The world of Mobius is a beautiful place. Lush green fields, sky blue oceans, and home to the most incredible people. In Mobian Year 3248, the Acorn family has lived to serve Mobius as one of its eight great world leaders, protecting its people from harm. Of course, not all people on Mobius care for the peace the world leaders wish to maintain. This story focuses on one such person who brought peace to an end and the struggle of those who tried to fight back.

Within Castle Acorn, a young Sally Acorn was in the training yard, doing some combat training with a few of the castle soldiers. The Mobian chipmunk was certainly able to outclass the soldiers around her, kicking them off the ground before then swinging the practice spear she held and sending the soldiers away from her with the force of the swing alone. As the soldiers stood back up, a laugh could be heard from the entrance of the yard, a regal looking squirrel, King Nigel, Sally's father, standing by a pillar as he watched the display.

Nigel: "Goodness me, Sally. If you don't restrain yourself, I might send these soldiers home with a bit more of a headache."

Sally: "Ah… Sorry, Dad. Didn't mean to go so hard… I just didn't want to slack is all."

Nigel: "Oh I'm not angry. Just try not to cause any undue injury. You are a princess first. The people should always come first."

Sally: "Of course. …But um… What are you doing here? I thought you were needed at a meeting."

Nigel: "Ah, that. Well, the others of the council have yet to arrive. I figured I'd have time to come and see you, that's all."

Voice: "You always were a family man first."

A feminine voice catches both Sally and Nigel's attention. The duo turn to the entrance as a guard escorted royal hedgehog walks in. Queen Aleena Hedgehog, one of Nigel's closer friends. Nigel is quick to grab Aleena's hand and take a knee in respect.

Nigel: "Queen Aleena. Your presence here is always a welcome one."

Sally: "Aleena! Does that mean he's here too? Or did he run out again?"

Aleena sighs, rolling her eyes as Sally could confirm the answer.

Sally: "Dang it, Sonic… Why do you do that?"

Aleena: "He's a free spirit, Sally. He doesn't want to be bogged down by responsibility or the like. He's like Bernadetta in a way."

Nigel: "The boy refuses to sit still, but then again, you are young only once. That said, are the other world leaders of Mobius assembled?"

Aleena: "Not yet, but they will be. I just came by to say hello to Sally."

Sally: "At least someone thought of me…"

Sally pouted angrily, crossing her arms. But then Aleena placed a hand on her shoulder.

Aleena: "Sonic cares. He just has his own way of showing it. Though… Tell you what… How about you and I do a sparring session after the meeting? That should help, right?"

Sally: "Hmm… Alright, fine. Actually, can I join in the meeting, Dad? Since I'll be queen eventually, I'd like to learn how they work personally."

Nigel: "While I wish I could arrange that, this meeting is about very sensitive topics. I'm afraid you will have to stay out of it this time. Next time though, okay?"

Sally groaned at this response, but shrugged. She then walked out of the training yard, heading to the library to do some studying. Nigel sighs as he could only watch Sally leave.

Nigel: "That girl shares her mother's dutiful side. If Alicia were still around…"

Aleena: "The same could be said for Bernadetta… Ah, but let us not dwell on that… We shouldn't make everyone wait."

Nigel: "Ah. Right."

Sally arrives at the library, looking at the shelves and volumes of different stories from Mobius' history and fiction. As she looked around for something to read, she spots her old friend, Rosie. In most other iterations of the character, Rosie would be an older, wiser caretaker of Sally, and her friends if the situation called for it. This iteration though is much younger, only a couple of years older than Sally, with blue hair worn down instead of white aged hair in a bun. She does still wear a blue dress though. And one personality trait of her's still remains: she does still enjoy entertaining younger children. It doesn't take Rosie long to notice Sally watching her read to the younger Mobians the tale of the Secret Rings. Rosie finishes up her storytime, which took a few minutes more, before going to greet the princess.

Rosie: "Your highness. I'm sorry if you were waiting for me, but the kids do love a good story."

Sally: "Oh, no need for that. I was just looking for something to read is all."

Rosie: "I… saw Queen Aleena earlier today. Is Sonic not…?"

Sally's scowl gave a clear answer as the chipmunk simply looks away. Rosie nods before sighing.

Rosie: "I see… I guess he didn't want to sit out the meeting the various leaders of Mobius are having…"

Sally: "I get it, he's not one to sit still, but could he at least see me before rushing off to Gaia knows where? He should know that I miss him when he doesn't visit…"

Rosie: "I'm sure he knows… But hey, you know? We could follow his example. In this time of peace, the world is our oyster."

Sally: "So go on our own adventure? I certainly wouldn't mind, but… I'd like to know what Dad and the others are discussing. From the sounds of it, it sounds important."

Rosie: "Now that you bring it up, I have heard some things going down in Soleanna, Meropis, and a number of islands. Namely, their treasures being stolen."

Sally: "Treasures? Seems a bit isolated, doesn't it? I mean, we deal with a few treasure thieves here and there, but we never call for a meeting because of it."

Rosie pulls Sally closer and starts whispering to her.

Rosie: "No, Sally… It involves… those treasures…"

Sally's eyes widened, now understanding just what Rosie meant. This could mean the situation is far bigger than she originally thought. Not wasting any time, Sally ran out the door, with Rosie following quickly behind her.

Rosie: "Sally! Where are you going now!?"

Sally: "To the sacred vault! If those treasures were stolen then who's to say our's isn't next!?"

Rosie only sighed as she followed her friend to one of the hidden passages to the underground.

Meanwhile, in the meeting hall, which was a sizable room with a long table meant for at least twelve occupants. King Acorn sat at the front while Queen Aleena sat at the back. Between them were various other people of different races and differing ages. One was a red haired human woman in a white short dress, Princess Elise of Soleanna; a married Mobian fish couple, one a small male pufferfish and the other a taller female angler, dressed in royal garb, King Puff and Queen Angelica of Meropis; a brown haired human man in a blue business suit, the President of the United Nations; a couple of gray wolves dressed in tribal attire, of them being a fairly younger wolf just over twenty, Lupe of the Wolf Pack Nation.

Nigel: "Everyone is here, correct? Then we can move things along in regards to the Treasures. But the details need to be accurately provided."

President: "Then I will start us off, since I can confirm the incidents are related."

The President stood from his chair before placing a circular panel at the center. He pushes a button on it, a hologram forming from the center of the panel. The hologram showed the location of a hidden vault far from the location of the United Nations' main hub.

President: "At exactly 5:05 AM yesterday morning, an alarm was sprung as a mysterious assailant had managed to locate and hack open the doors to the vault. I have the only security clearance necessary to enter so whoever found the entrance, they knew their technology very well. Impressively, the doors showed no signs of attempted assault."

Angelica: "Moving on to our vault… Meropis' vault was guarded by several of our finest soldiers, even locked by the Mystic Melody of the local priestess. A sudden emergency occurred when one of our city barriers was destroyed so suddenly, forcing the guards to handle maintaining order. When we checked the vault, a hole had been blown open in the floor and the Treasure missing. The panic caused in the city was nothing short of a diversion."

Elise: "Unfortunately, Soleanna did not fare any better. My father sent our Treasure to the White Acropolis base in hopes of it being hidden enough to avoid any potential thieving. Unfortunately, whoever had stolen our Treasure used not only some kind of tracker, but heavy machinery to destroy our robots guarding the facility. I'm sorry, your majesty."

Nigel: "It is no fault of yours, Elise… You did what you could and that is all we could ask. Lupe?"

Lupe: "Thank you, your majesty. The Gaia Temple housing the Treasure was not only hidden away in a deep jungle, but also locked away by a seal that very few knew how to lock, me being one of those few. But not only were the doors blasted open, but the temple was made dangerous by strange new machines like turrets. Many of my fellow Wolf Pack were injured thanks to these unwanted security measures, but it is believed that whoever left those there is guaranteed to return for one reason or another."

Nigel could only clench his hands together, feeling disturbed. These could be isolated incidents, but considering the time frame and how each seems to involve some kind of technology, they most certainly were related. Aleena then spoke up.

Aleena: "That unfortunately only leaves three Treasures left. One here under Castle Acorn, my own, and the hidden seventh."

Nigel: "Indeed. However, the fact that the assailant has a tracker for the Treasures only means that the last three will be found eventually. We must act now."

Puff: "And what do you propose we do, Nigel? How do we take action if we don't even have an identity to go off of?"

Nigel: "They will come, of this we can be assured. We must increase security and fight back against this assailant as much as we can. Mr. President, is there any way G.U.N. can provide us with this extra defense?"

President: "I would need to contact Commander Abraham, but I can see to it being done."

In the air space over Mobotropolis, the Kingdom of Acorn's capital, a dark shadow hangs over the city, catching the citizens' attention. They then see a large battleship of some kind, one that eclipses the sun. One thing that could be seen is a distinct smiling mustached insignia on the side of the ship. Within the ship itself, a figure sits on a throne, his face obscured by darkness but a pair of blue tinted glasses could be seen. A hologram of a small girl with white-silvey hair, a small streak of red in said white hair, dressed in a black cloak with parts of her body resembling a red mainframe appears before the figure.

Sage: "We have arrived at Mobotropolis, Lord Robotnik."

Robotnik: "Excellent, Sage. And what of Snively's progress?"

Sage: "All is going according to your plan."

Robotnik: "Good. Then it is time I paid the locals a visit. Prepare the Egg Robos to detain the entire city. No one escapes, and if any of those furballs try… Termination with extreme prejudice."

Sage: "Of course."

The figure stands from his throne as Sage's hologram vanishes. Outside the ship, a floating vehicle comes out of some kind of docking station and makes its way over to the castle, followed by an army of egg-shaped robots holding blasters, bazookas, and all kinds of weaponry, firing at the city and castle below.

Back in the passage leading to the vault, Sally and Rosie continue their descent until they find themselves in the caves before their destination. However, they find a sizable hole leading from elsewhere into the caves.

Sally: "That… That hole isn't supposed to be there…"

Rosie: "Sally… Do you think… an intruder dug through here?"

Sally: "We need to hurry. If the Treasure gets stolen, there is little doubt something bad may happen."

Sally and Rosie run down the corridors, rounding the corner, only to then be knocked back by the force of something hitting the doors to the vault. The metal door slammed to the floor as a big nosed little bald man in a floating vehicle of some kind drove into the opened vault and grabbed a glowing jewel.

Sally: "Hold it right there! Drop the Treasure in the name of the Kingdom of Acorn!"

Little man: "Kingdom of Acorn? My dear princess, you'll find that your little authority means nothing… to the future ruler of Mobius… I am Colin Robotnik Jr.! Now bow before me!"

A wrecking ball is tossed at the duo of girls, forcing them to dodge as Sally glares at the armed and dangerous Colin.

Back in the meeting hall, the hall had been filled up by various robot parts thanks to the ongoing fighting between them and the world leaders. The President was shooting his gun at the various Egg Robos that piled in through the windows while Elise shielded him with her barrier. Angelica unleashed a torrent of concentrated light from her angler to pierce multiple Egg Robos before kicking her husband, puffed up like a spiky ball, into them to finish them off. Lupe and her accompanying wolf pack member tore through a large chunk of the robots with their claws and teeth. Aleena ran up to a few Egg Robos, dodging them before curling up into a ball and bowling them over. One of them that was still down was stabbed through by a sword held by Nigel, who glared down at the machine. He quickly pulled it out as two other robots dropped from the hole in the ceiling, he using his shield to block one robot's blaster before slashing and cutting in half the other. Aleena kicked the other robot harassing Nigel before standing back to back with him.

Aleena: "They just keep coming. What do we do, Nigel?"

Nigel: "This is my kingdom. The rest of you need to leave and-"

Aleena: "Hell no! As if we'd just abandon you!"

President: "Queen Aleena's right! Whoever these terrorists are, they clearly had us all marked as an enemy!"

Lupe: "We need to stand our ground for as long as we can manage!"

Voice: "Valiant words, wolf girl. But sadly such chivalry will only get you so far."

The leaders turn and see more robots enter, but they split aside as a tall figure enters the room. A tall figure dressed in red and black, fair skinned, and a long orange mustache which he tugged at as he had a white smiling grin on his face. Nigel and Aleena could only stare in horror as to who appeared.

Robotnik: "It has been a long time, your majesty. I've come to claim what is rightfully mine. Hand over… your Chaos Emeralds. And I promise to let your kingdom live."

To be continued…