Mobian Legends
Story is (c) 2004-2008 John CoonFox, SethLeopard, and SallyGirl SatAM
Sonic characters are (c) 1992-1994 DiC Entertainment
Archie characters are (c) 1993-2008 Archie Comics Publications
Sonic The Hedgehog is (c) Sega/Sonic Team 1990-2007
Snively Fox is (c) "Spug" ("spug at dirtybaka dot com")
Bookshire Stormfire Draftwood is (c) 1994-2008 "Serinthia and Bookshire Draftwood" ("serinthia at foxcoon dot com")
SatAM Research and story: SallyGirl
Chief Writer: MetaLeopard
Writer: John CoonFox
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Timeline: June 15-16, 3235 - After Doomsday
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Chapter 1 - Return of the King
Sonic walks out of his hut the next morning and sees tails and Bunny playing hockey.
"Good morning, guys." He says, yawning.
"Mornin' sugah-hog." Bunny replies to Sonic.
"Hey, Sonic! Wanna join us?" Tails asks.
"Awww... I'd love to, little guy, but I have to go with Sally and Rotor to survey Robotropolis today." He says.
"Ohhh... ok..." Tails says. Princess Sally and Rotor are almost done packing some supplies into a small cart for their trip to Robotropolis.
"Looks like this should be all the computer equipment we'll need to bring the power grids back up, Sal." The walrus says.
"Good. Bunnie, Sal, and I will scope it out. If it's safe, I'll come back for ya." Sonic tells Rotor.
"I'll sit tight and hope for the best, Sonic. Good luck, guys." Rotor replies.
"Thanks, Rotor. We'll need it." Sally replies.
The three Freedom Fighters begin on their journey to the big city.
"Alright. Sonic, we're ready to head out. Dulcy, Antoine, you guys are in charge of Knothole until we get back." Sally instructs them as they depart for the large city.
"Awww... looks like I'm all alone again..." Tails says to himself as he goes exploring in the woods. He comes to his favorite meadow, his secret hide-out that only Sonic and Sally know of. This time, something's different. There's someone there, and they look unconscious. He approaches slowly.
"Hey, are you alright? Who are you?" Tails asks.
There's no answer aside from a groan. Tails touches his ear and it flicks.
"My name's Miles Prower, but my friends call me 'Tails'!" He says. The King starts to move a bit, struggling to get up. Tails helps him up.
"Ohhhh. Thank you, little one." He replies, staggering over before tails passes him a stick to help him walk, like a cane.
"What's your name?" He asks curiously.
"I'm King Max Acorn. Ruler of Mobius." He says to the young fox.
"You're Aunt Sally's dad?" He asks.
The King nods his head.
"Yes, I am, Miles." He replies as they walk back to Knothole Village. The few furs out this early in the morning stop what they're doing in surprise and shock. Antoine is sawing some wood into smaller parts to build a house when a soft-furred hand touches his shoulder. He stops working and wipes the sweat off of his forehead. He turns his head, seeing it is the King.
"My liege! You 'ave returned!" He says, getting down on one knee in respect.
"Antoine, that is not necessary. How does Knothole stand? Is Robotnik gone?" He asks.
"I don't know, sire. Rotor, Sally, and Sonic went to Robotropolis to find out." The coyote replies.
"Very well. I wish to greet my daughter." The squirrel tells his subject.
"B-but sire... it's very dangerous. We don't know what's out there. You could be hurt, or worse." Antoine respectfully answers.
"Do we have any guns remaining? Body armor? Shields? Vehicles?" The King asks.
Antoine shakes his head.
"Robotnik destroyed it all. We have been thrown back into zee Middle Ages." He says.
"Armour or not, I'm going, Antoine. I have to tell my daughter I've returned from the Void." He says, walking towards Robotropolis.
"Sire! Wait!" Antoine yells.
The King stops.
"Yes?" He asks.
"Sire, I shall protect you." He says, placing his sword in its sheath. The two furs walk towards Robotropolis, and reach the city within two hours.
"Sire, I think zey would be inspecting Doctair Robtonik's command center. Perhaps we should search there?" Antoine inquires as he walks through the deserted streets with the King.
"A logical idea, Antoine. Lead the way." King Max replies as they walk, approaching the giant, blue metallic egg-shaped structure. The sun shines eerily through the mist and haze.
Meanwhile, In Robotropolis.
Snively searches for Robotnik around their old base of operations, hoping his uncle is alive and well. He is unaware that the Freedom Fighters are on their way to retake the city.
"I wonder if Doctor Robotnik survived the blast..." He thinks to himself, a bit nervous as he searches through the rubble.
Ixis Naugus walks up from behind, scaring him when he speaks.
"He did, but he's under my control now." He says with his eerily calm voice.
"Where is he?" Snively asks. Ixis remains emotionless.
"That doesn't concern you at this time. You should be more concerned of the Freedom Fighters capturing us." He replies. Snively chuckles at the thought.
"The Freedom Fighters? I doubt they'd catch me. I'll soon be ruler of this mudball long before they'll even know what happened." He gloats.
"Don't gloat, half-pint. If the quickster and his friends did your uncle in and caused all this damage, even with his technology, then what do you think we are to them?" He asks. Snively thinks for a second, then gets an idea.
"Listen, Naugus, old pal... together, we could be a formidable force against those wretched freaks. We should team up and destroy them together. I'll give you the Great Forest as your own kingdom to sculpt as you see fit." Snively replies.
"A very generous offer, but how do I know you won't betray me?" Ixis asks.
"Simple. The problem with the Doctor is that he never gave a true genius a chance. I will succeed where my uncle failed." He grins evilly.
The two figures walk into the Control Center, and soon reach Robotnik's operations room.
"What is your plan on killing the Freedom Fighters, Snively?" Ixis asks.
"I plan on incinerating the Great Forest with napalm. We'll burn and melt the furballs out." He grins.
"I like that! Very efficient." Ixis speaks.
"I had a feeling you'd like it." Snively laughs.
In the Great Forest, Sonic is talking with Sally and Bunnie.
"Why do you think it's a better idea if Rotor stays behind?" Sonic asks.
"Well, we don't really know what the effects of the Deep Power Stones had on Robotropolis. If we end up injured or worse, it's best if we have a couple Freedom Fighters to still man the fort. Besides, the void could have even opened up from disturbances caused by the Deep Power Stones. If things are safe, we'll bring Rotor to help us get things back online." Sally replies.
"Man... I didn't think of that. Smart plan, Sal." Sonic says.
"Thank you, Sonic." She smiles.
Deep within the tall Control Center in Robotropolis, a short figure is sitting in the large green chair, watching the computer monitors carefully.
"Now that the sensor array is complete, I will see the furballs coming for miles. They may have gotten the drop repeatedly on the big fool... but I'm not so stupid."
He then presses a couple buttons on the chair's console.
"Computers, activate all anti-hedgehog weaponry." Snively speaks.
The Freedom Fighters cautiously make their way through the rubble-strewn streets of Mobotropolis. They don't know what to expect or what they will find in the abandoned city. As Sonic and Sally lead the way deeper, they see a platoon of SwatBots marching down the street, inspecting for any rebel life forms.
"Wait here, guys. I'll deal with the ugly squad." Sonic says, sneaking along the corner of the building, trying to stay out of sight.
The hedgehog takes a power-ring out of his backpack and tosses it into the street in front of the SwatBots. This gets their attention, and they approach the ring. What they did not expect was Sonic leaping out from behind the corner. The blue-furred hedgehog buzz-saws one SwatBot's head clean off its neck. The others start firing their lasers at him, but miss.
As he manages to destroy the other SwatBots, Sally and Bunnie approach him.
"What's up, Sal?" He asks.
"Sonic, we need to be careful. We don't know what happened to Snively, and he could be an even worse threat than the doctor was." She replies.
"Not to mention he's small and easy to hide..." Bunnie adds.
"We'll find him, and capture him, Sal." Sonic says as he walks down the street.
The hedgehog steps on a hidden mine, and is blown back a few feet from the explosion.
"SONIC!" Sally yells.
"Sugah-Hog!" Bunnie yelps as she runs up, helping the blue-furred hedgehog back up.
"Are you alright, Sonic?" Sally asks.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Did ol' buttnik mine the streets?" He asks.
"I think that was the work of Snively." Sally replies.
"I think there's something else that's the work of Snively, Sally-girl..." Bunnie speaks, pointing upwards.
The robotic rabbit sees two large re-inforced troop transporters approaching them.
"Oh, great. The welcoming party." Sonic says, leading Sally and Bunnie to hide behind a pile of rubble.
"Sir, we have lost visual contact with the Freedom Fighters." The swatbot pilot in one of the craft reports.
"FOOLS! How could you lose them??? They were right in the middle of the street!" Snively yells.
"Turning on heat scanners...." The robot reports, turning on the infrared sensors. "Targets found."
"Good! Capture them alive! I want them alive!" Snively orders.
The robots fire on the mound of rubble the Freedom Fighters are hiding behind.
"Sally, we're trapped. What do we do?" Bunnie asks.
"I have an idea. Sonic, do you have an extra power ring?" She asks.
"Yeah, Sal... I always carry power rings with me..." Sonic replies.
"We need to get to the Control Center and escape these SwatBots." Sally speaks.
"I'm way ahead of ya, Sal." He says, taking out the second power-ring. "Hold on tight."
Bunnie and Sally hold on tightly to Sonic as he runs very quickly towards the Control Center.
"NO NO NO! What are you robots even good for? Must I do EVERYTHING myself???" He yells, watching as Sonic and his friends approach.
Sonic runs through the streets with Sally and Bunnie, quickly dodging the other SwatBots. Once they think it's safe, they sneak over towards the building, but see several SwatBots and robians testing special jets.
"What's going on there?" Bunnie asks.
"Looks like Snively might be testing a new type of fuel... we gotta shut everything down." Sally speaks.
"Attention, SwatBots. Get those airships in the air immediately. Incinerate the Great Forest before Sonic and his meddlesome friends destroy you." Snively orders.
"What are they talking about?" Sonic asks.
"I'm not sure..." Sally replies.
"Is that all fuel?" Bunnie asks.
"No.... it looks like napalm... oh my god.... Snively's going to incinerate the whole Great Forest!" Sally figures it out, telling her friends.
"No way are we gonna let that happen, guys." Bunnie says, peering behind the corner of the building.
Sonic steps forward, but the robots see him.
"Ahhh.... crap." He thinks to himself.
The hedgehog looks around for anything he can use to his advantage as the robots approach. Bunnie jumps in from behind and kicks one of the robots into the others.
"Time to crash yer little party, Snively!" Bunnie says, setting a detonator on one of the airships.
"Alright, guys... run!" Bunnie says as she runs towards the exit of the building with Sonic and Sally.
Thirty seconds later, a large explosion rips through the factory, spraying the area with the flaming gelatin known as napalm, incinerating anything and everything it touches. Sonic, Sally, and Bunnie shield themselves under a metal sheet.
"Once this clears up, we nail Snively." Sonic says to his friends.
"What? NOOOOO! CURSE THOSE FREEDOM FIGHTERS! I HATE THEM SO MUCH!!!!" Snively yells, witnessing the destruction of his airships.
The tiny tyrant watches in anger as fire rains down on part of his city.
"I wouldn't be that lucky... but I hope Sonic and his friends were toasted in that explosion..." He mutters to himself.
Sonic looks out from beneath the metal sheet.
"It's cool, ladies." He says, helping Sally and Bunnie up.
The three Freedom Fighters then make a bee-line right for the Control center.
"WARNING! HEDGEHOG INTRUDER!" The alarms speak.
"Great. Well, I'm ready for you, hedgehog." He speaks, turning to Ixis Naugus.
"Feel free to do what you wish to the Hedgehog and his friends. I just want him alive so I can roboticize him." Snively speaks.
"Leave the Quickster to me, Snively." Ixis says.
Sonic kicks in the door as he walks in, catching Ixis and Snively off-guard.
"Game's over, Needle-nose!" Sonic speaks, approaching the short human.
"Not so fast, Quickster. You are at my mercy here." Ixis says, turning Sonic's feet into crystal so he can't move.
"Hey! Why'd you do that again? I thought you were on our side." Sonic asks.
"I have my instructions from Snively to remove you. After Snively roboticizes everything, I intend to have the void swallow up the Great Forest, as my own kingdom." He speaks.
"You won't get away with that, Naugus." Bunnie tells him, staying next to Sonic.
"Oh, but my dear girl... it's already underway." He replies.
Sally, meanwhile, crawls unseen under the control panel, and plugs NICOLE into a slot.
"NICOLE, scramble the main systems." She whispers to her hand-held computer.
"Working, Sally..." Nicole replies.
As Snively is typing on the computer, issuing orders for all available SwatBot battalions to return to base to attack the Freedom Fighters, the system begins to short-circuit. The screens go blank all at once.
"What the-- What's going on?" He asks.
"Great job, NICOLE!" Sally says, reaching up to unplug her computer.
Snively sees the brown-furred paw reaching up to disconnect her, and grasbs the princess' wrist.
"Well, what do I have here?" He grins, pulling the princess out from underneath the panel.
"You meddling twits may have destroyed my plans to incinerate the Great Forest... but I still have the three of you to Roboticize." He grins, walking up to the Roboticizer.
The short human grabs Sally's wrist as he walks over to the Roboticizer. He types on the console connected to the roboticizer to activate it, holding her wrist firmly.
"Don't try anything funny, princess. The game's over for you." He speaks as she struggles.
"Yo, Naugus... why are you even taking orders from Snively, anyway?" Sonic asks.
"We agreed that the Freedom Fighters were the bigger threat to Mobius. Robotnik is out of the picture, and once I find him, I will torture him for throwing me into the Void." He explains.
"So why attack US? We're against Robotnik and Snively, too." the hedgehog speaks.
"You wish to restore the Kingdom, and I won't let that happen." He tells Sonic.
"We'll fight you wherever and whenever we need to, Ixis." Sonic defiantly speaks.
"Then you can become Snively's personal statue." Ixis says, summoning a spell to crystallize Sonic.
Bunnie sees this as her chance to attack, and lunges forward at Naugus when his eyes are closed, kicking him in the chest, knocking him over.
"Change sugah-hog back, NOW!" She yells.
"Or what?" He asks.
Bunnie picks Ixis up by the collar of his cloak and holds him out the window.
"You wanna be road-pizza, y'all can be my guest. I'm done playin' games with the likes of you..." She says.
"Alright... I'll release him." He says, snapping his fingers and returning Sonic to normal.
"Alright, Bunnie!" Sonic cheers, running over to Snively, pinning him against the Roboticizer.
"Oh NO! AHH!" the human yelps.
"Let Sal go, NOW!" He growls.
"Alright..." Snively whimpers.
"Now, you two scram! We're simply going to defeat you every time you try to cause trouble, so just save us the hassle and beat it." Sonic says, overconfident as usual.
"You have not heard the last of Snively the Great! You will all tremble before me when I return!" He yells, running out of the city with Ixis Naugus.
"Yeah, I doubt that." Sonic says. "Snively the GREAT???"
The hedgehog starts laughing, before he remembers Bunnie and Sal.
"Are you girls alright?" He asks.
"Yeah, sugah." Bunnie replies.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Sally speaks.
"Good. I'll get Rotor over here to destroy the computers and deactivate the SwatBots." Sonic says, leaping out the window and running down the side of the building, taking off down the street towrads Knothole Village.
He returns an hour or so later, with Rotor tagging along.
"Where are we going, Naugus?" Snively asks.
"I am returning to the Void. You can stay here and wait for some furred rabble-rousers to capture you." He says, impatient and highly annoyed of the little human's actions.
"W-why? I held up my part of the bargain: capturing the Hedgehog." Snively says, somewhat angry.
"Correction. *I* captured the hedgehog. You simply got greedy and screwed everything up." Ixis replies, summoning a portal to the Void.
"I can still be of service. Perhaps it's better with you in the lead." Snively speaks.
"Hmm. The human has a point... he could be a valuable asset regarding Robotropolis and the Freedom Fighters..." Ixis thinks to himself.
"You think you can handle the hedgehog all by yourself, Naugus? He's the one ace card the Freedom Fighters have, and you know it." Snively speaks.
"Go on..." Ixis replies.
"With your wizardry and my technological intelligence... we could truly destroy everything on Mobius." He replies.
"Sounds like a plan." Ixis replies, shaking hands with Snively.
The sounds of fingers on a keyboard are heard, echoing softly from the metallic walls up in the command center, perched high above the debris-strewn streets.
"Sally, I think I've restored power to part of the city. It's only Downtown, and just the buildings within five blocks, though." Rotor says from behind his laptop, connected to the main computers in Robotnik's former command center.
She looks out the window, watching the still, lifeless city, clothed in layers of pollution.
"That's good news, Rotor. We're making progress at least." She replies, sounding a bit distracted, or depressed. Sonic senses something's up, so he approaches her, placing his hand on her arm softly.
"Sal, what's eatin' ya? I thought you'd be glad as the sun is bright to see Robotnik dead and gone." He asks her.
"I am, Sonic. It's just... all this. The city is ruined... it's not fit to live in. It was ours, and we fought so hard to get it back after it was stolen. We're going to have a hard time rebuilding peoples' lives now." She says softly, placing a hand on the cool glass of the window.
"I know, Sally, but we made it. We defeated buttnik, and we're finally free." He says, with his hand on her arm still. She smiles a bit, but starts to frown, looking to her side.
"It's also, my father. He's crystallizing in the Void for all we know. He could have died by now, Sonic. I've hardly known him since the war. We've been so far apart." She says, wiping a tear from her eye.
"Sally, your father's proud of you. I know I am. You're the definition of fearless leader. You've kept us going all these years. I bet your father is in the Void, but he's safe and healthy." Sonic says, trying to cheer up his friend and motivate her.
"Yeah, and we'll find a way to get him back, too, Princess." The walrus replies.
Without warning, a camera detects two shadowy figures walking near the building. A large screen turns on and an alarm sounds, with the border of the video flashing yellow and red.
"Hedgehog alert! Hedgehog alert! Priority one: Capture Hedgehog!" The alarms drone outside and inside the building, as the two figures run off in two separate directions.
"What the--" Rotor asks to himself before pulling it up on his laptop.
"What's going on, Rote?" Sonic asks his friend.
"Tracing it, Sonic... aha! Right next to what's left of the Doomsday Machine." He says.
"Juice and jam time!" Sonic says, taking off towards the door.
"Sonic! It could be a trap!" Sally tells him. The hedgehog stops at the doors.
"Sally, I'll be fine, and I'll return." He smiles to her, before taking off down the hall, going down the elevator.
Along the rubble-filled streets, a floating camera spies on Antoine and the King. Antoine recognizes it.
"Sire, hide! Ze swatbots are coming! It's Robotnik's camera!" Antoine says, as the King reluctantly runs into an alley, as Antoine distracts the camera, keeping it on him. Suddenly, a loud bang sound is heard, and the camera falls out of the sky, crashing into a few pieces on the street. He runs a bit down the street, scared out of his mind that he'll be captured.
"Oh no no no no! Mon dieu! I will be captured! Roboticized!" He yelps to himself as he runs. He bumps into something and falls over.
"Ahhh! Ze Swatbots!" He yelps, then jumps back up.
"I will nevair surrendair!" He snarls, pulling out his sword.
Sonic paces in the elevator as it descends the shaft towards the first floor. He counts the floors as they descend, from thirty-nine, downwards.
"Come on.. come on! I could have run across all of Mobius by now!" He says impatiently. The numbers count down, before they turn to the letter "G", indicating "Ground Floor", and the doors open.
"Well that was a waste of thirty seconds!" He says, running out of the elevator and out the door of the building. He rounds a corner and slams into something, seeing it unsheathe a sword.
"That accent... I recognize that voice!" He thinks to himself.
"Antoine!" Sonic says as he steps into the light again.
"Ahhh! Sonic! Halp! Oh... there you are... heh heh." He rubs his collar nervously, blushing a bit from embarrassment.
"What are you doing here, Ant? You normally guard Knothole." Sonic asks his friend, hands at his hips, tapping his foot.
"What am I doing here? Hm... oh yes! Sonic, follow me." He says, grasping the blue hedgehog's hand, walking down the street quickly, back towards where he and the King parted ways.
"What's goin' on?" He asks the coyote.
"Sonic, I have someone very important to introduce to you." He says.
"Oh yeah? Is it this piece of scrap metal?" Sonic asks sarcastically, pointing to the now-ruined hovercam that looks like it's been smashed to pieces.
"Non, mon ami. It is King Acorn." He says.
"No... it looks more like a broken hovercam to me, Ant." Sonic says.
"Not ze camera, you feul, ze King. He is hiding in ze alley. I told him to get out of sight of ze camera." Antoine tells his friend.
"Antoine, I think you've finally lost it." Sonic chuckles, still tapping his foot.
"Mister D'Coolette is on the level, Sonic." King Max says, stepping back out of the alleyway, holding a makeshift slingshot in his experienced hands.
"Sire! How'd you get out of the Void?" Sonic wonders, asking his sovereign.
"I'll explain when I see Sally." He explains.
"Sally's gonna love this, sire! She's in Robotnik's control room!" He says.
"Sally, should I disable the 'Hedgehog Alert'?" Rotor asks.
"I think that would be a good idea, Rotor. We won't need it anymore." Sally replies to her friend. Rotor types in a few commands, and disables the Hedgehog Alert System.
"There. All swatbots that respond will go towards the docks and wait for further instructions." He says, flexing his fingers.
"Rotor, you're a technological genius." Sally says to him, causing Rotor to blush.
"You guys take the elevator. I'll get there in a flash!" Sonic tells Antoine and the King, heading off into the distance, before turning sharply, running up the side of the building. He sneaks into a ventilation duct and into the building. Antoine and King Max arrive on the floor housing the command center. They arrive in the command center and Antoine starts to shake.
"Wai-wai-wait, sire! Doctair Robotnik is in there!" He yelps.
"Antoine, if he were here, he would have captured you already." Sonic says from above them. He crawls out of the duct and opens the door to the command center.
"Sally, I have someone who wants to see you." He opens the door, and the King steps through.
"Dad?" She whispers, tries to keep herself together, before running towards him, hugging her father.
"Dad? Is it really you? Is this a dream?" She asks him.
"It's real, my dear. I've returned." Max says, hugging her.
"I missed you. How'd you get out of the Void?" She asks the older squirrel.
"There was a terrible explosion, and I was thrown right out of the Void. I landed in the Great Forest, near Knothole. Whatever caused that massive explosion in the Void must've freed us from its grip." The King replies.
"The Power Stones!" Princess Sally and Sonic both exclaimed. King max grins and folds his arms.
"Ah, so you did use them. Good job, Sally, Sonic." He shakes the hedgehog's hand.
"Sire, please come back to Knothole Village. Everyone would love to see you again. We need you." Sonic says.
"I intend to, Sonic. Now that I'm back, I won't leave my people to fend for themselves any longer." The King replies proudly. The four furs talk and get caught up as the minutes go by. King explains that the other people trapped in the Void were also freed.
"I'm afraid that Ixis Nagus is also running around here on Mobius, once more. He is hell-bent on taking over the crown, Sonic. We have to be on our guard from his treacherous magic. He only sided with you to remove Robotnik from power." He tells his friends.
Rotor is looking things up on the computers while Sonic and the King are talking. "Initiate environment scan for Mobotropolis." He instructs the computers. A few minutes later, he sees the results: massive amounts of toxins are in the air and soil, polluting the city. "Just great." He says to himself.
Sonic walks up to the walrus.
"What's wrong, Rote?" He asks.
"It's all this pollution. We'll have to abandon the city until it dissolves. The city needs to heal itself. Just look at these results... benzene in the water, acetone deposits along the harbor." He says, handing Sonic the print-out.
The hedgehog then shares it with the King and Princess Sally.
"Rotor, it's alright. We'll rebuild, eventually." The King reminds him.
"Are we in any danger of just recon missions or short visits?" Sally asks him.
"No, but if this were a lifelong exposure, you'd become extremely ill or even die." Rotor replies.
The King nods his head. "We'll relocate to the forest, for now." He says.
"So, how long will we have to abandon the city?" Sonic asks.
"Well, the outer parts could be re-inhabited right now, but the industrial areas and the rest of the city... around four to eight years in some places." He says.
They all fall silent, from this sobering evidence.
"Sire, we also have to head back, since it's going to be dark, soon. We may as well give you a proper welcome back in Knothole." Rotor says with a smirk, folding up his laptop, as the furs have completed all they could have, that day.
"How will we get back to Knothole, Rote? I can run, but you guys have to walk..." Sonic says.
Rotor smirks and walks over to a pile of rubble. He digs a few chunks of reinforced concrete off of what is buried underneath. It is a swatbot hovercraft!
"I bet we could use this! It should make getting to and from Knothole much easier." He says, stepping inside and turning it on.
"Alright! It wasn't that damaged, either! Everyone, hop in. The bus is leaving for Knothole!" He says as Sally, Sonic, Antoine, and The King walk into the craft.
It takes off and flies across the desert, travelling at roughly one hundred and twenty kilometers per hour. Within a few minutes, the Forest is in sight. Rotor navigates going around the trees, slowing down to roughly seventy kilometers per hour.
"Rotor, watch for zat tree! You're going to hit it!" Antoine panics, covering his eyes as the hovercraft flies through the air, missing the tree entirely. It nears the Great Oak Slide, and towards the deeper parts of the Forest, where Knothole Village is hidden. A bat remains standing guard, watching for anything out of the ordinary. He hears the roar of powerful engines and looks around, then sees it in the distance.
"Robotnik!" He thinks to himself, before grabbing his CB radio.
"Guys, we got company! Swatbot hovercraft heading dead straight for Knothole!" He says into it.
Bunny is in the hut that is the headquarters of the Freedom Fighters. Suddenly, the CB goes off from the Bat stationed in the western part of the forest, close to Knothole. She hears him warning her and the furries there.
"Bunny to Batty. I'm on mah way, sugah!" She says, running off towards his outpost.
The hovercraft piloted by Rotor flies overhead of the bat very quickly, and is within sight of Bunny in only seconds. She steps aside as it stops moving and lands softly on the ground.
"Robuttnik, yer in for one hip-hop of a thumpin' if that's you!" She says as the door opens. Rotor steps out, followed by the King, Antoine, Sonic and Princess Sally.
"Oh, mah stars! Ah am so sorry! I thought you guys were Robotnik." She apologizes.
"No need for apologies, Bunny." Sonic smirks. They walk back into Knothole.
"It's alright, y'all! It's just Sal-Gal, Sonic, and the gang... and they brought King Max back with them!" She says as the furs come out of their huts and start to applaud the Return of the King.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, I proudly return to Knothole, to guide you back to prosperity. I will put all the resources I can into rebuilding your shattered lives, broken dreams, and your ruined cities. Though Mobotropolis is heavily polluted, we will rebuild it, and our proud nation will rise, once more!" He says to his enthusiastic crowd.
Back in Knothole.
"My plans are to assemble a small team to go with me to Robotropolis to reclaim our city, and to truly know if Robotnik is dead or alive. If he is dead, we'll celebrate the end of his tyranny. If he's alive, we'll capture him, and he will be placed on trial for high treason. Sally, Sonic, Bunnie, and Rotor have already demonstrated, last night, that the city is indeed safe for repopulation." The King continues his speech into the crowd.
Sally and Sonic are talking at the sidelines. "Do you think Robotnik's really dead and gone?" Sonic asks. "I don't know... I still can't believe using the Deep Power Stones actually worked in stopping Doomsday." She replies. "I hear ya. That ruled!" The hedgehog says with a nod.
"My furs, before we go to sleep tonight, I want you to think about the glorious future ahead of us. Dream of the wonderful reality that has come forth: we can rebuild our cities and our lives!" King Acorn finishes his speech, to much fanfare and cheering.
"Just think, Bunny... Robotnik is gone! Now we can finally start our lives." Antoine says to Bunny, holding her hands in his own as he looks into her eyes.
"Ah'm so glad, sugah-twan..." She replies, kissing his nose as she walks back towards their shared hut.
Day breaks over the western part of the continent, over the still smoking ruins of Robotropolis and the Great Forest. Ixis inspects the ruined power plant with Snively.
"It's time that we return to the Void, Snively. The Freedom Fighters have brought part of the city back online, and it's only a matter of time before they begin to repopulate it." He says calmly.
"Why, Ixis? Wouldn't you rather try to assist me in taking over Mobius?" He questions the old wizard.
"The quickster and his friends cannot attack us in my domain. We'll get stronger, and then attack from a safe distance." Ixis explains to his shorter cohort.
"Very well. I want to see those miserable furballs suffer." Snively mutters as he walks towards the portal conjured up by Ixis Naugus.
The portal closes up without a trace as the freedom fighters return with a lot of furs, inspecting their reclaimed city and its damage.
"This is going to be a LOT of work." Rotor says, surveying the city with his zoom-goggles.
"Yeah, but we can finally live in peace again." Sally replies.
While removing debris from the downtown core, Sonic, Tails, Sally and Rotor discover a perfectly preserved biplane.
"What is it, Rote?" Sonic asks, touching one of the rotors of the propeller on the nose of the plane.
"I think it's a sort of flying machine. I remember reading about it in my history books." He replies, rubbing his right hand along its wing.
"Nicole, can you explain what this is?" Sally asks her handheld computer.
"Analyzing, Sally..." The faithful computer responds. A few seconds later, a holographic image is displayed in front of them, as Nicole dictates to them.
"This object is a 'biplane', a type of flying machine. It uses liquid hydrocarbons for fuel, and has a top speed of two hundred and fifty-five kilometers per hour. This model was first built by the Ancient Race of Mobius, far before the Days of Fury, making it several hundred, if not several thousand, years old. It is unknown how it survived, how it got here, or if it still works." She recites from her data files on ancient technology.
"Well, I don't know what we can do with it. We'd have to get it to work with Power Rings. I say we just scrap it." Sonic says, holding his hands at his sides.
"No way, Sonic! I like this plane. I'll fix it up and we could even use it to go scouting and spying." Tails explains, hopping in the seat, touching the steering mechanisms.
"Tails, even if it could work, where would we store it?" Sally asks.
"I'll build a hut for it or hide it underground. I know Rotor would love to help me fix this thing up." Tails says, turning the keys, only hearing the motor stall.
Rotor rubs the back of his neck softly with his left arm.
"I would, yeah.. let's just see if it's worth working on, though." He says, inspecting the motor. He finds it's bone-dry for fuel, but surprised that it can take a Power Ring with just a few minor adjustments.
"I think it's possible to shove a Power Ring in there. Just gotta replace one part with another." He says.
"Already there." Sonic replies, tossing the walrus the power ring. Rotor makes the necessary modifications for Tails.
"Tails, give it another try!" Rotor yells as he slams the biplane's motor cage shut. Tails starts the engine, excited and cheering as he hears the engine roar to life. The freedom fighters stand back as tails pilots the plane out of the abandoned garage, and into the street. Sally looks at her handheld computer.
"Nicole, can you communicate with that plane's radio?" She asks.
"Yes, I can, Sally." She replies, with good news to Sally.
"Tails, be careful!" Sally shouts to him.
"Don't worry, Aunt Sally. I'll be fine. If I start to crash, I can bail and fly out." He says, suddenly flooring his foot on the gas. The old biplane races down the tower-lined street, before taking off into the hazy blue sky above the city and its bay.
"Son of a gun... you two did it!" Sonic says to Rotor.
Alright, Tails! You're doing great!" Sally says into Nicole, being heard over the plane's CB radio.
"Sally, you have to see the view from up here! It's breathtaking!" Tails says, absolutely thrilled as he flies the plane. He starts to do a barrel-roll.
"Oh my god. He's in trouble!" Sally gasps.
"Nah, Sally, I'm fine! Just seeing what this thing can do!" Tails replies as he goes through a loop.
"Tails, you're scaring me! Please come back down." Sally says into Nicole. Tails sighs.
"Alright, Aunt Sally. Coming in nice and slow." Tails replies as he lands back on the same street.
"Tails, you RULE on that thing!" Sonic says as he ruffles his little "brother's" hair. Tails blushes and hides behind his bushy tails.
"Awww... thanks, Sonic." He says.
Deep within the Void, Ixis and Snively come across Doctor Robotnik. The fat tyrant is looking around, dazed and confused.
"What is this place? Where AM I?" He asks.
"You're in my playground, Doctor." Ixis grins.
Robotnik's face shows a unique expression for the first time. It shows fear.
"Doctor, you are going to pay for casting me here all those years ago." Ixis speaks to him.
"What are you going to do to me?" Robotnik asks.
"Anything I see fit." Ixis replies, snapping his fingers.
Robotnik's head turns into that of a beetle.
"Ahh, this is going to be fun." Ixis grins, snapping his fingers repeatedly, changing Robotnik's appearance accordingly.
Snively starts laughing from the Doctor's misfortune, watching Ixis torture him.
"Doctor, you should never have betrayed me." Ixis tells the doctor. "I said you'd be sorry if you did, and now look at you."
"I'd say he looks better, Ixis." Snively says as he laughs.
"Indeed. Doctor, are are at my mercy, and I am running low on that. Welcome to your nightmares." Ixis tells him.
Doctor Robotnik simply shudders and closes his eyes, not knowing what this wizard could possibly be cooking up for him.