Dear Readers,

This is story has been in the works for a rather long time. It is the sequel to my previous story, Code Named S.M.A.S.H. As many stories do, this one contains several original characters that would not otherwise be known unless you have read the first story. Moreover, this story picks up in some ways exactly where the first left off. This brings me to my next point, the story follows characters in their relative time, so be aware what may seem like weeks to one person, may be several months to different characters. This notice is merely to inform readers that have not read the first story that several elements may seem initially confusing. Regardless of whether you have read the first story or not, I hope that you enjoy this one.

Cheers,

M.D

Additional Info

The first five chapters of this story each represent a year and are there as small foot print to tell you what has happened to the characters in the passing time. This is would obviously mean the most to the people who read the first story. If you are interested in skipping ahead to the good stuff, I would recommend starting with Chapter 6 or 7.

Gifts in Disguise

From: Sonic

To: Snively

Subject: More bad weather.

Snivs,

It doesn't look like the rain is going to let up anytime soon. I will be postponing my trip again. I'll let you know when I have more time to stop by and take a peek at all your fancy toys. If it's half as good as you claim, it should be worth the wait. Try not to disappoint.

Without any considerations,

Sonic.

From: Snively

To: Sonic

Subject: RE: More bad weather.

King Sonic,

Perhaps some day you will consider a mode of transportation other than those red sneakers you seem to always wear. Regardless, the weather here is less than ideal for a tour of the city. As usual my schedule is wide open.

Indifferent as usual,

Colin Kintobar

It was raining, again. It hadn't let up all week and continuously postponed the one thing he was looking forward too. The damp air gently pushed its way in through the curtains that covered the balcony door, causing the fabric dance in ominous waves. Sonic pushed them aside and stepped out into the rain, it was colder than he imagined. He shivered at its first touch, but soon enough he was drenched from head to toe and his feet became buried in the puddles. There was no escape from the rain, so why not embrace it, he thought.

He never wanted to be king, not even for a second. He only wanted Sally. Even though the two came in a package most would consider the greatest gift ever, lately it had been anything but. The girl he loved, married and missed more than anything was hardly ever around and he spent his days in the castle listening to people talk about problems that had nothing to with anything. Although despite his frustration, he could never say or do anything about it.

"How would it look?" Sonic almost said out loud.

Especially to Sally, who spent every waking moment at her father's side. He didn't want to appear selfish, but he wasn't cut out for this job. Sally was the brains behind everything, Sonic was just the figure head.

Slowly he let his thoughts wonder off as the rain came down even harder. The once quiet drips of water turned into a torrential downpour. It took him a moment to notice, but a warm hand was resting on his shoulder. Sonic turned to see Sally's face, her eyes boring into his. Water was running down her face, and quickly soaking her dress. Her deep red hair soon lost all of its curls as the rain weighed it down. Slowly he reached out a finger to lift her wet hair out her eyes and push it behind her ear. There seemed to be no light in which Sally wasn't the prettiest thing Sonic had see, even in the rain she shone brightly.

She spoke first, "what are you doing out here in all this rain?"

Sonic smiled, "you know how much I love the rain Sally, I thought I would spend some time getting to know it."

"Still upset about your canceled trip to Robotropolis?"

"If you mean 'Metropolis City' then yes. Snively promised me a tour."

"How nice of 'Colin', but since when are you friends with him?"

"Who says I am? I would never miss a chance to bother the little guy."

Sally smiled, "Three solid weeks on the throne by yourself and you are still my Sonic, I thought perhaps it would have killed you by now."

"I am standing in the rain," Sonic reminded her.

"Perhaps we should both go," Sally suggested.

"Inside?"

"Well yes that," Sally said as she pulled Sonic out of the rain. "But I really meant to Metropolis City. If everything Colin has been saying is true, in the last year he has completely torn down everything and cleaned up the streets."

Sonic shivered as the cool air surrounded his damp body. Sally noticed, "Come here!" she said as she pulled him close, wrapping a blanket around the two of them. "I don't think I will ever understand you."

"Metropolis isn't exactly what I had in mind for our first vacation you know," Sonic said through chattering teeth.

"I don't know what you're talking about Sonic, it sound like a royal affair to me," Sally said through a smile. "It will be completely work related."

Sonic took the hint, she wanted to come and he certainly was not going to say no to time with Sally, not after the last three weeks.

"How is your dad, Sally?"

Her smile disappeared, "The same really. My mother told me to take the night off so I could take my mind off of things… so I came here."

"Well in that case," Sonic said as he pulled her closer, kissing her gently on the lips. "I will do my best to keep my lady distracted."

From: Connor Henrick

To: Sam Decker

Subject: System Intrusion

Lieutenant Decker,

Roughly ten minutes ago our course was changed by the core system. Something has overridden my course and will not let me reconfigure. Can you take a look?

Connor Henrick

Chief Navigator

From: Sam Decker

To: Connor Henrick

Subject: RE:System Intrusion

Office Henrick,

You are correct. There appears to be an intrusion that I cannot correct. It has accessed multiple networks across all three ships. I have set a meeting with the General. Please meet us on the bridge ASAP.

Lieutenant Sam Decker

Chief Technology Officer

It was already quiet. Just one level below the infirmary was the brig and storage, which had gone unused for years. The sounds that reminded him he wasn't alone had faded and General Simmons cautiously stepped over the bulkhead onto the catwalk over the engineering bay. The cool dry air burned his lungs as he took slow deliberate breaths. He wouldn't find anyone down here in the dark, but that's what he was counting on. He had decided to take this detour to avoid the crowded decks above that were littered with his crew, questions and more potential problems.

A fleeting look to the right revealed the outlines of the engine compartments, which were traced in a faint blue glow from within, a new feature he had not yet taken note of. Their whisper quiet hum that could barely be heard over his footsteps was as mesmerizing as it was disturbing. The quarter mile long walkway that spanned nearly half the ship looked over all of the equipment and supplies they had once hoped to use on their new planet. Instead all of it sat unused, collecting dust in the bowls of the ship.

Too many things had happened too fast recently and Simmons could barely cope with it. It seemed that he hadn't had a moment to himself since he had left earth the first time. Over twenty five years had passed since they departed, determined to find a new home, but time felt different to him and everyone else aboard his ship. To them it could have been a little more than a few years ago that they were packing their things and abandoning their homes with no intention of returning.

But they did return again, and not to the run down critter infested world they expected. Instead they found a city brimming with the parts they needed, a serpent lurking in the shadows and friends in the most unlikely places. Simmons reminded himself that nothing could ever be had without some type of sacrifice. Even now that everything seemed it was going to return to normal, Simmons could only think of what could go wrong next, what his daughter was like, what they were going to find when they returned. All he wanted was peace and quiet, but not even in his own mind was he safe from the war the universe was waging against him.

As Simmons stepped through the door on the opposite side of the engineering bay, the warm air that filled the crew living quarters brought the color back to his face. Familiar faces darted in and out of doors giving him hardly anything more than a passing glance. It had only been a day since they left and it was obvious no one had yet returned to their scheduled shifts.

Without pause he made for the elevator at the end of the hall. Once inside he swiped his ID and called out, "Command deck". The command deck was linked with officer quarters and the bridge. After a brief moment to himself the doors opened up to dark hallways illuminated only by thin red lights only the walls of the floor. There was no daytime on a ship so everything on the command deck was kept dark to help with vision and obscure time.

It was no surprise to find his ships chief technology officer on the bridge, but the navigator came as a surprise. They stood staring off into the stars when he entered the room. He couldn't blame them though; he often caught himself doing the same. Something about the stars and the infinite expanse of nothingness could distract even the most learned minds.

"I trust you have good reason for calling me down here," Simmons said after the door slid shut. He continued walking towards the holographic table, "I was visiting with Davis."

"Sorry to bother you Sir," the CTO said as he turned and saluted, "but…"

"It's always a but," Simmons snapped, "get on with it."

"but," the navigator continued, "our course has changed since we left Sir."

"Well that's what you are for isn't it? Connor right?"

"Uhh yes Sir. But I didn't make the change, the computer did."

Simmons sighed under his breath. Ellie why would you do that, surly you must know that tinkering with our systems won't go unnoticed.

"And what exactly is troubling about this sudden course change?"

"Well, it's more efficient and somehow quicker…"

"What do you mean somehow?"

"I mean the math required to make these kind of calculations hasn't been discovered yet. I have never seen anything like it."

Then the CTO chimed back in, "I ran an analysis on the system Sir. It appears that there is something snooping around the entire networks, comms, personnel files, guidance, you name it, it's been there."

"Probably just some upgrade the doc installed," Simmons concluded. "We shouldn't really complain that its getting us there faster now should we?"

"No Sir," the CTO replied, "but we should be concerned with its intentions. I think we need to do a full system restore and wipe this virus clean."

"We don't even know what this is and you want to wipe our computer systems?"

"Yes! It could be anything. It could even be something the mobians put there."

"I am sorry, I will not allow you to erase our ships computers because you don't know what something is," Simmons stated firmly as he rose from his chair and moved back towards the door.

"Sir," the CTO replied. "There is just one more thing. The origin of this virus."

Simmons stopped walking but did not turn to face the CTO. "It seemed to originate here Sir, and after we left."

"Chose your next words carefully lieutenant," Simmons said through his teeth.

"Sir I believe you may have accidentally installed or activated some kind virus that is meant to monitor our progress and ensure a timely return to earth."

"…and is that so bad?" Simmons asked as he turned to face his men again but with agitated look.

"It could be! We don't know what measures the program might go to if doesn't agree with our decisions. It has clearly already demonstrated its willingness to intervene and I do not want to know let it make any other decisions for us."

"Luckily for me the chain of command lets me not care what you may or may not want to know," Simmons replied snidely. "Did it ever occur to you that you're looking at this the wrong way?"

"How should we be looking at it Sir," Collins asked inquisitively.

"Rather than view what you assume to be a virus as an enemy, did you ever stop to think it was a gift?" When neither responded Simmons continued as he took steps closer to them, "You said the math used to recalculate our journey was so advanced that you had never seen it before. Doesn't that shock you? That in itself is giving us knowledge that we didn't have before."

"Sir, if you know what this is, just let us look at it," the CTO responded.

Simmons stopped when he was standing inches from the Lieutenants face. "Very well see for yourself," Simmons said as he motioned to the holographic table behind him. "Ellie, if you wouldn't mind."

"Not at all," a calming voice answered as Ellie's form to shape on the table. "I can only assume that you two have questions for me."

"What you presumed to be a virus, is in fact the long fabled AI that troubled the great minds of our past. What you see before you is a being that lives among our technology. She may not breathe or bleed as we do, but she feels and communicates just a real person does. Ellie was given to us so that we could travel back to our families knowing that someone with a conscious is always watching over us."

The two officers stared into the holographic overlay as if they were expecting it to disappear.

"I don't expect you to trust me right away," Ellie said to the two of them. "Trust is earned and not taken for granted. I only expect that perhaps before either of you get too carried away that you give me a chance to earn yours."