Dude, Worlds Are Gonna Collide (A Sonic-TMNT Crossover)

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

"Is it just me, or is that thing getting bigger?"

Leo looked over his shoulder at where his youngest brother was pointing and observed the portal that had been taking up their living space for the better part of the night. It only took a few moments to realize that, yes, it was actually getting bigger. "For once, Mikey, it's not just you." Then, turning to his second youngest brother, "Do you know why it's growing, Donnie?"

Donnie fumbled with the tablet in his hands for a minute longer before replying. "An hour ago I didn't even know what that thing was." He waited another minute, shook his head, and finally looked his leader in the eye. "We need Kay."

Wonderful, Leo thought, crossing his arms. At least I'm not the one who went to get her. She never would have come if I had. Movement to his right made him turn his gaze. Master Splinter had emerged from his meditation in the dojo – rather quickly, Leo realized – and was now standing on the threshold, watching the portal grow ever so slowly with each passing minute.

Just when it was beginning to feel like maybe the size of the portal would soon become problematic, the brick wall separating their lair from the rest of the sewers slid open, and Raph, Kay, and another figure hurried inside. Leo raised an eye ridge. It was his only outward sign of question or confusion. He refused to say a word so long as Kay was here. She clearly did not value his opinion any longer.

Kay stopped short when she saw the portal, though Raph moved to join his brothers and the other figure moved fearlessly toward it.

"Who's that guy?" Mikey asked, voicing the question Leo would not.

Raph shrugged. "Sliver? Splinter? Something like that? Kay knows him, apparently. She says he came through another portal like this one earlier tonight."

The figure stopped just feet from the portal, then turned and flashed the brothers a smile. "Silver," he corrected simply. Then he focused on the issue at hand, peering intently at it for several moments before whirling around in the opposite direction. "Kay, it's Angel Island!"

Leo's gaze darted to the girl standing awestruck just in front of the brick wall. For a second it seemed as though she had not heard him, but then her feet began to move slowly forward. Utter silence settled on the lair during the time it took her to make her way to Silver's side, and then the two of them stared together.

Donnie finally broke the silence, seeming to catch on that Leo would not. "Might I ask what's going on here?"

That seemed to snap Kay out of whatever trance she was in, and she turned to address him. "It's a Genesis Portal. They're popping up everywhere because of what's happening on Mobius right now. Silver's job is to close as many of them as he can. He came through one earlier, and now..." The next words came out slowly as realization dawned on her, "...this one can take us both back."

Silver looked up at her. "We can take the Emerald to Knuckles and have him fix it. This kind of stuff doesn't just happen. This is amazing!" In his excitement he began to glow turquoise and float in the air at eye-level with her. At this point, Leo wasn't even surprised.

The grey hedgehog flew forward, put his hand through the portal experimentally, and then proceeded to go through entirely. Soon everyone was watching him levitate on the other side. He turned around and smiled at Kay, extending a hand. "Come with me," he said.

At first Kay hurried forward, but then something evidently stopped her, and she froze just inches from the portal. "Wait," she murmured, turning to look at the brothers and at Splinter. Her gaze rested on each of them, and when her eyes met Leo's, he could see the gears in her brain turning. Something was holding her back. He refused to ask what.

Again, Mikey took care of that for him. "What are you waiting for?"

Before she could answer, an exclamation from Silver on the other side made them all shift their attention back to the portal, which, after several minutes of steady growth, was now shrinking rapidly. Silver seemed frantic. "Kay, it's now or never!"

The next thing any of them knew, Kay had leapt through the portal to join her friend, barely having enough time to turn back and wave goodbye before it closed forever.

Silence settled on the lair. For a long moment, no one moved. Then, without a word, Splinter hummed thoughtfully and turned back into the dojo, Donnie turned toward his lab, and Raph started towards the upper level, obviously wishing to be alone. Mikey and Leo were the only ones to stay put.

"Bye, Kay," Mikey muttered quietly.

Leo scoffed and began to saunter away as well. "Good riddance."

~

The finality of the portal's closing is when it hit Kay what she'd just done. She stood staring at an open field of the greenest grass she'd ever seen, remembering the looks on the guys' faces in the last second before she lost sight of them forever. They'd been more surprised than upset and, truly, so was Kay. When it came to choosing Mobius or Earth, the answer was clear as day. But it was only after the portal had vanished completely that she was able to process what had just happened.

I'm on Mobius, Kay thought, the idea making her want to laugh and cry all at once. I'm back. Finally. And suddenly her previous hesitation faded away entirely and she allowed herself to take in a deep breath and turn around to face the world she'd been so unceremoniously yanked from two years before.

What she saw was not what she expected at all.

"Silver," she gasped, unable to say anything else. It looked like the end of the world was in progress. The continents of Mobius were floating in the air just like Angel Island. While the sky was blue, the open air surrounding the island and between hovering continents was a dark purple color. It was just like something out of Sonic Unleashed and, Kay remembered, exactly what Eggman had told her was happening to the planet. Why it was so vital that the seventh Chaos Emerald – the one she carried – was returned to repair the broken world.

Beside her, Silver nodded and stopped levitating. "Yeah. Welcome back, Kay." He glanced at her. "You have the Emerald, right?"

Nodding slightly, Kay brought out the gem for the both of them to see. It took her a moment to notice what was different about it. The dullness that had come from its being on Earth in the hands of a human girl was gone, replaced instantly with the shimmer it always had when active and ready for use on its home planet of Mobius. The only thing that showed any evidence of it ever having been anywhere else was the crack in its side. Well, Kay thought, that will be fixed soon enough. I hope.

Just then a voice that didn't belong to either of them shouted, "Hey, you interlopers!" Silver and Kay looked at each other, then whirled around to face the source. In the distance a teal-colored pika stood with her hands on her hips, looking rather upset by their presence. "What are you doing on my island?"