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The landscape was truly beautiful, like everything in that world. The people were kind and happy, the sky was clear, the winds were cool, and the view of the sea could not be more beautiful, with the sunlight gleaming over those waters.
A wonderful world in every sense — after all, it was Blaze’s kingdom.
He truly loved the peace that this place offered. He walked slowly along the beach, with no hurry. It was better than the stories he had heard from Sonic and Tails, even from Blaze herself. After all, he had always had a weakness for nature.
Unfortunately, his friend had a small inconvenience — a last-minute meeting with nobles. What was a noble supposed to be anyway? He had no idea, but it sounded important. However, the feline had arranged for him to have a tour guide.
“She’s special, but friendly… please don’t let her influence you…”
Those were the words Blaze had used to describe her companion.
Maybe she was like Charmy? That bee sure was known for being special. Or maybe like Tails, who had a great talent for his age. Sometimes he tended to wonder what it would be like to have his own partner, just like Sonic had Tails, or the Chaotix had Charmy.
“Hi!”
“Eh?”
“I’m Marine, the captain! Are you Silver? They told me I’d find you here!”
“Yes, I’m Silver. Nice to meet you, Marine.”
“Same here! I was looking forward to meeting you!”
In front of him stood Blaze’s companion — a small raccoon with an energetic look and a big smile. She offered her hand, which he gladly accepted. Her grip was full of life, shaking his arm up and down.
To his surprise, the little one began walking around him, inspecting him curiously, almost like a detective looking for clues or a dog searching for a bone.
“Blaze told me about you! Is it true that you’re a time traveler?” she asked with great curiosity.
“Well, yes, I am.”
As if he had triggered a bomb inside her, the little raccoon started moving from side to side with a smile, orbiting around the confused hedgehog.
“Will I be the best captain ever? Will Blaze stop being such a grump? Will Gardon go bald?” asked the raccoon, jumping with excitement.
Silver, scratching his head, a bit overwhelmed, prepared for the disappointing answer.
“I don’t know, sorry,” he replied, a little embarrassed, still scratching his head.
“But you come from the future!”
“Well, from my future — 200 years ahead. And, uh, I’m not from this world either.”
Marine squinted her eyes at him suspiciously but finally let out a brief sigh and stopped. That look reminded Silver of how he used to stare at Tails when the fox was repairing gadgets for the resistance. That little girl was really making him uncomfortable.
“What else did Blaze tell you about me?”
On one hand, he felt like he shouldn’t ask, but on the other, his curiosity was stronger — how much had Blaze told her about him, really? It wasn’t like he was nervous about the answer…
Marine kept inspecting him up and down, as if carefully planning what to say.
“Honestly, I thought she’d say something more exciting. I mean, she told me you’re from the future and that you have awesome powers, but most of what she said was about how you’re someone with noble goals and a big heart. Kind of cheesy, if you ask me.”
“…I like cheesy things,” said the hedgehog with a smile, pleased by the answer.
Marine looked at him suspiciously, then took a few steps back, turning her back to him.
“Although, you know, that’s not everything she told me about you. She mentioned something much… more secret. But I guess you wouldn’t be interested in hearing it.”
“Well, if it’s a secret, I should respect it,” said Silver simply.
“He’s either very noble or just too dense to get hints,” thought Marine in her failed attempt at manipulation. It wasn’t anything crazy, just a way to see if there was more than curiosity in that hedgehog’s feelings for Blaze. She wasn’t being nosy… not at all.
“By the way, I remember she said you were some kind of psycho-something.”
“I’m psychokinetic — basically, my powers come from my mind. I can control things and stuff,” explained the hedgehog.
“Ohhh! Can you show me!?”
“Of course!” he replied with a cheerful smile.
The golden rings he wore began to glow brighter, the cyan light intensifying. A soft whistling sound began to echo along the beach, and like a veil, the energy flowing from the hedgehog surrounded him. A hum resonated from the rings; part of the sand was wrapped in that energy, slowly condensing until all the sand formed into an exact replica of Marine.
“Wow, that’s awesome!” exclaimed the raccoon, examining every part of the statue. “Though, you know? If I were you, I’d add more muscles next time.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” said Silver, amused by the suggestion.
He was happy to get along with Marine. He always was when he could make a new friend. Before he first traveled through time, he’d been quite lonely — not because he wanted solitude, but because there was simply no one to talk to, play with, or spend time with. It was just him and the remnants of a ruined era.
He truly admired how Blaze managed her responsibilities, how her world was beautiful in more than one way — the happiness of its people, the comforting peace she had built. She always gave her all for her kingdom; that was something that would always captivate him.
His own world was also in a state of peace now, and he hoped it would stay that way forever. Every time he thought he was close to his goal, time itself changed due to actions in the past, and everything went back to the same — just him and the remains of a dead, empty world. Did that depress him? Yes, to the bone. Did it stop him? No, and it never would.
He would never think of giving up. He’d do whatever it took for tomorrow to shine brighter than ever, to maintain peace in his world just as Blaze had done — because there was no greater reward than the fruits of one’s effort.
Although his thoughts were quickly interrupted by a kick.
“Ouch, what’s going on?”
“Buddy, I’ve been talking to you for 20 minutes, and you didn’t answer! You were just staring at the sky!”
“Oh… sorry, bad habit.”
The young raccoon stared at him for a few seconds, puzzled.
“Okay? Anyway, I wanted to ask — why are you here? Blaze wouldn’t tell me, said it was a ‘private’ matter. You know how she is — few words, lots of stress.”
A long sigh escaped the hedgehog’s mouth. On one hand, he wanted to tell the truth, but on the other, he had promised not to reveal the reason for his stay. So he’d have to lie — except there was one problem: Silver didn’t know how to lie.
“Well… you know… I was just, uh, around… and thought I’d come here?” he said, scratching his head, forcing a smile as fake as a politician’s promise, with a brief twitch in his eyes.
Marine could barely contain her laughter.
“Pff, you really can’t lie, huh? It’s okay, buddy — Blaze told you not to tell me, didn’t she?”
“She’s either smarter than she looks or I’m just dumb,” thought Silver.
“…No…”
He couldn’t lie to a kid.
“You know, Silver, you can trust me. I swear on my captain’s honor and all the seas that I won’t tell anyone,” said Marine, then held up her pinky toward the hedgehog. “Pinky promise?”
“I’m sorry, Blaze… I’ve failed,” thought Silver.
“Pinky promise,” he said, intertwining his pinky with hers.
To say he felt uncomfortable would be an understatement — mostly because of the raccoon’s massive grin, one that made Eggman’s smiles look gentle by comparison.
“So?”
“Well, the truth is, I’ll be staying here for a few days due to a small incident. Blaze told you she’s been learning to cook?”
“Ah, yeah, I remember we thought there was a fire because of the burnt smell. Her cookies were harder than a dolphin slap.”
“…Well, I invited her to my apartment and—”
“Whoa, wait. How long have you two been doing that? Is she the only one who visits you?”
“Well, this would’ve been the first time we did that, and yes, she’s the only one who visits me.”
The raccoon’s grin widened, as if she were planning a meticulous scheme for the future.
“Go on,” said Marine.
“Well, I invited her to improve her cooking, since the last time I heard she made something, Amy ended up with a broken tooth from her cookies, and Sonic and Tails had to get their stomachs pumped. I don’t know why it made them sick — her food never bothers me,” said the hedgehog from a post-apocalyptic future.
He never wasted food, no matter the shape or taste — especially when he knew his friend had put effort into preparing it. After all, as a child, he’d eaten whatever he could find — rats, cockroaches, and all kinds of insects.
“Everything seemed fine. We were practicing one of Amy’s pie recipes, but it only took one second for everything to go out of control. I went to the bathroom for a few minutes, and when I came back, everything was on fire. The oven exploded, the whole building had to be evacuated, we ended up covered in dough, then they thought it was a terrorist attack, and the police arrived — I had to explain everything.”
“Blaze blew up your apartment?!”
“She didn’t blow it up! She just… singed it a little. Well, the oven did explode, and I got banned from the hotel for life and will be in debt for months, but at least I had a great time with Blaze.”
“You sure are optimistic.”
“What do I gain by being pessimistic?”
For a moment, Marine thought about using this new information as a weapon in case the princess ever lectured her about responsibility. But a pinky promise was sacred… that, and she didn’t want her new friend to suffer Blaze’s wrath.
“So I’ll be staying a couple of days here while I look for a new apartment.”
“Where are you staying?”
“Oh, at the castle. Blaze told me they already have a room ready for me. She really feels bad — I told her not to worry, but she insisted.”
“I feel like this guy has bad luck with everything,” thought Marine.
“Well, buddy, you’ve got the best person in this whole place! Trust your captain — because I’ll make sure you see every island! And don’t worry, I don’t blow up ovens!” exclaimed Marine, hopping with excitement, ready for adventure.
“Great! But first, can you take me to the castle? I have to meet her guard, Gardon. For some reason, Blaze said he wanted to meet me.”
“With pleasure! Follow me!”
“Yes, captain!”