Disclaimer - I do not own sonic or any other characters. They are property of SEGA and anything sonic the hedgehog affiliated with it.
Someday's later the people of the Knothole experienced a somewhat long stretch of peaceful time. Four days to be exact, and things seemed to be slowly recovering again after their latest surprise attack a few days ago. It was early morning right now in the Knothole, and the village was already bustling. The skies were cloudy, and the white colors made it dreary out; the weather was cool this morning as well. The village had been rebuilding and the people that were hurt had just about recovered. Because most of the village were unaware of how, but were informed by the Freedom Fighters that Robotropolis activity remained slow. So they took the opportunity like they were right now, and the villagers continued rebuilding what had been destroyed. Some were gathering food from their crops, and some were moving building materials to various parts of the Knothole.
The citizens were starting to get restless though, wondering when Nicole's plan would go into effect. Because after their latest attack they were itching to get a new home for protection against their enemies. And one Freedom Fighter pondered how long it had been like everyone else since they started their plans for a new home. Bunnie held a thoughtful face as she walked through the village towards the Freedom Fighters HQ. The citizens greeted her good morning as she walked along lost in her thoughts. She greeted them happily with a fake smile, because she still felt guilt for what had happened.
She was going to their HQ for another standard meeting, because after their last meeting they were finally going to discuss more serious matters. The last few meetings had all been about logistics around the Knothole, repairing the damage that had been done in their last attack. Bunnie kept her thoughtful expression as she walked pass a few people carrying planks of wood. She rounded a bin down the path into the forest that led to their HQ. It had been about two weeks now since Nicole came up with the plan for their new home. Her face then became neutral as she neared their HQ door. She sure hoped Nicole would be done soon, because they all knew since they had time to recover, so did their enemies…
Bunnie then opened the door of the HQ, and closed it behind herself. To her right the common room was empty, but to her left Amy and Sally were in the kitchen. They smiled and greeted her a good morning as she stepped into the kitchen. Bunnie smiled back as she took a seat at the table with Amy. Sally had an apron on, and she was chopping vegetables into a few bowls by the counter. Amy then turned her attention back to Sally as she chopped food, and continued questioning her about more frequent trips into Robotropolis with Sonic.
And Bunnie held a small smile as she listened to Sally speak to Amy about mission rotation. She leaned her arms onto the kitchen table as her mind began wandering again. The last few days had been uncharacteristic for everyone. Because it seemed Robotropolis had been hit hard by their retaliation. With their enemies networks in disarray, they were all surprised at how much trouble it caused them. It was backed up by the facts of their checks on Robotropolis in the last few days; there was a significant slowdown in activity in the city. And they knew their monitoring network well so they were certain. They wanted to be certain too because Eggman and Lien-Da looked like they were going for a final push in their last attack.
But they all got a breather knowing they had been slowed down yet again. Sally then finished preparing the bowls of food and handed them to Amy and Bunnie with utensils. Sally took her bowl and sat down to eat as she and Amy continued talking. Amy pointed her fork at her as she chewed and spoke narrowing her eyes at Sally. And Sally looked amused as she continued denying more frequent trips with Sonic.
Bunnie remained quiet with her small smile as she began eating her fresh vegetables. And things were going ok with the Freedom Fighters as well. Everyone had been forgiving of her uncle's betrayal. They didn't hold it against her knowing where she had come from…they knew it was important to her so they let it slide…
She mused at how even Sonic was forgiving of her; because of transgressions on him it surprised her. That argument they had about her uncle made her think he would hate her completely. But he still treated her kindly…and it made her slightly worried because he seemed somewhat indifferent…and everyone could see he still wasn't himself…he just seemed tired as of late…
And she hoped he would get better soon because she was sure she wasn't the only one missing his enthusiastic vigor…
But then Amy sighed in defeat as Sally finally talked her down. Sally put more food into her mouth as Amy glanced at Bunnie. She blinked her eyes once at her with a curious look "Hey Bunnie? What's going on with your hair? It's really long…"
Sally nodded with a smile "Have you been busy with your hair Bunnie?"
Bunnie's eyes widened slightly for a moment, but then she smirked with a smug look "Yiaah could say thet…"
Bunnie placed her fork in her bowl, and she reached up and pulled her hat off her head; her light orange hair poured down to the tips of her shoulders. It was sleek, silky, and bouncy. Amy and Sally donned surprised faces as Bunnie looked proudly at them.
Then Amy and Sally smiled. Amy squealed as she got up from her seat to compliment her, touching and inspecting her hair "Eeee! Bunnie you look so beautiful!"
Sally swallowed the last of her food giving Bunnie a wise look with her smirk "So that's what you've been doing with Nicole."
Bunnie couldn't stop her uncontrollable smile too, and she grinned at Sally "I can't tell yiah thet, it's a hair insidas secret."
"Well whatever you've done, your new hairstyle compliments you well." Sally spoke with encouragement.
Bunnie ran her hand through her hair once before she put her hat back on, and Amy sat back down. Amy and she went back to finishing their food as Sally spoke again. Telling Amy maybe she could give her more task with Sonic around the Knothole. And Bunnie's small smile remained on her face as she listened to them converse again.
She had been busy with Nicole making hair conditioners and things for her hair. And now her hair was lush and gorgeous. It made her feel a great sense of pride that her hair was so long and pretty. Whereas before she failed to work with hair properly she had now succeeded. She was making sure she saved and took notes on what she was doing because she wanted to continue to take care of her hair.
That and her new hair made her feel less self-conscious about her robotic parts…though it still bothered her and she still felt she looked weird….her new styled hair made her feel better about her looks...
But even so, in the last week or so after her breakup, she was still dealing with something else she couldn't quite put her finger on. In this time alone with herself again she was enjoying the independence…but there was still something missing…
She thought she would have figured it out by now, but she still felt lost. She still didn't know what she wanted for sure in life…and after Antoine, she still felt empty inside, and she didn't know why…
Though she did piece together whatever the reason why she was unhappy, tied to her wants. And she figured that if she could find out what she wanted, then maybe she could find what she was looking for. If anything it was a good place to start. She was going to try and do that today after their meeting as a matter of fact. And speaking of Antoine, she hadn't seen much of him…
Everyone had been seeing him hanging around Castle Acorn a lot lately. And they spoke to each other when they had to, but their differences kept their conversations brief. There was still some bitterness present between them. And the rest of the guys seemed to be faring pretty well as far as she could see. Everyone healed well from their injuries including herself. Sally was still upset about Sonic, but she still held some level of feelings for him. But Sally said she would still ask Sonic another time if things ever got better; maybe even if New Mobotropolis was built.
And she wished Sally the best in her pursuits…because she hoped she could find what she was looking for too…
Then soon Amy and Bunnie finished their food, and Sally gathered their bowls. They all got up from their seats and went to the lab to get started on their meeting, though everyone was not present; Antoine and Tails were missing. Sonic and Rotor were near the back counters speaking with Nicole as she created more nanites. Bunnie greeted them a good morning, and they responded the same. Rotor even noticed her hair and complimented her, but Sonic seemed a little quiet this morning, remaining stoic.
There were now four large glass vials on the counter near Nicole's assembly, and they all had corks. Bunnie smiled raising an eyebrow at the vials "Are those lil buggers in thare?"
And Nicole responded to her "Yes Bunnie. I will require ten full jars to start work on New Mobotropolis."
"Why don't you take a look?" Rotor asked stepping aside from Nicole's assembly; Sonic did so too.
"I can't believe this is really happening." Bunnies said as she walked over to the microscope on Nicole's assembly.
As she peeked into the microscope, she could see Nicole's tiny robots moving about. One of the robots was bigger than the others which she figured was the Master Nanite. And she couldn't make out exactly what they were doing but it looked like they were eating away at the piece of metal on the microscope glass. That and more robots seemed to be forming around the other robots.
"Wait a sec..." Bunnie lifted her head "I thought yiah said Nicole was tha only one who could see stuff thet small…" she said with confusion on her face.
"She is, Nicole is hooked up to the microscope. It's her vision you were seeing." Rotor said with a smile raising a thumb claw into the air.
"Rotor is correct, you cannot see on the nano meter scale on a normal microscope. To give perspective, imagine a grain of sand. It is twenty times smaller than that." Nicole finished.
Bunnie then chuckled with a smirk "Alright thets enough. Y'all are blowin my mind." she said stepping away from the assembly.
Everyone got a good laugh out of Bunnie's mind blow, but Sonic only smirked a bit. Not sad, but also not happy. And though no one showed it they cringed a bit at Sonics lack of enthusiasm yet again. They all frowned slightly not trying to look at him, and they all turned towards their circular metal meeting table.
Sally sighed with her light frown "Alright, we'll leave you to it Nicole. Let's get started on our meeting guys. I'm sure Antoine, and Tails will show up soon…"
Everyone walked over to their round metal meeting table and Sally briefly glanced at Sonic. Sonic blinked his eyes looking slightly confused by everyone's behavior. But he frowned as Sally turned away from him; seeing the mood of the room take a sudden shift. The spirit of their team still felt crushed for the time being, even though Sonic seemed to be getting better, he was not the same
They were waiting…but they didn't see him yet…
Once Sonic joined them at the table they began moving all the papers around to get ready to discuss important information they'd gathered in the last few days. The rotation around the table was a little different this day though. Rotor stood next to Amy, who stood next to Bunnie, who stood next to Sonic, who stood next to Sally. There were still issues between them all but for the time being everything was ok between everyone.
And not long after getting their papers in the order they wanted to talk about them, Tails and Antoine showed up. They took their place around the table between Rotor and Sally. Tails was exuberant as usual, but Antoine looked tired. He had bags under his eyes, and he yawned a few times. He didn't explain why he was so tired, but instead said they would see in time.
So with most business out of the way they started their meeting. Sally and everyone donned serious faces as she looked down at the papers on the table, "Now that everyone's here, I guess we should start with the relocation efforts." Sally looked up with her brows narrowed, and everyone looked at Antoine.
Antoine placed his arms behind his back with his serious expression "We finished clearing a new area to build the new huts."
"And the lumber?" Sally questioned him.
"The trees we chopped down could be used to fortify other structures that have been damaged." Antoine said as he slowly yawned again.
"Good idea…" Sally said as she looked back down at the papers on the table and began writing on them "…Now that most are beginning to relocate, what else do we need to move?"
Sally said continuing to look down and write.
Everyone glanced at Rotor with their serious expressions as he picked up a sheet of paper and read from it "As we already know, we were able to gather information from the device that was in Bunnie. After we got the device out of Bunnie, we found it only completed forty percent of its scan. And from further analysis, we got lucky as it only got a scan of the front side of the Knothole. All of our bunkers, resource storage, Castle Acorn, our HQ, and other important areas of the Knothole have remained safe." he said lowering his paper.
"But they do have maps of something then right?" Sonic questioned him seriously.
Rotor nodded in response "Well, they won't have any maps once we get done moving from the areas that were scanned. We at least know what to change and move because of the data we got from that device."
Sally finally looked up, and around the table "We'll continue our efforts then. Do we have an idea on ETA for relocations around the Knothole?"
And Tails answered "A few days still, though a lot of new huts have already been built."
Sally picked up a writing utensil off their table and crossed her arms "I suppose this could segue into that information Nicole collected."
Amy scratched her head for a moment with her frown "What did Nicole do exactly?"
A large stack of papers were in front of Tails, and he pushed them towards Rotor. Rotor nodded in thanks as he picked up a few from the top; he cleared his throat as he spoke "Ah-hum…with Sonic and Tails help Nicole was able to physically hack the Dark Legion's networks." Rotor paused as he glanced at Tails curiously "I forgot to ask Tails, but did our hacking tools make it out alive?"
Tails then grinned weakly rubbing the back of his head "No actually…all of our tools broke when that big robot hit me…"
Rotor sighed but nodded understandingly at him, and he looked around at everyone with narrowed brows "We'll fix them…" he looked back at the papers in his hand donning a serious expression again; so did everyone else "But Nicole was able to get pass their blocks easier with the physical hack. And not only did she gain access to the Dark Legions networks, at the time for reasons unbeknownst to us, there was also a backdoor into Eggmans networks as well."
Bunnie raised an eyebrow in confusion glancing around the table "So are y'all thinking what I'm thinkin?"
"I know I am. There's something else going on between the Dark Legion and Eggman." Amy said with a frown.
"It would not surprise me that they have hidden knives." Antoine said rubbing his chin seriously.
"But it's still good information to know." Sonic chimed in.
"It's strange, but I don't even think a betrayal would be good for us in this particular situation. As either way, if Eggman went down, then we would still have to deal with the Dark Legion and vice versa. Rotor? Other than a possible betrayal on their parts, what other information did Nicole get?" Sally said with her arms crossed still and her stern narrowed eyes.
Rotor began reading from the papers again; flipping through them "There seems to be something big being built in Robotropolis right now. Maybe another giant robot from Eggman, surprise suprise." he said sarcastically as he flipped a page looking up at everyone "But it is slightly worrying as it looks like it might have been in production even since last year from these readouts…"
And their brows furrowed harder as Sonic spoke "And whatever it is, is gonna come here…"
"That doesn't sound good at all…" Tails said grimly with a deep frown.
"Do you know specifically how long it's been in production?" Sally asked Rotor.
And Rotor shook his head "Unfortunately, we don't have any recent time stamped data on it. But we do know its construction has been going on for a long time." he lowered his papers.
"Maybe this is a reason why Eggman has been trying to upgrade tha city…" Bunnie pondered aloud.
"It's certainly possible he needs better facilities to do such things. It's something we should keep in mind." Sally said uncrossing her arms and writing on the papers on the table again.
As Sally wrote Rotor continued; flipping to another paper "On the Dark Legions side of things, the data we recovered from them was much more significant. It seems possible that the Dark Legion had something to do with that backdoor, but the information we gathered seems to lean towards an even larger scale attack the legion has planned. This attack could have something to do with Eggman as well."
"How large?" Sonic questioned him.
Rotor flipped a page "This data suggest every part of the Dark Legion around the globe would be mounting an attack. Again, we don't know when…" Rotor placed his papers down with a frown.
Sally wrote some more looking down as she spoke "It sounds like they're focusing their resources…"
"Eggman is no doubt involved. Thare going for tha big one aren't they…" Bunnie said slowly shaking her head looking down at the table.
"They almost did something similar a few days ago. I doubt we get that lucky again…" Antoine said looking around the table.
And everyone nodded silently in agreement. Whatever was coming their way next time was not going to be small; indicative of their last attack. Eggman and the Dark Legion were coming for them next time…and it looked to be the Knothole's final days approaching…
Rotor picked up a few more papers from the stack in front of him and spoke up and his eyes skimmed the sheet "We also got some other information that might personally pertain to Lien-Da too."
"Like with her implants?" Tails questioned curiously.
Rotor nodded in response "Yep. This ironically is the only recent information we obtained. It looks like Lien-Da was just implanted with some device labeled TUY2457 JNK. I have no idea what that is and there are no specific details about what it does. Only that it might be some type of metal reinforcement. But what is relevant is the same device has been implanted into others than just her." Rotor looked up again and around the table.
"But aren't her Legionnaires implanted regularly like her?" Sonic raised an eyebrow.
But Rotor shook his head again "Not just her Legionaries, the devices are also being implanted into those they've captured and Legionized."
And everyone's eyes narrowed at bit as they realized even the Legionnaires were becoming stronger "So they're becoming super soldiers now…" Sonic placed a hand on his head as he shook his head.
"That and some of those were ours…" Sally looked up at everyone seriously "They would be extremely hard to stop. And since it sounds like they're coming for a final invasion it's a possibility Lien-Da might want to sick her new super soldiers on us…"
"You know that makes me wonder if Lien-Da heard your conversation with your uncle Bunnie." Amy said in a skeptical tone looking over at Bunnie.
Everyone glanced at Bunnie as she spoke; her eyes narrowed looking irritated "Afta what he pulled it aint no doubt in my mind. They didn't get no important information thet's not known already though…I didn't say nothen about the Knothole or anythang sensitive…"
"They might have been doing both, trying to plant that device and get information…" Tails said aloud around the table.
"With the latter being the most reason to lure Bunnie." Sally said looking down writing on the paper on the table again.
"Not to mention how fast they got that device into Bunnie, we only lost contact for twenty minutes." Rotor said as he rearranged papers in front of him.
"Well it is thare specialty…" Bunnie mumbled with irritation still on her face.
"They did it faster than I expected, and we do at least know more about their capabilities now. Plus, if Sonic hadn't shown up so fast, and you'd been out any longer Bunnie…" he and everyone briefly glanced at her "It's possible they could have put more than one device into you if they had more time. And that would have been a nightmare…" he said looking down at his papers.
Bunnie nodded silently feeling a small wave of guilt bubble in her stomach. Her frown remained deep as Sally began speaking about something more miscellaneous. And her eyes fell to the table for a moment as she got lost in her thoughts for a moment. It seemed Sonic had saved her yet again…
She honestly wasn't sure where she stood in their friendship anymore. She didn't know where she stood in his eyes after the ways she'd been acting. A few days ago she had rebuilt some trust with him, but she felt like she had just smashed the progress she made. She still considered him to be one of her closest friends though…
And at the moment she felt empty inside…
But as soon as this meeting was over, she was going to figure out what she wanted. She had to because what she was currently feeling was tearing her up inside…
Bunnie snapped back into the conversation, lifting her head and Nicole called to Rotor and Tails. Tails went over to her as Sally stood fully up. Sally tossed her writing utensil onto the table holding a stern look on her face "I think that about wraps up recent intelligence. We'll convene tomorrow and get more citizen relocation, and this possible super soldier business out of the way. But we do have one more important thing to discuss. Rotor…"
And everyone glanced over at him, and his frown softened, and he smiled a bit; Tails just returned as well and placed Nicole down on the table "As you all know by now, Nicole has been creating nanites. She is officially in the production stage."
And everyone's frowns turned into smirks hearing the good news, and excitedly Amy questioned Rotor "So New Mobotropolis is going to be a real new city?"
Rotor nodded happily "Yes indeed. But Nicole still needs our help, and Nicole's got some new plans…"
Then everyone looked down at Nicole on the table as she spoke "With Tails and Rotors input, we have dubbed this plan Operation Scrap Zone."
Sonic picked up Nicole as Tails grabbed, and unrolled a blueprint paper on the table. They were blueprints for a plan Nicole had been plotting for a while. And the smiles on everyone's faces brightened again as Nicole's new plans made the reality of New Mobotropolis look even closer. Because from the information they just learned it seemed their time might just about be up, and helping Nicole create nanites faster was a great prospect. They were all looking forward to it too, as they all went on with their day…
A few hours later…
The Freedom Fighters went their own separate ways for most of the day, and the cloudy morning skies finally cleared up. It was starting to warm up, and the sun cracked through the many broken clouds above. Tails and Rotor stayed in their HQ with Nicole continuing various kinds of important work. Sally and Antoine went to Castle Acorn, and they went together because they both needed to go there. Amy was off helping some residents rebuild, Sonic had went to help residents do various things as well.
Bunnie though…she had excused herself…saying she needed some time to clear her head…
And no one questioned her as they guessed she still might need time to recover from her uncle's betrayal. And she did as she meandered through the Knothole with a blank expression on her face…
These last few days had been busy, but the downtime in-between all the work was well welcomed. It gave her time to ponder and try and figure out what was missing in herself. A group of children ran pass her, and she briefly smiled as they chased one another. But her expression became blank again, and a labored sigh escaped her as she stopped in her tracks. She glanced around herself looking for a place to sit down; she was feeling down today.
She was near the middle of the village near the lunch house, and she spotted a few logs and rocks to sit down on. She dragged her feet over to a log and sat down with grumpiness forming on her face as she took her hat off. She placed her hat on her lap and ran her hand through her hair with her organic hand. She felt her self-esteem improve the last few days as her hair grew long and pretty. With Nicole's help to create shampoos and whatnot her hair was bouncy and smooth. No more kinks and knots, and she wasn't planning on having any more bad hare days anytime soon.
It made her feel much better about her looks, as her robotic limbs still made her feel ugly, a feeling she didn't ever think would pass. But her beautiful hair now certainly lessened those feelings. Soon she noticed no one was around in the village center except herself right now. And she kinda wished someone was, hoping for some kind of social interaction.
She kept a light frown, sitting in the quiet as her eyes downcast to the dirt ground. Her brows narrowed as she got lost in her mind for a time. She didn't even notice when people did walk pass her this time; they didn't bother her either.
Because she was enjoying her new time alone lately and her independence from Antoine. This new phase in her life took some time to adjust to, but she felt more comfortable where she was at now. She still thought about Antoine sometimes, and the attention that she used to get from him. But she was glad it was over before their differences had a chance to tear them apart even faster. They had not been honest with one another about how they felt, and she was at least glad it was done. And she knew she had learned and grew from the experience.
She was also much more satisfied with her cybernetics. Her improved abilities, mobility and all gave her more freedom to move about than ever. She could run longer without getting tired and fly longer when she wanted to go somewhere. She was able to help out with the rebuilding a great deal due to her increased strength too.
And she did appreciate her new cybernetics, but sometimes she felt torn in between liking her new limbs and disliking them. She was glad she was alive, and it had saved her life, but sometimes she still lamented that her new cybernetics might be permanent, and she could never get rid of them now. But then again, she might be useless if she was normal and her limbs could be better than she knew…a blessing in disguise…so she let it go for a time…
And now that she been back on her own, trying to figure out what she wanted in life…she would not lie…she could feel loneliness starting to creep up on her again…. loneliness just like she had in the past, and all her life…
She'd been alone because of past issues all the way up to meeting the guys, and way before Antoine. Bunnie lifted her head and saw a male trying to speak to a group of females across the way to her right. The women giggled walking away, and the male looked undeterred as he followed.
Bunnie's frown softened into a blank expression as lighter thoughts crossed her mind. She did know of the things she thought she wanted; a quiet, simple, peaceful life away from all the drama. She wanted to work with hair and start another farm one day. And despite Antoine, she still did want love and a relationship. It was probably one of the highest things on her list. She enjoyed the attention, caress, and caring from another. She wanted it but she did admit she was sort of disillusioned about being in a relationship anytime soon. She guessed she'd meet someone in the future…
Because despite all the things she knew would make her happy…something was wrong…something was missing…and she felt empty inside…
After Antoine the giant hole she felt came back, and she wasn't sure why…
Bunnie tapped her foot on the ground as her vision slightly looked towards the ground again. Was it the lack of love? She wasn't sure…no one had interested her, and she figured no one would cause she was still getting over Antoine…
But whatever the case, the lack of emotion she was currently feeling was indicative that she wasn't happy about something…
Bunnie lifted her eyes from the ground again looking around the Knothole. She kept her blank expression seeing a large group of villagers approaching towards the village from the forest. She stared across the way straight ahead of herself as her mind wandered again.
It had been a few weeks now, and if Nicole's new plans worked they would soon have enough nanites to build a new home. But as she stared across the way, she felt a wave of depression hit her again, as she realized she'd gotten off track. And she frowned because she still didn't know why she was so unhappy…
She had thought of all the probable reasons and causes, but she still had no conclusion. And her grumpy face returned as her lips pinched together, and her brows narrowed looking annoyed. She still felt so lost…
She felt so empty right now…
She felt frustration as her mind wandered again trying to grapple with her problems, when speak of the devil, Sonic and Knothole residents came walking out of the forest and into the village. She was just thinking of him…
They were carrying sacks, which Bunnie knew was food they had just picked. She watched from her seat on her log as they walked to the lunch house and started dumping the food. Bunnie quietly watched from afar…watching Sonic as her grumpy face turned into a slightly curious one...
She leaned back placing both hands on her log to support herself. Her eyes then became half lidded, with a stoic expression, wondering how he carried on after all the horrible things that'd happened. He was still trying to rebuild the trust around him; the residents were seemingly warming up to him again lately too. They seemed to be happy as they dumped food with him.
She could even see from where she was sitting that he wasn't smiling; he didn't even grin as much anymore. But despite the depression written on his face all the time now, he continued to do the right thing. Bunnie's half lidded eyes locked on him now…almost as if she couldn't break away…
And slowly, a silly grin unknowingly donned on her face...he had always been that way though...trying to do the right thing…
Then suddenly Bunnie felt a lightness in her gut; then a slight tingling. As she began to realize it, her eyes widened in surprise, and she sat fully up on the log. A strong feeling was starting to wash over her….and Bunnie blinked her wide eyes with disbelief forming on her face…
Heat rushed to her cheeks making them slightly tinted red. And she froze where she sat as her jaw became slack. She was feeling something...
Bunnie then shot up from her seat on the log with her hat in her hand "Oh mah stars..." her eyes remained wide in shock, and she whispered to herself as she stared at Sonic "No...no...no..."
But she couldn't deny it; she could feel the high she was experiencing right now. She had butterflies in her stomach and that nice feeling extended all the way up to her suddenly light head. Bunnie then felt panicked as she quickly turned walking away in the opposite direction. Her eyes remained wide with a shocked expression on her face, and she fanned herself with her hat. It just couldn't be...
Not after what had happened between them...not Sonic...
Meanwhile at Castle Acorn…
Antoine and Sally had just went off into separate parts of the castle. Antoine tried to hold a conversation with her, but it became really awkward. The conversation was dull, formal, and immediately when they walked into the castle Sally went straight into the Royal Family's chambers. He took his awkwardness on the chin, but by the time he checked in, in the Military Department, he was grumpy again. His life still wasn't changing the way he wanted it too…
Antoine was currently in a fairly large chamber, a lunchroom for all the military soldiers. He just stepped out of line with a tray full of food and glanced around the room looking for an empty seat. The most experienced soldiers sat closest to the food, and the noobs sat way in the back by the entrance of the room. That's where he saw a few empty seats…and that's where he was headed…
His lips were curled down into a frown as he walked back to the empty seats; and most soldiers were busy eating their food as he walked pass them. He found indifference to be part for the course in military life. Yes, he had secured a place in the Royal Military. Only, he was not progressing as much as he hoped. Soon he finally made it all the way to the back tables and took a seat at a table full of new recruits. They paid him no mind, and even he didn't feel like talking himself. His stomach growled as he began eating his fresh steamed vegetables. He chewed his food with his brows narrowed into a grumpy expression staring down at his tray. He expected things to be different…
Because of his noble lineage, he expected he would rise to new ranks in the military quickly. But instead the exact opposite happened. He only didn't get rejected by the Military anymore because he had connections; but that didn't make up for his lack of skill. There were many soldiers that were much more skilled than him; he was struggling to keep up. That's why he was still a maggot…his drill sergeant mentioned how he'd been one longer than most soldiers were…
He'd been unsuccessful in basic training a lot longer than he would have liked, and for the first time in a while, he was starting to see some of his own failings. That he wasn't as good as he thought he was…
In the days pass, it made feelings of insecurity and jealousy bubble up within him again. And he had projected some of his jealousy onto Sonic, but now also at the other soldiers around him. And it made him realize another thing as well. That he might not ever reach the prestige Sonic had. Sonic's ability to run, his speed, it was super. It was beyond normal, and his super speed was a power he knew he could never get close to...
Antoine put more food into his mouth, and all the chatter around him drowned out as he was lost in his mind. He was going to try harder…but he certainly felt like he'd been knocked down…
And Antoine didn't notice with his grumpy expression as someone walked by behind all the maggots at the table. And on the empty seat to his left someone sat down with a tray and startled him. Antoine blinked his eyes looking over at Penelope; she smiled brightly at him.
When Antoine recognized her he smirked now looking curious "It has been zis long time. What are you doing in here Penelope?"
Penelope batted a hand at him "Standard procedure. Since the Substitute Freedom Fighters, I, and the others are still doing management like work. I like to come talk to our soldiers regularly; it helps boost morale." she said taking a bite of her food raising an eyebrow at him "Everything going ok with the Freedom Fighters?"
Antoine nodded with a weak smile "Yes yes, we all remain good friends. I have decided to pursue more patriotic interest as of late."
Penelope then donned a curious expression "That's great. You know, I usually don't ask soldiers this, but since you are a close friend. I wonder if I could run some ideas by you? And if you play your cards right I might be able to do some favors for you in the future…"
Antoine's eyes slightly widened for a moment, but then he smirked back at Penelope; seeing another way his connections could get him closer to prestige. He might be able to move up in the ranks easier if he had political favors. He nodded at her "What do you have in mind?"
Penelope got up from her seat smiling again "Let's go talk in my office."
Antoine kept his smirk feeling quite proud of himself as he got up and followed her. The soldiers around them paid them no mind either. They started up a conversation, and this time Antoine found he had a lot more in common with Penelope. With her background in governmental and political dealings, they both found they had much they agreed on. And Antoine found for the first time in a while, a person who understood his cavalier stances. And he liked the idea Penelope was proposing. That she and some others were thinking of starting a Consul…
Meanwhile in Robotropolis it was getting around noon ….
And Lien-Da was walking with her Legionnaires, as they just entered a large facility in the heart of the city. A large ridged metal door closed behind herself as she and her four Legionnaires glanced around. The building had large ceilings, and they had never entered this particular place; Eggman always kept it top secret. Lien-Da held a clipboard under her arm, and her mouth curved down into a frown with her grumpy expression.
She was meeting Eggman in this facility to discuss some data she, and he had come across. The building was illuminated by the same orange fluorescent lights that were used all around the city. It smelled of thick oil and burning fuels that stung the nose. And it looked to be another type of production facility, only it produced giant robot monstrosities. It seemed to be a place where Eggman did more of his experimental work…
Swatbots moved around doing various kinds of work as Lien-Da re-focused her attention on meeting Eggman. She walked straight ahead with her Legionnaires, as sparks and loud noisy machinery operated to her left and her right. There were many incomplete robots lined up against the walls. And there were vertical walls that separated the areas, but the areas were open. Swatbots looked to be assembling and disassembling some.
Somewhere complete and some stationary, while others were just parts neatly stacked on the side in the small areas where they sat. Surrounded by many tools, lifts, and canisters filled with unknown liquids. And Lien-Da wondered why Eggman wanted to meet her here. Surely he knew that she was getting sensitive information.
And that was one reason why she held a grumpy expression today. If he felt so comfortable letting her see such things she was even surer he was up to something. Though she knew that should have been obvious when she first started dealing with him. She just knew he had or was doing something when her networks went down…
She and her Legionnaires then were stopped by a Swatbot passing by them. It informed them that Eggman was waiting for her three workstations down from where they currently were. Lien-Da remain quiet not even responding to the bot though as she continued on. Her brows remained knotted looking upset, as it was clear in her mind at least, that Eggman was plotting against her. She just had a gut feeling he was going to try something soon…if he already hadn't…
They continued walking pass a few more walls, with a malfunctioning robot trying to break from its constraints to their left. A large group of Swatbots ran to the area as they walked pass it. Lien-Da then could see a workplace that was closed off by a giant door as she neared it. It seemed to be the only one like it. She huffed inside her head still feeling angered about her plans failing a few days ago. She was certain her non-intrusive devices would have given her control over Eggmans technology. But whatever had knocked both of their networks offline; she at least knew today that it might not have been Eggman like she previously thought.
As they neared even closer to the closed doors, they opened, and Eggman and Snively stepped out of it. The doors closed behind them, and a bright white light from the area had flushed out as the doors closed concealing it. Eggman was wearing a white sleeveless operating shirt, and a blue operating mask. Snively wore similar clothing, and a clipboard in his hand, the only thing that was the same was his usual bland expression.
Eggman removed his mask from his mouth, and he didn't grin; he held a slightly upset face "It's about time you showed up! What were your results?"
Lien-Da was unfazed by his rudeness keeping her own grumpy expression as she looked at her clipboard "The same." she looked up at him "That attack that brought down our networks seems to have originated from the Knothole…"
Eggman growled looking angrier as he rubbed his chin "I knew it! I just wonder how those filthy animals had the facilities to do such a thing. It's even more reason to destroy the Knothole and see what they have hiding there…"
Lien-Da sighed as she looked down at her clipboard again "And only forty percent of the scans we performed on the Knothole completed. We can transfer the maps to you at any time." she said un-clipping a piece of paper and handing it to Snively.
Snively took the paper, and Eggman raised a skeptical eye at her "How did you obtain those scans?"
Lien-Da frowned at him "I had an agent…" she lied.
Eggman remained silent for a moment squinting his eyes at her, then he glanced at Snively "Do you have the new building orders?"
Snively nodded looking at his clipboard "Yes sir…" he said unclipping some papers.
Snively handed them to Lien-Da as Eggman's upset face returned "Have the generators been rebuilt?"
Lien-Da nodded as she clipped her papers and looked at him "All but one, which will be completed today. We'll start on the extraction process immediately…"
Eggman looked less annoyed nodding at her, and she raised an eyebrow at him this time "You've been quite preoccupied with whatever you've been building…"
Eggman did smile a bit this time; a nasty malicious smile placing his hands behind his back "My latest greatest creation will be unveiled in time…for everyone to see…" he chuckled after his statement.
And Lien-Da's eyes narrowed at him...something just cemented in her mind…and she was sure Eggman was thinking she was plotting against him as well. Which she was…and she knew he was to now….
Lien-Da's expression became grumpy again "I'll contact you once the extraction process is complete…"
Eggman nodded keeping his smile "Excellent, now that our energy problem is leveling out we'll be able to assault the Knothole once and for all." he then turned around with his back facing her "I require sustenance. What is on the menu today Snively?"
He and Snively walked in the opposite direction, discussing lunch options, and Lien-Da turned to leave as well. Her Legionnaires followed, and her expression became angered. Her brows knotted, and she grinded her teeth. The Dark legion had invested and wasted much time in trying to take Robotropolis. All of her planning the months up until now had amounted to nothing, and it infuriated her. They were inches away from gaining control over Robotropolis, but now Eggman was getting suspicious of them. And because of that she had already made up her mind.
Lien-Da observed the facility, looking at all the support beams, and structural integrity this particular building might have. Her frown remained on her face as they neared the huge door they had entered from. She had been making her contingency plans for an exit the last few days…
The Dark Legion would take Robotropolis if she could, but if not no one would...
She would try and take Eggman down with it too if it was possible. And while she was at it, she was going to take out the full extent of her rage on the Knothole and its inhabitants. Since finding out they had something to do with their networks going down, she had something special planned for them too in the coming week…
As Lien-Da and her Legionnaires stepped in front of the exit door, a Swatbot near a panel noticed them. Then it turned around and began operating it as the huge metal ridged door opened. Lien-Da walked in a swift pace heading out the door as soon as it opened. Her grumpy expression remained plastered on her face all the way to the chemical reactors. The only thing she was unsure of was what Eggman was planning. And whatever he had planned for next week she knew was going to be an equally hard force to deal with…
Back at the Knothole…
It was after noon and creeping into the evening. It had been a day of pleasurable weather, and it was still warm out. The sun was still high in the partially cloudy skies, but would be setting soon. Much was accomplished throughout the day, and many inhabitants of the Knothole were starting to wind down. Sitting in chairs outside their hut speaking with their neighbors before dinner time. A sweet aroma was drifting from the lunch house and all around the Knothole currently. From the smell of the food being prepared, most knew the cooks were preparing a good meal tonight.
And Sonic's stomach growled as he hammered the last nail into the roof of a newly built hut. He held a neutral expression as he handed his hammer down to Amy below him; she smiled up at him. He pressed down on the wood and straw checking the sturdiness until he was satisfied.
He then hopped down off a small pile of wood and glanced at the three citizens to his right with a grin "I think we're done for today."
A male raccoon smiled at Sonic and Amy "We would have never finished so fast without your guys help."
A young girl; a squirrel; nodded her head with a happy expression "Yeah! Thanks for everything!"
Amy grinned at the trio "That's what we're here for! We'll see you all around."
They all turned to leave saying various kinds of farewells leaving Sonic and Amy alone. Amy continued to smile as they began gathering all their tools on the ground. But Sonic's grin faded from his face as they picked up their tools. He'd been faring well the last few days, trying to move pass the past issues with his friends; their distrustfulness and their betrayal of past circumstances. But though he'd been shrugging the chains of the past off, things had changed…
Everyone seemed to be lethargic, especially when he wasn't being enthusiastic himself, which was a lot lately. And that was just how he was feeling for the time being; he did what he could and only hoped for the best. Because the past was now set, and after how his friends had acted, he was having a hard time trying to forgive.
Once they gathered all their tools, Amy and Sonic began walking back to the Freedom Fighters HQ. But during their walk as Amy struck up a conversation with him, his stomach growled loud enough for both of them to hear it. Sonic donned a weak grin "I guess I should have ate more earlier…"
And Amy was just about to continue her playful behavior with him, but she saw right through his weak facial expression. And her smile became weaker "Come on Sonic…cheer up…"
Sonic blinked his eyes at her now gentle smile "We've come so far…"
And Sonic then grinned fully at her "I can't make any promises…"
"That's good enough." Amy purposely bumped into him.
Then Sonic groaned as his stomach growled again, and Amy giggled criticizing him for not eating more before they started working. That and she was going to personally make sure he had a full plate once dinner was ready at the lunch house. Though there was still an air of dolefulness as they walked back to the HQ, and Amy didn't say so, but she could see the change…
But over at the Knothole HQ….
Bunnie just entered closing the door behind herself with a worried expression plastered on her face. The same expression that had been stuck on her face since…earlier…
Noticing that no one was in the main room she briefly walked over to the lab to find Tails, Rotor, and Nicole still working. She announced that it was her, and they went back to whatever they were doing. And she was glad they didn't notice her behavior. She was actually more glad that she hadn't run into any of the guys since earlier either as she sat down on the makeshift couch in the common room. She sat down with her worried expression as her mind continued to race. Her vision was spaced out as she sat in the quiet of their HQ. She hadn't seen any of the guys during the day more so because she had been kind of avoiding them after what happened…
Sally especially because she knew she wouldn't be able to hide the change in her demeanor from her. They knew each other to well. And when she did finally encounter Sally, she was going to know immediately something was up with her…
Heck...she couldn't even hide the worry she was exuding…she couldn't hide the feelings on her face…
Bunnie's eyes remained slightly wide as she stared across the room at nothing. She'd come to a few startling outcomes that could happen, because of what happened. But the first one she would have hoped might pass…but it hadn't…
There was a fluttering in her stomach…the fluttering hadn't gone away…it wouldn't go away….and she'd felt this lightness in her gut all day…
She…she felt some sort of mistake had happened…but she had to at least admit she was feeling something…
She didn't want to…well she did…but not like this…she didn't know…
She'd been feeling jittery all day, and she knew what it was…she knew this feeling…but she wasn't going to say so…
At least for right now, she was trying to make sense of this…
Sonic and she retained a stable friendship for a long time now. They were always so frictionless with one another despite whatever happened...they never judged each other and…
And Bunnie blinked her eyes as she realized where her thoughts were trailing off too. She didn't want to think of why, but she was suddenly starting to see much more than she had previously thought…
Bunnie kept her vacant stare, with her slightly widened eyes, and her brows wrinkled in worry across the room. Her pulse and her mind continued to race, and she didn't notice as the door to their HQ opened and closed. She continued to stare ahead until her name was called, and she was startled out of her thoughts. She rapidly blinked her eyes turning her head at Sally, who looked bemused at her "…Oh hey Sally…" Bunnie said with confusion.
Sally raised an eyebrow at her with a smirk on her face "Hey yourself." and there was a short pause as they looked at one another. Bunnie's eyes became wider as Sally looked curiously into her eyes.
And before Bunnie knew it, Sally looked right through her and saw it "Whats wrong with you Bunnie? What's going on?" Sally said as her smile became mischievous.
Bunnie tried to hide herself, donning a slight smile to conceal her worry and surprise on her features "Nothens going on…I was jus thinking is all…"
But Sally shook her head still smiling brightly "That's great. Now tell me the scoop. You look awestruck, what's happened? Is it a guy?"
And Bunnie chuckled lightly, shaking her head but more bad thoughts crossed her mind. Sally was going to continue to ask her about what'd happened because they always shared gossip with one another. And that was terrible because of who it was. It was a guy, but it was the wrong guy…it just could not be known…
So Bunnie tried to nip it in the bud to throw Sally off "Nah, its nothing like thet. I was just deep in thought…thets all…"
Bunnie did her best to hold her smile and Sally looked skeptical of her lie. But Sally let it slide as she did have other important matters to tell her and the others. So Sally and she talked for a minute about new restrictions the Military and the Royal family were thinking about implementing. But Sonic and Amy showed up not too long later, greeting them as they walked into the HQ.
Bunnie was glad too as she felt that Sally hadn't believed her, but that was the least of her worries when she got up from her seat. She listened to them all talk but when she saw Sonic…the feeling inside her stirred up again…
Her heartbeat raced, and she felt a tingling down her back. She couldn't believe it…
She did her best to hide her surprise and worry though this time. Keeping a neutral expression; her stomach was in knots though. But the conversation drifted towards herself again when Amy spoke at her "Hey Bunnie? Could you take my tools into the lab? I wanted to show you this apple pie I made Sally."
Bunnie nodded as Amy handed her all her hammers, screwdrivers, metal parts, and wood pieces. She took them with her neutral expression as sally responded to Amy "You haven't had Sonic try it first?"
Amy giggled at her "Of course I did silly." Amy glanced at Sonic.
And he nodded at her with a smirk "It was tasty."
"Yeah I know it needs work." Amy looked back at Sally with a smile as they walked into the kitchen "We'll all go to dinner after this."
Sally nodded following Amy into the kitchen, and Bunnie deliberately avoided eye contact with Sonic. Sonic turned around and began walking towards the lab "It actually wasn't that bad…"
Which Bunnie knew he was directing at her, and she turned to follow him "Yeah…" was all she could muster.
Her brows wrinkled in worry again now that no one was looking at her. Because as she followed Sonic from behind the strong feelings remained; it seemed just being in close proximity now was triggering it…
And she felt terrible for multiple reasons now, but more so because she didn't know what to do now…
Some hours later…
It was dark out, but the weather was still warm. The night skies were still partly cloudy, but some of the stars in the sky could be made out. A lot of the residents were still out wandering about; torches lit around the Knothole at night made it fun to roam at night. It was mostly a peaceful night in the village today. The Freedom Fighters had all ate dinner together at the lunch house a few hours ago as they did every day, and everything went relatively smoothly. Well, it went as smooth as possible for Bunnie as she could have hoped. Because she had returned to her hut not long ago, and she sat quietly on the edge of her bed with the casing of her right cybernetic leg off. Her hut was illuminated by a candle, and she had all her new tools on the bed next to her. Her hat and jacket laid neatly on the floor under her bed.
Her brows were narrowed in determination as she looked down at her exposed leg. She'd been learning how her new limbs worked and trying to learn to maintain them. She put down a medium-sized wrench then picked up a bigger one next to herself. Then she leaned forward, leaning her body slightly to the left as she tightened a nut inside her leg.
She thought she had kept herself pretty hidden during dinner, and no one noticed her surprised demeanor. Only Sally seemed to be keeping an eye on her, and she knew she was going to be dealing with that for a while. But after dinner, they all talked for a while, spoke with the residents and everyone went off. They were having another important meeting tomorrow…
Soon though, the lose nut and bolt in her leg was tightened. And she leaned back, bending her right leg back and forth in the air. And she smiled a bit because it felt tighter, and she was done with her maintenance for the evening. Granted her cybernetics needed much less maintenance.
As she began putting the casing back on her leg, her mind came back to her main problem of the day….
What had happened earlier today…the things she felt were one issue that was for sure…
But all the repercussions of it were even worse. As she screwed the casing back on her leg worry consumed her face again and her lips curled down into a frown. She'd been repeating in her head all day that she was just confused…that she was just unsure of what she wanted…
That it was the only logical reason for why this was happening so fast after Antoine. Those thoughts only further cemented her disinterest of Antoine though, and her nervousness grew. How little did she ever care for her ex? Apparently not much considering the lightning that had hit her today…
Soon she finished firmly putting the casing back on her right leg, and she began gathering all her tools on her bed next to her. She then reached down and grabbed a small wooden box, and placed the tools into it. She sighed still feeling the lightness in her stomach, and her worried expression remained as she put her tools up. Her mind remained a slur of jumbled thoughts even now…
Like if Sally, her BFF, if she ever found out, how would it affect their relationship? Would it put more strains on everyone? She couldn't fathom that Sonic would even consider such a thing…
And Antoine what probably have a lot to say behind her back. And she knew Sally still had some sort of feelings for Sonic. It was obvious that this…it could cause even more problems than she already had…
After she put all her tools in her box, she placed it under her bed. And with nothing else to do, she was about ready to hit the sack But she stared at the light of her candle pondering more and her face became curious. What'd happened only added to her problems. She'd been saying she didn't know exactly what she wanted to do with her life yet…but that had changed today…
She'd been feeling pretty low and empty these pass few weeks, but today she'd felt her motivation return. And she still didn't want to say…but this feeling that had come over her…she knew what she wanted out of her life now…
But the way this had turned out…it just couldn't go this way…
And Bunnie stared at the flame of her candlelight with her curious expression. Some of the shock had worn off…but the feelings remained…
And a weak smile formed on her face "…Why…." she whispered then briefly closed her eyes "Drat…" she mumbled to herself as she reopened her eyes staring at the light of her candle.
Then a yawn escaped her, and her eyes began to burn. She could feel the exhaustion of the day. So she stretched her arms, and blew out her candle darkening her room. And as she lay down, an uncontrollable tender smile cracked across her lips. As her eyes closed, the buzz still gripped her senses. These feelings…they scared her…but she let them wash over her as she drifted off to sleep…
Oops! ≧◔◡◔≦ Looks like Bunnie is on da rebound! What a twist! What is Eggman up to now? What is Lien-Da planning? Will Antoine get prestige? Will Sonic be his old self again? What will Bunnie do about her newly discovered feelings? How will it affect the relationships of everyone around her? Find out next time! Later.