"Coming of Age"
Authors: Robert Brown and Francis Tolbert
Disclaimer: This story uses characters created and copyrighted by Sega of
America, Inc. and Archie Comics (except where noted, in which case
they were created and copyrighted by us or by another and we have
permission to use them). The authors hereby give permission for
this story to be downloaded and/or printed at 1 copy per user as
long as (1) no changes to the story are made without our express
written(not e-mailed) permission and (2) no attempt is made to
profit from this story. If either or both rules are violated, it
will be considered a violation of copyright law.
Author's Note: There's not much to say in this note. For those of you who have
been reading these things, you know that Francis' surgery was scheduled for
January 14. Due to my inability to lose weight, the surgery is probably going
to get pushed back to July. Keep us in your prayers, especially Francis.
Because of the recent developments on Bookshire's page, we
have decided to change our mind and post on a secondary page, at least for the
time being. We've selected Alessandro Sanasi, aka Tyro, to carry the stories
because he is one of the first ones to write us and offer to do so. We don't
know if it's permanent as of yet, but we'll keep you updated.
The only other thing is that we're glad to have fans such as
you, even if we don't say it often enough. Till next time, happy reading!
Cast of Characters(in order of appearance)
Princess Sally Acorn
Princess Sondra Acorn***
Sonic Hedgehog
Tanis Shi-rat***
King Acorn
Knuckles Echidna
Miles "Tails" Prower
Maurice Hedgehog***
Patricia Hedgehog***
Dr. Robotnik
Metal Sonic
Princess Lydia Evergreen^^^
Bunnie Rabbot
Antoine D'Coolette
Donovan###
Rotor
Dulcy
#20
Princess Sally woke up as the dawn's rays hit her face. She sat up,
stretched, and looked around. "Another day, another search," she thought,
rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She noticed she was holding her pillow again,
and smiled. "I'd rather be holding Sonic," she thought.
She reached over to the table near her bed and opened up Nicole. "Nicole,
state agenda for today."
"Loading, Sally," Nicole said. "Three items on the agenda for today.
First, you have a meeting with Sir Charles regarding more possible Emerald
locations in Robotropolis. Second, Sondra has asked to meet with you."
"Since when does she have to request one?"
"Since it's an official matter that may affect the Race," Sondra said
sleepily. "I need your permission to go ahead."
"We'll talk about it later," Sally said, intrigued. "What's the third
thing, Nicole?"
"A reminder that your eighteenth birthday is in two days," Nicole replied.
"It is?" Sondra asked, blinking the sleep from her eyes. "Wow, I got
some planning to do."
"It's no big deal," Sally said, looking away. "Really, Sondra, I don't
want anyone to make a fuss over it. In fact, I'd rather that no one remembered
it at all."
"You're kidding, right Sally?"
"No I'm not," Sally said a little angrily. She got up, marched to the
bathroom, and slammed shut the door.
Sondra looked at the door with one eyebrow arched. "What's eating her?"
she wondered aloud. "Oh well, maybe she just woke up wrong."
Sally marched down to the power ring pool, her anger calming with each
step. "I shouldn't have snapped at Sondra," she thought. "If she had been
raised as a princess instead of created one, she would know the problems that
face me now. Still, as the only one here who knows of such things, I'm not
going to let anyone else find out."
She sat by the pool and waited for the water to begin swirling. It had
been a while since she had come personally to gather a power ring, and she had
forgotten how calming it could be. The clearness of the water and the relative
quiet of the pool was like a balm to her troubled soul.
Sally let her thoughts wander as she waited. She had fully expected to
retake Mobius from Robotnik's grip by this time, and after the failed Doomsday
Project, it had seemed she was on the verge of fulfilling her dream. But then
Snively had shown up with his roboticization gun and Metal Sonic, so she had
had to put off the celebrations.
But nothing could've prepared her for the return of Robotnik, and the Race
for the Emeralds. Sally sighed. Her life was on hold while the Race was on,
in more ways than one. She didn't like the fact that she had to wait to marry
Sonic, but she had long since accepted it. It was another aspect of her life
that worried her, one that would come to a head in just two short days.
Sally shoved the thought from her mind as the pool began to swirl and
froth. She watched as a power ring emerged from the center of the pool and
hovered a few inches above it. She calmly flew over to it, grabbed it, and
flew back to shore.
As she landed, she heard approaching sonic booms. "Yo, Sal!" Sonic
called, speeding into view. "You got the power ring?"
Sally nodded. "Cool," Sonic said, but then he noticed something. "You
OK? You look like something's wrong."
"Oh, it's nothing, Sonic," Sally said, attempting to smile.
Sonic crossed his arms and tapped his foot. "I think I know you well
enough to know when something's wrong," he said. "Now talk."
"Sonic, nothing is wrong," Sally said measuredly.
"If you're worried that I forgot about your birthday--"
"It's not that!" Sally said quickly, too quickly.
Sonic nodded knowingly. "Don't worry," he said, smiling. "I got this
whole big thing planned out. I just need to set it--"
"Sonic, I don't want anything planned for my birthday," Sally said.
"Say what?" Sonic asked, confused. "Usually you get upset if I don't
remember your birthday. The one year I do, you don't want me to. What gives?"
"Well...it's the Race. I've got too much on my mind to think about a
party right now. The only party I want is the one where we celebrate our
victory."
Sonic raised an eyebrow and looked at Sally. "If you're sure. But I get
the feeling you're holding something back here."
"No time to talk, Sonic," Sally said, standing up. "Sondra wanted to talk
to me about something. Gotta juice." She took off with a sonic boom, leaving
Sonic standing there.
Sonic shook his head. "The only time she acts like me is when something
big is on her mind. I gotta find out what."
Sally took the long route back to her hut. By the time she got there,
Sondra had already left. "Where did she go?" Sally wondered out loud.
"Sondra will return in twenty minutes, Sally," Nicole said.
"Huh? Oh, thanks Nicole. I guess I forgot to shut you off when I left."
"Perhaps you should install the same type of auto shut-off in me that
Nadia has."
"I'll think about it. Right now, I need a long hot shower."
When Sally emerged from the bathroom, she saw Sondra sitting patiently on
her bed. "Feeling better, Sis?" Sondra asked.
"Yeah," Sally said, rubbing her hair out with a towel. "Sorry I snapped
at you this morning."
"It's OK," Sondra said, then just stared at Sally's head. "Umm,
Sally...."
"Oh no, not again," Sally moaned, running to her mirror. But everything
was fine and she heard Sondra explode in laughter behind her. "Sondra?!"
"Sorry, Sally," Sondra said, trying to stop laughing. "It's just that
you're getting paranoid lately 'cause Antoine's been quiet. I couldn't help
myself."
"Yeah, yeah," Sally grumbled. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"
"I was just thinking. We can't attack Robotnik, or do anything to weaken
him, right?"
Sally nodded. "We've checked for any loophole--"
"This isn't a loophole," Sondra interrupted. "Would we be weakening him
if we took something from Robotropolis that he didn't even know existed?"
"I'm not following."
"I'm talking about the roboticization gun plans. There are still three
plans out there that we need. Robotnik obviously doesn't know anything about
them, or he would have tried to build one. Why can't we just go get them?"
Sally thought about that. "I suppose we could," she said slowly, "but I'd
have to check with Knuckles to make sure. Stay here; I'll go to Sanctuary and
ask Tanis to contact him."
Sondra nodded and smiled. "I'll start getting together a 'raiding' party,
just in case he says yes." She took out a piece of paper and started writing
down a list of names, crossing some off as she wrote others.
Sally smiled and sped out of the hut, heading for Sanctuary. About
halfway there she stopped running and started flying. It had been a while
since she flew, and she had not realized how much she had missed it. She spent
about a half hour just losing herself in the ecstacy of flight before finally
continuing on toward Sanctuary.
To her surprise, Tanis was waiting outside for her. "I had a feeling you
would be coming," he said. "A day of reckoning for you is at hand."
"How did you know about that?" Sally demanded as she landed.
"Did you forget I have your father here? He remembers many such things."
Sally grumbled something that was probably better off unheard anyway.
"This may come as a surprise, but I am not here for that," she said slowly. "I
need to speak with Knuckles."
Tanis' eyes widened slightly. "Very well. Come inside and wait for him."
Sally brushed past Tanis and sat down on one of the benches in back.
Tanis walked to the altar and kneeled down in front of it. "I shouldn't have
been so hard on him," Sally thought, her anger subsiding a little. "He must
have been told by my father."
As if on cue, King Acorn sat down next to her. "You are not here about
your birthday?" he whispered to her.
"Daddy, I really don't want to think about it," Sally whispered back. "It
won't make much of a difference if we lose the Race, now will it?"
"There is that," the king conceded. "But the law is the law. You must
deal with it sooner or later. I would hate to have you default."
"Surely you are not thinking about defaulting the Race to Robotnik?"
Knuckles asked, appearing suddenly next to them.
Sally was too angry to be shocked. "What, no flash of light?" she asked
sarcastically.
"That is mostly for...theatrical use, I suppose," Knuckles admitted. "The
summons I received seemed urgent, so I didn't bother with such a trivial
thing."
Sally smirked. "If you must know, what I was speaking with my father
about is not what I asked you here for."
"I'll leave you two alone now," the king said, standing. "I have
something I wish to discuss with Tanis."
"So, what did you ask me here for?" Knuckles asked when the king had
left.
"My sister has an interesting idea," Sally said, then went on to recount
what Sondra had suggested to her. "Is it possible?" she asked.
Knuckles had become very thoughtful as Sally talked. He looked up after
a moment and sighed. "There is nothing against you getting those plans, but I
have grave reservations about what Sondra plans to do with those plans. I will
give permission for you to obtain those plans, but Sondra must talk with me
before she puts them to any use."
"Understood," Sally said, looking somewhat relieved. "At least this will
give us something to do other than sit around."
"Remember," Knuckles cautioned, "you can't use any type of distractions
that will harm him or hinder him."
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks for the permission, but now I gotta get back.
Later." Sally stood up and sped off, without so much as a goodbye.
"She is becoming entirely too much like Sonic," the king said, stepping
into the main hall.
"Eavesdropping, Your Majesty?" Knuckles asked with mock severity. "How
unkinglike."
"I'm concerned about my daughter. I was certain she would handle her
problem with more maturity than she is showing."
"Actually, she did the right thing--"
"I'm not talking about that," the king interrupted. "There is something
else that is troubling her. Perhaps I should tell you about it, for it may
certainly affect the Race."
Sally half-ran, half-flew back to Knothole. She headed straight for her
hut, almost forgetting to open the door before she burst through it. "Sondra?"
she called, coming to a stop.
There was no answer. "Oh that's right, she said she'd be talking to the
others about it. And I have a pretty good idea of where she is." She opened
the door and sped off.
Sally sped over to Tails' hut and opened the door. "Tails, have you
seen...?"
Both Tails and Sondra jumped. "Umm, hi Aunt Sally," Tails said, blushing.
Sondra quickly got off of Tails' lap. "H-Hi, Sis," she stammered.
Sally arched one eyebrow. "Am I interrupting something?"
"N-No, w-what gives you that idea?" Sondra asked, picking up her vest
from the floor. "I...gotta go round up some others."
"Before you go," Sally said with a half-smile, "you might be interested to
know that Knuckles gave his permission to get the plans."
"All right!" Sondra exclaimed, giving Tails a big hug.
"But," Sally cautioned, "before you actually use them for whatever you
have planned, Knuckles wants to speak with you. OK Sondra? Sondra?"
But Sondra had stopped listening and was starting to kiss Tails again.
Sally tapped her on the shoulder. "Did you hear me?"
Sondra jumped again. "Huh? Oh, sorry. Didn't know you were still here."
"I think you'd better get going," Sally said, forcibly separating the two.
"Umm, yeah," Sondra said. She headed out the door a little shakily,
bumping into things along the way.
"If I didn't know better," Sally mused. But then she shook her head.
"Nah, they know better." She started to leave, but saw a very glazed look on
Tails' face that almost made her reconsider. She just shook her head again
and left.
Sally walked around Knothole, trying to kill time until that night. She
was lost deep in thought, something she had been trying to avoid. She was
almost knocked off her feet when she ran into Maurice. "Hey there Princess,"
he said, steadying her. "What's with the long face?"
"Sorry, Maurice," Sally said. "It's been a long day already." She looked
at his face. "You don't look so good either."
Maurice sighed and looked in the hut. Patricia lay on a bed, her belly
swollen and heavy with child. "It's been rough," Maurice admitted, "much
rougher than when she had Sonic. I hope everything's OK."
"What did Rosie say?"
"She said the Patricia has to stay in bed this last month or risk losing
the baby. She doesn't like it, and I'm at my wit's end trying to keep her in
bed."
"All you have to do is ask, I'm sure the rest of us will be happy to
help out."
"Thank you, Princess."
"Maurice!" Patricia yelled. "Help me get up!"
"Here we go again," Maurice muttered. "Excuse me." He walked inside the
hut, trying to calm Patricia down.
Sally walked on, thinking about what it might be like to have a baby in
Knothole. Isabela was a cute child, but a baby would be something totally
different. "It'll give Sonic good practice for when we have children," she
thought, smiling darkly.
That night, Sally, Sondra, Tails, and Sonic crept into Robotropolis. "I
hope ol' 'Butt-nik doesn't spy us in here," Sonic whispered. "He might ruin
everything if he gets curious as to why we're here."
The others nodded. "Maybe it would've been easier to come in solo on
this," Sondra said.
Sally and Tails immediately shook their heads. "You don't go anywhere by
yourself, Sondra," Sally whispered fiercely. "If you came across an Emerald,
you'd be in real hot water trying to get out safely."
"I know, I know. Can't blame a girl for trying, can you?"
"We'd better split up," Tails suggested. "We can try to hit two spots at
the same time and jet back to Knothole. I'll go with Sondra."
"Think you two can control yourselves?" Sally asked jokingly. Both
Sondra and Tails blushed fiercely. "Umm, maybe I'd better go with Sondra," she
whispered, noticing their reactions with some concern.
"C'mon Sonic," Tails said, hurrying off.
"I think we need to talk," Sally said as the boys left.
"Can't this wait till we get home?" Sondra asked, starting to rev up her
legs.
"All right, but don't think I'm going to forget about it," Sally said.
Robotnik sat in his command chair, looking at the many flickering screens
on the console before him. He knew Robotropolis like the back of his metallic
hand, but he still had not found places to hide the Emeralds. And if he
didn't do it soon, he'd have to deal with Knuckles' ire, something he did not
look forward to.
As Robotnik was lost in thought, Metal Sonic surveyed the scanners in
front of him. It was pointless, especially because Robotnik didn't have the
Emeralds hidden yet, but it was better than doing nothing. And doing nothing
was better than listening to Robotnik rage on about the hedgehog and his two
Emeralds to one advantage.
As if on cue, blips appeared on his radar screen, all moving at high
speed. "Interesting," Metal Sonic thought. "The Freedom Fighters must be
here searching for an Emerald. Too bad."
But then he noticed they were not moving in a search pattern, but heading
directly toward a known goal. Metal Sonic smiled. "They're after the plans,"
he realized. "Interesting loophole. Well, I'm not about to help ol' Fat Boy
with anything that isn't in my job description."
"What are you muttering about?" Robotnik asked suddenly.
"Just wishing there was something else to do," Metal Sonic replied
tiredly. He switched some monitor views, ostensibly performing his duties.
In reality, he kept switching off the cameras that were just about to show
the Freedom Fighters.
Sally didn't forget that she had to speak with Sondra. Unfortunately, by
the time everyone got back to Knothole, she was dead tired. She was so used to
getting into fights in Robotropolis, that her body was primed for it the whole
time she was there. When nothing happened and the adrenaline faded, she was
left feeling extremely tired. After she reached her hut, she just plopped down
on her bed and fell asleep.
The next morning, Sally woke up feeling very refreshed. She took a quick
shower and headed out, not even bothering to check the day's list on Nicole.
It was late in the morning, later than it usually was when she woke up. "Hope
I'm not late for my wrestling lesson," she thought.
When she got to the ring, she found Tails and Sondra in the ring with
Sonic and Antoine watching from outside. Bunnie was referee, as always, and
Sondra seemed to be wearing Tails down. A series of forearm uppercuts had
pushed Tails back against the ropes, and he seemed dazed. Sondra tried an
Irish whip, but Tails reversed it and caught her with a quick leg lariat.
Sondra went down hard, grabbing her throat. Tails picked her up only
to throw her back down with a snapmare. He leaned against the ropes, ran over
Sondra to the other side, jumped on the middle rope and moonsaulted on to
Sondra. Bunnie dropped for the count as Tails hooked a leg. One...two....
Sondra reached up and raked Tails' eyes before the three-count, causing
him to pull off her. "Stay off the eyes, Sondra," Bunnie cautioned. Sondra
brushed Bunnie aside and headed for Tails. Tails ducked low and grabbed both
of Sondra's legs, tackling her down. Sondra tried to kick Tails off, but he
held fast. Tails flipped over Sondra, holding the legs. Sondra freed her
legs and bridged up, forcing Tails up with her. She turned him over and
bent him over, hooking both arms behind his back.
Sondra tried to lift Tails up and over, but Tails kicked out his legs.
Instead, he straightened up with Sondra upside-down on his back. He got his
balance and then just sat down, trying to drive Sondra's head into the mat.
But Sondra had let go of his arms and slid down in front of him until
she ended up sitting on his lap. She pushed him down and hooked his legs with
her own. Bunnie dropped to count. One...two...three.
Bunnie jumped up and called for the bell. She turned back to raise
Sondra's hand, but saw that Sondra had not let Tails go yet. "C'mon Sondra,
get off him," she said playfully, pulling at Sondra.
But Sondra evidently had no intentions of getting up. And from the looks
of things, Tails didn't want her to either. "Uh oh," Sally muttered, sliding
into the ring to help Bunnie pull them apart. It took both of them, plus
Sonic and Antoine to get them apart. And when they did part, both of them
had slightly glazed looks in their eyes, looks the other four knew well.
"If anyone needs us," Sally said, picking Sondra up on her shoulder,
"we'll be in our hut talking."
"I'd better talk to Tails," Sonic said, picking him up much like Sally
had Sondra. They both juiced off, heading in opposite directions.
Bunnie and Antoine just looked at each other. "I am thinking they are
forgetting the talk we had when Lydia first showed up," Antoine said.
"I don't know if they forgot sugarfox," Bunnie said thoughtfully. "I just
think something Sally said is coming true."
"You mean about their bodies deciding for them?"
Bunnie nodded. "I hope they can get a handle on it. I know I've had a
hard time controlling it while I'm awake, much less when I'm asleep."
Antoine just looked at Bunnie. Bunnie, realizing what she had just let
slip, turned a very bright pink from head to toe. "Umm, I'd...err...better be
...umm...going now," she said, stumbling through the ropes and to the floor.
Antoine stood in the center of the ring, watching Bunnie scamper off. "I
am thinking she needs a cold shower," he thought. "Come to think of it, so do
I." He calmly walked out of the ring and to his hut.
Sally deposited Sondra on her bed and sat down next to her. "I warned
you," she said, sitting Sondra up.
"Huh?" Sondra asked, shaking her head. "What happened? Last thing I
remember, I was in the ring about to pin Tails. Then...." Her voice faded
out as her eyes stared off in the distance.
"Snap out of it!" Sally said, shaking her sister. "Remember what we
talked about?"
"I know, I know," Sondra said angrily. "You think I don't know?"
"Hey, what's all the yelling about?" Lydia asked, poking her head inside
a window.
"Sondra's body just kicked into overdrive," Sally said, crossing her arms
over her chest.
"Sally!" Sondra screamed. "Why don't you just go blab it to all of
Knothole?"
"Easy you two!" Lydia said, rushing between the two of them. "Look, you
both need to calm down before this goes too far."
"She's the one that needs a dip in the pool," Sally said. "Me, I can
handle it."
"What's the big deal anyway?" Sondra asked. "It's not like I've got the
same things holding me back as you do."
"You'd like to think so," Sally said. "You don't know the half of it!"
"I know I'm a princess, but it's not like I'm the one who's gonna be
queen! I don't know what's been bugging you lately, but you've been going nuts
since Nicole reminded you of your birhtday tomorrow."
"It's tomorrow?" Lydia asked. "Wait a minute. You're gonna be eighteen,
aren't you? By the Almighty, I should've realized."
"Damn," Sally swore. "Why'd you have to remember that?"
"Remember what?" Sondra asked, thoroughly confused. "Somebody better
start talking."
"I don't know how much she's told you about the coronation," Lydia said.
"Just that it's the ceremony where she'll become queen."
"That's true, but it's not the whole truth."
"How so?"
"Put simply Sondra, the laws of Mobius state that all heirs to the throne
must assume the throne by their eighteenth birthday."
"So the ceremony is tomorrow. So what?"
"It's not that simple," Sally said reluctantly. "Fact is, Robotnik's the
one in power, and we all know he won't just give it up. And if I cannot truly
ascend the throne by tomorrow, I lose my chance to be queen."
"Say what? So then what happens?"
"Ordinarily, it would've passed on to one of my cousins, whomever was
either in power or about to attain it. But since you're here now, you will
become the first in line to the throne."
Sondra looked like she had just been struck. "You mean...." she
whispered softly.
Sally nodded. "As of tomorrow, you will truly be the Princess of Mobius."
Sondra lay back suddenly. "This is a lot to deal with right now," she
said. "And you weren't even gonna tell me?"
"It's not like we can do anything about it. Knuckles has made it clear
that nothing can interfere with the Race. Not even something like this."
"Did you ask him about it?"
"Well, no. But the law can't be broken."
"How do you know? Nothing's written in stone, especially these days."
"She does have a point," Lydia said. "Back when Mobius was wracked by
war, I'm sure something was done to prevent the line from dying."
"We have no way of knowing that," Sally said. "Even if such a thing
exists, the proof is in Robotropolis. You know Robotnik couldn't care less
about our problems."
"What about the computers? I'm pretty sure at least one of them has a
record of all the laws ever made."
"It's worth a shot." She took Nicole from her boot and opened her up as
Sondra did the same with Nadia and Lydia did it with Samantha. "Nicole, access
any laws dealing with the coronation during times of war."
"Searching, Sally," Nicole said. "No entries meeting required data
found."
"Samantha can't come up with anything either," Lydia said.
"Neither can Nadia," Sondra said, sighing. "Wait a minute. What's this?"
"What?" Sally and Lydia asked together.
"If anyone would have a record of this, Donovan would," Nadia said. "I'm
taking it upon myself to contact him about it."
Lydia shook her head. "I still don't know how she does that," she
muttered.
"Actually, Nadia, let me talk to him," Sondra said.
Donovan sat at his computer console in his main base. "Computer, access
possible locations for the Kavenoff and/or the final hidden Emerald."
"Kavenoff, wherever. The Emerald, wherever you didn't look yet," his
computer responded.
"Just look up the data," Donovan said calmly.
"Why don't you just go get some sleep?"
Donovan took off his shades and put his head in his hands. "Just bring up
the map highlighting where I haven't looked yet," he said slowly, emphasizing
each word. "And no more attitude."
"Excuse me Mister Cranky," the computer said. "But it looks like it'll
have to wait. You have an incoming call from Sondra."
Donovan smirked. "Tell her to call me later."
"Message relayed, but now Nadia's asking to speak to you."
Donovan's eyes brightened. "Well, what are you sitting there for? Patch
her through!"
"Hey Squirrel-boy!" Nadia said cheerfully. "Got a minute?"
"I got an eternity for you. Whatcha got on your mind?"
Before Nadia could respond, Donovan's computer snickered. "Keep it up and
you'll be dealing with a nasty virus from me," Nadia said. "I wonder how you'd
like to have your voice about four octaves higher."
"I'll be looking up the map data now," the computer said quickly.
"OK," Donovan said, smiling. "Anyway, you were saying?"
"We got a bit of a problem here," Nadia said.
"Nadia, you know I can't help with the Race," Donovan began.
"I know. This is not about the Race."
"OK, I'll bite. Then what?"
"Sally's eighteenth birthday is tomorrow."
Donovan winced. "Ouch. Let me guess, she's not ready to claim the throne
yet, so she's about to lose her right to it. Am I close?"
"On the nose. None of the computers here have records of any law that
might deal with this. Think you would?"
"Computer, process Nadia's request. Give it top priority."
"Searching," his computer said. "Uh oh."
"Uh oh? I hate 'uh oh'. What's wrong?"
"Remember when you told me to clear up space to help try and track the
Kavenoff?"
"Yeah," Donovan said slowly.
"And you said to clear up data that I figured would not have to be used
ever again?"
"Yeah."
"I erased all history files dating past 50 years."
"Damn. Looks like I'll have to do this the hard way. I'll get back to
you Nadia."
"You only have until sundown tomorrow," Nadia cautioned.
"I know. I'll get back to you before then."
"Take care Donovan," Nadia said softly. Then, she whispered, "My love."
"I love you too," he said, smiling. "Nadine."
"Connection terminated loverboy," his computer said.
"How would you like your circuits crossed?"
"Don't you have somewhere to go? You only have until sundown tomorrow."
Donovan sighed and pushed away from the console. He walked out the door
and sniffed the late autumn air. "Device one, activate," he said. His rocket
boots propelled him up and to the south, heading for a distant and secluded
area of Mobius.
"Donovan's working on it," Nadia reported. "But he may not come up with
anything in time."
Sally sighed. "I guess it's time to face the music, huh?" she asked.
Sondra nodded. "You couldn't keep this hidden forever you know. I'll
round up everyone so you can do this in one shot."
"And I'll go with you," Lydia said, smiling. "Just want to make sure you
don't forget what it is you're supposed to be doing."
Sondra smirked, but then saw the look on Lydia's face. "Umm, yeah. I
guess I could use the help. Grab on."
Sally hardly noticed when they left. "In all the time we've been
fighting, I've never kept something like this from them," she thought. "I
wonder how they'll react."
"SAY WHAT!!?" Sonic yelled when Sally finished talking. "You weren't
gonna even tell me about this?"
"I just thought that if I didn't think about it, it would go away," Sally
said lamely.
"Aunt Sally, you told me that never works," Tails said.
"I know, but--"
"But nothing Sally-girl," Bunnie interrupted. "We're supposed to be best
friends and you didn't say one word to me either."
"I may not be the closest animal to you," Antoine said, "but I thought you
would have consulted me because I do know more about these things than most."
"If it hadn't been for me overhearing her and Sondra argue, we never
would've found out," Lydia said.
Sondra looked over at Sally. "Umm, guys..." she said softly.
"And everyone says I act immature," Dulcy said.
"Umm, guys," Sondra said a little louder.
"I wouldn't say she was immature Dulcy," Rotor said. "Just irrational."
Sondra formed a crystal, threw it up in the air, and covered her eyes. A
second later, the crystal exploded in a burst of light. Everyone stopped
arguing as they were momentarily blinded. "Do I have everyone's attention
now?" Sondra asked. "Good. I suggest you all take a look at my sister."
Everyone looked at Sally, who had sunk to her knees. Tears ran freely
from her eyes, and she made no attempt to hide them or wipe them away. One by
one, they all looked down, ashamed of themselves.
Sonic was the first one to react. He walked over to Sally and placed a
hand on her shoulder. Sally shook away. "Just leave me alone," she said.
"But Sal..." Sonic began.
"Leave!"
They all looked at Sondra. She nodded, and they wandered away slowly.
"I'm here if you need me, Sis," Sondra said softly, leaving with the others.
Sally sat there, alone with her emotions. She felt bad for snapping at
Sonic, but also angry that they had not understood. There were a bunch of
other emotions there that she couldn't sort out, and she got a headache trying.
Eventually, she slipped into sleep, finding solace from her thoughts only
there.
Donovan looked up from a very large book. "I can't believe how long this
is taking," he muttered. Then he looked at the many rows of shelves filled
with books like the one in front of him. "Then again, yes I can."
Donovan sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Gotta keep at this. Even though
I've been at it for a few hours now. I know it's here somewhere. Somewhere."
He lowered his eyes back to the book and resumed reading.
Sally opened her eyes as a ray of sunshine hit her face. She tried to
sit up but found she was already sitting. She tried to stretch, but her arms
were being held down. She turned her head and saw she was sitting on Sonic's
lap. "Morning," he whispered.
"Sonic?" she asked, yawning. "What are you doing here?"
"I just figured you needed someone to hold you," he said. "Not that this
is going to become a habit again. I meant what I said."
"I know. And thanks. I guess I did need this." She kissed him gently
on his cheek.
Sonic kissed her back and then stood up, still holding her. "And I think
there's something else you need," he said, smiling.
Sally looked around and saw all of Knothole was surrounding them. "Happy
Birthday Sally!" they yelled.
Sally smiled. "Thanks everyone," she said softly.
"Like we wouldn't have done this anyway," Sondra said. "You need some
serious cheering up, and I think a party is just what the doctor ordered."
Sally smiled again, and let herself be drawn into the celebration. But
somewhere in the back of her mind, a small voice warned her that she was only
delaying the inevitable.
Donovan just finished reading another book and slammed it shut. "I'm
getting nowhere, and getting there fast," he said, frustrated. He got up and
took out his communicator, "Computer, how much time do I have left?" he asked.
"Four more hours," his computer replied, "including time to get to
Knothole. You better hurry."
"I'm not worried about that. You can teleport me to Knothole as soon as
I find what I'm looking for."
"First, you must find the book with the infomation and get out of there."
"Point taken." Donovan clicked off his communicator, got up, and sighed.
"Someone once told me, 'When you are looking for something, chances are you
won't find it.'"
He then walked over to a very large shelf. "'However,'" he continued,
"'if you are looking for something else, you will find what you were
originally looking for.'" He looked at the shelf "So, let me look for
something else." He then kicked the shelf and about a hundred books fell on
him. "Like my way out of this pile," he muttered.
Knuckles paced moodily around the Emerald chamber. "Talk about rotten
timing," he thought. "I had no idea that the Race would alter the ruling
family of Mobius so. And yet I always wondered why Robotnik insisted on
waiting a year before the Race began. I guess he thought that even if he lost,
he'd gain a small measure of victory by destroying the House of Acorn. Even
with Sondra here, I foresee many difficulties and challenges to her rule, if
indeed she becomes queen."
Knuckles sighed and assumed a meditative position. "If my Emeralds were
still here, I could use one of them to see exactly how the House of Acorn
survived wars before, for I know there were many."
Then a thought occurred to him. "And why couldn't I? There is still one
Emerald out there which no one knows the location of. It should be simple to
retrieve it and replace it without anyone knowing." He stood and started
chanting in a long forgotten language.
"Yes!" Donovan exclaimed, his hand emerging from the pile of books
holding a rather small book. "I knew that would work." He pushed the rest of
the books off of him and stood. He flipped through the book rapidly, making
sure it held the information he needed.
Satisfied, he closed the book and reached for his communicator. But it
wasn't in his pocket. He looked back toward the pile and noticed a wire
sticking out from underneath it. "Great," he said sarcastically, lifting the
book and seeing the crushed remains of his communicator. "Well, at least I
got my teleporter."
He reached into another pocket, but it was empty. "That's the last time I
rush out of my base without being properly prepared," he muttered. He walked
out of the building and activated his rocket boots. "I just hope these things
have enough energy to get me to Knothole."
Sally smiled as she cut her birthday cake, a special present from Rosie.
"This has been great," she said, taking the first bite as was the custom. She
looked over the presents everyone had given her. "You don't know how much this
means to me."
"Oh, I think we do," Bunnie said. "I just wonder if you know how much you
mean to us."
"I do, but it didn't hurt to be reminded." She looked into the western
sky and sighed. "The sun will set soon," she began.
"Hey!" Sondra said sharply. "None of that. We'll figure everything out
tomorrow. But for right now, you just concentrate on having fun."
"OK. Things will just happen as they happen."
"And they will happen better than you think," Knuckles said, walking out
of what seemed to be thin air.
"Come to join the festivities, Guardian?" Sally asked.
"If I'm allowed. But first, I have a present for you. It seems that--"
Knuckles was cut off by a loud explosion that sounded overhead. "Look out
below!" Donovan yelled, crashing to the ground.
Sondra ran over to him and helped him up. "Are you OK?" she asked
worriedly.
Nadia started beeping furiously. "Miles, open her up for me," Sondra
said, struggling to support Donovan.
Tails did so as Antoine helped Sondra. "Donovan!" Nadia said as she was
opened. "Are you OK? What happened? Are you injured?"
"I hate setting my boots on full power," Donovan said as Nadia started to
babble. "I'm OK, Nadia. I just had to hurry to get Silly's present here
before sundown."
"What present, Donovan?" Sally asked.
Donovan held out his hands, intending to give Sally the book, but his
hands were empty. He looked around for it but did not see it. Then, on a gut
feeling he looked up.
The book smashed into his face just as he saw it. "This present," he said
as the book slipped off his face. "I am not having a good day."
Sally picked up the book and looked at it. "I'm not sure I understand."
"Turn to page one twenty-four. You'll understand."
Sally turned to the page Donovan had indicated and started to read. "'Let
it be known that all heirs to the throne of the House of Acorn must take their
rightful place by sundown on their eighteenth birthday or forfeit the right to
the next heir in line.'"
"Keep reading," Donovan said, cutting Sally's question off before it got
started.
Sally shrugged and did so. "'However, in the event that the House of
Acorn has been uprooted from power by war or a coup d'etat, said heir shall
have one additional year to reclaim the throne by whatever means possible. If
the heir is unable to, then the aforementioned rule applies. If the heir is
successful, the coronation must take place within a week, else the rule still
applies.'"
Sally looked up, tears in her eyes. "Donovan, this is the best present I
have ever received." She rushed to him and planted a kiss of gratitude on his
cheek.
Donovan just looked at Sally in a mixture of shock, surprise, and wonder.
At the same time, a strange growling sound came from Nadia, causing Tails to
drop her. All eyes turned to Nadia. "Initiating self-shutdown routine," she
said quickly.
Donovan pushed away from Sondra and Antoine, able to stand on his own.
"Umm, yeah," he said. He walked over to Nadia and picked her up. "Tell Nadia
we need to talk," he said, handing her to Sondra. Then he turned and walked
away.
"You're welcome to stay," Sally called. "We really have something to
celebrate now."
"Thanks all the same, but I just want to get home and get this day over
with before something else happens." Donovan walked slowly into the Great
Forest and soon disappeared from sight.
"What was it you were going to say, Knuckles?" Sally asked, turning back
to him.
"Oh, nothing of importance," he said mysteriously. "Anything I had to say
has already been said. But I do hope that invitation to stay also is extended
to me?"
"What? You mean you can socialize with us?" Sonic asked jokingly.
"If I choose. But understand this doesn't mean that I favor your side in
any way."
"Of course," Sally said, smiling. And celebrate they did.
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