Stolen Speed

Mai-Em hated the caves.

She longed for the gleaming walls and bright lights of a Dark Legion instillation, not the dank, smelly darkness of the earth that surrounded her.

Ever since the defeat at the cliffs on the southern Mobian continent, when Dimitri and the Guardian had both fallen, when almost all Dark Legionnaires had been striped of their cybernetic enhancements, the few that had managed to escape both the beam’s effect and the ESTs had been forced to live like moles it the Aurora-damned place.

But not all was lost. They’d managed to salvage quite a bit of their own technology, from various places, the Legion had caches everywhere. They had also stolen quite a bit from other, less advanced Mobians. And without their leaders about to veto things, she and her brother were free to indulge in their own little enterprises.

The higher ups had always been against the twin’s ideas of biological enhancements, of genetic manipulation. Just as they had been with their father. But with the natural gifts afforded upon the freakish Guardian, and his equally freakish comrades, it seemed the obvious answer. Why couldn’t they see that? The Guardian had all but single handily defeated their technological might, so why continue to place their faith in it?

It hadn’t been easy to get the genetic material she’d needed for her experiment. She’d only managed to harvest cells from the echidna and the hedgehog. But then, she’d never seen the fox’s gifts as very impressive. After all, he was only blessed with the gift of flight, and the Guardian had that amongst his arsenal of abilities. And his companions, the Chaotix, their abilities were simply the gifts of their respective species…there was nothing special about them at all.

Finding test subjects had been difficult as well. None of her comrades were particularly interested, they held with the technological might ideals of the Grand Masters. And their numbers had dwindled to such an extent, she didn’t really want to risk any of them. Her ideas were untested…

So she had looked to the outside world, she didn’t really care about species outside her own. Surprisingly, she’d found a volunteer…a hedgehog…which had amused her greatly. She and her young son had proven to be excellent test subjects, she learned a great deal from their enhancements…

Then she had moved on to the one she considered her masterpiece. He had been designed to take out the Guardian himself, and she had little doubt that he could accomplish his task. A smirk curled her mouth as she thought of him. He was magnificent…too bad she’d had to wipe out his memory…

She entered her laboratory, the smirk still playing on her lips. Her brother, Havock, looked up from his computer screen.

“You’re looking rather smug…” He noted with a smirk of his own.

“Why shouldn’t I be?” She countered, checking the readouts on his screen over his shoulder. “They’re perfect…strong…fast…deadly…and not a hint of a side-effect.”

“At least not yet…” Havock said softly.

“You discover a problem, brother dear?” She glanced at him.

His dark brows knit beneath his snowy bangs. “It’s your little…pet project…”

“Oh?” Her cybernetic eyes sparkled brightly.

“I think we’ve made him too powerful…” He looked up at his sister. “What if he remembers? He’s not gonna be too happy if he learns what we did to him…he could cause us problems if he turned on us…”

Her smirked deepened. “There’s are always ways to keep a hormonal teenager on side…” She arched her back in such a way to emphasis her own attributes.

“You have a perverted mind, dear sister…” Havock shook his head.

“Assemble the troops…” She said. “It’s time they met our new…recruits…”

~~~~~~

Mai-Em looked down on their assembled number with a frown. There was barely a score of them now. There was no way they could currently be considered a threat to anyone.

But that was about to change.

“My friends…” She said to them. “For far too long we have hidden in the shadows…all but afraid to show ourselves. It is time for us to begin rebuilding what we once were…”

“And just how do you propose we do this?” Someone questioned. “We number little more than a handful!”

“Then we must increase our numbers…” She countered. “Many of our people now dwell on the Floating Island…some imprisoned…some amongst the general population…we will invite them back into the fold…”

“And if they resist?” Another queried.

“Then they will be executed as the traitors they are!” She declared.

“Calm yourself, me dear sister.” Havock smiled at her, he could see the colour beginning to rise in her face.

“What you’re suggesting is impossible.” The first Legionnaire stated. “The hypocritical Brotherhood and their technology will detect us before we set foot on the Island.”

“And how can they do that?” Mai-Em turned on him. “What is it that they detect? What is it that they’re looking for?”

“Our enhancements. Our transports.” He glared at her. “It’s not like we can just leave them behind!”

“Exactly!” She beamed. “Which is why we need Legionnaires without enhancements. Legionaries that can sneak onto the Island using non Legion transportation…Legionnaires that are a physical match for their much vaulted Guardian…” She looked at the assembly with a triumphant smirk.

“And thanks to my brother and I…we have just the Legionnaires for the job…”

~~~~~~

“You know what they say, Sal…” Sonic smiled. “Third time’s the charm…” He clinked his glass of apple juice against hers to emphasise his point.

“You’re a nut.” She giggled at him. They just looked at each other for a moment, smiling inanely. It had taken them so long to find some time to be together, and now that they’d found it they were both surprisingly nervous about being alone.

Sonic had, equally surprisingly, turned to Knuckles for advice. He didn’t know too many others to turn to. Antoine he felt was inappropriate. The coyote had never hidden his feelings about Sally, and even though he was now with Bunnie, Sonic didn’t want to open any old wounds. Which had basically shortened his list to a choice of one.

Knuckles had told him to be himself. He and Julie-Su seemed ecstatically happy together, so it obviously worked…at least for them. Sally was no fool, Knuckles had told him. If she was willing to spend time with him, it was because she wanted to. He didn’t need to put on any airs and graces. She already loved him for who he was.

Sonic smiled inwardly. ‘Knux always did have a knack for cutting through the crud…’

“It’s been a wonderful day…but I think we should be heading home…” Sally smiled as she began smoothing out her fur. It wouldn’t be appropriate for her to return to the village looking more than a little ruffled. Though the pair hadn’t shared any more than a bit of harmless ‘slap and tickle’, rumours were easy to start…and hard to quell…

“Yeah…” Sonic agreed, tossing the remains of their picnic in the basket at break-neck speed. He rose, offering her his hand. She took it and he pulled her easily to her feet, leading her off the blanket, which he then scooped up, folded it in a flash and shoved it the basket.

“Hang on a sec…” She said as she brushed a few quills back into place.

Sonic arched a brow. “Don’t want the nobility talking, huh?”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

“The Princess…out all day…and with a commoner no less!” Sonic placed the back of his hand to his forehead in a pantomime of extreme shock, looking for all the world like he was going to faint. “There goes the monarchy!”

“Very funny.” She punched him playfully in the arm. “My parents accept you…that’s all that really matters.” She hooked her arm through his as they headed back to Knothole.

~~~~~~

The village was in a shambles. Small trees had been uprooted, outdoor furniture overturned, windowpanes shattered. Various creatures were trying their darnedest to tidy up the mess. Several stopped to glare at Sonic…almost as if they blamed him for it.

“What the heck happened here?” Sonic demanded.

“Maybe YOU should tell US!” An irate squirrel growled at him, then returned to his work. Sonic and Sally exchanged a worried glance.

“Um…” Sonic beg meekly. “A really localised tornado…” He suggested.

“SomeONE or someTHING really FAST tore threw here and tore the place apart!” An angry beaver informed him, slapping the ground with his tail as he did so.

“And you’re accusing me?” Sonic countered.

“Who else is there?”

“Oh, c’mon!” Sonic rolled his eyes. “There’s heaps of super fast things out there…”

“Really?” The squirrel arched a brow. “Name one.”

“Well…there’s Metal Sonic…” He suggested.

“A creation of Doctor Robotnik who doesn’t know where Knothole is…” The squirrel pointed out.

“And if he’d found out, Robotnik would have wiped us out rather than just engage in some petty vandalism.” The beaver added.

“Mina!” Sonic suggested.

“She was chasing it.” The squirrel said. “And couldn’t get anywhere near it!”

“Any one of my other worldly counterparts.” Sonic stated firmly. Their number were potentially so high that it should put an immediate end to the argument, but the gathering number of creatures remained unconvinced.

“Oh c’mon!” Sonic protested. “What could I possibly have to gain?”

They exchanged glances and began murmuring amongst themselves. They had to admit, he had a point.

“Not to mention the fact that he’s been with me all day.” Sally added. “He’s fast…but he’s not THAT fast…I’d have noticed if he’d taken off to wreak havoc on an unsuspecting populace…”

“Then what the heck was it?” Sonic looked at her.

~~~~~~

Deep in the forest, hidden from prying eyes, two dark figures watched the goings on in Knothole Village. Their dark robes clearly marked them as members of the Dark Legion. The taller of the two held a small device in its dark fingers. It amplified the voices of the unsuspecting villagers…they could hear them perfectly. A pair of small hands reached for the device but were stopped by the creature that held their owner.

“No, sweetie…” A soft, feminine voice cooed. “We need to hear what they’re saying down there.” She looked up at her towering companion. She couldn’t make out his features, hidden in the deep shadows of his hood.

“What do you think?” She asked. He simply nodded his head, once, in reply.

She sighed. With all they’d been through, she still couldn’t get him to say more than a few words to her. But then, neither could anyone else. She knew they’d removed, or at least blocked, his memories, but in doing so it seemed they’d erased his personality as well.

She lowered the squirming bundle in her arms to the ground, squatting down beside it to speak to it.

“You’ve done well, sweetie…” She smiled at it. She looked towards the village. “See that blue hedgehog down there?”

“Yah.” The little one smiled back.

“I think it’s time you go and introduce yourself to him…”

~~~~~~

“None of us could get a real good look at it…” Rotor admitted. “It was fast…probably as fast as you, Sonic…but it wasn’t very big…”

“So it’s little and fast?” Sonic asked. “Doesn’t really help a whole heck of a lot…”

“Do you think this was an isolated incident?” Sally asked.

“With our track record?” Sonic rolled his eyes. “Believe me, this thing’ll be back…”

“But we’ll be ready for it now.” Tails beamed.

A high-pitched giggle split the air. Tails was spun around as something sped past him, faster than the eye could see. Before the young fox could regain his equilibrium, Sonic was after it.

It WAS fast, but the hedgehog was quickly gaining on it, though he had to run at full speed to do so. He could see it glance back at him, his eyes were designed to function at this kind of speed after all. It went into a wide arch, turning back towards the village.

It tore back past Sally, Tails and Rotor, giggling all the way. Sonic was a fraction of a second behind it. He reached out, grabbing a handful of something. It dug its heels in as it was captured, its sudden deceleration sending them both tumbling base over apex.

When they finally came to a stop, Sonic found himself upside down against a tree, his hands full of a still giggling young hedgehog. Bright blue eyes full of mirth studied him, pudgy little arms reached out for a hug.

‘Certainly is a friendly little fella…’ Sonic thought.

Sally, Tails and Rotor came into his line of sight, staring incredulously at the little green-furred hedgehog sitting quite happily on Sonic’s chest.

“Can one of you guys take this?” He asked, indicating the toddler. “I’d like to get up…”

Rotor leaned forward and lifted the little hedgehog off Sonic. He beamed happily at the walrus. “So…where did you come from?” He asked the tiny creature.

“Beats me.” Sonic shrugged.

“Maybe he’s a relative of yours?” Tails suggested.

“Yes…” There was a suspicious tone in Sally’s voice. “A RELATIVE…”

“Are you accusing me of something?” Sonic asked, noting the tone in her voice.

“A super fast, toddler hedgehog?” She queried. “What is there I could possibly accuse you of?”

“You’re out of your mind!” Sonic countered.

“Maybe Doctor Quack can tell us just which one of us is skating on thin ice here!” She snarled back.

“What are they so upset about?” Tails asked quietly.

“Tails…” Rotor sighed. “For someone as smart as you are…sometimes you can be really naive…”

~~~~~~

Doc Quack smiled as the little hedgehog swatted playfully at his stethoscope. He was bright as a button, at that curious stage, when everything fascinated him.

“So…” Sally said, glancing sidelong at Sonic. “What can you tell us about this…CHILD?”

“He’s perfectly healthy…about eighteen months old…”

“HAH!” Sonic snorted. “I told you you were off your gourd! Eighteen months ago I was in a coma! There’s no way that the kid is in any way connected to me!”

Doc Quack’s eyes widened at Sonic’s comment. “Am I to believe that you suspect Sonic is the father of this child?”

“There is very strong evidence to suggest it.” She glared at the blue hedgehog.

“He doesn’t look like Sonic.” Doc Quack pointed out.

“So he takes after his mother.” Sally countered. “WHOEVER that might be.”

“Sal, you’re being ridiculous!”

“Oh?” She turned on him. “So he just happened to develop super speed?”

“I was!” Sonic told her. “It’s not like I inherited it from my parents. It happened once. It could happen again.” He turned to the village medic. “Can’t you do some sort of test? Prove once and for all that he’s not my kid?”

“Well…a DNA test would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt whether he’s you son or not…” Doc Quack admitted.

“Fine!” Sonic cut in. “Do it!”

“I don’t have the equipment here to do it.” The duck sighed. He looked from one irate teenager to the other. “But we DO have some friends in high places that do.”

~~~~~~

Rotor sighed as he readied their transport. Sally was still refusing to talk to Sonic, despite the hedgehog’s assurances that he’d been totally faithful to her. She had told him that she’d seen him with Mina. When he’d asked Sonic, his friend had told him that the young mongoose had kissed him…not the other way around. He saw her purely as a friend. But Sally wouldn’t listen to him any more than she’d listen to Sonic.

He watched as Sonic approached the Princess. Ever since the toddler’s untimely arrival, she’d refused to talk to him, wouldn’t even let him try to explain himself. Not that Sonic hadn’t been trying.

The little green hedgehog was looking up at Sally, his tiny thumb firmly in his mouth. Somehow he knew this one didn’t like him, though he couldn’t figure out why. He too noticed Sonic, but the bigger hedgehog wasn’t interested in him at the moment either…

“Sal…” Sonic began softly. “This is ridiculous…you’re labelling me guilty without even bothering to find out if there’s any proof…”

She just let out an angry ‘humph’ and turned her back on him.

“Fine…” Sonic grumbled. “Be like that…”

“Okay…” Rotor said. “You’re set to go. I’ve input your flight plans with the Island. They’re expecting you.”

“Thank you.” Sally said curtly, deliberately pushing Sonic out of the way as she strode up the ramp.

Sonic sighed. “Better bake some humble pie…” He smiled at Rotor. “She’s gonna need it when we get back.”

“You’re THAT confident?” Rotor questioned.

Sonic’s jaw dropped. “Jeez, Rote…I think I’d remember if I’d…well…you know…”

Tails bounded past him, the source of Sally’s anger now snuggled happily in his arms, heading for the ramp.

“Hold on there, bud.” Sonic grabbed a tail. “Where do you think you’re going?”

He looked at Sonic with wide, innocent eyes. “You think I’m letting you two fly all the way to the Floating Island without a chaperon in your current state of mind?” He asked. “SOMEBODY’S got to stop you from killing each other.”

~~~~~~

The two Dark Legionnaires waited quietly in the bushes, watching as the ramp slowly raised and the engines ignited. The tall male produced a strong line with a hook at its end. He began to swirl it around his head, his eyes fixed on the closest landing strut.

“There’s gotta be an easier way to hitch a lift…” The other muttered under her breath.

~~~~~~

In the pilot’s seat, Tails frowned. “Better book this thing in for an overhaul when we get back.” He said to no one in particular. “It’s a bit sluggish…”

“That’s because we’ve got a big fat liar on board.” Sally snarled.

“This side of you is really not very attractive, you know…” Sonic told her.

Oblivious to the bad feelings that surrounded him, the little hedgehog was pressed up against the view port, watching in fascination as they lifted into the clouds.