Today has been surprisingly calm. There hasn't been an Eggman attack, no one has accidentally awoken a gigantic rock monster and no weird natural phenomena have occurred. It has just been me, all by myself almost all day long. The perfect type of day to just read a good book and do nothing else. Not that I would really do much anything else here anyway. Every day just seems to be me and Sonic talking. Anyway, this morning Sonic told me of his plans with Tails. The two were planning to go race somewhere in the forest and he asked if I wanted to join them. I politely declined and told him I wanted to just chill around today. He understood and promised the two of them would return later today. However, he did insist I don't go too far away from the shack and made me promise that I won't leave the island while he's gone. That all was several hours ago. I don't know how long of a race they were planning but they left at morning and afternoon is well on its way by now.
Because I have no idea where the two could've headed, I've decided my best bet is to check places I do know. My first guess is Tails' house as well as his workshop as that's the closest location to Sonic's shack and definitely the most logical place for them to be. Like always, the forest is humid but not to an uncomfortable point. The smells of the blooming flowers enter my nose and a bee buzzes past me as I make my way to Tails' workshop.
The wooden building quickly enters my vision and I walk up to the door. I knock and start waiting. There are no sounds coming from inside the workshop at all. In fact, the only sounds are those of the leaves rustling against each other in the soft wind. I knock again, louder this time. Still nothing. Walking away from the door and over to a window I peek inside. The workshop is empty. Walking back to the door I pull it open this time and enter the building. Tails did tell me I was welcome to let myself in anytime. Then again, he might have meant his house, but I can't be sure.
In the middle of the workshop is his plane. Tails probably didn't mean that I could snoop around this place but whatever. There might be a clue here as to where they are. On one of the workbenches are several blueprints. I have no idea what they are for but whatever it is requires a significant amount of power. I leave the blueprints be as my attention is turned elsewhere. On another workbench is a baseball bat like device. It has several buttons on its handle and it's entirely made out of metal. Tails probably wouldn't want me to touch it, but it does look kind of interesting.
I glance over to the doorway and peek out the window to see absolutely no one. My fingers reach around the device as I grab it from the workbench. To my surprise, it is very light. Holding it like I would hold a baseball bat, I imagine myself in the middle of an Eggman attack. Robots attacking me from all around and me being the last defense. A beebot flies toward me and I swing the bat toward it. As I do so, my finger presses against one of the buttons. Suddenly the bat feels a lot heavier and my grip on it loosens. The bat slips away from my fingers and straight into the window which breaks on impact.
"Uh oh," I say to myself and run over to the window. Outside is the bat lying in the bushes. Jumping out through the window I land by the bat. I grab the bat and try to lift it only to find it impossible. "What the heck?" I mutter and try again. It wasn't this heavy when I first took it. Why is it now? That's when I notice the buttons on the handle and press one of them. I try to pick the bat up again and this time it happens effortlessly. I get back inside the workshop and place the bat back where I had found it.
As I am about to leave the workshop again to find Tails and tell him what happened, I notice something still covered by a tarp nearby the doorway. I pull the tarp away to reveal Tails' translation module which he still hasn't seemingly fixed. Last I remember, he told me it kept picking up the wrong soundwaves or something like that. Considering Tails hasn't done anything to it yet it's probably not a high priority. Or maybe he forgot it.
I exit the workshop and start walking away from it. My next guess would be to go to the village. They could've gone to Meh Burger to eat after their race or possibly bumped into Amy, Knuckles or Sticks and went over to one of their houses. That would be a pretty understandable reason for why they haven't returned.
My surroundings soon change from trees and plants to wooden structures as I reach the village. Like on all days, a few animals are walking here and there going about their day. It doesn't take me long until I arrive over at the 'far from good but equally far from bad' burger joint. There, working his usual shift is Dave and ordering a burger is a familiar red echidna. He might have a clue where the others are. As Knuckles turns away from the checkout I give him a smile, "Hi Knuckles."
He smiles as he sees me and walks over to an empty table. I walk over to him as he says, "Hello Y/N."
"Why does that sound like you were expecting me?" I ask as I take a seat opposite from him.
"I wasn't," he tells me and then looks away scratching his head. "Or was I?"
"Well, that probably doesn't matter," I reply, and he turns to me again. "See, I was wondering if you have seen Sonic or Tails today."
"Yes," he responds, and I wait for him to go on. He never however does.
"Okay, uhh, where did you see them?" I ask.
"Where we always see each other. Battling Eggman!" he tells me.
I squint my eyes. Was there a battle and I didn't see it? "Um, where'd this battle happen?"
"I believe we were in the town hall," he tells me and takes a bite out of his burger.
I look at him confused, "That happened like two days ago."
He stops eating and looks up. He swallows his food and says, "It did?"
"Yeah," I nod. "Or maybe it was yesterday it's hard to keep track of days here," I mutter as I run my hand through my hair. "So you haven't seen Sonic or Tails, today?"
"I guess not," he answers.
I let out a sigh and lean back in the chair. "Okay," I nod. "Well, thanks anyway," I say as I get up. The echidna gives me a smile and I leave the burger place behind.
Slowly, I walk through the village. There really aren't that many places here where they would go. My best guess now would be to head over to Amy's house. There's at least a chance that they'd end up there. I head off toward the forest and make my way toward the lake.
After traveling along the winding pathways for a while, I find myself knocking the door of the purple building. It only takes a moment for the door to swing open to reveal Amy. The hedgehog looks at me with wide-eyes as she says," Y/N? Hi."
"Hi," I respond and give her a smile. "I was just wondering if Sonic and Tails were here?"
"No, why? Did something happen?" she asks.
"No, nothing happened. They just left and told me they were gonna come back soon but it's been like nine hours since then," I tell her. "I thought they might've come here or something."
"Oh that sound pretty normal for them," she tells me. "You know how free-spirited people are. Can't exactly be tamed by anyone."
"Yeah, I... guess so," I reply somewhat confused. "Well, in that case I'm just gonna go back to the beach."
"Sure. Glad I could help," she gives me a smile and we bid goodbyes.
The sun keeps getting lower as I walk on the beach. With each step I take, the powdery sand under my bare feet keeps scrunching. There hasn't been a word from neither Sonic nor Tails. I have no idea where the two could've gone to. It's weird but I feel kinda worried for them. They said they were gonna return in a few hours, but a few hours have passed quite a few times. Maybe they got injured at some point and are now lost in the forest. Or maybe they were attacked by wild animals and got injured that way. That actually reminds me, why are some of the animals so advanced and others are... wild. And why are there no humans? Apart from Eggman that is.
My gaze raises up from the white sand and to the horizon before me. Expecting to just see more beach along with the forest on the side, I'm surprised when I see something else as well. Sitting on a cape extending from the island is a large, sleek, white building. Eggman's Lair. Now, there totally is a chance that the two have somehow ended up over there. Whether that's by their own choice or if they're forced to be there doesn't matter. They could be there, so I'm going there.
I walk up to the start of the narrow cape and start walking along it. The walk up to the lair turns out to be uncomfortably long. By the time I'm halfway there, the sun has started to set. Shades of red are present on the canvas that is sky above me, as I walk and walk toward the building. Small waves keep crashing onto the sides of the cape that is barely above the surface of the water. If the destination wasn't Eggman's lair and I wasn't looking for two missing friends, the walk could be pretty enjoyable. I mean, the sky looks beautiful and so does the ocean below it.
Finally reaching the entrance to the lair, I walk over to the door and knock. I don't know if this a smart idea but considering Eggman hasn't shown hostility toward me I doubt it'll change now. The door swooshes open. Standing a bit further away from the door is the doctor himself with his hands on his hips. His eyebrows are furrowed as he looks around before turning his gaze down. As he notices me the expression on his face changes. "Oh, well hello," he says with his brows raised.
"Hi," I respond surprisingly bluntly. "I was wondering if Sonic and Tails are here? Maybe for a dinner or possibly in a cell or something."
"What? No they're not here! I'm off duty," he tells me.
"Are you sure?" I inquire. "Maybe you locked them up and forgot."
"No I didn't," he immediately replies. "If I had them there would be a parade happening in the village center right now."
That's probably true. Sighing I turn around. The walk here was long and the walk back will probably be even longer. "Okay then," I say to Eggman. "Thanks anyway."
I start walking away from the building but don't get far when Eggman says, "Wait." I stop and turn around to see him in the doorway. "You wouldn't care for tea or something? That way you didn't walk all the way here for nothing."
I raise my brow, "Tea? What, with you?"
"Well, Orbot and Cubot are here too but you can hardly count them as company," he tells me.
I look at the doctor contemplating whether to take his offer or not. My gaze then turns back to the road leading back to the island. "Okay," I turn to him. "Show me in."
It doesn't take me long to find myself sitting inside Eggman's living room, if you can even call it that. I mean sure there's a TV and a couch but that's really about it. Apart from those and the coffee table in front of the couch there really isn't anything in here. A living room requires something to... give it life, I guess. Why else would it be a living room?
Eggman walks into the room holding a tray with him. He sets it down on the table and grabs the kettle. Brownish liquid pours down from the kettle and into the two cups as Orbot arrives in the room holding a second tray. The bot places the tray holding several types of cookies on the table before leaving. Eggman places the kettle back on the tray and hands one of the cups to me.
"Thanks," I say to him and look down into the cup. The steaming hot tea smells surprisingly good. It's just, I don't know if I can really trust him. "What's in this?"
"It's tea. With a hint of honey," Eggman replies and takes a sip from his cup.
I eye him slightly suspicious. Still, I bring the cup up to my mouth and take a sip. The hot liquid doesn't taste like anything at first. I swallow it down as the sweet aftertaste fills my mouth. "Oh," I say surprised. "It has a nice aftertaste."
"It does," he agrees with me. "See, both the tea and honey are made 100% here in the lair."
"Let me guess, your beebots make your honey?" I ask as a joke.
"They do," he says.
I look at him confused, "The bots make honey?"
"Yes," he replies.
"Hmm," I hum. "Well, that's interesting." Trying to take the conversation in to a new direction is surprisingly easy as there already is a question in my mind. "So, Eggman, you're a scientist..."
"That I am," he agrees as I take a sip of my tea.
I swallow the warm liquid and get to the point, "I was wondering, how come there are no other humans here?"
"That's a good question," the doctor says and takes something from a sideboard by the couch. He places the keyboard on his lap and presses a couple buttons. As the TV moves closer to the couch and turns on, he says, "You probably have noticed how the population of the island is made of anthropomorphic animals."
"Yeah," I nod as pictures of the animals appear on the TV screen.
"I believe the island's remote location allowed it to stay free from what was going on all the different continents. That forced evolution to take a different path," he explains as the screen shows Earth changing throughout history.
"But shouldn't something like this appear in the history books? Or be teched in biology?" I question the doctor.
He throws me a glance, "Did you know of this island before arriving here?"
"No," I reply.
"Exactly," he says as the screen starts shoving different islands. "For some reason, this island has never been mentioned in history books. No one has ever even seen it. It's almost as if the whole place doesn't exist."
"So if someone were to find this island it would be a massive scientific discovery?" I inquire.
"Correct," he nods.
"Why haven't you done it?"
The doctor types something on the keyboard and the images on the screen change. Now it shows the island from above with water all around it and keeps zooming out. "See, it isn't that simple," he says. "The island might be hard to find, but I have found that it is impossible to leave."
"What?"
"I have tried. Several times," he tells me. "Each time I've only found myself back on the island. Eventually I just stopped and decided to stay."
"How can it be impossible to leave?" I question.
"No idea
"Have you tried—"
"Contacting the outside is impossible," he answers my question without even hearing it. "See, I believe there's a force on this island that keeps it from being discovered," he continues as the screen shows the island from its side. A circle appears around it along with lines shooting out from the island. The circle however turns the lines back to the island. "Something forces everything to stay either in or out."
"Expect us," I state. "We got in. Why?"
"No idea," he replies honestly. "I tried my hand at figuring out but that was ages ago."
I look at the images that are changing on the TV screen. How can an island be impossible to find? And how on Earth can it be impossible to leave? Shouldn't it be just as easy as getting on a boat and soaring back to the mainland?
Eggman's voice breaks my thoughts as he asks, "So, what brings you here?"
I glance over to him and take a sip of my tea, "Well, Sonic and Tails left somewhere and—"
"No, not here! I meant here. Why are you here on this island?" he asks me more specifically.
"I mean, I haven't really thought of that," I tell him.
"Sure you haven't," Eggman says and takes a sip of his tea. "You just came here because you had nothing better to do."
I scoff and look away from him. "Well what about you?" I ask him. "You just said humans aren't natural to this place so how come you're here?" I inquire as I observe him. The doctor simply just takes a sip of his tea but doesn't show any intention of talking to me. I turn away from him and glance at the screen that still shows the island. It's been a while since I came here. I haven't even really given much thought to why I am here. "I was supposed to go out of town for the holidays," I tell Eggman. His gaze turns to me as I go on, "I was waiting outside my house with my bags and everything with me... and then this thing happened. Things had already been going downhill but that was the breaking point. I took off and ran away. I realized at that point that there was nothing left for me there. I came across a boat on the shore and hopped in." I didn't want to think back to those days. It sucked. It still sucks. I glance at Eggman and get up from my seat, "Thanks for the tea."
I make my way over to the hallway when Eggman says, "There was a thing in my life too. It made me wanna leave." I look over to him to see him standing in the living room with his gaze down. "I guess, I'm trying to say that I understand why you're here," he says turning his gaze to me.
It's kinda weird for us two to be here. He's supposed to be an evil mastermind but there he is. For whatever reason he just decided to let me in on something. Even though it isn't much, he still chose to share it with me. He probably hasn't had a chance to share it with anyone before.
I give the doctor a smile before turning away and continuing on my way. "Thank you for not kidnapping me to lure Sonic here!" I shout as I reach the exit.
"That's a pipedream!" the doctor shouts back from the living room.
The door swooshes open and I walk out. By now it's dark outside. I have no idea how long we were having tea, but it honestly went pretty quickly. Like before, waves are crashing on the edges of the road as I make my way back to the island. Luckily for me, Eggman's tea had just enough of a kick to make the journey back feel like a walk in the park. Though you could totally argue that the journey is a walk in the park anyway as there aren't any dangers or stuff like that. it's just insanely long.
Even from afar, I can tell the shack is still empty and as I arrive at the doorway, I come to find myself right. I glance back outside and look both ways before entering the building. Once inside I change into my nightwear and do everything I'd normally do before bed. However, the hammock stays empty as I sit in the armchair while reading yet another book.
Time passes and minutes turn into hours. Still, there is no sight of that blue hedgehog anywhere. I finally put my book away and walk over to the hammock. Even though it has only been a few nights, somehow, embarrassingly enough, I must admit that I've grown quite fond of sleeping next to that damn hedgehog. He's just warm enough to the point where a blanket isn't necessary and he's soft like a plush. His heart beating in its overly fast fashion and his soft breathing bring a feeling of safety. A feeling like, nothing could get to me even if it tried. And now that feeling will be missing. I look out the doorway yet again but there's no Sonic anywhere. Sighing, I climb into the hammock, hoping that I fall asleep quickly.
That however doesn't happen. My mind is way too awake for me to just fall asleep. It's one of those, and you know exactly what I mean, nights. My thoughts race from my most embarrassing childhood memories to those of my most awful moments. Here and there pop-up images of the island that Dr. Eggman had shown me as his words, "It is impossible to leave" keep ringing in my mind. How can an island be like that? What is forcing everything to stay out? And why did it let me get in? It doesn't make any sense. Where is Sonic? Did something bad happen? Or could it be that he finally grew tired of me?
For the next, well to me it feels like forever, I keep tossing around in the hammock trying to fall asleep. At some point, it must happen as the next I know I'm being woken up by the rays of the morning sun. Yawning I sit up and look out the open doorway. By far, this has been the worst night here. And yes, worse than when Eggman was keeping us awake. I'm so tired and at some point, I remember being cold and it all just sucks.
Groaning I get up and walk to the kitchen, only to remember that the coffee maker is at Tails' house. Annoyed, I quickly change my clothes and brush my teeth before leaving toward Tails'. Unlike most mornings here in "paradise", this one feels awful. The humidity in the forest is way too much, it's way too hot and for some reason everything feels so bright. I open the door to Tails' house and immediately walk over to the coffee machine. I brew the pot and while waiting for it to finish just look around the house a little. Nothing has really changed here but there really isn't anything to do. Once I finally have the coffee, I take a seat at the counter and drink the bitter liquid.
Is this morning really all that bad? I mean, I did wake up feeling like a car ran over me, but maybe it'll wear off. The air here is always warm, and the forest is always humid. And I'm pretty sure it isn't bright, but my eyes are just hurting because I just woke up from a not too good of a sleep. Maybe today will be good. It's just—
My thought gets interrupted as I hear commotion from outside. Or maybe it will suck. I get up and run out of the house. Heading toward the direction of the sounds, I realize they're coming from Sonic's shack. I increase my speed and as I finally exit the forest see what exactly is going on. Several beebots are flying around the shack shooting around as motobots and crab bots are attacking from the ground. Out by the entrance of the shack is Tails who is being held by two chinchillas. Among the bots on the ground is a blue blur that spins around as it destroys them. Doesn't take a genius to realize who that is.
There, in the middle of the robots is walking an older chinchilla blabbering about something. Sonic attack s the bots by him and pushes him away from the fight shouting, "Out of the way!" He takes him to a rock and places him on top of it as Tails uses a branch to destroy a crab bot. "This isn't working! We can't keep fighting around these Gogobas!" Sonic says to Tails.
"Maybe we should fight over them!" Tails replies and runs over to the shack. From its entrance, he grabs two hoverboards and throws the other to Sonic.
"That's what I'm talking about!" Sonic smiles as the two climb aboard their boards.
Tails flies up to the sky and toward several beebots. Another group of bots notices this and flies after him, only for the fox to turn away just as his about to crash into the bots. The second group of bots doesn't have time to change their direction, so they crash into the others, blowing them up. Sonic on the other hand flies toward a group of crab bots and crashes into one of them, sending pieces of it to fly against the other bots. "Take that," he proudly says. Tails then flies over to him and the two grab each other. They start spinning around increasing their speed destroying any bot that tried to near them. As the last bot is decimated the two stop spinning and turn to look at Eggman who groans.
"Ugh! You've got to be kidding me!" the doctor says.
"I suppose it was our own fault, for getting in the way," says the older chinchilla.
Eggman turns to look at him, "Yeah, you know what, it was your fault! I usually win at these things."
"Hey, are you trying to steal our new teammates?" Sonic asks Eggman.
"New teammates?" Eggman questions.
"Yeah, we couldn't have won this battle without the Gogobas," Tails explains.
"And if they joined up with you, it'll be like you won this battle, you'd be unstoppable!" Sonic elaborates.
"Yeah, I would've, wouldn't I?" Eggman ponders.
The older chinchilla looks over to Sonic, "We wish to stay with our protector, Sonic."
"Fine, let poor Eggman suffer they humiliation of defeat after defeat, even though you can help him," Sonic says to him.
"Well..." the chinchilla ponders.
"Come on, crowny, what's an evil genius gotta do to get you to switch sides?" Eggman asks him.
"We pretty much bend our knee to the nearest tyrant who wants to enslave us," the chinchilla replies.
"Done and done! Follow me. So long, losers! Um, march in unison please, I like organized followers..." Eggman says as the group leaves.
Tails and Sonic look after them and turn to each other. The two of them smile and fist pump as I walk over to them. "Where have you been?" I ask and the two turn to me.