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Silver isn’t sure if he believes in an afterlife.
After spending a lifetime in perpetual toil, after being surrounded by hellfire on all sides, every day of his life, he can’t help but feel a little disillusioned over the concept of life after death. To be honest, he didn’t even believe in any of the gods until after he met Sonic, and subsequently, many, many different deities, such as the Ifrit, the Time Eater, and having heard about Sonic’s misadventures with other gods, like Perfect Chaos, Illumina, and Light and Dark Gaia.
Silver isn’t currently sure where he stands on the idea. He’s always been partial to believing that souls eventually convert into Chaos energy, though he’s not entirely sure if that’s a real thing or if that’s just old folklore passed through the years. He’s never really used Chaos energy before, so he can’t imagine if it feels like souls. He ought to ask Shadow or Sonic; what does using Chaos energy feel like?
Death is constantly on Silver’s mind, though only in respect to the concept of survival. Silver has to survive through apocalypse after apocalypse, trying to make sure he lives through each one so he can go back and correct it. Every time he goes back, however, nothing truly seems to change. The place is completely destroyed by hellfire and ancient wrath, and Silver is left fumbling over how to get back to the past.
It’s a little disheartening, helping Sonic and his friends save the day, only to come back time and time again to see his future just as dilapidated as it always is.
But Silver is nothing if not determined. He’s not going to give up, not until he sees his future restored, not until his world is fixed. He owes it to himself, to Sonic and his friends, and to everyone else on Mobius to make sure the apocalypse is averted.
But surviving the apocalypse long enough to find the Chaos emeralds is... difficult.
The world is barren. Finding a steady food and water supply isn’t always available. Shelters often burst after living through the initial torment of the apocalypse and the subsequent years afterwards of weathering by time and weather. Beasts continue to roam the plains, dark monsters excited to blight out Silver’s soul.
There’s thousands of dangerous things on this planet out to kill Silver, be it through ravenous murder or the callousness of his own body shutting down. But the Chaos emeralds are finicky to find when one isn’t particularly in tune to the natural rhythm of the energy, and lacking in the technological know-how to find them.
One of these days, he ought to knick an emerald tracker off of Tails before he heads back to the future. He’s never really brought anything to the future with him before, so he greatly hopes that idea might work. It would make his life a thousand times easier.
But he doesn’t have that resource at hand. Instead, he’s trudging through the ruins of society, searching for an emerald he’s about seventy five percent sure is around here. He can feel a pulsing energy, though he isn’t sure if it’s just delirium after not having eaten anything in a couple of weeks finally getting to him. He knows he’s been seeing things that aren’t real, since he hasn’t gotten enough sustenance.
Still, it’s all he has to go on, so he trudged on, searching for the emerald.
But Silver can only handle so much. He’s been walking for miles on end for days now, searching for food, and ran out of water not that long ago. His stomach is tied in knots, his energy is almost completely depleted, and Silver isn’t particularly surprised when he finally collapses on the side of an ancient road, cracked and gaping from the tremulous earthquakes that still like to rattle the earth's core.
His breathing is labored as his vision blurs. Silver hates that this is the end for him, hates that this is how he goes. Years of surviving, and all for what? His world is still in ruins, his future is still desolate, and nowhere closer than he was before in fixing that.
And now here he is, dying alone off the side of a road… “This is honestly rather pathetic.”
Silver’s stomach had long since stopped hurting once it realized it wasn’t going to see a scrap of food anytime soon, but the perpetual ache of his joints and muscles had suddenly faded. The lack of energy Silver had been feeling disappears, leaving him feeling almost rejuvenated, like a dying battery plugged back into an electrical outlet.
Silver grimaces and tries to push himself off the road, only to realize he’s already standing. He doesn’t remember getting back up. And he doesn’t remember closing his eyes, either.
Silver opens them, peering around. He’s still surrounded on all sides by fire, but there’s no warmth coming from the flames of disaster. There’s an almost... dreamlike quality to this place, though Silver can’t quite describe why, exactly, it feels like that.
He peers at the road beneath his feet and is surprised to find that the ground is slick. If he’s not careful, it might be easy to lose his footing. But the road before was wrought with crackled textures.
Something is wrong here.
“I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore,” Silver mutters to himself as he peers around. He picked that phrase up from Sonic, though he doesn’t understand much other than it’s a reference to something and the general meaning is that someone probably got lost. But he thinks it’s a fitting phrase for whatever is going on right now.
“You certainly aren’t.”
The fur on the back of his neck raises. Silver suddenly processed the fact that someone spoke to him earlier, and is speaking to him now. He wildly spins around on his heels, trying to find the source of the voice. He had been alone here, he was certain of it- there weren't any other survivors for miles around.
Except someone was standing barely a few meters away.
Silver blinked. Shimmering blue fur, green eyes that seemed to glow under the light of the fires, and ruby shoes that gleamed. “Sonic?”
“Silver?” Sonic mockingly asks right back. He’s closer than he was a few seconds ago, though Silver doesn’t recall seeing him walk over here. Sonic can move faster than the eye can see, though, so Silver tries not to think too hard on it.
“Sonic, what are you doing here?” Something bizarre is going on, that’s all Silver can figure. He’s fairly certain he was just on death’s door not even five minutes ago, and now he feels better than he has in weeks. He’s pretty sure he’s not in the same place as he was five minutes ago, either. And now Sonic’s here? “Do you have any idea what’s going on?”
“Why wouldn’t I be here? I live here.” Sonic peers at Silver, bending slightly, an eyebrow cocked. “My, kids these days just aren’t taught much, are they? Your ancestors have truly failed you, though I suppose that isn’t your sin to burden.”
This... doesn’t sound like Sonic at all.
Silver takes a half step back, hands curled into fists. He reaches out towards his psychokinesis, prepared for a fight. He’s dealt with Sonic’s archenemies enough to know that he’s got a lot of rivals and enemies who like to imitate him, in a vye to replace or supersede him. He looks far too organic to be Metal Sonic, but that robot probably could survive an apocalypse and out live his creator. He has the nasty willpower to, just to prove he’s better than Sonic.
“Who are you?” Silver asks.
“I wouldn’t bother trying to fight.” Sonic... Or, Not-Sonic gestures to Silver’s fists. “You don’t hold much power here, kid.”
Silver growls a little, both at being underestimated and at having his question brushed aside. But something clicks in his head, and he comes to the startling realization that his psychokinesis isn’t answering him. He focuses again, long and hard, trying to feel the energy that usually burns beneath the surface of his skin, but there’s not so much of a flicker. His gloves and cuffs lack a blue glow, and for the first time in five years, Silver no longer has access to his powers.
Silver immediately shifts into a defensive position. “What did you do to me?”
Not-Sonic appears unimpressed. “Your psychokinesis is rooted in Chaos energy, and you hold no power over Chaos energy here.”
Silver blinks. “What? My power- it has no relation to Chaos energy-”
“Must you question everything I say? What do I have to gain in lying to you?” Not-Sonic crosses his arms, appearing again, unimpressed. “Your bloodline is so annoying.”
Silver isn’t sure how to interpret his words, and decides to focus back on his powers, insisting, “My powers aren’t based on Chaos energy.”
“Everyone’s powers are based on Chaos energy. How do you think people developed these abilities? A mutation of two tails is a far cry from a mutation of developing super speed or psychokinesis. Chaos energy is at the heart of all things mystical.”
Silver frowns. “Where am I, then, if this place is... tampering with my Chaos energy?”
“It’s not tampering with your energy. It was never yours to begin with.”
“Then... okay, then whose is it?”
“Mine.” Not-Sonic’s sharp teeth glimmer as he smiles. “Your bloodline has stolen this energy from me. I never gave you this power. I never wanted you to have it. Your predecessor took it from me. I never wanted either of you, but sometimes, you have to make due with what’s been thrown at you.”
“My bloodline...?”
“You’ll learn soon enough, and not a minute earlier.” Not-Sonic taps his foot, looking like the true spitting image of an impatient Sonic. “I do so loathe spoilers.”
“Who are you, exactly?”
“What do you know about Chaos energy?” Not-Sonic hums, before asking, “Better yet, where do you think it comes from?”
Silver frowns. He’s... never actually considered that question before. His understanding of Chaos lore is second hand, from legends passed down from the survivors of the apocalypse to his generation, and from what he can glean from Sonic and Knuckles. He honestly didn’t even believe in the myth of the Chaos emeralds for a long time, until he started researching methods of time travel and became desperate for any means to get him back in time.
“The Chaos Force,” he finally answers, a little hesitant. “That’s where it comes from.”
“So tell me, little one, where do you think you are?”
Silver frowns at him. He’s not suggesting... Oh, Chaos. He totally is. “I’m in the Chaos Force?”
“In a sense, yes.” Not-Sonic leers closer to him. “So who do you think I am?”
The gears in his head begin to spin. Silver won’t lie and say he’s the most observant person ever; he was never particularly good at puzzles, and was always impatient if he couldn’t solve them right away. He was awful at riddles, which is all this being seemed to speak in.
But Silver manages to understand, somehow, gears churning until they click in place, Not-Sonic’s lips spreading into a grin when Silver lights up. “You’re... you’re the Chaos Force.”
“Good job. You’re much brighter than your predecessor. I had to basically tell him all the answers.”
“If you’re the Chaos Force, why do you look like Sonic?”
“Or perhaps, why does Sonic look like me?”
Silver blinks at that. “Why does Sonic look like you?”
“Or why do I look like Sonic?”
“You won’t give me a straight answer, will you?”
“I will, just this once. No.”
“Can you just... can you just explain to me what’s going on?” Silver glances around, absorbing the sight of hell fire around him. He already spent a lifetime in hell, certainly this being wasn’t going to send him straight into another one?
“What do you want to know?”
“Why am I here?”
“You have a theory, don’t you?”
Silver frowns. He was dying just a few minutes ago, and now he’s not. He’s already had a feeling life and death are connected to the Chaos energy- he has a bizarre feeling he’s even seen it in action before, that Chaos energy has interfered with the natural order of life and death. Silver covers his face with his hands, aghast at the realization. “I’m dead, aren’t I?”
“Unfortunately so. In a rather pathetic manner, I might add.”
“You’re not going to send me to hell, right?” Silver asks. “Please? I feel like I’ve been a pretty good person. I’ve been trying to save the world. Doesn’t that count for something?”
“It depends on your definition of hell.” Not-Sonic’s eyes sweep over the desolation of his future. “But you’ll certainly be sent back to the land of the living.”
Silver blinks. “Wait, really? You’ll let me go back?”
“Of course. You have a much bigger destiny than squandering away on the side of a barren road. Though do not mistake this act as one of mercy or kindness. I don’t favour you in the slightest, Silver the Hedgehog.”
The tone of his voice sends shivers down Silver’s spine despite being surrounded by fire. His fingers press to his palm unconsciously.
“Are you saying you hate me?” Silver tries not to sound too affronted, but, alright, he’s a little ruffled.
“I’m not exactly fond of you.”
“What? I’ve never done anything to you! How can you hate me when we’ve never met?”
“Your connection to me is false. I never wanted you to have even an inch of my power, and you do, through your bloodline. You’re also meddling in the destiny of my champion. I don’t take kindly to those who prove to be obstacles.”
The tensions in the air rise so high Silver can barely swallow. The Chaos Force leers over him despite the fact that they’re the same height; Chaos energy swells and nearly drowns him. There’s an aura of intense power, and Silver realises this isn’t someone he particularly wants to cross.
“If you continue to prove to be an obstacle, I will eliminate you from my plans altogether. Keep yourself in line, Silver the Hedgehog, and hopefully we shall meet only once more, again.”
“My time travel is altering fate...” The realisation strikes Silver in the chest. “This means I’ll be able to fix my future, right? If I’ve been messing with destiny and stuff, that means I have a shot of fixing everything, right?”
“You’ll be able to correct the timeline,” he answers back. “It will flow to it’s true state.”
Something clicks. “Wait... Champion. Who’s your champion? What does that mean?”
“Use your head, Silver the Hedgehog. I’m not interested in pointing out the obvious to you.”
He peers into Not-Sonic’s face, waiting for the epiphany to strike him. Wait. Not-Sonic.
“Sonic?” Silver can’t hide the bitterness in his tone when he asks, “What’s so special about him?”
“The better question is what isn’t.” Not-Sonic flicks Silver’s forehead. “You ought to speak kinder of him. You owe much to him.”
Silver crosses his arms. “I guess I just don’t understand the hype.”
“You don’t need to understand anything, except to make sure to stay in your lane. Stay away from my champion and his destiny, or I will rewrite your own destiny into something of misfortune. This is a second chance for you, Silver the Hedgehog. Do not squander this opportunity, and do not stray from your path.”
“Hey, wait-”
“The only thing you need to do, Silver the Hedgehog, is close your eyes.”
The deity reaches out, his fingers gently sliding Silver’s eyes closed.
“Man, Silver, you look like shit. What have you been doing out here?”
Silver didn’t believe in an afterlife, but he wasn’t exactly certain he wasn’t in hell.
He awakes with a start, everything aching. His entire body was in pain, his stomach growling something fierce, tying itself in knots as it tried to eat itself. He hasn’t felt this hungry in weeks. His joints ache as he tries to shift around, his muscles feeling awfully weak, and a hand reaches out, stopping him from moving.
“Come on man, don’t squirm. I’m still not that good at this.”
Silver lets his eye sight adjust. It had been blurring for the past few moments he’s gained consciousness, but as his awareness grows, his pain slowly decreases, and his vision begins to settle. He can feel a warmth flood his body, and it feels like his body is slowly mending from the inside out. It’s a calming energy that sends his frayed nerves signals to calm down, and he finds himself not quite as alarmed as he probably should be.
Emerald eyes meet his, and Silver almost startles back. But there’s something different about the presence of him this time, something much closer to the Sonic that Silver knows. “... Sonic?”
“Heya, Silver! Usually it’s you crashing into the past, but now it’s me crashing the future! Hope I’m not seeing something I’m not supposed to. I really hate spoilers, you know.”
Silver shudders. Sonic’s placed a hand right over his heart, and Silver watches as Chaos energy flows back into him. He’s Chaos healing him... Silver’s never seen it done before, only heard it in passing. He didn’t think it could heal malnutrition.
There’s an emerald pressed in Sonic’s other hand, gleaming in the fires surrounding him. Silver tries to wrap his head around Sonic’s presence, but he just can't. “Sonic, what are you even doing here?”
“A mishap with old Egghead’s latest machine.” Sonic’s eyes are focused on Silver’s heart, and he sounds distracted. Silver probably shouldn’t bother him while he’s healing him. “Chaos control went absolutely wild when I destroyed the thing, and it sent me through time and space. His latest plot had to do with time travel, again. You’d think he’d learn by now, but I guess he thinks that third time’s the charm, and all that.”
Silver feels more energized than he has in weeks. Sonic removes his hand from Silver’s chest and he almost misses the warmth of his energy flowing through him. His lips are no longer chapped, his stomach no longer growls, his muscles have their strength back, and he can feel the quiet thrum of his powers beneath his skin again.
“So what happened here?” Sonic cocked a brow. “You looked half dead lying on the road, like roadkill. You alright?”
“I am now.” Silver watches Sonic for a moment. Were his eyes always the colour of the green Chaos emerald? Was his fur always that shade of blue? “Sonic...”
He’s not sure what questions he wants to ask. He’s not even sure what just happened wasn’t a total fever dream, crafted by his consciousness drifting in and out while Sonic healed him. And would Sonic have any answers?
“You need something?” Sonic peers over Silver, clearly inspecting him for any additional injuries.
“Sonic... Do you think the Chaos emeralds... Do you think Chaos energy is sentient?”
Sonic pauses, considering Silver’s words. “Huh, I’ve never thought about it, but I think they are? Blaze and Tails kind of confirmed this during one of our adventures, and they’ve always...” Sonic trailed off, his expression shifting into something Silver couldn’t quite read. “They’ve always called out to me... way back when I first went super, they called out to me, and they’ve called out to me every single time. And when I use them, sometimes I...”
Sonic shakes his head. “It all sounds really weird, doesn’t it?”
“No, no, go on! What else?”
“Sometimes... I think they try to talk to me...” Sonic shrugs, clearly trying to remain casual, but there’s a tenseness to his muscles Silver can’t help but notice. “I tried to talk to Shadow about it once, but he said he didn’t feel anything like that when he turned super. I don’t know.” Sonic glances at the emerald in his hand before shrugging.
He stands up and offers a hand to Silver. Silver hesitates before grabbing Sonic’s hand and letting him pull him back up. The emerald gleams in Sonic’s hand, and Silver is reminded of the Chaos Force’s threat.
“If you’re headed back to your time, I’m coming along for the ride, too.” Silver makes a sweeping motion with his arm. “As you can see, the future is still in ruins, so I’ve got some more messes to clean. I bet they’re your messes, too.”
“Ha! An adventure’s no fun if you don’t make at least a little mess!” Sonic tosses the emerald in the air before catching it, his grip tightening before he shouts, “Chaos control!”
A time travel portal appears out of thin air. Sonic gives Silver a two fingered salute. “See you on the other side!”
He jumps through without a glance back. Silver hesitates for a moment, thinking about everything he just witnessed. The Chaos Force has something planned for Sonic, that’s for sure, and Silver can’t help but feel that it might not... It might not be in Sonic’s best interests.
And... Well, if something happens to Sonic, then that means the world will probably end, if he’s honest. If Sonic dies or something, that will definitely mess up the timeline. So Silver should go and prevent that. Yeah.
Silver glances at the apocalyptic ruins around him before settling his eyes on the portal of Chaos energy. If keeping Sonic safe means becoming an obstacle for the Chaos Force, then Silver knows what he has to do.
“Wait for me, Sonic!” He jumps in.