Zephyr tossed and turned, under the sheets. His eyes snapped open, and he shot up. He was drenched in sweat, and gasping for breath. He put his hands on his face and slowed his breath. He took his hands off his face and glanced around; it took a few moments to recognize where he was. The room was nearly pitch black, but he could still make out the paintings on the walls.
"Just a dream, just a dream," he told himself, as he got out of bed.
He snuck out of his room onto the 3rd floor. The dark green walls and the almost black wooden floors were alit with the faint flicker of candle light. Zephyr carefully walked around the floor, looking curiously at the unusual looking candles that were ablaze with strange purply/pink flames, until his eyes caught something even more interesting. A portrait; of his father...
He quickly and quietly went toward the portrait. His eyes stared at the brightly colored painting, with wonder. Inside of the swirly golden frame, was a blue hedgehog, that was clearly his father, a bright tangerine two-tailed fox, and a red echidna with sugar plum eyes; all of them with bright smiles. On the bottom of the frame were the words.
"'Team Sonic'"
"Hi dad," he gazed at his father with pride, before looking a little closer at the others in the portrait "I guess those are Sparky's and Angie's fathers."
Did the other floors have these? Filled with newfound curiosity Zephyr went up the stairs to the 4th floor. The 4th floor looked different then the third, the walls weren't a dark green, but a deep indigo-violet and the doors were different colors; the only things that it shared with the third floor was the almost black wooden floor, and the fact that it was lit with many strange purply-pink candles.
The 4th floor portrait was of his mother. She had a bright smile on her and looked much younger than she did in the photos in his room. Standing next to her was the biggest blue cat that Zephyr had ever seen and an adorable little brown rabbit.
"'Team Rose'"
Zephyr smiled at the portrait, at his mother. She looked so happy. "So, this was your team mom?" he thought.
Zephyr continued up the floors looking at the portrait of each team that once lived on them. the 5th floor was a dull, honey gold, once again the doors were different colors, and the floors was the same as the last two. There Zephyr found, a portrait of what looked like a team of a lime green crocodile, a grape juice colored chameleon, and a young bee or he could have been a wasp; Zephyr couldn't tell.
"'Team Chaotix'"
Zephyr went up on to the 6th floor. It was the same as the 3rd; the same dark green walls, same almost black wooden floor, same purply-pink candles. Only the doors and portrait were different.
"This is the floor that Aunt Maria said she lived on," He remembered.
Zephyr came up the 6th floor portrait, and he saw Aunt Maria, but she looked completely different. Her quills were shorter. She was standing up strait, without any sort of cane, and the tired looked she usually had on her face was replaced with a bright energetic smile. She, like everyone else in the portraits looked so happy, standing next to her team mates, who looked like a jackal and a red wolf.
"'Team Sahara'"
He came to the 7th floor; where the staircase seemed to have ended. However, unlike the other floors, it was so dark that he could barely see four feet in front of him and the deep indigo/blue walls weren't helping. Where were the candles? Zephyr looked around, straining his eyes against the darkness until he finally saw the only source of light, on the entire floor. It was a single purply-pink candle, sitting on the ground, right below the 7th floor's portrait.
The portrait had a silver frame and inside was a pitch-black Hedgehog with red strips, a white bat, that to Zephyr looked very similar to Angie, and a what looked like a giant red, yellow and black robot.
"'Team Dark'"
"Well, now I know who Mari is related to, and the bat might be Angie's mom, but who is the Robot?" Zephyr thought.
"What are you doing?" came a monotone voice from behind.
Zephyr tensed, and quickly turned around. There standing in the shadows was Mari, thanks to her dark fur she was nearly invisible, but she had a clear give away. The triangle marking on her arm and strangely her left eye lid, were now faintly glowing a tranquil blue. She was wearing a white cropped tank top and pajama shorts, that revealed other markings that were faintly glowing as well.
"Oh, I Mari I'm sorry if I... uh, why are you glowing?"
"What are you doing up here?" she asked, completely ignoring his question.
"Uh...I couldn't sleep."
"You shouldn't be here."
"Why shouldn't I be? I'm a leaguer kid just like you."
"No, you shouldn't be here. On the 7th floor. In the middle of the night. People are trying to sleep."
"Oh...hehe... sorry... So...uh...what are you doing up?"
"Sending you back to bed, before you wake the entire place," she began to walk down the stairs, gesturing with her eyes for Zephyr to follow her.
Being kind of creeped out by her sudden appearance and by the darker atmosphere of the 7th floor, Zephyr didn't question it and followed her down the stairs.
"So, you lived in a restaurant?" she asked.
"How did you know that?" Zephyr was kind of surprised by the question, she didn't give any indication of talking to him at dinner, yet this sounded like small talk.
"I heard you at dinner," she said.
"You were eavesdropping?"
"I may be quiet but that doesn't mean I'm deaf."
"Don't you think that's a little rude?"
"There's nothing that goes on in this mansion without me knowing. Even if I wasn't listening, I would have found out one way or another." They stepped on to the third floor.
"Ok, now I know that if I want to do something. I'll it run by you first."
"Answer my question. Did you live in a restaurant?"
"Yep, and proud of it." They entered into Zephyr's room, "You'd be amazed about how many things you learn..."
"Did you live alone?" Mari interrupted him.
Zephyr's ears flopped down in annoyance, "No, I had foster parents."
"Did they treat you well?"
"Yeah, to them I was their son."
"Were you happy there?"
"Yeah, of course."
Her stoic expression seemed to vanish and was replaced with a face that said 'are you stupid', but it quickly returned to stoic again.
"You're such a fool." She muttered, before storming toward the door.
"Excuse me?"
Mari stopped at the door, and glared at him, her grip on the handle tight with anger, "listen I'm going to be blunt." Her words were drenched in venom. "You don't belong here; you won't be able to handle this life. You have to give up everything. If you can't sever your connections to the outside completely, those who you care about can die. The people here can die. You can die. So, if you have any lick of sense, you will be gone by morning," she slammed the door.
Zephyr just stood there, in complete shock. "Man, she is a hardcase," he thought.
________________________________________________________________________________
The room was dark, and quiet. CREEK! Went the wooden door, letting light and a long shadow. Zephyr was peacefully sleeping, every now and again letting out a small snore. He didn't notice the dark silhouette standing over him. The silhouette pulled something slowly out from behind them and... HONK!!!!!!!
Zephyr's eyes snapped open, he nearly jumped out of the bed. "AHHHH!!!!"
"Come on sleepy head time to get up!" said a cheerful voice, and then lights flicked on. He rolled over to see Angie. She was dressed in a short strapless simple brown dress with teal stripes going along the edges, plum purple leggings that matched her eyes, and a small teal and brown leather vest; she looked adorable. She giggled as she waved an airhorn at him.
Zephyr yawned, "What time is it?" he rubbed his eyes and sat up.
"Around six."
"SIX! Six in the morning? How early do you guys get up?"
"Like I said six. We get up at six, well except for Mari, she usually gets up at 5:15."
"Wow."
"Anyway, you need to get up. Breakfast is almost ready," Angie said as she started to walk out of the room. Suddenly she stopped and turned around. "Oh, and that's for you." She pointed at a small paper bag on the blue and white desk.
"For me? From who?" Zephyr got up out of the bed and walked toward the bag.
"Aunt Maria, she said it was a welcoming gift. See you at breakfast." She skipped out the door cheerfully.
Zephyr opened the bag and pulled out, a small watch and a pair of bright red shoes, with golden buckles. He awed at the shoes. They were much nicer than the ones he had using. He flipped one of them over and found small flaps on the bottoms of the shoes. He was puzzled by this detail but shrugged it off when he noticed a small card leaning against the bag.
"'Dear Zephyr,
Just a little something that I think you should have. The watch is a commutator and the shoes are models that are similar to the ones that your father used. They will last much longer than your old ones. Use them well.
From: Aunt Maria'"
"My Father?" He thought.
Zephyr put on the shoes, a perfect fit, and snapped the commutator onto his wrist. He then ran down the stairs toward the dining room. However, when he stopped (more like fell down) he was in a part of mansion that he didn't recognize.
Zephyr looked around. He was in a tall hall way that led to a single room. He continued down the hall (walking) to find what looked like a den. Part of the floor was lowered into a round couch, and a fire place laid dormant in front of it. Tons of bookshelves lined the dark green walls, and to his surprise there was a T.V; he thought that a place like this wouldn't have any electricity.
He looked to his right and saw, Damian. He was sitting on a small sofa, on the left side of the room, staring out a large window, watching the sun rise.
"What is he doing here?" Zephyr thought.
He walked over to Damian, "Hey, buddy."
Damian gave a little squeak, and quickly looked at Zephyr.
"It's Damian? Right?"
Damian nodded, never taking his mix-matched eyes off of Zephyr.
"Well, what you doing Damian?"
"Waiting for Mommy," Damian said, turning back towards the window.
"Oh, is she supposed to come back from somewhere?"
"Yep."
"From where?"
"A battle field."
Zephyr's eyes widen, "Your mom is on a battle field?"
"Yep."
"Why is your mom on a battle field?"
"She was needed on the front lines."
"Why was she needed?"
"There was a league level threat."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know."
"Ok...so, she's coming home?"
"Yep!"
"That's exciting. When was last time you saw her?"
"I don't really remember, but Auntie Maria says that Mommy left three years ago."
"Three years ago? That sure is sometime away from you kid. I wonder if..." Zephyr thought, "Has she sent you any letters or something telling you she's coming back?" he asked, aloud.
"No."
"Then how do you know she's coming back?"
"Because she promised."
"What do mean?"
"When mommy left, she gave me a big hug and said, 'I'll be back before you know it, I promise,' so she has to come back."
"You think she coming back?"
"She promised she would come back, and you can break a promise." Damian said innocently.
Zephyr looked at Damian, something seemed off, "Damian how old are you?" he asked out of curiosity.
"5."
5? He was five years old? Zephyr was shocked sure Damian was still young, but at five he should know if his mother is dead or not. If she left three years ago the chances of her being...gone, were pretty high. Damian seemed to be much younger than he was. He seemed small. All the five-year-old's that Zephyr had seen came up to his waist, yet Damian was at least ½ a head shorter. Then again, those five-year-old were mostly wolves, and Zephyr was still unsure about Damian's species, so he could have been wrong.
"Zephyr what are you doing in here?" Said a calm voice from behind.
Zephyr and Damian turned around to see Aunt Maria standing at the entrance of the room. She was wearing a light blue dress, that brought out her eyes, with a maroon scarf draped over her shoulders.
"I do hope you realize that the dining room is about five hallways back." She said with a smile.
"Oh, I over shot that much? I'm sorry, I didn't realize I was going that fast." Zephyr said slightly embarrassed.
"It's alright. We'll be working on that today, anyway. Come along, you two. Time for breakfast."
Zephyr started toward Aunt Maria, but Damian stayed where he was, looking out the window like his life depended on it. Clearly wanting to stay.
Aunt Maria smiled and shook her head, "We have waffles Dami."
Damian bounced off of the sofa and bolted down the hall. Aunt Maria chuckled and then sighed. She looked so happy and nostalgic, as if she was remembering something.
"So, what were you two talking about?" she asked.
"Oh, Damian was just telling me about his mom." Zephyr said casually.
The joyful look in Aunt Maria's pale blue eyes quickly faded into one of sorrow. "What about her?" she asked, quietly.
"Oh, just how she promised to come home," Zephyr noticed the sudden sorrow on her face. "Aunt Maria?"
"Yes Zephyr?"
"Is Damian's mom...?" he didn't need to finish.
"Dead? I'm afraid so," She sighed, "She was killed in battle three years ago."
Zephyr's looked at the ground, feeling kind of guilty that he asked, "Oh...Does Damian know?"
She sighed, "I've tried to explain to him, but the message never really got through. He just kept holding on to that promise she made him. He might be too young to understand, or he just doesn't want to believe she's gone. Either way I dread the day that he finally wakes up."
Zephyr's ears drooped. He remembered how much it hurt him to find out what happened to his birth parents; he was still trying to get over it. Damian was only half his age. Zephyr couldn't imagine how badly Damian's mother's death would hurt him.
"Well, I suppose we shouldn't waste any more time here. Come along now Zephyr, we better get to breakfast before Angie and Damian eat all the waffles." She began to walk down the hall, but she suddenly stopped and turned around, "And Let's walk, I don't want a Zephyr shaped hole in one of the walls thank you very much."
________________________________________________________________________________
Angie had just finished putting breakfast at the table, when Damian ran into the room, shouting "WAFFLES!"
She giggled and helped him into his chair, "You'll have to wait for a few more minutes ok. We can't start without the others."
"Aww," he complained jokingly, making Angie giggle again.
"Morning Angie, Dami," said Sparky as he walking into the dining hall. "How are you two feeling?"
"We're great! I actually got a good night sleep. Did you fall asleep in the lab again or did you actually make it to your bed last night?" Angie said jokingly, making Damian giggle.
"Very funny and for your information I did manage sleep in my hammock last night." Sparky took his seat.
"For once." Said Damian.
"DAMI!" Angie fussed, as she and Sparky were trying to keep themselves from bursting out laughing.
"What?" Damian asked innocently; Angie and Sparky excepted defeat and started to laugh. "What's so funny?" he asked, even more confused.
"Good morning children," Aunt Maria, said warmly as she walked in with Zephyr following close behind.
"What are you laughing at?" Zephyr asked.
"Oh, just the comedic genius of Damian Lazuli Shade," Angie answered. Damian smiled, knowing that he made his family laugh.
Zephyr sat at his place at the table and the breakfast chatter quickly began. No one even noticed the dark figure walking into the dining hall.
"What's going on in here?" Mari asked, she walked toward them; she looked tired.
"Morning Mari! Grab a seat; you look famished." Zephyr said.
"No thanks, I'm not hungry," Mari grabbed a glass of water, "And you should be more focus on yourself right now," She took a quick sip.
"Wow, are you always this grumpy in the mornings." Zephyr said.
"Only when people are acting like idiots." She glanced at Zephyr's plate, with its mountain of pancakes. "You're not going to eat all of that are you?"
"Uh, yeah. Why?" Zephyr asked confused.
"How nauseated do you want to get today?"
"Uh...What?"
"Marisol has a point. This week you'll be going through some trials in order for us to determine where to start your training and some of the trials can be...uhm...stomach churning." She turned to Mari, "However, I won't be putting him on the Spinner today, Mari." Aunt Maria explained.
"Eat no more than half, then come outside. I think you can find the door by yourself." Mari said as she and Aunt Maria walked out of the dining hall.
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr walked out of the mansion's tall wooden doors; they were surprisingly light and seemed to move on their own. He saw Mari out in the field, the ocean horizon behind her, practicing on a large balance beam, with Aunt Maria standing close by. She was preforming flips and twists on the beam, not stumbling even once. Her movements were smooth, précised and confident. Leap. Flip. Leap. Flip. Jump. Twist. Land.
"Wow, you're amazing!" Zephyr said, as Mari finished on the beam.
"Your compliment is noted and forgotten, Zipper," Mari said.
"It's Zephyr and I was trying to be nice."
"That's going to get you killed."
"Alright you two, that's enough," Aunt Maria chimed in, "Come, you will be doing the track today." She turned and walked began to walk away, "Somethings never change." She thought.
Mari began to follow her without question. Zephyr just shrugged and followed them. Going passed the mansion, over a large lake, into the nearby forest, onto an old dirt path and through layers of thick brush.
Zephyr stepped out of the brush, flicking off the leaves that clung to his fur. He looked up and cocked his head to the side in confusion. A little way in front of him was a large ditch. He walked to the edge and looked down. It was at least 10 feet deep, and 18 feet wide. At the bottom was a black and white checkered line. It took him a moment to understand what he was looking at.
"A racetrack?" He asked.
"Very good," Aunt Maria answered, "This track was designed to push speedsters to their limits, in speed, balance and reflexes."
"How? It just looks like a dirt track." Zephyr leaned over the side of the track and looked from side to side. The track went about 30 yards before turning blind corners on both ends.
"Looks can be deceiving Zephyr, and believe me this is no ordinary dirt track," Aunt Maria said as she walked over to a small white station and pressed some buttons. The white station lit up, the screens came to life and two small drones launched from the sides of them. The drones flew down in the track and hovered right in front of the checker like.
"Are we late?" Sparky said as he emerged from the brush, followed by Damian, who was carrying a large bucket of popcorn.
"Not at all," said Aunt Maria.
"What are you guys doing here?" Zephyr asked.
"We came to watch," Sparky said.
"Yeah, the last race that happened was before I was born!" Damian said with great enthusiasm.
"Wait...Race?" Zephyr looked surprised.
"Yeah, when racing someone people usually try harder, and have a better performance because they're competing," Sparky explained.
"And, you're going to run on a racetrack," Damian said.
"Then who's my opponent?"
"Uh... Mari, she's the only person who can match your speed." Sparky pointed at Mari; she was doing stretches on the ground.
"This is going to be easy then. She's not even running." Zephyr smirked.
Damian giggled, "No it won't. It took my sister 36 tries before she could do the track from start to finish."
"36?" Zephyr's eyes widen.
"Over the course of 2 months, she had to let her injuries heal in-between goes," Sparky explained.
"Injuries?" Zephyr thought, "Uhm... Sparky do you know if anyone has died on this thing?" Zephyr asked aloud.
"I don't think so."
"Great..." Zephyr said sarcastically.
"Damian, Sparky stop scarring him. Zephyr you have nothing to worry about, no one has died this track," Aunt Maria reassured, "But you'd better get on it. The sooner we do this the sooner we can begin your training."
"Wait...I thought this was part of my training."
"This race is more an evaluation, so I know what we need to work on to improve your speed. Now, please step on to the track." Aunt Maria said.
Zephyr was about to jump down onto the track to face his opponent, when "Wait! What about Angie?! she isn't here yet!" Damian shouted, not wanting her to miss the race.
"Don't worry Dami. She's not going to miss anything. She is actually where she needs to be to do her job for the race. Understand?" Sparky explained.
Damian nodded, but he was still a little worried that Angie might not get to see the race.
Zephyr jumped down onto the track and took his spot right behind the finish/starting line.
"May the best racer win," Zephyr held out his hand to Mari, hoping she would shake it.
"Your goal should be to finish the lap, not beating me," Said Mari.
Zephyr put his hand down.
A hologram that read 3 appeared in front of them.
"You worry about your goals I'll worry about mine. Besides it must be much harder for you because you're only pretending to be fast. The real deal, won't have the same problems as a faker." Zephyr said smugly.
2
"You might be right, but I'm still going to kick your butt."
1
"Sure, you are."
"Try not to die."
GO!
They both quickly turned into two dashes of light, one blue, one purple; they were off. They zoomed around the corner, dirt and light trailing behind them. Zephyr glanced over at Mari; it was fun having someone to race against.
Suddenly the track changed, the simple smooth dirt vanished, and there were pillars and potholes everywhere. Zephyr moved in between them with great difficulty. Everything was going past him so quickly, he nearly fell in to a hole or crashed into a pillar, multiple times. He glanced over at Mari; she was easily swerving in between the obstacles, slipping between them like running water.
"How is she doing that?" Zephyr thought.
They both made it out of the Pillars and potholes, but then they were rushed into a section of the track that was full of jumps, rails, chasms that seemed to be bottomless, and giant hammers that were swinging overhead. Zephyr had to jump, and swerve in order to not hit anything, but when he went over the jumps, he had great difficulty not spinning out of control when he landed. Mari just went up the jumps, slid on the rails, and leaped over the chasms, with ease.
________________________________________________________________________________
Damian Sparky and Aunt Maria were watching the race from the screens on the white station, with great excitement. The last time there was a race on this track was 5 years ago.
"The new camera drones are certainly much higher quality then the last ones. Well done Sparky." Aunt Maria said.
"Thanks Aunt Maria," Sparky said.
The racers had just exited the Jumps area.
"Is it time?" Sparky asked.
Aunt Maria, smiled and nodded her head.
"Hello, Angie, come in," Sparky spoke into a small commutator on his wrist.
________________________________________________________________________________
Angie was standing in the middle of the brush next to the edge of the track, "I'm here, is it time?"
"Go for it," Sparky's said through the commutator on Angie's wrist.
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr and Mari dashed out of the Jumps Area, into what looked like a perfectly normal dirt track. "Finally, a strait way," Zephyr thought.
Suddenly there was sharp screech, like metal scraping against metal. Suddenly, multiple gigantic pipes, started to roll on to the track from all directions.
"Whoa!" Zephyr shouted, as he dodged left, but he didn't have long to be relived. When he dodged one pipe another was coming from the opposite direction. Unlike the other obstacles that were still or followed a pattern, the pipes were completely unpredictable. His eyes darted in everywhere constantly looking for a pipe that wanted to crush him. There was nothing he could do but keep running. If he slowed down the pipes would hit him. If he sped up the pipes would hit him.
Suddenly, Zephyr felt his ankle roll and his body fly forward. The rough ground scraped his sides and his mouth fill the taste of soil. His body came to halt in a cloud of dust. A loud rumble came from both sides of him. He opened his eyes, and confirmed what he feared. On his left and right two pipes were charging toward him. He froze and shut his eyes, waiting for the onslaught of pain, that would come with two cold pieces of metal slamming into his body, but it never came.
Instead he felt something jerk his shoulder, and then the rushing wind of going at supersonic speed, blowing against his face. Zephyr opened his eyes, Mari had grabbed his shoulder and whisked him away from the pipes before they could crush him; she saved him.
"Try not to scream," she said calmly.
Zephyr nodded and grabbed Mari's arm. She turned quickly to the right and when up the curved wall of the track, narrowly dodging the rolling pipes. Then she turned left hard, using the extra speed from the hill, she jumped over any piped that got in her way and propelled herself and Zephyr over the right side of the track wall.
Zephyr, was panting as he kneeled on the stable ground. He was nearly killed. He would've been seriously hurt if not killed, if it wasn't for Mari. He looked up at the mysterious dark girl standing a few feet away, typing something into her silver commutator. Why on Mobius did she save him?
"He went down on Piper's Ally," she talked into her commutator, "We're heading back."
"You just saved my life," Zephyr said to her still a little star-struck.
"Yes, I did. Great assessment." She turned her commutator off. "Come on we need to get back," she began to walk along the tracks edge, back towards the others.
"You just saved my life!" he got up and started following her.
"Why are you repeating yourself? Would you have preferred if I had let you get crushed?"
"No, I like being uncrushed, it's just I thought you didn't like me."
"I don't like you, but I'm not going to let you die."
"Really because with what you said last night, I thought..."
"Ok," she rolled her eyes and turned toward Zephyr, "I know this is going to be difficult for you but try to listen. I wasn't trying to scare you off or assert my dominance if that's what you were thinking. I was trying to stop you from making a mistake."
"Why? You don't seem like the person to do that."
"The thing is Zipper, is that once you get to know me, not that you will, you'll find that I'm not a heartless monster." She turned around and started walking again.
"You have a heart? And I am thinking you were Damian's half-sister."
"What is that supposed to mean hedgehog?"
"Well, you and Damian have extremely different in personality types, I was beginning to think you had different mothers."
"Me and Dami are full on kin and our parents were happily married before they died! Thank you very much!" She hissed.
"Ok, ok, sheesh, no reason to get so upset about it. I was just asking. You're obviously like your dad then."
"And what would you know about my parents?" she stopped and started to fidgeted with the golden ring that was tied around her neck.
"Only that your mom cared."
"She didn't care enough to..." Mari thought to herself. An obviously troubled look crossed her face.
"Uhm...Can I ask you something?" Zephyr asked. Seeing how trouble Mari was made him want to change the subject.
"Why would you waste your time?" Mari said aloud, pushing the thought of her mother out of her mind.
"I'm going to take that as a yes. What species are you exactly?"
"Why? Can't you tell by looking at me?"
"Not really. I think you're a hedgehog, but there's something off about you. No offence."
Mari sighed, "If you must know, I'm a cross-breed. Multiple different creatures rolled into one. Yes, I know what you're thinking. My parents we're psychos that married outside of their species."
"No, not at all. I think that it's actually kind of cool that you're not just one thing. Do other people often think of it as gross?"
"They feed us bullets and drown us with tear gas on sight."
"Oh... so one of your parents was a member of team dark?" he tried to change the subject again.
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, the portrait I saw on the 7th floor had a hedgehog on it that looked a lot like you, and that was the portrait of Team Dark." Zephyr thought. "Just a guess." He said aloud.
"Lucky guess, my father was and he had a name you know."
"Yeah, and what was that?"
"Shadow the Hedgehog."
Zephyr froze. He had heard of Shadow the Hedgehog before. He had been a hero but unlike Zephyr's father, he didn't have the same...tendencies. While his father was seen as a beacon of hope, Shadow was often viewed as someone to be feared. Clearly, Mari had taken after him.
"Shadow the Hedgehog was part of the League?" Saying the name made him shudder internally.
"Wow, you really don't know anything about the League, do you?"
"Only the legends."
"The legends that you know have been scrubbed, sanitized and white-washed to only tell you what they want you to know and those fairytales are far from the truth. Keep that in mind Zipper."
"It's Zephyr."
"Doesn't matter to me."
Mari and Zephyr turned the corner of some brush to where the others were waiting for them.
"That was Amazing!" Shouted Damian as he ran to his sister, "Mari you were so fast!"
"Thanks, Razzberry," Mari said as she hugged her brother and took him into her arms.
"Hey, what about me? Didn't I do good?" Zephyr asked in a joking and obviously fake sad voice.
"You crashed," Said Damian, flatly.
"Hey going fast isn't as easy as it looks, you know," Zephyr gave smirk.
Aunt Maria chuckled, "I guess it might be. However, Zephyr... your performance... how long have you had your powers?"
"A couple weeks. Why?"
Everyone froze. This was not the answer anyone expected. Powers usually showed up before the age of three, anything after that would be considered to be a late bloomer. Zephyr was double that age, and his father had powers since he could walk, making him even more an anomaly.
"Is something wrong? You look surprised?" Zephyr asked.
"No child there's nothing wrong with you," Aunt Maria reassured him, while shaking off her shock.
"That's not what your face said," he thought. "Why did you ask how long I had my powers?" he asked aloud.
"Because you looked inexperienced."
Zephyr looked down at ground he knew that he wasn't good at running, but he was still a little embarrassed.
"But don't worry Zephyr, we can get you back on track," Aunt Maria said with confidence.
She then turned back toward the mansion, and the others quickly began to follow her. Mari right behind with Damian in her arms, then Sparky and finally Angie. Zephyr was the last one to follow them.
"Is there something wrong with me?" Zephyr wondered.
Angie suddenly stopped, turned around and smiled at Zephyr, "If it helps, I think you did very well for you first time."
"Thanks," he gave her a crooked smile.
She smiled sweetly back at him, before quickly turning around to catch up with the others.
________________________________________________________________________________
Aunt Maria led Angie, Mari, and Zephyr to a small shed on the other side of the crop field. Inside the shed, was a truck, a bell on a string that was tied to the ceiling, tons of hay bales, tires, and a strange futuristic looking tread mill. Everything inside seemed to be covered a layer of dust, like it hadn't been used in years.
"What is this place?" Zephyr said.
"This is all of the old speedster training equipment," Angie said, "I was like 3, 4? last time I saw this stuff, right?"
"No, you were barely two, when we went through this junk for the funeral," corrected Mari, "And it was first locked up in here when the track was built."
"Marisol is right, we stopped using this stuff when the track was built. We haven't had a reason to use it until now. " Aunt Maria said, as she blew dust off of a monitor, attached to the tread mill.
"And what is that?" Zephyr asked.
"To teach you, Zephyr. Your performance on the track clearly showed that you don't know that much about abilities, so we're going back to the basics," Aunt Maria, pressed a button on the monitor, the tread mill came to life. She gestured at Zephyr to step on the treadmill.
"Are you sure? I don't want to break anything of yours," Zephyr said worried.
"Don't worry about it. Most treadmills can go a max of 10-15 miles per hour, but you don't need to worry about this one. Uncle Tails designed this one especially for your dad, so it can handle anything you got," Angie said, with confidence.
Zephyr sighed and reluctantly stepped on to the tread mill. Pit... pat... pit.. pat.. pit pat, his feet sounded as they hit the cold dusty metal. As he gained speed, his legs became hard to see, and a shield of blue lightning surrounded him. It was strange to be running on a treadmill rather than outside, as there was no wind rushing into his face.
Suddenly and unexpectedly, Mari snickered. Zephyr turned his head but even he wasn't fast enough to catch her smiling, all he saw was her face in her left hand, shaking her head.
"What are you laughing at?" Zephyr said, confused.
"Oh, chaos," Mari looked at the ceiling. She walked over zephyr, and stepped up on to a part of the treadmill that wasn't moving. She then pushed Zephyr's head downward, and threw his hands behind him. Almost immediately, the speedometer on the monitor dramatically rose, and Zephyr's legs became nearly invisible.
"Your technique was inefficient," Mari said as she stepped off of the treadmill.
Aunt Maria smiled at Mari, but then something on the monitor caught her eye. She began to stare curiously at it, "Strange," she murmured.
"What is it?" Angie asked. She came over to the monitor, confused.
"Well, that's different," Mari as she joined him.
"What is it? Why do you look so surprised, at that thingy?" Zephyr asked concerned.
"Uh...This monitor works the treadmill and tracks your data, your speed, heartrate, body temperature, glucose levels, and don't worry, all of those are normal," Angie said.
"For him," Mari said.
"Yeah...Anyway it's the tracker that measures electrical discharge, that's...unusual," Angie explained.
"Angelina, is right I have never seen a speedster with such a high charge," Aunt Maria said.
"Is that bad?" Zephyr asked.
"Don't touch anything mechanical while you're running and you'll be fine," Mari said.
"Uhm... I wonder... Zephyr could you rev up into a spin ball? I want to see if it will change the discharge levels," Angie asked her eyes completely glued to the monitor's screen.
"Uh...Do what?" Zephyr looked at her confused.
"You can't spin-dash?" Angie asked, surprised.
"Angie of course he can't spin-dash, he's only had his powers for a couple weeks," Mari rolled her eyes.
"What's a spin-dash?" Zephyr asked even more confused.
"It's a special battle technique, usually used by speedsters," said Aunt Maria, "You basically duck your head down, and pull your legs in to turn yourself into a spinning projectile. Your father used and perfected the technique in order to use his body to destroy enemy robots in battle. That's why he never needed any weaponry."
"Cool...Am I going to learn that?" Zephyr asked his eyes sparkling.
Aunt Maria, chuckled, "I wouldn't have it any other way." She said as she walked toward the door.
Zephyr leaped off of the treadmill and dashed for the track, but a hand grabbed his shoulder and gripped it strongly. He came to an abrupt stop and turned to find Aunt Maria holding his shoulder.
"Hold your horses' kiddo. I didn't say we were going to start with the spin-dash right away."
"But you were going towards the door? I thought that..."
"That I was head towards the track to teach you? No, I just thought I should be close to the door in order to stop you from running to the track. There are some things we need to work on first before we get to the spin-dash."
Zephyr was a little disappointed but he flashed a bright smile and asked enthusiastically, "Ok, how do we start?"
Aunt Maria smiled, "Marisol get the truck running and Angie please fill the back with hay bales please."
Zephyr watched in amazement as the seemingly gentle and cheerful Angie lifted up three hay bales with ease and place them in the bed of the truck. She continued to put bales in the back, never looking tired.
"Whoa, she is strong!" Zephyr thought.
"Got it," Mari shouted as the old truck sputtered to life. Angie quickly stopped putting hay bales in the back opened the large shed doors, hopped into the bed and helped Aunt Maria into it as well. Then Mari drove the truck out of the shed and into a large field next to the sugary white beach. Leaving Zephyr in the shed very confused.
Zephyr chased after them, "What are you doing?" he shouted over the wind.
"This is your first lesson!" Aunt Maria shouted over the wind, "The only rule to this exercise is don't get hit!"
"What!?" Zephyr asked even more confused. Suddenly the sun was blocked out, and a hay bale crash next to him. "AHHHH! Are you Crazy!"
"Angie! Don't be afraid to hit him! He needs to improve his reflexes," Aunt Maria Shouted.
"Aunt Maria are you sure?! I don't want to hurt him!" Angie said as she readied another bale to throw.
"Yeah, don't worried sweetheart we're only throwing hay at him!"
"Ok!?"
"What?!" Zephyr shouted as another bale came crashing down, "Gah!"
For the next few hours Zephyr ran behind the truck with Angie throwing hay at him. He was hit twice, but he managed to avoid the rest of the bales. At the end of it he was tired and very hungry. He fell flat on the ground, the earthy smell of the ground filling his nose, as he breathed deeply.
"Are you all ok?" Angie said as she stood over him.
"Tired and hungry," he answered.
"Well, I wouldn't get to comfortable. Aunt Maria wants you in the training field after lunch."
"What? Why?" He picked himself off the ground.
"She has somethings she wants to work with you on."
"Well if she wants to see me." He started to walk off.
"Uhm, do you want the directions to the training field?"
Zephyr stopped suddenly his cheeks flush red with embarrassment, "Whoops."
Angie started to giggle and snort, "Come on, I'm heading there anyway."
"What a cute laugh," he thought. Zephyr shook off his embarrassment and followed the still laughing and snorting Angie. Suddenly, his stomach began to rumble. "Uh... So when's lunch? I'm kind of hungry."
"Don't worry lunch break will be soon."
________________________________________________________________________________
Sparky was underneath an old blue plane working on its engine, in a shady area on to the right of the mansion and to the left of the training field. Damian was lying in the grass reading a book next to Sparky's tool tray.
CLANG! "Ouch!" Sparky said as he rolled out from under the plane.
"You ok Sparky?" Damian asked.
"Yeah, I'm ok. Just another part fell off," Sparky rubbed his birthmarked eye, "Can you hand me the wrench?"
"Size 4 or 6?"
"4."
Damian reached up onto the tall tool tray and grabbed a small wrench, "Here you go," He handed the wrench to Sparky.
"Thanks," Sparky went back under the plane.
Damian went back to his book, and quickly became tangled in it, when he quickly looked up. His multicolored eyes lit up, "Angie!" he shouted and jumped up to meet his friend.
PANG! "OW!" Sparky jumped at Damian's shout and hit his head on the under belly of the plane.
"Hey Kiddo," Angie said as she gave the little boy a big hug.
"Hey Angie!" Damian looked behind her, "Hey Zephyr."
"Hey Damian," Zephyr waved. "Hey Sparky."
"Hey, Angie, Zephyr," Sparky said as he rolled out from under the plane rubbing his head, "ah..."
"Whoa, is that a Plane?" Zephyr jogged over to Sparky.
"Yep, doesn't fly all that well though," Sparky Said.
"Why?"
"Uh...it..."
"It was in a pretty bad crash about 7 years ago, hasn't touched the sky since," Angie finished for Sparky.
"Yeah...that," Sparky said solemnly.
"Sparky could you watch him, I got to go get something," Angie said.
"Uh, ok?" Sparky said confused, as he watched Angie walk off, with Damian following her.
"What's she up too?" Zephyr asked.
"You can never tell with, Angie. She's can be weird, and confusing, but she's always there if you need her."
"So, you like planes?" Zephyr asked as he grazed his finger tips on the old painted metal.
"Yeah, all machines actually. Getting up in their gears and taking them apart, is something I could do all day. If its mechanical I can probably understand how it works."
"Really?"
"Yeah, machines are easy to understand. They do what you built them to do. They're simple and they don't judge you like people do."
"What do you mean?"
Sparky looked at Zephyr confused, "Zephyr have you never been made fun of?"
"Of course, quite a few times actually. It was usually about these," he pointed at the patch of frosted pink quills that hung over his face, "A lot of kids called me a girl, or 'Pinky', but I didn't really care."
"How? I would have lost it, if they were making fun of me."
"I guess I just figured out that what they said didn't mean anything. It doesn't matter what other people think of you as long as you like yourself."
"I wish it was that simple for me."
"What? Mari told me that cross-breeds can have it kind of tough but why would people pick on you?"
"Wow, you really are from the outside. Zephyr, it doesn't just happen to cross-breeds. If you have powers or a weirdo mutation..." he gestured at his two tails, "...they treat you the same. I have only been outside about four times, every single time, something...bad...has happened." He gazed up at the white stone cliffs, "Beyond those cliffs your nothing but a freak."
"Is it really that bad for you guys?" Zephyr asked kind of shocked.
Sparky gave a small nod.
"Well, I'm sure you can't wait to fix this plane," Zephyr said, trying to change the subject to something a little easier for Sparky to talk about, "I bet you can't wait to fly it."
Sparky's eyes went wide, "Oh, no never in my life! I love to fix planes, not fly them. I can't stand heights."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I know it weird."
Zephyr looked closer at the little fox in front of him. "Wait who are you parents, again?"
"My father was Miles Prowler, or Tails the fox. Where did you think I got the second tail?" he waved his two tails.
"Couldn't he use his tails to fly, and wasn't he usually a pilot for the league?"
"Yep."
"You do know how..."
"Ironic my fear is? Yep, but he wasn't just a pilot, he was an inventor too. Most of the League's gadgets and gizmos came from him."
"Really?"
"Yeah, where did you think Mari got her skates?" Sparky's eyes began to sparkle and a bright smile grew across his face, "He made them for her when she was little, however she couldn't wear them until she was eight. They were some of his greatest inventions..." The bright smile on his face quickly faded and turned into a sudden frown, "...and among his last, then...He...came."
"He? You mean Scour..."
"DON'T! don't say that name."
"Why not?"
"We're not supposed to talk about him."
Zephyr was about to ask why, but he quickly noticed the pure terror in Sparky's face. His lips were pressed together, his eyes were wide, and although subtle his breath was shaking.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know that you were so scared of him. I guess it's hard to talk about your parent's murderer." Zephyr said quietly.
"Yeah..." Sparky looked at the plane, with a look of sad longing. "But at least now we have a chance."
"What do you mean?"
"You! You are our chance. The chance to end this murder's rampage, to avenge our parents. Do you know how long we have looked for you? YEARS. You're our chance. With the son of one history's greatest heroes we can't lose!" Sparky stared at Zephyr with his eyes now shining with hope.
Zephyr, looked at the ground with shock and worry, "Have they truly been wait for me?" he thought.
Sparky saw Zephyr's face, and decided to change the subject, "Zephyr, can I ask you something?"
"Uh, yeah. What's going on?"
"What was your life with your foster parents like?"
"It was ok. They were nice, sometimes a bit overprotective but overall nice."
"How was it nice?" Sparky sat on the ground and looked up at Zephyr, eyes wide with wonder.
"Well, in the after-hours when the restaurant was closed. Me and Pa would have races to find out who could finish sweeping their half of the dining area first. We'd always get to arguments about who finished first, and Ma would always tell us it was tie. After we were done Pa would take me up to my bed and tell me one of his crazy legends then Ma would come and sing me to sleep." Zephyr smiled, the warm memories of the happy times with his foster parents, flooding his mind. Would he ever get to see them again?
"Wow, did that happen every night?" Sparky asked, his eyes were sparkling with curiosity
"Not unless we ran late. On those nights I was rushed up stairs to go to bed at a reasonable hour. While Ma and Pa rushed around downstairs trying to keep the customers happy."
"It's sounds like you liked it there."
"Yeah, it was fun. I'm sure you and your parents had fun times like that thought right?"
Sparky's eyes imminently dulled, and his ears drooped.
"Hey what's wrong?" Zephyr asked a little concerned.
"I didn't know them."
"Who?"
"My parents. I was only a newborn when they died." Sparky curled into a ball and his eyes began to water.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring it up."
Sparky wiped his eyes, "It's okay."
"HEY!" Angie shouted as she and Damian walked toward them. She was carrying a large brown basket, and Damian had a large blanket in his arms.
"Hi Angie," Sparky said.
"Hi Sparky, hi Zephyr," Damian said, as he laid out the blanket.
"Hey Dami," Zephyr said.
"So, what were you to talking about?" Angie asked, as she sat down and opened the basket. "Or were you too just standing here in silence?" she joked.
"No, we were talking," Sparky said.
"Yeah, we aren't completely social awkward," Zephyr said, "What's in the basket?"
"Lunch," Damian said excitedly.
"Ok, now you have my undivided attention," Zephyr said, as he sat down.
Everyone laughed. Angie took out several sandwiches, some weird looking blue and purple fruits, and water bottles and pasted them around.
________________________________________________________________________________
Mari was standing on the right side of the training, watching her brother, cousins and Zephyr. She looked at their smiling faces as the talked and ate their lunch.
"They look like their having fun, don't they?" Aunt Maria walked up next to her niece, "You could join them if you want. It's not a bad thing to take break."
"He's making a mistake," Mari said completely ignoring what Aunt Maria had said.
"Perhaps," Aunt Maria answered, well of aware of what her niece was saying, "But only time can tell. He might surprise you."
"I doubt it," Mari walked off back toward the training field
Aunt Maria watched as her niece walked away. When was the last time that she saw her smile and play like a child rather than train like an adult? Three? Four? No, five. Five years, since she had last seen Mari smile and play. Parents usually joke about how children grow up so fast, but some kids have too.
________________________________________________________________________________
"Then Sparky, said, 'I told you that would happen'." Angie said. Causing Zephyr and Damian to laugh, while sparky just smiled slightly embarrassed.
"I didn't know you could be sassy, Sparky," Zephyr Said, gently punching Sparky's shoulder.
"Only that one time. I don't really like to be 'sassy'; I think its impolite." Sparky said.
"Aww, you're so sweet!" Angie squealed. Causing the little fox to go a bright shade of red.
"Angie quit it. You're embarrassing him," Zephyr said.
"Ok, ok, I'm sorry Sparky. I can't help it, sometimes you can be as cute as a muffin," Angie said.
The little fox started to turn back into his normal color and gave a timid smile. "It's ok Angie, I know you can get excited. Just please don't do it again."
"You should listen to him Angie. He's got a lot of dirt on you," Damian piped up.
"DAMIAN!" Sparky squeaked, as Angie and Zephyr burst out laughing.
"What? all I'm saying is that you could bring her social status crumbling down; if she had one."
Now it was Angie turn to fuss at Damian, but she couldn't really stay mad at him, with his adorable eyes and the other boys laughing their heads off.
"Oh, you're impossible!" she shouted to the whole group out of frustration.
"Well, well, it looks like you four are having fun," Aunt Maria said as she walked up to the group.
"Good afternoon, Aunt Maria," Said, Angie, Damian and Sparky, in unison.
"Uh... good afternoon," Zephyr said a little late.
Aunt Maria warmly smiled, "I hope you all had enjoyed your lunch and I hate to be the bringer of bad news but now we must return to our tasks."
Everyone began to pack up the leftovers from lunch. Right before everything was back in the basket and the blanket folded up, Aunt Maria stopped Angie, "Before you put that away you should grab a moonlace fruit, for Mari. I don't think she's eaten anything yet."
Angie nodded, fully understanding her, and grabbed one of the strange blue and purple fruit. Zephyr watched as she put it in her skirts pocket.
"Me and Dami can take this stuff back to the Mansion," Sparky offered.
"Very well," Aunt Maria said, Watching Sparky and Damian walking off, "Angie, Zephyr, come we must head to the training field." She spoke calmly and clearly.
They quickly made it to the field. Zephyr quickly noticed Mari in the far corner of the training field. She was standing on a ground that looked as if it was made of glass rather than the dirt floor that the rest of the training field had. She was still as stone; her quills were whipping around in the afternoon breeze.
Suddenly multiple glass ballistas grew from the floor, surrounding her. Their crystal-like forms, were large and glistened in the sunlight. There was low clicking sound, and one of the ballistas fired. Mari quickly slipped to the left making the large spear miss her by mere inches and strike the ground. The clicking sound began again.
One by one the ballistas began to fire, Mari slipped in-between the next two shots, but before the fourth ballista could fire, she flipped onto one of the already fired spears and use it to bounced up high into the air. The other ballistas followed her and number four took its shot. Mari flipped herself in the air kicking the fifth shot away and fell back onto the ground. Number five then when off. Mari glance behind her. She heard the quick snap of the glass spear firing, before quickly turning around, while whipping her left hand in front of her. A flash of green was sent at the flying glass spear. Suddenly there was a bright green explosion, the sound of the glass shattering and the field was enveloped in green smoke.
Zephyr ran towards Mari wondering if she was alright.
"Zephyr, wait!" Angie called after him.
When he arrived, the green smoke had cleared; Mari was fine. She looked at him a little annoyed, but suddenly her eyes widened. Snap. She quickly grabbed Zephyr's shoulder with one hand, pulled him behind her, whipped out her other hand and another bright green explosion followed. They were once again enveloped in the bright green smoke.
"cough Wow," Zephyr just awed at Mari. Was that the power chaos? Zephyr had heard stories about the warriors who had its gift but had never seen it up close. Mari's father was said to be one of the greatest masters of this ancient power, it was only natural for her to have some kind of connection to it.
"ARE YOU INSANE!?" Mari exploded, as she turned around to face Zephyr.; her face full of anger. The ballistias melted back into the floor behind her.
"What?" Zephyr asked, now scared half to death.
"YOU CAN'T JUST RUN ONTO A SYM GLASS FIELD WHEN SOMEONE IS USING IT! DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISH!?"
"Uh...uh...no."
"WELL YOUR ACTING LIKE YOU DO!"
"Marisol, that enough," Aunt Maria's voice rang clear. She limped closer, her face stern.
"Oh, My Gosh! I'm so sorry! Aunt Maria! It's my fault I didn't stop him in time!" Angie shouted, as she flew over to the group.
"Angelina, it's not your fault. This was an accident on everyone's part," Aunt Maria reassured.
"Wait a minute, why am I in trouble? He's the one who jumped into the middle of a war zone and messed me up!" Mari shouted and gestured Zephyr.
"Marisol, although true, his actions did not give you the right to scream at him like that," Aunt Maria lectured. Mari looked down; shame veiled her face and her ears drooped.
Aunt Maria turned to Zephyr, "Zephyr, what were you doing?"
"I thought the something had happened to Mari when the smoke covered her. I'm sorry I didn't mean to mess up whatever she was doing," Zephyr explained.
Aunt Maria sighed, "Zephyr I know your new here, and that you probably have never since a Sym Glass Field before, but you need to think before you act." Everyone remained silent. "Well, now that this is settled. Angelina Marisol, please continue your combat training. Zephyr please follow me." She walked toward another part of the field.
Mari walked in the opposite direction, with Angie starting to follow her. Angie turned around and spoke softly, "Good luck."
"Angie! You coming?!" Mari called back.
"Coming!" Angie hurried off.
Zephyr smiled at Angie and then hurried to catch up with Aunt Maria. "So, what are we doing?" he asked excitedly. "Are you going to teach me how to fight off baddies? Have me face giant hordes of killer robots? Break the sound barrier?"
Aunt Maria chuckled, "You will see."
Zephyr's ears flopped down, he was not satisfied with that cyprid answer, but Aunt Maria had to know what she was doing; she did used to work with his father after all. He decided to remain hopeful.
They arrived at a part of the field that was a large obstacle course. Monkey bars, parkour walls, pools and nets were everywhere. Zephyr stood there in awe.
"Over here," Aunt Maria called Zephyr. She was standing on a large blue mat, that was coated in dirt.
Zephyr walked over. "So, what are we doing?"
Aunt Maria shifted her weight on to her good leg and she turned around and faced Zephyr, without her cane.
"Were going to learn self-defense," she raised her hands.
Zephyr stared at her, a little worried. She had been so nice and he doesn't want to hurt her.
"Trust me, my balance may not be the best but you don't have to worry about hurting me."
Zephyr obeyed, although still extremely worried, about accidently hurting her. He raised his hands in to an awkward fighting stance and threw his left hand towards her. He felt something grab his hand, yank him forward, and something kicking his legs out from under him. The next thing he knew he was on the ground, and had the taste of soft dirt in his mouth.
"Are you alright?" she asked calmly.
"Yeah," He picked himself off the ground, "What just happened?"
"I pulled you forward throwing you off balance and then used my leg to finish the job." She wobbled on her good leg, "Could hand me my cane please?"
Zephyr quickly grabbed the cane off the ground. He as picked it up he noticed something. Three metallic bands wrapped around neck of the cane just below the gemstone handle, Two golden, and one a pearly sliver. He thought he saw something written on one of the golden bands but he handing to Aunt Maria before he could be sure.
"Thank, you," She said as she steadied herself.
"Your welcome. How did you know how to trip me? I didn't know that you knew how to fight."
"Child, I served on the front lines of the Equinox War."
"WHAT?!" Zephyr's eyes widen in surprise.
Aunt Maria, let out a large chuckle, "How did you think the nerves to my left leg were severed? By falling down the stairs?"
Zephyr just stood there, his mouth ajar. She was so sweet, and kind. How could she have been a soldier on a battle field?
"Don't act so surprised. I told you I was on Team Sahara."
"Yeah, but it though you were just medics or when on scouting missions."
She began to laugh, "Goodness gracious, no. We were mercenaries."
Zephyr stood there in silent shock for a moment, "You...killed...people?" Zephyr's voice was quiet and filled with shock.
"Oh no, I never did, I couldn't stand the thought of taking someone's life. However, I can't say the same for the other members. They were a little more comfortable with it, but they never killed in front of me. They knew how I felt about it." She looked at the ground and began to fiddle with the ring on her left hand.
"Are you...?" Zephyr cautiously asked.
"The last member? No, there's one left." She said solemnly, "He's currently on the front lines."
"I'm sorry for asking. I didn't mean to make you sad."
"It's alright Zephyr you every right to be curious." She sighed, "Now shall we resume your training?"
"Yes, please."
Aunt Maria gave a small, mischievous smirk, and the training began.
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr was hanging upside down; his arms were pinned to his sides with ropes.
"Your alone in unknown territory and you've been caught in a trap. You hear the enemy forces closing in on your location. What do you do?" Aunt Maria asked, she walked around zephyr.
"Umm, tell them that..." he tried to answer.
"NO! you use your quills."
"My quills?"
"Besides for your powers, they will become your most important tool."
"uh, ok," he rocked his head back and forth trying to flip his quills up and cut the ropes, "Almost."
"TIMES UP!" She plucked a quill for her head and sliced the ropes cause Zephyr to fall to the ground, "Your either dead or at you enemy's mercy. Marisol got it on the first try."
Zephyr sighed, "Course she did."
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr ran forward and gently turned his feet to the side, he tripped and fell down the too ground.
"COME ON! FRICTIONS YOUR FRIEND!" She shouted.
Zephyr quickly got back to his feet and went to try it again.
"IF YOU DON'T SMELL BURNING RUBBER! YOUR NOT DOING IT RIGHT!" She shouted.
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr ran towards every different direction. Arrows were flying all around him, and bouncing off the walls.
"COME ON! YOU DON'T WANT TO BE HIT!" Aunt Maria shouted from far off.
________________________________________________________________________________
Two bags of sand were hanging, from a pole that was resting his shoulders. He was running laps but wasn't allowed to use his speed. He was hot and sweating from the previous hours of training. He collapsed to the ground.
"What are you doing?" Aunt Maria walked up to him.
"I'm tired." Zephyr said, breathing heavily.
"Do you think you'll be able just stop in the middle of a battle?"
Zephyr didn't answer. Angie suddenly ran past him, she had sandbags too, although hers were three times the sizes of Zephyr's.
"Come on you need to get up. Are you really Angie beat you?"
"She's been doing this a lot longer than I have."
"Then you have a lot to catch up on, don't you?"
Zephyr let out a loud groan and pulled himself up.
________________________________________________________________________________
"LEFT! RIGHT! UPPERCUT! LEFT! RIGHT! CROSS!" Aunt Maria shouted.
Zephyr hit the pads that Aunt Maria had on her hands. He was tired but he worked hard. He was panting, and sweat dripped down his Quills, making them shimmer in the sun's dying light.
"Ok, that's enough for today." Aunt Maria put the pads away.
Zephyr collapsed on to the ground.
"You did good today Zephyr. You have your mother's kick."
"Really?" He asked out of breath.
"Yes, you do." She gently touched her right cheek, "I could never forget. Which reminds me."
She pulled an old piece of paper out of her dress pocket. "I thought you might want to read this." She handed the paper to him.
Zephyr took the paper, and imminently recognized the hand writing.
"'To My Friends,
I'm so sorry, but I can't stay here. Everywhere I see him, and I don't want Zephyr to grow up in a world where he is constantly being hunted, and haunted by his father's memory. I am so grateful to all of you. Helping me through everything that has happened. I want to tell you where I'm going, but I can't. I know that if I tell you, you'll come after me, and I can't let you get in the way of what needs to be done. I love all of you, and I'm sorry.
Your Friend, Amy Rose Hedgehog'"
Zephyr smiled sadly as he read the letter. He eyes starting to well up, but he didn't cry; he was too tired. She had saved him, at the cost of her own life. It was humbling but sad. Now all he wanted was to meet her and it hurt to know that it would never happen.
Aunt Maria looked at his face. It was the same one that Damian and Sparky would sometimes get. She knew what he was thinking.
"She loved you. When you were a baby, once she had you in her arms, she never wanted to let you go. It must have destroyed her to send you away." Aunt Maria said.
"What was she like?" Zephyr asked his eyes filled with sorrow and curiosity.
Aunt Maria sighed, smiled and sat down next to him, "Your, mom was one of the strongest women I have ever known, and that's saying something considering the people we dealt with on a daily basis. She was someone not to be messed with, and not just on the battle field. If you got her mad you were in trouble, but she was sweet. She could talk anyone out of doing something rash. And boy, she was stubborn."
Zephyr started to snicker.
"She was. If she wanted a mountain to move, she would stand outside and watch it until it did."
Zephyr laughed even harder.
"That's how she got your father."
"She wanted mountain to move for my father?"
"No. she chased after your father for years before he finally agreed to go on a date her."
"It took her that long?"
"Oh, she loved your father, so much that she never even considered that another guy might better for her. Although, she did get my brother mixed up with him once."
"Wait what?"
"Don't worry it didn't happen on their wedding day."
Zephyr burst out laughing again.
"However, I don't think it was completely her fault that it took so long for them to finally get together."
"What do you mean?"
"Your father was a great hero, strong, brave, a little bit cocky but great nonetheless. He never seemed give up on anything or anyone. Truly someone to marvel at. In some ways I owe him my life."
"Geez, I have to lived up to that," Zephyr thought, a little concerned.
Aunt Maria saw his face, seeing the worry. She gave a little bit of a mischievous smile, and leaned a closer to his ear, like she was about to tell him a secret. "However, between you and me, when it came to girls your father was a complete mess."
"What?" Zephyr asked confused, nearly forgetting his previous thoughts. "The great Sonic the hedgehog, the hero who you owe your life to, was mess when it came to girls?"
"Yes, in fact one Christmas, this was before your parents were together, we were playing truth or Dare, now that I think about it, it was terrible idea at time, but we were young and stupid. Anyway, your father was dared to say a pick-up line and he was so clueless that he actually turned on his communicator and looked up pick-up lines. We all laughed so hard that night."
"So, that's where I get it."
"Get what? Can you not talk to girls either?"
"It's never been the easiest thing for me."
She smiled lovingly, "Don't worry about that. Not everyone destined to fall in love and you're way too young anyways."
Zephyr eyes went serious, "Did he like me?"
"I'm sorry?"
"My father, was he happy when I was born? Was he alright when My mom sent me away and when she was captured?"
Aunt Maria face fell, realization and sorrow filled her eyes. "Zephyr, your father didn't know about you."
"What?"
"When you father was killed, your mom wasn't even aware that she was pregnant yet."
Zephyr eyes widened; he should've figured it out. Aunt Maria had told him that his father had died 11 years ago and he was only 10. The only picture of his mom that he was remotely in, his father was nowhere to be seen.
Aunt Maria pulled Zephyr into a warm hug. "He would've liked you. You're a lot like him, energic, confident, and brave."
She gently kissed his forehead, in a motherly way, before struggling to her feet. "Dinner will be ready soon. Don't stay out to late." She limped back towards the house. Leaving Zephyr to his thoughts.
________________________________________________________________________________
Zephyr walked up the dirt path to the sea cliffs, although he didn't know where he was going. His eyes looked around with wonder. Unlike the woodlands, he had grown up in, this one seemed to be alive in a more mystical way. The plants seemed to be pulsing in array of vibrant purples, tranquil blues and bright greens. Golden lights gently flouted around the in the night time air. Even the sea seemed to change, it seemed to shine much brighter than it did in the daylight and the sky; Zephyr had never seen so many stars. The only thing that didn't seemed to change were small black stones that littered the path.
As he ended the dirt path, he came to a small ridge. It was blanketed in a soft grass, that was pulsing in waves of a soft bright green, with a perfect view of the shimmering sea and on the left was a single tree. It was different than any of the others he had seen in this forest. Its bark was a pale white that in the moonlight shimmer like polished porcelain. Its dark blue leaves were pulsing with a navy-blue aura, and hanging on each branch were a number of the strange blue and purple fruits, he had seen at lunch. What were they called again? Moonlace fruits? Yeah that was it. He didn't try one at lunch because of their vibrant colors.
Zephyr jumped up and plucked one of the strange fruits off of the branches. He was hungry. He remembered that Aunt Maria said that Mari would eat one of them for lunch, but then again Mari wasn't entirely normal. He sat on the cliffs edge and contemplated whether or not he should eat it.
"I see you have found The Sacred Moonlace Tree of The Lost Lunar Souls." said someone from behind him.
Zephyr dropped the fruit, and quickly turned around. Angie was standing there, in one hand was a large brown basket, and in the other was one of the strange purply/pink candles. She was smiling sweetly.
"Oh, hi Angie, and is that what this tree is? I am so sorry I thought it was just an exotic fruit tree." He began to panic as he had accidentally dropped the fruit over the edge of the cliff.
Angie giggled, "No, you're right it's just and exotic fruit tree. I was just having a little fun with you."
"Thank goodness." He looked relived.
"Are you ok?" she walked over and sat next to him, putting down the basket and candle on the ground nearby.
"What? Why you would you think that I'm great."
"Stop lying. You skipped dinner, despite claiming to always be hungry, and Aunt Maria told me that you asked about your parents. I thought you might want to talk to somebody."
"I guess. It's a little unnerving, knowing that my father never knew about me, and all that my mom went through."
"Not easy huh?"
"No."
"It'll get better."
"How?"
"Once you realize that there's nothing that you can do about what happened, it's a little easier to move forward."
"You speak from experience?"
"Yeah."
"So, who were your parents?"
"Rouge the Bat and Knuckles the Echidna."
"Knuckles?" Zephyr asked slightly snickering.
"Hey I don't make fun of you father's name! And besides he had a reason."
"And what was that?"
Angie pulled off one of her long white gloves and showed Zephyr her hand. There on her hand right where knuckles were supposed to be were two large spikes. Zephyr eyes widened at this.
"My Father had them too, hence the name," She put her glove back on.
"Well, I'm never fist bumping you."
Angie burst out laughing, "Yeah, you really shouldn't. I'd hate to break you hand."
"I'm sure you could. So, does that mean you're a..."
"A half-breed? Yep, and proud of it. People might think that I looked freaky because of it, but I don't mind. I'm as strong a minotaur, can fly like dragon and I'm as dangerous as both of them."
"Wow."
"So, how was your first day at Camp Chaos?"
"Uh, it was interesting to say the least. I'm pretty sure that Aunt Maria wants to turn me in to a pretzel in combat training."
"Oh, just wait until she makes you spar with either me or Mari. You might not survive." She chuckled nervously.
"Oh boy, I'm in big trouble, aren't I?" Angie giggled again. "Do you think she's a bit harsh? I mean I know how bad the situation is, but she had me doing things I didn't even think I be able to do."
"Zephyr when it comes to staying alive, you're going to want to listen to her. She survived through one of the nastiest wars that the world has ever seen, a life threating illness, a miscarriage and cheated death on multiple other levels."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Dude, she's died once."
"You mean like her heart stopped but they got her back?"
"NO, I mean like she died and then came back years later."
"How does that work?"
"I don't know. You'll have to ask her. Good luck getting an answer though. She never talks about the day she died, or how she came back."
"I can understand that. I wouldn't want to remember the day I died either."
"I don't think anyone would, but it's one of the reasons why people respect her so much."
"I've noticed. Even Mari listens to her."
"And why shouldn't she? She's her Aunt."
"It's just that I'm surprised, that an edgy girl like Mari would back down almost instantly to someone like Aunt Maria. I thought for sure she would rebel."
"Mari is not an edgy girl!" Angie glared at him, "She's just a little hard to get close to. Believe me she's a sugar-coated marshmallow."
"Really? Cause all I have gotten from her is black licorice."
"She just needs more time. It's never been easy for her to talk to other people."
"You must really care about her, huh?"
"We grew up one floor down from each other, since the age of three. We're practically sisters."
"Wow," Zephyr was surprised, but he was suddenly hit with a wave of confusion, "You sleep on the 7th floor?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Are fathers used to be on the same team, right?"
Angie nodded, slightly confused.
"Then why don't you sleep on the third floor, with me and Sparky? I know your mom was on the seventh floor, but wouldn't you want to be with kids of your father's friends?"
"My mom used to live on that floor and I guess I was just always up there. The only time my bedroom wasn't on seventh floor was when Angel Island was still flouting."
"Flouting island?" Zephyr stared at her, nothing but confusion etched onto his face.
"Oh, you must not know. Angel Island was the ancestral home of the echidna tribe. However, something happened, the island was sent in to the sky, and the echidna tribe was killed off. My father was the last of his kind." She took a deep breath and the cheerful sparkle in her plum eyes seemed to dim, "Anyway, after my parents got married, they moved on to the island, where I was born."
"Then why did they come back here if they had an Island to themselves?"
"Well... the island wasn't the only thing that my father was left by his ancestors. For generations the Echidna tribe were the guardians of a magical relic of chaos energy, The Master Emerald. When it was destroyed and all the chaos energy was dispersed the island fell from the sky. My father lost his legacy and his home."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"It's alright. I was young. I don't really remember, but it isn't the easiest thing knowing that I'll never become a guardian."
"A guardian?"
"Oh, a guardian of The Master Emerald. I was supposed guard the Master Emerald after my father. Not going to happen now."
"If you don't mind me asking, was the Master Emerald like the stone that Mari used yesterday?"
"Sort of. It was part of the same energy line as the chaos emeralds. Except it was more of a stabilizer then a power source."
"Chaos Emeralds?"
"Wow... you don't know anything do you?"
"You don't have to rub it in."
Angie giggled again, "Anyway, yes the gemstone that Mari used yesterday was a Chaos Emerald. The Master Emerald was like those just supersized and a lot more powerful...And it might have been an actual emerald."
"Are you saying that the Chaos Emeralds aren't emeralds?"
"Emeralds are always green, that what makes them Emeralds, however their gemstone species, beryl, can come in many colors, but a deep vibrant purple isn't one of them. I think they might be some kind of quartz, but that's just a theory."
"Wow, you can figure out what magical relics are made of?"
"With the right tools I can find anything. Besides it was just a matter a find out what kind of gemstones that came in all of the colors that the Chaos Emeralds are."
"That's cool. You know your..."
"Not as dumb as I look." She said quickly and coldly, and turned away from him.
"uhm...I'm sorry uh, I-I didn't mean it like..."
"Zephyr the Hedgehog. Let's get one thing straight. My father and I were NOT dumb, we're just strait forward people that have big hearts. Sure, my father wasn't the sharpest tools in the shed when it came to some things, but he was never an idiot. I want you understand that and I don't want to hear you talking down to me like I don't have a basic education. Are we clear?" she glared at him.
Zephyr Gulped, "As crystal."
"Good. I can't tell you how many people just assume things about me." she turned away from him again.
"Like what?"
"Like I can't read. That I'm nothing but muscles and a pretty face. That I'm very gullible, which I'll admit I can be, but not always." She took a deep breath, "It just goes on and on." She sighed.
"Well, I know that all of those are dead wrong."
Angie turn back to him, smiling, "Wow, you really know how to flatter a girl don't you?"
"Wait what? I-I D-didn't mean anything like that!" Zephyr began to panic.
Angie Burst out laughing again, "Zephyr, I'm teasing!"
"Oh..." Zephyr said, but suddenly his face fell.
Angie quickly noticed his expression; it was a mixed of worry and utter defeat. "Is there anything else on your mind?"
"What no, I'm fine," Zephyr quickly said, trying to pass off a smile that was clearly fake.
"Don't lie to me."
"OK... maybe I'm a little worried."
"About what?"
"Well, When I first left Birchtown, I thought that the worst-case scenario was I was going to find their graves and maybe a family friend, but never anything like this."
"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?"
"yeah."
"Life can throw you a loop and you just need to take it one step at a time. When my Father died..." Zephyr's ears flicked up and he quickly turned to Angie, "It wasn't easy for me or my mom. I know going to be hard for you, but you just need to slow down."
Zephyr just nodded, not knowing what to say. He felt sorry for her, but he didn't know how to comfort her. He had never been in this situation before.
"Well, it late and I'm tired." Angie said as she got up and stretched, "Your dinner is in the basket. I thought you might be hungry. Goodnight Zephyr." She turned around walked back down towards the house.
"Good Night."