Smoke and Mirrors By Lana MacBeth Sonic the Hedgehog and Company are Property of SEGA and Archie Comics. Lana MacBeth, Angus and Simon Mason, and Lombardi are Property of ME! Use of this story for profit is strictly forbidden. E-mail me (Opal1084@aol.com) with questions, comments, and other stuff. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tails slept peacefully, bundled under his quilt. Princess Sally watched him sleep for a while, then quietly slipped out the door to get to the War Room. There'd been a startling message from their spy ring in the heart of Robotropolis. Somehow, Robotnik had begun messing with biological weaponry, and had kidnapped a well known scientist to help him with it. This was a very dangerous situation for Mobians everywhere. Even the Floating Island was at risk. If the pathogen were to be released into the atmosphere, the whole planet would be devastated. She let herself into the War Room, where most of her elite group was waiting. Bunnie Rabbot, Rotor Walrus, Dr. Lana MacBeth, Antoine De Coolette, and a sleepy Sonic Hedgehog were in the room, talking about different things. They quieted down at her entrance. "We'll wait until Knuckles gets here before we begin," Sally said quietly. This got Sonic's attention, as well as Antoine's. "That self absorbed loser is coming?" They inquired in unison, shocked that Knuckles would actually get off of his heap of dirt to come to a "planet bound" (as he called it) meeting. "Yes, the self absorbed loser is coming and yes, he has arrived," a voice from the doorway said, mocking Sonic. Knuckles Echidna strode into the room. "Sorry I'm late, Princess. The thermals were kind of weak tonight." "No problem, Knux. Sonic and Antoine meant no offense by their little remark," Sally said, glaring at Sonic and Antoine. "None taken. What's so important for you to call me off the island this lovely evening?" Knuckles replied, taking a seat next to Bunnie. "We've got a major situation here...." Sally said, turning to her personal computer, Nicole. "Nicole, display file number 11976-2237." "Accessing, Sally," Nicole's flat female voice replied. The little computer hummed and a hologram appeared in front of the group. "This is a new biological weapon Robotnik has uncovered. Code name: Atria Caisson. It's the Atraean virus, developed in 3215 by Dr. Angus Mason. He was the head viral analyst for Mobotropolis General Hospital. He developed the Mason technique for organ transplantation. He also developed theories for the Mobian army physicians on different techniques for caring for ailing soldiers," Nicole began. "His son, Simon, was to continue his father's work after the doctor's death. Robotnik has captured Simon. Intelligence reports show that Dr. Mason is being forced to prepare the virus for Robotnik. He is being held in High Security Block G, Section Alpha, Cell number 4398," Nicole beeped. "End of File." "I've seen this before," Lana said, cutting through the silence that followed the Sally turned to her friend. "Where?" Lana sipped at her iced tea. "My dad used to work for Angus Mason. He brought me to work one day when I was seven. Simon and I got into the animal testing lab files. Being smart kids, we read through Dr. Mason's work. It was pretty gruesome." "Ha! A little virus? What can a bug do to put the entire planet and my island at risk?" Knuckles asked, sounding annoyed. "It's anything but a 'little virus'. Nicole hasn't given the symptoms yet. The disease itself incubates for about a week. The initial symptoms are headache, severe nausea, and weakness in the joints. As it worsens, you begin to be schizophrenic. Then, it attacks the central nervous system, where it shorts out everything. Your brain turns to soup, your spinal cord to jelly, and it's worse from there. If you get it on your skin, it acts like and acid and eats through you. Either way, you wind up a twitching puddle of slime, but you can still scream, until you lose your vocal cords. All this happens in about 12 minutes. Now, Knuckles, I ask you: Have you had enough?" Lana said icily. Sonic looked a bit green, as did Bunnie, Rotor, Sally, and Knuckles. Antoine had already run out the door to get rid of his lunch. "Okay, I think I get the hint," Knuckles said woozily. "I apologize, Your Highness, for the graphicness of my statement, but it's all true. If this thing gets into the atmosphere, this planet will be covered with splotches of goo. And I cannot treat it if anyone here gets it," Lana said, staring at the floor. "Hey Lana, d'you think you could just let Nicole explain it next time?" Sonic said, drumming his fingers on the table. "I mean, jeez, that was bogus!" "Anyway! I'll skip to the next part of the file," Sally said, pressing a button on Nicole's keypad. "So, what's the plan, Sally girl?" Bunnie asked. "We rescue Dr. Mason, take the virus research with us, and bring Mason to Knothole," Sally said. "Wait a minute. Where do I fit in?" Knuckles asked. "Go back to the island for now," Sally replied. "We'll call you back if we need anything," "all right. I'll stay in contact as long as I can," Knuckles said, and strode out the door to get back to the island. "Well, I guess this meeting is adjourned," Sally said, looking worried. The others left the room, but Sonic stayed behind. "Sal, do you think this is legit?" He asked, seeing the concern in her eyes. "I don't know, Sonic. I just don't know." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lana headed back to her hut. She kept thinking about how severe this new crisis was. She knew she was helpless to stop the disease if an outbreak occurred in Knothole. However, she'd left out something in her explanation to Sally... There was a cure. Simon Mason had it, but she knew that he wouldn't give it to Robotnik to use as a vaccine. Simon would rather let the dictator die than allow him to remain and ruin the planet further. Simon was just too smart for that. She reached her cabin and opened the door. She turned on the light and sat on her bed. She happened to catch herself in the mirror. It threw back the same reflection: blue fur and quills, pale blue eyes framed by thick lashes, and a shock of black hair drooping lazily over her right ear; all characteristic of the MacBeth women. Granted, she was a beautiful young hedgehog, but she felt old beyond her years. Being a child prodigy had taken its toll; She had always felt too different, almost alien, among her peers. The only person who knew how that felt was Simon, who was a prodigy as well. Lana got off the bed and strode out the door. She was going to get Simon back tonight. And she knew just who to ask for help. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Simon tasted copper in his mouth. Robotnik's new lackey, Lombardi, had been beating him like a dog for the past hour and a half. As he fought to stay conscious, he was looking for a weakness. So far, finding a weakness in a, 6'2'', 250 pound, muscle bound, ruthless bear was pretty much impossible. "C'mon boy, let the doc have the antidote. You know you wanna," Lombardi said, winding up for the next blow with his brass knuckled fists. "Sorry," Simon said, wincing as he did because of his bloodied lip," Can't do that. You and your boss will have to suffer!" Growling, Lombardi slammed Simon in the stomach. "You'd better fess up, boy, or I'm gonna mess up your face even more!" To Lombardi's surprise (and Simon's relief) the CommUnit on the wall crackled to life. "Lombardi, has our guest opened up yet?" Ivo Robotnik's deep, sinister baritone echoed in the tiny room. "No sir. He's still being a pain in the butt," Lombardi sneered, tossing Simon aside as is he were a broken toy. Robotnik's lips curled into a grimace of pure wrath. "That blasted hedgehog hasn't spoken yet?! It's been nearly an hour and a half!" Robotnik pounded the console in front of him, sending up sparks and a thick curl of smoke. "Want me to continue the interrogation, sir?" "No. Let him be for now. I need you up here to help with the new SWATbot positioning," "Yes, sir," Lombardi said, and the CommUnit shut down. Before he left the room, he gave Simon a final kick in the side. "You're very lucky, boy. I coulda killed ya right here!" The door hissed open and Lombardi exited the holding cell. Simon struggled to stand up. He held his stomach as he staggered to the bare cot in the corner of the room. The light in the room seemed too bright to his eyes. He caught a glimpse of himself in the polished steel wall across from him. His left eye was swollen and an ugly blue-black, his right arm had an even uglier gash to match. His brown fur was mottled with blood; his thick orange shock of hair stuck to his sweaty brow. His aqua blue eyes were bloodshot and stung. His entire body felt like it was on fire. At least I'm alive, Simon thought wearily, More or less anyway. He lowered his aching body onto the cot, grateful for what little padding there was. He curled up into a ball, closed his eyes, and thought hard to get a mental connection with Lana MacBeth. Lana... he finally managed after a while. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Meanwhile, Lana was on her way to see Sonic. She had to get to Simon. He probably would be very ill. She was about a few hundred yards from Sonic's hut when she felt Simon make a weak link with her. Lana.... Simon? I'm here. Are you OK? I'm alive, but pretty banged up.... Oh my head! Take it easy, buddy. I'm coming' to get you! Hurry...please... She felt him go unconscious, but not before he sent her a mental image of what he'd seen in his "mirror". "Oh man! I'd better get going!!" Lana said aloud, and she raced over to Sonic's hut. Sonic, meanwhile, was polishing his sneakers when he got a knock on the door. He opened the door to see an out of breath Lana leaning on the door frame. "Lana...?" He began, but Lana cut him off mid thought. "I need your help, Sonic. I have to get to Robotropolis now. Simon's in trouble!" "Yes!! Finally, someone who thinks like me!" Sonic said, and grabbed his backpack, dashed to the Ring Pool and back before Lana could blink twice. "Let's go!!" Lana said, and climbed onto Sonic's back. Sonic revved up and sped through Knothole, out of the village, and out into the starlit night. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The next night..... Simon lay curled up on the cot, shivering with fever. When he'd come to, he'd guessed that it'd been at least a day or so or so since Lombadri had beaten the crap out of him. He felt terrible. He new the reason he was shivering: The wound Lombardi had inflicted had gotten infected. If Lana didn't get to him soon, he would be one sick hedgehog. Suddenly, he felt a slight vibration underneath him. A shock wave, but from what? Wonderful, he thought, Someone's getting to o extravagant with the plastic explosives, and I'm stuck in this pigpen! A second blast threw Simon against the wall and blew the seal from the cell door. Simon couldn't see, but he could smell the burning plastique. He also heard someone yell his name before he blacked out. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "LOMBARDI!!!! I THOUGHT YOU SAID THE HEDGEHOG DIDN'T PULL STUNTS LIKE THIS AT THREE AM!!" Robotnik screamed, spraying saliva into hi lackey's face. Despite having two feet and sixty pounds over him, Lombardi was scared stupid by the shorter Robotnik. "I-I-I d-d-didn't th-th-think it was going to..." He began, his fur standing on end. "STOP YOUR WHIMPERING!! SNIVELY!! What's the total damage??" Robotnik barked. Under normal circumstances, Snivley would be smirking at Lombardi's failure, but he didn't dare when Robotnik was roaring and raving about. "Sir, over fifty percent of the power grid is down, along with refineries 10 through 13. Estimated repair time is thirty-six hours, twenty-four minutes." He said, a cold sweat trickling down his back. "So, the hedgehog scores a point here, eh? Well it will most certainly his last! Snivley, begin repairs on the power grid," Robotnik snarled and retook his position in the large flight chair at the center of the control deck. Cluck, his mechanical "pet" scuttled up to his master's enormous shoulder. From there, the cretinous bird cast a cold eye at the viewscreens as Snively began tapping away at his keypad to begin repairs on the city. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Great Forest.... "Phew!!! That was close!" Lana sighed and collapsed in the bush where Soinc and the unconsious simon were. "Man, this dude was seriously slammed before we got to 'im!" Sonic said, glancing at Simon's wounds. Lana took her canteen from Sonic's backpack and poured a drop or twoo into Simon's mouth. "I hope he'll be OK," Lana said quietly. "Hey, he'll be cool, trust me!" Sonic said taking Lana's hand. "Ohh...." Simon groaned, trying to sit up. Sonic pushed him down gently. "Easy, dude." "He's waking up," Lana said. "We've gotta get him to Knothole." "No prob, I'll get us there now!" Snoci said, and grabbed Lana and Simon and sped towards Knothole. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Aunt Sally! Aunt Sally! Sonic's coming back!!" Tails said, running to her. She got up from her seat in the mess hall. "Good, now I can kill him. No, first, I'll kiss him, then I'll kill him," She said under her breath as she went to meet Sonic. As she strided out to the center clearing of Knothole, she couldn't decide whether to be furious or be ecstatic. "Hey, Sal!!" Sonic said as he put an obviously injured hedgehog on the stretcher provided by Bunnie and Lizzie Mattocks, Lana's head nurse. Lana followed the stretcher to the infirmary, barking orders to the candystripers who were dashing about looking for medical supplies to treat the victim. "What on Mobius were you thinking, Sonic?? You could've...." Sally began, but stopped when she saw noticed Lana had gone too. "Hey, Sal, I-" "Don't say anything now. After Lana's taken care of Dr. Mason, I want you both to report to the war room. Am I clear?" Sally said softly. Sonic knew he was in trouble this time. Sal never screamed when she meant business; she whispered. "Sure, Sal," he said and backed off. Sally's head was full of conflicting emotions: anger at Lana and Sonic's mission, joy at their success, fear because she knew what could've happened to both her dearest friends. She didn't know what to to next. She saw Bunnie take a step toward her, but Antoine held her back. He knew what had happened, and he knew it would be best to let her cool off. Sally straightened hersetlf and turned briskly on her boot heel. Then she walked back to her hut and slammed the door as she went in. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Compared to the charred and polluted landscape of Mobius below it, the Floating Island was an untouched paradise. The many inhabitants of this airborne Utopia lived in peace and harmony, free of the pressures and constant fear of life on the planet. The main source of the island's flight power came from the seven Chaos Emeralds and the oversized Master Emerald. These eight mystical stones create an amazing power that is harnessed to keep the mass of the island aloft. Yet, if any one emerald, especially the Master Emerald, were to be removed, the island would fall to the surface of the planet. Depending on where it landed, the fatalities would be innumerable. To make sure no tragedy of that magnitude would occur, there was one person on this island with the responsibility to guard the island and its volatile propulsion. That responsibility fell on the shoulders of Knuckles Echidna. Knuckles was the seventeenth in the line of Guardians that had protected and would continue to protect the island for generations. He'd been on his own since he was about 11, when his father, Locke, had entered the Forbidden Zone. Until about nine months ago, when the Chaotix had joined him on the island. Three or four months after that, Julie-Su, a former member of the Dark Legion, had come on some strange instinct. Julie was all right, but she had one hell of a temper. At the moment, Knuckles was going over some of the old blueprints of the island, looking for someplace to place the inhabitants of each area if the threat of the virus was indeed legitimate. He'd been at it since he'd returned to the island the previous day. Some of the Choatix had come in to see what he was doing, but hadn't tried to get him to rest. He'd probably have dozed off if not for the loud zzzzt-thud of the aging fax-printer he kept in the office starting up. The old thing was held together with some duct tape, string, and a prayer. When it printed a document, the entire table it was on wobbled. And it was loud enough to prevent anyone with an attention span to be unable to hear his or her own thoughts. Knuckles pushed off the heavy oak desk and propelled himself over to the decrepit fax, the equally decrepit office chair squeaking in protest. The old fax stopped its zzzzt-thudding and spat out a piece of paper. Knuckles read the message, which read: We've got Mason Virus threat has been reduced Working on antidote Meeting -> 6/7/3228 1600h Knothole ComCenter Knuckles re-read the message again and couldn't believe what he'd read. He heaved a sigh of relief and turned to his left, where a transmitter was always on standby. He began to tap out a message to Knothole control: Message acknowledged Good Job! Will be at meeting See you there Floating Is. ComCenter ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "So you risked your necks to save this guy without a structured plan, all on a hunch??!!" Sally shouted in disbelief at what she'd heard. "Listen, Princess, I may be new around here, but I am a physician. If we'd sat on our behinds for another 24 hours, Simon would've died from severe septicemia from his wounds. Oh, wait, you'd rather have order and structure, despite the fact that if Simon was dead, your antidote would be too!!" Lana shouted back, slamming her gloved fist on the table in front of her. "You had best watch your tone of voice, MacBeth! I'll not have you starting any insubordination here. I can just as easily-" "Don't you dare begin head games with me, Sally!" Lana said, icily. "I am aware of my situation here, and I do have authority. In fact, I've the physican's prerogative to remove you from active duty," "Never mind that! The point is, you and Sonic left Knothole for Robotropolis without clearance!" Sally exclaimed, rising to look Lana in the face. Lana rose to her full height, which was a good two inches over Sally, who was tall by squirrel standards. "Listen, simply because you're the heir to the Mobian throne doesn't mean anything to me. To me, you're a person I've got to care for eventually. Think about that the next time you come into MY office and scream at me for saving a life, and a valuable one at that!!! Now, Your Highness, I've a patient to care for," Lana hissed, her voice dangerously acidic. She whirled around, grabbed a clipboard off her desk, and walked out the door, slamming it behind her. Sally, walked to the door, opened it, and let herself out, slamming it again as she walked down the hall to the exit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lana quickly composed herself as she entered Simon's room, which was three doors down from her office. Inside, Simon was sitting up and writing in a notebook. "Hey! You certainly look better!" Lana said, he voice calm and happy, covering up the surge of anger at Sally. "Hey, you certainly sounded angry back there? Is everything OK?" Simon said, looking up from his notes. Lana sighed. "You don't miss a thing, do you?" "Well, you look like you just told someone off, and I heard you and the Princess shouting from here," Simon smiled a bit. "Oh," Lana said, feeling really stupid. "Well, I've got to get this report ready for the meeting next-" "Oh no you don't," Lana cut Simon off. "Oh, yeah, I forgot," Simon said, grinning foolishly. "You've got to rest, Simon. Drink more fluids, Simon," He said in a mocking falsetto tone. "Ha Ha Ha," she laughed sarcastically as she took Siomn's notebook and pen and put them on the table across the room, so he wouldn't start working again. "Now, seriously, get some rest," She said and walked out of his room, smiling as she did. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ {This part has a bit of medical jargon in it. What can I say? It's a convention of doctors!} "Now, the virus was covered with an unstable protein coat, thus the severe symptoms involved with this disease," Simon explained to the council, which consisted of a medical representative from each of the 6 Freedom Fighter groups the Knothole base was in contact with. He'd been lecturing about the virus his father had created ten years ago for the previous half hour. "However, to prevent this virus to be easily destroyed, my father strengthened the coat with a chemical called Berylcyclin. This chemical preserved the symptoms and added a new agent to the virus: the ability to liquefy the tissues of the nervous system at the molecular level. After this occurs, the virus mutates into phase two, which attacks the rest of the body. After the mutation, the patient is now a terminal case, with a 99.9% chance of fatality." Simon paused to moisten his throat with a sip of water from the glass he'd filled at the beginning of the session. "This is the secret Achilles' Heel of this little bug," he pointed to a hologram that had appeared in the center of the hall. "The Berylcyclin is susceptible to an antibiotic agent," He raised his hand to quiet the murmurs that arose at this statement. "I know what you all are thinking. This is a virus, and viruses don't usually respond to any antibiotics. Well, when the Berylcyclin was incorporated into the original strain, it killed it, then created a bacterial hybrid. The strain we have to deal with is half virus, half bacterium. That's why it can be treated by a combination of antibiotics and bed rest," The delegate from the Floating Island, a chameleon named Ezra Madison, raised her hand. "Dr. Mason," she began, her melodic voice confident and powerful as it resonated about the hall, "What you have just explained to us is quite the paradox. What exactly is the antibiotic we should use?" "I'll leave that question to my colleague, Dr. Lana MacBeth," Simon said and stepped down from the podium. "Dr. Madison, the drug recommended for treatment of the Atraean virus is a botanical derivative of a flower on the southern tip of this very continent. It's located in the Great Jungle. It's called a Chamron rose. The petals, when consumed, are extremely poisonous. The poison they produce is ordorless, tasteless, and colorless, making it the ideal choice for an assassin to use against an enemy. However, when the seeds are ground into a power form and combined with water, it's an equally potent antibiotic," Lana explained. Dr. Madison nodded her head in approval. "Very good indeed. I've used the Chamron antibiotic a few times in my practice, and have seen its healing qualities." "Wait a minute," the delegate from South Island, a cat named Finn Cantrix, interjected, "Dr. Mason, I thought you said that the Atraean virus was fabricated by your father in a laboratory. And you can kill this thing with a botanical extract??" "Yes, but it's the Berylcyclin that makes it possible for us to use the compound from the Chamron to treat this disease," Dr. Madison said to her colleague. "Now, Dr. Mason and myself have set up a team to get a large quantity of the plants and mass produce vaccines and antidotes for the entire planet, including the Floating Island. All we need now is a vote," Lana said. To Simon, she looked as if she knew what was going to happen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "All right. This is the team we're going to use for this mission," Sally said. "Tails you'll be on transportation duty, and Callista, you can work communications from the plane to Knothole." "YES!!!" Tails exclaimed quietly. This would be his first mission, even if he played a small role in the entire thing. And he didn't mind working with Callista, Lana's little sister, who'd become one of Tails' friends over the past few days. "Sonic, Lana, Simon, and Knuckles will be collecting the plants, Knuckles will be on communication with us, and Rotor, Bunnie, and Antoine will work on communication here. Dr. Madison and the rest of the doctors will be setting up the production facility, and I'll work with communications to monitor the situation." "Let's do it to it, guys! Tails said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Yo, Tails! How much longer?" Sonic called from the passenger area of the plane to the cockpit, where Tails and Callista were piloting the plane towards the Great Jungle. "About 10 minutes, Sonic. Everyone, prepare for drop!" Tails said. "Whoa!! Nobody said anything about dropping into the jungle!!" Simon said, looking queasy. "I hear ya, Simon," Lana said, looking at her friend, who looked away, grinning sheepishly. "Five minutes!" Callista shouted back. "Lock on, check!" Knuckles said. Everyone clipped on to the pull line that led to the open jump-hatch. "Ten seconds.... 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!!" Tails shouted back. "Jump!" Knuckles shouted, and threw himself out of the hatch. Evrone followed, except Simon, who froze at the door. Lana pushed him out and jumped out herself, feeling the rush of the wind as she careened downward. About thirty seconds, they pulled their chutes and descended into the leafy canopy below. Lana began to laugh when she realized Simon was still screaming as he floated to the ground. After they'd all landed and detached themselves from their parachutes, Simon fell to his knees and kissed the ground, grateful to be on the ground at last. "I NEVER AGAIN IN MY LIFE WANT TO DO THAT---" Simon began, but Knuckles put a hand over his mouth. "Be quiet!! Do you want some animal to come over and have us for dinner??" he hissed, and Simon calmed down. "Ok, let's go get that plant, "Lana said and headed off into the forest, followed closely by Simon, Knuckles, and Sonic. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the jungle..... The sweltering humidity of the air forced the team to slow their progress, making frequent stops for water. To their surprise, the were about to stumble onto the right track for the Chamron Rose they needed desperately. "Are we there yet??" Sonic whined for the fifth time in an hour. He was getting agitated by the stickiness of the environment, much like children in the back of a car get during a long car trip. "We'll be there, I'm not sure about you!" Knuckles muttered under his breath. Unfortunately, Simon heard this. "Hey, why don't you leave him be?" he said, turning around to face Knuckles. "Y'wanna make somethin' of it?" Knuckles spat back in his face. "Sure why not," Simon replied and took a step towards Knucukles, standing up as tall as he could to make himself look bigger. Knuckles rose to his full high as well, putting him and Simon eye to eye. "Knux, back off. Cripes, do you always think with your fists, or is it an echidna thing?" Sonic catcalled from the sidelines, but Knuckles then turned to face him. "You're lucky I haven't K.O.'d you out yet, spike-brain!" he said raising a fist to strike. "YIKES!!!!!!!" Lana screeched, getting the guys out of their fight mode, "HELP ME!!" The guys rushed over to where Lana's voice came from, only to find her dangling over the edge of a sinkhole. She was steadily losing her grip. "Lana! Hang on!!" Simon yelled and grabbed her hand before she could slip further. The held on that way for a few seconds, then slipped some more, leaving Simon holding onto the edge only by his sneakers. sonic grabbed Simon's ankles and dug in with his heels. The movements of the trapped people on the outside of the sinkhole had turned it to thick mud, which prevented Sonic from getting the traction he needed to speed up and out of the hole. With the combined weight of Simon and Lana, he slowly slid towards the gaping mouth of the hole. "Hang on guys!! I'll save you!" Knuckles cried as he searched frantically for a vine of some sorts to help the quickly sinking trio. He remembered he'd brought a small chaos emerald with him, in case they neede light. He tore open his backpack and grabbed the emerald and some netting he'd intended to use as a bug screen. Using the power of the emerald, as well as a ring from Sonic's bag, he morphed into Hyper Knuckles. Using his hyper speed, he glided into the hole. He slammed into the wall and clung to it with his Knuckles. He diverted some energy from his knuckles and put it into the netting. Instantly, the netting leapt from his hands and stretched across the hole below him. When the edges of the chaos net hit the normal matter of the mud on the edges of the sinkhole, it fused with the mud, creating a very durable trampoline. "AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Simon, Lana and Sonic screamed as they finally lost the edge of the hole and hit the net, bouncing about thirty feet in the air and landing -hard- on the turf about a yard from the hole. Knuckles, now in his normal form, hauled himself wearily out of the sinkhole and crawled over to where the others had landed. When he arrived, he collapsed with relief and fatigue. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Knux? Are you OK?" a soft voice sliced through the swampy fog of Knuckles' brain. He struggled to wake up, to climb out of the dark. Then, when he opened his eyes, he saw it was nighttime. "He's OK!" Simon exclaimed from the side, out of Knuckles' view. "Yeah, I'm Ok.... ohhhhh," Knuckles said and tried to get up, but he felt a surge of nausea and laid back down. "Shhhh... don't sit up. You're experiencing Post Spontaneous Chaotic Morph Symdrome. It'll pass," Lana said gently, pushing him back down carefully. "You saved our butts, man. Thanks." "Anyway," Knux said wearily. "I feel like a bunch a people took turns throwing bowling balls at my head!" "I've sent sonic back to the plane to get my MedKit. We'll be camping out for the night. Simon, go get some wood for a fire. Get a lot," Lana said, turning to Simon. "How long was I out?" "About 12 hours." "You sure have a nice bedside manner, Lan," "I try. Now get some rest. You'll need it," Lana said. There was a loud boom, then a huge gust of wind. Behind Knuckles' head. "I got the bag, Lana!' Sonic's voice came from his left. "Great!" Lana said and took the black bag from him. She removed a small packet, and a turkey baster. She mixed the contents of the paket with a glass of warm water. Then, she filled the baster with the liquid. She placed a hand behind Knuckles' head and propped him up a bit. "Swallow this, please," She said, and squeezed the stuff into Knuckles' mouth. Knuckles swallowed..... and felt 100% better almost immediately. "Whoa!! What was that?" he cried as he stood up and tested his legs. "That was an old MacBeth Family Secret. My grandmother used to make huge batches of this stuff. I'll give you the recipe later. Now you've gotta rest," Lana smiled and resealed the last of the mixture for future use. "LANA!! LANA!!" Smon cried as he crashed through he underbrush and up to Lana. "I FOUND THE PLANTS!!!" "You did!? Where?" Lana said, standing up to face Simon, her eyes wide. "About... 30..... meters.... east of here!" Simon panted. "C'mon!" Lana, followed by Sonic, who was helping Knuckles walk for a few feet, dashed after Simon. When they reached a clearing, they were bathed in an iridescent blue-green light. All around them, bushes upon bushes of turquoise, blue and green roses grew. Their combined aroma was almost intoxicating. "Ok, we need about three bushes of the plants with green flowers, 2 of the blue, and one of the turquoise," Lana said. Knuckles hacked off the blue plants, Simon took care of the green, and Sonic took the turquoise. They packed them all up into cloth bags, then, with Sonic's help, they blasted back to the plane, which took off promptly and returned to Knothole Village. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Okay, sugah, it's all done, shhh," Bunnie said as the little kid that Simon was administering a vaccine to began to whimper as she felt the pinprick. "'Atta girl. Now, was that so bad?" The little girl smiled a relieve smile at Bunnie and Simon, then ran over to where her mother was. The two cats left the hut to go home. "Well, that's the last one, Bunnie. Man, I'm wasted!" Simon said as he collapsed into a chair with a sigh. "I'm glad this is over." "We all are, sugah. We all are," Bunnie said, sitting down next to him. "Wanna see if little Callista'll make us some of those nutrition shakes?" "Sure, why not? I'm craving strawberry-kiwi shakes as we speak. Those things are good!" "Alrighty then!" They exited the hospital and headed for Lana and Callista's hut. The Mobian sun was setting, turning the clouds in the western sky brilliant shades of pink, orange, red, and violet. "Man! Isn't that the prettiest thang you've ever seen?" Bunnie asked, taken aback by the display of color. "What?" Simon said, who'd obviously been jerked out of his thoughts by Bunnie's voice. "I said: Isn't the sunset beautiful?" Bunnie said, looking at Simon perplexedly. "Oh! Yeah, I s'pose," Simon said quietly, glancing up at the sky. "What's wrong?" "Nothing. Just thinking really hard." "'Bout what?" "I'm trying to figure out whether or not to leave or stay." Bunnie stopped abruptly. "Leave! Why? Whatever for?" She cried, looking as if someone had slapped her across the face. "I don't know. I just have a bad feeling that if I stay here, something bad's gonna happen to someone." "That's nonsense! You should--" Bunnie began, but she was cut off by the clang of the meeting bell. "Oh great! Now what?" Simon shouted as he and Bunnie double-timed it to the war room, where the rest of the mission team was, looking nervously about the room. "Guys, now that we don't have to worry about the virus anymore, we've got a new problem. Robotnik's found a new power source for the Death Egg," Sally said, her business voice in full splendor as she mapped out the whole situation for the team. "We would've been completely in the dark if it hadn't been for Callista. While she was listening to the Robotropolis airwaves, she heard this...." Sally pressed a button on Nicole's keypad. Instantaneously, the room was filled with a throbbing hum. "It's a low-level particle emitter, used mainly by the Overlander hovercars and hoverboards, only this was huge! Then, not ten seconds after I found it, we got an urgent message from Sir Charles, stating that Robotnik had built and immense particle booster for the Death Egg," Callista MacBeth said. Although she was three and a half years younger than Lana, she was just a smart as her sister. She sat tall in her chair, brown eyes wide. Her outfit matched perfectly, and she was impeccably groomed as well. She obviously was at the age where if her looks weren't perfect, she was self-conscious about every little thing. "So what're we gonna do about it, Sal?" Sonic said, smirking. He knew he'd be getting another chance to prove his worth to Sally. "You and Simon are going to take out the Death Egg, once and for all. We've got the right explosives to do it, but the egg is so heavily guarded, we can only risk sending two people. Since this will be your first mission, Simon, you'll use this as a test to be completely integrated into the Freedom Fighters once and for all," Sally replied. "This meeting is adjourned. Tails, get Sonic a Power Ring, Callista, get the team a map, Rotor get the supplies packed up. Let's move people!" Sally exclaimed as they all rushed to their separate jobs. Lana pulled Simon aside. "Be careful, OK?" Simon kissed her forehead. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I usually am, and if I'm not, you'll be here to put me together again." He said as optimistically as possible, even though he knew something would go terribly wrong. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The dank stench of motor oil and gasoline was heavy in the air as Simon and Sonic darted between different pies of junk towards the bunker where the Death Egg was kept. The throbbing hum that had been played back to them back in Knothole grew steadily louder as they approached the building. "Man, this is creeping me out!" Sonic hissed as he and Simon waited for their next chance to move. "No kidding. But, we've got only thirty feet left to go before we get to the bunker," Simon replied, running a hand through his hair. "Yeah. Ok, now we move. On my mark.... 3...... 2....... 1...... go!" Sonic said. he let Simon go first, then followed closely behind. Suddenly, alarms and red lights went off, exposing them. "Oh no!! He's got laser grids around this place!!!" Simon yelled. "Let's move!!!!!" Simon ran down an alley, while Sonic created a diversion. Out of nowhere, a large piece of metal, torn off by a SWATbot laser, flew down and caught Sonic from behind, knocking him cold. The SWATbots swarmed over him, binding him with polymer ropes and carting him off to Robotnik's headquarters. Simon, who'd watched the whole thing from the safety of an old, decrepit airbus, jumped out and ran into the Death Egg bunker to plant all but one of the charges. Less than five minutes later, Simon was on his way to the headquarters to save Sonic. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lombardi slapped the newcomer across the face, jolting him back into reality. "C'mon, Hedgehog, rise n' shine!!" he snarled. Sonic opened his eyes, squinting as the harsh fluorescent light stabbed into his eyes. His wrists and ankles were bound to the table and his back throbbed from where he'd been slammed by the metal shard. Simon! His mind shrieked. Did they get Simon?? He craned his neck to the left, then to the right, looking for any sign of Simon to no avail. "Well, well, if it isn't the blasted hedgehog. Can it be that I've finally gotten you?" Robotnik cackled from behind him. "It was a cheap shot, egg-brain!" Sonic sneered. "Oh come now, don't be a spoil-sport. You should be honored to be joining my elite force of fighters. Robotic or not, they get the job done. Of course you, being the vermin you are, aren't possibly capable of feeling that honor," Robotnik chided Sonic. "Well, there are two ways to do this: The easy way, which makes less of a mess, and the hard way, which is rather disgusting!" Robotnik smiled greedily, for either way gave him the edge over the Freedom Fighters. "Alright, Scuzzo, move aside!" An icily calm voice came from one of the darkened corners of the room. "Whu...? Lombardi grab 'im!" Robotnik whirled to face the direction from which the voice had come from. Lombardi charged.. then the hollow sound of bone hitting steel emanated from the corner. Lombardi hit the ground with a loud thud, and his assailant stepped into full. It was Simon, sans labcoat and with a rather large laser pistol. "Well, well, Dr. Mason, I presume. What an unpleasant surprise!!" Robotnik cackled. "Don't feel left out, you'll be--" "Let him go." "Or else what?" "Let him go now or I start pushing buttons. I've got this pistol on maximum, so your sorry ass will be splattered in every possible direction in this room. Any questions?" Sonic was definitely impressed with Simon's show of force. "You tell 'im, Simon!" "Shut up, you! Now , I'm a man of business, so I'll--" "No deals. Release him now." "Never!" "Ok, then." Simon removed a smaller transeiver and dangled it in the air. "I suppose you won't be getting any frequent flyer miles this time!" He pressed the green button on the side of the device. There was a distant rumble and then the whole place began to shake. The electricity cut off, releasing Sonic from his bonds, he staggered over to Simon and leaned on his shoulder for support. "C'mon, Simon! Let's get the heck outta here!!" He said, grabbing Simon's arm. Simon turned to face Sonic, his eyes flashing terribly. "No. He tortured me, now it's my turn!" "Dude, you'll get killed!!" "I've gotta do it. Take care of Lana for me. Now go!!" Simon ran towards the open hatchway through which Robotnik and Snivley had just escaped through. "Simon!!" Sonic took two or three steps to follow Simon, but a panel caught fire and set the room ablaze. He ran as fast as he could to follow the fleeing group ahead of him. When he got to the end of the corridor, he saw Robotnik's airship lifting off, with Simon dangling from one of the wings. He was shouting and blasting off random shots from the laser pistol. "Simon, jump now!!" Sonic shouted up over the roar of the engines. As he watched in horror, two huge calipers extended from the top of the ship. The tips of each caliper poked into Simon's head, pressing in till they reached his skull. A loud whine began, and Simon screamed in agony as a bolt of electricity surged through his body. He lost his grip and fell to the ground below. Sonic lept from his spot, grabbed Simon in mid-air, and hit the ground running at full speed, out of the crumbling control center, and out into the night, back to Knothole Village. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "OK, people, we've got a major case coming in here! Let's move!!" The duty nurse, a good sized bear named Marcellani, Marcel for short. He stood at about 6'1, and three hundred and ten pounds of true muscle ensured that he would never be attacked by anyone with at least the IQ of a cranberry. As he waled briskly to the ER, the other nurses and doctors, including Dr.MacBeth, had to run to keep up with his strides. When they reached the main ER bay, Sonic had just arrived with Simon in his arms. By the way he walked over to the corner, Marcel knew Sonic had been hit with something big. He went over to the smaller hedgehog, who'd sunk into a thick chair there, wincing as he did so. "Yo, Sonic. You look like youse been whacked aroud a bit," Marcellani said, his accent the equivalent of a Brooklander sounds here. "Yeah...." Sonic replied with a gusty sigh. Marcel automatically knew something was *not* cool. Ususally, Sonic would imitate his accent and say "Nah, not me!!" "Hey, let me get youse sumptin' for ya back, man," Marcel siad. He disappeared into an alcove and then returned with two caplets and a paper cup of water. The hedgehog took the caplets, dry-swalloed them, and then drank the water. "Marcel! we need you here, man!" one of the candystripers shouted to him. The big bear was at the table in two steps. As he got there, the electrocardio graph next to the patient went flatline. The shrill whistle pierced the ER's usual din. Marcel saw Mason's eyes cloud over, the pupils dialted. Dr.MacBeth was still shocking the corpse with the defibrillator, screaming at him to come back. "Lana.... It's over." That was all Marcel had to say. Lana stopped and looked Marcel in the eyes. It killed him to see the new doctor so hurt. "Note the time of death in the log, Cannibuck." He said to the candystriper beside him. Lana walked stiffly away from the table and into her office. Sonic got out of his chair and followed her. He saw he staring out the window, arms wrapped around herself almost as if she were trying to protect herself from the truth. Sonic tried to speak, but without his usual bluster, he was nearly powerless to utter a word. Finally, he managed to say her name. When Lana turned around, Sonic saw that she was shaking, silent tears rolling in a torrent down her cheeks. He nearly fell apart himself, but as he opened his mouth to say something comforting, she held up a hand. "I know.... it... it wasn't your fault, Sonic." "Yeah, but I coulda stopped him. I mean, I shouldn't've let him go after Robotnik," Sonic looked at his feet, feeling guilty that he'd let a new friend go off to his death. Lana sighed heavily, dropping wearily into her padded office chair. "Simon always had a foolish pride. Always going off to settle imaginary vendettas. Most of them were to protect me... he always seemed to consider me his little sister," Lana smiled at the memory, her eyes wistful. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Company... present arms! Aim... Fire! Aim... fire!" This ended the funeral. As the mourners filed silently away from the burial site, the mist surrounding the Ring Pool began to disperse, as if to remove the last threads of pain from Knothole Village. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ At long last... closure. Despite Simon Mason's tragic demise, the planet Mobius has been saved once again from a rather nasty fate. All because of a simple plant and the intuition of a simple person on that big world. So, with this in mind, it's time to say..... THE END