RUNAWAY A Sonic the Hedgehog story by Daniel J. Drazen drazen@andrews.edu PAUSE FOR BOURGEOIS LEGALITIES: This fanfic is copyright 1998 by the author. All of the characters are the creation of the author with the exception of the following: Sonic, Tails, and Robotnik are the property of Sega Incorporated; Sally, Rotor, Antoine, Bunnie, Snively and Uncle Chuck are the property of Archie Comic Publications; Bookshire Draftwood appears courtesy of The Draftwood Agency. Distribution of this fanfic is rabidly encouraged so long as you: A) Don't try to pass it off as your own work, and B) Don't try to make a buck off of it. Doing so will put you in violation of Title 17 of the U. S. Code concerning copyright restrictions. "GOOD AUTHORS, TOO, WHO ONCE KNEW BETTER WORDS/NOW ONLY USE FOUR- LETTER WORDS WRITING PROSE/ANYTHING GOES!" (Cole Porter): In creating one of the characters for this story, I discovered to my consternation that an indispensable part of this character's personality is the fact that he has a "colorful" vocabulary. And that the color is blue. In other words, he swears a LOT! To avoid using the two most profane Anglo-Saxon terms abroad in the land, I've had to resort to substitutions. Thus, the reader will encounter the Middle English word "spraint," which refers to otter dung and which parallels in its usage another monosyllabic word that starts with S and ends with T. And as for what Jean Shepherd once called "the queen mother of all dirty words," I have substituted the word "yiff," which I have encountered in my dealings with furry fans and which I trust requires no translation. TIME LINE: Standard Sonic cartoon continuity, well before Doomsday, in the Mobian year 3235. ================================================================= "Awww, Sonic!" "Sorry, big guy." Tails kicked at the dirt with his sneaker. He had just about been ready to go to his hut and prepare for bed when he saw one of the mechanical carrier birds, which Rotor called "homers," arrive with a message from Sonic's Uncle Chuck. He and every other Freedom Fighter gathered close to listen to Princess Sally read the message out loud. Any time Uncle Chuck resorted to using a homer instead of leaving a message at one of the blind drop sites in Robotropolis, it meant that something important was happening. The message was short and clear: "SONIE, MEET ME AT THE OLD TRANSPORT WORKS AS SOON AS YOU CAN. COME ALONE." "But Sonic...." Tails began. "You heard the message, big guy. 'Alone' means I solo this one." Sally tried consoling the fox cub. "I'm sure Uncle Chuck has a good reason." "Yeah, I guess," Tails replied dispiritedly. He started walking toward his hut, his tails dragging on the ground. "Sonic," Sally asked, "do you have any idea what's bothering Tails?" "I'm clueless, Sal. He's been like that for a couple of days now." "Maybe I can get him to talk about it when I tuck him in. Right now you'd better get going." "The next power ring should be up in a couple of minutes. As soon as I score one, I'm gone!" * * * Sonic skidded to a stop just as the Transport Works were coming into view. Once this has been the hub of rail transportation on Mobius, carrying Mobians and freight into and out of the city. The center was still in use now that Robotnik had taken over, but now it was the point from which Combots, SWATbots, and other instruments of evil were shipped to far points of the continent. Sonic saw that the Works were brightly lit and that a troop of SWATbots was surrounding a large transport carrier waiting to take delivery of something coming in by rail. The first order of business, though, was rendezvousing with Uncle Chuck. The hedgehog dashed to a dimly lit side street off the Transport Works. Unseen, he skittered up the wall and made his way across the roof until he came to a large expanse of glass: this was the skylight over the tracks on which the rail transports traveled. Sonic deftly lifted one of the large panes of glass, grimed with pollution, and peered down toward the tracks. He saw what he was looking for: a large concrete bumper at the end of Track 3. Unseen, Sonic dropped down onto the track and dashed behind the bumper. Crouching behind it was Uncle Chuck. "What's the story, Unc?" Sonic whispered. "I'm not sure, Sonie, but Robotnik's bringing something in from the East by rail. Something big!" "Any clue as to what it is?" "No; the Eastern Freedom Fighters weren't able to learn a thing. And there's ANOTHER problem I only learned about today: SWATbot Factory Number Two has been shut down for the last month for retooling. I've been trying to learn why but...." The sound of a train's horn cut him off. The two hedgehogs peered around the bumper as a locomotive as dark and large as Robotnik himself inched into the station along a different track. It was pulling a single flatbed railway car on which rested an enormous object at least fifteen feet tall hidden by a tarp. Instantly SWATbots began deploying around the train. Sonic and Uncle Chuck strained to get a look at the mysterious cargo in the dim light. Suddenly there was some kind of commotion by the flatbed as the SWATbots approached, followed by an explosion as one of the SWATbots flew to pieces. Sonic and Uncle Chuck then saw someone, a Mobian, running from the car across the tracks. The SWATbots began to give chase. "Clear out of here, Uncle Chuck!" Sonic whispered. "I gotta get that guy in out of the rain." "Be careful, Sonie. I'll contact you again when I can." Gripping tight on the Power Ring and feeling its energy flowing within him, Sonic sped across the tracks. He intercepted the Mobian, who was slightly smaller than he was, and carried him down the tracks and out into the rail yard before a volley of blaster fire from the SWATbots would have cut them both down. He quickly ducked behind a switchbot used to move rail cars around the yard. "Leggo! I woulda HAD 'em!" Now Sonic was able to get a look at just whom he had rescued. He was a young buck deer, no older than Tails, with antler buds just beginning to form. He wore a pair of loose- fitting pants which were held up by suspenders and which looked as if they'd been patched at the knees a half-dozen times. He also appeared to have his right forearm in some kind of wooden brace. "No way, kid. Those SWATbots woulda had YOU! What were you doing on that thing, anyway?" "None of your business," he said sullenly. "Leave me alone." "I do that and you're toast. Now where'd you come from?" "I'm not saying." "Hey, I ain't got time to play games. Now...." Sonic was interrupted by an all-too-familiar sound. "HEDGEHOG. PRIORITY ONE. DETAIN BY...." The SWATbot's words were cut off as its head flew apart. Sonic looked at the buck, whose right arm was raised in the SWATbot's direction. Sonic could now tell that what he thought was an arm brace was really an elaborate slingshot, modelled after the arm-mounted blasters with which the SWATbots were equipped. The buck reset the elastic band and began fishing around in one pocket. "Guess I owe you one," Sonic said. The boy said nothing as he placed what looked like a marble in the sling. "What's your name, kid?" "I'm not a kid!" the buck protested. "Leave me alone." "There's no way the other SWATbots won't find us if we stay here. If you got no place to go...." Sonic paused. "I'm waiting!" he prompted. "Hey, I said leave me alone, OK?" "No prob. I'll just wait here while you get past those other SWATbots." The young buck said nothing, as he realized getting out on his own wasn't going to happen. "Well, what's YOUR idea?" the boy asked. In response, Sonic slung the boy over one shoulder like a sack and tore across the tracks and into the shadows along the far wall. "When you're this fast, kid, you gotta be as fast as your ideas. And right now the only idea I got is getting out in one piece, and you're coming along for the ride. Unless you think you're tougher than the SWATbots." The boy was in no position to object. * * * It had been a long time since Knothole had known the sound of so much laughter. Tails and the buck, who would only say that his name was Sawyer, were in the middle of a furious game of dirt hockey. The fox cub, who had still been moping around just as Sonic had last seen him, at first was astonished at the sight of Sawyer when Sonic brought him to Knothole, then overjoyed. Since he had arrived in Knothole two days ago, Sawyer had been put up in Tails' hut and had accompanied Tails everywhere he went. Tails didn't mind in the slightest, as it gave him a chance to tell Sawyer about what the Knothole Freedom Fighters had accomplished. Sawyer hung on Tails' every word, yet pointedly ignored anyone older who tried talking to him. It was decided that, for the moment, the others would let Tails keep him company. Sonic watched as Tails and Sawyer played on, both of them so caught up in the action that they disregarded Antoine's attempts at refereeing the game. As the two boys mixed it up in the center of Knothole and as Antoine vainly tried to get their attention, Sonic looked on with a smile on his face. "Sonic, you've GOT to stop bringing home strays." It was Princess Sally. She smiled as well. They both rememberer how, when they were still children themselves and not yet Freedom Fighters, Sonic had come back to Knothole after a day's absence holding onto the hand of a toddler -- a two-tailed fox who had apparently been orphaned as a result of Robotnik's iron rule. Now they watched the two boys scuffling back and forth, running and falling and colliding and mostly laughing. "Man, it's been like night and day!" Sonic said. "I've been worried about Tails being down in the dumps; I thought maybe we hadn't been spending enough time together lately. I'd never have figured he just needed to hang with someone his own age." "Well, it's not like he gets that chance on a regular basis around here. This is something special." "And I was afraid that the kid might be bad news. So, any word from the other groups?" "I just got word from the last two Freedom Fighter groups. They don't know of any lost boys who match Sawyer's description, and they haven't heard of any groups of Mobians in hiding who have lost a boy who look like Sawyer, either." "That's bogus. So now what?" Just then, Rotor walked up to the pair. "I managed to get a look at that sling Sawyer carries around," he said. "Early this morning, when the boys were still asleep. Tails had him leave it and the 'marbles' he shoots with it by the window; I snuck them out, examined them, and put them back." "I'm guessing it's not just a toy," Sally said. "Definitely not. That thing is well-built, and designed for serious use by someone who knows what they're doing." "What about those marbles or whatever they are?" Sonic asked. "Also serious. They're small glass balls. They look like they've been made from raw sand. Each one is filled with a liquid chemical of some sort. I wasn't about to break any of them open, because of what you told me about what happened to the SWATbots in the rail yard." "Man, this is getting heavy! Now what, Sal?" "I've been thinking." "So what else is new?" he said with a smirk. "Sonic, please! He hasn't been talking to us," she said as she started walking toward the bridge that spanned the river which ran alongside Knothole. "He's spent almost all his time with Tails since coming here, as if he were avoiding us. You know what that means?" "Beats me." "Sonic, he's a runaway. If he'd have been separated from his parents by accident he would have said SOMETHING about it by now. He'd have asked for our help in looking for them, or to help him get back to someone he knows." "What if Buttnik's already nabbed his parents and they're...?" "I'd really rather not think about that possibility just yet." "OK, so why do YOU think he ran away?" "I don't know, and he's not telling." "Let's hope that he tells T2 something and that Tails tells us." "I think he's telling us something right now." Sally's attention was back on the dirt hockey game, as Sawyer checked Antoine into a tree. Even though he wasn't much taller than Tails, he was playing with an aggressiveness that belied his stature. The blow was sufficient to knock the wind out of Antoine as he dropped to his knees. Sonic and Sally ran over to Antoine and helped him stand back up. "Zut allors! This babies-sitting is harder than it is looking." Sawyer's reaction was to look at Tails and ask: "Hey, are we gonna keep playing or what?" "Uh...maybe later," Tails said as he watched Sonic and Sally escorted the wobbly Antoine back to his hut. "Besides," added Bunnie, who had walked up to the two boys, "Sally's called a meeting for about a half-hour from now. Y'all might want to be in on it, Tails." "What about ME?" Sawyer asked. "Well, Sawyer, you ain't a Knothole Freedom Fighter, and you SURE ain't showed any of us that you're a team player. Come on, honey," she added, looking at Tails. With that, Bunnie turned and walked away with Tails walking next to her, looking back over his shoulder at Sawyer. The young buck simply threw his dirt hockey stick at the ground and stormed off somewhere. * * * The meeting was supposed to be about the Freedom Fighters' next mission, but another subject kept coming up. "Is that kid gonna stay here or what?" Sonic asked. "I'd rather that be HIS choice," Sally replied, "and until he starts acting like the rest of us actually exist...." "Or that we are not to being treated like the punchy baggage!" Antoine added. "Ah think you mean 'punching bag,' Antoine," Bunnie translated. "I am knowing what I meant." "Please," Sally spoke up, "let's just get back to the mission. Rotor, any word from Uncle Chuck?" "Nothing since Sonic spoke to him last time." "So we need to know two things: what was shipped into Robotropolis, and why the SWATbot factory went offline." "Yeah, and it looks like we gotta sneak in under Buttnik's nose to find out." "Maybe if we knew what came in by rail we could guess at why Robotnik took his factory offline." "Yeah, but we DON'T know, Sal!" "I know." All eyes turned toward the open doorway to Sally's hut. Sawyer was leaning against the door frame, his arms folded across his chest. He may have been trying to look grown-up but he only succeeded in looking stubborn instead. "How long have you been standing there?" Sally asked. "Not long," he said with a shrug. "So you know what was shipped into Robotropolis?" "I hitched a ride into the city on the rail car that was carrying it. I know what was under there." "Cool!" Sonic said. "What is it?" "I won't say." "UNcool." "Not unless you take me with you on your mission." "SERIOUSLY uncool!" "Sawyer, this isn't a game," Sally said. "Whatever Robotnik's planning...." "Hey, if you don't want to know...." Sawyer began. "Now hold on!" Bunnie interrupted. "Sawyer, if y'all go along on this mission, do you promise to answer any questions we may have?" "ANY questions?" "Either that or stay here." "Uh...OK." "Bunnie, can I talk to you for a minute?" Sally asked. The two of them stepped off to the side. "Bunnie. I really don't...." "Ah know it's a gamble, Sally-girl, but it looks like the only way we'll get anything outta him. Besides, Ah...Ah kinda know what he's goin' through." Sally folded her arms, waiting for a further explanation. "Well, y'all remember what it was like at that age, wantin' to grow up an' all and thinkin' how hard it was to wait. Ah think that's part of what's eatin' at him." "But Bunnie, there are better ways of dealing with this than dragging him around Robotropolis!" "What were y'all plannin' on doin' there, anyway?" "I had planned for Sonic to create a diversion while I snuck into the factory and downloaded its computer records into Nicole. I hadn't figured on Sawyer coming along for the ride." She paused. "Maybe he'll get it out of his system if he comes along as a lookout." Sally knew better than to add "What could go wrong?" * * * "So far, so good," Sally told herself. She, Sonic and Sawyer slipped into the shadow of a deserted building along what had once been one of the main thorofares of Mobitropolis. Once it had been lined with small- and medium- sized shops which sold just about anything: furniture for newborns, books for mothers to read to their children at bedtime, school supplies for when those children got older. Caterers for weddings did business only a few doors away from funeral parlors. Behind and above the stores were apartment units where the proprietors of the shops usually lived. Sometimes the apartments were rented out to others -- young couples needing a place to start out life on their own. The street itself in its activity and variety was a microcosm of life on Mobius. Now, thanks to the changes Robotnik had brought to the city, the street was little more than a deserted canyon where the sun never cut through the foul haze hovering overhead. Sally didn't let herself think about any of this, or about what it would take to bring back to this street the life it had once seen. First things first. Find a way into the SWATbot factory, then download information from the factory's computers. The trio moved quietly toward the factory. Sally was relieved to notice that Sawyer appeared to know something about stealth, and was as silent as Sonic and Sally in his movements. Before she could begin to wonder where he could have picked up this knowledge, they had reached a corner near the factory. Sally peered around the corner to get a better look. Her heart sank. The factory was ringed by SWATbots, standing about 50 feet apart from one another. The darkness inside the factory was broken every few seconds by the white lightning of welding torches. She told Sonic and Sawyer what she saw. "Bogus! That's too many bots even for ME to take on!" "What's the problem with going out there and kicking some can?" Sawyer asked as he drew back the elastic on his arm sling. Sally and Sawyer had clashed on whether he could bring it along, and Sally had relented when it appeared that if Sawyer couldn't have it with him he wasn't going to answer ANY questions, period. "Because," Sally said with what little patience she had left, "there are three of us and at least a dozen SWATbots and those are just the ones that I could SEE! We've got to find another way into that factory." With that, she unclipped her handheld computer from the top of her boot and opened it. Sawyer might have been as impatient as Sonic was if he hadn't been even more fascinated by Nicole. "Nicole," Sally said, "access sewer line schematic for SWATbot factory #2." "ACCESSING, SALLY." Instantly a schematic hologram hovered in the air above the computer. Sawyer let out a low whistle; Sonic started drumming the fingers of one hand on his upper arm. "This pipe here," Sally said as she pointed to one line that shimmered at eye level, "would ordinarily carry waste water from the plant. Since the plant's been shut down it should be usable." "Where's the control room, Sal?" Sonic asked. "It should be just inside that outer door. We'll have to circle back once we're inside the plant." "No, you don't," Sawyer said as he slipped something into his sling. Before Sonic or Sally could ask what he meant, the boy stepped out of the shadows and into the SWATbots' line of sight. Sonic and Sally were too stunned to move or to say anything. Without a word, Sawyer released the sling and the sphere that was inside went flying. One of the SWATbots raised his arm blaster and hit the projectile with an energy blast. The sphere exploded and a thick cloud of smoke settled on the street. As Sonic and Sally watched, Sawyer disappeared into the smoke as the SWATbots called out: "DETAIN INTRUDER. BY ORDER OF ROBOTNIK." Yet both Sonic and Sally knew what Sawyer had done: he'd created a diversion so Sally could use the door. Sally might have admired his youthful resourcefulness if she wasn't in so much disbelief over his youthful stupidity. "Sonic," she whispered, "go after Sawyer. I'll try to get to the control room. Be careful!" "Man I KNEW that kid was bad news!" Sonic picked up his ears, trying to catch the sound of the SWATbots in pursuit of Sawyer. "Those walking tin cans make more noise than Ant does when he snores!" he told himself. Just then he heard the regular metallic cadence of the SWATbots approaching and eased back into the shadows. They each carried something. One of them carried Sawyer, squirming and kicking as the SWATbot held him by the scruff of the neck. The other was holding the boy's sling. Sonic watched as the two of them stood in the open street in front of the factory. It only took a moment before Sonic realized why, for the shadow of a hover unit settled over them, then gradually shrank in size as the unit landed directly in front of them. The door slid open and they entered, taking the protesting Sawyer with them. Sonic looked toward the factory, then toward the hover unit as its door slid shut. There was no sign of Sally out on the street; she must have gotten inside. He then watched as the ship rose, knowing perfectly well that its destination was Robotnik's headquarters. "Man, this bites big time!" he told himself. He took one more look at the factory, said "Sorry, Sal, you're on your own" under his breath, then sped off to get to Robotnik's ahead of the hover unit. * * * "The SWATbots have brought in the prisoner, Sir." Even as Snively announced the arrival of the hover unit, Sonic had hidden himself in a dark corner of the docking bay. He watched intently as the huge metal door slid open, allowing the SWATbots to enter with their prisoner. If things went as Sonic expected, Sawyer would be taken to a holding cell until Robotnik was ready for him, one way or another. It would be easy to spring him, link up with Sally, and retreat to the Great Forest and the safety of Knothole. Unfortunately, they headed down a corridor that wouldn't take them to the holding cells. Instead, they appeared to be heading for Robotnik's central control room. "Man, why can't these mission get easier?" he asked himself. But he stayed with the two SWATbots and their prisoner as they approached the door to the control room. As much as he wanted to follow Sawyer and the SWATbots inside, he knew there's be no cover for him there. He also knew what established procedure was: head for a ventilator shaft. Dashing to a nearby shaft, he eased the cover off and slipped inside. On hands and knees, Sonic made the short journey to a grate overlooking the control room. Sawyer was still being held by one SWATbot while Robotnik inspected the sling with an odd enjoyment. "This takes me back; very expert workmanship," he said aloud. "TOO expert for the likes of you to have made it. Where did you get this?" "I told you, I made it myself." Being captured had apparently done nothing to soften Sawyer's attitude. "I'm no fool, boy," he growled as he set the weapon down on a nearby table. "You must know what's going to happen to you if you don't cooperate. Was the hedgehog with you?" Sawyer said nothing. Robotnik grabbed the boy's suspender strap with his right hand and lifted him up to eye level. "I don't have a lot of patience, boy. You'd better start cooperating and fast." "Go yiff yourself!" Sonic was stunned. Rosie and Julayla had always been strict about certain misdeeds, and Sonic had come to accept that as a part of growing up in Knothole. After all, Sally WAS a Princess even if only in name, and the two women were doing everything possible to raise her as one. As a result Sonic had never even considered testing the limits of the grownups by using that kind of highly-charged profanity in their presence. And it just seemed WRONG to use that kind of language in front of Sally. But listening to Sawyer as the words came out of his mouth, it seemed as natural as breathing for the boy. Robotnik was taken aback as well, but only for a moment. He struck Sawyer in the face with the metallic palm of his left hand, then hurled the boy to the floor. Sawyer skidded along it and into the nearby wall. "Snively!" he roared. "Double the number of SWATbots around the factory. Whoever's in there, hedgehog or not, I want them captured alive!" "What about the boy, Sir?" Snively asked nervously as he glanced at the Mobian who had dared to say to Robotnik's face what he himself had only dreamed of saying. "SWATbots!" he yelled at the two robots standing motionless nearby. "Take that foul-mouthed brat out to the trash site and kill him!" With that, Robotnik stormed out of the room, with Snively trotting behind him in an attempt to keep pace. The door slid shut after them. Sawyer was starting to raise his head as the SWATbots approached. When they were within a foot of him, something struck one SWATbot on the head: it was the cover of a ventilation grate. "Yo, SWATbutts! Up here!" Directing their visual sensors upward, they picked up the image of Sonic, his head sticking out of a ventilation pipe. "Come and get me, slo-mos!" The SWATbots raised their arm-mounted blasters and fired. Sonic ducked back into the shaft just in time as it exploded into fragments which rained down on the SWATbots. Enough of the pieces were big enough to damage the two bots. As the dust settled, Sonic poked his head out of a jagged section of the shaft, then dropped down to the floor. "Man," he said as he surveyed the fallen SWATbots, "they make it too easy!" Sawyer was just struggling to his feet. He looked at Sonic with mixed emotions. He was glad to see the hedgehog, but at the same time actually resentful that he had needed his help. "Now what?" Sawyer asked. "Now I go get Princess Sally. Solo!" "What about me?" "You're on your own, kid. I'm outta here." "Hold it! I...." "I'm waiting!" "I...I'm sorry I didn't listen, and thanks for saving me." "See? That didn't kill 'ya. But those SWATbutts would've if Buttnik'd told them to shoot first and dump you later. Now hang on; we're gonna go in after Sally. HER way!" "Lemme get my piece, first." * * * Sally didn't want to believe her good luck. She had indeed managed to slip past the SWATbots in the smoke and through the door. Now she was in the control room, and she knew she had to work fast. Taking Nicole from the top of her boot, she located an access port and inserted the handheld computer. "Nicole, interface with plant computer." "LINK ESTABLISHED, SALLY." "Download all files dealing with plant operations." "DOWNLOADING." The seconds ticked by with agonizing slowness. Nicole silently copied and stored the data while Sally watched and listened for any signs that someone was coming. "DOWNLOAD INTERRUPTED." Sally just about jumped out of her fur when Nicole's voice broke the silence. "What do you mean, 'interrupted'?" she whispered. "HEIGHTENED SECURITY MEASURES HAVE BEEN INITIATED AND ALL COMPUTER TRANSACTIONS HALTED. ADVISE TERMINATION OF MISSION." Sally wasn't about to argue. Slipping Nicole out of the port and back onto the top of her boot, she edged toward the door of the control room. The factory outside still appeared to be empty. Quietly she made her way out of the control room and back toward the door through which she had entered. Just as she reached the door it began slowly opening. She froze for an instant, then pressed herself against the wall in a vain attempt to blend into the shadows. Yet even that was thwarted as the inside of the factory suddenly blazed with light. "SWATbots!" she heard an all-too-familiar voice say from outside, "search the premises for all intruders and apprehend!" Sally pressed harder against the wall. There was no point trying to make a break for it now; any motion on her part was sure to be detected. All she could do was hold still until the SWATbots had dispersed to their assigned sectors of the plant and hope against hope that she wouldn't be detected until most of them were in other corners of the factory. Her mind spun with possible ways of escaping, none of them any good. The first rank of SWATbots was just beginning to enter the factory. As she expected, they were facing forward and so she was out of their immediate visual sensor range. But it wouldn't be long before.... Just then a drain grate in the floor ahead of the SWATbots popped up and into the air, then clanged back onto the floor. And someone scrambled out of the drain. "Lookin' for me, guys?" It was Sonic. Before the SWATbots could even open fire, Sonic picked up the circular grate and threw it like a disc toward the tightly- ranked SWATbots. It struck one, who staggered back and into yet another SWATbot. It didn't knock them out, but it was all the disruption Sonic needed. "Sal, come on!!" Sally's only chance was to make it to the drain while the situation was still chaotic. She dashed toward the drain but wasn't even halfway there before someone else emerged. It was Sawyer. Instinctively, Sally slowed down, then noticed that he was raising his right arm in her direction. He was taking aim at something. Sonic saw it too and yelled, "NO!!" Too late, for Sawyer had released a sphere. It impacted just above the doorway, striking a metal junction box. There was a deafening explosion. Metal shards flew in all directions. Sally was knocked to the ground. Sonic coughed as dust filled his lungs. The factory plunged into darkness, broken only by the dull red emergency lights. In a second the dust settled. Almost a dozen SWATbots lay on the ground near where the projectile had exploded, but some of them were picking themselves up. Sonic then saw that Sawyer's attention was on the site of the explosion, a look of delight and self-satisfaction on his young face. Sally, however, lay prone on the floor a few feet in front of him. "Yo, Sal, shake it! We gotta book!" Sally didn't speak or move. Instantly, Sonic ran to her, scooping her up in his arms then running back toward the drain. "We're outta here, kid!" he yelled to Sawyer. "Did you see THAT?" Sawyer asked excitedly. "I mean NOW!" Sawyer wrapped his arms around Sonic's neck as the three of them disappeared into the drainage system of the factory. In an instant they had put enough distance between them and the factory that Sonic would have begun easing up on the pace. Instead, with Sally in his arms, he never even slowed down until Knothole was in sight. "Doc! Help!" Sonic yelled as he slowed down, not letting go of Sally. Bookshire Draftwood came limping out of his hut as other residents of Knothole began to gather. Sawyer saw Tails coming and let go of Sonic's neck. "You shoulda seen it!" Sawyer said to Tails. "I really nailed those SWATbots! And guess what I said to Robotnik? Right to his FACE!" But Tails wasn't listening. Instead he watched as Bookshire examined the still-motionless Sally. He felt her neck for a pulse, then borrowed a flashlight from Rotor to look into her eyes. "Get her inside my hut; I'll know better when I examine her there. Looks like someone or something knocked her out. And where do you think YOU'RE going?" he added as he looked at Sonic, who had turned to Sawyer. "To give that kid a clue!" he said angrily to Bookshire, as he glanced at Sawyer. "You were SUPPOSED to stay in the sewer, kid, not go blastin' up the place!" "I'm NOT a KID!!" "And YOU'RE coming with me!" Bookshire spoke up as he grabbed Sonic's right wrist and held up the hedgehog's hand. "I don't think this is chili sauce." Only then could he and everyone else see what had so concerned Bookshire: Sonic's glove was saturated with blood. His own blood. A wound in his upper arm bled freely but Sonic had not felt the pain so long as his thoughts were about Princess Sally. Now he looked as if he was about to faint. "Rotor, Antoine, help Sonic inside." Following Bookshire's orders, the two flanked Sonic and led him into the hut into which Sally had been taken. Tails started walking after them. "Where you going?" Sawyer asked. "Don't you wanna hear how I...?" "SHUT UP!" Tails yelled at Sawyer. The young buck was stunned. "Sonic is hurt, and Aunt Sally is...Sonic was right, you ARE bad news!" Then, close to tears, Tails ran after the others. Sawyer stood where he was for a few moments. Then he pulled the sling from his arm and hurled it to the ground. He ran to the bridge and dashed across it. He'd only just reached the other side when he tripped and fell to the path face first. He stayed down, crying. "Bad night, huh?" someone said after a few minutes. Sawyer looked up. Bunnie was sitting on the nearby trunk of a fallen tree. "Leave me alone!" "Why?" "'Cause you hate me! Everybody hates me." "Ain't nobody here who hates you, Sawyer. Only one we hate is Robotnik." "You do too hate me! Tails does, anyway." "He don't hate you," she said gently. "He's not like that. He's just worried 'bout Sally, that's all." "Yeah, because of what I did to her." "C'mon over an' set a spell, Sawyer." Sawyer picked himself up and walked toward Bunnie. Instead of sitting next to her, though, he sat on the ground with his back against the tree. "Sawyer, Ah don't know what you been told about us, but we Freedom Fighters don't win all our battles. We have our good days an'...." Bunnie fell silent. Out of curiosity; Sawyer looked up at her. He saw that she was staring at her robotic left arm, running her other hand across its cold, hard metal surface. "An' we have our bad days," she said quietly. "Sometimes they're REAL bad." Sawyer stood amd seated himself on the log. "How'd it happen?" So Bunnie told Sawyer about her capture by Robotnik, and how she'd come so close to meeting the same fate as too many other Mobians. Bunnie hadn't told the story in some time, and it wasn't easy dusting off the old memories. Sawyer bit his lip and said nothing throughout. "I'm sorry," Sawyer said at last. "Shoot," Bunnie said in an attempt to be lighthearted about it, "'twern't like y'all were responsible." "But I was responsible for...for...I just want to do something, something important. I want to be a hero like you guys. Not just stay home and do chores. Why do I keep messing up?" Bunnie didn't answer. She just paused as Sawyer wiped his eyes. "Will they let me in to see how Princess Sally is doing?" he asked. "Just stick with me." She rose and began crossing the bridge, with Sawyer close by. "Thanks. You're real easy to talk to." "Thank you, darlin'." "Uh, could you kinda not call me that?" The two arrived at Bookshire's hut and were let in. Sally lay in a nearby bed; her expression hadn't changed. Sonic was seated near Sally's bed. Bookshire was wrapping a bandage around Sonic's upper arm. Tails stood by Sally's bedside, looking up as he heard the sound of footsteps. "What're YOU doing here?" Tails asked contemptuously as he noticed Sawyer. "He's with me, honey," Bunnie said. "How are they, Doc?" "Sally does appear to have suffered a concussion. I'm hoping she'll come out of it before morning, but I want to keep an eye on her. Sonic's arm muscle got torn up by some shrapnel; fortunately, he doesn't run on his hands. It's also fortunate that it struck him where it did; a little more to the side and the metal I took out of his arm would have punctured his heart." "Sonic?" Sawyer said, swallowing hard, "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you, I...." "Yeah, yeah, forget it," he said dismissively, as if the subject were too much of a downer. "Would you tell Princess Sally I'm sorry when she wakes up?" "You'd better leave now," Bookshire suggested. Bunnie put her hand on Sawyer's shoulder as the two turned back toward the door, leaving Bookshire and Tails to keep a vigil over Sally. At the door, Sawyer paused and turned back. "Sonic?" "What?" he asked wearily. "The Cove. The place I come from. Tell Princess Sally it's called The Cove. I'd promised to tell her that." Sawyer then turned and left the room. * * * Dawn found both Bunnie and Sawyer still seated on the steps leading up to Bookshire's hut. Sawyer was hunched over, his head resting on his knees. Bunnie couldn't sleep; she simply wouldn't let herself until she knew how Sally was doing. Until someone came out with word one way or another, she wasn't moving and she wasn't going to sleep. The door opened and Bunnie turned sharply. Bookshire stepped out, rubbing his eyes. "How's Sally?" Bunnie asked. "She appears to have suffered a slight concussion, but she should be OK." He rubbed the back of his neck with one paw. "You kids know I'm too old to keep your kind of hours." Bunnie smiled. If Bookshire could make a joke, she knew Sally was going to be all right. Bookshire read her thoughts. "Go ahead," he told her, "you can see her if you want to. She's awake." Bunnie shook Sawyer's shoulder. "Y'all wanna talk to Sally?" Sawyer was still a little groggy as they walked back into the hut and walked toward the bed where Sally was sitting up, talking with Sonic. She was holding a piece of jagged metal in one hand. Tails slept in an empty bed nearby. "This is a serious piece of schrapnel, Sonic!" "Yeah, Sal, but it never slowed down the ol' hedgehog. Remember, I got you, the kid AND that hunk of junk from my arm out of Buttnik's factory before...." Only then did they recognize Bunnie and Sawyer's presence in the room. Sonic, who had been flippant and self-assured a second before, was now serious. "How y'all doin', Sally-girl?" Bunnie asked. "I feel fine, but I'm humoring Bookshire by spending the day in bed." "Don't go usin' the word 'bed' on me," she said with a yawn. "Ah'm one bushed bunny." "Then get some sleep. Sawyer, we need to talk." Bunnie left the room as the young buck sat in a chair next to Sally's bed. Sonic stood at the other side of the bed, his hands on his hips. "Bookshire tells me," Sally said to the boy, "that you come from a place called The Cove." "Uh-huh." "I've never heard of it. Where is it?" "North of the city. About a hundred miles up along the bay." "How did you get to the city? You didn't walk all the way, did you?" "No. I took the train." "Yeah, how'd you do that?" Sonic interrupted. "I hopped a freight train coming from the east." "No way! Buttnik uses trains that go like a hundred miles an hour. You'd have to be almost as fast as ME!" Sally reached for Nicole, which sat on the table by her bedside. "Nicole, display map of territory north of Mobitropolis including known rail lines." Instantly, a holographic image shimmered just above the computer. "Here," the boy said as he indicated a bend in the track. "Where the track bends here there's a lot of sand and it slows the trains down to a crawl." "Nicole, confirm." "INFORMATION IS ACCURATE; ACCORDING TO RAIL MANAGEMENT DATA DOWNLOADED FROM ROBOTNIK'S COMPUTERS, HIGH-SPEED FREIGHT TRAINS ARE FORCED TO REDUCE SPEED TO BETWEEN 5 AND 15 MILES PER HOUR TO PREVENT DERAILING AT THAT POINT." "And where's your home?" Sally asked. "Somewhere over here," he said as he pointed to a spot not far from the shore. "It's about a hour's walk from there to the tracks." "Nicole, analysis of terrain." "TERRAIN IS HILLY, WITH DENSE PINE FOREST COVERAGE. CLOSER TO THE SHORE, TERRAIN OFFERS LESS COVER WITH SAND DUNES COVERED BY DUNE GRASS." "Yeah, we live in the forest part." "So you said you knew what was on that train." "Yeah. It was...like a big roller!" "C'mon!" Sonic spoke up. "That tarp was covering something HUGE, like an oil tank." "I'm telling ya, it was a roller. With all kinda dents in it." "Dents?" "Yeah, like you could fit a marble or something inside." "Sawyer," Sally asked as she closed up Nicole and set it back down on the table, "did you run away from home?" Sawyer didn't answer and simply lowered his head. "Uh, maybe I'd better juice," Sonic suggested. "Nah," Sawyer said, his eyes still downcast, "you don't have to. Yeah, I ran away." "Why? Were you being hurt?" "Nah, nothing like THAT!" he said emphatically. "My folks'd NEVER do anything like that to me! It's...." "It's what?" "It's what they didn't do. See, they had a couple babies over a year ago. Twin girls." Sally picked up on the fact that Sawyer made a face when he said the word "girls". "Ever since then it's like...like they forgot all about me." "Babies need a lot of looking after. I'm sure your folks miss you very much." "Yeah, maybe." He didn't sound convinced. "Yo, big guy!" Sonic said as he shook Tails awake. "Whuh?" "Rise and shine, Tails," Sally said. At the sound of Sally's voice, Tails bolted upright. "Are you OK, Aunt Sally?" "I will be, after a day's rest. Why don't you and Sawyer go back to your hut?" Tails looked at Sawyer, then back at Sally. "Hey, everything's cool, li'l bro." "OK," Tails said. He figured that if Sonic and Sally were all right and they weren't mad at Sawyer, there was no reason for him to be mad, either. The two boys left and Sonic closed the door after them. "Yo, Sal, give the brain a rest for once!" "What are you talking about?" "You're plannin' something." "I'd like to travel up to this Cove where Sawyer comes from." "Give me one good reason why." "I want to make sure Sawyer gets back safely; I'm sure his family misses him. This is also the first I've heard of any Mobian fugitives living in that area. Since they're located between us and the Eastern Freedom Fighters they could provide volunteers who could cover the region. And if Robotnik's trains have to slow down at that point we might find a way to exploit that weakness...." "Hey, I only asked for ONE reason!" Sally smiled. "OK." "But the hedgehog is going along, too. You're gonna need back-up." "Wouldn't have it any other way. Now how about letting me get some of that rest the doctor ordered?" "No prob," Sonic said as he left the room as Sally settled back into the bed. Once the door was closed, however, Sally reached for Nicole and opened it up again. "Nicole, access most recent download at point of interruption." "FILE ACCESSED, SALLY." "List data that was downloaded." "DOWNLOADED DATA INCLUDES SCHEMATIC OF FACTORY AND PARTIAL OPERATIONS DATABASE." "Display interrupted transmission." "DISPLAYING NOW: 'FACTORY EXPECTED TO BE OPERATIONAL BY THE TIME NECESSARY SUPPLY OF GREEN IRON IS.'" "Is what?" "DATA TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED AT THAT POINT." "Search metallurgical database for references to 'green iron'." "NO DATA FOUND." "Search all strategic databases for same reference." "NO DATA FOUND." Sally sighed, closed Nicole, then settled back in bed. Her mind demanded an answer to the questions of what the roller could possibly be used for, and what exactly "green iron" was. But for the moment, she would listen to her body and rest. * * * "Eeew, this stinks!" Sawyer and the six core Knothole Freedom Fighters, each carrying backpacks, were entering the dump site that formed a buffer between Robotropolis and the Great Forest. Sally had determined that all of them should investigate The Cove and that a show of force might help convince the residents to throw in their lot with the Freedom Fighters against Robotnik. Sally had met several other bands of fugitive Mobians who lived wild, and for the most part the results had been disheartening: they were reluctant to join the battle. The seven Mobians made their way until ther were in a small valley--really a spot between two mountains of trash. Uncle Chuck was waiting for them. Sonic broke from the group and was the first to greet him. "You OK, Unc?" "Same old same old, Sonie." "Uncle Chuck," Sally asked, "did you get my communique?" "Yes, Princess, and I did what I could. I reprogrammed Robotnik's rail yard controller so that outgoing trains experience a four second delay before leaving the yard while the switches reset themselves. I didn't dare make it any longer for fear the delay would be noticable. That gives you only four seconds to get on the train." "Four seconds?" Sonic spoke up. "Man, where's the challenge?" "It'll have to be enough," Sally said. "Now where are we leaving from and when?" "From the Transport Center. There's a deadhead leaving in about an hour's time." "Do NOT be saying it, Sonique!" Antoine spoke up. "What?" Sonic replied. "I am knowing that look in your eye. You were to be saying something insulting to moi!" Sonic didn't say anything, but he thought: "Man, ol' Ant's starting to pick up on my straight lines!" "What's a 'deadhead,' Uncle Chuck?" Tails asked. "It's an old railroad term. It refers to a train that mainly takes empty freight cars back where they came from. Princess, if you'll be so kind as to bring up a map of the Transport Center." Sally withdrew Nicole, requesting a display of the Transportation Center yard. The schematic appeared a second later. "You'll want to travel by storm drain and come up here," Uncle Chuck said as he indicated a spot on the map. "It's just at the edge of the yard, and there are shadows that will provide some cover, but not a lot. The engine will stop fifty feet beyond that point while the switches reset. That'll be your only chance to get on. I don't like the idea of any of you kids trying to hop on a moving train--too much can go wrong and you could get badly hurt." "Not if you do it right," Sawyer said confidently. "It'll be cool, Unc." "I hope so, Sonie--one wrong move and your running days will be over." "It's a chance we have to take, Uncle Chuck," Sally spoke up. "Remember, you'll only have four seconds. Head for the car closest to the drain and hope it's empty; I'm afraid you can't afford to be picky. Take care of yourself, Sonie," he added earnestly. "You too, Unc." "We'll be careful." Sally assured him. "Let's get going." Sonic embraced his uncle, then began to lead the others toward the open storm drain that terminated in the dump. Sawyer didn't like sloshing through standing water any more than he liked the smell of the dump, but decided that it might be best not to say anything. It had been decided that the group wouldn't run the risk of waiting for the train out in the open, even with the cover of shadows. They would have to wait in the drain until the train stopped, remove the cover, get out, open the car if it wasn't open, climb into the car, and replace the drain cover. Sonic was unperturbed by the prospect: "No biggie, Sal; I can pop the top on this thing and have the train ready for you in ONE second!" "That still leaves us three to get out and onto the train. The more I think about this the less I like it." "Then ya gotta stop thinkin' so much, Sal!" "Sonic, one of these days...never mind. Just get out first and make sure the door is open to the freight car. Rotor and Antoine, you follow Sonic. Bunnie and I will stick with Tails and Sawyer." Sally opened up Nicole: "Nicole, time until the train arrives." "TRAIN WILL ARRIVE AT THIS POINT IN TWO MINUTES AND TWELVE SECONDS." Sally and Sonic loosened the cover of the storm drain, which was little more than a metal grating. Then they waited. Sonic's impatience would have gotten the better of him had he not decided that with Sawyer and his friends here, he had to play this one by the numbers. But it was a strain, and when the rumble of the approaching train grew louder and louder and then the train braked with a high-pitched scream, Sonic was ready to explode. "Now!" Sally had no sooner said the word when the drain hatch was gone and so was Sonic. Everyone began scrambling out of the drain and up against the tracks. As soon as Sally was up, however, she groaned. The closest car to the drain was a tanker, which afforded no place to hide. Sonic was standing by the open door of a boxcar, which was two cars back beyond yet another tanker. "Now what?" Rotor asked. Sonic was waving to the others. "Run for it!" Sally whispered. Just as the group started toward the box car, however, there was a series of what sounded like explosions. It was the train beginning to move, each car's couplings banging as the train moved forward. There was no time to think, only to act. As the group neared the approaching door, Rotor rather unceremoniously grabbed Antoine's collar and more or less threw him into the open box car. As for Rotor himself, he saw Bunnie telescopically extend her legs and wrap them around him as she held onto the door frame with her robotic arm. She then reeled him in like a fish on a line. Sally had only a second to time her leap into the open doorway as if she were executing a high jump. It wasn't a pretty landing, but she knew that landing inside the car, and not under it in the path of the car's wheels, was the main thing. Sonic started to help her to her feet. "Oh mah stars!" Bunnie called out. "Where are the boys?" Everyone started looking around the inside of the almost- empty boxcar. The light was dim but it was clear that Tails and Sawyer were nowhere to be seen. Sonic started to look out the door, to see if they had been left behind. That's when something flashed before him. It was Tails, sailing into the open doorway. He was holding onto Sawyer by the wrists. Just then Tails' strength gave out and Sawyer dropped to the floor. Sighing with relief, Sonic closed the door of the boxcar. "Are you all right, Tails?" Sally asked as she knelt next to him. "Uh-huh," was all he was able to say. "What about you, Sawyer?" "Yeah, yeah," he replied, as if the question were more a nuisance than anything else. "Smooth move, big guy," Sonic said to Tails, "but telegraph that punch next time. You had us worried." "Now what, Sally?" Rotor asked. "Now we ride the rails for an hour." "You will be riding, I think I will be relackadaisical," Antoine said with a yawn. The boxcar had no ventilation to speak of aside from a couple of slits cut into walls of the car near the top. The air inside soon became close. This, plus the rhythm of the car rocking as it rolled along, meant that after a few minutes Antoine wasn't the only one who was asleep. Sally herself felt drained, but knew that she had to stay awake. Someone had to stay awake, she told herself, or they'd miss their chance to jump off the train and get Sawyer home. She couldn't let herself fall asleep, couldn't let her eyelids get heavy, couldn't... Just as Sally was nodding off, there was a deafening noise that startled everyone, and light flooded the car. "AAAUGH!" Antoine screamed. "The SWATbots have founded us! We are doom-ed!" "Relax, Antoine," Bunnie said. "Sugar-hog just opened the door." Indeed, Sonic had slid the door of the car open and the Freedom Fighters watched the Mobian landscape moving past at a hundred miles an hour. "Thanks, Sonic," Sally said. "No prob, Sal. I was gettin' bored by looking at the same walls, anyway." On they travelled. They watched parts of Mobius they hadn't seen before zipping past, and it heartened them that there was still much beauty that Robotnik had not yet spoiled. Yet they also saw houses that had been gutted by fire after SWATbots had searched them, and small towns left deserted when their inhabitants had been roboticized years before. Nobody said much of anything as they passed these sights. * * * It was some time later, and Tails was trying to teach Sawyer the "handshake" used by the Freedom Fighters. "You missed that part again," Tails said. "What part?" "You hook the little finger of the other person and THEN you give the thumbs-up." "That's the baby part!" Sawyer protested. "Aunt Sally says it shows we're united...that we're in it together." "I still think it's dumb." "Big surprise," Sonic said to Sally under his breath. At that moment, everyone who was standing was knocked off their feet as the train suddenly slowed. "Now what?" Sally asked Sawyer. The buck leaned his head out the open doorway slightly. "We'll be at the bend soon. Only we'd better close that door and open the door on the other side. That way we'll be on the engineer's blind side and we won't be seen when we get off." "You figure that out by yourself?" Sonic asked. "Nah, a friend told me the best ways to jump a train." "Did he tell you it was dangerous, too?" "Yeah. He told me running away was a stupid idea, but if I was gonna do it anyway I oughta know how to do it right." "Some kinda friend." Five minutes later, the train had decelerated to the point where it appeared to be crawling as it moved past a forest of scrub pines that seemed to march up a number of hills in the distance. But watching the scenery pass at 15 miles an hour was dangerously deceptive; that point was brought home as the Freedom Fighters looked at the sandy ground adjacent to the track. To all of them except Sonic, it still appeared to be moving quickly. "Get ready!" Sawyer called out as the train went into the curve and the wheels scraped and whined against the rails. "Now what?" Sally asked Sawyer. "Jump, then tuck and roll. Like this!" Without another word, Sawyer jumped out of the open doorway. Sally's heart was in her mouth. But she saw him land on his feet, then let the momentum carry him forward as he rolled on the ground to a stop. "Come on, everyone!" Sally called out. They exited the boxcar with varying degrees of grace. Antoine was too panicked to jump, but Bunnie had foreseen this possibility and simply tucked him under her robotic arm and let her metallic legs absorb the shock of landing. Rotor's landing was as ungainly as one of Dulcy's but he still landed in one piece. So did Sally, whose gymnastics training had not quite prepared her for this. Sonic waited until everyone else had jumped, closed the door of the freight car after him, and still acted like he could run rings around the slow-moving freight. And nobody doubted that he could, too. "We're on your home turf now, kid," Sonic said to Sawyer. "Which way's The Cove?" "This way. Come on." It was late afternoon as the group entered the pine forest and followed Sawyer over the rolling terrain. The lush growth concealed their movements, but unlike the Great Forest the soil was loose and sandy, and those in the group who wore shoes had to stop and empty them more than once. "Man, this really bites!" Sonic said as he laced his sneakers back up for the third time. How much farther?" "Maybe half a mile to go." "Ah'll be glad for that!" Bunnie said as she opened several flanges on the soles of her metallic feet in order to let sand run out. "All this here sand's gotta be murder on mah movin' parts!" Rested and regrouped, the seven walked on up yet another sandy hill. "Don't you worry about security?" Sally asked. "Why?" "Well, do you have a system of lookouts in case SWATbots come by?" "We have some guys who do that. Gearbox does it mostly." "What's a Gearbox?" As if in answer, there was a small explosion just above Sally's head against the trunk of a nearby tree. The trunk was now marked with a bright red stain; Sally caught a whiff of paint. "That's him up there," Sawyer said. The others looked upward and gasped. Seated on the stout limb of a nearby tree was a figure dressed in black, his back against the trunk of the tree, one leg stretched out along the branch and the other bent at the knee with an engineer boot resting on the branch. He wore black jeans, a belt with pouches about his waist, black fingerless gloves, an open black leather vest dotted with insignia of various kinds, and a black peaked cap. Yet it wasn't his dress that startled the Mobians, or caused Antoine in particular to cry out in terror. For the figure up in the tree was a hyena, and Sally recognized some of the insignia on his vest from the encounter the group had had with a renegade cycle gang who called themselves the Nasty Hyenas, an experience that had nearly been the death of Antoine. And "nasty" was certainly the first impression given off by this Mobian. "Hi, Gearbox!" Sawyer called out as he kept on walking. The hyena held up his right arm, on which he wore a full- size version of the sling that Sawyer now wore across his back. He reset it and, with an unsettling grin, sighted along it as if aiming at Sonic. He kept the hedgehog in his sights until the group had traveled over the hill. "Isn't he cool?" The enthusiasm in Sawyer's voice was unsettling. "He's the one who made my sling for me. And he taught me how to use it, and how to jump a train, and...." "Sawyer," Sally asked, "did he ever say anything about belonging to a group called the Nasty Hyenas?" "Uh-huh. He said he was a member once." "Did he ever say what happened?" "They kicked him out." "Sonic..." Sally began to whisper. "I know," he whispered back. "Anyone who gets kicked out of the Nasties has got to be MEGA bad news!" They reached the top of the hill and paused. "There it is," Sawyer said, not with any particular enthusiasm. Nestled in a valley between several lookalike hills was a collection of huts not unlike those of Knothole. They were grouped around an open space instead of a complex of pavilions as was the case in Knothole. The Freedom Fighters could see simply- dressed Mobians moving about, carrying wood or water, not really paying them much attention. They could also just catch the sound of water washing up on a beach from somewhere nearby. Without a word, Sawyer began stepping down the hill, with the others following him. He waited at the bottom as the others caught up with him, but he didn't seem very eager to go anywhere. "What's wrong?" Tails asked. "That's my parents' hut over there. That's why I brought you in the back way. Maybe if we walk in like it's no big deal..." "GRAMPA!" A child's high-pitched voice pierced the air. They saw a small lamb, who couldn't have been more than five years old, standing by the hut that Sawyer had said belonged to his parents. She wore only a t-shirt with a hand-painted daisy on the front. "Grampa! Grampa! Sawyer's back!" She then disappeared inside the hut. Sawyer groaned. "Who was that?" Tails asked. "My niece, Heather. The biggest tattletale on Mobius!" He began walking toward the door of the hut, with the Freedom Fighters following him. "Listen, Sawyer," Sally began, "if you're afraid of what...." "Nah. My folks will be cool about it." "SAWYER?" someone called from inside the house in a booming voice. "You out there?" "I hope," Sawyer added, glued to the spot. Before anyone could ask anything else, someone stepped out of the hut and into the daylight. "Sawyer, you'd better have a dang good reason for what...." The speaker was a rabbit. He was tall and lean, at least half again as tall as the Knothole Freedom Fighters even if you didn't take his ears into account. His fur was light brown, but his head fur had gone at least half-gray. He wore a doctor's coat, but it was thin, its once-white color was almost as gray as his headfur, and the ends of the sleeves and the hem were ragged. He also wore an old, worn pair of warm-up pants that ended in a jagged hem above his long, bare feet. Sally was not as concerned about Sawyer's safety now as she had been. She caught something in the speaker's tone of voice, something she'd heard countless times when Rosie or Julayla used to scold Sonic over something or other. It was a worry that masqueraded as anger, much as Tails's anger toward Sawyer the other night had disguised his concerns for Sonic and Sally. But now something else was going on. The rabbit was neither angry nor worried. Instead, he appeared to be in shock. His eyes were wide, his mouth hung open, and for a second it looked as if his knees would give out under him. All he could do was stare at the Freedom Fighters. Uncertain as to what was going on, Sally looked at Bunnie and saw that she too wore that same shocked expression. Then, trance-like, Bunnie started walking toward the older rabbit, who bounded down the few steps leading up to the door of the hut. When he and Bunnie were almost toe- to-toe, he dropped to his knees in front of her. Then he took her hands in his own. "Bunnie?" he finally asked, his voice heavy with emotion. The Freedom Fighters couldn't see Bunnie's face but they were able to hear her near-whispered reply: "Daddy...." In an instant the two had wrapped their arms around each other. Bunnie's body trembled quietly as her father sobbed openly and loudly. The Freedom Fighters were stunned. "What's going on?" Sawyer squealed. "Sawyer," Sally said gently, "don't say anything." "But she just...." "Please. This is a holy moment." At the sounds of the rabbit's sobbing, someone else now emerged from the hut. It was a female deer, apparently the same age as the rabbit for her fur as well was streaked with silver. She wore a simple brown dress that hung from her shoulders, wrapped itself loosely around her bosom, then fell to just below her knees to end in a jagged hem. She looked at Bunnie and her soft, green eyes flew open in alarm. She gasped and covered her mouth with one hand as if to stifle a scream. Bunnie looked up, her tear-filled eyes shining like stars. "MAMA!" Bunnie started to run toward the doe, who also ran toward Bunnie. She caught Bunnie in her arms, then began crying and covering Bunnie's face with kisses. It seemed at times to the Knothole Freedom Fighters that their struggle against Robotnik had become a full-time job. There was always a new development to analyze, a plan to consider, a success to celebrate or a defeat to deal with. But Robotnik didn't have a strangle-hold on their dreams, and there was one dream that each of the Freedom Fighters had, one that was too painful to share with anyone else. It was the dream of once more belonging to a family. They had forged themselves by necessity into a family of sorts in Knothole, and they made no attempt to hide it. Tails was Sonic's "little bro" just as Sally was "Aunt Sally" to the cub. Yet even within Tails, who had never known any life other than Knothole, there was a part of him that wondered who his parents were and what had happened to them. Even Sonic, whose Uncle Chuck was the only family he had ever known before Knothole, wondered what had happened to his mother and father. This wasn't idle curiosity, but the working out of an innate desire in the heart of a Mobian, and it was a desire all of the Freedom Fighters had felt as they remembered the family lives they had known before their world had been shattered by Robotnik. To be part of a family once more, to belong, to know love without condition and acceptance without hesitation--this was the fervent and unspoken prayer of every Freedom Fighter. And now Bunnie's prayer had been answered. "I don't believe it!" Sawyer said out loud. "She's Bunnie!" "Well, sure, that's her name," Tails replied. "But she's OUR Bunnie! My folks always talked about her like she was dead or something. Man, this is bogus!" "What are you talking about?" "Now I've got FIVE sisters!" he whined. "Yeah, but one of them is a Knothole Freedom Fighter." "Oh yeah. That's cool!" Sally, who had been too overcome with emotion to take part in the conversation, simply rolled her eyes upward and thought "Boys!" Just then, Bunnie walked back to the group, followed by her parents. "Everyone," she started to say, "these are mah...." The words wouldn't come, whether out of disbelief or lack of practice. Bunnie couldn't continue; she buried her face in her mother's side and started crying all over again. The doe knelt, wrapped her arms around Bunnie and stroked her head. Then she looked at the Knothole Freedom Fighters. "My name's Deirdre," she said in a gentle voice, "and this is my husband, Percy." "Call me 'Doc'," he said as he began vigorously shaking hands all around. "And we shore are grateful to you all for lookin' out for our Bunnie." "We look out for each other," Sally replied. "And I can look out for MYSELF!" Sawyer said angrily. "Or did you forget I came back already?" With that the buck turned and stormed off. "Sawyer, hold on!" Percy called out. Sawyer stopped, and folded his arms in front of him, keeping his back turned to the group. Percy and Deirdre exchanged glances, then Percy walked over to Sawyer and dropped to one knee next to him. "Sawyer," he said as he placed one hand on the boy's shoulder. Sawyer jerked his shoulder away from his father's touch but stayed rooted to the spot. "Sawyer," Percy continued with a voice that blended the firmness of a hawk's beak with the gentleness of its feathers, "Ah reckon you've been tryin' to tell that to your Mama and me for some time now. An' we haven't done the world's best job of listenin'. Ah won't say it's because we were busy with the babies; we both know that that may be a reason, but it ain't no excuse. Now, we'll do a better job of listenin' to you, if you'll meet us halfway and forgive us for not gettin' it right." Percy placed a hand on his son's shoulder. Sawyer didn't flinch. Silent seconds passed before Sawyer said in a soft voice: "Aw, Dad...." He threw his arms around his father's neck. Percy held him close. The two didn't return to the group until Sawyer had pulled himself together and Percy had discreetly offered the boy the hem of his doctor's coat with which to dry his eyes. "Son," Percy said as they walked up to the others, "did you know you were gonna run into your long-lost sister?" "No way!" "Aren't you going to introduce us?" Deirdre prompted. "Uh, Mama, Dad, this is Sonic, Tails, Rotor, Antoine, and she's Princess Sally." "Oh mah stars!" Percy exclaimed. "Well, this IS an honor!" he added as he dropped to one knee. "Please," Sally replied. "that title doesn't mean much out here. Call me Sally." "Our Bunnie AND the King's daughter!" Percy said as he shook his head and placed one hand on Sawyer's shoulder. "If that don't beat all!" A crowd of Mobians, the other residents of The Cove, had slowly been gathering around the group. Their curiosity was only intensified as the name "Bunnie" traveled from one set of lips to another in hushed whispers. Just then, someone broke out of the crowd. It was another rabbit, this one in his mid-20s with dark brown fur. He wore a patched apron that covered him from his chest to his knees. He looked to be the very image of Percy when he was younger. He dashed up to Bunnie, put his hands on her shoulders, and spun her around to face his beaming countenance. "Is that you, Squirt?" he asked in a loud voice. "Roonie!" Bunnie squealed with delight, and threw her arms around the rabbit's neck. "Who's Roonie?" Sonic wondered aloud. "Our fourth," Deirdre replied. "The next oldest before Bunnie." "Ah couldn't believe it when Ah heard it was you!" Roonie said to Bunnie. "Where the hoo-ha you been keepin' yourself? No, wait," he added immediately, "save it for the party." "What party?" "The one we gotta throw for your homecoming: the biggest dang party The Cove has ever seen! And Ah better get started on it right away. It's a miracle, your comin' back here," he said as he embraced his sister once more. "That's all it is, a miracle!" He then rose to his feet and started trotting off. "Roonie!" Bunnie called after him. "Is everyone in the family here?" "We are now!" he shouted happily as he dashed off. "Daddy, what did he mean when he said he had to get things started?" Bunnie asked. "That's right, y'all don't know. Your brother's the chief cook and bottle washer in these parts." "How many others ARE there?" Sally asked Bunnie. "You know Ah came from a large family, Sally-girl." "And it's got a mite larger since then," Percy added, "what with Sawyer and then the babies." "Babies?" Tails asked. Deirdre looked up to the doorway of the hut. Standing there was a another doe, who appeared to be about 30 years of age. On each hip she carried one of twin fawns who looked to be just over a year old. "Oh mah stars!" Bunnie blurted out. "Brianna?" "And that's our oldest daughter, Brianna," Deirdre told Sonic. Bunnie raced up the steps and threw her arms around her big sister's neck. Then she looked at the infants. "They are so BEAUTIFUL! What're their names?" "Hope and Constance--Connie for short. They're twins." "Are they yours?" Brianna laughed. "Nope. I help take care of them. These are our baby sisters." Bunnie turned back to look at her parents, her eyes wide. "Mama?" "And a great one, too," Percy said proudly as he put one arm around Deirdre's shoulder. "Well, you DID help a little, Farm Boy," she said as she kissed Percy on the lips. "Wait a minute. Who was that who called you 'Grampa'?" Bunnie asked. "Oh, that's Heather," Percy replied, "Lindsey's little girl." "I'm starting to get a major headache!" Sonic whispered to Sally. "Where's Lin?" Bunnie asked. "Ah GOT to see her!" "You'll see everyone sooner than later, Bunnie-honey. Let's get y'all settled in first." "Settled in?" Sally asked. "But...." "Now it ain't gonna be nothin' fancy, Princess, but why don't you and Bunnie share the guest hut, and Tails can bunk down with Sawyer in his hut...." "Can Sonic stay with us?" Tails asked. "It could get a might crowded, but Ah don't see why not." "Cool!" "C'mon, Tails," Sawyer said, "I'll show ya where it is." And the two boys and Sonic dashed into the main hut. "I thought Sawyer had his own hut," Sally observed. "Oh, he does," Percy replied. "C'mon in, Ah'll show you the guest hut and you'll see what Ah mean." Sally followed Percy and Deirdre into what she thought was their hut. It followed the same one-room design of the huts back in Knothole, but it was not only bigger but cluttered to a degree Sally wasn't used to. Most of the clutter, though, was due to the fact that the hut was the home of twin babies as well as two adult Mobians. Small handmade toys were scattered across the floor so that the room looked like a gigantic playpen, there were cribs set up by a larger adult bed, and there was no mistaking the heady scent Sally hadn't smelled since Sonic had first brought Tails to Knothole: the smell of diapers. Deirdre walked to one wall of the hut and pulled aside a curtain. Beyond that was another curtain set about a foot back. Behind that second curtain was an entire hut with simple furnishings and two beds, one large and one small, and the lamb whom Sally had seen earlier was seated on the small bed, engrossed in conversation with a rag doll. "This is our guest hut," Deirdre explained. "Lindsey, her mate, and Heather sleep over here sometimes, but we plan for this to be Hope and Connie's hut when they get older." "Who's that, Grandma?" the lamb asked. "Heather, this is Sally. She's a friend of your Aunt Bunnie." "Hello, Heather," Sally said as she walked over to the child. "What kind of friend?" Heather asked. "She's...she's my BEST friend." "Like Mommy Lindsey and Mommy Colleen?" "What?" Sally asked. "Heather," Deirdre said as she took the child by the hand and guided her to the curtain, "why don't you go outside and find your Mama Lindsey?" "OK." With that, the child pushed the curtain aside and left the hut. "I'm afraid I didn't understand what she said about..." Sally began. "Colleen and Heather came here to The Cove after Robotnik's SWATbots destroyed their old settlement. They were the only two who escaped. Heather was orphaned and Colleen became her new mother. It was a stroke of good fortune for our daughter, Lindsey, when they arrived because now Colleen and Lindsey are mates." "But how could..." "Colleen and Lindsey are both gay." "Oh," Sally replied, as she thought to herself: "This family may take some getting used to...." END OF PART 1