Knuckles the Echidna is copyright SEGA Enterprises. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Next time, you're buyin'." --Mulder, "X-Files, Fight the Future" ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Meahwhile I Running Part 5 --Delphine Kiminsu nuckles the Echidna backed into a tree. Oh, he was in trouble. Deffinitly in trouble. A group of humans and furries, ten to twelve in all, all armed with laser rifles, had ambushed him. He had been walking through a lush forest, looking for his next place of rest. He had lost his pack, and probably wouldn't get any of it back. He hadn't brought anything valuable, but he still needed food. And fire.That is, if he got out of this mess alive. Major trouble. He ducked, and a shot went over his head and right through the tree he was behind. He rolled to the left, then shot into the trees. His attackers persued. He might have been able to get away, had he seen the ravine. As it was, he tripped and stumbled into it, head over heals. When he finally stopped, he had rolled underneath a thornbush patch. Actaully, he had landed on top of it and fell through it to the bottom, then rolled out of sight of the hole he had created. He was bleading from more scratches than he could count, and his head ached. He thought about what would happen to the Floating Island... and he thought about Delphine... But the last thought that went through his mind, before he fell unconscious, was, will I ever see Terra again? Knuckles had came upon a small town, with an population of somewhere around twenty. He had found an inn, and that's where he met Terra. She was an echidna. About fifteen, sixteen years old. She had been as surprised to see another echidna as he had. After paying for a night, they talked for awhile. Knuckles told her about himself. She told him that she had been orphaned several years ago, but she had been old enough to defend herself. She had cme here and opened this small inn to support herself. She was sixteen years old, and had never had a boyfriend. The small town she lived in had neer had much trouble. They all got by; she was very good friends with a few of them, and knew most of them. She lived in the inn, and many of the shopkeepers lived in their shops. It was a simple, good town. Knuckles had taken an instant liking to her. She was different from Delphine. She wasn't a very tough girl -- she probably couldn't even fight someone her size. She was innocent, maybe a little naive; she needed someone to take care of her. Terra liked Knuckles the minute he had walked into the inn. He was an echidna. She had been afraid that she would never find another echidna, but, here he was, in her inn. And after over two hours of talking to him, she was pratically in love with him. Unfortunatly, he lived far away -- very far. He was only on a trip, looking for his friend. Notice the lack of the term "girlfriend". He hadn't specified why he was looking for his friend, just that she was missing. Terra asked if she could go with him, but he told her that it was too dangerous for her. She tried to tell him that she could take care of herself, but he wouldn't listen. He had gone to bed a few hours after sunset, and hadn't awoken until midday. He had paid and started to leave, but she stopped him. "Please... listen... I really want to go with you... this place is boring... I can take care of myself, I won't be too much trouble..." He stopped her and grinned, saying, "I told you, it's too dangerous. I don't want you getting hurt. Look; when I find my friend, we'll come back and pick you up on the at home. Okay?" She grinned. "Okay!" He shook his head and left the town. She watched him go, hoping he would come back soon. About an hour later, Terra was in the inn, reading the newspaper. She was engrossed in the advice column when she heard a bloodcurdling scream. She put the paper down and ran outside. A tall human man had a laser rifle in his hand, which he had shot someone with -- that someone being the source of the scream. The man was dressed in all black, with black hair that fell over his bright green eyes. She had started to back away, into the inn, but another man grabbed her. She shrieked and tried to get away, but he had a firm grip on her. Several other of the townspeople had also been captured. The rest were hiding away in their houses, probably hoping the intruders were satisfied with what they had. Terra wished Knuckles hadn't left so soon. He probably could have been able to help them -- none of the townpeople were accustomed to fighting. They had brought her and the other captives to a large, black ship. It was triangle shaped, the long point being the bow. It looked at if it had been made of obsidian on the outside, but on the inside it was very obviously metal. It was a very ugly, depressing gray on the inside. She had been set down in a metal chair and chained to it. She was petrified, but she did her best not to show it. They flew for two hours. Several captives broke down in hysterics and had to be removed. When one taken out of the room, Terra had heard a shot and a scream, followed by silence. It scared the hell out of her and she almost went into hysterics herself. They landed the ship and brought the captives into a large, stone castle. The entire inside and outside was made of stone, except for the iron bars on the cages. There were an odd number of captives, so Terra was left in a cell by herself. She was lonely, scared, and wished she hadn't let Knuckels leave -- he would have helped her get away. Or even fought against her captors, so that the others could have gotten away. Knuckles blinked and opened his eyes. He was still lying under the thornbush, and people were still shouting to find him. His head pounding, he crawled throught the bushes, protecting his head and eyes. He found his way out of the thorn patch and ran, not even looking to see if anyone saw him. "There he is!" "Get him!" Knuckles pushed himself to the limit, but he could still hear them following him. He veared off into thicker trees, looking for a place to hide himself. He found one, and did so. He smirked when his pursuers walzted right by him, then got up and, figuring he was in the clear, walked on. He was sitting on a rock, hidden by a tree. He was studying a hut up ahead, to make sure it was safe. He was hoping to go to it, maybe get some rest, before he moved on. It seemed safe enough. He stood up to go to it, and a twig snapped. He stopped and listened. He could hear the sound of someone breathing. With a smirk he stepped around the tree and waited for the person to follow him. Unfortunately, it was a lot more than one person. He ran for the hut, but someone shot him down -- in the back -- with a laser. He rolled over and jumped up, ready to fight. Good thing, because he was attacked from all sides. He realized he was slowly being pushed away from the hut. He pushed back, almost getting through a few times. He was facing the hut, trying to get through the swarm of people. The door started to open. He would have seen who stepped outside, but someone blocked his view, then knocked him down. He looked up, and found himself surrounded by laser rifles. To be continued. End of Part 5. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Back