"Are we there yet?"

Sonic was leading the pack as they raced through the plains leading to the Emerald Hill Zone. The grass was beginning to become checkered. Loop-the-loops were starting to dot the landscape. Floating platforms popped up once in a blue moon. However, the more things stayed the same, the more they changed. The most prominent difference was the square hills. Rather than merely being checkered all the way through, they were instead shaped like a series of interconnected squares and rectangles, all fitting together and only being replaced with checkers at the ends. There were also various waterfalls and small fields of flowers peppered throughout the hills, though it was nothing that wouldn't be out of place in Green Hill.

Sonic was at the top of the group's formation. He was leading the way, paving the way forward for the rest of the crew. Manic was flying in his green forcefield while Bunnie was jetting along like a jet cruiser. Everyone else was content to use the bikes, and while they weren't as fast as Sonic, they were fast enough to keep up.

"Not yet," said Amy. She was positioned right behind Sonic and was doing her best not to get too exhausted from the hedgehog's constant line of inquiry. ("Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?") Part of her was hoping he didn't bring up her recent behavior in the last few weeks. After all, that incident with the cardboard box could be considered grounds for stalking in some circles. And another part was wondering how she could have fallen for him in the first place.

The others weren't faring much better. Tails opted not to fly along with Bunnie and Manic on account of not wanting to tire out his tails, though he seemed confident that he'd worked out a solution to that little conundrum soon enough. Sonia seemed to be fiddling with some sort of crystal or another, with her bike following the others via autopilot.

That just left Antoine, sulking at the end of the group in his little bike. He seemed to have a lot to say, but for whatever reason just couldn't bring himself to say it. Which, given recent events, was somewhat understandable. Bunnie tried to fly over to him once or twice to give him some comfort, but he didn't seem to be in a very comforting mood.

"Seriously?" said Sonic to Amy. "How long have we been running along here anyway?"

Amy checked her watch. She might as well humor him, she thought. "About half an hour. It shouldn't be that much longer now. That said, what are you complaining about exactly? I mean, you're the fastest thing alive. Running on an open plain ought to be one of your wet dreams."

"Not if I know where I'm going. It's like choosing between a normal dog and a chili dog. One is a lot more safe but doesn't have nearly as much to it, making it a lot less fun. While the other one has a lot more uncharted territory and might send you to the hospital if you take too much of it, but it's all worth it in the end. When I'm just runnin', I choose the chilidog. I want to just run with wild abandon, go wherever the wind takes me. But with something like this, I already know what the end goal's gonna be. Takes the fun right out of it."

"Yeah, well, I don't mind some adventure every now and then, but I still like to know where things are going. If I'm going to have a chilidog, (and that's a terrible analogy by the way,) I want to know exactly what's in it and what I'm getting before I possibly give myself a heart attack. Basically, I like to be on top of things."

Sonic briefly looked Amy in the eyes, as though he couldn't believe she just made an innuendo. And Amy swiftly took notice. "Uh, that is to say, not in that way. At all. Ever. In case you get any ideas."

"If you say so," said Sonic. "I just know someone was REALLY eager to be right next to me a few weeks back. Even though we barely had a proper conversation. Ever. There's being dedicated and then there's stalking. If I could've, I would've put a restraining order on you, ya know."

Amy winced, his words hitting straight home. "Yeah, I know. I guess I was overdoing it, huh?"

"Ya think? I mean, when someone's following you around in a cardboard box, 'overdoing it' is probably being polite. Or maybe that's just me."

Amy sighed as though remembering an old shame from years gone by. Even though it had only happened weeks ago. "I know. It's just, it's kind of silly, but I'm sixteen. And I have never been in love before."

"You mean, never been in a real relationship?"

She nodded, as though being unable to come out and say it. "Not once. And I knew girls who'd been doing it since they were fourteen. Maybe even sooner. I think I got jealous that I wasn't racking up a score. That I wasn't as far along as some of the other girls were."

"Kind of a slowpoke, huh? Not surprised."

Amy's right eye twitched, as though she had just been insulted. (Even if she hadn't been.) "Hey, excuse some of us for not being the fastest thing on the planet. Besides, what did you want me to do, be a slut? I know some women are fast and easy, but—"

"Whoa, hey, sorry! Guess I should've thought that one through a bit more, huh?"

"No, it's fine. It's— okay, it's not fine, but it's not worth arguing about either. Really."

Sonic sighed. He would have closed his eyes for a moment if there wasn't the risk of running into a loop-the-loop or tripping over a stone or something along those lines. Instead, he merely shook his head as though trying to relate. "Look, if I'm gonna' be honest, I've never been in a relationship either. Not yet anyway. I'm fast, but I'm not that fast. Same as you I guess."

Amy scoffed. "And here I thought you were the fastest thing alive. Well, I guess that's something we have in common."

"Maybe. All I know is that up until now, I was either too busy causing trouble or too busy traveling to even think of getting jiggy with it. But now that I'm stuck in one place, well, I don't know. It's too early to say. But I do know that with this sort of thing, taking it slow because you've got other priorities is nothing to be ashamed about."

Amy blushed. "Uh, thanks. In any case, I think I'm gonna drop the whole 'stalker with a crush' thing. Because I really shouldn't have been doing that in the first place. If something happens between us, it happens."

"Hey, if it means I don't have to keep checking around my ankles to make sure you haven't snuck in the bathroom, I'm all for it."

"Seriously?"

"Hey, you were stalking me in a cardboard box! Anything was possible."

"Uh-huh. But whatever. I guess I deserved that one. Anyway, friends?"

"Why not? Sure thing. And if things ever go from there, well, we'll just play it by ear."

"Fair's fair. And thanks."

"Hey, don't mention it! That's what friends do."

"If you say so. That said, if I'm going to be honest, you were the reason I dropped everything and got myself stuck in the middle of a revolution. And helping to lead one no less. Without you, I don't really know why I'm here."

"Well, sometimes I'm not really sure why I'm here either. I mean, I know why I'm here, but sometimes I wonder if that's enough. Maybe it's not really the same thing, but I kinda get where you're comin' from. But either way, it's not like I can just back out now."

Amy sighed in resignation. "And I guess it's the same with me. I may not know why I'm doing this, but either way, I've got a job to do. So I'm going to do it. Even if it kills me."

"Hey, that's the spirit!" Sonic gave her a resounding thumbs up.

"Thanks, I guess." Amy checked her watch. "Anyway, we should be almost there." She lifted up a pair of souped-up binoculars strapped around the bike's handle and looked into the distance. "There's a village over there, alright. And from the looks of things, Eggman still hasn't made it over to that neck of the woods just yet."

"It's probably because he sent out so many of them this time around," said Tails. "From what Geoffery told us, they might as well be a small army. As scary as that is, it does give us time to evacuate as many people from that village as we can while also letting us make our stand. And maybe buy enough time for the militias to get here."

"Good thinking, Tails," said Amy.

"What she said, lil' bro!" said Sonic. "Sally was nuts trying to make you stay behind again!"

"Thanks, big' bro. But I really owe it to Amy."

"Hey, don't mention it!" said Amy. "I mean, let's face it, you're one of the smartest people here. If I see someone useful, I'm not going to let them go to waste. And you're far too useful to pass up. Even if you still haven't hit puberty yet."

Tails was flattered by Amy's sound, logical reasoning. If nothing else. "Uh, thanks. I guess."

"Hey, what can I say? My dad taught me to be pragmatic as sin. You take what you've got and play your hand accordingly. Which is what we've got to do now. It should be fine over there, but be ready for anything."

Surprising one and all, Antoine was the first to suggest the worst. "What if it is a trap?"

"Antoine!" Bunnie gasped. "You can't be serious!"

"That's what I was going to say," said Amy. "I can't say the thought didn't cross my mind, but seriously?"

"Believe me, I do not wish to believe it any more than you do," said Antoine. "But think about it. I know that Sally said she had spoken with them, that they would be willing to help us, but how can we know that for sure? For all we know, they could turn against us when our backs are turned. Out of survival, if nothing else."

Bunnie nearly seized Antoine by the arm, only stopping just short of doing so. "Okay, sugar, we've gotta talk. I know things've been rough, but—"

"I am sorry, Bunnie, but I cannot. I just... cannot. Not just now."

Bunnie backed away, but judging by the look on her face, she was far from over it. "We ain't done. We're talkin' about this when this is over, you understand me?"

"Uh, well," said Amy, "I'll keep that in mind. But I'm not going to start suspecting our friends and allies without some real concrete proof. Or at least not act on it. Anyway, let's head on in."

A moment later, they revved their engines back up and they were on their way.


When they made it to the village, they found themselves greeted by the hustle and bustle of a town readying themselves for war. Half of the town militia was stationed near the entrance, practicing their skills before the ensuing conflict. The blacksmiths and craftsmen were preparing whatever gear and weapons they could. There were a few laser rifles from the science team in Knothole, but for the most part, they'd have to make do with old fashioned iron and steel. And everyone else was either waiting to be evacuated or doing what they could.

"You see, Ant'?" said Bunnie. "Nothin' to worry about." And all Antoine could do was grunt in defiance. A small mole in a nice suit soon came out to greet them as they neared the village gates, burrowing out from the under the ground as if he could sense their arrival. "Ah, greetings! The Freedom Fighters, I presume? You've been making quite the name for yourself!"

Amy shook his clawed hand, doing her best not to cut herself. "I bet. You got our message then?"

"Indeed. Haven't received a message by Flicky for some time. Though that just made it all the more urgent."

"Right. Though from the look of things, you're doing your best to make yourself ready."

"Quite. We are of course hoping you can take care of this threat before it gets here, but if not, we are ready to do our part. Most of us anyway. Those who aren't are ready to evacuate to Knothole."

"Glad to hear it. Sonic?"

"On it!" In a flash, Sonic found the evacuees, and they were all quickly gone like a gust of blue wind.

"I trust they'll be well taken care of?" said the mayor.

"If they aren't, I'll shoot myself in the foot. Which is less than what I'd deserve, honestly."

"Good, good. In any case, if there is anything you need, do not hesitate to ask."

"Thanks, but I think we'll be good."

"Good. With that said—"

Just then, they heard a scream from the back of the village. Then another. And another. And another. And anoth—

"My word!" said the Mayor. "What is-?"

"EVERYONE GET IN THERE NOW!" Everyone, Freedom Fighter and Minuteman both, rushed through the gates. It was a bloodbath. Every single member of the militia stationed in the village, every weapon maker, every supply vendor, everyone. Every single one was now a corpse lining the ground, and their blood was flowing out like a pool upon the stone streets and the grass. And standing in the center was none other than Swifty the Shrew.

"Hey, what's up, peeps?" He stood there, smiling like the devil and eyeing the Freedom Fighters as though Christmas had come early.

"EVERYONE, GET BACK!" Tails said at the top of his lungs. "I know this guy! And I'm pretty sure he fought Sonic to a standstill!"

"Oh yeah! You're one of those dudes Maw got his ass handed to, aren't ya? He's lookin' to pay you back ya know, big time. Especially that rabbit. But he's not who I'm after."

This was bad. Amy tried to buy time. She didn't have any powers. And she wasn't the fastest thing alive. All she had was herself. And that would have to be enough.

"You fought Sonic to a standstill, right?" said Amy. "In that case, you're probably as fast as him."

Antoine balked at the horror before him, his somewhat callous veneer cracking apart as his true self came rushing forth. "Sacre bleu! All this death!" Without hesitation, he drew his sword, all evidence of his timid nature gone. At least for the moment. "I DO NOT CARE WHETHER YOU ARE AS FAST AS HIM OR NOT! YOU WILL ANSWER FOR THIS!"

Swifty flashed his sharp claws, their fresh blood glistening in the afternoon sun. "Hey, don't get so worked up! It was nothin' personal, really. I just wanted to make sure no-one got in the way. See, I got bored of just marching along like a slowpoke. So I decided to go have myself some fun. Consider me the vanguard."

"Please don't tell me you're serious," said Sonia. "You're telling me you went ahead of everyone else and slaughtered half the village just so you could 'have some fun'?"

"Oh, no. Like I said, I was just getting them out of the way. This? This is the real fun." In an instant, he became a blur. Manic held out his ring and formed a solid green sphere around him, trapping Swifty within. Though he'd managed to get just within an inch of Sonia's face before he was.

"I've got him!" said Manic. Though it wasn't as though he'd have him for long.

"Now this is new. But so is this." Swifty began whirling in place like a top, drilling downwards and doing his best to pierce right through. And as the bubble slowly stretch downward like a balloon, it seemed it was working.

"Manic!" said Amy. "Can you put a, I don't know, a box or something around him? Something that'll do a better job at locking him up!"

"Whatever you say!" He closed his eyes and concentrated. Just as Swifty broke free of the bubble, he landed on the floor of a large green box. Not that he cared.

"You think this'll hold me?" he said. He quickly turned himself back into a drill and began boring straight through it. Or at least he attempted to.

"Actually, yeah." This time around, the walls were much thicker than the bubble, and it would take a lot more than spinning like a construction tool to break free of them. Not that Swifty couldn't be inventive. Or that would Manic's constructs would hold up forever. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, as just keeping Swifty trapped was already beginning to take a toll on him.

"Right. Who's up for some pinball?" Swifty rolled himself up into as much a ball as he could and hurled himself at the nearest wall. He bounced off it at just the right angle to bounce off the next wall, and he continued to do this every time he hit one. He was bouncing and bouncing, eventually going so fast that one could barely see him at all. More importantly, he was putting out a lot of force in a short amount of time, and more sweat started to roll down Manic's face.

"Yeesh!" said Manic. "Persistent little bugger, huh?"

"And smart," said Amy. "If he keeps this up long enough, it might actually work. How long do you think you can keep going?"

"Not sure," said Manic. "Though if he keeps on doing this, I'm not really sure how long it'll be."

Just then, Antoine had an eureka moment. "Of course! That is why he is doing this! It is not just because he is bored as he said, though that may be part of it! It is to buy the others time so that they make it here without us getting in the way!"

"He's right," said Tails. "And without Sonic here, we can't speed up towards them as quick as we could. Not that they were counting on that, but still."

"Then we need to take him out as quick as possible," said Amy. "Manic, think you can open up a tube in that box of yours?"

Manic looked at Amy as though she had gone sick in the head. "Uh, yeah, but—"

"Good. Bunnie?"

"Yeah, sugar?"

"Wait right in, say, this spot here. When I give the word, get ready to give him the beating of his life. Give him one single punch with everything you've got." She turned to Manic. "Manic, after you make the tube, that's also your cue to turn that off box and make a wall instead Got it?"

"Sure thing!"

"Alright! Manic, Bunnie, DO IT!"

It happened just like that. A long tube suddenly formed from the box straight at Bunnie, and Swifty wasted no time aiming himself straight towards it. It propelled him in a straight line towards Bunnie's person, and when he reached the end, it shot him out like a bullet. As soon as it did, the box disappeared. In its' place was a massive wall set right behind Swifty and at the far end of the village. And it was about to get very useful very soon.

Swifty was coming hard and fast, and Bunnie saw her moment. Putting her all into it, she raised her metal arm and let out the single fastest and hardest punch she had ever had the privilege of giving anyone. And just like that, he was done. With one single blow, Swifty was hammered right into the wall of hard-light that Manic summoned with more raw force than a wrecking ball. He was so savaged that he couldn't even work up lifting so much as a single finger. He was out like a light and down for the count. And it had ended nearly as quickly as it had begun.

It took a moment for everything to settle in. Everyone was standing silent as the grave. The whole thing was a hell of a shock. It was only seconds later that they finally had the nerve to pick themselves up and respond to the fallout. "Men," said the Mayor, "take that THING into custody! Tie him up, lock him in irons, dig him in a hole, I don't care! Just as long as he can't harm anyone else."

Two Minutemen promptly rushed forward. Tying both Swifty's arms and legs together, they lifted him up and carried him out of sight. "Uh, if you don't mind," said Tails, "I'd like to follow along. Make sure he's properly locked up. I want to make sure he can't hurt anyone else as much as you do."

Just then, one of the remaining Minutemen spoke. "Sir, with all due respect, that SOB just slaughtered half our village! Men, women, children! Even if we somehow manage to keep him properly incapacitated, he could still do it again if we're not careful. This could be our only chance."

"I must admit," said Antoine, "while I do not completely agree, he does have a point."

"Hold it!" said Sonia. "Are we seriously even having this conversation? Killing in self-defense is one thing, but this—"

"— is war, young lady," said the Mayor. "With all due respect. And to be frank, I don't like it any more than you do. But what choice do we have?"

Holding herself with grace and poise, Amy stepped forward. "With all due to respect to YOU, sir Mayor, this isn't really the time or place to be discussing this. He didn't come over just to have some fun. He came to stall us."

"Well, to be fair, he didn't stall us for very long," said Tails.

"That's beside the point," said Amy. "If we sit here arguing about whether or not to kill him—"

"So let's just kill him," said one of the Minutemen.

Amy ignored him as though he hadn't said a word.

"If we sit here arguing about whether or not to kill him, they could be on us before we even knew it. You want to lock him up somewhere? Fine. But we can argue over moral quandaries after this is over."

"What's there to argue?" said the Minuteman. "This is war. If we don't kill him, he'll kill us. Hell, he's already killed some of us! He killed half of our village before we could blink! You say this is a moral quandary, but I say it's a necessity. Or are you really going to tell him we should give him the chance to slaughter the rest of us?"

This was a conundrum if there ever was one. Except should it really have been? Amy knew that morally, killing someone in cold blood was wrong. Whoever he was, whatever he'd done, he'd been stopped. He was no longer a threat. And he was defenseless. If they went and killed him now, it would be tantamount to murder. And Amy was no murderer.

That said. This was a war. And their newly acquired prisoner had committed war crimes. Crimes that, at the moment, no court of law was equipped to deal with. Nor was there a prison to handle him. The only judge, jury, and executioners available were her, her fellow Freedom Fighters, and the town militia. And the latter seemed to have already cast their vote. Nevermind that if he wasn't stopped now, he could just kill again. If they became his executioners, they could no longer call themselves heroes. But were heroes what this war truly needed?

As if to put a stop to her overly long train of thought, Tails called out to her, pointing towards the horizon. "Uh, Amy, I think you'd better see this." Having shaken her out of her internal debate, he handed her the binoculars. And what she saw was enough to cause her quills to prick up ever so slightly.

In the distance was a large group of trucks, much like the ones Amy saw when they were buying time for Nicole to block the signal emitting from Marcus' tracker. Except there were more than there was the last time she saw them. A lot more. With that image now firmly in her noggin, she had to wonder even if Sonic showed up right that very minute if everyone she had would be enough. But it would have to do.

She gave the binoculars back to Tails. By this point, everyone could see the oncoming series of convoys up ahead. "My stars!" said Bunnie. "That's a lot of trucks!"

"Indeed," said Antoine. "And not very many of us. We will have to hope that raw firepower is enough." He held up his sword, taking note of the various buttons that had been embedded in the hilt. "Or at least buy enough time for the other militias to arrive."

"My thoughts exactly," said Amy. But regardless, we can't let this town get wiped off the map. Because that's what's going to happen if we don't take them on ASAP."

"I agree," said Tails. "But we can't just leave this village unprotected either. What about Swifty?"

"You mean the psychopath who tried to kill us all?" said Manic. He looked towards the guards that had been dragging Swifty towards the nearest makeshift cell. "Honestly, I think— holy hell!" Everyone else looked toward at the guards. They were lying down on the grass, their throats slit like using a can-opener. And Swifty was nowhere to be found.

"Seriously?!" said Sonia. "Wasn't he just out a minute ago?!"

"It must be due to his speed," said Tails. "I'm guessing he has a high metabolism that lets him wake up from being unconsciouses sooner than most people. It's the same with Sonic."

Antoine rushed over to the guards, taking a good look at their throats. "Their throats must have been slit so fast they could not even scream in pain. Which was probably the idea."

"What'd I tell you?!" said the Minuteman.

"Okay, I get it!" said Amy. "And I'm sorry. But right now, the important thing is taking on those trucks before they get here. If we had the time, I'd wait until Sonic got back, but—"

Just then, a blue blur blew into the village, sweeping away everything in its' path until it stopped just short of Amy and the others. And when the dust cleared, it was none other than—

"Big bro!" said Tails.

"Hey, lil' bro! Miss me?" said Sonic.

Amy breathed a sigh of relief, as though the odds had suddenly tilted considerably in their favor. "You can say that," she said.

Sonic turned towards Amy. "Hey, did somethin' happen? What I'd miss?"

"No time for that," she said. "Take look over there." As it turned out, one look was all it took for Sonic to get the message.

"This again, huh? Well, it's not like it's gonna do them any good. We took em on before, we can do it again!"

"Gaea, I wish had your confidence," said Amy. "In any case, we need to stop those trucks and we need to stop them now. You coming?"

"Did you need to ask?"

"Just wanted to make sure. Let's do it to it, people!" And as everyone either took off for the road or the sky, scrambling back to their bikes if they had them, Amy had to wonder if they really could do it to it.