Rock-laden leather removes itself from the ground with a pop. (Earth and dirt... it falls like dusty frozen rain.) Like a blunt-force puncture wound. The shuddering earth. The rumble underneath that could split a mountain in twain... Crimson red stood tall in the new crater now decorating Angel Island's delicate surface.
The latest intruder stood to acquire what his home had to offer. It was only customary that they received the same warning that all invaders received.
It served as a warning.
As pure punctuation.
You are not welcome here.
GET OFF OF MY ISLAND.
"I'm askin' you the same thing, shade. You really feel like dyin' t'day?" His form rises like a wall. The guardian of the Master Emerald, resolved in his duty, and damn-sure to see it through. Was he still willing to die for this cause? What kind of stupid question was that? From what Tails had told him prior, he thought the phantom better than to ask that which he already knew, rhetorical or no.
Sturdy shoes slam across the terrain. He is the barrier between the shrine's grandstanding steps... and the thing that keeps them all afloat. "I'll keep th'chit-chat short. I'm not one for talkin'. I know who you are, Mephiles, and I know what you're here for. That Emerald ain't goin' nowhere, y'hear me?"
He cracks his spiked namesakes with deep, guttural snaps. "I hope you didn't come up here lookin' for a rousing debate. You're gonna find I'm a little more aggressive than the kid." He rolls his neck, muscles flexing, joints popping...
—No more words. He moves without care for whatever the other has to say in response. Don't bother. It wouldn't matter. Everyone here was in agreement on what would happen next, so let's just cut to the chase.
It's the burst of a double-barreled shotgun and the roar of something primal. He leaps— his figure puts a cap overtop the sun, a falling shadow gracing the fallen shadow. His speed harkened to something far more blue, but he is just as wild; the wind at his back is blazing. It burns on the evening air, the flames carried in hulking fists. Sears the breeze, stings the eyes, sunders the ground—
The ground... it shudders, it ruptures. AN EARTHQUAKE SENDS BOULDERS SKYWARD. Chunks of rocky terrain fly upward from one seismic punch to the ground— the strike was never meant for Mephiles. THIS WAS ONLY THE BEGINNING. Jagged stone, they hiss and sizzle upon descent. They own an orange glow. Visibly volatile... The shade enjoyed keeping his distance. Let's test his reflexes...
FISTS FIRED A VOLLEY OF EARTHEN BOMBS. They fell as they would rise, what goes up and all of that... But these were especially made, they were no simple skipping stones. As explosive as they were large, the red bruiser's form braced, precision strikes sending him flinging to and fro. A body skidded across the mound, found itself in place to launch every boulder that fell from the heavens above. They launch at mach five, and detonate as they reach the other side of the field. It's like throwing hand grenades the size of twelve of you.
Concussive blasts, fiery heat looking to burn, scald, and engulf. A bludgeoning force... they'll simply smack you in the face if you aren't quick enough. And don't even think about sending the attack back to the source. He was ready to give back what you gave him, with added interest.
...Speaking of the source, where was that rascally red echidna? Through the rock, dust, dirt, and burnt stone of it all, it seemed he wasn't so keen on staying in place.
Why, he's getting in position, is all. The loud, raucous nature of the primer he's presented was nothing but hors d'oeuvres. He'd be preparing the main close-quarters course while bombs were bursting in air. That shadow of his would start to feel heavier if given the chance. He'd best not catch the specter slipping, he was just getting warmed up.