Who was Fortune again? He felt like he was supposed to know… Like she was someone important to him, but he could bring up no memories of her.
"How did I get here?" Espio asked looking around slightly panicked when he looked down to find Charmy nearly dying in his arms.
"Charmy!" Espio panicked as he looked around the area and began to run at high speeds, back to the Chaotix Detective Agency.
"How did Charmy get this way?" Espio thought aloud as he ran. "And why… Why can't I remember anything since the arrival of the hedgehogs? And who is Fortune?"
Zandorf watched Espio depart, with a smile on his face. "That takes care of those two."
"But Lord Zandorf, what if Espio's memory comes back?" The hedgehog who had been holding Charmy asked.
"That's too unlikely to be a problem, for Espio to break free of the memory swipe I just instilled upon him, would take a miracle," Zandorf said as he began to walk back to his own base.
Espio kicked through the door to the Chaotix Detective Agency, finding a surprised Vector with his feet up on his desk.
"Espio! And Charmy! Charmy what's wrong partner?!" Vector panicked as he rushed toward them and took Charmy from Espio and laid him on the couch.
"Hang in there Charmy!" Vector requested as he began to find blankets, to cover the feverish bee who could barely breathe.
"I'll call a doctor," Espio said rushing to a phone, while Vector finished dumping blankets on Charmy, and placed a cold wash cloth over his forehead.
"I should have known something was wrong when Charmy didn't come back!" Vector said to himself slapping his own forehead as he sat on his knees next to Charmy.
"Exactly where did you send him?" Espio asked as Vector looked up at him surprised.
"I sent him to gather info on those new hedgehogs, to see if they would lead us to Fortune's siblings," Vector reminded him as Espio looked down.
"I didn't know we had a case…" Espio admitted as Vector stood up and looked at him concerned.
"Espio, do you remember anything? You were in love with that Fortune girl, she's Sonic's older sister, and you left to chase after her and have been gone for like four weeks!" Vector pointed out as Espio continued to watch the ground.
"You really have no memory of any of this what so ever!" Vector yelled right as Charmy began to moan.
"Zandorf… he has… Cream… I have to get back and protect her…" Charmy said forcing himself to sit up. Vector and Espio rushed back to his side, and both put him back down gently.
"Charmy, Zandorf doesn't have Cream, he's trying to help this world out, so there's no way he could have kidnapped her," Vector attempted to reason only to have Charmy shake his head.
"No! He's lying! He's a bad man Vector!" Charmy shouted as tears came to his eyes. "He caught me spying on him, and used me to get to Espio… He had me trapped in a cage… So that he could use Espio to lead Fortune to a trap, and now he has Cream!"
Espio gasped. He didn't remember any of this. But with his memory gone… It was possible…
"I have to go help Cream! She's trusting me to keep her safe from that hedgehog," Charmy said sobbing before Vector pulled him in close to prevent him from leaving.
"Fortune!" Espio shouted only to watch her green eyes tear up and close from the constant voltage. She was gone… With the belief, that Espio never felt anything at all for the beautiful hedgehog… And there was nothing more he could do about it…
She trusted him to keep her safe, in body and in heart, and he betrayed her…
"I remember now!" Espio said making Vector look up. "It's true what Charmy is saying, Zandorf is planning on taking over this world, but he has to get his children out of the way first! When I freed Charmy he took away my memory, and when Charmy mentioned trust… I remembered everything he took away!" Espio said in realization.
He couldn't believe he'd actually broken Zandorf's memory swipe. From what Fortune had told him about her own memories being taken away, she said that to break most memory swipes, there had to be some sort of trigger, or ocasionly there was a time limit on the spell, and that the trigger was nearly impossible to find.
"Vector, we have a new case, free Fortune and the others!"
Chuck and Tails were just about to test the D.N.A collected by Shadow to find out exactly who these strange hedgehogs were.
"Ready to test-." Tails began to announce as Knuckles ran into the room carrying a half eaten peach, and bringing with him the horrible scent of garbage.
"I found something with Sonic's D.N.A!" Knuckles announced placing it on the scanner while accidentally pushing Tails into the genetic comparison button.
"Knuckles now look what you've done!" Chuck scolded. "Now the organizer is going to waste Sonic's D.N.A by comparing it to the other hedgehogs!"
"Gah! I'm sorry!" Knuckles apologized as best he could as a green hedgehog's picture and Sonic's picture appeared on the screen.
"Comparing… Relation positive..." The computer announced making Tails, Knuckles, and Chuck look up in shock.
"What?!" Everyone shouted in unison.
Suddenly the brown echidna looking hedgehog appeared on the screen and was compared with Sonic and the green hedgehogs dna.
"Relation Positive," the computer said again as a string of guilt pulled on Knuckles's heart, as he remembered the sequence of dreams involving Sonic and Fortune.
Then a two toned pink hedgehog appeared on the screen, and was compared with the other three.
"Relation Positive," Chuck, Tails, and Knuckles were silenced from words.
Finally, the red and black hedgehog, and the purple hedgehog appeared on the screen.
They were first compared with each other, coming up with a negative, then they were tested with the younger hedgehog's dna.
"Relation Positive," the computer announced as it drew out a family tree.
The older hedgehogs were on top, connected to each other by a line, then, Sonic, the green hedgehog, the brown hedgehog, and the two toned pink hedgehog, connected to the two older hedgehogs.
"I don't believe it!" Tails said as Chuck clicked on Sonic's profile.
"Name: Sonic the Hedgehog
Age: Fifteen
Born: February 27th 2:07 pm.
Medical History: Drug Resistant Sanaterea.
Blood type: O negative
Birthplace: Unknown planet
Allergies: Netra (deathly)," The computer read as Knuckles mouth hung open.
"What does it mean unknown planet?!" Knuckles asked shocked as Chuck shook his head and clicked on the green hedgehog's profile.
"Name: Manic the Hedgehog
Age: Fifteen
Born: February 27th 2:08 pm.
Medical History: Drug Resistant Sanaterea
Blood type: O negative
Birthplace: Unknown planet
Allergies: Netra (deathly)," The computer read, Tails clicked on the pink hedgehog's picture next.
"Name: Sonia the Hedgehog
Age: Fifteen
Born: February 27th 2:09 pm.
Medical History: Drug Resistant Sanaterea
Blood type: O negative
Birthplace Unknown planet
Allergies: Netra (deathly)," the computer read as Tails blinked in shock.
They clicked on the brown hedgehogs picture.
"Name: Fortune the Hedgehog
Age: Twenty seven
Born: June 25th 3:00 am.
Medical History: Sanaterea,
Blood type: O negative
Birthplace: Unknown planet
Allergies: Netra (deathly)
"So they're siblings," Chuck deduced as Tails nodded.
"Not only that, but Sonic, Sonia and Manic are triplets…" Tails added as Knuckles stared at the screen with his mouth open.
All that he had been dreaming was becoming his reality, part of him still wanted to believe that the dreams were just dreams.
"I can't accept these dreams as memories yet!" Knuckels suddenly yelled making Chuck and Tails turn to him. "None of this makes sense! There are still too many holes, if Sonic really was my best friend in my forgotten past why is it that neither of us remember it? And why aren't there more memories?!" Knuckles demanded holding his head which had begun to pulse in pain.
"What are you talking about Knuckles?" Tails asked taken aback by his friend's sudden outburst.
"I-." Knuckles began right as everything went black.
…Sonic's father, that Zandorf hedgehog that's here now… He's been destroying lives ever since the very beginning… Sonic and I, worked together to help those affected by his wrath…
"Did we get everyone?" Tikal asked carefully setting two foxes onto the ground.
A few seconds passed before Knuckles and Sonic ran out of a separate building each carrying three elder foxes.
"How did I let you talk me into this?" Knuckles asked as he set the fox elders down to the ground.
Sonic glared at him for a minute as he set the elders on the ground.
About sixteen feet away from the group Zeena was running out of a large medical building struggling with four newborns in her arms.
"Is there anyone left in there?" Sonic asked as Zeena handed two newborns to Fortune's empty arms.
"One newborn but the building is collapsing you're not going to be able to get to him in time!" Zeena warned already knowing what Sonic was going to try to do.
"We can't leave him in there!" Sonic urged as he ran into the building before Fortune could talk him out of it.
"Sonic!" Fortune called out desperately as he ran into the burning building.
"I'll get him out of there!" Knuckles promised as he began to dig a hole in the ground.
"Knuckles! Oh man, please be careful…" Tikal warned him but Knuckles was already too far deep in the ground to hear her.
Sonic coughed violently he began running forward, as he did flaming boards came crashing down in front of him blocking his path as well as more falling behind him.
Sonic was trapped in a burning building that would collapse any minute and there was a newborn still in there.
Just when Sonic thought this was the end of him Knuckles popped his head out of the middle of the floor.
"Am I ever glad to see you!" Sonic thanked as he pulled Knuckles out.
"Grr… You're and idiot you know that!" Knuckles yelled at the top of his lungs and began punching through the boards that blocked their path.
Sonic nodded and they both began running through the building once more until they finally reached an area of the building that had a bunch of wooden cribs for newborns.
Sonic tried to see through the smoke but it was almost useless. Suddenly his ears pricked up and he heard a weak dry cry.
He ran towards the cry and in one of the cribs in the back laid an orange fox wrapped up in a blanket.
Sonic carefully picked up the fox and held him with one arm then ran back to Knuckles.
"Let's get out of here!" Sonic yelled as they began running back the way they came as Knuckles continually punched away burning wood.
They finally made it out of the building just as it collapsed.
"Never run into a burning building like that again or else I am not saving you!" Knuckles yelled at Sonic once they had reached the rest of the group.
"I'm not making any promises pal." Sonic admitted as they began running back to the group.
"You two are safe." Fortune sighed with relief as she carefully hugged Sonic.
…That's where… We found Tails… Back when he was just minutes old…
Fortune used a chaos emerald to teleport everyone that they had rescued to Angel Island where Zeena and Keno went to work with treating the fox's burns.
Fortune was watching over the five year old foxes waiting for them to wake up from the smokes toxin.
Her efforts were rewarded as the fox with the medallion around her neck began to wake up.
She had one blue eye and one green.
Fortune helped her sit up until she caught balance then she gazed up at her.
"Where am I?" The fox asked confused as she looked around.
"You are on Angel Island, Zandorf bombed most of your colony but we were able to save your family a few elders and five newborns."
Fortune explained to the confused fox. "My name is Fortune." She introduced herself to the young fox.
"My name's Sage, nice to meet you." Sage introduced to the echidna looking hedgehog.
The two were becoming fast friends as were Knuckles and Sonic to the newborn they had saved.
"Wah!" The orange fox cried loudly as he struggled out of his blanket.
Sonic walked up to the newborn fox and carefully picked him up.
"What's the matter little guy?" Knuckles asked the young fox that Sonic held.
"Hey Zeena, do you know who and how old these foxes are?" Sonic asked as he rocked the fox genteelly in attempt to calm him.
"Well the pink one is Rosy and she is about five hours old, the bright yellow one is her twin his name is Sun.
The green fox is Axel and despite the name she is a girl and ten hours old, and the red fox is five hours old and his name is Leaf."
Zeena explained over the orange fox's cries.
"That's not helping him Sonic." Knuckles informed him as he carefully took the fox from Sonic's arms.
As soon as he was in Knuckles arms the fox's screams grew louder causing Sonic, Fortune, and Tikal to cover their ears.
Knuckles was defeated, he handed the baby back to Sonic which then made the fox's cry turn into whimpers.
"What about this guy?" Sonic asked as the fox squirmed out of his blanket completely.
"He was five minutes old, but now he'd be about a half hour and he didn't have a name yet." Zeena explained not looking up from the fox she was treating.
"I see." Sonic realized sadly as he turned to Knuckles who was looking wide eyed at the fox.
"Whoa this fox has two tails!" Knuckles noticed as the fox's tails began to move.
"No way!" Everyone said in unison except for Knuckles and Sonic.
"Pretty cool." Sonic thought aloud as the baby fox began to close his eyes.
"You know what he needs a name." Sonic decided as the fox sucked the bottle slowly.
"I agree question is what?" Knuckles agreed as he stared at the fox.
"My vote is with Tails." Sonic said as he pulled the bottle away from the newborn and laid his head over his shoulder.
The fox protested greatly once the bottle was taken away from him but within seconds of when Sonic began patting his back, he burped and was then returned to feeding position.
Sonic then replaced the bottle into the fox's mouth.
Knuckles shook his head and answered. "What happens when he gets older? Others will make fun of him." Knuckles explained then suggested. "Miles would defiantly work better for him."
"Okay how about Miles 'Tails' Prower?" Sonic suggested as the fox finished the bottle and was now asleep once more.
"Where did 'Prower' come from?" Knuckles asked unsure of the name he had chosen.
"I don't know it fits." Sonic shrugged as he lightly placed Miles next to the other sleeping foxes and covered him with a blanket.
…That's why I remember naming him… Sonic and I got so attached to the little guy that we decided to take him to the Underground Trail that led out of Sanctuary and to some place no one knew. The Fox-Echidna there removed Tails's tie to the emerald. Back when the Rainbow Emerald had other clans to collect energy from… But Sonic's father knocked all of the other clans down… one by one… Except the echidna clan… The Echidna clan was defeated by Chaos…
"You're going where?!" Knuckles demanded as he looked at his best friend with anger and worry.
"I'm going to join the protection unit, to see if they can teach me how to control my powers," Sonic explained smiling. "We just came here to get some yellow paint, so I'm not assassinated you know."
"Are you crazy?! You'll die out there!" Knuckles argued as Sonic shrugged his shoulders.
"I might die out there, but I have to learn how to fight for myself Knuckles, plus I don't know to what extent that power of mine goes, if I accidently use it, who knows what will happen." Sonic countered as Knuckles growled.
"You not going," Knuckles decided as he turned around and began to head back to the shrine.
"You can hardly stop me going that way Knuckles!" Sonic teased as Knuckles stopped and turned his head half way toward him.
"You didn't let me finish, I was going to say you're not going, without me," Knuckles said now smiling back at him. "Someone's got to cover your weak ass!"
"Say that again!" Sonic challenged as Knuckles stuck out his tongue.
"I'm going, to protect your weak ass!"
… That's right… It's starting to come back to me… Everything I went through with Sonic…He had a death warrant above his head because he was a blue hedgehog… A cursed color back on Sanctuary… I went with him… To make sure he didn't get hurt… Because he was my best friend, my only friend and I didn't want to lose him… In the protection unit I learned how to fight…But that didn't help me, for the raid on Angel Island… The last time I ever saw my mother…
The night was dark, lightless, and cold, on the edge of Angel Island, sat Knuckles, with his oldest friend, no his only friend, sitting next to him while Knuckles was drowning himself in tears.
"I have experience fighting! Why didn't she let me help her?" Knuckles cried as a hand was placed on his shoulder.
"I think it's because she didn't want you to get hurt, it's the same thing for when Fortune was protecting me when I was younger," his blue quill friend suggested as Knuckles pushed the hand off.
"It's not the same for you two! Fortune isn't even your real mom!" Knuckles yelled as sadness and surprise filled his friend's emerald green eyes.
"Maybe she didn't give birth to me, but she does everything I've come to understand a mom does for her children.
She cooks me food, tucks me in at night, changed my diapers when I was little, and never fails to tease me that's for sure.
Anyway, I guess the truth is, all my life, Fortune was always the one taking care of me, I know she is my sister, but she has been taking care of me like a mother…
So yes it is the same between Fortune and I! She is risking her life just to keep me alive! And I think that's why Tikal ordered you to stay back," his blue friend lectured as a brown quilled echidna looking hedgehog walked up to the two friends.
"I'm so sorry Knuckles there wasn't anything that could be done Tikal is gone." Fortune said slowly attempting not to cry herself.
"No! She can't be gone she just can't!" Knuckles denied attempting to punch air only to have Sonic catch his fists.
"I don't believe it! I can't believe it! I just can't!" Knuckles cried falling to his knees and just sobbing.
"Sonic… Can I speak with you alone please?" Fortune asked as he nodded leaving Knuckles behind.
"I'll be back Knuckles," Sonic promised laying a comforting hand on his shoulder before turning to follow his sister.
Knuckles remained on the ground for some time, sobbing, until he began to hear the muffled voices of his friends.
"What?!" Sonic's voice demanded making Knuckles stop crying, and edge closer to the hedgehogs who were standing in front of the ruined shrine.
"Knuckles has to forget about his life on Sanctuary," Fortune said as tears quickened down Knuckles face.
Forget? Lose all his memories?
"But Knuckles is only friend I have! I lost Iku, Zeena, and Keno, and now you're saying that I have to give up Knuckles now too?!" Sonic demanded his voice breaking as Fortune kept her face stern. Knuckles could tell, even from behind that Sonic was crying.
"Tikal asked me to do it Sonic," Fortune explained. "She wants Knuckles to forget his life on Sanctuary, and be taken with Angel Island to Mobius, where he can be safe, and protect the emeralds. It's what's best for him Sonic… I just thought I should tell you first…" Fortune explained as she began to walk toward Knuckles.
"Wait!" Sonic yelled making Fortune stop in her tracks.
"He's my friend! If it has to be done, if he has to forget everything, if he has to be sent away to a place I will never see him again, I want to be the one to tell him… As my best friend, he deserves to hear it from me!" Sonic insisted as Fortune's mouth dropped in shock, before she nodded with understanding.
"But I don't want to forget everything!" Knuckles yelled making both Sonic and Fortune turn to find him standing there clenching his fists.
"How could you even suggest something like that? My memories are a part of who I am! I can't forget everything that's happened. I especially can't leave the memories of my mother and I! I don't care what she wants… I won't do it! I won't forget my best friend and Mother!" Knuckles shouted looking again at the ground as tears fell.
"You won't forget…" Sonic said suddenly making Knuckles look up again. "Well we're best friends aren't we? We've been there for each other since the very beginning… To be a best friend, means that you never really forget…"
"But that's what's going to happen!" Knuckels reminded him as Sonic shook his head again.
"Your mind may forget me, but the heart always remembers, so you won't really forget," Sonic explained as Knuckles's fists unclenched.
"And besides, one day we might meet again," Sonic said smiling.
"But when, if, we meet again…" Knuckles began his voice calm. "I won't realize that I know you, except in my heart…"
"Every memory spell has a trigger that undoes it Knuckles, if you see Sonic you might regain your memories again," Fortune explained.
"But still…" Knuckles began again before Sonic interrupted.
"You have to protect the power here Knuckles…" Sonic encouraged. "You'll be a better guardian if you forget everything tied to Sanctuary… It's no place for anybody to live, at least not with my father in power."
"I won't forget… Not really, because the heart always remembers…" Knuckles decided forcing a smile and directing it at Sonic, who smiled back despite the tears rolling down his face.
"Fortune… Can I ask you something?" Knuckles said now looking at her.
"What is it?" Fortune asked as Knuckles walked up to her.
"Could… Could you at least wait until I fall asleep?" Knuckles asked as Fortune nodded.
"I can do that," Fortune assured him.
The three of them stayed there with Knuckles for the next three hours. Counseling each other over this and that, discussing broken dreams, making plans for what would happen if they ever met each other again, anything that Knuckles could think of to keep him awake. If he could just stay awake forever, he wouldn't have to lose everything. But exhaustion was taking his toll on him. And minutes to dawn, Knuckles struggled to keep his eyes open as he laid on one of the steps of the shrine.
"I'm… starting to fall asleep…" Knuckles said closing his eyes then forcing them to open again.
"What did you think you could stay awake forever?" Sonic asked nearly falling asleep as well.
"Well… I guess part of me wanted to..." Knuckles admitted laughing with Sonic joining.
"You will wake up in Mobius, and knowing you have to protect the emerald, you be careful there okay?" Fortune requested as Knuckles gave a slight nod as his eyes closed again.
"Goodbye Sonic…" Knuckles said as his world became a dream.
In the very distant corners of his dream, he heard a reply.
"Goodbye Knuckles…"
Knuckles woke up with Tails and Chuck looking down on him with worried eyes. He sat up quickly, looked up at the computer screen, that now showed the family tree of Sonic and his family.
"Knuckles are you okay?" Chuck attempted to ask as Knuckles got to his feet.
"I know where Sonic is from. He is from a planet called Sanctuary, you and I were born there too Tails," Knuckles began making Tails's mouth drop.
"Sanctuary? But then how did I end up on Mobius?" Tails asked shocked.
"Sonic and I sent you there, because Zandorf destroyed the colony you were born in," Knuckles explained his head finally clear.
"Zandorf did? But I thought-." Chuck began before Knuckles shook his head.
"No, Zandorf is playing this world, trying to gain our trust so that he can destroy Sonic and his siblings…" Knuckles said basing the idea on the collective memories of Sonic's father. He didn't know what happened after he left Sanctuary, so it was possible Zandorf also had other motives.
"Finally figured it out did you?" Espio asked appearing in the open garge doorway, with Vector carrying a sick Charmy.
"The Chaotix! What's wrong with Charmy?" Tails asked concerned as they walked in.
"Zandorf has been keeping him captive up until now, he's also the one who took Cream," Espio explained making everyone gasp.
"I can't believe it!" Chuck said as Espio nodded.
"She isn't the only one being held captive, Fortune, Manic, and Sonia were all captured thanks to me… He manipulated me to be a spy for him," Espio explained as Knuckles clenched his fists.
"What about Sonic?" Knuckles demanded as Espio frowned.
"He's using Sonic's siblings as bait, they will die soon if he doesn't turn over the Rainbow Chaos Emerald," Espio answered as Knuckles eyes went wide.
'If Sonic has the Rainbow Chaos Emerald, and the lives of his siblings are at stake, there is no way he'd go down without a fight, and if his siblings are locked up… He's going to try to face Zandorf alone!' Knuckles realized as he began running out the door.
"Knuckles where are you going?!" Chuck asked as they watched him rush out.
"To help Sonic!" Knuckles announced as he disappeared.
"That's what we came to do too, we're going to free Fortune, Manic, and Sonia, we just need someone to watch Charmy," Vector explained.
"Sonic's going to need his siblings to help him asap, especially since he nearly died from Netra exposure," Espio followed as Tails jumped in shock.
"The bullet I hit him with was laced with Netra!" Tails announced as everyone began to give him a death glare.
"Well we'll worry about that later, I'll take care of Charmy, Tails you brief Amy, Shadow and Rouge and head to give Sonic back up until his siblings arrive," Chuck ordered taking Charmy into his arms.
"Got it!" Tails assured him as he ran off.
"And we'll go save his siblings, be careful that you aren't attacked while we're gone!" Espio warned as they began taking off.
"Of course!" Chuck said before he ran inside with Charmy.
Zandorf and Gem stood together in the middle of Station Square, with a crowd of people, and soldiers, surrounding them, watching for any sign of Sonic.
Behind Zandorf a few feet away, stood Doctor Eggman with an ever present grin on his face, and his robots Decoe, Bocoe and Bokun standing at his sides. He purposely kept his mind clear of all thoughts.
"Tis almost noon and he still hasn't shown up," Gem said aloud moving a stray quill from in front of her eyes.
'I doesn't matter, one way or another I will get the emerald from Sonic.' Zandorf thought to himself. He was about to raise his hand to signal Eggman to drop the Netra flowers, right when Sonic appeared in front of him about twenty five feet away.
"Finally showed up?" Zandorf said grinning as Sonic began to walk closer, glaring only at Zandorf.
He didn't speak a word to his father, he just kept walking closer and closer to him, until they were fifteen feet apart.
At fifteen feet, Sonic got down on one knee, and set the Rainbow Chaos emerald down on the ground in front of him, then looked up at his father and smirked. "If you want this emerald, you're going to have to defeat me in battle!"
"Name your terms," Zandorf said smiling.
"If I win, you and Gem step down from power, and you cannot use your powers ever again, and you free Fortune, Manic, Sonia, and whoever else you may have trapped," Sonic announced as Zandorf laughed.
"And if I win, I get to take your life hedgehog, and the life of your siblings. The emerald of course will go to me," Zandorf announced as Sonic nodded and jumped back from the emerald.
"Aside from the use of the Chaos Emeralds or the Rainbow Chaos Emerald, everything is fair game!" Sonic added as Zandorf nodded, still grinning.
"Very well, prepare to lose Sonic," Zandorf said as they stared into each other's eyes.
Then, the battle began.