WEEK 5

[shardmods]

Your fight against Infinite didn't go as expected. You've now seen what the false Chaos Emeralds are capable of and how their powers can be used by someone accustomed to that power. Though Infinite is no longer a threat, Eggman certainly is - and you're in no position to return to Chicago to try to take him down right now.

Focus on recovering and regrouping; you're going to need a plan to oppose Eggman from here on out.

THE VOID

Maybe you've grown complacent over your time in Chicago. You won't be seeing the city this week. Tails is adamant that it isn't safe to go back and insists that you remain here, within the Void between worlds. It is a still, silent abyss of nothingness, broken up only by gemstone-like shards that serve as platforms or obstacles, with very little else to see.

Gravity doesn't work properly within the Void, meaning you can float and even zip around at high speeds once you've figured out how it works. You can also stick yourself to shards no matter what angle you're at, resulting in walking upside down or otherwise getting stuck to one without being able to escape. Thankfully, this wonky gravity only applies to the Void itself, and you'll naturally come to master it as you spend more time here.

There are some shards that are shaped differently from the ones you can use as platforms, however. These are almost hexagonal, with a dark center that may flicker whenever you approach one. If you're lucky, the surface will flicker like water and show you images of another world - usually you will see Chicago and the robots rampaging through the city streets - but occasionally you may see glimpses of your home world or of other worlds. No matter what you do, you cannot interact with these visions. Since they do seem to be water, punching them will do no good; your hand won't even get wet, as it will go through and dispel the image entirely.

Settle in, it seems like you'll be here for awhile. Oh, and try to ignore that unnerving feeling of being watched - there's no escaping it when you're in the Void, after all.

RINGS

There is one bright spot in being stuck within the Void, and that's that your colorful little pals have rings. If you've been diligent about collecting them from whatever ridiculous places they've ended up in, you may even have a good amount! Though it will take a day or so for the rings to actually work, as the week goes on, you'll be able to world hop to your heart's content.

Which yes, means you could absolutely go home. Be mindful of your mission and just how long you spend there, because you will need to return eventually, right? Though time may work differently in the Void, it mostly works the same between worlds. Try not to spend more than a week back home.

But there is something a bit strange about world hopping; you can't really control where or when you'll end up.

You may arrive back in your home world at the wrong point in time entirely, either in the past or the future. You may end up in an alternate reality of your world (canon AU or fanmade AU) or you may even end up in someone else's world entirely! You all aren't used to using rings just yet, so it makes sense that there's some confusion.

Two of you attempting to use a ring together will have more success... but even then, failures can still happen and you can still be sent to the wrong places.

You may visit any world to exist except any Sonic worlds. Worlds where Sonic shows up as a cameo (Super Smash Bros, for example) are fine. Which yes, means I am barring you from visiting Sonic Underground, you'll have to forgive me.

SHARDS

Though you're stronger now than ever before, your power pales in comparison to Infinite's, let alone Eggman's. You're going to need to be much, much stronger if you want to stand a chance of fighting back. Maybe it would be worth it to visit a world full of monsters to practice using your shards.

As you fight with your allies - particularly those you have a close bond with, positive or negative - you may feel the tug of something in the back of your head; it tells you that you can do more. Together, you can become more powerful. You can use your shards together. Doing so will grant you a new power, or strengthen the one you already have. The more you trust one another, the easier this power will be to use.

It might be good to experiment with these new powers; after all, you never know when you may need them.

TAILS' TASKS

Rings can only be found in certain worlds, which means your worlds are safe from them. This does mean there are only a limited number of rings, however... so please keep this in mind when world hopping! This week, Tails does not have any tasks for you aside from continuing to train and develop your shard powers. Oh, and to stay safe, of course. Please don't get yourselves killed in some other world.

ENEMIES

Surprisingly, you will encounter none of Eggman's robots this week. The Void remains still and silent for the whole week and your worlds are free from Eggman's influence. You're welcome to beat up any enemies native to your own worlds, of course.

NAVIGATION

Comments

[akademise]

So she left him in his care...?

[ LADY, WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT. ]

[tworo]

She did, yes. I am not entirely sure where she is now.

[Will she be called back to take care of Arven, now that Turo is dead? But then, Turo wasn't really taking care of him to begin with.]

[akademise]

[ Man....... ]

I feel for poor Arven. It's certainly understandable that you have no lingering sentimentality of any kind about her, given that context.

[ The real Turo may not have been a real father to Arven, but this Turo seems to have loved him as one, fully. ]

[tworo]

I am unconvinced that she would have been a better parent had she stayed...but at least the Professor did make an attempt.

[Derogatory, but there was an attempt...]

[akademise]

Yes, I... I suppose. An attempt alone is simply often not enough.

[ He would know, unfortunately. ]

[tworo]

No, it isn't.

[He knows that too, of course.]

I don't know if she'll be notified. I don't even know what Arven plans to say about what happened. He probably can't really explain the whole thing - it's too unbelievable.

[akademise]

The professor really left him a right mess to deal with...

[ AI Turo is not at fault, even despite calling him to the Zero Lab. You cannot change More's mind about this. ]

How old is he now? Actually, as I ask this, what age is considered 'adult' for the humanity of your world?

[tworo]

He's sixteen. Eighteen is when one becomes a full legal adult, but there's a gradation of responsibilities available before that. A child can apply for a trainer's license as young as ten. As old as he is, and having lived more or less independently for so long already...they may just allow him to become emancipated. That would mean he was granted legal responsibility for himself in spite of his age.

[It's probably the best route; it would mean more or less continuing his life as normal, without any disruptions from long-lost mothers. Perhaps he could be a ward of the school or something too.]

He will be provided for financially, at least. The Professor did have a will, and he was actually fairly independently wealthy after the Tera orb did so well. [You wouldn't know it the way he was living, but]

[akademise]

That is a relief... Though your world seems far less dependent on wealth than my own, I cannot imagine financial means to be meaningless.

Circumstances being as they are, he might find it the path of least resistance to simply let the world assume what it will and continue his life.

I wish him nothing but the best.

[tworo]

[Turo nods. If Arven does nothing at all...well, without the AI there to maintain Turo's presence, eventually people will notice when he no longer responds to messages. They'll send some people down, and find records of what he'd done, a non-functional time machine, and clear evidence of his death. They don't need to know Arven was involved at all. That may be easiest.]

I hope he will be alright. He has spent a long time habituating himself to his father's absence, I suppose.