Chapter 2

After the chapel was cleaned up and Cyrus' body was taken to the morgue, it was decided that they would just sign a marriage license and move onto the wedding feast. The event was somber but it was free food.

Sonic sat alone with a glass of champagne. Sally brought him a plate of chili dogs. "Sonic, are you alright?" She asked before sitting beside him.

He took the plate. "My sister, who I thought dead, appeared out of nowhere and killed my best friend. On my wedding day."

Sally sat beside him. "I don't know what happened but I don't think it's fair for her to blame you." She took his hand.

Sonic squeezed her hand. "What do you think she's going to do, Sally? We have to protect our kingdom."

Sally thought about it. "I don't know but… she did warn us so that gives us time to figure out what she's planning and stop it." She kissed his cheek.

Sonic nodded, his eyes downcast. He didn't know how but she was right. They just needed to focus on protecting the kingdom.

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Her gown dragged the ground as she returned home to a large hillside mansion. Her eyes were hard and icy as she entered.

The mansion had changed since they'd moved in. The walls were cloaked in a mournful black and lined with red roses. In the center of the great room with its domed skylight was a large cauldron bubbling with a purple liquid. On the wall, a large portrait of Bartleby looked out over the room. She poured herself a glass of wine and sat on an overstuffed red easy chair. As she drank, her thoughts flew to a day or two after their escape from the city….

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Sonia woke up with her leg feeling better. It felt like it had never been injured. Maybe it wasn't. Maybe it was all a terrible dream. She sat up and looked around. She was in Bartleby's bed. She must have spent the night with him and didn't remember. She got dressed, grateful he let her keep spare clothing there, and left the bedroom.

"Bartleby?" She called as she looked for him. He was probably having his morning tea and letting her get some much needed sleep.

She went to the living room but he wasn't there. "Bartleby, where are you?" She called until she saw a group of people, the rest of the aristocracy all in black standing outside of the conservatory. They stood aside when they saw her. She began to shiver as she stepped inside.

In a box made of glass, he lay as if he was sleeping. Reality came crashing down on her as she realized it wasn't a dream. It was like watching him die all over again. She walked up to the coffin and looked down at his face.

"Bartleby?" She said softly as she fell to her knees, sobbing brokenly.

A shadow settled over and she looked up at the tyrant she had feared for so long. His own expression was eaten alive with pain, tears staining his cheeks. He knelt beside her and put his hand on her shoulder. She took the unspoken invitation and leaned into his big chest as she wept.

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She gazed up at the portrait longingly. "I love you, Bartleby. It won't be long now. I promise." Tears rolled down her cheeks.

"That's right, my princess," a feminine voice came into the room. "Don't worry. Everything will come off right in the end." A reptilian anteater with teal flesh stood behind her. "How was your visit? Did you get your desired reactions?"

"I did, Teacher. My brothers both seemed rather distraught over the loss of their friend. A lot more than when they thought I was dead. And all Aleena had was excuses," she glared into the cauldron. "It doesn't matter. I wasn't expecting much more. It tells me all I need to know. Mobotropolis has led a charmed life in the last five years. A charmed life attained at the expense of innocent lives. It's time to exact payment." She looked at Sleet. "You know what to do."

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Manic left the party early. Not that anyone was really partying. His own sister killed their friend. His sister hated him. It was nights like these that he was glad to have his own personal bar in his room. He poured himself a shot of rum and sat down on his orange easy chair. Wait. Orange?

Before he had time to realize his error, a pair of arms clutched him tightly and transformed into the towering bounty hunter, Dingo.

The wolf laughed with glee. "Five years later, you still fall for it! And Sleet says I'm an idiot!" He held the struggling hedgehog. "Now, let's go see your sister."

Manic stopped struggling. This was his chance to talk to her. To talk sense into her. He said nothing as Dingo took him out the window where Sleet waited in a jet.

"Why does Sonia want to see me?" He asked.

Sleet glared. "You'll find out. You're a key ingredient in her plans for Mobotropolis." He chuckled. "Do as you're told and you might survive."

The green hedgehog trembled. Would Sonia really kill him or try to? "I won't help her hurt people. If she wants revenge, she can take me. But I won't help her hurt innocent people if that's her plan."

Dingo rolled his eyes. "Innocent people? Nahh, she'd never hurt the innocent. Good thing Mobotropolis has so few innocent people."

Manic frowned. "We're innocent. We didn't know she was alive. Mother told us…"

"Oh shut up. You're an adult, you didn't have to do what mommy said," Sleet jabbed. "You should have been there. You didn't hear it as we did. Her screams from beneath the rubble. Her leg almost crushed. Screaming for help while Bartleby slowly bled to death."

Manic's lips trembled. "We didn't know what was going to happen…" He pulled his legs in on himself as he imagined the screams. His sister had been hurt and he'd left her. Maybe he did deserve to be punished.

The wolf looked ahead as the landscape changed below them. "It's a shame too… I actually liked you back then…"

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Once the guests were gone, Aleena turned to the Oracle. They went into his chambers where his cauldron boiled expectantly.

"I don't know what you want me to tell you, Aleena," the Oracle said. "When your children reunited, I gave you the next step. I kept pushing you and urging you to take it. Why didn't you listen to me?"

"I couldn't let her marry him! He wasn't good enough for her. His family were traitors to our family. All of the aristocracy betrayed us to Robotnik!" She screamed. "And you wanted me to let her marry his protégé!" She stomped around. She sighed. "Besides, Robotnik would never have gone for it. He arrested Bartleby or did you forget that? He obviously didn't care about the boy. He was willing to roboticize that boy to trap my children. I had to deal with him before he got us all killed." Aleena looked at the cauldron,

The Oracle rolled his eyes. "Well now, we have a problem. Your daughter is quite angry and I would say she has a right to be." His eyes were cold and angry.

"And I need your help to fix it. You're the palace mage, it's your job," she retorted. "Can you see what she has planned and how we can stop her?"

The Wizard sighed and looked into his cauldron. "I can try, my queen." He held out his hand. He focused on the missing princess. "Her heart is filled with thoughts of vengeance but… there's something else… I'm trying… ahhhh!" He screamed as steam caught his face. He flew back and rubbed at his eyes.

Aleena gasped. "Oracle! Don't rub them. Hold still…" She held her hand over his eyes and cast a healing spell. "What was that?"

The Oracle regained his breath. "A protection spell. She blocked me from seeing her plans. But… she's not alone. I can see that. She has a new teacher… My sister… Priya." He shook his head.

The queen sighed with relief. "Well if this teacher is your sister, that must be a good thing. Right?" She asked.

The Oracle bathed his face with water and turned troubled eyes on Aleena. "No… This is not good at all." He trembled. "My sister and I were orphans, the only survivors of our kind. We were adopted by a great sorcerer called Merlin, a distant descendant of THE Merlin, and he taught us magic. I chose the path of Oracle. Being able to see the future amongst other skills was helpful. My sister specialized in the dark arts. Like Merlin, we both wanted to help people with our magic. But everyone only wanted my skills. All except the humans who sought to exploit her. And she despises the Hedgehog Royal Family." He explained.

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Manic looked around the mansion as Sleet forced him along. He remembered Sonia dragging them there several times to either help Bartleby or to ask for his help. Once it was bright and cheery but now the windows were all covered with black curtains and the white marble had been replaced with black. The silence was eerie.

"Look…" he began. "I didn't know what was going to happen. We thought it was a trap. We tried to stop her from going…"

Sleet raised his hand, silencing the hedgehog. "Just stop digging. Your grave is deep enough."

"Fine… I just don't understand… is Robotnik really dead? Why is she working in his name?" He demanded. "What he did was way worse."

"You would think so…" her voice answered as he saw her looking up at the portrait. "I was there for you, Manic. When you were upset over Ferrel. I was there for you and Sonic, I supported you. Even though you weren't supportive of me in my grief. You called me a spoiled princess. I broke off my engagement to join the resistance. I gave up all of my friends and my entire world for you." Her body shook with pain. "I gave the resistance everything I had. I did whatever I was told. What Robotnik did was bad… Lady Wyndermere was the only true mother I ever had. But what you and Sonic did… what Aleena did… I needed you. And you weren't there. And that betrayal cost me dearly."

The green hedgehog looked down. "I'm sorry about Bartleby, but Sonia…" He trailed off as her red, shining eyes glared at him. "Why did you have me kidnapped?" He skipped the rest of his speech. "What are you planning?"

"That's not your business. What you should be concerned about is what I need with you, Master Thief," she turned about. "Mother's staff. She keeps it with her at all times. And…" She held out her broken medallion. "I know Sonic has the other half. I need yours and his as well. You will get them for me. Help me and I might forgive you."

Manic trembled. "Why? What are you going to do with them? Sonia, I beg of you. Don't do this. Whatever it is you're planning, please. The people don't deserve this."

She shrugged. "Bartleby didn't deserve to die. He didn't deserve to be arrested. He didn't deserve to be abandoned by a group that swore to protect the innocent people of Mobotropolis!" She shouted, slammed her fist into the wall. "I certainly didn't deserve to be abandoned by my brothers!"

Manic's lip wobbled. "And I will never be able to forgive myself for that, but please… if you must have revenge, take it out on me. Please. Spare everyone else." He begged.

She reached out her hand and he felt his throat tighten. "Oh, your offer is tempting… but… I don't want revenge. I want justice." She released him and he gasped for air. "I still need those items. You will get them for me or… another member of the resistance will pay." Her hand opened and an image of a red-headed mouse was seen crying over Cyrus.

The green hedgehog looked at Trevor. "Sonia… fine. I'll get you what you need. Just don't hurt anyone else. Please. He wouldn't want you to. He was a better person than that."

She glared at her brother. "You're right. He was a much better person then you ever gave him credit for. And the resistance killed him but, in his name, I give you this one chance to earn clemency. Go, bring me those items by tomorrow night, or I swear, Trevor will be punished next." She flung her hand at him, making him flee from her presence.

Sleet was waiting for him. "I will take you back to the palace and you will do as Her Ladyship demands." His silver-blue eyes were steely and cold. Manic felt chills run up and down his spine. "Oh, she's become quite the leader in the last five years. Ever since you betrayed her."

His golden eyes burned with unshed tears. "Look, what do you want me to say!" The green hedgehog asked. "I feel terrible for what happened. I wish I could take it back but I can't. It can't be done. I can't turn back time. I'm sorry and I'll do whatever I have to. She's my sister! I thought I was doing what she wanted me to do. That's no excuse though. I took the wrong advice! What do you want from me?"

The silver wolf sneered. "Just knowing how much this is tormenting you is enough." He escorted the lad to the plane.

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AN: What does Sonia have planned for Mobotropolis? Who is the Oracle's sister and what are her intentions? Will Manic be able to get the staff and the medallions?