"The Eternal Flame"
Authors: Robert Brown and Francis Tolbert
Disclaimer: This story uses characters created and copyrighted by Sega of
America, Inc. and Archie Comics (except where noted, in which case
they were created and copyrighted by us or by another and we have
permission to use them). The authors hereby give permission for
this story to be downloaded and/or printed at 1 copy per user as
long as (1) no changes to the story are made without our express
written(not e-mailed) permission and (2) no attempt is made to
profit from this story. If either or both rules are violated, it
will be considered a violation of copyright law.
Author's Note: I did it!! I graduated! The date: May 31, 2002. 11 years
after I started down this road, I'm finally at the end. And to finish it off
with straight A's this semester is like a dream. Thanks to everyone who wrote
in with their support. This story is dedicated to all you fans out there.
So expect these things to pick up...maybe once every 6 weeks or so. I'm
working on two other storylines now: Pokémon(by myself) and Chip 'n Dale's
Rescue Rangers(with Francis...and that one started it all). Any fans out
there who like those cartoons as well, please drop by my website and check
them out. We need the support.
Oh, a quick bit of information. Francis now has his own e-mail
account at AstralFrankie@aol.com Feel free to write him, but be warned it may
take a while for him to respond. In his own words, he's a talker, not a
writer. Till next time, Happy Reading!
Cast of Characters(in order of appearance)
Nadia Osaya***
Donovan Osaya###
Antoine D'Coolette
King Sonic Hedgehog
Queen Sally Alicia Hedgehog
DJ Osaya###
Desirée D'Coolette***
Prince Juice Hedgehog***
Darrin D'Coolette***
Bunnie D'Coolette
Princess Alicia Rose Hedgehog***
Angela Shi-rat***
Princess Sondra Acorn-Prower***
Tanis Shi-rat***
Sir Charles Hedgehog
Krella###
Tanin###
Rotor
Dulcy
Rosa***
Tanak' Acorn***
The Unholy One***
Knuckles Echidna
#32
Morning dawned over a changed Mobotropolis. Word had spread quickly of
the attack at the palace by what seemed a group of demons. Gone was the sense
of security and peace that the public had enjoyed. In its place was a slowly
growing fear that hadn't been felt on this large a scale in nearly twenty
years.
Amidst it all, a squirrel lay unmoving in bed, looking from a distance
like she was only in some deep, peaceful sleep. But as one approached, they
could see the tension in her shivering form, still pulled into the same fetal
position she had collapsed in the night before. Her normally bright blue eyes
were shadowed with fear and stared at something only she could see.
Beside her sat another squirrel, her husband, watching over her as he
had the entire night before. His purple eye were nearly as dull as her blue
ones as it searched her form, looking for even the tiniest of movements.
"Please Nadia," Donovan whispered brokenly. "Please come back to me."
"Donny?" a voice whispered from the doorway.
"Come in, Antony," Donovan said without turning around.
Antoine walked in, stepping carefully to avoid making as much noise as
possible. "Has there been no change, my friend?" he asked, unable to mask
the worry in his voice.
"None," Donovan said. Then he added, "But thank you for the concern, my
friend."
Antoine placed his hand on Donovan's shoulder and let it rest there a
moment. "Nadia is a very strong squirrel," he said slowly. "If anyone can
pull out of this, she can." Donovan only nodded, his eye never leaving
Nadia's still form. Antoine stood with him for a bit longer before turning
and walking out.
Inside the throne room, what could be loosely termed a mob of frightened
animals clamored for answers. "Your Majesties," called the bird who had been
chosen as the spokesanimal, "I must insist that you address our concerns.
Demons attacking the palace? What is going on?"
"If you'll all calm down," Sonic said above the clamor, causing it to
die down, "we can try to have some answers for you." He turned to the love of
his life, sitting by his side. "Would you like to start Sal?"
Sally rose to her feet, smoothing out the gown she had chosen to make
herself look her most regal. "I know rumors are flying about what happened
last night," she said, her voice carrying the length of the throne room
without her having to yell. "Unfortunately, many of them are true." She held
up her hand to silence the growing murmur. "We were in fact attacked last
night by some force we have never seen before. That's all I can tell you
until the security tapes are analyzed. We don't know what they were after or
why they attacked. We don't even know what they're capable of yet."
"What of the reports of deaths?" The bird asked.
Sally sighed, lowering her eyes a moment. "Yes, there were a few
animals killed in last night's attack," she admitted. "Their families are
still being notified so I can't give out names just yet. But from how they
took us off guard, it could have been so much worse."
"Well then, what do you plan on doing to make sure we don't get caught
off guard again?"
"I'll take this one Sally," Sonic said, rising to his feet. "Robotnik
caught us all off guard thirty years ago. Back then, the Freedom Fighters
and I were only five years old, and yet we managed to survive and bring about
his downfall. Now, we have the chance to retaliate. I don't know who they
are or what they want, but I guarantee they'll end up just like ol' Buttnik
did. Now are you with us or not?"
A rousing cheer went up from the crowd in support of Sonic. "Now go
home to your families," he told each of them, his voice serious. "Sally and
I have declared today a day of mourning. Use it to heal and prepare for the
fight ahead."
Sally stepped closer to him and snuck her arm around his waist.
"Spoken like a true king," she whispered, kissing his cheek softly.
Sonic smiled and hugged her around her shoulders as they watched the
less frightened animals leave the throne room. "I guess some of your natural
ability rubbed off on me after all these years," he murmured, kissing her back
on her lips.
"I hope I am not interrupting," a voice called from the open doors, "but
you asked me to find out how Nadia was doing."
Sally couldn't help but smile as her kiss with Sonic ended and she
turned to look at the speaker. "Come on in, Antoine," she said. "How is
Nadia doing?"
"Not well, I fear," Antoine said, walking in a few steps. "Donovan
reports there is still no change."
Sally closed her eyes and sighed, leaning into her husband. "I'd hoped
she would've come out of it by now," she whispered. "Return to your rounds,"
she said aloud, "but report to us immediately if there's any change."
"Of course, Your Majesties," Antoine said with a low bow. "I mean, of
course Sally," he amended with a smile.
A ghost of a smile appeared on Sally's lips for just a second as Antoine
took his leave. "Do you think she'll be all right, Sonic?" she asked,
drawing on his strength to support her.
"Of course she will Sal," Sonic said with a confidence he didn't feel.
"Of course she will."
Antoine walked down the hallways quickly, his discipline allowing him to
keep his emotions from his face. But all his thoughts were of Nadia and how
his friend must be feeling. He knew that if Bunnie had been in that state, he
would be just as bad if not worse. "Nadia is strong," he told himself again.
"She will make it through this."
As he returned to his rounds, he heard a faint sniffling coming from
one of the open doorways. He poked his head inside to see who it was and saw
DJ sitting on Desirée's lap, trying to hold back his tears. Antoine's
discipline slipped slightly as he watched them, his face growing sad for just
a moment. He waited until his control was once more in place before moving
on, confident the situation was in good hands.
As a matter of fact, there was perhaps no one more qualified to console
DJ than the doe who held him right now. Desirée sighed slightly, pulling DJ a
little closer to her and kissing his temple gently. She had found him in this
empty room a few moments before sunrise and had given him a hug. He had
calmed down almost immediately, but when she tried to leave to go to her
training, he had grabbed on even tighter and started shaking again.
Desirée couldn't help but smile a bit. She knew she would pay for it
once she actually did get to practice, but there was no way she could leave
DJ like this. She had sat down on a nearby chair and pulled him into her lap,
resting his head against her chest. She had been holding him for the better
part of the morning, trying to get him to cry it out, but he refused, trying
to show her he was strong. And so she just held him, murmuring support as
needed and even singing softly to keep him calm.
She wasn't sure how much time had passed when the room's intercom
crackled to life, startling them. "DJ," the computer said, causing them to
pull back from each other slightly, "I hate to interrupt this tender moment,
but you need to get home right away. Nadia is starting to come to."
DJ looked at the speaker for a moment before what the computer said sunk
in. Suddenly, a smile broke out on his face and he hugged Desirée tightly in
happiness before jumping off her lap and running out of the room.
Desirée stood up and stretched, loosening muscles that had nearly
cramped from being in one position too long. "I'm glad Nadia's gonna be OK,
but I'd better get going before Mom really tans my hide," she thought,
sprinting toward the training grounds. "Still, it'll be worth it."
Juice and Darrin were talking in a nearby hallway about what everyone
else was talking about. "No matter how many times we talk about this,"
Juice said, pacing around, "it still makes no sense. Why would anyone dare to
attack us? Don't they know what we're capable of?"
"I'm sure they do," Darrin said, leaning against the wall as he watched
his friend pace. "But to launch an assault like that, they must believe that
they're capable of handling us."
"Between our parents and us? No one in their right mind would think
that."
"Obviously, someone does. The question is, who? And from what we saw
last night, I have the feeling we won't like the answer."
Juice stopped his pacing and turned to Darrin to say something. But
before he could, he was shoved out of the way by a rabbit running for all she
was worth. "Hi, guys!" she called as she ran by. "Bye guys!"
"Umm, Darrin," Juice said as Darrin helped him to his feet, "wasn't your
sister supposed to be at training since sunrise?"
"Indeed she was," Darrin said, glancing down the hallway Desirée had
disappeared down. "She is in for some trouble when she actually gets there."
"I guess so. You think we should ask for some training?"
Darrin shook his head after a moment's thought. "Mom needs to focus on
finishing their training. I heard her talking about scaling back on personal
appearances at the dojo, leaving it to the other black belts to teach the
classes."
"I guess you're right," Juice said, leaning against the wall next to his
friend. "Then again, with my speed and your sword, no one stands a chance
against us."
Darrin nodded, even though he didn't quite agree. They both just stared
off, wondering what the future would bring them.
Desirée got to the training area at full sprint and was immediately
flipped on her back. She flailed out her arms to stop her skid, but it was
useless as she crashed into the wall shoulder first. "Ow," she moaned,
sitting up and brushing her ears back out of her face.
"You'd better have a good reason for being so late young lady," Bunnie
said, looking down at her daughter. "Otherwise what I'm about to do to you
will hurt a hell of a lot than banging your shoulder into the wall."
"I was with DJ, Mom," Desirée said, rubbing her shoulder. She never let
her mom know, even though she suspected she did anyway, but Desirée was more
than a bit intimidated by her mom when she wore her special red gi like she
was right now. "I didn't want him to be alone while waiting to hear about
Nadia waking up."
"She's waking up? Oh my stars, that's good to hear," Bunnie said,
looking relieved for a little bit. "OK, you have a good excuse this time.
You'll just have to do all three trainings yourself."
Desirée groaned, but got up before her mom changed her mind. Off in
the corner, Alicia and Angela sat cross-legged trying to both meditate and
recover from the thrashing they had received at Bunnie's hands. Bunnie had
designed a very tough training exercise for the three of them. But since
Desirée had shown up late, Angela and Alicia were forced to do the work of
three with just the two of them. "If it had been any other reason," Alicia
muttered, wincing at the pain that lanced through her side as she talked, "I
would be helping Bunnie kick her posterior right now."
"Calm down," Angela said, still winded. "We knew she'd never miss
training for anything less. But something does puzzle me. If this is going
easy on her, what would she have done if the reason wasn't acceptable?"
"That's simple Angela," Bunnie said, taking her eyes off her daughter
for a moment. "If it wasn't a good excuse, she'd be doing the triple dance,
by herself, against me." Angela and Alicia both shuddered, wincing slightly
from the pain that movement caused. Then they just sat back and watched as
Desirée tried like mad to keep up with the training set before her.
As Desirée tried desperately to fulfill the punishment laid down by the
doe who was both mother and sensei, DJ nearly tore through the palace halls,
not even thinking of slowing down until he had reached, and slid past, his
door. He paused for the briefest of moments, just to collect himself and
catch his breath. The door opened for him, probably thanks to the computer,
and he hurried inside and straight to his parents' bedroom.
There, on the bed, Nadia had indeed come out of whatever trance she had
been placed in and sat there, hugging Donovan and getting hugged by him for
all they were worth. "It wasn't real," she whispered over and over as tears
fell from her eyes. "It wasn't real."
She paused for a moment when she heard footsteps at the door. She
lifted her head and blinked away her tears long enough to see her son standing
there, tears threatening to fall from his own eyes. Nadia freed one arm from
Donovan's hug and held it toward DJ. He literally launched himself into her
arm, hugging her tightly as she held him close.
After a few moments, Nadia finally began to calm down. "Thank the
Almighty it wasn't real," she whispered one last time before slumping back
tiredly.
"What wasn't real?" Donovan asked as he and DJ laid her back down on
the bed.
"I thought...." She shuddered a moment, reaching for hugs from them
both before she could continue. "I thought I was back in Knothole during the
days of the Freedom Fighters."
"I can see how that would be troubling, but--"
"Donovan," Nadia said, looking him right in his eye, "I was back in
Knothole...and I was still a computer." Donovan looked at Nadia in shock
while DJ looked between his parents in confusion. "I'll tell you later," she
promised.
"But...but how did...." Donovan sputtered, at a loss for words.
"That bastard did it," Nadia said venomously, her fear changing quickly
to anger. "I don't know how, but I know it was the Kavenoff."
"We destroyed him!" Donovan exclaimed. "We did everything right, I'm
sure of it."
"Well something brought it back then," Nadia insisted. "When I met his
eyes, it was that same milky white that Alexi had. And I could feel him
reaching into my mind, finding my one true fear."
"Great.... Not only is he back, but he's learned a few new tricks,"
Donovan muttered.
Nadia swallowed and seemed to force the next few words out. "Tanis and
the others need to be told about this," she said, her expression strained.
"But what about you? You just woke up, and I don't--"
"Donovan," Nadia said, cutting him off, "we both know if the Kavenoff's
back he's going to be on a tear and we need to find a way to stop him, more
permanently this time. That's more important than how I'm feeling."
Donovan sighed, but smiled slightly. "No wonder I fell in love with
you," he whispered, placing a gentle kiss on Nadia's lips. "I'll be back as
soon as I can. So you won't be alone too long."
"Take as long as you need," a voice called from the doorway, causing all
three of them to look. "I'll make sure to keep her occupied."
"Hey Sondra!" Nadia said, a smile relaxing her features slightly.
"Where are the kids?"
"Miles is giving them more flying lessons," Sondra said, walking into
the room and sitting down at the foot of the bed. "I swear, Miles was a
natural at it, I don't know why my kids aren't."
Donovan nodded to himself and slipped out the door. "Before you go see
Tanis," the computer said, causing Donovan to look at it, "I've finished my
scans and there's something you need to see."
"Very well," Donovan said shortly, walking toward the seat that he used
to sit in so much but rarely did anymore. Ever since the disappearance of
his daughter Nadine, Donovan found it nearly impossible to trust the computer.
There should have been some clue of her whereabouts, or at least how she had
been taken. But all the tapes showed nothing anywhere. One moment she was
there, the next she wasn't.
"As we suspected," the computer began, before being interrupted by two
sonic booms stopping right outside the front door.
"Let them in," Donovan said before the computer could ask the question
he knew was coming. And when Sally and Sonic came in, he simply said, "In the
bedroom." Once they had left, he turned his attention to the computer once
more. "You were saying?"
"As we suspected," the computer began again, a monitor flickering to
life, "all the tapes that led into the security room were taken or destroyed.
However, the camera that led directly to my console was not compromised. I
believe you'd find the tape interesting, to say the least."
Donovan said nothing as he watched the tape, until he saw the guard open
the door and a figure shrouded by a black blur walked in. "Computer, enhance
the image," he ordered.
"I have already tried, but I can't do that," the computer responded.
"This is what I wanted to show you. The black aura that surrounds that
animal, who by voice sounds like a female cat, reads through my scanners much
as Tanis' magic does. There is one important difference, however."
Donovan could feel a cold pit forming in his stomach, but managed to
keep that from his voice as he asked, "What difference?"
"The power is aligned with Chaos, not the Almighty."
Donovan's eye closed, but not before seeing the two guards fall and a
second figure enter the room. "Where is Tanis?" he asked abruptly.
"In the library, trying to translate the scroll found in the grave of
his ancestor. But before you go, there's something else you should know."
"Never mind that," Donovan said, grabbing his lab coat and, ignoring his
weariness, strode purposefully from the apartment.
The computer let out what sounded like a sigh. It had had other things
to tell Donovan, but he just wouldn't listen. Any other time it would've told
Nadia, who had forgiven it and trusted it again, and gotten the message
relayed to him. But with Nadia otherwise occupied, it could only hope that it
could tell Donovan before it was too late.
Donovan walked swiftly to the library and nearly burst through the doors
when he arrived. "Tanis!" he called, not caring that you were supposed to be
quiet. "Tanis!" he called again after receiving no answer. He glanced down
some of the aisles until he found Tanis hunched over a table, more deeply in
concentration than Donovan had perhaps ever seen him.
Donovan walked up to him, still not bothering to try and keep quiet.
"Tanis, we need to talk," he said.
If Tanis heard him, he showed no sign of it as he continued to pore over
the scroll in front of him. "Why is this not making any sense?" he muttered
in frustration. So lost was he in his work that he didn't even know he wasn't
alone anymore until he felt a hand on his shoulder. Tanis jumped up in
surprise, whirling around. "Oh, it's you Donovan," Tanis said, sitting back
on the table. "I didn't hear you come in."
"I was calling you," Donovan said with a small chuckle. "It has you
that stumped?"
"It's not that," Tanis said, sitting back in the chair and turning to
the scroll before him. "As you know, when a Holy One wants to keep messages
to other Holy Ones private, we use our own special code. Somewhere in each
document lies the codekey visible only to other Holy Ones. I've found the
codekey easily enough, but it makes no sense! While I can translate it, the
translation is nothing more than a jumble of words that make no sense."
"Well, maybe now that Nadia is awake, she could help you."
"Donovan, you know that--" Tanis began before cutting himself off.
"Nadia's awake? Thank the Almighty! Is she all right?"
"She says she'll be fine," Donovan said, a smile briefly appearing on
his face before his expression turned grim once more. "But she says she knows
who did it to her. She thinks it was the Kavenoff."
Tanis closed his eyes and sighed, leaning back in the chair. "I know,"
he said quietly. "I saw him there...along with my son."
"Your son?" Donovan asked, confused. Then a long forgotten memory
stirred. "You can't mean the one from--"
"The one and the same," Tanis interrupted. "That makes two souls we
banished that night brought back to Mobius."
"Well, that would fit in with what the computer said about the black
blurs."
"Black blurs?"
Donovan quickly summarized the computer's findings. "It believes the
energy is similar to yours, but aligned with Chaos," he concluded.
Tanis gripped the table in front of him fiercely. "So, you've come at
last," he whispered.
Donovan dropped to a knee to look Tanis in the face. "Who? Who's come
Tanis?"
"Donovan, how much do you remember of the old legends I taught you?"
"Not much," Donovan admitted.
"I'm not surprised, or you would've made the connection already. Do you
remember the wizard Lezar?"
"How could I forget? I remember what Robotnik tried to do with his
encyclopedia of magic."
"Yes, but do you remember he was once a Holy One?"
Donovan's eye widened. "Wait, are you saying he--?"
Tanis quickly shook his head. "No, he still sleeps, and his sleep has
changed him from the service of Chaos. But there was another.... Another who
strayed and fell under the sway of Chaos." Donovan felt his breath catch in
his throat as the legend came rushing back. "Centuries ago," Tanis continued,
"there was a powerful Holy One, nearly as powerful as the Shi-rat of that
time. But he wanted more, to be the favored of the Almighty. That desire
turned into an obsession, allowing Chaos to worm its way into his very soul.
He attacked Sanctuary and the Floating Island to restore his master, but he
failed, and the Guardian of the Emeralds banished him. But he was too
powerful and the spell was incomplete, leaving him a way back to Mobius."
"I don't remember that part," Donovan said.
"I never told you of it. We had all hoped he would never gather enough
power to free himself, but apparently we were wrong. Who knows how long he's
been here, biding his time and planning his attacks. And he won't rest until
he's accomplished his goal. With the Chaos Emeralds spent, he can no longer
restore his master, so he must be up to something else. That's why I have to
translate this scroll. Things are never found without reason, so this may
hold a key."
"I'll leave you to that then," Donovan said, standing up. "Right now, I
have to inform Their Majesties about the situation."
"Very well," Tanis said, turning his attention back fully to the scroll
before him. Though Donovan was walking away, he could still see out of the
corner of his eye the fine sheen of sweat that had already collected on his
forehead.
Donovan walked to his home apartment, fully expecting Sonic and Sally to
still be there visiting with Nadia. But they weren't. "They received an
urgent notice from Uncle Chuck," Sondra explained. "They ran back to the
throne room to see what he had to say."
"Thanks Sondra," Donovan said. "Would it be too much trouble--"
"Of course I'll watch over her till you get back," Sondra said with a
smile. "She's sleeping now anyway. Whatever she went through exhausted her."
Donovan nodded before heading out to the throne room. "This day just
keeps worse and worse," he thought, moving as quickly as he could.
Inside the throne room, Sonic and Sally were shocked at the news that
Uncle Chuck had brought them. "The Tear's gone?" Sally asked, gripping the
armrest of her throne. "How? When?"
"It had to have been last night, during the attack," Uncle Chuck said
gravely. "With everyone distracted, and control of the security booth, this
was almost too easy for them. Strange thing is, nothing else was stolen.
They wanted this and this alone."
"So all of that, all the pain and killing, was nothing more than a
distraction?" Sonic asked, his anger growing. "Not even Ro-butt-nik would
stoop to that level, even though he came close once or twice."
"Uncle Chuck," Sally broke in before Sonic could go off on a rant, "do
we know anything about the animal who took the Tear?"
"Well, I did find a few fur hairs. DNA testing identifies them as a
female ferret, but I can't tell you much beyond that."
"And there's more bad news," Donovan said, coming into the throne room
unannounced. He related what he had heard of the computer's findings and
Tanis' conclusions. "So in short, whatever we're facing now is more dangerous
than Robotnik ever was."
Sally closed her eyes in frustration as she felt Sonic's arm wrap around
her shoulders. "Will it never end?" she whispered.
"We'll get through this," Sonic assured his wife and queen. "We just
have to be strong."
Sonic turned back to Donovan and Uncle Chuck to start discussing
strategy and defense adjustments as Sally just slumped back. She looked
around the throne room, visions of what she and the other Freedom Fighters
had had to go through to get all of it back flashing through her mind. Her
gaze fell toward the floor slowly until it stopped suddenly on a small stack
of files that had sat by her throne for almost as long as she sat upon it.
With a trembling hand, she reached out and brought them into her lap.
"Ferret, female," she read off the top one in a whisper. "Bulldog,
male. Cat, female. Rat, male. Fox, female." The files fell from her hand
to the floor below as her mind made the inevitable connection. "Oh no. By
the Almighty, no...."
"Sal?" Sonic asked, concern in his voice as he turned to her. "Sal?
What's wrong?"
Donovan bent down and scooped up the files Sally had dropped. Seeing
what they were, he nearly dropped them himself on making the connection.
"It can't be," he said, staring at the files.
"What's going on?" Sonic demanded.
"Easy, Sonie," Uncle Chuck said. "Don't lose your cool."
"Even though you have every reason to," Donovan said. "I think we just
found out the identities of our opponents."
"But those are the files of...."
"Exactly, Uncle Chuck," Sonic said, finding the connection as the others
had. "Those kids taken all those years ago after their families were killed.
Now we know what became of them."
Sally just stared at the files with dull eyes as Donovan returned them
to her. "We'll talk more on this later," she said, her voice faltering.
"Just go for now, please?"
Uncle Chuck started to say something, but Donovan stopped him. "We'll
talk when you're ready," he said, walking the elder hedghog out.
"Oh Sonic," Sally said, getting up, sitting in his lap, and wrapping her
arms around him. "I can't go through this again. Not something like this."
"It'll be all right, Sal," Sonic promised. "It'll be all right."
From the other side of the doors, Alicia watched her parents console
each other, the soreness from her training momentarily forgotten. "They've
been through so much," she thought. "They shouldn't have to go through any
more. Maybe, just maybe, they won't have to." She walked away slowly,
her thoughts churning.
Sonic held Sally in his arms for a few minutes, until he could feel her
body relax against his. "Feeling better?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said, snuggling into him.
"Hey now, as much as I don't mind, you can't fall asleep."
"Why not?" Sally murmured sleepily.
"Because Rotor will be here soon."
"That's nice," Sally said, closing her eyes and starting to doze off.
Then her eyes snapped open and she pulled slightly away from Sonic's hug.
"Rotor's coming? Today?" she demanded. "I can't believe I completely forgot
about it."
"Can you really blame yourself?" Sonic asked, standing up and setting
her down on her feet. "Just calm down and get ready."
Later, in a distant part of the land, two figures walked slowly upon the
ground. "Can't we move any faster?" one complained, swishing her bushy tail
in annoyance.
Her companion sighed quietly. "You must realize how much of a strain
this is on me Krella," Tanin said patiently. "Keeping this level of holy
magic at bay is hard enough without moving quickly."
Krella gnashed her teeth in frustration, but she knew Tanin was right.
As soon as he had teleported then there, the holiness of this place had been
as a physical force looking to strike them down. He had barely gotten the
shield up in time to protect them, and even now he was having trouble keeping
it at bay.
She glanced at him sidelong as they continued on. Out of all the
animals she worked with, she had the most respect for Tanin by far. They
understood each other like none of the others did and it translated into
working well as a team. But they were also friends, the only two who truly
were. Yes, Maxwell and Hugo shared a desire to destroy and cause suffering,
but this was different.
Not for the first time, Krella wondered why it was she didn't love
Tanin. Everything told her she should be; from everything she had read, it
was the logical conclusion. But it was as if she was incapable of the
emotion. She wasn't too surprised, considering her upbringing as a Fallen
One. And yet, a nagging doubt told her it was more than that. Usually as
soon as that doubt surfaced, it was buried under layers of logic and other
information. But little did she know how right she was.
"We're here," Tanin said, coming to a stop.
Krella looked up and saw a marble crypt in front of them. "Finally,"
she said. "Father will be wanting us to return as soon as we grab the
Flame."
Tanin stretched forth his hand, a spell on his lips to open the crypt
when he heard something he did not like. "What's that sound?" he asked,
looking around.
Krella listened for a moment, grabbing hold of her trenchcoat to quiet
its rustling. "I don't--" she began before she realized she did. "It sounds
like giant wings." She looked around quickly and spied five flying figures
approaching. "There they are, and they're heading this way."
Tanin nodded as Krella pointed the shapes out to him. Grabbing hold of
her hand, he pulled her off to the side and added an invisibility spell to his
shield. "Stay still," he whispered.
Krella hardly noticed what Tanin was saying as the five came closer.
Three of the figures...no, dragons as Krella could now identify them, began a
slow spiraling descent toward the ground. The other two, red but wearing some
sort of armor, flew high above the ground as if keeping lookout.
But it was the three that flew toward the ground that captured her
attention, and something close to fear. The youngest of the three, a teenage
female, was grey scaled and had bright pink hair. Flying close by was an
older female green dragon with the same bright pink hair, watching the younger
one carefully. Watching over them both was a large male grey dragon, his
scales so grey one could call them platinum grey. Taken together, they just
gave off an aura of power and love so strong that even if you didn't know who
they were, you could probably figure it out.
As it was, Krella did know who they were and her grip on Tanin's hand
tightened. "The royal family!" she whispered harshly. "What are they doing
here?"
"I don't know," Tanin whispered back as he watched them glide in for a
landing, "but I do know we should be getting out of here. We're not equipped
to handle beings of their power."
"Just wait a minute. With all the holiness of this place, it should
mask us from even their Protector senses. If it's just a quick stop, we'll
get the Flame when they leave."
Tanin didn't like the idea, but he acquiesced quietly as the dragons
landed much too close for comfort. Well, two of them landed. The third ended
up skidding into the crypt door headfirst. "Oooo..." she moaned, sitting up
shakily and lifting a grey hand to her head.
"Are you all right, Rosa?" the green dragon asked.
"Oh, I'm fine Ma," Rosa answered, then shook her head hard. "Oh man,
I'll never get the hang of this."
"You will eventually," the male said in a deep, rumbling voice. "Your
mom didn't get it right until you hatched."
"Keep it up Rotor," the green dragon said, poking him in the side.
"You might be king of all dragons, but I'm mistress in our house."
"Yes, Dulcy dear," Rotor said, bowing his head to hide the smirk on his
face.
"Oh, admit it Rotor," Sally said, sliding off his back to the ground.
She was back in her usual blue vest and boots, showing no sign of the royalty
she really was, nor the tension she was under. "She has got you wrapped
around her little finger."
"Like you don't have Sonic wrapped the same way," Rotor grumbled.
"Of course she does; it's a girl thing," Dulcy explained, the smile on
her lips mirroring the one now on Sally's face. Gone was the shy dragon that
had joined the Freedom Fighters, unsure of her abilities and her purpose. In
its place was a strong-willed, graceful, beautiful, but still fun-loving queen
and mother. "Besides," she added, placing her chin on one of his wings, "you
men just love being wrapped."
Rotor's platinum cheeks took on a slightly pink tinge for a moment. "We
should get to our patrols," he said quickly. "You feeling up to it Rosa?"
"Hmm?" Rosa asked, snapping out of her thoughts and facing her dad.
"What?"
"I asked if you were feeling up to patrolling."
"Yeah, sure," Rosa murmured, her eyes focusing once more on a seemingly
empty patch of ground.
"Something wrong?" Dulcy asked, her voice growing serious.
"I...don't know," Rosa admitted. "I feel like something's there, but I
don't see anything."
Rotor and Dulcy both closed their eyes and felt out for the presence
their daughter seemed to sense. "I feel...nothing," Dulcy said after a moment
and Rotor agreed with her. "Are you sure it wasn't that weird food you ate
for lunch?"
"Mom," Rosa whined, stamping her foot and lashing her tail about. Even
though she was eighteen, far above the normal age of maturity for dragons, she
was aging at a slower rate than other dragons. But then, there was nothing
normal about her. As if being a princess and a Protector wasn't enough, she
knew her true heritage. Rotor, her father, known officially by the name of
Bahamut, had not always been a dragon. He was a walrus for many years, but
had chosen to become a dragon so that Dulcy could bear a child. It was
supposed to be temporary, but through circumstances her parents had never
fully discussed with her, he had fully assumed the aspect of Bahamut and would
for the rest of his life. There was no bitterness on his part; he had been
feeling left out when the change occurred, and this had allowed him to truly
find his place, as well as his love.
But it was because of her parentage that she aged so differently. Tanis
had conjectured that she was aging two years for every three that passed,
making her true age right around twelve. No one knew whether or not she would
always be this way, but it made a sort of sense. After all, the Dragon's
Heart was to be used only in times where there were few potential mates. It
was only logical that the offspring live long enough to be able to find a
mate.
"Don't 'Mom' me," Dulcy said, spreading her wings and taking off. "Come
on, you know Sally doesn't want to be disturbed while visiting here. Signal
us when you're done."
"As usual," Sally said, waving. She watched the three dragons take
flight, Rosa still glancing down at the ground. After they had joined their
guards, she opened the crypt's door and stepped inside.
Right nearby, still under the protection of invisibility, Tanin and
Krella were engaged in a heated discussion. "It's over, Krella," Tanin
whispered firecely. "Let's just head back and come when she's not here."
"But she wasn't even supposed to be here," Krella argued back. "There's
no way she could have known we'd plan another strike so quickly. Besides, we
can get the flame from her and be out of here before she can call for backup."
"It's too risky," Tanin started to protest but Krella was already moving
toward the entrance. "Stubborn," he muttered under his breath before catching
up to keep her within range of his spells.
Inside, Sally knelt before a small shrine dedicated to the memory of her
ancestor, Tanak' Acorn. It was carved from marble with a precision never seen
before or since. In the heart of it was a flickering orange flame that had no
visible source of fuel. Legend claimed that Iridal Shi-rat had called forth
this Eternal Flame in memory of her dearest friend. "I am here again,
Tanak'," she whispered, staring into the Flame. "But now, I beg for your
wisdom and guidance. A new evil threatens the peace you worked so hard to
forge. Help me to be the ruler you once were."
She repeated her plea a few times, almost as a chant. Slowly, she felt
her consciousness being drawn into the flame. Within seconds, she was
surrounded by intense light and heat, though it did not blind or burn her.
In front of her stood a young fox, about as old as her children. His fur
seemed to be made from the flames that surrounded them and the light of the
fire shone from his eyes. "Grave trouble lies ahead," he spoke softly.
"These enemies are mighty indeed, but there exist even more foes than these.
You must always be watchful, and you cannot let them succeed."
"But I have already failed my subjects," Sally whispered.
"You have not failed, Sally," Tanak reassured her. "Now, more than
ever, you must be strong for them. Your heart has chosen well for your king.
Be strong in your love for each other, and in your faith in each other. Now
awaken, quickly. Evil comes."
Sally was about to question her ancestor further but felt herself being
thrown violently from the flame into her body. The shock of it was so great
that she literally fell backward to the floor as if pushed. She looked up to
see bands of dark magic coil around the spot she was just in.
"How'd she know we were here?" Krella demanded as the invisibility
spell around them faded.
"Don't worry about that, just get the Flame," Tanin said, his hands
glowing with an unholy light. "I'll keep her busy."
"The Flame!" Sally yelled, trying to cut Krella off. But a blast of
dark magic made her fall back.
"Don't forget about me, Your Majesty," Tanin sneered, launching a volley
of dark magic blasts at her.
Sally took to the air herself to avoid the blasts, but was able to
annoy Krella enough to keep her from getting the Flame, for the moment. "I
can't keep this up forever," she realized. "I need help, and quick."
High above the battle, as if in answer to her plea, Rosa found herself
staring down at the crypt. "I know something's going on down there," she
thought. "I don't care what my parents say. I'm going down there!" she
yelled, breaking formation and winging her way down, pulling a red cap from
the toolbelt she wore and placing it on her head backwards.
"Rosa!" Rotor yelled, pulling up and hovering in midair. "We've
gotta go after her. You two stay up here!" he called to the guards as he
and Dulcy went after their headstrong daughter.
Meanwhile, Sally was being kept very busy avoiding Tanin's attacks.
He was systematically moving her further and further away from the shrine
until she could no longer defend it from Krella. "I've got it!" Krella
yelled, locking the Flame inside a glass canister. "Get us out of here
Tanin!"
"By your leave," Tanin said with a mock bow, dark winds beginning to
rise about his and Krella's forms. But in taking his eye of Sally, he made
a critical mistake. She flew into him feet first, knocking him into Krella
and disrupting all the spells he was casting. Not only that, but the Flame
was knocked free of Krella's grip and skidded across the stone floor.
Sally scooped it up and flew toward the door only to find it blocked by
a wall of dark magic. "Not so fast," Tanin said, his robe flaring about his
body. "Give up the Flame or--" A loud scream of pain stopped him short.
Tanin looked quickly to his feet and saw Krella writhing in pain. In an
instant, he realized the protection cast on her had been broken and quickly
set about restoring it.
While he was distracted, Sally looked for a way out. The door was still
blocked off by his magic, so that wasn't an option. And as soon as he was
finished with this chant, she was surely in trouble. Then she noticed a
hidden passageway that had been revealed by Tanin's blasts. Knowing it was
her only chance, she activated her power engagement ring and flew down the
tunnel at supersonic speed.
Tanin didn't even realize Sally had left until he was knocked over by
the wake of her sonic boom. The impact also woke up Krella, and she sat up
slowly. "What? Where did she go?" she asked, looking around.
Before Tanin could answer, a loud roar shook the building and three
dragons charged in, breaking his barrier. "I knew I felt something," Rosa
said.
"Time to leave," Tanin said, scooping up a weakly resisting Krella and
teleporting them both out of there.
Rotor reached for them, but it was too late. "Where's Sally?" he
asked, looking around. "Sally! Oh man, Sonic's gonna kill me if anything
happened to her."
"She's not here," Dulcy said, scanning the room quickly. "You don't
think...."
"Hey, there's a tunnel here," Rosa said, clearing some rubble away.
"I'll see if she's down here."
"Wait Rosa," Dulcy called, but it was already far too late. "That girl
is going to give me an ulcer yet," she muttered.
Far down the tunnel, Sally lay slumped on the ground, trying to catch
her breath. She was drained from her supersonic flight, which was why she
almost never used it in the first place. "No more walking or running today,"
she thought, using a wall to pull herself to her feet.
As soon as she made it to her feet she felt the stone she was using for
support fall away and crash inches from her boots. "What else can go wrong?"
she asked herself in frustration, smoothing down her hair mussed up in the
sudden breeze.
Breeze? Sally looked at where the stone had fallen from and noticed a
small niche behind it where the air was coming from. Inside was a tightly
wrapped scroll, sealed with the sign of the House of Acorn. "What is this?"
she wondered, reaching in and pulling out the scroll.
Before she could open it, she heard something coming down the tunnel
fast. Her body immediately tensed up for a fight, but relief came when she
heard a familiar voice calling for her. "Sally!"
"I'm here Rosa," she said, waving her arms.
Rosa skidded to a stop in front of Sally, just barely able to keep
upright and not landing on her. "Come on, let's get you out of here," she
said, turning around so Sally could climb on.
Sally looked at the scroll in her hand a moment before nodding and
climbing aboard. As Rosa took off gliding, Sally couldn't help but wonder
about everything that happened, seeming almost too coincidental for her
liking. "Maybe this will provide some answers," she thought.
In a distant castle, the Unholy One had hold of Krella by her throat a
few inches from the ground. "What do you mean you didn't get it?" he
demanded, increasing the pressure on her neck. "You told me that nothing
could go wrong."
Krella tried desperately to free herself from her "father's" grip, but
she was losing strength rapidly. "Wait Father," Tanin said, putting his hand
on the Unholy One's arm. "If you kill her, we will have no one to plan our
attacks. We need her if we are going to win."
Snarling, the Unholy One threw Krella from him and turned away. "Do not
disappoint me again," he said in a low, menacing tone. "Now leave my presence
at once. But," he added as Tanin helped Krella to her feet, "send Charisma in
to see me. I have something of great importance to discuss with her."
Later that night, in the palace at Mobotropolis, Sally and her friends
sat in the newly christened War Room, the Eternal Flame on the table before
them. "What is going on with them?" she asked of all those present. First
the tear and now this? I just don't see a pattern in all of this."
"Calm down Sal," Sonic said, taking her hands in his. "You'll figure
this out, like you used to back in Knothole. We're still the Freedom Fighters
after all. Nothing can beat us."
"Perhaps I can shed a little light on the subject," a voice said,
startling them. They all turned to look and their eyes fell on someone who
hadn't left his home on the Floating Island since the Race for the Emeralds,
and his expression looked just as dire now as it did then.
Somewhere on Mobius, an animal watched it all unfold on his monitor and
smiled. "Now things will really get interesting," he thought. "Let's see how
the 'Freedom Fighters' handle the news they're about to hear," he said with a
low chuckle. (
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