Heart to No Heart
Disclaimer-All characters are owned by SEGA and Sonicteam except the extras I put in to help the story along (There aren't many extras anyhow --;;).

-----------------------Chapter One: Echidna's Rage

"Lets move it everyone! I want this whole block cleared!" Julie-Su yelled though the megaphone that they gave her, though her voice could clearly be heard without the blasted thing. She tapped her foot a little, watching the destroyed block being taken away one piece at a time by the relief workers. She was sent to overlook the work being done on this site, though just looking at this place...where Knuckles gave his life for his family and friends...her eyes began to burn and she looked down at the ground.

She would've cried right then and there if her pride hadn't got the best of her, so she slipped off the roof of the destroyed car she was standing on and walked into the closest building. She made her way down the path and knew where this place was...she was running along her half-sister Lein-Da when she came here. Julie-Su shouldn't punched that wrench in that crooked muzzle of hers, she should've but she didn't have the will to at the time. It was all Lein-Da's fault...her and her great-grandfather's.

"I'll get even with her..." She stumbled over some stones and came to a place in the back of the first floor where blood and yellow taped lined the walls and rubble along there. This was the crime scene, marked with orange and yellow chalk along the ground, a larger circle where the body was found. She came over and moved down to one knee in front of the highlighted spot, in the shape of the Echidna's body. When her paw moved across the familiar spiked glove drawn in chalk she started to sob. He was really gone...she couldn't believe it.

Outside of the building, a very disgruntled working was carrying a large piece of stone towards the building. He bobbed his head up and down lightly to the beat of the music blasting though those mostly soundproof headphones. They bopped along his head, and he was eyeing the bag of cheese curls that he placed on top of the rock as he moved it. Vector sure knew how to fool those Echidnas into thinking he was doing actual work, he was hauling around the same rock all day. He would walk a little, set it down and take a break, then walk around in a circle and take another break.

He smirked a little to himself and placed the rock down in front of the condemned building that Julie-Su went in. He slipped around and sat down on the rock, grabbing for his back of food. No sooner then he grabbed it, it was taken away from him out of thin air towards the building behind him. " 'ey! Who did that?"

The first thing to phase in was a gloved paw which came around the bag, then the rest of the Chameleon came into view, and he was more then slightly upset at Vector. "Who do you think you're trying to fool Vector?" He was hanging upside down from a pole which was lodged in the side of the building looking down at him. "You lug the same rock around all day and you..."

"I know, I know!" So what if he was caught, he just wanted his back of food back. His protest was always that of a child's, so he would turn to face his partner with eyes that begged forgiveness. Vector was also a very good actor, which was needed when he slacked off like this. "I promise I'll work harder! I'll pull these rocks around all day if I have to! Just give me my food back!" He begged.

Espio dumped a handful of the crunchies into his paw and popped them into his muzzle. He crunched on them for a moment and then turned the bag upside down so the crumbs which where left few out of the bag. " Ooops, all gone. Now how about if I strike a deal with you..."

The croc folded his arms across his chest and looked back up at him, he already felt his stomach grumbling for something. Its only been about an hour since he last left, but his body burns off energy faster then he can take it in. " Anything to get away from here...this place scares the sh-"

"Julie-Su..."

"That woman! She's been pushin' my buttons since Knuckles died!" Vector shot back before Espio could finish, he mocked the voice of a whining hag, which is what Vector thought she was. " Vector, why don't you do more? Vector, you're such a lazy bum! Vector, why don't you-"

"Shut up because you either listen to what I have to say or get discharged from the island! Its a direct order from the Guardianship, you don't follow it and you know how they punish people." He dug around in his glove (seeing how Mobians don't have pockets 90% of the time) and got out a piece of paper. He balled it up and chucked it at the larger mobian's head below. " They need some time to deal with the lack of a Guardian for the Emerald. They need two temps to go out there and make sure that nothing happens to it!"

Vector didn't like where this is going, Espio could tell by the expression on his face. " But why me? Ya'll know that I know nothing' 'bout no emerald!"

"You do know enough to make sure that it doesn't leave the Shrine! They picked you and her for a very good reason, the other Chaotix agreed..." He nodded lightly to that before whipped around so he was sitting on the pole crouched down.

"Waitasecond! You all had a meeting without inviting me?!"

"We can't get a connection though those oversized headphones of yours!" Rolling a large rock along the side of the street, Mighty came up beside them jokingly. He snickered a little, those thin ears flapping before they lowed again. "Serious, we tried to get in touch with you...but you wouldn't listen."

Espio smirked a little, that was the closest he came to a laugh in a long time. Maybe because it was so easy to make fun of Vector, or because Vector always reacted in some childish manner. " Kind of like he's not listening now!"

"I AM listening!" Vector made his way to his feet and glared at them, snorting a little out of frustration. " I heard ya! Ya'll want me to go to the shrine with that woman because you think I'm worthless!"

Mighty shook his head on that part. " Not really. Its just that you're doing nothing at the moment that's bothering us..." Another sly remark on the side, Espio and Mighty both knew that Vector is a whole 'nother mobian when it comes to fighting.

The Croc growled a little and looked down at the ground. " Fine, I'm going! Its better then staying around here and lugging rocks all day!"

"Pretending to carry rocks. " Mighty corrected.

"You were mostly eating all day..." Espio balled the empty bag of cheese crunchies up and chucked them at Vector's head. Much to his surprise, Vector caught it in his oversized maw and snapped down on it. Espio was about to break the dam of laughter which was bottled up in him for a while. " Now why you do that? Hoping there's still a little cheese flavor inside?"

Vector flushed a little, but it wasn't noticeable under that green toned skin. " And what if I am?"

Mighty stumbled back, both paws on his stomach he lightly bumped the large boulder he was mouthing. " Oh goddess! I have to get away from him!" He turned around and started to push the rock down the street again, looking up at Espio, he offered him a nod before bursting out in laughter again. " I'll see you 'round lunchtime Espio."

"Huh? How come you two get a lunchbreak?" Vector was about to leave, but overhead what they said about Lunchtime. "I don't get a lunchbreak!"

"You get a 'Vector Break,' which is whenever you want to stop working. You have you break all thoughout the day, so I think its only fair if everyone else gets at least one break to call their own." And with that Espio was gone, or at least he faded into the background and sneaked away.

---------------Angel Island Shrine

"And this is the Master Emerald!" Charmy had a lot more free time on his hands now that his marriage to Saffron has been set for when he was 21. He had enough time to join the Chaotix, and even show Vector around the Master Emerald shrine. The little bee flew around Vector's head, the Croc looked very bored and unimpressed. "Now, Knuckles told me in case of emergency you..."

"Call Haven..."

"Well..." Charmy thought about that for a second and then shook his head. "No, that wouldn't work for you."

Vector eyed the smaller Mobian for a second before sighing. "And why not?"

"Because you don't know how to channel your energy though the Emerald!" Charmy pointed out, he flew over to the Master Emerald and sat down on top of it. He was tired of flying, but wanted to keep almost level with Vector, he still had to look up at him while he talked.

Vector walked up to the emerald and placed his gloved hand on the side of it. "Well it can't be tha' hard! I seen Knux do it a million times!"

"Well yeah, Knuckles does a very good job-..."

There was suddenly an awkward silence, it seemed like neither of them can talk about Knuckles in the past tense now. At times the other Echidnas in the city said they were nothing without their leader...so far they were able to prove them wrong. Then again, it's only been a week since the incident with Mammoth Mogul. The silence was broken by Vector, he cleared his throat before speaking up again.

"Ahem. We knew he did, and he would want us to keep workin' on protectin' the emerald even with him gone. "

Charmy nodded, with that out of the way, there wasn't much to talk about. He just kicked his legs a little until he head Vector snickering. "What?"

"Prince...Charming..." Vector said those two words between his snickering. "I still can't get over that!"

The bee flushed a little before flying up around Vector's ear, he removed the sound plug he called headphones just long enough to yell. " DON'T CALL ME THAT! " He hated being called Prince anything! He especially hated that story that went along with the name, thus was the story of his life (Pun-pun).

-----------------Angel Hopes Graveyard, Night

The sun was setting on Angel Island. When the sun hit the city just right, the plated sheets of metal and Crystal around the Echidna City made it glow with a mysterious light which could be seen by the Mobians who lived on the surface. The whole city was filled with light except for the graveyard which had one lone figure walking though it that night. Julie-Su had received her assignment to watch the Master Emerald, but checking on the grave of Knuckles wouldn't take too long.

She made her way down the path quietly, wearing a little more then she was used to now she wore a black sleeveless dress with a black headband on her left arm to show her mourning. She came close to the grave and seen some people where by it, those violet eyes narrowed...she knew who they were though she couldn't tell what they were doing. Her right paw dropped the small handful of roses she was carrying to go into the folds of her dress and retrieve her double barrel blaster. Even in mourning she never left home without it in just this occasion.

Sneaking along the treelines, she came within 50 feet of the group of Legionaries surrounding Knuckles grave to see her Half Sister looking over the site. The pink Echidna's eyes widened, they had dug up Knuckles grave and for what?!? A group of the metal bound Echidnas grabbed the casket in the hole and lifted it out and into the stone path leading though the Cemetery. Julie-Su would wait for a moment, she needed time for her gun to charge before she blasted her sister's head off for violating his grave. "Come on..." She muttered darkly, the gun was only charged to 15 percent!

Lein-Da inspected the casket before walking along the side where it swung open. "Open it and put him in the bag! Be quick about it, too." She ordered the men around her, who attacked the side of the casket with a crowbar and started to pull at it. Two others came ready with a large black bag which looked like a body-bag for the dead.

They managed to get it open when her gun was halfway charged, showing the body of a beaten red Echidna on the inside. One might've mistaken him for sleeping, but the Echidnas who opened the casket wasted no time looking at him. They took his body and slipped it into the bag before putting the casket back into the grave. Lein-Da zipped the bag up herself, then turned her head to see the Casket being lowered back into the grave and buried again.

The red furred female grabbed her COM and talked into it softly. " great-grandfather, we got him...we're heading back to the base with him now and-" She stopped and looked right into the direction to where Julie-Su was hiding. "One moment...I think we have a visitor."

"Damn! How could they see..." She cursed to herself, that metal quill towards the front of her face! The limited lights they were using reflected it, so it was now or never if she wanted to find out what she was doing. She moved to aim the blaster at her, but was suddenly held by a Legionnaire who was able to sneak up behind her.

Lein-Da smirked seeing the blaster drop out of her restrained half-sister's paws, she made her way over stalking like a snake would. "My-my, look who came to join us again..."

"What the hell do you think you're doing to Knuckles now?!" Su snapped trying to spit on her, but her mouth was partially held back by the Legionnaire's hand. She whipped her head back and screamed. "He's dead! He died saving Dimitri! You should be happy! You won!"

Lein-Da just shook her head, that head full of flesh and artificial quills rattling before she looked back up at her struggling sister. " Oh,but we will be happy when we're done with him, you'll see soon enough." She nodded off to the one who was holding her before turning her back on her. "I'll see you around. Maybe next time you'll have enough manners to say hello to me. "

So they took off, the one holding Julie-Su pushed her forward before walking away. She tried to keep her balance, but she fell forward and landed on the soft grass on the ground. She laid there stunned for a moment, but pawed around for her blaster which still wasn't ready to fire. et. " Red haired wrench...she didn't get the best of me!"

"Julie-Su! What in Aurora's name are you doing here?"

The voice came from behind her, she made her way back to her feet to see flashing red and blue lights coming on every side of her. She backed up a little, but was caught by the wrists of Remmington, who was unfortunately on duty at this time. The grave! They didn't bother to close it up, though they left their shovels and picks! She took a moment to plea her case. "Lein-Da was here! T-they took the body and..."

"And how did you see this Julie-Su? The Guardianship said that you were supposed to be watching the Master Emerald. " Remmington eyed her, though he had lightened up on her from when she was a Dark Legionaree, he was never able to get her complete trust.

She shook her head frantically. " I was going to go there after I paid my respects! Lein-Da said she was going to do something with the body and-"

"Constable...we found this in the grave..." A female officer walked up to him and showed him something that made Julie-Su's eyes widen, it was her blaster!

Remmington looked back to Julie-Su, he looked really disappointed right now. Her wrists still in his hands, he turned around and locked her wrists together with handcuffs. " That's more then enough evidence for now, thank you. "

"Hold on! I didn't do anything to his grave!" She cried out as she was lead away, she had both the tone of anger and sadness in her voice since she was being lead back to a police car.

"Julie-Su...as much as I want to believe you, I can't...you have to come down to the Station for questioning..." And so he started to read her off the rights that she had now, even though she wasn't listening to her, it was still his job.

-------------------------------------End of Chapter One

I hope you liked the start off for this fic, I have a lot of plans for it right now. This is my first time working with the Floating Island setting and the Chaotix characters in a story, I think their personalities need a little tweaking. If you have any suggestions at all, you can go ahead and either E-mail me or send in a review for me to check. Oh yeah, in case you're wondering, my favorite Chaotix is Vector =D.