For The Gardens

[EliOceans]

Hey guys, it's Eli. Working on another Chao story. Here's the Prologue to set it all up, and I'll post Part 1.1 tomorrow. I guess I'm back again, somewhat. :P

Prologue
Chao Gardens have changed much since the days of Sonic and the gang. Humans have left the places explored in both of Sonic's adventures, thanks to the help of Chaos, and Chao now live in such places. More Gardens were created, and Chao population multiplied by the millions, since they were no longer resticted to their population of eight per garden by the humans.

Since then, there have been numerous advancements to Chao society, making it more like human society. Calendars were made, and is kept track by the seasons, with 91 days per season, and 92 in the winter. Giant Gardens, resembling cities, were made. Science and engineering had evolved. Chao learned more about theirselves, and life. The arts advanced, and now sports are active throughout the lannds.

The only other main changes with Chao are related to their skin color. When relating to two-tones, their tone no longer fades onto their underlying color based upon their evolution, but completely covers it in all senses. So in a sense, a Two-Tone White Dark/None will no longer be black with white highlights, but will be white with gray highlights. A Two-Tone Blue Neutral/Swin will be Blue with Black highlights, rather than the ordinary. Skin color is also dependent on the parent genes, but is mainly seen in two-tones. Scientists say this is due to the lack of the presence of Chaos Drives now, which was discovered to be the reason Chao don't live as long as their potential.

Chaos Drives were commonly found in GUN Robots. As GUN was stopped, they stopped coming to the Gardens. Some Chao groups hoarded some, and reverse engineered them, to make exact copies of them. Chao scientists examined the Drives and found shocking results. The crystal found in the Drive acted as a very harmful drug, shortening Chao life by over five times. The liquid encasing the crystal kept it from killing the Chao, but was still very harmful. They were also slightly radioactive, but nothing serious. They were made illegal after this discovery. Over time, as Chao stopped using the drives, Chao commonly lived to be about 20 years old, then usually died. Reincarnation became rare, and Chaos Chao even more rare, even more so than before the Chaos Drive epidemic ended. To biologists, the Chaos Drives were key to reincarnation, but detrimental to overall health.

As stated previously, all areas in Sonic's previous Adventures have been abandoned by the humans, and taken over by the Chao. Both of the areas are separated by the Chaoco Ocean. The side with the Mystic Ruins is named Chaotica, due to the epidemic directly involving Chaos Zero. The other region is named Scatre, because it is a scattered region, with many islands. Differeny animals appear on each region, and Chao society in general.

Now, you will see how Chao have changed, in a much closer view.

[EliOceans]

Part 1.1: Weird Lactose
It is the 14th of Spring. On the western coast of the White Jungle, in the Scatre region, there is a Garden. In this Garden, the Albine River Garden, there is an egg, and its hatching is highly anticipated by the parents.



Rio, the father, is a Shiny Red Dark/Power/Swim Chao, and is 3 years old. The mother, Myst, is a White Two-Tone Neutral/Fly/Fly is also 3 years old. They recently mated, and awaited the birth of their child.

"I wonder who he's gonna look like more." Rio says, looking at the egg questionably.
"I do too. I hope he doesn't have your giant head!" Myst says, laughing.
"Oh ha ha ha, very funny!" Rio replies, pushing her lightly and laughing. "...But seriously, how long do these things take to hatch? I gotta meet up with X soon!"
"Hey, don't rush him! Or her... Perfect things take time. And I thought you didn't talk to X any more."
Rio sighed, and said "It's his birthday tomorrow. The least I could do is tell him that despite the past, he's still my brother. All opinions aside."
The conversation went silent, until a cracking sound was heard.
"Oh! Oh! He's coming! It's happening!" Myst exclaimed. Rio stood in awe.

Shiny white hands with gray highlights broke through the eggshell, and then a baby Chao could be seen as he threw the top of the eggshell off. He was a Shiny White Two-Tone, with a red highlight, only on the top of his head. He had no visible mouth, and regular, open eyes. He made no noise, and sat inside the bottom half of of the eggshell silently.

While Myst was trying to hold back her tears of joy, Rio stood with the same somewhat-confused look on his face as when the Chao was still in his egg.

"...What's wrong with him. Honey, I think we got a weirdo. Why isn't he doing anything?" Rio said, in all seriousness.
Myst gave Rio a disappointed look, and picked up the baby. "Just because he didn't come out screaming and flailing his arms like you, doesn't mean he's a 'weirdo', okay?"
"I'm surprised you remember that far. Well, whether he's a little different or not, I guess we have to keep him." Rio said, looking into the Chao's face, smiling, and saying, "Hey there kid, I'm your dad, Rio. We're gonna take care of you and all that good stuff. Come on Myst, let's take him to the Fortune Teller."
The Chao looked at Rio blankly, only blinking his eyes a couple of times. He looked over at the pool and laughed.
"Well it's about time!" Rio said, as they continued to walk.

After walking for a good ten minutes, and the parents got to know their newborn through the jungle, they finally arrived at the market, where the Fortune Teller works her magic. In the market, there are multiple shops, selling fruits, clothes, accessories, and Animals for those that don't like to hunt. The Fortune Teller gives baby Chao their name, and rarely tells the future. Not too many Gardens have Fortune Tellers, and Chao will usually have to travel some distance to get to one, as Rio and Myst did.

They found the purple tent, and went inside. Luckily, there was no line. The Fortune Teller, a Normal Dark/Fly/Normal, was meditating in front of her crystal ball.
"Miss Fortune Teller?" Myst said quietly.
"Yes, I have expected you. I felt your presence from miles away. Would you like me to name your newborn?" Said the Fortune Teller.
"Yes please, ma'am." She said
"Ooh, he's a cutie." Said the Fortune Teller, smiling, then channeling her energy. "Okay, here we go... Well, he's a boy. Surprise surprise. He is strong, yet his energy flows smoothly. His spirit has no rush for anything, and goes with the wind. Born on the coast of the white waters... Mmmmm... His name shall be... Milky."
"MILKY!?!" Rio exclaimed. Realizing how loud he was, he covered his mouth, saying, "Sorry. But Milky? Seriously?"
"Rio!" Said Myst.
"What do you want me to do? Just make something up? His name is Milky! Even if you didn't bring him here, he was gonna call his self that anyway! That's just how Chao are!" She held up Milky high, saying with emphasis, "MILKY. YOUR NAME IS MILKY. DO YOU LIKE THAT NAME?" And Milky started to laugh.
Rio sighed and said "All right. If that's how it is, then that's just it. I apologize ma'am. Thank you."
"You're very welcome dear. I hope that Milky lives a wonderful life." The Fortune Teller says, waving.
Rio and Myst wave as well, making their way back home with their newborn son, Milky.

[Lamby]

This could use some polish. The prologue is not compelling because it is essentially a timeline of events that go unexplained and leave many unanswered questions: why would humans abandon their cities and not rebuild them? Chaos was appeased at the end of the first Adventure; humans seem perfectly stabilized in the following game (I'm assuming you consider both Adventure games canon to your story because you mention them directly). Is this an alternate history? Do you consider the areas in both games different land masses? Are there other places humans have gone? What is the current year? How did Chao acquire collective intelligence and how long did it take?

These are all rhetorical questions, but my point is that if you are going to write a prologue that explains the world the story takes place in, you have to be positive no questions can be asked. Explore every avenue. Otherwise you have a prologue full of disconnected anecdotes that could be mentioned throughout the story instead.

Mind your ellipses. They make a spoken word trail off followed by a long pause. "Born on the coast of the white waters... Mmmmm... His name shall be... Milky," reads like this:

"Born on the coast of the white waters...

Mmmmm...

His name shall be...

Milky."

Use ellipses sparingly or your characters will appear to be speaking in slow motion.

Also:

"Ooh, he's a cutie." Said

If dialogue is followed by something like said, you use a comma, like so:

"Ooh, he's a cutie," said

It's a cute story so far, though.

[EliOceans]

Ah, thank you for pointing out my errors. I think I sort of rushed through the prologue, without much explanation. I think I actually forgot to put some things in, like the time period and such. My bad. :/

I think I'll try and incorporate the missing elements in the story, though it won't be as great. But still, thank you.

Oh, and as for the ellipses. I was trying to go for how they do it in the game, how the Fortune Teller says something, then pauses, and the cycle continues. That's all it is.

Again, thank you for the feedback. New part possibly some time this week.

[Lamby]

No problem. If you ever need any advice just shoot me a PM.

[mintdrop]

Great story! I like how you wrote a lot more than the average chao-fiction!
I'm gripped already, please continue!

[EliOceans]

Haha, thanks. I'll be working on it. Next part probably next week.

[EliOceans]

I think I'm going to hold off on the whole 'one image per part' idea I had. The pictures aren't as good as I want them to be, without a tablet at least, and they take way too long to make and are too difficult without the tablet. Maybe one day.

And I apologize in advance for the mediocre and short part, in my eyes it is. I'll try to make the next one better. I'm sure it will be.

Part 1.2: The Soft Serve And The Seal
As the family made their way back home, they talked to Milky and told him everything about the world that they could think of. They wanted him to be a very smart adult. They taught him about evolution, special skills, and Animals, not that he could understand what they were saying. One thing he could understand, is that he did not like going through the forest. There was very low visibility, and there were so many birds around.

"Aww, Milky," said Myst, "are you afraid of the birds? Mommy loves birds. They're not really that scary. They're just like oth-"
"Ah, nonsense!" said Rio, interrupting Myst. "You're like my Milky, birds are creepy. I stay away from them too. Daddy's gonna make sure they don't hurt you though." said Rio, trying to cheer up Milky.
But even with the help of Rio, Milky still noticed the countless flocks of condors and toucans, and began to cry, almost screaming.
"Oh no... uh... Rio, get him a fruit." Myst said, in distress.
"Okay, gotcha! Hold on Milky..." Rio said as he began to climb up a tree. "Do you think he'd like some Mangos!?"
"I don't know, just toss them down!"
Myst caught the Mango, and tried to feed it to Milky, but he threw it to the ground. Rio continued to go from tree to tree, tossing various fruits down to Myst, only to have them rejected by Milky. He began to scream louder.

With no more different fruits available, they gave up, and decided to simply deal with Milky's crying over the birds. This was, until, Milky spotted something shiny on the ground. It was sparkling, and seemed to be making its way into the stream. It was a seal. Milky stared at it in awe, not making a sound.
Rio looked at the seal, and had an irritated face. He pointed to the seal, saying, "Is this going to help you?"
"Whatever's going to stop his screaming." Myst said, as she let Milky down in front of the seal. He got down on the dirt, and stared at the Seal, then back at his mother. "Go ahead Milky," she said smiling.

Milky scooted closer to the seal, and the seal to him. Milky touched it with his head ever so slightly, and absorbed the seal's energy. Milky grew a seal tail and arms.
"Hahaha!" Rio exclaimed, "This is so cool. Milky's first Animal!" Milky smiled and began to laugh.
Myst picked up Milky, and the family then continued on their way home, with Milky extremely happy with his new looks.

[CitrusCat]

I like this story so far. However, the Seals do not grant Chao the Whiskers: The Otters do.
Just thought I'd point that out, but please continue, it's really good.

[EliOceans]

Augh darn it. I was looking for a list for what the animals give the Chao just to be sure, but I couldn't find it, so I just went with my gut.
Time to edit that out.

Thank you very much, and I shall continue. :D

[EliOceans]

I think this is going to be a good intro into a somewhat major part of Part 1.

Part 1.3: Growing Up, But Not Going Sour

About a week passed since Milky's birth. Along with every newborn Chao, Chao Services provide the family with a daily shipping of Animals until the baby learns to walk and swim, as they are essential to survival. To even out their stats, so that the Chao could ultimately choose what it wanted to evolve into, they are given an even amount of Power and Flying Animals. Given Milky's fear of birds, this was not an easy task, but it was done.

On his way home from visiting his brother, Rio bought a book from the market titled, 'All About Your Newborn.' He learned that at about a week after birth, Chao begin to speak in full sentences. Chao absorb all of the knowledge of what they hear around them and stay silent until they know how to speak fluently. It was about time for Milky to talk, and that was all that was on Rio's mind.

"Come on Milky. Say dada!" Rio said in a voice most fathers do to their children, as if it helped them understand more. "Say dada! Mama? ... Come on!"
"Rio," Myst interrupted as she ate a Triangle Fruit, "Give it a break. He'll speak when he speaks. You're too impatient with all of this stuff."
"Yeah yeah yeah. Or maybe he's a little slow, like I thought."
"Stop saying that about him!" Myst said angrily as she threw her fruit on the ground. "It's not funny! Now what if he really does turn out to be slow!?!"
Rio stayed silent, looking at the ground.
Milky put his hand on his father, saying, "Don't worry daddy. Milky fast!" And with that, Milky ran at full speed to the river, only to fall flat on his face within the first couple of steps.
"Oh!" cried both of the parents, trying to hold in their laughter. Rio then went to pick up Milky. "You okay buddy?"
"Yeah, I'm okay." said Milky, brushing some dirt off of his stomach.
"You should hold off on the high speed racing for a while, haha!"

"And you know," said Myst, "since you know how to talk now, it's time to put you in Kindergarten."
"Kindergarten!?!" said Milky, confused, and Rio, unhappily.
"Yes, Rio. Kindergarten." Myst bluntly said to Rio, "You know the rule. As soon as a child is able to speak, they must be enrolled into the nearest Kindergarten. Lucky for us, there's one in Southern Albine River Garden"
"But baby," Rio said as he kneeled in front of Myst, "I'm not ready. I mean, it's only been a week. I don't want him to leave us yet. He's my son!"
"But, Rio, it's only Kindergarten."
"Kindergarten means he's getting older." said Rio as a tear fell down his face, "And that only means he's going to evolve soon and move out on his own. And Mysty, I'm just not ready for that yet."
Rio fell into Myst's arms offering a hug, as she thought, 'Sheesh, and I thought I was supposed to be the emotional one.' still, she understood Rio's overwhelming feelings. "Rio, I know this is all moving too fast for us, but we've just got to face it. Face it and appreciate the time we have with Milky. Don't think about how much time is left, just love every moment of it."
Rio wiped the single tear off of his face. "You're right, thanks." He gave a peck on her lips, turned around to Milky, and hugged him. "We're going to tell you all about Kindergarten, Milky. And in a couple of days, you'll be going there."
"Am I going to meet more Chao like me?" Milky asked his father.
"Of course! There's going to be a lot of new faces to meet, and you'll make some friends too! You'll love it, don't you worry."

[EliOceans]

I like this part. This section of the story is sure to be fun, for me at least.

Part 1.4: Blueprints For Escaping The Death Trap

Spring 18th, three days after the introduction of Kindergarten, the family made their way down to Southern Albine River Garden, where it was located. As they made their way through the forest, they were brought to a halt by an enormous building. Everyone's eyes grew bigger, jaws dropped, and uttered the simple word, "Wow..." as if they had seen Chaos appear right before their eyes.

The building was extremely wide, and probably twenty Adult Chao high. The roof was blue and the body was pale, with columns connecting the bottom to the roof. On the roof, one could read the words, SOUTHERN ALBINE RIVER KINDERGARTEN, in yellow. There were many Adult and Child Chao lined up outside, waiting for the doors for enrollment to begin.
Myst broke the silence, saying, "I guess they're all here for registration. These might be your classmates, Milky."

Milky was unsure how to feel about that though. He had never met any Chao other than his parents. The Garden was usually empty. Whenever he saw another Chao, they were usually just passing through; tourists and adventurers exploring the jungle. Now he's being forced into a new type of life filled with other Chao, and he's going to have to interact with them.
"What am I going to do? I don't want to be alone. But how am I going to make a friend, or whatever that is, with anyone? What if everyone already has friends, or they just don't like me. Better get to looking around for an escape route." Milky thought endlessly in his head.

The doors were opened up by a Shiny Green Hero/Swim/Swim with a navy blue suit, white shirt, and yellow tie. He said in a very sophisticated voice, "The enrollment may proceed as of now. Parents and children, please, come in." Then he walked back inside.
"Well," Rio said, "Guess we'd better go on in."
With that, multiple families, probably as many as 30, made their way through the double doors. Inside, they were met by a big lobby, with folding tables and chairs set up for enrollment, with Chao behind them waiting for the parents.

The Shiny Green Chao stood in the middle of the lobby and spoke loudly, "Greetings! I am Mr. Ikeum, the principal of this Kindergarten! Parents, if you would, please meet with any of the helpers to register your child! And children, there is a play room in this direction for you to have some fun while you wait! Enjoy your time here." Then he walked into his office, as other young Chao ran to the playroom with excitement.
"Say, Milky," said Rio, "Why don't you go to the play room. You don't want to be out here with us. It's going ti be boring. Why don't you go meet some of the Chao?"

Milky nodded, then slowly and fearfully made his way to the play room. He felt so alone and afraid, but there was nothing he could do about it. He continued slowly to the classroom, and then halted at the corner.

[mintdrop]

i hope milky makes some new friends in kindergarten!
please continue, i'm gripped!

[EliOceans]

I could've sworn I already typed this...

Haha, we shall seen. I'll be writing the next part soon. Thanks for reading! :D

[EliOceans]

Hey. Um. Yeah. This morning, having a snow day and all, I did some homework that I shoulda done last night. Then out of nowhere, I felt the urge to write, and I figured why not this? I didn't realize that I had already written this, just never put it up. But I don't really like where it's going, so no promises on continuing. Maybe if I get through this slump of the Kindergarten Arc, so I shall call it, I'll feel better about it. I'm still working on other projects ad stuff, so who knows what's going to come out of this? So um, yeah. Enjoy! And I hate how this stuff seems at least moderately lengthy in Wordpad, but when I post it here, it looks like nothing. Ugh.

Part 1.5:

Milky really didn't want to go in there. He was feeling slightly confident, but something made him freeze in fear. It was all in his head, he thought, and made his way into the room. The moment he stepped in there, all the bravery drained right out of his body.

Apparently he was the last one in the room, or at least a lot later than he thought, as all of the other 20 something Chao have already made friends, got into groups, and began playing. He was at a loss. He spotted one Chao by his self though, playing with Knuckles and Bark Sonic The Fighters action figures. He was an off-green Chao, possibly a Green Two Tone, with spiky teeth. You could barely see his teeth though, as he rarely showed any emotion in his face. Milky, feeling an unbearable need for a friend in this situation, approached the Chao.

"Um, hi." Milky nervously said to the Chao, as he merely gave him a slightly annoyed look. "My name is Milky, what's your's?"
"... I am Takyon." He replied in a voice dangerously deep and monster-like for a child Chao.
"Um, can I play with you?"
Takyon sighed and said in a very irritated voice "NO. Now LEAVE." And with that, went back to playing with his toys.

Milky, with a shocked look on his face, sadly continued to walk through the class. He wallowed with his head hung down, with the idea that he would be all alone until he could finally leave this wretched place. He wasn't even paying attention as to where he was going, as he blindly destroyed somebody's block tower, to which he jumped when he saw what he had done.

"What the heck!?!" A Shiny Normal Chao yelled at Milky. "That's just great, now all of my hard work is wasted!"
"Oh! Aw man, I'm sorry!" Milky frantically said as he helped pick up all of the blocks.
The Chao sighed and said, "It's all right. Thanks for helping me."
"You're welcome... I'm Milky. What's your name?"
"My name's Herkul. Where are you from?"
"I live that way," as Milky pointed north, "I think my mommy said it's called River Albine Garden."

The two continued to converse on and on, while their parents registered them for the remainding hour or so. Milky had finally made his first friend.