- Chapter 37 -

Lazy Sunday

Knothole

The day after his return to Knothole, Sonic and Sally walked through Knothole until they made it to the Lake of Rings. Taking a seat nearby, Sonic steeled himself before telling her what happened on Angel Island.

"We got up there, and we were almost immediately attacked," he began. "Turns out, Echidnas aren't as extinct as we thought. There's one left. Knuckles."

"Knuckles…" Sally let out. "I swear I've heard that name before. Why does it sound familiar?"

She shook her head. "Anyway, continue."

"Robotnik had gotten to him first," Sonic went on. "Duped him into thinking I was the bad guy after the Chaos Emeralds, not him. He was beyond stubborn, a real knucklehead."

He chuckled slightly before his face fell. "He accused me of being a murderer, and later I found out why. I met up with Eggman, I asked where the other survivors were… He just said 'What survivors?'"

Sally gasped, her hands going to her mouth.

"Yeah," Sonic nodded. "Turns out the first thing the bastard did when he landed was kill the rest of the prisoners." His fists clenched. "All of them... except one. A kid managed to escape. Knuckles found her and hid her, but the damage was done."

He looked at his reflection in the water. "She hated me. I have never seen anyone look at me with such rage that wasn't Eggman… She was counting on me to save her, Sal, and I left her and all those people to go down with the Death Egg."

In a fit of anger and disgust, he swiped his hand through the water, distorting his reflection. Sally placed a hand on his arm.

"What happened from there?" she asked gently.

"Kat wanted payback. To make me suffer for leaving her," Sonic sighed. "So I let her."

Sally blinked, while Sonic let out a humorless chuckle.

"For a kid, she's pretty strong. Don't tell Tails, but my rib still aches from where she broke it."

He rubbed his side at that.

"You seriously stood there and let her beat you to a pulp?" Sally demanded.

"She needed to vent," Sonic defended. "Work through the rage and let herself grieve. You should have seen her, Sal. She was a mess… Angry, lost, scared… and in so much pain, all because of me. Because I left her and her people behind."

Seeing the normally confident and peppy Sonic look so forlorn and depressed, Sally felt a piece of her heart break.

"Please, don't do that to yourself," Sally pleaded. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't know.."

"Because I just assumed there was no one else on board. I didn't bother to look." Sonic curled up, hugging his legs. "And now, because of me, hundreds of people are dead. I failed, Sal… and they paid the price. She paid the price."

After a minute, Sally pulled Sonic into a comforting hug. Sonic stiffened before slowly returning it. She didn't say anything, just soothingly petting his head. They sat there silently for a while, and eventually, Sonic pulled away, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Well... I needed that more than I thought," he admitted.

"You needed to vent so you could grieve," Sally told him.

Sonic gave a small smirk, slowly standing up. "Guess I did."

"You came back for them, that's what matters," Sally insisted. "You can't change the past, Sonic. All you can do is learn from it and move on."

"I know," Sonic said with a nod.

Sally smiled at that. "So, when do we need to go get this girl?"

"Never," Sonic replied. "She wants to stay on Angel Island. She got pretty close to Knuckles while we were there."

"I see. Well, so long as she's happy." She let out a sigh. "I'll handle delivering the news to the other survivors. I think you've been through enough."

"Agreed," Sonic leaned back, stretching his arms. "I need a vacation."

"After everything, I'd imagine so," Sally agreed.

Later, Sonic was seated in his room, bouncing a ball off the wall. A knock rang out on the door, causing Sonic to pause his activity.

"Come in!"

Tails peeked in, smiling happily.

"Hey, pal. Since you've been down for a while, I think I've got the perfect thing to help lift your spirits."

Sonic perked, then Tails opened the door. This revealed a yellow-furred Mobini dog with blue eyes, brown spots on his back and over his left eye, a brown-tipped left ear, and a red collar. It ran in and almost immediately jumped onto Sonic's bed, pinning him down and licking his face vigorously

"Muttski!" Sonic laughed. "Down, boy! Down! Down!"

Muttski backed off, panting and barking as Sonic sat up, wiping slobber off his face.

"Tails, when did you-?"

"After everything that's been going on, I figured you could use some emotional support. So, I talked to your parents and they sent Muttski over from Christmas Island."

"Well, I'm glad you did," Sonic scratched Muttski's ears. "I feel better already."

Muttski barked, licking his hand.

Sometime later, Tails, Rotor, and Porker examined Bunnie's robotic limbs at her request.

"So... what are we looking for again?" Porker asked.

"I wanna see what all I can do with these robot parts," Bunnie explained. "Better to find out now than for it to hit randomly."

"Hmmm…" Rotor mused. "Well, we've seen a number of weapons being wielded by the Roboticized Mobians. It stands to reason your limbs would be equipped with a few features."

"Roboticized Mobian is a bit of a mouthful," Sonic said as he entered. "Let's just call 'em Robians."

They shrugged at that before going back to work.

"Ever since I got these parts, I've been eatin' a lot more, runnin' out of energy faster," Bunnie said. "What's up with that?"

"Well, you're only half-roboticized," Tails recalled. "The robot parts don't have an actual battery. My guess is that in lieu of that, they're powered by your biological caloric intake."

"Basically, think like how Sonic can put away stuff like fifty chili dogs in one sitting," Porker offered.

"Not to mention all the naps I take," Sonic added. "Running as fast as I do really burns through the calories."
Bunnie nodded at that as Tails looked at her feet.

"We've seen a lot of robots with jet boots on their feet," he recalled. "I think that's a good place to start."

"Let's take this outside first," Rotor interjected. "Don't want her to bash her head on the ceiling."

"Good idea," Bunnie agreed.

They went outside, where Bunnie walked into a clearing.

"So what do I do? Click my heels?"

"It's as good a start as any," Porker decided.

Bunnie shrugged before clicking her heels together. There was a beep, and she suddenly rocketed upward.

"Well, that answers that," Sonic said casually.

"Someone get me down from here!" Bunnie screamed.

"I got it," Tails flew up to her, seeing her flailing about in a panic. "Just relax, Bunnie."

"How am I supposed to relax?!" Bunnie demanded. "My feet are on fire!"

"Bunnie, calm down," Tails soothed. "Just focus."

He took her hand. "I've got you."

She gripped his hand, taking a few breaths.

"Now, let's try leveling out, and flying straight," Tails went on.

Bunnie nodded and they began working together, Tails showing her the ins and outs of flying.

"Maybe we should save any weapons for when she's done with flying," Porker suggested.

Rotor nodded. "Agreed."

Later, Sonic was in the training room, seeing Antoine practicing with his sword.

"So, any progress on your Sword Spin Attack?" he asked.

"Spin Blade Ball Attack," Antoine corrected. "And I believe so, yes."

"Alright," Sonic said. "Just let me find something to take cover behind."

"You're not letting me live that down anytime soon, are you?" Antoine deadpanned.

"Probably not," Sonic confessed as he ducked behind a group of training dummies.

With a sigh, Antoine prepared his attack. He did a few squats before curling into a ball and shooting forward, his sword outstretched as he sliced through a thick log. Fortunately for Sonic, he kept his grip firmly on his sword as he stuck the landing.

"Are you not impressed?" he boasted.

Sonic came out, nodding and applauding lightly.

"Not bad," he complimented. "The Badniks don't stand a chance."

After dealing with Bunnie, Tails examined Shortfuse's Cybernik armor while Sticks sat off to the side.

"What're you doin'?" Sticks asked.

"Something Shorty asked me to," Tails explained. "Since he's encased in a Badnik shell, we're trying to work out how he can eat and all that."

"Helmet doesn't come off for that, but I have some idea," Shortfuse added. "Whenever I'm out in the sun and all that, I feel better. More energized."

Tails checked, seeing what appeared to be solar panels in his shoulders.

"Well, that explains it," he said. "You're solar-powered."

"So he feeds off the sun?" Sticks questioned. "Are you leeching away our precious sunlight? Are you trying to consume the sun, you monstrous Sun Eater?!"

"No, Sticks," Tails cut in. "Sunlight just powers him up, gives him energy and all that. Solar energy is clean and renewable. There's no need to worry."

"Oh, alright then," Sticks relaxed for a few minutes before her curiosity got the best of her. "So, if he's wrapped up in metal, how does he, y'know…"

"STICKS!" both Tails and Shorty shouted.

"Okay, okay!" Sticks stood up. "I'm leaving."

She walked out, and there was a moment of silence.

"Great," Shortfuse sighed. "Now I wanna know how I-"

"Probably a built-in filter or toilet like the astronauts use," Tails interjected. "Let's just give you some semblance of privacy and leave it at that."

Shortfuse nodded. "...I can't wait until we find a way to get me out of this thing."

"We're working on it, Shorty. I promise," Tails assured. "Just give us some time."

Later on, Sonic was playing fetch with Muttski. As he lobbed the ball across the field, a shadow approached from behind him.

"Excuse me."

Sonic turned to see a Mobian hedgehog with pink fur and green eyes, wearing a green blouse with a frilly, orange skirt. She had a red headband on her head, and looked about a year or two younger than Sonic.

"Uh… hi," Sonic greeted. "Can I help you with something?"

"My name is Amy Rose. I sent in a letter a few days ago. I've come to apply for the Freedom Fighters."

Sonic just blinked at that.

-X-

At Freedom HQ, Amy sat before the rest of the Freedom Fighters.

"The letter came while you were on Angel Island," Bunnie explained. "With all that was going on, we forgot to mention it."

Sally had the letter in hand, looking it over. "You're from Mercia?"

"Yeah," Amy nodded. "Prince Robert O'Hedge is my cousin."

"Rob o' the Hedge?" Sonic asked. "Whoa."

"You know him?" Amy questioned.

"I've heard of him," Sonic clarified. "He's a bit of a legend in these parts. A hero and vigilante, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor."

"His contributions are a bit more legal nowadays," Amy said.

"So why come all the way out to Knothole?" Sally asked.

"Because I tried to join up with my cousin's resistance, but he refused to let me join," Amy explained. "He insisted it was too dangerous and that I had 'no place on the battlefield'. So, I decided to try my luck here."

"Resistance?" Tails asked.

"After the Westside Island incident, you guys have gotten a bit of renown," Amy told them. "Rob decided to form his own Freedom Fighter group in the event Dr. Robotnik comes knocking."

"Well, first, what exactly qualifies you to be a Freedom Fighter?" Sonic asked.

Amy blinked. "Qualities?"

"Yeah, what can you offer the team?" Sonic gestured to the rest of the group as he went on. "Sally's our tactician. Tails, Porker, and Rotor are all brains and can hold their own in a fight. Antoine's a trained soldier in the Acorn army. Sticks is a trapper. Johnny knows martial arts. Bunnie and Shorty have robotic enhancements, and then there's my speed and abilities."

"Well…" Amy thought. "I'm good at fortune-telling. Tarot cards and all that."

"That's a buncha baloney!" Sticks declared. "Ain't no cards tellin' the future. Ya got squat, doncha?"

"Sticks, there's no need to be rude," Sally chastised.

"I'm just telling the truth," Sticks insisted. "And I ain't gonna sugar coat anythin'."

"Sticks could have worded it a lot better, but she's got a point," Sonic admitted. "We don't really have any place for a fortune teller/palm reader on the team. I'm sorry, Amy, but you don't have what it takes to be a Freedom Fighter."

"What?!" Amy objected. "But I have the heart! The sense of justice! I wanna protect Mobius from Robotnik and the like!"

"That's all well and good, but what you don't have is experience," Sally told her. "We appreciate your eagerness, Amy, but we can't in good conscience let you on our team."

One could pinpoint the very second Amy's heart ripped in half. She stood there, completely shattered, before sniffling and running out of HQ.

"You think we were a little too hard on her?" Bunnie asked.

"What we do is too dangerous for anyone who doesn't know what they're doing," Sonic justified. "I've seen too many people go down already."

"Agreed," Sally nodded.

-X-

Outside of Knothole, Amy kicked a can, angry tears running down her face. As she fumed over her rejection, she clenched her fists in determination.

"I'll show them I've got what it takes," she vowed. "I'm not gonna give up. I'll be the prettiest... the most powerful... and overall best Freedom Fighter ever! That oughta get Sonic's attention!"

She straightened, then took off, determined to prove herself.

Author's Note:

We needed that breather, didn't we?

Now, Muttski is from both SatAM and Archie. As for Christmas Island, Sonic fans may recognize that as Sonic's birthplace in the games. It still is here, and the Hedgehog family has a summer home on the island; they alternate between it and their house in Mobotropolis. The character of Rob o' the Hedge is also from Archie.

Also, you may have noticed Amy's wearing her Classic outfit. She'll upgrade to her modern one over time.

Please R&R. Until next time!