Sonic Haven Season 2 – Episode 17

Sonic was walking through Haven when he heard a scream of frustration come from the computer room followed by a thud. It was well muffled thanks to the modifications that they'd made to that area and so was only audible to him, though it was no doubt quite loud from inside the room itself. Also, if he wasn't mistaken, the scream sounded like it came from Sally; and it was a scream, not of fear, but of frustration.

His hand rested on the doornob as he pondered whether or not to go in and see what she was worked up about. He knew that it was very out of character for her to be this way as she usually seemed to be very well composed. No doubt it was something serious though, and so leaving her alone might not do her any good. Having made his decision, he turned the knob slowly and peeked his head inside.

Sally was sitting inside at a small desk that had been tucked into the corner. She had her face pressed flat to the top of the desk and was breathing heavily. Her red hair was messier than usual and layed over her shoulders and crept down her upper back over her blue jacket. If the scream hadn't made it clear enough, she was upset. Though over what, Sonic had no clue.

Sonic stepped into the room fully, now deciding that he was going to let this situation play itself out in the hopes that he could maybe brighten Sally's mood. "Hey Sal, you okay?" He let the concern show in his voice.

She lifted her head from the desk and whipped it over to him in both surprise and mild embarassment. She apparently hadn't heard him come in; it caught her off guard. "Hey Sonic." She said. "I... I'll be fine."

"You sure?" He asked as he sat down on a chair on the opposite side of the room from her.

She nodded yes, paused, then shook her head no. "I don't know." She said in a sigh.

He leaned forward a little. "What's up?" He was leaving it to her to tell him. This was his last question. If she deflectedthe question, he decided, he would drop it and try again some other time. However, he didn't have to worry about it.

She started to explain. "It's Robotnik." She took in a deep breath and continued. "I thought that when we took down the barrier that we'd finally achieved some sort of victory. Now we could get out of the city, military forces could get in, and we could get supplies if we decided to stay. Instead, he's already left the city and all we did was take down a handful of his several thousands of S.W.A.T. Bots, essentially nothing. Not only that, but the man who killed my father is now out there hurting who knows how many people and destroying their lives like he destroyed ours."

She held her hands up in the air in mock surrender. "It doesn't matter what I do, I can't win! Every way I look at this situation, all I see is a losing scenario. It's like no matter what I do he's three steps ahead of me! Now, all I can think of is the fact that eventually he'll be back to finish us off. How long until he returns and kills us all?"

Sonic wasn't sure how to respond, so he just said the first thing that came to mind. "You know, you're right. That sounds terrible. But you're forgetting something."

Sally cocked her head to the side inquisitively. "What's that?"

"Simple." He said as he leaned back in the chair. "We've actually won three times. And if you look at it a certain way, we've never even lost. I mean, we destroyed his factory, rescued Bunnie, and have taken down the barrier to let G.U.N. Into the city. Now we're sitting here unharmed and actually ahead of where we started. He just expanded the scale of the fight a little. We've beat him before and we'll just beat him again and again until we win the war."

"Well, I guess you're right, but there's something that you don't know." She said as she settled down a little herself. "I bumped into Bunnie and Fiona earler and Fiona told me that her commanding officer offered anyone who wants out of Mobitropolis a way out via helicopter. She said he was offering a one-way trip to Spagonia to get us away from the war. I'm not going to insist that anyone stay and fight if they don't want to. And I have to think that at least some of them will take the offer when I present it later. We're already short handed as it is, losing anybody would be a serious blow, both to strength and morale."

Sonic thought to comment on how she had started thinking so much like a team leader, but something else took precedence in his mind. "You're not planining on leaving are you?"

She shook her head firmly. "No. This is my city and I'm the only remaining member of the royal family. It's my responsibility to see anyone who stays here through to the end, win or lose." She paused for a moment, then asked: "You're going to leave though, aren't you? You seem like someone who doesn't like being tied down."

"Well." Sonic replied. "You're right about me not liking being tied down. That's never been my thing. But you're wrong about me leaving. I'm not going anywhere!" He let his trademark smirk cross his face. "I'm kinda like a barnacle; stuck to this ship, sink or sail." Then he looked down and away as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe that wasn't the best analogy."

"But, if you don't want to stay, then why stay." She asked.

"I'll go stir crazy, but I want to stay." He jerked his head to the side as he shifted the thoughts around in his mind. "No, check that, I need to stay. Much like you I have a duty to my friends. That, and I made a promise."

That last comment caught Sally's interest. "What do you mean you made a promise?"

Much like he did when he told Sally about her parent's death, he decided to just tell her the truth and hope for the best. Taking a deep breath, he started to explain. "I was at the palace when Robotnik killed your parents. I talked to them right before he got there. Your dad asked me if I could go and find you to make sure that you were safe. A moment later, the wall was blown wide open and Robotnik strode in with a bomb that buried your parents. I checked them for a pulse, but they were both dead. So, as it was your father's last wish, I promised him that I would keep you safe no matter what. Suffice it to say that even if everyone else leaves, I'm not going anywhere!"

Sally wasn't really sure how she felt about that. It was a little weird but also kind of sweet in an odd way. At the very least, she knew that Sonic had her best interests at heart and that he could be trusted to come through for her. "Thank you." Was all that she managed to say in response, though her feelings were much more complicated.

Sonic gave her a thumbs up, glad to see that she didn't think his promise was weird. "Don't mention it Sal. Just let me know if you ever need help."

She waited a moment, then changed the subject. "So how many do you think will take the offer to leave?" She asked.

Sonic thought about it for a moment. "One."

"Really. Just one?" She asked surprised.

"Yep... Antoine." He said. "I think he'll take the opportunity to get out of this stressful situation, even if nobody else does. Can't blame him."

"No, you're right." She said. "But I kinda figured that other people would take the offer too. I mean, Knuckles has some kind of duty, Max is a soldier, but what about the other..." She struggled to find the word she was looking for, "more civilian side of the spectrum? Like Rotor, or Tyler and Nicole."

"They may not have as easily identifiable reasons for staying. But, you have to remember, everyone here in Haven is not just a group of individuals living together because they have no choice, they are here because they are friends who've learned to look out for each other. Nobody here, not even Scourge if you can believe it, would abandon everyone else. Antoine wouldn't want to leave either, I just think that he might make that decision under too much stress." Sonic said.

"Yeah, I could see that." She replied. "I guess we'll have to wait and see."

"Just watch," He said with confidence, "I think you'll be surprised."

"Yeah. I can hope." She said, her tone implying that she wasn't so sure. "Anyways, can you do me a favor?"

"What's that?" He asked as he stood up and waited for her response.

"Can you go and tell everybody that I want to make an announcement today at five P.M.?" She asked. "That's when I'm going to tell them about the offer to leave."

"Yeah, sure." He said with a short nod. Then, after realizing the conversation was over he turned to leave and said: "Later Sal. Try not to get too down on yourself while I'm gone, okay?"