Before Time After By: Silver Starr Sally watched in anticipation with Nicole at her side. If her plan did not work now, everything would be lost. Holding her breath, she waited . . . and then she saw the blast. The swat-bot factory had been destroyed. "Alright," she sighed, breathing once again. "Aunt Sally! Did you see it?!" Tails flew down beside Sally and gave her a high-five. "We did it, Tails! And now, let's get back to Knothole. I'm sure Sonic's already there." "Yeah, 'cuz that's where you told him to go. Come on, Aunt Sally! Race 'ya!" Tails took off flying while Sally slowly walked back to Knothole. By the time she arrived, everyone was already rejoicing. Spotting Sonic, she pulled him away from the crowd. "We need to talk," she whispered. Sonic blinked. "Yeah, Sal. 'bout what?" "Stuff. About today. Meet me at the lake at nine o'clock, okay?" "Sure, Sal." Sally paced around, waiting for Sonic to come. The sun had set hours ago and she couldn't wait to talk to Sonic once again. However, glancing at her watch, she wondered if he was even worth talking to. 8:59 . . . he would be there soon. She counted the seconds until finally Sonic sped up to the lake. "Right on time," Sonic smiled, and checked his watch. "Five seconds early. Hey, that's a record." "Sonic, come on. Be serious for just a minute." "A minute? That's really testing my limit." "Sonic . . . I'm worried about Robotropolis's situation." "Sal, there's nothin' to worry about. We blasted that swat-bot station without a hitch. What could possibly be wrong?" "We haven't won. Just a few battles here and there. When will it all end?" * * * Sally watched in anticipation with Nicole at her side. If her plan did not work now, everything would be lost. Holding her breath, she waited . . . but the blast never came. The swat-bot factory still stood as if nothing had happened. Sally sunk to the ground, her eyes watering in disbelief. Tails hovered down next to Sally and tried to say a word of comfort. "No, Tails . . . it's alright . . ." "Aunt Sally, what's going to happen now?" "I'm not sure, Tails. I'm just not sure anymore." "Are we going back to Knothole?" "Yes. I need to find Geoffrey and see what went wrong with today's mission." Sally slowly walked back to Knothole and Tails followed her, dragging his two tails behind him. When they arrived at Knothole, Geoffrey was waiting for them. "Princess, I'm sorry about today. I lost three more freedom fighters and we didn't gain one inch of land!" "Don't blame yourself, Geoffrey. We need to talk about what's going on. Meet me by the lake at nine o'clock." "Yes, Sally." Sally paced around the lake. She pulled out Nicole and sat her on the ground as she stared into the night sky. "What's wrong, Sally?" "Nicole, what did we lose today?" "Just some freedom fighters. We haven't lost any more area near the Great Forest." "We're still surrounded, Nicole. What can I possibly do?" "Sally, sometimes there's nothing we can do but wait and hope." "Nicole, time is running out. Downunda was captured yesterday, and I haven't heard anything from the Floating Island in almost a year. I must confess: Robotnik has won." "No he hasn't, Sally," Geoffrey said, walking up to the lake. "You're early," Sally said, glancing at her watch. "You know me, princess. . . . Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" "I think you've heard enough for now," Sally sighed. She looked at Geoffrey and noticed an envelope in his hand. "What do you have there?" "It's a letter for you." "Who is it from?" "I don't know." Sally took the envelope and ripped it open. After studying its contents, she looked up at Geoffrey. "What does it say?" Sally shook her head. "Somebody wants me to meet with him." "Why's that?" "He says he has the key to winning the war." "I wouldn't trust it for a minute." "But what if it's true?" Sally asked as she stood up from the ground. "I have to take a chance." "But Sally--" "Geoffrey St. John, you will stay here and wait for me. That's an order." "Yes, Princess Sally." Sally turned and ran, running to the Great Forest. If she was lucky, whoever she was going to meet would still be there. "Over here," a voice whispered. Sally stopped running and tried to find out where the voice was coming from. "Step out so I can see you!" she yelled. "Keep your voice down." The figure stepped out in front of Sally, who nearly gasped in fear. "Snively!" "Right you are." "What are you doing here? You set me up!" "No, that's where you're wrong. I have the key to winning the war." "Why would you betray Robotnik?" "I have my reasons." "Fine, fine. What is it?" Snively put a stone into Sally's hand, making her hand clutch onto it with all her strength. "This is a time stone." Sally frowned. "You're out of your mind." "That's where you're wrong. The lard ball and I went back into time to get rid of Sonic the Hedgehog." "Sonic the Hedgehog? Who's that?" "Right, I forgot, we got rid of him." "Snively, you're wasting my time." "Here is the exact time down to the last second when we killed him. All you have to do is think about this time and you will be transported back into time. Now, here's a picture of what he'll look like when he's a baby, and here's a picture that I drew myself of the freedom fighters that should exist today." Sally looked at the first picture. A blue hedgehog smiled in the picture, a small infant. Sally then turned to the picture that Snively had drawn. After critiquing how he drew her, she identified the freedom fighters that she recognized: Rotor, the handyman, Antoine, a fighting man when he wasn't scared, Dulcy, the friendly, child-like dragon, and Tails, her look-out for danger. She then spotted Sonic, the older version of the baby in the other picture. To her surprise, there was an additional freedom fighter, who looked like a rabbit except for the fact that her bottom half and one of her arms had been roboticized. Looking up from the picture, Sally turned back to Snively. "Why should I trust you? How do I know that I'm not rescuing some murderer? And why aren't you doing this?" "So many questions. But I can answer them with two words: trust me." Snively turned and walked away, disappearing into the shadows. Sally, frustrated and confused, walked back to the lake. Geoffrey was still waiting for her and seemed relieved when she finally arrived. "How did it go?" "I'm not sure," Sally sighed. "It looks like I'm going back into time." "What for?" "For a possible solution to this war. But first, I'm going to see if this is a trap. Nicole, look for any information in Daddy's records about a Sonic the Hedgehog." "Searching . . . no entries found." "I knew it! I can't trust Snively." Geoffrey scratched his chin, in deep thought. Finally, he said: "What if Sonic isn't his real name?" "Then maybe I'm approaching this wrong. Nicole, analyze this stone." "Analyzing . . . analysis complete. This is indeed a time stone. According to legend, a time stone allows two people to travel into time--" "Then I can go with you," Geoffrey said, immediately volunteering. "However, this time stone is small, so it is only able to transport one person back into time." "That will have to be me." "But Sally--" "Geoffrey, I know what I'm doing. Besides, I wouldn't want you to become jealous of him." "He's just a baby." "But my role as a princess might play as an important role in the past, so I must go." "Why do you always present the perfect argument?" "It's a gift." Sally tucked the pictures into the pocket of her vest, then picked up the stone. She focused on the time written on the paper, putting all of her concentration on the time until she could not think any longer. . . . Sally opened her eyes, finding small cribs in a room in front of her. A nurse was taking a picture of one of the newborns, then stepped away from the crib. "There he is!" Sally gasped. "Do you have a new brother here?" a voice asked beside Sally. Oh no, Sally thought, my cover's blown. "Yes," Sally replied quickly. "My parents decided to have another child. I told them that the age difference wouldn't matter; we'd get along fine!" "That's nice to hear." Sally turned around only to find a blue hedgehog who was smiling. This must be Sonic's dad. I wonder if he knows about his son? Sally's ears perked up to a voice coming from down the hall. "Yes, where are the newborns? One of my dearest friends has had a baby and I promised I'd come to see their new pride and joy." I recognize that voice . . . it's Robotnik! "Which baby is yours?" Sally asked, just to make sure she wasn't going to make a mistake. "That one, over there in the corner." The hedgehog pointed to his baby son, Sonic. Why couldn't it be somebody else? "Sir, you have to take your baby now!" "What?" "There is a threat on your son's life." "I can't believe it! Why would anybody do such a thing?" I don't know any of Sonic's relatives . . . who worked for my father? . . . Sir Charles was at the palace quite often. Maybe he's related. "Do you know Sir Charles?" "Yes, he's my brother." "Well, because of your connections to him, your son's life is in danger!" Sally quickly lied. The hedgehog motioned with his hands to a few guards stationed close-by. "Please make sure that nothing happens to any one of these babies." Looking out of the corner of her eye, Sally saw Robotnik turn away and disappear into another hallway. Now the future should be right, Sally thought. She pictured the lake in her mind, slipping away from the hedgehog and the baby Sonic. * * * Sally sat down by the tree and sighed. She found Nicole to her right, replacing the time stone she had once carried. "Nicole, what's going on? What happened to that mission I planned today?" "Sally, you told me not to mention it again." "I did? Well, please refresh my memory." "Today's mission was a failure. We lost three freedom fighters and the swat-bot factory remains." "This isn't right! I thought I corrected everything!" "And a good evening to you, Princess Sally." "Snively! What are you doing here?" "Didn't you get my note?" "What note?" "The note that told you to meet me at the lake at nine o'clock. You did get the note, didn't you?" "Uh . . . yeah, that note. Yes, I did get the note. Something about a possible ending to the war." "Yes. Now the lard ball and I have gone back in time to kill Sonic the Hedgehog." "Again?" "What do you mean 'again'?" "Nothing. Please continue." "There was an attempt on his life shortly after he was born, if that's what you mean. That wasn't us. That was somebody else." "Sure." "We went back in time to kill Sonic the Hedgehog when he was two years old. He's still slow, thank goodness. He doesn't learn about his speed until he's three." "He hasn't used it since he was a baby?" "Well, he's tried. I should say that when he was three, he could control it." "So what's this got to do with me?" "You want to win the war, don't you?" "Of course." "Then listen. We went back in time to this date and time." Snively handed Sally a piece of paper which held a different date and time. "Sonic's parents are on a picnic with Sonic, but he strays away. I had a knife with me, so I grabbed him by the neck and--" "Excuse me, but you're smiling." "So?" "You've committed murder, you psychotic thing! . . . I can see it all now. You're making me do this out of revenge!" "You're a sharp cookie, princess, but you'll never set the time straight. Even if you cannot correct the past, I still have a better chance of ruling in the future!" "You are sick. Now I'm going to go back in time, but your life is going to be messed up in the future, which is the present. I mean right now. You make Robotnik look like a good doctor." Then Sally disappeared before Snively's eyes, transported once again into the past. . . . Sally appeared on a checkered cloth which was spread out across the bright green grass. She smiled nervously, seeing Sonic's parents in front of her. "Hey, I remember you," the father smiled. "Who is she?" "She's the one that saved our boy's life." The mother turned to Sally and gave her a hug. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You see, we found out there was an attempt on my baby's life. If it wasn't for you, we would have lost him forever!" "And you might if you don't let me speak," Sally said, breaking away. "Your son has wandered off and the one who was going to kill him is here now!" "What?" Sally ran off from the picnic, looking desperately for Sonic. "Here little hedgehog who's going to be Sonic in the future! Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Sally stopped dead in her tracks. "This time travel stuff is getting to me. I've already lost my head." "I see!" a voice laughed, rolling on the ground. "I was wondering where you were," Sally said, bending down to pick up Sonic. "Silly girl," Sonic laughed. "That's not my name," Sally sighed as she walked back to the picnic. "Silly girl." "That's not funny." "You found him!" the mother cried, running over to Sonic. "Mommy!" Sonic reached for his mother's arms and she picked him up, holding him close to her. "Silly girl found me." "Then what should you say?" Sonic was silent. "Come on, what do you say?" "Th . . . ank you." "You're welcome," Sally smiled. Her eyes drifted off and she could see Snively hiding in a bush, a knife between his teeth. "We have to go now. Your son's life is still in danger. Do you have a hiding spot that nobody knows about?" "Yes, I think so." "Then you better run," Sally said, then ran toward Snively. "How did you get here?" Snively screamed. "You sent me." "Why would I send you?" "Maybe it's because you didn't think that I'd find you." "I should kill you on the spot!" Snively raised his arm, but when he was going to kill Sally, she disappeared, heading into the present. * * * Sally appeared back at the lake, right next to Nicole. This time she still had the time stone with her. She knew she must have changed the past for the better, otherwise the stone would be gone. "Nicole, tell me about today's mission." "A success just like you planned, Sally. Thanks to Antoine's efforts, he is going to be awarded a medal tonight." "Say what?" "You are giving him this medal, so you better hurry before you're late." "What was I thinking?" Sally started walking off toward the middle of Knothole, where she knew she would have to go in order to get through this mess. "I guess I don't remember because I can't exist in two different places at once. I keep coming back to the present, and things have happened that I never even knew about." Rotor walked up next to Sally. "Sally, I hate to interrupt your thoughts, but here's the medal you're going to present to Antoine." "I can't believe I'm doing this," Sally sighed. "Rotor . . . can you tell me what happened to Sonic?" "Gosh, I haven't seen him since we were kids. His mother was real overprotective about him. Said that somebody was always going kill him. I guess she kinda went out of her mind. She just wanted him to be safe. Why do you ask, Sally? Is everything okay?" "No . . . I've still messed up the past." "What?" "Oh, it's nothing, Rotor. Don't worry." Antoine stepped onto a platform, looking proud of himself. He smiled at Sally as she stepped on the platform, bearing the medal. "Antoine, let me ask you something: have you ever heard of a rabbit with roboticized legs and a roboticized arm?" "I do not think there eez such a creature," Antoine said, trying to cover up his accent. "But a roboticized dragon, yes!" he screamed, running off of the platform. "Some things never change," Sally sighed. She looked up, seeing a dragon that was heading straight for her. "Dulcy!" "Move, Sally!" Rotor yelled, pushing Sally off the platform. "Run!" Sally ran away, using the huts as protection. "This is very disturbing," she muttered to herself. She finally made her way to her hut, ripping the door open. An envelope sat on her dresser. "That looks like the exact same envelope I've seen two times before. I'll be in deep trouble if I'm seeing it again." Sally opened the letter, her eyes rushing over the words. Dear Sally, I'm sure you remember me, your cool bud Sonic. If you're reading this letter, then Tails has delivered it to you. I just wanted to let you know that everything's fine after all these years. I'm helping mom and dad with the farm, just like there isn't a war. "A farm?" Sally gasped. "Hee hee, it just doesn't feel right." Please tell me how the war is faring. I would like to help fight, but my mom and dad keep a watch over me twenty-four seven. If you can figure out some way to sneak me outta here, that'd be great. We could trash some swat-bots. --Sonic "Well, I'll have to do more than that. A farm, eh? Then that's where I'll go." Sally pictured in her mind a farm with a young hedgehog playing in the field. At once her body became light and she disappeared from Knothole. "Hey, you look familiar," a blue hedgehog said as Sally focused her eyes on her surroundings. "Where am I?" "My home." Sally shook her head. She could see clearly now; the green grass was to her knees, and a little house was off in the distance. "Are your mother and father at home?" "Yeah. Why do you ask?" "I've come to speak with them. Is that okay?" "I guess so. I don't really care." Sally started walking toward the house, Sonic on her heels. "Hey lady, do you want to race?" Sally sighed. "Not really." "Too bad. On your mark, get set, go!" Sonic took off with a flash, creating a gust of wind that followed him. "I don't think I'd ever get used to that." Sally continued to walk toward the house, her mind racing. What was she going to say to his parents? After all, they could do more damage to the future than she ever could now. But she would be the cause of all the problems if she did not choose her words wisely. "I'm waiting," Sonic sassed as Sally climbed the steps. "No, I beat you." "What?" "Didn't you know that this was a slow contest?" "A slow contest? What's a slow contest?" "You try to see who can make it to the finish line last." "That's no fair! You didn't tell me about it before." Kids, Sally thought. She knocked on the door and led herself into the house. "Sonic, is that you?" "Don't worry, ma'am. He's okay." Sonic's mother came from the kitchen and turned a pale blue when she saw Sally. "I remember you. You're the girl who saved my baby's life twice! What's wrong now? Where can we possibly hide?" "Mrs. Hedgehog, I assure you that from now on nobody wants to kill your son." "What? Can this possibly be true?" "Yes! However, if you deny your son the privilege to grow up and play with his friends, you deny him of his future. He will grow up alright, and if he doesn't, I'll come back here and tell you." Mrs. Hedgehog sat down on a chair and smoothed her quills back. "You will come back if something doesn't go right?" "Yes. That I promise you. You will see me come back after I leave this house if something goes wrong with the future. Just don't prevent your son from having a normal life, okay?" "You've been right twice . . . I will trust you for now." "Thank you, Mrs. Hedgehog." Sally stepped outside, shooing Sonic away from her. She thought back to the present, where the lake stood shimmering in the moonlight and Nicole sat beside a tree. * * * "Sally! Ah knew I would find ya here!" "Huh?" "Come on, Sally-girl. We can't be late for the ceremony." "I'm sorry. Who are you and what's going on?" "Oh my stars! That bump really did give y'all amnesia! Okay, do you know who you are?" "Yes, I'm Sally! Who are you?" "Ah'm Bunnie Rabbot. Just don't call me Bugs and we'll get along fine." Bunnie started to walk off and Sally followed her, the time stone still in her hand. "Where are we going, Bunnie?" "You almost bought the farm today, Sally-girl. Ah'm surprised you don't remember who saved you?" "Who saved me? What happened?" Bunnie sighed, deciding to tell Sally the tale of the day's events. "Sally, you were watchin' to see if that swat-bot factory would blow sky high. You were down on th' ground with Nicole and all of the sudden, there's a mass explosion. One of the buildings you were by began to collapse so . . ." "So . . . what happened?" Bunnie started to cry, trying to continue with her story. "Lil' Tails was there . . . saw you about to be crushed and flew down. He pushed you outta the way but . . ." ". . . he never made it! . . . Oh my goodness! Bunnie, tell me this isn't happening! Tell me that Sonic was there--" Sally's eyes caught sight of a tombstone with a named outlined in blue. "Sally-girl, don't cha remember? Sonic was at a mission to Robotropolis when he bought a chili dog from a vending machine. Robotnik had poisoned it, as if he knew the machine was in existence from the start!" "Then this still isn't right!" "Whatever do you mean?" "Sonic should still be alive and so should Tails! And by the time I've finally met you, I've messed up so many different times it's unbelievable!" A casket bearing the body of Tails was brought to the grave next to Sonic. "No! This isn't happening!" Sally yelled. "This isn't right!" "Sally, sometimes things just happen this way," Rotor sighed. "But it can change!" "How?" "I'm going to correct all of this by eliminating the source right now!" Sally held up her time stone and thought about Mobotropolis and a young warlord named Julian. . . . "All of this is at your command, Julian!" "Thank you, your majesty. Your trust in me is a great honor to behold." "I know my judgment is correct, Julian. Use your power wisely." "Daddy!" Sally whispered, appearing behind a pile of guns. "I will be back in an hour to see how your plans develop." "You will not be disappointed, your majesty." And with that, King Acorn left the room. "Ooh, this is good," Julian chuckled. "All of this is enough to make my own army! I have everything I ever wanted--exploding devices, land mines, guns, the perfect combination to winning a war so I can win the planet." Sally found a bomb and set the time for five seconds. "Even Julian can't figure out how to detonate a bomb in five seconds!" "Is somebody there?" Julian yelled across the room. "I mean you no harm, sir. Please come out from your hiding place." "'No harm' my foot!" Sally yelled, stepping out from the shadows. "Who are you?" "Princess Sally!" "But she is just a child. You must be insane." "No. I am from the future and I am going to put a stop to your evil ways before you really mess things up." "And how are you going to do that?" "Catch this!" Sally yelled. "A bomb? And how are you going to escape?" Sally thought back to the lake and disappeared just as the bomb exploded in Julian's hands. . . . * * * "Oh mah stars, there ya are!" Bunnie gasped as she saw Sally appear in front of her. "Bunnie!" Sally gasped. "Where on Mobius am I?" "Knothole, of course." Sally looked at Bunnie, who looked different. She no longer had a roboticized arm and legs but a lacy white dress. "Sally-girl, ya not gonna wear that to your own weddin', are ya?" "Wedding? Who am I getting married to?" "Girl, you have definitely got the jitters." "Bunnie, who am I getting married to?" "Hey Sal! Wait up!" a voice yelled. Sally turned around and found a blue hedgehog rushing up beside her. "Sonic?" "Sally, I'm glad you waited up for me. I didn't really know what to wear, so I picked up this bow tie on the way over. I see you're not too dressed up, so how 'bout I just forget the tie all together?" "I'm supposed to know you, right?" "Sal, we grew up together! Come on, I know you were kinda freaked when I proposed, but it was your idea to be married behind your father's back." "My idea? Whoa, this is too much for me to take in! I gotta fix things right. I can't be married to you! Imagine what kind of life that would be! And you, Bunnie, are supposed to be half machine. I know you like how you look and all, but you're going to have to learn to live differently." "Sal, what's wrong?" "What's wrong?! What's wrong is that I was stupid enough to even think about killing Robotnik in the first place!" "Who's Robotnik?" "I'm going to fix things so that they're right!" * * * "You know me, princess. . . . Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" "What did you say, Geoffrey?" Sally said, shaking her head. "I'm always early." "This is like how it was the first time, isn't it?" "What do you mean?" "This is how time was before I started messing with it! But how did I correct it? I don't remember a thing . . . except that I saw myself." "Perhaps," Nicole began, "if you really did go back in time, you saw yourself during one of your encounters." "But why wouldn't I remember?" "You scared yourself in both time frames. The first time you were in that place, you were scared out of changing time. The other you was shocked at your own reaction and thought of a simpler time, bringing you here." "I thought you didn't believe in time travel except in legend." "But I am your computer, so I can recall what you cannot even though I was not present at the time." "By the way, princess, this is a letter for you." "Who is it from?" "I don't know." Sally took the envelope and ripped it open. After studying its contents, she looked up at Geoffrey. "What does it say?" Sally shook her head. "Somebody wants me to meet with him." "Why's that?" "He says he has the key to winning the war." "I wouldn't trust it for a minute." "But what if it's true?" Sally blinked, refusing to believe her ears. "This feels like deja vu. . . . Geoffrey, I'm going to meet Snively." "Snively? Sally, I wouldn't--" "It shouldn't really matter to you. Besides, I've done this before and now I know how to fix it." Sally ran through the woods until she found Snively. She ran up beside him and tapped him on the shoulder, which sent him flying into the air. "Don't do that!" Snively snapped. "Keep your cool, traitor. Let me guess, you're going to give me a time stone." "How did you know?" "I just know. Now, hand it over." Snively gave the time stone to Sally and gave her the contents of an envelope he had been carrying with him. "So, you and Robotnik went back in time." "I was going to explain that to you." "That's okay, I can figure it out. It's not like I haven't done that before. Now, let me ask you a question: where did you and Robotnik find the stones?" "Why should I tell you?" "Let's just say that, now that I have this time stone, I can do some pretty powerful things. Like I can go right now and tell Robotnik that you're betraying him!" "Okay, okay," Snively sighed. Good thing he doesn't think too much, Sally thought to herself. "The one that we used is on a small island a few miles from here. The other one is from the Floating Island." "But you're not going to give me any more information than that?" "I'm not stupid, Princess." "Nor am I," Sally said, then ran back to Nicole. "You ready to do some thinking?" "Always ready, Sally." "Good. Nicole, search all maps for any islands within ten miles of Knothole. Then see if there has been any known activity." "Yes, Sally." "Princess Sally, what is the meaning of this?" "Geoffrey, it is not of your concern." "Oh, yes it is! I monitor everything that happens to my freedom fighters." "Your freedom fighters? Who do you think you are?" "Sally, you appointed me to be the leader of Knothole three years ago!" "How could I ever do such a thing?" "You said you were tired of losing endless battles. Shortly after, you appointed me and things have never been better! I actually thought we were getting somewhere in our relationship." "Now I know for certain that I didn't end up in the right time. Nicole? Are you done yet?" "Not yet, Sally. . . . Now I am. Sally, there are only two islands that has had recent activity. One is a small island approximately twenty miles from here. The other occurs somewhere within the Sky Sanctuary Zone on the Floating Island." "Can you show me what the small island looks like? And give me the exact time of activity on the island and what took place." "Picky, picky, picky! Here are some pictures of the island that I will display in a larger size. There is an excavation site and at exactly 6:17 in the morning, nobody was there. However, at 6:20, Robotnik appeared and he found the stone." "Great," Sally said, studying the pictures. "Now I've got to go." "Sally, I order you to stay here!" "I never liked you," Sally spat, then disappeared. "The sun is beginning to rise . . . and there is the site!" Sally rushed and jumped into a tunnel leading below the ground. Following the lights, she ran until the tunnel stopped. A small box rested on the ground. "I guess they wanted Robotnik to look at it himself." Sally quickly opened the box, seeing the large time stone. "If Nicole was here, I would use her laser. But since she's not here--" Sally picked up the time stone and threw it against a wall. It shattered, leaving only three large pieces. Choosing the largest piece, Sally threw it against the wall again, smiling as it shattered. Hearing footsteps, Sally threw the other two pieces against and thought back to the lake. . . . * * * "You know me, princess. . . . Now, what did you want to talk to me about?" "Geoffrey? You're still here?" "Why wouldn't I be here?" "And do you know who Bunnie is?" "Bunnie?" "Or Sonic?" "I would remember someone who had a stupid name like that." "Then Robotnik still has a way of going back into time? But how does he do it?" "Oh, Sally, this letter came for you. I wouldn't open it, though." "Who cares what you think? I'm going to fix all of this right now! And this time I know exactly what I'm doing!" Sally ran in the shadows until she found Snively, who was still looking for her. "Okay, give me the stone now!" Sally snapped. "What's up with you?" "Just give it to me!" "Alright, alright," Snively sighed. He handed Sally the stone that she knew by heart. "Is this the same stone Robotnik used to go back in time?" "Yes." "Good. Hasta la vista, Snively." Sally disappeared, only one thought in her mind. "Hey, Sally! I didn't know you were on the island!" Knuckles gasped. "Usually I can tell when somebody enters the Floating Island, but this time--" "I don't have enough time for this, Knuckles. Well, actually, I do. But I've run out of patience. When did Robotnik come?" "Oh, well that's not something that I'm proud of--" "Say it." "He entered Sky Sanctuary with his team of swat-bots, nearly killed me, then ran straight over there." Knuckles pointed to a tower where there appeared to be a tunnel. "A tunnel? So what?" "Not a tunnel, a hole. The swat-bots blasted through it and grabbed some box. I don't know what it contained, but they sure wanted it." "How long ago was that?" "About an hour." "Okay, I'll see you in an hour." "What?" Sally disappeared, leaving no trace of her presence. . . . "Okay, Knuckles, I'm back." "Sally? I didn't know you were on the island! Usually I can tell when somebody enters the Floating Island, but this time--" "Just forget it. Do you see that tower over there?" "Yeah." "Nicole told me that Robotnik has placed something in it. Can you bust through it?" "Hold on." Knuckles ran back a few steps, looking at the tower. Before Sally could blink, he ran toward the tower and rammed his knuckles into the outer wall. "How's that?" Sally didn't say anything, but walked over to the tower. "Sally, what are you looking for?" "This," Sally said, and pulled out a box. "It's a good thing this worked, because my time stone disappeared." "And what do you have there?" "My time stone." "I know I'm not catching any of this, but shouldn't both stones be able to exist at the same time?" "Yes, but these time stones can't. I guess there's some property within them that, when both are encountered at the same time, makes the one from the future dissolve. Anyway, I'm going back." "Back where?" "Back to Knothole. See you later, Knuckles." "Yeah, sure." Sally thought back to her spot at the lake, hoping that time was corrected. . . . * * * "Right on time," Sonic smiled, checking his watch. "Five seconds early. Hey, that's a record." ". . . Sonic?" Sally gasped. "Yeah, Sal? You asked me to meet you here at 9:00, so . . . what did you want to talk about?" "Sonic, what happened today?" "We did this way past cool mission, Sal! A success all the way!" "So you're not dead?" "Let me check." Sonic pinched himself. "I feel alive to me." "And Tails is still living?" "Of course, Sally! Remember, he beat you in that race comin' home." "And Dulcy isn't roboticized?" "Dulcy? Hey, she's kickin', hard and strong." "And Antoine isn't a hero?" "Ant? A hero?! Get a life, Sal!" "And Geoffrey isn't leader of the freedom fighters?" "No way! You are, Sal! Just like always!" "And Bunnie? Is she roboticized?" "Only her left arm and her legs." "And we're not getting married?" "Married? Sal, that must have been some dream." "Yeah, a dream, that was it." The freedom fighters ran up to the lake. "What is it, Sally-girl? Ah heard something was up." "No, Bunnie." "Eeverything eez all right?" "Yes, Antoine." "Are you sure, Aunt Sally?" "Yes, Tails." "Sally--" "Don't say anything, Rotor. And where is Geoffrey?" "Sally, he left some time ago to do some training, but who knows when he'll return?" "Then everything's in its place." Sally got up and looked at the time stone. Breathing in, she pulled her arm back and threw the stone. It hit a tree, shattering it, then fell into the lake. "What was that, Aunt Sally?" "Something that I want to forget," Sally sighed. "Now this nightmare is over!" Sally woke up, a cool sweat on her nightgown. "So, it was all a dream!" she gasped, sitting up in her bed. "Yes, it was a dream! There's no such thing as time travel or time stones! My life is back to normal!" The door opened and Geoffrey St. John entered the room. "Oh! Sorry, Sally, I didn't think you were in here." "I'm pretty sure I'm in here, Geoffrey." "Oh." "You wouldn't believe this dream that I had!" "Tell me about it." "Okay, it goes like this . . . no, you'd think I was crazy or something!" "Please tell me!" "Well . . ." "Sally, you're mature and so am I. I wouldn't think less of you." Sally sighed, smiling. "Thank you, Geoffrey. In my dream, it all started with us doing this crucial mission. Oh, it seems like ages ago. Anyway, it was a failure, and so I asked you to meet me by the lake. Kind of like what happened yesterday." "Yesterday?" "Of course! Anyway, you gave me this letter and I read it. It said something about winning the key to the war. You warned me not to meet with the writer of the note, but I went anyway." "And who was it?" "Snively!" "Why would Snively betray Robotnik?" "I'm not sure, but he did in my dream." "So . . . what happens next?" "Snively gives me information of all sorts. He tells me I need to go back in time to rescue Sonic the Hedgehog." "It's hard to believe that Sonic would ever need rescuing." ". . . What did you say?" "I said, it's hard to believe that Sonic would ever need rescuing." "Why do you say that?" "Because, he always seems to speed in and out of trouble." "Wait, you know Sonic?" "I wish I didn't. Always ruining my plans of getting to know you more." "Wait, do you know Bunnie?" "Yes, a nice girl. Too bad that she was half-roboticized. If I had been there, I wouldn't have been so slow, unlike Sonic." "But it was just a dream!" Sally gasped. She ran toward the window, seeing Tails outside. "Maybe it's just a dream." "Sonic, are you really going to teach me to run?" Tails asked, hopping up and down. "Right you are, little buddy," Sonic smiled. "Y'all better not leave any fires, ya hear? Yah know Sally hates it when yah do that!" Bunnie sighed, crossing her arms. "Nah, Bunnie. If we leave any fires, it's gonna be at Robotropolis so we can fry an extra large egg!" Sally pinched herself. Then she pinched herself again. Then, to make sure she was seeing right, she pinched her face. "Hey, Sal!" Sonic yelled. "Glad you're up! Now I know that the boom won't wake you up!" "But it was all a dream!" Sally gasped, stepping backwards. "It was just a dream! You were here yesterday, Geoffrey, tell me that it was a dream!" "Sally, I was training yesterday." "Nooo!" Sally gasped. "This isn't the way it's supposed to be! Nicole, tell me what happened yesterday." "Sally, I have gathered information from the past and your current brain waves. The time you refer to took place when you were fully active." "But it was just a dream. . . . It was just a dream. . . ." Sally got into bed, closing her eyes "It's just a dream, it's just a dream, it's just a dream. . . ." The End www.geocities.com/silverstarr3224/