Duncan carefully adjusted the shield on it's stand before leaning in close to examine the dent on its face. The holes clearly betraying it had been caused by a morning star striking its surface in combat. Before he could ponder it's potential story much longer the bell of his shops door sounded and drew his attention.
"Duncan?" a female voice called.
"Anne?" He turned around to greet a woman with short and curly dark hair.
"Anne?" Called another voice as Tessa entered from the back room, "How are you?"
"I'm fine, just the usual stressful shifts working in Station Square hospital" Anne replied.
"As long as the place hasn't been blown up or turned into a battlefield lately I assume everything is going better than expected." Duncan said.
"No, it was a DOT building last time and no one got hurt, thankfully," Anne replied.
"I heard it was some weird plan to draw out by Sonic attacking Tails aunt," Richie popped in from the back with a large package.
"I can't tell if everyone in this place has really perfect or really horrible timing." Duncan said.
"Tails is actually what I came here to talk to you about, or rather his mother." Anne said, digging in her purse for a piece of paper.
"Terrible what happened to her," Tessa said, "but at least he had other family to turn to."
"It might be less terrible if what I'm thinking is true." Anne unfolded the paper and looked at it as she spoke, "her body came up missing from the morgue, and then magically re-appeared when Tails and that Wolf starting asking about it. The doctor on duty swears it just appeared when they showed up to collect her."
"Could she have been misplaced," Duncan asked.
"There's something else." Anne said.
"I don't like the sound of that,' Richie spoke up.
"The superviser chalks it up to exhaustion playing tricks on him but a security guard says he swore he saw a vixen wrapped in a sheet sneaking out of the lower floors but couldn't catch up her."
"You think she's one of us?" Richie spoke up.
"I don't know but it sounds like the usual Immortal's first death."
"Interesting," Duncan stopped to stare at a basket-hilted broadsword in a glass case, "did you happen to pull any birth records on her?"
"In a bit of an eerie coincidence the records we were able to bring up said she was born in Glenfinnan and came here with her parents as a little girl. I dug further and it also says Tails is adopted but the records on his birth parents are on lockdown."
"If I ever actually die and meet God I'm going ask him why he keeps dumping immortals off in the same general region of Scotland," Richie said, "That is if he actually let's me into Heaven"
"Lockdown?" Tess asked, "is it because he's a minor?"
"No. This is some serious classified information territory. If I was a conspiracy type I'd say someone high-up on the food chain doesn't want anyone to find out who his birth parents were"
"A mobian vixen born in the same place I was…" Duncan trailed off, "I don't think I've ever seen a picture or her but can I guess what she looks like?"
"I guess, but I do have this pic-"
"Curly black hair: probably long. Green eyes, slender build, about 4-foot-6. You might've assumed she was about 19 or 20 if you didn't have an ID saying she was old enough to be his mother.
"I met her at an autograph signing before I cashed in my chips the first time and that sounds just like her," Richie spoke-up, "and from that look I'm guessing you know something."
"Melissa…"
Somewhere in the Scottish Highlands, early 18th century
Dazed, Duncan slowly walked the now silent battlefield battlefield. Bodies of english soldiers and his own brethren alike laid broken and bloody across the field. Blood stained the ground and his own person from not only his enemies but his own already healed wounds.
He was jerked from his stupor by the familiar feeling of another immortal. The intense buzz and electricity in the air betraying age and power. He readied his sword and slowly turned around, scanning his surroundings until he saw a short figure standing up and shaking their head.
They looked up and he got a good look at them. To his surprise it was a young looking mobian vixen wearing his clans uniform and colors. He found himself pondering how unlikely it was a woman was able to enlist in the cause and make it to the front lines but didn't let himself forget she was an immortal.
"I am Duncan Macleod of the Clan MacLeod, who are ye?" he called.
"Melissa, too damn old to have a clan." she slowly stood up, still gripping a sword with drying blood on it's blade.
It was now he took notice that all the bodies immediately around her wore English uniforms. Indicating she must have gone down fighting. Getting a better look at her was confronted with how deceptively youthful she looked. Especially with the mop of thick, black, and curly hair that almost reached her waist. Her age was only betrayed by the weary look in those emerald eyes.
"I'm not your enemy, I think you know that." Melissa said.
"Not that I don't know a woman can fight, especially one of us but how did you make it onto a battlefield?" Duncan asked.
"When I volunteered I kicked the officers ass and then five of his men when he laughed at me. He decided an able body was an able body and tossed me into the ranks."
"Where are you from?"
"The place they now call Glenfinnan, but around 900 years ago."
"Why have I not heard stories about you?"
"Unlike you, Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod and son of Chief Ian I was raised by a poor farmer no-one cared about but his friends. I was of no importance to history or legend."
"So you've heard of me?"
"A Chief's son doesn't rise from the dead and get banished without it getting around," she smiled and approached him, stopping a more respectable talking distance away and putting a hand on her hip.
"Aye, I had to tell them I was just named after myself."
She smiled before frowning as she looked out over the bodies all around her, "you ever think it's all for nothing? People from over there coming to kill people from over here and both dying together because some king couldn't handle the threat of losing power?"
"Aye, but if we don't fight to protect our home, who will?" Duncan found himself staring and pondering even more how this seemingly youthful and small-framed woman somehow gave off such an aura of strength.
"That's the real bitch, isn't it?" She shook her head, "neither of us can just give up because we know what might happen to innocent people like the housewives and children if we're beaten back down."
"That's why I fight, to protect everyone else. I was given immortality and I plan to use it to stand up for what I know is just."
"Same, just a few centuries ago I was with a man named Jericho in the holy land fighting the injustice of the crusades and the Knights Templar."
"So that we can agree on." Duncan looked down at her, "fighting for what we know is just"
"Yes," she smiled, "care to join me in hiking back to wherever the rest of our surviving people are?"
"We can come up with a good story for where we were on the way, they might have us marked with the dead by now."
"Not like they were wrong." she smirked.
We became close after that and she grew be like an elder sister to me. We fought in a lot more battles together during the uprising. Eventually she was made an honorary member of my clan even though she was just a wanderer.
"WHOA," Richie took a deep breath, "that would make her like 1,200 years old by now"
"I wonder if Tails knows about her immortality and if she re-grouped with him." Tessa wonder out loud.
"Wait a minute," Richie spoke up, "the paper said Tails aunt was Melissa MacLeod,"
Duncan smiled in reply.
"Her version of the old "I'm my own son" routine," I guess." Richie said.
"It also explains the beheading in the paper." Duncan said.
"That hired thug of Eggman's they chalked up to the deal going wrong and didn't even open a case on?" Richie asked.
"He was a real piece of work named Isa and she's the one that carved him up and left him for dead when she stumbled up on trying to claim a victim: a child".
"He threatens her family and she's had enough and takes his head this time." Richie added.
"More than threatened if the signs of hostages found at the scene were any indication" Duncan said, "Anne, out of curiosity do you remember what Tails called the wolf?"
"Uncle Kai, I think"
"That's what I assumed. Kai is one of us to and her long-time protege. He's practically her son because she lived with his tribe and raised him"
"Raised by immortals, that must be interesting but it explains where Tails got the hero streak from" Richie said.
"Maybe you can ask him about it, because I think I should go pay my old clanswoman a visit and see how she's doing and you're coming with me"
"Great, both of you can work together to peel me off the pavement when one of Eggman's robots steps on me for being friendly with his sworn enemies"
"That's the spirit, Rich."
"Where do we even start, Mac?" Richie a grabbed a tabloid off a newsstand and tossed a dollar on the counter as the two men walked by, "Look at this:
The cheap newsprint proudly displayed a stock image of Melissa. One clear enough to make Duncan even more sure it was truly her. A huge yellow font spelled out the headline "TAILS MOTHER DEAD! SECRET EGGMAN PLOT?"
"She's gotta be deep undercover with the way everyone in town is talking. We don't even know if Sonic and the others know and I'm sure she doesn't want to flash herself to the public." Richie handed the paper to Duncan.
"Did you miss the back-up story?" Duncan pointed to a smaller image along the covers top border. To his eyes it was unmistakably Melissa dressed in a white undershirt and open blue flannel. Likely taken during a local news interview on the street.
"SECRET TWIN!?" Richie read in a mock paparazzi voice, "Melinda's sister, Melissa has arrived in Station Square to move in with our young hero. Her sister that looks just her!"
"Looks like she's taken to hiding in plain sight. Shouldn't be hard to find her. Just keep an eye out for someone that might know her and we'll go from there."
"And tell them what?" Richie put on a smile "Hi, I'm Duncan MacLeod of the clan MacLeod and I served in the Scottish army with Melissa MacLeod over two centuries ago, know where I can find her"
"We tell them I'm a clansman from back home that knew Melinda's father so I want to pay respects to her family. Doesn't give anything away we don't have to or let them know that I know they're the same person."
"They're going to know your bullshiting them if they know she's immortal," Richie said, "unless they assume you're even older than she is"
"Then even if they don't trust me they'll tell her about it later. She remembers me and knows I'm looking for her," Duncan flipped open the paper, "we've got all our bases covered."
"You know, Mac: I'd love for you to be wrong just once so I can gloat." Richie said.
"Maybe once you live for another century or so, Rich." Duncan looked over his sunglasses, paying close attention to everyone around him.
"Something funny around here?" Richie asked, "I don't feel any other immortals"
"Just the mobian gentleman a ways back that was in a big hurry to grab one of these off the rack behind you and scurry off," Duncan waved the paper around, "dark-tan lop-eared rabbit, I'd say early twenties or late teens."
"Probably just some conspiracy nut like those guys that claim Elvis is an alien." Richie suggested, "and someday I hope you teach me how to Sherlock Holmes everyone around us like that"
"Comes from centuries of observation and honing instincts, Rich."
Duncan stopped in his tracks as Richie held out an arm and motioned for his attention. Richie pointed his thumb to a nearby shop and Duncan followed his gesture, A young hedgehog girl with pink fur and short, pink quills stared into the window at a wedding dress. She wore a red dress with a hoop-skirt and matching boots all trimmed in white.
"That kid is Amy Rose, Sonic's self-proclaimed #1 fan and from what I can tell really close to your old friend," Richie explained, "you wanna try to talk to her without looking like a creep, be my guest"
"I'm sure she's used to random people talking to her and can handle herself enough to tell I mean no harm," Duncan took off his sunglasses and approached.
"Excuse me, Miss Rose?" Duncan mustered the most disarming tone he could and then a big, non-threatening smile as she turned around.
"Can I help you?" Amy asked cautiously.
"My name Duncan MacLeod, from MacLeods antiques a few blocks from here." Duncan pulled a card from his shirt pocket and offered it to her.
"I think I recognize you, your Tessa's husband?" Amy carefully took the card, "I bought one of her paintings for my apartment"
"She's quite talented," Duncan looked over at Richie as he approached, "this is Richie Ryan, a friend that helps us out at the store"
"Nice to meet you," Amy smiled before looking down at the card. "MacLeod?"
"I came here from Scotland when I was a boy," Duncan said.
"That's.." Amy gave him a curious look, "Melinda's sister is named MacLeod and they also came from there as little girls"
"That's what I was hoping you could help me with, I actually knew their father and he was like family to me. I was hoping you could help me contact Melissa and Tails to pay my respects," Duncan mustered a mournful look, "it's horrible what happened."
"Both of them are away from home, but I can give her your card," Amy eyed him curiously, "okay?"
"I'd be grateful for the help." Duncan smiled and waved goodbye as she turned and walked off.
He put his glasses back on and watched a few seconds out of the corner of his eye as he turned to Richie, making sure she was out of sight and around a corner before turning to walk back towards the shop.
"She knows about Melissa and knows you just lied your ass off to her," Richie finally spoke up.
"I know, but either way she's going to find out I was looking for her and I'm sure she'll explain for me." Duncan grimaced as he noticed a picture of Isa in the corner on the paper in his hands, "I only met that guy once I still always hated him. Glad the bastard is buried."