it wouldn't hurt to try.

Giving the order to Nicole, she made an attempt to call the others, holding on to the expectation of failure just in case. There's no telling how long it'd even take for any sort of signal to travel to their location, after all.

But against all odds, the call miraculously went through and was able to be answered - specifically by one Amy Rose. This result gave Sally a whole truckload of much needed relief - not just because of the call itself being able to go through, but because of Amy being the one to pick up as well. Amy was always exceptional at bringing a sense of comfort back into such dire circumstances like this.

“Oh my gods! It’s working! We’re actually on a call right now!” Amy exclaimed in complete awe as soon as she picked up.

“I know, right…? Who would’ve thought that the signal could withstand such a dramatic distance…?” Sally responded, Amy’s excitement already bringing them peace.

“Oh, yeah, hi Sal!” Amy greeted, sounding as if she had completely forgotten to do so until just a few seconds ago.

“Hey Ames…” Sally greeted in return.

“You sound tired… Is everything holding up well back at home with you, Rotor and Nicole?” Amy then asked.

“Well to be blunt - no, it isn't.” Sally admitted.

“Oh no! What's the matter? I hope it isn't too serious!” Amy reacted with concern.

“It… Very much is…” Sally revealed, grimacing. She then proceeded to relay to Amy how the Robotnik Empire had gotten their hands on the Phantom Ruby shard and what they have done with it since then, a tale that caused Amy immense shock and distress.

“That's terrible!! Should we come back home??” Amy offered, completely horrified.

“No-no, you don't need to do that. Knuckles needs you guys out there.” Sally replied, despite knowing deep down that the help back home would make things so much better to deal with.

“Are you sure?? I can't imagine how stressful it is for just you three to be facing that all alone!!” Amy profusely insisted.

“It is a lot- But! Rotor, Nic and I aren't completely alone, actually!” Sally assured her. “The Chaotix very selflessly have been helping us out a ton despite the lack of a mystery to solve in all this! I hear that they're starting to make plans for some of them to go out on a mission to try to retrieve the shard for us! A-and! I know it sounds crazy because of their break-up earlier this year, but according to the security camera footage Rotor has gotten from Station Square, it seems like Team Dark have temporarily gotten back together to help take Doctor Robotnik down!” She elaborated, trying their best to not have Amy worry about them.

“Wait, run that last one by me again?” Amy questioned.

“Team Dark have gotten back together at least for now to help us as well?” Sally reiterated, hoping that was what Amy meant.

“Yeah that's… That's what I thought you said.” Amy affirmed, sounding very confused - which in turn confused Sally as well. “Sal, I mean this very gently but… Rouge is with us right now.”

“Wh… What?? B-but I know I saw Rouge with Shadow and Omega in the footage we got!” Sally argued in disbelief.

“Well one of us must be mistaken..!” Amy remarked. “Here, I'll go get Rouge to talk with you - maybe she knows what's going on!” She added, leaving the view of the communicator for a moment to presumably go fetch Rouge - or whoever it was with them pretending to be Rouge.

Or maybe it was the person in the security footage with the other former Team Dark members that is the fake? The more Sally thought about it, the more likely that sounded compared to her original assumption. Whoever it is - shouldn't she just be grateful that they're helping out? Sally tried to have that mindset, but they kept feeling like something about it was off.

“Me? A call with the princess? Well aren't I quite the lucky lady~?” Sally could hear Rouge's voice say as she and Amy entered the communicator’s view.

“Sal, do you wanna tell Rouge what's going on or should I?” Amy asked.

“I'll do it. You can go now if you're needed, Ames.” Sally answered.

“Alrighty then! I'll leave you both to it!” Amy said as she left the room.

“Rouge, did Amy tell you about how things are here as she brought you here?” Sally immediately inquired.

“She did. I got pretty worried when I heard that it's the apocalypse out there… again. But hey, at least it's just Eggy.” Rouge answered, her tone rather nonchalant despite the sweat Sally could see going down the side of Rouge's head.

“ “Just Eggy”?” Sally questioned.

“Oh- W-well… could've been another angry deity situation like with Dark Gaia during the Shattered World stuff, you know!” Rouge sheepishly clarified.

Sally narrowed her eyes for a moment, but decided to let it go. Instead, they decided to explain the specific situation at hand to Rouge that required her presence in the first place.

“... A-are you… sure that was me you saw?? Could've been any other bat mobian - th-there’s tons out there!!” Rouge finally argued after going silent for about a minute after Sally had spoken.

“I suppose you have a point, but I specifically saw “you” with Shadow and Omega. What other bat mobians do those two specifically know other than you, Rouge?” Sally elaborated, not liking that Rouge was immediately going on the offense.

“I don't fucking know! I already told you, they abandoned me in the middle of the night back in February! How am I supposed to know who they've met since then, huh??” Rouge lashed out very quickly, which made Sally feel very suspicious of her.

“Use your inside voice, please.” Sally gently reminded Rouge, not wanting to snap back at her. But it didn't seem to help.

“How do you know they're not just some civilian that came by and decided to help them out?! It very obviously seems to be a warzone out there!! Why does everyone always suspect that it's my fault when those two go off doing something stupid???” Rouge hollered, refusing to calm down despite Sally’s efforts.

“Rouge - you were closer to them than anyone else. You should know that they probably wouldn't accept help from a stranger like that.” Sally argued back, trying to hold back the anger of her own that was forming as they became fed up with Rouge's behavior.

“Well then I don't know what to fucking tell ya!! I don't know jack shit about what those two do! Because, news flash, since you apparently didn't hear it the first million times I've told you over the past year - THEY ABANDONED ME AND ALL OF G.U.N.” Rouge shouted.

“Why did they leave, Rouge? Have you given it even an inkling of thought-?!” Sally questioned her, having decided that they were done having Rouge give the others nothing but wallowing in reference to Shadow and Omega’s departure.

“LIKE I'D EVER FUCKING TELL YOU!!!” Rouge snapped back before Sally even had the chance to finish speaking, hanging up right after - and thus leaving Sally to fester in her pent up rage.

But very quickly that rage turned into paranoia. Rouge was hiding something - Sally was beginning to be certain in that belief. She very likely would have spiraled into a rabbit hole from it, if it weren't for Rotor showing up to bring a strand of optimism for Sally to hold onto.

“Sounds like that didn't go very well…!” Rotor uttered reluctantly as he entered the Sky Patrol’s central room. Sally didn’t respond. “Geez, ever since Shadow left, Rouge’s been filling the angsty angry edgelord hole it left behind more and more, huh?” He added in a sort of joking manner - very clearly trying to cut the tension and raise Sally’s spirits. It did work, honestly, it did. It was just taking Sally a bit to get back to a point where she felt comfortable enough to speak. “... What if the other Rouge we’ve been seeing in the security footage is a Phantom Ruby clone?” Rotor eventually suggested.

“A what?” Sally immediately replied, the foreign nature of the idea Rotor had just proposed snapping them out of her anxiety filled daze.

“I’ve been reading through the notes that Tails had managed to write about the Phantom Ruby before all this began, and according to them, the Phantom Ruby can create illusions of things! So what if this second “Rouge” is an illusion created by the ruby?” Rotor elaborated.

“How would we be able to trust it?” Sally questioned after taking a moment to consider what Rotor was saying. “The Phantom Ruby shard is in Robotnik’s hands now, and we haven’t found any other shards. For all we know, the “shard” could be the only Phantom Ruby out there! So if this “Rouge” was coming from the ruby, that’d mean that it’s coming from Robotnik.” 

“... Huh. That’s a fair argument Sal.” Rotor admitted. “So then… got any other ideas?”

“I’d rather not think about it right now.” Sally revealed.

“... Fair.” Rotor remarked as he finally sat down in one of the several chairs situated around the room’s massive table.

“I know I probably sound crazy right now but… The way Rouge acted… The way Rouge has been acting… I can’t help but think that she’s hiding something. Something crucial…” Sally confessed in a pained tone of voice. “Got any idea of what that might be?” Rotor asked.

“Heh… That’s the part that sucks the most - I don’t. I just have this… overwhelming sense of doom that’s eclipsing my mind.” Sally answered.

“Well in that case… Maybe it’s just nerves? When did you last eat? Or sleep?” Rotor inquired.

“Uhhhhh….” Sally uttered.

“... Drink water?”  Rotor added.

“Ehhh…” Sally reacted.

“You… Should really go do that. Any of those.” Rotor recommended.

“But-” Sally tried to argue back, but Rotor cut her off.

“Nicole and I can handle things here. Rest.” Rotor insisted.

“Fine… I’ll be in my room if you need me.” Sally relented, getting up from her chair.

“Atta girl.” Rotor replied.

-Loading ↻-

“Hey, Sally-gal!” The sudden sound of Bunnie’s voice broke through the metaphorical barrier between the past and the present, breaking Sally out of her daydreaming. “Are ya feeling alright?” She asked.

“Huh? O-Oh, yeah - just lost in thought, I guess.” Sally sheepishly answered, embarrassed. Unlike in the memories that had been playing in their head, the Sally of the present was still sitting at the central room’s table.

Feeling a bit disoriented, Sally took out her phone and flipped it open to check what the date and time was.

9:31 AM

Friday, October 7th, 2011

“Can’t blame ya. There’s a lot to be thought about right now.” Bunnie responded, placing her non-robotic hand on Sally’s shoulder. In her other, much more metallic hand, she held a mug filled with some sort of beverage.

“Yep…” Sally agreed tiredly, the strain in her voice being something that Bunnie seemed to very quickly pick up on.

“Say… You aren’t… mad at Ames for all these recent shenanigans, are ya?” Bunnie inquired cautiously.

“No! Not at all!” Sally quickly replied. “Besides, I wasn’t thinking about recent events…” She added.

“Oh? Well what were ya thinking about?” Bunnie wondered, sitting in the chair next to Sally and having a sip of her drink.

“... Back during the start of the Phantom Ruby War - when most of us were still away in Twilight Cage.” Sally replied.

“Oh yeah... That was quite the shitty sitch’ there, wasn’t it?” Bunnie recollected rather somberly, staring into her drink.

“Quite.” Sally uttered.

“Are you mad at us who went? I mean, imagine how much quicker things could have been resolved if we hadn’t been so divided - think of all the lives we could’ve saved-!” Bunnie questioned, turning back to face Sally - who interrupted her.

“No, I’m not mad at anyone. Promise.” Sally reassured her, placing her hand on Bunnie’s shoulder like she had placed hers on theirs earlier. “Just… Reminiscing? No, reminiscing isn’t the right word for something so… Bleak…” 

“Reflecting?” Bunnie suggested.

“Yeah, that sounds about right.” Sally agreed. “By the way, what do you have in your mug there?” She then inquired.

“Just some coffee! You want some?” Bunnie answered.

“Well, I guess, but I can just get it myself-” Sally stated, eyeing the coffee maker on the other side of the central room.

“I insist, sugar! I’ll get the coffee for ya! You stay right there and tell me about what you’re reflectin’ on.” Bunnie interrupted, placing her arm out to keep Sally seated as she herself got up from her chair.

“Okay. So Rotor and I were keeping track of the security cameras across Mobotropolis so we could keep track of what the Robotnik Empire was doing and to see if any civilians needed our help, right? So we’re doing that, and on one of our cameras, we spot Team Dark of all people out there fighting off badniks!” Sally began to explain.

“Team Dark??” Bunnie echoed in so much confusion that it interrupted her coffee making process. “But-”

“Rouge was in Twilight Cage with the rest of the Freedom Fighters at the time!” Both Bunnie and Sally said in unison.

“Exactly!” Sally exclaimed. “When I got the chance to talk to Rouge about it, she got really defensive and angry, lashing out at me and deflecting from the subject matter of the conversation, before outright hanging up on me!” She continued, Bunnie carrying on with making Sally’s coffee.

“Sounds like something Shadow would normally do. Ya know, rather than Rouge.” Bunnie remarked.

“That’s what Rotor had said!” Sally revealed. 

“Knowing you, I bet that got your nerves a real shakin’, huh?” Bunnie guessed.

“Definitely…! I think I still remember the exact words I used to describe how I was feeling to Rotor.” Sally replied.

“Is that so~?” Bunnie reacted teasingly.

“Yeah! I think it was… “a feeling of impending doom eclipsing over me” or something like… that.” Sally elaborated, the eventual irony of her choice of words occurring to her mid sentence.

“Good Gaias, Sally-gal! Looks like you have an acute case of pun-voyance!” Bunnie joked, giggling up a storm.

Sally didn't respond, leaving things silent between the two girls once Bunnie’s laughter subsided - aside from the sound of the coffee maker. But then Sally had a sort of epiphany.

“... Do you think that Rouge's behavior was related to the Black Arms?” Sally suddenly asked Bunnie.

“I was more talking about recent events in general with the “pun-voyance” thing but… Whaddya gettin’ at, girly?” Bunnie asked in turn as she brought Sally’s coffee to her.

“We didn’t know it back during the war, but the BA were already back by then, weren’t they? I mean, that is why Shadow and Omega left - that we now know. What if-?” Sally started to speculate, but was cut off by the sound of her phone ringing in her pocket.

Taking their phone out, Sally was fully ready to assume the caller was a telemarketer or something akin to such, since in her mind, anyone who she would know enough to justify getting a call from would do so straight to the Sky Patrol itself, especially this early in the day. But just before she went to press the reject call button, she saw who it was that was calling her and quickly changed their tune, accepting the call quite swiftly.

“Sal! I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time!” The person on the phone spoke.

“No, you actually caught me at a pretty good time all things considered - but why are you calling me through my personal phone at nine in the morning, Manic??” Sally replied, being rather confused.

“Manic?? Put that hog on speaker phone, won't ya?” Bunnie interjected, nearly spitting out her coffee in surprise.

Sally asked Manic if he was alright with being on speaker phone, to which he agreed.

“Is that Bunnie I hear with you?” Manic asked with curiosity as Sally placed her phone on the table.

“You're damn straight, sugar!” Bunnie confirmed.

“Well I'm not, but-" Manic began to reply, being interrupted by giggles coming from Bunnie and Sally. "... That means I either accidentally called in during a co-op mission, or you guys are just hanging out in the Sky Patrol.” He reasoned.

“It's the latter, don't worry.” Sally told them, to which Manic let out a sigh of relief.

“From what Sal’s been tellin’ me, there was a bit of a situation last week, but things have been rather quiet since then! Knuckles and Espio came by earlier to take Amy and Tails to hang out for the day, leaving the rest of us to laze about.” Bunnie added, temporarily placing her feet on the table, before putting them back down when Sally glared disapprovingly at her for doing so.

“Well aren't I a lucky little hedgehog, then! Besides, it makes me feel better for doing this when it isn't an immediate emergency.” Manic remarked, piquing Sally and Bunnie’s curiosities. “I just haven't been able to get a response from anyone involved, so I figured you'd be a good person to go to instead.” They then added, which only made the two girls even more intrigued.

“Sounds like you have a lot on your mind Manic. Mind telling us what it is you're talking about?” Sally wondered.

“... Have either of you heard of Project Midnight?” Manic inquired bluntly.

Sally and Bunnie silently looked at each other for around a minute, neither of them seeming to know what to say in response. Sally was completely motionless while Bunnie took a long sip of her coffee.

“I take it that you haven't?” Manic surmised, sounding a bit dismayed.

“Sorry, sugar. I don't think I ha-” Bunnie was about to respond, but Sally cut her off.

“I have.” They revealed.

“You have?? From where??” Manic questioned Sally, becoming ecstatic.

“Doctor Ellidy, an old employee of my parents - about a year ago he had told me about how he had been contacted to join the project.” Sally explained.

“Well I'll be, it seems like that ol’ Nicole disappearing incident that happened back during the Shattered World Crisis was just what the two of you needed to reconnect!” Bunnie observed, making Sally roll her eyes light-heartedly.

“Something like that.” Sally replied.

“Do you think you could share what he said?” Manic requested.

“Oh, of course! Let me just go into my messages…” Sally agreed, picking up her phone off of the table to look through her messaging app.

“Hey uh, do you think it'd be okay if I hung up real quick and called you back through Tails’ communicator thingy? I had figured it’d be more convenient with going through your phone at first but now it seems like the opposite is the case.” Manic then suggested.

“Sounds like a plan to me.” Sally said approvingly.

-Loading ↻-

It had taken Manic about ten minutes to call the Sky Patrol back after having hung up with Sally. This didn't bother neither Sally nor Bunnie all that much, as they knew that he had likely just gotten distracted by something. Manic is quite the busy guy after all, being a member of South Island’s royal family as well as an independent music producer and all. Sally especially didn't mind the wait, as it gave her time to go through her messages and scroll to where Doctor Ellidy and her had talked about Project Midnight - and also to drink her coffee.

After those ten minutes had gone past, Nicole's voice rang out through the Sky Patrol.

“Incoming call from-”

“It's Manic, isn't it? I know you know we're expecting him, so just pick up already!” Sally said teasingly to Nicole before she could finish her announcement.

“I figured it would be better to stick to the script.” Nicole argued. 

Part of Sally wished she could just spend the day talking to Nicole, the thought reminded her of when Sally was just a kid. The day was perfect for something like that, no sign of mayhem from any bad guys and beautiful weather - the perfect moment for a date that was exceptionally rare. But Sally and Nicole both knew that such things would just have to wait until Manic’s worries were quelled.

“Hey guys! Sorry for the wait - the ol’ parents wanted to let Sonia and I know that they're having a royal meeting of sorts later that they want us to attend.” Manic explained as soon as Nicole picked up.

“Is that so?” Sally wondered.

“Yeah - it's probably just an excuse to have us go outside on this nice day, but it's something to keep in mind, I guess.” Manic elaborated.

“Do you know when this meeting is, sugar?” Bunnie asked.

“Noon. That gives us a little over two hours to talk.” Manic answered.

“Good thing I pulled up the conversation I had with Doctor Ellidy about Project Midnight while we waited for you then!” Sally remarked, to which she noticed both Bunnie and Manic nod in agreement to. Now that Manic was speaking via their Twin-Tail Electronic Communicator straight to the Sky Patrol, the call now had video attached.

“I wonder if you put your phone in the slot in the table where you used to have to put my console into if I'd be able to display the texts onto the room’s main screen.” Nicole speculated. The idea did intrigue Sally, but she ended up turning down the idea.

“I'd still have to read or summarize them for Manic either way - so there's really no reason to complicate things.” She reasoned.

“Understood. Maybe we can experiment with it next time.” Nicole responded, sounding just ever so slightly disappointed.

-Loading ↻-

“Good morning, Doctor Ellidy!” - Sally

“Morning, Sally.” - Ellidy

“Is there any particular reason why you've texted me today?” - Ellidy

“Not really, no.” - Sally

“Just wanted to check up on you, that's all!” - Sally

“I see! Thank you.” - Ellidy

“So, how are things? Anything new going on for you?” - Sally

“All's good here.” - Ellidy

“Though yes, there is something new to talk about, I suppose.” - Ellidy

“Is that so?” - Sally

“Yes.” - Ellidy

“For the first time in quite a while, someone reached out to me to ask me to join on a project.” - Ellidy

“Ooooo~! Do you know what the project is? Who's running it?” - Sally

“The person who contacted me says they work for G.U.N, and they were looking for someone with experience dealing with roboticized Mobians for a new project G.U.N is funding.” - Ellidy

“A project in pursuit of rehabilitating roboticized Mobians and giving them a new life to live. “Project Midnight” is the name, apparently.” - Ellidy

“That sounds fantastic! Please tell me you said yes!!!!” - Sally

“Ehh… It sounds fine and all, but I'm an old man. I need to stick strong to my guns on my retirement.” - Ellidy

“Especially after what I was dragged into with the Shattered World Crisis.” - Ellidy

“Aw :(“ - Sally

“I understand, you take care of you” - Sally

“I’ll try to remember this convo and bring this project up to someone else who might be fit for the job!” - Sally

“ “Try to”? ” - Ellidy

“Well, I've got a lot on my mind right now. Sure, the Phantom Ruby War is over now, but it just ended, and there's restoration to be done in its wake.” - Sally

“Ahh. Makes sense.” - Ellidy.

-Loading ↻-

“And after that we started talking about the restoration efforts.” Sally concluded her reading of their texts.

“So, did you remember to follow up on the project?” Manic inquired.

“... No…” Sally admitted, becoming quite embarrassed.

“Aww, There there, Sally-gal. You’ve got a lot goin’ on, it’s all good!” Bunnie told her reassuringly, gently patting Sally on the back.

“Did he ever bring it back up?” Manic asked.

“He did not.” Sally answered. “May I ask why you're asking about this in the first place?” She then questioned.

“Ah! Right! I guess that would be good info for y'all.” Manic realized. “You see, even though the guys at G.U.N couldn't get that Ellidy guy in on the project, they went forward with it - getting into contact with Mama Aleena and having her send a group of partially roboticized Mobians to the mainland to be treated.” He then explained. “But there's a problem.”

“A problem?” Sally echoed with concern.

“You see, after they took that group… Those guys never got back to us. Not to tell us how the folks we sent are doing, not to tell us what they did, nothing.” Manic revealed.

“Well ain't that just peachy…?” Bunnie remarked sarcastically.

“Sounds like quite the predicament… Have you tried emailing them yourself? Or anything of that sort to initiate communication?” Sally inquired of Manic.

“I have, yeah.” Manic replied simply.

“... I'm guessing that didn't work.” Sally surmised from Manic’s tone.

“Yeeeep.” Manic confirmed, sounding understandably annoyed. Sally knew that their annoyance wasn't targeted towards her - it was targeted at G.U.N.

“Hey, in Sal’s texts with the good Doc, he called Project Midnight a “new life” for these roboticized Mobians. Is that something the folks behind the project say to or was it just El?” Bunnie interjected, seeming like she was setting up for another question depending on how Manic answered. Sally was curious as to what Bunnie could be thinking about, but she decided to just wait and see how the conversation would play out naturally.

“Yeah, actually. I think I do remember that wording. Quite a big promise, ain't it?” Manic responded.

“Did any of those G.U.N guys ever elaborate on that point? Did they ever specify what this “new life” even is??” Bunnie questioned. It was an incredibly fair question to ask, and a smart one at that. It was indeed a big promise to give, as Manic said - but it was also a terribly vague one. “A new life” could be anything.

“... Huh. I guess they didn't, no.” Manic replied, clearly having not thought of it himself.

“That’s great, just dandy, even! Those jackasses just gave those poor guys a false promise and then fucked off! Not like a poor mobian that went through something so horrific would be desperate to change things! No, not at all!” Bunnie lashed out and pouted. 

Sally understood why she would be so offended on the behalf of those that were sent in for the project. She too was a partly roboticized Mobian, her left arm and entire lower half being metallic. While Bunnie nowadays has found a way to live with how her body is, Sally was right by her side during the years of struggle she had to endure. Bunnie had to complety relearn how to walk, and still to this day struggles a bit with chronic pain stemming from her partial roboticization. Bunnie went through the exact same hurt as the Mobians selected for Project Midnight did.

Sally, on the other hand, did not. They had been there since the beginning for Bunnie, but Sally herself never experienced being roboticized in any way. So she decided to let Bunnie be, not wanting to possibly come off as insensitive in their attempts to comfort her.

“I can't lie, it's making me a bit worried. Like… what if the project just fuckin’ failed and they were like “Whelp! Better act like THAT didn't happen!”, not even telling the people counting on them??” Manic began to speculate.

“That certainly wouldn't be the first time they've done something like that…” Sally remarked rather bitterly, reflecting on the events of the past week.

“I wouldn't be surprised. Though, uh… Tell me if I'm intruding, but the way you said that sounded personal… Did something happen between y'all and G.U.N?” Manic wondered, clearly picking up on Sally's tone.

“Oh yeah, you and Knux have been talking about that the past few days, haven't ya?” Bunnie said to Sally, appearing from her more relaxed tone of voice to be feeling better.

“It has, actually. It's nice that Knuckles is so willing to share what he knows since G.U.N refuses to and Team Dark are. Well. Not our allies anymore to say the least.” Sally responded to Bunnie.

“Hey? Hello? I'm not mad at either of you but do you think you could explain what's up?” Manic butted in, sounding quite confused.

“Oh, sorry Manic. Bunnie caught my attention with her question before I got the chance to answer you.” Sally admitted, understanding Manic's confusion.

“Right, sorry sugarhog. Got ahead of myself there…” Bunnie apologized as well.

“With that being said… Are you alright with me being blunt?” Sally then asked.

“Yeah, fine with me. I'm blunt all the damn time!” Manic answered.

“Right.” Sally nodded. “The Black Arms are back. They have been for a couple of years - since around the start of the Shattered World Crisis, actually, from what Knuckles told me.” She then revealed.

“... Why didn't you lead with that? Like, in the call?” Manic replied in disbelief, going so far as to blink rapidly, seemingly to double check that he's indeed in reality and not like, in a dream.

“You called first? Also we were talking about something unrelated?” Bunnie snarked. Sally wouldn't have maybe said it the way she had, but they couldn't help but agree with Bunnie.

“Oh yeah. Uh. Right.” Manic realized, his cheeks flushing slightly, likely from embarrassment. “A-anyway. Like, was G.U.N responsible for dealing with those new aliens?? And they like, fucked up at it?? Is that what I'm understanding??”

“Yeah, that seems to be the case.” Sally confirmed.

“What is G.U.N even doing anymore, man???” Manic groaned in a mix of disbelief and annoyance.

“Taking advantage of folks like me, apparently.” Bunnie responded, her voice just as annoyed as Manic’s, but with anger instead of disbelief.

Despite Bunnie's anger, Sally couldn't help but to snicker a bit, which she initially felt bad for - but soon enough Bunnie and Manic joined in and began to chuckle as well.

“I must say though, the fact that you managed to pull that information together so quickly is a testament to your quick wit, I’d say.” Sally said to Manic once the laughter had died down.

“Great Gaias, Sal - you’re cheerleading for me a bit too much there! It really doesn’t seem too hard to piece together.” Manic responded, brushing off the compliment.

“Once you have all the pieces, maybe.” Sally added.

“Oh, well of course.” Manic agreed, nodding.

“Which is why I should probably admit that I haven’t actually given you all of the details just yet.” Sally revealed, mildly surprising Manic.

“Is that so?” He inquired.

“While it was indeed G.U.N that were supposed to get rid of these new Black Arms, I feel that it’s notable to add that it was Team Dark specifically that was assigned to such a mission. That was one of the first details Knuckles gave me.” Sally explained.

“Wait, like… the Team Dark lead by Shadow, notorious for being part Black Arms, THAT Team Dark??” Bunnie questioned.

“Who else?” Sally replied, rolling her eyes as she already knew what Bunnie was getting at.

“What, was G.U.N trying to fail the mission???” Bunnie blurted out, just as Sally had expected her to.

“I suppose we’ll never know for sure, given how secretive they are. But what we do know, at least now, is that such a stupid decision ultimately led to the three of them ending up on the side of the Black Arms.” Sally finally concluded her point. “... No pun intended.” They added, realizing the innate hilarity of using the word “ultimately” given Shadow’s well known moniker of the “Ultimate Lifeform”.

“... Yikes.” Manic simply stated, cringing.

“Didn’t Rouge stick around for a while longer than the other two, though? I think that was a pretty vital detail to the flashback you had that you were telling me about earlier, wasn’t it, Sal? The whole “seeing Rouge with Shadow and Omega in security cameras” being confusing thing was because Rouge was still allied with us at the time, right?” Bunnie pointed out.

“Oh, that’s right! Honestly, from what I could gather, it seems like Rouge stuck around at G.U.N until just last week.” Sally recollected, corroborating Bunnie’s point.

“So she’s now sided with the Black Arms just like Shadow and Omega?” Manic surmised.

“That is correct.” Sally confirmed, Bunnie nodding in agreement.

“... What the hell happened last week?” Manic then questioned.

“Well-” Sally began to speak, preparing to go into as much detail as she could concerning the previous week’s events, but Bunnie cut her off.

“Group of kiddos hoping to be like us accidentally uncovered a Black Arms run operation and some of us Freedom Fighters came in to help fight them off - they got away but we wrecked their base pretty badly. Also it turns out that Ames is part Black Arms. But she’s still chill because she’s way more determined to protect the planet than ol’ Edgehog ever was.” Bunnie quite briefly summarized the situation, catching Sally off guard with just how quickly and how accurately Bunnie was able to put her summary together.

“Thanks Bunnie.”

“Anytime, Sally-gal.” Bunnie replied.

“Do you think that her allyship with you guys after the other two left could have not been… totally genuine?” Manic suggested, catching the two girls’ attention.

“Whaddaya on’ sugarhog?” Bunnie queried. 

“You know, Rouge could’ve been hiding the Black Arms stuff between the time Shads and Omega left and when she left, maybe? I dunno, maybe I’m shooting a blank here, but that’s what I’m thinking. Sounds like that flashback Bunnie brought up could be a case of that, too.” Manic elaborated.

“... I mean, Rouge did seem especially upset whenever I brought up the two’s leaving. She’d always refuse to tell us why they left - she claimed she didn’t know, but at the end of that argument we had that day I brought up the doppelganger, I remember her saying something akin to “Like I’d ever tell you”, implying she did know something, but wasn’t willing to share for whatever reason.” Sally admitted.

“That’s it! That’s what I’m talking about!” Manic exclaimed. “Even though she acted likely she was still our ally, she was batting just as much for the other side!” They continued.

For a moment, Manic was quiet, but Sally could tell that it seemed like she was thinking.

“Hey Sal, I know this might be a bit late to tell you - but I think that other Rouge was a Black Arms in disguise!” They suggested.

Sally had to take a moment to process what Manic was saying. There was no doubt in her mind that he was most likely correct, there being no other explanation that would make sense on any level, especially knowing what she knew now - and especially since she was probably unintentionally hinting towards such a thing just before Manic called, come to think of it. But they still couldn’t help but be stunned. Not by the realization itself, but by just how she somehow hadn’t thought of it sooner. Still, though, there was just one question that remained in her mind.

“That sounds plenty reasonable, but why would those black creatures be protecting Aerth?” And that question was asked by Bunnie before Sally had the chance to ask it herself.

But because of such, Sally was able to give herself an answer.

“They wouldn’t want the Robotnik Empire taking over the place before they could, that’s for sure. I’m pretty sure the two have become bitter rivals after Eggman openly sided with us and G.U.N during their attempted invasion and the reveal that Professor Gerald had been plotting their downfall while working with Black Doom.” She reasoned.

“Makes sense to me.” Manic said.

“Same here.” Bunnie added. “But uh… Not to be rude, but what’s all this gotta do with Project Midnight?” She then asked.

Sally and Manic both stared at each other, very much not sure.

“Looks like you got distracted, hmm? Would you like help getting back on track?” Nicole interjected teasingly.

“Hi Nicole.” Sally greeted snarkily, rolling her eyes as her cheeks warmed.

“Hello, Sally~.” Nicole replied flirtatiously.

“... Hold on.” Sally spoke, an idea coming to her mind. Bunnie and Manic both looked towards her in curiosity while Nicole simply raised an eyebrow and grinned.

“Have I given you a thought?” She asked.

“In a way, I suppose.” Sally replied. “Can you add Doctor Ellidy to the call, Nicole?” They then requested.

“I absolutely can. It will take a moment, however.” 

“That’s fine.” 

“Didn’t we get everything outta your conversation with him that we could gather already, though?” Bunnie wondered.

“Well yeah, out of the convo the two had. But the Doc may very well be able to give us some more details that he’s gotten a hold of in the past year - or just stuff he didn’t share with Sal.” Manic pointed out, correctly guessing Sally’s train of thought.

“Eughh… What did I not share…?” Doctor Ellidy’s voice croaked out in confusion, seemingly only catching the final part of Manic’s sentence.

It definitely didn't help things with him looking quite tired - as if he had just woken up.

“Good morning, Doc! Sorry if we woke you.” Sally greeted.

Looking back at her phone for a moment, Sally noticed that it was just barely ten in the morning. The fact surprised her slightly, as they had sworn that more time must have passed in the time since Manic had first called. But no, it had only been a mere thirty minutes or so.

“Ah, mornin’ Sally…” Ellidy replied as he rubbed his eyes. He paused for a moment before speaking again, looking as if he was taking in his surroundings. “Is this a royal meeting?” He then asked.

“Nah, I’ve got one of those later though if you want in on that.” Manic answered.

“This is something of an impromptu affair - Manic called me first on my personal phone before hopping over to their Electronic Communicator.” Sally quickly added, worrying that Manic’s response alone would be woefully insufficient.

“We were talkin’ about Project Midnight. You remember that, right?” Manic briefly explained.

“Somewhat…? Honestly, I feel like getting a cup of coffee would help jog my memory.” Ellidy responded.

“Suppose we should leave you to it then, huh?” Bunnie remarked.

“I’d certainly prefer it if you would.” Ellidy stated dryly.

“Well then go and make yourself some coffee. We’ll wait for you.” Sally told him - to which Ellidy gladly agreed, getting up from his chair right after Sally finished speaking.

“Sooo… Do you gals have any ideas of what we could get up to while we wait for Doc Elly to get back?” Manic asked Sally and Bunnie after a minute or two had gone by.

“I for one wanna try to figure out what this “new life” bullshit G.U.N advertised even means. If you two are up for a guessin’ game, that is.” Bunnie suggested.

“I was just gonna play a game on my phone, but I suppose that’s more productive.” Sally said.

“Guess The Life it is then!” Manic surmised. “Bunnie, why don’t you start? Since this is your idea and all.”

“Oh- uhm…” Bunnie sputtered, being caught off guard. “What if… they were just moved to a different rehabilitation place?” She sheepishly suggested, not all that confident in the guess herself.

“Huh. Pretty optimistic for someone who was pretty against the whole “new life” thing from the start.” Manic teased.

“Shush you! Don’t expect anything good to come from putting me on the spot like that!” Bunnie argued, crossing her arms defiantly.

“Settle down, Bunnie. No need to start a fight.” Sally scolded her.

“If they indeed were relocated, what then would we do? Where would we go from that information?” Nicole pondered.

“I hadn’t thought of that. I panicked, alright?” Bunnie confessed.

“I suppose we should move on from that idea, then.” Sally suggested. The others agreed.

“I have a suggestion, if I’m allowed to participate.” Nicole then spoke.

“Of course you are, Nic. Shoot your shot.” Sally replied.

“What if the “new life” given to the roboticized mobians was that of a G.U.N agent? I imagine that G.U.N would see them as rather valuable assets for combat - perhaps taking notes from the likes of our own Bunnie Rabbot.” She speculated.

“Well that’s very flattering of ya, however, I don’t think something like that would be up their alley. Sure, G.U.N’s done some fucked up shit in the past, but involuntary drafting? Especially of a minority group? Even those suckers oughta know just how terrible that’d make them look if it ever got out! Imagine if it was in the news? Reputation’s right down the shitter.” Bunnie countered.

“I see where you’re comin’ from, Buns - but if I remember correctly, weren’t Shadow and Omega involuntary drafts themselves?” Manic argued.

“Wait, really? I thought they joined willingly!” Bunnie replied.

“Well… Omega never really shared anything about himself to anyone, and at some point I’m pretty sure Shadow forgot how they even became a G.U.N agent in the first place.” Sally pointed out to the both of them.

“I’d still call that sketchy.” Manic said.

“It’s a gray area.” Bunnie stated.

“Besides… The two did leave over a year before this project seemingly began, so would they really make the same mistake twice?” Sally suggested.

“You make a fair argument, Sally. But where I’m coming from on the idea is that perhaps G.U.N wished to fill in the hole that Shadow and Omega left behind?” Nicole interjected.

“The folks recruited for Project Midnight were most likely untrained. What good would they do as government agents, anyhow?” Bunnie retorted.

“I might be wrong here, but I think at least some of the people recruited were teenagers?” Manic recollected.

“That proves my point further, I think.” Bunnie remarked. “PR Nightmare.”

“Wasn’t Shadow a teenager when it was recruited into G.U.N? You know, technically speaking?” Sally inquired.

“If you do not count the fifty years it spent in cryo-sleep.” Nicole added.

“Pretty sure they don’t.” Sally said.

“Well Shadow’s an outlier, and frankly I don’t think it’s fair to have them be included.” Bunnie argued.

“I would like to point out that they are our closest frame of reference on the matter.” Nicole reminded them.

“If an only a teenager by technicality and mad science is the closest thing we have to an example of G.U.N recruiting a teenager, then I don’t think it’s fair to say they recruited a teenager.” Manic objected.

“Maybe we should move on to something else - there’s too many implausibilities here.”  Sally suggested.

“Yeah, can’t help but agree with ya there, Sal. Maybe we should wait until we have more info to circle back ‘round to this topic.” Manic recommended.

“Okay, so, you know how when government projects fail, the participants of the project sometimes are kept around to be experimented on for more projects?” Manic then queried, starting up a new topic of discussion.

“Oh good gaia, where the hell are you going with this, sugarhog?” Bunnie complained.

“Hear me out on this! What if that’s what happened here?? Project Midnight flopped, and now they’re usin’ its participants as lab rats!” Manic concluded.

“Sounds like a bunch of poppycock to me.” Bunnie scoffed.

“Well, it’s far from the strangest thing G.U.N’s ever done...” Sally pointed out.

“And it wouldn’t be the first time! Documents about this kind of stuff have been getting leaked into the public since at least the 80s!” Manic babbled.

“Have you been talkin’ to Sticks again, Manic?” Bunnie questioned, mildly annoyed.

“Sometimes she’s right, okay?!” Manic protested.

“But did anyone ever say officially that Project Midnight was a failure?” Nicole inquired, causing the other three to fall silent.

“Well, Manic?” Bunnie directed snarkily.

“... No, but-”

“Then your argument has no ground to stand on.” Nicole asserted. “Rude!” Manic pouted.

“But true.” Sally added.

“Besides, G.U.N’s usual M.O. when a project goes awry is to just kill everyone involved.” Bunnie reminded them. “Just like with Project Shadow.”

“Why do we keep bringing up Shadow?” Nicole questioned.

“... I don’t know.” Sally answered. “It's probably just a coincidence.” 

“The project names are pretty similar.” Manic pointed out.

“Manic brings up a good point. I don’t know what to do with that for now, but I’m going to store it in my databases for later.” Nicole stated.

“Duly noted, Nicci.” Sally spoke. “Anyway, I think we’ve reached as far as that idea will take us.” 

“Oh, actually! I think I do have an idea as to where to go with the similar project names!” Nicole suddenly exclaimed.

“Do ya now?” Bunnie wondered.

“Project Shadow was headed by Professor Gerald Robotnik. It was his grandson Ivo Robotnik who was responsible for the initial roboticization of these mobians. Perhaps there is a reason behind Project Midnight having such a similar name to Project Shadow that lies within this connection.” Nicole explained.

“What, are you implying they finished the job???” Bunnie shuddered. “... That’s a horrifying thought.”

“And quite out of character for G.U.N, all things considered.” Sally countered.

“That’s an Eggman thing, not a G.U.N thing,” Manic objected. “And last I checked - Eggman’s never worked for G.U.N.” 

“He has, actually.” Nicole retorted.

“Yes, but that was decades ago, Nicole. Years before the Robotnik Empire was ever formed.” Sally added.

“I’m sure they would want nothin’ to do with him nowadays.” Bunnie surmised. “Wouldn’t want to go around associating with an international terrorist and all that jazz.” 

“Okay - but didn’t they sorta do that with recruiting Shadow?” Manic debated. “Actually, technically speaking, they did so with Shadow’s creation in the first place-”

“And they’re already starting to separate themselves from it.” Sally argued. “This isn’t even the first time.”

“I suppose I should accept defeat.” Nicole sighed in disappointment.

“Sorry, Nicci.” Sally consoled her.

“I’m sure we’ll be able to figure this out.” Bunnie assured her.

“We appreciate your contribution either way!” Manic exclaimed.

“Thank you.” 

“... You don’t think they actually just… killed them, do you?” Bunnie asked somberly.

“They do have a precedent for doing that. Remember what we were saying earlier with Project Shadow?” Manic recollected.

“Uhm, guys? Don’t you think that’s a bit… bleak?” Sally interjected in a worried tone.

“Yeah, I guess…” Bunnie conceded. “Even I must admit, that is a bit… extreme.”

“Besides, even if the project did fail - which there is no evidence for - I’m sure G.U.N would want to get something out of it. Even with Project Shadow they still tried to hold onto their technical custody of Shadow themself.” Nicole pointed out. “What would G.U.N be able to get out of killing the participants of Project Midnight outright?”

“Well, I think I have an idea for that.” Manic proposed.

“And just what would that be?” Bunnie inquired.

“Maybe… If they did kill the participants, then they went back and cut off the remaining organic body parts of the mobians, sewing the parts together into a singular lifeform like some sort of Frankenstine’s monster. That counts as a new life, right?” Manic explained his thinking, to which the others didn’t take very kindly to.

“... And you said you think Sticks is RIGHT sometimes???” Bunnie hollered.

“Manic… with all due respect… I don’t think that’s a very plausible idea.” Sally stated disapprovingly.

“I agree with Sally. Such a thing just is not at all something G.U.N would do. Frankly, that sounds like something the Black Arms would do.” Nicole added.

“And as far as we know, the Black Arms have nothing to do with this project.” Sally remarked.

“Oh alright, fair enough.” Manic relented. “Sorry, guess I’ll take the pwnage on this one.”

“I think I’m go get some water…” Bunnie said, sounding queasy.

“You go do that” Sally replied.

-Loading ↻-

Just as Bunnie was returning to the Sky Patrol’s central room with her glass of water, Ellidy finally got back to his seat.

“Apologies for the wait, ladies.” Ellidy spoke as he adjusted his position in the chair, probably to make himself as comfortable as possible. “... And Manic.”

“No, you were right the first time.” Manic told him without hesitation.

“Right.” Ellidy said with a small nod. “Anyway… What was the matter of importance?” He then asked.

“Project Midnight.” Manic reminded him.

“And… uh, something else!” Sally butted in.

“Something else?” Ellidy questioned.

“Oh, are you talking ‘bout the Black Arms being back? Yeah that is pretty important I guess - though not exactly relevant to the current topic of discussion…” Manic guessed, leaving the others a bit speechless - especially Ellidy.

“Wh… What do you mean the Black Arms are back?? Why didn’t you lead with that??” Ellidy exclaimed in shock.

“I feel like this is the closest thing to “leading with that” I could have achieved…” Sally responded, her voice muffled slightly by her hands as they placed her head in them out of sheer embarrassment.

“I don't know if I should commend or reprimand you for your bluntness there, Manic.” Bunnie remarked as she sat down.

“Forget the coffee, that news alone would have done a great job at waking me up…!” Ellidy added to his previous statement.

“I'll keep that in mind for the future…” Sally sputtered, her face still in her hands.

“Do you want a sip of my water, Sal?” Bunnie offered as an attempt to comfort her.

“If that's alright with you…” Sally replied, moving her hands away from their face.

“Of course.” Bunnie assured her, handing them her glass of water - of which Sally took a swig of before handing it back to Bunnie. “Feel better?” 

“Yeah.”

“Anyways, back to Project Midnight, I suppose…” Ellidy began, getting the conversation back on track. “I remember being asked to join in on the project some time last year, just after the Phantom Ruby War had officially ended.” He explained.

“No offense, El, but we know that already.” Bunnie interjected.

“Oh?” Ellidy reacted with surprise.

“Sally read the conversation you two had about it earlier.” Nicole added.

“I see… Since we're talking about it now, I suppose that it continued on without me?” Ellidy surmised.

“Yeah. Rounded up some folks from South Island and everything.” Manic verified.

“How's that going along?” Ellidy asked Manic.

“I don't know.” Manic answered - bluntly, of course.

“You… You don't know?” Ellidy questioned.

“G.U.N has refused to give him or seemingly anyone else any details of the project’s progress. We're trying to get all the details we can so we can maybe uncover the truth for ourselves.” Sally explained. “Or… at least, that's what I assume our goal here is.” 

“That sounds right.” Manic said with a nod.

“While the information we were able to get from my conversation with you has been useful in its own way - there are some things missing that we figured we could get from asking you here.” Sally continued.

“That does make sense.” Ellidy remarked. “Manic mentioned G.U.N collecting some mobians for the project - I imagine he'd have their information somewhere, yes?”

“Oh yeah, I do!” Manic exclaimed. “But… I have a deal to propose to ya, Doc.” They then revealed, grinning smugly.

“A… deal?” Ellidy inquired, not too fond of Manic's attitude.

“I can go get the files we have on the roboticized mobians that G.U.N recruited into Project Midnight… If you tell us who contacted you about the project.” Manic proposed. Sally rolled her eyes at the unnecessary theatrics, but she did have to admit - it's a fair trade, and a useful one at that.

“Deal.” Ellidy grumbled, definitely seeming to agree with Sally that Manic was making things more dramatic than they needed to be from his annoyed tone.

“The two of you may feel free to share your information with me so I can display it to everyone else easily.” Nicole told Ellidy and Manic.

“Sure thing!” Manic replied before taking off to go grab the files he needed.

“Oh, I was just going to say their name.” Ellidy admitted.

“Very well then, doctor.” Nicole digressed. “I'll just search the web for them.” 

“Good idea - though, we should wait for Manic to get back before we do that.” Sally suggested.

“Agreed.” 

It took about a minute and a half for Manic to return with the files - six of them to be exact, and it took them another minute and a half to scan each of them with her electronic communicator to send to Nicole.

“There, you should be all set now.” Manic then said after the three minutes in total had gone by.

“Indeed. Thank you.” Nicole replied politely.

“Well, El? Did you hold up your part of the bargain?” Manic teased Doctor Ellidy.

“I elected to share my information verbally.” Ellidy explained quite plainly to Manic.

“Aaah, I see!”

Nicole then began to make the windows for Manic and Ellidy’s cameras on the central room’s primary monitor a bit smaller, and moved the windows to the top of the screen. This was in order to make room for the slideshow she was creating in the background of the files Manic had sent her. Once the slideshow was finished being put together, Nicole put it up on the screen just underneath the camera windows.

As Sally flipped through the slideshow, Nicole read each file out loud.

Name: Alexis Abelton

Species: Porcupine Mobian

Gender: F

D.O.B: 12/31/1990

Areas of Roboticization: muzzle, eyes, both arms & both legs

INFO: Born in Spring Yard, South Island. Was taken to an orphanage near Marble Ruins at a very young age. Was then admitted to Emerald Hill Care Home post roboticization. Patient is used to being alone as she sees it as being “independant”. Despite this, most people get along with her pretty decently.

“Huh… Abelton… Where have I heard that name before…?” Bunnie questioned to herself.

“Maybe it was a name you saw in something you read once?” Sally suggested.

“Nah… That’d be pretty insane.” Bunnie shrugged.

Name: Citrine Spice

Species: Hedgehog Mobian

Gender: NB-F

D.O.B: 04/13/1996

Areas of Roboticization: muzzle, eyes, chest & both arms

INFO: Lived in Spring Yard, South Island pre-roboticization. Was admitted into Emerald Hill Care Home post-roboticization. They have poor balance and poor circulation thanks to the roboticization (wears compression socks to help with these problems, but the presence of a caretaker may still be required at times). Legs tire out quickly from having to support the weight of her robot parts.

Name: Melanie Meadows

Species: Hedgehog Mobian

Gender: F

D.O.B: 01/09/1996

Areas of Roboticization: Entire body except for head and eyes

INFO: Lived in Spring Yard, South Island pre-roboticization. Was admitted into Emerald Hill Care Home post-roboticization. Patient is very vocal about disliking her circumstances, when brought up, it's best to try to redirect it to a different topic. Patient is not allowed to use any sort of sharp objects under any circumstances due to repeated instances of her being a threat to herself and other patients. Having a caretaker nearby the patient at all times is highly recommended.

Name: Nelly Nomad

Species: Hedgehog Mobian

Gender: NB

D.O.B: 10/10/1995

Areas of Roboticization: both arms

INFO: Lived in Emerald Hill, South Island pre-roboticization. Was admitted into Emerald Hill Care Home post-roboticization. Due to living in the town before being admitted, the patient knows many of the staff quite well. Due to the weight of their arms, patient has developed chronic fatigue (a caretaker may need to be present during certain activities to help prevent harm). Patient has a pair of unexplained metallic horns growing out of their head that apparently came about post-roboticization. Patient has chronic headaches which are likely caused by this fact. The reason for her horns is unknown.

Name: Penny Puffs

Species: Porcupine Mobian

Gender: F

D.O.B: 07/28/1989

Areas of Roboticization: eyes, both legs & left arm

INFO: Lived in Mystical Caverns, South Island pre-roboticization. Was admitted into Emerald Hill Care Home post-roboticization. Patient initially refused being admitted, only relented when it began experiencing chronic pain stemming from the roboticization. Patient is quite surprisingly optimistic about her situation - tends to refer to her robotic limbs as “enhancements”. Patient is rather self sufficient, tends to only need a caretaker to bring her pain medications. Likes to act as a pseudo caretaker for other patients if given permission by staff.

Name: Terracotta “Terry” Tiles

Species: Hedgehog Mobian

Gender: NB-M

D.O.B: 10/17/1992

Areas of Roboticization: both legs & right arm

INFO: Lived in Hilltop Village, South Island pre-roboticization. Was admitted into Emerald Hill Care Home post-roboticization. Patient is frequently in a poor mood and usually tries to avoid other people (staff and patients alike). Deals with chronic pain due to roboticization (is prescribed pain meds). Best approach with the patient is to try to come across as gentle and kind as possible.

“Well damn, Manic. When you said that you remembered some of them being teenagers, I didn't think you meant most of them!” Bunnie spoke. Though the words were arranged in such a way to indicate a light hearted remark, the tone of her voice was more distressed than anything else.

“Yeaaahh… I seemed to have… uh… forgotten that part...” Manic responded awkwardly.

“I personally feel a bit… off about how one of the people selected for the project seems to be rather… unstable.” Sally noted, referring to Melanie’s file.

“I wonder if that's where it all went wrong…” Ellidy speculated.

“Ehh… Let's… not go in that direction, please?” Manic butted in.

Everyone agreed that they were perhaps being a bit insensitive, and moved on from that point.

“How about you share your information now, Ellidy?” Nicole suggested.

“Ah, yes!” Ellidy exclaimed in agreement. “If I'm remembering things correctly, the person who contacted me went by the name of I.R. Kintobor.” 

“Do you know what those first two initials stand for?” Sally asked Ellidy.

“I don't, no. They never shared that information with me.” He answered.

“Unfortunate. But this should be enough to conduct a search with regardless.” Nicole remarked as she pulled up a browser window. She proceeded to then type in the name into the search bar.

No results.

“... I stand corrected.” Nicole sighed.

“Are ya sure you're rememberin’ that name right, Doc?” Bunnie questioned.

“That is a fair question… Hold on one moment everyone.” Ellidy replied, appearing to direct his attention to something else on his computer that was not the call.

After a few minutes of everyone sitting around and waiting for whatever it was that Doctor Ellidy was doing to be finished - Ellidy spoke up again.

“Huh. It says I.R. Kintobor right here in the email.” He pointed out.

“Forward it to me.” Sally requested.

“Sent.” Ellidy responded.

Sally flipped open her phone and went through her emails - finding the forwarded email from Ellidy right at the top of her inbox. Opening the email up, they came to see that Ellidy was indeed correct.

“Well then what gives!” Sally blurted out in frustration.

“Might've been a pen name.” Bunnie surmised.

“But what if the surname’s still valid? That part sounds pretty legit to me.” Manic added.

“I agree with Manic. I'm pretty sure I've heard that name before.” Sally decided. “Nicole, run a search for JUST Kintobor.” 

“On it.” 

Nicole exited out of her previous search and then entered in the new search.

This time, there were results.

“I knew it!” Manic exclaimed.

“Congrats, are ya looking for a medal?” Bunnie teased him.

“I’m getting three names in these results that have relation to G.U.N. Hope Kintobor, Doctor Julien S. Kintobor, and Shadow Kintobor.” Nicole explained.

“Huh… So that’s why it sounded familiar.” Sally remarked.

“Oh, I thought it was just because I’m pretty sure “Kintobor” is just “Robotnik” backwards.” Manic pointed out.

“It is.” Ellidy interjected. “From what I gathered during my time as the Acorn Family’s Royal Scientist and having to interact with G.U.N on several occasions throughout the years, many people that were born with the Robotnik surname changed their surname to Kintobor to distance themselves from Professor Gerald Robotnik and then later Doctor Ivo Robotnik.” He elaborated.

“And Shadow was involved in that process??” Bunnie questioned. “Don’t they just go by “The Ultimate Lifeform”? What would the need even be for that?”

“Considering the way G.U.N treated Shadow, it may not have been a choice they made itself.” Sally suggested.

“You’re saying they forced it to change their name??” Bunnie asked.

“Do you not think they’d do that?” Sally argued.

“Pardon me, but I feel like you two are getting off topic again.” Nicole reminded them.

“Right, sorry.” Sally said. “Though I feel like we should at least keep note of the topic for later.”

“Understood.”

“What about the other two, then?” Manic inquired.

“Isn’t Hope a kid?” Bunnie wondered.

“About Amy’s age, I think.” Sally answered.

“I doubt she would be involved, then.” Ellidy surmised. “Besides, now that I have my emails open, I can see that Doctor Julien is directly referenced in them!” He added.

“Really?! That’s a lead, then! Keep going!” Sally exclaimed, feeling excited by the prospect of progress.

In accordance with Sally’s request, Nicole clicked on one of the results she received that pertain to Doctor Julien. But unfortunately, the result only gave her an error message in response when selected.

“Hm… How odd.” Nicole remarked with disappointment.

“Hey, wait just a moment there!” Bunnie spoke. The others turned to face her in curiosity. “Didn’t Knux say that that so-called “Doctor Julien” was actually a Robotnik worker in disguise?? “Snively” or somethin’ like that?” She then questioned.

Sally took a moment to think about it, but as memories of past conversations with Knuckles came back to her, they couldn’t deny that Bunnie was indeed correct.

“If so, then that may be why all the results pertaining to him present an error page.” Ellidy theorized. “Once such a thing reached G.U.N’s ears, they most likely fired him and erased all public records of him.”

“That definitely sounds like a G.U.N thing to do.” Sally remarked, with everyone else non-verbally expressing agreement with her statement.

“Well that seems like pretty definitive proof that Project Midnight went under! The guy who ran it turned out to be working for the Robotnik Empire, and thus the whole thing was shut down.” Manic nonchalantly surmised. “Was probably a scheme by Eggman to take care of unfinished business.”

“That honestly does sound like a rather likely theory…” Sally admitted, as much as she didn’t want to say it, given how bleak and open ended it left things.

“I should’ve known Eggface had his greasy hands in this mess…!” Bunnie grumbled, clearly trying to contain her rage.

“The Robotnik Empire tried to be sneaky about locating past failed roboticizations in order to finish the job, but G.U.N realized that they were involved and cut the cord on Project Midnight to stop Doctor Robotnik in his tracks.” Nicole summarized. “It seems that we have come to a conclusion, yes?”

“I suppose we have…” Ellidy agreed, sharing the somber feeling Sally had. “But it is still quite scummy of G.U.N to not inform the Hogpines nor even seemingly the families of the people they recruited for this project.” He reflected.

“I know… I wish we could try to get some more closure on that end…” Sally lamented.

“I think I know how we might just get the chance to.” Manic interjected, sounding rather determined.

“You sound mighty sure of yourself there, Manic. Whaddya thinking?” Bunnie inquired.

“Sure, G.U.N may have removed all public record of Doctor Julien and Project Midnight… But what if they still have info on them internally?” Manic speculated, catching the attention of everyone else present.

“Where are you going with this, Manic?” Sally questioned, feeling uneasy.

“Well, since you asked so politely…” Manic responded. “Nicole, would you possibly be able to hack into G.U.N’s databases?”

“O-oh! Why yes, I can! But-”

“WHAT?! We can’t just crack into a government agency’s private records like criminals!! Don’t you realize what that’d do to the Freedom Fighters' reputation!? The Acorn Family’s reputation??!!” Sally objected loudly, cutting Nicole off. “We may be heroes, but we certainly aren't above the law!!” She continued.

“G.U.N certainly likes to act like they are.” Bunnie pointed out. “Someone oughta make them own up to their actions for us - and if it ain’t us, then who will?!”

“If this gets out, I’m more than willing to take the fall.” Ellidy offered. “I’m already retired - not much that they could do to me. Besides, I haven’t worked for the Acorns for years. I could claim the whole thing as one of my many passion projects I’ve gotten up to and absolve you all of guilt completely.” 

“We are NOT hacking into G.U.N’s databases, and that’s FINAL!” Sally insisted with force.

“I’m sure you’ll come to change your mind eventually…” Manic argued, to which Sally rolled her eyes at.

“MANIC!! THE MEETING’S IN 5 MINUTES!!” The voice of Manic’s sister Sonia yelled from afar within Manic’s camera.

“Oh shit, I didn't realize that it was so late!” Manic stated, taken off guard.

"HEY! HAS ANYONE SEEN MY CREDIT CARD??" Sonic’s voice reverberated from elsewhere in the Sky Patrol, spooking Sally and Bunnie.

“Aaand it looks like Sonic’s in trouble too!” Manic remarked.

“I suppose this is where we depart.” Ellidy suggested.

“Yep.” Sally agreed.

“Tell Sonic I said hi!” Manic requested.

“You got it, sugarhog.” Bunnie replied.

“MANIC!! HURRY UP!!” Sonia called out, annoyed.

“I'M ON MY WAY, HOLD YOUR HORSES!!” Manic responded.

"I DON'T EVEN HAVE HORSES!!" Sonia yelled back.

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT-!" Manic exclaimed before hanging up.

Soon afterwards, Ellidy hung up as well, officially ending the call.

“Did I hear Sonia and Manic just now?” Sonic asked Sally, wheeling into the central room.

“Manic called first.” Sally explained bluntly. “Says hi, by the way.”

“And you didn’t think to tell me??” Sonic complained.

“Well you didn’t think to tell Amy about her being part Black Arms.” Bunnie argued.

“Ugh. What’d you even talk about, anyway?” Sonic questioned.

“... Ever heard of Project Midnight?” Sally asked.

“No?? Sounds like some weird attempt at reviving the Project Shadow thing.” Sonic responded.

“Oh do we have a story for you then, blue!” Bunnie remarked.

-Loading ↻-

About an hour had passed since the call with Manic and Doctor Ellidy had ended. Bunnie was now back in her room, having departed from the Sky Patrol’s central meeting room alongside Sonic once the conversation recapping the investigation conducted on Project Midnight that morning had ended. Sally had heard through various means what had happened during Amy’s morning out and how it had gone wrong. She did her best to comfort both Amy and Whisper, was given the letter in question that everything had centered around by Tails to analyze, and then contacted Espio to make sure he and the rest of the Chaotix were fully brought up to speed. All this happened in such a short span of time.

And yet, all Sally could think about was Project Midnight.

Despite the conclusion that she and the others had reached by the end, there they stood, staring out one of the room’s windows like she had so many times before, still filled with uncertainty.

Perhaps it was the injustice of it all. Sure, there was an understanding of what had happened to the project itself - seemingly. But they still have no idea what happened to those roboticized mobians that were recruited for the project. Were they alright? Were they even still alive? Nobody knows - and that just didn’t sit right with Sally.

Although, on the other hand… The conclusion itself didn’t quite sit right with Sally either. It made sense, sure, but just because it made sense didn’t mean it was correct… Right?

A plot by the Robotnik Empire to try to recapture failed roboticizations and try once more to turn them into completely loyal machines - and a cover-up by G.U.N in the wake of finding out about said plot.

It all seemed so in character for both parties.

Almost… too in character.

An expectation rather than reality.

But who else could it be then?

Who would know the ways of the Robotnik Empire and G.U.N well enough to make it seem like this was all their doing?

And who among those kinds of people would have the perfect mix of disdain towards both organizations and lack of morals to want to do this in the first place?

…

Sally didn’t want to be thinking about those alien bastards again today, she really didn’t.

So they put her questions aside and decided to assume the conclusion made that morning was true.

“It certainly is very nice out, isn’t it?” The sudden sound of Nicole’s voice made Sally jump slightly.

“O-oh! Uhm… I guess?” Sally replied sheepishly.

Nicole looked at Sally and must have noticed the troubled look in their eyes, as the look in her own changed from calm to concerned.

“Oh, apologies… I had not realized you were upset.” She said.

“It’s alright.” Sally replied.

“What is it that worries you?” Nicole asked.

Sally explained most of the thoughts in her head, leaving out the speculation about whether or not the conclusion they had come to was correct.

“It’s just not fair that their stories seemingly will never be told.” Sally concluded.

“It most certainly isn’t.” Nicole agreed. “But there is a way we can possibly find the answers we seek. I know you know that.”

“... You’re not still thinking about Manic’s whole “hacking” idea, right?” Sally questioned Nicole in equal parts annoyance and disbelief.

“And what if I am, hmm?” Nicole inquired in response, teasing Sally.

“We can’t!” Sally protested.

“Why so?” Nicole wondered.

“You know why!” Sally argued.

“Because you're the princess of a nation and the leader of a vigilante group?” Nicole guessed.

“Exactly!”

“But I thought you hated those titles?” Nicole pointed out. “You dislike being seen as above the common folk of Mobotropolis and Aerth as a whole. You see them as your equals, and you see yourself as equal to them.”

“... W-Well-” Sally stuttered, unsure of how to respond - as she knew Nicole was right.

“Including the mobians signed onto Project Midnight… right?” 

That was the comment that broke the camel’s back. Despite her personal views - the responsibilities she’s been given in life means that Sally is responsible for the wellbeing of the world’s inhabitants. Including those six mobians. 

Reputation shattering or not, she had to do what was necessary to either save those mobians - or to get justice for their untimely fates.

“... You’re right.” Sally finally relented.

“About…~?” Nicole asked teasingly, clearly egging Sally on to saying her decision with their whole chest.

“... About doing what is needed to protect the world and its people.” Sally elaborated. “Whether it’s legal or not.”

“So, does that mean-?”

“Yes, it means we’re going to hack into G.U.N’s databases.” Sally revealed, leaving from where they had been leaning on the windowsill and heading towards the room’s table. Nicole excitedly followed from behind.

“It’s for the greater good.”

-Loading ↻-

Manic, too, couldn’t stop thinking about Project Midnight - even hours after the call had taken place. Not even the royal meeting could fully distract him from the subject, no matter how surprisingly nice it was outside during it.

Being completely fixated upon potentially finding the six roboticized mobians that were brought onto the project and even possibly bringing them home, they resolved to sneak into file cabinets that are supposed to only be accessed by their parents in order to glean any possible threads to follow in pursuit of her goal.

Family members, close friends, and even the doctors and nurses of each of the six participants had their files searched into by Manic, revealing to him their names, their phone numbers, their residence and all sorts of private information. 

But even though such a breach of privacy was done with honorable intentions, it was still very much against the rules and arguably not very legal either - so it was only a matter of time before someone would catch Manic in the act and give him a stern talking to.

“You know you’re not supposed to be looking through those, right?” Sonia pointed out.

“Yeah yeah, I know. But I couldn’t find anything elsewhere.” Manic responded nonchalantly, not even looking up from the files to look at Sonia as he spoke.

“Anything on what exactly?” Sonia questioned. “And since when were you the type to be tirelessly combing through files for information, anyway? I thought that kind of thing was “too much work” for you?” She added, revealing just somewhat the idea that underneath her annoyance at Manic for breaking the rules like always, they were a bit impressed with him, too.

“You remember Project Midnight, right?” Manic asked Sonia, still fixated on the files in their hands.

“... Yeah, a bit.” Sonia replied, taking a moment to pause. “But it’s been awhile since I’ve heard back from the participants.” 

“Same here. That’s why I’m looking for related contacts right now. Alternate avenues to getting in contact with them and all that jazz.” Manic briefly explained.

“... When I came to tell you that the meeting was about to start earlier today, I heard Sally’s voice coming from your room. Were you on call with her?” Sonia inquired after a moment of being silent. There must be something stirring in her mind. But as to what exactly it was that was in their mind, Manic did not yet know.

“Yeah. I called her earlier to see if she knew anything about Project Midnight, and we ended up calling some scientist guy they know and went on an investigative journey to figure out what happened to it.” Manic answered.

“What… happened to it?” Sonia echoed with confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Well, did you ever think of why you haven’t heard back about it in like, a year?” Manic asked, finally turning his head towards Sonia.

“... I guess I hadn’t, no.” Sonia replied. “I’ve been too busy with other things to really ponder about that kind of thing.” They continued as she decided to sit down next to Manic.

“To summarize our findings, Project Midnight was run by a guy who turned out to be actually an employee of the Robotnik Empire playing double agent, so we suspect that the project was a front for Eggman to get back his failed roboticizations. G.U.N probably suspected that too so they shut the project down and fired the guy - wiping all public record of both.” Manic explained.

“You mean that-” Sonia was about to respond but Manic cut her off.

“Also on an unrelated note, but something I also learned during the call - did you know that the Black Arms are back?” He said, stopping Sonia in her tracks.

“Wha… WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE BLACK ARMS ARE BACK?? WHY DIDN’T YOU LEAD WITH THAT??” Sonia reacted very loudly.

“Hey- That’s what I said, too! Not as loudly, though.” Manic remarked, only making Sonia angrier. “But anyway, I didn’t lead with it because it’s not related to the Project Midnight thing - just a sort of current events thing.”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S CURRENT EVENTS???” Sonia questioned.

“I think Sal and the other Freedom Fighters got into a big fight with them last week?” Manic recollected. “She only brought it up because of it being another fuck up by G.U.N.”

“A-Another fuck up by G.U.N??” Sonia once more echoed Manic very confusedly.

“They were supposed to wipe out those new Black Arms back during the Shattered World Crisis, but they sent Team Dark out of all people to do it and that just ended up with them joining the motherfuckers. Which, like, guys. Shadow is part Black Arms themself. This was bound to go badly!” Manic elaborated.

“Oh great fucking gaia….” Sonia muttered with a facepalm.

“I KNOW, RIGHT?” Manic exclaimed.

“Wait, and you said this wasn’t related to Project Midnight?” Sonia asked.

“Nah.” Manic replied.

“... I don’t agree with that notion.” Sonia then argued.

“Whaddya mean by that?” Manic wondered, it apparently being her turn now to be confused.

“I know it might just be coincidence that you remembered this project from a year ago right around the time that the Black Arms are making their presence here known, but I can’t help but to sense a connection here.” Sonia explained.

“Well, in that case… What kind of connection do you think they could have to it, then?” Manic inquired, giving Sonia the floor to speculate.

“Okay, so, I’m gonna be nice to you and Princess Sally to start off with here, and assume that you guys ARE correct in your assessment of the situation. That means my first idea will be an extension of your assessment, to put it bluntly, in the form of a motivation for G.U.N to greenlight this project in the first place! Considering that G.U.N’s original approach with taking down the Black Arms that appeared during the Shattered World Crisis went awry, perhaps they were looking for another way to strike the aliens down - and their answer ended up being Project Midnight! You see, I believe that they planned to turn the mobians they recruited into super soldiers to fight against the Black Arms! But just after sending the participants out to battle, they found out that the scientist leading the project was a double agent for Robotnik, and had to shut the project down to save their image. And in the end, it wasn’t even worth it… As the mobians died in combat. That’s my first idea, anyway.” Sonia theorized.

“Sounds pretty reasonable, though a bit grim.” Manic said.

Before Sonia could get the chance to speak again, Manic suddenly remembered a detail from the call.

“Oh wait, I just remembered! The guy said to be running it was the Robotnik Empire guy, yeah, but there was also the person contacting people like Sal’s scientist friend that was using a pen name of some sort - but the pen name included the very real surname of “Kintobor”, which was the surname of the Robotnik Empire guy, but was also the G.U.N assigned surname given to Shadow!” Manic recollected.

“Really now?” Sonia reacted. “Well that perfectly segues into my OTHER idea!”

“It does?” Manic asked, surprised.

“It does!” Sonia stated. “Because Shadow was part of those put in charge of killing the Black Arms by G.U.N, wasn’t it? But you yourself said that they instead joined the Black Arms!”

“After some time, yeah.” Manic clarified.

“The Black Arms are incredibly cunning, Manic. They can get very creative with their ways of getting what they want. They also have knowledge of how G.U.N is, both from the process of Project Shadow’s development and presumably from Shadow’s personal experience as well. Hell, the Project Shadow argument could also be used to argue that they’d have a pretty good understanding of the Robotnik Empire’s ways as well - as Doctor Robotnik’s own grandfather was the one leading the project and being in communication with the Black Arms. Though, also, the Robotnik Empire just tends to be rather predictable in their methods.” Sonia observed.

“Not to ruin your flow, sis, but where are you going with this?” Manic queried.

“The Black Arms very well could have orchestrated this entire Project, independent from both G.U.N and the Robotnik Empire, but also impersonating both of those aforementioned parties in order to paint a false narrative to hide behind.” Sonia claimed. “Tell me, Manic - do you have any evidence that the doctor that supposedly led Project Midnight was fired from G.U.N during or after its development?” She then questioned Manic.

“... Not really, no. Actually, come to think of it, it kinda seemed like he was fired… beforehand…” Manic responded, starting to get the awful feeling that his sister was indeed correct, and he, as well as Sally, Ellidy, Bunnie and even Nicole had all fallen for the trap those black creatures had set.

“Exactly! With their extensive knowledge of both parties and a couple of clever impersonations, they created the perfect disguise. If you ask me, I think that Shadow was the one sending out the emails under the pen name while someone else in the Black Arms that was more familiar with the sciences needed for their project impersonated the double agent doctor - but I don’t have evidence for those claims.” Sonia concluded.

“... But what would the Black Arms want with the roboticized mobians…?” Manic sheepishly wondered, the horrible despair caught in his throat and tying knots in their stomach stealing away any trace of the laid back aura she usually had.

“Assimilation, most likely. Especially now that I imagine that they’re pretty low in numbers now given their failed attempt to invade Aerth back in ‘05 and the attack from G.U.N during the Shattered World Crisis-.” Sonia inferred.

“Or…” Manic uttered.

“Or?” Sonia echoed curiously.

“... Do you remember that first email we got? How “G.U.N” promised “a new life” for those roboticized mobians they would come to recruit?” Manic asked.

“I… I think I do.” Sonia replied.

“Okay, so, during our call, Sally, Bunnie, Nicole and I at one point started talking about what that “new life” could be referring to… And I at some point came up with a rather… gruesome conclusion.” Manic revealed. “I had theorized that the people running the project had chopped up the participants, taken their organic body parts, and created a singular “new life”, Frankenstein style. I-It sounded ridiculous and over the top back then, but…”

“Now that you realize who it really was behind the scenes, it sounds much more reasonable?” Sonia guessed.

“Y-Yeah…” Manic confirmed.

The both of them were silent for a moment, taking in the ramifications of what the both of them were implying - especially the sheer horror of it all, and the realization that it was already too late.

They had already fallen for the trap months ago.

Just as it seemed that Sonia was going to speak again, both of them heard Manic’s communicator ring from within his room.

“That must be Sal.” Manic inferred, rushing over to the room with Sonia following closely behind.

-Loading ↻-

When Manic picked up, Sally noticed two things about him - Sonia was by his side, and he looked rather distressed, though also seemingly trying to hide that fact.

“Manic, I took your advice.” Sally revealed. “We hacked into G.U.N’s databases - a few hours ago.”

“Y-You told her to do what???” Sonia reacted, yelling at Manic.

“I-I thought it was going to be the only way to find more on Project Midnight - since I still thought it was a G.U.N project!” Manic explained himself to Sonia as if not on call at the moment.

“Well, it didn’t exactly-” Sally began to elaborate on her original statement, but cut herself off when Manic’s words had truly sunk into them. “Wait, what do you mean you still “thought” it was a G.U.N project??” They questioned.

“Oh- Right- Uhm, Sonia or I will explain. But you can go first.” Manic stammered.

“... Hacking into the databases didn’t exactly… go as planned.” Sally reiterated. “We couldn’t find anything on Project Midnight in there, for one… Not to mention that these strange glitches kept happening all throughout our search, and we ended up getting redirected to a very… gruesome recording of a mission mishap.” She then explained, shuddering as they fought back the urge to vomit for a second time that day.

“I’d hate to make you more upset than you already seem to be, Sal, but… Do you remember what mission the recording was from?” Manic asked, being surprisingly caring and gentle, which made Sally feel… odd.

“It was never said explicitly… But from gathering the details together and utilizing some critical thinking skills… I think it was from when G.U.N sent Team Dark and some other agents up to that new Black Comet that those new Black Arms came from during the Shattered World Crisis…?” Sally answered, trying to hide the fact that she was not entirely certain of her guess. “Heheh… heh… I-I guess Team Dark were going astray from the hero’s path for longer than we had thought…” They added, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t help. 

“I knew it!” Sonia exclaimed.

“Knew… what?” Sally questioned.

“It makes sense… You guys not being able to find anything about Project Midnight in G.U.N’s databases… The constant ties leading back to Team Dark and the Black Arms… It all makes too much sense…!” Manic vaguely divulged, his voice filled with the dread that Sally could tell from the start of this call that he was trying to hold back. 

But now it was spewing forth, and infecting Sally with it too.

She didn’t want to believe it, she wanted to think that they had been right earlier that morning.

But it was undeniable now.

“Manic… Sonia… Are you talking about… What I think you’re talking about…?” Sally weakly inquired, all of her queasiness from earlier coming back to haunt her, and the video she saw replaying in her head against their will.

“I believe that Project Midnight was never a failed project of G.U.N’s… As I believe that it was never G.U.N’s project in the first place. And I suspect you’re starting to believe that too.” Sally nodded as Sonia spoke. “Rather… I believe that Project Midnight, in its entirety…”

“Is a creation of the Black Arms.”

[glapplebloom]

IDW’s Biggest Issue with the Sonic Franchise.

For context, Dr. Starline has just infected Eggman’s Network, giving him access to every machine Robotnik has. Surge and Kitsunami have plans to clear the board once Starline’s guard is down. And Sonic, Tails and Belle are heading towards the central point of all these machines coming together. We begin with them wanting to convince Belle to go away, but she insists on staying because she wants to see this through to the end. Starline seems very confident, but then Eggman arrives in one of the few machines not under Starline’s control: the Egg Emperor from Sonic Heroes. And he’s angry.

When Belle sees Metal Sonic, she wants to help him. Another review found this weak since Metal Sonic is a killing machine and Belle is making him 100%. But considering the situation and Sonic and Tails likely going to be in more action, having a bodyguard who won’t likely attack her is probably the best idea. And she’s lucky she did because Sonic and Tails are forcefully split up by Surge and Kitsunami. Surge tackling Sonic at high speed and Kitsunami looking like he’s a Manga Villain. 

Surge goes on a rant because it's Sonic’s fault she’s like this. If only Sonic took out Starline or Eggman none of this would have happened. Sonic tries to get her to lighten up but stays a step ahead of her in combat. Surge may be well practiced in simulations, but Sonic’s been doing this for over 30 years so he has the experience advantage. Back with Starline Vs Eggman, Starline decides to fight giant robot with giant robot. And while she got Metal online, Metal is still Metal. But because she’s the only thing keeping him from serving Starline (and seeing her as an Eggbot), he needs her as well to find Eggman.

Tails is winning Kitsunami over with kindness as it seems Talk-No-Jutsu is working. After all, Kitsunami probably never received any sort of praise since his conception so hearing praise is making him think differently. It seems like Tails would be convincing Kitsunami to join the good guys side until he mentions stopping whoever is fighting Sonic. And since he is EXTREMELY loyal to Surge, he goes full Tsunami mode and goes on the attack. Back with Sonic, he asks if Surge is having fun. And like Kitsunami, this triggers her.

This is when Sonic talks about his motto: he lives for the moment and wants others to have the freedom of choice. And while Eggman and Starline are examples of such a thought is bad, Knuckles, Shadow, Chaos, the list goes on and on with so many examples of giving people the chance to change and them changing for the better. Sadly, Surge took that change for the better and cemented her thought: if she volunteered for this procedure, she had nothing for her. And if she was kidnapped, nobody is looking for her. So burn everything to the ground. 

Sonic is against that, because while he gives people the freedom to make choices, he’ll prevent others who try to take said freedom from others. Which means no matter what Eggman, Starline, or any villain who wants to continue being a villain does, Sonic will be there to stop them. Back with Starline Vs Eggman, while Robotnik proved to be the better mech pilot, Starline decides to pull a Sonic Heroes and go for a team attack. The Team Attack destroys the Egg Emperor and Starline stands victorious…

IS WHAT YOU THINK I’D SAY, WITCH! Eggman planned ahead this time. He knew Starline was so caught up in Nostalgia he would waste his precious Gauntlet’s power on an attack, leaving him open. Starline tries to hypnotize Eggman, but he comes prepared with Anti-Hypnotic Goggles. Starline is surprised that he actually listened to him. And then Eggman does a Hulk and calls him a puny scientist. So while another review highlighted this is Starline’s flaw of only seeing the actions and not knowing the person, but how did Eggman do this?

By looking at the Metal Virus, he was the least prepared for it. Seeing that caused Starline to double think on his views on Robotnik. So why did he do better here? Simple: Starline is not Sonic. Starline is predictable. So blinded by nostalgia and his own visions that he doesn’t see the full picture. Starline is playing Chess while Eggman is playing Risk. Planning for Sonic is a completely different beast than planning for an opponent that gives you so much information to use against them.

Speaking of against them, Belle arrives to say goodbye forever to Robotnik. The Eggman is impressed that she was able to fix Metal and offers her a spot in his empire. She refuses so Robotnik leaves. It's that specific moment that makes it feel like my interpretation of Eggman. But Starline is there and is not looking too good. Belle tries to warn him but he’s crushed by debris. While most people think he’s alive, the look on Belle’s face makes me think he’s going to be dead. And according to Ian Flynn, he will be unless he gets a huge demand to return.

Tails beats Kitsunami by waiting long enough for his water to be depleted and Sonic beats Surge. He tried to save her from a Disney Style death but she refuses, dropping down a seemingly bottomless pit. Unlike Starline, we all know Surge survived this. But with all the good guys back together and Eggman back in control, Robotnik decides to not waste this opportunity and attacks everyone with all the badniks around. Overall, a very fun issue and definitely worthy of a 50th Issue.

Sonic’s morals get shown in full view, Tails shows how clever he is. Kitsunami and Surge shows how interesting of a character they are. Starline had the best finale to his story. Belle lives (hopefully long enough to be in future stories) and we get possibly the best Eggman on paper. I may have issues with their Pony stuff, but their Sonic comics are definitely top of the line.

[theflashdriver]

Too Late

A mysterious visitor draws Blaze to the docks, having made his presence known through Marine and requested conversation with her. His reasons for this, who he is and why he's even here are all unknowns. Despite this rudeness, the ruler of the Sol dimension can't help but feel a bizarre tension in the air. Written for sonamysilvazeweek 2021, using the bonus prompt of hurt/comfort!

This one is more intended to be pure angst than romance but it is very soft, I hope folks enjoy!

---

These past two days had brought a bizarre tension that Blaze knew the origin of but not how to confront. Yesterday morning, a little before noon, Marine had burst into a royal meeting with all the disruptive force that she could muster. The now adult raccoon, stood in front of ministers and community stakeholders, had freely and willingly babbled about a weird old wizard who had offered to help with her ships if he could meet with the princess. Naturally, due to a combination of the shipwright’s tone and chosen way of relaying this information, Blaze had rather exploded at her, insisting that she leave and that this so-called wizard should make an appointment. When the girl had tried to stand her ground, she’d been asked if this person was a threat. With a grumble of no, knowing she was beat, the raccoon had made her way through the halls but out the castle entirely.

That was, until eight o’clock this morning. The young raccoon had barraged her way into the royal bedchambers, claiming that the same old wizard had successfully pulled eight of her crashed ships from the ocean and aided in their repair by merely waving his hand. She said that he was some kind of psychic sent from the other dimension and that, despite how weird and old he was, he apparently knew Cream, Sonic, Tails and the others. All those things had piqued Blaze’s interest, of course they had, but none of them propagated her curiosity quite like Marine claiming he’d sat on the dock ever since he’d arrived. He hadn’t eaten or even slept; he’d simply sat waiting for the princess.

Unfortunately, just like the day before, today had been filled to burst with work. Gardon had passed away three months ago and, although the monarch was now mature, the burden of that loss was still weighing heavily on her. No longer having that confidante, that source of sage advice, was finally beginning to wear her down. Hours were spent dealing with fussy landowners and handling minor issues, with both sets of Eggman long gone too, the guardian part of her role had been regulated to a mere title. It’d taken until now, approaching night on this summer day, for her to find the time and leave the castle.

The evening was humid, even by the docks, but that wasn’t too abnormal for this time of year. A dark sky hung overhead; grey clouds formed a barrier that barely allowed the pink of the sunset to pierce through. She was dressed in her usual working garb, her purple coat and white tights, but she wasn’t entirely sure if this was work. Marine’s descriptions of this man had been sparse to say the least- apparently, he was old, would glow with a strange cyan light and looked rather homeless. Blaze wasn’t even certain that her aid was needed in the Chaos dimension and so she hadn’t brought the Sol emeralds; according to Marine, he was just here to meet with the princess.

Blaze quickly found herself at the stout dock that Marine tended to work off of. Sure enough, no fewer than eight vessels that she could scarcely recognise were happily floating along either side of the wooden boardwalk. None of them held her attention for long though, despite how ludicrous and intricate their designs were. No, Blaze’s eyes quickly fell upon a cloaked figure sitting at the very end of the dock.

Her attention was immediately captured by a set of seven quills, the formation of which she’d never seen on a hedgehog before. They were long overgrown and, though she could tell five ascended from his forehead while two stretched from the back of his head, they’d all began to matt into one continuous mass of grey fur. The cloak Marine had described was actually a garb formed from brown burlap, heavily stitched in places and acting as some strange poncho with long and billowing sleeves. Strangely, his right sleeve hung loosely at his side while his left reached up to cradle his head.

“Hello there? Are you the one who’s been waiting for me?” She called out, trying to get his attention.

“Oh, hello,” A croaking voice half-hummed from the form, he didn’t so much as turn back, “It’s a shame you didn’t come yesterday, the sunset was wonderful.”

Feeling a little slighted by the hedgehog’s cheekiness, Blaze responded in kind, “Well, I’m sorry but my role finds me rather busy.”

“Oh, no, there’s nothing to be sorry about. I think I can make this work,” Once those words sounded, the hedgehog’s back straightened and his hand left his chin.

She watched from behind as he pointed to the sky and, though she wasn’t sure what to expect, she couldn’t have anticipated what would happen next. The once grey shroud that had blocked the sun was suddenly tinted cotton-candy blue. She watched as his fingers curled into a fist and the cloud mass seemed to convulse, almost gathering at a single point, before he flicked his wrist and spread his fingers. The clouds parted into a wide circle that breached the horizon and, as it did, his hand was made fully visible. A cyan circle shone on the back of his palm; by the tears on his worn glove, she could tell that it was part of his hand.

“Oh, today’s even prettier, is that normal for this world?” It was only then that the form turned for face her, not rising and bowing like most of her subjects would but simply glancing over his shoulder with a soft smile on his face.

Behind him, the sun couldn’t be more than an inch away from the ocean’s surface and the sky was the most glorious shade of pastel pink… but that couldn’t hold the feline’s attention. Her eyes locked on the hedgehog’s face, the face of an old and tired man. Sunburn marred his muzzle, giving him a rough appearance despite his smile. Plumes of white fur breached his garb’s neck-hole, wrinkles covered his face and there was an age in his eyes that spoke volumes to the feline. Marine hadn’t been inaccurate to call him a wizard, what he’d just done was ludicrous and he surely looked the part, but something in those bright yellow eyes called to Blaze in a bizarre way.

Stumped, finding herself unable to answer, Blaze managed another step forward before catching herself, “What on earth did you just do?”

“Oh, I just pushed the clouds away,” He said, so very nonchalantly, as he turned back to the sky, “Don’t you think it’s pretty?

“It’s certainly prettier than it was,” She conceded through clenched teeth, daring to take another step closer. Though he didn’t seem threatening, this bizarre figure had just split the sky with no more than a wave of his hand, “Marine was insistent that I come down here as soon as possible, was there a reason for that?”

“What? Oh, I’m sorry, no. I would have happily waited for a few weeks at least,.I heard that you’re very busy,” He patted the spot on the docks next to him, smiling back at her again, “I just wanted to talk with you a little, after that I’ll be on my way.”

Under normal circumstances, Blaze would have turned tail there and then. If he was just here to talk and willing to wait then he could book an appointment like all the rest; but these weren’t normal circumstances. He’d parted the sky, brought ships back from the depths and... well, something bizarre was buzzing in Blaze’s head. As she looked upon his form, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu; she’d never seen this old man in her life and yet he looked so familiar. The term anemoia came to mind but she was struggling to recall its meaning. Without even really thinking, she found herself stepping closer still to the grey figure- soon she was standing by his side.

It was as he turned back to the sunset, releasing a sigh of contentment, that Blaze truly understood what she was looking at. When Marine said he’d raised and repaired her ships with one hand, Blaze hadn’t thought that he lacked the other. His right arm had been reduced to a stump, bound at its end, but that wasn’t where the damage ended. Only his right leg poked free from his garb to hang over the edge, this figure had seen far more than his share of adversity. Even the smiling form of his muzzle seemed slightly battered and, even over the scent of sea air, the stench he carried was that of brimstone and sweat decades aged.

“And what is it that you want to talk about?” Blaze, rather bluntly, managed to ask.

“Well, um,” He tugged at his chest fur, “I have a couple of questions to ask, but I’m sure you’ll have some for me too. How about we take turns asking things? I asked one then you get to.”

Today just kept growing more bizarre, he hadn’t come to ask her anything, he’d come to play a game of twenty questions. Even with Marine, even with Sonic or Amy or any of the others, if they tried to confront her like this then she’d ask them to simply cut to the chase. But as she stood above him, a question did find purchase in her mind. He apparently knew the others, that meant he was probably from their dimension, so why hadn’t they bumped into each other? He was an older hedgehog, was he related to Sonic? She didn’t think so, but it was so bizarre- it was like she knew where he came from, it was almost on the tip of her tongue. Even his name, it was as though she was so sure of it but couldn’t verbalise it no matter how she tried.

With a heavy sigh, not masked in the way she’d try to hide such normalities during her royal meetings, Blaze dropped down to sit beside the grey figure, “Fine, ask away.”

“What, really? O-Okay,” He seemed just as surprised as she was about her willingness to go along with this, “I’m, well, I think I’m eighty-two now. How old are you?”

Blaze blinked; this absolute stranger had just asked the princess her age in such a blunt manner. His lack of tact was frankly astounding but Blaze wasn’t off put. If anything, there was something strangely homely in how casually he’d asked, “I’m twenty-eight now, going on twenty-nine.”

“Oh wow, it’s like we’re opposites,” He immediately seemed to notice, smiling even more warmly than he had before, “Your turn then.”

A couple of ideas floated in her head, questions that felt strangely pointless to ask despite her not knowing the answers. Eventually, she managed to settle on one.

“Marine said you knew those in the other dimension,” She posited, “Do you come from there? I’ve been over a few times now and I don’t think I’ve ever…” For whatever reason, another surge of déjà vu forced her to hesitate, “Seen you.”

“Oh, yes, right. I don’t think you would have, no,” He seemed to stumble over a collection of thoughts, “I’m from there but not from then, you see. I’m from their dimension but a very different time. Two-hundred years in their future, I was born. The time I came from though, that’s long gone, overwritten by my travels,” The old man said, as if it was the most normal thing in the world, “It was a bad place to live to be honest, overrun by monsters long before I was born. It took a lot but, after almost a hundred years of work, it’s finally all sorted out. I kept going back to the past and preventing disasters, now there’s nothing left to prevent,” And she found herself listening, as if it was the most regular of answers, “I guess I kind of come from nowhere now though, it’s nice there but it’s not exactly home. I’m just drifting now really…”

“Right…” The princess mumbled, trying to take that all in and finding it surprisingly easy.

Up until now things had been weird but now things were surpassing the point of strangeness. Looking past the other oddities this figure presented, for her to hear what she had just heard and feel as though that was both truthful and normal was the most bizarre sensation Blaze had ever experienced. Perhaps it was because she was used to introducing herself as a princess of another dimension but the fact she was so unphased by his words was thoroughly phasing her.

Before she could dwell on it too much, he was smiling at her again, “I’m wondering, the others mentioned that you were a pyrokinetic, would you mind showing me…?”

Again, without much thought, Blaze found this usually questionable proposal agreeable. She raised her right hand between them and, with no more than the click of her fingers, the top of her forefinger was set alight. Almost immediately he moved in closer, his bright yellow eyes marvelled at the exposed flame.

“Though it took me a while to properly control it, I’ve had this power for all my life,” She explained, snuffing the light against her palm, “What about you? What’s that symbol on your hand and what did you do with the clouds?”

As if to match her, the hedgehog raised his hand. Light seemed to pulse and ebb from the shining mark at his hand’s centre, tinting the environment around it. Once that had been shown, in such a casual way, the hedgehog turned and gestured to the sea before pointing his forefinger up. A light seemed to well in the dark depths of the water and, almost instantly, the waves ceased their lapping. Slowly coiling its way up, like some great serpent emerging from a lake, a long tendril of water, bathed in that same cyan glow, began to extend from the sea. It cut the sky, stretching a good ten metres up. Then, with a further wave of his hand, it fell away from them as though it was a tree that’d been chopped at the base. With a colossal splash, the waves restarted with a brief degree of additional aggression before, eventually, settling back into their regular pattern.

In any other situation, coming from any other person, Blaze would have taken this as some vague show of force. She knew that he could manipulate more than water, she’d seen him shift the cloud many miles in the sky, but he’d chosen to control the element that directly countered her own. Again though, for some unthinkable reason, Blaze couldn’t find the emotion to be shocked or perturbed.

“I’m psychic, I’ve had this power for as long as I remember but, to be quite honest, I’ve got no idea how it actually works or where it comes from,” His smile grew a little warmer, “I never really thought it all that important, all that matters is how these powers are used.”

“I’ve tried to embody similar thoughts myself,” She quickly responded, attempting not to dwell on that or the thoughts that came with it, “It’s your turn.”

“This is my big question, but I know this might be a little strange to ask. You don’t have to answer it if you’re not comfortable,” He said, as if everything up to this point had been normal, “Do you like living here? Do you like being the princess?”  

This wasn’t a question Blaze was new to, it wasn’t uncommon for children to ask what it was like being a princess, but Blaze thought his version carried a little more weight. He wasn’t asking about the simple things, like sleeping in a big bed or heading public events. For whatever reason, the princess knew he was asking if she actually enjoyed the role she’d been born into and, again for some unknown reason, she felt prompted to answer truthfully. This stranger was compelling her to unearth truths in a way that she hadn’t dared before.

“It’s… difficult,” She muttered, “Even though I hold a privileged position, even though I know I’m luckier than most, I don’t know that I’ve ever been comfortable,” Her head found her hand, her gaze drifted to the sea, “I can’t see my friends often, I can’t choose where I go and when, I can’t even stroll to the docks on a whim,” For some reason, although that was true, saying it aloud felt incredibly selfish, “But, it would be a lie to say I’m totally uncomfortable here. Marine keeps things interesting. Though I’ve seen adversity I’ve either been able to handle it or found the strength to call upon friends to aid me. Even if it’s not perfect, I’m happy I can live here and bring justice for those around me. I don’t know that I could ever see myself giving it up or…”

Blaze caught herself, grinding their conversation to a halt, “This is hardly professional of me; I really don’t know why I’m telling you all this. I shouldn’t be talking to anyone like this.”

“Well, I’d be lying if I told you I minded all that or that I wasn’t enjoying our conversation,” His eyes seemed to flicker away from hers and, though he spoke positively, his grin drooped ever so slightly, “I simply have a face that a people find familiar, I think it’s got something to do with my travels through time. People tend to speak with me in ways that they wouldn’t others.”

Somehow, despite the softness of his expressions and the newness behind their interactions, the princess could see that he wasn’t telling the total truth. There was something in the bending of his brow, the way the words hung on his lips. Then again, perhaps it wasn’t to do with him at all. Maybe it was the way his words resonated with her eardrums.

Equally though, she’d be lying if she said that she didn’t see what he’d said, “You do have a rather…” She rummaged for the right words, good and polished words, but what she drew was far too flimsy, “Kind face,” Though her stomach churned at her inaccurate choice of words, she pressed on, “Though that concerns me, it does really feel as though I’ve met you before. Were you a friend of Gardon’s?”

“Gardon?” The word rolled off his tongue, she couldn’t recall hearing that name in his voice at all. She knew the answer before he seemed to, “No, I don’t think so. Who’s Gardon?”

“He was,” Her tongue hitched on words like a hoe dragging through rocks, “Like a father to me,” That seemed right to tell him, even if it wasn’t proper to admit, “I didn’t especially realise that when he was with us but, despite that, I think he knew. He’d looked after me since I was a little girl, I can’t imagine he didn’t occasionally consider himself in that role,” She found herself stumbling, emotions were bubbling to the surface but, for some reason, despite her oversharing, she didn’t care, “I probably should have said I shared his view or made my attachment clearer but, given my position, it wouldn’t have been right.”

“Well,” Hesitantly, shakily, that glowing hand of his came to reside upon her shoulder. Any normal stranger would have promptly been brushed off, told to keep their hands away, but something about that weight upon her shoulder ebbed with a further familiarity that she could not place, “It sounds as if I’d love to have been a friend of Gardon’s, I’m so sorry, Blaze.”

It was only now, having sat with him for a while, that Blaze was beginning to pick up on subtle aspects of his mannerisms. Every word seemed as though it was intently thought out, as if he was running through a thousand memories every time she finished a sentence- so often punctuated with a hum or the word well. It was as if he was doing what she had done for so many years; carefully choosing his words, trying to match her royal status. The only difference was that while she searched for professional words, he seemed to do much the opposite. Not once had he remembered to call her your majesty or your highness, regardless of how much thinking he did.

“Though it’s not the same, I’ve lost someone close to me too,” For the first time since they’d started their conversation, his gaze had flickered away from her and back towards the sea, “Then again, I-I suppose that’s to be expected when you reach my age,” He took another moment, his remaining hand slipped from her shoulder to his knee as he seemed to catch himself, “No one so recently of course, but it’s hard to forget,” She watched his brow furrow further, his fingers seemed to push deeper into his cloak as his words slowly spilled, “You never actually want to forget. If you do, you’ll regret forgetting, more than anything else in the world.”

Once again, the two found themselves sitting in silence. Blaze the cat, the cold and hardened queen of the Sol dimension, felt a few bizarre words weighing so heavily on her tongue. In a matter of moments, with only a handful of words, the tension between them had remounted and tripled. Despite that, she was about to make things even more awkward.

“D-Did you love them?” She stumbled to ask, rather immediately regretting it but finding it impossible not to say something in continuation, “The person that you lost, I mean.”

“Oh, I loved her more than anything,” His answer was so immediate, “So much in fact that I can’t help but think I very much took her for granted. She never took to the word love well, it always seemed to embarrass her, but I feel as though I should have said it a million times more,” Unlike the name of Gardon or so many other things Blaze had heard today, the word love in his tone sounded so unforgivably familiar. It made her feel as though she was some kind of demon for not knowing where she’d heard it, “She was smart, brave, strong… and so much kinder than she probably liked to think, let alone that she could stand to admit,” The way he spoke seemed to carry a nostalgic joy and love that Blaze couldn’t recall seeing in any person, across their entire life “She’d scold me so often, I don’t think she realised that was how she showed her love. I don’t think I knew it either, but I would still go too far and get myself hurt just trying to impress her. It was all with the intent to do good of course, never pointless, but...”

A spark had grown in his eye, another glow that she recognised, but so very quickly he seemed to snuff it. Worry lines appeared on the hedgehog’s brow as he turned back to the sunset.

His smile frayed away at the seams as he mumbled, that love wasn’t gone but now it was being tiptoed around, “Well, she went too far herself a handful of times…”

This old man, this man almost three times her age, had already established a connection with her that few people, inside or out of her kingdom, had managed. Somehow, in a matter of minutes and without seeming to try, he’d managed to bring her fully out of her shell and allowed her access to his. No, it was more than that, it was as if she wanted access to the walls around this history he’d lived.  

“I’m…” Something about this felt weird to say, even though she knew it was right, “Sorry for your loss too.”

“I’m sure she loves watching the sunset,” He half hummed before catching himself and beginning to stammer, “W-Would have loved to, rather. This world is so very pretty, though I haven’t stayed for long, I’ve found myself rather smitten with it,” With his hand, he gestured out to the horizon and she followed his pointing, “Islands littered with limitless wonders, a glorious sunset every evening, softly rolling tides and wonderful people,” He spoke such simple words but they were so plainly from the heart, “Yes, this must be the most beautiful place I’ve ever visited. Even better than the world I made.”

Having not watched many sunsets, Blaze didn’t think she was in a good position to judge but there was no denying the prettiness of this sky. The soft pink of the ether, fading orange away from the sun and red towards, it was truly breath-taking to behold. The way the silver clouds hung, parted by his will, as if it were a picture frame surrounding the view made it all the more special. It was as if he’d revealed something she’d never have noticed, like he’d excavated some fossil or deciphered some ancient code.

“I’ve…” She caught herself before she could say something naïve again, “I must profess, I never really watched it until today. It just seemed so regular, as if it wasn’t worth noticing,” That turned his head but she kept her focus on the view in front of them, “But you’re right, it is beautiful,” In this moment, having discussed so much, Blaze felt bold enough to finally pry and ask the question she weirdly felt she already knew the answer to, “What did you say your name was?”

“Oh, I don’t think you asked so I didn’t give my name,” He’d tried to make it sound as though he’d just realised but Blaze could tell that was intentional, “I’m, um…” It took him much too long to provide an answer, “I’m Venice, yes, sorry. Its been a while since I’ve heard my name, let alone used it.”

“Venice?” That name didn’t sit fondly on her tongue, it didn’t seem to suit him at all. No, without even watching him speak it, Blaze knew that he was lying, “You mean, like the city in the other dimension? The one with the canals.”

“Y-Yeah,” He muttered in an attempt to reaffirm, “I think I was born there. I must admit, its been too long for me to really remember now. It’s really beautiful, but it can’t compare to this…”

“I see,” She didn’t feel as though she could really fight him on this, not directly at least.

In the silence that followed, Blaze couldn’t help but tear her gaze from the skyline and attempt to look upon him again. His heart seemed to always be on his sleeve; he was perpetually trying not to lie but plainly obfuscating the truth. Now closer, she could make out little details that were lost on her before. While his missing arm and leg were the most obvious marks on his body, it was clear that the tattered shroud he wore was intended to cover more. On his muzzle, just beneath his left eye, was a thin but clear gash that stretched almost the entire length of his cheek. The hedgehog’s nose looked as though it had been broken at least once, the way his left shoulder seemed to slump suggested that arm hadn’t escaped unharmed too and he was missing no fewer than three teeth.

These injuries would make any normal person feel bad for the hedgehog, but something about them was impacting Blaze a magnitude more than she’d expected. She’d been to hospitals in the wake of disaster, she’d seen people with injuries like his and even far worse following great storms and fires and floods, and she had felt for them… but it had never seemed quite so personal. Perhaps it was because he was older and she had just lost Gardon, perhaps it was because he’d shown her kindness, but Blaze doubted that. It was probably because of the bizarre connection she had felt this entire time. Who was this old man, who had he loved and what was he doing here?

Despite that question hanging in her mind, a very different one fell from Blaze’s mouth, “Do you want to talk about your partner some more?”

Equal parts of his face read that he did and didn’t want to but, ultimately, he resumed his talk, “I remember every detail, every little thing about her, as if we were together only yesterday. The way she’d flinch and brace at every bump in the night, the way she’d try to hide her laugh whenever I was especially stupid, the purrs she’d babble whenever things were truly peaceful, how she’d fuss over me while bandaging my injuries only to fuss more when I offered to help with hers,” Emotion now seemed to be overwhelming him, he went from staring straight at the sunset to turning such that she couldn’t see more than the edge of his muzzle, “There was this word she’d use, scolding me but not scolding me every time she spoke it. I didn’t even know what it meant for ages; it took me until very recently to know just what she meant by it though…”

Before she could even puppet her tongue, a question forcibly spilled fourth, “What was that word?”

“Oh, I don’t think I can stand to say it,” Somehow, by only seeing the edge of his ears furrowing and the slightest shake of his body, the princess could tell that the old hedgehog was at least hurting if not actually crying, “I’m sorry.”

Carefully, slowly, Blaze reached out a hand to touch his shoulder. That contact seemed to freeze him entirely or, perhaps, it would be better said that her touch had petrified him, “There’s nothing to be sorry for, I’m sorry you lost someone you clearly cared so much for,” For whatever reason, even though it was what so many had said to her after Gardon’s death, that didn’t seem like enough, “But, judging by what you said when I first arrived, I’m sure she’d be very proud of you. It sounds like you’ve lived a difficult life and done more for your world than people will ever know.”

“She probably would be,” He turned back, eyes red and plainly tired. He rubbed at his eyes with his stub, “I suppose, I lived up to our agreement.”

“You had an agreement?” She automatically pried before instantly regretting her forwardness.

“We promised to save our world, regardless of the cost,” Those words carried a weight that, try as she might, Blaze couldn’t shake. He concluded with five simple words that carried a tremendous weight, “That cost was rather high.”

Again, words seemed to leave her before she could question whether it was right or wrong to ask, “Do you think it was worth it?”

“I like to think this was,” Pulling his hand from his face, he rubbed where his right hand should have been, “Other things though… no, not so much, but there’s no going back now. It’s too late now, there’s no way of making up for what we exchanged.”

Blaze didn’t even need to ask the next question on her mind- the gap was filled without her permission. He lost his partner, whoever this woman was, to their task, at what stage and age she had no idea, but Blaze could feel her heart bleeding for him. He was old and so there was no real way to know when he’d lost her, he talked as if it was recent but to her it felt as though she’d vanished from his life long ago. This was just so strange, Blaze felt so many things that she couldn’t express and couldn’t recall feeling before. Why was he talking with her about all this?

Floundering, struggling for something to raise his spirits, Blaze blurted, “W-What about the others? I assume you’ve spent time with Cream, Sonic, Amy, all of them? Bonding with them helped me, did it do the same for you?”

“To an extent, I can’t deny that, but I haven’t seen any of them for decades. I’ve been dealing with their children and their children’s children and so on…” Recalling that seemed to return some of the joy to his muzzle, “Their faces began to blur towards the end, I’m sure I called one of their furthest descendants Amy more often than by her own name,” He almost chuckled, “It feels like yours is the most unique face I’ve seen in years, Blaze.”

Not once had he referred to her as princess or by the likes of your majesty, he’d asked about it as her job but it clearly wasn’t who he considered her. The name Blaze seemed to fall from his mouth and slip into her ears so easily, as if it almost belonged in the space between the two of them. Venice didn’t seem as though it’d capture nearly the same space.

“But no, there was no replacing her; not even partially,” He managed to continue, bright eyes gleamed with light even as the sun was rapidly setting, “Knowing them helped certainly but it's only now, as I reach this twilight age, I’ve realised quite how much I miss her.”

Part of Blaze wanted to believe that was the only reason he was here, that the old man was a wandering soul that’d long lost its leash, but there was something in itching at the back of her head that told her that wasn’t true. Furthermore, while it sounded like there was some truth to what he’d said, it didn’t seem like the whole truth; his talk of forgetting echoed in her mind. Regardless of that though, this sad hedgehog had rather endeared himself to her and if she could help shed some of that weight from his shoulders then she’d have done good today.

“What was she like?” She more gently questioned.

“My partner was, and always will be, the best person I ever knew,” His remaining shoulder started to relax, his whole form seemed to loosen as his stare returned to the sunset, “She knew me better than I knew myself, whenever I was pushing myself too far she wouldn’t hesitate to stop me. Without even blinking, she wouldn’t hesitate to knock me down or tell me I was being foolish. My emotions would get the better of me rather often while, even though she usually felt the same as me, she subdued most of hers. Whenever she couldn’t though, whenever things grew too aggravating or a defeat crushed her, I was there as best as I could be to help,” Even though he was looking off into the distance, she could tell he was more imagining than staring at the sunset, “She’d read poetry and prose while I liked to play games and investigate history, but we shared a number of things…”

For whatever reason, though she assumed it to be second-hand embarrassment on the part of Venice’s long-lost partner, the way he’d phrased those first compliments and briefly regaled her with their history was warming the princess’ heart further still. She found herself shifting just a little closer, entirely enamoured with the way he talked about this woman. Though Blaze couldn’t even begin to picture this other time traveler in her mind, she felt as though she was familiar too. Albeit, in a very different way.

“The world we were born into was practically devoid of nature, plants refused to grow and rain rarely fell. The world of the past that we knew came from books and, of the collections of books we found, none would interest us like those tomes containing nature photography. They let us see waterfalls, lush green grass and sights we couldn’t have even fathomed,” He reminisced, “As soon as I found out about them, I’d compare her to a star so very often. It always seemed to embarrass her just a little, how I always thought they were so very pretty. I never meant it like that at the time, but hindsight and a life of living paints a rather different story. I was so very… well, it’s not her word, but I was very oblivious to both of our feelings.”

A few clouds had begun to drift, dusting the sky and obscuring the end of the sunset, but with a wave he rearranged the sky again. As he did so, she watched as his attention was pulled from that imagined place and arrived back at reality. What was pink had gradually drifted to a deeper red and the colour had begun to overwhelm the dark clouds that lingered upon it. Even as it was nearing its end, even if the sun would dip beneath the horizon in a matter of minutes, it was all still so beautiful.

“The way the sun paints the sky in such a natural way never ceases to amaze me. I love a bright blue sky, free of clouds, but the way this one contrasts and blurs them is just so…” The joy in his voice reached a crescendo, “I’m just so glad that I finally got to see this with you.”

“See this with me?” Blaze blinked; she’d been overjoyed to hear him talk so freely but that stumble caught her full attention.

Her questioning seemed to stop him in his tracks, just as it did her. What could he have possibly meant by that? Panic and regret crumpled his face, “Um, yes… I’m glad we could have our meeting, as in…” The hedgehog’s head quickly whipped from her again, “But it’s been so long, the sun’s almost set. I’m sorry, Blaze, I’ve taken up far too much of your time,” A flash of cyan emanated from beneath his robes and, before Blaze could even understand what was happening, he’d materialised a leg from light and risen to stand tall. His remaining hand was extended down to her, “I’m sure you must be very busy…”

“N-No, I… Venice,” As she took his hand and said that name for the first time, it felt so wrong in her mouth. It absolutely wasn’t his name, “I don’t know what has happened, or even who you truly are, but meeting you…” She scrambled for the right words, “I don’t know what it is, but I feel as if there’s much more to you. I’ve never talked to someone like this, let alone a stranger. We’ve hardly been together half an hour but-

“Th-That’s why I need to go, even that’s too long,” He grumbled before a pulsing hum began to overwhelm his words. He raised his remaining hand and from the ring in his palm a disk of cyan light was projected. With another gesture, it was pushed outwards and Blaze could see a swirling blue vortex within that hole, “I’ve probably stayed with you longer than I should have, I’m sorry.”

“Why did you actually come here? What did you come here to do?” Why was her voice wavering? Why was she getting louder? What did it matter if this stranger left? “You can’t have crossed time and space just to see me, why would you do that?”

“Even if things aren’t perfect, I’m glad you’re safe and comfortable here,” He wasn’t listening to her or, at the very least, he wasn’t acknowledging her words, “Please try to enjoy yourself. If you get the opportunity, please be with your friends more and live the life you want to live. You were…” He managed to look at her again, smiling while his eyes were stained red with tears, “You are brilliant, Blaze. I’m so glad I made it here before the end,” Without turning from her, he stumbled forward and vanished into that void.

Her immediate reflex was to follow but the hole collapsed on itself and vanished in the air, spluttering out his final words, “Good luck,” as it vanished from reality.

Alone on the docks, left with only the sound of the waves and the whistling of wind, Blaze felt something inside her ache in a way she’d never ached before. Who was that figure, why did she care, what had he meant by his end and why had he come? She didn’t feel like she was watching one of her citizens die, she didn’t even feel as she had at Gardon’s funeral; this was alien to her and yet so familiar.

Having only risen to her feet a moment ago, she stumbled back and ended up sitting on the dock again. Ahead of her was the sky that he’d cleared, the sun had just dipped beneath the horizon. It was only a matter of time before his last impact on the world would be blown away, clouds were already encroaching on the space he’d made. He’d be wiped from this world, the ship’s he’d revived for Marine would surely sink again, but, for some reason, that old man had claimed an eternal place within the princess’ soul.

Why that was and who he was she’d surely never know, but she hoped her heart would stop aching soon.

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #808: Enter Team Dark (Sonic X SSBU)

10:34 p.m. at Game Guy's Casino.......

'Loud Sirens'

'CRASH'

Shadow, Rouge, and Omega starts running away from an angry Game Guy and his group of security guards and hounds.

Game Guy: DON'T LET THOSE CHEATERS GET AWAY!!!

Guard Hounds: (Barks Angrily at the Running Trio)

Shadow: Rouge, this is the last time we're ever letting you take charge in gambling. Or even going to anymore casinos for that matter....

Omega: I agree to that motion.

Rouge: ('Sigh') Okay, look, before you boys starting pointing fingers, just know that none of this would've happened if that stupid Game Guy didn't try and cheat first.

Shadow: Does the saying "Two Wrongs, Doesn't Make a Right" never occur to you throughout your life? You didn't have to stoop to his level to begin with.

Rouge: (Starts Rolling her Eyes) Well, excuse me for having a weaker moral compass than yours, DAD! But you know just as well as I do that I don't let that kind of thing slide.

Shadow: (Starts Rolling his Eyes Himself) Yet you have no problem trying to steal the Master Emerald.....

Rouge: (Glares at Shadow) Hey! I don't do that anymore. That's all behind me now.

Shadow: Is this all because you're dating Knuckles?

Rouge: You're goddamn right. And as much as love to tell you how much that handsome knucklehead of an echidna means to me, I think now will be a perfect time for you to warp us out of here.

Shadow: Can't. I left the Emerald back at home.

Rouge: (Eyes Widened in Complete Shock) You WHAT!? WHY!?

Shadow: Because I thought since we were going to a relaxing, trouble and stress free vacation, I wouldn't have any use for it. Guess you proved me wrong.

Rouge: ('Ugggh') What are we going to do now? We can't out run them forever!

Omega: Fear not, companions! I have just now thought of a perfect plan for our escape!

Shadow: (Turns Back to Omega Along with Rouge) You have?

Rouge: What's the plan, sweetie?

Omega: (Pulls Something Put From his Fanny Pack) We can use these Dimensional Rings to sent us away from our current location.

Rouge: (Eyes Widened in Shock) Wait. You have them this entire time? How!?

Omega: Futuba Sakura had given them to me before our departure from the airport. She informed me to use them to visit her and the rest of the Smash Family in Isle Defino.

Shadow: Since when did you two started interacting with one another?

Omega: We have interacted on multiple occasions. She even invited ROB and I to Dungeons & Dragons on most nights. (Smiles Brightly) We are known as highly skilled alchemists of our party.

Shadow: (Smiles Softly at the E-Series Robot) That sounds great, Omega.

Rouge: (Already Started Gushing Over Everything Omega Said) Awwwww~ My baby's making new friends!~

'ARF ARF ARF'

Shadow: Okay. (Takes One of the Dimensional Rings From Omega's Claw Hand) I think it's time for us to leave now.

Shadow turns himself back around to throw the ring in front of them, causing it to enlarge itself while creating a portal.

Shadow: You two are ready?

Rouge: Yep.

Omega: Affirmative!

Shadow: Great. Let's go.

With a simple boost in speed, Team Dark has successfully when into the ring, leading them to their requested destination. It wasn't long until the ring itself managed to disappeared right in front of Game Guy's Eyes in time.

1:45 p.m. at Isle Defino......

It was a normal day in the tropical, resort like island....That is until a Giant, Rotating Ring sudden appears in the middle of it before slowing down stopping while showing Team Dark jumping out of it.

'THUD'

Rouge: (Starts Getting Herself Up From the Ground While Stretching her Back a Little) That.....was a close one.

Shadow: (Sighs While Getting Himself Up While Picking the Ring Up From the Ground) Yeah. Too close for our comfort.... (Turns to Omega) Are we at the right place, Omega?

Omega: (Uses his Eyes to Briefly Scan Around the Place) According to my sensors.....(Turns Back to Shadow and Rouge with a Thumbs Up) We are, indeed, in the correct destination.

Rouge: (Starts Looking Around the Place) So this is Isle Defino, huh? (Smirks a Little) Looks lovely.

Shadow: I can agree to that. Oddly enough, this is the place where father has gotten arrested at in the past.

Rouge: (Turns to Shadow with a Bit of a Surprised Look on her Face) Seriously? What did he do?

Shadow: Nothing. According to mother, he was falsely accused of a crime he didn't commit.

Rouge: ('Sigh') Ah jeez..... Well, here's hoping bygones be bygones for then I suppose.

Shadow: Agreed. But in the meantime, I'm gonna find ourselves a hotel room to stay in. (Walks Away) You two are welcome to come along if you like.

Omega: I will accompany you. (Follows Behind Shadow)

Rouge: You two go on ahead! (Walks Away in the Opposite Direction) I'm gonna a take a tour around the place.

Shadow: 'Kay.

Few Minutes Later at the Beach Side of Isle Defino.......

Rouge: (Sighs Relaxingly While Sitting on the Laid Back Bench Tail While Wearing a Bathing Suit) This is true paradise~

????: Enjoying the tour?

Rouge: (Looks up and See Shadow and Omega Looking Down at Her) Oh very. If I'd known this place would be this nice, I would've convince you to come here sooner. Did you boys find us a room?

Shadow: The hotel manager told us that the entire rooms are full. So we decided to rent one of the cottage houses nearby.

Rouge: Neat. So you two have any plans here in the meantime? I'm already planning on relaxing here~

Omega: I plan on exploring and learning about this island as much as possible!

Shadow: (Place his Hand on his Chin) I haven't really about it until now.... But I guess I could start by finding where everyone else is at first-

?????: (From the Distance) HOLY SHIT, YOU GUYS! Shadow, Rouge, and Omega are here!!

The trio turns and see a few familiar faces (Sonic, Amy, Tails, The Phantom Thieves, and etc.) making their way to them while sone cheering Shadow's name.

Rouge: There's everyone.

Shadow: I can see thATT! (Immediately Gets Pulled into a Group Hug)

Futuba: (Happily Rushes Over to Omega and Hugs Him) Omega-Kun!~ You came.

Omega: (Smiles Brightly While Gently Patting the Top of Futuba's Head) Yes. That I have, Futuba Sakura.

Futuba: (Giggles Softly) Dude, come on. You don't have to keep calling me by my full name. Futuba is fine enough as it is.

R.O.B.: (Happily Claps his Mechanic Hands Together While Making his Way to the Duo)

Omega: (Smiles Brightly at his Robotic Friend) R.O.B!!

Sonic: (Place his Arm Around Shadow With a Playful Smirk on his Face) It's been a while, faker.

Shadow: Sonic. (Starts Rolling his Eyes a Little) I see that your as hyperactive as usual.

Sonic: And you're just as moody as you've always been.

Tails: What made you guys come here in the first place?

Shadow: Well, due to a.....(Glares at Rouge) "certain" incident that happened back at the Casino.....

Rouge: (Sticks her Tongue Out at the Black Hedgehog)

Shadow: We decided to come here for the rest of our vacati-

Before he could finish his sentence, Shadow suddenly felt something hugging the lower half of his body. He looks down and see that it was none other than his adopted little sister, Hat Kid.

Shadow: (Chuckles Lightly) Hey there, you. It's been a while. (Gently Ruffles the Top of Hat Kid's Head) Did you miss me?

Sonic: Like crazy. The poor kiddo has been like that since we first got here.

Shadow: Really now? (Turns Back to Hat Kid) Is that true?

Hat Kid: (Happily Nodded) Mmhmm.

Shadow: (Chuckles Lightly Once More Before Kneeling Down to Hat Kid's Level) Well, you have nothing to worry about now that I'm here. And I can assure you that I won't be going anywhere else soon. So let's continue to enjoy the rest of the vacation together now, okay?

Hat Kid: (Nodded in Agreement Before Hugging Shadow Lovingly Again) I love you, Shadow.

Shadow: (Finally Hugs Hat Kid Back) I love you too, little siste-

?????: MY BABY!!!!~

And with that, Shadow suddenly gets hug tackled by Mario and Peach. And all was good in the world.

@keyenuta

@caleb13frede

@26shann

@cyber-wildcat

@ma-lemons

@albion-93

@princekirijo

[robotnik-mun]

Tails, Eggman, and Cream (re: Little Planet if applicable)!

Tails - Favourite continuity? (Games, Comics or one of the Cartoons etc.)

Despite everything and all my issues with it? Pre-Reboot Archie.

SatAM was great but it was cancelled right around the time I learned it even existed, and it would be years before I could enjoy the show in its entirety. And then of course there was the fact I wouldn’t properly play the Genesis games until eventually getting Sonic Jam, so that meant for the most part? Archie Sonic was my go-to Sonic media, and it ultimately became the comic book I most invested in. I almost had every issue and special at one point, and being young, none of the problems with it really became clear to me- I just enjoyed it because it had Sonic in it, heh. 

That being said, as time went on, I began to enjoy it because of the fact it was SatAM based and yet also included stuff from the games, and I enjoyed a lot of the lore that was produced from it... it pretty much helped shape my idea of ‘Sonic’ entirely, and that includes all the stuff that went into Knuckles. Even to this day, in my heart of hearts, I can never really de-attach from this iteration of Sonic. 

Obviously, a lot of the polish has come off since the olden days. While as I got older and better informed about reading I started to realize a lot of the writing wasn’t as good as I remembered, the whole Lawsuit thing really opened the floodgates after @fini-mun directed me towards Penders’ forum... seeing his conduct there opened my eyes to the fact that not only was a lot of the stuff he made that I loved badly, badly written, but he himself was kind of an awful guy, and that awfulness underlay everything he wrote, ESPECIALLY with regards to Sally. 

Despite everything though... I still like it. I like it because I like how it interpreted things in the days before SEGA really began to solidify its idea of what Sonic was, and I like it because it incorporates so much from different parts of Sonic. And I like it despite how heavily flawed it was for much of its existence, and for the IDEA of the lore it presented even if the actual execution missed the mark more often than not. It was a pretty big fixture in my life for a very long time, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t still attached to it. 

...it’d probably be ‘perfect’ to me if Julian had remained, but oh well. 

Eggman - Favourite badnik or henchmen?

That’s not entirely clear given that a ‘Badnik’ is something I see as specifically being those robots powered by animals used throughout the early games and later own, while a ‘henchman’ has different connotations entirely. But what the heck, I can answer both. 

My favorite BADNIK are the Eggrobos. 

What can I say, I find them neat. I like the idea that they are the upper crust of Eggman’s badniks, his elite forces, and because of that fact they are modeled in his own image. It just says so much about the guy right there, and I enjoy thinking of them as the ‘Officer Corps’ of the Badniks- robots who will act as Eggman’s proxies when he himself cannot be present. 

Now as for Henchman? Unsurprisingly, it’s Snively. 

I love this little bastard, and he really is one, yet at the same time he’s rather pitiable despite how despicable he is. Being Robotnik’s lackey and personal punching bag would make you feel bad for the guy enough, but the reveal that he is in fact Robotnik’s own nephew and once admired the guy adds a surprisingly potent layer of tragedy to Snively. Likewise, it puts a new spin on his own ambitions to overthrow his uncle and run the show himself- he’s not merely power hungry for his own sake, but actively trying to outdo a man who spent the last decade treating him like dirt and calling him an incompetent. He has something to prove, and I think that’s part of why he’s destined to ultimately fail... which adds to the tragedy, especially with the way Archie expanded upon him and his background, while presenting the idea that there is a SLIVER of decency within him in that despite everything, he still legitimately loves his half-sister Hope. 

It presents a surprisingly complicated picture of a guy whose entire role is being Robotnik/Eggman’s treacherous, power hungry little lackey, but damn if it isn’t compelling. 

Cream - Any Headcanons?

I got a tiny one about the Little Planet. I believe that the Little Planet isn’t a natural phenomenon, but is in fact an artificially created planet that was made by one of the ancient Great Civilizations (one of the ones that pre-date the Echidna, obviously). It was specifically created to house the Time Stones and to test out their time travel abilities, though why the Great Civilization would do it is still a mystery, as is HOW they created an entire world to begin with. 

Furthermore? The Lost Hex is in fact an incomplete ‘Little Planet’. 

Whoever created the Little Planet simply vanished before they could finish the Lost Hex, but either way, the Little Planet and the Lost Hex as ‘brothers’ in a sense... and why the ancients vanished so suddenly is even more mysterious than the both of them. 

[pico-digital-studios]

Into, Across and Beyond! Cast: E-21

Replaces: LYLA Origin: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020 film) and Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)

"I have faith that you can actually do good WITHOUT having to resort to these measures. Don't you remember who you once were? You saved lives out of the goodness in your heart, just like those around you have. Why stop it now? Why when you believe letting others die is what's best for the SEGAVerse?"

E-21 is a special version of one of Movie Eggman's drones from Dimension MOV-2019, but with some special AI built into it.

Hopefully you've caught up with the Lost Memory Sonic explanation, but if you haven't, please do so before reading further. After whatever happened to erase the alternate universe LM!Sonic tried to take residence in, the hedgehog began becoming cold, his sheds of goodwill beginning to die out.

While exploring the multiverse on his own volition, LM!Sonic arrived at Dimension MOV-2019 after Movie Eggman was banished to the Mushroom Planet, but before he came back. The hedgehog took the opportunity to sneak into the doctor's abandoned truck and take one of the drones he left behind, feeling it could come in use.

Using a bit of technical know-how he got from his Tails back when he was still good, he reprogrammed the drone to help him with day-to-day tasks and simply be a companion towards him. The drone's newfound AI in question? It housed the consciousness of none other than the Princess Elise from that destroyed dimension.

The two had genuinely bonded well when LM!Sonic decided to replace the Sonic who died in that dimension, and when he was with her, he seemed to have genuinely found peace with himself, and when around her, he genuinely seemed to be happy. Elise felt the same way herself, at least happy to have a Sonic around as a companion as she adjusted to her new predicament.

Eventually, the two discovered the Quill Society, and Elise as E-21 was more than happy to introduce herself, even getting one of the top positions in the Society. However, it was after that that she and LM!Sonic began to grow distant. He still relied on E-21 for his work, yes, but while she did trust his judgement and fears of getting things wrong, even she found his cold acceptance of people dying concerning.

Elise really wanted LM!Sonic to make the right call for himself and wanted to free his repressed memories to help with that. However, he made it clear that he willingly repressed those memories because of the trauma they bring him, especially the deaths of his Silver and Amy, and that he was through with playing nice as a hero.

She still remained optimistic in her new work in the Quill Society, and even enjoys teasing some of the other members on occasion, such as around Zonic's serious, yet still caring, personality. She was even kind enough to help show OMT!Tails more about the SEGAVerse upon request, and can even show her original body in holographic form.

Later, when instructed to apprehend OMT!Tails during the big chase, E-21 bluntly refused, considering that LM!Sonic was literally the ONLY Quill Society member to have extreme prejudice against the kitsune and the fact she would not willingly harm a child. After LM!Sonic was knocked out of Terminal Velocity later, she decided then and there that he was clearly a bad influence to her now and got him briefly imprisoned.

In the aftermath of OMT!Tails's mission, E-21 was heartbroken to send LM!Sonic away, but by that point, the rogue blue blur's emotions had numbed, all consumed by his one-track-minded hatred for OMT!Tails and his new desire to control people's fates. It took her about a week to get over it, with fellow Quill Society members providing her comfort during that time.

After the events of Many More Heroes, she was able to continue providing good service for the Quill Society, happy to be provided upon for database-searching and general tasks. Sure makes a change from fans hating on her non-stop, huh?

[shadowsfascination]

Shadamy Swordland | ch. 5 | Lead the Way!

It was still early and therefore dark on a cold February morning when a caped Shadow and a cloaked Amy silently prowled around the academy grounds. Crossing the main square once again to get to the outskirts of the district, a blanket of fresh snow softly crackled under their shoes. The snow covered the herringbone-laid brick on the streets and the lack of daylight gave the snow a blueish glow. It sure has something enchanting-, Amy though to herself.

Treading lightly in attempt to make as little noise as possible, Amy exhaled in her already cold hands. The warm vapor of her breath felt nice on them for a brief moment, but they quickly grew even colder than before. She always wore gloves, but the her usual ones were thin and she forgot to put on her winter gloves this morning. Even when she’d placed them on the table next to the door, that was.

Shadow wasn’t much affected  by the cold. He’d wrapped his scarf around her neck and provided her one of his sweaters as well before they’d hit the road. It wasn’t hard to captivate his scent like this and it reminded Amy of the time she had had a secret crush on her trainer. Before every training session she used to ‘accidentally’ put her coat over his on the coat rack. It provided her coat with his masculine scent and she would secretly dwell in it afterwards. Back in the days it’d felt bittersweet to her because he wasn’t interested in her and she believed of them to have neither future or potential together.

While walking in silence through the cold morning Amy wondered why they were walking in the first place. Now that she’d learnt about his special ‘chaos’ skills, he didn’t need to hide them any longer- from her that was. Shadow explained to her that using his special skills, like warping, cost a high amount of energy. With the gemstone Shadow liked to refer to as a ‘Chaos emerald’, believed to be far away from South Island, there already was little energy to begin with. The thought of wasting the precious energy for every little thing was to be unheard of to him and so they trothed onwards through the snow.

The pink hedgehog researched every bit of information available about the tale yesterday. With the help of her dear friend Miles she collected a remarkable amount of notes on the subject when she left the library. Amy felt inspired and was eager to start this adventure, especially when the actual hero of the story was involved right here, right now. Still, she felt a little uneasy because she felt like some of her notes were missing. A couple of lines got stuck in her head and she couldn’t remember whether they were something she read or written down. Her mind drifted off and she went through yesterday’s events one more time:

__________________________________________________________

“Plagues, Miles, loosen up!”

'Miles', which was Tails’ his actual name, handed his friend a paper towel to wipe her hands before diving into the historic tales together. According to Amy he took his duty of keeping the books in his library in the best condition possible way too serious. The fox had, uncharacteristic as it was, assertively told her: ‘my library, my rules’.

Amy did as she was asked and grasped a notebook from her bag. In a zealous way she penned down everything that seemed important for their search, making sure the lay-out of her notes looked like a summary for a test. She dug through the pile of books Tails had picked out for her. She chuckled when she saw the many small, coloured pieces of paper sticking out of their pages. She was lucky to have a friend like him, even when there actually was no test to prepare for.

Amy lost herself in the exciting facts she came to know. Tails busied himself with other things like speaking to visitors and organizing the books on the countless shelves. Aqueous sunlight shone through the tall, stained-glass windows, drawing long shadows every time someone passed by. The colours of the glass-paintings broke the light into more subtle beams. After an hour or so, Amy’s eyes grew tired from the pleasant warmth of the sun through the windows, slowing down her pace. She yawned and decided it was time for a break. Tails went out to the kitchen to make them some tea.

Amy wavered through the things she wrote down and contemplated about where to start searching for the gemstone. She fell back in her seat and fixed her gaze on the ceiling and was surprised to find wood-carved illustrations on some of the beams.

The guardians of the jewel are echidnas… she quietly muttered.

Amy walked up to a bookcase and started looking for the letter ‘E’ until she found an informative book about Echidnas. She grabbed the book rushed through its’ pages. A map of their planet, portrayed on the next page showed the various locations of well-known echidna populations throughout the planet. She read out loud:

“‘Echidnas can live anywhere from mountainous peaks to deserts… They are able to cope with extreme weather…’”

Suddenly the door was swung open and a blue tornado-like wind whirled through the library, swirling up loose pieces of paper to spread them all over the place. A thumping of footfalls on the wooden floor accompanied this outburst of chaos before coming to a stop and bumping into the table because ‘it’ reduced its’ speed too late. Amy’s quills were blown into her face and she hurried back to the table. Her notes fluttered around and a well-known blue hedgehog laid clumsily spread across the table; Sonic the Hedgehog.

Sonic was a student like her, training to become a knight within the high order of knights like Shadow. He was Blaze’s student, who was a close friend of hers. It was a shame the cat had so little time to hang out, Amy thought when thinking about her friend. Sonic and Amy got along fine, but didn’t talk that often.

“Whoops… Hi Amy!”

“My notes! Sonic… look at the mess you’ve made!”

She impatiently tapped her foot at him, her hands planted on her sides.

“What are you waiting for? Go help me gather them!”

He jumped up and hastily grasped some notes. Amy collected some as well and snatched the untidy pile of the now crinkled pages out of Sonic’s hands.

___________________________________________________________

Amy swallowed. Either Sonic or Tails could have found her missing pages.

Well, can’t do much about it now, so I gotta let it go.

She shrugged the thought off and stepped forward into much more white than she expected and gasped when ice cold snow dripped into her boots.

“Right on time.”

Rouge waved at the two she could barely believe got together. Shadow’s breastplate reflected the fierce light from the now upcoming sun. Rouge squinted her eyes and covered them with her hands. She was clothed in a thick robe, matching gloves and boots and a purple, turtleneck-like scarf was wrapped around her neck.

“Tone it down, will ya? I’m already not too fond of being out in the sunlight.”

“Tough luck. Now, shall we?”

He pointed to the east from where they were standing, to an entrance of a cave. The females nodded and the three of them footed their way to the foot of the mountain. Leaving the countless fir trees and the snow behind when entering the cave, Rouge couldn’t be more pleased. The climate in the cave was damp and warm, noticeably less cold than the outside air, much to her satisfaction. Amy used an easy sacred art spell to light the torch they brought and she stepped forward to lead the way.

“I’m not complaining or anything, but why are we in this place?”

“The tale says that the stone is guarded by the designated echidna family. Echidnas like to dig.”

Rouge was already halfway through the breath she’d drawn to protest when she sensed something that cut off her opposition. Even though Amy’s starting point was built on a hasty conclusion, she might be right, Rouge thought to herself. Casting a spell under her breath, Rouge attempted to draw out chaos affected spores in the air. They showed her the amount of present chaos energy in her surroundings. Even when there were none to be found yet, Shadow caught on to the increasing activity of her sacred arts.

“Trust me. I’ve done plenty of research and I’ve got a real good feeling about this.”

“It’s a little too early to trust you already, hun.”

“For starters: don’t call me that.”

In the blink of an eye Amy drew her rapier and with a swift, yet threatening move she swung it towards Rouge, forcing her to a stop. The bat blinked before lowering her eyelids. Amy found it hard to name that expression. All she knew was she didn’t care for it. She felt mocked in a way. A grin spread across Shadow’s muzzle, a hint of that mocking expression Rouge had playing his eyes.

“You don’t wanna mess with her, Rouge. Especially when she’s angry.”

“Second: I don’t think you have much of a choice but to trust us.” Amy said.

“Geez! Fine, I’ll drop the nickname if you insist.”

“I do. By the way, I’ve been wondering: how’d you two meet?”

Amy hid her rapier in its’ sheathe again. Shadow and Rouge shared a glance, the flickering light of the torch casting a warm glow on their skin.

“Go ahead, tell her. I couldn’t care less.”

“Rouge used to be a member of the high order of knights. We worked together for a period of time. She was fired though because of a rather unfortunate incident.”

“Hmph! Coward! ‘Unfortunate incident’?! You don’t even dare to call me a thief, do ya?”

“Trust me, when it comes to being blunt, you’re outmatched, but unlike you I don’t enjoy putting someone on the spot and talk trash.”

“Anyway…!”- Rouge snorted, ignored Shadow and increased the volume in her voice. “I endeavoured  to steal some beautiful regal gems, got caught and have been an outcast ever since.”

“Why did you do that?” Amy asked her.

“I was pregnant and in need of money.”

“You had your loan, right? That should’ve been more than enough.” Shadow said in a crude way.

Without anyone being aware of it they had stopped walking. Rouge turned towards Shadow with crossed arms.

“You’re such an oblivious fool, Shadow! No knight in the high order can have kids while serving. They would’ve fired me either way. I was about to become a mother without a job and a roof above my head. Desperate times call for desperate measures! And on top of that: those jewels were absolutely gorgeous! It’s a shame I didn’t get my hands on them.”

Shadow’s ears fell back, gaze fixed on the ground by now. Even when she didn’t see his eyes, she read his shock from his posture.

“You … didn’t know?”

“Correct. The board clearly left out the pregnancy part when they explained your departure. How despicable.”

“That doesn’t surprise me at all. Let’s forget about it already.”

“That’s no way to treat a lady!” Amy hissed.

“I never even noticed you were pregnant at the time.”

“Again: not surprised. The Shadow I knew was never the least bit interested in women or anything even slightly related to romance, sex or intimacy. That sure changed.” Rouge shifted her eyes to Amy, who smiled an awkward smile.

“I told you before: don’t interfere.”

“I’m not. Just saying it as it is.”

“And what’s that?”

“You’re in a relationship, for crying out loud! Believe you me, I’ve never had an interest in you like that. Though I couldn’t help but wonder who on the planet could ever manage to break down those sky high walls you’ve put up over the years. I haven’t seen you in ages, Shadow. To see this cute pink hedgehog beside you… I’m just surprised you know…”

Amy was unsure whether this was a compliment or if Rouge was belittling her, which was sure to be a mistake. She locked eyes with her lover, who simply shrugged and told her Rouge wasn’t wrong about her being cute.

“I have to admit I’m impressed, Amy. You even got him to defile his oath and break the rules he’s so hang up on to follow.”

“Let’s drop the subject and just keep walking, okay?” Shadow sneered.

While continuing their search, Amy asked about Rouge’s kids. Rouge unravelled they were twins; a boy and a girl who were at the age of 4 now. The bat seemed fine with her questions and so Amy asked everything she liked to know and didn’t hold back. The pregnancy had surprised the now mother of two at the time. Somehow the guy who knocked her up wasn’t around anymore and it was just her and her two little troublemakers, as she called them.

Gradually the atmosphere between the trio got a friendly note to it. Rouge even teased Shadow, setting him on edge by saying he didn’t need to worry about the kids being his. With aggravated frown and deadpanned expression he stated it was an unnecessary thing to say. He could feel her eyes bore into the back of his head and pictured the kind of grimace that surely curled her lips.

They hit a bifurcation from where the tunnel divided into two separate corridors. Rouge drew out the chaos spores in the air to determine which way to go. They looked like a turquoise equivalent of fireflies. They swirled around in the air for a moment and then concentrated on the left corridor. It was the first time Amy witnessed a visible form of chaos energy and she was mesmerised by it.

A self-complacent smile curved the full lips of the bat-woman when she passed by Amy, her curved hips swaying as she did so. She lead the way while following the swarm-like chaos spores. With every step they made into the corridor its’ amount increased like a silent promise they were on the right track. The trio, now filled with curiosity and excitement, picked up the pace and Rouge peeked around the corner. She abruptly came to a stop and gave a muffled cry.

“A dead end?!”

Rouge cursed out loud, addressing the spores like they were a person who’d betrayed her. The three looked up to the bolt of energy whizzing above their heads. Shadow tapped at his cheek with his index finger, clearly brooding over the possibilities.

“Maybe not.”

Shadow stretched out his arms and absorbed the chaos energy from the spores to grasp the hands of the others next. At their touch a blue-greenish luminary flash gushed through them, increasing both their transparency and transcendence. He briefly informed them about his plan to jump through the ceiling, letting their chaos-affected bodily forms break the molecular structure of the rocks apart. The two women strongly disagreed with his plan. Feeling rather confident about this, he decided not to care about their opinions. He simply grabbed one of their arms and jumped up.

“This should work!”

_________________________________________

Summary: Shadow, Amy and Rouge begin their search for the gemstone after Amy thoroughly prepares their adventure with the help of her dear friend Tails. While on the road, Rouge opens up about surprising events from her past. ______________________________ Pffft, this felt more like a puzzle than a story to me. Never have I dragged so many alineas up and down the page to fit everything into place. I also struggled with translations of figure of speach here. One of the downsides of writing in English for me... Even so, when I translated a small part of ch 1 into my native language, it felt both off and odd to me. Also: sorry about the lenght!   - Like always: share your thoughts if you will and send me a not for annoying typo's or grammar mishaps. I'd really appreciate it! <3 - I uploaded this and some other stories/oneshots on AO3 recently. Username's the same as always

@shadamyheadcanons : promised to keep you updated 

[smugbugunderarug]

Smug Bug Reads: Fleetway’s Sonic the Comic #13

         Double Trouble introduces yet another villainous look-alike for Sonic... however, instead of originating from an opposite yet parallel dimension or from the lab of Dr. Robotnik, he comes from a power up most would expect to aid you instead of have a grudge against you...

         Script: Mark Millar          Art: Mike Hadley          Lettering: Ellie de Ville

         The first panel shows Tails losing his football (or his soccer ball, Americans) in a cluster of bushes whilst playing around in Emerald Hill. While rummaging about the foliage, he comes across what most fans that have played Sonic the Hedgehog can easily recognize -

         - one of these things. You’ve seen this before, right? An extra life tv box, a one-up, whatever you wanna call it. These are good things. Grab them when you can. They come in handy.          Now what Tails found doesn’t look quite as harmless.

         Granted, compared to Shadow or Metal Sonic, this “Sonic” does look a bit like the real deal (at this first glance close-up, anyways). He gives this story to Tails about how Robotnik trapped him in the T.V. box (later we find that that’s not entirely false) and that he had to press the button in order to get him out. Tails, completely falling for it, does as he says. The button is pressed, and “Extra Life” is free.

         I’m going to be honest, when I first saw this dude’s design, I thought of the werehog mixed with Classic Sonic. I still see it!          The shredded looking ears, particularly prickly spikes, harshly angled nose, sharp gaze, and spiked teeth are the details that separate this fake from the hero (at first, I thought he looked greyer than Sonic did, but later on when the two share a panel, both share the same blue). Tails is knocked out, and Extra Life is free to cause havoc.

         Close by, critters from the resistance are building a hideout in Emerald Hill that could hopefully keep them safe from Robotnik. It’s good to see them finally take some action in a sense; they havent done much except follow Sonic around, be saved by him, or be held captive by Robotnik and his creations. Now (or in this issue anyway) they’re actively helping out the... well, I guess you could call it the war effort. It’s good to see that!          But anyways, guess who’s headed their way...          Extra Life sees the group with their unfinished hideout and doesn’t hesitate to undo almost all their labor (while hurting and endangering a lot of them in the process).

         I really gotta wonder how fast one has to go in order to set fire to the forest. Like... dang. Well, it’s clear now that Extra Life can rival Sonic’s speed, so it wouldn’t be too far of a stretch to say that they’re equal in ability.          The critters believe that Sonic was the one who torched their hard work, and frankly, that wouldn’t be a bad assumption for them to make based off of appearances alone (however, by now they should know that although Sonic can be a jerk, he’s not villainous in behavior). Since Extra Life was practically speeding through the destruction, chances are none of them got a good look at him. A blue blur alone must have been enough to pin the blame on the hedgehog... but not the one they originally assumed.

        Although much damage is done, the real Sonic steps in to combat the fake. Since Sonic had the element of surprise, he found himself with the upper hand against Extra Life, and managed to send him flying out of sight... but then, the critters arrive.

        Sonic tries to explain that he wasn’t the one who trashed their efforts, but they deem him too dangerous and want him banished. I think maybe that was perhaps a bit too much and a bit too fast to do, especially after knowing what Sonic is really like (even with the more often than not sour attitude).          Anyways, unintentionally proving Sonic’s claim, Extra Life jumps back into their fight. The critters now realize he was telling the truth after narrowly dodging the storming fake.

         In the distance, Tails finally wakes up from being knocked out by Extra Life, and sees the terror going on further off. Picking up the T.V., he makes his way towards the scene...          Meanwhile, Extra Life seems to be winning against his brawl with Sonic,,,

         If Extra Life doesn’t fair well with a surprise attack, it would make sense that Sonic wouldn’t either.          We do have an origin story for Extra Life, anyway, so that’s neat. It really makes me wonder how long ago the doc turned evil if Extra Life was stuck there for years... So he was probably created some time after Sonic got his super speed, but before the incident happened with Kintobor, but that’s not really a time span that’s been explained in detail just yet. So yeah, really gotta wonder how long he was stuck in there for...          Another thing... how would the box work? Or rather, how was it intended to work? Was he really supposed to be just a “helping hand”? Not something that could revive Sonic if he died or was on the brink of death? Or maybe a more morbid idea; a replacement if the real Sonic truly died??? How does he know about all these things that happened anyways? He knew about Tails towards the beginning of the issue, and he knew about Kintobor going bad... he couldn’t escape his confines, and assuming they’re following game cannon at the time he should have been created before Sonic 1, so how’d he know about these things?          Well, it doesn’t really matter anyway since Tails comes in to set things right and save Sonic... wait... did I read that right? Yes! It’s time for Tails to save the day (woot woot)! He doesn’t do much, but not much needs to be done. All he needs to do is point the telly to the fake, press the button, and presto! The doppelganger is back in his digital cage.

         is this a jojo reference? Well, that’s the end of that. I doubt we will see Extra Life again since he was booted to the cosmos, but after all the trouble he caused, I don’t think they much care. After that, the critters apologize to Sonic for accusing him so quickly, and then the issue ends right there with all of them staring into the sky above.

         I can’t help but feel just a bit bad for Extra Life. The dude was created and (appears to be) sentient, but was kept trapped in a box against his will for years. He probably grew bitter over all that time. It’s not entirely explained why he turned bad since he was created with good intentions, but being abandoned for so long... probably was a main reason why. While this serves as an explanation for all the ruckus he caused, it’s still not an excuse. I guess banishment a la space is what was in store for him, but still... can’t help but feel bad...

         TL;DR: don’t do 1-ups, kids.

[chaos-societies]

Episode 7, The Spokes That Keep Turning

[x]

There was little light in the small entrance to a cave hundreds of miles from South Island. Chuck was crawling through the small passageway and already had stains of mud and dirt on both his clothes and his fur. He held upright a torch which limited his progress as he made his way deeper.

“You sure you didn’t want me to go first? I am a bit smaller.” A slightly high pitch voice came from behind him.

A smile arose on Chuck’s face. “Wasn’t it you who said whoever gets here first gets to go in first?”

“WaSn’T iT yOu WhO sAiD…shut up.” The girl answered back snarkily. Chuck just smiled.

He came across a small wall of rocks that seemed lose enough to dislodge. He reached his free arm as to his waist and pulled out a small hammer. He got as much leverage as he could in the tight space and began swinging at the wall. After a few hits the rocks seemed to loosen up and he kept swinging. Lo and behold, the small wall collapsed and he squeezed his way through.

He found himself in a massive cathedral. The sound of running water and the occasional drips of stalactites, giving portions of themselves to the pillars below in hopes that they would eventually meet to join the hanging columns, echoed through the chamber. He stood on a ledge and found he didn’t seem to need his torch as much as he thought as beauteous glowing crystals, larger than the tallest buildings in any village or city he had been to, were scattered all around. He didn’t dare extinguish the torch though as they had only succeeded in finding what the party of two were hoping to find. Only now would the exploring begin.

“By the lords…” He said as he gazed upon the sight.

His follower soon emerged from the tiny entrance and stood up to gaze upon the sight as well. “Whoa. It’s beautiful.” She said. The bluish tint of the natural light of the cave, coming from seemingly unnatural sources, washed away the green color of her fur. “So. I guess we found it.” Her awe was paused as she curled a smile and gave Chuck an elbow to the side. “Guess now that we found this place that means we’re forever cursed like the locals said.”

Chuck gave an ‘oof’ with the hit but had grinned at the joke anyway. “Come on, we only just found the cave. Now we got to find that crown. There may still be many curses that we have to look out for.” His partner rolled her eyes.

The two started making their way down to a ledge where there seemed to be enough footholds to climb down with relative ease. Working their way down, they appeared to be mere ants on a wall compared to the size of the vast open room.

…

[x]

“The cave was far to the northwest of the continent. It was bigger than anything I had seen or explored. I couldn’t imagine making a map of the place. I just made a crude trail on some parchment I had to make sure I got back out.” Chuck spoke to the gang as he dipped a biscuit in some black tea and took a bite. He continued. “There must have been miles of passageways, dozens of rooms and chambers that I was not able to investigate or explore. I ended up finding the crown in a crypt, deep in the cavern. I almost didn’t make it out; it was a very dangerous excursion.” His audience of the usual bunch listened intently. “Not being a greedy man, I had no means to keep the thing.” He let out a sigh and a small smile formed on his face. “Ah, I used to be quite the adventurer back in the day. I gave the crown to the archives in Westport. They have many safeguarded secrets in those archives and I still am confident in its safekeeping there.”

“Wow. Sir Charles, I didn’t know you were a treasure hunter.” Amy stated.

“I wouldn’t call myself a treasure hunter. More of a scholar. There just happens to be many scholarly relics of times of old that may be hidden about.”

“Did you go back into the cave to find anything else?” Sonic asked.

“I would have. Oh the wonders that must have been down there! When I went back, I found that a rockslide must have happened and the entrance, so small and hidden, taking me many hours of research and weeks to find, was covered up. It would take a massive crew to undergo the efforts to clear the rubble. No one other than those at the archives, and now you lot, know of what I found there and I find it best for that information to fade away.” He finished explaining.

“Do you think the other crowns were down there?” Tails asked.

“I don’t know. Possibly. But such things of great historical importance such as that are rarely in the same place. Would have made things much easier back then wouldn’t you say.” He answered with a chuckle to finish.

“So you want us to travel all the way across the continent?” Rouge asked a little unsure about the task if that be the case.

“Heavens no. At least…not quite yet. I hope things won’t come to that. But much of my research to find the crown was done in the library at Smithwick, beyond the Greater Area in the Green Hills. But that journey wouldn’t even make sense for you to go looking in old dusty books and then come back after not even knowing what to look for.” Chuck took off his glasses and looked away knowing what had to be done. “No…this next journey I may ask of you won’t be a simple errand. What I am hesitant to ask of you all, if you shall accept the task, I’m afraid may take you away from South Island for a while.”

“How long is a while?” Rouge asked.

“That depends. Weeks for sure. Maybe months.”

“How would we go about doing that?” Tails began to wonder.

“It won’t be easy. You’d have to do certain jobs here and there for tokens. Beyond Cap, I can’t guarantee a place to stay. And there will surely be many nights where you would have to set up a camp between cities in your travel.”

“You think we could take the Syphon to make things easier Tails?” Sonic turned to him to ask.

“I thought of that but it will surely need a good amount of maintenance on the way which I won’t have a means to do unless I am here usually. It can only do so much, I’d hate for us to come to an impasse and have to leave it somewhere, lose it, or it even break down where we can’t get it back up.” He explained.

“Why do we have to go out and do anything?” Rouge spoke up. “The way I see it, we had some kooks play a grotesque prank at Stark Ruins and now we’re chasing ghost stories. Do we really have to do anything?”

The room was a bit silent as Rouge had brought up a good point. There was no indication of apocalypse, there was no threat that they could tell, and other than some loose connections between pieces of mythology they had no reason to make any further action. But Chuck was smart and he wouldn’t be laying out the framework of such undertaking unless he deemed it necessary, and he definitely wouldn’t be asking them to put themselves in danger and leave South Island out of mere curiosity, despite it being embedded in the Cyan way of thinking. But there was another piece of evidence.

Chuck looked around at the lot and saw Amy shyly staring at the ground. “Amy.” He said warmly. “Do you wish to say something?”

She looked up at Chuck and knew he meant well. She could say no and that would be the end of it. But she felt something was awry. She knew answers needed to be found or else something horrible may come to pass. “I do.” She stood up to speak

“Amy?” Sonic said mostly as a reaction.

“I’ve…been having dreams lately. I know what it sounds like but. They have been…different. They aren’t some surreal haze that you forget about shortly after you wake up or even some fictional scenario or collection of events and memories. They have been clear and almost like a message. All of them foreboding.” She was timid at first but then her confidence overcame her. “They’ve been about the recent events, but because of recent events. In fact lately, they have been about recent events before they’ve transpired. Before we set off for Cap the second time, I dreamt of fire and flood devastating the land. Then we came across those runes about god and giants of fire and water in conflict. The gypsy in the street told me we were special. She knew I was having dreams and I hadn’t said a word to her at that time. I’m think something is about to happen and I think we need to act.”

The room was silent again. Finally Chuck spoke up. “Rouge, you have every right to be skeptical about this. I’m glad you are in fact. So many things can occupy your mind and if you don’t scrutinize them to really determine what they are for, you may succumb to falsehoods. Not at all am I ordering you to undertake this task, by any means. This is your choice.”

“When would you want us to leave?” Sonic asked.

“Not for a while. Before I send you off, I need to do much research and further study the Stair na Seacht to give you all the proper amount of information for your investigations and findings. That will give you time to prepare as well. Overall, so that you are not blind to my goals, I think we need to find the other crowns.”

“Do you expect me to join in on any of this?” Knuckles spoke up for the first time in this meeting.

“I’m afraid this concerns you, as well as anyone. But again, that choice is yours to make. You have your chapter of the Red Society on Angel Island to manage. I would never ask anyone to stray from their duties to their Society.” Chuck answered.

There were many wandering thoughts throughout the room. Yet none of them were spoken. “Can we have some time? Some time to think about it?” Tails asked coyly.

“Of course.” Chuck gave him a warming smile. “I am sorry to have burdened you with this request so suddenly. Go enjoy yourselves. Talk amongst yourself if you so please but rest your thoughts for now.” Slowly, they each got up and made their way out of Chuck’s hut. Once they were all gone, Chuck rubbed his eyes and placed his glasses back on his face. “Chaos have mercy.” He muttered.

…

“Up to the Green Hills. Oh I bet that’d be an awesome sight! Not to mention some great solid ground to stretch my legs. I don’t know about you all but I think I’m decided.” Sonic said enthusiastically as the group walked from Chuck’s hut.

“You won’t even need to do any convincing to give Sonic a chance for adventure.” Amy said almost in a derogatory manner if it wasn’t for the light admiration in her voice.

“Oh you know it!” Sonic responded as he pulled Amy close and gave her a kiss on the top of her head.

“I still don’t know about travelling hundreds of miles away on foot chasing fairy tales.” Rouge spoke up.

“Come on Rouge! Even if it’s for nothing, can you imagine the places and sights we’ll see? Something other than desert and this dusty old town? Don’t get me wrong, I love it here at South Island. But the world is much bigger than this corner of The Greater Area.” Sonic rebuked.

“Would you be joining us Knux if we decide to go?” Tails asked their pseudo-foreign friend.

He gave a huff and crossed his arms. “Why?”

“Why not!” Sonic answered back continuing his enthusiasm.

The echidna let out a sigh. “I have other things to worry about.”

“Oh? Like what.”

“Like my own island. Besides, you all have to learn to take care of yourselves. Can’t rely on me all the time to save your skins.”

“Oh har har har. You say that but we all know you enjoy our little scuffles, let alone our company.”

“Your company? Pfff, I need a break from your company on the regular!” He shouted back annoyed. “And IF I were to come along on your strange trek for some dead guys’ busted up crowns, I’d have to make it back to Angel Island regularly. Its trajectory goes along your path up north, depending on the time of year, and touches the Green Hills. I’d be coming and going often.”

“Sounds like you already thought it through.” Sonic said with a devilish grin. Knuckles looked over at him as Sonic gave a few raises of his eye brows which earned him a heavy shove from the Red.

The group came up to the tavern as Knuckles began to veer toward the road to the main bridge. “Well like Sir Charles said, we have some time to mull it over.” Amy stated. “Oh, are you heading out Knuckles?”

“I am. Someone’s got to make sure my goons up on Angel Island haven’t killed each other.”

“I’m sure Mighty does at good job keeping them in check.” Sonic added.

“Regardless, I’m looking forward to my own home again. I’ll see you in a few passings. Angel Island should be getting close.”

“See you around handsome.” Rouge called out to him. Knuckles threw his hand in the air in somewhat of a wave as he walked on. “I think he has the right idea though. I need my own place for a bit. I’ll see you all tomorrow.” And with that Rouge also departed the group.

…

“What do you mean, your turn? It’s MY hammock! If my ass is planted in it, it’s not leaving until I decide for it to.” Nack the weasel blurted out as he swung lazily in the breeze on a crudely made rope hammock. He flicked his wrist to ‘shoo’ off Bean, closed his eyes and went back to lounging.

“Kinda rude to make the decisions for your ass,” Bean began crawling on his hands and knees around the hammock. “I’m sure if you let it decide,” by now he was underneath Nack, “it’d want to go UP!” At that moment, Bean sprung up and sent Nack flying out of the hammock.

“Bean! I’m gonna kill you!”

Bark was sitting next to one of the trees used by the hammock, relaxing as well. Nack happen to land close to him so Bark quickly grabbed a hold of Nack’s handkerchief to hold him back from charging at Bean.

“Bark resting on bark, holding Nack back from attack!” Bean cheerfully called out as he swung his feet back and forth while sitting upright in the hammock.

Nack, now defeated as he surely wasn’t going to break free from Bark’s grip, crossed his arms to pout. “Bean, at least could you shut that beak of yours?”

“howms mhis?” He answered with a poor attempt at ventriloquism. Nack just sighed.

“Kn-Knuckles is b-b-back!” Ray came into the scene from above as he glided down to the group.

“Geez, it’s about time. The guy should just hand off the island to us with how little he seems to be up here now.” Nack commented.

Mighty strolled up. “Give him a break. He’s been alone up here for over half his life, if the guy wants to see the world and venture out a bit, he is more than deserving to do so.”

“But why the desert though? He always goes down there instead of anywhere else on the globe. He just wants to hang out in the dirt meanwhile it’s paradise up here! And let alone the treasure that’s supposedly up here.”

“Treasure you still haven’t found but are so sure is here?” Mighty taunted.

“Oh there’s treasure here. Heard it many times from people who see this hunk of land floating overhead.”

“And yet none of them have been up here?”

“Irrelevant. Every treasure hunter knows where there’s ruins there’s treasure.” Nack walked over to Bean as he was lying back in the hammock, whistling an odd tune. He flipped Bean out of the rope bed then quickly hopped back into it. “But nothing wrong with living the good life up here in the meantime.”

“Is he still talking about gold and riches?” Knuckles finally made his way up to the group. Bark just silently nodded his head. “I’ve told you, I’ve seen every inch of this island. The only treasure here is solitude and delicious fruit.”

“Maybe that’s the only treasure you care about.” Nack added.

“E-enough for me!” Ray said as he came down from a tree with a pear in his hands, taking a good sized bite from it.

“Ray, sounds like your speech is improving.” Knuckles said warmly as me moved over to another tree and gave it a hard smack with his fists earning a few fruit to fall from the tree. He tossed one to Bark, another to Mighty then took a bite of one for himself.

“I’ve b-b-been p-practicing!” The flying squirrel said excitedly.

Knuckles leaned over to Mighty and whispered. “Still no luck on jogging his memory about your village?”

“No. And at this point I’m starting to think it’s best if he doesn’t remember. He still is the same cheery optimistic guy but that event definitely traumatized him if it’s entirely blocked out from memory. It did something to him, other than give him that stutter that is. I feel for him.”

“Yeah. You’re a good guardian for him you know?”

“He’s like a little brother.” Mighty said with an endearing smile as he watched Ray devour the pear he came across.

“Heh, you two are like some others we know.”

“Sonic and Tails?”

“Yup. Speaking of them, some things went down not too long ago. They’re going to be venturing out up north at least to the Green Hills. I’ll probably be dropping down to join them quite frequently.” Knuckles explained.

“Nack has been getting a little irritant about your absence you know. It might be good to stay for a bit. The gang down there are tough cookies, I’m sure they can handle a lot of the journey themselves you know.” Mighty spoke his two cents.

“I know. But I’m thinking the crazy events that have surrounded their recent ventures are somehow connected to this place too. While I was down there, there were a lot of strange markings in some cavern north of Cap that matched some here in the ruins. Chuck called them runes and some other ancient markings that I have never seen up here before. Can’t remember the name. O-something he called them. I just…really want to know why I was alone up here and what happened to the others of my kind that used to live here.”

Mighty looked at Knuckles for a good bit and saw how him and Ray weren’t the only ones with some deep seeded issues about their past. Though his past was not a particularly great one, he at least knew his past. He decided to verbalize this to him. “I’ll support you buddy. Ray might not remember our village being ransacked, his parents being killed. But I do. It’s not comforting reflecting on it – that village took me in after I escaped that mad man’s experimentation – but I know where I came from and how I got here. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to not even know that.”

“Thanks.” Knuckles rested a hand on Mighty’s should briefly. “Oh, that reminds me. Amy was talking about some dreams she was having again. One of them mentioned a man with a manic laugh. Not going to lie, you don’t hear much about humans anymore. Not much left. But your captivity with that demented fool came to mind.” Knuckles explained.

“It would be horrifying if she’s having premonitions about the same guy. I will say…he did have a strange laugh that would haunt me for the rest of my life…”