Back to Chapter 94

Merlin Prower shook his head, “It makes so little sense”

His friend chuckled, “The boy is young yet, Merlin. Youth is the time to make mistakes. Your life is not yet lived then, you have time to learn from those mistake and grow from them”

“I simply don’t understand the lie, old friend. What does Miles hope to gain from them?”

“Well,” the other wise old man cleared his throat, “from what you’ve told me, the lad wishes to strike out on his own. The Nameless Zone is…” he paused, searching for a way not to upset his friend by unintentionally insulting his home, “Restrictive to the boy’s growth. He’s outgrown his home. Surely you must see that”

“True,” Merlin nodded, “but the dishonesty… that’s not who he is. His latest letter spoke of the mechanical creatures once more. But it simply didn’t add up. He tells me all too often that he is seen as a great hero of Mobius, the one who fights that fiend Robotnik with the aid of his sidekick Sonic. So why, then, did Robotnik create an army of robots modelled after Sonic? If the letter was to be believed at all, the lead was a monstrous creation named Zonik”

“There’s imagination for you”

“Pale and grim, a robotic mirror of Miles’ friend. But this is the part I have difficulty with. If Miles is the hero he says, why would his enemy make a duplicate of his sidekick? That is, frankly, illogical”

“I’m curious,” the other gent stroked his chin, “what came of the duplicates? This Zonik?”

“Oh, destroyed, all of them. The great factory they were constructed in wiped out to the last. Zonik was eradicated as if he never existed, dissolved to a blob it seems. Robotic versions of Miles’ friend seem to be a favourite of Robotnik, at least according to the letters. Yet they seem to be met with varying degrees of success- and none with total victory. Something tells me, however, this is not the doing of the boy as he so claims”

“What do you believe to be the truth?”

“I believe,” Merlin stroked his beard, “that Sonic is the true hero of Mobius. And that Miles, if anything is his sidekick, embellishing the truth for whatever reason”

“Merlin, allow me to ask you a question, if I may”

“Of course, old friend. You and I always speak freely with one another”

“When young Miles departed the Nameless Zone for his new home, you were concerned, were you not?”

“Naturally. The boy, as you pointed out, is still young. And the wide world is fraught with danger”

“That it is. And is that danger not evidenced through the missives the lad sends home to you?”

“You and I know well the danger Robotnik poses to the whole world,” Merlin concurred, “And I have no doubt the stories Miles tells are true. I just don’t believe the precise details of them”

“Would you wish him to return to the safety of the Nameless Zone?”

“Such as it is,” Merlin nodded, “Goblins and other creatures notwithstanding, I would prefer the comfort of home for Miles over the threat of a power mad threat like Ivo Robotnik”

“Then you have your answer, do you not?”

“I don’t follow”

Merlin’s friend looked up at the sky and smiled, “Miles is afraid, Merlin. Not for his safety, not because of Robotnik. He’s afraid because he’s found happiness and true friendship and doesn’t want to lose that by being forcibly returned home by his uncle, fearful for his safety. If he assures you that not only is he doing well, he’s doing excellent and, more than that, his people need him to be safe- well, you wouldn’t be so quick to bring him back home, would you?”

“Unusual logic,” Merlin raised an eyebrow.

“Again- he is but a child. Unusual logic is a speciality of their kind”

Merlin laughed, “Very true. But perhaps young Miles could do with some kind of test. Something to prove his supposed heroic mettle and see if he is worthy of the acclaim he seems so keen to hunt”

“The time of the foretelling is near, you know this as well as I do”

“Indeed. Perhaps Miles will become strengthened through his own adventure, without the aid of his friend Sonic”

“Merlin, when the wise ones entrusted me with the care of your nephew, I thought it strange they would not come directly to you. I believe I understand their motives now. Perhaps if you had been appointed his guardian, you may have been fearful for Miles’ safety. It is the wish of the Ancient Walkers that Miles grow to become a hero in his own right. I am detached from him, lacking a familial connection, and have grown to appreciate the value of letting him branch out on his own”

“Perhaps you are right, old friend,” Merlin smiled gently, comforted somewhat, “He is my blood, after all. It’s only natural I feel a protective fondness for him. And what of you? Your blood?”

Merlin’s friend stood, “My blood? His part in things is yet to come to pass. The universe moves in ways even you and I cannot begin to full imagine, Merlin. Motions smaller than a grain of sand being blown through the air are at work even now. When the time is right, my descendant will play his role. I fear I may not be long for this world by then, if indeed I live to see it come to pass”

Merlin waved a hand, “Come now, don’t talk like that”

“I am old, Merlin. Far older than you, do not forget that. I have lived many lifetimes. It is nigh time I pass from this physical form to a higher existence. I merely hope the boy will provide a legacy befitting his ancestors”

Merlin rose to his friend, putting a comforting arm on his shoulder, “I am certain he will, Athair. Our families will both leave a legacy of greatness beyond words. That is my belief”

“Yes, quite,” Athair agreed, “Your nephew, Miles… and my great-grandson, Knuckles”

On to Chapter 96