Protocol Cy-Fox: Version 1

by Cy-Fox Unit

[AU - T] At first, Lt. Commander Miles "Tails" Prower of the Royal Keplerian Space Navy would not be someone expected to be considered heroic as an information warfare officer on the battleship Warspite. But when his wife and twin children were caught in the middle of a surprise attack on the Space Station ARK, he got in harm's way and paid dearly with his life. Or so he thought.

Irexit – North Ireland to be released and unified with the Republic of Ireland as condition of Union with Kepler Act/Union with Britain Act pass

22 July 2086

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and North Ireland will be no more as of 1 May 2087. Instead, it will be known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Kepler as the UK will formally take possession of the territory once under the domain of the Kingdom of Acorn on Kepler-22B. With this exchange the question of Irish sovereignty that had been a point of contention for centuries will finally come to a close. The new Acts of Union 2087 will also help shepherd the Acornians (soon to be known as Keplerians) into a stable footing while also putting people in various industries to work modernising Kepler's infrastructure.

The new name of Kepler has a few different connotations. First is a homage to the German astronomer Johannes Kepler whom the exoplanet Kepler-22B was named for. Second, it is a name that has never been used by its inhabitants, an indication of a fresh new start for the nation's anthropomorphic citizens. The Kingdom of Acorn had held dominion over the territory and arguably the planet for centuries up until a military coup by Colonel Amadeus Prower of the Royal Acornian Army was undertaken to prevent a nuclear assault against the united echidna tribes that the Kingdom had been in conflict with for the last fifty-six years. This assault was stopped by a combination of Prower's coup, but also a rapid deployment of United Nations peacekeeping assets including ABM satellites, drones and troops.

Under nominal UN administration, the former Kingdom of Acorn had its military placed on stand-down as weapons inspectors took inventory of the remaining stock of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons and rendered them inert. Afterwards, the United Nations Acornian Transitional Conference was convened later in 2085. Making concessions to release North Ireland and to allow Irish unification, the United Kingdom was granted stewardship over the former Kingdom of Acorn's territories. The House of Commons passed a vote to release overseas territory on the planet to the echidnas.

In related news, a wholly independent coastal city-state on Kepler-22B was created by a negotiation with the echidnas and the Soleanna family. The famous Italian engineer Ikarus Soleanna and his wife Apollonia will be moving to the city-state, also known as Soleanna along with their young daughter Elise and will be known as the Duke, Duchess and Princess of Soleanna respectively, with the president of Soleanna Motori Regis Stocker becoming Lord Mayor and chief administrator.

Famous Keplerian 'coup' colonel knighted and promoted to General

14 October 2090

Colonel Amadeus Prower expected 7 November 2085 to be the day that he either led his troops to a successful government shutdown or to his death as he sought to prevent a madman from using his nation's nuclear weapons for the first time in battle. Following in the footsteps of Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, Captain Vasili Arkhipov and Lieutenant Colonel Stanislav Petrov, Prower was committed to stopping King Frederick Acorn by any means necessary, even willing to attempt detonation of the bombers of missiles with the (incorrect) understanding that their destruction would trigger the nuclear payloads. He managed to stop the bombers from taking off but was not able to prevent the first-generation intercontinental ballistic missiles from launch. Fortunately though, United Nations-deployed ABM satellites and drones intercepted every missile. Seriously wounded in his coup, he was tended to by a human xenobiologist who would later become a close family friend: Dr. Geralt Robotnik.

Robotnik, a second-generation Swedish-American xenobiologist originally trained as a physician specialising in genetics. However when the Warp Gate came online and survey probes sent back information about the different forms of life on Kepler-22B, he decided to return to his alma mater of Indiana University, which was also the alma mater of his famous Nobel Prize co-winner great-grandfather, Dr. James Watson, the former director of the Cold Springs Harbor Laboratory. Completing a doctorate in Biology, he went to work on a crash program to sequence the Keplerian anthropomorph genomes, the bleakly named Operation Graverobber. Secretly gathering fresh Acornian and echidna bodies by drones in the dead of night, he had them preserved and moved off-planet for study on Space Station ARK.

Robotnik's work at Graverobber enabled him to write his text Keplerian Xenoanatomy. After a hot tempered debate between the medical and veterinary communities, it was decided that xenomedicine was strictly a medical discipline and one to be integrated into the standard MD/DO curriculum, especially after haematological studies found that Keplerian blood and Human blood were interchangeable so long as proper care was taken with type-crossing and matching. Overall his creation and patronage of xenomedicine put him in the position to assist UN forces making landfall in 2085 and he was able to personally stabilise Colonel Prower until he could be brought to an aid station.

Formally, Colonel Prower was transferred into the British Army when the Acts of Union 2087 took effect and was made deputy commander of the British Army On Kepler (BOAK). With the Keplerian Army properly equipped, he was tapped to take charge and was thus promoted today to the rank of full General and also made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath by King George VII. Rumours within the Ministry of Defence suggest that he may be slated as a future Chief of the General Staff for the British Army and perhaps Chief of the Defence Staff. If so for the latter, he may find himself tackling the question of what form Kepler's space defence forces may take.

Former Keplerian military physicist Dr. Rosemary Prower aged 43, died. Foul play suspected.

22 November 2100

She had split the atom under the Kingdom of Acorn and designed the physics packages for bombs and missiles that she hoped would never come to use. Her conscience caused her to leak information about these new weapons to her future husband, then Colonel Amadeus Prower. After her husband's coup, she had resigned her commission as a major in the Royal Acornian Army and dedicated herself towards reforming her nation's education system, serving as interim Keplerian Secretary of State of Education until the new government was installed. For the rest of her life, Dr. Rosemary Prower was dedicated to her new job as a high school science teacher and mother to the family's single child, their son Miles.

That was until Dr. Prower was pronounced dead at Skane University Hospital in Sweden after heroic efforts to save her life were made. Suspected to have been a victim of radiation poisoning, an autopsy confirmed the cause of death and launched an international investigation between Swedish, British and Keplerian police and intelligence services. As of this time, no formal declaration of suspects has been made but MI5 Director-General Sir Anthony Tenthorn and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Richard Holt have reassured the BBC that they have a 'high degree of confidence' that the case will be resolved 'soon'.

Family friend Dr. Geralt Robotnik gave a brief statement on his arrival to Mobotropolis: "The family will require privacy while they acknowledge and handle this dreadful loss. We have been friends for some time and I've come to lend my friend and his son my support and that of my family."

Mobotropolis, Kepler

30 December 2100

The eight-year old fox looked around his room, stripped of important possessions, which were packed in two cases, one a carry-on, and the other a larger roller. He had come home on the day before from school, to find his father gone and Major Ogilvie waiting for him. The only explanation that he was given was that his father was ill and would be away for some time. Then to his surprise the next day, Geralt Robotnik had e-mailed an advance ticket to him with a brief explanation that he would be staying in Sweden with his wife and family.

The pale gold fox stared at himself in the mirror and adjusted his khaki-coloured necktie, tightening the knot. Then to his surprise, the door to his room opened. Miles turned his head, expecting Jules. Instead a human girl of eleven or twelve stood there, her long blonde hair running down her back with a red headband complimenting her white dress. He raised his ears in confusion, tilting his head.

"H-Hello there." Miles said quietly, muzzle flushed.

"You're even cuter than when I last saw you!" The girl strode in and smiled, holding both hands out, fingers twitching. Miles blinked, his ears staying all the way up. "Do you mind?" The girl asked. It took a few beats for her question to make sense and he couldn't help to shake his head. She got closer and scratched at the back of his ears, causing him to instinctively relax.

"We met before?" Miles asked, raising his tails up. The girl nodded and then brought her right hand in front of his face, squeezing her index finger and thumb together.

"It's all right, it was a good deal of time ago." The girl closed her eyes and embraced him, causing his muzzle to grow hot with embarrassment. "My name is Maria, Maria Robotnik."

"Professor Robotnik's daughter?" Miles asked, getting a shake of the head in return.

"Granddaughter." Maria corrected gently, slowly letting go. "I'm sorry about your parents, with all that's gone on. Now you're moving off-world at the drop of a hat. But you'll like Sweden and our school."

"Our school?" Miles asked.

"Bladins International, where I go as well." Maria explained, pointing to a red scarf as well as her hairband. "Considered to be the best school in Sweden. From what Grandfather says, you'll fit right in." Then she eyed the wall behind him, taking note of plaques from school competitions. "Electronics, mathematics and physics, what are you planning to do?"

"I don't know exactly." The fox's eyes drifted around to where posters had been tacked. He walked over to his desk and began the shutdown sequence for his laptop. "Maybe a little bit of everything." His ears raised as he turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. "What about you?"

"Oh I know I'm going to be our third doctor, the second MD. But I'm going to be a practicing physician." Maria walked up to the fox's side and sighed, placing her hand on the vulpinoid's shoulder. "It's going to feel unreal, you're going to ask yourself what you could have done differently, you're going to get angry, perhaps depressed and at some point you'll acknowledge it was outside of your control."

"You seem awfully familiar with this." Miles' ears stayed raised as he stiffened up.

"I suppose I am. Seeing people going through the grieving process, it's part of why I wanted to become a doctor. I won't ever be able to stop it from happening, the best we can do is delay it. Whether it's for a few seconds, a few weeks or even a few years." Maria swallowed. The fox turned to fully face the girl before settling into his chair. He turned the seat to face the window and felt the human's arms wrap around him. Staring out the window, he was frozen in the moment.

A cobalt blue coloured hedgehog walked into the room through the open door, watching the two. He waited for about a minute before giving a small, polite cough.

"Ready to go then, Miles?" The hedgehog asked.

"I'm ready. Father knows where I will be?" Miles asked.

"Of course. He may call of course and possibly come to see you when he's well." The hedgehog said. Then he knelt forward slightly. "May I take your bags out to the Professor's car?"

"Yes." Then Miles got up from the chair, leaving Maria's embrace, walked up to the hedgehog and blinked, offering his hand. "I'm going to miss you Colonel Ogilvie."

"You'll be back sooner or later. I'm not going anywhere while your father's in the hospital. Someone has to take care of things. It's like old times when I was your father's XO in the 1st Royal Armoured Guards. He set the mission, I get it carried out. Taking care of the bills, keeping the place orderly." The hedgehog explained. "But most importantly, making sure you're being cared for properly."

"This way I don't become a latchkey kid, right?" The fox asked rhetorically.

"Earth is a better place for you right now." Colonel Jules Ogilvie answered. He didn't want to let on that there was a possibility that the culprit behind his mother's death was going to likely try to target him next. They were intent on breaking his employer and friend fully. Though the news was not forthcoming with information, he already knew who had done the deed. Everything had the fingerprints of the Royal Secret Service of the ex-Kingdom of Acorn. If it hadn't been for his injuries from the coup reducing his energy and mobility, he would have likely taken his savings to go on a suicide mission to avenge his friend's sanity. It was hard to project how long General Prower was going to be in the psychiatric hospital, but Jules was happy with the fact that he had stopped the general's attempted suicide. Getting him back to reason was going to take time but the government was understanding. At least this way, the Robotniks were familiar and it wasn't as if he was going to some sort of backwater. This was Earth and the many sights, technological marvels and people there were awe-inspiring for him and he was no spring hedgehog. For a boy like Miles, it would be the trip of a lifetime, a sort of salve. Then there was the girl; she seemed to be as sharp as Miles, if not more. Perhaps she would be the catalyst to having him leave his room more often.

Regementsgatan 116

Malmö, Sweden, Earth

After arriving at Malmö Aeroport, Geralt had led Maria and Miles to his Ford Excalibur and drove them south on the Södra Sturupsvägen on to the westbound highway E65. They exited off of E65 onto the Inre Ringvägen which later became Annetorpsvägen, then forked off of it onto the northbound Lorensborgsgatan. Finally after a jaunt onto Ärtholmsvägen and Bellevuevägen and Major Nilssongatan, they stopped in front of a gated property near where Regementsgatan crossed Adolf Fredriksgatan. Geralt got out to get Miles' bag in the trunk. Then the two children exited as well while Geralt pointed his key fob at the gates and pressed a button, causing them to part. Miles yawned quietly, watching his breath come out in a white cloud.

They walked up the stone path to the house which had been built in 1867. The original estate covered three blocks. It had changed hands in 1963 after the previous owners sold it to Dr. James Watson and Francis Crick. As Crick later moved to the United States, the two amicably decided to transfer the property wholly to Watson. After a minor financial crisis, Watson had thought he would have to sell the property but later found himself in better straits. The home later passed to his son Duncan, then granddaughter Juliana who married a local Swede, Wulf Robotnik, Geralt's parents.

When the trio arrived at the vast wooden doors, they parted to reveal a smiling woman close to Geralt's age, with greying brunette hair. She opened her arms and Maria stepped up to her, hugging her. "Grandmother!"

Johanna Robotnik beamed and then looked back at the fox, gesturing to him. "Come now, we can't have you boys catching cold out here." Miles nodded and followed Geralt in. He glanced around in the entrance hall while Geralt took off his coat and let the fox's case sit beside him.

"How was your time on 22-B?" Johanna asked, unraveling her husband's scarf.

"Quiet and uneventful." Geralt looked down at Johanna then tilted his head towards the dining room. "I need to talk to you, Amadeus is in a very rough shape."

"Of course. Maria!" Johanna raised her voice to where it was audible. "Would you please show Miles to his room?"

Maria was in the process of taking off her shoes, which the fox did as well after a beat. Then she gripped the handle of his case, starting to pull it up the stairs. He kicked his shoes off and bounded up to follow her, also taking the handle. She would lead him up to the third floor, taking a slight turn to the left before opening a door across from what Miles figured to be the master bedroom. She set the case down and stood beside the fox.

"You look tired." Maria blinked and ran a hand against the back of his head. "Jet lag and fast food don't mix very well."

"I am." Miles blinked slowly as he moved closer to the bed. "I'll get started on unpacking when I wake up."

"Don't worry about it. You're home now." The girl moved up behind him and gently tugged on the sleeves of his jacket, freeing him from it and letting it drop to the floor. Tails crawled into the bed and rolled to rest on his left side. He slowly closed his eyes while Maria watched him, finally reaching out to pet the top of his head, a tired snort coming from his nose.

15 June 2106

Miles could feel Maria's hand against the top of his head again. Stirring, Miles opened his eyes slowly and grunted. Then he gave a glance at the clock sitting on the nightstand and finally over at Maria. She drew her hand back to her side and waited for him to get up, a lanyard with her Lund University identification card hung around her neck. The thirteen-year-old fox finally sat up and put his feet into his house slippers, groaning as he stood. Growing pains all around for the last two years, he was close to his fully mature height of five feet and eight inches.

Maria watched him as he ambled over to his closet and opened the doors, using the privacy that they afforded to change clothes. He removed his shirt and tossed it into a basket, padding over to his closet to pull out white button-up shirt and black slacks that hung together on one hanger. He took off his slippers and sat on the other side of the bed from where he had slept and got out of his pyjama pants as well, pulling on the slacks and the shirt, buttoning it first before securing the pants. He grabbed a red Bladins necktie and raised his collar, putting the tie down under it before cinching it up and lowering the collar. Above the pocket was the monogram for the school and in red was "Prower – Elektronikteknik". Maria had last worn her uniform two years ago in 2104 and now she had cast that aside for a dark blue turtleneck and denim jeans.

"Your last full day of school." Maria said quietly, putting a hand on his shoulder. Miles nodded with a small yawn. "The last time I will get to take you also."

"At least until I get seated at Lund University, you mean." The fox countered with a small smile. "Then I'll start stuffing my favourite medical student with food so that she can make it to her exams."

"You would be spoiling me." Maria sighed, reaching down to tickle his chin. "You are such a puppy, Miles Prower."

The fox's face remained flush as he started to break away from her. He reached for his bookbag and checked the interior, confirming that his tablet was in there among other things. "Ready to go, then."

"I will be at the car." Maria replied with a nod, walking out of his room. This left Miles alone in his room, he sighed quietly and looked at himself at a mirror. The flush was still on his muzzle from her proximity to him earlier. The eleven-year-old girl was now a young woman of sixteen, soon seventeen. He felt odd around her and realized soon that it was a combination of new elements to his age as well as something he dared not to voice aloud, especially to her.

Not just out of the idea of embarrassment but worse, denial. Why put one's head in the guillotine when they can just avoid it altogether? He left his room and traveled down the staircase to the front door, opening it to walk down the stone path to the gate, where Maria's 2102 NEVS 9-3 sat before. The fox walked up to the gate and pressed the unlock code into a pad, watching as it slid back. Then he opened the passenger side door, settling in before she took off towards Bladins.

2:50 PM

Regementsgatan 116

Miles had returned from his last day of school after breaking off from the Coop Nara grocery with one of the other humans of his class, Rene Hart. Bottles of unopened Cuba Cola were in his bag, an open one in hand as he entered the gate at Regementsgatan 116 with a small sigh. This was it then, no more compulsory school at least. Now he could finally start applying to colleges, perhaps even take part in summer break.

Geralt was sitting in a lawn chair with an unlit cigar in hand. Upon sighting the fox, he greeted him with a wave to the empty chair next to him. Miles could make something out in his lap, but he didn't take too much note of it. He lowered his bag down to the grass to the left of the offered chair. Then he sat down, surprised to find a cigar being offered to him.

"Aren't I four months early before I can start smoking?" The fox asked, both ears rose.

"You are but you are both finished with school, with distinction and within arm's reach of your guardian." Geralt mused. Miles took the cigar and sniffed at it, putting it between his teeth. Geralt lit a match and lit it for him before lighting his own. Miles inhaled slowly and relaxed, staring at the trees before them. "So, then what is next?"

"College applications I think." Miles replied, finally looking over at what sat in the human's lap. He made out the stamped return address of the Ministry of Defence and his own name and addresss. Geralt looked down as well, realizing that he noticed and then held the envelope out.

"It arrived today, but I did not open it." Geralt said.

Miles took it and slowly opened it, removing a perfectly folded letter. Either computer or typewriter wrote it, but the signature was by pen.

Field Marshal Sir Amadeus Prower, KA KCB

c/o Ministry of Defence

Whitehall

Westminister, London SW1A 2HB

United Kingdom

Earth

Miles Prower

Regementsgatan 116

217 74 Malmo

Sweden

Earth

Greetings Mr. Prower,

It is to this Office's attention that you will have finished your compulsory education in Sweden today and have your graduation ceremony on the weekend. It is the intention of this letter to advise you of the Chief of Defence Staff's interest in you considering your future in the Keplerian Forces. We of the Prower family have served in some capacity for several generations.

A career in the Keplerian Army would be suggestible. As an officer you will have the privilege to lead men and women as well as to attend the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. Your contribution of time and service will carry on this tradition that we are expected to follow.

When you are ready to begin, present yourself to me at the Ministry of Defence and I will make the necessary arrangements to place you into the next class at the Academy.

Regards,

Field Marshal Sir Amadeus E. Prower, KA KCB

Chief of the Defence Staff, British Military of Defence

The fox stared at the letter, re-reading a few times. Then he raised his head up in incredulity.

"My father sent a letter and seems to expect me to join the Republic Army as an officer." Miles said, wrinkling his nose.

"But that is not what you want, of course." Geralt observed.

"I was meant to work on robots and computers, not to lead people into battle." The fox growled softly, looking back at the letter. "Not to be his successor. Haven't we had enough soldiers?"

"I have to admit that I am surprised myself. I would have thought he would have fostered your engineering skills and let you follow your own path." Geralt said, lifting his cigar up to his mouth.

"I would have thought too, but then again I have not seen him since coming here. Not even after he got out of the hospital." Miles lowered his ears.

"If you would rather be an engineer then be an engineer." Geralt said, puffing on his cigar slowly.

"He speaks of obligations though. If only Mother were still alive, well I'm not sure if I would be facing this sort of dilemma." Miles folded the letter up with a low growl. "I could serve the Republic, I have no qualms with that. But this way, it seems so predetermined. How could I lead in Father's own branch? How could I be taken seriously? I couldn't be, truly."

"In any event, I would take the time to think and decompress. You're still a boy of thirteen. Keplerian majority is not until fourteen and if you change your mind and want to make a clean break of it, there are ways. Unpleasant where your father is concerned but they exist." Geralt advised.

"I figured as much." A lackluster smile formed on the fox's muzzle. "He doesn't even acknowledge me by my first name except in an address. Otherwise it's just 'Mister Prower'. Going back in had to be the worst decision he could have made. Why couldn't he have just sat at home or go work at a defence contractor? Fuck!" He stood up and clenched the letter with his left hand, putting the cigar back into his mouth as he paced around the lawn, smoking furiously with Geralt watching, shaking his head. Why indeed?

16 October 2106

Amadeus grumbled as he got out of the rental car that was ordered by the Ministry. The driver was a staff second lieutenant that was essentially a minder and secretary. Antoine D'Coolette pulled at the collar of his uniform shirt and shivered even in his jacket. It wasn't just from the cool autumn but perpetual nervousness around the field marshal. After all, he was plucked from Sandhurst after completion, making it at least to the top ten of his class despite ridicule for being a relative of the dead Michel D'Coolette.

That name even in the new Keplerian Army carried the weight of incompetence and shortsightedness. Some of the historical minded cadets even gave the dead Major General the nickname of "the Acornian Goering". So, when he studied, he had to work twice as hard to even get the time of day. But when Field Marshal Prower called him into his office to be his staff adjutant, fortunes seemed to change, even though the aging fox sometimes terrified him.

There was also a degree of guilt, for he had to be the one to type the letter that found its way into Miles' hands months ago. Amadeus had knowledge of computers of course but passed the job off onto him even though it could have been handwritten. The only personal touch he had given to it was the signature. Even as it was dictated to him and printed, he felt like tearing the paper up and deleting the file. Orders were orders though and a father's advice to his son was their own business.

The coyote made certain to stay behind the fox as he shuffled across the stone walkway, marshal's baton in hand. He then blinked as Amadeus looked up at something or more precisely, someone looking at them from a balcony. Maria Robotnik stood there in a blue dress and jacket with her arms crossed, staring back at the fox before noticing the door behind her had opened.

Miles strode out and had the pipe she had given him earlier in the day between his teeth. The briar pipe was a straight-stemmed billiard and the bowl was packed with one of the blends from an assortment of sampler tins. He lit it with a match and joined her side, realizing whom she was looking down upon.

"He looks like he is coming to summon you for tax court rather than your birthday." Maria lamented quietly.

"Accurate." Miles said, placing his hands on the railing as he stared down at the two.

"Have you made a decision?" Maria asked, looking at him.

"Mmhm." Miles replied nonchalantly. "I'm going to join the armed forces but he's not going to be happy. I'm going to enter the Royal Keplerian Space Navy."

"What about your college prospects? I thought you were going to go to Lund with me." Maria's eyebrows shot up in confusion.

"I'll still be able to study what I want but I'll also be able to serve on my own terms." The fox explained. "I'll actually be doing some honest work rather than being the Big Boss' son.

"I-" Maria looked upon his face and saw the determination on it. In one way she felt proud that he was sticking to his guns, but there was also disappointment. He was still appeasing his father this way. Who could force their son to make this decision, especially at this age? Did this really fit him? One look at the two-tailed fox, was there really a spacer in there? Sure, the Space Navy was still in its infancy and likely would not stray farther than the Kepler-22 or Sol systems and would be working with Earth space services but there was so much that could happen.

There was also one other item that was unresolved. Maria eyed the vulpinoid and crossed her arms, her chest rising and falling. She couldn't deny that despite his alien origins, he was strikingly handsome. But he didn't seek anyone of his age, human or Keplerian. With the dynamic they had with each other, as much time that was spent between them, there was something blossoming. He didn't treat her like a sister and that was not how she saw herself being to him either. This was completely wrong and unfair of his father to do this to him!

"I don't want you to go." Maria blurted out as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I want you to be happy and I know that this isn't want you want! You can leave with me and go to school. Do what you want to do. I don't want you to be unhappy, Miles."

"That's why I-" The fox hesitated for a moment and swallowed with Maria following his mouth with her gaze. The fox squeezed her arms, then his ears flattened. "That's why I'm going to miss you, Maria."

Maria's eyes widened as she caught the glistening film of moisture in his eyes as he turned away from her, making for the door. She watched him disappear, tails and all back into the house. "You don't have to do this!" The young woman called out after him. Then her voice grew quiet as she finally said the four words she couldn't bring out in his presence. "I love you, Miles."