Hey everyone, I'm back and decided that the show must go on! I finally found a way to progress my story and am currently in the process of writing the next chapter as we speak. Sorry it took so long, work along with family issues have taken priority once again. Now it's safe to say that the hiatus has officially ended and we're back on track.

Anyway, onto the next chapter.

The next two months were all but a blur to the Freedom Fighters. Outside of Tails' condition, the tiny village was currently forced to ration their food supply due to the air becoming much colder as the seasons changed from fall into winter much sooner than anticipated, with some of their crops being lost to the frost. Many of the difficult decisions fell onto Princess Sally's shoulders, such as to who got rations and who didn't. These decisions didn't sit well with the villagers as many of them accused her of hoarding the food and showing favoritism when someone close to her was given food instead of themselves. The same was being said about many of their dwindling medical supplies as she began to prioritize Tails' wellbeing as he was still comatose.

Sally shivered in her sleep as an ice cold breeze crept through her window in the early hours of the morning, she pulled the covers over her shoulders as she swung her feet over the side of her bed. It felt as though her feet were beginning to numb as they touched the floor, she threw on a pair of socks that sat on her nightstand as well as a thick robe that sat at the foot of her bed as she made it over to her window, promptly shutting it. She made her way out of her bedroom, flicking the light switch on and off.

The power is out now too?! To be without any power, especially when it was this cold was far from a good thing. She ran down the steps almost instantaneously, tripping and falling into Bunnie and almost knocking her over.

Bunnie regained her footing after she had caught Sally before dusting off her coat. "Sally 'girl, you need to be careful-" She was was cut off.

Sally was frantic and trying to push past Bunnie with all of her strength, which wasn't much due to the rationing and the cold. "Bunnie! Let go of me! The power is out and Tails-."

"... is just fine." Bunnie said calmly. "Rotor came in and connected an emergency battery to Tails' life support earlier just before the power went out. He said it should be enough until he can get the power running again."

Sally quickly regained her composure, as much of it as she could anyway. "Did Rotor say how long it could be out?"

"He said he could have it back on in maybe a couple days to a week, for now we have to rely on our emergency batteries."

"Does the command center and field hospital have any power?" Sally asked, concerned.

"Yeah, the command center has power but not much, just enough for the essentials. Rotor gave most of the emergency batteries to the field hospital."

"That's good, Dr. Quack's patients need every bit of electricity Rotor can spare." she said before eying Tails' bedroom door.

Bunnie knew Sally wasn't really interested in talking about much else right now, she was too worried about Tails'. The rabbit stepped aside and decided to let the princess pass her.

Sally walked into Tails' bedroom to check on him. There she still saw NICOLE hooked into Tails' life support system, running her system diagnostics and monitoring Tails' vitals. She then looked over at Tails, who still laid motionless on his bed and was beginning to look much more emaciated than he did before the incident. His fur was matted, unkempt, and was slowly losing it's bright yellow color. Seeing Tails in the state he was in broke Sally's heart. All she wanted was to hear him laughing and to read him his favorite stories again. She wished that all she had to do was call his name and that he'd wake up but wishful thinking did nothing. Things were never that easy, especially for the Freedom Fighters. She walked over to his bedside and pecked his cheek before rubbing his head, still the only sign of life being the steady rise and fall of his chest.

She looked through the books and toys that were all packed away neatly on the shelf next to the bed, wiping away the dust that had collected over the last few months before pulling out a well worn book. It was an old copy of the Wizard of Oz and it was one of his favorites and it was the story she was reading to him before Tails fell into a coma. For a few moments, time stood still. She remembered the scene in the book she was reading to Tails, the scene where Dorothy had met the Scarecrow for the first time, and let out a light chuckle. Tails' favorite line from the book was "Some people without brains do an awful lot o' talkin'. Don't they?" Despite having been read to him very often, he still laughed at that one line.

Sally put the book on his nightstand before walking over to NICOLE, who was still running her diagnostic scan of the life support system. "NICOLE? Are there any updates on Tails' condition?"

"His condition has not improved, but aside from slow muscle atrophy due to lack of physical activity, his brainwaves and vitals are still stable."

"What about his life support, are there any changes to that?"

"System diagnostics indicate that Tails' life support is operating at ninety-five-point-eight percent efficiency. The only known issue is the limited power supply, but this is a minor issue that can be resolved once power is fully restored.

Sally let out a sigh of relief, she's glad that at least something was going somewhat smoothly. She looked over at the two IV bags, one that was connected into Tails' arm, and the other into his . both of which were nearly empty. She turned towards the small locked refrigerator that sat next to the life support machine and opened it. There she saw only what seemed to be three of each type of IV left inside. We're running low. she thought before grabbing two, one with water and one with food before shutting the refrigerator and quickly clipping the feeding tube into them.

"Bunnie, we're going to have to let Dr. Quack know that we're going to need more IV's for Tails." she said loudly to Bunnie, who was still in the other room.

Bunnie walked inside Tails' room with a look of concern on her face, she looked at Sally and was nearly frozen as she fumbled to think of what to say.

Sally gave the rabbit an inquisitive look, she could tell she was hesitating to say something but wasn't sure what. After a moment of silence, Sally spoke up. "What's wrong? Is there something you don't want to tell me?"

Bunnie let out an exhausted sigh, she really didn't want to tell Sally but it was something she had to know. "I went to get more IV's for Tails earlier, but Dr. Quack said he won't give him any more."

Sally's eyes shot wide open and she began to tremble, her heartbeat quickening as the shock set in. She placed her hands on Bunnie's shoulders and shook her rather violently as she said "He won't? Why not?! Doesn't he understand if Tails doesn't get those IV's he could starve to death?!"

"Sally, calm down!" Bunnie responded, her voice shaking as she was shaken. "He doesn't have much medicine or first aid left. He needs what he has left to treat everyone under his care."

"Calm down?! How can I be calm right now?!" Sally shouted as tears filled with both anger and dread formed in her eyes. "We lost most of our crops to the frost, forcing us to ration our food. We have more sick, injured, and dead, than able bodied. The villagers hate me because they believe I'm hoarding food, water, and medical supplies for me and my friends. All the while, I have to care for an orphaned child in a coma, who'll die if he doesn't get what he needs!" she sobbed.

Bunnie pulled Sally's arms off her shoulder, lightly pushing her back. "Do you think losing your cool will help?!" Bunnie yelled, angry at Sally for putting her hands on her the way she did. But she let out a sigh, she knew Sally didn't mean it. Poor girl is just on edge is all, we all are. she thought. "Listen, I've already sent Sonic and Antione out on a supply run. I told them to search the city ruins for food and medicine."

Sally looked up, confused. "You sent Sonic and Antione out... together?"

"Those boys need to learn to get along and work as a team." Said Bunnie.

The chipmunk sighed and rested her face in her palms, Bunnie was right, Sonic and Antione never really got along but she thought that this was the worst possible time for them to learn how to "team-bond". "We're stretched thin anyways. You think they'll find anything in the ruins of Metropolis?"

"I don't know, but it's our only option."

"What about Robotnik? How are we supposed to fight him?"

"We can't, we don't have the resources or manpower right now." Bunnie sighed.

Sally put her chin into her hand as she tried to hold back her feelings of dread and anger. She knew they were rationing their supplies, but she wasn't aware of how much they really had left. Did they really have very few supplies left? Were they being stolen? Or are were they being hoarded, like how she was accused of doing so? Asking these questions now got her nowhere. She looked to NICOLE and quickly asked "NICOLE, can you tell me how long Tails can possibly go without food or water?"

"One moment... given Tails' current condition, due to lack of physical activity, Tails' body has atrophied rapidly. However his metabolism has slowed therefore his body needs less nutrition than normal. He would be able to go without food for a minimum of a month."

"What about water? How long can Tails go without water?"

"Water is an essential resource for the body, regardless of metabolism, he will need as much as possible. He would be able to go without water for a minimum of a week before experiencing symptoms of dehydration."

"Can't we just give him water from the spring?"

"That would be an effective short term solution if his body was in better condition. As a long term solution, that would be ill-advised, given what IV fluids are comprised of and how they're administered. His body will also be more sensitive to diseases in it's current state."

Sally fell into the chair that sat next to Tails' bed, the feeling of powerlessness had hit her much harder than before as the reality of the situation had set in. She placed her face into her palms and began to sob softly.

Bunnie approached her and began to rub her back softly despite being unsure how to console her friend. This was by far one of the toughest seasons the Freedom Fighters have gone through, they have been through much but never once were they on the verge of starving or on the verge of losing many people to sickness and injuries.

Sonic... I know you too have pulled us through the worst of times. So has Antione... but now we're REALLY counting on you.

The air of Metropolis reeked with pollution, the clouds in the sky were so black that no one without a clock could tell if it was day or night, the ground laid completely barren and lifeless, and the city was so silent that you could even hear the metal in the large towers bend. The only things that inhabited the city now was that of Robotnik's robots, scouring the devastated city for scrap and resources to continue powering his factories and his machines as well as patrolling the city in search of Freedom Fighters and any other mobians.

"C'mon Ant, why do you got to act this way all the time?" Asked Sonic as he tapped his foot, looking over to the coyote who was hiding behind a pile of rubble. "You should be used to this by now."

"I am used to this, you imbecile ." Antione spat as he began to step out from behind the rubble, albeit a bit slowly. He lugged a large camping backpack over his shoulders, pots and pans banging about behind him with each step he took.

"Really, you're calling me names?" Sonic spat back. "You're the one making all the noise on what's supposed to be a quiet operation."

"That is funny coming from the one who has the most fun, how you say, flipping Robotnik's switches."

"The phrase is "pushing Ro-butt-nik's buttons" Antione." Sonic said, deadpanned.

"I know what I said."

Sonic sighed before turning to the ruined city before him, looking around to see if any robots were in sight. He didn't know why, but the city seemed to be much darker than Knothole at night, giving the city a much more eerie look. The only thing that gave the ruined city any sort of visibility were the lights that were still powered on inside the abandoned buildings, to which was a mystery despite the fact that they were abandoned. Still, Sonic shook the thought away and erred on the side of caution.

"Man, it's hard to tell what any of these buildings are... or were in this case." Sonic said as he and Antione rounded the corner. "I can't see a thing here."

"M-maybe it's b-best we just leave. Live to f-fight another day, yes?"

Sonic furrowed his brow and glared at Antione. "You know we can't do that." He said angrily "Knothole needs those supplies. Without them, lots of people could wind up taking a dirt nap. Including Tails."

Antione shivered when Tails was mentioned. Nobody in the Freedom Fighters, especially Sally, would let him forget, not that he intended to. They coyote let out a sigh and looked over the buildings, hoping to make something out of what he could see. As his eyes began to adjust to the darkness around him and Sonic, he pointed out towards a building with a collapsed sign in the front with text that read: "ius - General - hos."

"Sonic, over there!" the coyote said, pointing.

"What are you pointing at, dude?" Sonic asked.

"It's the old general hospital."

"You sure?"

"Do you doubt my navigational skills?"

"I doubt a lot of stuff about you, Ant." Sonic said as he gave another deadpanned expression before looking in the same direction as Antione. "I swear... is the writer even trying?" he said to himself, shaking his head. "It's like he's making it obvious where we're supposed to go."

Antione gave Sonic an inquisitive look. "The writer? Who's that?"

"Don't ask." he said before grabbing Antione and speeding to the hospital. The two looked around and only saw the window as their only entrance as the front door was nothing but rubble. The two made sure they were completely alone before Sonic gave Antione a boost over the edge.

Antione quickly reached down from the edge and helped Sonic up before walking through the broken window, being mindful of the sharp and jagged edges of the glass.

The two jumped down from the window and onto an old carpet that managed to muffle the sounds of their feet as they landed. Even though the city looked empty, they had to be extra careful as Robotnik's robots could be listening from anywhere. Sonic and Antione both pulled out some flashlights and switched them on before scanning the room. They soon found themselves inside what looked to be the reception area, old and rotted papers covered the counter and the floor, broken and dusty computers sat on the desks with one broken on the floor. Sonic looked over at one of the computers that sat on the desk and saw a light near it's power button and out of curiosity, pushed the button.

The computer soon whirred to life and an old OS screen appeared before opening to the main desktop.

"Hey, it still works." Sonic said, rather excitedly before hopping into the chair.

"Sonic! We need to be looking for medicine and food, not playing computer games!" Antione said assertively.

Sonic spun around in the chair and raised an eyebrow. "We might be able to learn a little more while we're out here. Might have an idea where the medicine could possibly be." he said before spinning back around towards the computer. "Besides, Sal taught me how to use one of these. I might as well put my skill to use while we're here."

Antione huffed before looking behind him "Fine, no one listens to me anyway." he said, irritated. He pointed his flashlight down the hallway to make sure that nothing was coming before looking back to Sonic who was typing away at the computer. "You're taking an awful long time."

"Hey, you think I like bein' slow?" Sonic said before looking to the screen once more. He flipped through the desktop folders and saw what had seemed to be old records of past patients as well as their status while being treated. "Nothing yet, it seems like there's nothing useful here." he said as he scrolled down even further. When Sonic scrolled to the very bottom of the folder and found an odd file. He wasn't sure if the clock was off or anything, but the file was recent and only about a week old. He clicked it open and began to read it.

-October 15th, 57XX-

Trace and I managed to capture one of the caravans today, we hit a jackpot! It was loaded with all kinds of things, ranging from new tech and weapons to food and medicine. I'm going to guess it was for Robotnik, he's the only human left in Mobotropolis, or so he thinks. Dodging his SWATBot patrols have become increasingly difficult lately, guess he caught on to the fact that we were raiding his caravans. Not that it mattered, that fat bastard is persistent as hell and determined to find us. Luckily, we've been hiding out in the southern city ruins for the last few months now. SWATbot patrols rarely come through here, and when they do, they don't stick around very long. Not sure why but I don't really care either, makes it easier to hide from Robotnik. The next caravan raid is in a few days, we need to be good and ready when it goes through the northern sector.

"Hey Sonic, I-I don't t-think we're the only ones h-here." Said Antione very shakily.

Sonic sighed and turned the computer off. "Yeah, I got the feeling too. This file was pretty recent and-" he was cut off mid sentence as he heard the sound of clicks and grinding metal, along with the sound of what was a high-powered flashlight turning on. The hedgehog quickly turned and saw what looked to be five or six towering figures looming over them with rifles pointed at their faces. But they didn't look like SWATbots, each one looked as though they wore armor but they didn't cover every bit of the body, just the head, face, and torso. Their headgear had strange goggles on top of them, and they glowed an eerie green color. They didn't grind or click when they moved either, just the shuffling of cloth and footsteps. Sonic quickly realized that these weren't robots but were flesh and blood like them.

"Ant! They're hum-" was all the blue hedgehog could say before he was hit with what seemed to be a dart in his arm, he shut his eyes and fell to the floor, unconscious.

Antione looked on in horror as he kept his hands up in the air as more approached them. "Please! Don't hurt me!"

One of the figures in front of Antione pulled out a radio and flicked it on. "Overlord, this is Alpha Leader reporting in."

Alpha Leader, what is your status? Over.

"We found two bogeys in the reception area, please advise. Over"

Are they SWATbots?

"Negative sir, they appear to be Mobians. Over."

Are they hostile? Over.

"Not sure. We neutralized one with a tranq-dart and the other immediately surrendered. Awaiting further instructions. Over."

Alpha Leader, your new orders are to detain them and return to base camp immediately. Over.

"Acknowledged, Overlord. Alpha Leader out." the man said before putting his radio away before turning his attention to Antione. "Alpha-four, restrain him."

Antione did his best to stifle a scream as one of the taller looking figures pulled a bag and placed it over his head before restraining him with a pair of handcuffs. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! LET US G-"

"Shut him up before he gives away our position!" said Alpha Leader, yelling at one of the others.

Antione began to panic, unsure of what was going on around him before he felt something hard hit him in the head. He sat in a daze and tumbled before falling to the ground, unconscious.

The last thing Antione heard just before passing out was the faint sound of "What are these things doing way out here?"

Well guys, that's the end of this chapter. Again, I'm sorry this took a while to get out. But don't worry, the next chapter may be on it's way soon as it is nearly halfway finished. I was working on it prior to this one and decided to take a break. Also work kind of made it difficult.

I hope you enjoyed it and I'll see you again soon.