Chapter 48: Assembly
Location: Government House
Five hours later…
As the squad car pulled to a stop outside the gates of the Prime Minister's residence, Sally let out a sigh of relief. Her ordeal had left her exhausted, leaving her desiring nothing more then to get some sleep. The officer who had been escorting her was speaking to a security officer manning the gate, likely having been assigned from the ISD. The gate slid aside, allowing the police cruiser entry, as it pulled to a stop outside of the sprawling estate. Sally's friends and companions were waiting for her outside, alongside the Prime Minister and his family.
"Sally-girl, we were all worried about you," Bunnie stated, as she emerged from the back seat of the vehicle.
"Sorry. I should've brought one of you with me," she apologized.
"Stick and I were able to find NICOLE," Amy said, handing the handheld over to the Princess, "She was suffering a system error, but Rotor and Tails were able to correct it."
"Thanks. I'm fairly certain that Dr. Ellidy wouldn't have been pleased to learn that I had lost her."
The brainchild of Dr. Ellidy, NICOLE had been named for Queen Nicole; the Traliusian-born wife of King Reginald Acorn. Over time, NICOLE's experiences had allowed the AI to develop into a fully sentient being.
"I'm sure you've had an exhausting day," the Prime Minister said.
"I definitely have," she admitted, "And I still have so much to do before my speech to the National Assembly."
As the group headed indoors, Rotor grabbed the arm of Sticks, wishing to speak with the Badger out of earshot of the others.
"Did you see the way Sally was acting?" the Walrus whispered.
"Yeah. She seems way too happy for someone who was just kidnapped."
It hadn't been the first time either, as Fang the Sniper and his gang had abducted just prior to the Xorda's assault. They had intended to ransom her off for some quick cash, only for their plan to foiled by Sonic and Mina.
"Want me to keep any eye on her?" Sticks asked, after a prolonged silence, "Make sure she's not an evil robot alien clone?"
"If you don't mind. Your...eccentric behaviour will go unnoticed by the others."
Eager to accomplish her mission, the Badger immediately saluted the Walrus and vanished into the interior of the estate. Rotor hoped that it was the nothing, that he was worrying needlessly, but in the pit of his stomach he knew something was wrong with Sally. Until Sticks could come across evidence that would either confirmed or denied his concerns, he would be able to voice them to the others. He didn't want to needlessly spread mistrust amongst the group if it his concerns were unfounded. The Walrus could only hope that he and Sticks weren't the only ones to have noticed that something was amiss, and that one of the others would say something.
Location: Capitol City
Afternoon, two days later...
Seated in the back of a limousine, Sally watched as the buildings passed by the tinted windows. Geoffrey and Antoine were seated beside her, both silent witnesses to the nervousness that was gnawing at her.
"Perhaps we should postpone your speech," Carmichael suggested.
"I wouldn't want your considerable efforts to be for nothing."
"Given that you had just been kidnapped, I think would be a completely reasonable response."
"Doing so would only risk embolden thugs like them."
The Prime Minister had to admit that she was correct, and that postponing her speech could encourage other extremists to do the same. Things within the National Assembly were dysfunctional enough, they didn't need people going around kidnapping politicians they disagreed with.
"Besides, she has us escorting her this time," Geoffrey stated, gesturing to Antoine.
"The ISD is also escorting us," Carmichael added, "You'd have to be a fool to attempt anything."
The vehicle eventually pulled to a stop out in front of the National Assembly, a building with a gleaming white façade with a bronzed roof. She remembered that it had been pointed out to them by the Prime Minister aide, who she hadn't encountered since their arrival. Numerous photographers and reporters were camped outside, hoping to snap photos or get a question answered as they exited from the vehicle.
"AMBASSADOR! AMBASSADOR! JENNIFER SCHLESINGER FOR UNN. HOW DO YOU PLAN ON CONVINCING THE ASSEMBLY TO ALLY AGAINST THE EGGMAN EMPIRE!" one of the reporters shouted.
Ignoring the questions being thrown at them, they marched up the steps and stepped through the entryway. Everyone was subjected to the same security check, and Sally was no different as her bag was searched.
"Victor!" a voice called out, grabbing the Princess' attention.
Approaching the Prime Minister was a middle-aged man, dressed in a dark suit with dark hair and a full beard that was heavily saturated with gray.
"Arcturus, so good to see you," he greeted, "Have you seen Jorgensen?"
"No. In fact, no one has, nor have I been able to get a hold of him."
Waved through the security checkpoint, the remainder of the conversation was drowned out by the noise. Her attention immediately became drawn to the cavernous hall that she had entered, with walls that were covered in bright wood panels with numerous portraits hanging from them, while the floor itself was made of slabs of black marble laced with gold. Sometime later Geoffrey and Antoine reunited with her, leaving them to wait for the Prime Minister.
"Mon Dieu!" Antoine exclaimed, "Zis place is huge, non?"
"Makes you wonder what our parliament will look like," Geoffrey commented.
"Ambassador, allow me to introduce you to the President of the National Assembly; Anthony Godheim," the Prime Minister introduced.
The party turned to find a bald-headed man standing behind them, dressed in a finely tailored black suit.
"A pleasure to meet you, Ambassador," he said, "We'll be opening this emergency session of the National Assembly momentarily."
"We'd better get a move on then," Carmichael suggested.
The group headed into the Assembly Chamber; a large semicircular white chamber with a high ceiling that housed the 308 elected officials. There were other seats in the middle of the chamber where the President of the National Assembly resided along with numerous other officials. The chamber was quickly filling up with people although Sally noticed that several remained vacant as she stood next to the Prime Minister, waiting for the emergency session to begin.