FOR YOUR HEART-BOOM

☆Ch9

"I am not obliged to help just anyone coming here. Can you imagine, what would happen, if this place becomes a common ground for the outter world?" the wolf reasoned with Sonic, who straightened his posture and finally started listening now.
"Wait... are you the guardian of the Amber?" the hero asked with a raised eyebrow, unable to believe, that the legend is indeed real.
"The Amber? How do you know about that?" the wolf asked while tilting his half-transparent head.
"A friend of mine told me about a book with the legendary story of the writer themselves, saying, that they supposedly found the Amber and used its powers," Sonic explained calmly this time while staring up at the creature.

"So, you're here only for the crystal, correct?" the wolf stated questioningly with Sonic nodding in confirmation.
"I need the crystal to heal my friend here, please," Sonic approached Shadow and crouched down to him while taking his hand.
"Friend, huh? That's a weak word for what you truly see him as," the wolf replied knowingly, which shocked the hero, who blushed deeply upon the discovery.
"W-What? How do you know?" he asked in astonishment, but the wolf only chuckled in response.
"I know love when I sense it. Your heart speaks louder than your voice," the wolf explained and Sonic just stared at him blankly with dropped jaw.

"Shut your jaw now, hedgehog and come into my Sacred Temple," the wolf added and just then the big gate finally slowly opened wide, welcoming the hedgehog hero. Sonic closed his mouth shut, but then frowned as he glanced down at his soulless friends laying lifeless on the ground.
"What about my friends?" he asked the wolf while staring at the group.
"Don't worry about them, they will be alright. I give you my word. Now, follow me and don't forget to take your partner with you," the wolf replied and waited for the hedgehog to comply. Sonic blushed deeply again.
"He's... not my partner... at least, not yet," he retorted and picking Shadow carefully up he gave his friends last worried glance before following the wolf spirit into the temple. The gate closed shut after both of them entered and Sonic warily looked over his shoulder, hoping, that this isn't some sort of trap.

"This way," the wolf led him through a long corridor with tall roof and magnificent decorations making this place seem more appealing and comforting to the eye, than the raging winters of the outside. Not to mention, that the interior of the temple was much warmer and both hedgehogs' suits automatically shrunk to the backpack part upon detecting the higher outter temperature. Sonic followed the spirit further and soon approached another huge double-winged door, which moved open wide, revealing the enormous room filled with many kinds of spiritual stuff, precious stones, a section with potions and finally an altar surrounded by pleasantly scented candles.
"Place him on the altar, please," the wolf instructed and Sonic gulped upon the nervousness now filling his core as he glanced down at the unconscious hedgehog in his arms and sighing he gently laid him down on top of the slab.

"Good. Come over here," the wolf gestured for him to come to the precious stones section, the hero quietly complied and followed the given instructions.
"Since I am only a spirit, I cannot physically touch, grab or use the items. My purpose here is purely only to guard them and make sure, that they won't end up in wrong hands. However, your aura is unique, one of a kind, which makes me believe, that you are strong enough to handle Transparix Amber's power," the spirit elaborated further, making everything more clear for the hedgehog hero.

"So, you want me to use it?" Sonic asked with a raised brow.
"Yes and no. My soul is bound with the crystal, which means, that I will be able to give you the needed boost of energy in order to heal your partner. But if you aren't strong enough, it might end in a disaster for you," the wolf warned him while Sonic had his hand hovering above the legendary crystal, which was right here, glowing straight in front of his face, solid and approachable, resonating a comforting warmth all across his palm.

"As long as it saves his life... I don't care what happens to me," Sonic said in determination and finally laid his hand upon the crystal. His eyes immediately turned into the equal color shade and he could feel the energy surging through his body, surrounding him and soon engulfing him entirely. Sonic groaned as he felt the huge energy boost and it transformed him into a powered up form, where he found himself hovering above the surface - since his feet no longer touched the ground - and a bright pure golden aura surrounded his blue-furred body.
"Impressive....," the wolf whispered in utter astonishment, when he saw how perfectly Sonic's energy matched the Amber's.
"Wow... I feel...so energized!" Sonic smiled brightly while looking at his body.
"Ahem, no time to waste, hedgehog! We have only few minutes, till I run out of energy. You must hurry and save the one your heart has chosen," the wolf snapped out of his amazement, turning serious.

"Right. What do I do exactly? Just hover my hand above him, or...?" Sonic also snapped out of his surprise and amusement, rather focusing on the unconscious hedgehog as he carefully sat down on his knees next to him and placed his hands on the hedgehog's chest.
"You must make your way to his heart, hedgehog. The parasite tormenting his body is filled with the lowest vibration possible - hate," the spirit guided the hero, but Sonic got even more confused.
"What? But Tails said, that it contains a nano-tech stuff," he frowned upon the memory of Tails saying exactly that to him. Now he didn't understand.

"It does, your friend wasn't wrong. Those nano-bots are clutching at his very core and keep him in such state, slowly decreasing his life energy supply and it would be only a matter of time, when he wouldn't make it alive," the wolf explained.
"Who would do such a thing to him?" Sonic lowered his ears and gripped the hedgehog's chest fur tightly, as if his own life depended on it.
"Hedgehog! Focus! We are running out of time!" the spirit reminded him sternly, snapping the hero out of his gloomy bubble.
"Right! Here goes nothing," Sonic sighed and closed his eyes as he focused on the immense power surging through his whole body and tried his best to transmit the energy into the unconscious hedgehog's body and hopefully get him rid of the parasite. The spirit did his best to give Sonic the needed boost, yet there was still something missing, as the process seemed to go slower than expected. Sonic gritted his teeth and could feel the slight exhaustion slowly clawing at him, trying to swallow him.
"Ngh! Why isn't it... working!" the hero opened his eyes and completely lost focus while panting heavily, the golden aura surrounding him getting a bit thinner now as part of the energy got transmitted into Shadow's body.

"Do what all the cliché stories speak of in many love stories," the wolf advised him and Sonic turned red in his face from the imagination of actually kissing the ebony hedgehog's lips.
"What?! You want me to kiss him?" he squeaked in shock and surprise, his heart started pounding in his chest from the rush of both excitement and nervousness.
"Silly hedgehog, how else are we going to finish the cure? Your soul has to bind with his own for the healing process to be fully successful," the wolf replied matter-of-factly, unfazed by the topic. Sonic sighed while pinning his ears to his head, looking at Shadow's peaceful sleeping face he let his eyes land on the saffron lips, which were slightly cracked due to the hedgehog being out for so long.
"W-What will happen afterwards?" Sonic asked carefully as he gently moved his arm underneath the hedgehog's head and lifted him halfway to his embrace, cupping his cheek with his other hand he tried his best to gain some courage and finally kiss the only mobian, who seemed to steal his heart despite his brooding and distant nature.

"You'll have a deep connection with him, unlike with any other person in your life," the spirit replied calmly, giving the hero last bits of his energy, so the hedgehog can finally finish the process and save his future partner. Sonic nodded in response and taking a deep breath he moved his head down towards Shadow's face, carefully pressing his peach lips against Shadow's saffron ones he closed his eyes and poured all the care, love and worry into the very first kiss of his life while embracing the ebony hedgehog tightly in his arms. This action triggered a reaction of course, as a bright golden light engulfed the both hedgehogs and spread all over the temple before creating an immense energetic explosion and then.... the hedgehogs were gone, while the spirit vanished into the dark smoke and Sonic's friends disappeared as well....