The Return: Prologue/Original Version

This is a fanfiction created by BlazingLeopard on 07/06/2014.
NOTE: This fan-fiction is part one of a two part story. Part two is a roleplay which can be viewed here.
==Overview==
An ancient entity has returned to wreak havoc on the world once more. It was once thought that the entity was defeated and trapped in a impenetrable magic field, but somehow, it has since escaped. It now seeks revenge on all Mobian life. In order to stop the evil from ruining the world, heroes must rise. They will have to be brave, strong and willing to risk everything, even if it means their lives, for this entity is not one to be easily defeated.
==Included Characters==
===Major===
*Ember the Leopard
*Astrid the Fox
*Agent Jacob Lawson
===Minor===
*Ember's Family
*News Reporters
**Ryan West
**Julia Morgan
*Merc Leader
*Victim
*G.U.N Soldiers
*Lawson's Assistant
==The Return: Prologue==
===Part 1: Ember===
Ember's House, Anglian Islands - March 9th 2014, 23:18 PM
----
It was late at night, and Ember was in his bedroom watching a movie on his TV. The light from the various explosions within the film flashed all over the darkened floor. Ember's eyes began to flicker as he fell asleep. Suddenly, the film stopped abruptly and had switched to a news broadcast.
"We apologise for interrupting scheduled programming," the male on the TV said, "This is Nightwatch with Ryan West. We've just received breaking news on what appears to be a terrorist attack in the UF."
Ember's eyes then slowly opened to reveal the bright, yet blurred image. He put on his glasses in order to see the broadcast better.
"Several buildings were seen to be exploding and catching alight within the centre of Central City. Our international correspondent, Julia Morgan joins us now," the news reported said as he turned himself to face an giant television screen.
"Now, Julia, do we know what the cause of these attacks were yet?" he asked.
Behind Julia were various police cars, ambulances, firetrucks and even G.U.N vehicles.
"At the moment Ryan, nobody knows what exactly caused this other than the fact that explosives were used. The police and G.U.N are currently investigating, but they believe they won't have an answer for the next few hours," she reported.
"What about who caused it? Do we know that?"
"G.U.N are still trying to find out who it was through CCTV footage but so far, they are unable to determine who it was that set off the explosions."
By this point Ember had fallen asleep, with his glasses and his TV still on. A few minutes later, the news report ended and the movie continued to play, letting out bright oranges and yellows that flashed before.
----
Ember opened his eyes and found himself in a pitch black room. There were no lights and he could not see anything, not even himself. He felt cold. It was is if he was in space but without the stars to shine any light on him. He turned his head to see a small light flicker before him. Then, he woke up.
Ember grunted as his mobile phone let out a loud alarm. He tapped his phone's screen violently until it stopped and then rubbed his eyes.
"Weird," he said, "That almost felt real."
He sat up in his bed and started up a web browser on the laptop beside him. When the home page finally opened, he saw news posts all over the screen. Titles such as 'Terrorists Attack UF' and 'Central City Bombings' were displayed on the screen.
"Damn. This must be really serious," Ember said to himself, "Well, I can't go across the pond to help. Guess I just gotta stay here."
Ember clicked on one of the various links that dotted the page. When it loaded, there was a few paragraphs of text before a short video. He clicked the play button on the video.
"Since the attack on the city centre, more explosions have happened throughout Central City, destroying homes and a number of other buildings. The President gave a speech early this morning to address the matter," the news reported said.
"As many of you know, Central City has come under attack from an unknown terrorist group. So far, G.U.N has been deployed within the city to contain the threat and to find out who is behind this. As of right now, police units have been ordered to evacuate Central City during the operation and G.U.N has been ordered to question any suspicious people. I would just like the UF to know that we are working out hardest to resolve this situation and hope to have it completed soon," the President said.
The video ended and a replay button appeared on screen. Ember then got out of his bed and got dressed. He walked downstairs to see both his mother and father watching a cooking show on TV.
"I made you some bacon, dear," his mother said.
"Cooleo. Thanks mum," Ember replied, walking into the kitchen.
Ember then looked at the three strips of cooked bacon that were laid in the pan.
"Hm. Bacon sandwich," he said to himself as he reached to grab two slices of bread.
As he reached for the two bread slices, Ember and everyone else in the house heard explosions. At first, they thought it was gunfire from the nearby military academy but soon realised that it was far too loud for a rifle. He walked out of the kitchen and looked outside the glass pane of his back door. A giant cloud of smoke filled the sky.
"Looks like they're here too..." Ember said.
"Are you talking about those nutters that blew Central City?" his father asked.
"Yup."
A few minutes later, sirens could be heard as ambulances, firetrucks and police vehicles raced down the main road nearby.
"This must be really bad..." his mother stated.
"Yeah, it is," Ember replied, walking back into the kitchen.
As he walked toward the kitchen, there was a knock on the door so he detoured toward it. He opened the door and saw two G.U.N agents one female and the other female.
"Can I help you, officers?" he asked.
"May we talk to a parent or guardian please?" the male one asked.
"Sure," Ember replied, turning towards the lounge, "Dad! People at the door."
His father then came to the door and saw the agents. Ember walked back into the kitchen, to continue creating the best bacon sandwich ever. He overheard the conversation. His father sounded angry and was sternly talking to the two agents.
"No. My son stays here," he said.
"I'm sorry, sir, but he can't," the male agent replied.
"Why the hell not?!" his father said, obviously fuming now.
"Because of the incident four months ago. We need him for questioning," the female agent answered.
"But we've already been through this with the police!"
"We need to further investigate it to if it is linked to the recent attacks," the female agent said.
The conversation continued for about another ten minutes and his mother had since joined in. Ember was eating his marvelous bacon sandwich in fear. He was afraid that this wasn't just for an investigation, but also a science experiment. A few minutes later, Ember's parents and the two agents walked in.
"Ember, you need to go with them," his father said, with slight disappointment.
"What?" Ember asked in disbelief.
He would've thought that his father would've been able to stop this, but obviously the G.U.N agents were relentless and managed to convince him.
"Your mother will pack your clothes into a bag. You won't be gone for long," he continued.
"Oh... okay..." Ember said with worry in his voice.
He then walked to the closet and grabbed his shoes. He sat down, slipped on his shoes and then walked outside to the car, where a driver was waiting.
"You can wait inside the car," he said.
Ember then opened the door and strapped on his seat belt, not saying a word.
----
===Part 2: Astrid===
Snowton, Anglian Islands - March 10th 2014, 07:04 AM
It was around seven in the morning and guard postings in mountainside mercenary base were changing. The old warehouse that the mercenaries used as the base was cold and ice covered some areas of the floor inside. Some of the windows were smashed, allowing snow to unknowingly settle on the windowsills. Crates of varying sizes rested on top of each other and containers were in clear rows. Around the edges of the warehouse, were walls made of old pieces of metal and wood to designate the different areas of the base. Some of these poorly made rooms had doors and others did not. The mercenary group's leader was a dangerous man. If things weren't done to his standards, the concequences were death or something a lot worse.
Astrid was on top of a container outside of the warehouse. The container gave a perfect view into the leader's office. In it was desk with various paper work sprawled on top of it and shelves with different models of weapons on it. These weapons ranged from small firearms to rocket launchers. However, only a carbine had a magazine clipped into it. It was unknown to Astrid whether the magazine actually contained bullets or not, but it did not scare her. In the middle of the room was a small coffee table on which a office lamp sat on and a chair next it. A masked man was sat on the chair and the mercenary leader was stood in front of him pointing .45 calibur pistol at his forehead. Astrid opened the window to listen in on the conversation.
"Where is it?!" the leader yelled.
"I-I-I don't man!" the hostage yelled back with fright.
The leader pulled the trigger, but the pistol just clicked.
"Oh, would you look here," he said, "I forgot to load my gun."
The hostage was panting and shivering with fear as the leader loaded the magazine into the gun.
"Now, I'll ask again, where is it?"
"I don-I-I don't, man. I'm just the delivery guy," the hostage replied.
"Wrong answer," he said.
The gun's barrel moved quickly to point towards the hostage's left knee. The leader pulled the trigger, releasing the bullet upon his leg. The hostage screamed in pain.
"Now, tell me where the emerald is or you loose the other one!" he shouted.
By this point, Astrid had heard enough and was already aiming her bow toward the pistol.
"I dunno! Please don't kill me..." the hostage begged.
The leader pulled the trigger again, damaging the hostages other leg. Straight after, Astrid fired her bow and climbed through the window. The arrow hit the gun and pushed it out of his hand.
"Wha-?" he asked, confused at what'd just happened.
"Is it a chaos emerald that you're looking for?" Astrid asked.
"Who are you?!" the leader shouted.
"Not important. Now answer the question," she replied, unsheathing her dagger.
The mercenary leader simply growled an nodded.
"And what do you expect to do with it?"
"To use it."
"And do what?" she asked.
"Take over what is rightfully mine."
"You cannot wield that power. I will not let you."
"Just watch me," he replied.
After he said this, Astrid plunged the dagger into his stomach and twisted it around. She then slit his throat. The mercenary leader died quickly and mostly painlessly.
"I am truly sorry," she said, as she laid the blood-stained corpse onto the wooden floor.
She walked over to the capture man and cut off his bindings and pulled off his mask.
"Through the window and run," Astrid said simply, "I cannot assist you from now onwards."
"Okay, thank you so much," he said before crawling through the window.
Astrid walked over to the corpse that lay on the ground and searched it's pockets. She found a mobile phone. It buzzed and the screen, a text was displayed. It read, Remember when you agreed to help me?. Astrid looked at it quizzically, not knowing what it meant. Then a helicopter flew above the building and a G.U.N soldier burst through the skylight.
"Freeze!" he shouted. He then looked at the corpse.
"Did you do that?" he asked.
"Yes. He deserved it. He was a threat," she replied simply.
"We need you for a mission."
"G.U.N, I assume?"
"Yes ma'am," the soldier replied nodding.
"What exactly is this mission?" she asked.
"Agent Lawson will brief you soon."
"Lawson? Is this about-"
"As I said, you'll be briefed soon," the soldier interrupted.
"Alright then, let's go," she said, climbing through the window. She jumped and climbed up the building to the roof where the helicopter was landing, where as the soldier just climbed up the rope he came down in.
As they were leaving, G.U.N units began taking over the warehouse, arresting the mercenaries and seizing all of their equipment.
----
----
===Part 3: Lawson===
Federation Airlines Skyline 122, Anglian Islands Airspace - March 10th 2014, 10:35 AM
Jacob Lawson, a G.U.N agent for the Science and Intelligence Division, or S.I.D, was sitting patiently on a private jet which had been provided by the United Federation government. He was en route to a private location within the Anglian Islands to meet with Astrid and Ember.
"Agent, we will be landing in about a half-hour," the pilot said in an announcement.
"Good," Lawson said to himself, "The quicker the better."
He was sat in a chair near the jet's emergency exit. On the table in front of him was a laptop which listed all of the casulaties that had recently happened. A man in a black suit came walked up to him and saluted.
"I'm not a soldier, you don't need to salute me," Lawson said.
"Okay then, sir," the man replied.
"No need for formalities with me either. Anyway, what's up?" Lawson asked.
"We've just recieved reports that both the targets have arrived at the location specified."
"Brilliant. Everything is going according to plan. Is there any news on the suit I ordered?"
"Nothing yet, agent. I'll let you know if I'm told anything," the man replied, walking away from the agent.
Lawson turned back to his computer. "It'll be nice to see you again Astrid. I hope you and your pyro friend will help me," he said to himself.
----
----
===Part 4: The Kid, The Assassin and The Agent===
Unknown Location, Anglian Islands - March 10th 2014, 11:21 AM
----
By now, it was mid morning and Ember did not have the slightest clue as to where he was. All he knew was that he was sat in a darkened room with nothing but a desk and a chair to accompany him. That was until the door in the corner of the room opened.
"Wait in here, the agent will be with you shortly," a G.U.N soldier said.
"Thank you," Astrid replied, walking into the room.
Ember was surprised. He didn't expect Astrid to be here. "Astrid?"
"Ember? What in the world are you doing here?" she asked.
"I was about to ask you the same question," Ember replied.
There was a brief moment of silence before Astrid said, "I know why we are here."
"Okay, why are we here then?" Ember asked.
The door opened again to reveal a wolf in standard issue G.U.N uniform.
"I can explain why," he said.
"Agent Lawson. It has been some time since we met," Astrid said.
"Wait, wait, wait... You know him?" Ember asked, confused.
"Astrid and I met on a rooftop in Central City. It's a long story, but we should really get down to business. Please, sit Astrid," Lawson insisted.
Astrid sat down in the chair and pulled herself toward the desk. Ember folded his arms, still unsure whether or not to trust Lawson.
"Ember, I am Agent Jacob Lawson of G.U.N Science and Intel," he said, holding out a hand to shake.
Ember shook his hand cautiously and said, "Nice to meet you. Now, why am I here?"
"You and Astrid are here because we need your help," he stated.
"I'm going to have a rough guess and say it's got to do with those random explosions happening everywhere," Ember said.
"Explosions?" Astrid asked Lawson.
"Yes, we've had several reports of people suicide bombing various locations. The explosion you saw, Ember, was likely coming from a munitions area in the military base near to where you were."
"So, explain to me why this is my problem," Ember said, folding his arms again.
"This is your problem because of the... event that happened a few months ago in Soleanna."
"Soleanna? What the hell's Soleanna got to do with this?"
"Well, when you, quote, exploded, end quote, after touching the warrior stone, you released enough energy to give an ancient entity known as Moordenaar enough power to break free from his magical prison and rain hell on this planet," Lawson said in a mouthful.
Ember looked at him oddly. It looked as if he didn't believe anything of what Lawson just said.
"I smell bullcrap," he said, sniffing, "I think... *sniff* I think it's coming from you, Agent Lawson."
"Ember..." Astrid sighed, "He is not lying. I saw one of the victims kill himself because of the entity."
"Hmmm... Alright, I'll help."
"Brilliant. Now to unlock your pyrokinesis," Lawson said to Ember.
"Say what now?" Ember asked, confused once more.
"Your pyrokinesis. Didn't you research about the warrior stones before you touched one?"
"It was forced into his hand, agent. He has had no prior education about it," Astrid said.
"Oh, boy... Right, whoever touches a warrior stone has a fifty percent chance of dying, and a fifty percent chance of gaining some of it's power. You touched the red one and lived. Therefore, you have pyrokinetic abilities," Lawson informed Ember.
"Now you just need to unlock these abilities," Astrid said.
"You knew about this? Why didn't you tell me sooner, Astrid?" Ember asked her with a slightly annoyed tone of voice.
"When was the last time we saw each other?" she asked.
"Iiiin... Soleanna..."
"Exactly. I had no way of telling you."
Agent Lawson then took a syringe from his pocket.
"What's that?" Ember asked.
"A substance that helps to speed up the process," he replied, walking toward Ember, "Now, if you would roll up your sleave, please."
"Agent, just remember that I still do not fully trust you. If you do anything to harm Ember, I will kill you," Astrid mentioned sternly.
Ember rolled up his sleave and Lawson injected the green substance into his shoulder.
"There. Now, you will notice that you will start to have extremely vivid dreams. That is a good sign. It means that your powers are being unlocked."
"Well, I've already had one. But it was brief," Ember mentioned.
"You'll be seeing more of them then. They'll also probably be longer," Lawson replied.
Astrid stood up, "So, shall we train him?"
"There's no time for training," Lawson said, resting his hands on the desk, "It will not be long until this world is filled with darkness and insanity. Moordenaar seeks nothing but revenge on one bloodline. He will destroy everything in his way to make sure that everyone in that bloodline is dead. He will then likely attempt to rule Mobius and he is powerful enough to do it."
Lawson walked over to the door.
"Our job is to gather as many unique and talented people as we can to finally kill Moordenaar."
Lawson walked out of the room. After a brief look at each other, Ember and Astrid followed him toward the biggest and most dangerous suicide mission in history...
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