[Notice: This story was written in 1997.  I have no intention of continuing 
this, as I have no time to.  However, please enjoy it, as I only recently found 
it on my HD.]

*Pause for Legal Balogna:  This short story is part of a Three Part series.  
"The Final Chapter" is copyright 1996-1998 Daniel Harris.  Any unauthorized 
redistribution without expressed written consent of the author is not permitted.  
Characters including, but not limited to:  Sonic the Hedgehog, Princess Sally 
Acorn, Rotor Walrus, and Dulcy the Dragon are copyright SEGA and/or Archie 
Comics, Inc.  All other characters not owned by SEGA or Archie are copyright 
Daniel Harris.*


			Mobius:  The Final Chapter, Part III
				by Daniel Harris, A.S.J.

*Previously, a critical lapse in security surrounding the newly built fortress 
enclosing the entire city of Robotropolis has led to the launch of the final 
attack of the Freedom Fighters.  With the advanced tunnel ship Freedom Spirit 
One in the lead, the Freedom Fighters have attacked and destroyed Robotnik's 
force of cloaking fighter ships.  Seeing his force annihilated, Robotnik orders 
Snively to launch the juggernaut Messiah.  On the ground, Sonic's severely 
undermanned battalion of only a few hundred soldiers bravely fight to gain 
ground against the nearly unstoppable Reaperbots.  Hearing that the battle is 
not going well, Lupe takes off in her ship for the front lines, ejecting over 
the battlefield.  She fights viciously and bravely, destroying quite a few of 
the robots, but getting maimed in the process.  Her ship autopilots its way back 
to Knothole.  At the fleet, the robot dragon arrives and attacks the ships.  
Dulcy attempts to ward off the robot but is losing.  The Underground Coalition 
arrives and the father of Dulcy, Dimitri, joins the battle.  Griff and Bunnie's 
ship attempts a surprise attack on the 'bot, only to have it slice their ship in 
half, which crashes tragically.  After an intense fight, the robot impales 
itself on a spike, and appears destroyed.  Dimitri takes off to assist Sonic's 
ground force.  He appears, destroying every Reaperbot and rescuing the few 
remaining soldiers, including Lupe.  Sonic orders Dimitri to take off without 
him or Tails.  Both of them explain that they must attempt to infiltrate the 
fortress on direct order of the Princess.  

Dulcy is taken by surprise when Messiah comes to life and grabs her.  As it 
prepares to kill her, Dulcy remembers the glitch in the robot's programming. She 
cries out for her mother, and Messiah lets her go and reverts to its previous 
inhabitant, Sophia, Dulcy's mother.  Dulcy tells the disoriented Sophia of the 
changes that have occurred on Mobius since she was nearly killed in the attack 
on Mobitropolis 11 years ago.  She realizes that Robotnik must have implanted 
her intelligence into the robot after he had sliced her up with the 
dreadnought's lasers.  Once Dimitri returns with the wounded, Dulcy takes him to 
his wife.  They share a few moments together before Snively regains control of 
Sophia/Messiah, and the fight begins again. Just as Snively prepares to kill 
Dimitri in a self-destruct explosion, Sophia regains control of the robot's 
computer.  Dimitri pursues, until Dulcy, who had been told to stay behind for 
safety, rockets up from the forest and nails the robot.  

After a short talk, Dimitri and Dulcy decide that they must work together to 
destroy Messiah.  Snively attempts to retreat, only to be cornered again.  
Seeing they have the upper hand, Dulcy and her father attack the robot.  As a 
last ditch attempt, Snively activates the self-destruct system, which responds.  
Dimitri flies in to remove the injured Snively from the cockpit, who then tells 
him of the imminent destruction of Messiah.  Dimitri crushes Snively, throws him 
back into the 'bot, then signals Dulcy to destroy it.  Dulcy dives at tremendous 
speed at the ship, which explodes in a gigantic fireball.  Dimitri, meanwhile, 
protects the retreated ships from the maelstrom.  When the smoke clears, Dulcy 
appears dead, only to emerge from the smoke carrying Snively's body.  Sally 
orders that Dulcy drop the body, since it is no longer useful.  It plummets 
limply to the ground, where the spike of Messiah's severed head impales it.  
Snively and Messiah die within feet of the fortress walls.  And Sophia?  Who 
knows...*
****************

"Sonic, this smells."
"I know, buddy.  It's weird for it to be this quiet this close to the city.  
Normally we'd hear the factories by now."
"No."  Tails poked his head out of the backpack.  "No, Sonic, I mean it really 
smells.  PU!"  He pinched his nose closed and tried in vain to wave the stench 
away.
Sonic sniffed the air a bit.  "Eeeeuuu, it does stink, Tails!  I wonder what's 
causing it?"  Just then he saw.  As he crested the final hill before arrival at 
the walls of the fortress, Sonic saw one of the saddest sights he had ever seen.  
Sprawled out over what must have been miles, he saw thousands of bodies in 
various states of decay.  Most appeared to be clothed, some not.  Some carried 
weapons, most didn't.  All were nearly unrecognizable as the Freedom Fighters 
they once were.  Sonic stopped dead in his tracks at the top of the hill.  So 
this is where all the Freedom Fighters have disappeared to, he thought.  He 
didn't say a word for almost a minute, until Tails said:
"What is it, Sonic?  Why did you stop?"  He tried craning his neck to see over 
Sonic's shoulder, but Sonic stopped him.
"Don't look, Tails.  Please."
"But...what...?"
"DON'T LOOK AT IT!  Please, Tails, get back in the pack...and stay down."
His voice shook as he said it, and Tails promptly complied.
It was hard for Sonic to get going again.  The sight had hit him like a laser 
blast; it burned his insides.  He forced himself to move forward, no matter how 
heartwrenching the scene that presented itself.  As he approached, he was forced 
to put his air quality mask on, the kind that the Freedom Fighters used on 
missions to the city to prevent particulates from entering their lungs.  He did 
it for two reasons:  1. he could not stand the smell of decaying flesh, 2. he 
knew that decomposing bodies often released gases that could contain viruses or 
bacteria.  He told Tails to do the same.

The closer he got, the more disgusting and heartbreaking the scene.  Bloated 
bodies, yellowed with decay, and with most of their fur and skin eaten away, 
were literally piled dozens high in some places.  They were carelessly thrown 
about, and some had frozen on their skeletal faces looks of complete terror and 
fear.  Sonic noticed that a few had evidence that they belonged to one of the 
four largest Freedom Fighter groups.
"My God, I can't believe this." he whispered to himself.  "I had no idea that so 
many had tried attacks before..."  He thought to himself that they must have 
been killed either in the city or just outside of it, then picked up and dumped 
like so much trash in one of these heaps.  Robotnik must have done a thorough 
"cleaning" of his city before he built the fortress encasing its limits.  The 
thought of so many failed attempts sent shivers down his spine.  He almost 
wished that he was one of those corpses now.  At least their souls were at 
peace.  His would never be, not until Robotnik and his evil empire was 
destroyed.
There was one body that stood out above all the rest.  Sonic thought he 
recognized the face.  He walked over to it and knelt down, despite the intense 
smell.  This body, a fox as it appeared, seemed fresher than the others, killed 
more recently.  It seemed almost as if it could be alive, if it wasn't for the 
way the limbs were twisted unnaturally outward.  There was a patch on the 
shoulder which looked familiar.  "No, no it can't be the same..."  But so it 
read:  Sandra Nightweaver, Underground Coalition.  Before Sonic lay the body of 
the mysterious spy who had led so many of the Great Forest Freedom Fighters on 
crucial missions that would have been impossible to accomplish without her help.  
Sonic pulled back her green windbreaker and searched for a heartbeat.  He 
checked the neck for a pulse.  Nothing.  He covered her back up and closed her 
eyelids with his fingers.  He knew she wouldn't have made it very far with that 
big hole in her chest.  He knew Sandra didn't suffer long.

"Damn...I don't believe it."  Sonic allowed himself a few tears for Miss 
Nightweaver, saying a few silent prayers as he did so.  He then stood back up 
and quietly saluted her.  "Keep yourself well, Sandra.  We're almost there.  
Don't you worry, we'll get him.  We'll get him."  Tails, keeping himself in the 
pack all this time, began to wonder what was happening.
"Sonic, why are you talking to yourself?"
"I'm not.  I'm just letting a good friend know that I still care about her, even 
if she wouldn't have liked to admit the same.  Let's go, Tails."
Sonic bent over and picked up a piece of fabric that had been laying near the 
body.  He gently placed it over Sandra's face, then turned and began again his 
march to the city.
************

"Do you really think we pull this off, Sal?"  Rotor mumbled nervously to Sally 
as they slowly cruised towards the fortress in their flying bomb of a ship, the 
Freedom-1.
"Of course we can, Rotor.  We made it this far, right?  What makes you think 
that we can't go all the way?"  Sally, who had been standing at one of the side 
windows, turned to face him.
"I don't mean the fleet, not us in general.  I mean we two.  Do you really think 
we can deliver our end of the bargain to Robotnik?  I don't want to die out here 
alone, Sal."
Sally's eyes narrowed and she turned back to face the twilight sky.  "If you're 
really that apprehensive about this I'm sure we can drop you off at the edge of 
the city with a laser rifle.  You can join up with Sonic's ground attack force, 
that is, if you survive long enough to reach them."
"I...I didn't mean it like that, Sal.  I just meant that maybe we should have 
rethought this plan before we tried to carry it out.  And besides, without me, 
who would pilot this ship?"
"I'm a very able pilot, trained in multiple fighter designs.  I'm quite sure 
that I could steer this thing into Robotnik's reactor core almost as well as you 
could.  Whaddya say, Rotor, how about we send you down to fight on the ground 
with no more protection than a rifle and your wits?  I'm sure that Robotnik 
would love another trophy buck to mount on his wall."  Her voice hardened a bit 
as she finished the last sentence.
"Okay, okay!  I'm sorry I asked.  Come on over and sit with me a while, Sally."  
Sally turned back and sat down in the co-pilot's seat.  "Jeez, girl, you really 
have a way of making a guy feel wanted."
"I just want to make sure that you're in this all the way, Rotor."  Sally said 
shortly.  "There's no room for gutless cowards who can't stand the heat of 
battle.  I know that you've been on precious few missions with us, but I can 
guarantee you that this will be our last, win or lose.  I know, too, that you 
have that anxiety in your stomach that burns like an inferno.  I had that, too, 
on my first few missions.  I got through it.  Can you?"

Rotor sat agape in his chair, his head slumped ever so slightly forward.  He 
swallowed deeply and sat up.  "I...I am a fool, Sally.  You know that.  You've 
always known it.  I could see that you knew it the very first time you turned me 
down for a mission.  You were more than disappointed that I was a coward, Sally, 
you were frightened that I might one day turn over to the other side because you 
sensed my cowardice.  Because, for all the knowledge I have of technology, all 
the skill with machines that I have, a coward is all that I am.  All that I'll 
ever be."
Sally could see Rotor was in pain.  She reached over and placed her hand over 
his.  Her attitude softened.  "No, Rotor.  You're not a coward.  By the very 
fact that you came on this mission proves that false.  Don't sell yourself 
short, I never have."
Rotor looked up.  "Huh?"
"You're wrong about my opinion of you, Rotor.  I may have doubted your courage 
the first time I rejected you for a mission, but I was young.  We all were young 
then.  We did things for strictly selfish reasons back then, even though we 
pretended to be a team.  Eventually, we grew up.  I grew up too, and I realized 
that your courage was of a different type, one that relied more on steadfast 
devotion to your work and quiet victories than of brash, arrogant showmanship.  
The only reason that I kept you from most of our later missions is because I 
knew how you could best serve our cause."
Rotor saw the blush forming under her facial fur.  He smiled slightly.  "Is that 
the only reason?"
Sally averted her eyes from his gaze.  "Well, that, and the fact that I...care 
about you."
Rotor covered her slender hand with his other one.  "I figured as much.  You're 
too much of a mother not to care about wounded baby birds you find in the 
forest."  He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it.  "Thank you, Sally.  
I finally know you now."
She turned back to him, a tear forming on her eyelid.  Ever so slowly, Sally 
brought her face closer to his, as he did the same.  Ever closer, Sally prepared 
herself for a...

"Rotor!"  A sharp voice pierced the silence as it filtered in over the com.  
Rotor let Sally go and leaned over to hit the transmit switch on the console. He 
seemed visably annoyed.  "What IS it, Shannon?"
"I hate to interrupt your little rendevoux, Romeo, but look out your forward 
window."
Rotor glanced out the tinted port glass.  Looming up on the horizon was the 
massive shape of a fortress, black as night against a blood red sky.
"There it is, Rotor, the city of Robotropolis.  I'll bet you've never seen it 
like that before...Rotor?  Rotor!"  He snapped out of the trance the sight of 
the fortress had brought about in him.  "Yeah, yeah, Sal.  It's big, all right."  
Rotor hit the send button on the com as he realized something.
"Shannon, how the hell did you know what was going on in here?"
Her filtered voice crackled over the speaker again.  "Didn't you look at the 
inside of your own ship before you left?  All of our ships are equipped with 
video cameras and screens to monitor each of us.  I just happened to tune into 
your ship when it was getting...interesting."
Rotor scanned the ceiling of the ship as she spoke, and sure enough, there was a 
tiny camera lens and monitor installed in the ceiling panels.  On screen at the 
time was Shannon, waving cheerily.
"Why you little...!"  Rotor started, but then slumped into his seat, 
embarrassed.  "I swear, men just don't pay any attention!"  Shannon said as she 
finished with, "Shannon, out."  Sally noticed a blush form on his cheeks as 
well, which caused her to giggle to herself.

Rotor gave her a hard glance, and Sally composed herself.  She leaned over her 
control panel and opened a line to the last remaining transport, where Lupe and 
the remaining ground shock troops were being cared for.  They had been 
transferred to the makeshift hospital once Dimitri had brought them back from 
the front line.  Most of them were from the Wolf Pack, and many of them had 
slipped into shock induced comas.  The transport, which itself was badly 
damaged, had been left grounded far behind the fighting.  "Transport ship Orion, 
this is the lead attack ship Freedom Spirit-1.  Request for a report on the 
condition of the wounded."  The transmission was choppy and static-filled as 
Sally listened to the reply.

At the receiver post on board the dank ship, a young, battered, male fennec 
twisted the dials to receive the Princess' transmission clearly.  "Freedom-1, 
this is Orion.  We have 17 patients in serious condition, 5 in critical.  
We...have also had to euthanize 3...Hutch...Terry, and Dirk.  We're...sorry, 
Princess.  There wasn't enough left of them for us to save."
Sally let the button go for a moment, to observe a moment of silence for the 
fallen soldiers, especially for the co-ruler of the Wolf Pack, Palo Dirk.  The 
Wolf Pack had indeed brought every one of their soldiers with them to fight.  
Lupe must be devestated.  If she was still alive, she thought.  She then resumed 
transmitting.  "Orion, our ETA to the fortress is approximately six minutes.  
We...will be encountering its main guns momentarily.  I...want to say something 
to them."
The fennec transferred her to the loudspeaker.  "Go ahead, Princess."
Sally cleared her throat and began.  Rotor, meanwhile, listened intently.  "I 
don't know how many of you can hear me right now, but for those that can, hear 
me.  Your sacrifice has not gone unnoticed.  The fleet of ships now headed 
towards our final target could not have survived without your dedication and 
bravery.  If, for some unknown reason, we don't make it back, if we are cut down 
defending our freedom, you must fight on in our place.  You...we...are part of a 
larger plan.  And by our actions today on this battlefield, we will determine 
who will write our legacy.  For though our bodies may live a short time, our 
spirits can never die."
At these words, some of the soldiers lifted up their heads to the loudspeaker.  
A few shed tears as Sally's voice trembled on the other end.  "We will 
survive...no matter how long we must fight.  This may be the last transmission 
you will ever hear from us.  If it is to be that we are to be defeated this day, 
you are our last hope.  Fight on, freedom fighters, fight on."  Her voice 
trailed off as Sally numbly closed the line on the other end. 

"That was...beautiful, Sally.  I...can see why people look to you for leadership 
now."  Rotor quietly said.  "I could have never come up with anything to say 
quite like that..."  Just then, the fennec came over the loudspeaker again. 
"Princess?  Madam Walker has something she would like to say to you as well. She 
says it's urgent."
Sally perked up from her somber gaze.  "Lupe?  I don't believe it!  She's still 
alive?"
"Yes, she is, Princess.  However, we had to amputate her left arm at the elbow.  
There was little left of it but pulp.  She also has severe internal bleeding 
that we were fortunatly able to stabilize."  The com officer momentarily turned 
away, and voices could be heard in the background.  "Here she is, Princess."
"Sally?  Sally!"  Lupe coughed out over the line.
"I'm here, Lupe.  We thought that you were dead back there, after you broke off 
from the fleet.  We're glad to see you still with..."
Lupe cut Sally off short.  "That doesn't matter anymore.  Look, I've been trying 
for ten minutes to try to get these shellheads to understand me.  I've been 
receiving a distress signal from somewhere South of your position, near us.  
It's Griffen's ship, Princess.  Or...at least I'm pretty sure it's him."
"How is it that you're picking up the signal and no one else there is?"
"A while ago, the Wolf Pack visited the Underground Coalition.  Griff took a 
liking to me...he wouldn't leave me alone.  It's like he...was afraid I'd die if 
I wasn't in his sight 24 hours a day.  So when it came time for me to leave, he 
wouldn't let me go."  Lupe coughed again, this time rather violently.  When she 
continued, her voice was weaker.  "So he gave me a personal locater beacon.  
Once activated, it gives off a EM pulse that can be picked up on either end.  
I've just gotten a signal...it's got to be him, Princess."  She went into 
another coughing fit, then finished, very weak.  "You must send someone to find 
him, Princess.  We...can't do anything from here.  I don't care what happens to 
me, but please...save him."  The last part of the transmission was mixed with 
the voice of her doctor talking to her.  The line then cut out suddenly.

Meanwhile, in his massive command tower overlooking the dark, brooding city, 
Robotnik sat and waited.  His entire fleet of prized stealth fighters had been 
destroyed, and his valuable right hand man had been killed.  He was waiting, not 
for the approach of what remained of the Freedom Fighters, but for his servant 
robot to return.  Robotnik didn't concern himself with the mounting odds against 
him.  He didn't mourn for his fallen comrade.  And he certainly wasn't concerned 
with the thousands of lives he had been personally responsible for taking.  No, 
he simply sat and waited.  Little emotion crossed his misshapen face as he 
contemplated his next move.

It was as much a chess match now as it had ever been.  For the past eleven 
years, the Freedom Fighters had stalked him, as pawns stalk the proverbial king.  
It seemed now that they had him in check.  Check, yes, mate, no.  They had 
annoyed him, they had gotten under his skin, and that he could deal with. He 
could even handle the fact that they had ruined his best laid plans.  However, 
what he couldn't handle, couldn't stomach, was this continued defiance.  For 
that defiance he would have his revenge.  He still had one move left, and he was 
prepared to take that move.  Behind him, the door to the control room slid open, 
and a Swatbot entered, halting halfway down the gantry.  Robotnik spun his chair 
around.  The robot saluted, and gave him the message.
"Sir?  All stations report ready.  Power levels are at 100%, and all cannon are 
aimed.  Shall I give the order to fire?"
He had his answer.
Getting up slowly, he told the robot, "No...I want the pleasure of carrying out 
this order myself."
*****************************************************************
"What's going on, Rotor?  Get her back!"  Sally frantically yelled to Rotor.
"I can't, Sally.  We seem to have entered an unusually strong magnetic field 
coming from the fortress.  There's nothing I can do...I'm sorry."
"Well, we've gotta do something!  We've gotta send someone!"
"We're already running at minimum, Princess.  Any fighters we send out will be 
to our disadvantage."
"I don't care, Rotor!  If I have to go myself I'll get them back!  I'll..."  
Suddenly, a voice broke in over the speaker.  "I'll go, Princess."  It was 
Dulcy.  "Dulcy?  But that would mean breaking off from us...there's no telling 
what kind of traps Robotnik has out there!  It's too dangerous...I won't allow 
it.  You're ordered to remain here with the fleet."
"Like staying here with you guys is any safer?  C'mon, you know I can't follow 
that order, Princess.  Bunnie was my closest friend, and I won't let her die out 
there!"  Out the Freedom Spirit's window, Sally saw Dulcy bank left and peel off 
from the formation of ships.  In a frantic attempt to  keep her there, she 
yelled, "You get your ass back here, or I'll have you court-martialed!"  But it 
was no use. Dulcy was already gone.

Meanwhile, at the wreckage site, Bunnie had just woken up.  Next to her was the 
automatic homing beacon, which was continuing to bleep loudly.  It had been 
programmed to respond once an emergency arose.  It was a good thing that it did, 
because Bunnie was in no condition to set it off.  Her entire lower body was 
pinned underneath the left engine of the fighter, and it was a good thing that 
her legs were robotic, or they would have been crushed to a bloody pulp.  
Instead, although the titanium structure was able to withstand the immense force 
of 8 tons of steel pressing down on her body, it had her pinned so she was 
completely immobile, unable to reach the beacon.  As she regained consciousness, 
she began to notice her situation, and attempted to push the engine off of her.  
It wouldn't budge.  Even with her mechanical left arm, the steel held firm.

"Oh my stars, I guess I ain't going nowhere.  Griff?  Griff!"

Despite her pleas, Griff, who was hidden from her sight on the other side of the 
craft, did not move.  He remained still as blood poured from a gaping wound on 
the back of his head, coating the grass in a thick, oozing jelly.  He was dead.
****************************************************

End of Part One