"The Hybrid" A work of Sonic the Hedgehog "Fan-faction" by Ian Patterson 
A few technicalities... I've read enough fanfic to know what title 
17 (the copyright law) does and does not allow; you can't change the text in 
any way or charge anyone money to read this without my expressed written 
permission. All situations and characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog 
Saturday morning cartoon series, as aired on ABC, are copyright SEGA, DiC, 
and/or Archie Comics, and are used (or at least referred to here) without 
permission, except the characters created by yours truly, which are 
copyrighted by me.


THE HYBRID


	Science.  It was the one constant that existed on Mobius.  While
many other things changed over the course of time, science would always
be there.  Sure, it may exist beside sorcery, but it would still be there.
	Snively lifted his head up from where he had rested it on his arms.
He was sitting at a lab-table in one of Castle Acorn's many labs.  He wasn't
quite sure how long he had been sleeping, but it couldn't have been very
long.  It had been dark outside when he had dozed off, and the sun hadn't
risen yet.
	He looked at the monitor that was flashing numbers in front of his
face.  It wouldn't be long now.  Soon, he would unleash the very thing
that would spell nothing but death for the Freedom Fighters and anyone
else who opposed the Dark Queen.
	"Irony", he said to himself, "Nothing but sheer irony, heh heh."
	Snively looked over the lab-table at the glass cylinder that was
sitting in the middle of the lab.  It was filled with a special solution 
that was essentially the same as the fluid that surrounded an unborn child
in its mother's womb.  Inside it, floated a Mobian that was eagerly awaiting
to be born.

	It was no use.  Sally sat up in her bed, and looked around her 
darkened room.  She had been trying to sleep for the past three hours, but
it had refused to come.  She hadn't really be sleeping well for the past
few weeks.  She didn't quite know what it was.  
	Several thoughts came to mind.  First on the list was their struggle
against the Dark Queen.  Sally had just received word over the old 
Emergency Bandwidth that the Southern Provinces had fallen just days ago.
The Dark Queen's forces were marching across the face of Mobius and leaving
nothing but death and destruction in their wake.  
	Sally picked Nicole up from her night stand, and opened her.  Her
white light illuminated the room slightly.
	"Nicole", she said, "What was the Dark Queen's direction when she
left the Southern Provinces?"
	"The Dark Queen's forces were on a direct course for the Coastal 
Colonies, Sally", said Nicole.
	"What was their ETA?", she asked.
	"Two days, Sally", said Nicole.
	Sally sighed, and set Nicole on her lap.  
	"Sally?", said Nicole.
	"Huh?", said Sally, not looking at her.
	"This is the second time you have inquired about the same data", said
Nicole, "Do you wish to act upon the information that I have given you?"
	"No, Nicole", said Sally, "I already went through several senerioes
regarding the Coastal Colonies.  It would take too long to warn them at this
point.  Even if Sonic left right now and didn't stop running until he got
there, he'd run right into the middle of a war zone."
	"Much like what occurred in Mobo-Tropolis?", asked Nicole.
	"From what I can deduce", said Sally, picking Nicole back up, "The
Dark Queen's tactics aren't at all like Robotnik's or Snively's.  They 
wanted to conquer and control everything in their path.  The Dark Queen
is only concerned with destroying everything she comes across."
	"What do you believe her motive is?", asked Nicole.
	Sally grinned.  She'd never seen Nicole so curious about anything
before.  In fact, this was the longest conversation she'd ever had with
the computer.
	"She's exterminating us, Nicole", said Sally, "She's wiping Mobius
clean of all of us, and plans to replace us with her cybers.  As Khaos
said before, she believes that they are the next step in Mobian evolution."
	"This does not compute", said Nicole, "Evolution is a natural 
ocurring phenomenon.  It requires no assistance from any creature."
	"I know, Nicole", said Sally, "I think the Dark Queen's a little
nuts."
	"From her motives", said Nicole, "I believe she is extremely mentally
disturbed and should seek professional help before she becomes a danger to
herself."
	"If you want to try telling her that, Nicole", said Sally, shutting
the computer, "Go right ahead."
	Sally put Nicole back on her night stand, and laid back down in her
bed.  Maybe sleep would come soon.

	"Are you going to tell me what you've got floating in that tube in
that lab?", asked Anthrax, following Snively down one of the halls of 
Castle Acorn.
	"When the Dark Queen decides you need to be informed about it", said
Snively, "Then I'll tell you.  Not before."
	"Aw, come on!", said Anthrax, "Just a little hint?"
	"No!", said Snively, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to speak
with her."
	The huge door to the Dark Queen's quarters swooshed open.  Snively
poked his head in, and didn't see her anywhere.  He looked back at Anthrax.
	"Did she say she was going anywhere?", he asked.
	"Not to me", said the yellow cyber.
	Snively gulped, and went in.  Anthrax followed behind him.  The door
shut once they were in.  Snively looked around the huge room.  It was the
first time since he'd been freed that he'd even seen inside here.  It was
safe to say that the Dark Queen enjoyed the finer things in life.  Her
room was covered with lavish decorations, jewels, portraits, and other
priceless things that she had gained from her conquest of Mobius.
	"Uh", said Snively, "Highness?  Are you here?"
	"Hey, Snively!", said Anthrax, pointing behind Snively.
	Snively turned, and saw the Dark Queen's armor and helmet standing
in the corner.  His eyes automatically drifted to the bathroom door.  He
saw light and steam coming out from under it.
	"Oh dear", he said, backing towards the door, "I think we caught her
at a bad time."
	Snively had no idea how the Dark Queen would react to the two of them
walking in on her while she was in the shower or in the bath or whatever it
was that she took.
	Snively turned, and started to leave, but the door to the bathroom
slid open, and a voice came from inside.
	"Going somewhere, Snively?", asked the Dark Queen.
	"Uh, well, you see, I was, ah, going to wait until you were, ah,
decent, Highness", stuttered Snively.
	"Nonsense", said the Dark Queen, "I want to hear your report right
now.  So, get in here!"
	Snively looked, and saw Anthrax chuckling.  
	"You too, Anthrax", said the Dark Queen.
	Anthax straightened up, and looked back at Snively.  Nervously, the
two entered the bathroom.
	It was hard to see, because of the steam.  However, it dissipated 
quickly once they were in the room.  The Dark Queen was sitting in the
bathtub, which was overflowing with bubbles.  A Drone was filing her
claws on her right hand, and she was drinking from a glass in her other.
Her long, blonde hair was hanging out the back of the tub, and was being
combed by a second Drone.  Her evil looking eyes just staring at the two
of them.
	"Keep your mouths closed, Boys", she said, "Just because I'm missing
a few pieces of my attire doesn't mean you get to stand there and gawk at
me."
	Snively shook his head, and held up his report.  He handed it to the
Dark Queen.
	"H-H-Here's the report, Your Highness", he said, "I'm sure you'll
find it most revealing, I mean interesting."
	The Dark Queen looked at him handing her the report, and glared at 
him.
	"Do I look like I have a free hand, Snively?", she said.
	"Oh, right", said Snively, "I'll just leave it out there and you can
read it when you're not naked, ah, I mean, er, what I wanted to say was..."
	"Snively", said the Dark Queen, "You're blushing."
	Snively looked in the huge mirror to his right, and saw that his whole
head was bright red.  He tugged on his shirt collar.
	The Dark Queen grinned a malicious smile, and licked her lips.  She
took a drink from her glass, and snapped her fingers.  The two Drones
got up, and headed out of the room.  She then looked over at Anthrax.
	"That'll be all, Anthrax", she said, "You have work to do, anyway."
	"Yes, Highness", he said, following the two Drones out.
	Snively turned, and started to leave as well.
	"Not you!", she snapped.
	Snively turned, and looked back at the Dark Queen, who was still
staring at him.
	"Come here, Snively", she said, motioning him towards her with her
finger.
	"Really, Highness", he said, sweating profusely, "I must return to
the lab."
	"I said get over here!", she growled.
	Snively whimpered, and moved a few steps closer to the side of the
tub.
	The Dark Queen fluttered her long eye lashes, and patted the side of
the bathtub.  Snively slowly sat down on it, and started twiddling his
thumbs.
	"I'm going to ask you a personal question, Snively", said the Dark 
Queen, "And I want a straight answer, is that clear?"
	"Y-Y-Yes, Highness", said Snively.
	"Do you think I'm pretty?", she asked.
	"What?", said Snively.
	"You heard me", she said, "Do you think I'm pretty?"
	"Ah, well, you see, um, I don't really, well, what I mean is, um,
well", stammered Snively, looking he was about ready to have a heart-attack.
	"Yes or no", said the Dark Queen.
	"Ah, well", said Snively, "I, suppose so."
	The Dark Queen raised one of her eyebrows.
	"You suppose so?", she said, "Well, that's too bad, Snively."
	"Why?", asked Snively, afraid of the answer.
	The Dark Queen slid towards Snively, and brought her face only inches
away from his.  She smiled, and Snively could see her razor-sharp teeth
quite clearly.  She ran her index finger down the side of his face, and
narrowed her eyes to slits.
	"You like me, don't you?", she said.
	"Well, ah, I, uh, value your leadership and your abilities", said
Snively, feeling like he was going to be sick to his stomach.
	The Dark Queen took Snively's chin in her hand, and held his head
still.  She continued to run her fingers across the side of his face.
	"That's not what I mean, Snively", she said, "And you know that.  
You're attracted to me, aren't you?"
	Snively didn't say anything.  When he didn't, the Dark Queen started
giggling slightly.  
	"Did you think I'd never find out?", she asked, "I've seen you staring
at me.  At first, I didn't think anything of it, but then I realized that
you were checking me out.  It's no wonder you're so nervous now.  What
would your uncle think about this.  His nephew has a crush on a Mobian."
	Snively didn't say anything.  He just stared at the floor.  
	"Aw, don't feel bad, Snively", she said, "You're not the first human
to fall in love with a Mobian."
	The Dark Queen put her forehead against Snively's, and looked into
his eyes.
	"I understand now how much you want me", she whispered, "And if you
please me sufficiently, you just might get me."
	Suddenly, the Dark Queen pulled away from Snively, who about fell
onto the floor.  She slid back to the other end of the tub, and leaned
against the side of it.  
	"Now", she said, "Fun's over.  Time for business.  How is our little
one?"
	Snively stood up, and took the report off of the counter.  He looked
at it, and then back up at the Dark Queen, who was taking a drink from her
glass again.
	"She's growing at an unbelievable rate, Your Highness", he said, 
"She is expected to reach the level you wanted her at in about six and
a half hours."
	The Dark Queen smiled.
	"Excellent!", she said, clapping her hands together, "What about her
programming?"
	"That's the thing", said Snively, flipping a page in the report, 
"We've been feeding her basic knowledge, such as our language, mathematics,
reading, science, and other things.  However, you still need to provide 
us with the necessary additions."
	"Don't worry about that, Snively", said the Dark Queen, grinning,
"I have the perfect little package for that."
	"Very good", said Snively, "Well, if that's all, I'll just be on
my..."
	"Not so fast!", said the Dark Queen, "Do me one last favor before
you leave."
	"What?", asked Snively.
	Without warning, the Dark Queen stood up in the tub.  Snively's eyes
about bugged out of his skull when she did.  Fortunately, the bubbles were
sticking all over her, so not too much of her was visible.
	"Hand me my robe, please", she said, extending her hand.
	Snively grabbed her black silk robe from the hook it was hanging on,
and handed it to the Dark Queen.  Instead of taking it, she stepped out
of the tub, and shook all of the excess water off of her.  She then held
her arms out.
	"Be a gentleman, Snively", she said.
	Snively quickly put the robe on her, and she closed it.  The Dark
Queen looked at him, and walked up to him.
	"You are so sweet", she said, kissing him on the cheek, "Now, get
back down to the lab.  I'll be there shortly."
	Snively didn't say another word.  He ran out of the bathroom as fast
as he could.  The Dark Queen just folded her arms, and smiled.  Males, such
easily manipulated creatures.  

	Sally was sitting at the control panel for the power generator way
at the top of Lower-Mobius.  She was running some routine diagnostics on
the Power Stone piece that Sonic had given to Griff several years ago.  They
had apparently left it behind when they abandoned this huge cavern.  Sally
wondered what had happened to Griff.  She hadn't seen him since the first
time they had met.
	"Yo, Sal", said a voice behind her, "Whatcha doin'?"
	Sally turned, and saw Sonic walking up behind her.  He flopped down
in the chair next to her, and stared at the huge needle-like generator.
	"Nifty little thing, isn't it?", he asked.
	"I guess", said Sally, sounding down.
	"What's wrong?", asked Sonic.
	"I just got word", said Sally, "The Coastal Colonies have fallen to
the Dark Queen's forces.  There's nothing left."
	"Don't beat yourself up over it, Sal", said Sonic, "There's nothing
you could've done about it."
	"Couldn't I?", asked Sally, looking at Sonic, "We could have tried,
Sonic.  Even if it meant entering a war zone, we still should have tried.
Instead, we sat down here, and ignored it.  We can't afford to do that
again, Sonic.  If we do, then the Dark Queen's going to roll over the entire
planet, and everything we did to defeat Robotnik and Snively will have been
for nothing."
	"What are you getting at, Sal?", asked Sonic.
	"I'm saying we have to quit hiding our heads in the dirt and start
doing what we know is right", she said, standing up, "I've seen too much
death and destruction in my life, Sonic.  I'm not about to sit by and let
it happen again."
	Sally started to walk out of the room, and Sonic watched her leave.
	"Where are you going?", he asked.
	"I'm going to find the others", said Sally, "It's high time we started
planning some tactics on beating this menace."
	Sally walked out of the control room.  Sonic watched her leave, and
just sat there for a moment.
	"Man!", he said, revving up, "I love that 'take charge' attitude!!"
	Sonic sped out of the room after Sally.

	"Geez!", said Anthrax, looking at the list of things that were 
displayed on the computer screen in front of him, "What is all this?"
	"Just what it says", said the Dark Queen, now fully dressed in her
black armor, "Everything that appears on this screen will be placed in
our little one's mind."
	Anthrax looked up at the now much larger form floating in the tank
in the middle of the room.
	"She IS going to get bigger, isn't she?", asked Anthrax.
	"She will stop her excellerated growth at about the physical age of
14 years old", said the Dark Queen, "Even though she's just the prototype,
she will be no less deadly."
	Anthrax looked back down at the list on the computer screen, and
read it out loud.
	"Martial arts, urban combat skills, torture methods, terrorist tactics,
violent behavior?", he said, "Geez, this is going to be one mean kid."
	"Exactly", said the Dark Queen, "That's just what I want.  The best
part is that no one will suspect that this innocent little girl is a deadly
killing machine until it's too late."
	"Are you sure that her mind is advanced enough to assimilate all of
this information?", asked Snively, "Remember her age."
	"Of course she will", said the Dark Queen, "She has the best traits
from both of her DNA donors.  The fine mind comes from one of them."
	"Say", said Anthrax, "Now that you mention it, who were the donors 
you keep talking about?"
	"None other than the two she is being created to destroy", said the
Dark Queen, "Princess Sally and Sonic the Hedgehog, hee hee."
	Anthrax just stared at the Dark Queen.
	"How did you manage to get their DNA?", he asked.
	"When I first captured them following the destruction of 
Mobo-Tropolis", said the Dark Queen, "The princess dropped several hairs
from her head in the containment cylinder she was in.  I tried to create
an exact duplicate from just that, but there were too many anomalies.  I
needed another set of DNA to combine it with.  The hedgehog seemed like a
perfect candidate."
	"That still doesn't tell us how you got it", said Anthrax.
	"Fortunately for us", said Snively, "The hedgehog is just as clumsy
with his DNA as the princess is.  One of his quills was left behind when
they were rescued from us."
	"Is this kid gonna be able to run like the hedgehog?", asked Anthrax.
	"Yes", said the Dark Queen, "She'll have his agility, speed, and 
reflexes, along with the princess' keen intellect and her agility."
	The Dark Queen looked at Snively.
	"How long?", she asked.
	Snively checked some things on the monitor, and then looked back at 
the Dark Queen.
	"About three or four hours", said Snively, looking up at them.
	"Good", said the Dark Queen, "Inform me when she's ready to be 
'born'."
	"Yes, Your Highness", said Snively.
	The Dark Queen looked at the figure floating in the tank, and smiled.

	"Well, Sally?", asked Bunnie, sitting with Sally at a table with 
several others in the Mess Hall, "What've ya got?"
	"Well", said Sally, punching some buttons on Nicole, "All of our 
previous data on the different Freedom Fighter groups is totally out of
date.  I'm not really sure as to how to find any of them again.  Last time,
we didn't even realize that there were other groups out there until we got
my father's lists."
	"I'm not sure we should concentrate on finding any Freedom Fighter
groups just yet, Princess", said Geoffrey St. John, "Remember, there are
still some settlements, colonies, and cities that haven't fallen yet.  I
think our first priority should be to warn as many of them as we can."
	"Good point, Geoffrey", said Sally.
	"What's the Dark Queen's next likely target?", asked Uncle Chuck.
	"Nicole", said Sally, "Display coast line and put the Coastal Colonies
in the center."
	A holo-map of the western coastline came up, and a yellow dot that
represented the Coastal Colonies began flashing.
	"Now", said Sally, "What was the nearest inhabited area?"
	Another yellow dot came up.  It was slightly above the Coastal 
Colonies.
	"The village of Pynecrest", said Nicole, "300 miles North East of
the Coastal Colonies.  Population, 3500."
	"If the Dark Queen's forces headed there, Nicole", said Sally, "What
would be their estimated location from it?"
	A red dot came up slightly between the two flashing yellow ones.  It
was moving slowly towards Pynecrest.
	"Alright", said Sally, "I think we can do this.  Pynecrest is only
about 130 miles from here.  Nicole, how long until the Dark Queen's forces
arrive?"
	"ETA is 4 days, five hours, sixteen minutes, 34 seconds", said Nicole.
	"How long would it take Dulcy to fly four of us there?", asked Sally.
	"ETA is 4 days, four hours, eight minutes, 13 seconds", said Nicole.
	"Ick", said Sonic, "That's cuttin' it a little close, isn't it?"
	"I know, Sonic", said Sally, "But we have to try."
	Sonic didn't like this one bit, but he knew that Sally was right.
They had to try.

	Snively hadn't noticed it, but he had fallen asleep right on the 
counter he was sitting at.  He got tired of watching the test subject's
biorhythms, and had dozed off.  
	It was rather late at this point.  The chronometer said that it was
well after midnight.  The Dark Queen was sound asleep in her oversized
bed, and most of the cybers had powered down for the night.  What could it
hurt if he decided to take a little five-minute snooze?  
	The answer to that question came to Snively in the form of a huge
crash.  He jolted awake, and looked around.  No one was in the room with 
him.  Perhaps he was just dreaming.
	Snively slid off of the stool he was sitting on, and his feet sloshed
down in something on the floor.  He looked, and saw that the fluid from the
cylinder was all over the floor.
	"Oh no", he said, looking up at the cylinder.
	There was a huge hole in the side of it, and the fluid was still
running out and onto the floor.  The breathing hoses and wires that had been
connected to the subject were hanging from the top of the tube.  It was 
awake, and wandering around Castle Acorn somewhere.
	Snively immediately ran to the monitor, and connected to the Dark
Queen's room.  Only darkness appeared on the monitor for a second.  Snively
began impatiently tapping his fingers on the counter.

	The Dark Queen heard something beeping.  She opened her eyes, and
took her sleeping mask off her eyes.  To her right, her monitor was 
flashing.  She let out a huge sigh, and pushed the button below it.  
Snively's face appeared on it.
	"This had better be good, Snively", she said, "I was in the middle
of a really good dream."
	"She's gone", said Snively, sweating profusely.
	"What?", said the Dark Queen, beginning to scowl, "What do you mean
she's gone?"
	"I must have dozed off", he said, "She broke out of the cylinder,
and wandered off."	
	The Dark Queen smiled, and tilted her head slightly.
	"I'm sorry, Snively", she said, "It sounded like you said that you've
managed to lose our subject."
	"That's what I said, Your Highness", choked Snivley.
	The Dark Queen gritted her teeth, and growled slightly.
	Snively tugged on his collar, not sure what to expect from the angry
queen.  To his surprise, the Dark Queen deactivated her monitor.  He just
sat back in his chair.
	The Dark Queen sat up in bed, and then stood on the floor.  
	"It's always something, isn't it?", she said to herself.
	She quickly pulled her nightgown off, and stepped into her armor.
After it had locked itself onto her body, she picked her mask up, and put
it on.  
	"Computer", she said, "Code red alert status.  We have an intruder.
Repeat, we have an intruder."
	The lights in the halls of the castle began to flash red, indicating
the code level that was now active.  Cybers and Drones began moving through
the halls, searching for their commanding officers.
	
	The Dark Queen stood in the lab, staring at the empty cylinder.  She
looked back at Snively, who was standing with his arms behind his back.
	"Explain it to me again, Snively", she said, "I monitor this project
for two months straight, and the second I leave you alone in here, you
lose the subject!!  How is that possible, Snively?!!"
	"Well, I..", started Snively.
	"SHUT UP!!", yelled the Dark Queen, "Anthrax!"
	Anthrax stepped forward.
	"Yes, My Queen?", he said.
	"Tell your men that I want her taken alive and unharmed", she said,
pointing at him, "Is that clear?"
	Anthrax bowed, and then headed out of the room.  The Dark Queen 
walked up to Snively, and grabbed him by his shirt collar.  She lifted him
off his feet, and pulled him up to her face.
	"Let's just hope, for your sake, that they find her", she hissed.
	"Yes, Highness", whimpered Snivley.
	The Dark Queen dropped Snively on the floor.  She looked down at him,
and pointed at the fluid all over the floor.
	"Clean up the mess", she said, "I'll be back later."
	She walked out of the room, making a crunching noise as she smashed
pieces of the cylinder.  Snively just shook his head.
	"Women", he said.

	"Hurricane", said Anthrax, walking down the hallways, "Take Squad 9
down to the lower-levels of the castle and see if she wandered down there.
Blizzard, take Squads 3 and 4 to the hangar bay.  She may be hiding in one
of the cargo units."
	"Affirmative", said Blizzard.
	"Whatever", said Hurricane, "I just wish Snively could lose clones
during the afternoon instead of at 1:00 in the morning."
	With that, Hurricane tromped off with his squad.  This was stupid.
Snively was the one who lost the little whatever-she-was, so why was he
still sitting in the lab?  Hurricane growled slightly.  He hated the 
bald little human.  If the Dark Queen had any sense, she'd vaporize the 
little maggot right now.
	"Or better yet", said Hurricane, "Let me do it."
	
	Anthrax walked to find Vortex and Mist.  No way those little shits
were going to get a good night's sleep while the three of them had to 
run all over the castle.  
	Anthrax hadn't walked more than a few dozen meters, when he saw 
something out of the corner of his eye.  He turned his head, and saw the
girl no more than eight meters from him!  She was facing the wall, looking
at a huge mirror that was on it.  
	Anthrax stepped back a few steps, and looked back down the hall that
he had come from.
	"Hurricane!", he whispered loudly, "Blizzard!"
	No answer.  The were too far away by now, and he was all alone.  He
looked back at the girl.  Apparently, she hadn't noticed him yet.
	"Blast!", he said, "Looks like I'll have to hold her myself."
	Anthrax took out his plasma pistol from the holster in his leg.  He
set it to 'stun', and aimed it right at the girl.  
	"Nighty night, Kid", he said, pulling the trigger.
	Anthrax wasn't quite sure what happened next.  He pulled the trigger,
the blast flew right at her, but didn't hit her!  At the last possible
second, the girl stepped backwards at almost supersonic speed, and the 
blast just hit the wall and disappeared.
	The girl looked right at Anthrax, and scowled.  Then, she pulled the
mirror off the wall, and threw it like a Frisbee at him.  
	"Oh no!", he yelled, putting his arms up over his face.
	The mirror crashed into him, and threw him back against the wall.
He slid down to the ground, and pushed the broken mirror away from him.
When he did, the girl had disappeared.
	Anthrax lightly banged his head back against the wall.
	"Damn", he said lightly.

	Something on the ground caught Hurricane's eye.  He looked down,
and saw a trail of fluid running down the hall towards the edge of the
castle.
	"Whaddya know?", said Hurricane, "She left us a trail to follow.  
Come on!"
	He started marching off, with his squad towing behind him.
	The trail went on for a little while.  Finally, Hurricane looked up,
and stopped dead in his tracks.  There was the girl.  She had punched her
way through the huge door to the balcony, and was standing on it, looking
out at the Great Forest below.
	Hurricane commanded his squad to halt, and then lifted his arm up.
As he did, the girl turned and looked at them all.
	"Come in, Anthrax", said Hurricane, not looking away from the girl.
	Anthrax's face appeared on the small screen.
	"Hurricane!", exclaimed Anthrax, "I saw her, I saw her!"
	"She's right here, Anthrax", said Hurricane, "She's, looking at me."
	"Don't make any sudden moves", said Anthrax, "She just Frisbeed me
with a mirror."
	"What should I do?", asked Hurricane, still staring at the girl.
	"Just don't let her leave", said Anthrax, "I'll get the Dark Queen, 
and we'll meet you there!"
	"Okay", said Hurricane, putting his arm down, and continuing to stare
at the girl, who just stared right back.
	
	About five to six minutes later, the Dark Queen, the four other
cyber generals, Snively, and about twenty drones appeared.  Hurricane and
the girl were still trying to stare each other down.
	"What has she done?", asked the Dark Queen, looking at the girl.
	"Nothing", said Hurricane, finally looking away from the girl, "She's
just gawked at me ever since I first got here."
	The Dark Queen looked up at the girl, and grinned behind her mask.
What a marvel she'd created.  From what the Dark Queen could tell, the
girl's physical age was about 14 to 15 years old.  She was perfectly built,
and quite attractive.  From the looks of it, more of Sally's physical traits
had shown than had Sonic's.  The girl's hedgehog traits could be seen from
the quills coming out from the back of her head.
	"Hmmmm", hummed the Dark Queen, "Time for a little field test."
	She looked over at a drone standing by.  Grinning behind her mask,
she motioned for the drone to restrain the girl.
	The drone obeyed, and started walking towards her.  She looked over
at him, and stepped back a few feet.
	"Do not move", said the drone, reaching for her arm.
	It grabbed her arm, and tried to get her other one.  
	"Jessica", said the Dark Queen.
	The girl responded to her name being spoken, and looked at the Dark
Queen.
	"Attack", she said.
	Jessica pulled her arm away from the drone, and lifted it off the
ground.  She then smashed it, face-first, into the side of the wall.  After
sufficiently smashing its face, she threw the form over the side of the
balcony.  
	The other drones reacted to the threat by drawing their weapons, and
training them on Jessica.  She looked, and gritted her teeth.
	To everyone's amazement, Jessica revved her feet up, just like Sonic,
and shot right at the drones.  She zoomed past them at an extreme velocity.
She stopped behind them all, holding their weapons.  The drones looked at
their empty hands, and were confused for a moment.
	Jessica didn't give them time to figure it out.  She revved up again,
and destroyed drone after drone with each pass.  After they were all 
destroyed, Jessica stopped, and trained her eyes on the Dark Queen.
	The Dark Queen clapped her hands a few times, and then pulled a dart
gun out of her gun holster.  She fired a single dart into Jessica's arm,
and she collapsed.
	"Gather your materials from the lab, Snively", said the Dark Queen,
"Then report to the Dreadnaught.  We have a schedule to keep."
	"Yes, Highness", said Snively, running off.
	"You two", she said, pointing to Hurricane and Blizzard, put her in
a holding cell on the ship."
	Hurricane and Blizzard gently picked Jessica up, and walked off with
her.  The Dark Queen looked over at Mist and Vortex.
	"Once they have her on the ship", said the Dark Queen, "Clean her up,
and find some suitable clothes for her.  I don't want her running around
soaking wet and stark naked, you know."
	"Yes, Highness", said Mist and Vortex, in unison.
	They ran off, and the Dark Queen looked at Anthrax.
	"This is going to be good", she said.

	Sally opened her eyes, after realizing that she had fallen asleep.
She lifted her head up from Sonic's shoulder, where she had rested it some
time before.
	"Rise and shine, Sal", said Sonic, smiling, "Enjoy your nap?"
	Sally stretched her arms out, and cracked her neck.  She took a deep
breath, and looked at Sonic.
	"How long was I asleep?", she asked.
	"A couple hours", he said, "You looked so cute all snuggled up against
me."
	Sally sighed, and tried not to blush.  She looked up at Rotor, who had
been piloting the Freedom Stormer ever since she'd fallen asleep.
	"Rotor", she said, leaning over the front seat, "Please tell me again
where you found this old thing?"
	"When we beat Snively", explained Rotor, "I put it in a storage shed
that was in a subbasement in one of the buildings in Mobo-Tropolis.  It
was one of the few things that survived the devastation."
	"Yeah", said Sally, briefly thinking about Sasha, "Not much did."
	Sonic noticed that Sally was getting upset, and decided to change the
subject.
	"So", he said, leaning over the front seat as well, "How long until
we get there?"
	"About three hours, Sonic", said Rotor, "Just sit tight."
	"Not one of my better talents", said Sonic, sitting back in the
seat.
	Sally pulled Nicole out, and flipped her open.
	"Nicole", she said, "Has there been any response to our message to
Pynecrest?"
	"Negative, Sally", said Nicole.
	"Send it again", she said, "Send it every thirty seconds until you
get some kind of response."
	"Come on, Princess", said Geoffrey St. John, sitting in the front
seat, next to Bunnie, "They would've answered by now if there was anything
left."
	Sally gave him a worried look.
	"I just don't want to believe that we've failed to act again", she
said.
	"I know", he said, "But one person can only do so much.  Remember
that."
	"I suppose", she said.
	
	The Freedom Stormer flew across the main view screen on the massive
Dreadnaught, which was several miles ahead of the little plane.
	The Dark Queen sat in her command chair, tapping her fingers together.
It was all going according to plan.  Those ratty little Freedom Fighters
had absolutely no idea what they were walking into.  
	Anthrax walked up next to her, and looked down.
	"This still doesn't make any sense to me", he said, "They're right
out in the open.  Why don't we just come up behind them and blow them
out of the sky?"
	"It really doesn't matter whether you understand anything, Anthrax",
said the Dark Queen, "However, for your personal information, if we do
as you suggest, the princess and the hedgehog will be out of my hair, but
they would become martyrs in the process.  That would cause others to rise
in retaliation against me.  I don't need that.  This little band of insects
is putting enough of a crimp on my plans.  I don't need anything else."
	"And letting them live will solve the problem?", asked Anthrax.
	The Dark Queen looked up at Anthrax, and her eyes flashed red.
	"You're lucky you're a rare model of cyber, Anthrax", she said, 
"Because a type 003 would have just been torn to shreds for questioning
my motives and methods.  However, since you are important enough to escape
that fate, I'll tell you.  To defeat the princess and the hedgehog, I must
show their broken bodies to all who would dare rise against me.  Seeing 
their champion's lifeless corpses at my feet will answer any question they
may have regarding my power.  Do you get it now?"
	"Yeah", said Anthrax.
	"Good", she said, "Now, shut up."
	Anthrax put his arms behind his back, and faced forward.  The Dark
Queen pushed a button on the arm of her chair, and Snively's face replaced
the Freedom Stormer on the view screen.
	"Tell me good news, Snively", she said.
	"Pynecrest has been secured, Highness", he said, "All prisoners are
enroute to Castle Acorn for cyberization."
	"Excellent", said the Dark Queen, folding her hands, "What about
Jessica?"
	"She is being put into position", said Snively, "As per your orders,
she will have no clue as to her true purpose.  When she hears the frequency
you've programmed in, she will activate, and set about her task."
	"Good", said the Dark Queen, "Now, step on it."
	"Yes, My Queen", said Snively, "Over and out."
	Snively's image disappeared, and was replaced by the landscape in
front of the Dreadnaught.  The Dark Queen looked over at Anthrax, who
was still standing next to her chair.
	"Order the fleet to move onto the next target", she said, "I want
Pynecrest to be a ghost town in the next half hour.  This way, if those
ratty little Freedom Fighters decide to do a scan, they'll see that we're
heading out of the area."
	"At once, Your Majesty", said Anthrax.
	The Dark Queen turned in her chair, and gazed at the view screen.
Oh, were those Freedom Fighters going to get it now.

	"Why do I not like the looks of that?", asked Sonic, pointing to the
huge pillar of smoke rising into the sky.
	"Oh no!", said Sally, "Don't tell me that we're too late!"
	"Looks that way, Luv", said Geoffrey, "I'm gonna take us down."
	Geoffrey landed the Freedom Stormer right outside of the shattered
village of Pynecrest.  Sally immediately pushed door open, and dashed out
into the center of the village.  She looked around at the flaming huts and
blast marks everywhere.  There were a few shattered hulks of drones laying
here and there.  The people of this village put up a fight.
	Sally sank to her knees, and pounded the dirt with her fists.
	"NO!", she yelled, "We were too late again!"
	Sonic came up beside her, and helped her back to her feet.  
	"It's okay, Sal", he said, "Just relax."
	Sally pulled away from Sonic, and looked back at him.
	"It is not okay!", she yelled, "These people are dead because we 
didn't get here in time to warn them about what was coming to kill them 
all!"
	"Chill out, Sal!", said Sonic, "We did all we could."
	"Did we?", asked Sally, "Or did this happen because we hesitated?"
	Before Sonic could answer, Bunnie started calling for them both.
	"HEY!!", she yelled, "There's someone over here!!  Ah think she's
still alive!"
	Sonic and Sally hurried over to where Bunnie was standing.  Bunnie
pointed to a piece of metal that was stirring.  Sally nodded, and Bunnie
grabbed the metal with her robotic arm.  She yanked it up, and threw it
to the side.
	The three of them gasped.  A young girl, maybe 14 years old, was 
laying underneathe the metal.  She was coughing, which meant she was
still alive.
	Sally dropped to her knees, and put her hand under the girl's head.
She helped sit her up, and then checked for any broken bones.  Fortunately,
she didn't have any.
	"She's alright", said Sally, breathing a sigh of relief.
	She looked down into the girl's eyes, who were still closed.  She
gently shook her.
	"Hey", she said, "Wake up."
	One of her eyes lifted up a little.  The other one followed.  She 
looked around for a moment, and then her eyes locked in on Sally.
	Almost immediately, she pulled away from Sally, and scooted several
feet away.
	"Hey", said Sally, holding her hand out, "I'm not going to her hurt
you."
	"Who are you?", asked the girl, "What do you want?"
	"My name is Sally", she said, "We're here to help you.  What's your
name?"
	The girl seemed hesitant.  Sally just smiled at her.  Finally, the
girl gave.
	"Jessica", she said, "I think..."
	"You think?", asked Sally, slightly confused.
	"I don't remember anything before I just woke up", she said, rubbing
the side of her head."
	Sally looked, and saw a huge red mark on the left side of Jessica's
head.
	"Something probably hit you", said Sally, "It may have caused 
amnesia.  It's probably just temporary.  You'll most likely start to 
remember things later on."
	Nicole started beeping, and Jessica immediately jumped to her feet.
She looked rather panicked.  Sally smiled, and pulled Nicole out of her
boot.
	"It's okay", she said, "It's just Nicole."
	"Neato", said Jessica, eyeing the computer.
	"What is it, Nicole?", asked Sally. 
	"Short range sensor readings indicate that the Dark Queen's fleet is
moving to a settlement to the South."
	"Meadowridge!", said Jessica.
	"You know where they're heading?", asked Sally.
	"I don't know how", said Jessica, looking at Sally, "I just know that
Meadowridge is to the South of here."
	"Do you know how far?", asked Sonic
	"It's a long way", said Jessica, "Something like 200 miles."
	"That's quite a ways", said Geoffrey.
	"Doesn't look like we have much choice", said Sally, "Nicole, is it
possible to beat the fleet there?"
	"Since the Freedom Stormer moves considerably faster than the Dark
Queen's fleet", said Nicole, "It is possible to arrive at Meadowridge 
before they do.  Only one problem exists."
	"Which is?", asked Sonic, folding his arms.
	Nicole displayed a map of the region, and a red line indicated the
only way to get the Meadowridge ahead of the Dark Queen.  Sally frowned
when she saw it.
	"Nicole", said Sally, "Um, that path goes right through the Dark
Queen's fleet."
	"Affirmative, Sally", said Nicole, "Any detour would make it unlikely
we would arrive in sufficient time to evacuate the settlement."
	"That's just beautiful!", said Geoffrey, throwing his arms up in
the air, "The Freedom Stormer is a fast plane, but aside from good 
maneuverability, it has no defensive capabilities.  I've got one plasma
rifle that's about three quarters charged, and that is not going to do us
any good against fully armored attack cruisers."
	"Then we'll have to do it the hard way", said Sally, "Fly right 
through the fleet, and hope that the Freedom Stormer's speed and 
maneuverability will hold out."
	"This is a suicide run", said Geoffrey, "I'm a fair pilot, but I don't
think I can pull this off without taking a hit or two."
	"You're not going to fly, Geoffrey", said Sally, "I am.  You're the
best marksman we've got, so I want you to use your rifle if any of them
get too close."
	Geoffrey knew there was no point in arguing with Sally.  Once that
girl's mind was made up, there was not changing it.

	They had all piled back into the Freedom Stormer, and were enroute
to Meadowridge.  Geoffrey was sitting in the seat behind Rotor.  He was
brandishing his fully automatic plasma rifle.  He looked down at the power
gage, and saw that it was a little more than 3/4 charged.  He was kicking
himself for not bringing an extra charge, but Sally had yanked them out
of Lower-Mobius so quickly, he hadn't had a chance to go to the armory.
He also wasn't planning on flying a rinky-dink wind powered plane through
a fleet of state-of-the-art attack cruisers.  
	Sally had placed Nicole on the dashboard of the plane.  She was 
scanning for the fleet, which was just ahead of them.
	"How far, Nicole?", asked Sally.
	"The Dark Queen's fleet is directly ahead, Sally", said Nicole.
	"Oh, man", said Sonic, buckling his seat-belt, "I knew I shoulda
stayed in bed today."
	"Get ready, Geoffrey", said Sally, looking back at him.
	Geoffrey cocked the rifle, and sat ready.
	"What's going on?", asked Jessica, looking slightly panicked.
	"It's all right, Sugah", said Bunnie, fastening Jessica's belt,
"Just hold on."
	"Have they picked us up yet, Nicole?", asked Sally.
	"Unknown, Sally", said Nicole, "They have not deviated from their
course, however."
	"Here we go!", said Sally, shooting the plane forward at an incredible
speed.

	The Freedom Stormer shot right between two cruisers that were bringing
up the rear of the fleet.  After they righted themselves, they shot after
the smaller plane.
	"Here they come!", yelled Rotor, looking out the rear view mirror.
	"Geoffrey!", yelled Sally.
	He hung out the window with his rifle, barely able to breathe because
of the extreme velocity they were traveling at.  He took a shot at one of
the cruisers, and hit the view-port.  It shattered, and the two Drones 
inside were overwhelmed by the wind.  The cruiser quickly spun out of 
control.
	"Good shot, Geoffrey!", said Rotor.
	Geoffrey cocked the rifle again, and waited for another shot.  His
eyes wandered forward, and saw what Sally was doing.
	"What are you doing, Lass!?", he yelled.
	It was too late, Sally turned the plane onto its side, and they flew
right between the two cruisers that were charging them.  One of them 
collided with the pursuing them.  The remaining one did a turn-about and
flew after them.
	Sally righted the plane again, and saw the rather panicked look in
Sonic's eyes.
	"Are you alright?", she asked, smiling.
	Sonic just scowled at her.  Sally looked forward, and grinned.  She
had a plan.  She angled the plane right towards the Dreadnaught.
	"What are you doing?", asked Rotor, looking at Sally.
	"Whatever it is", said Geoffrey, looking out his window, "You'd better
do it fast, because we're drawing a crowd, here."
	Three more cruisers had joined the one that was already chasing them.
In the back, Jessica had both of her arms wrapped around Bunnie's robotic
arm, and was holding on tight.  Bunnie was holding onto the arm of the chair
with her other hand.
	"Uh, Sal?", said Sonic.
	"What?!", said Sally, holding onto the stick as tightly as she could.
	"THE DREADNAUGHT!!!!", screamed Sonic, pointing at the huge vessel.
	At the last possible second, Sally thrust the stick forward, sending
the Freedom Stormer into a vertical drop.  Sonic looked out the rear of
the plane, and saw the four cruisers smash right into the side of the huge
ship.
	The Dreadnaught listed to the side, due to the huge explosion that
had racked its hull.
	"She's insane!", screamed Anthrax, holding onto one of the bulkheads.
	"I know", said the Dark Queen, gripping her chair to keep from falling
out of it, "But she's also playing right into my plan."
	The Dark Queen looked at the main view screen, and saw the little
plane fly off into the distance.  She grinned maliciously behind her mask.
	
	"See?", said Sally, relaxing her grip on the stick, "That wasn't so
bad, now was it?"
	"YES!!!", all four Freedom Fighters yelled in unison.
	"Geez, Sal", said Sonic, unbuckling his seat belt, "I'm all for speed
and all that, but only when I've got the ol' sneaks on the ground."
	"Where did you learn to fly like that, Princess?", asked Geoffrey,
wiping his forehead and laying his rifle against the side of the plane.
	"Oh that?", asked Sally, "I was just making it up as I went along."
	"WHAT!!?", yelled Sonic from the back.
	Bunnie looked over at Jessica, who was still clinging to her arm.
She patted the girl on her head.
	"It's all right now, Sugah", she said, "Sally-girl didn't kill 
us.....this time."
	"I heard that!", said Sally from the front.
	Jessica lifted her head up, and opened one eye.  She looked cautiously
around, and then let go of Bunnie's arm.
	"Are you alright?", asked Sally, looking in the mirror.
	"Yes, I'm fine", said Jessica, "Just warn me next time?"	
	Sally smiled, and looked back to the front of the plane.
	"Nicole", she said, "How far is it to Meadowridge?"
	"ETA is twenty minutes", said Nicole, "Sally, might I remind you that
further actions like that may cause extensive circuitry damage to my own
sub-processor systems?"
	"What are you all complaining about!?", snapped Sally, "We're still
alive, aren't we?"
	"Define, 'alive'!", yelled Sonic from behind.
	All Sally could do was sigh loudly.

	The Dark Queen sat in her command chair as the Dreadnaught finally 
righted itself.  She shook her head as she smiled.
	"Enjoy your victory, Princess", she hissed, "While it lasts, hee hee."
	Anthrax came up beside her, and handed her a view pad.
	"Here's the damage report, Highness", he said, "It's not too good.
Several of the port stabilizers were severely damaged.  If we try to move,
we'll start rolling like nobody's business."
	The Dark Queen tapped her fingers on the arm of her chair, and then
looked up at Anthrax.
	"How long is needed for the repairs?", she asked.
	"About ten hours", he said.
	She flashed her eyes at him.  Anthrax stepped back a foot or two.
	"However", he said, his voice slightly shaking, "Since you don't have
ten hours, I'll do it for you in five."
	"Good", she said, "Now get down there and make it happen!"
	Anthrax bowed, and hurried out the door.  The Dark Queen watched him
leave, and then pushed a button on her chair.
	"Vortex", she said, "Report to he bridge at once."
	No sooner did she lift her finger off the button, a small portal to
the Void opened, and Vortex floated out of it.  She landed right in front
of the Dark Queen, and the portal closed behind her.  
	"You called?", she asked, giving a short bow.
	"Why can't you just use the lifts like everyone else?", asked the
Dark Queen.
	"Where would the fun be in that?", asked Vortex, standing up, and
running her hand through her black dreadlocks, which were hanging over
her right shoulder.
	The Dark Queen just shook her head, and looked back at the black
cyber standing before hr.
	"Those miserable little Freedom Fighters will be landing at their
destination shortly", said the Dark Queen, "The fleet won't be moving for
about five hours.  I want you to go ahead of us, and shadow their every
move.  When the Princess and the Hedgehog split up, I want you to activate
our little surprise."
	The Dark Queen tossed Vortex a small device.  There was a small 
transmitter dish on the top of it, and a red button on the center.
	"This will transmit the frequency that will put Jessica into Kill
Mode", said the Dark Queen, "Once she is, the only thing that will stop
her is if she completes her mission."
	Vortex chuckled maliciously, and hooked the transmitter to the side
of her waist.  She bowed one more time before the Dark Queen, and then
jumped into another portal.
	After she was gone, Snively came up beside the Dark Queen, looking
rather worried.  The Dark Queen, ran her finger under his chin.
	"Aw", she cooed, "What's the matter, Snively?  You don't look happy?"
	"We may have a small problem, My Lady", he said.
	The Dark Queen grabbed his nose, and pulled him over to her.  He
could hear her growling as she breathed.
	"What KIND of problem?", she hissed.
	"With Jessica", he whimpered, "There's the possibility that a sharp
volt of electricity could erase all of her programming."
	"How much of a volt?", she asked.
	"According to my calculations", he said, still trying to breathe,
"About 1.21 gigawatts would be sufficient to wipe out all that we've done."
	The Dark Queen thought for a moment, and then let go of Snively's
nose.  He jerked back, and felt the huge mark she hand left on it.  The
Dark Queen then rose out of her chair, and pulled her mask off of her head.
She tossed it down on the seat, and walked right up to Snively.
	"You're saying that 1.21 gigawatts is the bare minimum to cause a
problem?", she asked.	
	"Yes", said Snively.
	The Dark Queen suddenly grabbed Snively, and kissed him full on the
lips.  After a moment or so, she brought her head back, and let go of the
shocked human.  She turned away from him, and grinned.
	"The only kind of electric charge that can create 1.21 gigawatts of
electricity is a bolt of lightning", she said, "So the only way Jessica's
programming could be erased is if she gets struck by lightning."
	She turned around, and looked at Snively, who hadn't moved.
	"Tell me, Snively", she said, "What are the chances of that 
happening?"
	Snively didn't answer.  She scowled, and walked closer to him.
	"Snively!", she yelled.
	All of a sudden, Snively fell flat on his back.  His eyes were still
as wide as saucers.  The Dark Queen smiled.
	"Yep", she said, running her hand through her hair, "I still got it."
	
	The Freedom Stormer touched down on a little dirt road that ran 
through Meadowridge.  Once the plane stopped moving, Sonic jumped out of
it, and started kissing the ground.
	"Is he always like that?", asked Jessica, looking at Sally.
	"Only when he's awake", she answered, hooking Nicole to her boot.
	Sally got out of the plane to notice that quite a few people had 
started to gather around the plane.  The rest of their little team filed
out behind her.
	"Who is in charge here?", she asked.
	"I am", said a voice from the crowd.
	Sally looked, and saw a young female cat walk out from the crowd.  
She was wearing a white lab coat over a light green dress.  She had on
red glasses and had her hair tucked back with a headband.  For a brief
moment, Sally was reminded of Julayla when her mentor had been young.
	"My name is Tara", she said, "I'm the magistrate here.  Who are you?"
	"Sally Acorn", she answered.
	There was a gasp from the crowd.  Tara's eyes got real wide, and then
she finally spoke.
	"Well", she said, straightening up her glasses, "This is quite a 
surprise.  We didn't expect to visited by royalty today."
	"I'm very flattered, Tara", said Sally, "But that's not why we're 
here."
	"Why are you here, then?", asked Tara folding her arms.
	"You guys have about five or so hours until a fleet of attack cruisers
and hover-units come flying over your village and wipe it off the face of
Mobius", said Sonic, "How's that?"
	The crowd started making quite a bit of racket after that one.  Tara
held up her hand, and everyone quieted down.
	"So", she said, "Are you here to force us to surrender?"
	"Absolutely not!", snapped Sally, "We're here to help you evacuate
this place before they get here!"
	"This is our home, Princess", said Tara, "We're not just going to 
run away with our tails between our legs.  We'll fight."
	"And you'll lose", said Geoffrey, stepping in, "The fleet that comes
this way has already decimated Mobo-Tropolis.  All that remains of it is
a barren wasteland.  They've left a path of destruction from there that
stretches all the way to your front door."
	"Who's doing this?", asked Tara, "What do they want?"
	"What do they want?", rumbled a voice from behind them, "After looking
at me, I think the answer should be obvious."
	Sally and the others looked, and saw Khaos walking towards them.
The crowd rumbled up again, but Tara soon calmed them down.
	"Khaos", said Sally, "What are you doing here?"
	"Oh", he said, "I just thought it was a nice day for a Sunday stroll,
but I guess it's not Sunday."
	"What's that thing?", yelled someone from the crowd.
	"What am I?", growled Khaos, "I'm what you'll all be if the Dark Queen
captures you.  Robotnik just stole your bodies from you.  The Dark Queen
steals your body, memories, and your soul.  She's on her way here right
now.  If you stay, you will lose.  Some may die, and those will be the
lucky ones.  You have the chance to escape my fate.  Sally and her friends
are here to help you do it.  I suggest you take her up on her offer."
	"Where are we supposed to go?", asked Tara.
	"Come back with us to Lower-Mobius", said Sally, "The Dark Queen won't
find you there."
	Tara paused for a moment, and then nodded her head.
	"Alright", she said, "Everyone!!  You have five hours to get what
you can carry.  I'm sorry it has to be this way, but it appears that we
once again have no choice."
	To Sally's surprise, nobody panicked.  They all hurried back to their
homes to scrape up whatever of their lives that they could afford to take
with them.  She turned her head, and saw Tara looking right at her.
	"I'm sorry about this, Tara", said Sally, "But there's nothing that
can be done about this."
	"I'm not angry at you, Princess", she said, "I'm waiting for an
explanation on who it is we're running from."
	"I'll handle it, Sally", said Khaos, putting his hand on Sally's
shoulder, "You see, Tara, the Mobian you're running from calls herself the
Dark Queen.  I don't know who she really is.  She wants to turn every 
Mobian into what you see before you, living machines that exist only to
serve her."
	"You're a cyborg, aren't you?", asked Tara.
	"That I am", said Khaos, "However, unlike the robotization process,
there is no way of ever reversing the damage done by cyberization.  Every
memory or trace of personality is erased from the mind.  I know, because
it happened to me."
	Tara sighed, and took her glasses off.  She folded them up, and put
them in her pocket.  
	"I understand", she said, "I had a feeling that peace wouldn't last
very long."
	"I'm sorry, Tara", said Sally.
	"Believe me, Miss", said Geoffrey, "No one has felt the sting of the
Dark Queen more than the Princess.  Her father has been taken prisoner,
and her sister was killed in the destruction of Mobo-Tropolis."
	"That's horrible", said Tara, "What kind of monster are we dealing
with?"
	"The worst kind", said Sonic, "Believe me.  This broad's a total
nightmare."
	"I see", said Tara, "Well, I need to get some things of my own 
together."
	She started to walk off, when Sally piped up.
	"Sonic", she said, "Go help Tara get what she needs.  Take Jessica
along with you."
	"Fine, fine", said Sonic, taking Jessica's hand.
	"Come on, Kid", he said.
	Jessica walked right behind Sonic.  Sally couldn't help but notice
how much she walked like Sonic.  Come to think of it, Jessica did resemble
Sonic quite a bit.
	Sally quickly shook it off, and looked back at the others.
	"Rotor, Bunnie", she said, "The three of us have to fix the damages
to the Freedom Stormer that our little flight caused.  Geoffrey, Khaos,
I want you two to stand guard and take care of any scouts the Dark Queen
may send ahead."
	"Yes, Princess", said Geoffrey, cocking his rifle, and heading into
the forest.
	Khaos didn't say anything.  He just followed behind the skunk.

	Tara led Sonic and Jessica into her hut, which was full of medical
journals and other equipment.  She noticed Sonic just looking around in
total awe.
	"I'm gonna take a wild stab in the dark here and guess that you're
the resident doc, huh?", Sonic said, still looking around.
	"Yes", said Tara, smiling, "My father was a very successful surgeon
before Robotnik took over.  We relocated in this area and became sort of a
country doctor for everyone here.  Believe me, he always had work to do.
I just sort of grew to love this place."
	"Is that why you stayed?", asked Jessica, flipping through some of
the books.
	"That's right", said Tara, "Sonic, I'm really only wanting to take
my father's journals with me.  They're his whole life's work, and I want
to make sure that they stay safe."
	"No problemo", said Sonic, grabbing a step-stool to grab a bunch
of them off a high shelf.

	Outside, Sally was fixing a tear on the Freedom Stormer's wing.  
Apparently, they'd flown a little too close to the Dreadnaught when they
were trying to break through the fleet.
	"A little more, Bunnie", said Sally.
	Bunnie lifted the plane up a little higher.
	"Perfect", she said, "Now just hold it there."
	Sally quickly patched the tear by putting a magnetic strip of metal
onto the hole.  It wasn't much, but it would hold until they got back to
Lower-Mobius.
	"Alright, Bunnie", said Sally, sliding out from under the plane,
"Set her down."
	Bunnie lowered the plane to the ground, and let go of it.  After she
did that, she rubbed her robotic arm a little bit, as if it were in pain.
	"What's the matter, Bunnie?", asked Rotor, walking around from the
other side of the plane.
	"Ah don't know", said Bunnie, gritting her teeth, "This cotton-pickin'
arm o' mine is actin' up."
	Rotor took her arm, and looked at it for a minute.  He then scowled
at it.
	"Sally", he said, "Take a look at this."
	Sally walked over, and saw several deep dents in Bunnie's arm.  She
looked back up at Bunnie, who seemed to be as dumbfounded as Rotor had
been.
	"When did this happen?", she asked.
	"Ah have no idea", said Bunnie, "They weren't there this morning."
	"It looks like someone grabbed her arm and dug their fingers into
it", said Rotor, "Only a robot or a cyber would be able to do something
like that."
	"Wait", said Sally, widening her eyes, "Didn't Jessica have hold of
your arm during the flight?"
	"No way, Sally-girl", said Bunnie, "Ah can judo-chop logs thicker than
that little girl's head is and not get a scratch from it.  Ain't no way an
ordinary 14 year old girl could dig her fingers that deep into my arm."
	"Maybe she's not so ordinary", said Sally, "I didn't think about it
before now, because we were in such a hurry, but didn't it seem odd to you
that the cybers just conveniently missed her when they destroyed Pynecrest?"
	"That does sound a little fishy", said Rotor, "And she was a little
eager to come with us."
	"Not to mention that it wasn't too terribly difficult to break through
the Dark Queen's fleet", said Sally, "Just because we damaged the flagship
wouldn't mean that the Dark Queen would hold the entire fleet in one spot
until it was fixed."
	"Are you saying that she planted Jessica in Pynecrest, let us get
through her fleet and is waiting outside of here?", asked Rotor.
	"It's the only thing I can think of", said Sally.
	"But it doesn't answer how Jessica did this", said Bunnie, holding her
arm up.
	"Augmented strength", said Sally.
	"Think she's a bot like the one Robotnik replaced you with?", asked
Rotor.
	"It's possible", said Sally, "Come on."
	Sally and the others ran to find Geoffrey and Khaos.  She hoped that
it wasn't too late.  She looked up, and saw a huge storm cloud moving in.
They'd have to hurry.

	"Tara!", said Sonic, holding three huge boxes full of journals, "Are
you sure you really need all these?"
	"YES!", snapped Tara, "Hush, I'm sorting."
	Sonic looked, and saw Jessica sitting over by another pile of books.
	"You okay, Kid?", he asked.
	"I'm fine", she said, smiling.
	Behind Jessica, there was a slight flash of light.  Jessica turned,
and saw a pick hole floating in the air.  She scowled, and backed away
from it.
	"Sonic!", she said, "What's that?"
	Sonic turned his head, and yelped.
	"Holy....!!!!"
	He dropped the boxes he was holding, and caused Tara to fall off her
ladder.  Sonic stood up, and looked in horror as Vortex walked out of the
portal.
	"Hey, long time no see, Hedgehog!", she cackled.
	"You got some guts coming here all by yourself, Vortex!", said Sonic,
dropping into a defensive stance.
	"Who-what is that!?", said Tara, putting her glasses on.
	"She's one of the Dark Queen's wind-up toys", said Sonic, "She's also
goin' down, too!"
	"I'm not here to fight you, Hedgehog", said Vortex.
	"Oh yeah?", said Sonic, "Then what are you here for?"
	"This!", said Vortex, grabbing the device the Dark Queen had given
her off her waist.
	She pushed the button, and it started to hum lightly.
	"I'm not impressed, Vortex", said Sonic, getting ready to rush the
female cyber.
	He stopped when he saw Jessica drop to her knees.  
	"What did you do to her?", growled Sonic.
	"I have unleashed the demon, Hedgehog", laughed Vortex, jumping back
into her portal.
	Sonic ran over to Jessica.
	"Kid!", he said, "Are you alright?"
	Jessica looked at him, and he was shocked to see that her eyes were
now totally bloodshot.  She grinned an evil grin.
	"Better than ever!", she hissed.
	Jessica grabbed Sonic by his arm, and literally threw him across the 
room.  He crashed into a shelf full of manuals, and the whole thing fell
down on top of him.
	"Sonic!", screamed Tara.
	She looked over at Jessica, who was cracking her knuckles.  The 
frightened cat backed up a foot or two.
	"What the hell are you?", she said.
	"The ultimate weapon that will destroy the hedgehog and the princess
as well", said Jessica, smiling, "You will be destroyed too if you get in
my way."
	Jessica yanked the shelf off of Sonic like it didn't weigh an ounce.
She threw it right threw the wall, leaving a huge hole.  Sonic was hardly
conscious at the time.  All of the books falling on top of him had knocked
him senseless.
	"Time to die, Hedgehog", said Jessica, "You ready?"
	There was a flash of light, and Jessica was thrown forward several
feet.  She turned around, and saw that Geoffrey St. John had shot her in
the back with his rifle.
	"That hurt, Soldier-Man", said Jessica, "Let's see if I can hurt you
some!"
	Geoffrey fired three more shots right into Jessica's chest.  She
staggered for a moment, and then fell back on the floor.
	"Hurry!", he said.
	Tara lifted Sonic off the ground, and put his arm around her.  She
then slowly walked him out of the hut.  Sally and the others were waiting
outside.
	Geoffrey looked down at Jessica, who was laying on the floor, 
unmoving.  He shook his head.  He hadn't wanted to kill her, but it didn't
look like she was going to give him a choice.
	He turned his head, and looked at Tara, who had stopped in the 
doorway to look at Jessica.
	"Hurry up and get out there!", he yelled, "We still don't have a lot
of time to get out of here."
	While Geoffrey had his head turned, he didn't see the wounds on
Jessica's chest close up.  She blinked her eyes, and lifted her head up.
She slowly rose to her feet, and walked towards Geoffrey.
	"Look out, Geoffrey!!", screamed Tara.
	Geoffrey turned his head just in time to see Jessica swinging a
punch at him.  He moved out of the way, and her fist smashed into the side
of the doorway, busting it to pieces.	
	"Alright, you cheesy beggar!", he snarled, "Take this!"
	He fired, and only got a click from the rifle.  To his dismay, he
had used up the charge.
	"I'm waiting", mocked Jessica, rushing him.
	Geoffrey swung the rifle at her, and clocked her right in the side
of the head.  However, the girl didn't go down.  Geoffrey looked, and saw
a huge dent in the side of the rifle.
	"What the bloody blazes are you?!", he said, freezing up.
	Jessica grabbed the rifle, and rammed it into Geoffrey's stomach.
She then yanked it out of his hands, and hit him across the face with it.
He flew into the wall, and passed out.
	"Wouldn't you like to know", she said, tossing the rifle to the
side and walking out of the hut.
	
	Outside, Jessica looked around for Sonic.  Then, she saw him.  Tara
was taking him towards the woods.  Sally was with him.
	"Good", she said, "I can kill them both with one stroke."
	Right after saying that, Jessica's arm shot up, and blocked Bunnie's
chop.  She looked over in the face of the surprised rabbit.
	"You look shocked", said Jessica, grinning, "How's this?"
	Jessica backhanded Bunnie right across the face.  The blow sent her
flying through the air, and she hit the side of a hut.  Bunnie slid down
it, and remained still.
	"I'd kill you, Bunnie", said Jessica, "But business before pleasure,
I'm afraid."
	Jessica revved her feet up, just like Sonic, and ran into the woods
after the three.
	Rotor ran over to Bunnie, and put his hand behind her head.
	"Are you alright, Bunnie?", he asked.
	"Ah feel like ah just got trampled under a stampede", moaned Bunnie.
	"Jessica ran off just like Sonic", said Rotor, "I don't think she's
a bot at all."
	"Whaddya mean?", asked Bunnie, trying to sit up, "You saw what she
did.  She took three slugs from Geoffrey's rifle right in the chest and
one in the back.  It didn't even slow her down."
	"I know", said Rotor, "But I have my suspicions."
	"Whatever, Sugah", said Bunnie, "Now, help me up, so we can see if
Geoffrey's still alive."
	
	In the woods beyond Meadowridge, Tara and Sally were running as fast
as they could with Sonic between them.  He was still delirious from having
the huge shelf fall on him.
	"What the hell is she?", said Tara, looking over at Sally.
	"I'm not sure", said Sally, "I thought she was an android, but I
don't think so."
	"She was bleeding when she took those blasts", said Tara, "And they
seemed to hurt her.  But then they just closed up like they were never
there!"
	"That's it!", said Sally, "She must be a genetically engineered
life-form!  The Dark Queen definitely planted her with us for the sole
purpose of wiping me and Sonic out."
	"What I don't get", said Tara, still running, "Is why she was alright
until that black think used that little machine."
	"What black thing?", asked Sally, looking at Tara, "What machine?"
	"There was some black thing that looked just like your friend, Khaos",
said Tara, "She stepped out of some pink hole in the air, and used some
little box that hummed.  When she did that, Jessica went psycho."
	"Vortex", said Sally, "She must have triggered Jessica's programming
with the box."
	"So what do we do?", asked Tara, "Isn't there any reasoning with her?"
	"Not likely", said Sally, "If she's been programmed the way I think,
she may just ignore everything we say."
	Just as Sally said that, a plasma blast hit a tree near them, causing
it to shatter.  Tara screamed, and Sally looked to the source of the blast.
She saw Hurricane and Vortex standing there.
	"Going somewhere, Girls?", asked Hurricane, waving his lightning
discharger at them.
	"How fitting", said Vortex, "You three came here to die!"
	Just then, Jessica sped into the area.  She slammed on the brakes, 
and slid for several feet.  Sally just looked at the feat in awe.
	"Surprised?", asked Jessica, "I don't know why.  Any offspring of
Sonic's should inherit his ability to run at supersonic speeds."
	"Offspring?", asked Sally.
	"Precisely", said a whiney voice.
	Sally looked up, and saw Snively appear behind the two cybers.  He
folded his arms, and grinned.
	"You cloned her from Sonic's DNA?", asked Tara.
	"Not just Sonic's", said Snively, "If I had done that, she would
be an exact duplicate of him.  Besides, she would have also inherited his
blatant stupidity.  No, we combined Sonic's DNA with someone more, 
intellectual, the princess."
	Sally was shocked.  She looked at Jessica, and did see a resemblance
between herself and the girl.  She hadn't noticed it before, since she was
only paying attention to the way she resembled Sonic.  But it was evident;
Jessica was a mixture of her and Sonic's DNA, their daughter to be exact.
	"Enough of this little reminition", said Snively, "Jessica, kill them
all!"
	"Zip it, Snerdly", said Jessica, "I know my job!"
	Sonic lifted his head up slightly.
	"Huh?", he mumbled, "Wus going on?"
	"You're about to go to the big chili dog in the sky, Sonic", said
Jessica, revving her feet up.
	"What the...", started Sonic.
	Jessica shot forward, and slammed right into Sonic.  The force of
the impact caused Tara and Sally to go flying in two separate directions.
Sonic and Jessica slid for a good fifty feet before coming to a stop.
	"Time to die, you little Maggot!", yelled Jessica, grabbing Sonic's
neck, and yanking him off the ground.
	The girl held Sonic off the ground by his neck.  He was kicking and
gagging for air, but all Jessica did was narrow her eyes to slits and grin.
Sonic could tell she was enjoying this.
	"Never thought you'd be done in by your own flesh and blood, did 
you?", asked Jessica, "Oh well, time to finish this!"
	Just as Jessica was about to break Sonic's neck, something slammed
into the back of her head, causing her to release Sonic.  Sonic fell to
the ground, and sucked in huge amounts of life-giving air.  He looked up,
and saw that Bunnie had chopped Jessica in the back of her skull.
	Jessica turned around and looked at Bunnie.  There was only pure
madness in her eyes.
	"Alright, Sugah", said Bunnie, "Let's do this."
	"With pleasure", said Jessica, "After I strangle you with your
intestines, I'll take care of Blue-Boy."
	Sonic was about to get up, when Hurricane slammed his foot down on
his chest.
	"Just hold that pose, Hedgehog", said Hurricane, "You'll get your
turn soon enough."
	Jessica flexed her hands, and huge claws came out of her fingers.
Bunnie just glared at them.
	"Nice, huh?", asked Jessica, "I've been given several defensive 
capabilities to use at my disposal."
	Jessica slashed at Bunnie, who blocked it with her robotic arm.  There
was a huge spark as the claws hit the metal.  Bunnie retaliated by spinning
around and kicking Jessica in the stomach.  Bunnie realized then that she
might as well have been kicking a titanium wall.
	"Nice try", said Jessica, "But utterly futile!"
	Jessica spun around, and kicked Bunnie in the gut.  The kicked knocked
the wind right out of the her, and she doubled over.  
	"Feeling a little out of breath, Bitch?", sneered Jessica, slamming
her fists down on Bunnie's back.  
	"BUNNIE!!!", screamed Sally, who was being restrained by Vortex.
	Jessica grabbed Bunnie's ears, and pulled her back up to eye-level.
	"I just want you to know", she said, "That you were doomed to lose
from the start."
	Bunnie spat right in Jessica's face.  Jessica wiped it off, and
head-butted Bunnie.  There was a loud 'crack' that was the sound of Bunnie's
nose breaking.  
	"As much as I've enjoyed this little exercise", said Jessica, "I'm
afraid I must draw it to a conclusion.  You see, I still have a job to
do, and I'm afraid that business comes before pleasure."
	Bunnie swung her robotic arm at Jessica, who promptly caught it.
She smiled, and looked at the dents in it.
	"Did I do that earlier?", she asked, "Oh well, let's try for something
a little more dramatic this time."
	With that, she ripped Bunnie's arm clean off of her shoulder.  Sparks
popped and flew away from Bunnie's shoulder.  Several broken wires hung
from it as well.  Bunnie screamed in pain and tears ran down her face.
	"Damn, I bet that hurts, don't it?", laughed Jessica.
	She threw Bunnie on her back.  Bunnie was still wreathing in pain.
Jessica lifted the arm over her head, and hit Bunnie in the side with it.
Bunnie screamed even louder at that point.
	"Stop it!!", screamed Sally.
	"Shut up!", said Vortex, grabbing her arm and shaking her.
	Jessica continued to beat Bunnie with her own arm.  She could see that
Bunnie was bleeding heavily by now and was on the verge of passing out from
the combination of pain and loss of blood.
	"Time for the final blow!", yelled Jessica, lifting the arm over
her head.
	Sonic realized that this was the only time he had to act.  He twisted
out from under Hurricane's foot.  Hopefully, he could reach Jessica before
she killed Bunnie.
	"Why, you little...", said Hurricane, stepping back.
	He raised his lightning discharger, and pointed it right at Sonic's
face.  Sonic took the microsecond he had to look at Jessica still holding
the metal arm over her head.  Then, he had an idea.
	Sonic twisted out of the way, and kicked Hurricane's discharger up
a few inches.  The kick caused it to involuntarily fire.
	"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!", screamed Snively, seeing what had happened.
	The bolt of lightning hit the tip of Bunnie's arm, and electrocuted
Jessica.
	"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!", screamed Jessica, feeling the gigawatts surge
through her body.
	After a moment or two of spasming, she fell flat on top of Bunnie.
Bunnie promptly pushed her off, and grabbed her arm.  She had to resist
the urge to start hitting Jessica with it, since she didn't want to sink
to that level.
	"Hurricane!!", yelled Snively, "I can't believe you did that!!"
	Hurricane grabbed Sonic by his neck, and looked at Snively.
	"Don't worry!", he said, "I'm gonna rectify right now!"
	"Not today, Mate", said Geoffrey.
	Hurricane felt something cold and circular press up against the back
of his head.  He realized then that it was a plasma rifle.
	"I'm armor plated, you oaf!", said Hurricane, "That won't kill me!"
	"Care to test that theory?", asked Geoffrey, cocking the rifle.
	Hurricane didn't say anything.
	"Nah", said Geoffrey, "I didn't think so.  Now, let Sonic go."
	Hurricane released Sonic, and he fell to the ground.  Geoffrey then
looked over at Vortex, who still had hold of Sally and Tara.
	"You too!", he said, "Let the princess and the other lass go, or
we all get to see what a cyber brain really looks like."
	Vortex scowled, but let them go.  Sally grabbed Tara's hand, and ran
over to Bunnie.  They both helped her up, and walked over to where Geoffrey
was standing.
	"Now", he said, "If you'll be excusing us.  We still have work to
do."
	Snively started to pull a small blaster out from under his shirt.
That twit, Geoffrey, hadn't paid any attention to him, and that would
prove fatal, for the princess anyway."
	Suddenly, something grabbed his hand, and lifted him clear off the
ground.  He looked, and saw Khaos staring right back at him.
	"Now I KNOW you weren't planning on shooting anybody with that thing,
were you?", he asked.
	"Uh-uh-uh, n-n-n-no", stuttered Snively, "I was just going to, ah,
er, um, that is.."
	"Give it to me", finished Khaos, snatching the gun out of Snively's
hand.
	Khaos then tossed Snively to the ground, and looked over at Hurricane
and Vortex.
	"You three have got exactly two seconds to clear out of here before
I make a huge mess", he said.
	Within a second, they all fell into Vortex's portals, and vanished.
A portal opened under Jessica, but Sonic ran over, and grabbed her before
she fell into it.
	"What are you doing, Sonic?", asked Khaos, "We don't want the little
creep."
	"I couldn't let them have her", said Sonic, looking at the unconscious
girl's face.
	Sally didn't say anything, but she felt the same way for some reason.
	
	The rest of the day was uneventful.  The residents of Meadowridge
managed to vanish into the surrounding forest long before the Dark Queen's
fleet arrived.  Surprisingly, few of them had any desire to return with
the Freedom Fighters to Lower-Mobius.  They decided to remain in that 
area and build new lives for themselves.  All Sally could do was wish them
luck.
	As for Jessica, the Freedom Fighters took her back to Lower-Mobius
with them.  It was then that the hard decisions were to be made.
	"Well", said Uncle Chuck, looking at a strand of Jessica's DNA on
his computer, "She is a combination of Sonic and Sally's DNA."
	"What about her programming?", asked Sally, "Is she still a threat?"
	"I don't think so", said Uncle Chuck, "You told me about the way
Snively reacted when he saw that Hurricane was going to hit her with his
discharger.  I think he knew that lightning would fry the programming.
As far as I can tell, when she comes to, she'll be just a normal kid again."
	"A normal kid with the speed of Sonic and the brains of Sally", added
Khaos.
	"It's your call, Sal", said Sonic, "I'm all for giving her another
chance.  You know it wasn't her fault."
	Sally didn't say anything.  After a moment, she looked at them all.
	"Give me some time", she said, "I need to think about it."
	"Alright", said Sonic.
	Sally left Uncle Chuck's lab, and headed to the infirmary.  There,
Dr. Quack was monitoring Jessica, who still hadn't woken up.  
	"How is she?", asked Sally.
	"The good news is that all of her strength is gone", he said, "Her
programming was causing massive amounts of adrenaline to run through her
body, giving her augmented strength.  Without it, she's no stronger than
she looks."
	Dr. Quack then headed out to see to other things.  Sally pulled a
chair over, and sat next to Jessica.  She put her hand near the young 
girl's, and surprisingly, Jessica grabbed hold of it, and held onto it
tightly.  Sally just smiled, and patted the top of Jessica's hand.
	From the door, Sonic just watched Sally sit with Jessica.  Uncle Chuck
came up next to him, and watched as well.
	"Look at her, Unc", he said, "She's actin' almost like..."
	"A mother would?", said Uncle Chuck.
	"Yeah", said Sonic, "Strange thing is, I wuz feeling like doing the
same thing."
	Uncle Chuck patted Sonic on the shoulder.
	"I know, Sonie", he said, "I know."
	Sonic just looked back, and wondered what was going to come of this.

THE END