"If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."
Romans 12:18
And...
"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."
2 Corinthians 10:4
Quick Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of these characters, locales, etc. They all belong to Sega and the Archie-IDW Comics universe I and many others like me have dreamed of combining.
This fanfic is rated T for moments of non-descriptive nudity, light swearing, minimally explicit romance, and violence (of the mild variety). Although, to be fair, Sonic boys (and girls from the Pre-SGW Timeline) are not exactly backlashed for not being completely covered in clothing,
considering they're anthropomorphic animals. So, riddle me that.
May the Lord bless you for all of your days.
A gentle breeze danced throughout the woods as a herd of deer grazed along the riverbank. Rodents scampered up and down trees in a race to collect the most food before winter sets in. And bees and butterflies flew from flower to flower gathering enough pollen to store for the journey ahead.
All in all, the scenery was peaceful with nary a thing being out of place. Except for an unconscious anthropomorphic echidna lying on the lake's sandy beach.
There were no clothes on her. No jewelry, no weapons, no anything! She was like a newborn babe, if said newborn was the approximate age of a teenager.
The echidna girl began to stur from her coma bit by bit. And when she awakened, it wasn't shock or confusion that graced her features. Rather, she seemed...curious. Like she was seeing the forest for the first time.
The herd—still grazing nearby—didn't share the same enthusiasm as the girl. They just stood frozen and stared at her, waiting to see what she will do next. Whether it be out of hostility or otherwise.
The girl simply sat there in silence, watching the deer.
After what felt like hours had gone by, one of the young bucks decided to show his bravery and make his way to the echidna. In response, the latter slowly raised her hand to reach out and touch the animal's muzzle as it got close enough for her to stroke its pelt.
Then, out of nowhere, a bright flash accompanied by a loud bang echoed throughout the forest, causing every critter within the vicinity to run away in terror.
Even the girl was left disoriented and spooked. But that was nothing compared to the sheer horror of what she saw before her.
The young buck, once full of life and wonder, was now lying scorched in a rotting heap.
She tried scampering to her feet, to get away from the carnage, but ended up pressing herself against a boulder instead.
Out of the shadows came a woman. Her fur was stained the same colour as freshly spilt blood. Her blue eyes appeared to be alive with electricity as she sneered at her. And one of her dreadlocks gleamed like polished silver. She carried no weapon, and yet her hand was dowsed in smoke. She had an air of superiority and malice trailing in her wake.
A sense of familiarity washed over the girl. But she can't figure out who the lady was or why she had shot such a magnificent creature. All that she can infer was that she shouldn't be anywhere near her.
She tried to do something, anything that could get her as far from this murderer as possible. Unfortunately, she was glued right to the ground.
The woman clenched one of her fists tightly in response to the girl's attempt to move. From it, little white sparks wiggled and danced across her fur. Her eyes brightened, her hair raised and split apart against the static, and her arm reeled back. Black claws extended to their fullest length.
Just as the madwoman went in for the kill...
The echidna girl jolted upward with a loud shriek. Loud enough to startle the butterfly nurse coming into the room. The tray of medicine bottles and other first aid supplies tumbled out of her hands and onto the floor.
"Ai, yai, yai! Next time, give me some warning before you go and give me a heart attack!" she exclaimed.
The echidna didn't notice her. Or she did, but was too dazed to function properly.
"Hello?" the butterfly called, inching closer and waving a hand in front of her. "Anybody home?"
The girl shook out of her stupor easily enough, but the look of abject fear remained plastered to her face.
The nurse raised her hands in a show of appeasment. "Take it easy there. You've been in a coma for at least two weeks. How to do feel?"
She didn't answer. Instead, the girl opted to have a better look at her surroundings. All of the walls were a calming mint green with white trim touching the ceiling and floor. A door to the right was left ajar; no doubt that's where the nurse came in from. And the light grey ceiling had filigree forming around the ornate light fixture.
It didn't look like a hospital room, that she knew of. It was too homely.
After she made her inspection of the room, the girl finally acknowledged the nurse's presence.
"Where am I?" the girl inquired. Her voice felt as if a year's worth of snot had slipped down her throat from the time she spent out cold. It certainly tasted like it, as well.
The butterfly—having just recollected her supplies from the ground—gave her a warm smile. "You're in Station Square: the biggest city in the entire archipelago. Well, maybe second biggest."
'Station Square.' the girl thought. 'Why does that name sound familiar?'
The nurse set the tray down on the bedside table. "You seem to be pretty fine for someone who's been knocked out. Do you remember anything?"
The echidna wanted to say yes, but it was at that moment she realized she couldn't recall a single thing from her life. Her place of residence, her favourite hobbies, not even those she'd consider friends and family. All that she can remember was her name. Or at least part of it.
"I...I think my name is Su. Without the 'e.'"
The butterfly pondered this for a while, in a state of concern and perplexity. She went to the foot of her bed and wiped off what was written there, replacing it with the name 'Su' provided.
"So, you don't remember anything else?"
Su shook her head. "That's about it."
The butterfly sighed. "Well, it'll have to do for now," she reoriented herself with another kind smile, "I'm Betty the Butterfly, and I'll be your nurse for the time being. If you need anything, or have any questions, press this buzzer and I'll come up right away."
Su followed her gesture to the little round rod that had slipped between the bed and the railing. She picked it up, examining every inch of it. The rod was attached to a white cable plugged into the outlet behind the table. And on top was a little red button.
"Just don't go testing it out, okay? The people down in Reception don't take too kindly to pranksters." Betty quipped with a grin.
She began opening the bottles, selecting one tablet or capsule from its respective container. Then, she handed the assorted medicine to Su, who took them in trepidation. Betty then handed her a water bottle.
"I will be coming back periodically to give you your medicine. Just to let you know. Now, on to the rebandaging."
"Rebandaging?" Su questioned. She then noticed a mirror to her left and was caught by surprise at how dishevelled she looked. Her pink fur was bruised all over. Her lavender bangs were askew. Bandages were on her legs, arms, and head. She could even feel some wrapped around her torso. And she was disturbingly skinny underneath the hospital gown.
What happened to her before she went into that coma?
Betty paused her task and followed her gaze to their shared reflection, sympathy gleaming in her magenta eyes. "I know, it's a terrible sight. But, for what it's worth, I heard you'd put up a pretty good fight."
Su turned to her in astonishment. "I was in a fight?"
"That's what the emergency team said. And from what else they told me, it sounded like a really bad one. Almost no survivors."
Su swivelled her attention to her bandaged feet as Betty continued redressing them. She had survived getting beaten up by some thugs or whatever. But what was it that put her in that situation in the first place? Were there others who are in worse conditions? And more importantly; who saved her?
The more she contemplated about it, the more she was left with questions than answers.