How would you define Chaos?

Would you say it's the unpredictable nature of life itself? How a single drop of water will never take the same route down twice? Does it stand for a time of stress and turmoil? Is it this nebulous state we all find ourselves living in or is there an opposite? An element that binds it, understands it, tames it? And if there is, what would that be called? Order? Control? The fabled ‘red string of fate’ that strings us along, having already decided who sinks and who swims?

Perhaps none of these things matter in the end. After all most of us will go through the motions without ever really having the time or the energy to ponder the way of the world, not to mention the universe around us. Perhaps as we experience our lives our opinion will change and so will our answers, forever having the truth feel just out of reach, so close yet so far away. Then perhaps it’s better to stay in the moment and act accordingly, forever left to wonder if you did so by yourself, or if that too was a

pre-written event scripted to happen from the moment you were born. They say ignorance is bliss but is it really? Are we truly free? Are you comfortable floating down a pre-determined river or did any of this make make you long for the endless open ocean?

So then tell me...

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“Whose side are you on!?”

A voice screamed into the darkness, birds and other small fauna jumping, flying and running off into all directions. The full moon cast her dim glow upon the land below. Her image reflected on the surface of the water as it warped and twisted with the waves. A once beautiful lake surrounded by plains, hills and even a forest off in the distance had become the main stage for a grizzly scene. The immaculate green of the grass had been tainted with the deep red hue of blood, entire patches and trails uprooted making the field appear scarred and bleeding. There’s a tension in the air so dense, so charged with dread and danger that not only those present here and now but those from miles away could sense it. A shift in the atmosphere so severe it couldn’t be compared to an approaching thunderstorm or the early signs of an earthquake. The voice that had posed the question rather aggressively now snarled and with a wave of its owner’s hand the water from the lake behind him rose up, curling forward and threatening to come crashing down on whoever happened to be a bit too close to shore yet at it’s highest peak it stopped.

The silhouette of a hedgehog now stood out against the glistening backdrop of water, the light of the moon seemingly amplified by the reflective surface. He held his hand up above is head, palm open as if about to strike something or someone but instead he just stood there, still as a statue. His eyes pierced straight into those of his attackers, nailing them to their places only a few feet away from him. Heavily armored in white, high-tech protective gear from head to toe and with weapons drawn they kept their aim at the outlaw’s head and chest with possibly a few skilled, or cocky, marksmen planning to switch to the legs should he decide to turn tail and run.
Unfortunately for them he had no intention to run.

“I’ll ask you again, nicely, whose side are you on? Because that insignia on your armor says mine, but those guns sure don’t. So what’s it gonna be boys?”

The lone hedgehog’s voice was full of rage though masked by the smug tone he was infamous for. A crack here and there gave away the layer of fatigue building below the surface though and he wasn’t too keen on giving it any more room to breathe or the consequences could be dire. A minute passed though to everyone present it felt like an eternity and when he was given no answer his hand twitched.

“What about you?”

One of the armed ‘knights’ as they liked to call themselves spoke up. A ballsy move sure but perhaps humoring the hedgehog’s ego would be their best chance of survival right now.

“You know what you did! You know why we’re here! At least tell us why!”

Icy blue eyes narrowed at the poor bastard who dared raise his voice at the outlaw whose arm had frozen in place one more. The audacity one had to have to make bold claims like that were one thing and he wasn’t sure whether to laugh or get even angrier than he already was, but to ask a man for a reason for something he has no memory of doing? Now that hit him funny.

“Ooooh but of course. Dad croaked and suddenly that’s my fault. For all the funding he put into your dinky little excuse of an ‘elite force’ you guys suck at your jobs. You really think if I had anything to do with it I wouldn’t take all of the credit?”

It was true and the Knights knew it. Their adversary was a known critic of the king, of his father but if he had anything to do with the act of regicide that shocked their nation mere days ago it would be him who would celebrate with a beer and mourn the fact he can’t dance on his grave. No, instead the former prince had kept his head down. It was so unlike him to do so it didn’t make him any less suspicious to some, but to those who really knew the young man it just didn’t add up. Why would a prince who had fallen from grace, stripped of all his titles and possessions and forced to live on the streets of his home city suddenly appear humbled by the whole experience? After all he had spent all of those years on the streets devoted to dismantling the monarchy with all of the knowledge he held on his own family. Murder was not part of the plan though, it would’ve been too easy and too simple. It would mean giving his deadbeat father an easy get-out-of-jail-free card which he didn’t deserve. No, the former prince wouldn’t have gone so far as to use a prototype warp ring despite all of it’s potential consequences if it had been him who did the honors. He would’ve accepted jail, or even execution with that same smug grin and proudly proclaim he did his kingdom, his people, a massive favor.

It mattered little now, the deed was done and the culprit was out there. The former prince wasn’t necessarily a suspect, just damage control. If this really was a coup on the throne by some outside force it made complete sense to him that he too would be a target. As the last heir currently known to be alive, even if bound to the throne only by blood, he posed a threat to whatever or whoever is behind all of this. The hedgehog had heard enough and made his choice, he would drown them all in the depths of the abyss if it meant his freedom, it being a punishment for their insubordination would just be a nice bonus. One wave of his outstretched claws and this whole mess would be washed away--

Just as his hand twitched he heard it, they all did. A deep rumbling, rumbling that grew louder as the ground shook, throwing everyone off balance. Instead of a focused tidal wave the water crashed down on everyone, merely causing confusion and panic. Rather than his attackers being dragged down into the water they would merely get their armor soaked and their vision temporarily obscured. The captain yelled out an order to fire at will and fire they did, forcing the stumbling hedgehog to bolt out of the line of fire. With the ground still shaking it was as hard for him to run as it for them to aim but he still had to try for getting hit with a bolt from their plasma rays would mean getting a hole burnt right through him. He’d never been more grateful for a boulder than he was now as he skidded across the wet grass and came to a stop behind it, crouching and making himself as small as possible. With a moment to think of a next move something stood out to him about this mysterious earthquake. An earthquake normally affects a large area, the lake water should be rippling but it barely even stirred. The rumbling and the distant yelling of the knights was like an awful white noise ringing in his ears, vague orders were being barked to find their target despite the chaos and he was running out of time. The outlaw weighed his options which were to either bolt and run or to stay and wait as something told him this seemingly sudden and highly unnatural earthquake might be the answer to his predicament. Each excruciating second he remained frozen in place, unable to make a decision and with adrenaline surging his heightened senses picked up on the detail that told his intuition to stay.

The rumbling of the ground moved. It’s intensity shifted as it seemingly came from beyond the lake, passing underneath the hedgehog and made it’s way to where the team of elite knights were still trying to gather their bearings. Whatever was heading their way could’ve very well heard the noise and commotion and felt drawn to investigate, or worse, it felt threatened. He didn’t dare to take a peek and instead hoped he would hear an opening instead.

And an opening sure did come.

The ground below the captain himself split apart and before he could aim his weapon down or take a step back a blur of gold came right for the visor of his protective helmet that obscured his identity. The frightened yelp finally made the hedgehog move to take a peek at what was going on, too curious for his own good. The mystery gold object would become lodged in the captain’s visor before it could damage anything vital but the person attached to the pair of golden claws that struck him wasn’t finished. They popped out of the ground almost as easily as a fish leaping out of the water and the gap they came out of closed in just a second, giving the unknown assailant solid ground to stand on. They were big, not just tall, BIG, a solid red silhouette illuminated by violet geometric markings on their head and face which emitted a soft glow. Their enraged growl almost sounding like the earthquake from before as they turned to spin the poor canine still stuck to the golden claws that adorned the figure’s balled up fists, dragging him along and off his feet before flinging him up into the air. The rest of the knights were too frightened to move, let alone snap out of it enough to start firing at their new target and they watched their ‘fearsome’ leader make contact with the dirt like a sack of potatoes.

All of their heads snapped back to fix their gaze on the red stranger who cracked their knuckles and roared something unintelligible before charging straight at them. The silence of the awe struck knights broken by gunfire and angry war cries. Curious how bringing hand to hand combat to a gunfight would fare for the stranger the hedgehog stared intently. They moved like a well oiled machine, disarming those that clung to their weapon for dear life, snapping their guns in half like they were twigs, straight up butting their head against the metallic helmets if their hands were occupied and while the knights crumpled they seemed completely unaffected. As the battle raged on the lone hedgehog figured now was his chance to turn tail and run but as he turned his back on the battlefield a hand slipped over his muzzle, covering his mouth and muffling the yelp of surprise that followed. Blue eyes met an emerald green pair as yet another stranger held up his index finger to his own muzzle, the universal signal to tell someone to be quiet. As the loner took another good look it appeared he was no longer the only hedgehog here as this new stranger was a deep, vibrant blue all over. He could practically disappear against the night sky if it wasn’t for the short peachy fur covering his muzzle, arms and chest. Before he could get a better look the blue stranger whispered.

“Can you run?”

Whether this person was friend or foe would have to wait. For now the outlaw would take his chance and nodded.

“Then run with me and don’t look back. He’ll be fine. Trust me.”

That voice. If he didn’t know better this blue stranger sounded so much like him though he lacked the signature gravelly sound. While his thoughts raced the blue hedgehog removed his hand from the outlaw’s muzzle and firmly grasped his hand instead to help him to his feet and start running into the darkness.

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