Super Sonic Squad

Season Five, Episode Five

Take Her By The Hand

By Cole Bezotte

Cosmo knew that with all that she had, there was no stopping Tails from running away from those who cared about him most. She needed help right away from the one who was worthy of being Tails' true love: Courtney, princess of Corlon.

She hurried all the way back to Knothole Village, reporting herself to give an urgent message to Courtney. Given clearance, she was allowed into Courtney's room, only to find a stressed, tired Corlonian slumping upon her bed. But something was wrong with her: her special inky fluid had regenerated from her brain, through the special vein in her arm, and to her right index finger.

"Something terrible has happened!" Cosmo spoke to Courtney, hurriedly approaching her. "Tails has gone missing, and it's all my fault!"

Courtney did not respond at first; she was still worried about the Juntoagua that leaked from her finger.

(Fun fact: "Juntoagua" is the name of the inky fluid, "junto" meaning together and "agua" meaning water. They are Spanish phrases put together by myself, meaning "together in the water", which is a Corlonian ritual after a child is adopted; he/she stands in the magical water that heals him/her of whatever wound or bad memory. The child becomes healthy again and accepted into the new family.)

"He's gone…" Courtney whimpered as she fought to hold back the fluid that continued to run out from her finger. "This Juntoagua will never stop until it finds a new child to place the special mark upon. It still tells me that there is still someone who is worthy of being mine. But because I am the last of my own kind, I may use this for whatever purpose that satisfies me. As ruler of the deceased Corlon, I may place the mark upon the forehead of my true love. Then-to fulfill the meaning 'together in the water'-my love and I may stand in the water and heal us of our differences."

"But there is still one who is worthy," Cosmo replied. "You must go to Tails before he goes to far out into the wilderness. I now understand that he did not expect me to return; the way I see it, YOU are the one he deserves."

"I don't know why… but I believe you… The farther out he goes, the more pressure is put onto my special vein. When a Corlonian child is adopted, the thought comes to the brain of the mother, where the the fluid is produced then sent through the vein and to the finger."

"That's why you must come with me. I don't want that vein to burst! Come on!" Grabbing Courtney by her aching arm, she led her through the limits of the Great Forest, on their quest to find their fox friend.

Meanwhile, as the full moon began to shine brightly upon the beautiful lands and lakes of the deep forest, Tails finally stopped his flight temporarily to find a place to rest his weary head. He still could not get his mind off of the situation between him and the two girls who had almost stolen his heart.

"Why does it have to be this way?" he continued to think aloud. "Is it right being a hero and loving someone who doubts me? The more I think about it, the more I begin to doubt THEM. Courtney and Cosmo are BOTH not for me! Even now, I begin to even HATE them!"

"But you CAN'T hate them," said a voice from nearby. Tails stood up and looked behind the tree he laid his head upon, and saw a familiar-looking panda standing right in front of him. "I bet you were expecting my friend Spencer, not me…" Noah the Panda continued. "But I couldn't help but overhear what you were ranting about."

"Why should you listen in on my situation?" Tails rudely snapped. "It's not like you've experienced the same thing!"

"I know I haven't… But you need help; as far as I'm concerned, you're way in over your head now. As a martial arts expert, I have experienced many problems that came my way, but they did not stop me for long. All I needed to do was stop and remember that I am strong-willed and courageous. If anything was to help me get past my situation, it would be the will to move on and fight through these trials."

"That's just what Sonic said when we were filming that cowboy movie. No matter how hard what we face, we must overcome."

"Now THAT'S the spirit! I'm sure that once you meet up with Courtney and Cosmo again, you can work it all out, and we'll have a good laugh about it. And yet, I'm beginning to think that this was not a mere trial; it was all a MISUNDERSTANDING."

"What?! What do you mean?"

"They are looking for you. Cosmo finally realized the connection between you and Courtney. All you need do is apologize and admit the mistake, then it will all be over."

But the encouraging Noah spoke too soon; once he finished talking, Rech arrived with a new weapon that he assured would completely destroy Noah and his friends. "I am glad to have interrupted you," he spoke up as he held his new invention on his shoulder. "This weapon of my own design will completely drain you of your powers, leaving you as a helpless tortured animal!"

"We don't believe what you say!" exclaimed two other evildoers. Needles and Dr. Eggman came to snatch the invention away with both their strength combined. "We created that invention, and so we demand that you give it back!"

"We don't care who it belongs to…" Noah muttered to Tails. "We just need to beat these guys to victory. Take on the clown freak while I snatch the new weapon. And hurry please…"

Tails was now determined and willing to go on and fight this enemy to prove his love towards Courtney. No longer a cringing coward, he dashed forward to knock Needles right off his feet before he could feel what hit him. "Now I know everything will be alright…" Tails thought. "I won't worry… I won't give myself up so easily…!"

But the young fox thought that he spoke too soon when he felt something touch his head. It was not danger but a telepathic message sent by Courtney, who was very anxious to seek him out. "Tails…!" she exclaimed through Tails' mind. "Where are you?"

"I'm not very far…" Tails mentally replied. "Once you see a lake, you'll see that I am here…"

A few hundred yards away, Courtney's vein began to settle and cease its pain as she and Cosmo came closer to where Tails and Noah were. "A lake…" Courtney muttered, looking ahead of her. "I see one just up ahead… I hope he IS there…"

"Look!" Cosmo exclaimed as she pointed ahead of her. "I see a battle up ahead! He's there!"

With the girls' help, the battle was won by those who used their skills and abilities wisely, as well as the courage within their chests. Like how Sir William Wallace led the Scots to freedom from England centuries ago, these heroes fought valiantly. Like how David bravely took on the giant Goliath with only one stone, these fighters continued their battle with bravery.

With all they had, the heroes had successfully won the battle against these three fiends. Where Rech had failed, Dr. Eggman and Needles thought that they would succeed. But the only end result was failure, which left King Plague in a mood of anger and frustration. Would there only be corruption throughout his realm of Straggo? No one would know until many years to come…

Courtney was glad to see that Tails finally understood what had happened, and he had apologized for his foolishness. "Just remember I am always willing to forgive you," Courtney replied after hearing the kind words he had said. "I'm glad that you are back with us, who care about you most. But now…as princess of the deceased Corlon...I may now place this special mark upon you, to claim you as mine."

As Tails felt the Juntoagua streak across his forehead, he chuckled from what Courtney just said. "When did you begin talking fancy?" he joked. "I know you're a princess, but I can't help but hear this humor…"

"I guess it just comes to me naturally," Courtney replied as she laughed. "You all come with me and we'll REALLY settle for the night.. so says the noble of Corlon…"