As Nico ran through the vibrant landscape of South Island, the wind rushed past his ears and rippled through the red fur across his body.
The island was alive with color. Towering palm trees swayed gently in the breeze, patches of bright flowers dotted the grassy hills, and the ocean sparkled in the distance like a sheet of moving glass reflecting the bright blue sky above.
The warm sun hung high overhead, casting long shadows across the rolling fields. The scent of salt from the nearby ocean mixed with the smell of grass and tropical plants.
Every step Nico took sent blades of grass bending beneath his feet before springing back into place behind him.
The island stretched far in every direction. Hills rolled across the land like waves frozen in place.
Cliffs stood tall near the coast, overlooking the water far below. Bright green grass covered almost everything, broken only by patches of flowers, palm trees, and occasional rocky outcrops.
Nico loved running here.
To him, the entire island was like one massive racetrack.
There were no traffic lights, no crowded streets, and no buildings in the way.
Just wide open land, hills, cliffs, and endless paths waiting to be crossed in seconds.
He sprinted across the grass at blinding speed, his footsteps barely touching the ground as he darted over hills and around trees.
Birds scattered as he zoomed by, squawking in surprise before flying up into the sky.
Leaves rustled violently from the force of the wind he left behind, and small pebbles bounced across the ground in his wake.
The faster he ran, the more the world seemed to blur around him.
Colors stretched slightly at the edges of his vision. The sound of the wind grew louder and louder until it almost drowned out everything else.
To anyone watching from far away, Nico would look like nothing more than a red streak slicing across the island.
Then suddenly something strange caught his eye.
A snout.
Sticking straight out of the ground.
Nico slowed slightly as he ran closer, squinting his eyes.
"What the," Nico said to himself, observing the strange scene.
The snout twitched slightly.
For a brief moment, Nico wondered if he was just seeing things. At the speed he ran at, sometimes objects blurred together and played tricks on his eyes.
But no.
That was definitely a snout.
Nico skidded across the grass, digging his heels into the ground until he slid to a stop just a few feet away from it.
Dirt sprayed up behind him as he slowed down, carving a short trail through the grass.
He leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees as he examined the strange sight more closely.
"Wait... is that..."
The snout was white.
Very familiar.
It had the same shape and size he had seen many times before.
Nico sighed.
"Oh no."
He already knew exactly what this was.
Or more specifically, who this was.
He gently reached out and tapped the snout with one finger.
Then the ground beneath him exploded.
The dirt burst open like a volcano erupting as a massive figure shot upward from beneath the earth.
Chunks of soil and grass blasted outward in every direction as the ground cracked open.
A muscular fist rocketed upward.
"Surprise Underground Upper Cut Attack!" the goat shouted.
CRACK!
The punch connected directly with Nico's chin.
"OW!" Nico yelled as he flew backward and landed flat on the grass.
He rolled once before stopping, staring up at the sky for a moment.
For a brief second, everything around him spun.
Clouds twisted in circles above him while his ears rang loudly.
For a moment, the world spun around him.
Nico groaned, rubbing his jaw as he slowly pushed himself up onto his feet.
"Ugh..."
He rubbed the side of his chin carefully.
"That really hurt."
The goat stood proudly where the ground had broken open.
He was tall and humanoid, with short white fur covering his entire body.
His frame was enormous. Broad shoulders stretched outward like a wall of muscle, and thick arms hung at his sides like tree trunks.
Across his torso sat an impressive eight pack of rock hard muscle.
His red eyes gleamed with excitement.
His snout extended forward from his face, and his long ears hung down at the sides of his head.
Two brown horns curved slightly upward from the top of his skull.
He wore black pants with a white belt sitting just below his abs.
The goat crossed his arms confidently as if he had just performed the greatest attack ever invented.
Nico rubbed his chin again.
"Ow, Rex! What the hell was that for?" Nico asked in a furious tone.
Rex grinned proudly.
"Oh, Nico... sorry about that. I was testing one of my moves!"
Nico stared at him.
"You tested it on me?"
Rex scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Apologies. I couldn't tell who it was. My eyes were buried in the ground, you see."
Nico stared at him in silence for a moment.
Then he sighed deeply.
"Ugh... it's fine."
He rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck slightly, making sure nothing was seriously injured.
"Still though. You could have broken my jaw."
Rex shrugged casually.
"But I didn't."
Nico rolled his eyes.
"Yeah. Lucky me."
He cracked his neck slightly and stretched his arms.
"Anyways... what did you do today?"
Rex straightened up proudly as if he had been waiting to tell someone.
"Oh! Well, I just took a trip down to Metropolis City to defeat one of Dr. E's robot goons."
Nico raised an eyebrow.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yep!" Rex said proudly. "Big metal thing. Shot lasers. Tried to stomp on me. I punched it."
"You punched it?"
"I punched it."
"What happened?"
Rex shrugged.
"It exploded."
Nico chuckled.
"Sounds about right."
The red cheetah turned and looked toward a massive cliff that stretched across the island.
A gigantic bridge extended from the edge of it, reaching far across the ocean toward the distant skyline of Metropolis City.
Even from here, the city's massive towers were visible.
Skyscrapers stretched up into the sky like metal mountains, reflecting sunlight across their glass windows.
Bright lights glowed between the buildings.
Flying vehicles zipped through the air like glowing insects weaving between the towering structures.
From this distance the city looked small.
But Nico knew it was massive.
"Hey... that's the bridge that leads to Metropolis, right?" Nico asked.
Rex nodded.
"Yep."
Nico stretched his arms over his head and rolled his shoulders slightly.
"I might go down there for a little while."
Rex tilted his head.
"Oh yeah?"
Nico smirked.
"Yeah. Haven't been to the city in a bit."
Without another word, Nico started walking toward the bridge.
His pace was slow at first as he casually strolled across the grass.
Then suddenly he burst into motion.
FWOOOM.
He burst into a sprint.
The grass behind him exploded as he accelerated to Mach speeds, leaving a powerful gust of wind that rustled the surrounding plants.
Within seconds he had already crossed half the field.
"See ya never, Rex!" Nico waved over his shoulder.
Within seconds, he was halfway across the field.
Rex watched him disappear into the distance.
The red blur grew smaller and smaller until Nico eventually vanished over the rolling hills.
Rex shook his head slightly.
"Ugh... bastard's always in a rush..." Rex muttered.
But he smiled.
"See ya, Nico."