Author's Note: I am SOOOO sorry it took me so long to get these chapters up! Too much happening too fast on my end. To make up for it, the next chapter is a bit longer than the usual length of four pages. Hope that makes up for it, and please don't hate me!

So this is the Floating Island…

Knuckles gasped as he arose from another uncomfortable slumber. He wiped the tears from his eyes and got out of bed. Every night the same nightmare, the same horrible memory. Every day the guilt grew worse and worse. How long would it last? Probably forever. The images would never leave his mind. He strapped on his belt and threw on his hat as he left his hut, unaware of what the day would soon bring.

It was a day of rest. The last mission had left them rather weary, and a break was needed. Some took the time to have fun, others to just shoot the breeze and hang out. As the day came to a close, however, it was back to business as usual. "Freedom Force, it is at this time that we need to unite ourselves with other resistance groups and establish alliances," Sally said as they ate their dinner, "We will be taking a trip over to the Floating Island to negotiate with the resistance movement there. Knuckles knows the area, so we should have no trouble, right Knuckles?" They all looked at him and noticed that he had stopped eating. He pushed his plate forward, sighed as he got up, and said, "Yeah. No trouble," as he left the room. They all looked at each other, wondering what was wrong with him. "I figured he might be happy to see home again. It's like he doesn't want to go back," Sally said. "The guy's a weirdo if you ask me," Sonic said, ignoring the echidna's previous departure.

Out in the woods, Knuckles slowly walked, staring at the ground. Go home? How could he? After all that had happened…he figured he wouldn't return until he had done what he had set out to do. His secret objective. Deep down, he was merely using the resistance to achieve his own personal goals, which remain to be discovered. The snapping of a twig made him jump to attention. He threw his arm back and blocked an oncoming kick. He found himself under attack from a barrage of punched and kicks. However, he was able to keep up with his opponent's great speed and eventually land a lucky shot. When his opponent hit the ground, he saw it was a black hedgehog with red eyes and streaks in his quills of the same color. Knuckles reached out his hand and said, "Nice try, Shadow." They both began to chuckle as Knuckles helped him up. They shook hands and Knuckles said, "How are you, old friend?" "I find myself passing by quite well. You?" "Same as usual" "The dreams, still?" Knuckles nodded and Shadow sighed. "You must not blame yourself for things you couldn't control." "I know, but-" Suddenly, Mighty's voice rang through the woods. "Knuckles! Where are you?" "They are looking for you, so I will take my leave." "Until we meet again," Knuckles said with a smile as he left. Not a second after, the black hedgehog dashed away.

Mighty looked around him and saw that the echidna was nowhere in sight. He sighed and turned to leave, when he heard a rustling in the bushes. He turned around, only to see Knuckles. "Yes?" the echidna asked. Mighty smiled and said, "Uh…What's up?" Knuckles gave Mighty a curious look. He called for him to ask a question like that? "Nothing. If you're worrying about me, don't. I never said I wouldn't go to the Island. I…was just surprised." Mighty could tell right away that something about the island bothered him. "Anyway, I also wanted to tell you that we're leaving in an hour. We figured we'd travel overnight and get there early." Knuckles nodded, and said, "Fine. See you then." Mighty slowly nodded, and began to leave. He could tell by the way the echidna was staring that he wanted to be alone. When Knuckles had lost sight of the armadillo, he pulled out a locket. It was a golden half-circle with a gold chain. He opened it and stared at the picture inside with watery eyes. He closed it and grasped it tightly, holding it over his heart as a tear slid down his cheek. 'I won't fail you, too. I promise.'

"We present to you…the rebuilt and refurnished jet!" DJ shouted as they stared at it. It wasn't the most glamorous thing in the world, but then again, Knothole was a bunch of huts in the middle of the woods. You could clearly see where missing sidings were patched up; being that the paint job was incomplete. It's tough when you're limited on supplies. "Um…good job?" Espio said to Tails, Rotor and DJ. "If you like this, wait 'til you get inside!" DJ said, either missing or ignoring the sarcasm, speaking with great enthusiasm. They peered inside and were amazed. It was worse on the inside than the outside. Cords were hanging from the walls and ceiling, and the seat cushions were ripped. "You really outdid yourselves," Sally said with a sigh, "You shouldn't have spent so much time working." "Ha. But we did," DJ answered, turning to Tails and Rotor, "Present wrenches!" The three mechanics pulled out a wrench each and held them up in a triangular formation. "Mine's the monkey wrench," DJ commented. "Yeah. You're dumb as a monkey," Vector said. "If monkeys are so dumb, how come they discovered how to peel bananas?" "They didn't. And they don't."

Knuckles walked onto the ship and glanced around with a raised brow. "Alright, everyone seated?" Sally asked. She then noticed Knuckles and told him to take a seat. He looked back and noticed that the only chair left was the one next to Julie-Su. He groaned as he walked back and asked to sit down. "If you must," was her reply. The jet rumbled and shook as it took off, and with crossed fingers, Sally steered it forward. "She lives!" Rotor shouted.

Not long after, it became very dark out. One by one, the passengers fell asleep. Rotor, who had taken over for Sally, activated the autopilot and set the course for the Floating Island. Eventually, he too fell asleep. All were dead to the world, with the exception of two echidnas.

"So…What's it like on your island?" Julie-Su asked, breaking the eerie silence. "Like paradise." "So why did you ever leave?" He didn't bother to answer. They sat in silence for a few moments, until she glance over at him. He seemed like he was very tired. "You ever gonna sleep?" she asked. "I don't sleep well," he said, "You?" "No. I'm not too tired yet." He yawned, placing one hand over his mouth, and stretching the arm next to her over his head. Expecting him to put his arm around her, she drew one of her blasters and pointed it at him, "Watch it!" He turned to her and said, "Woah! What's your problem!" "Like you don't know! That's the oldest move in the book!" "What are you talking about? What move? What'd I do?" For some reason, she could tell he was sincere, and lowered her blaster. "So you weren't trying to put your arm around me?" He turned bright red and said, "No! Why would I do that?" She smiled and said, "Fine, fine. I'm sorry." "Yeesh." Another period of silence occurred, until she finally yawned. "So now you're tired?" he asked. "Just…a little," she replied, a bit dazed. "Well, maybe I can get you a pillow or…or…" he began, until she slowly drifted off to sleep, resting her head on his shoulder. He blushed, but was afraid to move. She was smiling pleasantly, and he didn't want to disturb her. For some reason, he smiled as he looked down at her, closed his eyes, and rested his head on hers as he drifted off to sleep.

Sally opened her eyes as she heard the landing gear touch the ground. She let out a yawn and stretched her arms as she stood up. A few of the others began to stir, exchanging 'good mornings'. It was then that Bunnie chuckled and said, "Heh. Well git a load 'a them." Sally turned to see Julie-Su and Knuckles still asleep, leaning against one another as they had during the night. "Awww. They look so cute," Sally said. "Too bad we gotta wake 'em up. Hey love-birds! Rise and shine!" Sonic shouted. The two echidna's stirred, looked at the others, and then hopped up onto their feet, blushing. "Um…Sorry, I…" Knuckles began. "It's uh…it's okay…uh…" she replied, tilting her black shades up. Sally glared at Sonic for being so rude. Sometimes she just hated him. He was one of the most ignorant people she had ever met. Why then did she have some strange attraction to him? As Knuckles stepped off the jet, something hit him. The nightmare! He hadn't had it! But why? What had been different? He turned and looked a Julie-Su, who adjusted her black bandana on her head. Was it something to do with her? Maybe…

They began a trek through the jungle, Knuckles leading the way. He stopped under a large tree and began to climb it. "What are you doing?" Sonic asked, thinking the echidna was a moron. Suddenly, a strange fruit came down and struck him on the head. The others laughed as Sonic rubbed the top of his head, cursing under his breath. Knuckles tossed down a few fruits until everyone had one, and then slid down on a vine with a fruit of his own. "Oh I'm sorry. Did that one hit you?" Knuckles said to Sonic with a wicked grin. Sonic growled in frustration. He hated looking bad, or being looked down upon, and both were taking place at the moment. He hated Knuckles. He kept making Sonic look like a fool in front of everyone. Sonic was the hero of Knothole, and then this echidna shows up and makes him look like a joke. He hated him.

They quickly ate and continued on their way. Knuckles pointed out a few landmarks as they went, and the others took complete fascination. That was…enough for Sonic. "I'm scouting ahead," the hedgehog said as he took a step forward, ready to use his speed. "I wouldn't do that. Stick with me and you'll be fine," Knuckles said. "I don't need you for anything," Sonic grunted back before he sped off.

Sonic didn't need Knuckles at all. This was easy. He ducked under branches, jumped over logs and bushes…he was fine. He had gone about half a mile before getting snagged in a trip line and getting stuck in a net. He struggled to get free, but couldn't. Finally, he used his trademark Sonic Spin to cut loose, only to find himself surrounded by echidnas with blasters. There was too many of them and not enough room to move around. He was trapped.

"Stand down, men," a familiar voice said. Sonic turned to see Knuckles and the others coming though the brush. "Guardian!" the echidnas gasped, lowering their weapons, and not taking their eyes off of Knuckles. "He's with me…unfortunately," Knuckles said as he walked over to Sonic. He looked the hedgehog in the eye and said, "I suggest you listen to me. The Legion is here, too. You're lucky you ran into the EST and not them, or I'd leave you to rot. So I suggest you sit tight, or I'll break one of your legs so you have to!" the echidna growled. For some reason, Sonic was scared. Perhaps it was the tone of the echidna's voice, or the fiery intensity of his violet eyes that let Sonic know that Knuckles meant business. Knuckles then turned his attention back to the echidnas and asked, "Could one of you take me to Constable Remington?" One of them nodded and began to lead them through the woods. As Sally passed Sonic while following, she shot him a glare and said, "You and I are going to have a LONG conversation later, concerning your attitude."

After a bit of a walk, they found themselves entering a city. Most of it was in good condition, but there were other buildings, especially on the outer rim, that were in ruins. As they walked down the streets, they noticed all the echidnas stopping to look at Knuckles as he walked by. Either he was trying to ignore it, or he just didn't notice. Either way, he didn't look at them. Just at the road ahead. Finally, they approached a building with a large EST on it, with the top of the E broken off. Before they could enter, another echidna ran out. He was brown, with a tan hat, similar to Knuckles', and a green jacket. "Guardian!" he said in joy and he and Knuckles shook hands, "We haven't heard from you in months! We feared for the worst!" "I'm fine, Remmy. How have things been here?" "We haven't had too many tangles with the Legion in a while, actually. Dimitri seems to be averting his attention elsewhere." Knuckles' eyes narrowed at the mention of that name. Remington placed his hand on the young echidna's shoulder and said, "I know what you have lost. He will pay." "I know," Knuckles muttered.

Remington's eyes looked over Knuckles' shoulder and narrowed. "What have we here? A prisoner?" Knuckles turned around and saw he was looking at Julie-Su. He could see she was hurt by this, but didn't want to show it. "I trust her for the most part, so you should show her the same respect you show everyone else," Knuckles said with a slight smile. Her head lifted and she lowered her shades to look at him. Why was he defending her?

Knuckles and Remington arranged a meeting with the high counselors in order to discuss negotiations, and in the meantime, arranged lounging for the visitors. As before, the citizens stared with smiles as Knuckles walked by. It was like he was some kind of hero here. As they walked, he stopped at the sound of a small voice crying. The others stopped as he walked over to a little echidna girl on a stoop and stopped in front of her. He bent his knees so he could get down to her level and said, "Hey. What's wrong?" The little girl looked up and said, "The black-ack m-monsters killed my d-daddy." "Where's your mommy?" he asked in a soft voice. "Working in the factory." "Your daddy must have been proud of you. You're a very pretty little girl." "Th-thank you m-mister Guardian s-sir." "You're welcome," he said as he put his hands on the side of her face and wiped her tears away with his thumbs, "There now. All better. Don't worry about the black monsters anymore. I'll take care of them for you." She stepped over and hugged him, and he hugged her back. "Y-you promise?" "I promise." "What about that one?" she asked. Knuckles turned around to see that she was pointing at Julie-Su. The pink echidna's eyes filled with tears as she stared at the little girl. She was ashamed. "She…she isn't one of them anymore. She's gonna help us," Knuckles explained. "But what if she's lying?" Knuckles wasn't sure how to respond for a moment. Finally, he said, "Hey. You trust me, right?" the little girl nodded, and he replied, "Then everything will be okay. She's helping." She nodded and hugged him again. He kissed the top of her head and said, "Now go and play with your friends. Everything will be fine." "Okay," she replied as she got up and walked off.

He watched her leave and sighed. Finally, he turned to the others, who were giving him a strange look. "What?" Sally smiled and said, "Who knew you were such a sweetheart? That was so nice of you." He blushed for a moment, and then looked around, as if he were searching for something. "What is it?" Tails asked. Then turned in the direction he was facing to see Julie-Su walking off on her own. They called after her, but she didn't answer. Knuckles let out an aggravated sigh and said, "Give me a minute," as he jogged after her.

Julie-Su finally stopped when she had left the city and was at the edge of the forest. She looked out at the sunset and sighed. As she walked, she had noticed how everyone was staring at her. No one cared that she was helping. She was only seen as an enemy. Even that poor little girl was suspicious of her. 'Maybe I don't belong here after all…' She heard someone behind her and spun around to see Knuckles. "Uh...Hey." "Oh…It's you." "He was quiet for the first few seconds, then finally said, "Listen…about what that girl said…don't worry about it. Forget it. She's just scared. Nothing against you." His words brought her no comfort, and she lowered her head and sighed. "I feel like a monster. Like I really don't belong with the rest of you," she said, leaning against a tree. He stared for a moment, sighed, then turned and looked at the city. "I've felt the same way, sometimes. I guess it's my own fault. I don't try to get cozy with anyone. I just…remain alone." She looked up at him, then said, "I guess we both have our problems." "Yeah," he replied, not turning back to her. "At least you know where you belong. Your home is here. Me? I don't know what home is." There was a short silence, until she said, "Knuckles…I'm sorry." "For what?" he asked as he began to turn around, only to be pistol-whipped in the back of the head. She caught him as he fell, and slowly laid him on the ground. She looked at him for a minute and thought, 'I think we got off on the wrong foot. You really aren't a bad guy at all, are you? …Guess I'll never know.' With this finally though, she whispered "Goodbye" and walked off into the darkness of the forest.