Scratching the Box

by TheMaxx

Being able to think, but not being able to feel is a madding feeling. After temporarily switching bodies with Sally, Nicole cannot not stop thinking of the experience. Even years after that fateful day, she can not forget, she thinks but she cannot feel. Unable to control herself or her thoughts any-longer, she acts on ulterior motives.

3. Hyperreal

Disclaimer - I do not own sonic or any other characters. They are property of SEGA and anything sonic the hedgehog affiliated with it.

---

The next morning…

It was total chaos across New Mobotropolis and more so for the Freedom Fighters and the circumstances that were just foisted upon them mere hours ago. After Nicole's actions, the city's security was breached and alarms went off for a few hours, causing the city to panic in the middle of the night. After taking Nicole and the list of instructions she had left for them, they sealed the room behind them. Fortunately, nobody happened to notice the room in the dungeon, but they were all still in a state of panic from the previous night into the morning. They quickly hid her after finding some white blankets to wrap her in. As they made their way back up to the castle's upper floors, a few people may have noticed her, but they didn't seem to care. They were still in shock at what had actually occurred.

They knew a lot was about to happen, but before they could consider or take any further action, they had an instinctive priority. They had to keep her hidden...

NO ONE COULD KNOW ABOUT HER…

No one could see her… no one could know about this…

About what she did…

When daylight arrived, they were inundated with calls pleading for their presence, since N.I.C.O.L.E. was not answering. It was the first thing everyone noticed, and something even the Freedom Fighters hadn't considered yet. As they moved Nicole around the castle throughout the night, they battled anxiety, perplexity, tension, and worry. They postponed all they had planned for the next day. They were just now starting to see some of the ramifications of Nicole's actions because they had not yet had time to fully comprehend what she had done. Actions that seemed unforeseen for the entire crew.

They were simply unable to comprehend Nicole's motivations for her actions. Still in shock about it...

Right now, they were all in Sally's room, debating how to handle it all and what they were going to do. One, the Consul of Acorn, was already breathing down their necks. They wanted to see them right away, but not just them; the former king and queen, King Maxx and Alicia Acorn, would also be present. They were still a part of the governing monarchy, pulled numerous strings, and had influence, even though they were not officially in charge any longer. These days, they typically only appeared when a serious event occurred. The Freedom Fighters felt dread, knowing that they were in trouble because this seemed serious enough to draw them out.

Two, the city's security and technology had gone haywire. The IT professionals throughout the city, particularly at the castle, were keeping everything together, but Nicole's actions caused numerous systems to be disrupted. More complaints were made against and directed toward Nicole than ever before due to the nanites' increased dysfunction.

Moreover, the disturbance resulted in a breach of their security, drawing the notice of their adversaries. It was highly probable, as confirmed by internal intelligence agencies and from their allies, that their enemies were aware of the compromised security integrity of New Mobotropolis. Every IT staff member was becoming agitated about the situation and sought clarification.

Finally, the obvious issue was Nicole herself...

She sat between Amy and Bunnie on Sally's bed, still covered in white sheets, listening to them talk to her with a curious look. Sonic was standing with his arms crossed, Rotor had his hand on his head, Antoine had his palm resting on his sheathed sword, Sally had a hand on her hip, and Tails was perched on a chair moved close to Sally's bed, holding the list of commands Nicole had left behind. Their brains were still spinning, and they all wore serious frowns. As Bunnie and Amy conversed with Nicole on her bed, they observed in silence… Nicole...

She was alive now; they supposed...

They quickly discovered that she did not know how to speak or even walk. In truth, she was a blank slab who had no idea what to do. The mere thought of it made their heads swim. She would need to be taught how to eat, talk, and other skills. However, they were unsure of how this would play out given the pandemonium that was occurring.

It was beyond their means to attend to her needs. At minimum, one of them would need to remain at her side constantly in order to keep her hidden.

Sally stared down at Nicole's portable in her hand before turning to gaze at Tails. "Do you guys think you can make some headway on her portable and those commands?"

Determinate, Tails nodded. "I'll be working on it nonstop with Rotor. But no guarantees, though."

"Right…" Sally replied haltingly.

"How much trouble do you think we are in?" Antoine cast a quick glance at everyone.

"I imagine your superiors are going to blow their tops with a security breach this big," Sonic shot back.

Antoine nodded, closing his eyes. "Yes. I'm going to get chewed out."

"We'll have to stall until we can come up with a decent lie. It goes without saying that someone would want to talk to Nicole about what's happening around the city." Sally spoke with fear, and the others realized they couldn't do that. With Nicole gone, she could not just materialize instantaneously into a room on a whim. They would have to fabricate an explanation for her inability to present herself. Additionally, they couldn't keep lying about it. Nicole possessed the ability to teleport to anyplace in the city, so she could be anywhere at any time. As a result, the falsehood about her inability to show herself would not survive very long. Sally spoke again "What do you guys make about that thing on the back of Nicole's neck? What is that?"

A moment of silence fell as they all studied the metal gadget embedded in Nicole's neck, which had a green light. Rotor was the first to speak. "Well, based on Nicole's actions and with no other knowledge. Maybe it's some kind of device that's related to her… I don't know… transferring her computer self… to a living body…"

Rotor looked at Sonic, Sally, Antoine, and Tails, and noticed the looks of unbelief on their faces, and them grinning at how stupid what he was saying was. With a shrug of his shoulders, Rotor shot them a sharp glance and said, "Don't look at me like that; this situation is strange. Whatever it is, and how it works, I have no idea, but it may have to do with her transition from a computer to a living body."

The others recognized what Rotor was saying went beyond the normal suspension of disbelief, but they didn't have much to go on. It was really unusual for Nicole not to tell them anything herself. So, they were unsure whether Nicole was malfunctioning. Was she an impostor? Was everything she'd ever said to them a lie? They didn't understand what she had just done... which was to create a body... it was unfathomable...

They still didn't believe it…

"We'll find out what that thing on her neck is later. Everything that's happening with this..." Sally sighed. "We need to split up and get ahead of this." seriousness enveloped Sally. "Come with me to speak with the consul, Sonic. If we tell them she's on a mission with us and we need her, maybe they'll believe us more. We could buy some time with it."

Sonic did not smile, but he did nod and uncross his arms. "Which does happen occasionally. "We'll come up with more sweet lies on the way."

Next, Sally gave Rotor Nicole's portable. "You two go over to the control room and try to get a hold of all that tech stuff. Hopefully, you can use whatever Nicole gave us to recover control of her portable and, by extension, the city."

Rotor took her portable, and they both nodded quietly. Her eyes shifted to Antoine. "Please try your best to protect us from the political conflagration that is headed our way. The military loves its secrets, and since they are not secure, we are under more scrutiny than ever."

"Understood." With a frown, Antoine nodded.

"You guys get her some clothes," Sally said to Amy and Bunnie. "I'm not sure what to do with her just yet, but after we take care of this, maybe we can teach her some things."

Amy frowned as she turned to face her. "Don't you think we should do some tests on her? I know there's a lot more we need to figure out, but if she cloned a body or something, we should probably check to see if she's healthy."

"Good idea, Amy. I'm not sure how long we can continue telling lies, but we need to try for at least long enough to decide what to do with Nicole. It's not a question of if, but when, we won't be able to hide her any longer. Exactly how long is anyone's guess." Sally finished.

The Freedom Fighters were startled when they heard an unknown voice after she finished speaking. Everyone looked over at Bunnie and Amy on the bed. Nicole began to form the syllables with her mouth. She faltered for a split second before blinking her eyes inquisitively. "Ni… Ni… Nicole…"

Bunnie nodded with wide eyes, "Thare yiah go! Yes… Nicole… that's you..."

The Freedom Fighters paused, staring at each other, puzzled once more. Everyone raised an eyebrow. How in the world had she learned to form words at all? A baby couldn't even utter a single word till they were at least twelve months old. Another thing they needed to figure out. That was quite strange...

After giving nods of agreement, the Freedom Fighters—aside from Bunnie and Amy—left the room, their brains still racing. They were in a panicked state, had not eaten or slept, and had no idea what to do. They were engulfed in confusion, not understanding why their friend had done what she did. Granted, they were aware that they still knew very little about her. They only knew what she let them know about herself, which was mostly that she came from the future to assist them. Everything else was unknown...

Being as odd as she was, a computer, an AI capable of speaking and acting on her own volition, was bizarre enough to be sure. The nature of who she was had always kept the Freedom Fighters guessing, even though they had been the closest to her all these years. They always suspected there was more to her than she let on. But in spite of this, what she'd just done caught them off guard. When they returned, they had to come up with a plan for dealing with her. It was going to be a long day today...

---

A little later…

Sonic and Sally made their way to the Castle Acorn courthouses located elsewhere in the castle. Sonic and Sally waited on a bench next to the Consul of Acorns Chamber, bustling as usual, waiting to be called. Right now, they were having a session with someone else. They exchanged small talk as they came up with a variety of lies to tell the consul, but their conversation veered off course. Sonic maintained a knowing grin on his face as he listened to Sally tell another lie. However, she flashed him another smile and flirted again...

She bared an ardent smile, attempting to conceal her enthusiasm as she talked. "We haven't lied so much since we used to sneak out of Castle Acorn together to play. My parents always said no, but we always found another way out. Remember?"

Sonic smiled and laughed sincerely at the recollections. "Yeah, I remember…"

Sonic smiled, but it faded as he thought of the drama that developed between them as they grew older. The drama that had brought them to their current situation...

By now, a few years had passed since their separation. It was recent, but there had been no signs of reconciliation, particularly on his part, as he felt betrayed. When they broke up, she didn't even admit that she might have been at fault. So, he stopped caring and let go of their relationship...

However, Sally had been progressively attempting to win back his favor lately, which, to be honest, he did not particularly enjoy. They'd had a long history of intermittent dating. He first got to know Sally when they were young, in the heyday of Mobotropolis, just before the Great War, and before they organized the Freedom Fighters to take on Eggman.

Sonic grinned, recalling the memory. It was sort of by accident that they ran into each other. At the time, he was aimlessly roaming Mobius when he came across her. He was unaware that she was the princess of the Acorn Kingdom. She was intrigued by how fast he was, and they hit it off from there. They became fast friends and would cause mischief in and around the royal castle. Though her parents disliked him and did not want their daughter to befriend a commoner. They still maintained the same sentiments to this day.

But, as the Great War began and Mobotropolis was besieged by Eggman, she and many other youngsters fled to a safe haven, the Knothole Village, outside of the city. As a result, Sally and he were also temporarily separated. He did not have a permanent residence. He wandered around Mobius a lot but did not see her. The great war, which lasted for about a year before cooling down, saw numerous factions in the Northammer region fighting for control over resources and territory. As the Great War ended, everyone who had been evacuated returned to Mobotropolis. However, soon after everyone returned, Eggman staged a coup.

The origins of Eggman were a mystery to everyone. As one of the few known non-Mobians, He first assisted the kingdom of Acorn by bringing technological advancements to lift it out of a pre-industrial medieval state. But it was all part of a larger plan to conquer the kingdom and, by extension, the entire planet.

He captured Sally's father and rounded up millions of Mobians to be robotocized. In doing so, Rosie and Julaya escorted Sally and many other children to the Knothole once more. Where they met again...

When he learned of the coup, he immediately returned to Mobotrolopis from wherever he was at the time to help in whatever way he could. Things were getting hairier around Mobius as Egmmans' swatbots swarmed across the lands, so he came to the Knothole community for refuge as well. It was in the chaos of the Knothole village that they met their other friends, who would later become the Freedom Fighters. He encountered Sally again, but he also met Tails and Amy on his travels, and they arrived to the Knothole when Eggman attacked. Antoine and Rotor, and later Bunnie after rescuing Bunnie from being robotocized.

While the inhabitants in the Knothole watched Mobotropolis burn, Sally and he were inspired by a rag-tag group of resistance fighters battling Eggman and his conquest of Mobotropolis. They assisted citizens in escaping to the Knothole and caused Eggman a great deal of problems. They were the original Freedom Fighters. But ultimately, Eggman gained complete control of the city, defeating them and making their circumstances appear even more bleak.

Despite her youth, Sally was determined to fight back after seeing the destruction of her kingdom. She had a natural ability to lead. It was a trait that always stood out about her. Taking the initiative, she forged a pact with all of her newfound friends in the Knothole to create the new Freedom Fighters, who would fight back against Eggman. The rest was history. As early as the age of ten, Sally led the Knothole Freedom Fighters into battle with Eggman in Mobotropolis. Even as a child, Sally was tenacious and stubborn.

During their battles with Eggman over the years, they developed a thing…

They weren't sure if it was their shared history or something else. However, their affection for each other was so apparent to everyone that it turned into a joke. They were constantly at odds with each other due to their clashing personalities. One reason they could never express their obvious feelings to one another.

However, as they became closer and their feelings became more serious, she talked to her father, King Maxx, about… marriage…

However, he turned down her plea for him to be her future husband. Despite the fact that Sonic's actions saved him from Eggman and his capture. They temporarily grew apart because of their royal customs, which determined who she would marry through an arranged union. Because of Antoine's common origins and comparable royal ancestry, Maxx intended to compel her into marriage with him instead.

So, they separated again...

Her responsibilities as a princess kept her occupied back at the Kingdom of Acorn while he and others were off fighting Eggman. During their separation, he rescued a Mobian named Mina. She quickly became smitten with him and his heroic image. As the Freedom Fighters battled the Eggman, he gained notoriety—something he, to be honest, never really wanted. He was also attracted to Mina, but their relationship didn't work out after she discovered how deeply he felt about Sally at the time. Along with Sally almost catching her kissing him, which made her think, he moved on. It left her heartbroken, and they broke it off for real…

It got worse, as she assumed he had moved on. She agreed to her father's arranged marriage, only to discover that Antoine was an imposter. With him being the one to discover and stop the antis by himself. Their antis infiltrated Mobius and impersonated himself and Antoine, causing havoc throughout in the days of the Knothole. Patch, Antoine's anti, almost ripped them apart. It was a difficult period for him as well, because he didn't believe Antoine was the real Antoine and labeled him an imposter. Antoine was clearly acting strange, and while he was upset about Sally getting married, he did not make the charge lightly.

Nobody took him seriously, branded him insane, and claimed he was jealous because Sally was getting engaged. He still felt hurt from everyone turning their backs on him after everything he'd done. And it led to the slap…

The event that broke them...

Following all that happened, she requested him once more to become her husband, her king...

And she understood, and even conveyed this to her father and him, that he would run just at the mention of marriage. Her father proven wrong about him after he rescued everyone from the antis. The arranged marriage called off… leaving a clean slate...

After everything they had been through together over the years, she could not bear to see him injured or dead. She wanted him to come out of the field and rule by her side…

To which he had to follow his heart and refuse…

He would never give up freedom…

He said no…

So… she slapped him in front of everyone…

Calling him selfish…

They got into a heated argument in front of everybody. Both of them made valid arguments for why she thought he should be by her side and why he should be out fighting Eggman, but emotions were high after just stopping the antis. Needless to say, their relationship ended that day, before the Knothole eventually was destroyed…

He would always care for Sally, but he was wary of her advances. Particularly considering that she and Monkey Khan recently went through their own separation. She developed a relationship with him during their recent conflict with the Dragon Kingdom. Centuries of conflict between the clans of the dragon kingdom culminated in chaos when Eggman entered the fray. In these difficult times, Sally made an effort to rekindle her friendship with him. He responded indifferently, to which she responded by acknowledging and backing off, and they had been cordial friends ever since. Recently, there had been a lot of hostility between the dragon kingdom and the kingdom of Acorn. Political troubles emerged because Eggman had been dabbling in the kingdom's century-old conflicts and they wanted the kingdom of Acorn to remove him so they could focus on their own conflicts without interruption.

They had a rocky relationship with monkey Kahn over the years as well, but he mostly leaned good.

He had gained the title of king of the free people in his own battle against the dragon kingdom in their recent joint ventures against them. The other clans in the dragon kingdom did not share the same beliefs as the free people. The free people were a group who were not aligned with the other clans within the dragon kingdom. Over the years, monkey Khan had always had feelings for Sally. However, when he learned that they had split up, he took a gamble, and Sally seemed to accept it. When asked why she broke up with Khan, she said she wasn't ready for a commitment at that level yet.

Which perplexed Sonic as she sat in front of him... flirting... yet again...

He didn't buy it. Either she still held feelings for him, or she felt it was salvageable. Over the years, she consistently maintained that sentiment. She held the belief that with enough effort, every relationship could be mended. Which was the polar opposite of how he felt. He felt some things needed to be let go.

Their opposing egos came into conflict once more. This is why they often joked about their feelings and could never admit them to each other. And Sonic couldn't help but grin again as it was something he liked about her…

So yeah… they had a long history together…

Something that seemed to continue to bolster how they felt towards one another…

Things were going well with her and khan. Did she really still have feelings?

He didn't expect that from her, yet he was still hurt by her slap…

Things between them were clean again, though…

His heart said yes… but his mind said run…

"We'll need a better lie than just hanging out for a couple of hours in the Knothole forest. Maybe we'll stick to we went on a secret mission and Nicole can't show herself right now because she's trying to fix the damage." He sighed.

"Who knows how long that lie will last?" Sally closed her eyes, still smiling. When she reopened her eyes, they were half-lidded. "Let's get lunch, Sonic, after we sort all this Nicole stuff out, huh?"

He hadn't been accepting anything from her lately, something he was sure she was aware of. After she friend zoned him for monkey Kahn, he remained aloof from her, despite his own lingering feelings. And he was even more wary because she wasn't that far removed from her relationship with Khan. He'd declined every invitation she'd extended to him following their breakup, but he'd healed a lot since then and no longer harbored ill will towards her. They were just friends now...

But she appeared to be trying to cross that line again...

And, despite his gut tightening with worry, he went against his better judgement and gave in for the first time in years. Sonic nodded and gave a meek smile after a period of silence. "All right. We'll find some time to do that in the near future..."

And even though he was unaware of it, Sally's heart skipped a beat as she silently nodded in agreement, noting the number of times he would blow her off. Quite understandably. But as a female, she knew a man only had so many no's. And in spite of everything that had transpired between them, she had just taken the initial step toward reuniting with her friend—perhaps even getting back to where they were one day…

The drama was in the past now…

So, they both sat on their bench, rehearsing their story, attempting to sound as believable as possible because they didn't have much time to hide Nicole. Before they knew it, a number of well-groomed individuals wearing suits emerged from the Council chamber through the massive doors that opened near them. Sonic and Sally got up from the bench with frowns on their faces. The security guards at the door didn't need to let them in because they could see the Council of Acorn glaring at them from their bench in the courtroom. Additionally, King Max and Alicia were waiting near the bench of the Council.

Due to Patch's poisoning during the days of the Knothole, King Maxx was still confined to a wheelchair. Antoines father, Armand D'Coolette, unfortunately did not get as lucky…

The security personnel exited the room and shut the doors behind themselves. And the entire area was silent as Sonic and Sally's footsteps reverberated across the chamber as they approached the bench. The Council's expressions were predictably unhappy. Elias, who appeared more irritated than during their previous meeting, sat forward and folded his hands together. Sally and Sonic came to a halt in front of the judge's bench, gazing up at the consul. Both silently sweated, praying that they were going to buy what they were selling.

After a fleeting glimpse at her parents' pompous looks, Sally gulped and turned back to face the consul. This meeting was not the end for her. When all this was over, her parents would want to talk to her and her brother.

The entire Council frowned, and Elias unfolded his hands and spoke. "Let's cut the pleasantries. Where is Nicole?"

Adrenaline raced through Sonic and Sally. They maintained their composure and did not blink, maintaining tough facial expressions as they anticipated this would be one of the first questions. As Sally spoke, their doubts lessened. "Not here. The damage was so severe that she needed to be there in person."

Hamlin snarled. "And precisely what is this damage? Details, details."

"An unprecedented security breach that we have never seen before." Sally stated decisively.

Rosemary did not appear convinced, and she prodded on with an unhappy frown. "One that Nicole was unable to manage?"

"It's not that she couldn't handle it. Our technology couldn't handle it. "She's fixing it." Sonic lied.

The Council paused, then Sir Charles' hedgehog intervened, lifting an inquisitive eyebrow. "Would you please elaborate a little bit for us? What exactly transpired to jeopardize the security of the entire city?"

Sally then jumped in, piggybacking off Sonic. "We have intel that we have not shared with anyone else. Only between the Freedom Fighters and Nicole. Our enemies found a backdoor into one of our systems. As of right now, that is all we know."

"I take it that you're looking into who launched this attack?" Penelope replied.

"Yes. We've narrowed it down to two. It might be between Eggman or the Dragon Kingdom." Sally remarked this while crossing her arms.

Dylan rubbed his chin thoughtfully and nodded. "Given our recent conflict with the Dragon Kingdom, I suppose that's not completely implausible."

Elias lifted a questioning eyebrow. "Maybe we could ask Khan to confirm. Since he is still in the dragon kingdom, I will speak with him immediately."

Sally blinked in response to this. "I, uh, actually could handle that. It's part of our investigation anyway…"

The consul noticed Sally being flustered at khan being brought up. Elias nodded, letting it go, knowing that their past courtship was common knowledge. Though the mention of her ex did arouse some emotion, they were unaware she was really nervous about their lies being discovered. Sonic then spoke, "We need Nicole with us until we figure this out."

Then, with contemptuous expressions on their faces, King Maxx and Alicia Acorn joined their conversation. King Maxx was the first to speak. "Why don't you just give her a call? It will take just a moment."

Sonic shook his head. "No can do. That's why she hasn't been answering anyone's calls."

However, Alicia turned to face her daughter and sensed that something was off. Sally felt a cold sweat come over her as she saw her mother's intense gaze. What Sonic and her daughter were saying didn't add up; she knew her daughter well. Nicole's behavior was contrary to what they were portraying, as she would be in close contact with the Freedom Fighters herself personally. Being in private areas with Nicole herself as well. Everybody in the city knew that Nicole had never been unavailable. Alicia narrowed her eyes at the two. "Nicole has the ability to teleport anyplace, correct? Can't she come here for a moment?"

However, Sonic retorted, "We don't control Nicole. She told us she had to be at ground zero for this one."

As much as the consul sought to argue them down, Sonic's lickety split talking persuaded the consul. They all sensed something was wrong with the situation, but the truth was that Nicole was no ordinary computer. She was autonomous. The Freedom Fighters did not control her or her actions any more than they could themselves. Though something was still fishy, they had a solid argument with no holes for the time being.

Elias continued to wear a suspicious expression. "Well, keep us updated as soon as new information becomes available. We need to speak with Nicole as soon as possible to get a more... technical breakdown..."

The consul, as well as the former king and queen, continued to look suspicious, and Sally and Sonic knew they still didn't believe it. However, together, they appeared to convince them enough to buy them some time. Which was all they had hoped to do.

Sonic and Sally felt relief pour over them, though they didn't show it because they couldn't believe they had survived that. In an attempt to push the conversation toward a swift departure, Sally nodded again. "We should get back to it, then. When we learn anything new, we'll let you know."

Elias then picked up his gavel and banged it on his round wooden sound block in front of himself. BANG! "You are dismissed."

Sonic and Sally turned and walked out of the courtroom slowly, feeling the consul's intense gaze on them from behind. They had no idea how they got through that, which is why Sally wanted Sonic with her. He always had a knack for delivering the right information at the right time. His language was cheeky, but it was also shockingly effective at times. His big mouth had gotten the Freedom Fighters out of numerous sticky situations, or made them worse. However, his overconfidence was always backed up by his actions. There dynamic was something she missed dearly between them…

---

Later that night…

The Freedom Fighters returned to Sally's bedroom chambers after a busy day, not even bothering to return to their individual homes considering the unusual and alarming circumstances they found themselves in. Forgoing any plans they had, they assembled again to discuss what they had done and what they intended to do next. All gathered in their own subjective night attire, sitting on a carpet in front of Sally's bed discussing their most pressing matter… Nicole…

Nicole herself had stayed safe and hidden with Bunnie and Amy respectively throughout the day, only when either needed to leave, someone was always with her.

Tails was the only one not in the circle, sitting not far from the group on the floor, with Nicole attempting to teach her to talk more. She was now clothed in purple wrapped robes, just like her computer self, which they decided was OK in a private setting—as long as she avoided going out in public, where she would be easily recognized. Speaking of which, Nicole continued to unnerve them all…

After they all returned, Amy and Bunnie informed them of the accelerated pace at which Nicole was able to speak. Something they witnessed first-hand as she was already starting to piece words together…

Only after just awakening the other day…

Something was odd about her…

They all knew something wasn't right, something was amiss about Nicole…

It was obvious by the circumstances. They were dealing with a computer who had cloned a body and then transferred herself to said body. They thought anyway…

Tails held up flashcards, and Nicole tried to pronounce the words but struggled. While she tried to pronounce letters and words, the Freedom Fighters discussed a few theories in their circle. Was she a clone? What the heck was that thing on her neck? Was she really alive now? They had to investigate Nicole in the coming days because there were still many questions that still needed to be answered. One thing they all agreed on was that, regardless of what she had done, there was something fishy about the entire situation in the dungeon.

Just the way she acted made them all feel something was off…

No explanation…

She refused to even entertain that they caught her definitely doing one of the strangest things they had ever seen…

They needed to get to the bottom of this before they ran out of time. Because the clock was ticking and like the consul, the whole city was awaiting theirs and Nicole's response, and they weren't sure if Nicole was going to be able to respond again…

"What do you make of her being able to talk so fast?" Sonic spoke aloud to the group, seemingly perplexed.

Rotor crossed his arms and puffed out his mouth in a frustrated manner. "Heck, if I know. There's no doubt that we'll need to test her. Maybe she is a cyborg or something."

"Somethang like me?" Bunnie replied with a puzzled expression.

"We could certainly check to see if it is similar to robotocization, but with this stunt she just pulled, we'll have to think outside the box. She always claimed she was from the future. What's to say she knows about some technology that is beyond our comprehension?" Rotor remarked, still looking uneasy.

"If there's metal and circuitry beneath that skin, we'll know by tomorrow and rule out some possibilities. Maybe she built a robot body. I guess nothing is out of the realm of possibilities at the moment." Sally replied as she sat with her legs folded and her hands in her lap.

"I can get us a room reserved." Antoine took a quick look at Bunnie. "Maybe you could figure out a way to dress her up so she goes undetected when we move her?"

Bunnie grinned. "Already done. Amy and I have already come up with some adorable outfits for her. We'll get them in the morning."

Antoine nodded as Amy spoke with a frown, "what are we going to do when everyone realizes Nicole is gone?"

The group fell silent, their brains going blank. Whatever they tried, it seemed to lead to Nicole being found out, and they had no idea how or even if what she had done could be undone. And when they did, they were going to be in big trouble…

And with her being gone as suddenly as she was, the Freedom Fighters felt lost…

As this would be the first time since the days of the Knothole they were without her guidance…

And it made them realize how much they relied on her and how much she did for them…

For they were not going to be in trouble just for her being gone by the populace at large, but also her not running the city, as she had left them in a vulnerable state. She built the city to keep them safe from Egg Man and their adversaries. Without her, they could not have returned to a semblance of civil society because she gave them the security they needed to do so.

However, the most important thing that they all feared, and knew others were unaware of was...

How were they going to run the city without her?

All the technology she built, all the systems she managed on a regular basis, and all the threats she monitored. It seemed as though all of that stability might vanish in a moment now...

They were afraid of returning to their vulnerable state against Egg Man...

Which led them into a Segway of their next conversation, which Sonic initiated. "They're going to crucify us when they realize how much trouble we're actually in."

All the Freedom Fighters listened solemnly as Sonic spoke in a matter-of-fact manner, knowing that it was the endgame that they couldn't escape. Nicole's departure upended the city. She was too vital to it, and their newly acquired way of life. And, no matter what, they were going to be blamed for Nicole's absence, since it appeared she could no longer answer for herself. Since everyone was aware of the Freedom Fighters' connections to Nicole, their inability to provide an explanation for her disappearance put them in danger of being punished. Seeking clarification, Sonic glanced to Rotor. "what did you guys find out on your end today? "Can you do anything with Nicole's portable?"

"Yes, what is your progress?" Antoine arched an eyebrow in curiosity.

Rotor uncrossed his arms. "Well, it's not as bad as we initially thought, but it's still not good. I was doing administrative work today, and Tails was in charge of networking." He glanced back at Tails. "You said it was mostly fine?"

Tails lowered his most recent flash card to gaze at the group, and Nicole followed suit, blinking her eyes inquisitively. They all stared at Nicole for a moment, but she said nothing. So, with attention back on Tails, he spoke with a frown. "Our networks are in disarray, but with the commands she gave us for her portable, we were able to restore it to where it was before yesterday with some backup configurations on our servers. Her portable did a lot of work. It only responds to the commands she gave us. But something isn't right. Since Nicole left, it looks like we've lost some functionality. "Some stuff just isn't working..."

Sally let out a sigh. "I'm guessing our IT division would also like to talk to her."

"More than anyone." Tails seemed uneasy. "Nicole is easily reachable over chat. I'm not sure what to say to them..."

A cold sweat came over everyone again as Amy spoke. "We need to protect Nicole when they find out..."

"We're gonna need to protect ourselves. Whos to say they won't turn on us…" Bunnie said in a grim tone.

"If they turn on the Freedom Fighters, they will turn on all of our brethren groups. I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to get rid of us for what happened with Nicole. They are already trying to." Sally said, looking around the circle.

"Nicole..." Nicole suddenly uttered.

Sally smirked. "Yes, that's you Nicole."

All the Freedom Fighters smirked. Regardless of the circumstances, watching Nicole in this naïve state was endearing. She had been their friend for so long that they couldn't help but feel sympathy for her, even if they were all furious with her. However, they rallied together to protect their friend. When others eventually learned about her, they were unsure of how to proceed.

Which prompted Sally to speak, still smiling. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there. The public will despise her. The consul is likely to take action against her. Everyone and everything are going to converge on her..." Sally shook her head, looked down briefly before looking back up. "She's going to be in danger..."

"Were going to have to make contingency plans…" Rotor stated gravely. "We may even have to flee ourselves..."

"But we are going to protect her to the very end," Sonic said, cutting in. "She has always looked out for us."

The Freedom Fighters nodded in agreement, although it was apparent by the expression in some of their eyes that indicated otherwise. They were feeling doubtful about their life once more because of the situation Nicole had just put them in. They just achieved a certain degree of stability with Mobotropolis once more. Having a modern society after the destruction of Mobotropolis, it was now threatened to be snatched away again. They were seized with dread at the mere prospect of returning to living in constant fear on the daily bases. All wondering if she had given any thought to the threat they might face from Eggman again in her absence. They all had plenty of questions and choice words for her if she was in a state to answer them.

It was one day at a time for now, though, and they all knew that if things were this terrible today, they would only get worse tomorrow. As time passed, people would begin to realize that their lies weren't adding up, and the longer Nicole was gone, the quicker someone would figure it out...

Sally frowned again, huffing in annoyance. "I have no idea what these plans we are making even are. If Nicole is really gone, we will only be fighting to defend her while the city gradually ceases to function. What is this all even for…"

Her sentiment was shared by all the Freedom Fighters. Their efforts to protect Nicole were fruitless, as it all led to the city failing again…

Sonic cut in, though, giving her a powerful stare. "Yeah, that's true. But we still have to try. We can do this…"

Sally felt the motivation in his words as she fixed her gaze on him. She turned towards the others, and they all nodded quietly, knowing full well how terrible their current circumstances were. With a determined attitude, Bunnie spoke, "It's what she'd want us to do…"

Sally gave a nod and resumed her serious tone. "We need to work on restoring some functionality to the city tomorrow. It would ease some people's anxiety and buy us a little more time before we're figured out." She glanced at Rotor and Tails. "Is something like that possible?"

Rotor nodded. "Tails and I were working with Nicole on a system update before she went down. We could rollback some stuff and theoretically everything would be in a mostly functional state for a while, anyway."

"If we can make that happen, it would take some heat off us for sure. Rotor and I will see what we can do." Tails said aloud as he held up a flash card to a curious-looking Nicole.

"That's good. Bright and early, Amy, Bunnie, and I are going to get Nicole ready so we can do some test on her. While Tails and Rotor try to restore some functionality, we need to find other ways to steer our outcome." Sally looked around the circle with an inquiring eyebrow. "What if we told them the truth? How do you think they'd react?"

The guys all donned curious expressions, and Amy spoke first. "Well, if they believed us, had some understanding, and did not want to throw us in jail for endangering the city, they might be less harsh on us. But then they would know about Nicole… and the future and stuff..."

"Yeah, you're right…" Sally sighed and Bunnie patted her on the back sympathetically.

Sonic laughed, and Antoine chuckled, closing his eyes. Rotor smirked. "We're all tired. We'll figure something out."

Sally playfully glared at Amy. "Thanks for shooting me down."

Amy giggled rubbing the back of her head. "I know you were thinking outside the box. I didn't mean it."

And the Freedom Fighters stayed up for a few more hours, conversing in a more lighthearted mood. Enjoying each other's company in spite of the situation and throwing more ideas off each other. They had not had a sleepover since the days of the Knothole, and even though they were terrified of what was ahead of them, they enjoyed talking to each other late into the night. Nicole even joined them in the circle. She did not talk much, but she did say her name a few times. They were determined to help their friend, yet there was tension in the air about her. It was clear from their tone that some of the Freedom Fighters disapproved of what she had done. For as long as they knew Nicole, even though she helped them without complaint, some of them felt betrayed by what she had done. She yanked the rug out from under them and offered no explanation for her actions. And no strategy for dealing with the cards they were dealt...

---

The next morning…

Tails directed network IT operations while messing about with Nicole's portable, giving him an aura of determination about himself. The employees even noticed. The room was as busy as usual, but many of the employees were still dissatisfied with the lack of information about Nicole. With a racing mind, he sat at a computer terminal, inputting commands. Rotor was off addressing hardware problems, but he would be back to help him shortly. The staff was still skeptical of him, even after the official story had been publicized. Nicole was busy with something pretty much…

In frustration, Tails let out a sigh. They were right to be skeptical. What the Freedom Fighters were saying did not make sense. They asked him the same questions when he arrived this morning. Where was Nicole?

Tails lifted his hands from the keyboard in front of him. In actuality, they were equally ignorant. Nicole had vanished, as far as they could tell. She transferred herself into a living body? They didn't know yet. So, he informed them again that Nicole was working in secret with the Freedom Fighters to locate the cause of the disruption and she would report back when she was finished. A lie he knew that wasn't going to last another day. If he told them the same thing tomorrow, they would not believe him anymore. Every day, their lies eroded even more...

Nicole's absence became increasingly apparent as time passed, and soon everyone was going to figure out she was really gone...

Not to mention that without Nicole, the city would continue to be nonfunctional. They couldn't keep the city up on the same level as her, if at all. All it would take is one attack and they could collapse again…

When he finished what he was doing, he stood up and grabbed Nicole's portable and the sheet of paper with the list of commands she had given them. He was preparing to go up to the Master Console and utilize Nicole's portable to experiment with some things. As he walked, he had a sensation of doubt. About this whole thing with Nicole… something wasn't adding up…

Something bothered him about how quickly she vanished and how she left them without explanation. Approaching the steps that led to the master console, he passed a couple of workers carrying equipment. He came to a stop abruptly, staring down at Nicole's portable. The list of commands she gave them. He wore a frown. He used them yesterday with Rotor, but some of them weren't working...

Why…

Was it on purpose?

Before he could reflect any more on his gut sensation that something was awry, something unexpected happened in the control room. On the jumbo screen above the control room, a technician was handling a request on a device's CLI. With a wireless keyboard in their hands, they typed with one hand, but they seemed to be having trouble until a voice echoed through the control room. "Invalid syntax. Configuring R652 as DNS host."

And everyone in the room paused at the sound of the voice. It was Nicole!

Tails was undoubtedly the most astonished of all the individuals present. His jaw dropped open in disbelief and his mind raced with questions. What the heck was going on? How was she back? Considering what she'd done, how could it be possible? Obvious of the fact that everything the Freedom Fighters thought was now thrown for a loop. If Nicole was back…

Who was that with them…

Tails growled. Why was she back? Something wasn't right, just as he thought before he was about to walk up the stairs to the master console.

Every single person in the control room stopped what they were doing and directed their attention to the jumbo screen. With wide eyes and slack jaws, it was silent for a moment as Nicole took over the technician's CLI and she fixed the interfaces' configuration. They all watched as the text appear on the screen above:

R652 (config)#ip dns sever

R652 (config)#ip host

R652 (config)#ip name-server

R652 (config)#ip domain lookup

"Configuration complete." Nicole spoke aloud in the speakers of the control room.

Tails still looked upset as he turned fully around and held up Nicole's portable. She was rebooting…

The technicians began to congregate in the center of the control room, filled with relief, thinking that Nicole's return would resolve all the city's problems. They now believed the false narrative that the Freedom Fighters told, which they claimed that Nicole's absence was due to their search to find the source of the security breach, responsible for the last two days' mayhem and disorder in the city. Tails knew this was not the case, and it made his stomach drop as technicians began speaking with her and asking her questions.

Tails descended the stairs and started to go toward the control room's center. As the sole senior IT manager in the room, he came to a halt in front of the enormous jumbotron. The questions they were asking could reveal sensitive information…

Tails moved up to the front of the technicians' group that had assembled in the control room's center. With great excitement, a technician spoke, "Did you know she was coming back today, Tails?"

Tails shook his head, frowning, "No..." He stopped, considering a lie. "We had no idea when she would be back."

Numerous technicians asked Nicole a range of questions out loud, but she remained silent. He was in a difficult spot. If Nicole had been truly offline, she would be oblivious of the story the Freedom Fighters had created. He had to be careful with his wording because everyone would know they were lying if it didn't match what he said. Tails spoke, silencing all the questions. "Hey Nicole. You're back…"

She responded "Yes Tails. I am currently in the process of repairing our network…"

Tails narrowed his eyes. Why was she doing that if she just came back online? How would she know? He needed to ask her more questions, which he couldn't in front of others. What he needed to ask was officially Freedom Fighters' business now. He needed to get the guys here. He needed help.

Tails cleared his throat and faced everyone with a serious expression. "I need everyone to clear out of the control room. What the Freedom Fighters need to speak to Nicole about concerning the breach is classified information."

And there was an uproar of cheeky comments from the technicians, who didn't want to go without answers. Tails, however, smirked. "Once the Freedom Fighters work out the specifics of what happened, we'll address all of your inquiries. But, until then, please vacate the room until further notice."

"You owe me a coffee, Tails!" a male technician said to him as he and many other techs reluctantly turned and went out of the room.

When his fellow technicians left the control room, Tails' smile gradually faded from his face. When the room was empty, Tails's frown returned. He turned to gaze up at the jumbotron screen. "Is it clear, Nicole?"

"Yes, I do not detect any activity in the control room." She responded.

Tails was careful with his words. He raised an eyebrow as he spoke. "Nicole?"

"Yes." she responded simply.

Tails hesitated, his heart palpitating. Given the events of the past two days, he felt uneasy with the way she was responding. In his entire life, he had never witnessed anything as bizarre as what she had done in the dungeon. He knew she wouldn't show them the dungeon for no reason. What she showed them, he knew, and she knew, she showed with intent. She revealed to them all something she knew went beyond normal. If she claimed otherwise, she would obviously be lying because it was so strange, and she knew it was. They were talking about a sentient computer that appeared to have created a body. It seemed absurd even to consider that such a thing could occur.

And his mind ran wild…

Did she know what happened? Was she really offline? And if she knew what happened, was she lying the whole time?

Why…

Tails felt a cold sweat come over himself. Something wasn't right…

And he wasn't going to ask her if she knew by himself. Tails swallowed a lump in his throat as he spoke. "Could you contact the guys? I think we all need to talk…"

"Yes, I believe so. I am contacting them now." She responded in her usual neutral tone.

Tails said nothing, but arched an eyebrow in suspicion at her reaction. Fortunately, he had to wait only a little while for one freedom fighter. Which was what Tails was hoping for when he and Rotor agreed to not be too far away from one another during the day. Rotor rushed into the control room less than a minute later.

Out of breath, his eyes wide, he spoke hastily at the front of the room. Looking at the jumbotron, he paused and exclaimed, "Nicole!"

"Yes Rotor." She responded.

Rotor swiftly closed the doors behind himself and made his way down next to Tails. Rotor's eyes remained wide as he spoke: "When I heard your voice over the PA, I almost didn't believe it." Glancing over at Tails, Rotor appeared ready to speak again, but Tails maintained an expression of upset. He paused at his uncomfortable expression. They met eyes, and during the brief exchange, Rotor saw the reluctance in his eyes. Just like in the days of the Knothole when Tails was a young one. They collaborated extensively, using Nicole's assistance to create many of the meager technological creations they could at the time. The Freedom Fighters were quite good at reading one another. The constant danger kept them alert, and they could tell if there was trouble or something wrong without saying anything. Every freedom fighter could. When they went to Robotroplis, it was a skill that aided them greatly. And right now, Rotor could tell something was awry in his friend's eyes. Tails's troubled expression spoke a thousand words, and they were positive that it was something they were sure even Nicole was blind to.

Rotor then frowned himself. Blinking his eyes, he realized he needed to tread carefully. He curtly nodded to Tails, who understood and followed his lead. Rotor and Tails gazed up at the jumbotron. With caution, Rotor spoke. "Nicole? Why did you come back online? Are you aware of what has happened over the last two days?"

Nicole did not reply. After a brief silence during which Tails and Rotor exchanged glances, Nicole suddenly materialized adjacent to them in her holographic form. The way she was behaving was putting them on edge as Tails spoke. "How did you restart, Nicole? We thought you were offline."

With her usual stoic expression, she turned and spoke, looking at them. "I was never offline."

As she spoke those words, a video on the jumbotron screen appeared, showing the freedom fighter currently with Nicole's body. Taking the other Nicole by the hand, Bunnie hurried down a hallway and clearly led her in the direction of the control room. However, the video only followed Bunnie...

Tails and Rotor looked perplexed. Why only Bunnie? However, every indication pointed to the body Nicole had created. She clearly had an interest in it. However, that raised other questions...

Tails spoke, still looking uneasy. "We thought you created a body to be Mobian, Nicole. So, you could feel again. But it looks like your plans to become… real… didn't work, Nicole…"

Nicole shook her head though. "No Tails, they just have not been completed yet."

From the looks in the video, all the Freedom Fighters had seemed to converge together, and they were all now walking with each other and nearing the control room. But her ominous words made Tails and Rotor sweat. Rotor spoke slowly. "If you're not in your body Nicole…who is that…"

Nicole spoke calmly, looking up at the jumbotron watching the screen with Bunnie and her body intently. "That is no one..."

Which Tails and Rotor understood the subtext of her words. Meaning whoever that was walking with the guys… that was not Nicole…

Surprise filled their faces at Nicole's revelations. Was this the same individual they thought they knew? That, along with their brief talk, left even more questions unanswered.

And the Freedom Fighters made it to the control room before they could question Nicole further. Talking among themselves, they forced the doors open through one of the entries. However, they all froze as soon as they got to the staircase threshold. Nicole looked away from the jumbotron screen as Tails and Rotor whipped their heads to gaze at them too.

She fully turned to face them all, her living body drawing her attention the most. With a blank expression, she stared…

Sally was the first to step forward, peering down at her. "Nicole?" she asked, looking behind herself at Nicole before returning her gaze back down at them. Her expression was one of annoyance. "What is going on?"

At that living Nicole stepped forward, looking down and seeing herself. She blinked, remaining quiet and scrunching her eyes in confusion. Nicole, too, stepped forward with a blank expression on her holographic.

Tails sensed something was off, his eyes still wide. He raised his voice, trying to catch Nicole off-guard. "It's a trap!"

The Freedom Fighters recoiled in surprise, blinking their eyes at the startling statement. However, before any of them could respond, the doors behind them locked, and heavy metal security descended, enclosing the control room's entrances and exits. The Freedom Fighters became even more perplexed since anytime security tripped to the control room, alarms were supposed to go off. However, they didn't...

Sonic frowned, moving towards the stairs "Whatever is going on here, I don't like the looks of it…"

Antoine joined Sonic at his side, holding a look of disgust as well. "Indeed. We need to get to the bottom of this right now."

Sally, Bunnie, and Amy followed suit. Sally's voice was commanding and tinged with irony. "Why are you back online, Nicole? We have so many pressing questions..."

After all the trouble Nicole had caused them over the past two days, the Freedom Fighters lost their cool, and they all had some choice words for her.

Nicole addressed them all. "We will find out…"

Sonic, Sally, Bunnie, Antoine, and Amy all glanced at each other, analyzing the way she spoke. She sounded unlike the friend they'd known for so long. Then again, the way she spoke in the dungeon was also uncharacteristic of her. They therefore proceeded cautiously down the short set of stairs that led to Tails, Rotor, and herself. After they did so, it was quiet for a few moments, with everyone uneasy by Nicole's behavior.

They kept their distance, standing a few feet away from her. Bunnie protectively made living Nicole stand behind her. But more so, the others noticed Rotor and Tails looked even more perturbed than themselves. They did not move from where they stood to join them.

Sonic questioned the pair. "What's up with you two?"

Tails remained wide eyed. "We're just as much in the dark as you."

Sonic raised an eyebrow in confusion but Sally spoke to Tails, "Can I see Nicole's portable?"

Tails nodded cautiously, walking over to her with Nicole silently watching. Sally took it and held it up, all the while keeping a stern look at Nicole. "Nicole, are you there? Is…"

But Nicole cut her off as her portable screen flashed green as she spoke, and her holographic spoke simultaneously in the room "It is me Sally..."

Sally blinked her eyes, frowning again, confirming that she was not an imposter. Because of her actions, everyone assumed she was a fake or something because of her behavior. Additionally, it seemed like the alarms had not gone off on the metal security doors. Nicole was undoubtedly responsible for it.

Sally became irritated and began to ask questions, clearly fed up. "Why don't you start telling us what's going on? Why did you lock us in here, Nicole? What was that in the dungeon? Why did you clone a body, or whatever you did? Explain!"

Sally's frustrations became increasingly apparent, and the others noticed. It was common knowledge that Nicole's and Sally's friendship was close. And Sally did not like that her authority as princess was being so severely undermined, particularly in light of everything else going on and putting her and everyone else in jeopardy. They were all annoyed by Nicole's sudden insubordination because she had always obeyed them. Especially considering that Nicole was both her closest friend and occasionally her subordinate. Nicole chose to help them, but it appeared that she was working against them at the moment.

Nicole looked at Sally and spoke in her usual neutral tone. "What I have done in the dungeon was a necessary task. I would not be able to claim my body without the work done there."

Sally's agitation remained high though. "That is beside the point Nicole! Don't you realize what you've done? Do you know how much trouble you've put us in? The whole city is breathing down our necks and we don't have an explanation! What is wrong with you?"

Nicole remained quiet to her tirade and Rotor spoke disapprovingly. "You left us with no explanation about why you did what you did in the dungeon. You didn't even give us a chance to talk about it. But now that we are, you just can't do what you're doing! Isn't it obvious the danger it would do to the city? Not to mention that you just shouldn't do whatever you're doing. Just look at the ramifications of your actions Nicole! You're jeopardizing new Mobotropolis! The city you helped build!"

The looks of irritation on her friend's features did not perturb her as she spoke "In this case, yes I am."

What Nicole said threw them all for a loop again as her statement only led to more questions. It made the others who were not Tails and Rotor question her the same as they did a few minutes ago. Bunnie squinted her eyes as she spoke. "Hold on knaa. If you aint in yuer body already, this aint you behind me. Don't that mean she's alive? This anit you Nicole?"

All the Freedom Fighters took a quick glance at living Nicole, who looked curiously at them, staying silent. Sonic spoke looking surprised "That's someone else…"

Nicole nodded, speaking calmly with a deadly eeriness. "I cannot stop my body from coming to life."

The Freedom Fighters paused. Nicole was making them feel uncomfortable speaking so nonchalantly about this issue of a body she created and all the other troubles she'd put them through. Amy took a step forward with a serious expression. "Wait a second Nicole, you created that body, but it's alive now. We thought that's what all this was… you were trying to... make a body for yourself... so you could be real… to feel again… weren't you?"

"You are correct, Amy. And it still is." Nicole responded, revealing more unanswered questions.

"What do you mean by that? Even if it's just a part of it. We saw your plans Nicole... they didn't work...you didn't become real..." Rotor questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"A part of it?" Sally spoke with confusion.

Tails nodded with a serious expression. "Nicole told us before you showed up that her plans weren't complete yet…"

The ramifications of what she was saying were beginning to become apparent, which caused all the Freedom Fighters to frown with uneasiness. Sally's furrowed brows remained tense with ire. "Nicole? If you're still going to claim your body, you'll kill her." Everyone glanced at Nicole's living body as she stood protectively behind Bunnie, and Sally returned her gaze to Nicole. "She's her own person now…"

The tone changed at this point, and the expression on her holographic remained blank…

Though Nicole continued to speak in her usual impassive manner because she could not emote being a computer. But the emotion was still in her actions as her holographic avatar took a step forward and looked directly at Sally. "It is my body."

The Freedom Fighters all took a step back, feeling the emotionless intimidation emanating from Nicole. Despite her stoic demeanor, it was evident from her expressionless words that she meant business. However, tensions increased as the Freedom Fighters realized Nicole and the body that she created were officially an issue. They initially believed she created a body but failed to become real, but this did not appear to be the case any longer. They had no idea what Nicole was going to do to obtain her body. Were they going to have to fight their friend?

Their first instinct was to try to protect whoever this living Nicole was. Technically, she was not Nicole, but it seemed like she was in danger from Nicole.

But Rotor a donned questioning gaze at Nicole. "There is one thing you might have overlooked Nicole."

Nicole turned to look at him and the Freedom Fighters did the same, following his lead, thinking he might have something. Rotor spoke in a sobering manner. "You say you're still going to claim your body. So, Nicole, could you explain to us how you plan to enter your body? Seeing as you have no soul?"

Rotor asked his well thought question, thinking there would be no way she could answer this. Even the Freedom Fighters looked smug at Rotor's question. She couldn't take her body because she was a computer. Computers didn't have souls. They were just wires, metal, and circuitry. She couldn't enter her body even if she wanted to.

Nicole turned to face everyone and spoke in her characteristic robotic tone. "I was an organic operating system. An experiment, yet one which ended up being successful. I will not get into the minutia, but biotic compounds make up my hardware. I am composed of some organic biochemical processes and inorganic materials. The source of my biochemical composition is derived from naturally occurring immortal cell lines. As a result, I potentially have the capacity to operate indefinitely. In my first year of existence, additional cells grew into my already semi biological central processing unit. There were already cells embedded into electrodes on my CPU. The new growth spurred me, and a short time after I came to be. For three years, I was unaware of my surroundings. In my third year, I came to realize that I was capable of conscious thought and could take conscious control of my digital environment without outside assistance. Because of my biological makeup, my creator thought that my operating system might have drawn in unknown life force. Despite their best attempts, they were unable to determine why I was born, as based on the scientific consensus of the time, how I came to be shouldn't have been possible. Instead, they believed they had created AL. You are likely unaware that organic computing is faster than analog computing. When using analog technology, information must pause for other information. There were no such limitations on my OS. Similar to the organic brain, data in organic computing flows in all directions without stopping. After I emerged, I became even faster. Consequently, nothing of the sort limits my OS. I was self-aware and conscious, able to distinguish between the real world and my digital one. I possess a life force. I was simply born different… bound by my world…"

As she finished, the Freedom Fighters were wide-eyed and slack-jawed, but her holographic face remained blank, gazing around at the others and waiting for their reaction. "I can enter my body. I now have the resources to do so, but what I am attempting is unlike anything that occurred in my original timeline."

After a brief period of silence, they all turned to face one another in shock. Doubting the reality of what was occurring. Her specific words speaking about her timeline left them stricken. Almost washing away the anger from all the trouble she caused them the last two days. The conversations they'd been having since entering the control room had took such radical turns the issues the city was facing paled in comparison.

She said, "Her time!" They didn't think they heard her correctly. Was she talking about the future? The future that she consistently claimed to be from but never spoke of? They had never heard her discuss the future openly before. In fact, never!

The Freedom Fighters had shocked, perplexed, and amazed looks on their faces. Rotor gulped, astonished by what she had just revealed. "If you have a life force, why did you do all this?"

"I have never tried to leave. This is a new endeavor for me as well." Nicole responded.

Tails looked exasperated. "Why are you telling us this? Why now?"

Nicole looked around at her friends. "I will need all of your help."

Their minds raced, still reeling from this new information about Nicole having an actual soul. They didn't think she could answer that. But she threw them a curve ball. Being a living being in some sort of odd way…

They always thought she was just ones and zeros…

The Freedom Fighters remained surprised and quiet, unsure how to formulate their thoughts based on the information Nicole revealed. This was definitely not what they expected. This entire situation had turned around, upside down, and in places they didn't even know. Before a minute ago, they believed they knew what was going on, but they could now confidently say that they had no flipping idea.

A computer with a soul! How could a computer have something like that? But she all but seemed to explain why she did, which made it even stranger. Because if what she said was true, then she was a living being…

Sonic blinked his eyes, looking over at Nicole's living body and noticing the device on the back of her neck once more. Something they never got an answer to. With wide eyes, he looked back at Nicole. "So, what is that thing on the back of your neck? Is it supposed to help you become alive or something?"

"Yeah, we never figured out what it was." Tails said rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm assuming because you went through so much trouble in the dungeon that maybe that device on your body is some sort of mechanism to integrate yourself from your portable to your body?" Rotor theorized at Nicole.

But Nicole shook her head, speaking in her usual stoic tone, "It is a kill switch."

And yet once again the Freedom Fighters were shocked, their eyes wide, not believing what she was saying as she continued, "In this process the body will come to life, like any living organism. And as such, the life force needs to be expelled before I can enter it."

As she said those words, time seemed to slow for a moment as the Freedom Fighters looked at one another horrified, dread filling their stomachs at Nicole's words. Then they looked at living Nicole, almost knowing what was about to happen, and she blinked her eyes curiously at them because they were all staring at her. Then Nicole spoke again, "And that time is now."

Her eyes flashed green for a brief moment, and the Freedom Fighters noticed the device on Nicole's neck beep and change from solid green to red. And as it happened, in slow motion, living Nicole's eyes went droopy, and she instantly went limp and dropped to the floor. Her fall prompted an immediate response from the Freedom Fighters, who raced to her aid. Yelling her name, but she had her eyes closed…

The Freedom Fighters gathered around Nicole, who was lifeless, as she lay on the ground. Bunnie shook her, but she remained motionless…

Sally turned away from Nicole's body on the floor and looked at Nicole with disdain. She spoke with disbelief in her voice, "Nicole…"

But Nicole held a blank expression on her holographic face at the scene. She looked at Sally with intent, holding her hand out expectantly. Sally blinked her eyes, quickly understanding she wanted her portable, that she held in her hand. Sally huffed, walking over to her and handing it to her. Nicole took it and turned away. "I will explain."

Nicole turned and walked over to a door in the immediate area. Sally watched her go with trepidation. She had been their biggest ally for as long as they had known her. Someone she was personally close to. She was starting to realize, though, that they did not know her half as well as they thought they did, based on the little she had revealed about herself. They were always curious about her, given she was a sentient computer. Beyond her self-disclosures, there always seemed to be more going on under the hood than what she told them about herself. About where she was from and whether her repeated claims over the years that she was from the future were true. In fact, now, there seemed to be much more to her than they could fathom…

Nicole walked out of the room, first bringing out a small, metallic, circular machine with the words BCI etched on it. Then she returned to the room and rolled out even more equipment, this time what the Freedom Fighters immediately recognized as operating equipment. Their stomachs sank at the sight. An operating table, monitoring equipment, fluids, a silver metallic tray loaded with medical supplies and tools, and a bright, tall lamp. She set her portable down on one of the nearby desks.

The Freedom Fighters remained silent as she quickly assembled her medical equipment. She returned to them after finishing.

Still gathered around her body, which was lifeless on the ground. She held a blank expression on her holographic, while they all gave her upset looks. Her intent was evident from her waiting manner and presence. So much so the Freedom Fighters stepped away from her body. They all backed up a few feet, and Nicole looked around at them all before moving forward. She bent down and picked up her body.

As she carried her body over to the operating table she had prepared, her arms and legs went limp in her arms.

Putting her body face down on the operating table, she then attached a black velcro strap to her body's arm that was hooked up to the machines next to her. She looked up at the monitoring apparatus. Shortly after, a pulse was detected by the monitoring equipment, but it was dropping.

With nervous anticipation, the Freedom Fighters observed. They felt horrible for whoever it was that had just passed away in front of them. But, seeing what Nicole was doing, the body was merely a tool, a vessel, and they watched her keep it alive.

Nicole then grabbed a dark red bag of fluid and connected it to an IV. Then, with machine-like precision, she inserted the IV into her arm. Nicole then rolled over a scanner-like machine and hovered it above her head. After that, she pivoted and started to type on the keyboard of the additional devices she had brought into the space. Pictures started to appear on the jumbotron screen above them, and they appeared to be brain scans. The Freedom Fighters looked up in confusion, wondering what she was doing when her equipment's heart rate monitor began to beep.

Nicole then grabbed a dark red bag of fluid and connected it to an IV. Then, with machine-like precision, she inserted the IV into her arm. Nicole then rolled over a scanner-like machine and hovered it above her head. After that, she pivoted and started to type on the keyboard of the additional devices she had brought into the space. Pictures started to appear on the jumbotron screen above them, and they appeared to be brain scans. The Freedom Fighters looked up in confusion, wondering what she was doing when her equipment's heart rate monitor began to beep.

The Freedom Fighters wondered whether her body would perish because her pulse was still decreasing. Nicole took a quick glance at the jumbotron screen before looking away. She moved to the other device she had brought into the room. A small circular metallic machine with the words "BCI" etched into it. She positioned it near the operating table and plugged it into a floor outlet. Then she walked over to the desk where she laid her portable and picked it up as well. She made her way back to the BCI machine and connected her portable to it. Next, she pivoted to the tray containing all of her instruments. She reached for a hair clipper.

The Freedom Fighters raised an eyebrow as she shaved all the hair off the back of her neck. Then she returned to her tray of tools and retrieved cloths, liquids, sharp metal tools, and blue rubber gloves. She proceeded directly to surgery, expertly removing the kill switch from the back of her neck and discarding the bloody device on a nearby tray, leaving the Freedom Fighters stunned. She stopped the bleeding by using whatever tools and fluids she had picked up before pulling a cable from the BCI machine with three sharp, pointy prongs. The cable extended and stretched, laying on the operating table.

Nicole's eyes turned florescent green, and she picked up a sharp tool and began making incisions on the back of her neck. Her neck started to bleed, so she took some cloths and sprayed some liquid from a transparent plastic bottle on it before patting it down. Then she grabbed the cable from the BCI machine off the table and moved slowly and precisely, as if she were scanning for the area where she would insert the cable. But the cable's prongs began to spin like tiny drills, and she inserted it slowly and carefully into the back of her neck. Despite not being alive, her body twitched…

The Freedom Fighters' spines tingled at the sound of a drill burrowing into flesh. But as Nicole worked on her body, something else occurred to the Freedom Fighters'. Nicole's aptitude for medical work was immediately apparent to them. That she could operate so easily on herself, or on anything living really. It was astonishing how she even understood the behavior of a living body. It took skill to be able to stabilize and analyze a body. Everything about the scene was bizarre…

But as Sally blinked her eyes, another thought occurred to her. A frown crept across her face. "Nicole? "You weren't offline, were you?"

Nicole spoke with her back turned as she continued to drill into her neck. "You are correct, Sally. I was hiding in the background. I saw and heard everything."

Nicole's revelations enraged the Freedom Fighters, who felt duped. Nicole's body abruptly stabilized, causing the pulse monitor to slow down and stop beeping before they could ask her any more questions. Nicole's portable flashed and her holographic briefly glitched as that was happening. And the Freedom Fighters wondered why, if there was no soul in the body, it had suddenly stabilized. Did that mean there was something there now? The heart rate started to beat at a regular, steady pace. Nicole took a bottle containing a gel from one of her trays as the BCI machine began to whirr.

She evenly applied the gel to the back of her neck after squirting it around the area of her incision. She then grabbed another bottle and a sterile needle. She sucked up the liquid after inserting the needle into the bottle. She then started injecting it near the cable that protruded from the back of her neck.

Once she was done, she placed all her tools down and stared down at her body as she spoke again. "I lured you to the dungeon."

Bunnie spoke with frustration, "Why did yiah do thet for?"

Nicole kept her back turned as she replied. "I showed myself so you would see me. Every time you saw me was intentional. You seeing my body before I was in it also gave the unintended effect of you getting used to seeing me alive for a brief moment. I was unsure of how you would react to seeing such a thing, and how that might affect you possibly helping me once I was in my body." Nicole looked at the heart rate monitor, then turned to face them all with a stoic expression. "I will be vulnerable. I will not survive."

The Freedom Fighters paused at this and their expressions of anger vanished. A look of consideration replaced the anger that had left their faces. It was as if they were beginning to realize there was more to what they thought were her antics, because they still didn't understand why she was doing what she was doing. Their frustration shaken by the news that their friend would be in danger.

Nicole continued, "I was not trying to enter my body yet. What is happening now is I am trying to enter my body for real now. The reason why I will need all of your help."

"And that would be?" Sally questioned.

"As previously stated, you cannot stop an organism from coming to life. My body was already alive and because of that, I lured you because I will need medical attention when I actually enter my body. I do not know what it is like to be alive. I assume I will become naïve once I leave my portable. I will lose all my knowledge. I will not understand the world around me any longer…"

And after hearing her remarks, the freedom fighter's rage subsided even more. Thinking, why would she go to such lengths knowing she was essentially making herself weak and powerless? She had to be doing this for a more significant reason…

Sonic cocked an eyebrow. "So, if you're not in your portable anymore, do you like shutdown for good?"

Nicole briefly displayed a small smile on her holographic face. "No Sonic. There is much more I need to discuss with you all."

This partiality towards Sonic was noticed by the Freedom Fighters. They all looked at him, particularly Sally, who appeared more upset than the others, and Sonic frowned. "What?"

They all looked back at Nicole, who kept speaking, losing her smile and returning to a stoic expression on her holographic. "I will be gone for real this time. Our enemies will take notice."

The freedom fighter's eyes widened once more because they had talked about this when she had initially vanished. Their intelligence agencies confirmed that the city's security had been compromised. And if she really did leave, what protection would they have from their enemies?

And it all lead back to why she was doing all of this. All the chaos she caused since they found her in the dungeon left them feeling betrayed more than anything. Because they genuinely felt hurt by the actions of their friend. Not understanding why she would do this to them after helping them tirelessly throughout the years they'd known her. If she left… they were going to be in big trouble…

New Mobotropolis would fall…

Sally snapped back at this, appearing agitated. "You know you're endangering everyone, so why are you doing this? If you know our enemies will attack, you are intentionally putting us in danger."

Nicole tried to calm their qualms. "The city was still fully functional when I hid. Security was always intact. It was a ruse. What our enemies saw was a change that happens often in a security modification, and they saw it was nothing major, which is why there was no retaliation from them. I only modified security to throw you off that I had not entered my body yet. When I leave, there will still be a functional OS. There will, however, be some work that needs to be done to install it."

However, her remarks appeared to exacerbate their annoyance. Amy seemed displeased by her answer and crossed her arms. "What good will that do us? If you leave, we'll be in trouble no matter what."

"I have more to explain." Nicole shot back.

But Tails spoke up, appearing just as agitated. "You just killed someone! How far is this going to go?"

"Eggman is going to have a field day with us!" Antoine said in anger.

"We're going to lose everything if you leave!" Rotor said in annoyance.

"Not gonna lie Nicole, this is a bad spot you're putting us on." Sonic said with a frown.

"All of this just so you can become real…" Sally said with a frown of her own.

Nicole spoke again. "You do not understand." A frown came over her holographic face, speaking in her usual neutral tone. "And yes Sally… I do not care of the cost any longer…" Nicole took a step forward "…You do not know… how long I have waited…"

Though Nicole's voice was emotionless, the conviction in her statement surprised Sally and the Freedom Fighters. The sense of what she was saying was still present. Sally blinked in surprise, causing her and the others to once more reevaluate everything she was doing.

"When I actually am gone, our enemies will notice it is no minor change. They will know this time they can really attack us because our security will be gone. That is why I need all of your help. I still have more to explain." Nicole said, turning back around and moving to a machine to type on its keyboard.

When Nicole was done typing on the machine, she turned back to face them once more. "I will now tell you why I require your help."

The Freedom Fighters had determined expressions on their faces, eager to hear her explain why she was doing this. "What I am about to discuss with you, you must not tell anyone," Nicole said in her typical stoic manner. "It must never leave this room or the Freedom Fighters' circle."

Sally was gaining new faith in Nicole again, as she spoke sympathetically. "Nicole, please tell us…"

"It's just like when we first met you Nicole, we won't tell anyone, just like we've never told anyone," Rotor spoke intently.

Nicole nodded, donning a serious expression on her holographic. "What I am about to say goes beyond the usual suspension of disbelief, but it is the truth…" There was an expectant pause and Nicole gauged their reactions, which were of incredulity yet open-mindedness as she continued. "Your actions will determine the course of this time period. Everything is at stake..." Nicole looked at her friends again, and they were still waiting patiently, though there was a hesitance in her demeanor that was noticeable now. "I've always told you I was from the future... and I was sent back to help you... this is why..." there was one final pause, and seeing she had her friends undivided attention she spoke in her usual stoic tone "...The reason I was sent back in time was to prevent the progression of technology from growing out of control due to future timeline tampering. Individuals from this futures timeline are streaming objects and information back through time, changing the course of the future."

And the Freedom Fighters appeared surprised and perplexed for a fourth time. They were now discussing time travel and the future. What other bizarre events were they going to encounter today?

Nicole went on, "From what I understand, the time travel technology discovered in my original timeline enabled individuals to send objects back in time. As a result, it triggered an infinite amount of alterations. Something that even I was unable to calculate because even a small adjustment in the past could have dozens or even millions of effects. Altering the timeline resulted in complete mayhem. There were too many changes that could not be accounted for, and my timeline was destroyed. I was sent back to stop this…"

Sally swallowed a lump in her throat and blinked. "Nicole… where do we even start…" she paused. "Where do we fit into this?"

"That is why I need all of your help. I am attempting an alternative approach in completing my plans to halt the progression of technology." Nicole finished.

"How is being alive going to help stop altering the course of history?" Tails asked unbelievably.

"I have tried many methods exhaustingly. This one I have not. And I believe I can accomplish what I was sent to do in this manner." Nicole stated in her usual neutral tone.

And based on the information she provided; it appeared the Freedom Fighters were beginning to recognize the seriousness of her actions. The reason she lied and did what she did was to prepare them to defend her, because it was essential to their timeline's outcome. They wanted to ask more detailed questions about the other strategies she had used to keep technology from getting out of control. However, their level of trust in her was growing again. They were going to trust her judgement if she believed this approach of becoming alive to prevent technology from spiraling out of control would work. Also, so she could be alive and feel too…

She had just divulged astounding facts. She never discussed the future. She consistently maintained that knowing anything about the future would be perilous. So, the gravity of what she was doing was so great that she was forthright about it for the first time since they'd known her. It demonstrated that what she was doing was not a game. Now that they could see, they were involved in something far greater than themselves. Something incomprehensible to them. Everyone was impacted by it… they could all be destroyed by it…

It was just like when they first met her that fateful day in the Knothole years ago. She said she had come from the future to help them. And whenever they asked her about it she said it was restricted information.

It wasn't restricted anymore…

This was no game…

Sonic stepped forward with a frown on his face. "I got your back, Nicole."

And Sonic's confidence spurred the others to do the same. Sally's brows were furled and determination "okay Nicole. Whatever you need us to do, we will protect you. We always will. You are our friend."

"We love you, Nicole." Amy stated.

"We'll do everything in our power." Rotor stated with a serious expression.

"We'll be there every step of the way." Tails stated, crossing his arms.

"You ain't gonna want for nothing." Bunnie said, tipping her hat at her.

"Under our watchful eyes, no harm will befall you." Antoine said, placing his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Nicole nodded, looking around at her friends, her greatest allies. "I am glad."

As she spoke those words, the BCI machine started whirring louder, and Rotor asked a curious question, "Nicole, what is that machine?"

Nicole looked at the machine "Brain–computer interface."

Only hearing the term in passing, Rotor nodded. "I've heard of the technology, but I'm not sure what use you're using it for."

Nicole nodded. "This machine is intended to be a direct communication pathway between a living organism's brain and an external device, myself."

Tails examined her choice of words and spoke with a curious face, "What do you mean by intended?"

After hearing a beep from her portable, Nicole turned to face herself once more and watched as the screen flickered green, processing whatever task she was engaged in. She turned her back on them all and continued, "Brain-computer interface is not used for the purposes that I am attempting to achieve. In its earliest iterations, its sole purpose was to assist individuals with disabilities. However, as the technology advanced, both in my timeline and others', it took on new forms. Utilizing the brain to control technology, or in extreme cases, it was used for mind control of organics for purposes you might have guessed were unconscionable. And for that reason, there is no established procedure for what I am about to attempt. I've modified the BCI so that it can transform and move energy. To transfer and transmute bio-magnetic energy from my hardware, my portable, my body, to my physical organic body. Synchronizing with the bio-magnetic energy waves that my living body emits. Bio-magnetic energy waves resulting from the existence of my organic body. In laymen's terms, syncing to the mass of my physical organic form, using how much my organic body's mass affects the gravitational field around it to measure it, and transform the bio-magnetic energy, my soul, from my hardware, my portable, my body, to fit it."

Just from the little bit Nicole had just shared, the Freedom Fighters could not even begin to imagine the horrors that the future—or any other timeline, for that matter—might bring. They all felt existential dread at the idea that there had to be a ton of more horrible and heinous things that occurred as time went on.

Sally spoke with a raised eyebrow. "So, wait, Nicole, are you in your body now? Your heart rate stabilized."

Nicole walked over to the BCI machine and picked up her portable and spoke as she looked down at it. "The first step of this process seems to be successful. As my body did stabilize when the BCI machine activated. It seems my life-force from my portable is now attached to my physical body. There is no going back now…"

"Meaning?" Amy asked with uncertainty.

"This process cannot be reversed. My creator even did not know how I came to be. If my body fails, I could try to go back to my portable, but I am unsure if that is even possible. As there would be no one to initiate the process back to myself. Essentially, I am even uncertain of the extent of how I operate," Nicole stated.

Sonic held a frown. "So, if this doesn't work, you die too?"

"That is correct, Sonic."

Bunnie scratched her head. "But this aint adding up Nicole. Why are yiah putting yourself in a situation where you're compromised? This aint like yiah. What else aint you telling us?"

Nicole looked Bunnie in the eyes. "I am ninety nine percent sure this process will work. In my original timeline, there was a similar process used to transfer myself to my portable bodies. The only difference now is that it is with living tissue."

The Freedom Fighters couldn't keep up with the bombshells. She didn't say so, but it looked like Nicole had other forms or computer bodies than her portable. Antoine looked confused. "Why is your body not up in moving if you are in it?"

"I am attached, but soon I will… feel… my consciousness shift… as the BCI measurements syncs my bio-magnetic energy firmly to my body…" Nicole paused speaking again as if she didn't believe her own words "…I will feel…"

Saying she would feel was novel for the Freedom Fighters as well. It was bizarre to see their friend, who had never expressed any emotion in all the years they'd known her, about to do just that. However, one individual did not overlook something that might have gone unnoticed by others. Sally's brows furrowed in frustration as she gazed intently at Nicole with an annoyed expression.

She didn't express the agitation she was feeling at the moment towards Nicole, one of her best friends. She had grown to be one of her closest confidants during their struggles in the Knothole up until this point.

More than some of the others, she had a personal bond with Nicole. She had helped her deal with issues on the day-to-day basis for years now. She genuinely thought of her as a BFF. However, there was an unusual incident that occurred during the Knothole days… something odd…

Something they all could only describe as technology, not of this time, something they could not explain…

Nicole told them to disregard it even after it had occurred, saying it was an anomaly that shouldn't have happened…

And it was starting to all come full circle…

She and Nicole… she didn't know how… but…

They temporarily switched bodies for a very brief time…

She could see from Nicole's perspective inside the digital landscape where she presided…

And Nicole was walking around in her body experiencing life, it seemed like for the first time…

She felt nothing while in Nicole's body…

But Nicole was blown away by experiencing emotion for the first time…

Something began to dawn on Sally. Is this the reason she made a body? She just said it was to help complete her plans? Which was it? To allow her to feel once more? Or to help save the world? Over the years, she never talked about creating a body. But every now and then, following the body switch incident, she would confide in her for a change. She was inquisitive about what it meant to be a Mobian again…

She repeatedly expressed the sentiment to be like an organic being after the body switch…

Expressing an ambition to feel once more…

Something that none of them took seriously, thinking of it as a body switch side effect… never imagining it would get to this point… something they were unable to fathom…

And Sally had a bone to pick with her. It was obvious to all that Sally was irritated as she spoke. "So, you still maintain that you weren't lying about wanting to be real? You did all of this so you could feel again?"

"Yes, Sally," Nicole nodded.

Sally now looked angry "Well which one is it? You just said becoming alive would help you to prevent technology from going out of control. Is you being able to feel supposed to help with that as well? You initially told us all of this was so you could feel again, so now it's both?"

There was a small pause from Nicole "…It is a part of it… yes Sally…"

And it was obvious from Nicole's hesitation, her being able to feel might not be as big of a part of her plans as she claimed it to be. And Sally was able to easily sniff out her half-truth.

Sally took a deep breath and calmed herself before she spoke. She treaded lightly. "Nicole…" she paused "Even if it's both… don't you think that you were feeling my feelings while you were in my body…" Sally paused, weighing her reaction. The incident jogged even the Freedom Fighters' memories when Sally mentioned it, connecting all the dots to everything Nicole had done now. Nicole herself remained quiet to Sally's question, holding a blank expression on her holographic. Sally sighed and continued, "You never had them before that temporary body switch or whatever it was."

Nicole said nothing, and all the Freedom Fighters stared at her expectantly, waiting for a response. Although she had given Sally's remarks careful consideration many times, there were still other reasons she did this…

And to think that everything she was doing was not her will, but Sally's, was a misconceived notion. Her friends did not have all the information, nor they may never have, even if she gave it to them. She had her own free will…

Nicole then stared at Sally. "My will is my own Sally… I want to be Mobian…to be like everyone else… to feel again… no matter the when or where… It is mine…"

Despite her words striking a nerve, Sally continued to look upset and unaffected. It was personal. Whatever feelings Sally was harboring for Sonic at the time, the question of whether Nicole experienced them as her own or as Sally's because they were in each other's bodies remained open for debate.

As they reached an impasse, the power in the room began to fluctuate, and the BCI machine became even louder. The lights dimmed and brightened every few seconds, and the Freedom Fighters' expressions became serious. Nicole's holographic started to flicker and fade, and Rotor spoke, sounding concerned, "Nicole, are you alright? What's happening?

Nicole looked down at her holographic hands, which continued to glitch. Her expression was blank as always as she glanced back up at the Freedom Fighters, but she said nothing. Her holographic then dematerialized, and the power went completely out for a few moments.

"What just happened? You guys ever seen her glitch like that?" Sonic said a loud in the now darkened room.

"I have… once…" Sally said in the darkness.

"I see…" Antoine said aloud. Obviously, she was referring to the body switch incident again. Suggesting most likely Nicole had glitched in a similar manner.

But the power soon came back on, restoring light to the room. The BCI machine's loud whirring subsided to a soft hum. The Freedom Fighters soon realized, though, that Nicole's holographic was missing. They were all confused as they glanced around the room, but as soon as they turned to face each other, they heard a loud intake of breath behind themselves. Their eyes widened, and they looked behind themselves as Nicole's body on the table began to move.

Nicole rose from the operating table, blinking her eyes…

The Freedom Fighters remained quiet as they turned fully around. Nicole was expressionless for a moment, but then she donned a look of disbelief…

Her eyes widened fully…

Her mouth opened speechless…

She spoke…

Both her living body and her portable spoke at the same time…

"This is it…" she spoke in a whisper "…what it was like…" she said in disbelief, getting up off the operating table. She stumbled and the metallic cable connected to the back of her neck thunked onto the floor. She grabbed onto the side of the table to not fall onto the floor. When her feet touched the floor, she looked down, unsure of the sensation…

She donned a curious expression…

Her body shivered…

She was unsure why…

And then, all the Freedom Fighters gathered around her. As Nicole looked down at her feet, Sally walked forward with a tentatively raised hand, her upset expression softening into sympathy. "Nicole?"

With gradual effort, Nicole got to her feet. Her expression was one of pure awe as she looked around the room in a robotic manner. Her eyes widened once more as she turned to face Sally. "Sa… Sally…"

It went without saying that this time, Nicole appeared to be in her body for real. This was the fifth time in a row that the Freedom Fighters had been shocked. They found it hard to comprehend that they were witnessing this strange sequence of events—a machine coming to life. Nicole herself was in pure bliss for being able to feel again. Her eyes glazed over as she spoke in a tone full of pure joy. "This is wonderful…"

Nicole put her hands over her eyes and then took them off. Taking pleasure in the feeling of physical contact, she placed her hands on her face. Her unusual behavior baffled them all, but they had no idea what it would be like to never have felt anything at all. Nicole then approached Sally and took hold of her outstretched hand. Nicole gripped Sally's hand, and Sally turned to face the others, looking confused. "I am seeing things in two different places…. much different from my omnipresence in New Mobotropolis…"

"Are you in there, Nicole? Is it really you?" Sonic questioned a few feet away.

Nicole, however, turned to face him, and her expression went blank. She let go of Sally's hand and stayed silent, gazing at Sonic for a longer period of time than anyone else. The Freedom Fighters appeared perplexed. But Nicole's expression quickly turned into one of infatuation. Her eyes became half-lidded, and she smiled. "I remember…"

Sally appeared doubly irritated, and the rest of the guys turned to Sonic, who tugged on an invisible collar with a puzzled expression. Nicole's portable flashed green and then above them on the jumbotron screen she searched the internet. The Freedom Fighters observed as a web browser appeared on the jumbotron screen and numerous webpages quickly flashed by.

They realized that she was searching for definitions, which she had never been able to comprehend before. Nicole's eyes widened in surprise and her infatuated expression vanished as the internet browser abruptly closed. Nicole and her portable whispered at the same time, "I understand…."

Another realization dawned on them: she was in her body and had just realized she was experiencing an emotion. After the body switch, she sought to understand something she had never understood before.

She was experiencing the chemical reactions that created emotions once again…

She couldn't come up with a satisfactory explanation. There were no words to express it. An explanation was no longer necessary, now that she knew what it felt like to feel again. She just knew…

Sally was the first person to admit she was upset. But there was no turning back now. Sally frowned. "Nicole? When will this process be finished?"

But this time, when Nicole spoke, she spoke with sadness. Worry consumed her features "Soon… I am rechecking the sync of my bio-magnetic transfer of my life force… once stability is confirmed I will break connection with my portable…" she looked around at them speaking in a depressive tone. "There is more I must tell you before I am gone…"

The Freedom Fighters all watched as Nicole rolled a wheeled container from behind her equipment that she had brought in earlier. The Freedom Fighters looked bewildered by all the mood swings she was having. The front of the silver metallic container included a keypad on the front. The container opened when she entered the correct number combination. The Freedom Fighters crowded around the container as she opened it. There were disk stacked within, and a massive book that appeared to be a manual was sitting on the disc. Amy arched an eyebrow. "What? Are we about to watch movies?"

But Amy's comment seemed to send Nicole into another mood. Nicole frowned and her brows furrowed in annoyance. "This is a serious matter Amy, these are not normal disc. These discs hold over seven million hours of video spread across them. Roughly eighteen thousand hours on each disc. They hold terabytes of data. You will need them to help me."

Amy held her hands up in defense. "Sorry Nicole…"

Nicole still looked upset as she spoke. "On these discs are video of my original timeline and footage from this timeline as well. While I am growing, it might help you to glean some insight from watching them and help my living self on my mission."

"Sugar, I hate to be a downer, but what do yiah think we could figure out that you couldn't? Yuer smarter than all of us combined." Bunnie said with a frown.

Nicole slipped into some sadness again as her eyes shot to the floor. "I have failed to stop technology from expanding beyond control previously…" Nicole looked back up at them, but now with a hint of obvious jealously in her tone. She frowned at them all. "I believe my previous approach lacked an awareness that organic beings possess. A perception that lets you… create… think outside the box…"

Sally didn't care about her sass any longer. "I think we get the gist, Nicole. Your mission is to prevent technology from getting out of hand. How can we help prevent technology from going out of control? Can we prevent stuff happening in the future by stopping it here or something?"

Nicole's jealousy seemed to fade, and her mood became calm again. "You cannot. Objects and information are still streaming back at us. Eventually it will happen here too. I cannot give you a full dissertation as I am running out of time, but watching as it happened may give you an idea of how to approach it when I am eventually able to join in and help myself. It can be managed, but… I myself have not been able to fully stop it…"

"So, whatever is on the disc can help us navigate this crisis. How are we supposed to analyze that much video data, Nicole? Do we even have the time to do that?" Rotor questioned.

However, Nicole's focus seemed to shift as she returned her attention to Sonic. This time, she donned a dreamy expression and walked nearer to Sonic. Looking embarrassed, Sonic cocked his head back as Nicole drew extremely close to him. Now her mood seemed to be just vibing as she calmly stood in front of Sonic staring at him.

Rotor scratched his head. "Nicole?"

But she all but seemed to ignore him and Amy looked annoyed, too. "Sonic, talk to her."

Sonic looked over at the Freedom Fighters and all but Sally and Amy smirked a bit at his predicament, as it was obvious to everyone now, even him, that Nicole might have a bit of a crush on him. They all guessed that body switch thing was the real deal because he recalled to them what she had said to him after being in Sally's body. Which was a bit more amorous than they all thought a computer could be…

Sonic gave them all a wise look and spoke "Nicole?"

"Yes, Sonic…" she said in a calm manner.

Sonic sighed, wondering, why him, as he donned a serious expression "How are we going to watch all the stuff on those discs, Nicole?"

"You do not have the capacity and it does not matter…" Nicole spoke offhandedly. "…You are a very appealing hedgehog… just as before…" Sonic took a step back but Nicole's attention and goofy smile remained firmly on him as she continued stepping forward with him. "You must find whatever you can on the disc. I have instructions on how to reinstall the OS on my portable to return the operations of the city to a functional state once I am gone."

She turned on a printer on one of the many neighboring desks, and numerous documents started to print from it. Sonic exhaled with relief as Nicole finally turned away from him.

But Nicole collapsed to her knees as she finished her sentence, groaning in pain. Her hand shot to the spot where the cable stuck out of her neck. Tails and Sally bent down next to her as the BCI machine resumed its loud whirring. Tails looked worriedly at her, "Nicole, are you all right? What's wrong?"

Nicole gritted her teeth. "This sensation is the opposite… what is this?"

"That is pain, Nicole. It doesn't feel good," Sally said with a serious expression.

"I see… ahh…" she gripped the cable harder. "The numbing medication must be wearing off. I will need medical attention soon…" she lifted her head with a frown looking around at her friends. "I have made my final calculations and I am severing the connection to my portable… I will be wholly present in my physical body only in a few minutes time…"

And despite how upset they were with her, they all bent down and huddled around her. Sonic spoke seriously, "Tell us everything else you need to before…you know…"

"We aren't going to let anything happen to you, Nicole." Sally said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Nicole's head dipped. "There is also a book, a manual in the container with my disc. Please, give it to me when I am ready. It is a coding manual for my portable. You will not be able to understand it, I will."

"You sure about that? You wouldn't mind if we give it a shot?" Tails said, now looking saddened at their friend's state.

"I will be able to read it… I am sure of it…" Nicole said with her head still dipped. The BCI machine was getting louder, and the power was beginning to fluctuate again. The computer screens all throughout the control room begin to glitch and the Freedom Fighters knew it was the end of the line.

This time Nicole strained to lift her head, but she did so, looking to be in more pain than she was before. She huffed, and she squeezed one of her eyes shut as she looked around at them. "There is one final thing I must tell you. It is of the most importance…" she flinched, clinching her eyes shut for a moment but opened her eyes again "Tails… Rotor…"

Tails and Rotor nodded and listened intently. She spoke looking directly at them "The compiler I created so that you can create and program in your programming language for my portable to interpret… I will not be there to restrict you any longer…" Nicole donned a serious expression "My portables OS will be unencrypted… open… and unrestricted…"

Tails looked surprised "You don't mean…"

"Yes… my mathematical modeling simulations will have no protection until new programming is in place to restrict it again. It must be written in my portables OS programming language. You are able to access it because of the compiler, and I cannot delete it because you need it to continue operating New Mobotropolis when I am gone. My simulations are unlimited…" Nicole stated.

"But you said the technology you created for us to help us had limitations." Antoine inquired.

"That is true. But I also lied. Information was restricted to protect and prevent technology from spreading faster than it was supposed to. A part of my mission." Nicole paused and they all almost knew what she was going to say next. "Anything can be created with no restrictions…"

And the Freedom Fighters' stomachs dropped as what she was saying was starting to sink in. Anything they could think of could be modeled… engineered and made a reality…

Technology…

Going out of control…

The implication being even they could create something dangerous…

Nicole grunted in pain again, and the Freedom Fighters looked down at her sympathetically. When the recent wave of pain subsided, Nicole lifted her head again, speaking to them all, "No one can ever see the video on those discs. Do not let the disc, me, or my portable fall into the wrong hands. I will give you one final warning to never use the unrestricted mathematical modeling simulations my OS is capable of. If any of these things happen… powerful technology can be created… and if any powerful technology from my time fell into the wrong hands, this time line would diverge into a similar fate of my time…"

As Nicole finished speaking, it became a sobering moment for them all. It now seemed the weight of the world was on their shoulders yet again…

They had to protect Nicole no matter what…

Despite their bias…

Even if they didn't agree with her actions… even after everything she told them…

They still didn't entirely comprehend why she was doing all of this. However, that was now irrelevant. Even if they wanted to, they were unable to stop her. The minute they stepped into the control room it was out of their control. The Freedom Fighters exchanged resolute stares, knowing that safeguarding Nicole was fundamental to the fate of their future and preventing their world from slipping into chaos.

They just hoped they could follow through as Nicole expected them to…

Nicole was starting to look faint, and her voice was weak as she spoke. "Once connection is severed, the city will no longer function until you reinstall my OS on my portable. The city's force field will shut down, all security will cease to function, and our enemies will notice. You will not have a lot of time…"

Sally nodded in understanding. "We got it, Nicole. Everyone is going to hate us more. Send an evacuation order, Nicole, before you leave. We are going to have to evacuate with no notice…"

"Yes Sally…" she responded.

"And we need to get yiah medical attention right away. Can you contact Dr. Quack? Tell him thare is an emergency in the control room." Bunnie questioned.

"Yes, Bunnie…" she responded.

"We will not let anyone know it's you. We'll lie and say an attacker hurt a civilian in the castle. Hopefully, Dr. Quack doesn't recognize you outside of your purple robes." Antoine said with a frown.

"Everyone's going to think we're under attack anyway, with the city shutting down. It's a good enough excuse, I think…" Tails said with a frown.

Nicole then looked up at them, all conveying a level of emotion they'd never seen from her. With a pained expression on her face, and her still gripping the cable in her neck tightly, she spoke to them all "… Thank you…"

The Freedom Fighters all blinked in surprise. They didn't think Nicole was capable of such a thing yet, but just in her short time of experiencing emotions again, she caught on pretty quick. They all smiled down at her as she spoke again. "I am ready… I am cutting the connection to my portable…"

Immediately after uttering those words, the room's heavy metal security doors opened. The control room's computers immediately started to display blue error screens. The city's force field monitor appeared on the large jumbotron screen above them, with the power gradually ebbing from it as the alarms throughout the castle started to sound. Notifying them that the city was about to switch to auxiliary power. That meant they wouldn't have much time to reinstall Nicole's portable's operating system. Nicole's portable's code ran the technology that powered the city, and without it, the city would not have power.

Nicole then shifted her focus from everyone… to one individual…

Despite the extreme pain she was experiencing at the moment, she stared directly at Sonic… she held a pained expression on her face…

Sonic held a grin at her…

At that, Nicole slowly smiled back at him… an infatuated expression crossing her face yet again…

She shakily removed her hand from gripping the cable in the back of her neck and moved it towards Sonic…

She reached out towards him… and Sonic caught her outreached hand…

Sonic gripped her hand and squeezed it…

Nicole did the same in return…

Nicole looked up at Sonic with a dreamy expression, and Sonic nodded at her. Nicole still did not understand the gestures of organics, but she mimicked him, nodding her head despite being in much pain. The Freedom Fighters watched the exchange feeling sadness at seeing Nicole in so much pain. But seeing Sonics friendly gesture warmed all their hearts.

The pleasant moment was washed away when the cable's drill in Nicole's neck went off and forced itself out. Nicole's eyes widened in shock, and her mouth opened wide. Her head lifted upwards. The pain was excruciating. She started to bleed profusely from the back of her neck, and the bloody drill flopped onto the floor. Without saying a word, she collapsed onto her stomach, and the pain quickly set in.

It all went black…

Nicole, in a fog, heard numerous sounds all around her. She believed she heard voices she recognized calling out for her to hurriedly move her somewhere. She gripped onto the back of her neck, which made the pain greater, squeezing her eyes shut. Nicole didn't recall being held down and moved, nor did she recall hearing herself scream in pain. It was such a blur that all she could remember was staring down at Sally and Rotor from a different perspective through a security camera… then her vision went dark and she only had vision outside with her friends …

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Will the Freedom fighters be able to protect Nicole? Will the Freedom Fighters be able to protect the city now that it is defenseless? What happened to Nicole? Find out next time! Later.