The Dimension Keepers (A Sonic Boom Fanfic)

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

The first leg of their journey was spent in a sort of tense silence. Kay could feel it in the air – each of them was consumed by thoughts of what could await them during their trip, what would happen when they finally reached the capital...and whether or not she would cause more problems for them in the meantime. Kay's thoughts, in particular, were a complete whirlwind. It wouldn't have mattered if someone had spoken to her; she probably would not have heard them anyway.

Until now Kay had not allowed herself to think too much about who the Dimension Keepers could be, or what it was they stood for. The implications of the name alone were staggering. But given the circumstances – and the excess amount of quiet among the small troupe at present – she really had nothing better to do, so she let herself theorize.

Espio had said they were made up of foreigners, so that would at least indicate they were not native to the Dragon Kingdom. But that still left a whole planet full of places they could be from, so the question of who they were was rather pointless at present. But what they stood for? Kay almost dreaded to think what "Dimension Keepers" could possibly represent.

Generally speaking, keepers of anything were protectors or guardians, so if someone were a dimension keeper...did that mean they protected entire dimensions? And if so, from what? From her? If they were looking for her, she supposed it was a possibility. But that only raised another question: Why would they want to protect dimensions from her? She'd already been involved with at least two of them, both in good ways, not bad. Did these Dimension Keepers think she was a bad guy?

And why had they set up their base of operations in the Dragon Kingdom? If they were aware of other dimensions, they must know about Sonic's importance in them, so why not put down roots closer to where he was? Then again, Bygone Island was pretty small, and this version of Sonic was not nearly as pivotal a Mobian as he was on Prime. It would be hard to establish an entire empire of rebels around him – if in fact that was what they were doing. Kay was not certain about that.

The hours dragged on, and finally the small troupe reached a point where they were to eat and recuperate before continuing onward for another several hours. Kay accepted her ration with a nod and was just sitting down when Li Yuen suddenly grabbed Espio's arm and pulled him back to the opposite end of their resting place. The remaining men jumped up, hands on their weapons, at the ready. Kay froze, uncertain what to do. It hadn't looked like anything was amiss, but these were trained warriors. Something must be wrong.

Li Yuen and Espio exchanged hushed whispers while the rest of the men kept their eyes on every inch of the area surrounding their resting grounds. The forest was so thick it was impossible to see beyond the trees to know if there were enemies about, but Li Yuen certainly seemed to think otherwise.

At length Espio nodded once and turned to his men, silently moving his hands in the air, making gestures only they understood. Two of the remaining five got to their feet and got in formation on either side of Li Yuen, and the three warriors moved soundlessly in the direction he had apparently sensed danger. Espio stayed where he was, crouched on the ground but prepared to leap back up at any moment.

Silence filled the air for several long, long moments. Then muffled grunts filled the air as though from a far-off distance, and not only a few meters away from where the rest of the troupe sat waiting. If the rest of them – as well as the forest itself – had not been completely quiet, none of them would have heard it at all.

Now everyone was on high alert. The rest of the men got to their feet, as well as Espio. Kay hurriedly put her food aside and reached for her bo, which she had lain beside her while she rested. More hand gestures, and the rest of the troupe were reaching for their weapons. Espio drew his katana blade and appeared for a moment to shudder before vanishing entirely. Kay blinked in surprise. She'd forgotten that as a chameleon, he had the ability to become invisible.

She got to her feet. The men gripped their weapons and hurried forward soundlessly, leaving her alone as they went to investigate the danger. Kay had only just gotten to where she had last seen them when a sudden shout pierced the air, sounding like thunder after all the quiet before it.

"Sore wa karedesu!"

A dagger whirled through the air, flying past her and barely missing her head as she instinctively ducked after hearing the yell. Kay fell to the ground completely, taking cover behind a couple of trees that were closer together. More shouts filled the air, as well as the discernable sounds of battle. Kay peered between the trunks to try and see exactly who it was they were fighting, but she saw no one at all – not even Espio's soldiers.

The sounds of scrimmage didn't last long. Only moments after they had begun, they stopped, leaving the forest in an eerier quiet than before. Kay's heart pounded in her chest. She knew that whatever was out there, she wouldn't be able to fight it if none of Espio's men could.

Espio! Kay gasped quietly and gripped her bo. What if he'd been captured? She couldn't just sit here. She had to at least try to fight. With a deep breath, Kay got to her feet, shifted her grip on her weapon, and hurried out in the same direction the men had gone before her.

Then she stopped cold. The six soldiers – Li Yuen included – lay scattered on the forest floor, each of them unconscious. Frantically her eyes darted about for Espio's signature purple color. When she couldn't see it immediately, she continued onward until she did. He lay unconscious at the base of a tree several meters away from the rest of his troupe. Wanting to cry out but knowing better, Kay ran to him and dropped to the ground beside him. He was breathing, and he appeared mostly uninjured, but where was his katana? She was so busy searching the surrounding area for it that she almost forgot about the reason why any of them were unconscious in the first place.

Espio shifted then, startling Kay at first but then sparking hope inside her when he opened his eyes. "Kay..." he whispered, his golden gaze shifting to a spot over her right shoulder. "...behind you."