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 5-18, 3241 - Early Summer
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Chapter 13 - Breathing Room

For the first time in nearly twenty years, the sounds of music and laughter echo through the Mobotropolis Central Park. The first Summer Festival in a long time has returned. Much of the park is taken up with rows of arcade games and small rides, along with a big Ferris Wheel, giving a great view of the harbour and bay. Music is blaring loud over the soundspeakers, and the laughter of children on rides is heard by the people in the crowds.

A certain familiar couple is walking along the midway.
"Sonic, this is so wonderful. It's just like how i remember it in my childhood. I can hardly believe this is real." Sally says, walking with Sonic.
"Oh, it's real, Sal. Without villains to mess things up and scare people, we can have fun again." Sonic replies.

Sonic stops when he hears the roaring of small diesel engines. "What's that I hear? Go-Karts?"
"Sonic, you're already faster than those little karts..." Sally giggles.
"Yeah, but i gotta be the fastest thing alive in everything. Come on, I'll race ya!" Sonic smirks, running towards the Go-Karts line, with Sally running close behind him.

"He's always so competitive... and yet, I love him..." Sally thinks to herself.

Sonic and Sally hop into two available Go-Karts.

"Three laps around the track, Sal. Think you can beat me?" Sonic asks as he puts his helmet on.

"Sonic... It's no contest. I'll beat you." She smirks, putting her helmet on.

The two freedom fighters rev their engines and race off down the track as soon as the light turns green. As Sonic steers his Go-Kart, Sally approaches him from behind. The two furs battle for first place as they race along the circuit. Sonic tries to keep up, but Sally manages to stay just a small bit ahead. The finish line approaches quickly, and Sally finishes ahead of her best friend. Sally stops the Go-Kart as Sonic approaches a few secodns later.

"Well, Sonic... I thought you said you were the fastest thing alive." Sally says to him.
Sonic takes his helmet off and shakes his head, trying to get rid of "helmet fur".
"Yeah, well, if I ain't runnin', being the fastest thing alive is just awkward and weird for me." He replies

"That's alright, Sonic. I still love ya, speed or no speed." Sally tells him as they walk towards the ride exit.

"Here we are, Bunnie! Zee midway!" Antoine tells Bunnie, walking with her.
"Aww, why, Antoine.. this is the sweetest thing you've ever done for me." Bunnie remarks to her friend.

"Well, I... how do you say eet in English... I have ze crushings for you..." He blushes, walking with her.
"You are just too cute!" She giggles, hugging him as they walk down the midway.

As the two walk by, they pass a booth with a few pendants to win.

"Step right up! Come on, people! Hit the bull's-eye and win a prize!" The booth operator speaks, when he sees Antoine.

"You there, my well-dressed soldier friend... how would you like to win a prize for your girl?" He asks.

Antoine turns and looks at Bunnie, then the booth operator.

"Oooh, Antoine... they have jade pendants..." She says, looking at a couple of the pieces to win.

"If zat is what you like, zen I shall win one for you, my dear." Antoine speaks, walking up to the booth.
The booth operator hands him a dart and steps back to watch. Antoine throws, and it lands dead on in the center.

"Antoine! You did it!" Bunnie says happily, hugging him.

"Oof! Uhh... oui, oui... I did it for you, Bunnie." Antoine replies, placing the pendant around Bunnie's neck.

The female bunny hugs her friend tightly as they walk along the fairway. The cute couple bump into a pair of their friends.

"Hey, Elias... Geoffrey. Whutch'all doin' here?" She asks.
"We're just walking along and having a good time.... and you?" Geoiffrey asks.
"Same here, sugah-prince! You two are the cutest couple I've ever seen." She says, causing elias and Geoffrey to blush.
"W-well...what about Sonic and Sally? They grew up together... you can tell they love each other, even if they don't say it..." Elias replies.
"Yeah, that's sure 'nuff..." She replies, walking with her friends.

As the sun sets on the first day of the carnival, we find two furs in particular getting on the ferris wheel. The night is very special, being a night of celebration and freedom. Sonic steps forward, but helps Sally into the ferris wheel seat.
"Princesses first, Sal." He says, holding her hand before joining her.
"My my, such a modest and patient hedgehog... where's the real Sonic?" She giggles in return.
"He's gone far, far away..." Sonic jokes, in a lame villain's voice.

The two sit back and enjoy the ride as it takes them higher above the midway, soon giving a great view of Mobotropolis, as well as the perfect seats for the fireworks. Sally scoots a bit closer to Sonic, who hugs her gently with an arm.
"This was a very sweet and romantic idea, Sonic hedgehog..." She says softly, in the arms of her hero and best friend.
"I thought you'd like it, Sally." He replies, watching the fireworks with her.

After a few minutes of watching the fireworks, Sally breaks the silence of words. "Sonic, I was thinking about our futures..."
"Whatcha mean?" He asks.
"Well, I'm going to be queen someday, and I was hoping that you might be willing to rule with me when that time comes." She continues.
"I was born free, Sal. I can't be tied down in one place. I don't think I'd make a good king or dad anyway..." he explains.
"I know you would. I wouldn't tie you down, Sonic... that would be unfair. You are who you are: a renegade adventurer who runs with the wind and fixes injustice." She replies to him.
"In that case... would you marry me, Sal?" Sonic asks, showing Sally a small ring made by Uncle Chuck that would fit on her finger.
"Of course I will, Sonic Hedgehog." she smiles and kisses him.

In Botany Bay, Downunda, Walt and Barby are relaxing at their hang-out on the beach, listening to the radio's news reports.

"This is the Royal News. With the fall of Robotnik's empire, the kingdom is commencing a week-long festival in celebration, in downtown Mobotropolis. All are welcome to join in the celebrations." The radio informs.

"Nice. We've worked hard to restore Downunda, Barby. We could use a vacation to the "big city". It could even be like a big Freedom Fighter Reunion." Walt speaks.
"That's on the other side of the planet, though..." Barby replies.

"Yeah, but you'll get to see Tails again." He points out.
"Agreed! Let's go!" She says, grabbing him by the hand.

"Yipes!" He yelps, being dragged out the door by his friend.

She quickly finds the other Downunda Freedom Fighters nearby. Guru Emu is meditating under a palm tree, while Wombat Stu and Duck "Bill" Platypus are playing basketball.

"Hey, mates... there's a big Freedom Fighter reunion in Mobotropolis. Think we should stop by for a visit?" Barby asks her fellow freedom fighters.
Wombat Stu and Bill stop playing their ball game.
"Sure. Sounds like fun to meet friends from all over." Bill replies.
"How will we get there?" Wombat Stu asks.
"I managed to turn one of Crocbot's aircraft into something we can use to fly there." Walt says.
"Let's go, then!" Barby says, leading Wombat stu and Bill with her towards their hideout.

Waiting in the sun, is a medium-sized passenger plane, with enough seats for ten people. Walt helps his friends into it and turns it on, taking off.

"We should be able to make it there within twelve hours." He tells his friends as he steers the flying airplane.

While flying over the Great River, the plane begins to experience engine trouble. Walt grips the steering wheel firmly, trying to glide the plane down towards some small islands in the river. The plane manages to land safely. Walt steps out of the plane and looks around to get his bearings. He sees he's on a very small island, with a solitary house on it.

"I'll go ask for help. You guys stay put." He says, walking up to the house.

He knocks softly on the door. He remains silent, as he hears footsteps inside. The wallaby is somewhat nervous as the door opens. A short, elderly black-skinned human opens the door.

"Yes, son? How can I help you?" He asks.
"My friends and I were flying to Mobotropolis when our plane had some engine trouble. We had to land nearby. Can you help us fix it?" He asks.
"Of course I can. I'll get my tools." He speaks.

The human walks over to their small plane and immediately gets to work on it.
"You seem to know what you're doing..." Walt says, watching him.
"I used to be a mechanic, then I had a... a clerical job for a while. That's all ancient history, though." He explains.

Walt nods his head in recognition.

"A-HA! Gotcha." The elderly man speaks, ripping out the corroded fuel line. "I have a newer one of these in the shed, but I think that should fix it."
He gets up and walks back towards his house, returning a few minutes later with a new fuel hose. He installs it and checks it to be sure.

"Why dontcha give 'er a go?" He says to Barby.
She turns the plane on as Walt and the elderly man stand back.
"Hey, it works! Ya fixed it, mate!" She says.
"I'm just glad to help my fellow Mobians." the elderly man replies.
"You don't seem like the other overlanders... why don't you join us? We're heading to the summer festival in Mobotropolis." Walt says.
"Mobotropolis? It still stands?" he asks, very surprised.
"Yeah.... it was liberated a few months ago by Sonic and Sally..." Walt replies.
"Last i heard, it was conquered in the Great War...." The elderly man replies.
"That was twenty years ago! Man, you've been out here way too long without contact! We'll fill you in on the way." Duck Bill speaks.
"Alright. Let's go, young'uns." the elderly man smiles.

The plane quickly takes off and is soon in the air once more.
"We should introduce ourselves... we're the Downunda Freedom Fighters. This is Barby, I'm Walt, that's Guru Emu, and these two cheerful blokes are Wombat Stu and Duck "Bill" Platypus." Walt explains.
"It's very nice to meet you all. I'm Nate Morgan." the elderly man replies.
"How old are ya?" Wombat stu asks, being the inquisitive youngest member of the DFF.
"STU! That is incredibly rude!" Barby replies.
Nate simply laughs upon hearing this.
"That's quite alright. My age surprises everyone, though. I'm one hundred fouteen years young. While I don't get around as much as I used to, arthritis and all, I still do everything myself." He replies.

After a few minutes, he breaks the silence.
"You know, I didn't know what to think when I heard your plane's engine above my house. After all...I don't get many visitors on "Just Enough Room Island"..." He speaks.
"Quite an appropriate name... but why live out here by yourself? How long have you been living out here?" Barby asks.
"Well... It started before the Great War, when I was a ddoctor who worked for the Royal Government. I left for personal reasons when I saw that tensions were rising. I decided to just live on my own and built my home on that little island." He explains.

The small airplane flies through the night and into the next morning, approaching Mobotropolis Airport from the southeast. It lands without incident at the airport, and comes to a stop on the runway.

--- Possibly cut or move to later chapter.
Within Freedom HQ Mobotropolis, Rotor, Tails, Snively, and Sally are working in Rotor's laboratory. The walrus had an idea on how to allow NICOLE project herself in the real world, instead of being confined to her circuitry.
The walrus is gently unscrewing the case on NICOLE, while Snively hooks up the power amplifier.

"Guys, please be careful. NICOLE is very fragile and sensitive." Sally says.
"Don't worry, Sally. I would never harm NICOLE. Tails, is everything hooked up normally?" He asks.
"Yeah. Snively's ready to let the power flow." Tails replies.
"Do it." Rotor replies, as Snively turns the power amplifier on.

NICOLE begins to glow, and her screen begins to project a three-dimensional holographic image. Everyone in the room is silent as NICOLE enters the physical world for the first time.

"So this is what the real world is like? It's wonderful." She says.
"I'm surprised this actually works, guys. There's so much for you to experience in the world, Nicole." Sally replies.

The freedom fighters walk down the street for another fun day at the carnival, when Tails sees some old friends. He runs up and hugs them.

"Walt! Barby! You guys made it! It's so great to see you guys!" He says as he hugs them.
"Sally, Bunnie... I'd like you to meet my friends, the Downunda Freedom Fighters." Tails says as he introduces the two freedom fighter groups.
"I'm glad you guys could come. Now, all of the freedom fighter groups on my father's list are present. We can finally thank each other for the help we gave to each other during the battle for freedom." Sally speaks.

The princess stops when she sees Nate Morgan. She has not seen him since she was five years old.
"Nate? Is that you???" She asks.
"Indeed it is, Princess. I see you've grown into a smart and beautiful young lady." He says.
"Hey, Sal... you know this guy?" Sonic asks.
"Sonic, he was my tutor before the Great War, like Julayla and Rosie." She replies.
"That was a long time ago. I've been living in hiding since. How is your father? Is he still alive? And your Uncle Chuck, Sonic?" He asks.
"Yeah, they're both alive... Uncle Chuck's still a robot, but he has his mind back." He explains.
"It's good to see things are almost back to normal. I bet I could work on restoring people back to their old selves

After getting caught up with old friends, Sally reveals her father's plans for the country. She unfolds the map and lays it flat on the table for all to see. Lupe, Walt, and the Freedom Fighters are present. Within the country of Mobius, are smaller areas.

"Why isn't Downunda listed on the map? We've been loyal to the king for decades." Walt asks.
"My father's rewarding Downunda with independence, if you want it." Sally replies.
"Who will lead us then?" Barby asks.
"I will." Tails says, silencing everyone with surprise.
"Why move Downunda, though?" Sonic asks.
"When I battled Croc-Bot and was injured, Barby and Walt helped me, and I need to repay their kindness. I'll rebuild their nation into a glorious one." Tails replies.
"We're gonna miss ya, big guy." Sonic says, scritching his ears.
"I know. I'll miss you guys too, but we'll stay in touch and visit." Tails replies.
"What are these other locations?" Walt asks, placing a finger next to the word "Pridelands". Barby asks.
"Father thought it would be nice for each species to have its own "homeland", or province, as a way of reducing tensions between the furs." Sally explains.

Feist the supernatural panda watches this meeting through his portal within the Hidden Palace Zone. The large panda keeps a close eye on Tails.
"You, my two-tailed friend, are the chosen one. Genra and I will help you and your friends save the world." He says to himself.

Something makes the panda freeze, rocking him to his very core. He closes his eyes and tries to think about what could send shivers down HIS spine.
"Genra, did you feel that?" He asks.

The kitsune appears in front of him, teleporting to the Hidden Palace Zone.
"I did." He speaks.
"Do you know what it is?" Feist asks.
"I do. They've returned sooner than I had expected, and they shall soon be here." He replies.
"Who are we going up against?" He asks.
"Something far more terrible than Robotnik himself could ever do." Genra replies. "Take my hand, dear friend. I will show you what we are up against."

Genra holds Feist's paw in his own. The panda's eyes open wide, as he sees a large fleet of starships cruising through deep space at light speed, surrounding a large flagship. Their target is Mobius, and they are using the stars, and Mobius' own television and radio transmissions to zero-in on the planet from four light-years away. There are easily enough for an invasion, but they plan on doing something far more efficient. The Mandaras plan on mining every resource the planet can offer. Its water, minerals, soil, and atmosphere... even its CORE of solid iron and nickel will be entirely mined, as they did to countless worlds before, and how they tried and failed with Mobius in the past. They come back with a vengance, with ten times the numbers, intent on succeeding this time.
"No... oh, god no..." He says to himself.
"We don't have much time, Feist. They will be here in four years, and you know how fast time flies." Genra says.
"W-what do we do?" Feist asks.
"We start training the freedom fighters. If they knew what they were going to fight against, they may either back down, panic, or become frightened and unable to perform as well as they can." Genra speaks "I have an idea. We train them without them knowing what it's truly for until after their powers have fully developed. This way, we'll all stand a chance of survival." Feist replies.

A storm front moves in over the Mobotropolis skyline. The buildings' lights glow and flash in the darkness, as thunder echoes against the skyscrapers, and lighting strikes the lightning rods on the tallest of the skyscrapers. Rotor stands in front of the window of his bedroom overlooking the harbour as the storm rolls in. The thunderclaps get progressively louder and the lightning gets more powerful as it arcs across the sky. One particularly LOUD thunderclap wakes the freedom fighters from their nighttime slumber. Sally is jolted from her bed by it.

"NICOLE, what was that?" She asks.
"It seems to be an electrical storm, Sally." Her handheld computer replies.
"Can you tell where it is coming from?" She asks.
"Checking... unknown source, Sally." NICOLE replies.

Another thunderclap rocks the city, and Tails is awakened and frightened right out of his bed, landing on the floor. His fall wakes up Sonic.

"OOF! Oh..." Tails says to himself as he gets back up, somewhat drowsy.
"Whoa... you alright, lil' bro?" Sonic asks.
"Yeah... Just fell out of b--" Tails replies, before another thunderclap and lightning bolt occur.

This frightens the fox to bits and he jumps up onto Sonic, clutching tightly to him.
"Oh no... I'm afraid of lightning!" He yelps, hugging Sonic tightly.
"It's alright, Tails. We're safe in here." The blue-furred hedgehog replies.

Tails climbs down off of Sonic and the two furs walk into the living room of their complex, soon joined by Bunnie and Sally.

"Hello, ladies. Were you woken up from your sleep, too?" Sonic asks.
"Yeah, sugah-hog. I don't even know how this storm came up so fast... looked calm when we went to bed." Bunnie replies as she rubs her eyes.
"I hear ya. It's like the Forbidden Zone moved in here, with us..." Sonic replies, scritching an itch on his ear.
"NICOLE can't seem to pinpoint the source of this storm..." Sally says.
"Could it be Ixis Naugus?" Rotor asks as he walks in from his bedroom.
"Nah. That would be too stupid of a move for him to make. He knows we'd have him taken down and thrown back into the void in no time." Sonic replies.

As another thunderclap startles the Freedom Fighters, Tails looks a bit closer at the window. He thinks he sees something.

"What do you see, Tails?" Sonic asks.
"Those clouds look weird... almost like a face..." Tails replies, walking out onto the balcony.

As Tails walks out onto the balcony, the lightning and thunder stop. He sees a large face portruding from the clouds, almost like a panda's.
"What on earth is sugah-Tails doin' outside in this storm?" Bunnie asks, seeing Tails standing on the balcony.

He watches as the clouds clearly develop into a face. Feist speaks to the Freedom Fighters.
"Freedom Fighters... Gather everyone in the park at sunrise. I will meet you there." He speaks.

"Who was that?" Bunnie and Sally ask.
"It was Feist. He's a supernatural panda. He's the spirit guardian of Mobius." Tails explains.
"What do you think he wants?" Rotor asks.
"I dunno. But it must be big if he needs us for somethin'." Sonic replies.
"NICOLE, please display all your information on Feist." Sally speaks.
"Working, Sally." her computer replies. "Feist is a supernatural panda. He was the guardian spirit of the Great Forest, but was cast into the void by Ixis Naugus." NICOLE replies.
"So, is he a good guy or a bad guy?" Bunnie asks.
"I think he's on our side, but I'll be cautious around him until I know for sure." Sally replies.

As the starfleet travels through hyperspace, they approach the Lylat System.
"Sir, hould we begin deceleration when we approach the gravitational field of Sol?" The navigator asks this commander.
"Yes, but gradually. When we are within one light-year, exit hyperspace, and set all weapons to ACTIVE at one half light-year's distance." Asellus explains.
"Understood." The navigator speaks.