Lame Excuse by B&M. Sonic was fleeing back to the Great Forest with some of his fellow Freedom Fighters close behind him, and they were all followed at the rear by an amry of swatbots. "Grab those rebels! Don't let any of them get away!" shouted Nack the Weasel. He was a disloyal mercenary who changed sides in favor of Dr. Julian Ivo Robotnick a year ago. Come to think of it, he would sell out his own mother to the evil scientist if he made a good enough offer. Hey, rat-face," shouted Sonic, " I'd hate to insult ya and run, but me and my buds gotta book." With that, he then poured on a sudden burst of super speed, and he gave Nack and the swatbots the finger and a raspberry at the same time, doing everything except watching where he was going. "Sonic, look out for that tree!" Princess Sally shouted, but it was too late. The hedgehog ran right into the tree, and he fell flat on his back. He was still conscious but dazed. "I got you now," chuckled Nack as he shot his ray-gun at the stunned hedgehog, but he missed and hit a branch on the tree, which broke off and fell right on Sonic. Sonic was obviously in very excrucianting pain. He was screaming loud enough to scare the birds out of the trees as he tried to push the heavy branch off of him. "Hang on, sugarhog! I'll help ya!" shouted Bunnie as she ran up to Sonic, pushed the tree off of him with her robotizied right arm, picked him up, and carried him on her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. In spite of the extra weight she had to carry, she and the other Freedom Fighters outran the swatbots and escaped into Knothole safe and sound. That night, Brookshire, the local doctor examined Sonic in the infirmary. Sonic can tell by the sad expression on the raccoon's face that it wasn't good news, and so could Sally, who was standing there watching. "How bad is it, Doc?" asked Sonic with more than a little worry. "I'm afraid it's very bad," answered Brookshire, "I'm afraid that the tree branch dislocated your spine. I'm sorry, but you will never walk again, let alone run." Sonic was in total shock. Sally was there to to comfort him, but it was no use. Running was his life, but now it was all over forever. Meanwhile, Nack was talking to his evil master Dr. Robotnick at his control center in Robottropolis. "Are you sure the hedgehog is finished?" asked the evil scientist with hopeful glee. "Trust me, Doc," answered Nack, "His spine is totally shot. He's going to be a gimp for the rest of his worthless life." "Excellent!" said Robotnick with a cold smile on his face followed by an evil laugh. "If you want my opinion, sir," added Snively, "it shouldn't happen to a nicer rodent." Sonic's spirit was at an all-time low. Everybody tried to cheer him up, but it was just no use. All he did for the next few weeks was mope around in the wheelchair Rotor made for him. Sally meanwhile was planning to sneak into Robotropolis that night in order to download more information on the robotizizer. She invited Sonic to come with her and the others, but his reply was, "No thanks, Sal. Without my speed, I'm just no good. I'll just wait here and hold down the fort." The Freedom Fighters had no choice but to go it alone. Robotnick knew they were coming, however, so he sent a team of swatbots to ambush them. Sally and her troops didn't satnd a chance. Tails, on the other hand, had better luck. He took advantage of the confusion to escape, and he flew back to Knothole as fast as his two tails can carry him. "Sonic, you gotta help Aunt Sally and the Freedom Fighters," he shouted as spotted the depressed hedgehog sitting next to a chilli dog he was too depressed to eat. "Robotnick has captured them, and he will robotizize them all if you don't go and rescue them." "Forget it, bud," sighed Sonic. "As long as I can't run, my freedom-fighting days are history, Just leave me alone to think." "All right," replied the little fox, "You used to be my hero, but now you're just a big quitter. I'll just have to save the gang myself." With that, Tails then flew off and disappeared into the forest. This really worried Sonic. He knew that Tails didn't stand a chance against Robotnick and his swatbots. He had to go into the Great Forest to find him. He didn't have to look very hard. No sooner had he drove his whilechair into the forest than he saw a swatbot carry off the young cub who fearfully yelled, "Help, Sonic!" Sonic was shocked as he saw them disappear into the woods. He began moving his wheelchair as fast as he could as he shouted, "Chill, pal! I'm coming!" He was totally amazed to to find that he was making the chair go as fast as he used to run. This filled him with a renewed sense of of self-confiednce that he didn't have in weeks as he sped off to Robotropolis. He could not have arrived a moment too soon because all of the Freedom Fighters were in the robotizizer, and Snively was about to turn it on when Sonic ran right into him, and Robotnick's nephew then landed on the keyboard, causing the robotitizer to open and free all of its captives. "Stop him," shouted Robotnick to his swatbots, whom then lined up only to be knocked down by Sonic like a set of bowling pins. "How does that stike you, metalheads?" asked the Hedgehog. It's impossible!" roared Robotnick. "You can't defeat me! You're handicapped!" "The word is physically challenged, egghead," replied Sonic with his restored cockiness. "On foot or on wheels, there's nobody faster than me, and I'll bring you down big time someday. Right now, however, we gotta juice." The Freedom Fighters were soon running into the Great Forest when Sally suddenly yelled "Dulcy, look out for that tree!" The clumsy dragon hit the large oak head first, and she landed on Sonic while smashing his wheelchair to bits. "Sorry, Sonic!" apologized Dulcy as she got up off the hedgehog who answered, "No prob, Dulce!" "Sonic, you're standing!" Tails shouted with joy, and it was true! The blue hedgehog was standing on his own two feet again. "Dulcy must have popped his spine back in place," reasoned Brookshire. The greatful hedgehog just couldn't be happier. He was soon hugging Dulcy, and he was in turn hugged by Tails and Sally. Meanwhile, Robotnick was simply furious. "So the hedgehog was completely helpless, eh?" he barked at Nack. "So I was wrong," replied the terrified weasel. "It happens! Just give me another chance, and I can promise you he will be all yours." Robotnick said nothing, but he did signal two of his swatbots to grab the frightened weasel. "Please don't robotitize me!" Begged Nack in tears. "I have no intention of doing that," he answered, "Instead I will arrange a reunion for you with your former comrades in arms." "No, not my home town!" screamed the weasel in complete horror. "They'll tear me limb from limb for selling them out to you. Robotizize me, I beg you!" "Give my regards to your family," the wicked scientist laughed as the swatbots dragged Nack away screaming in terror. The End. Dedicated to the students and alummi of Joaquin Miller High School in Reseda, California.