Author's note: This is actually the second part of chapter three, but we'll just call it Chapter four, ok? I please ask you to keep an open mind about this chapter. This'll make or break the fan-characters. 

Chapter Four: What Does it Matter?

Monday

0900 hrs

Mystic Ruins: Forest

Team Wildheart

"Why do you always have to be so difficult?" Zeera said. The wolf and panther were standing inside a large cave. A door space had been carved out and covered with a simple wooden plank. The cave itself had about seven rooms, counting the living room, kitchen, dining room. There was a long hallway with four doorways along it. Three of these rooms were bedrooms. The one with a black door was an off limits room.

In the far corner of the living room was a small T.V. A sofa stood in the center of the living room. It was a three-cushion light blue couch. The panther walked over to the couch and sat down. She slowly played with the dark brown tress on her head. "Oh, I'm being difficult?" The wolf muttered. "What about you? You know better than to run off on your own like that!"

""Why, Gallop? Why can't I have a life?" Zeera asked.

Gallop narrowed his amber eyes. The storm cloud-grey fur on his back bristled angrily. His narrowed eyes darted around the house. The wolf never slept inside, and hardly went in. Gallop had numerous phobias, but one of his worst was claustrophobia. "We've been through this," Gallop growled.

"No, we haven't!" Zeera said, keeping her voice calm. Unlike her older friend, she was better at keeping her temper. Gallop hardly ever lost it, but when he did, it wasn't something to be taken lightly. "Just because you are afraid of life doesn't mean I have to be, Gallop!"

Gallop shook his head angrily. "No! I'm trying to protect you!"

"Just because you had a horrible life doesn't mean you have to make mine a living nightmare!" Zeera snarled. Even her temper was being tested.

""It's a harsh world out there!"

"So let me learn that!" Zeera growled. Gallop closed his eyes, indicating he was getting a head ache.

"I don't want to see you get hurt, Zeera," he muttered softly.

"Then let me make some friends, Gallop! You are the only one hurting me!"

Gallop bowed his head. He hated when they fought. This was a reoccurring argument. The wolf had to face facts. His panther friend was growing up. He licked his chops and sighed. "Alright," he muttered. Zeera's words struck him hard. "You want to get to meet those guys we met on the beach, right?" Zeera nodded. "Okay, I'll call up a detective agency I know of and see if I can get some information of those guys. Fair enough?"

Zeera sighed. "Sure, Gallop, I'll compromise with you. Call your detectives."

Gallop smiled and picked up their house phone. He walked out of the cave. The second he was out, he took a deep breath and began to tremble with relief of not being confined within the cave walls. Once the spell ended, the old-timer walked over to a hammock between two trees. He dug beneath the hammock. About a foot underneath, there was a chest. Gallop pulled the chest out from the dirt. He dug through it. Many things were hidden within the chest. There was a faded blue blanket with a few tear stains on it. Wrapped in the blanket, Gallop knew, there was a knife. Gallop shook his head and removed the blanket from the chest. Underneath was a fairly new phone-book. Gallop quickly looked through the phone-book and found what he was looking for.

"Team Chaotix Detective Agency, this is Vector speaking. How may I help you?" The voice at the other end of the phone asked.

Gallop smiled at the greeting. He was near hyperventilation and found almost everything funny. He wasn't used to talking with anyone. "Hello," Gallop said, trying to keep his breathing under control.

"Good morning, sir, how can I help you?" Vector asked.

"I'm looking for some information. Background checks, if you will," Gallop replied.

"Well, sir, that's highly irregular for our line of work. Background checks are personal matters. Do you have a reason for one?"

"May I keep that confidential?" Gallop asked.

He heard Vector sigh on the other end. "Yes, sir. I'll read you the records. Who are you looking for?"

It was Gallop's turn to sigh. "I would prefer if I could read them myself, if you don't mind."

"Well, sir, that'll have to cost you the delivery."

"I'll give you a hundred dollars for the records."

The Detective whistled. "Deal!" He said. "Who are we looking for?"

Gallop lifted his eyes to the sky. He did this often when he was thinking. "A trio," he said. "A fox, a hedgehog and an echidna."

Vector let out a short laugh. "You want their records?" He asked.

"Is that a problem?" Gallop asked. He was somewhat confused by the detective's reaction.

"No, sir, that'll be no problem. Where and when should we meet you?"

Gallop thought a few seconds. The phone was shaking in his hands. This was the longest conversation he had with anyone but Zeera in over thirteen years. "You know the Temple?" He asked.

"Yes sir," Vector answered.

"Meet me there in an hour. I'll have the money." Without waiting for an answer, he hung up. He shook visibly. Gallop waited for the tremors to stop before he replaced the phone-book in the chest. He picked up the blanket with the weapon. His eyes darkened as he felt the hardened blade within the soft fabric. Sadly, he placed the blanket back in the chest and replaced the chest within the hole underneath the hammock. He buried it quickly and sighed. Silently the wolf slipped into the forest.

Same Day

Chaotix Agency

0915hrs

"Who was that?" Espio asked when the croc finally hung up the phone.

"Some freak wanting some information on Sonic and his gang," Vector responded. He stood up from the desk and headed to the computer desk. With a loud grunt, the detective sat down and began typing.

"We gonna give him the records?"

Vector shrugged. "Why not? Whatever we give him, he could get off the internet for free, but if I had told him that, than we would be out a hundred bucks, now wouldn't we?"

Espio shook his head and sat down in the locker. He looked at the grey walls of the old thing. "Why do we have this?" He asked.

Vector looked at him. "Because Charmy likes to sleep in it?" He said with a shrug.

"Works for me. Wake me when we're leaving." The chameleon placed the top of his head on his knees and closed his eyes. Vector laughed slightly and turned his attention back to the computer. He shook his head as he pulled up the files he had on the trio. In the back of his mind, one question was bugging him. Why in the world would someone want a background check on these guys? He pushed the question aside. The idiot was willing to pay them a good sum of money for information that was easily accessed through the World Wide Web.

After a good ten minutes of typing, Vector hit the print button. The sound of their loud printer woke Espio. The ninja jumped high enough to hit the top of his head on the locker shelf. Vector shook his head. "Now you see why I'm the smart one," he said. Espio glared at him and Vector smiled. "Charmy, let's go!" He yelled up the stairs. The bee flew down.

"Where're we going?" He asked.

"The temple."

"Cool!" The bee answered happily and flew out the door.

"Sometimes I wonder if we should let him have coffee," Espio said, coming over to stand by Vector.

"Don't know," the croc answered. "Better get a move on if we're goin' to meet the client on time."

Espio shook his head and followed the bee. Vector looked back at the office. Little did he know his life was about to change.

Same Day

Meeting Place

1005hrs

"You sure this is the place?" Espio asked.

Vector, too, was looking around, confused about their client's late habit. "He said the temple." Charmy had gotten bored and was now sitting on the steps of the Temple.

"Put the records down," a voice said from within a nearby bush.

Vector and Espio jumped, but the croc recovered quicker than his partner. "You got the money?" He asked.

They heard the unmistakable sound of someone hitting themselves in the head. "I knew I forgot something," the voice muttered.

"No money, no files." Vector said.

There came a low growl from the bushes. Out off the bushes stepped a metal wolf. He growled softly. Espio gulped. "Was this part of the deal?" He asked.

Vector shook his head. "He didn't mention he was a robot," the croc answered.

"Just give him the files," Espio whispered.

"No way!" Vector said. "I'm not giving up a hundred dollars." Espio didn't have time to retort. The wolf lunged at Vector. Without touching the detective, the robot snatched the files within his teeth and dashed into the woods. Vector could only stare, dumbfounded, at where the robotic wolf had fled. "Look what you did, Espio!" He yelled.

"Me?" Espio growled. "What did I do?"

"If you hadn't distracted me, than that thing wouldn't have gotten the records!"

"Oh, so this is my entire fault?"

Vector shrugged. "I'm just saying," he muttered. Espio glared at him. Their friendship was being tested lately because of all the dead-end jobs they had been given. This was the straw that broke the camel's back.

One certain bee was finally fed up with their arguments and fled during their fighting. It was Espio who first noticed the bee's disappearance. "Where's Charmy?" Espio asked.

"Great! You lost him!" Vector growled.

"I didn't drag him out here!"

"Okay, I'll look that way," the croc pointed north, "and you look that way," and then pointed south. "Got it?"

Espio didn't answer. He just went off in the direction his partner had indicated. Vector sighed. "Oh, and by the way," Espio called before his disappeared into the underbrush, "I quit!"

Same Day

Somewhere in the Forest

1010hrs

Gallop stopped his flight through the forest and placed the files down on the ground. His paw went to a red pendent on a rope collar he wore around his neck. He pressed the pendent and the metal melted away from his body. The Cyborg shook his full length and sighed. He slowly began to read the records.

Unlike most creatures, Gallop didn't have to read something over and over to memorize it. His half robotic brain could easily take scans of any information while his flesh-side of his brain worked on understanding the data it received. It took the old wolf only about twenty minutes to read over the records and decide that he would not allow Zeera to associate with the trio.

Gallop hauled himself to his feet and began trotting through the forest. When he picked up enough speed, he jumped into the trees and ran along the branches. Years of practice had given him amazing balance. Another twenty minutes went by at a steady lope before the wolf made it back to the cave. He jumped down from the trees and walked up to the door. He took a deep breath and stepped inside.

"Hay, Gallop," Zeera called from the kitchen. She came out with a glass of water. "So, what did ya find out?"

"I found out that you can't hang out with these guys," Gallop answered simply, taking a seat on the floor.

Zeera glared at him. "Why?" She asked.

"Because I said so," Gallop growled.

"But Gallop," the panther whined.

"No 'buts' about it, Zeera. I said 'no'!"

Zeera narrowed her eyes at her old friend. "You're not the boss of me," she growled.

"Wanna bet?" Gallop retorted. The panther let out a furious hiss and walked out the cave door. Gallop sighed as she walked past him. "Zeera…" he began, but found her to have already taken off on her own. He let out a loud exhale and walked out of the cave. Good going, wolf-boy, he thought and left the clearing around the cave entrance.

Inside, a little kestrel by the name of Skylar watched this scene take place. He shrugged, not fully understanding what had just happened. With a little chirp, he flew out the door of the cave, leaving the door wide open.

Author's note: Ok, one, Gallop walks on all fours, but he still can use his front paws like hands. Don't ask. Zeera is Anthro, she walks on two legs. Skylar is just a bird. He has no hands, just wings!

Two: The Dark Hearts had nothing to do with anything that happened in this chapter. Their major goal was Team Sonic, and these two groups just got caught in the crossfire.

Three: I am terribly sorry about all the scene changes in the story, but those will become essential through out the story because of the fact that I will be switching from one group to the next because even I can't ramble on and on about one group of people!

Four: Please don't be too critical about how the groups split apart. Everything looks better in the planning stage! And don't be too critical about the fan-characters, especially Gallop. He will be explained as the story unfolds.

Hope your enjoying it so far! Please R&R!