Authors Notes:

Finally the third chapter. So how's things so far? A new review! Yay. Just to let you know Celestial the Hedgird you find out in this chapter, plus others. Heh. Kind funny cos I'd already finished this chapter the day I finished the second chapter. Weird. But I don't mind. Thanks for the review. Opinions are as wanted as ever. Beta reader would be nice.

I still don't own the official characters. Never will otherwise I'd have Shadow, he rocks!

Anyway Enjoy!

Reviews always wanted.

Chid

"You see ... twenty years ago Sonic the Hedgehog took a holiday as a break from saving the world. Miles knew where he was but when he was needed a month or so later Miles couldn't find him anywhere. A worldwide search went out for the hero hedgehog. However no matter how much they looked they couldn't find him. Miles never gave up hope, Knuckles stayed on the Floating Island permanently so that he could keep the chaos emeralds and the Master Emerald from Robotnik's hands. Shadow and Amy started all of this, and then Miles helped for a while. Amy always said that 'this was what Sonic would expect us to do' she however gave up hope after 5 years and in the same mission that Shad...the traitor betrayed us and Robotnik took Amy captive. We later found out that she'd been robotsized." Sonic looked upset, could it be that 20 years had passed whilst he'd been gone? He had never thought that Eggman would get his robotsized on one of the gang. Let alone Amy. He didn't hate her, she just bugged him in her own cute way but he'd never wished she'd be robotsized. Rouge continued. "I'd already joined early on and found myself in the position of leader." Rouge paused and opened a door labelled 'gym'

"Cream. I've got someone here to go through a medical," She said loudly, Sonic looked around.

"Did you just say Cream? Cream as in Cream the rabbit and her Chao Cheese?" He asked looking at what was in the room, from what he could see there were climbing frames and a few treadmills and plenty of mats lay out on the floor. And that was looking out from inside a corridor like bit they were in at the moment. An Angel Chao popped its head around the corner and looked at Rouge and then at Sonic.

"Chao? Chao...CHAO!" and then disappeared back around the corner leaving Sonic feeling like a headache was coming on like one always did when he thought too much. The Angel Chao came back around the corner pulling on a young woman rabbit's arm.

"Cheese what has gotten into you?" The rabbit said and then looked at Rouge and Sonic as the Chao let go of her arm and landed back on the floor. "Another new recruit?" The rabbit looked at Sonic up and down inspecting him. "It can't be!" She said and looked at rouge who nodded and then the rabbit gaped. "But it can't be Sonic. This hedgehog looks no older than 16 at the most. Sonic would be 36. And everyone searched the world over. It just can't be him." The rabbit turned to Rouge. "Wasn't it you who said that one day Robotnik would crate a robot that would be so like Sonic we'd believe it was him?"

Rouge nodded but then walked out of the corridor shrugging.

"I know. And I thought it was one of them. But... He knew." Sonic looked at her and followed looking at the gym and whistled. And then turned to Rouge.

"Knew what? That you and Knux flirted? It wasn't exactly like you hid it," He said.

"Robotnik wasn't around either of the times that you mentioned. He couldn't have known. And for some reason that even I don't understand I know that its you." Rouge said looking at him. She then looked at the rabbit. "Cream you have to understand, put aside all the years of grief and look at him, remember how you saw him all those years ago and try to tell me it isn't him."

Sonic looked at Cream and held his arms out as she looked even more closely at him. Sonic took the chance to look at Cream; she was wearing a grey bodysuit that only left her head and neck free to the air. She wore sensible shoes for walking around in and her ears were down to her shoulders like they had been, her eyes were the same colour yet they showed years of seeing things a young child shouldn't see and be subjected to.

"What's happened?" Sonic asked. It was Cream, he knew it was but this rabbit was just taller than him and older than 6, Cheese was an Angel Chao, and in those eyes of hers were hurt and pain, suffering and few joys and only a hint of hope that was getting bigger.

"I told you Sonic, twenty years ago you disappeared and you've just appeared again and have twenty years of history to catch up on." Sonic cringed at that and looked at Rouge.

"You mean take lessons? Like a human?" He asked her. Rouge laughed, Cream looked at Rouge shocked.

"Rouge you laughed?" Cream said unbelieving, she couldn't remember the last time the bat had laughed. This was a good sign.

"Humans are slaves, as are we. Robotnik flushed out all the villages and settlements of our kind and we now mingle with the humans, according to Robotnik we're below humans, and I mean in more ways than height. And those who are not part of the Freedom Fighters are slaves to do as he wishes." Rouge explained. "Humans no longer go to schools, they are taught Robotnik's ways whilst they work in the factories and in his palaces." Sonic shook his head and looked at the treadmill, he wanted to run fast but his last experience with one of those had changed him from brown to blue which lead to the events meaning that the evil man known as Robotnik, although he had nicknamed him Eggman, was born. He'd been wary of them since.

"Sonic." Cream said quietly and cupped Sonic's head in her hands and looked into his eyes. "My mother, Robotnik uses her as a personal slave to entertain him by dancing. I've seen her myself. Promise me Sonic. Promise me that you'll save her, and free Amy. And if you see that traitor you'll kick his butt." She said. Sonic nodded,

"I promise I will Cream. I'll save your mom and Amy." He said nothing about Shadow, Sonic had his doubts and as far as he knew Shadow the Hedgehog he wouldn't betray anyone to Eggman.

Cream let go of his head and then silence passed around them all.

"He'll need a new name. If we go around calling him Sonic and Robotnik finds out he'll send all of his armies after him to make sure there is no threat." Cream said finally breaking the silence. Rouge nodded but then her face paled a little.

"What about Lana she already knows?" Rouge pointed out, "Probably Mania too if she's told him." Rouge said thinking, she never trusted Lana but then again as everyone kept pointing out she only truly trusted Cream, Miles and Knuckles. Cream knew about Knuckles but the rest of the group just thought that he was living somewhere unknown in the world or didn't even exist and that Miles was living somewhere on the planet and found his own way of transporting the latest machines here.

"Guys, care to explain this place to me or shall I go and hunt for Tails who will explain it to me in a way I understand?" Sonic said looking between them as he stretched his arms, suddenly feeling restless.

"This is the headquarters for the Freedom Fighters" Rouge said, she opened her mouth to continue when a voice came from nowhere.

"Rouge, you're needed in the main control room." It was a male voice of about 18 years roughly, Sonic figured. But it was an unfamiliar one. Rouge looked at a speaker and frowned.

"Cream I'll leave you to explain to him, I've got to go." She turned to Sonic. "I'll be back, don't leave this room until I say so, you might be back and the fastest thing in the world twenty years ago but I'm the leader here and there are things almost as fast as you on the surface. Plus you need a new name. Got it?" She said, she didn't wait for an answer as she flapped her wings and flew off down the corridor bit and out of the door very fast.

"So then Sonic. Lets get this medical over and done with shall we? And whilst we do it lets think up a new name for you okay?" Cream said cheerfully.