Sonic Series Fan Fiction ❯ Miles 'Foxy' Prower! ❯ The Calling ( Chapter 17 )

Fuck, ok, as promised, here's the edited chapter. It's VERY different… well, only one part. Ok, if you want to go straight to the part that's been changed, then go to the part with Chris and Cream… and you shall see what it is I screwed up on. Yeah yeah, don't nag me, you assholes! I know, but we all make mistakes, right? Yeah, EVEN me. ^_^;

 

Anyway, nothing's really changed except for the part I mentioned… but it's changed DRASTICALLY, so you'd better read it if you don't wanna be lost!

 

…Oh, and if this is your first time reading chapter 17, you've the joy of reading the non-fucked up version. Enjoy it!!!

 

Miles `Foxy' Prower! Chapter 17: “The Calling”

 

It made him a bit uneasy… knowing that he was partially to blame for the prime example of utter destruction that lay before his eyes…

 

Well, eye.

 

Knuckles the Echidna adjusted the thick black bandana, slanted so it was covering his eye, tightening the knot at the back. He didn't like the idea of an eye patch, or walking around with one of his eyes sealed shut all the time, so this would have to do.

 

There was a patch underneath the garment, but it wasn't visible. He scratched at it a little.

 

“I told you to stop that.” Came a smooth, though scolding voice. He looked in that direction, blinking once.

 

“It itches…” He told her, his voice not whiney, but a bit frustrated. Rouge put her hands on her well-endowed hips, doing that stance she does.

 

“It'll only itch more if you scratch at it… now quit it, it'll get irritated and swell up.” She said, pushing his gloved hand aside with her own. He crossed his arms, and blinked once at her. She grinned slyly, and winked at the echidna.

 

“Hey, was that a wink or a blink, I can't tell anymore!” she teased him. He smiled inwardly, but didn't let it show.

 

“Heh. As if I'd wink at the girl after my Emerald…” He said, seeming a bit serious. The time spent around the bat was… interesting for him, but he never let his guard down in that area. After all, she was a sly one. She got angry, and huffed at him.

 

“Hmph! Well, if you'd have let ME steal MY emerald, I'm sure we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place!” She shot back. He grit his teeth, and was about to jump into the argument head first (as usual), when he realized…

 

His look faded from one of anger and into a pensive one. He looked at the sky, and a moment passed. Rouge just looked at him, amazed they hadn't thrown any attacks at each other yet. What was up with him…?

 

He shook his head, and sighed a little. He seemed calm, and peaceful, but also a tad regretful.

 

“…Bah, you're right, Rouge.” He told her, sitting on a pile of rubble. She looked at the red guardian, not really knowing what to feel. After all, those are three words she NEVER thought she'd hear out of HIM.

 

“I… am?” She said, revealing that she'd stated it only for argumentative purposes. He didn't move his head, but his navy, almost purple eye trailed up to meet her.

 

“…It's all my fault this is happening. People are dying because I failed to keep the Master Emerald out of the hands of evil. Now I'm powerless to stop it…” He told her, shaking his head in spite of himself. She was starting to see why he was acting so strange, and she folded her arms and tapped her foot.

 

“It's in the past.” She told him. “Don't get pathetic about it, that's not going to help anybody!” She said, turning her nose up in that disdainful way she does. She was doing this for his own good, though. She knew not to humor a lamenting person, or they'd just get even more pathetic. You had to be straight-up with them, even if they got upset or mad at you.

 

Knuckles looked at the bat, his expression a mixture of thought, bewilderment, and calmness. Rouge was a complicated lady. He could never bring himself to understand her… but he had to admit, it was rather fun to try sometimes. He, to her surprise, grinned a little bit. Rouge looked at him for a moment, then grinned back, in that sly way she does.

 

“What're you smirkin' at, Knucklehead?” She teased, her smile showing that it was all in the interest of indirectly hitting on him. He shook his head, and blinked, before turning to walk away, continuing the search. He turned around again, though, and looked at her, with a smile.

 

“THAT was a wink.” He said, before he went on his merry way, proceeding to try and locate the blue hero.

 

Rouge watched him walk away, before following, eyes narrowed in a rare look of significant interest. Especially rare considering it wasn't jewels she had her eye on this time…

 

“Hey Rouge, look at that!” Shouted the guardian, suddenly, as he pointed to the sky. She snapped herself out of the pleasant little moment she was having, and ran to his side, looking up in the direction he was pointing.

 

She noticed that his sense of direction was a little off, as the flare in the sky was slightly to the left of where he was pointing. Poor guy, she thought, he still wasn't used to the decreased depth perception of only having one eye. She remembered to earlier in the day, when they'd met up, and she first saw it. She was a bit shocked.

 

(flashback)

 

“Ouch…” The Echidna grunted as she tried to adjust the accursed bandana.

 

“Oh, shush! Hold still, I've almost got it…” She said, wrestling with the garment. He complied by moving around even more, doing the exact opposite as directed, which seemed to be a natural reaction in males when told to do something.

 

“Urk! Rouge, I told you, it's FINE!” He told her, trying to remove it. She kicked him in the kidneys in response, effectively making him behave, after a yelp and a few curses.

 

“…It's NOT fine. You've got to cover it…rrr… up with something, or you'll just look like a perpetually winking…rhhhg, doofus!” She said, finally securing the band around his head, and over his eye. She stood back and looked at him triumphantly. He blushed a little bit.

 

“I feel stupid…” He said, scratching at the patch beneath the cloth. She grabbed his hand and waved a finger.

 

“Don't do that. And you look fine! If I had the hots for one-eyed numbskulled echidnas, you'd be on the top of the list!” She said, actually trying to be nice, not really realizing how MEAN that statement was. Knuckles chuckled though, thinking that was kind of funny. He looked into a mirror. He looked kind of like a war veteran, and it really wasn't as goofy looking as he thought it'd be.

 

“I just KNOW Sonic's going to think up every distasteful `one-eye' nickname under the sun when he sees me like this.” He said to her. She grinned.

 

“Don't worry about him… just do what I do.” She told him. Knuckles decided he was in a good enough mood to make a snide comment.

 

“What, everybody?” He remarked, earning himself a slap to the head from the bat, halfway playful, halfway pissed. She smiled, in the `wanna play hardball? I'm game' sort of way, and he rubbed the spot, laughing. He'd actually expected a kick to the face, but he was happy to get off with just that.

 

“No, you pervert, this!” She said, sticking one of her legs in front of her, in somewhat of an attractive pose. Knuckles, denial aside, wished he could have seen that with BOTH of his eyes…

 

He looked at the leg, trying to hide an obvious interest. He looked back up at her face. “Show him some thigh? And you call ME a pervert…” Knux stated, getting another bonk to the noggin'. This one was a little harder, and he actually said `ow' this time.

 

“NO… I mean trip him up when he runs by… you should see it, it's HILARIOUS… I did it to him just a couple of days ago and…” Rouge trailed, making an irritated face at the echidna, whom wasn't paying a bit of attention. “Knuckles, stop looking at my legs…” She told him, a vein popping out of her head.

 

The echidna averted his eye, and folded his arms, sweatdropping. “Uh, erh, what? I WASN'T!” he claimed.

 

“Sure…” She said, rolling her aquamarines, taking her exit from the GUN medical tent she'd requested for aiding the echidna. She lowered her wings to cover her hind quarters as she walked away. Knuckles felt insulted.

 

“Hey! You don't REALLY think I'm looking there, do you?” He called to her. She turned around, shooting knives at him with her eyes.

 

“You NOTICED, didn't you?!” she retorted. The echidna would've responded, but realized that she had him there… despite his brain's clamoring denial.

 

“Oh man, checkmate.” He said to himself under his breath.

 

(end flashback)

 

Rouge looked at Knuckles.

 

“You think it's one of ours?” She asked him. He pointed again, and she turned her head.

 

The flare in the sky burst, painting the cerulean with a freaky flaming smiley face with a mustache sticking out… Eggman's insignia.

 

“Huh… So the good Doctor's found something, eh… hope it's not Sonic.” She said, shaking her head.

 

Knuckles folded his arms, nodding.

 

“Well, we're not accomplishing anything by standing here… let's go!” Said the scarlet fighter, leaping, and taking to the sky in a swift, smooth glide. Rouge jumped and followed in suit.

 

=-=-=+_+_+_+________________

 

VrooVRROOOOOON….

 

Sounded a GUN class military battle cycle, which chugged loudly, covering up all noise around it. The irritated rock star took the key out of the ignition to shut it up.

 

“My god, this thing's so LOUD…” Chris said, putting the kickstand down, grimacing at the vehicle. The boy greatly missed his Glimmerbolt… but everything was too hectic right now to have it repaired, even WITH the factuality that he was a famous rock star.

 

“Ohhhh, my ears….” Cream whimpered, wrapping the sensitive appendages around her head, tightly. She released them once the noise ended, looking a tad relieved. She sniffled a little. Chris frowned.

 

The poor girl was miserable. She, like him, hadn't slept in about a day, with all the commotion… then she had to deal with worrying about him, what with the damage Alastor inflicted (which only consisted of a few bruises and a cracked rib, which was tied with a bandage), Sonic was supposedly dead now, Tails refused to help look for him, and went out to search on his own, and on top of ALL that, she still had that awful cold!

 

She just looked at him, then at the ground, as if his wasn't the face she'd been hoping to see. Even Cheese slumped a bit, seeming just as down as his best friend.

 

Chris opened his mouth, but no words would come out. He felt so bad for her. He'd never be able to imagine how stressed the bunnygirl must have been. On top of everything, she seemed to get the most upset when they called Tails, and he wouldn't come with them. He recalled the exact conversation…

 

(Flashback)

 

“Wow, I can't believe this… it's like some kind of bad dream…” The young rocker spoke, looking upon the ruins of the city in awe. Cream's bell jingled, as she looked left and right, before rubbing her eyes in disbelief.

 

“This isn't happening… Did Sonic really have to fight the thing… that did all this?” She worded, ears drooping even more-so than normal. She was obviously fearing for the hedgehog's well-being even more than he was. Then again, Chris had always thought of Sonic as… invincible. He was quite confident that he was alright, or at least that's what his heart told him. But he was worried about Cream. After a moment, his frown evolved into a little bit of a sad smile, as he thought of something that might cheer the girl up a bit.

 

“You know… I have Tails's cell number on my phone, Cream, if you want, we could call him and ask him to meet us, and then we could all look for Sonic together!” He offered, holding out said device. She, just as he'd thought, immediately brightened up a bit, if only a little bit.

 

“*Sniff* Yeah… that sounds like a good idea…” She muttered, more to herself than to him, as she flipped open the phone, and dialed the number, ignoring his list, as she obviously knew it by heart.

 

Chris could only grin as she saw the odd way she held it as it ringed. It was adorable, one would have to admit. She held it at her mouth, looking at the screen. Her ears were large, and doubtlessly keen enough to hear the voices that came from the object, without need to hold It up to one of them, as any other person would. All of the Sonic gang held phones in rather humorous ways, being that they had differently placed ears than humans did, but Cream's was by far the funniest. Or in his mind, the cutest. She glanced at him, and smiled a little.

 

Needless to say, she wanted to see the fox-boy with even more intensity than per usual, since she needed SOMETHING to calm her nerves, and hopefully take her mind off things, if only a bit. Tails didn't generally pay much attention to her, as mentioned before… but she liked him enough to firmly deny the thought that this meant he didn't like her, and concluded that he was just shy. She took a moment to appreciate Chris for his idea. Only a moment.

 

Chris smiled, glad for her. But just for her. He, on the other hand, sacrificed her attention for her happiness, a sign of true care. He didn't like the idea of Tails coming along with them… when the three came together, normally Chris was the fifth wheel… Well, Tails actually talked to him, but oddly enough, ignored Cream as much as possible. Cream did the exact same thing to Chris, ignoring him, paying attention only to Tails. Chris would usually just reflected what Tails said to give the fox feedback, as he emptily puzzled as to why he was even there in the first place.

 

In short, three, for him, would be a crowd. But, whatever made the bell-wearing rabbit happy was vastly more important than his little `jealousy' issue. He never was the type to be jealous… he still wasn't, so, whenever he encountered the emotion, he just became perplexed, anxious, and inward.

 

The phone ringed several times, before the kit's voice came.

 

“Chris, what is it, have you found Sonic?” He asked, his tone a hasty, strictly business one. Tails was always like that… he never answered with a simple `hello', at least not with calls he could identify, which was most of them. She giggled a little bit.

 

“No, silly, it's Cream… I'm using Chris's cell…” She said, trailing, before looking a bit sad. “…And no, we haven't found him yet…”

 

Tails was silent for a moment on the other line.

 

“Oh, ok… So, why're you calling? Something the matter?” He asked. She knew Tails, he was always like that, to the point… but still, even in a situation like this, she couldn't help but feel as if he didn't care to speak to her from that.

 

“Well… Chris and I were just… um *sniff* wondering, if you'd like to… you know… help us search? Three heads are better than one, right?” She asked him, seeming a tad embarrassed, as if awaiting rejection. She frowned though a pale blush. The fox boy's voice came in small, unclear stutters.

 

“Uhm… oh, well… I… Cream, I erh-can't…” He came. Chris's heart plummeted in his chest as he saw her face melt into one of despair… She was quiet for a moment.

 

“W-…Why not…?” She asked, voice a bit wavery.

 

“…I just… I have to look by myself… because… I just do, Ok? I'm… I'm sorry Cream, It's… too much of an inconvenience to me right now… call back if you find him, alright?” The genius's stammering words came, as he seemed to be unsure of how to put it. Cream tried hard not to cry… and hung up.

 

(End Flashback)

 

She, of course, cried. She was an extremely sensitive girl, after all. The rejection seemed to really crush her… Chris simply didn't understand why Tails avoided her so. He'd probably give anything to have a girl like her actually like him… the way she liked the two-tailed fox.

 

He, honestly, hadn't expected the foxboy to turn them down. Usually, Tails didn't mind spending time with them. He always dodged Cream's looks, and such, but he didn't seem to mind just being in her presence. At least not most of the time.

 

The rocker frowned, and looked at her. She just stared glumly off into the distance. No matter how he tried, he simply couldn't figure out what the bunny saw in him. Well, yeah, he thought the fox was a great guy and all, but how could she go on liking him after all the stress he'd put her heart through? She was always excited about seeing Tails, but she never seemed to get any of that happiness she sought in him… she always ended up frowning, wondering what she was doing wrong, why he tried so hard never to look her straight in the eye…

 

It was amazing that the musician hadn't drawn any hatred toward Tails in the respects of all the times he saw the girl's face fade to disappointment because of something he said, or did… or more rather, didn't say, or didn't do. All of the girl's affections were going to waste… but Chris… he couldn't let envy or greed get in the way of his friendship with Tails, he just couldn't. No, literally, the boy lacked the capacity.

 

“I don't wanna ride that thing, Chris…” The girl said, pointing at the wretched vehicle. Chris looked down upon it, and sighed deeply.

 

“Yeah, I don't either… Somebody needs to tell GUN that engines are designed to make a bike move, not bust people's eardrums…” The boy said, unlatching his axe from the side of it.

 

He secured the belt in which the instrument was attached to around his chest, letting it hang at his back. He grunted a little, as the weight put pressure on his injury. That… wouldn't work.

 

“Be careful!” She said, her face drawing concern. She, no matter how upset, indifferent, or sour her attitude may be, never failed to show compassion and sympathy toward the injured. She held her gloved paws out, as if to catch him, were he to somehow collapse. He waved her off, dismissing it as nothing.

“Gahh… no, I'm… nggh… ok…” He said, adjusting the guitar at his waist, tightening the belt, to where it would stay. “…There, that's better…” He said, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.

 

Cream let out a breath of relief, then sneezed.

 

“…Why did you take that off of the motorcycle anyway…?” She asked after a moment, through a handkerchief. The mildly battered rock star looked at her, eyes as blue as the ocean. He folded his arms.

 

“Because we're not taking it!” He said, as if it should be obvious. She frowned, and shook her head.

 

“No… You're injured, we can't just walk around, just because that thing hurts my ears…” She said, as usual, putting all others before herself. Chris made a note to immediately disagree.

 

“Yes, yes we can… I told you, I'm fine… Besides, I don't want to ride it, either… and I'm certainly not letting you do it. You're sick already, we don't need you getting worse, riding around on this… thing, no wind-resistant material, or anything.” He said. She pouted, and, before she could even think of retorting, her illness confirmed his point, as she coughed lightly into her glove.

 

Chris was about to say something, but he was cut off by a high-pitched, chao-like voice.

 

“Chow! Chow Chowwwwww!!!” The winged being exclaimed, pointing at the sky.

 

“Do you see something, Cheese…?” The bunny girl asked him, as she looked in that direction. Chris looked that way as well, and the answer to the question was confirmed as their eyes locked with the light in the sky.

 

“Wow, where do you think that came from…?” Chris asked nobody in particular.

 

“What kind of rocket is that… it doesn't look like any fireworks I've seen before…” Cream said. Chris couldn't help but grin, she probably had never seen one of those before, and it was sort of cute.

 

“I think that's a flare, Cream…” He said. She didn't answer, but gazed up at it, wondering if it would ever stop, or go back to the ground…

 

But after a mere moment, the two gasped, as they watched the object explode into a dazzling light, which cleared to show the Eggman insignia, etched into the clouds.

 

“Oh…? That looks like the pictures on Dr. Eggman's robots…” The bunny girl stated, seeming a bit uneasy.

“I'm pretty sure it is… I think Eggman's found something… but this could only mean trouble… I think we'd better check it out.” Chris said, immediately overtaken by his curiousity, adventurous side, and intuition. He looked at Cream, as if for her acknowledgement. She nodded a bit.

 

The three began walking (Cheese, of course, flying) in that direction, leaving the GUN motorcycle behind. Fortunately for them, it wasn't that far away, anyway…

 

_++--_____==+++++++__________________

 

(A/N: Just to inform you, all of these scenes are happening at once, but from a different point of view… so this next one with Tails will trace the same time passage as the one you just read, from his POV)

 

“Hmmm… What to do…” The fox-boy muttered to himself, as he gently rubbed his forehead, trying to coax the gears within his noggin to turn.

 

The poor fox was at an unbelievably inconvenient dilemma, here… SO inconvenient, that it was taking all of his brainpower, every single quotient of his intelligence to think of a way to avert it, and so far, he'd come up with nothing.

 

“Oh man… what a crisis…” He said, beginning to suffer from a minor headache. It seemed like that brain of his would never work when he really needed it. On top of that, he had so many other things circling around annoyingly within that skull of his… it was sufficiently clogging his focus.

 

Tails was informed by Amy, the news, Rouge, and various soldiers of what was going on… luckily for him, he'd only had contact with Amy and Rouge's voice, since he wasn't at his workshop when they'd gone to find him. Tails was a bit absent-minded at times, but he always took account of his own situation.

 

The moment he'd heard Amy's voice on his cell phone, he'd recalled his…. aromatic… predicament. He was worried about Sonic… REALLY worried… in fact, to him, it wouldn't be going too far to say he was almost as worried as Amy.

 

But he had multiple reasons for searching for the hedgehog solo. First off, were he to come in contact with ANY females whatsoever… He shook his head, not wanting to think about it.

 

Were he to… distract Rouge, Amy or Cream, whom were all probably out there looking feverishly as well… well, that would cut off part of the search, and next thing you know, Sonic's life is in danger… if he still WAS alive.

 

The fox shuddered, as he considered how upset the others must be with him already…

 

…Especially Cream.

 

His look of pure stress faded into the most melancholy, self-hating look you could imagine. He, in short, felt like an utter and complete heel… and he didn't like it one bit. The poor girl… he remembered how upset her cheerful voice became when he declined her offer… it was almost like he could feel her tender heart crushing beneath his foot.

 

(Flashback)

 

Tails's cerulean eyes traced every inch of the city, analyzing it for any trace of blue. He didn't understand… having the altitude of the Typhoon on his side, he should've been able to spot the heroic hedgehog by now.

 

His chaos readings were his first thoughts at locating the hedgehog… since he had the emeralds… supposedly. But the radical spikes of energy emanating from the Master Emerald were disrupting the device too much for it to be of any use. Heat sensors wouldn't work, either… at the hands of the destruction the Titan had brought upon it, all the ruins of the cities were smoldering, and hot.

 

The two-tailed pilot had to resort to using his eyes… but he still hadn't turned up any results.

 

Suddenly the boy jumped in his seat, startled as he heard a familiar diddy ring out from his plane's storage compartment. (I imagine the ring tune as a cell-phone version of Tails's theme, though I don't care for it, it would sound cool on a cell phone)

 

He sighed in relief, and lowered his altitude… he couldn't talk on the phone and fly a plane at the same time… well, he probably could, but he never took such risks. Fortunately for him, there was a half of a helicopter-pad clearing atop a building, just large enough for the Typhoon.

 

In a matter of seconds, he'd skillfully parked the plane perfectly on the spot, and withdrew his cell-phone, taking a moment to see who it was on his Caller ID.

 

Now, Tails didn't own a single piece of technology that he hadn't customized at least a little bit, not even his toaster was the same as when he'd gotten it. The boy loved to tinker with things, see how they work, then make them better. With his phone, he'd improved upon the ID, among other things…

 

Even if someone called under unknown, the ID had the ability to decipher and trace it, revealing who it was. Not only were the caller, and the number they were calling from show, but the nifty little device could usually give him their location as well. And that didn't pertain to just addresses, but a satellite he'd launched a while back, which orbited the Earth, harmlessly, and undetected, gave him the ability to know exactly where any call, even one from a moving cell phone on the other side of the planet, came from.

 

He read the data on it as it rung again. He saw that it was Chris's cell, and picked up, hoping he'd found something.

 

“Chris, what is it, have you found Sonic?” He asked, crossing his fingers. As the voice on the other line let out a high-pitched titter, revealing it was CERTAINLY not the punk rocker, Tails nearly jumped out of his fur.

 

“No, silly, it's Cream… I'm using Chris's cell…” Revealed the voice. The super-intelligent fox would've been able to figure that out in a heartbeat, but, nevertheless, wasn't expecting it. She wasted no time in answering his question when he didn't respond. “…And no, we haven't found him yet…”

 

Tails took a brief moment to gather himself, until his heart slowed down to a fairly normal rate. Nothing else to say, considering he found himself at a loss of words at so much as the thought of the girl, he questioned the purpose of the call.

 

“Oh… Ok, so, why're you calling? Something the matter?” He prodded, gently. He felt at the most bizarre combination of emotions at the sound of the rabbit's voice… it soothed him, and yet, at the same time, in a certain respect, made him uneasy. She took a moment, before a rather bashful reply met his ears.

 

“Well… Chris and I were just… um *sniff* wondering, if you'd like to… you know… help us search? Three heads are better than one, right?” She asked him, generating a shocked look on the boy's face.

 

…In any other circumstance he'd have gladly accepted… but… Now wasn't a good time for her nose to come in contact with his scent… it would generate an inconceivable amount of inconveniences… for her, for him, for everybody. He also found himself a bit scared, actually imagining the thought of her doing the things that Rouge, and Amy did.

 

Little did he know, it wasn't Cream he was afraid of, but he was actually in fear of his own feelings.

 

Nevertheless, his better judgement found itself agreeing with his cold feet, and he knew he'd have to think of a way to turn the offer down, without hurting her feelings…

 

“Uhm… oh, well… I… Cream, I erh-can't…” Came his loose, sparsely understandable stuttering. He flinched, as his heart felt as if something had pierced it… it was almost like he could feel exactly what she was feeling at that moment.

 

“Oh yeah… smooth…” The fox scolded himself inwardly. He hoped with all his heart that she'd understand, and not be as hurt as he dreaded she might be. A long, torturous moment passed with no answer.

 

“W-… Why not…?” She asked, weekly. The boy cringed at her tone… which was weak and wavery… it was as if the cheerfulness had been zapped right out of it. He sighed, searching his head for some way to make it seem like more of an… inability, rather than rejection.

 

“…I just… I have to look by myself… because… I just do, Ok? I'm… I'm sorry Cream, It's… too much of an inconvenience to me right now… call back if you find him, alright?” He uttered, in an absolute failure of a soothing voice. He waited for her answer… he waited…

 

CLICK.

 

His eyes shrunk… She hung up on him.

 

(End flashback)

 

The memory ever intensified his regret. He felt like the most cold-hearted villain in the world.

 

His mind began a poor attempt to cheer him up, making up empty excuses, suggesting that it wasn't his fault, though it was entirely.

 

“…Maybe I should've told her why I can't go near her…” He thought to himself. He shook his head. “Yeah, like she'd believe me… She probably hates me now… who can blame her…?” The boy thought to himself.

 

The worst part of all this was, eventually, somebody was GOING to find Sonic, and they'd expect him to be there… there with everyone else… Amy, Rouge… Cream.

 

The fur on the back of his neck rose as the vary thought of all three girls… teaming up on him… and right in front of their love-interests, no less. No matter how he looked at it, he simply couldn't draw a happy, or at least painless ending to the scenario.

Suddenly, his train of thought was severed by a light, which shot up from the ground a few miles away, and seemed to claw at the sky…

 

“A flare…” He thought. His mind told him many things… but his heart told him that was exactly where Sonic was.

 

As he saw the Eggman insignia light up the sky, he stood up, wary… then, after a long moment, he grinned. A shallow grin, but a grin nonetheless. He finally concluded that the situation wasn't totally hopeless, as he got an idea, hopping into his plane.

 

…He knew what he had to do.

 

-----______---++==___

 

In the darkest part of the world lay the ebony hedgehog… cloaked deeply in a vast crimson hood… hidden in the shadows of the world.

 

Being a Vampire wasn't all it was cracked up to be… the immortality and rejuvenation of wounds, the powers… they were offset by this.

 

With each daylight came another life-or-death situation. And the Titan was destroying many good sources of shelter from the sunlight… so it was even harder to remain hidden from the accursed star. He had to eclipse dash a lot, his only means of getting through the sunlight unharmed. He was quite exhausted from all of it… But, suffer long, and it will set you free. Only through trial do we find the strength we need… it's never over… just another day. Through hope, and tragedy, and everything that comes our way...(from `All Hail Shadow', in Shadow the Hedgehog) He was quite invigorated by all of this.

 

Still, it got him wishing he could stroll, no daylight to hold him back. His life, since 4 years ago, had been a shady one. It had to be. He had no shadow to protect him on the other side… so he had no choice but to find other means of shade.

 

Suddenly a light burst, from behind him. He turned about, silently, to investigate, making sure to hug the halved building he was next to (the tallest he could find around, though). He looked up, and saw the flame rocket into the air. It flew up, silently, before exploding, into… an Eggman-like shape. It was one of the doctor's, Shadow instantly knew.

 

It was extremely close by…

 

The cloaked, raven vamp considered his options… but the fact was, there was no contest between his rational side, and his bored, curious side. He grinned, baring a pointy fang. He finally realized something he had in common with Sonic.

 

Sonic… The Master Emerald Titan was still roaming, and Shadow, despite wishing to admit it to himself, realized that meant the hedgehog had been defeated. He shook his head, hoping that the blue one was alright.

 

Without another thought, his image became disoriented, and his body was covered in the void of black, as he flew in that direction, at near light speeds…

 

=========__--+++__________ (it's just so fun to write about vampy Shadow!)

 

Amy fumed, pacing about in an obvious anger, as Armic watched her uneasily. He wished he could find a way to calm the girl down. Seeing somebody so kind this… out of character made him a tad upset. Ever since Eggman's walkie talkie was apparently destroyed, this confirmed by the static-covered noise she heard on that particular frequency, she had been thrashing about.

 

“That fat egg! I'll scramble im'!” The girl said, pounding an already rubble-ized piece of what was once a sidewalk with her toy-like hammer. With a `peenk' noise, it was violently reduced to dust.

 

“…I'm glad you never managed to hit me with that thing… it's more dangerous than it looks.” Armic stated. Amy looked at him, realizing she was scaring him a bit. They'd let the boy have his staff back, taking his word that he'd not use it to betray them. She believed him… he didn't seem the type to tell a lie.

 

“…It's called the Piko Piko Hammer.” Amy said, smiling a little. Armic gave her a cute little grin.

 

“Because of the sound it makes?” He said. She nodded.

 

“You're pretty clever. Most people just think it's a name… they never really connect the facts like that.” She told him. He rubbed the back of his head, modestly.

 

“Back in the day, I was notorious for being preposterously coherent.” He told her, with a little smile. “Honestly, I'd rather be more whimsical, and free spirited, like you, Amy.”

 

She almost awed. It was a very sweet thing to say… he made her attributes, which most people considered drawbacks, seem like more redeeming qualities.

 

“Well, that's very nice of you to say. Sometimes, though, I wish I was more like you. Maybe then people would take me a bit more seriously… Like Sonic.” She said, looking at the ground. It wasn't like her to say something so sulky. Armic frowned. He then smiled, trying to infect her with it.

 

“Hey, don't worry. Near-death experiences have a tendency to make people realize the things they've taken for granted… the blue one will doubtlessly notice you, now.” he said to his role model, spreading his arms for emphasis. Amy giggled. He was just adorable. She'd never seen such a young face talk in such a manner before, and he seemed to be trying a little optimism for a change.

 

“Hehehe… thanks, you're sweet. But he's got a name, you know.” She told him. He rubbed his head.

 

“Right, Sonic…” The yellow emerald spirit corrected himself. Amy tittered again. He seemed almost like an adult in a child's body. He looked at her, and laughed as well, happy to have somebody he could truly admire… something he'd been deprived of for 2000 years.

 

A moment passed, and it was a bit uneasy for Amy, as Sonic was hard on her mind. Armic, however, was cherishing it. He suddenly broke the silence.

 

“Amy?” He prodded. She looked in his direction.

 

“Uh huh?” She came. He looked at the ground in front of him, as if wanting to say something he felt he might regret saying… but also might regret NOT saying. He then looked at her.

 

“So… am I still your prisoner…?” He asked, with a little smile. She had a warm expression.

 

“…Do you still wanna kill yourself?” She asked back, bluntly. He looked at her, with a forlorn look, but then shook his head. She grinned largely.

 

“Then you're free to go!” She said to him, as if it were obvious information. “…But…” She trailed, holding out her hand to him. He looked at it, wondering what to do. “…You're welcome to stay, as a friend.” She told him.

 

Armic reacted to this with a flabbergasted, deeply surprised expression. His golden eyes twinkled, wavering, as if holding back tears… Amy was confused that he was taking such a simple statement… and making such a big deal out of it.

 

“…f-…friend…?” He mirrored, wondering if he'd heard correctly. Amy nodded, but frowned. He was acting like he'd never heard the word before… the poor boy! She felt bad for him… from the way he talked, he was exposed to nothing but evil in the past…

 

“Of course! Everyone needs a friend, right?” She said, chipper, as she continued to hold out her hand. He looked at it, and then took it, squeezing it a tiny bit, though still being gentle.

 

“…Yes… I'd be honored if you would… be my friend.” He said, with what one would probably consider the perfect smile. His amber eyes glimmered with a happiness that made Amy feel good inside. Like when you give a small child a present on Christmas, and they give you a big hug because they love it.

 

Suddenly, Amy noticed something… She let go of his hand, and stared, taking a moment to rub her eyes. Armic cocked his head, and turned around to look. He saw nothing.

 

“Armic, you have… wings!” The pink hedgehog shouted. Armic looked at her, seeming a bit surprised, maybe even doubtful for a moment. He looked at his back, and indeed, he saw the glowing, ethereal appendages sprouting from his dorsal region. He audibly gasped.

 

“Th-the Wings of Chaos!” He said, in only half belief of what he saw.

 

Amy didn't have a word to say, just stood there, her mouth ajar, as he continued to look at them. He smiled, and gave them a flap… a slow one, just to test that they were really there…

 

“…Amy! Look, I…” He trailed, realizing she didn't fully understand the concept behind the wings. “…oh, right, I forgot to tell you about them…”

 

He looked at her and cleared his throat. “…Ok, um, well… in short, these are known as the `Wings of Chaos'. They are gifted to what I refer to as the `Lead Emerald'… It was said long ago that, should the Lead Emerald be destroyed, or cease to express it's normal power, the wings would pass along to another emerald…” He said. Amy nodded, though still looking a bit confused. Armic looked at her, and rubbed his head awkwardly.

 

“Um… I'll give you the full explanation later, when everybody's together.” He told her. She nodded again, still looking at them. She'd never seen anything like them… they were really beautiful, and it was eerie that they seemed to suit the boy so well… they seemed to give him angelic qualities. It only made sense, too, though he'd not admit his own purity.

 

They dispersed, seeming to burst into a dazzling display of feathers, which faded into nothing, as if never really being there. He summoned them again, just to experiment, and she watched him. He was smiling largely, and it made her smile to, as they reappeared, seeming to immerge from invisible sockets on his back, the light forming themselves into the wing shapes.

It was quite a sight… he could even alter their size. He did everything with them, captivated with the new ability, though he never used them to fly, yet. Suddenly he frowned, and let them fade away with his smile.

 

“What's the matter…?” Amy prodded gently. He didn't bother to look up.

 

“…Well…” He started, with a regretful sigh. “…This just proves that all my brothers and sisters are dead… and the other emeralds with them.” He lamented. Amy frowned. A moment passed, and neither said anything.

 

The female hedgehog then realized, when she was down, he cheered her up… she should do the same for him, and offer something positive for him to think about. She put her hand on his shoulder, making him look up into her bluegreen eyes.

 

“It's ok…” She said. “…We haven't known eachother for long, but… you're like a brother to me.” She told him. He seemed horribly flattered, and, in an emotional display, he embraced her, like a child would their mother.

 

Amy was taken aback, but returned the affection, happy to show him that bit of love he never got from anybody else. She meant what she'd said, too.

 

The tender moment was disrupted, however, as she spotted a flash out of the corner of her eye. She squirmed a bit, and Armic released her from his arms, hoping he hadn't offended her. He soon saw, to his relief and curiosity, a light flying through the air.

 

“…What manner of magic is that…?” He asked, revealing his lack of knowledge concerning this era. Amy watched it.

 

“It's a flare... It's like a signal that we use to let somebody far away know our position…” She explained. Before the 2000 year old youth could respond, the flare exploded into a flaming symbol Amy was vastly familiar with.

 

“…Huh… what a bizarre shape.” Armic stated, the mustachioed face seeming to resemble somebody he'd seen before, though he couldn't recall who.

 

“It's Eggman! He's over there!!” She shouted, jumping up and down. After registering the information, Armic summoned his wings, and held his staff out, in both hands, as if presenting it to her.

 

“Here, hold onto this… I'll get us over there a lot quicker.” He said to her. She smiled at him.

 

“Are you sure you can carry me? You've never flown with them before, have you?” She asked, putting him before herself. He only smiled back.

 

“No… but it's alright. I know I'm not ver strong, but I have the limitless vigor of a Chaos Emerald… and the Wings of Chaos are very powerful… I feel so much lighter at their very presence. Soaring at high speeds should be simple!” He exclaimed, flapping once, and gaining many feet of leverage. He flapped again, leveling his staff with the girl, as a sort of handle that she could hold onto.

 

She smiled, and grabbed hold of it. Not wasting a second, Armic lifted them into the air, seeming to have ease with it. He gave her a nod of reassurance, and she grinned. With that, they sped off, high hopes that Sonic was okay, and that everyone else had seen the flare, and was heading that way.

 

End Chapter

 

Ok, just so you know, you just read the EDITED version of the chapter. Originally, Tails accepted Cream's offer, but this was because I hadn't thought ahead, to the consequences that… well, just wouldn't have worked out. Sorry for such a loooooooong delay, but it took me a horribly long time to work out the kink in the story. Next chapter should be here fairly soon, as it's already partly written! ^_-

 

That's all I have to say fer now… so if you didn't the first time, REVIEW now, or forever hold your peace. A peace of my foot up your ass.