Sonic the Hedgehog Anthology

Oblation Day

Plot Synopsis:

Blaze the Cat has sacrificed herself to Iblis to save the future that she and Silver the Hedgehog has spent ages fighting for. The appreciation for Blaze was tremendous and ever since then, the people have dedicated one day to her: Oblation Day. For six years, Silver has attended this festival as a way to reconnect with his best friend. This year goes differently than expected for Silver...

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The past hasn't been all too kind to us. Our way of life, our mere existence was threatened by a being of godly destruction. Our home was like any other. We all lived peacefully and happily until it was turned into ruins. The inferno that devastated our home had last for years. Our morale was gone and we had little hope. Nevertheless, I refused to stand down without a fight. I had the strength to bring back the peace that we have yearned. I didn't do it alone, even I needed help.

Blaze and I had been through a lot. The hardships we've endured seemed insurmountable to some, yet we persevered. We knew our duties and we never stopped at anything. Our journey was certainly not easy, but that's just what comes with it. We fought long and hard to alleviate the pain that was inflicted on our home. Our efforts proved successful, but not without a price.

I tried to seal away Iblis, I did all I could. I tried to fight it, but it was futile. My soul could not accept the fiery demon, but Blaze's did. My heart was shaking and I prayed for an alternative. I didn't want to see her go. Blaze helped me out a lot, she kept pushing me, and she was there for me when I needed her. She wasn't just a warrior fighting for the people, she was my best friend. Her sacrifice wasn't in vain. The fire subsided and our home was now ready to be rebuilt. Blaze's sacrifice is one that everyone would honor as time went on, but sometimes I wish it was me instead.

From that day onward, we thanked Blaze for her heroism. She's the reason we have a happy home again. She's the reason we can rebuild. She's the reason we'll continue to live. Blaze's deed for us was too great for us to just give a simple thanks for. I knew this had to be a tradition. That day when Blaze was gone became ingrained in my head. My best friend gave her life for all of us to be happy, knowing how insecure I am without her. I shouldn't have to be the only one to feel this strongly about her. I proposed the idea to honor her on that same day for each year after. We all came to a consensus and decided to dedicate that day in history to Blaze. With that, Oblation Day was born.

Oblation Day became an important part of our lives. To honor Blaze, we would all gather around the heart of the city where we have our sacred fire pit. To show her our appreciation, we would all write down messages, giving our condolences and gratitude to her. Our heartfelt messages would then be wrapped over a small stone that we'd chip our names into. Once our messages were ready, we'd lit up the fire pit and we would burn our messages wrapped over stone. The burnt paper is then sent up to the heavens where Blaze resides. She reads our messages and gives a message of her own on the stone that the message was wrapped on. Once the paper has disintegrated, we'd retrieve our stone to look at her message she sent. Each finite burn on the stone told it's own story. The possibilities were endless. To us, it didn't matter if we could interpret it. What mattered to us was that Blaze was hearing our appreciation and that, despite being gone, she still lives in our hearts.

Six years after Blaze's sacrifice, Oblation Day was here yet again. Everyone was bustling through the city. Once everyone was at the fire pit, we wasted no time. People were writing messages left and right. Some made quick "thank you" notes and some took their time to make it extra special. I know some people didn't know Blaze that well, so I didn't hold it against them for making quick messages. I knew Blaze much more than others... I knew her fighting spirit and I knew her personally. I miss her each day and every time Oblation Day comes around, I do all I can to make it extra special for her.