Chapter 4
Carnival Night
_______________________________________________________________________
The first thing Tails saw were the lights. Lights everywhere, of
every color there was, all different sizes. The next thing he noticed
were the brightly painted buildings, red being the dominant color. Then
he saw the loops and curves of a huge roller coaster towering up in the
background. Beyond that was the darkening evening sky.
Tails turned to Sonic in surprise. "What is this place?"
"It's called a carnival, Prower."
Sonic and Tails turned to see Knuckles approaching, wearing his
customary smirk. He minced along, his body language daring Sonic to
fight him. Sonic and Tails sideyed each other and slowly backed away.
Knuckles stopped six feet away and folded his arms. "I should welcome
you here, but I'm not going to."
Sonic folded his arms, too. "What is your problem, Knux? Why
treat us like this?"
Knuckles ignored the question. "I see you regained all the
emeralds."
Tails shot a quick glance at Sonic and said nothing. Sonic
nodded slowly, gloved fingers drumming on his arm. "So I did. What's
it to ya?"
A lot. It's useless to demand them, because I know you won't
give them to me. But you know what? The Carnival isn't open yet. The
front gates are locked, and I doubt you could jump the fence again.
You two will stay here without food or water until you're ready to
hand over the chaos emeralds." He smiled as if he were doing it for
their own good.
"Why you--" Tails began, but Sonic touched his arm. "Chill,
little bro." He looked Knuckles straight in the eye. "That could be a
really bad idea."
"Why? Gonna fight me or somethin'?"
"No. I have a friend who could make life absolutely miserable for
you."
"Stop the charade. You're bluffing."
Sonic looked at Tails. The fox caught his drift and lifted his
silver whistle to his lips. Sonic returned his gaze to the echidna.
"Wanna call our bluff? What do you think will happen when Tails blows
that thing?"
Knuckles sneered, not believing them. "Nothing. It's just an
old whistle. What kind of idiot do you take me for?"
"How many kinds are there?"
"Don't change the subject. You could blow it until you turned blue
and nothing would happen."
Sonic looked down at himself. "I already am blue."
Knuckles stepped back and began to walk away. "Go ahead, you
twerps. But you're stuck here until you give in."
Sonic nodded to Tails. The fox drew a quick breath, then blew his
whistle. It was silent, but Knuckles heard him blow through it. He
turned. "Ha! It doesn't even work!"
Tails looked at Sonic as the echidna vanished into the twilight.
The hedgehog looked smug. "Don't worry, kiddo, he'll regret it. Boy,
will he regret it! She'll make him pay, and good."
* * *
I stalked through the carnival, passing though bright pools of
light, then darkness, then light again. Try to scare me with a wimpy
little whistle, ha! Sonic couldn't have friends like that--he was too
goody-goody. I wondered what had happened to Tails; he looked like he
had been standing in front of a gigantic hair-dryer. Maybe had had tried
to use the emeralds the wrong way. Now THAT would have been worth
seeing.
I hung a hard left and entered a long alley between four
buildings. There was hardly any light, but I knew the way, and there
wasn't anything to trip over. That Sonic! What a jerk--Tails, too. Maybe
Doc would let me main 'em before he had at 'em. Yeah, that would be fun.
And since I knew the carnival like the back of my hand, I could beat
'em up and escape before they knew what hit them.
Doc had his ship parked at the end of the alley. He was bent over
the engines with a flashlight, but stood up as I approached. "They're
here," I told him.
"Good," he replied. "Any luck?" He meant the emeralds.
"No," I sad, shaking my head. "Sonic has all of them now, and
he's not about to let them go."
Doc snapped his fingers in disappointment. "I'm not surprised.
Cut the power whenever you feel like it."
"Okay. Hey, I was wondering--"
"No!" he bellowed. "Not yet! I still have tests to run, and the
computer still has bugs. Forget it!"
"I wasn't talkin' about the robot," I snapped irritably. "I
wanted to know if you'd like me to disable Sonic and Tails so your new
gear would have a chance."
"Oh." He seemed surprised. "You mean beat them up?"
I nodded.
"Sure, go ahead."
I grinned. "Thanks. I'm gonna cut the power now--see ya, Doc."
* * *
Sonic and Tails were walking along aimlessly, looking at the rides
and attractions. Tails had his eye on the distant roller coaster. "I
wanna go on that, Sonic," he said, pointing.
"Okay little bro, so do I. But it's kinda far away, and we might
as well see what else there is."
"Oh, all right. But can we walk faster? It's--"
Suddenly all the lights in the park blinked and went out, plunging
them into total darkness.
"Heck," Sonic said.
"Double heck," Tails added.
* * *
I stood next to the power box, letting my eyes adjust to the
darkness. Amazing, I thought, how the flipping of a little switch can
effect an entire carnival. It sure was dark. I squeezed my eyes shut
and counted ten seconds. When I opened them, my night-vision had
kicked in.
I stepped away from the building and turned toward the eastern
horizon. The moon would be full tonight, but had it risen yet? Oh,
there it was; I could se its rim just beginning to poke up. Good.
Enough light to see by, but not too much. I started back toward where
I had left Sonic and Tails. I would enjoy this immensely ...
I was about halfway there when I began to have the feeling I was
being watched. Stared at. "It's just the dark," I told myself. "It's
nothing, really." I kept moving, trying hard not to look around. But
every so often I would toss a glance over my shoulder. I couldn't see
anybody, but something was out there. My heart told me so--it
ricocheted off my ribs every time I heard a sound. The further I
walked, the edgier I felt. I didn't like the feeling.
At last I thought, "I wouldn't feel like this unless there was
someone out there. Maybe it's Sonic." I felt a white fury at that. I
ducked behind some display booths, wove through them to another open
area, then dove into the cover of some shrubs flanking the brick fence.
I watched my trail. If it were Sonic, he would come out, look around,
and perhaps move on. At least I would see him.
But nothing happened. I think that scared me more than if I had
seen whoever it was. I stepped out of the bushes, wishing I hadn't
turned out the lights. "Is anybody there?" I called. No answer, of
course. I advanced into the open and nervously looked around. Nothing.
"I'm going to find Sonic and Tails," I muttered defiantly. I
whirled and ran into the darkness, then stopped as an idea struck me.
I stepped into the display booths and grabbed one of the prizes-- a
little mirror. Holding it so I could see over my shoulder, I jogged
toward where I had left Sonic and Tails.
For exactly thirty seconds nothing happened. Nothing stirred
around or behind me, and I began to think it had been my imagination.
Then a shadow behind me bulged outward and stirred forward. I stopped
and looked back, but by that time it had vanished. "Who is that?" I
demanded, angry at being frightened.
To my horror, it answered. The voice said no words, but the sing-
song snarl it made was enough. It sounded close, and wasn't where I had
seen it. It was all around me. It was something like a lion's growl, but
it had a high hiss and whine I didn't recognize. Needless to say, I
freaked.
I broke into a run in the direction I had come. I was so scared
my feet hardly touched the ground. I kept my teeth clenched so my heart
wouldn't leap out of my mouth, so it plummeted into my stomach and
stayed there. All I could think of was, "It's going to eat me." The only
reason I stopped was to get my breath.
I didn't see anything when I looked around, and I couldn't hear
anything over the pounding in my ears and noisy breath. I felt a little
more secure. Maybe I had left it behind.
I leaned against the chain link fence at the foot of the roller
coaster, staring out into the dark carnival. I didn't remember running
all that way, but here I was. Well, I was safe for the moment ...
Three sharp claw-tips touched my shoulders and ran down my back,
ticking against the fence links. At the same time, I felt a hot breath
on my neck.
* * *
Sonic and Tails, standing on the boarding platform of the roller
coaster, and short distance away, were startled by a sudden shrill
scream. They jumped and looked around. "What--what was that?" Tails
queried nervously.
"Gosh, I donno," Sonic replied, peering in the direction it had
come from. Slowly a smile spread across his face. "Hey, know what?"
"No, do you?"
"I'll bet she got to him."
"Oh man! Was that Knuckles, then?"
"Probably. SHE doesn't scream when she's stalking somebody." They
two exchanged a huge grin. They had been stalked by her before (by
request), and knew all about it.
After a moment, when they heard nothing else, the two returned
their attention to the roller coaster.
Three different tracks intersected in the station, forming a sort
of clover-loop through the park. The brightly colored cars were lined
neatly, still and silent. "Too bad it runs on electricity," Sonic said
longingly. "It'd be neat to put it through it's paces." He stared out at
the dim loops and spirals of the track.
Suddenly he turned to Tails, the gleam in his eyes showing he hand
an idea. "Hey, wait a minute! Remember those tracks we ran on in
Robotnik's mine a couple months ago? They were old roller coaster tracks,
right?"
"Oh yeah," said Tails, catching on. "Think we could do that on
this thing?"
"Why not? I think I'd better go first, though."
"You? Why?"
"To make sure it's safe!" Sonic flashed a grin at his friend.
Tails started to protest, but by then Sonic had stepped onto the track
and vanished down it.
The track he had chosen contained several sharp turns and drops.
He could hardly see them in the darkness, but he managed with the moon
gleaming off the silver rails. That is, until he entered a stretch
shaded by several large trees. The track swerved right, and thought it
went left. His flying feet encountered empty space, and down he fell.
The tracks were low there, fortunately, so he only fell about
eight feet. Slightly embarrassed, Sonic picked himself up, dusted
himself off and looked around. He was on the far side of the park, only
a few yards away from the brick and barb-wire fence. "Too bad I can't
jump it," he thought. "There's just not enough room for me to get up
enough speed."
He turned his attention to getting back up on the roller coaster.
The metal struts and supports didn't look hard to climb. Sonic started
up.
He got about five feet up and stopped, as there didn't seem to be
any other handholds in reach. He sat in the crook of a strut and a
support beam, puzzled. The blocks of moonlight spilling through the
track above were confusing. Maybe he could get a foothold in those
recessed bolts ...
A sound. Sonic looked down. Footsteps. Someone running through the
maze beneath the roller coaster. He pressed himself against the main
beam and held still. There was no light anywhere near, and his dark blue
made him nearly invisible. He stared intently in the direction of the
faint sounds.
A figure came into view. He was running, one hand outstretched to
keep from smacking into the pillars. As he drew closer, Sonic could hear
his ragged panting. Knuckles? It had to be. A rectangle of moonlight
brushed him, showing his red color. Why was he running around beneath
the roller coaster? Sonic remembered the scream they had heard. Was Knux
being stalked?
Sonic watched Knuckles narrowly. The echidna was slowing down,
head turning from side to side, looking around. He looked right at Sonic,
but the hedgehog held still and Knux missed him. Knuckles backed up to
the foot of Sonic's pillar and crouched down, trying to hide. Only his
loud breathing betrayed his presence. Sonic looked down at him, almost
close enough to touch the scarlet head, a warm glee spreading over him.
"This is a very interesting situation," he thought. "He doesn't know I'm
here. What can I do to him?" The answer came immediately. Without
stopping to think about it, Sonic acted.
* * *
My terror had run away with me twice now. I wasn't aware I had
screamed the first time, but the second time it crept up on me, I almost
had a heart attack. The thing was big, black and shapeless, with glowing
green eyes. The pupils were vertical slits, like cat eyes. Those eyes
were all I could see of it--that and the occasional glint of white
teeth.
I had ducked under the roller coaster, hoping the Thing wouldn't
follow me, but it had. Between my hard gasps, I could hear it hunting.
Its breath purred through its throat in soft exhalations, giving away
its location. It was coming after me, slow and determined, like when an
animal is sure of a meal. I gulped, trying to quiet my breathing. It
was close enough to hear me, I was sure.
My survival adrenaline was pumping full and strong, so when I
heard a rabid snarl directly above me, I broke and ran without thinking.
I tore into the open, blindly clawed my way over the chain link fence
and fled into the carnival beyond. But as I did, I heard an outburst of
laughter, like somebody was having a grand time. I recognized Sonic's
voice. Sonic had scared me? Where the heck had HE come from? As I
pondered this, I remembered his threat when he first entered the
carnival. "I have a friend who could make life absolutely miserable for
you." The whistle. It must have been like a dog whistle, too high for
us to hear. His friend was the monster that chased me? Oh gosh, then I
was dead. It would kill me for sure.
I sank down beside a carnival booth, exhausted. I couldn't run
anymore. My legs felt like rubber, and my entire upper body, inside and
out, was on fire. I leaned back against the cool wall and closed my
eyes.
After a moment I heard the dreaded purring breath. As it drew
nearer I had a terrible urge to open my eyes and look, or to climb to
my feet and run, but I did neither. I sat where I was. It came all the
way up to the edge of the building and stopped. I knew it was looking
at me. I could hear its soft intakes, then the purrs that sent the
chills down my spine.
It growled menacingly. I felt my heart turn over, but stayed put.
After another long moment it said, "Run, fool." The voice was low and
gruff, as if it were speaking through a growl.
I opened my eyes and turned, but it was standing just around the
corner, out of my line of vision. I sank back down, legs aching
faintly. "No," I said into the darkness. I heard the slight tremor in
my voice and was ashamed, but kept on. "I can't run anymore. I have
to stop. So go ahead and maul me." I closed my eyes and waited,
knowing I was a goner.
Abruptly the purr faded out, leaving the creature's breath barely
audible. I heard it sigh, then say, "I admire your courage, Knuckles.
I will not harm you." There was the soft thud-thud of its departing
footsteps.
And it left me alone the rest of the night.
* * *
"There you are, Sonic! What took you so long?"
Sonic came skidding into the station, a wide grin on his face.
"Hey, Tails. Here's a bit of advice; don't take this track."
"Why?"
"There's a place you can't see the railing. I fell off."
"YOU fell off? Mister sure-footed fell off?"
"Yup."
"HA! Well then, I'll take this one."
"Tails, listen to this--" But Tails had shot away down the track
of his choice. Sonic watched him go, still grinning.
The impatient fox tore along the track, occasionally rolling head
over heels to increase his speed. His course was as long as Sonic's had
been, but simpler, with only a few sharp turns. Most of it were curves
and drops. After a few minutes Tails whizzed back into the station,
skidding at the last minute and nearly colliding with the parked cars
at the far end.
Sonic helped him up. Tails was nearly loopy from going so fast,
and had to lean against the rear car. Sonic thumped him on the head and
said, "You need to get your brakes fixed, kid."
Tails looked up at him innocently. "Fixed? I never had any!"
Sonic chuckled, then told him about seeing Knuckles under the
roller coaster.
"Oh man, he jumped about three feet straight up and took off at
that height! He didn't touch the ground again until he hit the fence
and had to climb over. You should have seen him--what a riot!"
Tails was laughing. "I wish I had been there. Serves the creep
right!"
After a few minutes the two jumped off the platform and returned
to wandering through the silent, dark carnival. It was about eight-
thirty. The western sky was a faint blue, and most of the sky was velvet
blue-black and strewn with stars. Sonic and Tails were beginning to feel
the effects of adventuring. As Sonic put it, they felt like donuts they
were so hungry. "With great big holes in our middles," he added as an
afterthought.
"If I just fall over," said Tails, "with my feet sticking up,
you'll know it was too late to save me. Then I'll shrivel up like a
raisin ..."
The main gates were their next stop. "If you can't jump 'em, I
can," Tails said confidently.
They found the brick wall and were walking along it when a call
stopped them. "Sonic, Tails!" They turned. It was Knuckles, hurrying up
to them from out of the darkness. "C'mon, I'll get you out of here." He
glanced around nervously. "Stay out of the shadows. The gates are this
way." He trotted away. Sonic and Tails exchanged a suspicious glance
and followed.
But true to his word, Knuckles led them out. The gates were
wrought iron and spray-painted white. Knux unlocked them and swung one
open. As they stepped past him, Knuckles hissed in Sonic's ear, "I'm
gonna get you for scaring me."
Sonic smirked, unconcerned. "So you say. But who was chasing you?"
Knuckles didn't answer. He merely stepped back inside the gates,
locked them and walked off.
"He's ticked," Tails said.
Sonic shook his head. "The guy's been ticked since we got here.
He's got a problem."
"Yeah, us."
"Ha ha."
They moved away from the gate, looking around. The moon's soft
light illuminated a flat, grassy stretch with woods forming the borders.
A dirt road led out of the park and curved away toward the distant
mountains. Sonic and Tails stepped onto it and walked further into the
open. "Let's call Slasher," Tails suggested, holding his stomach.
"Okay," Sonic agreed.
But before either could do anything, a throbbing hum filled the
air. They turned, scanning the wall of forest and the starry sky.
"Robotnik?" Tails asked.
"Robotnik," Sonic replied grimly. "Kiddo, I want you to go hide in
the woods over there. It's dark, and I don't want you getting hurt."
"You mean you don't want me to get in the way," Tails replied
grumpily. But he obeyed and moved off in the direction of the trees.
Just in time. The humming noise increased, and Robotnik's ship
appeared as it swooped over the carnival wall. Sonic stood in plain
sight, head thrown back defiantly, daring his enemy to try something.
The ship bore a new set of accessories. A big brassy wheel encircled
the underside, studded with what looked like huge glass balls. The wheel
was slowly turning, the glass on it catching the moonlight. Sonic backed
away as it approached, sensing that the wheel was the main weapon.
Robotnik sneered at him from inside the bubble windshield. The ship halted
over the dirt road. Sonic watched as three little clamps released and a
gigantic marble fell from the underside. It clunked to the ground and
rolled to a halt. It was about two feet in diameter. It's polished surface
shown a translucent sea green.
Sonic watched warily from a safe distance as the wheel began to
spin. The glass balls began to glow and spark, as did the marble on the
ground. Suddenly lightning began to play back and forth on the wheel.
After a second it began to arc downward to the green marble. Faster and
faster it flashed, blinding the spectators. A strange electrical wind,
created by the tremendous charges, began to stir, pulling all mobile
objects in range toward the lightning ball.
Tails was far enough away to be safe, but Sonic was slowly sucked
toward it. He fought and struggled, but to no avail. The current was too
strong. Suddenly he stopped and said aloud, "Why am I fighting this?" He
looked up at Robotnik and yelled, "I might as well give in!" Quick as
thought he drew out two chaos emeralds and struck them together.
Instantly his cool blue changed to a hot yellow. He lunged into
the center of the lightning, standing over the green marble. The
lightning was automatically directed to his body, but, as he was unable
to conduct the charge, it bounced off and back up to the ship. The bolts
missed the wheel and went straight into the underside of the ship.
Over the noise and crackling of the lightning, Sonic heard
Robotnik bellow in rage. A second later the brass wheel crashed to the
ground, narrowly missing Sonic. As the ship turned to fly away, Sonic
leaped after it, one hand outstretched. He grabbed the back end of the
craft and hung on, letting the charges of his invincibility flow into
the metal. Unfortunately, he was hanging against the engine. When it
backfired he was flung off backward. As Super Sonic this didn't hurt him,
but by the time he scrambled to his feet again, Robotnik had escaped.
Sonic deactivated the emeralds as Tails came out to stand beside
him. "Gosh," the little fox said, "I thought he had you when you jumped
in there."
Sonic nodded slowly. "How depressing. He still escaped! Not even
Super Sonic could stop him."
They stood there in silence, staring into the dark sky after the
departing ship.
Sonic said, "I'm too tired to worry anymore. Let's call Slasher.
She might have some news for us."
Tails nodded and covered his hears. Sonic lifted his own whistle
to his lips and blew one silent blast on it. (Sonic's whistle was a
lower note than Tails's, and Tails could hear it clearly.) Almost
immediately there came a bird-like trill from the woods. The two looked
at each other in surprise. "She's already here?" Tails asked.
They walked into the woods, looking for their friend. She found
them first. The big dark form that had terrified Knuckles appeared out
of nowhere, approaching them. "Hi, you two," she said gruffly.
Sonic and Tails walked up to her without fear. "Hey, Slash," Sonic
said. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, just causing trouble and snooping around. Nothing new. You
guys wouldn't be hungry by any chance, would you?"
"Oh yeah, we're starved," Tails said.
"Good," said Slasher. "I've got a camp set up a little ways back.
C'mon." The creature turned and walked away, and Sonic and Tails
followed.
The camp was little more than a sizeable campfire built beside a
brook, but to Sonic and Tails it looked wonderful. They sat down beside
the fire, extending their hands to its warmth.
The light revealed Slasher to be a reptilian-looking creature.
She walked on her hind legs with her forearms held out. Her long, stiff
tail was twice her body length. Her narrow, rectangular head was
supported by a medium length neck that was always held in an S shape.
Dark brown stripes marked her light tan body, and formed big patches
around her emerald green eyes. The eight-inch arched claw on either
hind foot showed her species: velociraptor. But her size marked her as
a mongrel--she was far too large to be a purebred.
Her most noticeable feature were not her teeth or claws, however.
They were the golden feathery wings folded close to her sides. They were
usually immaculate, with every black-tipped feather in place. Tonight
they looked rather ruffled, as if she had been flying hard all day.
Sonic noticed this. "What happened to your wings, Slasher?" he asked.
She coked her narrow head and looked down at them. "I haven't had
a chance to preen them yet today," she said matter-of-factly. "I told
you I've been up to no good."
Apparently the big raptor knew Sonic and Tails well, for she had
prepared a meal of big, messy chili dogs. As the two adventurers fell
to, Slasher lay down across the fire from them. She folded her legs
beneath her, curled her long tail around, then said, "My day has just
about matched yours, stride for stride. Care to hear about it?"
Their mouths full, Sonic and Tails nodded.
Slasher began. "A little bird (a literal little bird) told me you
two lost the emeralds by less-than-above-ground-methods, so I came on
out. I arrived just as the bomb squad did. I searched as fast as I
could, but I couldn't find you. I did find Knuckles, however." She
paused, and Sonic and Tails leaned forward expectantly.
"He was running from the fire. From where he was, he couldn't see
that the wind had swept the tree fire around him and cut him off."
"What did you do?"
"Well, first I attacked one of the bomb ships. None of them had
pilots, but they were built for them. They all had oxygen masks and
little tanks. So I took one, flew down and found Knux. He was about
dead of suffocation, but he revived as soon as I gave him the mask.
I carried him over the fire and left him in the rocks at the foot of
the mountain."
"Is that when you ran past us and flew away?" Sonic asked.
"I ran past you?" Slasher said, not really surprised but
pretending to be. "Figures. That's why I couldn't find you."
Sonic looked at Tails. "And that's where Knuckles got the oxygen
mask. Remember, in the cave with the first teleporter?"
"Oh, yeah. What else, Slash?"
"Well, what I did next is classified information," the raptor
said with a wink, "but it involved getting the island turned around so
the fire would go out. I was still busy with that when the Flying
Battery blimp attacked you. I didn't even see it until it flew away.
And then, when Robotnik showed up, I just watched, thinking you two
could handle him. And you did, too. Too bad Knux is such a spoil-sport."
"I couldn't find an inlet into Hydrocity I could use, so I ended
up on the far side of the island, about the time you guys got washed
out. I still didn't know where you were until you blew the whistle,
Tails. I came back around and Ah Ha! you were in the carnival. You two
looked all right, so I tracked Knuckles back to where he met up with
Robotnik. He asked his boss if he could maim you guys, and Ivo agreed.
I couldn't let him do that, now could I?"
Sonic had finished eating by this time, and Tails was nearly done.
Both were listening with obvious enjoyment. "What did you do to him?"
Sonic asked.
Slasher shrugged. "Oh, not much. Just followed him around all over
the place until he was about ready to go nuts."
"Who screamed?"
"Oh, you heard that, huh? That was him. He thought he was safe,
and I traced one hand down his back."
"Gosh, no wonder!" Sonic exclaimed.
Slasher nodded. "I felt bad after our little game of Cat-and-
Mouse ... he actually refused to run from me anymore. So I came back
here and rustled up some grub for you two."
Tails shook his head. "I think the red-haired creep was asking for
it. Anything else?"
"Just a little. Robotnik left the island completely tonight. He
told Knux that if you defeated him again, plan B was to retreat to his
secret base in the Ice Cap mountains. I can take you there in the
morning, if you like."
Sonic nodded. "Fine with me. Him and Knux are up to something, no
question. Did you hear they built a robot together?"
Slasher perked up. "No. Really? How'd you learn that?"
Sonic told her what they had heard on the bi-plane's radio. She
seemed concerned when he finished. "Design ANOTHER robot," the dinosaur
murmured. "They could have built any number of them. Have you seen any
badniks today?"
Sonic and Tails looked at each other. They had not.
Slasher growled, "Then something's up. The road to Robotnik is
paved with robots. Be careful tomorrow, guys. They might decide Ice Cap
is the place to test their inventions."
The three of them straightened up their camp. Then Slasher lay
down again, broadside to the fire. Sonic and Tails lay down on either
side, and she draped her big wings over them for warmth.
Tails was on the side facing the fire, and Sonic was on the
cooler, forest side. He curled up against the raptor's warm flank and
sighed contentedly. He might not be as warm during the night, but he
felt secure. Being with Slasher was like being with a tank escort.
As he lay down, Sonic suddenly remembered something. "Hey, Slash,
we saw this weird mural in Marble Gardens, and I wondered if you could
read a piece of it. I don't know what language it is." He dug out the
brick fragment he had been carrying and gave it to her. She took it
and studied it.
"Mm, ancient inscription of some kind. It's a short word--
probably 'and' or 'the' or something. I can't read it, but maybe I
can have it translated. Think Knux would know how to read it?"
"Naw, it's pry too old."
"You don't know that. He could be bilingual and you would never
know it."
Slasher set the fragment down between her forepaws and lowered
her head. "Sleep, you two," she commanded. Sonic and Tails lay down
obediently.
Tails was soundly asleep in fifteen minutes, but Sonic was not.
Very quietly his mind was turning over the possibilities of tomorrow.
Ice Cap. One of the highest mountain ranges in Mobius, it was situated
in such a way that all the rain coming off the ocean was dropped on
them, no matter what the altitude. Because of this, the highest peaks
were locked in snow winter and summer. A ski resort had been
constructed on one of the more hospitable ridges, but it was the only
sign of civilization for miles. Mountain climbers trying to conquer the
highest peaks were routinely killed or lost. No one had ever climbed
Mount Neverest, the eight-mile high giant, and lived to tell the tale.
And so the Ice Cap was avoided and feared by the Mobians.
Sonic had not heard about Robotnik's secret base, but wasn't
surprised. Robotnik was always on the lookout for suitable locations to
practice his illegal experiments.
And then there was Knuckles. His threat at the carnival gates
came back to haunt Sonic. What was he going to do? And when would he be
forced to fight him?
Slasher caught Sonic's heavy sigh. She lifted her head from her
forepaws and murmured, "What's wrong, Sonic?"
"I can't sleep."
"Aren't you tired?"
"I'm exhausted. I just can't stop worrying about what's going to
happen. Knux told me he was going to get me for scaring him, and I'm
afraid he'll have the chance tomorrow. What am I gonna do, Slash? Do I
fight him?"
Now it was Slasher's turn to sigh. "Well Sonic," she said, lifting
her wing a little to look at him, "I've seen how he's been treating you.
He thinks if he pushes you around you'll give up."
"He says he wants the emeralds."
"Likely story. He'd still hate you, even if you DID give them to
him. No, his problem goes deeper. He's lived here alone for years, and
views you not only as trespassers, but as intruders into his life. He
wants confrontation."
"So, what do I do? Challenge him?"
"No, no, anything but that. Try to hold off a fight as long as
you can."
"Why?" Sonic asked, slightly miffed. "You think he'd beat me?"
"In a word, yes."
"Slasher!"
"It's true, squirt. He's bigger, stronger and more experienced in
fighting."
"But you just said he's pushing a fight."
"Yes I did. But you two are nothing more than a couple young
cocks, both crowing about how good you are. His spurs are longer than
yours, and he is older. He may hurt you badly." The velociraptor paused
a moment, feeling Sonic relax resignedly against her side. "Remember,
never give up, in or out, and you'll make it."
"I felt like all three today."
"But you didn't, and that's something. If you ever need me, I'll
be close."
They lapsed into silence. Slasher lowered her head and closed her
emerald-green eyes. Sonic shut his eyes, too, glad to have his mind at
rest. As he began to doze, vaguely aware of the rise and fall of
Slasher's side, he heard her say quietly, "Rest well. You'll need it."
Peace settled on the clearing.
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