Mirror Image

II - Into Darkness

Warm damp air rose from the carpet of leaves in a fine mist, the grey clouds laying down a shroud of rain across the Jungle Ruin Zone. Through gaps in the cloud bright sunlight streamed across the forest, guiding the little plane to its destination. Diving down the shaft of golden light, Tails pulled back on the controls, bringing the Tornado level with the treetops. Balancing on the wings of the bi-plane, Sonic shook his quills out in a spray of water.

"Nice flying, Tails!" said Sonic, throwing a sly wink from the wings of the plane back at the pilot, "We getting any closer to the Chaos signal?"

"The signal's weak, but we're getting close," said Tails, glancing at the instrument in the cockpit, "Hold on Sonic, sharp turn left in 5 seconds."

The little plane dropped, tilting to the left, and Sonic slid up the length of the wing to take a firm hold of the right side. The adrenaline rush of Tails' daredevil flying coursing through him, the wind rushing through his quills, and the exotic perfume of the forest enveloping him, Sonic sported an elated grin. As the plane straightened up, Sonic saw a dark shape rising from the trees ahead.

"That must be it Tails," said Sonic, "That ziggurat up ahead!"

Tails set the tornado to circle around the stone pyramid. The structure sat in a large clearing, dominating the surrounding jungle, its steep stone steps worn and rough, covered in layers of moss. The fox brought the plane down with a bump in the clearing, nearly knocking Sonic off the wings. When the plane stopped fully the two boys leapt onto the soft grass below.

"Whoa," said Sonic, craning his neck to look at the towering monument, "That...is big. Bigger than it looks from the air, anyways. You think the Chaos spike is in there?"

"All my readings suggest so," said Tails, intimidated by the scale of the building ahead of him, "I wonder who built this thing?"

"Doesn't look like Eggman's handiwork," said Sonic, "his face isn't plastered all over it for a start."

"True," said Tails, "but he could have something set up inside. We need to be prepared for anything."

"Tails, buddy," said Sonic, putting an arm around his friends' shoulders, "have you forgotten who you're with? I'm always prepared for everything!"

Tails smiled a nervous smile, the yawning mouth of the temple now bearing down on him.

"I hope you're right," he said, as they crossed the threshold.

The bright sunlight of the jungle outside diminished to nothing after only a few metres, surrounding the boys in darkness. Sonic gave Tails a gentle nudge.

"Did you remember your torch?"

A single point of light pierced the absolute darkness of the temple. Sonic & Tails' footsteps resonated in the overwhelming silence of the corridor, and the desolate hall clamoured with noise. Tails shined his torch along the carvings and murals which decorated the walls and floor, jumping at the occasional stone head of a Mobian leering at him from the darkness with exaggerated features.

"S-sonic, I don't like this," said the little fox, "This doesn't look like one of Eggman's bases."

"It's alright, buddy, you'll be fine so long as you're with me," said Sonic, taking Tails by the hand. Times like this reminded Sonic that for all his technical wizardry, Tails was only a little kid who got scared sometimes. Even with his big brother instinct kicking in, Sonic found the quiet hall disconcerting. None of Eggman's trademarks like wires, control panels or cameras, and no sign of his ugly mug on every available surface. Sonic peered into the wall of darkness barely parted by Tails' tiny torch, hoping to see something, anything, which would reveal this strange temple's secrets.