Tales from the Phantom

An illusion

Sonic's eyes grew wide as Knuckles held up the original Phantom Ruby, raising his arm to throw it and shatter it. "Noooo!!" Sonic tried to stop him but it was too late. The gemstone hit the floor and shattered into a million tiny pieces. Sonic stumbled down besides the shards and picked up the biggest ones. Holding them closer, he could feel the power draining away from them. He held back tears knowing the consequences of Knuckle's hasty actions. He opened his mouth a few times, and to his utter horror, he was right.

His voice was gone.

Not wanting to believe that it was true, he tried talking a few times, but nothing. Tails was the first to notice his distress and knelt down besides him. "Sonic? You ok there? You seem a little upset about the Phantom Ruby." He was confused by this. Surely after everything that had happened, he'd want the dreaded things gone, Sonic raised his head and trying say his name, but nothing would come out. Even so, Tails knew that he was trying to say 'Tails', and nodded knowingly. "Okay, guys. I think that he needs some space." Tails then ushered them all out the door, all of them chatting, wondering what was happening. When they'd all finally gone, Tails shut and locked the door behind him. When he came back into the living space, he found Sonic scribbling something down on a notebook, before handing it to his friend. On it it read.

I never had a voice.
Tails gasped at that first line alone.

Ik you all think that I only started Talking thanks to some kind of miracle. But the truth is, a while back, I found a Phantom Ruby. A few days after, I was messing with it and realised that with it I could make any illusion, including giving myself a voice. I let everyone believe whatever they wanted, and eventually everyone stopped wondering why I just started talking, but in reality, it was never even real.

Tails looked up at his friend in utter shock, completely thrown back by this. Sonic lowered his head and his ears and turned away slightly in embarrassment. He's gonna think I'm a lier. He's properly never gonna trust me again. What if he never wants be around me again... Sonic then felt the Fox hugging him very tightly. "I, I never knew that." Sonic sighed closing his eyes, hugging his friend back, just appreciative that Tails didn't seem mad at all, for now at least. "I just wish that Knuckles wouldn't have smashed that without thinking" It doesn't matter now I guess. What's done is done. Even though he couldn't hear what he was thinking, Tails knew exactly what he was thinking. "I know, I just wish that we could do something. Trust me, If I could, I would give you my voice and I wouldn't even hesitate." He told him looking his friend straight in the eye. "How are you thinking of telling everyone else?" Sonic lowed his head. I don't know. Looking back at Tails, he took the remaining shards and walked up into his room.

Upon going into said room, he walked over to an empty wooden draw and dumped the broken Ruby in it, shutting the draw harshly, locking it. There. It's gone, out of sight. Nothing ever happened. Sonic shivered a bit from the cold winter air coming from the open window in his room. Shutting the large window, he laid down on the warm bed, pondering what had just happened. Well, that was supposed to never happen. Well, I guess after the Phantom Ruby incident they was bound to be found and destroyed on sight. Wait! Does that mean.. Sonic looked down at his left leg and felt down the side of it. Yowtch! Sonic then moved the fur aside to reveal a very thin scar leading all the from his ankle to just above his knee, a souvenir from his 6 months held captive. Another reason why he used the Phantom Ruby, to erase it so that it wouldn't bother him whilst healing, and so that no one would ever know what he went through up there. I don't even know how to tell anyone about... this. They might never trust me again. After all, would I? Thinking, he grabbed a notebook from the bedside cabinet at started writing on it. Putting it back down on the cabinet, he flopped down onto his bed and closed his eyes, falling into a sleep.

"Sonic?" Tails asked walking into the hedgehog's room. He hadn't seen him for a while now and he was worried about him, however walking into bro's room, he found said hedgehog fast asleep on his bed. Spotting the open notebook on the side, he walked over to read it.

  Meanwhile, Sonic was dreaming about how he had first come across the original Phantom Ruby in the first place.
He was just out in the lushness of Green Hill, enjoying the bright Summer rays from the warm yellow sunshine. That was when noticed the sun beaming down on something shiny and read peeping through the checkered grass. Glancing around him, he slowly approached it and knelt down besides it, digging up the surrounding dirt with his hands. Upon contact with the weird gem, red and pink waves surrounding him. "Woah!" He suddenly shouting, and then held his hands to his mouth in utter surprise. "What...? How...?" The confused Hedgehog picked up the object he identified as some sort of Ruby. "However this did that, I don't know. But He could really use this to my advantage." And so, he picked it up, and took it with him.

Tails read the slightly creased note that his friend had left for him.

Tell everyone for me.

That was all it said. Nothing else. It was clear to Tails that Sonic was in a bit of a jam, and needed some help by the one he trusted the most. He probably felt embarrassed as well. He looked down at his sleeping friend, and nodded. "Okay, Sonic. I will."

Later that day, Tails had had a genius idea. Excitedly, he grabbed the biggest shard of the shattered Ruby, accidentally waking Sonic up, and rushed down to his large workshop, eager to work on the brilliant idea. Not long after, Sonic came down, confused and wondering what was going on. "Ah, Sonic!" Tails exclaimed happily. "Here, try this on!" He then felt Tails putting something around his neck, "ah, Tails, what are you doing.. huh?!" Sonic stopped what he  saying when he realised that he was talking again. The Ruby itself was hanging from a large decretive string, hanging loosely from his neck, sorta like a charm. It also appeared to glow when he talked. "It's a translator." Tails told him, pleased that it worked. "It translates what you want to say from your brain straight to the phantom Ruby," he then watched his brother look at it properly through the mirror, and he couldn't help but think that he didn't like it. "I understand if you don't like it, and that's fine." Sonic then turned to face him and seemed to sigh at him. "If it's uncomfortable, or seems weird, or just not a good idea. I just wanted to help you the best that I co..." Tails was then cut short as Sonic hugged him tightly. "Thank you, so much." The phantom Ruby glowing when he spoke the words, in Sonic's same old voice, like it always was. "Ehhh.. you're welcome.?" Tails responded with, very surprised by Sonic's reaction, and so he just hugged him back. "Anything for my best friend."