Chapter 25: A Father's Final Message

Angel Island Village, 10:00 am…

"All settled in, are we?"

Owen paused his unpacking to turn to see Cream standing in the doorway. "As well as can be, I guess." Owen replied. "But all I need is for Dad to get back and things will be fine.

Cream felt a tinge of sadness as her conversation with Roman earlier in the day replayed in her mind, but ignored it, saying: "Yeah." Looking around, she said. "Hard to believe this used to be Roman's house. Back before that big rift he had with Sally."

"Back before I was born." Owen said.

"So, are you planning to talk with Sonia anytime soon?" Cream asked. "I mean, you are going to be this group's leaders if your father doesn't-"

"Don't say it, Cream." Owen snapped. "My father is coming back. He has to." He said this to hide that deep within, he was terrified. About half an hour ago, he'd felt a pain unlike any he'd ever felt before, like something had been stabbing him through the chest. He was panicking at the notion that it had something to do with his father. Since then, he'd busied himself with unpacking, trying to keep his mind off of it.

Cream sighed. "I'm just saying; it might be a good idea, since you two need to-"

"What we need is some space." Owen said. "Until such a time that I feel like talking to her. I don't need someone telling me to go talk to her while I'm still angry at her; it just won't end well."

Cream opened her mouth to respond, but sighed and shut up. She knew Owen was right. Any contact between Sonia and Owen at this point would result in another argument. "Okay." She said. "Do you need anything? A drink? Some food? I mean, you haven't eaten since last night."

"I'll be fine, Cream." Owen replied. "I've gone longer without food and drink. Sometimes, all I need is the Force."

Cream nodded before she heard her comm come to life:

"Sugar! Ah jus' saw the first ship land! They're back!"

"On my way." Cream said as her eyes met Owen's. "You coming?" She asked.

The young vulpine immediately stood and walked out of the room. He wasn't about to force his father to come to him.

Outer gate of Angel Island Village…

"Hello, Knuckles. Anything?" Cream asked as she drew close to the imposing Echidna.

Knuckles shook his head. At the same age as Roman, Knuckles also bore several scars, the result of fierce defences of his island against Imperial assault. One such was the obvious absence of his left eye, which now had a robotic replacement that was very creepy to look at. Also, his fur was tinged with grey, as Roman's was. But what hadn't changed was his immense and imposing figure, as he towered over most still. "No sign of Tails or Roman. They're probably on some of the later ships. It's all of the wounded at the moment."

Owen drew in a sharp intake as he nearly allowed frustration to take over. As much as he cared for his father, Roman clearly had a penchant to keep those he cared about waiting.

His frown deepened as a voice behind him said:

"Figured you'd be here as well."

Owen turned to see Sonia behind him, saying: "Was wondering if you'd show up."

"Well, someone royal has to be here to greet the stragglers." Sonia said. "I assume you're here to greet your father, then. If he's survived."

"He's survived worse in the past, Sonia." Owen retorted. "Anyone here can tell you that."

"It's true." Said a voice nearby.

Owen and Sonia turned to see Ashla shuffling over to them. "Ash, you should be resting." Owen said.

"Owen, you can't deny me a chance to see Roman as well. He was my father as much as he was yours." Ashla said. For the most part, her attire had remained the same, except now, a bandage had been wound around her eyes, covering the scars there, and a clear sign of her blindness. A walking stick guided her path at the moment, but once she had learned to see without her eyes, she'd told Owen she'd no longer need it.

"She's got a point." Cream said. Her eyes suddenly spotted someone emerging, saying: "Well, I can see Shatter."

Owen turned to see the former clone captain making his way over, a sad look on his face. Probably because Tusk died in the battle, Owen thought, noting the absence of the ARC Trooper.

"Wait… There! I see Tails!" Knuckles suddenly shouted.

Owen looked up, seeing the twin-tailed vulpine's face amongst those close by. A grin crossing Owen's face, he made to shout a greeting, coupled with an inquiry into where his father was, but then Owen took note of Tails' sorrowful expression, and what Tails was carrying in his arms.

Owen's eyes widened as he recognised the dead body of his father.

The first thing Owen felt was his knees suddenly buckling beneath him, forcing him to his knees. The next was the sound of his breath coming in short ragged gasps as his strength suddenly left him. Then it was the sensation of fresh tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

Somewhere next to him, he heard Sonia gasp, followed by a remark of:

"No…"

It was a remark echoed by Owen, although it came out more of a whimper than anything else. "No…" Owen said again.

Suddenly though, he found strength in his limbs again, and he broke off towards Tails, who lowered the body just enough for Owen to near snatch it from him, falling to his knees as he shook the corpse, moaning: "DAD!" Shaking his head in denial, Owen shook his father's body, saying: "Come on… Don't do this to me, Dad. Don't do this…" Owen let out a choked sob as he finally let loose, letting out a loud cry as he held his father close. "No…" Owen sobbed. Lowering his father's body to the floor, Owen buried his face into his father's chest, soaking it with his tears.

Watching this, an equally tearful Sonia placed her hands over her mouth, horrified and stricken beyond belief with grief. She'd seen several interactions between Roman and Owen, and she knew that Roman had loved Owen more than anything. And it had been the same the other way around. She suddenly found herself rushing towards the scene, kneeling by Owen and taking him by the shoulder. "Owen…"

Owen simply slumped into her arms as he continued to cry, drenching her with his tears.

It was around this time that Tails reached Cream, both of them crying visibly.

"I couldn't save him." Tails sobbed. "But I-"

Cream shushed him before pulling him into her arms, husband and wife shedding tears of their own in mourning of a person both had long called their friend.

Meanwhile, Sonia simply was saying: "I'm sorry. Sorry for ever saying anything I said yesterday. Now I…"

"It's not your fault, Sonia." Owen replied. "You were stricken by grief for your own parents." Looking up, Owen added between sobs: "I guess we're both orphans, now."

Sonia tearfully nodded and pulled Owen close, hoping she was giving the younger vulpine some semblance of comfort for the pain he was feeling at his father's death. She knew he needed it.

Later, Owen's house…

Cream found the door still open from how Owen had kicked it open before stepping closer, knocking on the door and calling out: "Owen? It's Cream."

"I'm up here." Owen called out, likely from his room.

Walking into the house, Cream traversed the stairs into Owen's room, finding him sitting on his bed.

"Hey." Owen said. His eyes were extremely puffy, and were noticeably bloodshot. Tears stained his cheeks even hours after he'd first cried them.

"Hey." Cream said, trying her best to maintain a smile. "Are you alright? It's been some time since we've seen you."

"I just lost my fucking father, Cream." Owen snapped. "What idiot thinks that qualifies as alright?!"

Cream backed away, startled at Owen's outburst.

Owen immediately let his features soften. "Sorry. When I lose somebody, I tend to become an asshole."

"It happens, Owen. To all of us." Cream said, walking over and sitting next to Owen on the bed. "It's just, people were getting concerned. Especially Tails."

Owen sighed. "Figures." The young vulpine said. "I've just been letting it sink in… That he's gone."

"Has it?" Cream asked.

Owen looked up, revealing eyes still wet with tears. "No." He sobbed.

Cream sighed and pulled Owen into a hug, letting the young fox cry into her shoulder. "Hey…" She said. "It's okay…"

Breaking away, Owen asked: "What am I going to do? I don't know anything about being a leader. I never wanted to become one."

Cream nodded. "Neither did Tails. But sometimes, the people who want it the least have to step up. Like the Jedi had to do during the Clone Wars." She suddenly remembered something, saying: "I've something for you."

"What?" Owen asked.

Reaching into her pocket, Cream fished out the holo Roman had given to her what seemed like a lifetime ago. Handing it to Owen, Cream said. "It's from your father. He… he asked me to give it to you in the event that he… Well, you know."

Owen studied the holo curiously before he looked up at Cream. "Did he tell you what's on it?"

Cream shook her head. "My best guess is it's a message. Something that'll… that'll ease the pain." With that, she stood and left, leaving Owen with the holo.

Sighing, Owen pressed the activation button. Time to see this message.

Almost immediately, Roman appeared in front of him.

"Owen…" Roman said. "If you're watching this, then it's happened. Vader's killed me, and Cream's done as I asked. Good on her."

Roman sighed as he said: "If this finds you still mourning my passing, then I'm sorry if this is merely salt to your wounds. But, I guess what I'm going to try and say is a few things to ease your pain, as well as give you some measure of confidence to be the leader I know you're capable of being."

Sighing, Owen's father said: "Here goes. I've not done many of these, so bear with me."

Owen allowed himself a small chuckle at his father's remark.

"The thing is, I've always known this was coming. Ever since I heard a prophecy during the Clone Wars that one day me and a friend would face an unwinnable battle against an unbeatable foe that only me or my friend would walk away from." Roman paused before saying: "For a time, I thought it'd either be Ahsoka or your mother. And I thought that when your mother died, the prophecy had been fulfilled. I'd faced an unbeatable foe with one of my best friends at my side, and she happened to be the one that died." Roman sighed as the memory seemed to return to him. "But ever since coming back, I'd come to realise that the friend the prophecy referred to was Tails. And when that happened; I made the decision to ensure that out of me and him, Tails would be the one to survive."

Owen's eyes widened at the revelation, to which his father said:

"And I know, you're probably wondering why the hell I did that. Well the truth is, Tails has a five year old son and an even younger daughter. To rob them of their father so I could spend more time with you is probably one of the most selfish things I'd have done in my lifetime." Smiling through clearly tearful eyes, Roman added: "Because I've already had the time to see you grow up into someone any father would be proud to call their son. Because while I may be dead, I died knowing just how proud I was of you." Pausing, Roman added: "And just how much I love you, Owen."

Owen felt some pain return as tears began to flood his sight.

"Ever since you were born, I've loved you." Roman said. "What father doesn't love his son? Or daughter?" Looking around, Roman said. "I may be dead now, but at least I died with only you in my heart. And that's something not even death will be able to take away from me. Not now, not ever."

Roman took a moment to catch his breath. "Fuck, this is making me more emotional then when I married your mother."

Owen let out a small laugh as his father's sense of humour managed to manifest itself once more.

"But now, I know you have your reservations about leadership." Roman said. "And admittedly, I know you're not ready. But I guess no-one ever is ready for leadership, regardless of how much they're groomed for it." Folding his arms, Roman said: "So since I'm no longer around to guide you, I'm going to lay down some simple words of wisdom, borne from my own experiences."

Sighing, Roman continued: "The first thing is to not worry about being unready for leadership. It's okay to be worried about that. Heck, I remember when Roth gave me my first command. I was nervous as all shit. Throughout the mission I kept checking my pants to see if I'd shit them."

Owen nearly flat out laughed at the short anecdote, thinking it to be just something his father would do.

"Next, if you don't have an answer to something; then that's okay." Roman said. "People have this stigma that leaders always have the answers to everything. The truth is they don't. They say they do because they want everyone to think they're a good leader. I say it's not. If you don't have the answers, then say it. It may not make you popular, but popularity was overrated long before the Clone Wars started." Roman sighed as he added: "Finally, take the advice of others. Just because you're in command doesn't mean your opinion is the only one that matters. Sally made that mistake when Seth died, and we all know how things turned out then. Listen to Tails, listen to Sonia, heck, listen to everyone. They're all only trying to help." Roman paused before adding: "I hope."

Owen smiled as Roman once more spoke:

"The thing is Owen, you've always had the attributes of a leader. I've said this before when I told you that you were leaving with the others, and I'll say it again: When you fought Vader, you did it knowing full well you weren't ready. That in itself takes serious courage to do. Furthermore, you fought him ready to defend Sonia and Manic to the death. The fact you possessed the courage and willingness to give your life for others told me just what I needed to know. What's more, you've got a personality to fit being a leader: You're charismatic, you're a good fighter, and on top of that, you're smart. Things like that are good qualities to have if you're leading a group of people. They'll listen to you, appreciate your fighting prowess, and look to you for answers." Roman paused as he said: "And that's all I have to say about it." Looking around, Roman said, clearly fighting back tears: "I guess this is goodbye, then."

Owen started feeling tears as well, just as his father said:

"Goodbye, my son. I love you… So fucking much." And with that, the holo-recording ceased.

Owen barely contained his own tears as he whispered: "Goodbye, Dad."

Meanwhile, Master Emerald Shrine…

"What do you mean, you're not going to take leadership?!" Knuckles demanded. "You're the most experienced out of all of us!"

Tails scowled as he folded his arms. A meeting had been convened of the village's most senior members to decide who would be the one to lead them in the years to come. "That's true." Tails said. "But the fact of the matter is; Roman knows I've never had a taste for command. In fact, he knew that I hated command. Which is why I'm willing to act as a second-in-command to whoever does take leadership, but not the leadership role itself."

Knuckles scoffed. "Who cares what Roman thought? He's dead now."

"Knuckles, that's not the way to respect an old friend." Sonia said. "I was told that you were always respectful to friends that had passed on."

Knuckles scowled. "That was before Roman left. Now, it took all of my willpower not to spit on his corpse."

Sonia scoffed. "Funny. Before he was killed, Roman seemed to want me to take leadership, like my mother did before me."

Knuckles gave her an 'are you serious' look before he burst out laughing, a guffaw that while pleasant enough when Knuckles was in a good mood, meant the opposite when he wasn't in a good mood.

Sonia scowled, asking: "Any idea what's so funny?"

Pausing his laughter just enough, Knuckles replied: "It's funny, considering that fifteen years ago, Roman probably would have killed you."

"Well then it's a testament to his character that he didn't." Sonia fired back. "And in case you haven't been told, my mother made peace with Roman before she died. So maybe that's something you should consider doing."

Knuckles scoffed. "The dead can't hear you, Sonia. So why bother making my peace with Roman now?"

"You can do it tonight at the funeral." Tails said. "Owen's going to be there. So maybe he can make peace with him on his dad's behalf."

"Speaking of Owen, Roman wanted me and him to co-lead the Freedom Fighters." Sonia said. "Him combatively, me politically."

Knuckles' eyes narrowed. "Do you seriously expect people to take you seriously? You're both kids. Leave leadership to those old enough to actually know how to lead, Sonia."

"People tended to take my mother seriously when she led the Freedom Fighters." Sonia snapped. "And she was seven when she took control."

"That's because she actually knew how to lead." Knuckles said.

Everyone gasped at the remark, and Sonia bristled.

Knuckles didn't let up. "Touched a nerve did I?" He asked. "Well maybe you should think twice before-"

"Shut up!" Shouted a voice.

Everyone turned to see that Owen had entered the room.

"Owen…" Sonia said. "When'd you come in?"

"Around the point that Knuckles said that we were just kids and should leave leadership to the grown-ups." Owen said, stepping further into the room.

"So what have you got to say about it, kid?" Knuckles asked.

"Nothing except that I recognise that to someone who thinks of themselves as manly and grown up, yeah, I am a kid." Owen replied. "But what you fail to remember is that I'm the son of a war hero. One of the best Jedi Knights of his time."

"And look what's just happened to him." Knuckles said.

"Knuckles, could you please knock it off?!" Tails demanded. "Let him talk."

"Thanks." Owen said. "And you're forgetting that Sonia here was the daughter of the former leader of the Freedom Fighters. If Sonia doesn't already know a thing or two about leadership, I'd be surprised."

Sonia smiled at the remark, adding: "And like I said, they were both forced to grow up at an early age. My mother slightly more than his father, but he got round to it."

"So were we." Owen said. "Albeit the other way around."

"Right." Knuckles said, not believing anything coming out of their mouths. "So, any idea on how to topple the Empire this time around?"

Tails made to intercede, but Owen silenced him with a hand.

"I'm not going to pretend that I know all of the answers." Owen replied. "Nor will Sonia. Because the fact of the matter is; we don't know all of the answers."

"Hah!" Knuckles scoffed. "Then how do you expect to-"

"But that's where you all come in." Owen interrupted. "Because we're not going to be able to win against the Empire on our own. Everyone in this room has either fought or resisted the Empire at some point in their lives." Looking to Tails, Owen said: "You're all here to help us lead. Because some of you will have the answers we don't know, or the paths that we don't find." Owen sighed. "My father realised that neither me nor Sonia were ready to lead." He admitted. "And I'll admit it; we're not. But ask yourselves, was Sonia's mom ready to lead when she formed the Freedom Fighters?" Looking around, Owen added: "Was my dad ready to lead when he was given his first command during the Clone Wars?" Pausing, Owen said: "The answer to both of those questions is no. Neither of them were ready when they became leaders. But I know for a fact that while the times will come that me and Sonia make mistakes, as we all do sometimes, the opportunity arises to learn from them, and do better next time." Stepping up so that he stood by Sonia's side, Owen said: "And that's why I think me and Sonia should be the ones to lead the Freedom Fighters."

Tails looked around to the surrounding people: Knuckles, Shadow, and Rotor. Smiling, he asked: "All in favour?"

After eyeing the people around him warily, Shadow was the first besides Tails to raise his hand. "Your fathers were two of the only people I respected in this life." Shadow said. "Consider this my way of honouring their memories."

Bunnie raised her hand, smiling at Owen, who returned the smile thankfully.

Rotor too raised his hands, saying: "This is my way of making my peace with them."

Owen and Sonia nodded appreciatively.

Seeing how much was stacked against him, Knuckles sighed. "Fuck's sake." He groaned, raising his hand as well.

And with that, Owen the Fox and Sonia Acorn were the leaders of the Freedom Fighters.

Looking around, Owen looked at Sonia. "Guess we've got the reins, now." He said.

"So we do." Sonia replied, sharing his optimistic smile. They turned to face the assembled Freedom Fighters, of which Tails asked:

"So what now, guys?" He asked, smiling.

Owen and Sonia shared a look at each other before they both looked up at the sky, and Owen swore he saw his father smiling down on him, and he gave a nod before looking down towards the Freedom Fighters and said: "Now? Now, we say goodbye to those that have fallen. But after that, it's time to get to work. The Empire's not going to topple itself."

"Hear, hear!" Tails shouted as the assembled Freedom Fighters milled out of the area, leaving Sonia and Owen alone in the shrine.

Taking Owen by the hand, Sonia looked towards him. "You'll make your father proud. I know you will." She said.

Tightening his grip on her hand, Owen replied: "We'll both make our parents proud, Sonia. By burning the Empire to the fucking ground." Together, they returned to looking at the sky. Their parents may have been dead, but within the hearts of their children, their memories would live on forever.

Well, it's been quite the journey, hasn't it?

From the first time I introduced Roman the Fox to the time he breathed his last breath, it's been a journey. And it's been one I've enjoyed taking all of my readers on. But, this is still rather bittersweet, in that I'll be saying goodbye to one of the characters I've personally created. It honestly feels like saying goodbye to a very dear friend that I'm unsure whether I'll see again or not.

I'll definitely miss this series. I'll certainly miss writing some funny quip Roman cracks, or one of his remarks towards Silver and Blaze over their intimate relationship. But what I do know is that he'll return in the future; although not as the central character.

With that said; thank you all so much for taking the time to read this fanfiction. If you liked it, then leave a review in the appropriate section. In the event that you really liked it, then give it a favourite, so you can read it whenever you feel like doing so.

And on that note, I say goodbye to this series. But rest assured, the story of this fanfiction series has not completely finished. You might recall I have a prequel series planned. But before I get round to that, I have to conclude my Transformers and Sonic the Hedgehog Series. Which may or may not take me another whole year to complete. But hey-ho.

Regardless, I shall see you all soon.

T-Rock14