"Report"

"She has made contact with the Badnik as expected."

"Most intriguing. Contact our ally and ask him of his progress."

"As you command, sir."

"Oh, and bring me another bottle of that magnificent wine, my nerves need to be calmed down."

"Of course, sir."

CHAPTER 3

THE JUNKYARD- 02:35 AM

The junkyard was under the watchful eye of swatbot patrols, much like any other sector in Robotropolis. When Robotnik discovered that the Freedom Fighters used this area as their entrance and route of escape often, he tightened security around it. He did well for a couple of months, capturing mobians twice as much than he would inside the steel city.

This meant that he had badniks to spare for his factories and other plans he would unleash on Mobius. Just like in Robotropolis, Swatbots patrol continued their daily routine, even after his master was no longer around. Hidden cameras inside piles of junk and debris, hoverbots scanning around pools of acid and oil, heavy-armored Swatbots walking around the mounds of steel and metal, arms raised with their laser armlets in check.

Around in the middle of it all there was a tower that served as a communications center, barking orders to all Swatbot patrols and controlling laborbots in their cleaning routines. Swatbots where at the rooftop, controlling a spotlight on the ground while in the inside of the tower were guardbots, controlling the mainframe of the tower and scheduling the next patrolling routine. Five guardbots where at command, each rolling around to every single computer screen, checking on every security sector every now and then.

"Group Alpha-Beta 12-4-5, this is Central Tower, report your progress."

"Alpha-Beta, all clear, over."

"Affirmative, continue patrolling the area, Alpha-Beta."

"Roger. Alpha-Beta over and out."

"Group Omega-Dial-16-6-5, report."

"Omega-Dial, all clear, over."

"Affirmative, Omega-Dial. You may continue your duties."

"Roger, Central Tower. Omega-Dial over and out."

Searches where twenty-four seven, even if there were no sights of any organically being for months now. Orders where orders, and no one above their rank could ever do otherwise. The robots were loyal to their master indeed.

A heavy-armored Swatbot rolled around a pile of junk, crushing any thrash on the floor and avoiding any harmful acid puddles. It stopped right in front of a dead-end, wall of scrap metal surrounding it. Its right arm came out from its side, forming into scanning lenses, oval in shape and focusing ahead pf the road. It snapped shots of its finding, sending it towards the Central Tower immediately. The Tower received the data and translated it to a computer screen, scanning the images that just got in.

"Intruder alert! Sector 54, East of Central Tower. Code Yellow. Swatbot unit 12-543 is scanning presumed intruder at the moment."

A few seconds later, the image cleared completely, showing the body of Medusa standing aside a pile of scrap metal, her head down as her body remained completely still. The guardbots studied the image, coming with any known conclusions about it.

"Awaiting your orders, Number 1." Said the guardbot who gave the initial alert, "Should we pick up the badnik and scan it for any malfunctions?"

The guardbot referred as Number 1 rolled by, its arms clicking once. Its head looked up at the screen, computing any orders that would suit this situation.

"Bring the badnik in. It must have got lost on its orders and malfunctioned. Give the go ahead to the armored swatbot, Number 3."

"Affirmative" Said Number 3, while sending the orders to the armored swatbot. Moments later, the massive machine picked up Medusa, who was standing still with her electronic eyes off. A massive claw that formed from the right arm lifted the badnik, carrying her back towards the guarding post. At the same time, Hershey lay in wait nearby the door to open. This was a plan she and Medusa planned during the last miles of their journey. A risky plan since the feline would have to jump in at the same time the armored swatbot would be allowed to get inside the post. There were hoverbots around the door, and too many cameras surveying the area, so a chance of her hacking the security code to get inside was not an option this time.

Her tail flicked once in anticipation. She tried her best to remain calm until she received he chance. At last the armored swatbot came to the door, holding Medusa in one claw, while his head looked up to the cameras for a full access scan. Lights turned on form the ceiling as the cameras whirled at the massive machine for a few seconds, then the door moved upwards, making a rusty rumble that made Hershey cringe momentarily. The swatbot marched in slowly, taking its time, as it there was nothing better to do. The lights went of once the entire frame walked in, and the door was closing shut.

Hershey leaped from her hiding spot-a heap of metallic junk and garbage-, and rushed inside the entrance before it was sealed once more. The cameras whirled away from entrance while she did this, avoiding any unwanted attraction to her mission.

The inside of the structure was dark, not a single light was lit save for the blinking lights of some maintenance bots. She moved close to a wall, relying only on her natural eyes to see in the dark. Her temptation to use the night vision goggles kept creeping inside her head, but it was far too risky to get caught while using them. The night goggles gave out a green glow around the eye area, and swatbots would surely come to inspect the strange new light.

For a brief moment she wanted to follow that armored robot. She wanted to check on her partner to make sure nothing has happened to her. But she could not betray her orders for anything...or anyone.

She bit her lower lip and resumed her inspection, slowly trough the darkness to reach her destination.

***

THE JUNKYARD-MAINGATE- 02:55 AM

Look for an oval-shaped column, next to a set of steel stairs.

Those were the last words the metallic vulpine said to her before entering the junkyard. It was a secret passage concealed by the residents of Lower Mobius. In years past this place was nothing much than garbage bin, to recycle scrap metal. But Robotnik rebuilt the place, converting it to a small fortress to keep unwanted visitors at bay. Hershey realized it would still not be successful at keeping the likes of Sonic from rushing in and destroy it. Perhaps this was to be a mission waiting to happen for the Forest Freedom Fighters.

If they had any reason to come here that is.

Hershey counted her steps in case she needed to withdraw should such passage no longer existed. Each turn she made on the corner of the place was also imprinted in her memory, every detail felt on her fingertips from the wall, memorized. Working solo meant a lot of caution, and avoiding armed robots outnumbering you was reason enough not to get caught.

A low hum came from the left of her position; Hershey stood still and turned her head slightly to confirm what she heard. A small rounded robot advanced slowly past her, not taking notice of her presence at all. Even in the darkness Hershey could note a number 3 painted on the back of the machine, vanishing to the darkness away from her. It must've been an operator of some sort, unarmed. Hershey kept walking a bit more confidently now, as she saw a pair of stairs leading up to the second floor of the structure.

And beside the stairs, there was an oval-shaped column. Right where Medusa said it would be. Hershey cautiously walked towards it, her eyes fixed on everything that moved in the darkness. She began looking for the switch to open the doorframe, finding instead a numerical pad with an id recorder on the side. She opened her backpack, taking a small purse filled with fixed identification cards that were hacked in advance and looked at them, trying to identify the matching card with the lock. She realized that if she picked the wrong card to slide, it would trigger an alarm of some sort. It was a dilemma that would take some time to figure out.

But time was a luxury she couldn't afford at the moment.

"Might as well go with instinct," she muttered, picking one card at random from the collection. She sled it trough without hesitation, and waited. Moments later, a phrase asking for the password flashed on the small screen, accepting the code from the hacked ID card. Hershey sighed with relief, not getting any unwanted attention from the robotic crowd. She started keying the password, using a set of numbers she remembered from Medusa.

Again, she waited for a few seconds before any reply came from the lock. The lights turned from yellow to green, opening the hatch. Hershey walked inside immediately, ignoring any other noises around her. She closed the hatch once she got inside, and surveyed the newfound area.

A series of pipes surrounded the walls and ceiling, extending endlessly trough a well-lit tunnel. Humming noises came from ventilation ducts and it felt a lot colder than it did outside in the junkyard. Hershey realized she was inside a ventilation unit, one that connected with the path to her destination in Lower Mobius. She began walking with more confidence along the group of pipes.

"Not bad, the walk is not too tiresome...but the view's kinda bland." She said to herself, trying to keep amused after walking for a good period of time. Soon, she came into the end of the tunnel, with a closed hatch surrounded by a huge circular doorframe. Hershey started analyzing the doorframe, in hopes of finding a hidden switch at least. Luck was not on her side once she failed to find any.

She leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed against her chest with frizzled fur due to the coldness in the tunnel. She closed her eyes and pondered about her current situation, not giving up on this dilemma. Her eyes twitched once, catching the humming sound coming from the opposite side of the tunnel. She ignored it for the time being, and reached into her backpack, retrieving the laptop given to her by the mysterious organization. The mini disc given by Medusa was inserted a short time later, and a map of the tunnels was shown to her, along with directions on how to reach her destination. She traced along the route she was taking, every corner and point was there, as promised. Then there was a long viaduct shown, connecting the entrance of Lower Mobius.

Hershey sighed. There was no record of how to open up this hatch anywhere. She closed the interface, and began exploring the contents of the hardrive, trying to locate anything she may find useful in her quest. Folders, applications, many things were built in, but none of these seemed to help her much in her mission. Finally, she tried to enter into a folder marked "Quartz Quadrant", but it was protected by a passcode. She sat down for a few minutes and tried to figure it out by herself, when another vibrating hum that came from the same direction as before.

At first, Hershey thought that this was just one of the pipes near her making the noise, but her eyes opened up once she heard the sound of lasers striking metal far away from her position.

She looked deep into the darkness of the tunnel as the humming increased in volume, sparks flowing from every side where the first things that materialized in the distance. Soon, there was a yellow-painted transport that was coming at full speed towards her. Hershey thought of moving out of its way, as it may not be able to stop in time it reached her.

There was one slight problem however: The tunnel was not spacious enough to move out of the way, and there was no other means of dodging the incoming vehicle. She packed the laptop quickly into her backpack, and took out her taser gun, aiming it at the hovering craft.

The vehicle's top flew open as one laser beam hit it, sending it back in a haze of smoke to whoever was chasing it. Hershey distinguished the driver as a male canine mobian, with a look of shock on his face as he started to wave at her. She noticed that he started to scream as well, words slowly materializing as the vehicle came closer.

"...out the way! Move!"

Yeah, that was her first plan, but her current situation excluded such actions.

There was a giant bulk following him, shooting lasers from every other appendage that came into view. Hershey didn't need to know that this thing was, the mechanic sounds had Robotnik's signature all over it. As they both came into better view, the metal beast resembled a giant rat with cannons mounted on each side of its head and on its back. It looked like some kind of mutated badnik running in all fours.

A small beep sounded behind her, and the oval doorframe opened in full. Hershey looked back briefly, only to catch a glimpse of the vast darkness that resembled a pit, just a few steps away from her feet.

"Great."

Hershey crouched as the vehicle came near, and waited. The thing was coming at full speed and she knew it would not stop as long as the mechanic menace following them kept on firing lasers at their back. One tactical maneuver was all she could ever think of at this moment. She holstered her gun and reached back on her backpack with her right arm, pulling out a small spark grenade.

She jumped to the wall, one free hand and feet crouching on the surface momentarily before she pushed herself once more into the open space into the vehicle. She tossed the spark grenade at the robotic rat, hitting it straight on the face. Hershey's body impacted with a laudable thud on the passenger's side of the vehicle, her shoulder and legs crashing onto it. The driver didn't know what just happened, but as soon as the vehicle crossed the door, he closed it behind by pressing a button on the console near the steering wheel. A deafening boom and a crash against the doorframe were all that was heard seconds later.

Hershey held on to the seat as she felt gravity pulling her body away, the vehicle was now hovering downwards on the wall, at full speed still.

"Are you alright?" The mobian yelled, without turning his head. He started to slow down since he heard no response. "Yeah..." Hershey managed to say once she breathed a gulp of air to her compressed lungs, she tried to sit up, but the awkward position she was in made it impossible to do so. The driver resumed his original speed down below, figuring it was the only thing left to do at the moment.

A few uncomfortable miles later, the floating vehicle came into a horizontal position again, and Hershey was now sited on passenger's seat next to the driver (Whose name mentioned to her was John Kosher). He explained that he was off in a mission from Lower Mobius to find food and water sources up on the surface, finding only trouble once the robotic rats blocked the way to the world above.

"So there are more of those things out there?" Hershey asked dreadfully.

"Yep...but the one you saw was the mother of them all, the rest are smaller and less deadlier. Luckily them lot didn't had the urge to chase me down here. I am glad you were around as well, that was some stunt you pulled back there. Where you said you came from again?"

"The Junkyard, I was supposed to follow this route towards Lower Mobius, I need to find its current leader for some information." She turned her face at John with a serious gaze. "I can't tell you much else".

"Hey, no problem," he replied gleefully," You saved my tail back there as observed, I'll keep my mouth shut until I get you home."

Home as it was, Lower Mobius was located 300 meters below Robotroplis. Survivors of the First Wave attack that Robotnik launched on Mobiopolis trekked endlessly until they found a space among the rocky seclusions of the underground. Their source of power was a gigantic crystal that was strapped to a machine, on the highest part of the humongous cave. Food became scarce on these times, as the population kept growing year after year. Their means of transport were not many, including a handful of hovering vehicles like those John was driving, at times, they would even climb the tunnels that lead towards different parts outside Robotropolis, but it took much more time than using the vehicles.

Of course, even if they were able to reach the surface with such ways meant that they had to deal with Robotnik's inventions, avoided them was the best way to deal with such occurrences, they lacked the means to combat the likes of the robotic rats that swarmed the ventilation tunnels above.

They stopped near a mobian-made rail corridor, where John parked the vehicle. They both jumped out of it, and headed towards the steel door located at the right side of the rocky wall. John knocked on it a few times and waited. Within seconds, a small opening revealed a pair of glaring eyes from within.

"I hope you didn't ruined another vehicle, John." a male booming voice said from the other end, "If I find much as a scratch on it, I am gonna make you build one from scratch up there at the junkyard!"

"Come on, Nero," John said with a wry grin and a shrug, "You let me in, and I buy you a hotdog, whaddaya say?"

Nero grunted and closed the steel slit. The sound of a lock came later, before the door flung open. It revealed a mobian bear, wearing a red cap and a utility belt with all sorts of tools strapped on it, a yellow shirt and black pants that merely held his waist came to view as well, as she noted his gaze on her.

"Who's yer girlfriend?"

"My name is Lieutenant Hershey, agent for the Underground Resistance. I need to talk to your immediate superior". Hershey said with a sharp tone.

"So you say..." He said, rubbing his chin with a hand, "Well, go on ahead, you should be able to reach Lower Mobius Headquarters from here. I'll catch up with you later, John." The bear moved aside and let them both walk by, not saying another word. Hershey noted that he was looking at her from head to toe when he replied to her answer. She decided not to pay attention to that kind of look for now, but it was something she would not forget anytime soon. She followed John inside a hallway lit by small lamps that were mounted on each side of the walls, each waning in power every moment or so. They encountered Lower Mobius after a while.

Hershey's eyes widened at the sight of the city, endless houses were constructed on hills formed by rock and limestone, and the view was illuminated in an amber-colored shine, which came from the gigantic crystal that provided the city with energy. She noted that the crystal was also waning every so often, like the lights inside the hallway.

They walked through a series of rocky steps all the way down, entering the town. Some children were playing around brick-built homes, as other adults walked by, each talking among themselves and taking care of their own business. None seemed to be too worried about the problems on the surface. It seemed as if this was a whole new world altogether, and Hershey hasn't seen this kind of cheerful display since she was a kid frolicking in Mobiopolis.

John led her to a tall building in the middle of the town, not so far from the steps they walked trough, the building seemed to be only two stories high, and was painted in blue, with red streaks around the edges. The colors seemed purple thanks to the hue of the amber crystal above. Hershey noted a familiar looking symbol on the top left corner of the building, it resembled that used by the royal guard who served King Acorn, 10 years ago. They both entered the building and John closed the door behind them, shutting the cheerfulness that townsfolk were enjoying outside.

The interior of the building was built with white walls and green doors, each placed in contour with the other along a long hallway. To the right of the hallway were a stairway made of concrete, while at the left of it was a small desk, occupied by a feline mobian typing on a small computer.

"Hey there, Rosie" John said. The orange-furred cat stopped working on the computer and looked up at him trough a pair of eyeglasses.

"John! You're finally arrived...what took you so long?" She implied.

"Eh...just a couple of vermin on the way, nothing much to worry about...say, is Captain Morak available? I need to talk to him for a while, he has a visitor here."

John pointed with his right thumb at Hershey, who was behind him and observing the conversation without interest. The cat looked at her and raised her eyebrows, noting her attire.

"Well...he is on the second floor, but he is busy at the moment, I will report to him that you are-"

"Thanks Rosebud," John said, already walking upstairs. Hershey soon followed, ignoring the look of surprise on the secretary's face. They climbed until they reached the second floor, which had the same look as the one below. Walking down the hallway, Hershey spotted a few portraits hanging on the wall, each a painted version of generals and officers who served King Acorn, and others who served kings before him. She followed John towards a wooden door at the end of the hallway. As they neared it, Hershey picked up faint argument behind it, she wondered if it was wise to interfere in their business today.

***

UNKNOWN LOCATION- ??:??

The air, stale as it always been for years, was overcome by the vapors emitting from one of the encased cocoons which wired up to the mainframe computer, just as many of its kind were. The dust covering the crystal hatch moved as it opened slowly, letting out more vapors and fog substances that kept the body's furry tissue alive, while his mind remained dormant, waiting for his arousal.

His eyes blinked, stirring about, waking up to an unfamiliar place while shaking the bits of dreams and obscure memories that were now gone from his mind. His hand reached from the opened hatch and pulled his body up from the metallic cocoon, wishing to be inside no longer. His eyes focused on his surroundings...darkness was all it saw, along with monitor screens that flashed green lights and red typed fonts on each set. His ears perked up fully as the beeps of computers continued in a monotone rhythm.

He observed patiently, discovering that this chamber was much alive as he was now. He coughed, gasping for more air as a choking sensation threatened to cut his air supply. Breathing seemed new to him, but he knew that it was common among any living being.

He questioned his presence in this room. He did not remember how he got here, or where he was before he was inside this cocoon. Many questions appeared on his mind, but one stood above all.

"Who...am...I?" The words blurted out like much difficult task, each with a voice so familiar, yet so strange to him. He sat up fully, and rested a foot on the cold ground of the floor, the sensation being new and old at the same time as it was everything he sensed and touched. The body of a young German Shepherd now stood fully, and tried to make his first step in this room, only to find himself fall to the ground with knees that were not yet ready to follow the commands from his brain. He used his hands to raise his body halfway, and looked up to a computer screen, with green words flashing on a black background.

SUBJECT TYLER, K. SUCCESFULLY PROGRAMMED.

***

LOWER MOBIUS- 03:34 AM

"They argue all the time," John suddenly said to her, "I'll take care of it, they always listen to me." He started knocking at the door and the argument behind it stopped. A mobian goat greeted him with a glare as he opened the door; Hershey saw the tension on John's face as his shoulders stiffened.

"Well, well, look who finally made it to dinner." the goat said, without looking at Hershey, "You better come up with a better excuse this time, Sergeant John, the Captain is not pleased with your actions since last week."

"Er...yeah, nice to see you Lieutenant Harvok. Look, um, I really need to talk to the Cap, and well...is not about me exactly..." John pointed with both hands at Hershey behind him, a wane smile appearing on his muzzle. Harvok raised his eyebrows as he looked at her, and then opened the door fully to allow them to enter the room. Hershey stared at the inside of the room carefully, noticing nothing more than a couple of wooden chairs in the middle of the room, with a small, steel desk behind them.

And behind that desk, a Warthog, dressed neatly in his navy blue uniform, reminiscent of the royal guard of Mobiopolis. Three golden stars were accommodated on his left breast, pointing his rank, and at the bottom of them was a golden lion's head, which pointed out a deed of heroism the veteran Captain did during his time with the Mobian Army.

Hershey felt relaxed at this point, although she did her best not to show it. She knew she was in the company of fellow Mobians that fought for the same cause as her. Almost.

"A member of the underground resistance, I presume." The warthog finally said after minutes of silence. John was about to speak, but he was silenced by a single glare from the Captain. "What brings you here today, um..."

"Lt. Hershey, member of the second brigade of the Underground Resistance, sir." Said the feline, posing in military attention and saluting with her right hand over her forehead. The General nodded, noting the tone of discipline and respect she projected in her introduction. He motioned his right hand at the chair in front of her, to which Hershey looked briefly.

"I am grateful for your generosity sir, but I am in a bi of a hurry for commodities. I need access from one of your operational terminals to decode some files I gathered during my last trip to Robotropolis. One of my sources informed me I could count with you to provide help in my mission."

"I see...and who might this source be?" Said he, leaning his head to the right while raising a white-furred eyebrow at her. Hershey hesitated for a brief moment, feeling a bit of tension from Harvok (and even John) beside her.

"Medusa."

The Captain relaxed in his chair, leaning back with arms crossed along his chest. He cocked his head to the side and looked straight at Hershey, making eye contact with her. It was as if he was trying to see trough her own words, or possibly trying to find any sort a bluff among this conversation. The old hog closed his eyes.

"Well, let's see what we can do for you, Lieutenant." He sighed, "Although we have very limited sources down here, I hope they can be use to you."

"Thank you, sir" She replied, saluting the Captain moderately. He saluted back, and nodded to Harvok, who was already at the door.

"See that she gets what she needs. Walk her to the computer laboratory."

With that being said, Harvok escorted Hershey outside the room. John also was preparing to follow them, when the Captain stopped him cold with another glare.

"You are to remain here, Sergeant." He spat, "We have a few matters to discuss."

"Ah, yes sir, well..." Jason said in a frantic tone. "I am truly sorry for what happened to your last vehicle, I can explain-"

"I am not calling you for that, fool." The Captain held his hands outstretched on the table, and his glare turned into a gaze full of curiosity. "Have you found the Emerald?"

The Husky smirked, reaching in his left pocket of his pants with his hand, and retrieving a glowing emerald the size of his fist from it. He set it on the table, looking at the Captain in with an eyebrow raised.

"Indeed I have, sir. And I may know a way to find more of these yet."

"Excellent, go then and follow Harvok. I have a funny feeling about that female."

The husky saluted and retired from the room. The Captain examined the Emerald closely in his hands, and grinned. The future of Lower Mobius might depend on this single gem, allowing the city to recuperate loss energy for the last couple of years.