The next day at the park…;
Jenny just arrived in the park with Shard in the pram. Kai and Barrett were with them, as they didn't want to deal with Farid, and Kurama was busy conversing with Rodney and Melody, trying to figure out what Shard's nightmare truly meant. Shard had a lovely time, as Kai, Barrett, and Jenny played with him all day in the park and made sure he had a wonderful day. Two days after this, Skadi dropped Shard off at the Gamma 13 base to be babysat by Kai Shin and Barrett as she and Fists had a busy schedule that day, as Skadi had a lot of work at the hospital and the MKND cadet training academy that day, and Fists was off on a solo mission. As soon as Shard saw Kai, Shard tried his best to jump into Kai's arms, but he fell out of the pram. Luckily Kai managed to catch him before he hit the ground and held Shard up to his eye level.
Shard (ecstatic to see Kai, wagging his small tail wildly): Uncle Kai! I missed you a lot!
Shard reached his arms out to hug Kai, and Kai smiled, happy to know that somebody actually loved to see him, as they didn't know about his past, and he intended to keep Shard unaware of his past as long as he could. Kai hugged Shard back and pulled him in close, while Barrett took the diaper bag and Shard's stuffed animals from Skadi.
Skadi: Okay then. I'll leave you guys to spend the day together. I know you guys should have the list I gave to Jenny when I left Shard with her last time. Just make sure Shard eats all his vegetables and doesn't get hurt.
Kai: We understand, and we'll be sure to do that.
Shard meanwhile gave a disgusted look and stuck out his tongue at the mention of vegetables. After Skadi left, Shard looked at Kai, hoping he wouldn't have to eat vegetables.
Shard: Uncle Kai, do I really have to eat yucky vegetables? I know Mommy's cooking is good, but the vegetable baby food she buys from the store is nasty! But she insists that I eat it as that baby food has lots of nutrients that I need to grow big and strong! I just want good tasting vegetables! That baby food is yucky!
Kai chuckled.
Kai: We'll see what we can do about that. But until we do, you're going to have to eat the yucky food kiddo.
Shard (groaning in disappointment): AWWWWWWW! But I don't wanna eat that yucky s**t!
Kai was aghast at Shard's language, wondering where Shard heard the word "s**t" before, and if Skadi and Fists knew about it.
Kai (frowning at Shard): Shard, where did you learn that bad word?
Shard: From Daddy. He says it all the time along with many other words when he's playing games and Mommy isn't home. He always told me that I wasn't allowed to say it around Mommy at all. When I asked him what the word "f**k" meant, he just said it was a bad word and I shouldn't repeat it around Mommy.
Kai: And she's absolutely right. I know we use a lot of bad words here, but we know what they mean. Right now, you're too young to fully understand what they mean exactly. And you definitely are not ready to understand what the f-word means for real yet, because I don't think you need to learn about the "birds and the bees" until you're a few years older. And don't ask me what the "birds and the bees" mean. I am not going to tell you. All you need to know now is that it's an adult thing, and only adults should do it. And I don't want you repeating those bad words ever again until you're older. Understand?
Shard: I understand. But I still don't want that yucky food.
Shard then gave Kai a puppy dog pout, trying to change his mind about feeding him the vegetable flavored baby food.
Kai (giving Shard a sympathetic smile): There's a popular saying that says "mother knows best" Shard. And Skadi just wants what is best for you. And eating vegetables is good for you. But between you and me, I hated vegetables when I was a kid too, so I know what you mean by hating vegetables, but I don't really mind vegetables nowadays. How about we go inside and get you set up to have a wonderful day together?
Shard nodded, and the three went back into the base.
Meanwhile with Drago and Sirena a few days later…;
The two had finally finished with everything that the MKND deemed as necessary protocol for them to be able to live in the child villages. Sirena decided to go find and rent an apartment for them, while trading some of the extra and useless goods she had picked up on her travels for seeds (the MKND currency), food, weapons, and other supplies she and Drago needed. While she was doing that, Drago went off in search of Skadi. He got lost, until a friendly kid who was next door neighbors with Skadi and Fists.
Kid: Hello! You look lost, did you need help getting somewhere?
Drago: Yes. I was trying to find where a cat girl named Skadi lives. I know that her MKND codename is Number 7.3, but I have no idea where she lives here.
Kid: That's no problem! I'm next door neighbors with her and her small family! Come with me!
Drago: Okay.
Drago followed the kid to her house and she directed him to Skadi and Fists's house. Drago thanked the kid, who told him he was welcome to visit her anytime he wanted, and she sent him on his way with a small tin of cookies that he put in his pocket for later. Drago thanked her for the cookies then went on his way and he knocked on Skadi and Fists's door. Drago was immediately surprised when Fists was the one who answered it.
Fists: Hello. Can I help you?
Drago: Yes, I was looking for Skadi?
Fists: Oh, come in then. She's just setting our son down for his afternoon nap. She'll be back shortly. You play videogames?
Drago: Not really. Never had a chance to really do that or any real kid activities.
Fists: That's okay. Wanna play an easy one?
Drago (shrugging): Why not? Which game is it?
Fists: Tetris. It's really easy to play. Wanna play it?
Drago: Okay.
Drago and Fists then sat down on the couch, where Fists handed Drago a controller, and the two began to play two player Tetris. It took Drago a few minutes to get the hang of it, but when he did, he often beat Fists. The two didn't realize Skadi was watching them play together. She was happy to see Drago forming a bond with Fists. After their current game was over…;
Skadi: That was entertaining you two.
Drago turned around and smiled at Skadi. He jumped over the back of the couch and hugged Skadi tightly, tears in his eyes.
Drago: Skadi! I missed you so much!
Skadi smiled and hugged him back.
Skadi: I missed you too, Drago. (breaking the hug) Did you want to stay with us for dinner?
Drago: I would like to, but my sister would probably worry about me.
Skadi: Then she can come over for dinner too! The more the merrier!
Drago: Okay. Can I go get her now?
Skadi: Of course dear!
Fists: I'll come with you so that you won't get lost trying to find your way back.
Drago: Okay.
Fists: Follow me, we'll take my car.
Drago nodded, and followed Fists to his car, getting in the passenger seat.
Fists (getting in the driver's seat): Buckle up kiddo. Don't want you to get hurt because of not buckling up.
Drago nodded and buckled up. Fists then started the car and backed out of the driveway, driving around Care-A-Lot. The two kids saw Sirena walking out of a weapons and mechanical parts store, loaded down with bags. Fists pulled over and parked, then he and Drago went over to Sirena, helping her with her bags.
Sirena: Thanks bro.
Drago: Don't mention it.
Fists: If you want, you can load your bags into my car and I can take you back to your residence here if you wanted.
Sirena: I would love that. I'm too worn out from getting supplies all day today, and my feet and wings are killing me!
Fists: Okay. Let me take these bags for you.
Sirena: Okay. Thanks.
Sirena then used empathic telepathy to talk to Drago.
Sirena (empathic telepathy): Bro, who is this guy? Can we trust him?
Drago (empathic telepathy): Yeah. He's a good guy. He and Skadi invited us to dinner. And I spent some quality time with him, he's a good person to be around and he introduced me to an awesome puzzle videogame called Tetris! I think you'd like it.
Sirena nodded, then the two saw Fists waiting for them.
Fists: You two done staring into each other's eyes or what? Because I really don't wanna upset my son if I'm not back home after my son finishes his nap to play with him like I promised.
Drago and Sirena: Coming!
The two rushed over and Drago got in the backseat while Sirena got into the passenger's seat. Fists got back in and followed Sirena's directions and drove to the apartment complex, and Sirena and Drago were surprised that the apartment that Sirena had rented for herself and Drago was the same one that Fists and Skadi used to live in before moving to their house. Fists helped them unload the bags, then the three went back to Skadi, Fists, and Shard's house, where Skadi was busy cooking dinner and Shard was playing in the playpen. On the drive back…;
Fists: By the way, I never did get your name.
Sirena: It's Sirena. What's yours?
Fists: My name's Fists. Fists the Echidna. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sirena. To be honest your appearance reminds me of a frenemy of mine. Well, more like she's a frenemy of my older cousin and legal guardian, Knuckles. Though to me, he's my REAL dad, and he sees me as his own son. But getting back on track, her name is Rouge the Bat and she is always trying to annoy/hit on Knuckles by stealing the Master Emerald.
Sirena: I met her. She was nice. Gave me a lot of good weapons and things when I helped her steal some valuable gems from Eggman. I think she called them, "data gems," or something like that
Fists: Weird. Must have been for a mission from G.U.N. Those data gems can hold a lot of data for a robot and send a robot's potential skyrocketing. I heard that data gems can potentially house a robot's soul if the robot is programmed right too. I am guessing that they were going to use at least one data gem for the advanced robot, Omega. I know for sure Omega would have been happy to get a data gem and get more power from it.
Sirena: Intriguing. Rouge gave me thirty of them since Eggman had at least sixty. Rouge said that G.U.N only needed one, so they wouldn't miss fifteen missing. She said that the gems would be an adequate payment for my helping her.
Fists: Then you made out like a bandit. Data gems are SUPER RARE and are extremely expensive. You wouldn't believe how much they go for on the black market! And the MKND black market as well! Rouge potentially made you a multi-million, multi-billion, or even a multi-trillionaire! Which is a surprising act for Rouge. You must have endeared yourself to her. Rouge NEVER gives anyone gems, she likes them too much! Rouge's main thing is being a jewel thief, but if you are endearing to Rouge, then you are GOOD! Rouge must respect you a LOT to give you that many gems, Sirena!
Sirena: Wow! Thank you for telling me this, Fists. Out of everything I traded today, I didn't trade a single data gem, as I was wanting to study them for myself and find out what secrets they contain. That plus the fact that I highly doubt that others would know exactly what data gems are, and probably just treat them as shiny gemstones or really shiny rocks.
Drago: How do you know about data gems in the first place?
Fists: My son's name is Shard. He used to be a robot that had one in his body. You can connect the rest of the dots yourselves.
Drago: Hold on, Shard the Metal Sonic is your SON?! HOW?!
Fists: Skadi and I don't know how. We just found him in some bushes after he got transformed into a flesh and blood baby hedgehog. We never really thought about it before. You two should meet him, he's really nice and sweet. I wouldn't be surprised if he started calling you two his "Auntie Sirena," and, "Uncle Drago," after he spends some time with you two. Although since you spent some time with Skadi in that Eggbase, and Skadi talked a lot about you, Shard probably will call you "Uncle Drago," quicker.
Drago: Intriguing.
Fists (pulling into his driveway and parking, and turning to face Sirena and Drago after he parked): We're here. Okay, just so you two know, no cussing around Shard. Skadi doesn't want him hearing any swear words until Shard's a bit older. Okay?
Sirena: Okay. I can do that.
Drago: Me too.
Fists (sniffing the air): Okay. Oh, smells like Skadi is cooking her special spaghetti and meatballs for dinner tonight. You two are in for a treat! Skadi makes some of the best spaghetti in all of Mobius!
Drago: Sounds tasty.
Sirena: I might ask her to teach me how to make it if I like it.
Fists: Yeah. And she can give you something for your wings and feet, Sirena. She is in charge of the hospital here.
Drago: You mean she's the head medic?!
Fists: Yep! And she's the best one around! Her hospital has a higher recovery rate than any other hospital on Mobius, including adult-run hospitals!
Sirena: Wow.
Fists nodded and opened the door to his house, hearing Shard wailing for something and he saw Skadi cooking dinner.
Skadi: Roughs, can you see what's upsetting our baby while I continue to cook dinner?
Fists: Sure thing, Softs!
Fists then let Drago and Sirena into the house, while telling them to make themselves at home while he went to check on Shard, discovering that Shard had a dirty diaper and was wailing for a diaper change. After he changed Shard, Fists took him back to the living room and began bouncing Shard on his knee while introducing Shard to Sirena and Drago, to which Shard quickly wanted to be held by both of them.
Shard: Dad, can I sit with Uncle Drago?
Fists looked at Drago, and Drago nodded. Fists smiled and handed Shard over to him. Shard stared at drago intently, looking directly into his eyes. Shard could tell just by that that Drago was a unique being like him.
Shard: Your eyes look a lot like Mr. Kurama's eyes, Mr. Drago.
Drago (rubbing Shard's cheek): You don't have to call me "Mr." You can call me "Uncle Drago" if you want, Shard.
Sirena (moving over to sit besides Drago so that she and Shard could see each other better): And you can call me "Aunt Sirena," as well.
Shard smiled and tried to hug Drago and Sirena, to which the two hugged the infant back, with Sirena wrapping her wings around Shard and Drago. Drago would have done the same, but couldn't because his wings were big metal slabs that hindered him from flying. Shard was happy to be hugged by two new family members, happy to have more members to his family. After the three broke the hug, Fists and Drago started another round of tetris, while Shard watched with Sirena, resting his head on her chest, listening to her heartbeat. After a few rounds, Drago switched out and Sirena took a turn playing against Fists, where Shard was shifted over to Drago, with Shard resting his head on Drago's chest, listening to his heartbeat. Shard heard an irregularity in Drago's heartbeat, and Shard became concerned.
Shard: Uncle Drago, are you okay? Your heartbeat sounds funny.
Drago: I don't really know Shard. I would have gotten it checked out, but ever since I got legionized, I don't like hospitals that much.
Shard: Mommy can probably find out what's wrong with you. She set up her own little infirmary in the basement. She's a really good doctor. And if you're scared, I'll sit with you during your checkup.
Sirena and Fists looked at Drago, concerned when Shard said something about Drago's heartbeat, pausing the game.
Sirena: Bro, are you okay?
Drago: I don't know. I haven't really been feeling right ever since I was forced into the Legion.
Skadi (standing in the doorway): Okay. Dinner's ready guys. And after dinner, Drago, I want to check you out down in the basement. Don't worry, I try to make sure my patients are happy while I take care of them.
Drago looked at the concerned look of the others, and relented, deciding to let Skadi take care of him after dinner.
Drago: Okay.
Skadi nodded and with that they all ate dinner, where Sirena asked Skadi to teach her how to make the spaghetti and meatballs. Skadi was happy to teach Sirena, and Skadi offered to teach Sirena how to make some of her other specialties as well. After dinner, Sirena, Shard, and Fists were with Drago as Skadi gave Drago a checkup. Skadi discovered something very concerning and she told Drago about it.
Skadi (with a grim expression): Drago, I found a large benign tumor of cancer next to your heart and lungs. It is pushing up against your heart, forcing your heart to beat irregularly. I can remove the tumor no problem, but I have to perform surgery on you, which means you will have to stay in the hospital for a few days to heal up. It is good I was able to detect it this early. If left unchecked, it could have caused cancer in other parts of your body. My guess is that this cancer was caused by the terrible medical job the Legion did to you when legionizing you. I can't remove the tumor here because I don't have the necessary equipment here. And besides, it would be dangerous for me to do it here without other medical professionals as there could be complications that I wouldn't be able to fix as soon as I see them.
Drago: Okay. Will you please remove the cancer for me?
Skadi (giving Drago a special doctor's order slip): I will. I will try to make sure you have a speedy recovery. Come to the hospital tomorrow, and hand this to the kid at the front desk. They will know what to do, and you do exactly what they say. I will have warned them beforehand, so they will know what to do. And if you are concerned about how to pay for your hospital bill, don't. I can pay for your surgery and everything else out of my own pocket. You and Sirena don't have to give a single dime. Okay?
Drago (putting the paper into his pocket, folded up): Okay.
Shard: Mommy, Daddy, can I come visit Uncle Drago after his surgery and he's recovering?
Skadi: Of course, son. It will probably help Drago heal quicker.
The next day, Drago went to the hospital, where he got the surgery that he needed to remove the cancer. On his way, he accidentally tripped over his own feet and knocked into Kurama and Areza, who were walking past him, taking in the sights of Care-A-Lot.
Kurama: We got ya! You okay kid?
Drago: Yes sir. Thank you for catching me.
Kurama and Areza: You're welcome.
Arteza: Where are you going?
Drago (sighing): The hospital.
Kurama: Why?
Drago: Cancer removal surgery. I have a large tumor near my heart and lungs, making my heart beat irregularly. Thankfully my new doctor detected the cancer last night when she examined me and she says she will be able to remove it today. But I am dreading going there. I friggin hate hospitals now, ever since I escaped the Legion.
Hearing this made Kurama and Areza's hearts sink. They'd known people who'd had worse forms of cancer, and seen benign ones go full on rogue. They were even at risk themselves from many of the chemicals they worked with. Of course, hearing an adult had cancer was hard, but a kid? Oh, that was worse.
Kurama: We hate hospitals too, but the hospital here is actually quite nice, and I don't really feel like I'm in a hospital here.
Arteza: We can go with you to the hospital if you want. And afterwards, you can come visit us on the roof after your surgery.
Drago: That would be nice, but I don't think that will be possible. I probably would be high as a kite on drugs after getting out of my surgery.
Kurama: Yeah. But you can come visit us afterwards.
Drago: That would be nice. I might do that.
Arteza: Okay. Let's get you to the hospital.
Kurama, Arteza, and Drago then walked off together, holding each other's hands and they arrived at the hospital, where Skadi met them and took Drago off to get his surgery, while setting it up for Kurama and Arteza to watch Drago's surgery through a window. They wanted to be with Drago, holding his hand, but Skadi wouldn't allow it, as Kurama and Arteza was too big and the flames on their tails were too much of a risk to Drago's health with what Skadi needed to perform the surgery on Drago safely, as she needed several flammable gasses and dangerous flammable ointments in order to successfully remove Drago's cancer and make sure it would never come back. Kurama and Arteza were joined by Amadeus, Melody, and Jenny when they found out he was at the hospital and they discovered him watching Drago's surgery, fidgeting with his lighter, watching Drago's surgery. Folsom would have come, but he was barred from doing so as he'd have caused a scene.
Melody (putting a hand on Kurama and Arteza's's arms): Guys, are you okay?
Kurama: No. We hate the fact that that kid on the surgical table in there has cancer. I know that people do get it, even children, but I hate the fact that a lot of kids get cancer and the cancer kills them long before those kids rightfully should have died.
Arteza: As much as we work with the nastiest chemicals, s**t that's illegal in over 100 countries and counting, we oughta be there. We should be the one's Skadi's operating on.
Melody: I hate that too. And I blame the Legion for this kid's cancer. But neither of you need to start that again. Stop taking the universe on your shoulders and wishing you'd suffer. Look, we'll talk about later.
Kurama(nodding and going back to the first point): So, what were you talking about? Blaming the Legion?
Melody: You see he has metal wings, right?
Arteza: Yes….What about them?
Melody: That's a price Mobians pay for joining the legion. They have to give up a body part that is replaced by a cyber prosthetic. Poor kid must have given up his wings when he joined the legion. I did a psych evaluation on that kid, and he gave up his wings to save his sister, and they're looking for their missing brother. The way they described their missing brother was eerily close to Rodney's description. Except they said their brother had giant wings and he had scales on his face.
A lightbulb then went on in the two chimera's shared mind and they connected the dots and realized the kid on the surgery table was Rodney's brother, "Medium Wings."
Kurama: Mel, what is that kid's name?
Melody: Well, Skadi was the one who named him, as he had no name before that. All he had for his name was some sort of serial number. Skadi talked to him and when she found out he had no name, she named him "Drago" because his wings looked like a dragon's wings to her. She became his rock in his sea of despair.
Arteza: Poor kid. Wait a minute, what the hell was Skadi doing when she met Drago?!
Melody: Acting as a "damsel in distress" so that we could loot the hell out of an Eggman base just to steal a Chaos Diamond before it was shipped off to Baldy McNosehair. Drago was the only one in the base and we hacked their security cameras and gave them fake CC footage just to keep Drago out of trouble. And it worked. The legionnaires that Drago worked for were so stupid they didn't realize the footage they saw was fake!
Kurama, Jenny, and Arteza laughed at the new nickname for Eggman. By that time, Skadi had finished the surgery and had sealed Drago back up. Her assistant surgeons meanwhile carefully transferred Drago onto a rolling hospital bed to be taken to his hospital room and cleaned up the room, disposing of the cancerous tumor safely. Skadi walked out to where the others were, discarding her surgical gloves and pulling her surgical mask down.
Skadi: The surgery was a success. Drago no longer has cancer! Kurama, you and the others can go visit him in his room. Just let me get out of this surgery attire first.
Kurama and Arteza nodded.
Kurama: We'll come visit later. We need to talk to Rodney about some things first. We'll be back later.
Skadi: Okay, but I'll call you when visiting hours are over for today. And you'll probably have to wait since Fists and I promised Shard that he could visit Drago after he got out of surgery, and his sister is coming to visit him too.
Arteza: In that case I'll come visit Drago tomorrow, and I want his sister there too so I can meet them both.
Skadi: Okay. I'll call you when visiting hours start tomorrow and Sirena's here with Drago.
Kurama and the others nodded and left the hospital to do their own things.
By the time Shard, Fists, and Sirena came to visit him, Drago was sitting in his hospital bed, letting Skadi tend to him, as he refused to let any of the other doctors near him. Fists, Shard, and Drago all brought him get-well gifts. Drago was happy that they gave him those gifts, and he opened Shard's gift first. He was surprised that it was a stuffed blue triceratops.
Shard: I knew that you were in a lot of pain, so I wanted to get you something special. Daddy helped me get it from the toy store. It's identical to mine. Horns always helps me feel better when I'm hurt or scared, and I thought you would feel better if you had your own.
Drago smiled and pulled Shard and the triceratops into a hug.
Drago: Thank you Shard. This means a lot to me. I am not going to give it up for anything.
Sirena and Fists also gave Drago meaningful gifts, as Fists gave Drago his own S.C.R.A.M., and a special ancient echidna talisman necklace. Sirena gave him two gifts, one a new assault rifle that she had made for him out of the parts she had gotten the previous day and a stuffed teddy bear. Drago thanked them and was happy to be receiving such wonderful gifts, and he talked to Sirena, Fists, and Shard for the rest of the day, and they only left when Skadi came to tell them that visiting hours were over for the day, but they could come back bright and early the next day. The next day, when Drago woke up, he saw Skadi tending to his surgical wound, checking on it and changing the bandages.
Skadi (noticing Drago was awake): Good. You're awake. I know visiting hours won't start for another three hours, but I am bending the rules a bit. Your sister is here waiting to see you already. And you have two other visitors too, but I am going to leave their identities a surprise for you. Shard and Fists will come to visit later this afternoon. Want me to send your first three visitors in?
Drago: Sure.
Skadi nodded and brought in Sirena and left the two to talk while she went to the roof to get Kurama, Arteza, and Rodney. Jenny was babysitting the twins, and of course Erron was working. When Kurama, Arteza, and Rodney entered, Drago and Sirena stared at Rodney, not believing that their brother was there.
Drago and Sirena: Big Wings…? Is…is…is that you?
Rodney (smiling and tearing up): Yes. It's me. I missed you two so much!
Sirena (happiness turning to rage and worry): What the f**k happened to your wings, Big Wings?! Did you get them chopped off?! Who f**king hurt you?!
Rodney: I haven't lost my wings! I still have them. I just have them hidden from everyone else around here.
Drago: WHY?!
Rodney: Look, I got bullied a lot when I was separated from you two. The only way I could avoid bullies was to hide my wings.
Sirena: Okay, but who is this man with you?
Kurama: I am Kurama Nikita Avro.
Arteza: And I'm Arteza Nikita Avro.
Kurama: We've been taking care of Rodney ever since I met him. And we would have stayed here and searched for you two even if it would have taken me the rest of our lives, because my husband and I promised Rodney that he would see you two again.
Arteza: And whenever we make a promise, we will move heaven and earth itself to make it come true.
Drago: Thank you for taking care of our brother. We really missed him a lot.
Rodney: And since we're reunited together I promise to protect you two. Kurama and Arteza have been training me and I can protect you two better now. That is if you'll let me?
Sirena: Of course we will, Big Wings. We missed you so much, Big Wings. We have a lot of lost time to make up for.
Kurama: And we promise to protect you three like you're our own kids.
Arteza: As long as you two are here, we promise you two will never be parted from your brother ever again and you three will always have a family with us and our family. We swear it.
Rodney: Please stay here with us. I don't want to lose you two ever again.
Drago and Sirena looked at each other, coming to an agreement.
Drago: We're going to stay here with you guys.
Kurama: That's good.
The four then began talking to each other, getting to know each other better, and gladly, Erron was able join them, and Drago and were happy to know that Erron was as loved as they were. When Shard and Fists came to visit, the fun multiplied, but everybody was sad when visiting hours were over, but Skadi promised that she would bend the rules for them again for the rest of the time Drago was stuck in the hospital. And this also postponed the birthday party even further, as Skadi now wanted to plan an even grander party for Rodney, Drago, and Sirena, since the three of them were triplets and Skadi was determined to give them the greatest birthday party they had ever had.
After a week of Drago recovering from his surgery, Skadi discharged Drago, giving him some pain medication to ensure he healed properly. That night, after Drago was discharged, with Drago and Sirena watching TV in their apartment…;
Sirena: Y'know, I really think you should enter this MMA grand tournament, Medium Wings. Gives you a chance to really cut loose and be almost lethal. Would help you with your stress and get a lot of that bottled up aggravation out of your system.
Drago: I think I will. I've been watching some of the old recordings of that Incineroar kid when he was in the ring. That fight against Horus when Horus was under the masked identity of Mastermind for the MMA champion belt was tough, but he pulled through. And judging from everything that I have seen of Incineroar, I think he may very well be Big Wings.
Sirena: Really?!
Drago: I don't know until I make my way up the MMA ladder and challenge him for the belt. And I really want to get rid of all this aggression. I will make quick work of whoever is in my way to get that belt.
Sirena: And I'll be cheering for you from the audience. I'll keep an eye out for any sort of trouble from your opponents on the sidelines.
Drago: Thanks sis. That means a lot.
Over the next month, Drago took on the entire MKND MMA league, winning every single match he was in. Sirena was his secret trainer and sparring partner, as Sirena managed to spy on Kurama and the rest of Gamma 13, as well as all of Sector S, watching them intently, learning all of their physical moves that she saw them perform so that she could teach Drago later. That was how Drago became so good in such a short amount of time. One day, after the match that would send him to the championship match against Incineroar…;
Kid reporter #1: Excuse me, Mr. Blastoise, kids all over the world are wondering, who are you and where did you come from?
Drago: I'm just a plain old orphan kid with nothing to his name wanting to make something out of himself.
Kid reporter # 2: Is it true you're only fighting just to get the championship belt?
Drago: No. I am fighting because I saw a worthy opponent in Incineroar. And I want him to prove it in the ring. Not that my opponents that I faced in the ring were bad fighters, it's just that I wanted to face Incineroar in the ring. And no more questions for now. I want to go celebrate my victory with my sister in peace.
Later, with Drago and Sirena…
Drago and Sirena were celebrating Drago's victory.
Sirena: Y'know, I think I can set it up so that you can spar with Horus for a few days each week so that you can prepare for your battle with Incineroar.
Drago: Sure. I have been wanting to see how well he is in a real battle. Remember back when we were brought to MKND HQ by him and Hermione?
Sirena: Yeah. What of it?
Drago: Well, Horus can use the same sort of thing that we use to communicate telepathically. He said that he was like us and that if we wanted to go toe to toe with them, we would have to expect anything and everything. And that Hermione was a tier-1 mage, so since we don't know any magic, we are screwed into a corner if we try to fight her before we figure out what all she can do first.
Sirena: Good thing that I have been spying on her and the others. Apparently, Hermione is trained in ninjutsu, and various other martial arts. And Horus seems to be trained in some sort of ancient tribal martial art that I don't know the name of.
Drago: Okay. This just makes the training session even better. I can't wait to crush Horus in a fight! Show him how not to underestimate us!
Sirena: I agree with you bro. He is going to see what we can the way, do you think Kurama would want to watch your championship match when it comes time?
Drago: I am sure he would. All we have to do is ask him. I am sure he'd want to. And I was going to ask Folsom if he could train me more tomorrow to help prepare for that match. Though…..
Sirena: Yeah, that may be a bad idea, I talked to Barrett, and he says that Folsom is an absolute d**k if he goes into that mode. It would be understandable since his wife is a Drill Sergeant….
Drago: But what?
Sirena: He's ultra-harsh with kids. I heard from Erron and Rodney that the thylacine girl, Leica, who's staying with Mr. Kurama and Mr. Arteza, like….
She told Drago everything, and Drago really couldn't believe Folsom could go that far.
Drago: Screw Folsom! He's mean!
Sirena: That's how I reacted!
Drago: Well, maybe try someone else?
Sirena: if we can find someone.
Meanwhile with Sheila…;
Sheila was busy riding her motorcycle through the nearby forest, trying to find anybody that could help her. She parked her motorcycle, and decided to scope out a particular area, as she saw a strange vehicle that seemed to be modeled after an ambulance with several kids surrounding it. Many kids were dressed as paramedics, and others were injured. The injured kids were on rigged up rolling stretchers, being tended to by the kids dressed as paramedics, being loaded into the strange ambulance. Shelia used her EVS to zoom in on the kids, and saw that they were tagged as friendlies, and she guessed that Jenny must have interacted with these kids and had tagged them. There was one cat girl dressed differently than the others, as she looked like she was dressed in a similar manner to Mira and Farid, and a lead paramedic. Shelia's EVS identified the differently dressed girl as Skadi, and that she was a definite friendly.
Shelia (in Tighran): These kids are really talented. Whoever trained them is one talented doctor or healer. These kids seem to know exactly what they are doing. And the way that those injured kids are dressed, they seem to be like strong warriors. And that Skadi seems to be some sort of warrior healer…holy f**k...she looks a lot like our Skadi!
*Author's note: Skadi's true name, translated, is Combat Medic Sheila Kouzan. (Skadi's father changed his last name to Kouzan as he liked his wife's last name and decided to show his love for his wife, plus the fact it distinguished him from others in the Filade.)
Skadi meanwhile had overheard Sheila talking to herself in Tighran, and was wondering why somebody was calling her by her real name, as she could hear what Shelia said reverberating through her bones. And this really bugged her cause she thought she heard her Sheila, Kurama and Arteza's wife.
Skadi (to the rest of the paramedics there): Guys, continue to do your jobs. I have to go off to see something. It may be a threat. But I want you guys to hurry up and get back to Care-A-Lot as fast as you can. And be on guard.
The other paramedics nod, and Skadi goes off by herself. Sheila tracked Skadi, and discovered that Skadi was heading towards her. As soon as Skadi was in Shelia's earshot, and out of earshot of the other kids, Skadi began to speak in Tigrhan.
Skadi (in Tighran): Hello? I know somebody's here and can speak Tighran. You said part of my real name, and I heard it in my bones. Do you need any help? I can help you if you let me.
Sheila didn't say anything and let Skadi look around for her. When Skadi couldn't find Sheila, she simply opened a warp ring, going back to the hospital in Care-A-Lot. As soon as Skadi left, Sheila went back to her motorcycle and drove off back to where she had stashed her, Arteza, and Kurama's truck, thinking about Skadi and how she knew how to speak perfect tighran. Shelia knew she wasn't on Charybdis or anywhere else in the Charybdian Alliance, as she tried to find out where she was. It ate Shelia up, trying to figure out what was up with Skadi and why she was tagged as Skadi, but apparently had a different name, which she claimed as her real name. Sheila pulled out her laptop and opened a new document and began typing up all the info she had found out about Skadi and made a list of everything that was off about her.
Shelia: There must be something going on with that girl. There is something oddly familiar about her, but I can't put my finger on it. Could this girl be Ako's daughter? Wait a minute. Whatever happened to Ako'rra? I remember that she left to join the military when I was four, but I never saw her in the Charybdian Alliance military at all. Could she have joined another military group that I don't know about?
Sheila ended up burning herself out, and her laptop's battery as well, trying to figure out the mystery that had presented itself to her. Back in Care-A-Lot…;
Skadi had went off to talk to Kurama and Arteza in private.
Skadi: Kurama, can I talk to you and Arteza, PRIVATELY?
Kurama: Sure.
Arteza: No prob.
Kurama Arteza led Skadi to their room, closing and locking the door behind them.
Kurama: What did you want to talk about?
Skadi: Your wife. I know this is a sensitive and hard topic for you, but I think I may have heard your wife's voice from somewhere nearby, but I am not sure about that.
Arteza: What do you mean by that?
Skadi: I believe I heard her voice through my bones earlier today. But she was speaking in Tighran and she said part of my real name.
Kurama: Your real name?
Skadi: Kurama, Arteza, "Skadi Celtia Cat '' is my secondary name. My real name is in Tighran, and my real name is Shaan'torra Shelia Kouzan. And I can honestly say, there was something familiar about your wife's voice and I don't know why that is. But...I really think you're my Kurama...and I found our Sheila….
Author's note: Skadi's first real name is the Tighran word for "combat medic."
Kurama (remembering Shelia's older sister's name, as Sheila told him many years ago that she was the one who inspired her to join the military in the first place, and was wondering if she and Skadi's mother were one and the same): Skadi, what is your mother's real name?
Skadi: Ako'rra Kouzan. Why did you want to know?
Kurama: Because I have a theory, but I want to investigate this matter further. I'll tell you when I have more information for you. And Skadi…I'm sure you're my Skadi.
Skadi: Okay. Well, I am going back to visit my parents and little sister. Tell Fists to look after Shard for me, and make it clear to Fists that he is NOT allowed to take Shard to a restaurant called "Ultimate Cheeseys," no matter what the situation may be. And don't worry, I won't tell my parents about you and the rest of Gamma 13, I promise.
Arteza: Okay, but why is this "Ultimate Cheeseys" restaurant off limits for Shard?
Skadi: The food there will make Shard have really ULTRA bad diarrhea and stomachaches. Trust me, you DON'T want to deal with that, especially with the smell that comes from Shard's diapers when he eats that stuff. You would probably try to get away from Shard as fast as you could, just to get away from the smell. If you and your team have to, please make Fists live with you guys here in the base so that you all can keep an eye on Shard and make sure Shard is eating the right things and stays healthy.
Arteza: And don't let Folsom near him, right?
Skadi: Yep.
Kurama: Okay. Me and the rest of Gamma 13 here will keep an eye on Shard and Fists for you and make sure that both of them stay away from Ultimate Cheeseys, and keep Folsom away.
Skadi: Thank you. And I see this as another opportunity for you guys to get to know Shard better, since Shard has been begging me and Fists to let you guys babysit him again. Shard seems to have attached to you, Jenny, and Farid the most so far. But I think it would be in the best interest for Shard to spend a lot of time with Kai Shin. Kai seems to be eternally sad for some reason, and maybe Shard and Barrett will help pull him out of his depression. And before I forget, DON'T leave Shard alone with Wolfgang at all. Wolfgang may not seem to be like it, but he has become a real jerk since he and Mel temporarily left the MKND then came back. I don't want my baby to be affected or put into harm's way by Wolfgang.
Kurama: Okay. We promise not to leave Shard by himself with Wolfgang.
And so, while Skadi was off visiting her family, Kurama and Arteza took very good care of Shard, who really loved spending more time with Kurama and Arteza and their 3 babies. Though Shard was still curious about Arteza since he wore shemaghs and bandanas a lot.
A week or two afterwards, a terrible storm was brewing up over the sea, and the weather report was delivered to Melody during a meeting she was having with Rodney, Arteza, and Kurama in her office. The kid delivering the report knocked on Melody's office door urgently.
Kid: Your majesties, I have urgent news for you.
Melody: Hold on, the door's locked!
Kurama unlocked the door, and the kid rushed in with the weather report papers.
Melody: What is the urgent news?
Kid (setting the report papers on Melody's desk and her reading them): Queen Melody, a terrible hurricane is blowing in from the ocean! Our meteorologists predicted that it will flood out Care-A-Lot and many kids' lives will be lost as many of them can't or don't know how to swim.
Melody then stood up from her chair and went into her serious Supreme Leader mode.
Melody: Issue an immediate emergency evacuation! Code Brandenburg-Alpha-Storm! Now!
The kid saluted Melody, then raced off to issue the emergency evacuation. Melody then turned to Rodney, who was already standing up.
Rodney: I'll take Kurama and Arteza with me and begin helping the kids to move to the cavern storm shelters in the nearby mountains.
Melody: Help Skadi and the doctors at Care-A-Lot Memorial Hospital to help move the patients to the underground hospital first.
Kurama: Got it. Let me call the rest of Gamma 13 and tell them to start moving the hospital patients.
Arteza: And we'll keep an eye on the skies in case we get ambushed during the evac.
Melody: Yes, and ask Horus to lend you guys vehicles and to give Tara the four land/air massive portable hospitals that I commissioned for her, as I wanted to give her another plane to add to her collection. That will make transporting patients even easier, and don't worry about the controls. I made sure to commission a special hospital vehicle that is custom made to approximate the controls of Tara's gunship.
Arteza: Thanks. I think Tara would like to have the new plane. You wouldn't know how many times it would have made missions easier for us if we had a hospital on wheels like you guys have.
Melody: If you want, I could commission an entire fleet of hospital vehicles for you and the rest of Gamma 13 after this hurricane is over.
Kurama: Give us the blueprints for these hospital vehicles first so that we can tailor them to suit our needs. Then we can manufacture our own versions, which will save you guys on a lot of your resources.
Melody: Well, we do get a lot of the metal we use from a lot of Eggman's scrapyards that he makes. Eggman makes so many scrapyards that he doesn't care what happens to them and he leaves them unguarded, so we can just loot the hell out of what he had in those scrapyards for our own purposes.
Arteza: Okay. See you later with evacuating kids.
Melody: See you, and stay safe.
Kurama and Arteza: Will do!
Melody: Okay.
During the evacuation with Sheila…;
Sheila had just arrived at Care-A-Lot, and discovered it empty and devoid of people. She was trying to figure out what was going on, when she noticed the buildings seemed to be boarded up and prepped for a bad storm coming. Shelia used her EVS to check the buildings, discovering all of them empty, making her wonder what was even going on. Sheila then drove onward and came up on the now vacant MKND HQ, also prepared for a storm to come in, yet nobody was there. Shelia decided to seize the opportunity and tried to break in, but was legitimately surprised that the doors opened for her, as she had no idea that Kurama had already programmed the security systems of MKND HQ to allow all of Gamma 13 access when they wanted. Sheila quickly located the food stores in the base and made herself some food, as she was starving and her own rations she had on her at the time had run out the previous day. Once Sheila ate her fill, she explored the base more, discovering the subtle influences that she knew only Kurama and Arteza would have made, which made her happy to know her husbands were nearby. Sheila then discovered Melody's office, finding the weather reports that were left on Melody's desk.
Shelia (looking at the weather reports): Oh s**t! I gotta get back to the cave with the truck if I wanna avoid this hurricane!
Sheila then rushed back to her motorcycle, as it began to rain hard. On her way, Sheila saw a purple hedgehog cradling a bandaged up and upset baby black and yellow hedgehog that was crying its little eyes out, as Melody entered the cave system where the others were. Sheila took note of the giant cave, and decided to tunnel into the larger cave system, as she never noticed it before when she arrived on that world. By the time Shelia got back to her own cave with the truck, she was completely drenched. The rain was coming down so hard at that point that when Shelia looked out of the cave, it looked like there was a curtain hanging in front of the cave. Since she was cold, Shelia decided to go into the larger cave system so that she could at least try to warm up and hopefully find Kurama and Arteza. As she was tunneling to the main cave system, Shelia's thoughts turned back to the two hedgehogs she saw, mainly thinking of the purple one and how closely that hedgehog resembled her cousin Melody Avro. Sheila also knew that there was something mysterious about the baby hedgehog the purple one was carrying, as she could sense from far away that there was something off about the as well, Kurama and them were heading into the caves and things were soon to take a dark turn when Folsom made his massive mistake.