Sonic the Hedgehog: Sisterly Love Preface: It started out as a normal day- the Freedom Fighters were inside Knothole Village, their secret underground town, planning ways to free the planet Mobius from Dr. Robotnik's evil grasp. Sir Charles Hedgehog (Uncle Chuck to his friends) and his nephew's dog, Muttskii had just slipped in through the Village's secret entrance- a tree stump in the middle of the forest- with some new information for the Freedom Fighters from Robotropolis. It wasn't as hard as it may sound- Uncle Chuck and Muttskii were both robots, turned that way by Dr. Robotnik's Robotosizer, a machine that turns free willed individuals into mindless robotic slaves, a long time ago. But thanks to an accident during an experiment to create a better Robotosizer, Uncle Chuck and Muttskii had their free will returned, but were still robots. That made them the perfect spies for the Freedom Fighters. "Hey Uncle Chuck!" Sir Charles looked towards the voice and smiled. His nephew, Sonic and Sonic's best friend, Miles "Tails" Prower were speeding towards him. Sonic was there in less than a second, while Tails was there shortly after. Sonic gave his uncle a hug, then knelt down. "Hey there Muttskii!" Sonic continued as he patted the dog's head. "How ya doin', boy?" The dog barked happily and wagged his tail. "Where's Sally, my boy?" asked Uncle Chuck. "I've got some important things to talk with her about. "I'll take you to her, Uncle Chuck," Tails piped up. "She's this way!" As Tails ran off, Sonic chuckled and shook his head. "You better hurry, Uncle Chuck," Sonic said. "If you don't, you'll never catch him. He's almost as fast as I am." Uncle Chuck laughed. "All right then," he replied. "What are you going to do?" Sonic looked down at Muttskii and smiled. "I'm gonna take my dog for a run." As Sonic and Muttskii rushed off, Uncle Chuck just shook his head. Then he followed Tails to find Princess Sally Acorn. "Robotnik is searching for something, Princess," Uncle Chuck told the half squirrel, half chipmunk girl in his presence. "I'm not sure what it is, but it has to do with the ruins of my old house. He's had me and many others there for days on end." Sally nodded. "You lived there with Sonic and Robotnik, right?" Uncle Chuck nodded, but Sally felt he was holding something back. "Sir Charles?" she asked. "Wasn't it just the three of you?" Uncle Chuck shook his head. "No. There was another." Chapter One: Savior Sonic the Hedgehog should have known the sign saying "Free Chilidogs" was a trap. But the aroma of the spicy sauce covering the meat of many names and questionable origin was too much for one teenage hedgehog to resist. So now he found himself out in the light of a full moon running from Robotnik swatbots, trying to keep them as far away from Knothole Village, home of the Freedom Fighters, as possible. But as he was keeping the bad guys away from his friends, he ran into a problem- a cliff the ocean. Sonic knew he wasn't the greatest swimmer... actually, even though he was sixteen years old, he couldn't swim a lick. There was a valid reason for that, though- he was terrified of water. But when it came to a choice between water and capture, Sonic was one to choose water, especially since most of the swatbots chasing him couldn't swim either. Besides, there was always the chance that someone would save him before he drowned- he had sent his faithful robotic dog, Muttskii back to Knothole Village, a thing he never did, so his friends would probably come looking for him. So, without further debate Sonic took a few steps back then charged foreword and leapt off the cliff. As Sonic fell to the water below, the swatbots in pursuit stopped pursuing- not only did they know they didn't stand a chance in the water, but they knew Sonic didn't have one either. Before completely assuming the hedgehog was doomed, they watched him complete the fall. Sonic barely missed the rocks before hitting the water, cueing the robots that their job was done. "Come on." one said, "If that doesn't kill him, Master Robotnik's waterbots will." They left, feeling that they had finally rid Mobius of Sonic the Hedgehog. Back in Knothole Village, Muttskii had arrived. He had ran as fast as he could back to the rest of the Freedom Fighters and now he had to tell them Sonic was in trouble. He didn't need to- as soon as Tails saw Muttskii heading to the village without Sonic, he instantly assumed the worst and went to find Sally and Uncle Chuck. He found them talking with Bunnie and Rotor about what Robotnik could be looking for at Uncle Chuck's old house. "All I can figure is that it has to be something he left up in his room," said Uncle Chuck. "But that could be just about anything!" Sally was about to reply, when a voice caught her attention. "Aunt Sally!" cried Tails, "Uncle Chuck! Muttskii's back- Sonic's not with him!" The Freedom Fighters looked at one another. "Bunnie." said Sally, "You take Tails and Rotor and search the northern parts of the Great Forest, near the mountains. Uncle Chuck, Muttskii and I will check near the ocean. We'll meet back here in two hours, with or without Sonic." Everyone agreed and split up. As Sally and Uncle Chuck searched for Sonic, the same thought crossed their minds- Sonic's cockiness had finally gotten the better of him and he was now Robotnik's prisoner. Uncle Chuck noticed the Sally seemed to be more worried than usual. He placed a hand on her shoulder and when she turned to him, he smiled. "He's alright, Sally. Don't worry." Meanwhile, Sonic wasn't quite sure what he was going to do now. It was only a matter of time before he stopped frantically treading water and sank to his death. It seemed like that time was gonna come sooner than he thought- something underneath the surface grabbed hold of his leg and began to pull him under- one of Robotnik's newer creations, known as the Octabot. It looked to Sonic like that was to be the end, but before his head went under he saw a light blue colored streak heading his way gliding... running over the water. Without any reason at all, Sonic held up his arm as the streak closed in on him. Suddenly, one of Octabot's tentacles came up, slammed into Sonic's head and all but his outstretched arm went under water with the streak still a good twenty feet away. He felt something grab his hand and pull him away from the Octabot's grasp, but by the time he had been rescued, Sonic had passed out. A short time later, Sonic woke up and found himself covered with a warm blanket. He was having a hard time keeping his eyes open, but managed to open them wide enough to see a small fire out of the corner of his eye and with the light it was giving off he could also see someone sitting next to him and watching his every move- a girl hedgehog. She was light blue with neon green eyes, a color that completely shocked Sonic for he'd always thought his eyes were the coolest green he'd ever seen. Hers were even cooler. Along with her neon colored eyes she was wearing a tan baseball cap, with the brim pointed up and her ears sticking out to the sides, the left of which was pierced near the top with a earring that looked like a red flower with a blue center. She also had a pair of orange sneakers with a blue stripe, black socks and was smiling at Sonic. "You okay?" she asked in a quiet tone of voice. Sonic nodded and tried to get up. "Stay down. You're not sturdy yet, you've probably got a concussion and you're just gonna hurt yourself if you try to get up." She put a hand on Sonic's chest and gently pushed him back down. Sonic looked at her- other than the fact she was also a hedgehog, the first non-robot one he had seen in a long time, other than him and his Uncle Chuck, something was strangely familiar about her. "Who are you?" he asked. Her smile remained on her face as she shook her head. "It's safer if I don't remind you Sonic." was her reply, "I'll end up getting you in trouble." Sonic was confused and was about to ask what she was talking about, and how she knew his name, when he heard people calling his name- Sally and Uncle Chuck. He could hear Muttskii barking as well. He was about to call back, when he saw his rescuer tense up and start to leave. "Wait, don't go!" cried Sonic as he tried once again to get on his feet- he made it, but felt really dizzy and was about to fall when the girl ran over and caught him. Sonic couldn't believe it- she was as fast as he was. "What's your name?" She bit her lip for second, then set him back on the ground and shook her head. She had a look of complete fear on her face, as if telling her name would get one of them killed. "Please, tell me!" begged Sonic. The girl could hear Sonic's friends coming closer and knew she had to leave, but didn't know what to say. Finally, she took a deep breath and said "Name's Storm. Gotta juice." With that she sped off towards the ocean and ran right across the surface. As Sonic watched her in awe, Sally, Muttskii and Uncle Chuck had found him. "Sonic!" cried Sally as she rushed to his side and wrapped her arms around him as Muttskii lovingly licked his face. "You had us worried, my boy!" said Uncle Chuck, "When Muttskii came home alone, we thought Robotnik had caught you for sure!" Sonic was still looking out towards the ocean in awe and looked like he hadn't heard a word either person had said or felt Muttskii's wet tongue on his face. "Sonic!" Sally said again, shaking him back to reality, "What happened?" Sonic continued to be transfixed on the ocean, more specifically the light blue blur that had just ran across it, for a moment longer, then blinked and looked over at Sally. "Huh?" Sally let out an aggravated sigh and repeated her question, which caused him to shake his head. "I don't know if you'll believe me, Sally." Sonic replied, "I don't even know if I believe me." He told the tale of what just happened, ending with himself being found by Sally and Uncle Chuck. There was something Sonic noticed about his uncle when he told about the mysterious lady hedgehog- Uncle Chuck's eyes widened as Sonic gave her description and his jaw dropped when Sonic said her name. "Uncle Chuck?" asked Sonic, "Are you okay?" Uncle Chuck didn't say a word. Instead he pulled something out of his pocket and gave it to Sonic, who couldn't believe what he was looking at. It was a picture of two children who couldn't have been more than three years old. One was Sonic- the other, from the orange sneakers to the tan baseball cap and single pierced ear, was the girl who had just saved his life- Storm. As Sonic stared at the picture in disbelief, Muttskii and Sally looked over his shoulder, then over at Uncle Chuck. This had to be the 'one more' Uncle Chuck had been talking about, when Sally asked him about who lived with him. When Sonic looked at him as well, he and Sally asked the same question. "Who is she Uncle Chuck?" Uncle Chuck sighed, as he stared down at the ground. "She's someone I thought long dead." he replied, then looked his nephew dead in the eye. "Sonic, that girl who just saved you is your twin sister." Chapter Two: Storm Story Sonic, Muttskii and Sally's jaws hit the ground. There was complete silence for a moment, until Sonic, in a loud and slightly angered voice, spoke. "What are you talking about, Uncle Chuck?" he cried, "I don't have a sister, let alone a twin!" While Sonic was saying this, Storm was watching from above in a tree. After leaving Sonic by way of ocean, she sneaked back around to make sure whoever was calling him were really his friends. It broke her heart to hear he didn't remember her, but why should he? The two of them were only three years old she had ran away from home. But, he had been the reason for her running- to save his life. "Calm down, Sonic!" she heard her uncle say. She hadn't seen her Uncle Chuck in a long time, but other than the fact he was now a robot, he didn't look much different- still dark blue with white bushy eyebrows and a white bushy mustache. "Whether you believe me or not," he continued, "the girl in that picture is your twin sister. I know we haven't talked about her in thirteen years, but you can't honestly tell me you don't remember her! You and Storm were the best of friends, for crying out loud!" Sonic shook his head, but stopped mid-shake. Still up in her tree, Storm stared at him as he stared at the picture. She smiled- he was starting to remember. Sonic kept looking at the picture- he was on his hands and knees on the floor and Storm was standing on his back with her arms out to the side. Suddenly the picture seemed to come to life as Storm's outstretched arms waved from side to side and Sonic moved back and forth. "Whoa! Ya better juice, Storm!" he cried, "Incoming tidal wave!" Storm bent down a little bit. "Man, that was a close one Sonic!" she replied, excitedly, "What now?" "SHARK ATTACK! It's gonna ram the surf board." Sonic quickly moved to his left, causing Storm to lose her balance, fall off and land with a loud thump, which was caused by her head hitting the floor. "Storm!" Sonic said worriedly. "Are you okay?" Storm lay still with her eyes closed and Sonic began to shake her. "STORM!?" Suddenly, Storm arms shot up and began to tickle Sonic on the ribs. "Attack of the tickle beast!" she cried happily as Sonic laughed and begged her to stop. Seconds after she did so, Robotnik walked into the room. Back before he became a fat, ugly, totally mean man, Robotnik was fat, ugly and totally mean kid who lived with Uncle Chuck, Sonic and Storm. He shot a glare at Storm, who froze in her tracks and just stared back. Sonic remembered how scared she looked. "She left the day after this picture was taken." he said finally, "I used to think it was Robotnik's fault she left. And when she never came back... I forgot about her." "It would seem that she hasn't forgotten about you, though." Storm looked over at Sally. "If she had, she probably wouldn't have risked her neck to save you." As the trio below kept talking, Storm quietly got down from the tree and headed to large boulder that covered a hole barely big enough for one person to fit through. At the bottom of the hole was a tunnel that lead to her home- it was a modest place, with only a bed, table and a storage area for food and one more little detail. Storm walked over to a wall and pressed her hand into a small square. A part of the wall opened up and inside was Storm's lab. Like her uncle, Storm was an inventor and had a lot of inventions in her lab. Right now, among other things, she was working on a prototype for a pair of sneakers. The one's she had were like Sonic's- made of material that wouldn't burn up when she was running at top speed- with one minor detail. Sonic's had been designed and made by Uncle Chuck; Storm's were only designed by him. During her thirteen years of living alone, if Storm ever needed something, she'd get it from Uncle Chuck's workshop or his Chilidog stand and repay him by leaving money or something she knew he needed, which she found out by watching. Once, when she was fourteen, she went to grab something and found the workshop and the stand in ruins. Lying on the all over the ground were robot parts, most of which said "Made by Robotnik, new King of Mobius." Storm shook her head and rushed into what was left of the two buildings to see if her uncle and brother were okay. When she didn't find either one, she feared the worst but kept looking. That was when she came across Uncle Chuck's plans for Sonic's special sneakers and material for making them. She grabbed both items and started to leave, making that the first and only time she took something from her family without paying for it. She never knew exactly what happened that day, but she had discovered later that her uncle had been turned into a robot and her brother was living with a group known as the Freedom Fighters, whose goal was to restore Mobius' freedom. But they were alive- that was her biggest worry- the one time she wasn't there to help them, they got seriously hurt. But that was then- when her family thought she was dead. And now, they discovered she was alive. Storm wasn't sure what she was going to do about that. As far as she knew, everyone thinking she was dead kept her loved ones safe. The realization of that not being true might be fatal. But she refused to think about that, as she got back to work on the new shoes. The original prototype was designed by Uncle Chuck, but the ones Storm was working on had two slight modifications: they were orange with a blue stripe and they were made out of a new material Storm had created. When she had taken the plans for Sonic's special shoes and the material to make them, Storm had also grabbed the recipe for making the material. After using the plans to make her own shoes, she was amazed how durable and comfortable they were. Storm knew she was capable of running at speeds close to Mach 1 and the sneakers held up through it! But, there was one short coming- when they got wet, they lost that durability- not just some, all of it. As Storm pondered on this, she remembered that Sonic had always been afraid of water, which was why they only surfed in the living room and never in the ocean. Storm didn't have a problem with water, but she still wasn't the world's greatest swimmer. Besides, she found it so much easier just to run right across the surface and it was a lot more fun. The only problem was that she didn't have a sneaker that could stand up to both her speed and the water. Until now, at least she hoped so. After many unsuccessful tries, she had finally created a sneaker material that wouldn't burn up when she ran nor would it break down in water. "With these new sneaks," she said to herself, "nothing can stop me. At least I hope not." Then she made another pair, this time they were red, with a white stripe. "What's the fun of being the fastest girl hedgehog, if the fastest boy can't keep up with you?" She finished the sneakers in a flash, put them into her dark blue backpack, and then went to bed. She'd test her own sneakers tomorrow and leave Sonic's at the entrance to Knothole Village tomorrow night, if the test was a success. That would be the best time and place to leave the sneakers without hand delivering them. Dr. Ivo Robotnik couldn't believe that Sonic had survived. He knew for a fact that the hedgehog couldn't swim so why did he live? The only answers lied in the surveillance cameras that had been installed in each of Octabot's eyes. Robotnik watched as Octabot grabbed Sonic's leg and attempted to pull him under. Then came the light blue streak- it flashed in, grabbed Sonic and flashed out. Robotnik rewound the tape and put it slow motion. He gritted his teeth when he discovered what the streak. "Storm." he said angrily, "You're alive after all." Snively looked at his boss with a questioning expression on her face. "Beg pardon, Master Robotnik." he said quietly. "But, other than a light blue hedgehog, who is this 'Storm' character?" "Someone I thought I had rid myself of long ago." came the reply, "And someone who has something I want- the exact thing I've been looking for." He paused for a moment. "Snively, locate Sonic and his friends- this girl won't be too far away from either of them. Once you have the girl, forget about the rest- bring her to me if you can, kill her if you have to. Do I make myself clear?" Snively bowed and backed towards the door. It had been next to impossible to catch Sonic before, but Snively wasn't about to anger Robotnik more than he already was. "Yes, Master." Snively was half way out the door, when Robotnik added something. "Don't come back without her." Chapter Three: Traps The next evening Snively lead a team of swatbots into the Great Forest, hoping to get lucky and nab Sonic or his friend. He still didn't understand why Dr. Robotnik would forget about Sonic and go after this slip of a girl hedgehog. Even if she did have something he wanted, that was no reason to give up a chase that had been going on for so long. But orders were orders. Find the girl. To Storm's delight, the tests had been a success- after running a good twenty minutes, at top speed, across the water, she ran another twenty minutes across dry land then repeated the process through out the day. No smoke or anything. The sneakers held out. She was on her way to Knothole Village when she spotted Snively and the swatbots and instantly hopped into a tree. She rarely saw Snively outside of Robotnik's factories in Robotropolis, let alone in the Great Forest. That meant he was looking for something- her or Sonic. Still in the treetops, Storm followed them to wherever they were heading. Sonic had been sitting in his favorite spot, atop a hill outside of the Great Forest, watching the sky, which was now decorated by the sunset. He'd been there since his encounter with Storm and nothing anyone said could get him to leave. Uncle Chuck had given up long ago and returned to Robotropolis with Muttskii. He felt angry, confused and guilty all at once. Angry because Storm had left him, not once but twice and confused because he didn't know why. His guilt came from not remembering her right off. How could a person not remember their own flesh and blood? But how could a person desert their own flesh and blood? That was what Storm had done... wasn't it? "Sonic?" He turned around to see Sally standing behind him. "Are you all right, my boy?" Sonic shook his head. "I'm not sure, Sal." he said, "Why would she leave?" Sally shook her head. "There are some things that can't be explained sometimes." she replied, "Whatever made her leave was something Storm couldn't tell you back then. All we can do now is find her and ask." Suddenly, Sonic heard someone cry for help-Tails. "Tails is in trouble!" he yelled, "Come on, Sally!" With that, the two sped off, Sonic going slower than usual so Sally could keep up with him. Moments later, the cries ceased causing Sonic and Sally to freeze. They were in a clearing of the forest, where a large fire was blazing. There was no sign of anyone, let alone Tails or what made him scream. "What the...?" Sonic didn't get a chance to finish his thought- swatbots came out of nowhere and threw a net over Sally, trapping her. Others managed to get an extremely firm grip on Sonic's arms and legs, for once rendering him helpless. Snively walked out from behind a tree, followed by two more swatbots with Tails in their clutches. He was an unexpected, but welcome capture. If they didn't find this "Storm" creature, Snively believed that he would suffice just fine. But, first things first- a plan that would not only make him happy if it worked, but it wouldn't matter much if it failed. "Swatbots!" he commanded, "Throw the girl into the fire." "NO!" yelled Sonic, as he fought to free himself. It was no use- these swatbots were more powerful than any he'd ever encountered before. He watched helplessly as the swatbots dragged his netted friend across the ground towards the fire. Suddenly, Sonic fell to the ground. He looked around only to see pieces of swatbots lying at his sides. As he sat there, more swatbots were being destroyed by an invisible force- all except the ones that were carrying Tails away. He forgot about his uncle for a brief moment as he raced after Tails and broke him free from the swatbots. "Are you all right?" he asked. He nodded, then froze in horror. That's when Sonic remembered Sally. After telling Tails to head home, Sonic rushed back to the clearing, only to find swatbot parts scattered all over the ground and Sally was gone- but there were no signs of her in the fire. "SALLY!" Chapter Four: Reasons She ran away from the clearing to the ocean where she had saved her brother and set her brother's perfectly safe friend on the ground. Storm bent at her waist, put her hands on her knees and took deep breaths. She didn't think she'd ever ran that fast before. Then again, she'd never been that scared before, either. She saw everything from up in her tree, but didn't move until she heard Snively tell the swatbots to kill her the chipmunk girl. Like a bolt of lightning, she flashed down and destroyed the swatbots holding her brother and all the others around, except for the ones guarding Tails- she meant to get them too, but a slight miscalculation in aim caused her to miss them. But Sonic charged after him and by the time he had returned to the clearing, Storm had grabbed Sally and got her out of harms way. She had never ran that fast before. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around to see Sally standing behind her, smiling. "Storm?" she asked, "Are you all right?" Storm slowly started to back away and she looked like she was ready to run... again. "No, Storm! Don't go, please!" "I'm sorry," she replied, her voice wavering, as if she was about to cry. "I have to." "Sally? Sally, where are you?!" Storm gasped when she heard Sonic's voice- it had been hard enough to say goodbye the first time, the second even harder. She couldn't do it again, no possible way. As Sonic sped towards them, she sped away. "Sonic!" cried Sally, "I'm all right- go after her! Bring her home!" Sonic hesitated- he didn't want the swatbots to return while he was gone and hurt Sally."Go on, Sonic!" Sally insisted, "I'll back to the village- go find your sister." Sonic finally nodded, then dashed off. "Storm, wait!" "Don't follow me, Sonic." she thought, "Just turn around and go home, please." That wasn't going to happen, though. Storm knew her brother too well and he would follow her to the ends of Mobius if he had to. She looked behind her to see how close Sonic was- he was nowhere in sight. Still looking behind her, Storm skidded to a stop, confidant that she had lost him. She gave a sigh of relief and turned around; Sonic was standing in front of her. Startled, Storm gasped and quickly backed away... and fell into a hole behind her. Her hand managed to grab a root and she slammed into the side of the hole, which was really a rattlesnake den, filled with the poisonous reptiles... and they sounded mad. Storm was frightened beyond all belief- she couldn't even scream- and didn't know what to do. Suddenly, the root snapped and she began to fall again. Something grabbed her arm. Storm looked up to see Sonic, gripping with both hands and holding on for dear life. "Hang on, Storm!" he cried, "Don't let go!" Storm reached up with her free hand, grabbed Sonic's arm and put her feet on the sides of the hole to help herself climb out. Moments later, she was out of the hole and sitting on the ground with her arms around her knees, shaking violently and breathing deeply. She wasn't really afraid of snakes, but she had a great deal of respect for them... and that was just a little too close for her. Sonic stood next to her, wondering what to do- his head told him to yell, ask her why the heck she ran away like she did. Sonic's heart, on the other hand, said to take his sister in his arms and calm her down. He listened to his heart and wrapped Storm in a loving embrace. Slowly, she stopped shivering but she was still breathing like there was no tomorrow. "It's okay, sis." Sonic said, "It's okay." "No, it's not." Storm whispered. She sounded like she was crying when she said that, explaining her deep breathing. "I'm gonna get you killed and the reason I left in the first place is so that wouldn't happen." Sonic's mind flashed back to Uncle Chuck's picture of him and Storm and the memories it brought back- when Robotnik looked at Storm that day, she was scared stiff. And the next day, she was gone. In his mind, it confirmed what he had originally though- Robotnik was the reason Storm had left. But to make sure... "Storm." he said, "Did Robotnik threaten you?" Storm nodded, then looked up at Sonic. Her eyes were red with tears and Sonic couldn't believe how young she looked- like a little kid, no older than Tails. "Tell me what happened." "It was a couple of days before I left." Storm said, "Uncle Chuck asked me to take some stuff up to Robotnik's room. When I went in there, I found a whole bunch of plans and blue prints..." Her voice trailed off and she was silent for a second. "The plans were for what's happening now- an eleven-year-old kid and Robotnik was already planning to take over Mobius. Anyway, he caught me in there looking at the plans. He grabbed my neck, held me up against the wall and said if I breathed a word of what I saw to anyone, he'd kill you and let me live with it for the rest of my life. Two days later, I was gone." Sonic couldn't believe what he was hearing. Not the fact that Robotnik was planning his overthrow of Mobius as a snot-nosed punk kid, but that he threatened Storm the way he did. His sister left out of love for him- if she wasn't around, she couldn't tell anyone and Sonic would be safe. But there was one more thing he didn't understand. "Storm." he said, "Why didn't you come back after Robotnik took over? With his plans already in action, his threat would be meaningless." Storm shook her head. "I have something he wants." Sonic's jaw dropped. "What could you possibly have that he wants?" Storm smiled. "Follow me and I'll show you- if you can keep up." She leapt to her feet and ran a few yards away from Sonic, then stopped and turned around. "Come on slow-mo!" she yelled, "Lets juice!" Sonic smiled and dashed after her. "Finally," he thought, "Someone worth racing!" As the siblings raced through the Great Forest, Sonic's friends back at Knothole Village worry about him... except for Uncle Chuck, who had returned to tell Sonic that Robotnik was looking for Storm as well. When he heard that Sonic was on Storm's trail, he chuckled. "How can you be so calm, Uncle Chuck?" asked Bunnie. "Yeah," said Rotor, "Sonic's never been gone this long before! What if he and Storm are in trouble?" Uncle Chuck shook his head and smiled. "It's true, he's never been gone this long." said Uncle Chuck, "But, it's also true that Sonic and Storm haven't done anything together in thirteen years." His smile widened. "They're gonna have some fun and become best friends all over again." All were silent as they looked at one another. Finally, Sally spoke up. "And then?" "And then..." replied Uncle Chuck, "They'll come home." Snively didn't know what hit him. All he remembered was the swatbots were about to throw Uncle Chuck into the fire when something, he hadn't a clue what, came out of nowhere, destroyed all of the swatbots but two, and knocked him unconscious. Now, he was left with nothing but broken swatbots. The girl, Storm had to be behind this. She was as fast as her brother, if not faster- lightning came to mind as a way to describe her speed. Snively only had one thought on his mind: "How do you catch a lightning bolt?" Chapter Five: Evil Potion Coming home wasn't a high priority on neither Sonic nor Storm's list of things to do that night. They were having too much fun to quit now. But as much as she would have liked to keep getting reacquainted with her brother, Storm knew there was something a little more important than that on hand. She led Sonic to the boulder covering the entrance to her house and pushed it aside. She looked at him, smiled and nodded her head at the hole. "Hop in." Sonic jumped into the hole, followed by Storm who landed right on top of him. He was on his stomach, Storm was sitting on his back and both were laughing. Sonic rolled over and she fell on the ground, still laughing. Finally, Storm got up off the ground, helped Sonic up off the ground and led him to her lab. "Whoa!" Sonic said as he looked around Storm's lab. It was filled to the brim with different tools, gadgets, gears and other stuff. "Storm, did you make all this stuff?" He looked over at his sister, who was smiling brightly and nodding her head off. "Sure did." she replied, "I've been trying to invent a Derobotosizer, but I haven't been successful- I think if I can get my hands on the plans for the Robotosizer, I may be able to find something that can reverse the process... but that's not why we're here. Come on." She took him over to the back part of the lab where there were a bunch of different vials full of chemicals and a bunch of different plants. Carefully, Storm took an eyedropper and took a bit of a black chemical from a vile. "Watch this." she said and put two drops onto a plant in front of her. Right before his eyes, Sonic watched the plant slowly turn from green and leafy to brown and hard- almost like stone. "Storm." he said, "What the heck is that?" "Its kinda weird, bro." came the reply, "I call it the Stone Serum- I found the recipe for this stuff in Robotnik's room that day he caught me in there. Somehow, it causes cells in the body, or plant in this case, to harden to a point where the outside is like stone. My estimation is if they remain like this for more than twelve hours, they can kiss life goodbye." "You said 'body,' sis. This stuff doesn't just work on plants?" Storm looked at Sonic and shook her head. "Do you remember that stone bird Robotnik always kept on his dresser?" she asked. Her brother's silence told Storm that he certainly did. "This was created for the ones Robotnik felt were undeserving of Robotosizing." she continued, "This way he could kill them without getting his hands bloody. When he killed that bird, he put this stuff in some sort of gun and went from a liquid to a... a laser beam. I couldn't find the gun, or I'd have that too." Sonic was about to be sick, when he saw Storm smile. "You've come up with an antidote?" Storm reached over and grabbed a vile filled with a blue liquid and got some into the eyedropper. "I made this in case Robotnik ever remembered the recipe, but I haven't tested it yet." she said, her smile looking slightly nervous. Sonic smiled as well. "Let 'er rip." With that, Storm dropped the liquid on to the plant. They waited- just as it seemed as if it wasn't going to work the plant started to glow bright green. Seconds later, where a stone had once been there was now a living plant again. Storm's mouth opened wide as she took in a deep breath. Sonic wrapped his arm around her shoulders and rubbed his knuckles down on her head. "Stormy-girl, you did it!" he cried, "You've created an antidote!" Storm smiled. "One for plants, anyway." she replied, "Let's hope it works on animals too... let's hope we never need to find out." Sonic nodded, then looked over at a clock Storm had on her lab wall- it was late. "Storm, we'd better be getting home. My friends are probably worried sick." He looked at her and smiled. "Hey, when was the last time you had a decent Chilidog?" Storm smiled. "You remember when Uncle Chuck had his own stand?" Sonic nodded. "It was back then- I can cook, but I'm no Uncle Chuck." "Then we are definitely getting you some Sonic chow- just as good as Uncle Chuck's. Let's juice." As they headed back towards Knothole Village, Storm remembered when Sonic had first lost her- it was late at night and she was in the room she and Sonic shared, quietly packing up some of her things as Sonic slept. As always, there was that one creaky floorboard that wakes someone up. Storm stepped right on it and Sonic slightly woke up. "Storm?" he asked, "What are you doing?" "I'm um... You're having a dream!" Storm said, "I'm really asleep you're just having a little dream. So go back to sleep so you can wake up later." Sonic nodded and laid his head back down. "Good night, Storm." She smiled. "Goodbye, Sonic." Storm sighed. Maybe now that she had the antidote for Robotnik's Stone Serum,' she wouldn't have to say goodbye to her brother ever again. Sonic and Storm returned to Knothole Village and were greeted by all the Freedom Fighters, Storm especially by Uncle Chuck who wrapped her in a large hug. "Welcome home, Storm." he said. Storm smiled. "It's good to be home, Uncle Chuck." she replied, "It's great to be home." Sally walked up to Storm and held out her hand. "Hello, Storm." she said, "I'm Sally- thanks for saving me." Storm looked as if she was unsure what to do, but finally took Sally's hand and gave it a shake. "No problem. It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess." Sally was surprised-she had never said she was a princess. Storm smiled. "A friend of yours told me all about you." Sally looked at Sonic, who was as confused as she was. "Don't look at me." he said, "I didn't..." "Storm!" Chapter Six: Storm and Tails Everyone looked towards the sound of the extremely excited voice and watched Tails run over to Storm and leap into her arms. "Storm, you're here!" he said, "You're here!" Storm started to laugh as she gave the fox a huge hug. "How ya doin', Tailsster?" she asked. "Cooler than ice, Stormster!" Tails replied, "You're here with everyone else- are you staying for good this time?" Everyone just looked at them, wondering what the heck was going on. "Tails, you know my sister?" asked Sonic. "Know her?" cried Tails, "Sonic, this is my bestest friend!" Storm nodded. "This guys been my little buddy, going on six years now." she added. "You've known about her and you didn't tell us?" asked Sonic, in a rather angry tone of voice, causing Storm put up her hand. "Sonic, don't blame this on the Tailsster." she said, "I asked him not to tell you- he's very loyal like that. His only condition was that I keep coming to see him." "How did you guys meet?" asked Uncle Chuck. Storm and Tails looked at one another. "Tails," Storm said, "Do we have time to tell this one before you go to bed?" Tails looked at Sally. "Can I stay up Aunt Sally?" he asked, "Please?" Sally chuckled and nodded. "All right, Tails." she said, "You can stay up until it's over." Tails and Storm slapped a high five then sat down, as did the rest of the Freedom Fighters. "Jump in whenever I forget something, okay Tailsster?" Storm whispered. Tails nodded. "No problemo." "It was back when I was ten." Storm began, "I was heading home from grabbing some supplies when I came upon this little two tailed fox hiding in a bush." "That was me!" cried Tails, happily, causing everyone to laugh. "That was you all right." Storm agreed, "But anyway, he told me his name was Miles Prower and he was looking for his parents..." (Flashback kind of thingy.) "Your parents?" asked Storm, "What happened to them, Miles?" Miles' face scrunched up at the sound of his own name- Storm guessed he hated it. "This ugly lookin' fat guy came into my village and took them away." he said, "I was hiding in the basement, under a pile of boxes and junk. When I came out, they were gone. That was about two weeks ago and I haven't been able to find them." Storm bit her lip for a second, then smiled. "Hey Tails." she said, "You hungry?" Miles looked at her and smiled. "Tails." he replied, "I like it... what's your name?" Storm didn't hesitate as she did with Sonic. "Name's Storm the Hedgehog." "Hedgehog? You related to Sonic?" Storm nodded. "He's my brother, but I haven't seen him in a long time." "Why not?" "Long story, Tailsster. If you're hungry, I can tell you over lunch." "Let's do it!" Storm led Tails back to her home and made some Chilidogs. Tails looked at them and gave a wondering look. "Uh, Storm?" he asked, "What are these?" Storm's jaw dropped. "You've never had a Chilidog?" she asked and watched Tails shake his head. "Okay, I'm not Mobius's greatest cook, but you will love these things- take a bite!" Tails still looked a little skeptical, but took a small bite of his Chilidog. Seconds later he took a bigger bite. "Storm this is great!" he said, "I love them!" Storm smiled. "I knew you would." As they ate their Chilidogs, Storm was telling the story of leaving her brother in order to save him from Robotnik when she stopped in the middle of her sentence. "That's it!" she said. "What's it?" asked Tails. "Sonic!" Storm replied, "He lives in an underground town now, with a group known as the Freedom Fighters- you'd be safe with them." "Why can't I stay with you?" Storm bit her lip, gave a soft smile and shook her head. "I know you're probably not afraid, Tails." Storm told him, "But it's not too safe to be around me- I've got something Robotnik wants and if he found out I was still alive and had someone with me, it would spell trouble for both of us. I like you too much to let you get hurt." Her smile widened. "Besides, what could be cooler than hanging out with the fastest guy hedgehog in the world?" Tails smiled back. "Hanging out with you." he replied, "Why can't you come with me?" "The same reason why you can't stay here- if Robotnik found me with the Freedom Fighters, all of them would be in trouble. And Tails, you can't tell Sonic about me either. If you did, he'll start looking for me and that would be more trouble." Tails bit his lip. "If I don't tell, will you come visit me?" Storm nodded. "Of course I will." she said, "Nothing could keep me away. Now, lets you and me finish lunch and figure out how we're gonna get you in with the Freedom Fighters." (Back to the present.) "I know how this part of the story ends." said Sonic, "I found Tails later on that day, sitting on the entrance to Knothole Village." Storm nodded. "Tailsster's a pretty good actor, eh?" she asked, "We waited until we saw someone leave the village, which just happened to be you Sonic, and set the plan into action. I kept a look out for you to come back and when I saw you coming, Tails sat on the stump and started, quote unquote, crying." "Where were you?" asked Sally. "Hiding in a bush." Storm replied, "I watched Tails tell Sonic the same story he told me and listened as he introduced himself as "Miles Prower, but everyone calls me Tails." Sonic took him into the Village, but before he jumped in, Tails looked over at me and winked. I winked back and left." "What was the wink for?" asked Uncle Chuck. Before Storm could answer, Tails did. "It was my way of telling her "Don't forget"- I hadn't told Sonic about her, so she would still come see me." Storm nodded. "And my wink was to say "Don't worry, I won't." And I didn't. I'd wait until I saw everyone leave the village and then go in, or Tails would go out to play and come to my place." She rubbed the top of Tails' head and smiled. "This little guy helped me develop that antidote I showed you, Sonic." Sonic looked at his sister and Tails and found himself more than a little jealous of the closeness the two of them shared. He remembered that he and Storm had once been that close. But as he thought about it, Tails really needed to have someone that close to him- he was just a kid after all. Besides, just because Storm and Tails were close that didn't mean she and Sonic couldn't become close again. Tails had his arms wrapped around Storm's neck and was hugging her like there was no tomorrow. "You still haven't answered me, Storm!" he said, "Are you staying for good this time?" Storm looked over at Sonic, who smiled at her and nodded. Storm returned the smile then looked back at Tails. "Yeah, Tailsster- I'm here for good." She then looked over at Sally and her smile widened. "And I think it's time we got you to bed." Chapter Seven: Capture When Sonic woke up around seven the next morning, the first thing he did was to look in on Tails and Storm. Uncle Chuck had returned to Robotropolis after he helped tuck Tails in for the night, but it had taken awhile to get the little fox to go to sleep that night. He wasn't fully convinced that Storm was staying with the Freedom Fighters- he figured now that Sonic knew she was still alive, she'd run away forever. Finally, to get him to go to sleep, Storm said she'd sleep in a hammock set up in the corner of his room. So, you can imagine Sonic's surprise when he looked into the room and found both Storm and Tails missing. He was on the verge of freaking out, when he found a note on Tails' pillow, next to a pair of red sneakers. He picked it up and began to read. "Dear Sonic," it said, "Don't freak out or anything- Tails and I just went to grab some stuff from my old place to bring home. I was gonna go by myself, but the poor kid still thinks I'm not coming back. A part of you probably thinks the same thing, so I doubt you mind him tagging along. Also, before I forget, the sneakers next to this note are for you. They're just like the ones Uncle Chuck made you, with one minor exception- they won't lose their durability when they get wet. I know you probably didn't know they broke down when they got wet but they do, trust me. I'll talk to ya when we get back! Storm." Sonic put down the letter and shook his head. It amazed him how well Storm knew him. His first thought at finding Storm and Tails gone was that Storm had run away again and Tails had gone to find her. Still, it wouldn't hurt just to go check. Snively had seen Storm and Tails walking through the Great Forest, laughing together like they were old friends. He smiled- he had returned to Robotropolis long enough to gather more swatbots and now they could just follow the hedgehog and the fox to wherever they were going. That was how you caught a lightning bolt- Simple enough. "Have you got everything, Storm?" Tails asked. The two of them were in her lab getting the last of her tools and stuff. Storm shook her head and grabbed a piece of paper. "What's that?" "It's the recipe for Robotnik's stone serum." Storm replied, as she struck a match. "I want the only copy of it to be in my head." She put the paper into the flame, dropped it to the floor and let it burn. "No one should have a weapon like this." Tails nodded- when helping Storm with the antidote he had seen many plants turned to stone during the tests. Since plants couldn't talk, it was impossible for them to tell what kind of pain they were in, but it probably didn't tickle. No one deserved that. " I've got everything now." Storm said, shaking Tails out of his thoughts. "Let's go home." Tails liked it a lot when Storm called Knothole Village 'home'- it convinced him she was going to stay. "Yeah," he said, "Lets go home!" Storm and Tails were about to head out, when they heard something crash through the ceiling of the main room. Storm motioned for Tails to stay back as she peeked out- swatbots were out there, tearing up the place. Storm looked back at Tails and bit her lip- Tails noticed that she did that a lot, especially when she was thinking. "Come on!" she said in an urgent whisper, "We'll go out the back." She led Tails to a wall on the far side of her lab and pressed a button. A section of the wall opened up, showing another hole leading to the surface. They went inside, closing the door behind them. Storm was about to lift Tails up out of the hole, then climb out herself, when two robotic arms reached down and grabbed them both by the neck. Storm and Tails were lifted out of the hole and thrown into a cage that was at the edge of the hole. Storm tried her hardest to break out of the cage, but to no avail. She heard someone start to laugh- Snively. He stepped out from behind a group of swatbots, smiling his tiny pointed head off. "Game over, Hedgehog." Sonic reached Storm's place a short time later and hopped down the tunnel. He would have been there sooner, but he just had to try out the new sneakers Storm gave him. He was thrilled with them- he'd never ran over the water before, because of his fear of it. The feeling was great! Waves splashed out to the side as he sped across the water. His speed was now unstoppable and he had his sister to thank. "Hey Storm, Tails!" he called as he walked into the main room, "Where are... oh my gosh." Sonic saw the place in ruins- all of Storm's stuff was either destroyed or seriously damaged. There was only one explanation- Robotnik. Angered beyond all belief, Sonic raced back to Knothole Village. He couldn't rescue Storm and Tails on his own; he needed a power ring, but more importantly, he needed his friends. Chapter Eight: Hopes and Promises Tails was scared. Locked in a dark cell, he was worried that nothing could save him. The only thing that could make things worse was if it started thundering and lightning- he hated thunder and lightning. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his shoulders. It was Storm giving him a hug. She had been pacing around the room when she noticed how scared Tails was. Tails had been so scared, he forgot she was there with him. "It's okay, Tailsster." she said, "Sonic will come get us, don't worry." Tails sniffed and wiped his eyes on his hand. "How do you know?" he asked and watched Storm smile. "I left that note remember? He probably headed over to my old place right after reading it. He's gonna see that we're gone and come rescue us." Tails wasn't convinced. "What if he hasn't seen the note yet? What if he doesn't see it until it's too late? I never said goodbye to anyone." "And there's a good reason for that!" Storm told him, "Remember what I told you about goodbyes?" Tails shook his head. "Goodbye is supposed to be permanent- it means you'll never come back. That's why when I first ran away from home I said goodbye to Sonic- I wasn't planning on coming back. Now we're gonna see everyone again, so there was no reason to say goodbye." "I hope you're right." Tails said, causing Storm to give him a tighter hug. "We're gonna go home, bud." she said, "I promise." "Don't count on that, Storm." A chill ran through Storm's veins when she heard that voice, one that she had hoped she'd never hear again. She turned around and faced the door. She also faced Robotnik. "You brother may get here, Storm." he continued, "But I doubt you'll be around to see it." He pulled a gun out from behind his back- the gun he used to shoot the Stone Serum. Storm narrowed her eyes. "You don't have the juice to fill that gun and you know it." she said. Robotnik smiled. "Yes, but you do." he replied, "And if you know what's good for your 'bud' over there, you'll give it too me." This wasn't something Storm had planned on. Of course no one ever plans on getting caught, but Storm had always figured that if that ever did happen she would be alone. The last thing on her mind was Tails being with her. She got up off the ground and stood in front of Tails. "I'll make the stuff." she said, "Just leave him be." Robotnik nodded. "You have my word..." Storm shook her head and cut him off. "Oh no- your word isn't good enough for me. Before I make anything for you, I want it in writing that you will leave Tails alone, one hundred percent." Storm stared him down until he nodded. "It will be done." he said, "I'll have it written up and I'll bring it to you for your approval." With that, he left Tails and Storm alone. "Storm, what are you doing?" Tails yelled, "You can't make him the serum... wait, you're gonna screw it up on purpose, right?" Storm shook her head. "I'm not gonna risk that, Tails." she said, "I can't risk losing you." "Why not?! If you make him that serum, he'll use it on you and Sonic- you told me yourself you'd never do anything to hurt Sonic..." Storm put her hands on Tails' shoulders and looked into his eyes. "You know how to make the antidote, Tails." she whispered, "If Robotnik uses his serum on Sonic, make the antidote and bring him back." Tails' eyes widened. "What about you?" Storm shook her head. "He won't use it on me- as long as I don't write down the recipe, he has to keep me alive." Sonic was in the cave where the power rings appeared, near the water, trying to be patient- it wasn't working. Who knew what Robotnik was doing to Tails and Storm... His sister knew the recipe for the Stone Serum, meaning she might be getting the worst of it. The ring had to hurry up. "Sonic?" Sonic turned around to see Sally and Bunnie standing behind him. "You okay?" asked Sally. Sonic shook his head. "I don't know." he replied, "I may not remember much about Storm, but I remember that she always stood up for what she thinks is right- she'll stand up to Robotnik to protect Tails and who knows how it'll turn out." He looked at the water and shook his head. "And it looks like I have to do this without a power ring." He then resorted to something he'd seen Storm do a couple times- he bit his lip and shook his head. Then his head shot up suddenly and he looked at Bunnie. "Bunnie, is there a water port in Robotropolis?" She nodded. "Yeah, there is." she said, "Why?" Sonic smiled. "That's how we're going in." They were about to leave when a yellow glow filled the room and a power ring appeared. Sonic sighed in relief, grabbed the ring and put it in his pocket. Now he was ready. Meanwhile, Robotnik had written up the contract and Storm was reading it over. Everything she wanted was in there- Tails wouldn't be harmed after she made the serum and it was signed at the bottom by Ivo Robotnik. Storm nodded and was handed a pen. She signed her name and Robotnik smiled. "Snively," he said, "Escort Miss Hedgehog to the lab, so she may begin." He looked over at Storm. "The fox will remain here and, as the contract states, he will not be harmed." Storm nodded, then looked over at Tails and smiled. "It'll be all right, Tailsster- I promise." With that she was lead away and Tails was left alone. It started to rain, followed by a clap of thunder. Tails had a bad feeling about all this. "Okay," said Sonic, "We go at night. Sally and I will enter the city through here." He pointed to the ocean on a large map in front of the Freedom Fighters. It was about ten in the morning and they were planning the rescue for Tails and Storm. "Robotnik won't expect that in a million years- he knows as well as anyone that me and water don't mix." "What about us?" asked Bunnie, indicating her, Rotor, and Uncle Chuck, who had returned as soon as he learned of Storm's capture. "I need you, Rotor and Uncle Chuck to sneak in by land and meet us here." He moved his finger to a factory inside the city. Then he handed a smaller map to Bunnie. "But first, I need you guys to go to Storm's old place and get all of her chemicals and stuff. After you get Bunnie and Rotor in the city, Uncle Chuck, get the chemicals back to Knothole. If Robotnik gets her to make the Stone Serum, we're gonna need the stuff to make the antidote." "What if he uses it on Storm?" asked Uncle Chuck. "Unless he's stupider than he looks, Robotnik won't risk it." Sonic replied, "Storm won't write the recipe down for him, so he'll let her live." Sonic took a deep breath. "I hope." Chapter Nine: Never Say Goodbye Storm returned to the cell a short time later, shaking her head. Tails had been sitting in the corner on the room since she had left. Lightning scared him and that was all he saw every time he looked out the barred window. Storm went right over to him and took him in her arms. "It's gonna be okay, Tailsster." she said, "Sonic's gonna come get us." Tails rubbed his head up against her shoulder. "You made the serum?" he asked. "I did- I had no choice, Tailsster. I couldn't let him hurt you." "Oh how touching." Storm looked towards the door to see Robotnik standing there with his gun in his hand. "I honestly believe I'm going to be sick." "I made your serum, Robotnik." Storm said as she got to her feet. "What do you want?" "You're so right, Storm- you did make my serum." he replied, "Now all I have to do is analyze it for the ingredients..." Before Storm knew what was happening, Robotnik fired at her and the laser hit her dead in the chest. "Which means I don't need you any more." With that, he turned and left. Storm dropped to her knees, then fell onto her back in front of Tails. He watched in horror as the serum spread across her body- the look on her face told him that she was in a great deal of pain. "STORM!" he cried and grabbed hold of her hand, which was still flesh. She turned her head towards him and squeezed his hand tightly as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Tails." It was all she had time to say- shortly after speaking her friend's name the serum had taken it's toll: Storm was now nothing more than a statue, lying on the ground with the pained look still on her face. The only parts of her that remained real were her brown cap and the tear that had been on her cheek, which fell to the ground and was gone as quickly as Storm was. Tails still had her hand in his and he couldn't bring himself to let go. "No. Oh please no." As Sonic carried Sally across the water towards Robotropolis, he felt something shoot through his veins. It hurt a little, just enough for him to almost drop Sally into the water. "Sonic!" yelled Sally, "What's the matter?" Sonic ran over to the shore and set Sally down. "Are you all right?" she asked. Sonic shook his head. "Something's happened to Storm." "Master Robotnik," said Snively, "What if we can not produce a proper analyzation of the serum? With the hedgehog gone, we won't be able to make more if we need it." The two of them were in the laboratory where Storm had created the serum, using a machine to analyze the ingredients. Robotnik looked over at Snively and nodded. "Yes, I know." he replied, "But if it comes down to that, I have enough of the serum to use it on one last hedgehog." He smiled. "Two dead hedgehogs is all I need to be happy." Sonic and Sally met up with the other Freedom Fighters outside of the factory as they had planned. Sonic hadn't received any more shocks to the system, which scared him more than anything. "Okay guys." he said, "This has gotta be quick as we can possibly make it. Rotor, I need you and Sally to create some sort of disturbance... you think maybe you could cut the lights or something like that?" Rotor smiled. "I can do better than that, Sonic." he said, "And you know I will." Sonic put a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks man. After you do that, head home- we'll be there shortly." Sally knew that Sonic was hurting. She was usually the one who created the plans and Sonic wasn't one to interfere with that. Only when he was really scared did he jump in. He must have been terrified. "What are we gonna do?" asked Bunnie, shaking Sally out of her thoughts. Sonic looked at her and smiled. "I'm gonna need your strength, Bunnie girl. Who else is gonna break down the door?" Tails was still holding onto Storm's stone hand. It was still raining outside with the thunder and lightning going strong, but Tails hardly noticed. His best friend was gone- the only one who never made him feel like he couldn't do anything because he was young, who never called him a kid or a child and who was always there when he needed her. He looked at his watch- it was nine o'clock and had been eleven hours since Storm had been turned. "Sonic is going to get here on time." Tails told himself, "Storm said he would." Suddenly, the lights went out, causing Tails to let go of Storm's hand and jump to the window. Not only were the lights out, but everything in Robotropolis had stopped running- robots and all. The Freedom Fighters had arrived. "Snively!" yelled Robotnik, "What in Mobius is going on? Why isn't anything working?!" Snively pushed buttons, flipped switches and turned dials, but could get nothing to work. "I don't know sir." he said, "It must be a blown fuse or something." "A blown fuse would shut down the whole city?!" Robotnik was about to smack Snively upside the head when he realized something. "Sonic- he's here." He rushed out of the lab, followed by Snively and headed towards the prison cells. But before he left, he grabbed the Stone Serum gun. He had a hedgehog to kill. "Tails? Storm? Where are you?" Tails had gone back to holding Storm's hand when he heard someone calling his name- Sonic and Bunnie. "In here!" he called, "Sonic, Aunt Bunnie we're in here!" The door flew open and Sonic and Bunnie stepped inside. Sonic saw Storm lying on the floor and it took all he had to keep his bottom lip from quivering. "How long?" he asked Tails. Tails looked at him. "She's been like this for eleven and a half-hours." Tails said, "We've got time to get her home." "I wouldn't be so sure." Everyone turned around and saw Robotnik standing in the doorway, his gun in his hand and a big grin on his face. The gun was pointed right at Sonic. "I made an agreement with you sister." Robotnik said, "I promised I wouldn't touch the fox, but I never said anything about you." He began to pull the trigger when Sonic ran up to him and kicked the gun out of his hand. It fell to the floor and shattered, leaking the serum all over the ground. Robotnik started whining and throwing a tantrum on the ground, cueing Sonic and everyone to split. Bunnie picked up Storm and Sonic grabbed Tails and they ran out of there. They needed to make it home in less than thirty minutes. When they returned to Knothole, Uncle Chuck and everyone were waiting with all the chemicals from Storm's lab. Tails barely got down from Sonic's arms before he started mixing chemicals together. There was only five minutes left- no room for an error. He finished the serum and took it over to Storm. She was lying on the floor next to him, so all he had to do was turn around and pour the serum on her. They waited- the clock struck eleven and nothing had happened. Tails started shaking- he had messed up the serum and now Storm was gone forever. He dropped to the floor next to her and grabbed her hand once again. "Storm," he cried, "Storm, no." Sonic was shaking as well. He hadn't been fast enough and now she was gone. Not knowing what else to do, he stomped his foot on the ground. When he did that, the power ring he had put in his pocket fell out and landed on Storm's chest. Suddenly her body started to glow as bright yellow as the ring. Seconds later, the stone was gone- she was real again, but still not moving. "Storm?" asked Tails, "Storm, please wake up." Nothing happened. Before anyone could tell him it was no use, Tails leaned over Storm and kissed her. He sat back up and a tear rolled down his cheek. "Goodbye, Storm." Tails got up off the ground and began to walk out of the room when he heard a voice that stopped him cold. "Tailsster, what did I tell you about goodbyes?" Tails spun around and there she was. Storm was lying on the ground, leaning on her elbows and had a huge smile on her face. "Storm!" Tails rushed over and wrapped his arms around her, so tight she had to tap him on the shoulder in order to let him know she needed air. Sonic couldn't believe it either. He didn't think that corny things like people getting kissed and then waking up actually worked. Storm saw the look on her brother's face and shook her head. "It wasn't the kiss, bro." she told him as she held up the power ring. "This is what saved me from the serum- Tails' kiss just woke me up from the nightmare I was having." Storm looked back over at Tails. "Thanks Tailsster." There was a moment of silence, until Uncle Chuck remembered something- if Storm had been turned to stone, Robotnik had the serum. When asked about it, Storm just smiled. "He may have the serum," she said. "But he sure as heck doesn't have the machine to analyze it." She pulled some gears and wires out of her pocket and handed them to Uncle Chuck. "What do you suppose those babies were used for?" Everyone burst out laughing and patted Storm on the back. Uncle Chuck smiled. "It would also seem that the power rings work for you as well." He said, "Lucky break, eh?" Storm started to laugh when Tails raised another question. "Storm," he said, "you said I woke you up from the nightmare you were having. What the heck were you dreaming about?" Storm shook her head as she rubbed her hand on top of Tails'. "I dreamed that Robotnik went back on his deal and Robotosized you... and he got Sonic too." Sonic still hadn't said anything, making Storm wonder if he was still alive. "Sonic?" She stood up as he walked over to her. "I almost lost you again," he said, "I came so close..." Storm smiled and gave her brother a hug. "But you didn't lose me," she told him, "I didn't say goodbye that time, remember?" Sonic nodded. "And you won't ever lose me again," she continued, "I promise." Sonic smiled at her and placed her cap back on her head. "Welcome home, sis." The End (For now, anyway.)