Chapter 6- Forced Retreat

Most of the army had returned to the city to regroup and heal wounds, or bury the dead. Many sad days had befallen Knothole, and this was one of them.

Wherever you went in the village, from the tallest tree to the deepest basement, you could hear the groans of the injured and dying. The dark wave had taken a heavy toll upon the army, weakening its soldiers so much that they were very easy targets for the robots. Few had felt as downcast as they did now, especially the workers in the hospital. They had a bloody task, and set about it with grim determination. Many had volunteered to help in the hospital and the huts where the wounded were taken, even the walking wounded. It was a sad day indeed.

Sonic, Mina, Lazer and Tails and had not died. The aura that Lazer had provided took the brunt of the evil force, but even so, the group had suffered. Tails had taken it the worst; he had been rendered unconscious from the severe drain of energy. After the ordeal, they had to cut a swath through the enemy lines, Mina carrying Tails, all the way back to their village. Lazer and Sonic had spatters of crude oil on them, and dust clung to their fur.

"Oh, Goddess," whispered Mina, her eyes and ears filled with the torment around her. She and the others were speechless. That feline and her emerald had wrought incredible amounts of destruction. As they stood gazing, Sally ran up to them, her hair in a mess, her hands and body stained with blood.

"You're all alive," she gasped, brushing back her hair and leaving a red mark upon it. She took a moment to catch her breath.

"Please, there are so many injured people, you've got to help,"

She stopped short and noticed Tails.

"Tails!" she cried fearfully. Mina was cradling the blue-coated fox in her arms, his eyes shut and his head lolling back.

"He's just sleeping," Mina reassured her. The squirrel let out her breath in a whoosh, relieved.

"Okay. I'll take him. Sonic, please help the others!"

She scurried off to another hut with the fox in her arms. Sonic nodded.

"Right. We've got to help these guys."

"Straight to the ER for me," sighed Lazer, and he floated to the hospital.

"Is he a surgeon, too?" asked Mina.

"Five chaos emeralds. Go figure what he can do. Anyway, I gotta go."

"I'll come help."

They were fighting a new battle now, to save lives. They tried hard to ignore the frustration and shame brought about by their premature defeat.



King Acorn sat upon his throne, and a guard brought the visual communicator to him. He switched it on, and set the frequency. After the static cleared he heard a voice, and the face of the city's mayor appeared.

"My King! I am glad that you are uninjured," he said hastily.

"Spare me the greetings. I want to know your situation."

"There are a countless numbers of injured, and the death toll is approximately two thousand, five hundred."

The King dropped the device, and its screen cracked upon the floor. The mayor's face faded.

"Two thousand. five hundred." he said in a shuddering voice. His face visibly went pale. Sir John, standing nearby as usual, was concerned.

"Sire! Are you ill?"

"Please, Sir John," he sighed, waving his hand, "Please. clear the court."

The royal guard looked worried, but obeyed.

"Yes, majesty."

All who were in His royal presence left quickly, and the doors boomed shut. The King stared forward blankly.

"So many."

Tears welled in his eyes. The King was grieved for the loss of so many, and thought of the families who had lost a father, mother, child or even husband and wife. Then the tears fell, and he bowed his head. It was not acceptable that he should cry, but it all weighed upon him: the ruler of thousands, who had lost thousands of subjects. How could he not feel grieved that so many lives had been brutally taken? One of the doors slowly swung open.

"Dear? Are you in here alone?" It was Alicia. She saw her husband with bowed head, and tears dripping from the end of his nose. She ascended the steps and simply hugged him, for she knew that words could not comfort him. He returned the embrace, a sad King, with a caring Queen.

"Two thousand five hundred soldiers from the city died, Alicia."

"They will be honoured, Max," she said in her most reassuring voice. She did not tell him that more than one hundred fighters of Knothole had died. Maybe more from the city had died because they didn't have same experience that those of Knothole did in battle. She did not care about who was or was not experienced, though, what she did care about was the families of those who had died and this man she held in her arms.