Tails vs. The Salamander
			fanfic by Daniel Wheeler

Chapter 1> Entrance of the Salamander

	Elrond and Sarah Prower, parents of Tails, were walking together
in an area south of Bluebrook, when they saw a volcano that had been
dormant for many years, though many Mobians feared the day when it would
again erupt.  According to legend, the volcano housed the fierce,
legendary Fire Salamander, who caused great damage to Bluebrook and
caused many deaths.  But one of Tails' ancestors used his magic Ice Sword
and overcame the vile monster.  Though it was vanquished, the Fire
Salamander was not dead.  So the fox warrior, who was named Ice Fox of
Bluebrook, used his magic to keep the beast asleep for centuries in the
volcano.

	Elrond decided to go into the volcano to look at the interior. 
"Be careful," cautioned Sarah as he entered the crater.  Elrond replied
"I will!", and descended further into the stone tower.  He suddenly came
to an island in the middle of the lava, and saw the Fire Salamander
imprisoned in a stony state.  He had trouble reading the runes on the
plaque near the statue, so he lit the two torches beside the beast, which
wasn't one of his better ideas.  

	Soon, the whole cavern shook, and, as he read the plaque, Elrond
learned (too late, regrettably) that lighting the torch releases the Fire
Salamander.  He quickly climbed the rope and hurried up the crater to
Sarah, and, after explaining what had happened, apologized for his
erroneous action.  "Look," Sarah said, "what's done is done.  Now we must
hope and pray that our son and/or his friends can help us."


Chapter 2>  The Ancient Walkers' Call For Tails To Action

	Tails was helping Sally and Sonic around the palace in
Mobotropolis, when the Ancient Walkers appeared to them.  "Greetings to
thee, friends," they said to the three.  "Bluebrook calls for the
double-tailed one."  Tails, hearing that his birthplace was in need of
him, stepped forward to them.  Putting his hand on him and waving his
wand, the blue-masked Ancient Walker transported Tails to Bluebrook.

	When Tails landed, he saw his birthplace Bluebrook, but it wasn't
as beautiful as he saw it when he first came after the fall of Robotnik,
but as a seared wasteland, with burned ruins marking places where towns
once thrived.  When Tails asked the Ancient Walkers "What happened?," the
pterodactyl Ancient Walker explained:

		"The Fire Salamander, full of wrath,
		Destroyed all that lay in his path.
	Thy ancestor, Ice Fox of Bluebrook, fought him 	before,
	But now the beast has risen to destroy once 	more."

	Shocked by the news, Tails asked what could he do to defeat the
savage Salamander again, and the bird-masked Ancient Walker said:

		"Near the volcano, to the east,
		Is the sword Ice Fox used to fight the
		beast.
		To the petrified forest go, and its
		guardians face,
		That the magic Ice Sword may ye 		embrace!"

	Filled with courage and a strong sense of justice, he prepared to
go to the petrified forest to seek the Ice Sword of his ancestor. 
"Before ye go, double-tail," said the blue-masked Ancient Walker, "take 
this talisman."  The Walker gave Tails an amulet that had a gentle cyan
glow.  "Now," continued the Ancient Walker, "thou art protected from the
spells of the many monsters that lie in the forest.  Only the strongest
magic spells can penetrate it, but the glow will reduce the damage the
strong spells can do."  "Thanks.  I'll keep that in mind," said the young
fox as he set out into the stony woods.


Chapter 3>  The First Part Of The Adventure

	The gray trees in the Petrified Forest cast fearful shadows as
the faint vermillion glow of the volcano shone upon them.  But afraid or
not, Tails must find the Ice Sword and defeat the Salamander that
attacked the place he was born in.  The first problems came in the form
of Fire Bats, which came out of the holes farther out in the forest and
tried to singe Tails with their fiery touch.  But he simply found a
petrified stick and smacked them down, where they were extinguished.  

	He continued into the forest, still in the outer portion of the
forest, and met some Fire Serpents that were no more than half the size
of Tails himself.  A simple stomp knocked out half of them, while he had
to use his stick to take out the rest.  After about ten minutes of
traveling, he found a magic crystal, undoubtedly put in the tree hole by
the Ancient Walkers for Tails to find.  The stick, when it touched the
crystal, turned into a makeshift "wand" for casting Ice spells.  He
needed the magic, too, because a low-level Fire Troll came after him.

	The Fire Troll threw boulders of obsidian at Tails, which were
about one and a half times bigger than the small fox.  Tails simply flew
above the humanoid hitman and pelted him with Ice Sparks.  The monster
was snuffed out in ten blasts.  After the troll disappeared, Tails
continued forward, now in the outer middle of the area the sword was in
(the Petrified Forest was shaped somewhat like a bull's eye, with three
rings and a center.  If the outer portion was the first ring, then the
area the Ice Sword was in is the center, and Tails is now in the second
ring.).


Chapter 4>  Treachery Is Afoot

	Meanwhile, back in Mobotropolis, Sonic and Sally were taking care
of things back at the palace.  Amy was at the palace, too, using her
tarot cards to keep track of Tails' progress.  Sonic asked Amy "How is
Tails doing?," and she replied "He is closing in on the sword, just a few
meters away from the thing the Ancient Walkers sent him to seek."

	Suddenly, the palace shook, and a crack in the floor opened up in
the ground floor as the Fire Salamander attacked the city.  Sally tries
to drive away the beast with a seltzer bottle filled with water, but to
no avail; as soon as he realized that the princess was trying to fight
him, he captures her in a teleport spell and sends her to his volcanic
lair, then goes back into the crack.


Chapter 5>  The Search Continues

	Tails gets closer to the sword and his chance to save Bluebrook
from the flaming grasp of the Fire Salamander, when some mini-salamanders
assaulted him with flaming breath.  The talisman that the Ancient Walker
gave him protected him from getting fried, and he cast a spell that
summoned a cold wind, blowing out the hotfoot foes.  But the leader did
not give up so easily; he recuperated after his forces were decimated,
and started a fresh attack.  So Tails cast a sleet spell that proved to
be the leader's weakness, and destroyed him.

	The two-tailed traveler then found a larger petrified branch and
a crystal ball.  He placed the stick he already had on the branch and the
stick was absorbed into the branch; when he placed the crystal ball onto
the branch, the branch became a magic Ice Rod.  He carried the Ice Rod
with him to more battles.  The next battle that came was a horde of
flaming goblins, who wanted nothing more than fried fox.  Tails cast an
Ice Bolt spell that obliterated the lead goblin, which caused the rest of
the goblins to retreat.

	Tails was on the edge of the "deeper middle" (the third ring of
the bull's eye) of the Petrified Forest, when a Red Giant attacked with
some mid-level firestorm blasts.  The talisman held up good against the
assault and Tails cast Arctic Waves at the megaton troublemaker.  The
giant was vanquished in sixteen hits.  


Chapter 6>  Amy's Discovery of the Fire Salamander's Plot

	Amy read her tarot cards some more, keeping her hopes up on
Tails' success.  She gasped at the cards that foretold of a battle, then
a volcanic eruption.  "What is it, Amy?," Sonic asked her when she
gasped.  Amy cried "Oh, Sonic!  The Fire Salamander plans to kill Tails
in order to fully empower himself!"  "Say what?!," exclaimed the Blue
Blur.  

	Amy explained, with overtones of fear "The Fire Salamander wants
Tails to find the Ice Sword.  The sword will prove that he is the
descendant of Ice Fox of Bluebrook, who thwarted the Fire Salamander so
many centuries ago.  Then he would kill him in combat as soon as he faced
him in his volcano.  Oh, Sonic-- If the monster succeeds, Mobius is
doomed!"


Chapter 7>  The Ice Sword At Last!

	Tails was now in the deeper middle of the Petrified Forest.  He
found an old staff, obviously left by an old wizard of Bluebrook.  He
fused the rod he already had to the staff, and the staff granted Tails
the spells second only to the Ice Sword in power.  It was a good thing,
too-- because some strong Flame Ogres came out of holes in the ground to
kill the two-tailed adventurer.  Fortunately, Tails used an Ice Boulder
to take out the small army of fiery ogres.  After many more battles with
Flame Ogres, he finally made it to the center of the forest, where the
Ice Sword awaited him.

	But before he could even touch the sword's handle, he had to
contend with a Red Dragon, who was second only to the Salamander in
power.  The talisman reduced the damage of its breath to a hot air blast.
 He cast many Ice Rays at it, but to no avail.  Then he noticed a
vulnerable spot in the dragon's chest.  He then cast an Ice Arrow spell
at it and the Red Dragon fell dead.

	The staff Tails had dissapated, but that didn't matter to him,
for he now had the Ice Sword of his ancestor, Ice Fox of Bluebrook.  The
pterodactyl Ancient Walker grasped him with his claws and brought him to
the volcano, where he must seek and vanquish the Fire Salamander once
more, and hopefully for good.


Chapter 8>  The Volcanic Cavern

	

	As Tails entered the crater, he soon was attacked by Shadow
Phoenixes and Pyrocobras.  Tails fought his way past the onslaught and
found himself in a system of Stygian catacombs.  His talisman glowed and
showed him the way through the maze.  The first level of the catacombs
involved weaving through columns and facing Fire Bats.  

	He then entered the second level of the catacombs.  It was
starting to show some lava, and some Pyro Snakes came out of the fiery
sea as Tails raced from island to island, trying to pass the level.  A
giant Pyro Snake guarded the entrance to the third level.  He cut three
slashed at the serpent's head, and the path was clear for the third
level.

	The third level of the maze was the most fiery, with flames
everywhere, with only the large column-like islands as solid ground.  He
flew from column to column, facing as many Shadow Phoenixes as he could,
and escaping combat whenever possible.  A giant Pyrocobra guarded the
entrance to the fourth and final level of the Salamander's lair.  He
valiantly dodged the cobra's strikes and stabbed the cobra in the heart. 
Only the Salamander stood in the way between him and victory.


Epilogue>  The Final Conflict.

	Tails entered the final level of the catacombs, a crystalline
zone filled with beautiful adornations, but with an overtone of evil.  He
was suprised to see Sally held prisoner, along with his parents.  But as
he approached the captives, the Fire Salamander appeared out of nowhere
and attacked.  He slashed the beast but to no avail.  It seemed that all
is lost.

	But just as the Fire Salamander was about to win, the spirit of
Ice Fox appeared, healed Tails, entered his talisman, and making him
powerful enough to vanquish the beast.  He then noticed the weak spot in
the Salamander's heart:  An orb bulging from his chest.  Tails charged at
the orb, sword first, and plunged the sword into the monster's heart and
destroying it once and for all.

	Soon, after the battle, there was a brilliant flash of light, and
Tails, Sally, Elrond, and Sarah appeared in Bluebrook.  But Bluebrook was
suddenly restored, as if the Fire Salamander had never even touched it. 
Elrond and Sarah hugged their son to thank him for defeating the monster.
 "I can't take all the credit, mom and dad," said Tails.  "Ice Fox helped
me."  Elrond said "Still, it was you who took the challenge to pick up
where Ice Fox left off."  Sarah added "Yes.  All of Mobius would have
been doomed, if it were not for you."

	Then, the pterodactyl Ancient Walker came to take Sally and Tails
home.  Tails gave his goodbye to his parents and returns to Mobotropolis,
where Sonic, King Acorn, and Amy awaited them.



						The End =)