LOL! The title says it all. Once you have read the chapter, you'll see what I mean.

When Knuckles finally came to, he was in the passenger seat of a car that he wasn't too familiar with. The seats were made of black leather and from what Knuckles could tell, the car was sitting high. There was also some wood grain in the dashboard and doors. Knuckles knew what car he was in. This was the black and gold Chrysler. He felt his stomach turn upon this realization. He sat up and looked across to see Rouge behind the wheel.

"Did you enjoy your nap, babe?" asked Rouge.

Knuckles just groaned. His body ached all over from his tussles with Shadow and his old crew. "Where's Lara-Su?"

"Right here," said the high-pitched voice that Knuckles loved to hear. His daughter stuck her head between the two front seats with a big smile on her face.

Just seeing his baby girl brought a smile to Knuckles' face. He soon forgot all about his aches and pains.

"I loaded up the money and your emerald. We should have enough to start a new life somewhere far away from G.U.N.," said Rouge. "I might even be able to have a new club built."

"There's only one question remaining. Where are we going to?" asked Knuckles.

"The closest place that's not within the perimeters of G.U.N. is Soleanna. They have their own government there under the rule of Princess Elise and Lord Regis," said Rouge.

Knuckles just stared out the window into the night. He really didn't want to leave his home, but he had no choice. G.U.N. knew all about where he lived, who he knew, and what he was capable of. There was no way that it would ever be safe here ever again. Besides, he had the Master Emerald still with him; so he would still be able to perform his sacred duty. He just couldn't do it in his ancestral home.

"I guess that's where we're going then," said Knuckles.

As they drove around Central City, they noticed several G.U.N. vehicles scattered on almost every street. It seemed that G.U.N. was pretty determined not to let them leave the city.

"They're everywhere," said Knuckles.

"Well, at least the windows are tinted," said Rouge.

Lara-Su was sitting on the back seat with her legs crossed. She started to squeal lightly, which was loud enough for Knuckles to hear.

"Baby, is something the matter?" he asked Lara-Su.

"I have to pee," she said.

"We really do not need to be stopping now. Can't you hold it until we get away from the city?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "I don't believe I can."

Knuckles hesitated the response but finally answered.

"Rouge, can you pull up at the next convenience store? Lara-Su needs to go to the restroom," said Knuckles.

"What? You do realize the consequences if we're spotted, right?" Rouge asked.

"Don't worry. I'm going to make sure that you get out of here safely. You have my solemn vow," said Knuckles.

Rouge looked over at him. She already knew that Knuckles was not one to go back on his word. She was also seeing the way that Knuckles cares for his child. Never before had she seen such kindness expressed from the echidna. He fully understands her needs and does anything to satisfy them. Rouge pondered on these realizations as she pulled into Love's. All three of them entered the store together.

"Rouge, could I ask you a favor? Could you take her into the restroom for me?" asked Knuckles.

"Uh, sure," said Rouge.

"Thanks. Lara-Su, go with Rouge to the restroom," said Knuckles.

"Why?" asked Lara-Su rather rudely.

"I'm not allowed to go into the little girl's room," said Knuckles in an innocent tone that you really wouldn't think he could speak in.

Lara-Su looked at Rouge. She didn't really know Rouge; so it was understandable that she would not mistrust Rouge. After all, her previous experience does not encourage the trust of strangers.

"Well, okay," said Lara-Su unsurely.

"Don't worry, kid. You're safe in my hands," said Rouge with a wink. She escorted Lara-Su to the ladies' restroom. Once inside, Lara-Su went into a stall while Rouge patiently waited on the outside.

"So, you're Knuckles' little pride and joy, eh? You're pretty darn cute," said Rouge.

"Thanks," said Lara-Su,

"I have to admit one thing, though. Your daddy needs to learn how to dress you. No offense, but your clothes are definitely last season. You just leave it to me. I'll have you looking glamorous before you know it," said Rouge.

"Do you like my daddy?" asked Lara-Su.

Rouge blushed. The question kinda startled her. She did not expect to hear a question like that.

"I think so. Why do you ask?"

"I see the way that you look at him. I thought that you did," she said.

"Is it okay with you?" asked Rouge.

"I guess. As long as you make him happy, you're okay in my book," said Lara-Su. She flushed the toilet and exited the stall. "All done!"

Rouge couldn't help but smile. Her cuteness was just too much. Rouge leaned down and straightened her clothes on her and even removed a cotton swab that was stuck in one of her dreads. After she was finished and washed her hands, the two girls exited the restroom. Knuckles was standing at the door with a brown paper bag in his hand.

"Are you all better now?" he asked Lara-Su when she approached him.

She nodded with a smile.

"Okay. Let's get back on the road," said Knuckles. "By the way, I thought that you might be hungry; so I got you a honey bun and a grape icee."

"Thanks, Dad."

Rouge just watched and smiled at them. They exited the store in haste, eager to get back on their trail before it could be discovered, but they were too late. Sitting in the corner of the parking lot and eating on jelly doughnuts were two of Central City's finest.

"Hey, isn't that Knuckles the Echidna?" asked one of the officers.

"It sure does look like him. Didn't he rob the national bank this morning?" asked the other one.

"Yep. He escaped a hot pursuit chase through the city," said the first one.

"Well, he won't escape us. Radio headquarters and get us some backup. He won't get away from us."

Knuckles, Rouge, and Lara-Su took off down the highway. The night lights shined so bright that night almost turned to day. Lara-Su was busy eating her honey bun and sipping on her icee. The two teenagers up front were still pondering upon how to get out of Central City. They can't wait out the search. Rouge's experience with G.U.N. let her know that their searches could go on for weeks and even months at a time. Their best bet is to make it to Soleanna.

As they traveled down the highway, they began to notice flashing lights. Knuckles looked back and saw that there was a police car trailing them.

"Oh shit," said Knuckles.

"Hey, watch your language around your daughter," Rouge chastised.

The police car pulled up next to Rouge in the following lane.

"Driver, pull your vehicle to the shoulder, now," instructed the police as the sirens started to wail.

Knuckles became very agitated at the moment. There was no way that they could stop.

"Punch it!" ordered Knuckles.

Rouge stomped the gas pedal and hastily sped away from the police car. As Rouge weaved through traffic, Knuckles leaned onto the backseat of the car and strapped Lara-Su into her safety belt. Rouge kept straight, going at full speed. After a few minutes, a couple more police cars joined in on the chase.

"Attention! The suspects were seen heading south. Suspects have been positively identified as world renowned hero, Knuckles the Echidna, and ex-government agent, Rouge the Bat. Block all major roads and capture the suspects."

Rouge had the gas pedal pressed to the floor. Despite all the modifications that Magic had made to the car, it still was not fast enough to outrun the local police. It wouldn't be long before G.U.N. was after them as well.

"You can't keep going the same way. You have to do something unexpected," said Knuckles.

"Like what?" asked Rouge.

"Like this!"

Knuckles grabbed the steering wheel and gave it a hard turn to the left. The car's tires started to tread as Rouge hit the brakes. Knuckles sudden seizure of the wheel shocked her.

"Are you crazy? That could've killed us," said Rouge.

"Just drive. Sometimes crazy works," said Knuckles.

Rouge knew she didn't have time to argue. She punched the gas pedal and took off in the opposite direction. She sped through the flow of police cars trailing them. It caused them to slightly spin out and even bump into each other, but they were far from done. They quickly recovered and continued their pursuit of the black Chrysler.

Rouge made a quick right turn onto a one way street; however, she was going the wrong way. She steadily and skillfully weaved through the oncoming traffic, which caused a traffic jam that halted the flow and caused the police cars to be held up.

"I think that we're losing them, but they won't be lost for long," said Rouge.

Knuckles hated to admit it, but she was right. They needed a quick plan to get past all the cops and G.U.N. officers or else they might as well give up and save themselves the trouble. As they tried to think of a plan, they came upon a city parking garage.

"Turn here," said Knuckles.

"Why?" she asked.

"Just do it," Knuckles said in a calm voice.

Rouge quietly obeyed. She turned into the garage and went around until Knuckles told her to stop. Knuckles then got out of the car and walked over to a green Honda Civic Sedan. He cleverly used his sharp Knuckles to pick the lock to the door. Then, he reached under the steering wheel and exposed a few wires. He started to work with them.

"What are you doing now?" asked Rouge.

"I'm hotwiring this car. It's a little trick that I learned when I used to run with Magic," he said.

"Why are you doing it?" asked Rouge.

"We've got to split up. I want you to take Lara-Su, the money, and my emerald, and head north. I'm going to head south in the Chrysler and draw them away from you. Hopefully, I can get enough of G.U.N. to come after me to allow you to get away undetected. I'll meet up with you in Soleanna," said Knuckles.

"No, we're in this together," said Rouge.

Knuckles ignored her rejection. He continued wiring until the car started. Then, he raced back over to the Chrysler.

"Lara-Su, get in the front seat," said Knuckles.

Lara-Su obeyed and got into the Honda.

"You're not leaving us," said Rouge.

"There's no time for argument. You know what'll happen if we get caught. There's no telling how long we both will be locked up. To make matters worse, my daughter will be in the system. I can't allow that," said Knuckles. Knuckles then walked over to the front seat of the Honda, where Lara-Su was sitting. "Lara-Su, listen to me. I'm about to go somewhere, okay, but I'm coming back for you. I need you to take care of Rouge for me."

Lara-Su shook her head.

"No!"

"Lara-Su, trust me on this," said Knuckles.

"Do you promise to come back for me?" asked Lara-Su.

"I'll always come back for you," said Knuckles.

Lara-Su gave Knuckles a huge hug.

"I love you, Dad," said Lara-Su.

"I love you, too. Put your safety belt on," said Knuckles.

Knuckles then returned to Rouge. He could tell that she was worried about him from the look in her eyes. He walked over to her and handed her a cell phone.

"Here, take this. It was lying in the Chrysler. I think it belongs to Magic or Big Blue. Anyway, I'm going to call you from the car phone about ten minutes after I leave. If you don't answer, I'm coming back for you," said Knuckles.

"You don't have to do this," said Rouge. She was near tears as she spoke.

Knuckles lifted her chin and gave her a gentle kiss.

"Just take care of my daughter. I'll see you soon," said Knuckles with a smile.

"With all my heart," she replied.

He brought her in for a hug. She pressed against his hard body, never wanting to let go but knew that she eventually had to. She could only hope that she and Knuckles would be reunited again soon. With his daughter in her care, she knew that after all that time of not trusting her, he'd finally seen the light. She never would've guessed when this quest started that she and one of her greatest rivals would become as close as Adam and Eve. Rouge did indeed feel like she was a part of Knuckles: the rib of Knuckles, always at his side. After they parted, they shared another quick kiss before Knuckles dashed back to the Chrysler.

"Get out of here. Go!" he ordered.

He jumped into the driver's seat of the Chrysler and drove back out into the open. Rouge watched until he was out of sight. The police cars quickly spotted Knuckles and continued their pursuit. All of the police cars had been replaced by G.U.N. vehicles. There was even a helicopter in the sky now shining a light onto the Chrysler. Knuckles shifted into third gear and sped down the road. As G.U.N. chased Knuckles, Rouge took her car and headed in the opposite direction.

The hot pursuit chase was becoming intense as tactical maneuvers were put into play. They tried several attempts to run Knuckles off the road, but they all failed.

"Driver, this is your last warning. Stop your car!" said one of the agents from the car loudspeaker.

Knuckles kept going. He wasn't about to stop now. Knuckles swerved through traffic as best he could. Living on Angel Island did have his disadvantages. It was hard for Knuckles to steer the car well because his lack of experience in driving one, but he knew his way around a car like an expert.

Knuckles was constantly looking back. It seemed like the numbers were increasing. It didn't matter, they weren't about to catch him. He was constantly going on and off the road. He continued this for about another few miles. He remembered his promise to Rouge and picked up the car phone. He dialed and waited on an answer. It took a few seconds before Rouge answered.

"Hey, are you alright?" asked Rouge. Knuckles could hear her voice breaking.

"I'm fine. Are you and Lara-Su clear?" asked Knuckles.

"Yes. There's not an agent in sight," said Rouge. Talking to Knuckles made her feel a little bit better.

"They're still on my ass, but I'm going to lose them in a minute. Hold on," said Knuckles.

A roadblock of huge ramming trucks was set up in front of him. Knuckles managed to swerve through it. The side of the car managed to bump one of the G.U.N. vehicles, but that was the only damage. Knuckles battled to get his footing back in the road.

"So what do you think it'll be like in Soleanna?" asked Knuckles.

Rouge smiled, even though she was crying at the moment. "It's going to be beautiful."

The road became more bumpy as Knuckles found himself going off-road in the factory district. Knuckles swerved around a container sitting in his path. The agent that was tailing Knuckles the closest managed to hit the container. The container exploded upon contact and sent the agent's car flying. Rouge could hear the sound effects through the phone.

"Knuckles, are you still there?" she asked.

"Put Lara-Su on the phone," he said.

Rouge handed the phone to Lara-Su.

"It's your father," she said.

Lara-Su took the phone from Rouge.

"Hey, Dad," she said.

"Hey, baby girl. What are you doing?" he asked.

"Nothing. I'm just looking at the ships in the water that I can see from here. They're very pretty," said Lara-Su.

Knuckles' car was bouncing up and down as he rode through the factory district, still being chased by police. Sparks flew off the car and into the air. He passed by workers on bulldozers, steamrollers, and forklifts.

"Dad, can I have another toy horse?" asked Lara-Su.

"Sure. Do you want the same kind as before?" asked Knuckles.

"No, I want one with stripes. What are those called?" she asked.

"Zebras," he replied.

"Yeah, I want a zebra," said Lara-Su.

"Okay. No problem," said Knuckles.

"Thanks, Dad," she said and handed the phone back to Rouge.

"I love you," said Knuckles. He had no idea that Lara-Su had passed the phone back to Rouge.

Rouge smiled as the tears continued rolling down her face.

"I love you, too," she replied.

Knuckles was surprised to hear Rouge's voice. He was about to tell Rouge that that was meant for Lara-Su, but he decided against it. He did, in fact, love her. It just took him a long time to realize it.

The sirens continued wailing in the distance. So far, Knuckles was able to keep ahead of G.U.N., but that all came to an end. Knuckles made a right down onto the next turn and came to a screeching halt. There was no more land ahead of him. Knuckles had run upon a loading dock. There was only water ahead of him. He was about to turn around, but the G.U.N. cars quickly closed the gap and boxed him in. He was trapped.

"Knuckles?" Rouge said.

There was a long pause between their last words. Knuckles wouldn't dare tell them of the predicament that he was in.

"I gotta go," said Knuckles.

He hung up the phone. The G.U.N. agents all readied their weapons and stepped from their vehicles. The helicopter still whirred above Knuckles' head. Soon, Knuckles just tuned everything around him out. The whole world became inaudible to him as he entered his subconscious mind. Inside, he knew that he had failed. There was nowhere else left to run. The thought of his failure just ate away at him like a parasite. He felt sick to his stomach. A tear met his eye as he thought about Lara-Su and Rouge. He would probably never again see his daughter or Rouge. They were going to take him away for who know how long. He started thinking about how he broke his promise to Lara-Su. He said that he'd come back for her.

"Dad!"

Knuckles could hear Lara-Su calling for him in the back of his mind. He knew that now was not the time to give up. He had to find a way to get to his daughter. There was just no way that he could go on knowing that he failed to keep his promise. He had to try something, no matter what the cost might be. Even if it cost him his life, he was not going to stop here. He was going to make it back to his daughter or die trying.

Knuckles shifted the car back into gear. He shifted the gear so hard that the handle broke off. It didn't matter. He pressed the gas pedal as hard as he could. The car accelerated all the way down the dock and over the edge into the water. The car quickly began to sink as the G.U.N. agents rushed over to the edge of the dock with their weapons ready in case Knuckles resurfaced, but nothing happened. As the car sunk, they eagerly awaited for someone to resurface. The helicopter shined the light all over the water but found nothing. There was no trace of survivors anywhere.

Might I remind you that Knuckles was not wearing his air necklace. I'm saying that because I don't want you trying to find plot holes in this chapter. LOL! Well, Rouge and Lara-Su got away, but at what price? You'll just have to wait for my final chapter, which will be coming soon. I expect to hear from all of you in a review.

MERRY CHRISTMAS
HAPPY HANUKKAH
HAPPY KWANZAA

And a Happy New Year

ICY KNUCKLES