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“Espio… Espio?”
Doing his best to ignore the whisper that sounded near his head for the umpteenth time that evening the chameleon kept his eyes stoically closed, disregarding the shifting weight on his folded legs and the intrinsic glare that would burn right through his eyelids if that were possible. Meditating was already difficult enough on its own, requiring good concentration and an ability to look at oneself without judgement or verdicts; with a needy psychic whispering in his ears and mushing himself onto his chest the task tended to become so, so much harder. The same went for his entirely neutral facial expression, the evenness ever so slightly disrupted by a frown as something poked him in his cheek. With an inward sigh Espio relented and opened his eyes, looking down into large pools of gold accompanied by a sea of soft grey fur sprawled out in his lap. “Espiooooo…” sounded once more, pleadingly and whiny and far too adorable for the recipient to be able to do anything other than comply with Silver’s wishes.
“I am awake,” the ninja dryly responded as he moved his hands from where they laid folded against each other to scratch the hedgehog behind one ear. “As are you, despite the… late hour.”
Amusedly twitching his nose Silver grinned up at the clock hanging on the wall, which proudly told the two anthros it was nearing a quarter before twelve. Charmy had long gone to bed already, as had Vector; Espio had promised them he’d come upstairs later after some late-night meditation to prepare himself for tomorrow’s busy day filled with cases and appointments, feeling peaceful in the knowledge that his entire family was resting and safe. Clearly that did not go for all of them. “I can’t sleep,” the time traveller stated, cheeky and adorable as he gently leaned up to nose the chameleon’s face.
“I got such a feeling already.” Stretching out his stiff limbs with a groan Espio got up, easily hoisting Silver into his arms with the movement. They did this song and dance more often than he could count, though despite his grumbling and grumpiness the chameleon would never get tired of it, and he could already tell this night would go exactly like all the others. Though, although more on the psychical plane as opposed to the mental, he himself was feeling quite exhausted indeed… Turning his attention to the hedgehog he smiled sleepily. “Luckily I can, so I am going to tuck you in now and you are going to rest also. How does that sound?”
Chuckling at the huff that resounded from just below his chin the ninja made his way over to the stairs. “That sounds terrible,” his beloved meanwhile pouted from where he laid hunched in Espio’s grasp like an agitated foldable lawn chair, filled with an energy and zest the chameleon could only wish for in the moment. “You gotta tell me a story, Espio!”
That was a staple of their evenings too, and Espio squinted a prickling eye close at the request. He was nearing collapse, that much was clear; despite how much he liked to spend time with the other, hopefully he and Silver could keep the other’s required bedtime tale short this time. “Do I, now?” he hummed off-handedly, keeping the other steady as he went up the first steps.
“Yes!” Fussing around a little Silver wrapped his arms around the chameleon’s shoulders, poking a wet nose against his cheek. “You need to tell me a bedtime story, otherwise I’ll never fall asleep again!”
“What did you do before I was there to tell you your much-coveted tales, then?” Espio took the bait despite knowing he shouldn’t, hushing for the other to be quiet as he walked up the final few steps of the chair into the upstairs hallway. If Charmy woke up also due to them being too noisy the situation would get quite chaotic indeed, and the ninja honestly wasn’t sure he could deal with two hyperactive young children clamouring for his attention and stories at midnight when he wanted to do nothing else than curl up in bed and fall asleep.
Puffing out his chest Silver huffed once more, closing his eyes with all the self-righteousness and smugness of a hedgehog who knew what he was talking about. “I just didn’t sleep, duh.”
“Oh, I’m sure. Goodnight, dear one.” Dropping the hedgehog onto the mattress and quickly trapping him underneath the covers Espio gave him a quick peck on his cheek, turning around to make a beeline for the door and right into his own bed… only to be stopped by a teal-marked hand that shot out of the covers and grabbed his own before his escape was successful.
“My story? Please?” sounded behind him, and as he turned around to fix Silver in the driest glare he could muster Espio suppressed a fond sigh. Clearly the hedgehog wasn’t going to go down without a fight, like every night. With a shake of his head at the pleading yet stubborn gaze sent his way the chameleon let himself get pulled down on the covers, rubbing his prickling eyes. His mind was entirely blank, though; what tale could he possible talk about?
“I have told you every story about our jobs and adventures, plus every adventure Sonic has gone on also, plus every bedtime story I’ve ever come up with for Charmy… You’re not leaving me much here to work with, small one.”
“Well, then I want to hear about the rest of the world. A, uh… non- nonfiction story? That’ll work for me just fine,” the hedgehog told him persistently.
With a fondly-raised eyebrow Espio hummed. “And what would that entail, exactly…?”
“…Um.” Clearly Silver hadn’t thought that far ahead, the adorable frown on his face that indicated he was thinking deeply creasing his brow as his nose twitched along. Silence rang out for a few seconds, before the other jumped up with an enthusiastic cry. “The Emeralds! I wanna hear about the Emeralds!”
Rapidly shoving his jumpy beloved under the covers anew and tucking in the loose duvet in record time Espio shrugged, sensing an opportunity for an easy getaway to his own bed and grasping it with both hands. “Very well. No-one-knows-where-the-Emeralds-came-from-the-end-now-let’s-go-to-bed-goodnight-and-sleep-well-I’ll-see-you-tomorrow!”
But before he could get up and dash out of the room like intended he got snatched by long tendrils of teal-coloured energy, mercilessly getting flung upside down in the air and helplessly bungling there as he got subjected to Silver’s glare. Luckily the other did this often enough for him to no longer be fazed by it, and he easily tucked his head towards his chin to stop himself from getting a headache. At least getting turned around like this would make him slightly more immune for Silver’s golden eyes that he could never say no to. “That’s the most lamest way you could have told it!” the objection meanwhile came from the grey-furred hedgehog, simultaneously scolding and pleading at the same time.
“Well, no-one does know where the Emeralds come from, so it was nothing but truth,” Espio sighed out, frowning at his failed attempt of escape before yelping as he got unceremoniously dropped on the bed face-first. With a small groan he freed his horn from the covers, looking up at Silver with a pleading glance of his own. “Small one… we have multiple cases tomorrow to work on, it’s nearing twelve, I want nothing more than to go to sleep, are you sure you cannot go rest also without listening to me droning on about some gemstones first? Why even the Emeralds, what’s so special about them?”
Crossing his arms in an imitation of Charmy more than anything else Silver shook his head. “I’m sure. And the Emeralds are cool, so I wanna hear whatever cool tale you can tell me about them.”
Deeming the other too adorable to go against any further Espio shook his head fondly, moving up to lean against the bed’s headboard as he wrapped an arm around the other. This battle had been lost, not so much because of Silver’s amazing persuasive skills and solid reasoning as the chameleon not wanting to hurt his feelings. “Very well, then. But we’re keeping this short, and no interruptions.”
Opening his mouth happily the psychic shut it again only a heartbeat afterwards, instead nodding fiercely as Espio smiled despite himself. The tales surrounding the Emeralds certainly were interesting though, the chameleon cheered himself up. His beloved definitely could have picked a more boring topic of conversation. “Let’s see… Well, like I said, the origins of the Emeralds are shrouded in mystery-
“How come?!” Silver loudly interrupted, a giggle slipping past his lips immediately afterwards at the sour look Espio sent his way. “Sorry, sorry. I’ll try to keep quiet.”
“You better, because I’ll get up and leave otherwise,” the chameleon half-heartedly threatened, knowing full well he loved Silver too much to ever hurt him like that. Settling more comfortably with Silver’s ears underneath his fingers he forced himself to relax; he was going to be here for a while, that much was certain. “I’ll just start at what we presume is the beginning, then. The Emeralds existed already prior to recorded time and perhaps even before civilisations came into being, allegedly having been on our planet for much longer than the Master Emerald. Some say they were a gift of the gods watching over us, others state they are an accumulation of the natural Chaos energy that surrounds all of us into seven gemstones, even others still consider them to be the beginning of the entire universe… The thing is, we just do not know. There are near-infinite legends and tales talking about their feats and prowess, and how ancient civilisations used them for their bidding, be it good or evil. In that regard little has changed these days.”
“You mean Eggman, right?” Silver piped up, fur bristling at the mere mention of the madman.
Soothingly Espio stroked him behind his flicking ears. “I do, yes. As you know, the Emeralds are said to hold infinite power; the one who has their might in their grasp can do virtually anything their heart desires, be it for good or evil. Eggman cannot resist such power, just like all the fools before him.”
Falling silent he let the psychic muse over his words a little, the other peeking up with a questioning gaze. “Hey, Espio?” Fiddling a little with his gloves Silver frowned, his nose twitching. “If that’s the case, isn’t it kinda weird that the Emeralds are both good and evil? Why are they both, not just wholly good?”
With an amused chuckle Espio held the hedgehog close, running a hand over the stubborn quills. “You need to have balance in your life, small one,” he explained patiently. “Just like how life does not only exist of either happiness or sadness exclusively, the Emeralds contain both positive and negative energy. Happiness becomes hollow and inconsequential when your existence is filled with only good feelings, just like how you cannot survive when you are held down by grief at every turn. You need the sadness for the happiness to mean something, just like how you need the happiness to know you can overcome the sadness when it strikes. You cannot be complete with only one.”
Letting his head lean against the chameleon Silver hummed softly, his adorable frown serving only to make Espio smile in adoration. “I guess… But what does that have to do with the Emeralds, then?”
“We’re getting there,” the ninja assured him. “In short, the Emeralds can transform thoughts into power. Due to them containing both positive and negative energies they can be controlled by positive emotions such as joy and love, as well as negative emotions like anger and grief. That allows anyone to use the Emeralds on a basic level, no matter their intentions with them.”
“But why would the Emeralds be okay with people using them to destroy the world?! That’s evil!”
Gently Espio pressed his lips against the disturbed frown on Silver’s face, smiling fondly at the other’s agitation. “That I do not have an answer to, I’m afraid. But you must remember they are the Chaos Emeralds, small one; that would imply that they themselves don’t care all that much.”
“Oh…”
Shaking his head affectionately the chameleon gave Silver’s quills a resolute pet. “We got off-track, my apologies. So, one of the clearest myths about the Emeralds and their might is the one of the Knuckles Clan-“ he smirked as amusement entered Silver’s gaze, the hedgehog presumably already having an inkling where this was going- “a tribe of echidnas who lived about 4,000 years ago, near the Mystic Ruins.”
“Echidnas, huh?” The intrigue on Silver’s face fell, getting replaced by something Espio could best describe as wistfulness. “I thought Knuckles was the last one, though… So if he had lived a bit earlier he’d have had echidna friends?”
“4,000 years is not exactly a bit, but yes,” Espio agreed, smiling at the other’s naïve statement. “As for the Knuckles Clan, they were blessed with the power of the Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald to keep them safe. The Master Emerald had been created by the gods -allegedly- at that point, because it was seen time and time again that the Emeralds would be used for evil purposes. Every time that occurred the world got plunged into despair-“
“See, this just wouldn’t happen if the Emeralds refused to be used for evil.”
“-so, the gods decided it was best to create a counterweight to the Emeralds’ power, to stop them when it was most necessary,” Espio pointedly continued after the interruption as Silver mumbled an apology. “It’s okay. The Emeralds plus Master Emerald resided at the Altar of the Emeralds just outside of the Mystic Ruins -how they got there in the first place I do not know- where the Knuckles Clan was building up quite the empire at that time. They had started out peaceful, in balance with the planet and others around them, but then Chief Pachacamac came into rule.”
“Pak- Paka- Um-“
Chuckling amusedly the chameleon petted Silver’s quills. “You can ask Knuckles about the pronunciation, he’s the one who told me this story anyway. Although the tribe had been peaceful under his mother’s rule he quickly turned it into a warmongering and battle-loving army. The surrounding clans and civilisations were not safe; Pachacamac and his men stopped at nothing to increase their might.”
“Oh…” With drooping ears Silver looked down. “That’s not nice of them, Espio.”
“It’s not, no. But not all was lost; Pachacamac had a daughter, as loving towards the world as he looked down on it and as kind-hearted where he was brutal. Her name was Tikal, and due to her gentle spirit she quickly befriended the Chao that made their home at the Emerald shrine. Even more, she was one of the only people allowed to witness the guardian deity watching over them: Chaos, who we now call the god of destruction.”
“Hey, I’ve heard of Chaos!” Silver beamed, sadness evaporating as he perked up. “Knuckles says he’s a god who lives in the Master Emerald!”
“That is correct, though if he did at the time I do not know,” Espio hummed. “Tikal gained their well-earned trust, and learned more about the Emeralds and the Master Emerald that anyone else of her time, presumably. However, Pachacamac refused to stop his warmongering and conquests. Tikal firmly opposed her father’s ways, wishing instead to live in peace with the others. Though she tried to bring him to a halt before it was too late, her father didn’t listen. He figured that with the might of the Emeralds, considered sacred objects in their culture, his clan would be unstoppable and indestructible… All in all the fool was not wrong, though I doubt he could have imagined what was going to happen in his blindness.”
Swallowing thickly the psychic looked up, tipping his head to the side. “What happened…?”
As he stroked the other’s quills Espio beheld the ceiling, a grim look on his face as he tried to imagine just what that fated day must have been like. “Tikal’s pleading fell on deaf ears, and Pachacamac directed his army to the shrine to take the Emeralds away. The girl stood no chance, nor did the Chao… The Knuckles Clan almost succeeded in their attack, were it not for Chaos who emerged to defend those he cared about. With the negative energies of the Emeralds he transformed into Perfect Chaos, a massive water monster who destroyed the warriors like it was nothing. In one fell swoop, most of the Knuckles Clan was no more.”
Silver’s face carried a stoic frown as he listened to the tale, gaze dropping as Espio fell silent. “They… they deserved it, I would say,” he mumbled, quills slowly beginning to droop as the sorrow of the tale truly registered. “But what happened to Tikal…?”
“Chaos was blind with rage, convinced that all people wanted was to take over the world and hurt others,” the chameleon recounted. “Acting quickly, Tikal went up to the Master Emerald and used its power to nullify the Emeralds’ might, after which she sealed Chaos and herself away in the stone. They stayed there for 4,000 years, until Eggman broke the Emerald, but I’m sure Sonic has told you that story already.”
“He did, yes. But what happened to the Emeralds after that?”
“The Master Emerald stayed in the shrine, its power large enough to lift most of the tribe’s territory into the air. It formed Angel Island, also called the Floating Island by some, presumably to keep itself away from people trying to harness its power and prevent the world from ever befalling such tragedy once more. The remaining echidnas swore to protect it, however over 4,000 years their numbers dwindled until now, when Knuckles is the only one left,” Espio summarised the rest of the tale quickly.
Fiddling with his gloves Silver sighed, letting his head rest against Espio’s chest. “That’s sad, especially for Knuckles…”
“Even though it’s just him now, Knuckles will do anything to keep the Master Emerald and Angel Island safe,” the chameleon assured him. “The knowledge of what had befallen the Knuckles Clan passed down into legends and fairy tales, warning others against the might of the Emeralds. Those stories are drenched in blood, but also in hope… Despite their crimson history, or perhaps because of it, people kept gathering the gems time and time again. Some wished to use them for good and others for evil, though so far hope and happiness have always persevered, and now we’re here.”
Silence rang out for a few seconds, wherein Silver contemplatively looked up before a small smile formed on his face. “Huh… That’s really neat, Espio. It gives me hope for the future.”
“It does, for me too,” the chameleon agreed, the adorably inquisitive face of the hedgehog warming his heart immediately. Though, it got eclipsed only slightly by the yawn tugging on the corners of his mouth and the prickling of his eyelids. “Have your bedtime story needs been satiated now?”
Stopping himself from getting too excited about the possibility of finally being able to go to bed the chameleon looked the other over, recognising the curious gleam in Silver’s eyes all too well. “Uh… Can I ask something else? About the Emeralds?” the other indeed piped up, as he had expected.
“Yes, of course.”
“Like… How do they work? How do they, um, turn thoughts into power…?”
His face falling a little at the unexpected question Espio shrugged, unsure of the answer himself. “…Perhaps you should ask Sonic that, or Shadow. I am not an expert.”
“But you know everything,” Silver pointed out, smug certainty on his face as he gave the chameleon’s cheek a nuzzle.
“Well, I certainly don’t know how to put you to sleep successfully, that’s for sure,” Espio dryly retorted as the psychic grinned.
“I just wanna know, Espio. Everyone can use the Emeralds, right?”
With a nod the ninja turned his attention to Silver’s ears once more, half to make the other sleepy under the guise of providing pleasure and half to keep himself awake. “Well, some people can do so better than others. Sonic and Shadow have this thing called a Super transformation, where they become nigh-invulnerable and their strength plus all their skills are greatly enhanced. Sonic once told me that it spreads positive feelings to everyone nearby, though I’m not too sure about the validity of such claims. Regardless, only a select few can do that, and I do not know what causes it.”
“But you’re a detective, so you definitely have a theory,” the other chirped, peering up at him adorably with love and pride shining in his eyes.
Chuckling fondly Espio nodded, realising Silver had him there. “Touché. I must admit that I have not put that much thought into it, though… However, my theory would be that those with enhanced affinity for Chaos energy are more aligned to the Emeralds, and thus better at utilising them than people who lack this affinity. Shadow certainly has it, considering his powers, though for Sonic I am not sure. He does enough insane things for it to be plausible, though.”
“I see,” Silver hummed. “Chaos energy, you say… Can I use the Emeralds, then?”
Blinking at him Espio frowned, caught quite off-guard by the question indeed as his fingers slowed to a halt. “Well, you… Um. Why would you be able to, if I may know?”
“Because of my powers,” the response came with no hesitation.
“Yes, but your powers are psychic powers. I’m not sure…” With the frown making deep creases on his face Espio slowly fell silent. Silver’s innate powers had to have originated from somewhere, especially considering that they broke quite a few fundamental laws of physics their world was built on. And didn’t the Emeralds, unlimited sources of energy compacted into seven gemstones capable of otherworldly feats and miracles, do the exact same? But he had no evidence to back that up, nor any idea how they could test that… “I do not know the answer, I’m afraid,” he told the hedgehog truthfully.
With a smile Silver flicked his ears. “We should try it sometime, then. I’m curious.”
“Perhaps, but not tomorrow, and definitely not now.” A glance at the small clock on the bedside table told the chameleon that they were rapidly nearing half past twelve, and he gave Silver a pointed glance to tell the hedgehog it was truly over and done now. “You’re going to sleep, and that’s final.”
Yawning cutely the psychic nodded, leaning against Espio with a content purr. “Of course. Thanks for talking to me, Espio.”
“Anytime, dear one.”
“And sorry for annoying you.”
“Oh, Silver.” Leaning close to press a kiss against his cheek Espio smoothed out his quills, smiling warmly at the finally-sleepy pools of gold that peered up at him. “You could never annoy me.”
With a slow blink the hedgehog yawned once more, his ears twitching back with the movement. “Can I ask one more thing, then?”
Despite his efforts to contain it a loud sigh slipped past Espio’s lips immediately at the question, followed by a groan and a bashful smile as Silver chuckled sleepily. “One thing, and keep it short,” he complied.
“Can you stay here and sleep with me tonight?” the hedgehog purred, yawning himself a third time as he oozed against the chameleon’s chest.
A yawn splitting open his own face before he could respond Espio stretched himself out, rubbing his eyes once more as he realised he was effectively trapped with the hedgehog splayed out against him. “Only for this time,” he grumbled in mock discontentment, his words and movements overflowing with affection as Silver snuggled close with a coo and he securely wrapped an arm around the other. His statement was a lie anyway, the two of them slept in the same bed much more frequently than they rested alone these days, and as such the chameleon easily slipped into a comfortable position with the psychic laying warmly against him.
“Love you, Espio,” piped up from where the weary time traveller laid snugly against his chest, a gentle shimmer of teal nosing against his cheek for a second as the chameleon smiled.
“Goodnight, dear one. Have sweet dreams.”
From Silver’s deep breaths he could discern the hedgehog had already fallen asleep even before his words had been spoken, but despite his earlier exhaustion the chameleon struggled to close his eyes and let himself drift away into soothing darkness also. The legend of Tikal and the Emerald, though sad and perhaps a bit too bloody to make a suitable bedtime story, wasn’t occupying his mind; rather, Espio let himself ponder the possibilities of Silver using the Emeralds like Sonic and Shadow could, teleporting all over the place or generating pure Chaos energy with only a mere command passing his lips… What would his fur look like in the vibrant gold that adorned the two other hedgehogs when they turned Super? Or, the chameleon mused as a worried frown overtook his thoughts, what would happen if it turned out Silver didn’t have such an affinity to Chaos energy like he predicted was necessary…? What would happen to the other if he…
Clutching the gently-snoring psychic close the ninja shook his head, pushing away the thoughts to the back of his mind and pressing a soothing kiss to Silver’s forehead instead. They wouldn’t be experimenting with that anytime soon, and as long as they had an expert with them surely nothing could go wrong. Even though his curiosity was piqued the chameleon reminded himself that resting was most important now, and he closed his eyes as he buried his head into soft quills lovingly tucked away underneath his chin. Though, perhaps he could let himself fantasise about Silver turning Super just a bit more… Before he knew it Espio had fallen asleep also, Silver warmly against his side and dreams overflowing with gold and chaos and love.