The Calling of... [Sonic the Hedgehog FF]

The forest - Mephilver - (part 1/2)

He never thought any second could pass so fast as his body hit the raging river below the cliff. As he collided with the water mass, the air was forced out of his lungs. The water engulfed him, pushing him fast forward, not giving him any time to think, much less to catch a breath. His limbs chaotically flapped all around until the body was lifted above the river surface.

He sucked the air into lungs for a mere second before his head was submerged once more. This time he managed to resurface for a longer time. And like the wild river wasn't enough, the rain started to mercilessly lash his head, making his vision even worse. A sudden wave threw him against a big rock, tearing the coat over the shoulder.

He yelped, gulping the water and coughing it back. A powerful storm was above him and each thunder kept blinding him all over again. The river took any control over his body he may still had, playing with him like a girl would with a rag doll. Swinging him from one side to another, pushing him against rocks, making him gasp for each breath. He felt his consciousness slowly slipping away. With one more push from the water mass, he was send flying.

But was nothing but an illusion as his body was merely thrown above the level as he reached the waterfall. The young medic was falling to his death, being buried by the mighty power of falling water above him. The splash he has made was quickly swallowed by the liquid around it and the lighting storm suddenly turned so quiet. Its light hardly penetrated the bubbling water, only two green dots remained. Not letting him go.

A last bubble of the air escaped his mouth as his body almost touched the fine sand below him. The water seemed cruel, but it soothed even the roughest stone. With his mind still with him, he noticed his body was lifted and quickly brought above the water level. His brain noticed it, forcing his lungs to start working. He coughed, puking water, feeling his heart to beat like crazy as his body was taken away along the river.

The storm suddenly got so far away as he was engulfed by endless cave with a rushing water. He fought against the embrace that held him, thinking only about how to run away as those lime eyes were still after him. His body shook as it hit a big rock, shattering it. There was a yelp, but... not just his.

Someone else was there too. And that someone was carrying him. But his mind was too wild, too scared to think, and the instinct to survive took him over. He scratched the back of the other person, not noticing it's scaly and that he has gloves, making any scratching fairly impossible.

The pitch black darkness wasn't easing either, making him more agitated. Suddenly he felt they are slowing down and even getting out of the cold water. It may have been just a few minutes he spent in the rapids, but they felt like an eternity.

He was kicking and even biting, falling on the hard ground completely soaked, tired and scared to the death. With no sense of the direction, he started to crawl away, until he slammed into a wall pressing against it, whimpering and sobbing. His heart was throbbing like crazy. He could hear only the flowing water, his loud breathing, and chattering teeth.

Minutes passed and nothing moved, only water droplets would be crashed upon their landing on the cold stones, continuously smoothing the mineral beneath. The silver hedgehog noticed a dim green light nearby and once he glanced at it, it took him several seconds to realize it's coming from crystals. The cave was carved with them and it was the only source of the light.

A vapor was coming from his mouth and with the slightest movement he felt his body to shiver. He didn't want to move, but he had to or he may freeze to death. With the help of the wall behind him, he slowly stood up supporting his body. He hardly saw anything a few meters in front of him, but he was still able to recognize a lying body near the edge of the river. It wasn't moving.

'Who is it?' His mind was confused, hardly remembering the past events. With shaking steps he came closer. "Hello...?" his voice was sore and he was capable only a whisper. "Hello?" he tried to talk louder but it only caused a short coughing fit. The young man gradually got on all fours, touching the stranger's head.

He felt pointy quills with a strange feeling and as his hand traveled down the back he touched a warm liquid. He squinted, smelling the fingers. "A blood?!" He was shocked. He bent down, to see the person's face.

"This... is..." His brain kicked the overdrive, flooding his mind with suppressed memories. A fear overcame him. That laying body belonged to that forest guardian that almost killed him. He bit the back of the hand to forcefully calm down. 'What's it doing here? Did it follow me?'

As the memories settled down a particular scene flashed in front of him. "Did he..." he whispered in a hoarse voice. "... save me...?" That made no sense!! Why would it jump to raging water for him? Any hunter would give up on his prey!

He started to shake and before he could sink into madness, a smell of the blood brought him back. 'It's hurt.' He touched the wound noticing only a little bit of the blood was dried. It must have been big or deep and if he won't tend it, the guardian may die from a blood loss.

"The herb!" he exclaimed... really softly. He reached for his bag realizing it's a small miracle, it wasn't lost in the river. The flowers were soaked, but otherwise alright. He quickly took out his equipment, a mortar with a pallet and started to crush the plants, making a green mash while adding a few others ingredients. Then he took his handkerchief, soaked it in the river below, noticing part of its tail was still in the water. So he took it out remembering a school lesson stating snakes are cold-blooded, depending on the outside temperature. That made him wrap the snake tail around the main body.

Once he finished cleaning the nagahog's back, he applied the medicine. He was trembling... either with fear or coldness. He checked the creature's breathing, noticing it's still alive. He sneezed and the echo startled him. "Man... I'm so cold." He hugged his sides, deciding to throw the wet clothes, spreading them around on the ground and over stalactites.

The only thing that kept him a bit positive was the fact his fur was naturally oiled repealing most of the water, making squeezing his quills a lot easier. The teeth started to chatter once more and he decided to cuddle near the nagahog, sensing its upper body is emitting a heat, making him ponder if this guardian may have some sort of heat regulation. But his mind was too tired for any thinking, he soon fell into a deep slumber.