Chapter 4

The whole car ride didn't feel as awkward as the truck drive. Sort of. Stone wanted to put on some music, so all I could hear was this happy-sound, poppy music with some…piano instruments and electro keys in it. Though, after the third listening, it slowly dawned on Stone of the only CD playlist he brought along. It kept repeating 'Where Evil Grows' the entire car trip.

Topaz insisted on leaving this on for the rest of the ride despite Stone starting to get bored of hearing the same song. She said that listening to an enjoyable song on repeat could make a person concentrate better when doing a task.

For me? In my head, I could only hear the song slowly getting muffled by an incredibly loud drone beep.

It was an ear worm to the point I wondered if it was used to torture or hypnotize people into giving up information.

Fortunately, I didn't need to bore my head out with this 'pop song' as we get to drive through the city again. I noticed that it was getting dark due to the evening approaching, but all the lights turned on. It was mostly through the use of technology. I would have preferred seeing them using fire torches, but this seemed to be a bit safer.

A couple of those monitors were decked in vibrant lights. Stone described them as 'neon lights' and that kind of fitted how they appeared like. It was as if I was already in the future. Sure, the Eggman Empire relied on technology, but it couldn't even beat the multicolor palette from those advertisements, fun images and decorations. From the smallest stores all the way to the highest skyscrapers.

At one point, we passed by a large white house. When I asked, Topaz said that it was a government house. I shouldn't feel surprised that this would be where the alphas of the city reside in, though I doubt that they would live in there. Many lighters in front of it were shining on the front, making the house had a castle-like appearance. Mostly in shades of bright pink and blue, but it was close enough.

My tail wagged a little at the thought that maybe there is some kind of kingdom society in Central City.

I noticed that we seemed to be trying to drive out of the city. It turned out that there were these places called 'suburbs' connected to Central City. I evaluated it as rows of homes and shops that weren't part of the main area of the country. It kind of reminded me that those living outside were the lesser mercenaries while the most successful ones moved to the center to become the boss. It didn't seem to be the case with Stone and Topaz were high-ranking agents.

As we turned around and nearly close to the last traffic before leaving the city, I didn't expect a huge crowd of cars all packed together at a red light. There were loud honks from angry drivers as they yelled at each other. I nearly shrank back into my seat while my fur stuck up. My ears flattened as I clenched my teeth. This really sound…too loud.

"Oh c'mon!" groaned Topaz. "At this hour? What is keeping everyone back right here?"

I felt the ruby activating and my vision kicked into high peak. I spotted the front of the cars and crossing across the road right at the very front…was a turtle. With a cane. Walking slowly and waving at the agitated drivers like they were his audience.

He didn't even look like he was halfway through!

"I knew we should have taken the road on the left," said Stone.

"Remind me again," said Topaz. "At a busy junction like this, which way should we go?"

"Why not go left? That is the closest."

"But it'll be jammed! Most people drive here at this hour to explore the city!"

"Hang on," said Stone, pulling out a small device. "I'll check the traffic app."

"Traffic what?" I said.

"Make sure that you have the exclusive GPS on," informed Topaz. "Don't use map search on it."

"Oh yeah," said Stone. "That one is much slower than a turtle."

"Um, excuse me," I said, standing up.

"Hey!" said Topaz, looking behind. "Seatbelts!"

"Oh, right," I said, putting mine on. "What…is that you're using?"

"It's a traffic application system!" said Stone, grinning. "Helps keeping track with the latest traffic activity."

I tilted my head. The large image displaying all of those roads couldn't be possibly to fit in one small device. It wasn't even like the tablets Eggman use. However, I guess that I didn't know much about technology before.

"So it's basically a satellite?" I said blankly.

"In a way…yeah," said Stone.

"No, not really," said Topaz. "It connects to other people who use the app. Don't worry, they are anonymous. Also have a look on when the traffic lights are on or how many cars are waiting at a traffic stop and much more."

I nodded. "I see then. So…that applies to other cities?"

"This app is more of a local city app, so it might not be the same with the rest of America."

I looked back at the heavy traffic with the noise getting progressively worse. "Never knew that it could get really busy."

"It's always like that," said Topaz. "When cars get invented, it would be a miracle. Such a shame that the roads are now packed with vehicles you can get hit easily."

"Was that how the desert is like?" asked Stone.

"You know that deserts don't have roads."

"Yeah, but-"

"There is not really a straight way forwards," I explained. "It's…mostly an open world if you don't stay in a village. Unsafe for you two, but me and the Jackal Squad can go over those large cracks."

"Especially the ones that are really deep?" asked Stone.

"Especially the ravines. I could only say that this heavy traffic isn't too different to the market place. One thing I'm happy about is that no one is outside to get hurt or spread illnesses to one another."

"Spreading illnesses?" said Topaz. "We have an electrical car and everybody else is encouraging global warming through fuel use."

A large sputtering from behind us. It was a larger truck with a red trailer. On the side hanging from the truck was a massive pipe that spewed out black smoke.

"Yeah, exactly," said Stone, cringing a little. "After all, humans never learn their lesson and the symptoms that could make things worse."

I stroke my chin. "Hmm, I thought global warming doesn't exist."

"Wait, you DON'T believe that?!"

I shrugged. "The air in the desert is thick in saltiness and humidness."

Topaz shivered. "I don't even want to hear more about it."

"This here is a bit more spacey as…" I squinted my eyes, observing how the cars were positioned. "...they seemed to be in a good order. Why not just walk by foot before they start moving?"

Stone raised an eyebrow. "Walk by foot? Don't you know the likely chances of death and therapy you would receive if you get hit by a car?"

"Speak for yourself, I did get hid by a G.U.N truck…"

"Look, the faster way now is to plan what would be the next turn to take," said Topaz, snatching Stone's phone. "Think you can use your tracking skills to know which turn won't put us into another hour of waiting?"

Holding her phone right towards me, I looked at the image of a map area. There were a couple of words to describe the streets, some numbers and a lot of pathways…wait, there are too many roads in this area!

What is this?

Another one of Eggman's screensavers that presented a complex graph drawing?

I knew my way around if I was given a map out in the desert, but this was my first time seeing a map of a city. One that had a lot more safety features and signs of many places. The disadvantage was that I was unprepared by how much I needed to learn of using this 'app' properly. I didn't even know what the numbers represent or the glowing dots at random spots mean.

"...have you tried turning it on and off?" I asked.

Both Topaz and Stone groaned in unison.

Finally, the cars moved. A half of them were already turning in all directions. Just as we were about to drive right into the T junction, Stone pressed the break when he saw someone else about to cross the street. The traffic light turned to red, causing more drivers to complain.

Everybody was ultimately provoked when they saw a line of children walking across the road with a caretaker. A VERY long line of children.

"Kids?!" I said in disbelief. "What's next? Orphaned puppies?"

"We can use your ruby to life the car over them," offered Stone.

"No way," said Topaz. "I'm not ruining two nice pairs of wheels today."

"Then how are we going to get out of traffic?"

I turned to my right window. "Maybe we can follow that guy?"

On the right was a leather-cladded man riding what appeared to be a motorcycle. His looked much more shinier than the ones mercenaries rode on in the desert. He let out a loud whoop as he charged right towards a small truck. It had its back open with a small ramp attached to it.

"Let's-a-go!" cheered the biker as he went flying off the truck.

We all watched in admiration as he went soaring above the children, free from needing to wait…only to crash right into the trailer of a chicken truck. Feathers flew right out from the hole he made as there was the unmistakable sound of chickens squawking upon having a stranger on their ride. A loud annoyed wail from the drivers followed this.

"...I'm sure he'll be fine," I said.

"Yep," said Topaz flatly. "Not gonna waste two nice pairs of tires."

Turning over to the left window, I noticed that there was a child watching me from the car besides us. A young puppy with brown spots over him, waving his little hand. He looked adorable with how large his eyes were. He stuck out his tongue in a raspberry.

I couldn't really tell if he was mocking me or being playful. I looked around, wondering if he was blowing his tongue to someone else. However, there weren't any other cars in particular he was focusing on. I turned to him and stuck out my tongue, returning the gesture. This invoked laughter from the baby.

I smiled a little. Not a lot of children were that happy. You could count me and the rest of the Jackal Squad as the exceptions. That was just a nasty part of our upbringing. The kids didn't really stand a chance until they learn the harsh reality of their surroundings. They were trained from the very start to be tough in order to survive when they were on their own. The children living in this city appeared to have less worries about needing to be trained for the future.

A loud honk snapped my out from my daze. The driver, what must be the father of the child, was glaring daggers at me. He gestured cutting his own throat. I gulped, looking away. Despite hearing the faint babbling from the child, I decided that I rather not have an angry man breaking in the car to throttle me.

Oh wait, I'm a trained mercenary, so…I shouldn't be worried!

"Don't stare at people for too long," informed Stone. "Nobody likes being stared at."

"Um…why's that?" I asked dumbly.

This wasn't the first time I got into trouble like this. I had a bit of problem when maintaining eye contact. Sometimes if I felt uncomfortable, I would try to look away. Kind of like I…didn't really want to feel guilty when talking with people. Sometimes, it was due to me thinking about other things and not being interested. Me staring at somethings were more likely due to me taking an interest. A lot of jackals called me a creep for that, mostly girls.

"It's pretty rude," said Stone. "Could make people uncomfortable since they would believe that you are judging them."

"But isn't everyone judgemental?" I said.

"No one likes to be judged in the end."

The lines of kids finally got to the other side safely and we were allowed to continue driving. We ALMOST drove on the wrong turn as the second Stone spotted another heavy traffic on the right, he jerked the car left. However, he nearly crashed into another car that was going in the same direction.

"Sorry!" he called out loud.

The driver of the car we barely hit, an elderly pig, pulled down her window and gave him the middle finger.

"Charming," said Topaz, rolling her window up.

When we reached the suburbs, I noticed how neat all the houses were, lined up in order. The city was spectacular and filled with color, but the lack of crowds meant that there were less shenanigans. With the exception of those black rubbish bins, some litter and what must be feces in the grass. I found myself feeling fortunate to get to live out here since the city might be too busy for me to be able to handle, at least at night time.

Stone parked the car near the pavement, next to a small white house. It didn't look too big, so I could only guess how the inside would be like. I noticed that the bricks appeared to be a bit outdated, combined with fresh new white bricks. Looks like that was the previous damage of Stone's missile hitting this house.

"This is the place for the next few months," said Stone, turning the engine off. "Or however you want to stay there."

I stared at this house for quite a while. The shelter I used to stay in was made from clay and stone, molded in a crude shape that would nearly look like an upside down toy container. The type that could stick forever without falling apart. Seeing the white coat alongside how neat the entire house appeared to me made me feel dirty. The garden right in front was enough to make me feel a little queasy. It then hit me that I needed to get used to being in this land.

"I don't feel like I belong to this type of place," I thought as I hopped out of the car. "I never really grew up living in a place so fancy like this."

"Alright," said Topaz, turning to me. "So as you might already know, we have a few house rules here." She lifted up a finger and pressed on my chest, feeling the tip of my hidden ruby. "The first obvious one is to not use your ruby without notifying us."

I shrugged. While I had been worried, it seemed that the ruby mellowed out. "Yeah, I think that will be easy."

"Well…we don't know if it would be THAT easy," pointed out Stone. "You said that it feels 'alluring', so who knows if it would drag you off somewhere."

"Nothing is going to try to drag me to…" A bird caught my eye. "Oh, wow…"

I believe that the correct term might be a 'pigeon'. Normal pigeons in which people tended to hate or throw bread crumbs at them for some reason. In my eyes, it felt like seeing a beautiful peacock. Normally, the birds I would see would have their feather colors muted due to not cleaning themselves or native birds having more earth colors. Vultures were too common in the desert.

The non-anthromorphic bird, covered in different shades of grey with beautiful green and dark pink feathers around the neck part. The brownish eyes stood out from the birds I saw before. It cooed, sounding nearly cuddling. It tilted its head curiously. I tilted my head as well. The moment was interrupted when the nearby cat neighbor shooed the pigeon away for sitting on his fence.

"Yeah, exactly," said Topaz.

I quickly snapped out from my distraction, turning back to the two agents. "OK, OK, you got a point. I…tend to get distracted sometimes."

"Second thing is that you can't steal any of our personal stuff," said Stone. "We will provide you with a few things, but don't think you owe our house."

"Speak for yourself," deadpanned Topaz. "You also had a hard time trying not to mess with some of my cups lately."

"It was for variables!" insisted Stone. "I swear that I didn't know a tiny pinch of a surely edible chemical could burn a hole right through one!"

"I don't want to see that many broken cups, understood?" said Topaz firmly.

"Promises promises," I said.

Honestly, I didn't know if I could make a promise. I wasn't exactly the worse, but I remembered a lot of how some of my friends from the Jackal Squad tended to cause a lot of mess. Flashbacks went through my head, remembering the many times when Tempest, Fender and Ryder LOVE creating destruction. They couldn't go over a day without breaking a rock into half.

Zero only chewed them out whenever they roped the rest of us into breaking redundant things that could prove to be an obstacle, though I wasn't sure if it had an influence on my clumsiness. The only thing I could do was force a grin in hopes that it would be enough not to get myself caught up in any thrills in the house.

"And finally," explained Stone, pointing at my nose. "For whatever sake, do NOT go near the door next to the fridge."

OK, that wasn't a normal house rule. "Wait, what?"

"It's a little…basement in which the outside world cannot enter in," said Stone, crossing his arms. "A little project I'm working on. Not even a teensy weensy look inside."

He was talking to me as if I was a child. Something seemed a bit fishy about him.

"Not even just seeing the door open?" I asked flatly.

"Just don't open the door next to the fridge," said Topaz, playfully nudging Stone in the elbow. "He doesn't like it."

"I'm explaining here," said Stone, dead-serious. "So don't go teasing like this. NO ONE goes in!"

I had no other response to that. "OK…then. Anyway, it's getting dark. Let's just go inside now."

Entering into the living room that was connected to the kitchen, the inside of the house wasn't what I really expected it to be. It was still small, but it wasn't that small. I noticed that the walls were much thinner and smoother as if they were in much healthier shape. There were a few gray stains on them, but it was new to see that the stain didn't splatter all over the white walls. Though, it wasn't just the walls I noticed about this new environment.

The floor was made from shiny wooden planks. There were some dust or random cotton lying around, but it made the bumpy floor of a desert hut look like a rat's hole. The furniture and chairs standing around decorated the house quite nicely instead of being just tossed around. There were a few dirty cups and leftover newspapers on the tables, but they seemed to be in an orderly way instead of lying on the ground to be stepped on.

There were a few cobwebs from the corners of the room alongside some dust bunnies hanging around underneath tables, but I was glad that it wasn't sand or dried mud. Not even a trace of even a plant growing through the cracks of the floor tiles.

In contrast to G.U.N HQ, this felt less serious and even more of a private party.

"Sorry that we haven't cleaned up the place that much," said Topaz, pushing aside a huge pile of newspapers aside. "I don't usually invite guests over here."

I wasn't really listening to her. "This place…"

"I know that it's a bit of a dump at the moment, but-"

"…is really fantastic!" I said, grinning.

Topaz looked surprised. "You think so?"

"I'm just…kind of feeling lucky to be here," I said, my ears moving a little in embarrassment and my tail wagging in excitement. "Got to hand it to you. Must have took a lot of hard work and money to buy a house this spacious and tidy!"

Topaz gave me a look I have never seen before. When Stone slid into my view, he leaned close to Topaz with a knowing look.

"The Jackal Squad spent most of their lives in the desert, remember?" he reminded her.

"Oh right," said Topaz, blinking. "Sorry, just a bit surprised that…"

"I'm a bit surprised myself here," I continued. "I have to thank you two again for letting me stay around."

A faint blush was painted over Topaz's face. She chuckled a little bit, looking aside. As I explored the living room, I noticed that there was indeed a door near the fridge. Right there, looking like some downstairs attic. It stood out from the rest of the room since it didn't appear to be up to date. Surely a wooden door without paint with a few cracks in it would be part of the garbage.

Stone slid into my view again with his hands on his hips.

Oh, right.

I took a step back and pretended to observe a cobweb up at the ceiling. I could feel Stone's eyes staring at me. Sniffing a little, I could sense that he was…anxious. Speaking of which, he sniffed a little.

"Why do I smell pee here?" he asked.

"Uh…I don't smell anything," said Topaz.

I sniffed again. Lifting up my arm, I sniffed it. Immediately, I jerked my head back.

"Pee-yew!" I said. "Oh, it must have come from me. Perhaps, you know where the bathroom is?"

"I can show you there and what to use," said Topaz.

"Hmm…maybe I'll try using the shower on my own," I decided. "I mean, I DID got a bit of a privilege to use some of Eggman's facilities back then. This is probably gonna be the second time I use a shower. It shouldn't be too bad!"

Topaz raised an eyebrow. She looked a little resigned to what I might do. "Remember rule two, boy."

I was starting to feel a little sick of being treated like a child. "OK then, mama."

Topaz's face reddened until she looked like a beetroot. Stone wheezed as if he got the joke.

Later, after Topaz guided me to which bathroom I should use (I wondered what was the point with having two bathrooms) and reassured that my backpack would be in the guest room, I was left alone to observe the bathroom. Trying out Eggman's bathroom was a simple start, though Stone's and Topaz's bathroom looked more like it was a complete jigsaw puzzle.

There was a single lone toilet there, though I quickly slammed the lid shut since the sight of toilet water was making my stomach twist. I'm notTHAT kind of dog. The sink desk and the bathtub had a lot of soap bottles on them. From the items I could see so far, I spotted a deodorant roll, a hair comb, a hair dryer and what must resembled a pet cat lick. The shower cubicle seemed to have the least number of bottles inside.

That being said, there was something I wanted to try out first. I never really got to use soap since it was a rare item for me to get my hands on. The Jackal Squad mostly use water as a way to clean ourselves. It was said that soap liquid was meant to make you smell sweet, but with the many different flavors from it…

I placed the dispenser sprout into my mouth like it was a straw and pumped it. I got the nice jelly-like feeling of the soap entering my tongue…

…and the sourness of it.

It tasted horribly.

A lot.

Placing the soap bottle down, I bent down over the desk and began coughing every trace of the soap right out of my mouth. I messily turned on the sink to get some good sips of water to help get rid of it. I felt it nearly going down my throat, causing me to choke even more. It took a good chunk of 5 minutes until I couldn't taste the bitterness anymore.

"Oh man!" I said. "They lied when they said that they make you smell good!"

Remembering that I still smell like a rotten sock, I jumped right into the shower cubicle. Upon seeing dirty footprints, I remembered that I was supposed to discard my clothes first. Not a big deal since I don't like to wear much anyway. I couldn't take off my inhibitor rings since they were already locked onto my wrists and ankles.

However, I came across a problem when I found myself not sure how to turn on the shower itself. The one I used at Eggman's place had a panel of buttons to choose from. Ranging from the types of shower sprinke to the temperature to what kind of music wanted to be played for a 'relaxing' wash.

The closest thing I found were two knobs. One colored in red and one colored in blue.

Might as well start using the cold water first.

I twisted the blue knob, enough to make a large rain of cold water to splash all over my body.

It felt REALLY cold. Like it was enough to sink into my skin and start freezing all my bones inside. One could say that it felt like being with the ice cubes as they freeze in the fridge.

I like it.

I moaned happily, rubbng my arms as I enjoyed the cold water.

All of a sudden, I felt my ruby flaring up a little. The green glow from underneath my eyes was visible again. It was trying to tell me something. Through the loud splatters, I could hear it telling me to turn on the hot water. It felt like it was unnecessary, but the ruby must have scanned my thoughts and fired back that I would start sneezing if I used cold water due to the current room temperature.

I can't believe that it was telling me this.

Pouting a little, I gave in and turned on the hot water. Hoepfully it wouldn't make the water feel too humid.

Topaz made a mental note to tell Obsidian not to use the shower for more than 30 minutes. The last thing she wanted was a higher water tax. The worst was when she accidentally used one of Stone's inventions for too long and broke a fuse. This didn't really help her stress levels as she tried to finish eating her small dinner. She and Stone need to get up early tomorrow, so they would need the rest they could get.

The flimsy door near here opened and Stone cheerfully came out, carrying a large beaker with…coffee in it?

"Do you think that this might have come along too easy, Stone?" asked Topaz, keeping her eyes on the sandwich she was chewing on. "Obsidian is a nice guy, though we do have to keep an eye on him."

Stone mused over this. "I don't know. I think it won't be too bad. It's just the ruby I'm worried about."

"Fortunately, the Commander has plans to test them out," sighed Topaz. "Though, I have to wonder how powerful that ruby is and…if it would be safe for Obsidian to try it out."

"But wouldn't he gained some sort of immortality from it? Like he cannot be injured?"

"I…guess so. Though, the only way he might be severely injured or killed would be when the ruby is taken out."

"Good point," said Stone. "Judging by how he could sense it, it must have gone way past its safety protocols and into the neural system."

Topaz nodded, afraid of what potential threat could come with Obsidian. He might be acting like a young high school student, but he was far from being senseless. He was a mercenary and of course, the former member of the surviving Jackal Squad. He swore that he didn't want to keep stealing for the rest of his life, but redemption isn't going to be easy. And having a ruby on his chest isn't going to help his mental health after being forced to wear it by Eggman.

"That rock has a lot of power, so…I'm hoping that he will use it for good," said Topaz finally.

Stone nodded as well before he changed the subject. "So, I took your advice and I am now using beakers if I'm experimenting on drinks. Try this one!"

Topaz was a bit stunned to see the coffee beaker Stone was holding. "I…don't drink coffee at night, but OK." Without hesitation, she took the beaker and drank half of it. Her face turned red again. "Oh…oh my…oh my GOODNESS! IT TASTES LIKE BURNING!"

Stone pulled out his notepad to record down his investigations while Topaz ran around the kitchen like a headless chicken. She quickly gulped down a bottle of water, turning her face back to normal. But there was still red from her growing anger.

"Now that's what I call the 'Chilli Caffeine'!" said Stone. "It's like getting hit in the face by Mexico."

"This isn't how Mexico would be like!" snapped Topaz. "Why the hell does this taste so melting?"

"That's because I'm working on a special weapon. By changing around the molecule structure of the stimulant and combining it with an acidic chemical that could eliminate organism cells if used constantly, this would make the drink able to cause people to collapse after one drink. It hasn't been finalized as both you and me are OK from it."

"You mean YOU'RE OK because I haven't strangled you yet?" questioned Topaz.

"No, Topaz," said Stone nonchalantly. "I tried a sip, but it didn't melt me in a goop like I wished. I just need to figure out the key in making it work."

"At least don't test it on me."

Stone scratched the back of his head. "Sorry. I predicted that it would only cause small warming from this prototype. It isn't deadly at this stage. I ran out of test subjects to use."

"Why didn't you tell me about this before? You have a secret lair underground, but that doesn't mean I don't have consent to know what dangerous things you're up to!"

Stone rolled his eyes. "That's because you would try to shut it down since it's a weapon."

"Of course, I would!" said Topaz, spreading her arms open in emphasis. "I don't want G.U.N to be producing deadlier weapons than using plain guns! Are you asking for a war, Stone?"

"But given that G.U.N did get into a lot of mistakes, then it would be alright if we keep mistaking some of them as we build new weapons."

Topaz huffed. "I wonder if they really know about this…"

"Oh wait," said Stone, looking over her shoulder. "I think you spilled that."

Topaz looked behind to discover that she accidentally knocked the beaker over. The spilled coffee appeared to be much thicker like cream. There was a loud puddle over the kitchen desk…until it reached a new large hole in the table. Evidence of melting was the long stream of smoke coming out from it. The dried coffee outline around the hole was enough to compare the liquid to lava. And it smell like black coffee so strong that it could knock a person out.

Topaz clenched her teeth, cringing.

"Yeah, you don't want to touch that," said Stone calmly. "Time to pull out the fire extinguishers again."

Never knew that a hot shower could also feel satisfying. I didn't really enjoy hot water that much since I grown used to humid temperatures. However, given that Central City didn't feel too humid and had the breeze of night, it would convince a person to take a warm bath instead of taking the risk of shivering. Especially if it gets really cold outside. By the time I stepped out, I felt like I was a completely different person.

I didn't bother using the hair dryer since I usually use a tower to dry myself. Took a bit too long in addition to needing to pat my fur down, but it might have taken a longer time if I used a small hair dryer to dry every cranny of my body. I was even a little worried that using it might even change my mohawk since the usual quiff would slowly stand back up once naturally dry.

Once I confirmed that not a patch of my fur was wet, I took a good look right back at the mirror. The first thing I spotted as the ruby on my chest. It came to me that the whole time, I hid it underneath my jacket, small enough to make it look like excessive chest fur. It was still a surprise to see it as if it was a part of me. At the same time, something whispered in my mind that it was normal. This ruby was…telling me that it is now a part of me and that it would remain there forever.

I shook my head, not wanting to accept this fact. I didn't even want it anyway. It was Eggman's invention. A weapon that would have done worse to other people. It changed everything taking something from a monster. It made me feel as if I was never myself again. This was NOT how I should be like. Just because I had a ruby on me now doesn't mean I can't be a jackal who doesn't need fancy weapons like this. Despite it trying to reassure me, I tried to keep its voice out of my thoughts for just once.

Directing my eyes upwards, I looked back at the jackal in my reflection. While I had been telling myself of how it would take longer for me to adapt to the city, just seeing myself came a bit…shocking. Compared to the rest of the agents and the civilians I saw so far, I appeared too out of place. A wild white mohawk, tall ears and sharp canines wouldn't be how a person living in the city would appear as. In fact, my appearance made me look like I belonged to the wild.

Seeing this just made feel more bad about living in this society. I don't really look like the type of guy who could live in the city or join the military. What would the other former Jackal Squad members look like after staying here for a while? Would they change as well? Would I need to change how I look? I gulped a little when I thought if I would turn into someone to the point that I couldn't recognize the old me.

"Stop thinking like this," I scolded myself mentally. "This is just you telling yourself that you're weak. You just got here and this is the choice you make. This is your new life, so deal with it."

"You're OK in there, Obsidian?" called a voice from the other side of the door.

I tore my gaze away from the mirror, remember how long I spent in the bathroom. Hurriedly pulling back on my gloves and shoes, I opened the door. He already changed clothes, going with a single grey t-shirt and black pyjama pants. To my surprise, his shirt had a glaring image of Eggman's stupid face symbol.

"Is that…a shirt of Eggman?" I pointed out.

"Yep!" said Stone. "I actually got it from a mini brand in the shop at the edge of the city. It is pretty controversial, but still…"

"Erm, but I'm not sure if that shirt is good to wear."

"Why's that?"

"You're a G.U.N agent, not an Eggman lackey."

"So?"

I decided to not go further detail of that. The last thing I needed is another bad reminder of what Eggman did to me. "What do you need?"

"I just came here to inform you that it's kind of getting late," said Stone. "Well, not sure what time you usually sleep at night, but the Commander wants us to arrive early at G.U.N. Wake up before 7 AM at least."

I glanced at the clock. "It's 8 PM now. Fair time, but wouldn't you stay up a little late? Like…erm…what other people like to do in the city?"

"Tell that to us. Us G.U.N agents and soldiers need to be diligent with the right amount of rest. Besides, you would need a lot of energy since we were notified that we will be trying out your new ruby tomorrow morning."

As if on cue, the ruby glowed once more, but I bit my lip which was enough to convince it to stop trying to get attention.

"I…kind of nearly forgot about it," I said. "It won't go too bad, right?"

Stone nodded. "Don't worry, my friend. Safety protocols will be taken to ensure your safety. They said that they are going to start out with some things lightly since this is the first time examining a prototype of the Phantom Ruby. I don't know if you will be assigned to try to do heavy things, but we don't want to cut shortcuts just yet."

"So…I don't have to carry a truck?" I asked randomly.

Stone raised an eyebrow. "Don't think they have the money to buy a truck subject." He checked the time again. "Come along. Your new room should be nice and comfy for you to rest in. Also left you some nice dinner there; not that much, but we'll give ourselves a heavy breakfast in the morning."

It nearly felt like a breakaway from all the worries I had when walking right into the guest room where I will be sleeping for the next couple of nights. I noticed how empty it is. Even though there was a desk, a bed and my backpack lying against the wall, it is nearly plain. An improvement from sleeping in a tent on a hard ground or in a dirty small room however, but there is something that felt hollow about where I would be residing in.

Dinner wasn't much as I was able to gulp down the pastry. Crumbs were nearly all over the bed I was sitting on, provoking me to pick them up. I would have left them alone, but comparing the mess once again to the rest of the house made me feel that I shouldn't be acting like a slob. I wondered if I was going to become a neat freak later on.

As I lied down in bed, I found myself recollecting my thoughts and thinking about what happened. It still felt like a dream being granted a second chance and getting to stay in the city during my time paying for my crimes. It made me wonder if I might get to revisit the desert again or get to see any former Jackal Squad members out there. With the nearby window opened for the cool air to come in, it acted like a doorway for me to explore more later in the day.

The crazy thing is, until this point, I had forgotten how long it took for me to escape from Eggman, travel across the desert and end up here. I nearly lost track of time on how long I separated myself from Zero. I wondered how he is doing, but knowing that he is going to have a ruby prototype for himself, I doubted that he is going to be anything but stable. Any chances of getting back to him are slim unless G.U.N catches him first.

As I pulled over the blanket and curled my tail around my body, I imagined how my friends would think. My dead friends. Would they be happy that I turn away from Eggman? Or for me working with the military who had Shadow as one of their agents? Would they be disappointed for throwing away everything?

I don't want to admit it, but it is more confronting than I assume in the first place.

I decided that I should go with whatever I can do. 5 years of community service would serve something right after all.

Drifting off to sleep, the ruby glowed, its warmth embracing my body. Surrounding me as if protecting me. Its presence was comforting just like how it did in the first place. Without even thinking, I found myself allowing it to keep me warm for the night.

AN: Just to note that the turtle who was crossing the road is actually Tommy Turtle. Make up that dreadful image in your mind if you can.

Obsidian starting a bit too long at a kid is a reference to 'MeAndTheBoys:ATeamDarkStory' by Mchovey. In fact, this story is probably one of the inspirations behind this story. I encourage you all to take a good read of it since it's actually pretty good.

Stone is still the ultimate coffee maker, but being independent on his own leads him to test on even his own drinks. I think my version of him takes some aspects of Doctor Starline from the IDW Comics (RIP Starline :p) since Stone looks up to Eggman but is productive and competitive himself. I think it's gonna be fun playing around with Stone being on the good side BUT also in love with Eggman.

Thank you for reading this chapter! If you enjoy this story, be sure to follow or favorite this story, so you can get updates about this story. If there is any feedback or constructive criticism you want to share, let me know in your review. It would be nice to hear open thoughts so that I can know what to improve.

Until next time, keep on rocking!