The Marble Zone was not one of Sonic’s favorite zones, with all the lava and the traps laid by Eggman. So you can imagine why he was very cautious while zipping around the actually quite artistic looking marbly field, with Shadow, Silver and Blaze not that far behind. However, one was highly resistant to injury, one could fly above the lava pits and one was literally immune to burn. Sonic rolled his eyes and proceeded to simply guide them over to Eggman’s lair. Blaze however was somewhere else with her mind, staring at nothing as she casually walked inside lava, coming back only when she realized she had sunk up to her chest in it. -Great…- she grunted as lava behaved kinda like quicksand so she knew not to struggle and simply waited for Silver to extract her from it, which happened not long after as he took her out and placed her on solid ground. -Thanks…- she said, wiping her dress and resuming running. Silver sighed: he usually was not very good at knowing what others’ mind state was but if Blaze, one of the more competent and mature people he knew, could be this distracted, it meant that something was wrong. He floated to her, flying on his back as she looked down at her, trying to think of what to say. -...What?- asked the firebending cat. -Nothing, it's just… Are you okay, Blaze?- he asked, blinking. -I’m fine…- she replied, huffing. -...Look, I’m not the brightest around here, but I can tell something’s upsetting you. You can tell me, we’re friends, right?- he said, smiling a bit. -(I want to be more than that…)- she groaned in her mind, then she sighed. -I just… I want to catch this guy, but… I don’t know if we can…- she said, looking down and jumping over another lava pit. -Seems to me you know this guy very well.- he said, which had her almost tripped, but regained her balance quickly. -...You can say that… But only because I’ve been trying to get this maniac for several years!- she quickly snapped, as if she was covering up something. -Ok ok, you don’t have to raise your voice. I understand being fully wrapped up in your purpose. Look at me: I have followed Nega across time to beat him, and now I have to fight two eggheads at once for a future that seems to want to stay in ruins, no matter how hard I fight to change it.- said Silver, clenching his fist. Blaze sighed: of course he’d know what she was going through. -I guess each one of us has our own impossible mission.- she stated. -Yeah…- Silver replied as they kept up with the other two hedgehogs.
-Aw, aren’t they super cute?- asked Sonic, smirking as he looked back. -What do you care?- Shadow asked back, huffing as he leaped over a lava pit and smashed a security bot with his rocket shoes. -I guess being with Amy has made me change my mind about relationships. I used to think that being caught in one would slow me down, but it actually gave me another very good reason to run.- replied the blue hedgehog, karate chopping a Grounder bot. -Too bad Silver’s kinda dense and doesn’t see how much she’s in love with him.- added Sonic, sighing. -If you want them to be together so much, why not tell Silver?- asked the Ultimate Lifeform. -Dude, that'd be, like, so wrong! They have to figure out each other, or else their relationship won’t be genuine. It’s so clear that you know nothing about romance, bro.- Sonic replied, running backwards. -Ok, one: don’t call me bro. Ever again. Two: you should focus on our current mission instead of losing time with this useless stuff. And three: I know about romance, you moron. I just don’t understand what’s so difficult with just telling your interest that you want to be with them.- Shadow grunted as he slid under an Egg Pawn, breaking its legs. -The fact that you say that proves otherwise…- said Sonic, spindashing onto another Egg Pawn, then stopping. -Whoop! There we are!- he said out loud so that Silver and Blaze, who too had met and destroyed a few Pawns, would listen and stop running. -This is the Egg Tower, Eggman’s self proclaimed 8th wonder of the world.- said Sonic showing them Eggman’s base, which was just a very tall tower with Eggman’s insignia emblazoned on it. -That’s it?- asked Blaze, folding her arms. -I mean, it’s tall and all, but…- commented Silver, placing his hands on his hips -Eggman has no taste.- Shadow stated coldly, to which a huge tv screen appeared on the front of the tower and the two eggheads appeared.
-Hohohoho! Sonic, my dear archenemy, we meet again. Here to witness the might of my latest creation?- asked Eggman, laughing while Nega stayed in the back, arms folded and scowling. -Nah, I’m here to show my friends how ugly your mug and this thing are. By the way, thanks a bunch for placing all those tourist signs all over the zone, which made it much easier to find this place, though I don’t see how anyone would come to visit it.- Sonic giggled. -I’ll have you know that tourism is better than ever, rodent! Just before you came, a family came to visit and bought several Eggman-themed souvenirs after making a full tour of the tower!- Eggman growled, slamming his fist to the screen, to which Nega groaned and rolled his eyes beneath his glasses. -Are you really indulging in this useless conversation?- he grunted at Nega. -Uh, duh? Tourism helps me afford these bases, you know, whenever I’m not using them to plan my world-conquering schemes…- said the evil scientist, to which Nega rubbed between his eyes and pressed a button. -Nega Egg Armada, deal with these pests!- he commanded and, as the door of the tower opened, revealed a massive army of robots, a mashup of the Egg Pawns and the Nega Pawns in front of them. -Heh, it’s party time!- said Sonic, grinning and slamming his fist on his other open hand as the armada charged at them, the ground shaking as they approached the four heroes. -It sure is a lot of robots…- commented Blaze, swaying her tail. -They’re only trying to scare us… And they’re failing! Silver, round ‘em all up, please.- said Sonic, smirking. -I was waiting to hear it…- Silver giggled and cracked his fingers before walking in front of his friends and getting in position while the robots continued to inexorably advance. Silver stretched his hands forwards, forming a barrier in front of the first row of robots, who couldn’t stop in time and slammed onto it, allowing Silver to pick them up and compact them into a ball of scrapped metal. Thn Silver smirked and tossed the ‘ball’ at the other robots, flattening and destroying a good number of them. -Oh yeah! That’s a strike, baby!- he cheered himself as the rest of the robots charged and shot at them. Sonic and the others took cover as Silver formed a shield with which he grabbed all the projectiles and threw them back at the bots. -Let’s help him, guys!- Sonic shouted and charged up a Spin Dash, bolting at full speed at the robots and piercing three of them in one go. -Chaos… SPEAR!- said Shadow as he shot his trademarked Chaos energy bolts of energy at the robots, breaking through their armor with ease. -BURN!- Blaze shouted as she emitted a colossal wave of flames, aided by the warmth of the lava around her, which melted her assailants with ease. Despite getting absolutely bodied by the four heroes, the robots kept marching on, although this led more of them to their demise as the heroes made quick work of the huge armada.
-Damn, they’re destroying them all…- grunted Nega, he had worked hard to merge his superior technology with Eggman’s so you can imagine why he was being this upset, but Eggman looked all but worried. -Calm down, sonny. We gave them a false sense of security. Now we strike hard.- said Eggman, turning his back to their guest, still hidden by the shadow of the room. -Buddy? It’s time.- said the evil doctor. -About time…- grunted the stranger, who then was wrapped in an ominous orange aura and bolted through the roof of the room. -Tsk, doesn’t this guy know of doors?- grunted Nega. -But what an exit…- commented Eggman, chuckling. The figure rushed up in the air, then stopped and took a deep breath. -HEY!! You’re trespassing into the property of Doctor Eggman. Leave at once or you will be terminated!- he shouted loud, allowing the heroes down on earth to hear him. -Huh?- asked Sonic, looking up. -What the…?- Silver gasped as he saw who the intruder was. -Is that him?- asked Shadow. -Yes…- groaned Blaze, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists. -One of the Multiverse’s most deranged and powerful psychic masters: Venice the Hedgehog.- she exclaimed dramatically as, far from them, a storm started brewing. The flying hedehog’s cream white hair flew in the wind along with his abundant orange chestfur, as orange as the aura flaring from his body. His piercing cyan blue eyes stared down at the intruders and he clenched his fists, showing off the spikes on his black gloves. He was an exact copy of Silver, only that he looked much more menacing. -Wait a minute! But that… That guy looks exactly like me! Is he your world’s version of me? Does that mean that in your world, I’m a dangerous psychopath?- Silver asked, looking fairly shocked by this situation. -Silver… If there’s one thing you don’t wanna do… Is comparing him to you…- Blaze’s voice cracked as she held her hands to her chest and started shivering. -He… He destroyed several big cities all over the Multiverse, including the biggest city in my world aside from the castle citadel, which was the commercial town of Aquaria… He forced my father to kill my mother and then commit suicide once they found out… And worst of all…- she told the others as tears fell down her eyes. -…He’s a ruthless, unempathic, maniacal, possessive monster who has no problem using others to get what he wants…- she finally said after a pause to sob and looked away to hide her tearful face. Sonic and Shadow were surprised to see her crack like that and even Silver had never seen her look so vulnerable before. Then it clicked for the silvery hedgehog.
-...How long?- asked Silver, to which she sniffed and looked at him, tears trickling down her face. -How long were you two together?- Silver asked again, which prompted a chuckle from the blue hedgehog. -What are you talking about, Silver? There’s no way that she could’ve been in a relationship with such a guy. Right… Blaze?- his jovial voice died in his throat as Blaze continued to silently cry, the look in her eyes spoke louder than any word. -No. Way.- Sonic said in shock. -You’re extremely stupid, you know that?- Shadow grunted and punched his shoulder. -...Three years… He robbed me of three years of my life… I… I thought we had something, but…- she couldn’t finish speaking as she almost fell on her knees, prompting Silver to sustain his friend. Up in the sky, Venice was seething in anger: they forgot he was even there. He growled and was about to descend down on them but then he took a closer look and froze. -Wait… Those fluent, majestic hair… That fur color that yells of royalty… That uniquely feminine yet muscular body shape…- he spoke to himself, shivering. -Can it be…?- he stammered, to which he started descending at super speed, becoming somewhat like a comet. -Watch out. He’s coming.- said Shadow as the whistle coming from Venice’s descent became louder and louder until he impacted with the ground, creating a massive crater. -Woah… Ok, I have to admit, that was kinda cool.- said Silver as Venice walked out of the crater. Blaze bit her lip so hard that it almost bled and clenched her fists very hard, making them sizzle slightly as she walked forward. -Blaze? What are you doing?- asked Silver. -I… I need to do this… Alone. No one follow me.- she said, she was still shivering yet her walk was impeccably royal-like. -I’m not letting you face that guy alone!- said the silvery hero, but Shadow blocked him. -This is her fight. Let her face her demons as she sees fit.- stated the ebony hedgehog, to which Blaze looked back and nodded slightly at Shadow before continuing to walk towards Venice, who did the same until they stopped a few meters away from each other, the warm wind blew their hair as they stared at each other silently.
-Blaze…- Venice broke the silence as his voice quivered. -Venice…- replied the lilac princes, rubbing her arm. -It’s… It’s really you…- he stammered. -Yeah, it’s… been a while…- she said, unsure of what to do, then Venice clenched his own fist. -LOOK OUT! HE’S GONNA…!- Silver bursted and tried to fly to her, being held by Sonic and Shadow as Venice dashed at her very fast and… hugged her, wailing her name as she was left speechless. -...Hug her?- asked Silver, confused as to why he would do that if he really was the monster Blaze told him, as the other two dragged him down. -What part of letting her face her demons as she sees fit don’t you understand, Silver?- grunted Shadow as Silver landed on his butt. -S-Sorry, I thought…- Silver groaned as he got up, watching the two ex lovers interact. -I CAN’T BELIEVE I FINALLY TRACKED YOU DOWN! I WAS SO WORRIED I LOST YOU!- Venice bawled as he nuzzled with her, leaving her extremely confused. -V-Venice…?- she asked, raising a brow as he calmed down. -Shh shh shh… You need not speak… I know what happened and it was not on you… It was those old geezers’ fault…- he whispered in her ear, which had her widen her eyes open as tears ran down her cheeks again. -O-Old… G-geezers?- she stuttered. -Yeah, your parents… Ugh, they could never accept me because I wasn’t of royal blood… Good thing I took care of them…- he groaned to which Blaze got free in a fit of rage and slapped his cheek hard. -HOW DARE YOU?!- she growled as Venice was thrown off balance, but he regained it easily. -...Ow. That really hurted.- he said, rubbing his cheek, although his voice was deadpan, as if what he said wasn’t really what he thought. -YOU HAVE THE GULL OF SPEAKING OF MY PARENTS LIKE THAT?! YOU’RE WORSE THAN I REMEMBERED, YOU’RE DEMENTED!!- she growled in tears. -...And that hurted my feelings.- said Venice, as if Blaze’s sorrow meant nothing for him. -You dare mock my pain?!- she growled again. -Calm down, baby, you’re overreacting because you still think you loved your parents, but you know better than me they were holding you down.- said Venice folding his arms. -I don’t THINK I loved my parents, I did! And you made them kill themselves, after slaughtering an entire city for no goddamn reason!- she growled again. -Please. Gods don’t need reasons.- he huffed, shaking his head. From where they were Sonic, Shadow and Silver watched the scene. -They sure are catching on…- commented Silver. -Bah. What they do is not my concern.- said Shadow. -But it is so mine!- Sonic said and dashed towards them, making the others almost trip at the gust of wind he generated. -Aaaaaand… We’re screwed…- Shadow grunted.
Sonic appeared between the two arguing ex lovers, stopping their argument. -I’m sorry to interrupt the reunion, but there are a few questions I have to ask to Silver’s faker.- he said. -Sonic, don’t interrupt me! I’m in the middle of a discussion!- Blaze hissed at the blue hero. -Yeah, I’m sure it’s important and all that jazz, but yours truly has been brainwashed by your ex and wants to know why and what he wants. And ain’t that important too?- replied Sonic. -Absolutely, but you can’t just interrupt people. It’s rude and childish.- Blaze grunted, while Venice clenched his fist. -Ugh, you too? I’m NOT childish! I’m practical! You can argue with him all you want once we defeat him…- Sonic ranted until he felt Venice’s hand on his shoulder, so he looked back and saw the evil Silver behind him. -I understand your reasoning, Sonic, but I’m busy as well. I swear I will answer all your questions, once I take care of something.- said Vencie, in a calm yet ominously deadpan tone. -Uh… Ya will? And… What’s that something?- asked Sonic, blinking. -Easy…- murmured Venice as he suddenly clamped down hard on Sonic’s shoulder, making him gasp and groan as his grip became vice-like and already made his shoulder bone creak. -NGH! H-Hey, w-what are you…?- Sonic whined as he struggled to keep upright since Venice was pushing down on his shoulder to increase the power of his grip. -I’m showing you the error of your ways…- he said as he clenched his fist. It was then that his deadpan expression morphed into a scowl of anger. -...LIKE INTERRUPTING MY PRINCESS!!- he suddenly growled in an almost animalistic way as he punched Sonic in the back so hard that he was sent in the air and through the clouds. -Sonic!!- Blaze yelled as his scream was lost by the altitude. -Fuck, this guy is strong!- commented Silver, gasping in surprise. Venice took flight and followed Sonic in the air, grabbing him by the chest and pummeling his face with the free hand; each punch made the spikes on the gloves scratch and pierce Sonic’s skin, causing him to bleed. Not to mention, Sonic had a pretty nasty and bleeding scratch on his back, between his two back quills. -You’re nauseating! People like you truly revolt me!- Venice growled as he let go of Sonic and punched him down on the ground, flying at him at great speed and making his descent faster as he kicked the blue hero’s stomach and caused a crater as they landed. -Woah, that’s gonna leave a mark! Sonic is almost unable to react! I’d surely hate to be in his place…- Eggman giggled as he and Nega watched the brutal beatdown enfolding. -Truly. And this is barely the beginning. Robots! Keep the other animals distracted!- ordered Nega as he pressed a red button. -Crap, Sonic’s getting stomped!- said Silver who had reunited with Blaze. -Ugh… That’s exactly why I wanted to take care of him alone… Now that he’s mad it’s gonna be much harder to have him listen…- Blaze sighed, then both turned as Shadow huffed. -Then let’s subdue him and force him to listen.- said the Ultimate Lifeform. -Subdue him?! Are you crazy?!- Blaze shouted. -Shadow, at least you listen to me. There’s no way that any of us can fight him. Thanks to his psychic powers, he’s able to use the full strength of his brain and muscles. Not even someone like you can even come close to hurt him, let alone subdue him!- she explained, while Silver shivered a bit as she described his power. He truly sounded like a scary enemy, especially with how easily he was taking care of Sonic. However, Shadow answered with a scoff. -That’s what you say. You don’t know how powerful I really am. No one does. And no one, NO ONE, tells me what to do, especially not a whiny princess. Now stand aside, so I can mop the floor with your ex’s face.- said Shadow, still arms folded. -NO! I refuse to let you through! It’s suicidal!- Blaze growled and stood in his way. -If you want to fight him, you’ll have to go through me!- she shouted as she spreaded her arms to block him. Shadow stared at her for a second before teleporting away, leaving her and Silver alone. -...Okay, that was both badass and extremely rude…- Silver commented while Blaze groaned and clenched her fists.
