DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Sonic the Hedgehog series or any of it's characters. All rights to Sonic go to SEGA, but the story is mine, and it also includes some original characters too. Also, in contrast to the previous stories, there won't be any songs in this one.
A/N: Thank you all so, so much for reading and sticking with me so far. You're all so lovely and I couldn't do this without you or your support. So, without any further ado, let's get on with it!
A pair of jade green eyes wakes up to see a small mobile hanging from a ceiling. A pair of tiny hands reaches out, hoping to grab the mobile, but with no success. Suddenly, a steady crying sound pours from little Erica's mouth as tears pour from her eyes, loud enough for her mother to hear it from a room away.
Amy Rose, now 21 years old, opened her eyes and looked at the baby monitor to her left. She sighed heavily as her upper body rose from the bed and she flopped her legs over the side of the bed, her feet landing in a pair of pink bunny slippers as her white nightie hung from her body, which had grown as she did with age.
"What's wrong, sweetie?" asked Amy as she reached the crib Erica laid in, her crying calmed down somewhat. Amy noticed that her daughter was reaching for her mobile, the contents of which were mostly weather-based. Amy picked up Erica, being careful not to crumple the pink baby onesie her daughter had on, and cradled her in her arms. Erica's sobbing stopped long enough for the little pink hedgehog to point upwards to the mobile.
"You wanted to play?" Amy asked with a smile, shifting Erica around in her arms so she could lift her up close enough to play with the mobile. Erica chuckled happily as she swatted at the mobile, clapping her hands as it spun around. Soon, Erica stopped laughing and let out a loud yawn, causing Amy to do the same as Amy brought her daughter close to her to kiss her on the cheek.
"Good night, my little angel," Amy said as she laid Erica down in her crib, pulling her quilt up over her. Amy walked back to her own bedroom, stopping at her doorway to turn and see Erica close her eyes and yawn, showing a small array of very tiny fangs in her mouth. As she saw them, Amy smiled, turning to head into her bedroom and kick off her slippers, laying back in her bed with her quilt over her.
She turned to see the time was 6:30 am, but she didn't mind at all. She was just happy for what she had now. She was happy she was able to see Erica's first birthday, with a small cute cake. Come to think of it, that was the last time Amy saw much of anybody. She knew that Rouge and Shadow had gotten married and had a son, Drake, recently, as well as Shade being pregnant with Knuckles' twin boys. Tails and Cream were trying for a baby, Silver and Blaze had gotten married, and Jet and Wave got engaged not long ago, too.
But now, Amy felt like the odd one out. Sure, she had a daughter of her own now to take care of, but no one to share her with. She had love to give, but the person she wanted to give it to wasn't there anymore. The pink hedgehog had to buy her own house with the help of Tails after their second year of college was up. They had all parted ways since then, and nobody had heard anything from their runaway friend since he disappeared.
Yet, it had now been two years. Two years and not a single peep from Sonic except for his brief appearance at the birth of Erica alongside his mother, Aleena. And even then, it was just a brief glance at the one Amy loved, and still loves to this day. The father of her child, the first person she ever shared her love with in the fullest, was always going to be in her heart.
Amy shifted her head to look at a photo of him which showed him smiling and flashing a peace sign at the camera as Amy kissed his cheek with her eyes closed. That was a long time ago indeed, but it made Amy smile nonetheless. She also looked down from the photo and saw the necklace that Sonic got for his 19th birthday, which was laying down next to the picture on the bedside table. Amy only took it off at night, but always kept it on in the daytime, smiling because she knew that one day Sonic would come back for her.
With that very smile on her face, Amy turned her head away from the photo, closing her eyes and hoping to get as much sleep as she could until the next day came.
Meanwhile, in another location...
An alarm clock blares aloud, causing a pair of emerald green eyes to look over at it. A blue furred hand comes down and slaps the top of the alarm clock, forcing it to stop as the green eyes adjusted to the very early morning light. Sonic leaned up from his bed, clad in only a pair of black boxer shorts. He slid out of his bed and immediately headed to a nearby bathroom, switching the shower on and stepping under the flowing water to clean himself.
The droplets of liquid that fell from the shower-head doused Sonic's fur and skin, washing over him as he kept his eyes closed, deep in thought as images of the past flashed into his head. After running away, Sonic crashed out in any run of the mill motel he stumbled across for six months before eventually Manic managed to catch up to him. For the last year and a half, Sonic was hiding out at the house he grew up in, which made him smile as it felt nice to be at one home, at least.
Sonic walked out of the shower, scrubbing his quills with a towel to get them dry before coming across a closet. He disposed of his black boxers in favour of some white ones, and settled on a blue pair of jeans and a grey sleeveless shirt. He went over to the mirror after putting the jeans on and stared at the scar on his chest, the permanent reminder that he once literally did die for his love... and he would do so again.
He also noticed that his body looked different: He kept his lean build, but his muscles were more pronounced now, giving his body more tone, not to mention that he had grown taller now. He also took note that the fur around his muzzle had grown a bit shaggy, and his quills looked a little bit scruffier than before despite him just having been in the shower, but for the most part he has remained unchanged.
"So, today is the day, huh?" asked a voice from Sonic's bedroom door. Sonic turned to see his sister, Sonia, leaning against the doorway. She wore all black, as was her usual garb when they had been training for the past year and a half.
"Yes," Sonic replied simply as he put his shirt on.
"It's been two years since the police put out a manhunt for you. Do you think they're still searching?" Sonia asked.
"I don't know," Sonic replied, sitting on his bed and reaching under it to grab a pair of black shoes. "But if they are, then I'm gonna have to be a little extra careful."
"Do you have any plans to avoid them?" asked his sister.
"Run. That's my usual avoidance plan."
Sonia let out a soft chuckle. "And it has worked out so well for you. But don't forget what you've learned here... if father were alive, he would be proud."
Sonic finished putting his shoes on and looked up at his sister with a smile before gesturing to the left side of his neck, showing a brand that he had been given by his family not too long ago before this day. It marked the start of his training as much as it marked his own skin. Somewhat fittingly, it was a lightning bolt, and after it had all healed turned a shade of pink in contrast with his skin.
"I'm sure he would be," Sonic replied, reaching under the bed again to pull out something concealed in a large, holster-like object. "From what mom has told me, not only do I look like my dad, but I apparently fight like him, too."
Sonic stood up and hung the sling of the scabbard over his right shoulder, readjusting it so the scabbard was position on his back. The sword itself belonged to Sonic's father, and at the bottom of the hilt was a golden ring fixed onto it. Sonic reached behind him and rested his hand on the hilt, pulling the broadsword out and taking a look at the blade as it gleamed compared to the dusk.
"So, when do you leave?" asked Sonia.
"After breakfast. When that's done, I may need to make a small pit stop on my way back, but with that aside, I'll just focus on heading straight back."
"Well, you'd better hurry, then. Mom's making your favourite," Sonia said with a smile.
Sonic laughed a little as Sonia walked away to head to the living room. "Tell her to put some extra ketchup on mine!"
"Will do!" Sonia replied as she walked.
Sonic stood from his bed, walking back over to his closet and searching through the top drawer of a small set of three drawers. He rooted around for a bit, eventually coming to a picture of Amy, which was the only keepsake he had of her now. The photo showed Amy's eyes covered by Sonic's hands from behind, with a small smile on her face. He smiled and stuffed the picture into his pocket.
'It's been so long,' thought the blue hedgehog. 'After two years of being away from her, I'll finally be going back to see not just her, but our daughter. Our beautiful Erica... I wonder if she'll know who I am when I see her.'
"Sonic, breakfast is ready!" shouted Manic, snapping Sonic out of his train of thought.
"I'm on my way!" Sonic replied. He put his sword back in it's scabbard, taking one more look around and making sure that he had all the things he needed. He then walked over to the other side of his bed and picked up his sports bag, having already packed all the things he needed the night before; various shirts, jeans, shoes, socks etc. He hoisted the bag up and positioned it on his other shoulder, heading down the stairs to the kitchen of his family's house, the smell of chili-dogs instantly assaulting his nose.
"You know, I don't understand it," Manic said from the kitchen table as he ate, also wearing all black like Sonia.
"You don't understand what?" Sonic asked.
"Well, how come you eat so many chili-dogs but still look like you haven't gained any weight?"
"I dunno... good metabolism, I guess?" Sonic said with a shrug, walking over to the living room to lay his bag down on the couch, also unhooking his still-holstered sword from his shoulder and planting it tip down in the ground, leaning the hilt end against his left knee. Well, more like the middle, considering the size of the blade.
"So, it's the big day today."
Sonic turned to see the source of the soft voice, cocking his head backwards to see his mother, Aleena. She walked up to Sonic, who stood up from his spot on the couch and gave her a huge hug, Aleena's purple nightgown getting slightly rustled from the contact.
"Thank you for taking care of me, mom," Sonic said. "I know I was a pain in the ass at first, but I couldn't be more grateful for what you've taught me."
Aleena let go of the hug and smiled at her son, proud of how far he came since the things that had happened at the college. Over the past year and a half, Sonic had been busy training and exercising with his family in preparation for what would happen should he meet Eggman again. Along with leaving his teenage years behind him and growing physically and mentally, the training was a big help, as well. Having to keep to a harsh training regimen, Sonic didn't like it at first, but eventually grew to accept that it was what he had to do if he wanted to win this fight.
Soon the microwave beeped, indicating that Sonic's food was ready. They all sat around a polished, hardwood kitchen table, eating food, laughing, and messing around like most families. Later, Sonic is in his room, sitting up on his bed with his eyes closed, his mind focusing on when he last saw Amy as she gave birth to their daughter, Erica. He was happy to have seen both of them, but was sad that he couldn't stick around because his training had barely begun at the time.
"Hey," said a voice from the door. Sonic looked up to see Manic there. "You got a minute?"
"Maybe not that much time. I gotta take off soon," Sonic replied, opening his eyes as Manic sat next to him on the bed. Sonic was now wearing a grey hoodie to go with his current clothing. He had to do whatever he could to keep his identity sealed for whenever he was in public.
"So, how are you gonna get there?" Manic asked.
"I'm gonna run. It's one of those things I'm kind of good at," Sonic answered, looking at the clock to see it was now 7:00 in the morning.
"Do you think you can make it in time?"
"Of course I do. Mainly because running to something is a lot faster than running from something," Sonic replied with a smile. "And besides, I don't have a time limit, really. I just want to leave as fast as possible."
"Sonic! You should come and see this!" shouted Sonia from the living room. Sonic and Manic stood up and headed for the living room, noticing the TV was switched on. They saw a green hedgehog with ice blue eyes, wearing a mainly black army uniform, stood at a podium. A title came up on the screen reading "Scourge: Head Of G.U.N. Tactical Division."
"Sir! What about the police? Weren't they heading up this investigation?" asked a news reporter.
"The police got sloppy and are focusing on other matters. Since Sonic has been missing for two years now, they've given up their search mainly due to lack of evidence, apart from the blue fur that was supposedly found at Mighty's murder scene."
"Was it a DNA match to Sonic's fur?" asked another reporter.
"It was, but that's the only evidence people have found. There's been no murder weapon, no motive, and no reason why. Which is the reason G.U.N. is going to look into it," Scourge replied.
"You hear that Sonic?" Manic said. "You're gonna have to be careful out there."
"Careful? These G.U.N. guys, whoever they are, probably know less than the police do about all this mess."
"And we know less about G.U.N. than we do about the police," Sonia retorted. "Just because they might seem new doesn't mean you should brush them off."
Sonic sighed and nodded. "Yeah. You're right."
"Of course I'm right. I'm the sister," Sonia said, earning a chuckle from Sonic.
"Thanks to information from the police, we are aware of Sonic's appearance," Scourge continued. "If anyone watching this report has seen Sonic or knows someone who may be affiliated with him, then police report to the local authorities. Thank you for your time."
Manic then switched the TV off as a male news reporter behind a desk started speaking about random subjects that no one really cared about. Sonic chuckled and headed back to his bedroom, grabbing his sword and hooking the scabbard around his right shoulder like earlier before hooking two straps of his sports bag over his left shoulder. He walked back out to the living room, seeing his Manic and Sonia were sat down on the couch, watching music videos.
"So, you're leaving now?" asked Sonia.
"Pretty much. I need to move fast if I want to avoid G.U.N."
After looking around, Sonic asked "Where's mom?"
"She's in her bedroom," Sonia replied.
Sonic nodded and relieved himself of the weight of his sword and bag, putting them next to each other on the chair next to the couch. He turned around and headed for his mom's room, opening the door slowly and seeing his mom sat down on her bed, her hands fidgeting with something.
"Everything okay?" Sonic asked.
"Yes... everything's fine."
Sonic could detect the uncertainty in his mother's tone, walking over to her and seeing her looking over old family photos. "You look so much like your father... I wish you could have met him."
"Me too," Sonic replied with a smile, sitting next to her as she went through more photos.
"This one was taken when your brother and sister were born. Two weeks after, in fact," Aleena said, showing a picture of the two curled up in opposite cribs.
"What about this one?" Sonic asked, pointing to a photo of his father holding a small baby hedgehog.
"That's your father holding you when you were born. You were adorable back then," Aleena said. Sonic took a closer look at the photo and noticed how much his father looked like he does today. Of course, Sonic had seen these photos during his time with his family, but it still amazed him how much they looked alike.
"How about this one?" Sonic asked, pointing to a photo of what appeared to be him and his siblings when they were smaller.
"Oh, that was taken when you were three. It was taken a month before..."
Sonic didn't need to wonder why Aleena stopped talking. He knew what happened the month after. Even though he didn't remember it, it remained embedded in his mind like a stitch since he was told about it two years ago when he met his family for the first time at college. Well, the first time he could remember meeting them. Sonic leaned down and gave his mother a hug from behind, which she smiled at, trying to stop her tears from flowing.
"I still miss him. He was a brave man. If he were alive today he would beam with pride if he saw you now."
Sonic smiled at his mother's kind words and shifted himself off the bed, heading back to the living room as Aleena put the photos away to catch up with him. Soon, Sonic stood facing his family who were trying not to break down into tears.
"Listen, I'll keep this short because I really need to be on my way. I love you all, so very much. I can't thank you enough for preparing me for whatever lies ahead. I promise that I'll visit as often as I can, okay?"
His family didn't speak, instead walking up to Sonic and catching him in a group hug, which he complied with by hugging them back.
"We love you, Sonic," Sonia said.
"I love you guys too," Sonic replied as he let go of the hug, walking over to the couch to pick his things up.
"Take care of yourself, bro," Manic said, sharing a fist-bump with Sonic.
"I will."
"You be careful now, you hear?" Aleena said.
"I will be careful, I swear," Sonic replied, leaning in to give his mother a kiss on the cheek.
"Good. Now... take care of your girlfriend and your daughter. I can only hope I've done right as a mother."
"You have, mom. You've all done right by me. I can't thank you enough," Sonic said with an honest smile.
Without another word, Sonic turned around and walked over to the front door, his hand pushing the handle down and pulling the door towards himself, before he walked through the doorway, stepping outside for the first time that day. He shut the door behind himself and pulled his hood over his face before unhooking his bag from his shoulder, setting it down on the ground and rooting around for his hoverboard. He found it still in it's folded form, so he pressed a button and it unfolded to reveal it's full size. He picked his bag back up and jumped on the board, planting his right foot back so he could accelerate.
Soon, he found himself at a bar called Double Down. He folded his hoverboard up and put it back in his sports bag before heading inside. He was secretly thankful that there wasn't many people there, just an elderly bartender and a couple of patrons who were either passed out or too drunk to recognize who Sonic was. The blue hedgehog immediately walked over to the bar, the bartender wiping off the counter and spotting Sonic as he took a stool.
"Hello there, sonny. What can I get you?" asked the bartender.
"Just a coke, please. I'm not stopping long," Sonic replied, settling his sword and bag down on either side of the stool.
"One coke, coming up."
Within the space of a minute or so, Sonic had his drink in front of him. He took a quick sip as he heard noise at the front door to the bar, turning his head slightly to see three of the drunkards who were still barely conscious wander out there door, chanting something unintelligible due to the mass consumption of booze. Sonic turned his head back to focus on his drink as they walked out, not seeing another two Mobians walk inside and sit down at a table.
"So, the police literally just gave up?" asked a female voice.
"Pretty much. No thanks to just one piece of lousy evidence. Without proof, they can't say it was him," said the other voice. A male. It sounded familiar to Sonic in some way.
'Scourge?' Sonic thought. Worried, he finished drinking his coke quickly and reached inside his pocket, pulling out a black wallet and fishing a $5 bill out of it.
"Keep the change," said Sonic as he left the money on the counter. He picked up his things and tried to conceal them as he started to head for the front door, hoping he wouldn't get noticed by Scourge and whoever the other person was. He didn't so much as cast a glance at them as he walked to the door, opening it and shutting it behind him.
"That was way too fucking close," Sonic whispered as he made it outside. He soon heard some commotion from around the corner, and hooked his sword back up onto his shoulder as he walked around the side of the bar to see a young girl with blonde hair being held against a wall by the three drunks from earlier.
"LET ME GO!" the girl begged.
"Shut up, you dumb slut!" said one of the drunks, holding a knife to her neck. "Just give us your money and we'll let you go... unless..."
"U-unless what?" the girl asked.
"There are other ways you could pay us," said another drunk, leaning in and getting dangerously close to her neck, his breath against her skin.
"Let her go, you fucking creeps!" Sonic yelled.
"Fuck you, asshole! We got first dibs!" said the third drunk.
"Let go," Sonic said, walking over to them, "Or I make you let go."
The drunks let go of the girl, allowing her to run away, but not before she said a quick thank you to Sonic, who still had his hood up.
"We can take some time out of our day to deal with this shithead," said one of the drunks.
"Look at this punk, acting all tough and mysterious because he has a hood up," said the drunk wielding the knife. "What do you think you are? Some kind of superhero?"
"Not exactly," Sonic replied.
The drunks all laughed at Sonic, not taking him seriously. It got funnier somehow when one of them peered close through his beer goggles and noticed the sheathed blade hanging on Sonic's right shoulder.
"Is that a fucking sword? Who uses a sword?"
"I know, right! Where'd this guy come from?"
Sonic unhooked his sword and laid it on the ground, pulling his hood up too as he was adamant that none of the three would recognize him.
"I don't need my sword to beat the shit out of some drunk idiots."
The blue hedgehog walked closer to the three misfits, lifting his hood up over his face since he was sure they were all too stone drunk to see Sonic's face and memorize it the next time they woke up.
"Who wants to take the first swing?" Sonic asked, raising his hand to the three drunks, motioning for them to try and attack him.
The leader of the three stood back and let his one of his cronies go first, showing a wolfish grin as he moved towards Sonic. Sonic saw a punch coming for his left side, dodging and making the attacker stumble and fall down due to a lack of balance and soberness. He got up soon after and threw another punch for Sonic, only for the blue hedgehog to catch it and slam his fist back against the attacker's face. Once, twice, three times, and the drunk was out cold on the floor.
"I'll get you, you son of a bitch!" said the second attacker, running hard at Sonic and throwing a hard punch, missing horribly as Sonic sidestepped and stuck out his foot to trip him up.
"That's not a very nice thing to say about my mother," Sonic said as the attacker stood back up, wiping his mouth of some dirt that stuck to him there. He went to kick Sonic in the leg, but missed, allowing Sonic to grab him by his collar and pull him down to knee him in the stomach. The drunk spat out a bit of bile before Sonic elbowed him in the back, causing him to go faint and fall to the floor in unconsciousness along with the first attacker.
"And besides," Sonic continued, unfazed, "at least I know who my mother is."
"I'll make you eat those words, you little shit!"
Sonic sighed audibly and walked over to the wall, leaning his back against it. This confused the one remaining drunk, who tightened his grip on the knife in his hand out of anger, walking over to Sonic.
"What the fuck are you up to?" he asked, forcing Sonic to wave his hand in front of his own face from the bad breath.
"I'm making it easier for you," Sonic replied. "Come on, already. Get to the stabbing."
"You're fucking crazy, man!" said the drunk.
"Eh, I've heard worse," Sonic replied casually, pissing the drunk off more. Enraged, he decided to just go for it and slashed at Sonic, who moved out of the way so fast the drunk thought the blue hedgehog was made of some ethereal substance.
"Wha? Where'd you go?" asked the drunk, instantly feeling a weight press against his back as he was pushed hard against the wall, causing him to drop his knife. Sonic managed to get the tip of his shoe under the blade before flicking it up, getting a hand free to catch it.
"D-don't kill me, man!" the drunk pleaded with Sonic. "I didn't mean to hurt the girl! Just let me go! I'll... I'll pay you! I'll give you whatever you want!"
Sonic grabbed one of the drunks hands and held it up against the wall, palm flat against it. He then switched the knife around in his hand so he was holding the blade of it, but held it gently lest he do himself any damage. With one swift movement of his arm, he crushed the handle end of the knife against the drunk's hand hard enough to hear a bone pop and earn a scream from the drunk.
"OW! Please, let me go!"
Sonic ignored his cries and brought up the mugger's other hand, once again placing it palm first on the wall, and once again slamming the handle end of the knife hard enough to hear a bone snap.
"If you go find a hospital and get your hands fixed up," Sonic said, "I want you to think about tonight. I want you to think about the next time you hold a knife to a girl's neck and threaten to kill her. I want you to think about your buddies lying on the floor, passed out. And I want you to think about your bones being crushed in your hands so you can't jerk off to whatever sick pleasures you get up to. Do you understand?"
"YES! I understand!" the mugger cried. "Please, just let me go!"
Sonic grabbed the back of the mugger's head and whispered into his ear "Okay," before slamming his head against the wall hard enough to knock him out. Sonic shrugged down at the mugger, smirking as he said "I didn't say I'd let you go awake, now did I?"
The sound of a pair of hands clapping slowly caught Sonic's attention, causing him to look at the the source and see Scourge and a pink hedgehog next to him, who Sonic guessed was the female voice from earlier. They were both wearing what Sonic guessed to be standardized G.U.N. uniforms.
"Very nice performance there," said Scourge, stopping his clapping as Sonic leaned down to pick up his sword and his bag. "I've got to say, I knew you were violent, but I never expected this."
"I didn't kill Lucas, or Mighty," Sonic said defensively.
"Whoa! Calm down, now. Nobody here accused anyone of killing anyone," Scourge replied.
"And besides, how do you know about those murders?" asked the female.
"I saw your press conference on TV this morning," Sonic replied.
"Ah, good. So you know who we are, then."
"That I do. You're agents of that G.U.N. organization. I know his name," Sonic said, gesturing to Scourge before pointing to the female, "but I don't know yours, lady."
"I'm agent Rosy, Scourge's second in command."
"Ah, well, it was nice to meet you two, but if you don't mind, I have a family to get home to," Sonic said, starting to walk past them. He felt Scourge put his hand on his chest, stopping him from going any further.
"Yeah, we can't let you do that."
"Why not?"
"Because we have an offer to make you," Rosy said as Scourge moved his hand away from Sonic's chest.
"An offer to make me? You want me behind bars more than the police did. Why not just whip out the handcuffs right now and get it over with?" Sonic asked.
"First of all, we use Tasers. And secondly, we need your help with something," Rosy answered.
"We have reason to believe that Eggman is planning something. We are not sure what that is yet, but that's why we bought out the police, so we could look into it ourselves."
"You bribed the police into getting off the case?" Sonic asked.
"Sure did! But moving back to more important matters: We want you to help us find out about Eggman and if he is up to anything," Scourge responded.
"Look, the more I stay away from that guy, the more chance my daughter has of staying alive long enough to see her next birthday. The answer is no."
"Fine then," Scourge said.
"Really? You're just gonna let me go, no questions asked?" Sonic said.
"Yes. We can't force you to make the choice. You're free to go your own way."
Sonic walked past Scourge and Rosy and just about pulled out his hoverboard before Scourge spoke up.
"But ask yourself this: Would your daughter be better being far away from him, or not knowing he existed?"
Sonic thought about that as he took off before anyone else started talking. He sped into the distance, hoping to get to Mobius City before any sunlight showed up. Scourge did have a point, but Sonic wanted to be with his girlfriend and daughter for now. He missed them... and he wanted to show Amy and Erica how sorry he was. That's when another thought came to his mind, and he decided then and there with a smile to make one more stop.
Well, here it is! The first chapter of my third story. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope the change of pace is welcome. I'll see you on the next one. Till then.