GeneX - Soleanna Struggle
Chapter 1 - Plan of the Deathbringer
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
The Cosmic Interstate is (c) Archie comics.
"If you were able,
Would you go change the past,
To mend a faux paux,
With one last chance" - Dreams of an Absolution, Sonic the Hedgehog 2006
The universe is a vast place. It stretches further than the furthest reaches of the imagination. Still, a single universe doesn't even scratch the surface of what's out there. Hidden in each universe is an entrance to countless other universes, dimensions, and realities. Some are nearly indistinguishable from others. Some have only slight variations from others. Still others are drastically different. Among the many alternate realities are a group inhabited by anthropomorphic animals. A common factor in many of these dimensions is a powerful force of good, an incredibly fast blue blur known in all such realities as Sonic the Hedgehog!
This story takes place in one such universe, known as GeneX Prime. Perhaps you already know of the first major quest that distinguishes this dimension from similar ones. (Detailed in "GeneX - Tails the Fox" and "GeneX - A New Beginning") This is another side of a story shared by this and a similar dimension. (The other sides detailed in the "Sonic the Hedgehog" video game for PS3 and X-Box 360) For both worlds, the future is bleak. The denizens of the world have lived in darkness and despair all their lives. Life is a struggle, and people live without hope. When asked how the world came to be like this, no one has a good answer, but they always point to the flames. Flames belonging to an eternal life form, which cannot truly be defeated. It is the Flames of Disaster, known as Iblis.
Yet hope never dies. Some beings in this nightmarish world have chosen to fight back. Discarding weapons in favor of special powers, they have formed many small groups of freedom fighters, searching for a means to destroy their eternal nemesis. Leading the struggle in Soleanna, ground zero of the day of disaster, are two good friends, Blaze the Cat and Silver the Hedgehog. Many believe these two will finally destroy Iblis, but there's always a chance that they will instead be destroyed. Therefore, some groups are searching for havens where people can live safely during the reign of Iblis. One group, led by a fennec called Fred Leo, has departed for the place once known as Angel Island, now called Onyx Island. It is their goal to liberate the island from the rule of Dr. Eggman Nega, and more importantly, cleanse the island of the Lost Ones. Spirits and souls lost to darkness, the Lost Ones have taken control of Onyx Island away from Eggman Nega and placed one of their strongest beings in charge. Still, Eggman Nega maintains his former base as best he can, so the freedom fighters must defeat him as well as the monsters.
Fred's apprentice, Gemini, gazed out the window of the helicopter that was taking them to what they hoped would be a new stronghold in the struggle against Iblis. "We're almost there..." she said, fear in her voice. A friend of hers, Timothy the Fawn, was searching the island with his binoculars. "Do you think the Lost Ones have spread far in the island?" he asked, not directing the question at anyone in particular. "We won't know that until we find the current guardian" came the voice of the pilot, a pink fox named Evelyn. "Pay attention to where you're flying, Eve." Fred suggested. He was a white fennec, much like Gemini, who wore black clothes similar to that of a priest. In his hand, he often held his wand, black in color with a turquois gem at the tip. "Everyone, keep your guard up. The Lost Ones have likely overrun the island, so never assume you are safe. Especially you, Adam." he said, glaring at the gray haired bat he was addressing. Within moments, the helicopter landed on the island, joined by two more shortly afterward. Their group contained over 20 miscellaneous furries.
Watching the helicopters from the skies high above was the smoky being often believed to be the leader of the Lost Ones, Lospecter. After watching the helicopters land, he plummeted to the surface of the island, stopping just above the ground. He soared through the island toward a dark temple, then through the wall of the temple. Inside, it was dark. The floor was covered with Losol and the lesser, Loslime, and blue Ghost Fire burned in several places throughout the temple. Within moments, Lospecter reached a the large central room of the temple, which contained a few statues of fearsome monsters and a large organ piano covered in Ghost Fire, which was being played by a human-like creature, with turquoise skin and blue and green clothes. He had pointed ears, dark blue hair, and sharp fangs. He looked sort of like a vampire. "How can all the sorrow and all the pain of our time give rise to such a sweet melody..." the creature pondered as he played the organ. "Sweet melody? It is mournful and miserable. C'mon, Losipher, you have control of an island! Can't you be a little happy with your success? Hm?" Lospecter said, a bit annoyed by the music. The vampirical creature ceased his playing and stood up, turning toward Lospecter quickly and angrily. "What is it you want from me now? This poor, miserable soul eater... Consumed by the misery of those consumed... How can I be of service?" Though he seemed miserable and hateful, Losipher also seemed to hold some amount of respect for Lospecter. "Well, I just thought you'd want to know, a few more souls have arrived to be added to your army of the lost. And by the way, 'consumed by the misery of those consumed,' that's good, if I ever get depressed, I gotta steal that. But these souls, they're here to destroy you, I think. Yes, my cards say so!" Lospecter said. Losipher sat down on the stool he used for playing the organ and pressed his fist to his forehead. "Foolish mortals. Why can they not leave me in peace..." he muttered. Lospecter flew around his neck and whispered into his ears. "They'd rather leave you in pieces... Not to mention everything you worked so hard to build! Let's get 'em! It could be fun! I haven't had fun since... Well, long enough." Losipher stood up again, walking to the center of the room as Lospecter followed. "Those whose souls could find neither heaven nor hellfire, have found sanctuary in my dominion. I, born of a thousand lost souls, drowning in their misery, shall not allow light to enter our dark world again! Those who are lost, find them and make them lost as well! Spirits! Attack!!" At his words, the losol and loslime in the temple began to stir, and Losipher fell to his knees. "And so I wait once more... Watch over them, spectre, I need deeper darkness..." Lospecter flew off to join the Lost Ones. "Aye, aye, fellow lord of the para-abnormal. My cards never fail me!"
As the group of freedom fighters searched the island for signs of life, they found that everything on the island had been twisted and transformed by the island's current occupants. Mechanical trees, covered in ectoplasm, were among the many strange sights that stretched as far as the eye could see. Even the grass on the ground seemed artificial, not to mention slimed. "Ugh, I actually think the flames may be an improvement over this sludge hole!" said Ozzie, a silver morph who had piloted one of the helicopters. "It's not sludge, it's slime." Timothy pointed out. Black smoke blew past them, coming from a large building built into the side of the island's largest mountain. "What's the difference?" Adam said, trying futilely to shake the slime off his shoes. "The slime is undead." Gemini said, "Right, Teacher?" Fred nodded. "Where there is slime, it is not safe. That said, be on guard. We'll try that building. Scout ahead, Ozzie." As the morph dashed ahead of the others, Fred walked beside Gemini. "It's dangerous here. Have your wand ready." he said. Gemini looked at her feet sheepishly. "I would, but I can't find it. I'm sorry, Teacher Leo." Fred sighed frustratedly. "You are a student of the Divine, Gemini! You should always have your wand! But, I guess it can't be helped. Take mine. I have a spare. But don't lose it! We have no more." Gemini took the wand gratefully. "I promise I won't screw up again!" she said. Ozzie came running back at that moment. "Mechs! It's Eggman Nega's base! Run!" As he shouted this, a missile exploded behind him, propelling him foreward past his companions. "Oz!!" Eve shouted in terror. However, the morph was all right. He'd transformed into a swallow and flown above them. "Hurry! No time to lose!" he shouted. The group had already begun the retreat, when an Egg Mobile dropped out of the sky in front of them. "Leaving so soon? But I have guests so rarely..." It was Eggman Nega! "I insist you spend some time at my base. Say, the rest of your short lives!" Fred fired a bolt from his spare wand toward Eggman Nega's plane, but it swiftly moved out of the way. "We're taking back this island, Nega! You can either give yourself up, or we'll be forced to fight you, and, if necessary, destroy you!" Fred declared. Eggman Nega chuckled at his threat. "How amusing. Twenty against twenty thousand! Or more, I don't count my robots anymore. Still, you all must be desperate..." An army of robots surrounded the group, guns ready and waiting. "We got me, that makes it about even!" Ozzie said, landing with his companions and reverting back to morph form. Eggman Nega glared coldly at Ozzie. "You morphs may be resourceful, but you are far from invincible!" He pointed to the morph and issued his commands to his robots. "Fire! Kill the shape-shifter! The rest will follow like dominos!"
The robots aimed their rifles and fired without delay. Before any shots could hit them, Fred raised his wand and cast a spell. "Proplasmar!" As he shouted the spell, explosions erupted all around them as the missiles fired by the robots hit. Coughing was heard as the smoke cleared. "Missile maniac..." said Moe, a yellow rabbit in their group, and their third helicopter pilot. It appeared no one was hurt by the missiles. Fred had erected a barrier before they could be hit, but the barrier was severely weakoned by the attack. Eggman Nega growled softly, but then smiled. "That barrier won't hold back a second wave! Obliterate them, my army!" The robots targeted the barrier. A single missile was fired, destroying the barrier, but before any more shots could be made, the robots were suddenly engulfed by the slime they were standing in! More robots quickly ran in and shot down their comrades before the Lost Ones could take over their circuitry. Fred shouted to the freedom fighters. "Retreat, quickly!" They quickly obeyed, running off into the nearby jungle. Eggman Nega rose his Egg Mobile higher into the air. "Forget the animals! All nearby units, repel the Lost Ones! Let no more of you be taken over by the pests!" He then turned his ship toward the retreating freedom fighters. "I'll give them a little gift to remember me by..." he muttered, pressing a button on his control panel. The front of his plane opened up to reveal a missile launcher, and fired a single missile into the jungle.
As the freedom fighters dashed away, they heard the missile approaching them. "Take cover!!!" Fred shouted, and most of them did so. Moe, however, was running at the back, and couldn't get away. The missile caught him swiftly, and after the resulting explosion, it appeared to become utterly silent, despite the blasts going off in the direction they had come from. Adam was first to come out of hiding, dropping from a tree he'd flown into. "Guys? Did we all... Ohhhh...." he gasped suddenly as he spotted Moe's charred shoes a few feet away from where the missile had impacted. It appeared to be all that was left of the rabbit. "Poor bugger..." Adam muttered as the rest of the group walked over to him. Moe's closest friends ran to his shoes and began sobbing, but Fred quickly walked over and pulled them up. "Sorry to rush the funeral, but it's not safe here. We have to find a place to hide until things calm down. And, we need to make a plan. Let's go!" Ozzie ran up ahead, leading the others away. Gemini walked over to the shoes and froze as she looked at them, now fully realizing the gravity of the situation. "One of our pilots... What if we need to get off the island?" she whispered, holding back tears. Fred ran to her side and led her away. "Come. There's nothing we can do here now."
Ozzie had led them deep into the jungle, and they took shelter inside an old temple. It was very dark, but it seemed safe enough. "Dark as a tomb, but at least it seems empty." said Evelyn, "Who knows? Maybe the guardian is here somewhere!" Ozzie was leading the group deep into the temple, with his left hand morphed into a flashlight. "I don't know. I have a bad feeling about this place." Timothy said, shivering. Cuthburt, an alligator, laughed nervously a bit. "It-it's fine. So, we're down by one already and the entire island is like the stronghold of the enemy. That's no reason to worry, r-r-right?" he said. Adam scoffed at him. "Cowards, the lot of you. Out of my way!" He pushed past everyone and ran in front of Ozzie. Fred followed him quickly, and everyone else took off after them. "Adam, you foolhardy knucklehead!" Fred shouted as he chased him. In a moment, though, they heard the sound of Adam screaming. They picked up the pace and burst out of the hallway and into the large room Adam had led them to, which was dominated by the ghostly organ belonging to Losipher! Adam was backing away from the center of the room and rejoined the others as Losipher slowly approached them. "So, you escaped my losol and have come to destroy me!" he roared in a demonic voice. Fred pushed to the front and pointed his wand at Losipher. "I didn't expect you to be so easy to find, devil!" he said, a bit spooked. The tip of his wand began to glow. "We're taking back this island from you fiends!" Losipher backed away a step and looked at the wand. "A priest of the Divine. How quaint." He resumed stepping toward them and smiled, baring his demonic fangs. "You have no power here, son of light! I AM this temple, and this temple IS me! Drown in my sorrow! Fade into my darkness! And be damned to my Hell!! I, Losipher, shall be your end!!" At that moment, the entire temple seemed to come alive, and a vicious wind blew throughout the room. Tenticles burst from Losipher's back, growing along his spine, and more tenticles grew throughout the temple, sprouting on the ground, walls, and ceiling. All of the tenticles ended in sharp points, and the walls of the temple burst into ghostly flames! "Scatter and retreat!" Fred called out, though everyone was already doing it. As everyone ran for the exit, Losipher seemed to grow in size until his head seemed to take up the entire room, while his body sank below the floor. More tenticles shot from his mouth and chased the fleeing freedom fighters. Fred cast barriers on his way out in hopes of protecting everyone, but they fell quickly. Several of their comrades were soon skewered by the tenticles, then pulled into Losipher's gigantic gaping maw. Fred and Ozzie were first to escape Losipher's chamber, followed closely by Adam, who was shouting something about not wanting to die again. Evelyn, Cuthburt, and Gemini were at the back of the group, and before they could escape, Evelyn's ankle was wrapped by one of the tenticles! Cuthburt grabbed her arms and struggled to save her. Gemini, thinking fast, fired a bolt from her wand and severed the tenticle. As she and Evelyn ran off, Cuthburt remained behind. "Hurry up, Burt!" Gemini shouted. Cuthburt shook his head. "Go on. I'll keep him busy!" Gemini thought he was mad, and was about to run in and drag him away when Evelyn grabbed her by the arm. "No time to lose!" she insisted, and they took off together. As Gemini glanced into the room for the last time, she could see the tenticles surrounding Cuthburt...
Losipher's voice sounded through the entire temple. "There is no escape!!!" But the remaining thirteen members of the group didn't seem inclined to accept that. They ran as quickly as they could back in the direction they had come from, dodging tenticles that has sprouted all over the halls. Gemini dashed as fast as she could, passing most of who remained. A scream was heard as another of their friends were lost. Now, Gemini was running beside Todd, a beaver, and they seemed to be almost racing after a moment. Suddenly, a tenticle sprouted in front of her, and in Gemini's panic, she pushed past Todd to get away from it. Realizing what she'd done, she turned back to help him, but in his haste to get up, Todd had leaned against the wall. The Ghost Fire burning on the wall gave off no heat. He could not have realized it was there. Gemini looked away from him and kept running as Todd's screams faded to the shriek of a Loskel. Luckily, they were now near the exit, and Gemini soon ran into the jungle where Fred and Ozzie were waiting with a few of the others. They waited a few moments, and soon Evelyn, Adam, and Timothy joined them at the exit. With only ten members of their group remaining, they set out to find a better haven. As they left, they noted that Eggman Nega wasn't fighting with the Lost Ones anymore. Soon, they found that the Lost Ones were on their way back to the temple. The group tried to stay out of sight, and made their way back toward the helicopters. They had failed already, and they knew it.
It didn't take long to find out what became of Eggman Nega. They found him fighting with more Lost Ones not far from the helicopters. Adam had foolishly tried to sneak by the fight to reach the helicopters, but instead got the attention of both Nega and the Lost Ones. Now, they were running for their lives once again. What Losipher had said earlier now seemed quite true. There appeared to be no escape. Gemini was running along with her friend, Timothy, when she suddenly tripped. Taking advantage of her moment of weakness, a losol jumped at her. She screamed and covered her eyes, certain that this was the end. She snapped out of it when she heard Timothy's voice. "Run, Gemini!" Opening her eyes, she saw that Timothy had blocked the losol from hitting her, but now he was being swarmed by the fiends. Gemini scrambled to her feet and shot bolts from her wand at the losol, to no avail. "Run! I'm a goner, save yourself!" Timothy shouted. Gemini realized he was right, and with tears streaming from her eyes, she ran off with the remaining nine freedom fighters.
They finally found refuge in a cave a short distance away from Eggman Nega's base. They had set up a small camp, and their spirits soon improved after a few hours. If they couldn't get to the helicopters, they decided that Ozzie would morph into something that could fly them all away in the morning. They could regroup at an old abandoned workshop in the Mystic Ruins. They now knew what they were up against, and they'd return more prepared another day. Still, Gemini couldn't get over all the losses they'd faced. She sat in a corner, sobbing over the loss of her friends. Why did they have to die? More than half of the group, gone, and no one seemed to care much. The others were used to such loss, but Gemini had spent her life away from the battles, this was her first time out on a mission. She now realized that she wasn't ready. She looked over at the survivors, then at the wand her teacher had given her, then burst into tears. Noticing this, Fred walked over to her and sat beside her. "Too much, too soon, huh?" he said. Gemini nodded between sobs. Fred handed her a handkerchief, which she used to dry her tears. "It is terrible. We live in dark times. Do you need to talk to someone?" he asked. Gemini stood up and walked away. "I just want to be alone right now." she said, heading deeper into the cave. "Stay close!" Fred shouted, watching her leave sight. She ignored his warning, and wandered deep into the cave. It was dark, and she stumbled for a bit, but then saw a red light ahead of her. "A Chaos Emerald?" she said to herself, rushing toward the light. Upon reaching the source of the light, she found it was indeed a gem, but not a Chaos Emerald. "What is it?" she wondered aloud. "It is a Time Stone." A voice replied. Gemini looked around, and noticed a figure standing nearby. It was a creature in a black cloak, its face hidden. It had two large black wings on its back. "Wh-who or what are you?" Gemini asked nervously. "Don't be alarmed. I am the Deathbringer." the cloaked figure said. Gemini chuckled nervously. "OK. You're called the Deathbringer. And I'm not supposed to be alarmed... Great..." The Deathbringer picked up the Time Stone and handed it to Gemini. "This stone has great power. It can be used to travel through time." Gemini held the stone, looking at it curiously. "I could use this stone to go to the future... Or the past?" she asked. The Deathbringer nodded. "Think on it. You could go back in time. Save your friends. Tell your friends what's up here. Or, you could go further back. Back before Iblis. Before Losipher. You can prevent everything. Tell me... Do you wish to see your friends again?" Gemini opened her mouth to speak, but the Deathbringer vanished before she could, dissappearing into the darkness. She thought about it, and decided to ask her teacher for advice.
"Absolutely NOT!!" Fred yelled when Gemini suggested using the Time Stone. She felt he didn't understand. "We could change the past! We could rescue Moe and Todd and Tim..." It sounded good to her, but Fred disagreed. "Time travel is dangerous. You can cause all manner of mayhem. You can negate your own birth! You want to never have been born? End of discussion. Forget this plan." Suddenly, an evil laugh was heard at the cave entrance. "So, here you all are! Robots, attack!" Eggman Nega had found them! Missiles soared into the cave, blasting the camp as the Freedom Fighters took cover. Eggman Nega's plane flew in ahead of a small army of robots. The Freedom Fighters, however, were through running. A chatic battle ensued, but Gemini chose not to participate. She ran deep into the cave, toward where she'd found the Time Stone. "We can't win this fight.... We're going to die! I can't let this happen..." Gemini held up the Time Stone. "What's that you've got there?" Eggman Nega had followed Gemini! She turned around to face him. "You won't hurt my friends! I'm going to stop you! Time Stone! Send me back in time!!" The Time Stone glowed brightly, then let out a huge flash of light, forcing Gemini to shut her eyes...
When she opened her eyes, she was somewhere else. It appeared she was standing on some sort of altar. It was the shrine of the Master Emerald! The Time Stone had vanished, but she wasn't worried. She still had her wand, and also her spell book, which she always kept with her. She could return with a time travel spell. Looking around, she spotted a grey shrew in a blue cape. He was holding the Master Emerald, and he looked shocked. "Wh-who are you? Where did you come from?" the shrew asked. "Um... I'm Gemini. Pleased to meet you, mister...." She trailed off, and the shrew realized she was asking his name. "Illusi. Illusi the Shrew. Where did you come from?" Gemini thought a moment. She might as well see if she could make the time travel spell work. However, as we know, it didn't. She ended up becoming a dragon, then losing her wand and her spell book. Still, thanks to the help of Knuckles the echidna and Illusi, she eventually managed to regain her wand, her spell book, and her true form. Now, she searches for a way to stop Iblis and the Lost Ones, and to get back to her own time.
Meanwhile, other adventures have been unfolding. Somewhere over the sea, a ship known as the Green Freedom was sailing. Aboard the ship was a black and white, two-tailed fox called Experiment 2, or Copter, as he preferred to be called. With him were his friends, Punchy the green echidna and Rainbow, the echidna of many colors. Captaining the ship was Gator, an odd fellow in an alligator suit. "Soleanna ho!" he shouted from the crow's nest. Copter and his friends had already noticed the landmass drawing ever closer. "Somewhere on that island is Experiment 7. We can't let Bucky force it to serve him." Copter said. "True, Very true." came a voice behind them. It was a bent figure in an old cloak, leaning on a wood staff. "I've been listening to you three this whole trip. I can see your destinies are linked. Oh, my senility. I am Dimentime. Don't mind me. I'm just an old guy who exists in more than one dimension. Enjoy your adventure. I'll see you again, somewhere." With that, Dimentime limped away. "That was weird..." Copter muttered. "What else is new." Punchy said. "I'm gonna call him Caney." Rainbow decided. The three of them then set to work preparing for their arrival in Soleanna. Their next great struggle was about to begin...
To be continued...
