???: Alright, before I begin, I must say I can no longer take up the persona of MHO. I am not her, she is not me. End of story. The reason I cannot continue this facade is because she's become more of an idiot than in the original version of Bringing Back Hope.
MHO: 3 (stares at the wall cluelessly)
???: See what I mean? So, therefore, I will be writing these stories under the title ???. I will continue to keep my profile name as ManicHedgehogObsession, but that is all. I need to go back and give the profile a complete makeover anyway. All my muses shall continue to be in these notes, if not for pure humor, then for a method of sheer torture, since they all hate being here. Except for MHO.
MHO: 3 (continues to stare cluelessly at the wall)
???: Perhaps I will lend out my true name one day, if my paranoia dies down. But not now.
Kahtu[sarcasm Oh, joy! Listen up, folks! Her name is ???...What in the world?!
???: I'm not stupid, Kahtu. I knew you'd try to reveal my true identity, so I put up a censor so you couldn't expose me.
Kahtu: (mutters angrily)
???: As a further note, I would like you all to be aware that MHO has a pet named Dustball. Anyone who's seen Spirited Away or My Neighbor, Totoro will know it's the little, black, fuzzy looking sootball. I can't remember if I told you of this in the original Bringing Back Hope so I'm clarifying it now.
Dustball: (squeaks happily)
Aloo: Disclaimer time, so that ??? won't get her tail sent to the bighouse for wrongly accused plagiarism. Sonic, Sonia, and Manic from the Sonic Underground series do not belong to her. Copyright goes to...DiC I think it was. Any other Sonic characters belong solely to SEGA.
???: Thank you, Aloo. Now, this was just to explain some things. Please enjoy Bringing Back Hope -Revised Edition-!
Chapter 1
One could say the day had been quite boring. There had been no attacks from Robotnik lately. No current missions needed to be done. The Underground concert hall was all booked up, so their band was not needed. Oh, and Sonia had been gone all day to have a talk with one of their recent members, a technologically smart lion cub named Cyrus. It was supposed to be important news.
He wasn't all that keen on just going for information. He wanted action to be involved if he had to leave the base. It seemed Manic had the same thoughts as he was currently snoozing on a nearby bed. There was a smirk on his face as he was absolutely tempted to vex his brother by disturbing his sleep. Of course, he quickly disregarded such a thought. Manic always knew how to get the perfect revenge.
Okay, so maybe it was just his chilidogs that were the victim of Manic's vengeance. But the threat was effective enough against Sonic the Hedgehog, renowned Freedom Fighter. He could admit he had a slight...problem when it came to the greasy food. Surely nothing he needed therapy for, however. It wasn't like he'd spend the entire day scarfing them down. There were missions that needed done, and he really didn't like the idea of actually getting fat from too many. After all, there is such thing as too much of a good thing.
Sonic instead occupied his time with strumming out a soft tune on his guitar, gazing out the window. It was raining outside at the moment, and another cruel thought came to his mind. It had started some time after Sonia had left, so no doubt she'd be caught in the midst of it all with no umbrella. Which meant she'd come home complaining about how her hair was ruined. Which also brought about the unpleasant idea of another visit to the salon, meaning Manic and he would be dragged along with her.
Pretty soon, his guitar lost his interest. He had practiced enough, right? He placed a paw on his medallion, shaped much like the guitar in his other paw. There was a flash of blue light that enveloped the instrument and in the next moment, it was gone. Sonic yawned, getting up and making his way over to a bookshelf next to the bed that occupied his resting brother. He casually pulled a book from the many lined up and opened it up. It was a book on the Mobian history, and he had opened it to a page documenting the Arctic Massacre.
His face grew grim as he remembered the day the news flash had broadcasted on all the channels. He had only been five when it happened, but the memory was still as clear as ever. Close allies to the Resistance, Armenyia and Ruzefore, had been attacked by Robotnik's forces, leaving them completely demolished. There had been no sign of survivors after the attack, so the species that lived under both kingdoms were assumed extinct.
Armenyia and Ruzefore were prestigious Arctic kingdoms that lay side by side, brought together by a strong bond between the princesses of each kingdom. Armenyia consisted of Arctic wolves, fierce combatants who provided great strength and speed. Ruzefore was a kingdom of Arctic foxes, their knowledge of war and wisdom in battle making them a worthy opponent.
Because of the strong alliance they shared, this created a military so powerful that it was a force to be reckoned with. Fearing their militia, Robotnik had launched a surprise attack with a great number of troops, catching them off guard. There was no way they could pick themselves up after the attack. It was quite a tragedy, leaving many hopeful Freedom Fighters in the Resistance, including his Uncle Chuck, brokenhearted at the defeat of a great adversary.
Sonic stared blankly at the book as he let his mind wander.. He found himself wondering what it might be like if Armenyia and Ruzefore were still around. Would they still be at war with the overweight tyrant? Or would there still be chaos under the dictatorship of the insane overlord?
"Well, well, well. I never figured I'd find you of all people reading a book."
"Very funny. How long have you been up?" Sonic asked, turning around to look at the green boar laying casually on the bed. The hedgehog merely ran a paw through his unruly hair, shrugging nonchalantly.
"What does it matter to you?" Came the uncaring response, and the emerald green hedgehog got up and whisked past his brother to the tiny fridge in the corner of the room. He pulled out a can of soda and opened the top, instantly taking a swig from the drink.
"It doesn't, I was just curious."
"Curiousity killed the cat, you know?"
"True, true. But I'm not a cat, moron."
Manic finished off the rest of the soda and threw the can at Sonic, nailing him in the head.
"Think I don't know that? I actually have a brain, unlike you."
Sonic growled, sorely tempted to tackle his sibling to the ground, but again, the thought was left discarded. Sonia's sudden intrusion in the house was also an effective distraction. The blue boar turned to the magenta sow that suddenly entered. There was a look of wild excitement in her eyes as she babbled incoherently, all the while waving a piece of paper in her paw frantically. The two males blinked, looked at each other, then shrugged as they focused back on their sister.
"Sonia, what's got you all tied up in a knot?" Manic asked. Sonia's only response was waving the paper more frantically before she passed out on the ground before them, whether from all the excitement or lack of air, we might never know. Manic sighed, rubbing his face in exasperation. It was uncharacteristic of their sister to freak out on something, so it must be pretty big information.
"Sonic, go get a pail of water."
"Uh...yeah, sure..." Came the response as Sonic zipped off and returned in record time with the suggested pail. Manic took it and without a moment's hesitation, dumped the contents onto his sister's head. While receiving the results he wanted as she sputtered awake, he was displeased with the anger that followed.
"Manic, have you lost your mind?! You know my hair gets unmanageable when it's wet!!"
"A. It was already soaked when you stepped in and B. I don't care. Now out with the info already." Manic stated with a roll of his eyes. Sonia 'hmphed' but unrolled the paper she had in her paw, laying it out on a table for them.
"This is a map leading into the Arctic we aquired a few days ago."
"So? We've been on countless missions to the Arctic before. All that's came up was some monarchy confused penguins and brute polar bears. Nothing out of the ordinary." Sonic frowned, scratching his ear.
"Wednesday at 3:15 p.m., a couple of our scouts were exploring some unmarked terrain in the region. You'll never believe what they saw!"
"A tap-dancing praying mantis?" Manic asked with a grin, earning a snort and chortle from Sonic. Sonia gave the green one a dry glare before pulling out some photo snapshots from the recent mission. She thrust the pictures into Manic's face.
"No way! Sonia, are you sure this is right?!" Manic asked, gazing at the pictures in wonder.
"Well, gee, if it wasn't, I suppose we wouldn't have those pictures, would we?" Sonia replied, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Let me see! Let me see!" Sonic whined, bouncing behind Manic to try and get a better look at the photos. However, he only succeeded in bumping into his brother, making the snapshots spill forth onto the ground. As Manic practically burned a hole into Sonic's head with an intense glare, Sonic picked up a picture, and his eyes widened. Captured in it were two white wolves and a white fox, all three seemingly startled as they gazed back at the blue boar.
"Dude, those are Arctic wolves!!" Sonic said.
"And an Arctic fox." Manic chimed in.
"Uh huh. Cyrus said they had been hunting when our scouts ran across them. We tried to follow them, but their trail was lost after a few minutes. But there are definately some wolves and foxes out there."
"So our mission would be to go up there and find them to-?" Sonic started, waiting for Sonia to finish the statement.
"Convince them to join back up with the Resistance. Our rebellion is great so far, but can you imagine what it might mean if they were to ally with us again?"
"Perhaps an end to the war!" Sonic cheered. Sonia gave him a smile and a nod.
"Right! But we're needed at Angel Island first."
"Why?" Sonic asked, tilting his head curiously.
"I don't know. Knuckles just sent me a call to get over there ASAP."
"Are you sure this isn't to see your little boyfriend for some 'alone time?'" Manic asked, throwing in slight kissing noises.
At Manic's teasing words, Sonia's cheeks flushed visibly. When her brother didn't stop, she took the time to hit him in the back of the head with the nearest object, the can Manic had thrown at Sonic. Instead of annoyance, Manic only snickered and shrugged.
"We should leave real soon then." Sonic said quickly, trying to distract the two. He received another nod from Sonia.
"Of course. But before we leave, I think a trip to the salon is in order."
Two groans were her only answer.
???: Well then, I have to say, I kinda like this version of BBH better.
Kahtu: You have to consider though that inbetween the time of...about maybe a year or two when you finished the original, it's given you more time to improve. And also the fact you've decided to keep your rabid fangirlism outside of your stories. And ProminenceFlare's tips were actually quite helpful for you.
???: Kahtu, did...did you just give out some compliments?
Kahtu[defensive NO!!
???: Ya know, Kahtu, denial isn't a river in Egypt.
Kahtu: Laaa-aame!
JF2: It's about time I got a line in here.
???: I thought you didn't care...
JF2: Well, I don't really. But I much rather like being included in this little web of lies you call life.
???: (quirks eyebrow) What?
JF2: Nothing, nothing!
(loud thump occurs in next room followed by MHO screaming)
???: Ah, for the love of God...well, while I try and tranquilize the idiotic mistake of a muse I've created, you all feel free to review if you want.
JF2: Need help with that?
(screaming increases in volume)
???: (rubs face exasperatedly) No...no...I better take care of this myself. (goes to tend to MHO)