#voxai

---

The Emerald had given itself life. And it was now a little mobian, crawling across the floor, putting its mouth on anything it came across and falling over with the slightest breeze.

Mobians were very different than Thebes had ever thought. Only a few of them could fly, and they saw with what Thebes had thought were simple markings on the face. They often had differing skin, differing heights and weights, and very strangely, differing minds. Voxai could be individual, yes, but they had a hivemind to connect them, to make them part of each other. The Mobians had no such connection, leaving them all alone to think on their own. How lonely that must be, Thebes thought. To not be able to calm another’s fears, or cheer another on in such a simple, yet intimate way.

The Overmind’s research had yielded nothing. No tales of the emeralds taking form, no tales of any changes in the stones... Thebes wondered if it was his fault, but he couldn’t think of anything at all out of the ordinary he’d done leading up to the transformation, nor could anyone else. But nevertheless, the Emerald didn’t seem to be turning back, so they just had to work with what they had.

Thebes floated to the child, brushing it with a wing. It felt him, and looked up, letting out a loud noise that Thebes had discerned to be laughter. It reached up its arms, trying to grab his wings and lift itself high into the air.

It will need a name, Thebes thought. If it will stay mortal.

The child lifted its arms again, its fists opening and closing, trying to grab onto its guardian. “Up-mi!” it called- it had recently begun attempting to communicate, though its words made little sense. “Uh-mi!”

What is that, little one?

“Uh! Mi!”

Amy. That was a name that meant beloved.

That was fitting.

--- 

Amy had moved into childhood, and she still would not stop getting into trouble. She climbed on everything she could, trying to get high enough to jump on a Voxai for a surprise ride. She would grab small objects, swinging them around as some kind of game. She poured through tablets, her eyes faster than light as she absorbed whatever information she could get her hands on. 

“Thebes, what does ‘sy-kick’ mean?” she asked.

(They had found that while she could connect to the hivemind, it was a very weak link, and so it was easier for her to speak aloud, and for the Voxai to respond in their normal way.)

“Psychic, Amy.” Thebes replied, floating beside her. “It is a word often used to mean one who connects to another’s mind- or sees forward into the future.”

“Like you!”

“Like the Voxai, yes.”

“Am I psychic?”

“A little. We’re not entirely sure what the expanse of your abilities is.”

“I dunno what that means.”

Yes, it took her a bit longer to learn larger words than it would the average Voxai child. “We don’t know what you can do.”

“I can do this!” Amy jumped, grabbing onto his wing and swinging back-and-forth. “Whee, whee, whee!”

Amy was certainly a strange child. She shouted, she cried, and she had to always be moving. She didn’t seem to have an appreciation for stillness whatsoever, and instead needed to run, or jump, or climb, or swing. She could not fly, was barely connected to the hivemind, and was always being loud.

She was a strange child, and she was the Voxai’s child. 

It had taken them quite a while to get used to her, but by the time she seemed to gain sentience, the whole colony had gotten into the swing of letting her run and play in her own way. And it wasn’t as if she wasn’t like them whatsoever- it barely mattered that they couldn’t connect to her thoughts, as she always spoke them aloud. She would try to help as much as she could, using her strange limbs to carry materials to and from construction sites, or help garden the small, sparse patches of land that could produce nutrients. She would watch the Voxai children play their own games, and join in when there was a game that didn’t require wings or an intense connection to the Overmind. If she couldn’t join in, she would cheer everyone on, or find a way to play referee, so it was never like she was lonely or left out. 

She had a strange way of showing physical affection, too, but they accommodated her as best they could. While Voxai would usually show affection via their hivemind- or, if they had to be physical, by brushing wings or tails- Amy was always grabbing onto some part of them. Forget simple brushing, Amy would climb up their tails, swing on their wings, and cling to their backs, leaning against them and just feeling them breathe under her. At first, it was strange, but it seemed to help her- the more physical affection she got, the more comfortable she seemed, so soon the Beta Colony was used to treating her a bit differently, in pretty much every way.

Yes, she was a strange child, and she was the Voxai’s child. But most importantly, at least to Thebes... she was his child.

He had been there when she learned how to walk- he’d studied for months on how mobians moved so he could best help her amble along. He was there when she picked out what nutrients she liked to eat and would throw the others on the ground, and he would teach her that was rude and she really should have just expressed that she didn’t want them. He was there when she started to speak, learning along with her how best to communicate. He was there when she fell asleep against him that first night, curling his wing around her like a blanket, and he was there, teaching her how to spell and count. He took her to the library to study whatever languages they had, fascinated with how quickly she picked them up, feeling intensely proud of her for running to the nearest librarian to practice her sentence structure. He was there when she scraped her knee and began to cry, and they figured out how to make it feel better. He was there when she’d cry again, reading a sad book, and he was there when she’d run to him, reciting quickly something funny she’d read in a different story in hopes that he would laugh, too, at least in his own way.

Whenever he expressed how proud he was of her, he could see her eyes light up, and then she’d shut them tight and wiggle her nose a little, her smile brightening even the darkest of nights. If he had to express disappointment- if, for example, she said something unnecessarily cruel to another child, or she hid the scroll she broke instead of admitting to it, she would get very upset, leaking water from her eyes, and she would promise to never repeat the behavior, knowing now that it wasn’t right. Thebes hated seeing her upset, but then later, when she did the right thing instead of repeating wrong behavior, he got to be proud of her again, and see her bright smile.

She wasn’t perfect, by any means. Mainly, she had some issues expressing her anger in a healthy way. More than once he had to show disappointment in her breaking something in a fit of fury- though, honestly, he wasn’t quite sure if her way of breaking things was normal for a mobian or not. She would kick a rock and watch it shatter into pieces, or punch a wall and create a gaping hole. He didn’t think mobians were supposed to do that- and it got even stranger when she would stomp on the ground during a tantrum and create a crater, or lift up an entire house to grab a lost toy. Most worryingly, when she was angered, her normally green eyes would spark with energy, glowing the same pink as her quills. He knew that most Voxai couldn’t do these things, certainly, and though she was clearly not a normal Voxai, he wasn’t sure if she was a normal mobian, either.

He also wasn’t sure if that was good or not.

---

Once every cycle, Thebes would take Amy to visit the Overmind, so they could check on her progress. Afterwards, she would play with a toy they’d found for her, while the adults would discuss their research. Since she’d started talking, Amy was always very well-behaved when with the Overmind, addressing them by name and asking them how their cycle had been, answering all of their questions with a smile while bouncing on her paws and letting her tail wag back-and-forth. Then she’d go play, oblivious to whatever discussion was happening around or about her.

That started to change as she got older, though, and it was because of Thebes, unfortunately. Thebes had been unable to hide his discomfort at times, and though he’d told a questioning Amy that nothing was wrong, really, she could sense that something was troubling him.

Indeed, as the years pressed on, he felt that the Overmind was... becoming strange. The hivemind was meant to encourage them all, but sometimes he’d hear whispers of the Overmind being too pushy, sending out instructions that some Voxai couldn’t make themselves disobey. He’d never experienced it himself, but the more he visited with Amy, the more he started to see signs of something strange going on with them. He didn’t know if it was the stress around the lost Chaos Emerald, a corruption of power, a new behavior they’d picked up from another planet they’d trade with, or a combination of all of it, but they were, indeed, getting pushy. They’d ask him questions that were normally considered impolite, about himself and about Amy. At times, they talked about her as if she wasn’t at all alive, as if she were still an emerald locked up in a hidden temple. That above all made Thebes angry. She may have once been that emerald, but now she was Amy, his Amy, who loved to read and play in the garden and climb on whatever she could find, who was curious about this world and any other world she researched.

It worried Thebes, but not enough.

---

One cycle, when Amy was about eight or nine years old, the Overmind stated that in their research, they thought she may be able to summon things with her mind. Bring items out of nothing. Thebes thought this was ridiculous, but he agreed to try with her.

It took several weeks of work, of Amy sitting on the ground, imagining items she’d want to create, and then growing bored and wandering to the garden. Thebes would help as best he could, but in her natural Outermind state, as well as the strangeness of the situation, he couldn’t do much.

One day, she sat with him on the floor of their home, and said, “I don’t know what they want from me, really. What would make them proud of me?”

Thebes sighed, and brushed her with his wing. “Don’t think about that, Amy. What matters is I am very proud of you for trying. You don’t need to succeed if you cannot do it.”

Amy smiled and wiggled her nose at his praise, but then said, “I think I can. I really do. But I keep changing my mind on what I should bring about.”

Thebes considered. “What about those tools you use to help us build our homes? We only get those during trading periods with other worlds- wouldn’t it be useful if you could get them whenever you wanted?”

“That would be nice.” Amy nodded, considering. “I’ll try that.”

It took much longer, but she seemed more focused after that, sitting and humming and trying to make things out of thin air. But Thebes could sense her getting frustrated every day she failed, and though he assured her she didn’t need to do anything she was incapable of, it seemed every day she wanted more and more to do this magic.

Finally, one day, in the garden, she’d sat down among the stones to try and summon something. Then she stood, angered, and stomped a stone into shards. “This is awful! I can’t do it!”

“You don’t have to--”

“But I should be able to! I should be able to do anything with my head, like the rest of you! But nooo, I can’t even do anything normal! I don’t even look normal!”

"Amy.” Thebes said stiffly. “You are normal for your species.”

“Pfft, as if! I’m pretty sure most mobians don’t form out of magic emeralds!”

“Amy, please keep yourself controlled.”

“Why does it matter? I can’t even be like you!” Amy huffed, tears springing to her eyes. “How can I be anything special if I can’t be normal first? No, I’m just weird little Amy! Strange little Amy! Dumb little Amy!”

“Nobody thinks that.”

“They should! Cause that is who I am!”

In her fury, Amy turned towards the large stone behind her, and acted instinctively; what she had wanted to do was punch it, get some of her anger out by destroying the rock she’d sat against. Instead, her hands reached up behind her, in a position not very equipped for punching. And to both her and Thebes’s surprise, in the few seconds it took her to swing, a colorful, extra-large hammer appeared in her hands, and she brought its face to the rock. The impact turned the rock to an explosion of dust.

When the cloud settled, both Thebes and Amy stared in shock. Then, slowly, Amy smiled, and laughed, looking down at her hammer. Then she spun, laughing harder, beginning to dance. “Thebes, look! I did it! I did it! I made something! I made something! I did it right!”

It turned out she didn’t need to think like a Voxai to do it- to retreat into her mind, to focus on the energy around her. What she had to do was think like Amy. To think with her heart, her feelings.

Of course, Thebes was proud of her, but he also had a heavy heart at her previous words. After she’d calmed down, she threw the hammer into the air, making it disappear. And once she’d calmed from that action, which she thought was equally impressive, Thebes took her inside and sat her down.

“Amy, do you really think you’re incapable? That you’re... what was the word?”

Amy curled in on herself; it was an action she did when she was embarrassed, or upset. “Weird? Strange?”

“Amy, you’ve never been like that.”

“Don’t lie.” Amy sighed, glancing up at him. “I know you all just put up with me. I don’t act like a Voxai, and whenever I try, it feels wrong. I have to climb things and touch things, I can’t fly or lift things with my brain, I can barely even hear the hivemind. I’m just a weird outermind.”

“Has anyone told you this?”

“No... but I can tell.” Amy sighed. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed that I have to have you fly me up to certain areas, cause nobody thought they’d have someone who couldn’t fly wandering around. Or that there are games I can’t play, or that I don’t have wings and my tail is too small, and I have these legs and arms that none of you know what to do with. I can tell I’m... different.”

Thebes floated beside her, and then curled against her, draping his wings over her like a blanket, as he had when she was just an infant. “Different does not mean wrong, Amy.”

“But it makes it harder on all of you.”

“And we don’t mind.” Thebes brushed against her again. “Do you remember when Croesus’s family’s home was destroyed in that quake, but you ran there before everyone else at night, before we could rebuild?”

“Yeah.”

“And you figured out that it was a location very sensitive to quakes, so you found them a better spot and started building on your own?”

“Yeah...”

“That was all you. You used a Voxai sense, to feel the world around you, and your own research to figure out what was wrong with the location. And then you used your strength to begin building.”

“I guess.”

“Amy, you’re not a Voxai.” Thebes said quietly. “But I don’t think you’re quite a mobian, either. And you’re not a simple stone, locked away without a mind. You’re Amy, the Rose-Colored Emerald who became the Rose-Colored Hedgehog. You’re a curious girl, a temperamental girl, and overall, a kind girl who wants to do no more than help those around her. And that is not ‘weird’ or ‘strange.’ That is not even ‘normal.’ That is special. You are special, to me and to everyone in this colony.”

For a moment, Amy was quiet, and Thebes was worried he may have made things worse, due to the tears that returned to her eyes. But then she leapt up, clinging to him as she always did, burying her face against his skin, and he knew she was going to be alright.

Unfortunately, that didn’t last long.

---

Their next appointment with the Overmind, Thebes was under the impression that Amy was simply playing in the other room. He would discern later that she, instead, sat there, eyes shut, doing her best to connect to the hivemind, to listen to what they were saying, to figure out if they were proud of her for her summoning- which she’d been practicing since her first victory- or upset at her for doing it in a strange way. There was more she’d wanted to know, too- she was curious as to what they talked about when she was busy, fearful that they were saying bad things about her, and... well, recently, she’d become concerned about Thebes’s occasional worry, his distance when thinking about the Overmind. Thebes could tell that Amy wanted him to stop being scared, he just never thought she’d stop her playtime to figure out what was worrying him so.

Unfortunately, this was just about the worst time she could have listened in.

The Overmind had compiled their years of research on Chaos Emeralds, mobian culture, and Amy’s own behavior, and concluded that her magical abilities were powerful beyond their imagining. Her fits of strength, her glowing eyes, were all things that they’d never heard of any species doing, let alone mobians. The summoning only confirmed what they thought- her origins as an emerald had given her not just power, but what seemed to be an unlimited power.

Thebes stayed quiet as they presented this, but then their words turned to what they could use her power for. It was, again, as if she were a simple stone again, one that had been locked away to prevent those from using this power in the way the Overmind was discussing. They brought up how her strength could be used as a weapon, her energy to summon great things for the Overmind and terrible things for their enemies.

“What enemies?” Thebes asked. “We have always been a peaceful society.”

“But with this power,” they tried to say, “We could have a better planet, one without seas of rocks, without quakes.”

“We are fine with the rocks. We don’t need a planet of branches to get tangled in or dirt and water to drag us down.”

“You are not thinking clearly, Thebes. Just because you are used to what you have doesn’t mean you can’t want more.”

“You are trying to use her for battle, something that we hid the emerald to prevent from happening. But now you know what she can do, you want to use her for violence. Have you thought about what she wants to do with her power?”

“She is one of us, and thus in service to the Overmind. So she will be happy to do what we tell her.”

“That is not what your power is supposed to be used for.”

“Perhaps it is. Perhaps we should encourage you to think so, too.”

That must have been when Amy broke; Thebes had a strong will, she must have known, and would have resisted the Overmind trying to force him into something he didn’t want to do. But she had fear, the fear that he would be forced into a shell of himself, that the Overmind would take her away from him and use her in a way that wouldn’t make him proud.

She burst into the room, screaming for them to stop, to leave him alone, and her eyes were glowing pink, her body sparking with that intense energy. They turned to see her, and she raised her hands, wanting to simply express her anger. But again, she acted instinctively; her hands formed around the summoned hammer, and she slammed it into the ground.

The energy that burst up caused chaos. Everyone in the room with Amy felt their connections to each other severed as they were thrown back, into the wall, thudding against it as the child screamed. A blinding light seemed to burst from her, flowing into the sky and across the colony. For a few brief seconds, there was no hivemind, and everyone was alone, and began to panic. Even when it returned, there was that fear, that horror that it might happen again. The blast of energy also hit several stones, several homes, causing them to shake, a few to burst.

When Amy came back to her senses, her eyes widened with horror, and she dropped the hammer, causing it to disappear before it hit the ground. She stepped back, looking in fear at what she’d done, and then she ran.

She couldn’t get far before Thebes caught up, curling his tail around her to carry her to someplace safe and calm. But she screamed as he lifted her, kicking and screaming for him to let her go, to let her get away from him, and the Overmind, and everyone. He could feel her energy as she screamed- she was not angry, but she was terrified, a level of fear he’d never thought her capable of.

He took her to a quiet cave, and when he dropped her, she curled into a ball, crying and screaming ot herself.

“Amy,” he said.

“Don’t touch me! I’ll hurt you again! Don’t touch me!”

He realized that he would not be able to reason with her in this state, and that made him fearful- reason was what he knew best, after all. But he had to remain strong, remain calm, to keep her from panicking farther. So he floated back, and for a long, long, while, let her get her emotions out. She screamed and sobbed, pounding her fists against the floor to make small craters, slamming herself into the wall to cause it to rumble... it was terrifying, how much the small child was capable of, and how she didn’t seem to care if she hurt herself in her breakdown.

But finally, finally, after what felt like forever, her cries quieted, and she stopped slamming against the stone, and instead curled up into a ball, finally calming herself. Slowly, Thebes approached, though he kept at a distance in case she did not want to be touched.

“Amy.” he said again. Then, when she did not respond, “Amy.”

“What?”

He sighed and floated beside her, brushing her quills with his tail. “You are not to blame for what happened. You didn’t know that was possible.”

“But I hurt you.”

“I’m alright. I’m more concerned about you.”

“I’m a monster.”

“Never.” Thebes lowered himself, so that he was covering her with his wings. “It is like I said. You are Amy.”

Amy slowly unfurled from the ball, and then climbed onto his back, wrapping her arms around him in an embrace.

“Are the Overmind gonna take me away?” she sniffled.

“I would never let them.”

“I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“I know.”

“I like it here. I don’t want another planet.” Amy pressed herself farther against him. “I don’t even want Mobius. I just want to be here, at home, and make everyone happy.”

Thebes felt his heart swell. “Then you shall stay. Amy, my Amy, you make us happy just by being here.”

“What if I just ruined it? And everyone’s scared of me?”

Thebes considered, and then said, “I know I would never be.”

Amy sighed, and then embraced him tighter. “Then I guess it’ll be okay. So long as you’re still here.”

---

Thebes had to smuggle Amy back to the house, fearful of questions or some kind of repercussions from the Overmind. But when they were finally back in their colony, at their home, Amy quickly scampered into her makeshift bed, curling beneath the blankets that had once been the sling Thebes used to carry her as an infant, and soon was snoring soundly. Thebes wasn’t quite sure what to do while she slept, so he tidied the house, and then sat at the window, staring out into the sky. He thought it best to let Amy sleep, to let her dream of a place without trouble.

What he didn’t know is that that would be the last time she’d have that luxury for quite some time. 

---

Amy awoke to the rumble of the ground, and the sound of screams.

Thebes flew to her as fast as he could, and saw her rubbing her eyes, having momentarily forgotten what had happened the previous day. She blinked up at him, sleep still a distant glimmer in her green eyes- he realized, only now, with a heavy heart, they were the same green that the Chaos Emerald had been before it changed. The emerald within her soul.

“Wha’s going on?” she asked blearily, as Thebes swept her up in his wings.

“We’re under attack.”

“What?” That was almost a foreign concept to her. Then she blinked away her exhaustion, and began to tremble. “The Overmind?”

“Worse.”

“Wh- what’s--?”

Amy soon found out, as Thebes swept her onto his back and began to fly as fast as he could. Amy began to shake, letting out startled cries, as she looked to the sky, which had turned blood-red, something dark and looming floating above them and blocking their light. Around her, Voxai were scrambling, panicking, their thoughts a jumble bursting into a confused hivemind. They flew as fast as Thebes could manage, but even in the quick movements, Amy could see the shadows of creatures, strange creatures she couldn’t recall reading about, leaping onto Voxai, smashing them into the ground, screeching and roaring.

“What are they?”

Thebes was hesitant, but then he said, “They’re here for you. So we have to get you safe.”

“What?”

“They must have sensed that explosion of Chaos Energy. So they want your power- and trust me, what they could do with your power is worse than anything even the Overmind, even in this state, could imagine.”

Amy grabbed onto him tighter, shutting her eyes and trying to think of something, anything else, to block out the screams, the crashes, the roars.

When Thebes began to slow, Amy opened her eyes, scared he might have been cornered. Instead, she saw them floating in front of some tall, elaborate building- far more decorated than any other practical Voxai residence.

“Where are we?”

Before Thebes could answer, they heard more screams, more screeching- and then, a horrifying hiss. They turned behind them, and Amy whimpered as they saw a thick gas spreading in the area behind them. As they watched, every Voxai that came in contact with it completely froze, unable to move. Their screams, however, could still be heard in the hivemind- they were conscious, but unable to move at all, leaving them ripe for the taking of the invading monsters.

Amy finally let out a terrified scream, and that pushed Thebes fast enough to act. He took off flying again, into the temple, the one where Amy had been born so long ago. He could only hope he could outrun the gas for long enough to save her.

He burst through the temple, only slowing whenever it seemed that Amy was slipping. He could feel her tremble against him, looking up and around at the temple halls, curiosity and confusion bursting into her fear.

Thebes had not been in the temple for about a decade now, but he still knew the pathways, every nook and cranny, and before long he was able to get them to the chamber that had once held the emerald that became the hedgehog clinging to him now. Once there, he let Amy slide off his back, and flew to the wall, counting the bricks.

“What are you doing?”

“Only the Overmind knew we had one of these,” he said, “and only the guardian of the Emerald’s Temple knew where it was. And... here! Amy, move this stone.” 

“The Emerald’s Temple?” Amy asked, realization dawning on her. Then she ran over, pulling a loose stone from the wall as Thebes said. There was something behind it, and she reached inside, pulling out...

“A ring?”

“It’s a teleporter.” Thebes explained. He hooked it around his tail, taking it from her. “It will take you far away from here, where they won’t be able to find you.”

“Wh-what?”

They heard roaring, then, echoing through the temple halls.

“They’re inside.” he said, almost disbelievingly. Then, he shook his head. “You have to leave, before that paralyzing gas reaches you and you can no longer escape them.”

“But you’re coming too, right?”

Thebes took a deep, steady breath. “Those monsters will be here before long. I will not let them follow you.”

“What does that mean? Thebes?”

Thebes then flung the ring into the air. With a jing sound, it expanded, opening up into a huge, dark portal. On the other side was a world Thebes knew Amy had read about, one where she’d be able to survive until she found someone to care for her.

“Listen to me. Your power is unlike anything we could have imagined. That means there will always be someone looking to use it for evil. Do not let anyone use you. Your power is yours- which means it is something beautiful.”

“What are you saying?”

“You must hurry.” 

“No!” she stomped her foot, causing a floor rumble. “I won’t leave you! I’ll fight them, I’ll protect you! I’m not leaving!”

There wasn’t time to argue, and Thebes knew it. Even with her strength, he doubted a child as young as she would be a match for the invading creatures, especially with their paralyzing agent. He couldn’t let them use her for their dark ends, hurt her for their horrible means.

He wrapped his wings around her, as he had when she was a baby. Then he spun, and flung her into the ring.

“Thebes!” she screeched, and he watched his daughter disappear into the ring portal, and, as best he could, sent her a calming wave of energy before it could close and the aliens could reach him.

---

Amy ran to where the portal had been, clawing at the air, then the dirt beneath her fingers, much more dirt than she was used to. “No! No! Thebes! Thebes, bring me back! Dad! BRING ME BACK!”

Her eyes sparked with that pink energy, tears flowing from her and landing on the ground, before turning into steam from the magic within her. It finally hit her that the ring would not open again, that Thebes had sent her away, and that... that Voxai... they must all be...

She sunk to her knees, unable to hold herself up any longer. She stared into space, letting the strange wind hit her, feeling the strange plants under her, and letting herself cry.

This was her fault.

No.

But it is. They were after me. My power.

Amy hugged herself, despair overwhelming her.

Then, slowly, Thebes’s words entered her mind. “You are not to blame for what happened. You didn’t know that was possible.” 

But if it wasn’t for me, they wouldn’t be dying right now.

What would Thebes say to that? “It doesn’t matter. It happened, and you must go on.”

How could I go on without my family? My home?

“That is for you to decide.”

She shivered, hugging herself tighter and curling into a ball, hearing those last words in her head. “Your power is yours- which means it is something beautiful.” 

Right now, it sure didn’t feel beautiful.

But after a while, she sat up, the words ringing in her head. Thebes sent her away, but not out of fear of her. To keep her safe. She couldn’t let that be in vain. She couldn’t sink into despair in the middle of this strange place. That wasn’t what Thebes would want.

She struggled to her feet, taking a few steps before sinking again. And then she got up, and took another step, and another, focusing on making her way across the unusual terrain.

She walked for what must have been hours, the sky above changing from its dark black to a bright blue. It seemed strange, that the sky could brighten when her home was gone, that anything could be light ever again. She felt heat against her quills as she pushed through tall plants- trees, she thought, from her reading. She found a long trickle of water- a river. It was strange, seeing one of those- usually on Voxai, their water was extracted from the small plants that survived on the stone. It was amazing that someone could have so much water it flowed across the land.

There were stones in the middle of the river, and as she hopped across them, she felt a brief flash of home- except these rocks were wet, and slippery. It was almost like a taunt, reminding her she would never be home again.

But she followed the river. Most species needed water to survive, so she’d find someone. As she walked, she wondered if she wanted to do this at all- what if they wanted to hurt her, too, and Thebes’s sacrifice had been for nothing? But then, what if she wasted away in the woods, dying because she didn’t understand how this world worked? No, she had to at least see who lived here. This had to be a planet she read about, right?

She’d been walking for so long her legs ached, but she kept pushing on, until she finally reached the river’s end. She looked up at a huge waterfall, amazed by the roar it produced, the droplets flickering onto her. She’d never seen anything like it.

There was a rustle behind her, and she jumped, turning. On instinct, she pulled the hammer, again, out of air, in case one of those monsters had followed her.

Instead, something flew at her, too fast for her to react. But when it stopped, right in front of her face, she saw it was something organic, something alive. A bright teal creature, flapping with tiny pink wings. It had legs and arms like her, and blinking eyes, these a dark blue as opposed to her green. It stared for a long while, and she stared back, the two of them trying to figure each other out.

She heard a rustle again, and the creature retreated a little bit, turning to look. Amy’s stare was then directed at what emerged from the plants.

A mobian.

She was small, miniscule. A little girl, with the same body shape as Amy, the same head, limbs... but she wasn’t a hedgehog. She had long ears, so long that she tripped over them as she waddled over, and a puffy, bushy tail.

“Hi!” the creature said, in the Mobian language. “I’m Cream, and this is my very best friend, Cheese. What’s your name?”

Amy kept staring.

“Maybe you cannot talk yet.”

Amy swallowed a cry, and then carefully said, “I’m Amy.”

“Oh! You can talk! I’m so glad. A lot of people don’t visit the garden, mama says. I bet she wants to meet you. We take care of the chao, like Cheese. Do you like chao? Do you want some food? We have cookies--”

She sure talked a lot for someone who was so young- barely past the toddler stage, probably. At least, Amy figured. She didn’t know how fast mobian children developed. All she knew was... herself.

Amy turned to river, watching her rippling reflection. She was filthy, with red cheeks and dark circles under her eyes. But she looked mainly up at the quills on her face, which pointed outwards, spiking like jagged stones.

Slowly, as the rabbit talked, she reached up, pulling her quills down. If she pulled them to point down, against the sides of her head, it almost looked like a Voxai shell.

“--my house is back this way. I bet Mama will be real real happy to see you, we like having visitors. And we have pretty pretty flowers! Do you wanna see?”

Flowers. Amy had never seen one up close before. She wondered if there’d be one the color Thebes had described her as. The Rose-Colored Emerald, he’d said.