"Strengths and Weaknesses"
Love and Hate part 2 of 4
A Sonic Fan-Fiction story
By: Erin Lindsey
Yikes! This story ain't for kiddies! Rated PG-13 violence, and a bit
of profanity.
Disclaimer at bottom.
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Hiyas everybody! Welcome back! Hope you enjoy my newest
part in the "Love and Hate" saga! In this part, we have several interesting
developments. 1, Mecha-Sonic makes his battling debut, 2, Shelia reveals
her true identity, 3, the Floating Island is once again attacked by the
Forces of the Dark Legion, 4, Knuckles finds something in Shelia he didn't
even know he was looking for. (hint hint, this story gets increibly
mushy at parts) ;D
If you're just joining the story-line, here's what happened last time:
As we last left our wonderful heroes and heroines the Freedom Fighters
plus Knuckles, they were off to help the village of the cured amnesia-stricken
vixen, Shelia ClearWaters, who claims that her 'desert base' was attacked
by Robotnik's newest mechanical invention, a Mecha-Sonic. Sally had at first
been skeptical, fearing that Shelia was a spy and trying to lead them into
a trap, but thanks to the efforts of Sonic, Knuckles, and Clawz, she was
talked into going anyway. What will become of them? Who is Shelia really?
Why don't you read the story?
I think that's pretty much it, so thanks a bundle!
/\/\
\'-/ Erin
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Chapter five: "Revelations"
What had happened?
What had gone wrong? What had torn her away from her family, and all
that she loved?
A monster, with red glowing eyes....
Even though the pounding in her head was wrenching, the pounding in her
heart was worse. What had she done? For days she had wandered on her on whims
and dreams while her family was suffering. How could she just forget the ones
she loved? Why, why did she have to forget? Why hadn't she remembered the
gun? Or the Mecha? Why had only Knuckles' words aroused her memories and
her forgotten responsibilities? It had been so cloudy. All she could remember
was the sensation of heat, dry and dusty. That and nothing more. Everything
else was just a shrouded dream she had woken up from and forgotten. And then
he had came, and awoke her from the dream, or was it nightmare? It still made
no sense. It made absolutely no sense. It made no sense at all...
"Shelia..."
She continued staring into nowhere.
"Shelia? Anybody home?"
She blinked, turning to him. "Hmm?" She mumbled.
"Are you sure you're all right?" Sonic asked.
"No." She sniffed. "But I'll be fine. As long as we get there soon."
"I think we're close." He reassured.
She sat up stiffly, but eagerly, to gaze out the window as the world
whooshed by them as they flew noiselessly over the ground in the small hover-
unit Rotor had restored.
After at least an hour riding, they came upon the deep valley Shelia
had talked about. It was just as she described. Tall, tall sides with sharp
rocky cliffs and huge bolder-like rocks. There were little signs of life,
only several partially dried cacti and tumbleweeds and a few short stubby
trees dotted the desert-like valley.
Suddenly Shelia stood up. "Stop here!" She yelled, and as Antoine
slid to a stop, she vaulted out of the vehicle and raced to the side of
the canyon. She searched vainly for an opening. "Its here somewhere! I
know it is!" She yelled, frantically examining the rock wall.
Knuckles walked slowly up behind her, "Shelia... Calm down. We'll
find it--" He started.
"Look!" She exclaimed pointing to a small opening half-covered in
rubble. She rushed over to it and began to dig through the rocks. "It's
under here!" She yelled then turned back to the others, "Help me!" She
practically ordered.
They all obeyed and helped her clear away the doorway. Right as the
last large rock was away and she could fit through she darted through the
opening and pushed open the door.
"Shelia! Wait for us!" Sally called, but the frantic girl had all
ready disappeared into the doorway.
Knuckles tried to go through after her, but the opening was still too
small for him. They quickly cleared away the rest of the rubble and plowed
They're way after her.
"Oh my Gawd..." Bunnie said breathlessly as they walked into the
cavern.
It was lit adequately with holes through the rock ceiling, but the
light only did add to the horror. There were blackened buildings everywhere,
the charred remains of family homes, burnt to ashes leaving the entire
floor surface covered in blackness. You cloud still smell the scent of
burning flesh and fire. As they walked down the dark path, if you glanced
into one of the half-burned buildings, you could make out the forms of
mangled figures, most just burnt skeletons, but some were just rigid lifeless
bodies, dried bloodstains all over there remaining flesh and fur. Sally and
Bunnie tried to turn away, but every where you looked were the horrendous
reminder of the painful deaths these animals had suffered.
Shelia was standing in the middle of the road staring at a darkened
building. She was all stiff, her body slightly slumped in a weak position.
Sally walked up beside her. "Shelia... C'mon, lets go back home now..."
She said softly putting a gentle hand on her shoulder.
Shelia turned around and violently threw Sally's hand off of her. She
all ready had tears streaming down her face, "This is my home!" She yelled
and ran into the crumbling house.
Sally stood startled and motionless for a moment. Then turned back
to the rest of the group.
Bunnie was trying very hard not to cry herself, but her eyes were
red with held back tears. Sonic and Antoine looked very pale. Clawz looked
more than sick himself. Only Knuckles looked slightly collected, but still
he had a entirely sobering expression on his face.
He stepped forward then looked to Sally. She nodded sadly at him.
He continued and slowly entered the burnt down remains of Shelia's
home. It didn't take him long to find her. She was standing right inside the
doorway her face white as a sheet, her head facing away from the room and to
the outside wall. She didn't move an inch at his appearance. It was if she
had turned to stone. She was petrified with horror, and it only took Knuckles
a brief moment to realize why. There, in the room in front of them, lay the
gruesome scene of some agonizing death. Blood was strewn across the floor,
thick and black with age and decay, and lucid with dead scent. He even had to
look away as his eyes rested on the mangled body. It was if the animal had
been slowly tortured, ripped to shreds piece by piece.
Shelia, as if awakening from trance, began crying hysterically. She
sunk slowly down the wall, her head against it, until her knees reached the
floor. And she stayed there, tears flowing from her eyes as she wept in
disbelief.
"Please god, no... Momma... No, not her..."
Knuckles bent down beside her, his throat aching, watching her pour
her soul onto the bloodstained floor. She hadn't even noticed him, just kept
sobbing, and let out a long wail of anguish. He put a hand on her back. She
shrugged it off. He put one arm under her legs and another behind her neck
and picked her up. She struggled for only a second then put her arms around
his shoulders and helplessly wept into his chest.
"No no no..." She repeated softly between sobs.
He silently carried her out of the building and back out onto the ash
filled road where the others were standing.
Suddenly a huge metallic creak erupted from the silence as the ceiling
began to collapse. The bright gleam of the afternoon sun burst into the
cavern, bleaching the ashes and death with its rays. A loud, low and evil
voice shattered the desolent cave. A large robot burst through the ceiling and
hovered above them.
"Now we've got you." He laughed. "Got you all. My master will be most
pleased."
Shelia took one look at the figure and went completely frantic. Her
eyes filled with fear, as memories, memories of carnage and blood ran over
her eyes, blinding her with absolute terror.
There stood the true murderer of her mother, the red-eyed monster,
Mecha-Sonic.
"Hello there keeper." He growled almost happily in his fake voice.
She said nothing, just trembled with fear in Knuckles' arms. He stepped
back with shock. 'Keeper?' He thought, 'Is he talking to Shelia or me?' He
mustered his strength and courage, but Sonic was the first to speak up.
"What do you want here, you robotic reject?" He growled offensively.
The one that had burst through the ceiling, slowly hovered down to the
floor, his cobalt blue armor glinting in the blazing sunlight. He remained
untouched by his counterpart's insult. He just laughed. "Stupid organic
being. You must know what I have come for. The death of that keeper," He said
pointing to Shelia, "And the rest of you to go with her."
Shelia cringed, tears running down her white cheeks. Knuckles held her
tighter. 'Keeper? Why does he keep calling her that? Why would he want to kill
Shelia?' He thought, 'Why would anyone want to kill such an innocent angel?'
"Not while I'm still around." Sonic challenged.
"Exactly." Mecha-Sonic laughed flatly in its mechanical tone. "That
is why I intend to kill you first." There was a metallic whisk as a long thin
blue blade formed in his hand. Then, with almost insurmountable speed, his
lunged forth at him, blade aimed at the heart.
Shelia peeked out at the fray. 'No, no more killing.' She thought.
'Oh god... Please spare them.' She prayed.
Knuckles felt a sudden tugging at this mind, like a bolt had struck
him. He felt a force calling, but not to him, but to someone else. But who?
A loud echoing clank sounded as Mecha-Sonic's blade sank into the
hard rock ground where Sonic had seconds before stood.
He had been able to dodge out of the way, but just barely. This new
Mecha's speed was incredible, more so than any other robot of its kind. He
had only been able to slide out of the way in a scarce moment. But the robot
had been far away then, now he was in close combat.
Mecha-Sonic saw the fear in the hedgehog's eyes. "You're afraid of me?"
It asked coldly, "You should be. I am not just another... How did you put
it?... 'Robotic reject' was it?"
"Shove it." Sonic growled with hostility.
To Knuckles' surprise, Shelia suddenly sat up, and with a unexpected
rage, she screamed out at the two fighting hedgehogs. "ENOUGH!" She yelled.
Both fighters looked stunned.
"Shelia?" Knuckles stuttered.
She crawled out of his grasp, walking slowly and steadily right between
the two combatants. She stood face to face with the evil Mecha-Sonic.
"Shelia, what are you--" Sonic and Knuckles began simultaneously.
Before they could finish, without a word, she withdrew a gun from her
skirt, and aimed it into the eye of the robot.
"Hey! That gun!" Sally yelled. She was almost positive she had locked
the gun she had found in Shelia's possession in Rotor's workshop. How had
she got to it?
At first the robot seemed shocked. But then as he focused, he grew
amused with the situation. He even smiled. "Dear girl, you dare to aim such
a weapon at me? One that my own master made?" He asked quietly.
"I know what you have come for. Do not harm the others. They play
no part in this." She answered, slow and simply, still aiming at his head
with the laser gun.
'What is she talking about?' Sally thought, 'And why is she defending
us? Maybe I was wrong about her after all...'
"I would like to do that," It sneered, "But you see, they are my master's
orders. An order is an order you know. Or didn't your brother teach you that?"
Shelia cringed, but her anger and frustration rose. "Just take me, and
I'll show you where the jewel is, but only if you let them go." She pleaded.
The Mecha's eyes widened.
"Jewel??" Clawz asked softly, more to himself than anyone.
Knuckles had the oddest sensation about this whole situation. It all
had to fit together somehow. Shelia, the 'jewel', this feeling...
"Tell me and they will be set free." Mecha decided, after a bit of
hesitation.
"Set them free first and I will tell you." Shelia contradicted.
The robot tried to growl, but it came out more like a mechanical hiss.
"They are free to leave." He decided finally.
Shelia seemed to be relived a bit. She looked back at Knuckles, Sonic,
and the others. She spoke softly, "Go, please. I'll be fine."
"But Shelia--" Knuckles began.
"Please! Just go. I'll... I'll be all right."
"Shelia, we're not leaving." Sonic said firmly.
She turned back to them, trying not to show her real fear. "You must!
This doesn't concern you! Save yourselves!" She pleaded, "I'll deal with
this robot."
Sonic was speechless.
Sally gently put her hand on his shoulder. "Sonic, lets get out of
here. This is her fight." She said softly.
"But Sally-girl..." Bunnie sobbed, "We can't jus leave her here all
'lone to fight this monstah!"
"Look, obviously this isn't any of our business. Let's get out while
we still can." Sally demanded. "And that's a royal order!"
Stunned, the group began to slowly follow their leader back towards
the door. Knuckles was last, and only then, having to be practically dragged
off the scene by Clawz.
Shelia sighed with relief as she watched them turn the corner.
Mecha then addressed her. "Put the gun down now, keeper. Both you and
I know it isn't loaded." He said firmly.
She slowly let her arm fall to her side. She looked back at the robot,
with glazed eyes. She turned away. "I knew you wouldn't kill me anyway. I'm
too important to your plan." She said eyes brimming with tears. "I am the
only keeper left, now that you have murdered my mother."
Suddenly, Sally, who had been leading the others towards the exit
stopped, then motioned for the others to follow her in back of a building.
"Sal," Sonic asked, "What the heck are you doing?"
"Shh!" She scolded, covering his moth with her hand. "You didn't just
think I was really going to let Shelia face the Mecha-Sonic alone, did you?"
Clawz smiled, "I knew it. I knew I had t've gotten somethin' in yer
head wit dat lecture." He said.
She smiled too. "Hey, Freedom Fighters don't abandon their friends!"
"Thank gawd." Bunnie sighed.
"We'll split up. Sonic, you stay here with me. We'll cover the front.
Bunnie and Antoine, you two go to the sides. Clawz, you take the back." She
ordered.
"What about me?" Knuckles asked.
Sally thought a moment. "Take the roof tops. We might need a surprise
attack from above." She decided.
"Right." He said.
"Everyone, wait for my signal, then we'll attack together." Sally
said softly. "Like Freedom Fighters should."
They all silently saluted, then departed to their positions.
Sonic and Sally sat alone together in the darkness.
"Sal?" He asked, when the others had left.
"What?" She answered, a bit shakily.
He hesitated for a moment, then leaned over to look into her eyes.
"I... We need to talk..." He whispered.
There was a silence.
"I've been miserable the last couple of days..." He admitted, "With
you angry at me..."
"I know." She said, and gently kissed him. "We'll talk later." She
reassured, "But now its time to fight for freedom."
He smiled and they looked around the corner quietly and watched the
scene in front of them from the shadows, undetected by the robot.
"I have done as you said and let the Freedom Fighters go. Now you
keep your end of the bargain. What is the location of the ruby?" Mecha droned,
growing impatient with all this idle chatter.
Shelia was silent.
"Well?" It growled.
"I... I don't remember." She said softly, turning away.
He jumped in front of her and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look
into his glowing blood-red eyes. "You what?!" He snarled.
She trembled as she looking into the eyes of the murderer of her
family. Tears rolled over her cheeks. "I d-don't remember..." She whimpered.
With that, he drew back, and striking her across the face, flung her
to the ground. She lay there for a moment motionless, but she staggered to
her feet again with unexpected persistence. Mecha lunged forth and grabbed
her again. His blade erupted from his hand and he held it to her throat.
"LIAR!" He snarled menacingly, "Don't lie to me, you little bitch! I
know you know where the ruby is, now tell me, or die like the ones before
you!"
Knuckles felt himself cringe with her pain as she watched the scene
from above. He wanted so to help her, tear that evil monster off her and
rip it to pieces. How could he torture he like that? It made him angrier
than he had ever been before. A blazing fury began to grow within him.
"I.. I don't know... Please... I d-don't know..." Shelia whimpered,
her body trembling like a leaf.
Mecha-Sonic shook her violently. "Last chance, keeper!" Mecha threatened.
Sally felt helpless. 'What can we do to save her?' She thought, 'We
can't just attack him head on. It would be suicide!'
"Please, please.." Shelia sobbed frantically, "I.. I can't..."
He paid no heed to her pleas, but his knife drew back to get momentum
for the kill, to slice through her neck with one single blow.
Suddenly a blow struck the robot like a ton of bricks, sending him
to the floor, the side of his headpiece dented. He stumbled back to his feet,
trying to shake the malfunctions from his computer, and met with the eyes
of a very angry echidna.
Sally gasped. 'What is he doing?!' She screamed in her head, 'He'll
get himself killed!'
"You.. fsszt.. stupid ... tsstz.. " Mecha struggled to speak.
Knuckles took advantage of this moment of weakness and swung at him
again fiercely. He knocked the robot down again, but this time, instead
of staggering back to his feet, Mecha flipped, and landed easily back in
place, barely showing signs of sparking.
He grinned evilly, "Thanks for knocking my mainframe back on-line
echidna." He snarled, again drawing his metallic blade, "Now you will pay
the price of knocking it out in the first place..."
A sudden voice rang out from the shadows. "ATTACK!" Sally yelled,
emerging from the cover.
Sonic hit the robot with the full brunt of his most powerful sonic-spin,
sending it flying into the wall. The blade was knocked out of his hand and,
just missing Shelia's neck, it flew across the cavern, where Bunnie caught it
with her robotic fist. She bent it easily until the hard metal snapped like
a twig.
Knuckles turned away to the fray to where Shelia had collapsed on the
ground when Mecha had dropped her. Barely even thinking, he picked her up,
and took her back to the roof, where she would be out of harm's way. She had
buried her face in his chest, clamped onto him as if for dear life.
"Shelia..." He said softly, trying to calm her.
She sniffled, but didn't move, or loosen her grip.
He kneeled down, putting a comforting hand behind her head. "You're
safe now, Shelia." He reassured, "It's okay."
She slowly looked up at him, still a bit shaky and confused.
"You all right?" He asked.
She nodded silently.
He stared at her a moment as if expecting something else. She didn't
move, or speak, just sat there, still holding him as tight as ever.
"How come you're still holding onto me then?" He asked.
"You... You saved me." She mumbled.
"Of course I did." He said.
"How come?" She questioned.
He opened his mouth to say something about duty, and his responsibility
as guardian, but closed it again as he realized he was no longer on the
Floating Island. Protecting anyone here was not his job. He had never before
cared what happened to an outsider, besides his friends Sally or Clawz, but
he had known this girl for only a day. Why did she matter so much to him?
"I... I don't know." He concluded finally.
She smiled weakly. "Thank you." She said.
"No problem." He said a bit awkwardly.
She was still holding onto him.
He felt hot. She looked almost beautiful there, her hair mussed and
fallen over her emerald eyes, which still brimmed with tears. His pulse
quickened.
"Maybe we should get out of here..." He stuttered, starting to
stand up.
She put her hand on is shoulder to stop him. "Wait..." She said softly.
He stopped, turning back to her. "What?" He asked.
She leaned over and kissed him tenderly on the lips.
* * * * *
Chapter six: "Face Off"
Mecha-Sonic pulled himself up from the rubble, shaking his head. He
focused on the animal that had plowed into him. He had been injured only
slightly by his blow, but his computer work had been knocked loose. This
hedgehog would have to be eliminated immediately.
"This time I ain't backing down." Sonic growled.
"Foolish organic being..." The Mecha droned. "I am the exact
mechanical copy of you, plus hundreds of improvements. You don't stand a
chance."
"We'll see about that." Sonic challenged.
"It's your death wish, hedgehog." The robot said, then lunged at him
viciously, pulling himself into a ball, his razor-like metallic quills
protruding.
Sonic jumped over him just in time, landing several feet away from
his robotic twin. He laughed, "Is that the best you can do? My grandma can
do a better sonic-spin!"
Mecha was highly perturbed. He snarled ferociously, steam spewing from
his hot joints and nose. He turned around and lunged at him again.
Sonic jumped again and Mecha missed once more, but this time, he
immediately turned back, and was able to surprise him from the back.
Sonic tripped and fell onto the ground on his stomach.
Mecha laughed. "Ha! I warned you hedgehog. There is no possible way
you can beat me alone..."
"That's why we'er here!" Someone shouted.
Mecha turned to face the voice, but instead was met by a incredibly
large boulder. It smashed into him, plowing him halfway across the cave
and into the wall on the other side.
Bunnie, the one who threw the boulder, rushed over and helped Sonic
up to his feet again.
"Y'all all right, Sugah-Hog?" She asked.
"Yeah thanks, Bunnie." He said. "You sure took care of him!"
"Hey, I guess this ole 'bot arm uh mine is good for something." She
said patting her robotocized left arm.
Antoine, Sally, and Clawz rushed to meet them in the center of the
cavern and congratulate them.
"Cherie, vous is really, how you say, kicking some butt, no?" Antoine
said happily, taking Bunnie's hand.
"Thank yah, hun." She said, smiling.
"Yeah, Sonic!" Clawz said giving him a high five, "You showed that
punk who runs th' joint 'round here!"
Sally gently touched him on the shoulder. "Yes, you did do a great
job." She said softly.
"Hey, what can I say? I am the coolest!" He said happily.
"And oh so modest and humble." Bunnie added.
"You too Bunnie." Sally said turning to her, "Great team work!"
"Aw, shucks, 'twern't nothin'." She said modestly. "Mistah Knuckles
was tha one to first beat the snot outta him anyway..."
"That's right. Hey, were is he anyway?" Sally said looking around.
"And what happen' t'Shelia?" Clawz asked.
"I don't know." Sally said, "I hope they are okay."
"We should form a search party!" Clawz suggested.
"Monsieur Wildcat, zis is not a time to be thinkings of parties!"
Antoine scoffed.
"C'mon guys, let's go and look for them." Sonic said, ignoring the
fox's English illiteracy.
"Now zeres a good idea." Antoine said.
Bunnie sighed, "C'mon sugah, we'll go look this'n way." She said
pulling him down the street back towards Shelia's old home.
They all separated and went their different ways searching for their
lost friends.
* * * * *
They parted slowly, pulling their lips apart softly, desperately trying
not to break the tender moment. It had felt so good, and neither wanted
the feeling to fade.
He felt hot all over now. Her arms were around his neck, and his
around her waist. His heart beat wildly.
Shelia looked at his face, seeing the awkwardness in his eyes. She
turned away, her face flush. Had she really done it? Had she really kissed
him?
Knuckles was finally able to find his voice. "Shelia..." He mumbled
softly.
She looked back at him meekly, her cheeks red.
Their eyes caught, and so did the lump in his throat. "I... Uh... You..
Whoa..." He stammered, still unable to find the right words.
"I didn't mean to scare you..." She sniffed.
Knuckles raised his eyebrows, "No, no! You didn't _scare_ me... Just,
uh... Surprised me." He said smiling weakly. He gently touched her face.
She smiled too, blushing an even deeper shade of red.
She looked so beautiful like that, he thought, with her face all
bright, her eyes still shining with crystal tears. So sweet, and innocent.
He had never felt this way about anyone before... He leaned closer to her,
still holding her head in his hand. He could feel her warm breath upon his
lips...
"KNUCKLES!!!" A loud voice echoed throughout the cave. "SHELIA!!!"
The pair fell backwards in surprise. They sat up quickly again. Shelia,
face still red as a beet, stood up.
"Eh, the other's must be looking for us..." She mumbled, beginning to
walk away.
"Shelia, wait..." He said jumping up and running after her.
"WERE ARE YOU GUYS!?!" Clawz yelled from down below.
Shelia was at the edge of the roof now. She leaned over and called down
to him. "We're up here!"
Clawz looked up to see them standing on the roof of a nearby building.
He smiled, "Are you all right?" He called.
"Fine." Knuckles grumbled. 'He just has to interrupt everything doesn't
he?' He thought bitterly.
"Great!" The wildcat said. "Mecha-Sonic's done for, thanks t'Spikes and
Legs!" He paused a moment, "What're you guys doin' up there anyway?"
"Eh..." Shelia mumbled, turning red again. "Well, we were..."
"--Hiding from the robot!" Knuckles cut off, "We were just keeping
out of the way, that's all."
Clawz looked confused for a moment. He watched them, Shelia with her
flushed face, and Knuckles looking more than shaky. "Oh..." He said finally,
smiling. "I see."
Knuckles choked, "Wh.. What are you talking about?!"
"Nothin'. I'm not sayin' nothin'. It's not any of my business." Clawz
said, still smiling, and beginning to walk away.
"Hey, wait!" Knuckles yelled, "Come back!" He jumped off the edge and
landed on the ground and began running after him.
Shelia, left alone on the roof called to him, "Knuckles! Wait!" She said
"Wait for me!"
He stopped and turned around. "No." He said sternly, "Stay here. I'll
check if it's safe, then I'll come back for you."
She frowned. "But I..."
"Stay. I don't want you to get hurt." He said, this time softly. "Please."
She said nothing.
He smiled at her, then dashed off after Clawz.
She stood there for a moment silent and motionless. Then slowly sat
down again, smiling to herself contentedly. For a while, she was lost in
a daydream, letting the memory of his kiss linger in her mind. There was
something special about him, she could feel it in her heart...
A thought rushed through her mind like a flash of lightning.
"Heart..." She whispered, standing up. "I... I remember now. Oh,
please let it still be there. I must get to it before anyone else finds it!"
With that, she climbed down the side of the building and began to run
Back towards her broken home.
* * * * *
Knuckles had finally caught up with Clawz, but before he could say
anything to him, Sonic and Sally came running up to them.
"What's the matter?" Knuckles asked.
"It's Mecha-Sonic..." Sally panted, trying to catch her breath. Keeping
up with Sonic was definitely not easy.
"What 'bout him?" Clawz asked.
"He's gone. Flew the coop. Disappeared!" Sonic said.
"But I thought you said he had been destroyed." Knuckles said, turning
to Clawz.
"Well, obviously he hasn't. Me and Sonic went to go check if we could
salvage any of his parts for our use, but when we got there he was gone!"
Sally explained.
"Not good." Clawz commented.
"Oh no..." Knuckles mumbled.
"What?" Sonic asked.
"Shelia. I left her alone!" He yelled, "Mecha-Sonic still might be
after her!"
"And Mecha's probably allready called reinforcements!" Sally said.
"We've got to hurry and get out of here!"
"Don't worry, Sal!" Sonic said, "Hurry is my middle name!"
"Then let's go!" Knuckles said, "We've got no time to loose! We've
got to find her and get out of here before even more 'bots arrive!"
"Then what are we standing around here for?" Sonic said starting off,
leaving the others in a cloud of dust. "I'm up, over, and gone!"
* * * * *
"Look, that's her house." Bunnie said to Antoine as she pointed out
Shelia's house to him. "Maybe they went in thar."
They were still searching for Shelia and Knuckles, as was the original
search party's mission.
Antonie trembled at the sight. "I am not zure goings in zere iz such
a vonderful idea, mon cherie." He stuttered.
"Well, it's mah best guess of where'n they went off to." Bunnie argued.
"Have you'n got a better idear?"
"Ah, vell... No, but--" He mumbled.
"Good." She said, grabbing his arm and pulling him after her again.
"Then we're goin' in.
"I don't have a good feelings about zis..." Antonie mumbled.
"Yo! Bun, Ant!" Sonic called as he sped up to meet them.
Bunnie stopped, just as she began to open the door. "What's tha mattah
Sugah-Hog?" She asked.
The rest of the team caught up with him about this time. They had
all ready searched the roof where Knuckles had left Shelia, but she was
no where to be found.
"Have you seen Shelia?" Knuckles asked them immedately.
"Ah thought she was with you!" A confused Bunnie replied.
"We were goings to search Madmosele ClearWaters' home..." Antoine
explained.
"No one with a weak stomach should set foot in there." Knuckles
cautioned.
"I theenk I'll be stayings out here." Antonie said, pulling himslef
from Bunnie's iron grip.
"I'm not afraid." Sally said. "We have to check if Shelia's in there."
"Right." Sonic said, stepping forward and slowly opening the door. The
rest, including an especially hesitant Antoine followed.
Knuckles was surprised to walk into a empty room. Blood still remained
on the floor, but the body he had seen before was gone.
"What the..." He mumbled.
"Oh mah stars..." Bunnie said softly, as the rancid smell flooded her
nose. She covered her mouth.
"Gag, it smells like something--" Sonic started.
Knuckles clamped a hand over his mouth, "Don't you dare finish that
sentance. Don't you realize this is where Shelia's family was killed?" He
growled.
Sonic paled. The echidna took his hand away slowly.
"I.. I didn't know..." Sonic apologized.
Knuckles ignored his comment, and began to search around the room.
"I don't get it." He mumbled.
"What?" Sally asked.
"Before, when I followed Shelia in here, there was a dead body laying
right there." He said pointing to where Antoine was standing.
The fox yelped and jumped off the spot like it was a pit of hot coals.
"Well, a corpse couldn't just get up and walk away." Sally said.
"...Or could it??" Clawz said in a deep spooky voice, raising an eyebrow.
Antoine yelped again.
"Don't scare him like that!" Bunnie scolded, hitting Clawz on the
back of the head.
"I was just kidding!" He said in defense.
"This is serious." Sally said, "We have to find Shelia. She could be
in terrible danger!"
Sonic leaned upon the fireplace restlessly as the others searched the
rest of the house. Suddenly, upon doing this, the mantle shifted, and the
back of the fireplace fell away to reveal a hidden passageway. "Hey, guys!
Look what I found!" Sonic announced. He stepped into the fireplace and the
others followed him down the long steep staircase that it held until they
reached a large damp, tomb-like room.
There in the center, was a large shallow grave. Beside it knelt
Shelia, her hands soiled with dirt, and her face torn with grief. She held
a tiny pendant in her hand, which she clutched to her heart.
"Shelia..." Sally said quietly, but not moving.
She turned slowly back to look at them and stood up.
Sonic and Sally looked at each other. Sally nodded. Sonic stepped
closer to Shelia. "Come back to Knothole." He said. "You are one of us now."
"I... I can't." She said.
"Why not?" Clawz asked.
"I don't belong there." She said, turning back to look at the grave.
"I belong here, with my mother."
"Shelia, you have done all you can here." Sally said, "Come find a
new mission with us. We can help you make Robotnik pay for what he has not
only done to you, but hundres of other Mobians. If we stand together, one
day we will triumph against him."
"It.. It all sounds so tempting: Adventure, action, revenge." She said
softly, "I wish I was like you."
"You wish you were like me?" Sally said. She was at a loss of words
for a moment.
"You, Princess. Strong, brave, smart." Shelia said, "I'm not any of
those things. I could never be like you."
"But you all ready are."
"What?" Shelia said.
"You are brave and strong, and everything else." Sally said.
"N.. No I'm not..."
"Yes you are. It took courage to stand up to Mecha-Sonic like that.
It took strength to face him by yourself and let us go. I know at first I
didn't even belive in you, but others did, and you belived in yourself. You
have proved yourself. You are strong, Shelia. Strong at heart."
She stared at her for a long time, not moving, not speaking a word.
Finally, she pulled her hand away from her chest, and looked at the object
in her hand. She titled it, to let it fall and dangle from it's chain, then
slowly lifted it up and put it around her neck.
Now Knuckles could see it was the heart locket he had seen around the
neck of the dead body before in the upper room. It had been Shelia's mother's,
but now it was hers. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. Slowly she began
to walk towards them, but trembling she fell. Knuckles caught her easily,
and picked her up agian. She began to cry.
"Is.. Is she all right?" Sally asked.
"She's fine." Knuckles said.
"Poor lil' thang." Bunnie said, "Such a hard day."
"Let's get her back to Knothole where she can rest." Sally said.
* * * * *
No one said a word as they walked back to the vehicle out in the
valley. The only noise that broke the silence on the way back to Knothole
were Shelia's frantic sobs, that had quieted slowly as she began to grow
drowsy. About halfway there, she had cried herself to sleep.
Sally was deep in thought. She was so confused. What exactly had happened
today? Shelia, a girl who she thought to be a hardened spy turned out to
be a innocent pawn thrown into Robotnik's chess game. She wasn't quite sure
how she fit, exactly, but for one thing she was sure: Shelia was one of them
now.
Sally turned her head slightly to look back at Shelia. She had tear
stains streaked down her face, but otherwise she looked to be having
peaceful dreams. Poor thing needed something to keep her spirits up. She was
leaning against Knuckles shoulder, a hand still clutching to his arm. Sally
was glad he was there, none of the others could handle that kind of emotion
with such bravery. Sonic may be a hero, but he was nothing much when it came
to crying girls. He had decided to run the way by himself, probably to keep
from hearing Shelia's tortured sobs.
Sally studied Knuckles from the corner of her eye. At first it seemed
he had fallen asleep too. He was sitting up straight though, neck stiff,
but eyes closed. He blinked opening his eyes halfway. He stared at the
back of the seat in front of him with a confused expression on his face. She
wondered what he was thinking about. He blinked again, as if making a
decision to stop staring there and looked over at Shelia on his shoulder.
He stared at her for a long time, too. She moved slightly, her eyes still
closed, but her face twisted with pain. Knuckles emotionless gaze changed,
his eyebrows tilted outward and his mouth tightened with concern.
Sally for the first time realized what expressive eyes he had. Usually
cold blue, and dark, his eyes seemed to hide any emotion he felt with a
certain stubbornness, but now he didn't seem aware of Sally, or anyone
watching him so he let it show. This made her even more curious. When they
were children, when she met Knuckles for the first time on the Floating
Island, he always seemed serious and rather melancholy. After the years had
passed, and they met again, he still had the same demeanor, always wearing a
stern and angry expression, like life had dealt him a bad hand of cards.
But now he seemed perplexed to some degree. Shelia sobbed gently into
his arm. He raised a hand as if to touch her, but put it back down again.
He shifted uncomfortably. Sally wondered what was the matter with him. He
had seemed so nonchalant when he first carried Shelia out of the building, as
if he were performing duty, something he had to do. Shelia quieted her sobs,
now only softly trembled as if she was cold. Knuckles made that concerned
expression again. He looked absolutely terrified.
Sally had to turn her gaze away as Knuckles looked up so he wouldn't
know she was watching him. He looked around cautiously, as if for checking
just that, but quickly returned his gaze to Shelia, still trembling at his
side. He seemed to relax a little and Sally turned to watch them again. He
put a hand on Shelia's shoulder, tilting his head down and to the side
slightly to look at her face. He looked hesitant, but slowly lifted his hand
from her shoulder and cradled her head in his hand. He put his other arm
around her back and pulled her to his chest. Her sobs softened then stopped.
She buried her face in his fur. For a second Knuckles looked uneasy once
again, but then his expression changed altogether. A small smile formed on
his lips. He actually looked happy.
* * * * *
"...Master... fstvt ... Robotnik... fzztt Come.. crackle in..."
"Mecha?!" Robotnik roared over his communicator, "What in the gods'
name happened to you?!"
"The Freedom Fighters.. fstt ... hedgehog... ffsstx..." Mecha-Sonic
sputtered, sparking like a broken toaster. His entire bottom half was
destroyed, and now he crawled on his hands in the middle of the desert back
towards Robotropolis.
"Blast!" Robotnik snarled, "I thought I ordered you to call for
reinforcements if you needed them!"
"...spark... The Communication systems... drrk were temporarily
down..."
Robotnik looked like he was about to blow a gasket. "Damn! How could
you let those... Those... Those animals defeat you?!"
"... ffztt Tracking device... ddrzt implanted on Freedom... frzzt
Fighter vehicle..." Mecha sputtered, changing the subject.
"AH! So you can do something right, Mecha! Have you found anything
else?" The human asked anxiously.
"... Master... ssrzt I found the... grrax location of the ccrzt
red jewel... drrzt.." Mecha struggled to continue to speak.
"The ruby?!" Robotnik yelled, suddenly estatic, "Where is it?"
"....FFRSST The ruby is ZZTXT .......... BBRSSTTSSZZZZZZT"
"WELL?!" Robotnik screamed.
"Connection lost." The computer on Robotnik's control panel droned.
The entire city trembled with Robotnik's curses. He grabbed a SwatBot
and jerked it in front of him. "Find that damned robot Mecha and bring him to
me, or take a trip to the scrap heap!" He growled.
"YES SIR, MASTER ROBOTNIK." The SwatBot said, "THERE WILL BE A SCAN
OF THE GREAT UNKOWN IMMEDIATELY. TROOPS WILL BE SENT OUT TO FIND HIM."
"Excellent!" He said, dropping the robot to the hard metallic ground.
"You go do that... And bring me a sandwich too, would you?"
* * * * *
Chapter seven: "A Story to Tell"
Rain fell once again on the leaves of the trees of the Great Forest.
This time, a healing rain, like that that falls on a site of a fire, cooling
it making new things grow again among the ashes. New lives were starting,
growing, maturing.
New life, new friends, new love...
She looked around her. All the new faces sitting around her little
white bed in the medical room. Everything was changing, and had changed.
It scared her, but yet, mysteriously made her feel more complete.
Someone handed her a warm cup of tea. She sipped it gently. Then drew
back and smiled sadly, "My mother used to make me this kind of tea when I
was sick." She said softly.
"My mother too." Said Rosie, siting down at the foot of her bed. "It
warms the body, and mind."
The sadness in her smile slowly faded. "Thank you."
"How you feeling, Shelia?" Sally asked.
"A lot better." She said.
"Good." Sally said, "I know how hard it is to loose someone. I myself
lost both my parents when I was young, as Bunnie and Antoine. I know
Knuckles has just lost his father in the just the last few years..."
Knuckles nodded. "Four years ago. He went on some dangerous mission
in the Forbidden Zone, and never came back." He said softly.
"My Uncle Chuck took care of me when I was still a kid." Sonic said,
"But when the war started, Robotnik used him to test a machine called the
roboticizer. It turns flesh and blood into metal and wires..."
"It's what turned mah arm n' legs into this." Bunnie said, lifting her
heavy robotic arm.
"My mom died when I was born." Said Clawz sadly, "My dad was no
father to me. He was a criminal, and a drunk. He was 'boticized like
Sonic's Uncle Chuck. I nev'r knew what is was like to have a real dad."
"You see Shelia, you really were lucky to keep your family until now.
You should be truly thankful." Sally said.
"I am..." She whispered, "But it still hurts."
"I know. It will probably never stop hurting, when you lose someone
you love. If it ever did, it would be a incredible miracle. The fact is that
you still have to get on with your life, because your lost ones would not
want you to grieve forever. They would want you to be happy, and to live
life to the fullest."
Shelia sniffed softly, "Thank you..."
"You're welcome." Sally said smiling, "I know it's going to be hard,
but, I need to ask you some important questions..."
"I know, I know." Shelia said, "I must be quite a mystery. I want to
explain myself. I need to."
"Good." Sally said happily.
"I have so much to say... I still don't quite remember everything
completly... I don't know where to start." Shelia mumbled.
"Start at the begging, and stop at the end."
She smiled, then after some thought, she began her story.
"It all began so long ago, and every thing is still so cloudy in my
head, I hope I can remember it right... It was about... Eleven years ago, at
the beggining of the Great War against the Overlanders. My father, James
ClearWaters was the commander of an artillery squadron. I remember so little
about him. Just that he cared for us in every way he could. He wanted us to
be protected, and be able to protect ourselves. So, me and my brother,
Jeremy, who I called Jem, went into gunsman training. (My mother didn't, for
one reason: she was pregnant, and another: she didn't belive in violence). I
was still so young, and a girl, so I wasn't admitted into the academy like
my brother. I trained on my own though, despite my mother's pleas against
it."
"My mother. She was so beautiful and loving. She was, well a bit of
an outcast. She was very spiritual, and religious. I did not know why until
my fifteenth birthday, upon which she presented me with a incredible
responsibilty. She was a keeper of two sacred stones, given to her ancestors
long ago by a mysterious being. I was told to protect them as she did. I
never knew that this job, as keeper of the stones, I would so greatly fail."
"Back when I was still six years old, and my father still alive, and
my family lived peacefully back in Mobotropolis so long ago, the war took a
dreadful turn. A man named Julian had taken over the palace and the
Overlanders invaded Mobotropolis, and my father sent my pregnant mother, me,
and Jem, to a place out in the middle of the desert. It was a cave, where my
mother's ancestors had once lived, and where the two sacred stones had for
so long been hidden. My father stayed in Mobotopolis to fight. I learned
later that he modified all our files in the Mobius computer files to say
that we were dead, so Julian, now known as Robotnik, wouldn't come looking
for us."
"Unfortunately, although we were safe, my father was not. He was
killed in battle shortly after we left. Since then we have been hiding out
in the desert base together with select few other families. We went on
living in peace, as long as the war raging on the outside did not effect us.
Our job became to protect both the stones, and each other. But of course,
the war has lasted much longer than we ever thought it would. Our food and
water supplies ran out, and we had to turn somewhere to find more. The now
transformed Mobotropolis was the only place. Small groups would try to sneak
in and get food for us, and sometimes they would suceed, and sometimes they
would not. Finally, Robotnik had enough of us stealing from him, and he
captured me on one of our missions only a year ago. My family was counting
on me to bring back needed supplies, so I made a deal with Robotnik. If
he would supply us with the food and water we needed, I would hand over one
of the crystals. The plan worked, and I gave him the Black Amethyst, and he
gave me freedom and my family food.
"It was not long after though, that Robotnik became greedy. He had used
the dark crystal to contruct a super robot known as Mecha-Sonic, and he wanted
the other crystal, the ruby of which Mecha spoke of. I was out practicing in
the valley when I saw them coming to take it from us. I hid behind the rocks,
and watched as the hundreds of robots stormed my former home. My brother was
so brave, and he stood up to Mecha-Sonic, But it was no use. Mecha killed
him, with one blow. They tortured my mother to tell them where the ruby
was, but she would never tell. My little sister must have been killed with
the rest of the others. I was able to escape, but soon the robots were onto
me... And then..." Shelia began to stutter.
"You ran into me." Sonic said.
She nodded sadly, closing her eyes, letting tears form on their brims.
Knuckles, who was sitting beside her on the edge of the bed, put a
hand on her shoulder to comfort her. He knew he had felt something special
about her, and now he knew.
"So that's why your so good at handling guns." Sally mumbled.
Shelia nodded. "Yes," She said softly wiping her eyes, "I learned how
to use a basic laser gun when I was only five years old."
"Woah." Clawz said, "Kinda scary: A 'lil kid wit' a gun."
"I know." Shelia sighed, "My mother thought so too, but I so wanted to
be like my father and brother... To be strong..."
"Ah." Sally said thoughtfully, "So that's why Nicole's files said
you were dead. It was so suspicious, it was what made me think you might
be a spy working for Robotnik."
"Never." Shelia said, rather sternly. "I would never work for that
back stabbing, low-life, son of a--"
"I still have one more question." Sally asked, interupting Shelia's
interjection. "How did you get that gun after I locked in Rotor's workshop?"
"That would be my fault, Sally." Rotor said, standing up.
"Wha..?" Sonic said, his confused expression matching Sally's.
"Shelia came to me and asked me if she could have it." Rotor said.
"So you just _gave_ a complete stranger (no offense Shelia), a
deadly weapon?!" Sally asked, surprised at her officer's ingnorance.
"Don't be mad at him Princess." Shelia said, "I just had to have it.
I begged and pleaded for him to give it back to me."
"But why?" Sally asked.
"It was the only thing that connected me to my past." Shelia explained.
"It was very important to me. I didn't know why then, but now I remember. It
was my brother's. He gave it to me before he.. Before he died..."
Sally's face became more sympathetic.
"Thankfully, Rotor gave it to me." Shelia said, smiling.
"Unloaded ofcourse." Rotor added.
Sonic stood up. "You mean you stood up to Mecha-Sonic with a unloaded
gun?!" He yelled with surprise.
Shelia looked down. "I... I guess so." she mumbled modestly.
"Wow!" Clawz said.
"You're so much braver than you give yourself credit for." Knuckles
said softly, as he gazed at her.
She smiled weakly, looking back at him for a second, then down in
embarassment.
"All that stuff you said about keeping those 'sacred stones'..."
Knuckles said, changing the subject, "Does that mean... You're a...
A guardian?"
Shelia sniffled, "Not exactly." She mumbled.
"What are you then?" He asked a bit confused.
"My ancestors are 'keepers' not guardians." She tried to explain.
"What's the differance?"
"As a keeper, I was just to hide the stones, and keep them safe until,
as it says in The Scrolls, when a true guardian appears. Us keepers are
just temporary guardians really."
"...The Scrolls...?" Knuckles mumbled.
* * * * *
Chapter eight: "A New Threat"
"What's the matter?"
The elderly echidna looked down at his compainion restlessly. "I
wish Knuckles would come back. I don't fully trust those friends of his
with the entire island. They are kind of... How can I say this politely?..."
"Irresponsible? Undignified? Irrational? Insane?" Archimedes suggested.
"Exactly." Locke mumbled.
The two associates were conversing over long table covered with papers
and scattered books in the secret lair known as Haven. Locke is Knuckles'
father, and was the guardian of the Floating Island before him. Now he
secretly watches over his son through Archimedes the fire ant, who serves
as Knuckles' mentor. Archimedes reports back to Locke periodically to
inform him of Knuckles' progress.
"Don't worry about it, sir." Archimedes reassured, "I'm keeping an
eye on them. Besides, we've got more important things to discuss than the
behavioral problems of the Chaotix."
"Right." The echidna said returning to a bussiness-like mode, "I have
discovered some more information about the book."
"The book? You mean the 'Story of the Elements'?" The ant asked.
"Yes." He answered. "I think I've figured out part of it's mystery."
"Really, sir?" Archimedes asked enthusiactically, "What have you
found out?"
"The book is being entirely re-written, just as it was a thousand years
ago..." He said.
Archimedes looked confused, "Pardon, sir?"
"I remember that when I read the original version, so long ago, it
spoke of 'being written as it happened'." Locke said.
"... Meaning...?" Archimedes, still confused, asked.
"It means, I belive, that as the events it spoke of happened, it was
written in the book, just as the events that are happening now are appearing
here in the text." He explained, opening the thick book, and showing it to
his confidant.
Archimedes hopped up onto the page and surveyed the newly written words
on the clean white page. He though a moment, then began to read aloud.
"... After the awaited finding of the sacred diamond, the new creator
(meaning Knuckles, I suppose) journeyed away from his island home, and down
to the earth from hence it came. While being welcomed by old friends there,
he met an interesting creature of beauty. Ever since the moment he saw her,
he had sensed something about her was different, yet so familar. A monster
had slew her family, and she was all alone. He felt compassion for her, and
helped her. Only later did he learn that she possessed one of the elemental
crystals he was searching for..."
"Amazing, isn't it?" Locke asked him after he had finished.
"You mean to say," Archimedes mumbled, "This is telling us what is
happening right now, to Knuckles while he is down in Knothole?"
"Apparently. It is telling us Knuckles' story, just as it told
Arora-Sa's a thousand years ago." He said.
"You're right." Archimedes said. "That is amazing!"
"This proves it. Knuckles has been choosen!" Locke said, almost
proudly.
"What and honor!" Archimedes said, "Knuckles will be regaurded as
a historical hero for the next thousand years!"
"That is, if he can pull the job off." Locke added.
"What do you mean?" Archimedes asked.
"He has the incredible task of finding these 'sacred elemental
crystals'. I hope he can handle it. He still is only a boy." Locke said,
a little regretfully.
"Don't worry!" The ant reassured again, "Knuckles' powers are
increasing. His seventeenth birthday was not long ago, and soon he will
no longer be a boy, or just an aprinticed guardian."
"True, maybe I am underestimating him. I still wish he was back here
on the island. Anything could happen while he is gone!"
* * * * *
Night was falling over the ocean, and as the sun dipped beyond the
horizon, a huge black craft arose from the waters, and undectected began
to make it's way slowly towards the tropical island floating high overhead.
Inside the dark halls of the ship, various preperations were taking
place. Hundreds of soldiers clad in black shuffled about readying for the
attack.
A dark cloaked figured sat overlooking the commotion below. He
surveyed the soldiers happily, his cybernetic red eye glowing. He sighed,
and leaned back in his chair. "Finally..." He mumbled, "Another chance to
take back what is truly ours..."
A girl walked up behind him and began to massage his shoulders. "Yes,
Master Kragok. With the Floating Island back in our possession, we'll be
unstopable."
"Mmm..." He mumbled in approval. "Yes... And it is the perfect time
to strike, with the gaurdian away. Our ties with that fool Robotnik have
finally become useful. His robots encountered the Guardian just a day ago
down in the desert. It's a perfect, perfect plan!"
The girl walked around the chair and sat in his lap. "You are such
a genius, Master." She purred.
"Hmm, yes I know." He said, smiling darkly, "After our victory over
the Floating Island, what do you say we have a little 'private
celebration'?"
"Sounds like fun." She purred, leaning down and kissing him.
"Good girl." She said, "You are dismissed now. Go help prepare for the
attack."
She nodded, and slipped off his lap and proceeded to the door. She picked
up her robe on the way and pulled it on. She turned before exiting back to
the dark half roboticized ecidna in the chair. "Thank you, Master." She said
bowing, then took her leave. She went down the long dark hall a ways before
stopping, making sure she was out of earshot, then spitting fiercly onto the
cold floor.
"Uggh!" She grumbled wiping her mouth, "I HATE having to be his stupid
servant girl! As soon as we land, I'm outta here, for good!"
* * * * * *
Chapter nine: "Wishing for the Past"
"Where we going Sal?" Sonic asked as he followed Sally down the long dirt woodland path.
She had asked him to come with her after they had left the infermary.
"Here." She said stopping out in the dark feild, where the shooting targets had been
earlier. Now they were gone, and the meadow was bare. It was dark, and the sky was black with
night. The many small moons of Mobius shone a dim glow over the grasses.
"Why are we here?" He asked looking around. They were alone.
"I thought you wanted to talk." She said.
"H-here?" He asked, a bit shakily.
"What does it matter where we are?" She asked.
"Uh... I dunno..." He mumbled, sratching his head.
She sighed, almost sadly. "Well..."
"Well..." He echoed.
They stared at each other for a moment, as if expecting something.
"Aren't you going to apologize?" She asked finally.
"Me?!" He practically yelled, "You're the one who should be apologizing!"
"For what?" She asked innocently.
"For hanging all over Knuckles, that's what!" He said sternly.
"Well you were all over Shelia, even before he was here!" She argued.
"You started it!" He said back.
"I did not!" She countered, "If it wasn't for you being so damn jealous
all the time, none of this would of ever happened!"
He was taken aback for a second. Sally didn't usually swear unless
she was really upset. He didn't know it had made her so angry. His voice
softened, "Sal..." he said, walking towards her slowly.
She turned her back to him. "How does it feel?" She said, edging on
tears, "Having someone turn thier back on you when you just want to talk?!"
He put his hand on her shoulder. She threw it off. She didn't move to
run away, just continued standing there with her back to him. Her shoulders
twitched slightly, as she tired desprately not to break down and cry.
Sonic was silent for a long time, but finally he spoke. "You know, it's
kinda funny..." he said, then waited.
She resisted the urge to turn and look at him. "...What?" She managed
to choke out.
"This feild and us here, like this." He said, rather vaugely.
"What are you talking about?" She said, turning her head slightly
to watch him from the corner of her eye. He had moved, and was now sitting
in the grass about a yard away from her, with his back to her.
"Don't you remember?" He asked, and she was silent, so he continued,
"I guess not, but I sure do. I must've been at least six years ago..."
Sally now turned fully around and stared at his back with pure
confusion.
"... We were here, at night, like now... I gues we must've snuck out
or something, and we came here. We were talking, but then we started to
argue about something, I don't remember exactly what, but I guess it doesn't
really matter now..." He trailed off.
A memory suddenly fell into Sally's mind. "I remember..." She mumbled.
He looked back at her, surprised.
"We... We were fighting about how many moons Mobius had." She said softly,
"I said it was eight, and you said it was nine."
He laughed, "Oh yeah!" He said, "What a dumb thing to argue over."
She laughed too. She walked over and sat beside him. They were both silent
for a while again, as they pondered over thier memories. They looked up at the
beautiful moons.
"So how many are there, anyway?" He asked.
"Eight." She answered.
"You sure? I coulda sworn it was nine." He said.
"It's eight." She said.
"Nine." He argued.
"Eight!" She said, pushing him playfully.
He laughed, laying on his back in the grass. "Yeah, sure, whatever."
She looked down at him, feeling both sadness and hapiness at the same time. She
was smiling, but yet she felt tears in her eyes. She looked away. She felt his hand on
her shoulder, and when she turned around his face was next to hers.
"Do you remember what else happened that night?" He said, in almost a whisper.
She nodded slowly, feeling her heart beat quicken. "Yeah..." She mumbled. "You...
You kissed me..."
"It was our first real kiss..." He whispered, leaning closer to her.
She suddenly felt a wave of guilt over her. "Sonic, I... I'm so sorry..."
She said, a tear falling over her cheek, "I..."
"Shh... No, no. Don't apologize. It's really all my fault..." He said,
putting her finger to her lips, "I know you think it's stupid of me to be
jealous, when I see you with Knuckles, or Geoffery, or any one else, but
it's just because... Because I care so much about you... I want you all for
myself... I know it's selfish, but I... I can't help it, you're so beautiful
and smart and incredible... I can't apologize for needing you so much..."
Sally's eyes spilled tears freely now. She took his face in her hands,
"I know... I know..." She whispered.
He hugged her tightly, and she hugged back.
"...Just, just don't do that again, okay...?" She said, sobbing.
"I won't... I promise..." He whispered.
She pulled back to look at his face again.
"It's nine." He said, grinning.
She laughed, then kissed him.
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To be continued....
Everyone: AAGHGHGHGHGHGHHHHHHHHHH!!!
Yes, sorry again folks. It's time once again for that period of horrible waiting until the
next part of this story comes out! Things have turned out all right for Sonic and Sally,
but it looks like the Freedom Fighters are out for some trouble, with that tracking device
implanted on thier vehicle! Will Robotnik learn Knothole's secret location? And what about
the attack on the Floating Island by the Dark Legion? Will the Chaotix be able to handle
it with Knuckles away? New tales, twist, and characters lie ahead! I hope to see you next
time!
~Erin Lindsey
elindsey@ix.netcom.com
And now you can visit Erin's great Sonic and furry art page, starring the one and only
Shelia ClearWaters! Visit ClearWater Productions here:
http://www.FurNation.com/clearwaters
Disclaimer:
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Legalities: Okay. ready, set go!!!
Sonic the Hegehog, Knuckles the Echidna, the Freedom
fighters, the Chaotix, Dr. Robotnik, and any related
characters are licensed characters of SEGA and Co.
and/or DIC and Archie Adventure series Comics. Clawz the
Wildcat and Shelia ClearWaters were created by Erin
Lindsey. If you want any of my stories on your site,
want to use any of my characters, you must have written
consent of my aurthorization, beforehand.
Send any questions, comments, or complications to:
elindsey@ix.netcom.com