Sonic defeated another construct.

This one had a wooden bow and a couple of arrows. Sonic immediately took them with him, taking the horn and the sphere with him as with the other constructs he had defeated.

He continued his way up the hill with steps, and when he arrived, he found himself climbing the wall at times, since some of those steps had collapsed long ago. Sonic, however, didn't mind. If anything, he was grateful for it. It would allow him to stretch his body a bit.

When he reached the top, he found himself in front of the shrine. Up close it wasn't as imposing as he thought it would be, but perhaps that was for the best. Thinking about it for a bit, he placed his hand on it as the same symbol as the door to the Temple of Time appeared, and this time it did dissipate.

Behind him, on a sandy surface on which the shrine was located, a round, blue symbol appeared, one he didn't quite recognize. He looked back at the shrine, and suddenly, a portal of sorts with a green aura opened up, giving him access to the shrine. Sonic could barely see what was inside, and he wasn't entirely sure if he really wanted to go inside.

Soon, though, he remembered that he needed the power hidden within the shrine to meet Sunny at the Temple of Time. It was a hassle, especially considering he only had to open one damn door, but it was better than nothing.

With a determined look, Sonic walked through the strange portal that opened in front of the shrine.

When he reached the other side, it seemed like he had been transported to a whole new world. The walls and floor were a white color, somewhere between marble and bone, with golden details. They shone, as if someone had just cleaned them, although there didn't seem to be anyone else inside.

The ceiling was a strange transparent energy floating above his head. There seemed to be no blue sky beyond, and he couldn't even see the sunlight through this transparent layer.

Sonic had barely entered the shrine when Rauru suddenly appeared in front of him.

"So you've made it here," The spirit said, a tiny smile appearing on his face. "This is a Shrine of Light. Long ago, I filled these places with light that purges evil."

"I thought the shrine would be smaller..." Sonic confessed, looking around in disbelief. "How can it be so big?"

The spirit let out a light laugh at Sonic's confusion. "An ancient Zonai power. We could contain spacious places in small containers. It was very useful in our time. I believe this light will restore an ability your right arm has lost."

"And then I can open the door?" The hedgehog questioned, the mission of finding Sunny being his highest priority at the moment.

"If you get past the shrine first," Rauru said. "Now then, extend your hand."

Sonic hesitated for a moment before obeying, extending his right hand.

Soon, green energy began to gather in a sphere on his palm, which surprised him a little. When the energy was fully accumulated, it showed a sphere with a hand symbol in the middle, and following that, the sphere entered Sonic's arm. He felt a tingling sensation, probably the energy of the new acquired power running through his arm.

Confused, the hedgehog looked at Rauru, waiting for an explanation.

"This is the Ultrahand ability," Rauru explained, and Sonic noticed the excitement in his tone. "It allows you to move objects freely and attach them to other objects. With it, you will be able to build a great number of things. Really, anything you can imagine. Personally, it's one of my favorite powers."

Sonic looked at his arm, incredulous. If what Rauru was telling him was true, then this power would not only help him open the door, but it could also be useful once he returns to Equestria.

"Use Ultrahand," Rauru's voice brought him out of his thoughts, "and receive the blessing from this shrine."

After explaining everything he needed to, Rauru vanished, leaving Sonic alone. The hedgehog looked at his arm again, and suddenly found himself excited to test out his new power.

He went down the steps further ahead, and found himself facing his first obstacle: A cliff, and a higher area that would allow him to continue. To his right, there was a pale stone slab, with Zonai spirals etched into the surface.

Sonic looked at the area he had to reach, the edge of the cliff, his arm, and the slab, in that exact order. He knew then that he had to use that slab as a bridge.

So he decided to concentrate, pointing his right hand at the slab. Rauru didn't give him instructions on what to do, but it wasn't a problem for him. He could handle it on his own. So he pointed at the slab and concentrated, thinking that he wanted to lift it from its place.

He stayed like that for a while, starting to feel like an idiot and believing that it wasn't going to work... But then, his arm started to glow with that greenish energy, and suddenly, he released a bit of energy that touched the slab and lifted it from its place.

Sonic felt incredulous, blinking to make sure he wasn't going crazy, and then he moved his hand, which consequently moved the plank as well. It was like having unicorn magic, but without a horn.

He laughed like a little kid with a new toy, and it wasn't that far from reality, then he moved the plank and adjusted it to the angle he wanted before letting it go. The plank fell, each end of it resting on the edges in the middle of the cliff.

Sonic walked over the plank, which was perfectly sturdy, and when he was on the other side, he turned around to see in disbelief what he had achieved. He couldn't wait to overcome the shrine and keep his new power.

He continued on his way, and found another cliff, a little bigger and higher than the previous one. To his left he found 2 planks, and immediately he grabbed one of them with Ultrahand, then brought it closer to the other, and after concentrating on making both of them come together, he succeeded.

The two planks were stuck together by a strange greenish rubber that was left in the middle of them. Sonic touched that rubber, feeling it soft but, strangely, resistant, strong enough to keep both planks together without separating.

Sonic then used Ultra Hand once more to move the bridge he had created, once again leaving each end of the bridge on each edge in the middle of the cliff. When he walked on it to get to the other side, it did not collapse, indicating that the rubber was quite resistant.

The hedgehog smiled again. If he met again with Sunny, he would definitely show her his new ability. He didn't know if she would feel jealous or amazed, but either way, he would be happy to show her.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a chest high up, so he used Ultrahand to bring the bridge he had just created and place it on a small space in front of the chest.

He climbed the bridge, and upon reaching the chest, he opened it using his right hand. When the symbol that appeared dissipated, he opened the chest, finding a piece of amber. It seemed to be shaped like a blade for a weapon. Why would an amber be shaped like that?

He decided to ignore it for the moment and put it away. He didn't think it would work as a weapon, but maybe he could sell it when he returned to Equestria, or even give it to Pipp. She would get more use out of it without a doubt.

He climbed down from that pillar where the chest was and moved forward, reaching a strange area. In it there was a huge metal tube, each end held in a pillar. Under that tube was another huge precipice, and at the other end, next to the wall, he saw a pedestal on which were two figures that seemed to be carved to life size. A green energy floated around them, forming spirals of strange symbols, but the sculptures almost glowed on their own.

To his left, he saw a huge wooden plank, and next to it, a kind of white stone hook. Sonic figured he would have to build something out of it to get to the other side. He looked up, intending to think, but instead, he found several wooden platforms moving from one place to another, all of them using a stone hook to move them.

Sonic immediately knew what to do when he saw that, so he got to work. He used Ultrahand and moved the wooden plank, then took the stone hook and attached it right in the middle of the plank. Afterwards, he moved his entire creation, placing the hook right on the metal pipe.

The platform began to move, and Sonic quickly climbed onto it. It moved perfectly along the metal pipe until it reached the other side, near the pedestal.

He got off the platform and climbed the steps to reach the pedestal. In front of it appeared the same symbol with the hand in the middle. Sonic touched it, and when it dissipated, the pillars next to it glowed, and the camera in front of him opened, giving him a better view of the two stone figures.

He saw that one of the carved figures was identical to those under the castle, but it was smaller. A tall Zonai with an animal snout and long ears. The figure next to it, however, was identical to the figure of a mare. The lack of wings and horn made Sonic think that it was an earth pony, and it was wearing a very long robe, as well as a tiara.

The sculptures were holding each other, the Zonai with its hand and the mare with its hoof, extended towards him. Sonic felt like he had seen that mare before, and at the same time, he didn't recognize her. The Zonai, on the other hand, he recognized very well.

"You have done well to reach this place," A voice suddenly spoke, and Sonic thought it echoed in his mind. "We offer this light that will cleanse you of evil."

After saying that, the green energy floating around the figures changed to a deep gold, and soon headed towards Sonic, who felt somewhat surprised by this. The golden light entered his body, and the hedgehog suddenly felt renewed energy, as if part of the strength that the darkness took from him returned to him again.

He didn't feel invincible like when he found Excalibur in Korok Forest, but he definitely felt stronger than when he woke up in that strange place.

When all the golden light had entered his body, Sonic looked at the figures again.

"May the Light of Blessing grant you the strength you seek," That voice simply said.

Then, the figures were locked away, and Sonic could no longer see them. He assumed that meant that he had already overcome the sanctuary, so he decided to check it out by heading to the exit.

Sonic left that shrine, and noticed that the sun was beginning to set in the distance. How long had he been in that shrine? It couldn't have been more than 5 minutes.

Suddenly, Rauru appeared in front of him again, his gaze showing a gleam of pride. "You did very well getting through that shrine," The spirit said, and his tone showed the same pride as his gaze. "And you've restored an ability. This is wonderful."

Sonic felt like he was going to faint, he didn't know if from shock, confusion, or both.

"An ability? As in, just one?" Sonic asked, feeling incredulous again.

"That's right," Rauru nodded, a smile appearing on his face. "If you visit and complete two more shrines, you should be able to open the door to the Temple of Time."

Now he didn't know how to feel: Whether excited to know that he could obtain two more powers, or frustrated to know that it would take longer than he wanted to meet Sunny.

However, he knew that feeling frustrated wasn't going to do any good. He could learn to master his new abilities along the way and be well prepared. He'd impress Sunny a lot more, by the way, and that was extra points on his agenda.

"I suppose a few extra powers wouldn't hurt," Sonic admitted. "Where do I find the other shrines?"

"You can locate them with the map on Sunny's phone," The spirit replied, earning a confused look from Sonic. "That artifact has the option to mark pins over certain places you want to get to. You may want to mark the shrines in the distance with pins. Then you'll never lose track of where they are. Sunny's phone offers you a very useful scope. It's quite handy."

Rauru disappeared after saying that, and Sonic pulled out Sunny's phone to check the spirit's words. He looked through the phone's apps for a while, looking for one that would activate the scope, and eventually activated it by accident when he pressed a completely black icon in the middle of the screen.

With that, he activated the telescope, and Sonic wondered since when Sunny has a telescope and a map on her phone. Regardless, he picked it up to start looking around. To the south of the island he spotted another shrine, not only because of the stone structure, but also because of the green spiral. He marked said shrine with a red pin so he wouldn't get lost.

He moved the telescope around, and then he spotted another shrine, in the snowy area to the east of the island. He didn't know how he would get in there without freezing to death, especially considering that he isn't even dressed from the waist up. Still, he marked that shrine with a blue pin. He would manage to get there without suffering from the cold later.

Not finding any more shrines, Sonic deactivated the telescope and put Sunny's phone away. He could see the shrine to the south from where he was, so he immediately set off on a mission to get to it.

Sonic descended the hill he was on at a slow pace. When he reached the ground, he continued on his way, heading south of the island.

Along the way, and to his surprise, he found Rauru near a kind of ruined house, looking at one of those steward constructs. It was chopping down a tree with a wooden stick that had a stone stuck to one side. It was like an improvised axe.

Sonic was going to ask how that was possible, but Rauru spoke up first. "I see that they're still at work even now," The spirit said, a sad and nostalgic smile plastered on his face. "We originally created the constructs to assist in our endeavors. All of us were fond of them. I never imagined they would continue to carry out their assigned tasks to this day." Suddenly his gaze darkened and he crossed his arms. "The fact that their labor no longer serves any purpose, yet they perform it still...it is disquieting to me."

The question Sonic wanted to ask ended up dying, and now the hedgehog felt compassion for Rauru.

Maybe he was a spirit, but he still felt at the end of the day. Sonic was going to ask him about the mare he had seen at the sanctuary, at the end of it, but he thought he might be opening old wounds that were better closed, so he swallowed the question.

Rauru was already dead, he didn't deserve to suffer in that state.

Suddenly, Sonic heard a bell in the distance, and turned to look at the Temple of Time. The bell came from that place. Rauru turned around, looking at the temple as did Sonic, and his sad but nostalgic smile returned.

"What is that?" Sonic asked, hoping that question wouldn't ruin Rauru's good mood.

"It's the Bell of Time," The spirit answered. "In my time, it rang to announce the sunrise and sunset, and when that happened, the appearance of this place changed. There was always a solemn silence, but the sound of the bell seemed to give it a little life. At night, for example, the air was filled with fireflies."

Sonic found himself smiling a little when he heard that. "It sounds like something incredible to see."

"It was a beautiful sight. It brings me back memories..."

Sonic could see in Rauru's eyes that he was feeling melancholy at that moment, so he decided to leave the spirit alone and continue on his way.

He approached the steward construct who was cutting down a tree, and noticed that next to it, in the trunk of an already cut down tree, there was an improvised axe just like the one the construct had. Sonic took the axe and examined it.

The stone seemed to have embedded itself in the wooden stick that made up the axe, as if that piece of stone had always belonged to the stick.

Sonic still didn't understand how this was possible, but he supposed that one of Rauru's powers could give him the answer. Clinging to that idea with enthusiasm, he decided to take the axe.

Once the sky was bathed in stars, Sonic considered the possibility of stopping to rest for a while. He saw not far from his place a steward construct in front of a bonfire. He assumed he created it for whoever passed by, if anyone did.

However, not far from that same place, he could also see a sort of construct camp. There were 4 of them, all watching the place with a sort of red scanner in their eyes that allowed them to detect nearby threats. One of them was on a very tall pillar, holding a bow in one of its hands. The other three were just watching the area, but there were weapons nearby.

Sonic knew that if he wanted to take a well-deserved rest, he would have to deal with the constructs first, or they would deal with him if he fell asleep.

He crouched down in the tall grass and slowly approached until he was behind a ruined stone wall. He took a breath for a moment, then took out a bow and arrow and aimed at the construct standing on the pillar. He drew back the bow, made sure there was a good wind, and let go of the arrow. The same one hit the construct right in the eye, and made it fall defeated.

With that, the other three were alerted, and made a horrible sound that made Sonic cover his ears. It sounded like some kind of alert, but not the kind of alert that Hitch would make with his megaphone, but much more unbearable. When the sound stopped, Sonic shook his head, equipped the shield and the stone axe and took a breath.

He then jumped back, falling in sight of the constructs, who were already armed.

Sonic focused only one of them, however. The one who took a rusty sword and shield to defend himself. The hedgehog waited for the construct to approach, and when it did, he dodged its attack at the last second by jumping back.

Time seemed to suddenly stop, and Sonic took advantage of this to accelerate towards the construct and attack it with the axe. When time returned to normal, the enemy fell limp to the ground, dropping his weapon, his horn and his sphere.

Sonic smiled, but then jumped to the side, just in time to dodge the blow of an arrow launched by another of the two remaining constructs. That one had a bow and arrows, so Sonic only approached at a slow pace with his shield, and being already close, he used the axe to decapitate the construct.

When it fell limp, Sonic put the shield to the side and turned around throwing the axe towards the remaining construct. The axe landed right in the enemy's eye, and it soon fell to the ground, limp.

With the 4 constructs defeated, Sonic nodded satisfied. He noticed that there was a chest nearby and approached it. From the chest he took out an opal, which looked normal unlike the amber.

He was beginning to believe that one of Rauru's powers was to fuse materials to his weapons. If so, he could create a weapon out of that amber judging by the looks of it. In fact, he could also use the golem horns for the same thing. The opal could be sold as soon as he returned to Equestria, or he can gift it to Pipp, but the amber would serve better as a weapon.

He picked up the horns and spheres the golems left behind and stretched, yawning. Tiredness finally got the better of him, so he headed towards the bonfire he had spotted earlier.

The steward construct didn't seem to pay him any attention, so Sonic took the opportunity to finally take a breather, scratching the back of his neck tiredly.

He took off his weapons and set them aside, as well as those uncomfortable sandals. His feet thanked him immediately, and Sonic had never felt so happy to be barefoot before. When he returned to Equestria, the first thing he would do is look for a comfortable pair of shoes. His feet would thank him even more.

Sonic reached out his hands to feel the warmth of the bonfire. It was comforting, and watching the fire move with the movement of the wind brought him some calm.

Now that he could finally sit down for a while, he found himself thinking about what could be happening down in Equestria since he and Sunny disappeared. Knuckles, who was the leader of Lookout Landing, must be losing his mind, and Izzy might kill him if he returned without Sunny, just like Hitch.

Damn it, Hitch. He hadn't thought about him or the rest of his friends as he should have. They watched them leave for Canterlot Castle never to return. How would they be dealing with it?

Tails would probably blame himself. He was one of the ones who insisted the most to him and Sunny not to go down there, at least not alone, and not being able to convince him or Sunny must be tormenting him. Hitch would regret not having helped Sunny. It was an open secret that he liked her and vice versa, not to mention that they have known each other since they were young. Her disappearance must be killing him.

Izzy would perhaps start crying considering how sensitive she is. Considering as well that he and Sunny were her first real friends, their disappearance must be affecting her. Misty might be the same, since they were the ones who gave her the opportunity to redeem herself and be free from Opaline, an opportunity that she did not waste. The fact that they are not there now must be weighing on her.

He is not sure if Team Dark would be neutral. He can certainly say that Omega might not care, but regarding Shadow and Rouge he is not so sure. Instead, he knows full well that Knuckles must be stressed out to the core for not being able to find them, and Amy may have started crying over his absence. He doesn't know if she's worried about Sunny, but she most likely is.

Zipp must be more worried about how the others react to their absence, although that doesn't mean she isn't worried as well. And Pipp... damn, Pipp might have it worse than the rest. She's his girlfriend, for Chaos' sake, and thanks to what happened with Eggman and his Death Egg Titan, he knows full well that she would give her life for him. She must be devastated by his disappearance, and he doubted Sunny's would be any less so. She was one of his best friends, after all.

Sonic had to hurry to meet up with Sunny to return to Equestria together. Only then could things start to calm down a bit.

So, with one last yawn, he lay down on the stone floor. It wasn't comfortable, but he had no other choice. He promised himself that he would get up early the next day. The sooner he met up with Sunny, the sooner they would return home...

When the first rays of the sun rose, Sonic woke up.

His back felt numb, the result of sleeping on the uncomfortable stone floor all night. He sat up on the ground with effort, groaning in pain. This was going to stay for a while, but he could bear it.

He took out a couple of apples he had collected earlier and roasted them over the fire of the bonfire, which surprisingly was still lit. He ate the apples with relish, feeling his energy renew and the numbness in his back disappear. When he finished eating, he tied his sandals, surprisingly quickly, then took his things and continued on his way.

He came to a stream and jumped into the water. He swam to the shore and found himself in front of a huge body of water that extended to the other end of the island, right where the shrine he was heading to was.

He looked around, searching for something to help him cross the lake, because there was no way he could swim across, not in his current condition. Running didn't seem feasible either, because to his own surprise, he didn't feel the strength to run.

He came across a sail tied to a mast on the ground, as well as a couple of tree trunks. He walked over to the nearby trees and cut down a third trunk. He then used the power of the Ultrahand to attach the three trunks together to form the base of a makeshift boat.

He lifted the boat and placed it on the water. It floated, indicating that it was working. Following that, he levitated the sail-mast and attached it to the middle trunk. The wind was blowing directly south, moving the makeshift boat. Sonic smiled, proud that his plan worked, and climbed onto the makeshift boat just as the wind began to push it to the other side of the shore.

As he moved, he looked at his right arm, smiling. He was slowly starting to feel it again. Last night he felt the warmth of the bonfire, which meant that he was starting to get used to his new arm faster and faster. And now, with the power of the Ultrahand, he felt like a door of infinite possibilities had opened before him, and he planned to make the most of it.

Arriving at the other side of the lake, Sonic got off the makeshift boat and walked around a couple of ruins, then turned right and climbed a set of stairs. At the end, there was the shrine he wanted to reach.

Determined, Sonic approached the shrine. Once in front of it, the green symbol with the hand in the middle appeared. Sonic brought his right hand closer, causing the symbol to dissipate. The entrance to the shrine opened before him, and just behind it, a blue circular symbol lit up.

With the entrance now open, Sonic entered the shrine.

Author's Note

Fun fact: I'm playing the actual TOTK while I'm writing this story. This way, the dialogues are more precise and I don't make mistakes when locating certain places :)

Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter.