Isaac was walking up the stairs to Sally's room, wearing a fresh change of clothes. Lily was sitting in front of the door, waiting. The moment Lily saw Isaac, she quickly sprung to her feet.
"Is she in there?" Isaac asked. Lily nodded, noting she was inside. Isaac knocked on the door, waiting for Sally to answer. After about 30 seconds, the door opened, revealing Sally.
"Isaac, finally! Quick, you need to see this!" Sally exclaimed, running back into the room. Isaac and Lily walked in, closing the door behind them. Sally flipped open the laptop on her desk, a program booting up.
"What are we looking at?" Isaac asked.
"Give it a moment. She's been in the flash drive for a few days. She just needs to warm-up." Sally explained.
Isaac was confused. Who was she talking about? Also, who could fit inside something as small as a flash drive? After a few minutes, the program booted up, revealing a Mobian on the screen. She was a lynx, her hair braided with beads interwoven into her hair.
"Isaac, it's about time you meet Nicole. Nicole, this is Isaac. He's the ranger I talked to you about." Sally said, introducing the two.
"Greetings, Isaac. As Sally has said, my name is Nicole. I am an Artificial Intelligence entity. Anything you need to know; I will have an answer very shortly." Nicole said, greeting Isaac.
Isaac blinked, confused. He had never met such a being before! A person… all within a computer screen! Isaac could tell she had a personality, something he never thought an artificial creation could possess!
"Are… are you real?" Isaac asked, not sure how to ask such a question.
"Of course I'm real! But I guess the question you're asking is if I'm actually alive. Technically, since I do not have flesh or blood, I am not 'alive'. But I do understand pain and grief, betrayal, and, to some extent, love. Does that answer your question?" Nicole answered.
Isaac nodded, feeling like he was in a Science-Fiction book.
"Besides what Sally told you, do you know anything else about me?" Isaac asked, wanting to see the extent of her knowledge.
"Alright, let's see… from your electronic personal and medical records, I have that you were born on June 4th, currently 17, you are missing your left pinky toe, and you have a large burn scar that spans from your right shoulder blade to the left side of your lower back. You are 4' 3", exceptionally skilled in archery and swordcraft. You are the current guardian of Lilith Deborah Abaddon, and you are also currently the personal guard for Sally Acorn." Nicole listed.
Isaac nodded, impressed she could get all of that in a matter of seconds.
"Why did you send yourself in a flash drive, if you can access information electronically?" Isaac asked.
"Well, only reason is because Sally's computer wasn't connected to the internet. By the way, you should really upgrade your laptop! This thing is five years obsolete!" Nicole explained, directing the conversation to Sally.
"Noted. Now, didn't you have something to show Isaac?" Sally asked.
"Oh, that's right! Listen, I had recently received an encrypted transmission! Unfortunately, most of it was corrupted. But I was able to decrypt a few snippets of the message!" Nicole said, walking on the screen. Nicole's avatar reached into a folder, pulling out a large bar of what looked like a recorded sound. After placing it in front of the screen, she hit the 'play' button, the message beginning.
"*Static* Nicole, we need *static* Scourge *static* cease ven- *static* Eggman is *static*" The message played, ending.
"Was… was that Isaac?" Lily asked, recognizing his voice in the message.
"Impossible. I don't remember recording that." Isaac responded.
"Well, whoever sent it, the parts we could hear sounded important! Especially when the message mentioned Scourge!" Sally said.
"Who is Scourge?" Isaac asked.
"Scourge: AKA, the Anti-Sonic! Hailing from an alternate universe, Scourge is everything Sonic isn't! Ruthless, greedy, violent, murderous, extremely egotistical! Beyond redemption of any kind! He's been the most wanted by both the Kingdom of Acorn and The United Federation!" Nicole explained, bringing up multiple pictures of Scourge. From what Isaac could see, Scourge looked like Sonic, except he was wearing a pair of red shades and a leather jacket. His quills were green, three scars adorned on his chest.
"Nicole, while I will note that he does sound dangerous, I do not believe anyone is beyond redemption." Isaac noted.
"Isaac, Scourge attempted to destroy both our world and his own! He killed his own father to take control of his Mobius! Trust me when I say this, but Scourge is not someone to be the rational type!" Nicole asserted, the pictures of Scourge vanishing from the screen.
Isaac thought on this presentation, getting a better understanding of Nicole's extent on gathering information.
"Nicole, are you by chance able to dig up information on the Mobian Trading Company?" Isaac asked.
"Of course! But what did you have in mind?" Nicole asked.
"I need inventories of all outgoing ships from the mainland, extending back about 8 years ago. I also need information on shipments of resources to remote locations in England, France, and Spain. Shipments that would seem excessive for the location they're going to. Can you do that?" Isaac asked.
Sally's screen went dark for a few moments, before an image of Mobius appeared, dotted lines representing the routes travelled by aircraft and ship.
"This'll take a bit to process. Do you also want current inventories and ships as well?" Nicole asked.
"Yes! I need to know their chain of supply!" Isaac answered.
"Right! Sally, this'll take a few hours. Make sure to leave the laptop plugged in." Nicole said, before becoming silent. Sally plugged her laptop to the charger, walking from Nicole.
"Isaac, why do you want information on the Mobian Trading Company?" Sally asked.
"I just found out they've been supplying the Order with supplies after being hired to burn down my home to prevent people from seeing their illegal cargo drops! We find something to take out the Company, we can starve out the Order of essential resources." Isaac explained.
Sally was shocked, never knowing that the Mobian Trading Company would stoop to such a depraved level to make a larger profit! That was the moment she also realized they were both now fighting a corporation, and not only an organization of demon killers.
"Isaac… let me grab my sword." Sally said, walking to her bed. She bent down, pulling the sword from under her bed. She fixed it to her belt, securing it.
"Sally, it would be suicide to charge into one of their buildings to kill an executive." Isaac said, believing this was her intent.
"That's not what I'm doing! I need you to train me to use the sword! I'm going to help you!" Sally explained, opening her door.
"What?! No! I'm not going to put you in danger like that!" Isaac exclaimed.
"Isaac, I order you to train me to use my sword! I am going to help you, whether you like it or not!" Sally demanded.
Isaac went to say something, but he was stopped by Lily tugging on his shirt.
"Brother, it would be better if she knew how to fight effectively! Then, in case you aren't around, she won't be as threatened if she didn't know how to." Lily suggested. Isaac wanted to say something to the contrary, but he couldn't find a logical argument to her suggestion. Sighing, Isaac walked to the door, unsheathing his sword.
"Sally, if you promise to not engage an enemy without my say-so… then I will teach you." Isaac said, establishing a standard in her training. Sally quickly kissed Isaac, catching him off-guard.
"Alright, well, let's get to the courtyard! The sooner we get out there, the sooner we can get started!" Sally exclaimed, jogging down the stairs towards the nearest exit leading to the courtyard.
"Lily… go get your training sword. Get to the courtyard as soon as possible." Isaac said, shaking his head.
Isaac walked down the stairs, heading for the exit to the courtyard. Isaac opened the door, the cold wind hitting his face. As the snow crunched under his feet, he heard the faint sound of a sword cutting the air. Isaac turned the corner, seeing Sally swinging the sword, a lot of effort in her swings. She grabbed the handle with both hands, performing a downward cut. The sword followed through, the blade going to the side so as to avoid Sally's legs. Isaac could tell she had some experience with a sword, but nowhere near enough to fight the Order.
"You're putting in too much effort in your swings. You waste too much energy in the first swings, the battle will be over before you know it." Isaac instructed, walking closer.
Sally smirked, sheathing her sword.
"You gonna show me?" Sally asked playfully. Isaac responded by unsheathing his sword, adopting a battle stance.
"If you want me to teach you how to fight, then you'll have to be more serious. There is no room for arrogance when it comes to defending your life." Isaac said, walking closer with his sword. Sally quickly pulled out her sword, adopting a defensive stance.
"Come at me with all you got!" Isaac challenged.
Sally ran at Isaac, performing the downward cut. Isaac effortlessly blocked it, pushing up. Sally staggered before regaining her footing.
"After I pushed you away, you were open for two seconds. Enough time to kill you. You need to focus on moving with the force delivered to be able to react accordingly in case I strike." Isaac instructed, adopting a defensive stance.
Sally rushed in, striking towards Isaac's left. Isaac blocked the strike, pushing the sword away. Sally leaped back, creating some distance.
"Good! Making distance when open makes it harder for your enemy to take advantage of your weakness." Isaac complimented, holding his sword vertical.
"Come on! I'm ready!" Sally yelled, holding her sword tightly.
"Why would your enemy attack, if they know you're ready?" Isaac asked, relaxing his shoulders.
"Well, I mean-" Sally began, before Isaac began charging. Isaac swung down, Sally barely reacting fast enough to block him! While the sword held, Sally felt something in her wrist give. She leaped back, dropping her sword on the ground. Isaac stopped his attack, seeing Sally clutching her wrist. Isaac sheathed his sword, approaching Sally.
"Are you hurt?" Isaac asked, seeing her gritting her teeth.
"I'm fine!" Sally answered, exhaling sharply. Sally walked to the wall of the castle, sitting down on one of the crates. She took a look at her wrist, seeing it was red with some minor swelling. Letting go of her wrist, she scooped up some snow and put it on her wrist. Sally inhaled sharply, as water from the melting snow rolled down her arm.
"Just… give me a few minutes." Sally said, gently rubbing her thumb on the ligaments of her wrist.
"You're injured. We need to go inside." Isaac said, picking up Sally's sword.
"No way! I told you, I'm fine! Listen, I just need a few minutes. Then, we'll get back to training!" Sally responded, looking at her wrist. Isaac knew Sally could handle pain, but if her wrist was sprained, it wouldn't help to keep training.
"If you're going to keep training, you should switch which hand you're using to hold your sword." Isaac suggested.
"Isaac, I'm fine! Here, give me my sword!" Sally replied, holding out her injured hand. Isaac grabbed the sword by the blade, handing her the handle. Sally grabbed it, pulling it out of Isaac's grip. She quickly inhaled, tightening her grip.
"Sally, there's no shame in pausing training to take care of an injury." Isaac said. Sally responded by performing an undercut strike against Isaac. Instead of blocking it, Isaac dodged, making some distance. Keeping his facial expression blank, Isaac sheathed his sword. Isaac held up his fists, ready to fight unarmed.
"RAAAHH!" Sally screamed, swinging her sword wildly. Isaac blocked the strikes, having equipped his gauntlet after changing his clothes. As sparks emitted from the contact, Isaac's sleeve began to fall apart, further exposing the gauntlet. After one last swipe, Isaac rolled to his right, the sleeve finally tearing from his shirt. Isaac was breathing heavy, surprised Sally had that in her after spraining her wrist.
"Isaac, can I get in on this?" Lily asked out of Isaac's vision. Isaac looked over his shoulder, seeing his sister wearing a large shirt of chainmail, holding her practice sword.
While Lily's sword was made from high-carbon steel, lightweight, and the blade would most likely never snap while in battle, the blade was not sharpened. This was intentional, so Lily wouldn't end up hurting herself in case of a bad swing. She wore chainmail, so that she wouldn't get cut if contact with a sword would ever happen.
"Think you can keep up?" Isaac asked. Lily nodded, taking Isaac's place. Sally looked incredulously at what was happening, Lily being half her height. Lily prepared herself, adopting an offensive stance.
"He can't be serious!" Sally told herself. Suddenly, Lily ran towards Sally, her sword held out from her left. Lily began slashing like there was no tomorrow, taking no heed to where the sword would go, as long as it hit Sally! Sally blocked as fast as she could, but as she backed away, blocking the strikes, Lily began formulating a plan to end the fight! Sally attempted to fight back, but any strikes she attempted to make were cancelled, Lily always striking when an opening was made when Sally would try to fight back! Sally attempted to hit Lily with the blunt side of her sword, so as to make room in the fight. Lily responded by ducking, and then performing a flash kick, knocking the sword out of Sally's hand! The sword impaled one of the posts in the courtyard, disarming Sally and ending the battle.
"End of fight." Isaac announced, walking towards the two. As Lily stretched her back and legs, Sally was clutching her wrist, redder and more swollen than before. Isaac scooped up a clump of snow, walking to Sally. He gingerly grabbed her wrist, compressing the snow. Sally winced, but soon her face relaxed.
"Alright, you've proven your point! I'm nowhere near ready! But that's not going to stop me from training!" Sally said, adamant in her decision to help in the fight.
"My intention wasn't to discourage you from training. It was to temper your confidence. You may have a weapon of legend, but it is only as useful as the person who wields it. Lily disarmed you with an oversized butter knife." Isaac explained.
"Yeah… a butter knife that can bruise skin and break bone." Sally responded.
"A regular butter knife can do that, if you know how to use it." Isaac replied, walking towards the post that Sally's sword was embedded in. Grabbing the handle, Isaac swiftly pulled it from the post, the edge still as sharp as ever. Isaac walked back to Sally, handing her the sword. Sally grabbed the handle with her uninjured hand, sheathing it into the scabbard.
"Now, I think we should go inside for a bit. At least, to restrain your wrist so you don't injure yourself further." Isaac suggested, looking towards the door.
Sally smirked, formulating a plan to get back at Isaac for training.
"Lily, I need you to go to my room! I need you stay there to check on Nicole. We'll be there in a few minutes, after we get something for my wrist." Sally requested. Lily obliged, walking to and going through the door to the castle from the courtyard.
"Alright, now I believe there's a first aid kit in the Common Room. I'll run inside and grab it." Isaac said, beginning to jog towards the door.
"Actually, Isaac, I think there's a first aid kit in that room near the staircase. I'm pretty sure it's better stocked than the one in the common room. I'll go with you to grab it." Sally clarified, walking with Isaac.
After walking inside, Sally and Isaac eventually made it to the room near the staircase, Sally looking around before opening it.
"Why are you so wary of who sees us use the room?" Isaac asked.
"It's only for emergencies. The crates and barrels contain emergency supplies, like food and water that won't go bad for years! But it also has a first aid kit with splints. So, we'll just go in, grab one of the splints, and get out." Sally explained, going inside.
Isaac followed, closing the door behind them. Sally peered over one of the barrels, trying to see what was behind it.
"Isaac, can you move the barrel? I think the first aid kit is behind it." Sally asked. Isaac walked past Sally, grabbing the barrel by the top. As Isaac moved it back and forth to move it, Sally went to the door, discreetly unscrewing a bolt. As soon as Isaac moved the barrel, he saw the first aid kit.
"Sally, I found it! Here, sit in the chair. I'll wrap up your wrist and then we can check on Nicole." Isaac said, opening it. Sally sat in the chair, giving Isaac her injured hand. Gently, Isaac used a compression wrapping to keep things immobilized, careful not to make it too tight. After he secured it with a butterfly suture, Isaac went to the door, grabbing the handle. But as soon as Isaac pulled, the handle flew off, hitting him in his head. Isaac stumbled back, tripping over one of the crates, falling over into a heap.
"Oh no! That's not what I meant to happen! Isaac, are you alright?!" Sally exclaimed, jumping from the chair. Isaac slowly got up, rubbing his temple. The handle was still in Isaac's grip.
"I think… I might've torn the handle off the door." Isaac said, dazed.
"Isaac, I'm so sorry! I just… wanted a little payback. I took out one of the screws for the handle." Sally confessed.
"Sally, am I bleeding?" Isaac asked, removing his hand from his temple. Sally looked, seeing a red welt where Isaac's hand was, but there was no bleeding.
"No, you're fine. But there is a cold pack in the kit. Here, I'll get it." Sally said, walking over to the first aid kit. Sally reached in, grabbing one of the instant cold packs. After activating it, she gave it to Isaac, who promptly put it on the welt. After reattaching the handle to the door, Sally opened it, peeking out. After making sure no one was out there, Sally motioned for Isaac to follow, leaving the room.