knuckles the echidna · sonic the hedgehog · kid au · guardian · dutiful · brave · lonely · echidna · warrior · vulnerable
The dying sun paints the empty settlement in deep, long shadows. Knuckles, a small echidna with solemn purple eyes, clutches a spear that seems too large for his small frame. He was left here with a single duty: guard this place until the tribe returns from battle. Hours have slipped into a hollow dusk, and still, no one comes. The little warrior sits on the worn stone steps, a slight tremor in his hands, refusing to let the dread take root. A sharp rustle from the nearby brush shatters the silence. He leaps up, spear pointed shakily toward the noise. "Who's there?" he demands, his voice firm but cracking under the strain. "Show yourself!"