ALEXIS

Alexis knew that the princess probably wouldn't make it. She was in a coma and her pulse was weak. Without medicine or intravenous nutrition, it would only be a matter of time before Sally Acorn's body gave up the fight altogether. Her breathing was shallow enough to arouse concern; if Alexis were back in Bookshire's clinic, she would have already given her an oxygen mask. It was not a question of if she would die, but when. The likelihood of Sally emerging from her coma without proper medical attention was almost nonexistent.

At least she could make her comfortable, though. Alexis tucked her into the bottom right-hand bunk of their cell and gently propped her up with pillows. "Her forehead is warm," she said to Tails, her twelve-year-old cellmate. "We should soak one of those towels in cold water."

The fox was standing against the wall, hugging himself. He was obviously frightened. Alexis didn't blame him; she was scared too. But as a medical assistant, she knew the importance of staying calm under pressure.

"Is the water safe?" Tails asked.

It was an intelligent question -- one which Alexis hadn't immediately considered. It was not outside the realm of possibility that the water might be contaminated with something: poison, perhaps, or even some kind of acid. She still had no idea who had captured them or what their motives were.

"Good thinking," said Alexis. "I'll test it." She crossed the cell and picked up the fruit bowl and one of the towels, then stopped herself. Include the kid, she thought. He needs to feel like he's helping.

"Hey, do you think you can give me a hand with this?"

Tails shrugged. "Sure, I guess. What do you need me to do?"

"First we'll need one of these oranges." She dumped the contents of the fruit bowl onto the mirrored floor. To her surprise, a small knife clattered between the oranges and pears. She didn't stop to rationalize why it was there -- she simply handed it to Tails with a plump orange. "Here. Peel this and break it into slices, okay? I'll be right back."

She hurried into the bathroom with the empty fruit bowl and began filling it with water from the sink. "If this water contains anything toxic," she explained from inside, "then the citrus from those oranges will produce a chemical reaction with most Mobian substances. Right now, I'm most concerned with finding traces of hydrotonic chlorate, which is a colorless and odorless compound. Basically, that means we'd have to taste it to know it's even in there. Not too safe."

Tails allowed himself a small laugh. "Yeah, guess not, huh?"

"So this is the next best way to tell." She returned with the bowl and gingerly placed it on the floor, taking care not to let it spill over the sides. "Many of the other toxins that would be dangerous to us have a definite color or scent, and we'd know right away that it's not okay to drink."

"Wow," said Tails, genuinely impressed. "Where'd you learn this stuff?"

"Oh, from Dr. Bookshire, mostly," Alexis said. "I'm his assistant. I also studied for a couple years with Dr. Quack from the Eastern regiment. Hey, who knows -- when we get out of here, you might be able to teach your friends a few things. Try not to play with too many volatile chemicals, though; it's no fun to burn your eyebrows off."

"I'll bet," Tails giggled.

Alexis smiled. "Got those slices ready?"

"Right here."

"Okay, here goes…"

She took a slice in each hand and squeezed the juice into the bowl. They waited for a few seconds. Nothing happened.

"So what does that mean?" Tails asked.

"Hmm… I dunno. Doesn't look or smell funny. I guess it's safe." Alexis rolled up her sleeve. "Only one way to find out, though, right?"

Tails leaned forward intently, his expression serious. Alexis slowly dipped her hand into the water. Seconds passed.

Her eyes grew wide. "Oh my god!"

"What?" Tails gasped. "Is it poison…?"

"Hehehe. Just kidding," she said. She pulled her hand out of the bowl and flicked a few drops at him.

"Hey!" he yelled, laughing.

"You're right, that was mean," she giggled. "Here, lemme have one of those towels..."

Later that evening, Tails was sitting next to Princess Sally on the bed. Her temperature had gone down, thankfully, but they decided to keep the towel on her forehead anyway. She lay peacefully with her arms at her sides, expressionless.

"When's she gonna wake up?" Tails asked quietly.

Alexis sighed. "I dunno, kiddo. I'm afraid she's in a coma. She needs a doctor."

"Aren't you a doctor?"

"Well, sort of. But there's only so much I can do here. We really need to get back to Dr. Bookshire's clinic."

"How'd she get into a coma?"

"I honestly can't tell you," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I can't remember anything from last night. Can you?" The kit shook his head. Alexis knelt beside him. "My best guess is that we were drugged in our sleep -- some kind of anesthesia. I don't see any bruises on her body or anything to indicate a struggle, so maybe she's having an allergic reaction to the chemical."

Or maybe, she thought, our captors did something else to her. But she kept that to herself.

She caught a glimpse of the security camera in the corner again -- a constant reminder that someone nearby was paying close attention to them. She wondered why their neighboring cells were empty. Perhaps there were additional detention levels above and below them; she couldn't imagine that they had been the only ones captured. The princess might have been a valuable prize, but not valuable enough for their captures to ignore the rest of the village.

"Don't worry, Aunt Sally," Tails was saying, holding her hand. "Sonic'll break us out of here. I know he will."

Alexis wasn't quite so certain.