A Tale of Two Brothers
Hey Peeps, I don't own anything related to Sonic or his universe, that's SEGA and all other companies relevant to the creation of his various back-stories, and even though most of them have tanked it now that is beside the point. Honestly, I actually own very little in this fic (next to nothing apart from some background alterations) but this is my story and even though I am using characters from Archie, DiC and SEGA I will be fleshing many of them out because they were only 2-dimensional so in some ways they will appear very OC hopefully you'll bear with me! Anyway, I've bored you to tears with this disclaimer so enjoy and let me know what you think! X
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Slayer 666: Haha, did nineteen wake you up? I told you in the Little Notes section the focus of this fic would be changing.. And to be honest, how often in these kind of fics do you ever get to see our main character work his way up only to have to fall right back to the start and try again? It's probably the most original Sonic-plot I've seen in a while to be honest.. As for the idea of Jules recovering Prince Rob, it's doubtful. You probably won't hear much of him again in this story, he's officially 'missing' now and I pretty much have Jules' stint with the Mobian Army worked out already, it's going to be very dark and dramatic, don't you worry! I admit I always wanted to take this fic right back to the darkness of SatAM and then darken it a little more. I know Sonic is mostly for kids but Sega is forgetting that this generation of gamers also includes those that are older and grew up with the blue spike-ball, they're missing a whole section of gamers. If they want to move forward they need to go back and darken Sonic down a bit, stop mollycoddling kids because they all play Call of Duty..
****Knuckles is red and Sonic is blue… Happy Valentines people, here's a chapter for you!****
Chapter Twenty:Does He Deserve A Chance At Absolution?
Over the following days King Ogilvie the Third was reminded of why he hated scandal in the palace. The press were practically hounding his every move outside the safety of Hedgington Hall still desperate for a hint at the name of the Royal Guard who had disgraced him so. The emerald-green-quilled hedgehog remained calm and silent in their presence, giving them no more than a simple 'no comment' for their time and effort but still they seemed to doggedly stalk him proving that they just weren't satisfied with this reply. The green-quilled middle-aged hedgehog did not want to fuel the press into running a hate campaign against his now suspended captain while he was awaiting for a decision on what would happen next.
Despite his dalliance with the Princess of Mobius Captain Jules Hedgehog's work-record was faultless, he'd always been a good, reliable officer on patrol in the palace. From what King Ogilvie the Third had learnt from the long serious talk he had shared with his daughter after initially finding out about the two of them, Jules Hedgehog barely let their relationship affect his work in the palace. This certainly explained why no-one had found out about it before now. According to Princess Aleena when his restraint did slip while on duty it was usually because she had coaxed him into letting it. Of course this was followed by the awkward question of whether or not the princess' virtue was still intact. Princess Aleena assured her father that she and Jules had gone no further than kissing. Apparently the cobalt-blue hedgehog had always remained reluctant to take it further due to his respect for King Ogilvie. It was probably this show of loyalty more than anything that was holding the green-quilled hedgehog back from summoning Jules Hedgehog and having him dishonourably discharged from the Royal Guard..
King Ogilvie the Third could not even escape the scandal in his own home either. His throne room seemed to have turned into a circus for his high society friends and supporters. The opinion was divided between this high class gathering of mobians. While most of them were outraged about how such a fling could even happen and were vying for Hedgehog's instant dismissal there were a few that were more sympathetic towards the Captain of the Royal Guard. It was causing the royal court to quarrel somewhat over his worth.. It was at this point that it all became too much for the blonde-quilled female hedgehog to bear so Princess Aleena was now hiding in her private chambers while her green-quilled father was left to mediate the two opposing sides.
'It is outrageous!' Lord Henley Montclair cried out in anger, his white-gloved fist shaking to illustrate his feelings. 'Hedgehog is not worthy of our princess! He is nothing more than a lowly guard, hired to insure her safety! The very fact that he would dare abuse his majesty's trust in such a manner is.. is… just despicable!' The light-blonde-furred mink blustered, his high-class accent still sounding pompous even in his anger. Behind him Lord Montclair's venomous words had caused those who agreed with him to cry out in agreement.
'Now who are you to say such a thing Henley, you've never even taken the time to speak with him.' A soft-grey-furred dog-mobian spoke up from the opposing side. He was dressed in a long flowing green cape with a sharp pale-blue suit and had a crop of slightly thinning dark-grey hear-fur. The Duke of Velcomia looked over at Lord Montclair with serious deep-grey eyes. 'I may not agree with his behaviour but I've always found Captain Hedgehog to be a rather likeable young fellow.'
'Know him? I don't need to know him to see what type of gentlemobian he is..' The light-blonde mink-mobian closed his eyes and raised his tiny black nose haughtily. 'His actions speak more than words ever could.. He lied to the king, he abused his position and has henceforth dishonoured our royal family's good name in the process. The boy is clearly nothing more than a scoundrel..' Lord Montclair sounded with clear conviction in his nasally-toned upper-class voice. His supporters behind him made agreeable noises and many nodded their heads in agreement.
'You're wrong!' A shrill female voice cried out with indignation in response to his words and this made Lord Henley Montclair's deep brown eyes widen in shock. He immediately swivelled his head around to find a young light-brown furred female chipmunk with copper-red ringlets glaring at him with her arms folded across her chest. Her pretty sapphire-blue eyes were filled with defiance while she stood wearing a smart navy dress-suit. 'Jules isn't like that..' She hissed vehemently and jabbed her slim light-brown finger out towards the mobian-mink forcefully. At this point a larger light-brown hand was gently placed on Alicia Acorn's left shoulder which caused her to glance slightly upwards to see her tall fox-mobian husband now standing behind her looking down at her with concern.
'Alicia, please.. This isn't our place to-' Maximillion began softly but immediately the red-headed female chipmunk shrugged her husband off.
'Max, I'm not gonna stand here and let this pompous upper-class twit slag off my friend..' Alicia lowered her voice as she gripped Mayor Acorn's lapel and scowled at him.
'Yes I understand how you feel but Henley does have the majority of influence in this room. His family has always been well-respected in the royal court, my family name will protect you a little but we Acorns don't have the same sway we once did. Be careful my dear if we are ostracized by the court then we will not be any help to anyone.' Maximillion continued in his quiet but calm voice and Alicia sighed before smiling slightly and releasing him from her tight grip.
'I know your worried Max, but if I don't stand up for what is right then isn't our family name sullied anyway.. After all Alexander Acorn was a huge believer in freedom and equality to all.' She said softly to her husband and immediately Maximillion blinked at his wife then nodded in silent agreement, relinquishing his own grip on her as the light-blonde mink spoke as if their short one on one moment had never happened.
'Oh isn't he Mrs Acorn?' Lord Henley replied with a tick twitching in his right temple, he was clearly repressing what annoyance he felt at being spoken to in this manner by a lady in the royal court. 'Well why don't you enlighten us on how you would know?' He added firmly, placing his white-gloved hands on his waist.
'I used to date him when I attended Acorn Academy..' Alicia replied with a slight smirk and an eyebrow raise which clearly read 'checkmate'. Lord Henley merely let out an over-dramatic groan of despair at her words as his hand slapped his forehead in an almost comic fashion.
'Oh my! Maximillion, just who have you brought into our royal court?' The light-blonde mink-mobian added in a tone expressing his despair at the knowledge of Mayor Acorn's wife attending a public school. He fanned himself as this was almost too much to bear.
'Now steady on Henley, my wife is not the one who's worth is in question here..' Maximillion's usually kind blue eyes narrowed in annoyance towards the light-blonde mink-mobian, the light-brown fox-mobian moving beside his teenage wife and wrapping an arm around her protectively.
'Maximillion's right..' The voice of another young aristocrat spoke up, another pale-furred fox-mobian with slicked-back red head-fur by the name of Declan LaTour. His father had been a wealthy philanthropist and when he had passed away he had left his son a vast fortune meaning he would not have to work a single day in his life. '-we are discussing Captain Hedgehog. Let us not become side-tracked here.'
'Thank you Declan..' Maximillion blinked surprise at his words, not expecting LaTour to side with him on this matter.
'Don't thank me just yet.' The young twenty-something red-headed fox-mobian waved Mayor Acorn's words away. 'I happen to agree with Lord Henley. Hedgehog's actions do not place him in a very good light, do they?'
'But Jules is a good mobian, I swear by Sauna he's not a bad guy.' Alicia said instantly, her tone was almost pleading as she was desperate for the royal court not to judge him so harshly.
'How can he be honest if he was disrespecting our king by defiling his daughter?' Lord Henley Montclair snapped out and the majority of the room made noises of agreement, some even nodding their heads as well.
'He hasn't defiled her! He loves her!' Alicia cried out, hot angry tears starting to pick her sapphire eyes now at the stubbornness of the high-society around her. 'Sire please..' She suddenly turned desperately towards King Ogilvie the Third who gave a slight start as this was the first time he had been openly addressed, the middle-aged green-quilled hedgehog had merely been listening and watching the argument before him while musing over his own feelings towards his cobalt-quilled captain. '-Jules only kept his feelings from you because he feared you would not deem him good enough for your daughter. He wanted to prove himself to you, I implore you to give him that chance. Let him prove himself to you once and for all..' The light-brown-furred chipmunk-mobian uttered softly as she gently placed her small hand on the white sleeve of the King of Mobius' uniform, her watery sapphire eyes locked with his calm maroon ones, silently pleading him with her gaze.
'Mrs Acorn unhand the king this instant-'
'Silence Henley!' King Ogilvie whipped around and scowled slightly at Lord Montclair's sudden interruption and immediately the light-blonde mink-mobian was quiet and moved meekly back in line with those who felt the same way as he did. Opposite them stood Maximillion Acorn with the Duke of Velcomia, Lady Elizabeth Windermere and the D'Coolette's, all their eyes were gazing in amazement at the fact that young Alicia Acorn seemed to have held the king's attention over Lord Montclair which was something new to the court. Her husband's kind blue eyes widened a little as the King of Mobius placed his white-gloved hand on Alicia's small one.
'My dear child..' King Ogilvie the Third sounded in a soft voice as his maroon eyes narrowed kindly at the eighteen year old female chipmunk who was now knelt beside his throne. 'Your devotion to young Jules is admirable, he's very lucky to have such a loyal friend.' The green-quilled hedgehog then squeezed her fingers gently. 'I cannot make promises but I will seriously consider your words Mrs Acorn..' King Ogilvie the Third then pulled her hand off of the sleeve of his uniform and let go with a slight smile. Alicia immediately grinned widely back widely and threw her arms around his neck, hugging the suddenly stunned king tightly.
'Oh thank you..' She trilled happily before her sapphire-blue eyes widened in shock at what she was doing and Alicia suddenly saw her husband gesturing wildly for her to let go. 'Uh, sorry your majesty..' King Ogilvie the Third blinked as the female chipmunk pulled away flushing furiously at her social faux-pas but the green-quilled royal hedgehog chuckled good-naturedly at her.
'Quiet understandable my child. But let's not make a habit of it now..' King Ogilvie the Third winked slightly at her and immediately Alicia stumbled backwards towards her husband.
'I won't sire..' She squeaked girlishly, still unable to process how relaxed the King of Mobius was about her hugging him. Maximillion Acorn slipped his arms on her shoulders and pulled her gently to him.
'Sire..' Lord Henley Montclair began moving towards the throne now, determined not to be outdone by an eighteen year old womobian. 'Hedgehog is just a guard. He has no history and now no prospects, what does he possibly have to offer your daughter? He's a nobody-'
'Alright Henley, that will do..' King Ogilvie the Third said interrupting him before sighing heavily. 'Now if you all do not mind I wish to be left to my musings..' The green-quilled King of Mobius said politely to the crowd of upper-class mobians and they nodded politely with a bow, murmuring their farewells before leaving. Maximillion Acorn guided his wife out as Lady Windermere smiled kindly at her.
'You did your best Alicia dear, the rest is up to him now..' Her voice murmured sympathetically.
'I know, thank you Elizabeth..' The red-headed chipmunk murmured gratefully. Behind them the other high-class mobians were muttering between themselves and uttering their distaste at Alicia's highly forward behaviour with their king.
As the room cleared slowly King Ogilvie the Third let out a sigh, his mind was conflicted over what to do about the whole sordid mess that Captain Jules and his daughter had created. He knew that Jules' actions could not be condoned but the King of Mobius couldn't help but feel a pool of sway due to the fact that Captain Jules had shown great respect towards both him and his daughter by leaving her virtue intact, it showed his good character despite the dishonesty of the affair. King Ogilvie was feeling strong mixed feelings about the whole scandal. His maroon eyes spotted his old friend and fencing partner Armand D'Coolette who was one of the last to leave with his pregnant wife. Madame Marie was now sporting quite a large bump and had one hand placed neatly on it as she moved slowly.
'Armand, old friend..' The green-quilled hedgehog got up and walked towards the pale-tan-furred coyote-mobian. The general's deep-blue eyes turned to his long-time friend immediately. 'May I speak with you a moment?' Armand D'Coolette glanced at his wife and Marie nodded sweetly before kissing his soft-furred cheek and leaving the two of them alone.
'But of course mon ami. What is eet tu are wishing to be discussing?' Armand D'Coolette asked with an intrigued kink of the brow. His white-gloved hands rested neatly against his lower back as he walked with his oldest friend.
'You've worked with Hedgehog in the past Armand, what is your opinion about all this?' The green-quilled King of Mobius spoke softly, curious to know what the light-tan-furred coyote knowing that he could trust him to give his honest opinion. Armand D'Coolette brought one white-gloved hand back around and stroked his light-blonde goatee as he considered how best to answer his friend and ruler.
'Mon majeste, 'Edgehog ees, how you say..' Armand clicked his fingers, his expression twisting as he tried to think of the phrasing in Mobish. '-a loose cannon. 'E can be un peu reckless as demonstrates 'es actions but 'e is a bon mobian at 'eart. I am not condoning what 'e did 'owever deescharge would be our only option..' The coyote-mobian finished with a firm line, he knew that there was no comeback from what the teenage hedgehog had done. Whatever way he looked at it Jules' actions were highly inappropriate and he would still have to face the consequences of them.
'Yes, yes..' King Ogilvie the Third waved his white-gloved hand with a little impatience now. '-I know that there's no way around Hedgehog's dismissal but I don't want the boy to suffer any public humiliation.' These words made General D'Coolette blinked then give a sly smile.
'Ah, ees that why tu kept 'es name away from zee press?' The coyote-mobian replied.
'Partly.' The green-quilled King of Mobius said plainly before sighing and pinching the pale-skinned bridge of his nose. 'The truth of the matter is, I think I may actually like the lad Armand.'
'Oui?' The French-speaking coyote-mobian sounded surprised at this admission from his king. 'Somezing is telling me that tu is wanting more than just an opinion from moi.' Armand's deep-blue eyes looked straight into King Ogilvie's maroon eyes seeing his conflict plainly without his old friend saying a word.
'Is there anything you can do to lessen his dishonourable discharge from my services without it looking as though I have intervened at all?' King Ogilvie asked seriously now, his maroon eyes searching his oldest friend's face. Perhaps there was a chance of absolution for Jules Hedgehog, a chance to prove himself worthy to the royal court. At these words Armand D'Coolette suddenly looked deep in thought as he tried to think of a solution. He did not question his king on why he was asking this favour, King Ogilvie the Third had admitted a certain level of fondness towards the teenage hedgehog and that was enough. Suddenly an answer hit the mobian-coyote and he smiled widely at his oldest friend and fencing partner.
'I theenk I am having an idea.' Armand D'Coolette replied before turning on his heel and headed for the double-doors of the throne room. 'Just be leaving it with moi mon majeste.' He needed to track down General Prower and discuss this fully with him…
'Very good..' King Ogilvie replied as he turned away from his oldest friend and began to muse on the other thing that was bothering him… Jules' lack of history…
A few days later in the secluded hamlet of Knothole, hidden deep within the Great Forest on the Green Hill mountain range Lionel Lion and Doctor Charles Hedgehog were stood in the open clearing by the lake just behind the wooden cabins of the settlement. This respectable expanse was also the only place with a large enough clearing to properly test Lionel's hovering board while the experiment was also concealed from the mobian-public so as not to draw attention to the uniqueness of the hovering device. The hot-red board with a single yellow stripe down the middle was hovering stationary beside Charles' younger brother Jules. The cobalt-blue hedgehog was wearing his usual bright-red vest-top with white zipper up the middle of his chest. His old brown combat-boots were gone and in their place were a brand-new set of two-tone wine-red boots with bright-white soles. Jules had ordered them the day after he had been suspended as a pick-me-up for his low mood and collected them yesterday, tossing out his now 'out-dated' brown boots. Ever since his older brother and Lionel had sold their combined rubber-compound to the shoe manufacturers who designed the boots that he wore Jules was able to order his boots to be specially made for him without having to turn to Charles every time he wanted new shoes. Along with his old red-vest and new combat-boots Jules was wearing his aviator specks on his forehead just under his quiff of blue quills. These would protect his eyes from the brightness of the midday sun that was shining down on and glittering against the rippling waters of Knothole's lake.
'So how exactly does this thing fly Lionel?' The eighteen year old hedgehog asked curiously as he stepped up onto the hovering board which bounced momentarily as it adjusted to the weight change.
'The power-stone converts the ether around it into energy which is processed and compressed into the thrust boosters and forces the board forward..' Lionel said and immediately Jules' expression melted into one of complete loss. The blonde-lion then smiled in a friendly fashion. 'Basically it runs on air Juice, all you have to do is tilt the board to make it move in four dimensions i.e. up, down, right, left.. The board will sense the shift in body-weight and move with you.'
'Right, sounds simple enough.' Jules responded with a smirk then adjusted his footing so that now he was stood one foot in front of the other adapting a stance usually used in snowboarding. 'Let's surf some turf..' He drawled coolly before pushing his aviator specks down over his warm-hazel eyes and leaning forward. The moment the board's axis changed with the shift in weight it jerked forwards, hurtling through the air with Jules balancing neatly on it, his fringe of blue quills curling up and back up over his head and following the natural curve-line of his top-most head-quills.
Charles and Lionel's jaws simultaneously dropped at the terrifying pace that Jules Hedgehog was now travelling at.
'What speed is he going?' The mild-blue hedgehog asked in a tone laced with slight worry and Lionel looked down at the display-screen of the flat-screen clocking tablet he was holding.
'Around the two hundred miles an hour mark..' The blonde-lion replied casually, knowing that Jules could handle the speed he was moving at.
'Is that safe?' Charles immediately followed his first question with another, still worrying about the wellbeing of his only family member.
'This is why I wanted Jules to be our lab-rat Chuck. In anyone else's hands I'd say no but since your brother can run at a top speed of four-hundred and seventy-eight miles an hour I'd say this is pretty safe..'
'Pretty safe?' Charles repeated and Lionel sighed and rolled his blue eyes at the eldest Hedgehog-brother.
'Chuck, this is Juice: the fastest guy in Mobius. He can handle any speed this board can dish out and I can't wait to see how fast this hoverboard can go!' The blonde-lion added the last part with a gleeful glint in his eyes, looking suddenly excited at the prospect of finding out his new invention's top-speed. At this point a loud whoop of glee came from the opposite side of the lake made both scientists swivel around and widen their eyes as Jules and the board shot upwards into the air at an almost vertical ascent.
'YahhhhHoooooo…!' Jules cried out in delight as he stamped down on the board and it pinged upwards at an incredible rate, the knee of his long cobalt-furred leg was almost pressing into his broad chest as he ascended with a wide grin splitting his muzzle. When the eighteen year old hedgehog had climbed to a height that he knew would make his older brother sweat Jules immediately pushed his front foot against the board and straightening his knee slowly and sending himself into a swift aerial spiral. With a jerk of his rear foot the board evened out swiftly and he shot across the canopy line of trees back at the other side of the lake. The four-foot two cobalt-blue hedgehog laughed out and tilted his position, making the hoverboard do a hairpin one-eighty-degree turn and shoot back towards the lake to where his brother and friend stood together.
'Lionel, this thing is incredible..' Jules declared brightly as he gently pushed down on the board causing it to descend, controlling it's speed by gently shifting weight between his feet before stopping the board by setting one wine-red boot on the ground. The cobalt-blue hedgehog then lifted his aviator specks and grinned at his best friend. 'Hands down, your finest work bud!'
'Thanks.' Lionel replied with a grin, forestalling an irritable looking Charles from scolding his little brother on his reckless boarding. 'How about a speed test Juice? I wanna know how fast you can push it..' Immediately Jules grinned widely at these words and his aviator specks slid down his eyes once more.
'Let's do it to it, man.' The teenage hedgehog grinned with a thumbs up and then immediately hopped back onto the board.
'Here, take this.' Lionel passed Jules a wireless earpiece, which the cobalt-blue Hedgehog-brother then inserted into his ear, and a small clip-on microphone which the cobalt hedgehog clipped onto the collar of his red-vest. The lion-mobian then placed a small tracking device onto the base of the hoverboard so the clocking tablet could track him. The yellow-furred lion then turned to Charles and passed him the discreet headset with microphone. 'This will keep you in constant contact with your brother.. That way, Sauna forbid, if anything does go wrong we'll know straight away.'
'Thanks..' Charles replied putting the headset on his head and moving the microphone in front of his mouth. 'Now don't do anything stupid up there Jules, y'hear?' The mild-blue older Hedgehog-brother said with a slight frown knowing that his risk-taking younger sibling was prone to being reckless to the point of self-inflicted injury.
'Yeh, yeh Charlie, quit worrying about me I always bounce back.' Jules' warm-hazel eyes narrowed behind his mirror-like aviator-specks. Charles was always such a stick-in-the-mud and worried far too much for his liking.
'Yeh? Well if you don't start using your head you're gonna bounce so far it would take a miracle for you to come back-'
'Oh now you just sound like dad..' The cobalt-blue eighteen year old hedgehog drawled, cutting his older brother off before his sentence was finished and folding his arms with an irritable pout twisting his nude lips.
'Alright, that's enough guys, you can bicker later. Can we just get this test over with?' Lionel interrupted the scowling hedgehog-siblings before this argument turned serious. Both Charles and Jules swivelled around as one and blinked, they'd almost forgotten Lionel Lion was even there.
'Your right..' The older mild-blue-quilled older Hedgehog-brother sighed.
'Sorry Lionel..' His cobalt-quilled sibling added then slid his feet further apart on the hoverboard. The blonde-furred mobian-lion smiled at his two friends warmly at them for apologising, he could forgive them easily because he knew how hot-headed the Hedgehog brothers could be sometimes. Stubbornness was a trait that ran deep within this family.
'Forget it, I know what you're like.' Lionel replied amiably before turning his blue eyes onto Jules with a smile. 'Ok Juice, whenever you're ready..'
'Just be careful..' Charles added, the gleam of worry for Jules' safety still in his eyes as he really didn't want anything to happen to his little brother.
'Sure thing Charlie..' Jules replied automatically before grinning widely. 'Back in a few!' The board then shot off at incredible velocity and vanished up and over the canopy of trees at the opposite side of the lake. While Charles watched his brother disappear into a speck of nothing Lionel's eyes remained glued to the screen of his clocking tablet.
'Two hundred miles… Two-fifty… Three-hundred..' He sounded, reading off the numbers as they appeared, the board's speed was still climbing.
'How are you doing Jules?' Charles asked into the microphone of his headset as one white-gloved hand touched his right-side earpiece.
'Pretty good Charlie, I think we're almost there I'm just gonna give it one last push.' Jules' voice came back loud and clear since his earpiece was small and protected in his ear canal inside his head.
'Alright give it all you got..' Charles replied and this caused Lionel to glance around as the speed figures were not appearing as quickly now they had crossed the three-hundred and fifty mark.
'How's he doing?' The blonde-lion asked curiously the moment his eyes returned to his screen.
'Fine.. He thinks he's almost there but he's going to try one last push.' Charles replied with a reluctant sigh. He knew his brother would be fine but he'd made a promise to his father on his deathbed that he would always look out for Jules and it was for this reason he just couldn't shake off his worries.
'Holy Sauna...' Lionel grinned with excitement, his eyes widening as the figures were still rising. '-he's almost reached the four-hundred mark! This kinda begs the question: where is he on Mobius?' The blonde-lion then asked curiously and Charles immediately turned his attention back to his earpiece.
'Jules, just out of curiosity: Where exactly are you at this second?' His pale-blue eyes narrowed as he waited for a response.
'Um… I'm not one-hundred percent on that Charlie, the scenery is kinda just blurring at the moment. If I was to hazard a guess I'd say from the mass of vibrant green that has just appeared I'd say the Great Jungle of the South Mobius continent.' Jules' voice came back and Charles gasped out loud causing Lionel to blink at him.
'What? What did he say?'
'He reckons he's above the Great Jungle of South Mobius.' Charles replied.
'Really?' Lionel blinked. 'Wow… he got there in only five minutes, now that's impressive.' The blonde-lion grinned brightly.
'Yes but he's deliberately going that fast, the average speed this board goes at clearly is more like two-hundred miles an hour.' The mild-blue hedgehog replied with a smile.
'Yeh, your right but it's still impressive..' Lionel added with a smile before his eyes widened at the number on the tablet-screen. 'Oh my, he's almost at the four-hundred miles an hour mark.'
'Wow, really?' Charles added with a smile and he looked at the figures that were now slowly crawling past the four-hundred mark, tenuously making its way to the four-ten mark. Both scientist-mobians watched together as the numbers trickled toward four-twenty.
'Alright… think that's as fast as this board goes, guys. How fast am I going?' Jules' voice sounded through the earpiece and Charles touched it automatically.
'About four-hundred and twelve miles an hour.' The mild-blue hedgehog replied.
'Wow. Really? That's all?' Jules' voice, though surprised, didn't seem as enthusiastic about this result as the two scientists by Knothole's lake. This was most likely because he could sprint faster than that even if he couldn't keep up the momentum for long. 'Ok I'm gonna turn back now should be with you shortly-' His voice seemed to break off from his sentence at this point and there was a long pause before Jules' voice sounded again. 'Hold on, I'm gonna have to stop and take this call guys.' There was a distorted sound that could be Jules removing the earpiece out of his ear and then everything was silent.
'What's happening?' Lionel said recognising the concern crossing Charles' face as he pulled off the headset.
'Jules has stopped to take a call. It must be the General Prower wanting him to come in for his disciplinary.' Charles bit his nude bottom lip with worry as his mild-blue pointed-ears dipped with concern.
'Ouch. Well, we knew this had to come sooner or later Chuck and Jules said he would take whatever they gave him like a real mobian.' Lionel said in a soft sympathetic tone. He had been astounded to hear that 'Bernadette' was actually Princess Aleena and Jules had been dating her secretly. Once he had had time to process the huge web of lies that his cobalt best friend had spun over the past two years Lionel had decided that there was no point being angry at what had happened, that couldn't be changed now, he would just have to move forward as Jules would need his support.
'I know… I just feel so helpless knowing there's nothing I can do.' Charles sighed heavily as his blue eyes scanned the tree canopy for any sign of his younger sibling, anxious to hear what the palace was saying..
'Hedgehog, good. Your right on time, come inside..' Amadeus Prower said the next day when Jules Hedgehog knocked on the slightly ajar door of the Royal Guard main office. The golden-furred fox-mobian beckoned the young hedgehog inside and to the seat in front of his desk. By this point Jules had been suspended from duty for a whole week and even though the cobalt-blue hedgehog knew the only logical direction they could go it did not stop him from feeling nervous as he crossed the threshold and moved to sit in the chair.
'I understand you've come to a decision General Prower..' Jules said in a calm voice that masked his true feelings but they weren't truly hidden as a small flicker of his nerves twitched his lips and his white-gloved fingers fidgeted restlessly on the arms of his seat.
'Oui. We 'ave 'Edgehog.' The nasally voice with the familiar French accent made Jules' cobalt-head swivel around to see Army General Armand D'Coolette leant against the far wall as his piercing deep-blue eyes looked directly into the teenage hedgehog sat nearby.
'General D'Coolette! Wh-what are you doing here?' Jules automatically jumped out of his seat in shock as his eyes widened at his ex-commanding officer. His cobalt-blue head then swivelled to General Prower and blinked. 'What's he doing here?' He scowled, pointing an accusing finger at the light-tan coyote stood at the side who apparently was observing this hearing. He wasn't his boss anymore so Jules saw no reason for him to be here.
'You'll see in a moment Jules, just sit down would you.' The golden-furred fox-mobian said with a sigh and slowly the teenage hedgehog slipped back into the seat, not taking his eyes away from Armand D'Coolette.
'As you already know Captain Hedgehog you were suspended last week because of gross misconduct concerning our princess, since we all know what those details are I see no reason to voice them now.' The moment Amadeus Prower began speaking Jules' pupils snapped onto his commanding officer once more. 'If you have anything further you wish to share with us or have anything to say in your defence now would the time to say it.'
'I have nothing to add..' Jules replied solemnly as his hazel eyes narrowed. He had not spoken to Amadeus at all in the past week of his suspension, mostly because he wanted to give the mobian-fox time to come to terms with the truth. General Prower had always come to his defence in the past and this betrayal had obviously hurt him deep as his voice still retained a small hint at his broken pride.
'Very well. I regret to inform you that due to the severity of the misconduct we at the Royal Guard must issue you with a dishonourable discharge. You of course understand what this means. You will not be welcome back on palace grounds nor will you be able to get another job with another military outfit.' The fox-mobian said calmly, his hands resting on Jules' discharge papers which he had not stamped yet with the correct hallmark.
'Yeh, I figured this is what would happen..' Jules sighed, folding his arms across his chest. 'For what it's worth I'm sorry I betrayed your trust General but I'm not sorry for the way I feel about the king's daughter.' General Prower's mouth quivered from its serious line as he picked up the discharge papers then sighed.
'I… understand Jules but this isn't personal, it's business.' The golden-furred fox-mobian said gently before scanning to see if the information on the sheets was complete.
'Which ees exactly why I am 'ere Mousier 'Edgehog.' Armand D'Coolette suddenly spoke up, moving forward towards Jules' seat and resting his hand on the backrest of the chair. The cobalt-blue hedgehog swivelled his quilled-head around so he could keep the light-tanned coyote's gaze. 'I am, how you say, prepare-ed to be offering tu un deal..' Armand D'Coolette concluded with a wolfish grin.
'What kind of deal?' Jules kinked a brow curious but also guarded, unsure of what to expect from D'Coolette considering their working history together.
'Un zat eef tu are smart tu will be taking..' The coyote began to pace the back of the office with the cobalt teenage hedgehog watching his movement shrewdly.
'I'm listening..' Jules murmured in a cool tone, still curious to hear this offer.
'General Prower 'ere 'as agreed to not be giving tu a deeshonourable deescharge eef tu are agreeing to be coming with moi over to zee Mobian Army.' Armand D'Coolette said in a serious tone as he whipped around to face the young hedgehog once more.
'You mean I have to transfer over of my own freewill?' Jules sounded unsurely, his mouth grimacing with distaste as he knew there was a war going on and no doubt he would be swept up into that.
'Jules. No-one will make you sign yourself over..' Amadeus Prower interjected at this point, his sky-blue eyes looked at the teenage hedgehog with concern. 'But Armand is right, this is the only way forward for you. If you truly want to regain your honour then joining the Mobian Army and becoming an active force for us there could give you that opportunity.'
'And you're really just going to wave my dishonourable discharge? How will you manage that?' The cobalt-blue hedgehog asked, both brows lifting with intrigue.
'We will simply say that the officer in question accepts he's done wrong, that he wishes to atone for it and try to reclaim his honour. Your name will not be released to the press, there has been enough backlash from this scandal without it.' The golden-furred fox-mobian said smoothly then added gently. 'This really is in your best interests Jules..' At this point Armand D'Coolette returned to Jules placing official Mobian Army sign-up papers on the desk in front of him. Jules' hazel eyes looked nervously down at the papers. In a normal situation he would have liked to talk this over with Charles but this was hardly a 'normal' situation. He knew his older brother would hate it if he signed up without discussing things through but if he didn't he would just be proving to his father that he wasn't adult enough to deal with his mistakes..
'I still don't get why you would do this for me?' Jules suddenly swivelled his cobalt-quilled head around to Armand D'Coolette, still unsure about the whole deal and looking to stall the inevitable.
'Be believing eet or not 'Edgehog but I am not wanting to see tu being deesgraced.' The light-tanned coyote-mobian said, stroking one side of his long twiddly light-blonde moustache. 'We 'aven't always been seeing eye to zee eye, still I am 'aving respect for vous. Hence zees deal 'Edgehog.' Armand tapped the papers impatiently now and shoved a pen into Jules' left hand, knowing full well that this ambidextrous hedgehog was born left-handed. The cobalt-blue-quilled teenager began scanning the information on the pages of the military contract as an uncomfortable twist developed in his stomach.
…What choice have I got? If I don't sign up for the Mobian Army what kind of future will I have? I'll be disgraced and have nothing to fall back on, then what? If this war gets worse the King of Mobius sign conscription.. I'd want to be out on the battlefield then but with a dishonourable discharge and just a high-school engineering qualification I'll be looking a mechanical work in warehouse working on war-machines.. Jules repressed a shudder at the very idea of being stuck in that kind of situation.. That wasn't for him. He thought about his brother, who would not take well to this news and all the friends he knew he'd leave behind, all the mobians who had gone up against these Overlanders and died…
Was this really the better option?
At this point Princess Aleena popped into his mind. He frowned slightly to himself, kicking himself mentally for not having the courage to truly admit his feelings to her when he'd had the chance. Could he really live with himself if he didn't at least try to redeem his honour? His father had always told him that a real Hedgehog wasn't a quitter: When life knocked you down you just got right back up and faced it like a real mobian.. His hazel eyes seemed to darken with purpose as he lifted his eyes to look at both General D'Coolette and General Prower..
He'd just been kicked to the ground…
'Alright.' Jules declared and his swift left-hand scribbled his signature onto the sign-up sheet of the Mobian Army. 'I'm in..'
…It was time to get up and become a mobian..
Little Notes:
Hey peeps! I've just gotten around to checking out the new Sonic Boom line-up and I nearly died of shock at uber-buff Knuckles! When they told him to guard it I don't think they meant swallow it haha.. I kinda like Amy and Tails but what is up with Sonic's limbs, the poor guy runs like a spider now! And his arms are blue… but next to the spider-run that's kinda a moot point. To be fair, I actually don't mind the scarf. Personally I think he nicked it out of his dad's closet, just saying.. I just wish they hadn't covered his shoes in bandages... Still, I'll wait and reserve judgement until I see the game and cartoon..
Ok, this chapter is pretty exciting. I'm sure a few of you saw this coming… I mean how else was Jules going to get the chance to prove himself, right? This chapter is the start of a whole new arc, I'm now going to be moving away from all the cute brotherly bonding and little love scenes and into a whole new section of this story which has only been lurking in the shadows… The Great War. I will be writing a few home scenes too, after all we are following Charles too but not as thoroughly as Jules as this story is mostly about him and reclaiming his honour..
Just what is King Ogilvie the Third up to, huh? I admit Princess Aleena will probably be taking a small back-seat as I try to develop the king a little more… Admittedly he's one of the few OC's I have in this fic but he plays such an important role it would be stupid not to delve deeper into him.
This story has just gotten interesting..
Until next time..
~Ditzy x
P.S. This is short I know but I'll make it up to you soon!