While your conversation with Shadow may have shed light on a few things... it's obvious he doesn't think you all are up to the task of saving the universe from Eggman. Which also means that now you're dealing with his test, starting immediately. Some of you may be whisked away with no time to even blink, while others may find themselves wandering the Void aimlessly. Regardless, it seems this week won't be a particularly easy one.
THE VOID
Nothing has changed in the Void. Nothing ever changes in the Void. It's impossible to track the passage of time in here, and your only escape are the rings... though you should be careful with them, as there's far fewer this week. You're free to travel between worlds as you see fit - Shadow won't stop you - but you can be snatched up from wherever you are at any given moment and pulled back into the Void. Maybe don't plan on spending to long anywhere else, because it won't end well for you if you do.
The hexagonal shards will still show you visions of other worlds... but this time they all show the same thing. You'll see worlds - maybe even your own - taken over by robots and Eggman's chroma, reduced to smoldering ashes or being rebuilt in Eggman's image. Your friends, allies, and enemies may even be going about their lives just as listlessly and dutifully, heedless of their surroundings. You may even see alternate versions of yourself among them. Regardless, it seems all these shards have to show you this week are all the possibilities of failure - that other versions of shardbearers in other timelines have already lost.
MINDSCAPES
Shadow's usage of the Phantom Ruby and his own fake Chaos Emerald shard have caused quite the problem for you all - namely, you'll find yourselves traversing each other's innermost thoughts and dreams. Exactly how this mindscape manifests depends on the individual, but one thing will always remain true: you won't be able to find the owner of the mindscape easily.
As a reflection of these inner thoughts, mindscapes can be any sort of place. Perhaps they are a reflection of the owner's inner demons and fear, or perhaps they showcase a bright future they want to work towards. Regardless, this is a dream and one the owner must be awoken from... which means finding them and bringing them back to reality. That's easier said than done when traversing through this dream-like state, where the rules are made up by the owner and you're a foreign being that the dream recognizes as a threat (even if you aren't).
You may encounter familiar places or people within these mindscapes. You may not. You may end up fighting for your life in here... or you may not. Each one is individual, and the experience can vary wildly from person to person. No matter what you face, you must find the owner of the mindscape and bring them back. You must ensure you're strong enough to support them... and protect yourself.
Curiously, you can activate your shared shard power with the owner of the mindscape at any time - or bolster your own power if you share shard colors - even without them being present. Will this make it easier or harder to help bring them back? It depends on the person, your bond, and the mindscape itself...
Waking them up is as simple as convincing them that they're dreaming - that this isn't real and that they still have things to return to - but that may be easier said than done depending on the person... or the mindscape itself. There's no telling what you'll encounter, after all.
SHARDS
You'll find you're capable of more now than you were before. You're really adapting to using your shard powers and fighting with others. Those of you who share shard colors will feel the strength of your shards increasing even more when working together.
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
Given that your allies are being pulled into mindscapes and are unable to break free of their own, your task this week is to help your friends. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles are off dealing with their own mindscapes, but whenever they are around, they're adamant about the importance of making sure everyone is freed and prepared for whatever comes next.
ENEMIES
Like last week, you will not encounter any of Eggman's robots. The Void is still free of enemies, though other worlds may possess their own threats. Mindscapes are a bit of a different beast; each one varies, and you may or may not encounter threats of any sort in them. Best be on your guard.
[Nothing of particular note on this particular chunk of land! It's a road, or part of one. Grass sprouts through cracks in the pavement and the white dotted line that continues onto the nearest few chunks of land is barely visible.
Beyond the dilapidation, there's nothing that stands out much, besides the patch of bright red that's staining the edge of the street a few chunks ahead.]
[Good thing this dream is happening several weeks into watching humans get hurt in interesting ways otherwise he would have no real sense of alarm at something being vibrantly red other than "huh. weird."
But no, that... looks like it could be blood, among any other matter of things. So he will start to head in that direction.]
[It doesn't look like a crazy amount at first, so there's only cause for mild alarm!!!
That is, unihe actually approaches it, and it becomes clear.... There's much more blood. On the nearest fragment, a little ways down (which is why it was hidden from view), is a much larger pool of blood, lying faceown in the middle of which is a human body, also covered in blood.]
Given the absurdity of the space, he's not going to bother calling out for anyone in the emptiness. He might as well try to take a closer look. Why this, of all things, in the middle of this mismatch of nothing?]
[Who's to say!!! Anyway, it's not too far away for him to jump down, so getting there is easy. I assume in getting a closer look, Vakama will probably want to turn to body over so he can see their face.
The body is that of a young woman with long black hair. She's clad in nothing but a white dress, though most of it is stained with blood now. Close inspection will reveal several puncture wounds across her chest and abdomen as the source of all the blood and presumably the cause of her death.
I don't want to look up the time frame for rigor mortis and Vakama wouldn't know it anyway. So as far as how long she's been dead, the blood here is still not dry, though it's a bit sticky, and the body has gone cold. So relatively recent, but probably not so recent that the culprit is nearby still.]
[He knows enough to know cold body = this didn't just happen.
Assuming he's seen everything that likely matters on the body, he's going to take a look around the immediate area, wiping blood off himself as he does so. Is there any trailing to show what direction this person came from, or does it look like they just immediately collapsed on the spot from an attack?]
[It looks like she must've been attacked here, there's no real trail to be found, but it could also just be covered up by the pool of blood. There's a lot. Realistically, more than her slim body could have contained but y'know. Dream world.
What does happen, though, is a voice calls out from above, another chunk of terrain a few meters up, as a face pokes over the edge to look;]
Ah, another Brilliant Detective?
[The voice is familiar, though the face is quite a bit different from the face Vakama's used to associating it with.]
[He starts a bit at the voice, head snapping upwards to try and see--]
...Fukuda???
[Is it? It... SOUNDS like Fukuda, but the hair is slightly different, the face is slightly different... is he wearing his stupid coat with the three lapels]
Of course I'm not a detective. What are you talking about???
Was this... him from the past, then? Then what was with the--
I couldn't think clearly a lot of the time. I had to count things. Tiles on the floor, blades of grass on the lawn, stars in the sky. I'd have to do things over and over. Write things down, pointless things. But always the numbers.
Trying to ignore it.... I just couldn't.
...]
Kaeru?
[He glances down at the body.]
Ah... no, Fuku--- Anaido, no, I only just now saw what happened to her.
[A past version of Fukuda would make sense, wouldn't it? Given the lack of hole. Anaido does look like he could be a few years younger than Fukuda, too.]
Well.... I can't really discuss details of the case if you're just a civilian. Those are the rules.
[Dang it - okay, okay, think, what would Matau do here?]
Whoa, whoa, easy -- Do I look like a civilian?
[He certainly hopes not. It's taken him who knows how long to not FEEL like a civilian playing dress-up in a big tall body, running away from the police constantly.
Aw fuck what was it the damaged vahki patrols called themselves again uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]
My, uh... my squad might not be detectives, but they'll understand if I have to take a detour to help one. I can't exactly ignore this with how recently it looks to have happened.
[He seems surprised by this, perhaps there aren't usually police in this world which... given the everything about it.... understandable. For a second it seems like this isn't going to work as Anaido examines him in silence for a moment.]
Well, in that case, can you make it up here? I'm following a lead, an extra pair of hands would be nice.
[He'll nod his agreement, starting to glance around for if there even IS a pathway up there to be seen. He would rather not test about un-spiraling his limbs to travel unless he absolutely has to.]
There's not much left on her. What sort of lead are you talking about?
[There sort of is, a series of other debris he can use as steps to jump up there. Some of the footbolds are a little small though. But maybe Vakama wouldn't fall in the first place if he missed a step in the first place given how gravity seems to be a suggestion for all these blocks ]
Well that's because I took it with me! Obviously that's an unorthodox tactic, but I didn't know there were actual police dispatched to the scene who'd have the means to properly handle evidence!
[Have a fun time! It's easier than it looks, somehow. Then he'll be face to face with Anaido, who looks and sounds similar to Fukuda but apparently isn't him.]
Ah, but at the end of the day, as long as the Brilliant Detective splves the case, people will overlook that sort of thing, you know?
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no subject
Uneasy as this is, there's not much point in standing around if he's able to push himself forward and try to figure out what's going on here...
Anything of note in his immediate surroundings? If not, it's time to take a walk.]
no subject
Beyond the dilapidation, there's nothing that stands out much, besides the patch of bright red that's staining the edge of the street a few chunks ahead.]
no subject
But no, that... looks like it could be blood, among any other matter of things. So he will start to head in that direction.]
CW dead body, implied murder
That is, unihe actually approaches it, and it becomes clear.... There's much more blood. On the nearest fragment, a little ways down (which is why it was hidden from view), is a much larger pool of blood, lying faceown in the middle of which is a human body, also covered in blood.]
no subject
Oh, that's.... that's bad.
Given the absurdity of the space, he's not going to bother calling out for anyone in the emptiness. He might as well try to take a closer look. Why this, of all things, in the middle of this mismatch of nothing?]
no subject
The body is that of a young woman with long black hair. She's clad in nothing but a white dress, though most of it is stained with blood now. Close inspection will reveal several puncture wounds across her chest and abdomen as the source of all the blood and presumably the cause of her death.
I don't want to look up the time frame for rigor mortis and Vakama wouldn't know it anyway. So as far as how long she's been dead, the blood here is still not dry, though it's a bit sticky, and the body has gone cold. So relatively recent, but probably not so recent that the culprit is nearby still.]
no subject
Assuming he's seen everything that likely matters on the body, he's going to take a look around the immediate area, wiping blood off himself as he does so. Is there any trailing to show what direction this person came from, or does it look like they just immediately collapsed on the spot from an attack?]
no subject
What does happen, though, is a voice calls out from above, another chunk of terrain a few meters up, as a face pokes over the edge to look;]
Ah, another Brilliant Detective?
[The voice is familiar, though the face is quite a bit different from the face Vakama's used to associating it with.]
no subject
...Fukuda???
[Is it? It... SOUNDS like Fukuda, but the hair is slightly different, the face is slightly different...
is he wearing his stupid coat with the three lapels]Of course I'm not a detective. What are you talking about???
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You must be mistaking me for someone else. I'm the Brilliant Detective, Anaido.
[In any case;]
Well, you're inspecting Kaeru's body, so I figured you were here to solve her murder too.
no subject
Was this... him from the past, then? Then what was with the--
I couldn't think clearly a lot of the time. I had to count things. Tiles on the floor, blades of grass on the lawn, stars in the sky. I'd have to do things over and over. Write things down, pointless things. But always the numbers.
Trying to ignore it.... I just couldn't.
...]
Kaeru?
[He glances down at the body.]
Ah... no, Fuku--- Anaido, no, I only just now saw what happened to her.
How does one get murdered in a place like this?
no subject
Well.... I can't really discuss details of the case if you're just a civilian. Those are the rules.
[Better backtrack fast, Vakama.]
no subject
Whoa, whoa, easy -- Do I look like a civilian?
[He certainly hopes not. It's taken him who knows how long to not FEEL like a civilian playing dress-up in a big tall body, running away from the police constantly.
Aw fuck what was it the damaged vahki patrols called themselves again uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]
My, uh... my squad might not be detectives, but they'll understand if I have to take a detour to help one. I can't exactly ignore this with how recently it looks to have happened.
no subject
[He seems surprised by this, perhaps there aren't usually police in this world which... given the everything about it.... understandable. For a second it seems like this isn't going to work as Anaido examines him in silence for a moment.]
Well, in that case, can you make it up here? I'm following a lead, an extra pair of hands would be nice.
no subject
There's not much left on her. What sort of lead are you talking about?
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Well that's because I took it with me! Obviously that's an unorthodox tactic, but I didn't know there were actual police dispatched to the scene who'd have the means to properly handle evidence!
no subject
You're... not worried that might look like some sort of tampering, my friend?
no subject
Ah, but at the end of the day, as long as the Brilliant Detective splves the case, people will overlook that sort of thing, you know?
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That is dangerous levels of confidence, Detective.
Well? Let's see it, then. Where's your lead?
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This way! Follow me!
[Evasive... This really is Fukuda.]
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HE DOESN'T REALLY HAVE MUCH OF A CHOICE so he's following after a moment's hesitation.]
You can't just tell me? I thought you removed something from the body.