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Chapter IV
Hector

"Look, Elise. This is Solaris, the flame of hope."
"It's so beautiful..."
"When the flame has grown large enough, our world will change.
Solaris will allow us to control time and move through history.
People will be able to rectify past mistakes and avoid bitter fate."
"Will we be able to see momma?"
"Yes, Elise. We'll both be able to see your mother once again."

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Hector the Fift, Duke of Soleanna, was sitting at the window of his study, high up in one of the east-facing castle towers. Besides some heads of various dangerous animals, hunting trophies from his days of youth, staring down at him from their places on the wall, the small brick room contained a work table, a reading desk, and an oversized, very comfortable armchair, in which even the imposing figure of the aged but still stoutly built sovereign looked almost lost.

The secluded, restful chamber was his favorite retreat, not only when he wanted to be alone or had to brood over important motions and political decisions, but also because of the unique view of the open sea the room had to offer. In addition, and this was the most important thing for him that morning, from here he was perfectly able to overlook the events on the small hidden jetty at the foot of the backside of the castle rock.

For this reason, he had pushed his huge armchair to the window and was now watching his daughter as she tried to practice the ceremonial dance he had imposed on her to perform at the festival tomorrow. An almost invisible smile played about the lips of the old monarch, who otherwise always wore a quite serious, almost petrified expression on his face. Despite her rather plain dress, Elise looked enchanting and graceful, even if she acted a bit clumsy every now and then. There, did she make another step mistake? Yes, she had to repeat the step sequence. An inaudible chuckle made the broad shoulders of the sturdy man quiver, and suddenly a countless number of little laugh lines appeared around his eyes.

It was both a curse and a blessing for him that she reminded him so much of her mother, Alisa. But that was also the main reason why he demanded her to participate in the dance act during the festival. He desperately wanted her to become like her mother, wanted her to follow in her footsteps, honoring her memory in every way possible. And in the past, her mother had joined the artists' performances every year, always captivating the crowd with her breathtaking appearance and graciousness. It was not actually a mandatory part of the event that the representative of the royal family of Soleanna had to dance on the festival boat before lighting the symbolic flame of Solaris, but it had always given so much joy to both Alisa and the audience that it had quickly become a sort of annual tradition.

And there was so much more that Elise had in common with her late mother. She had inherited her cherry-red hair, which glowed like fire in the sunlight and shone like black silk in the dark. She had the same expressive, bright blue eyes, by which anyone who knew her well enough could immediately tell what mood she was in. When she was happy, they sparkled like a pond reflecting the midday sun. When something was troubling her, they seemed as deep and dark as the ocean. Whenever he looked at his daughter, he had to think of Alisa, who had been a woman of almost majestic beauty. A goddess, sent from the heavens to mesmerize the mundane.

Or at least an angel. My angel... Just as Hector was about to wipe something out of the corner of his eye that could have become a full-blown tear a moment later, he realized that he was still holding his daughter's Sonic plush doll in his hands. Maybe I've overdone it a little this morning, he thought. I'm going to give this... toy back to Elise and apologize to her for my improper behavior. He sighed. But at some point she has to finally grow up and also behave like an adult. She needs to understand that she must take responsibility for her actions, and that everything she does will reflect on the royal family. There are already enough embarrassing rumors circulating, after all.

He glanced down at his offspring again, and for a moment an expression that could well have been described as loving crept into his gray eyes. Not only in appearance did Elise resemble her mother in an almost painful way. Alisa, too, had always had so much nonsense in her head and, in an endearing way, had sometimes behaved like a little, dreamy girl. But with her light-hearted and childlike manner she had also often managed to cheer him up, even on difficult days, of which there had been more than enough for the ruling couple. Alisa... Why did you have to die? I miss you so much! The tender, affectionate expression disappeared from his face so suddenly that it almost looked as if a dark cloud had moved in front of his face.

The tragic death of Elise's mother in an accident that, under other circumstances, could easily have been avoided, had pierced Hector's heart like a red-hot blade. That dagger of grief and solitude still stuck in his chest, torturing him like a thorn left in an infected wound. Every time he thought of his deceased wife, he unintentionally touched that sting, painfully irritating the inflamed flesh even more until it became necrotic, releasing poison into his heart and mind. The unbearable pain of his loss had changed the suffering widower over the years, turning the once kind and level-headed ruler of one of the greatest and most respected nations on Earth into a narrow-minded, choleric and unforgiving despot.

That damn, senseless accident...! But one day I'll be able to turn back time and change your destiny, Alisa! The destiny of all of us! He looked up at the rising morning sun hovering above the calm sea. With your help, my fiery friend Solaris, I will bring the fabric of time under my control and alter the past.

Already shortly after Alisa's passing, he had initiated a program to develop and construct an energy field machine that would be powerful enough to invoke the eternal flame of the sun god itself. He led the people of Soleanna to believe that he was researching an effective and sustainable method of energy generation. But his true intention was to force the super-dimensional lifeform under his control and harness its ability to manipulate the structure of time. Some of the most gifted scientists all around the world had followed his call. They had set up a vast secret high-tech laboratory deep beneath the catacombs of Kingdom Valley, even deep beneath the surface of the sea to be exact, to be surrounded by plenty of cooling water for their literally flammable schemes. They called the facility the Aquatic Base.

Two years later, when Elise had just turned seven, they had finally completed the construction of the machine simply named the 'Solaris Prototype', and some initial experiments indicated that their project could possibly succeed. Amazingly, they actually managed to summon the deity and capture its disembodied, flame-like appearance in a specially prepared stasis tube. We were so close to achieving our goal! But only seconds later, Hector had to witness in horror how the tiny flame began to flicker before suddenly vanishing into thin air. It literally looked as if someone invisible had blown out the flame of Solaris. Blown out my flame of hope...

Never would he forget that frustrating moment eleven years ago. Even without this particularly bitter dissapointment, it had been an eventful time, since it was also the year when the strange space-time rift to Mobius and the Mobians had appeared and that bizarre Eggman guy had attacked Earth for the first time. Hector and two other members of the council of the most powerful nations on Earth, called the 'Great Eight', which Soleanna was also part of, had voted to ban travel through the space-time distortion by law or, better yet, to destroy the wormhole altogether. By the use of nuclear weaponry, if necessary. But they had been outvoted by the other five member states. Against the will of Hector and some others, the Mobians were even granted residency and civil rights a couple of years ago.

To make matters worse, his team of scientists had not been able to repeat their success down in Aquatic Base since then. Not even once. The flame of Solaris seemed extinguished, almost as if the sun god had been wiped out of existence. There was no comprehensible explanation for what had happened, and that drove the suffering monarch crazy. With every further failed attempt to summon the time-influencing deity again, the aging duke became more and more desperate. Over the years, his increasingly rude behavior had caused most of the laboratory staff to quit and leave the country again. With carrot and stick, he tried to push the remaining scientists to perform at their best, but it seemed to be in vain. Why, Solaris? Why do you refuse to listen to my voice?

Eleven wasted years. Expensive years! Giving up had never been an option for the obstinate ruler, and in order to keep Aquatic Base running, he was forced to take out higher and higher loans. Meanwhile, the kingdom of Soleanna was heavily in debt due to his machinations. Rimlight Corporation alone is licking its greedy fingers. They're making a fortune on just our energy costs! His finance officer, Lord Alfred Regis, was bugging him for years now about the disastrous state budget. In night-long and mostly heated debates, Hector had to make that annoying bean counter comprehend over and over again that money would never be an issue again as soon as they would finally be able to change the past with Solaris' help.

It had also apparently been inevitable that numerous rumors about his dubious activities had arisen over the years and taken on a life of their own, sometimes even beyond the borders of Soleanna. Such old wives' tales seem to enjoy great popularity among the rabble. They keep making up new, increasingly absurd stories about what's supposedly going on in and under the catacombs of Kingdom Valley Castle. He snorted scornfully. 'The Duke is having demons summoned. The Duke wants to seal a pact with the devil. The Duke has sold his soul. The Duke drifts into madness,' he ran through some of the most common legends in his mind. Such latrine talk!

More and more often, he even got the impression that his subordinates and, moreover, numerous guests of his country no longer respected him sufficiently, even downright made fun of him behind his back. The idea was unbearable for the once highly respected monarch, and his paranoia had even led him to distance himself from his daughter at some point. Hector gnashed his teeth. That's why every single one of those morons has to call me a king and not just a duke. After all, I'm the ruler of this kingdom, of this empire! I'm in charge here! I expect to be accorded the respect I deserve! Out of anger and agitation, he began to knead his daughter's defenseless toy in his hands without even realizing it.

He glanced at his hunting trophies on the wall, which stared back at him with wide-open eyes and jaws. It was quite out of fashion by now, but in his day, it had been a tradition for every ruler of a country, especially for a leading member of the council of the Great Eight, to hunt down a certain selection of wild animals and keep their taxidermied heads as lucky charms to support their reign. A constant reminder of the qualities a ruler should be able to provide. And Hector possessed them all. The head of a lion, symbol of leadership and pride. The head of a wild boar, standing for determination and perseverance. The head of a bear, representing strength and vitality. Every now and then he was even toying with the idea of adding the head of a Mobian to his collection, but those abominations were good for nothing at all and only ever caused trouble, so that would probably just increase his bad luck.

Oh, how much he hated those seemingly always bouncy, happy-go-lucky sons of bitches. Although much smaller and with almost no visible musculature, Mobians were physically far superior to humans in every respect. They were much faster and stronger, more vital and powerful. Hard to kill. But what got on his nerves the most was the fact that life for the so-called anthros seemed to be just like a big fun, an entertaining game. They got away with everything, took whatever they wanted, and apparently no one could deny them anything. Because they're oh so cute! His throat constricted in disgust as he had to fight down a sudden gag reflex. Maybe I'm a bit xenophobic, but those... critters make me cringe! Without being aware of it, he squeezed the pitiful but uncomplaining stuffed toy in his hands more and more violently.

Looking back down at the festival boats, he saw how his daughter messed up her dance steps again, but this time he wasn't in the mood to smile about it. Not in the slightest. And then Elise! She causes me nothing but grief! It's really time for her to finally get married! And the Prince of Ostenheim is a more than suitable candidate. This time I'm not going to give her any choices. I can't, even if I wanted to. Baron Waldemar Bullenhorst has offered me an almost obscenely high dowry if I'll give his son Reginald my daughter's hand in marriage. He sighed again, now out of deep desperair. And I need that money badly. It will buy me at least two more years to keep Aquatic Base and the Solaris Prototype running.

But if he wanted to be honest with himself, even to him it somehow seemed as if he was virtually selling his daughter in order to come into money again. Although he tried not to think too much about it, he felt dirty, stained with a kind of grime that no shower would ever be able to wash away. But one day she will understand my decision. I'm sure she will. And love doesn't come overnight anyway. It has to grow, to blossom, exactly like a flower. Always. And it will, also between those two, I'm certain about that. Also, as soon as I'm finally able to get in touch with Solaris and travel back in time with his aid, I'll make sure that this wedding will never become necessary, will never have happened, should Elise really be unhappy with Sir Reginald. But he doubted that this would be the case. He had met the Prince of Ostenheim about two years ago, at a trade fair for warfare and weapons technology, and had come to know him as a very impressive man. One might say that he lives up to his animal namesake in terms of stature.

To ease his conscience, he kept telling himself that he was killing several birds with one stone. First of all, he would be able to pay some bills again. Perhaps he could even take out new loans. As one of the leading manufacturers of weapons technology, the kingdom of Ostenheim was very wealthy, and in addition to the offered dowry, an alliance with them would open up further, highly profitable trade relations to Soleanna. Moreover, their military strength makes them powerful allies. And on the other hand, it will hopefully keep Elise from finally getting lost in her creepy and repulsive fantasies of forming a romantic bond with one of those misshapen Mobian animal creatures. Just the thought made him shudder in disgust. Gross! I have no idea where she got that from! Not from me, that's for sure! He gritted his teeth. But marriage and the obligations that come with it, especially after the transfer of the throne that will then be on the horizon, will knock that nonsense out of her head! Once and for all! He was still not aware of the fact that he was meanwhile literally strangling the little plush doll, which was not really designed for a treatment like that.

If there had been something like a loving twinkle in his eyes a few minutes ago, it was gone now, replaced by the usual callous emptiness. He grunted in annoyance as he saw his daughter botching her performance yet again, this time losing her balance completely. Helplessly, she stumbled across the deck, and it looked like she was about to fall off the boat. Unbelievable! She's such a useless klutz! But all of a sudden, a thunderous bang shook the entire palace. The window in front of him was blasted out of its frame and shattered into a thousand pieces. It was only thanks to fortunate circumstances that most of the shards fell to the outside, so that Hector was not hurt by any of the sharp fragments.

Startled, he shot up from his seat, and his heart made a painful leap. An attack! We're under attack! He looked for his daughter, but saw her neither in the water nor on the ship. For some reason, it suddenly seemed like she had been swallowed up by the earth. But a second later, he spotted her again. His still stumbling heart almost stopped completely when his eyes confirmed him what his mind was trying to deny. She was on the outermost footbridge of the pier, lolling in the arms of a certain blue Mobian Hedgehog, well-known even to the Duke of Soleanna.

What the fuck?! Every muscle in Hector's body cramped, and his eyes bulged out of their sockets. What the hell is he doing here? Speak of the devil! I bet that bang and the shit with the window are also thanks to him! He saw the alien set his daughter down, and also how it immediately had to support her again, because she was seemingly unable to stand on her own legs at first. Is she even injured?! Then that's definitely his fault, too!

Still in a state of shock, the troubled monarch could do nothing but watch his daughter talking to the creature and even laughing heartily in between. What does that critter have to discuss with my daughter, anyway? For a moment he considered calling for the guards, but he was like paralyzed. The personnel from the boats made their way to the pair, and shortly thereafter the Mobian sped away, almost too fast to follow him with the naked eye.

Hector was meanwhile trembling with rage. A father's eyes did not miss the fact that Elise was limping when she went back to the ceremonial ships to continue her training with the others, even though she was obviously trying to hide it. He gnashed his teeth. This will have consequences! That beast attacked us, devastated my home, and even crippled my daughter!

Finally, he remembered the Sonic toy he was still holding in his hands. He looked down at it, slightly surprised to find that he had unconsciously ripped it apart in his agitation, separating the head from the torso. White, fluffy stuffing was pouring out where the seams had been torn. Seemingly unfazed by all this, the plushy Hedgehog face was still smirking at him impishly. It almost looks like he's mocking me! Screw you, you son of a bitch! With a disgusted grunt, he threw the broken toy across the room where it bounced against the wall and tumbled to the ground. The way the parts came to rest on the floor was actually kind of reminiscent of a real decapitated body of a Mobian Hedgehog.

Seeing this, a cruel thought occurred to the duke. That gives me an idea. Maybe it's time to make a certain phone call, he thought, and a malicious glint crept into his eyes.

Finally, Hector was smiling again. A shark's grin.

...