The Great Swamp scramble

[OctaScratchRock]

Sally began to feel weird.

"Uh, Rotor....." Sally said, holding her stomach. "I don't feel so well."

Rotor scratched his head. "There are too many problems going on today, you know that?"

Sally began to gag. She choked and sputtered and finally puked up Sonic and Tristina, and the plan worked as planned. Suddenly, Sonic and Tristina stood before Sally.

Sally's eyes were wide open. "What just happened?" she asked.

[tiff15]

"Princess, you might want to sit down for this one..." said Tristina earnestly.

"wait a second," said Sonic, looking around. "Wheres the accelerator?" they soon found the piece of machinery sitting on a slimy stump,

seconds later, an electric blue throwing knife sank into the piece of machinery. "Better safe than sorry, Princess. Particularly after what we just went through," said Tristina, dusting her hands.

---
"Sir, I've just received a report that the current swatbot team has lost the tracking signal on the accelerator." Snively then pressed a few keys and a line of bright blue script appeared on the screen with the words

Strike two, Tubby.

[OctaScratchRock]

Robotnik had had ENOUGH.

He looked down to face Snively.

"I want every single robot we have to that swamp, now."

"Everyone?" asked Snively, nervously.

"EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Robotnik screamed furiously.

"Y-yes sir!!" Snively saluted. He immediately began dispatching every single SWATbot they had to the swamp, with orders to kill.

[tiff15]

"huh?" Tristina looked upt o the sky, then frowned.

"whats up, Tiff?" Sonic asked, noticing Tristina had sensed something they hadn't.

Holding up a hand, Tristina's eyes faded to pure white as she held out a glowing light blue hand towards the direction of Robotropolis.

after a few moments of silence, Sally asked. "what is it?"

"Attention all units, proceed to Great Swamp coordinates Sector 12, area 17, quadrant 43. locate and kill Priority One Hedgehog, Priority Two Hacker, and Princess Sally." Tristina reported as the script scrolled in front of her eyes.

"Kill? Not capture? not Roboticize?" Sally asked.

"Affirmative." Tristina replied, bowing her head as she disconnected from Robotniks mainframe. "Hes not sparing any expense. He's sending them ALL. Swatbots, Walkers, Hover units, even Worker Bots."

"Is Uncle Chuck among them?" Sonic asked. Tristina nodded.

[OctaScratchRock]

(Sorry I'm so insanely late)

SWATbots seemed to be coming out of the woodwork. No matter where they looked, robots, robots, robots.

"Well, we're doomed." said Sally. "Any last words from any of you? I actually have a few."

"What are your last words, Aunt Sally?" asked Tails.

"I like celery sticks." said Sally.

Antione looked up. "Seriously!?" he said. "THOSE are your last words!!?"

Sally shrugged. "They work!"

[tiff15]

"Mines actually in my peoples native language, but I need all of you to gather as close to me as you can."

Confused, Sonic, Sally, Antione, Rotor, Bunnie and Tails gathered around Tristina's wheelchair as she spread out her arms. with seconds to spare, Tristina's pupils disappeared as she cried "Alto Atonamtos!"

every single robot around them, forming a rather large circle, stopped as a light blue wave rippled through the crowds from Tristina's hands.

after a few moments of silence, the group looked back at Tristina as she continually seemed to pulse the light blue wave through the air. her arms lowered, and she slumped in the chair. "Aunt Tiffany?" Tails asked, crawling into her lap to lightly shake her. "Did it...work...?" Tristina slurred, opening her eyes and looking at her friends shocked faces.

"What did you do?" Sally asked, looking around as the robots around them stood still with their heads bowed. "M-mass reset protocol." Tristina stammered. "Unfortunately, it effects all electronics in a 100 mile radius. even my wheelchair and Nichole. but on the bright side..." Tristina wheeled up to one of the swatbots and gently pushed it aside. "we should be able to go home without any more interference."

Meanwhile, Robotnik was literally flying blind without his spy orbs. "Whats going on out there?!" Robotnik shouted. "I'm trying sir, but that energy pulse the hacker used automatically reset every operational machine within the great swamp. its going to take hours to get them all functioning again." "then send more out there to replace the ones effected by the hackers energy pulse." "S-sir," stammered Snivley "we've already sent every single robot within Robotropolis. there ARE no more to send!"

"I HATE THAT HACKER!"

[tiff15]

(OOC: do you mind? We already have a solid plot set up. You just interrupted it.)

[OctaScratchRock]

Robotnik looked down at the now-useless controls. "There's no way I'm letting that hacker do this to me again. She's destroyed my ENTIRE force......"

Snively rolled his eyes.

Robotnik began to think of something that could be used against Tristina.

"If she's powered electronically.........maybe we could try and hack HER........."


*Back at Knothole*


"Help me out here!" said Sally, loading scrap SWATbot parts to be used in Rotor's workshop.

"Coming!" Sonic said.

All of a sudden, Sally twitched a little bit.

"Something the matter?" asked Sonic.

"Nothing, nothing...." said Sally.

But it was only a matter of time before Sally started spazzing out and twitching violently. It was almost as if she were doing some sort of cartoony robot dance.

That's when Tristina came outside. "Sonic?" she asked. "I just now noticed a little part of my computer missing. Seen it?"

Sonic looked over at Sally and then looked back at Tristina. "Are you SURE you brought your WHOLE BODY out of Sally when we escaped her body?

[tiff15]

Tristina sighed and ran her hand through her quills. feeling something prick her fingers, she pulled her hand away and noticed several light blue quills clutched in her gloved fingers.

Swearing quietly to herself, Tristina looked at Rotor. "get Sally on a table. I have an idea."

Rotor and Sonic laid the still seizing Princess on a metal table, Tristina gently pushed her wheelchair up to the table as well. "Keep in mind, I've never done this before, so be ready for anything."

"What are you going to do?" Rotor asked. "You know how I can take data from computers and project in on a holographic screen, or digitally transfer the information to Nichole?" Sonic and Rotor nodded.

"I'm going to try to do the reverse with the quill I left behind. I'm going to break it down while it's inside Sally and transfer it, but I'll need somewhere to transfer it to."

"here," said Rotor, placing a small stool at Sally's head.

"Perfect. Okay...One more thing. I'll be vulnerable to digital attacks while I'm doing this, so Rotor, keep scanning the area around Sally and me while I'm transferring the quill."

"Got it," said Rotor, powering up his computer.

taking a deep breath and letting it out, Tristina opened her eyes to let them fade into pure white.

"Initiating Transfer..." Tristina said in a monotone voice, a light blue keyboard appearing at her gloved fingers in front of Sally.

[OctaScratchRock]

Stuttering as she vibrated, Sally tried desperately to speak.

"Y-y-you-u-u w-w-won-t-t h-h-ur-t-t m-m-me-e-e, r-r-igh-t-t-t-t?"

Tristina smiled. "Would I be doing this if I wasn't confident in my ability?"

Meanwhile, the one quill left behind rested on Sally's brain, which was why she was so messed up at the moment.

Suddenly, she smacked herself in the face.

"Wait- I didn't want to hit myself!" she said.

Again, she smacked herself in the face.

"Why are you hitting yourself?" Sonic asked.

*SMACK*

"Why are you hitting yourself?"

*SMACK*

"Why are you hitting yourself?"

*SMACK*

"Why are you hitting yourself?"

*SMACK*

"Why are you hitting yourself?"

*SMACK*

[tiff15]

"I'm so sorry, Princess!" Tristina cried, briefly coming out a hacking while Sonic held Sally's hand.

Okay, Hacker. FOCUS Tristina thought, taking a deep breath and letting it out through her nose. In her mind's eye, she saw it. the stray quill causing them so much trouble.

"Attempting basic deconstruction maneuver 001 - Alpha" Tristina reported in a monotone voice. the quill, vibrating so badly, slowly began to disappear. "basic deconstruction in process. rerouting foreign entity." Tristina reported, pointing her right hand to the stool next to Sally.

Sonic and rotor watched, mouths slack, as the air flexed and warped...then began to solidify into a thin, light blue fiber. the fiber began to harden and wind itself into a quill. the quill was halfway complete when Tristina shuddered before reporting

"Unknown interference detected. compensating...."

After a few moments, Tristina gritted her teeth and gave one final shudder. "Unknown interference nullified. proceeding with transfer"

after several tense moments, the air around the quill gave a final quiver as Tristina reported

"Transfer complete. scanning subject 'Princess' for any additional foreign matter."

Sally closed her eyes as Tristina's right hand cast a gentle blue light over her. "No additional foregin matter detected. disconnecting."

Tristina then lowered her head and hands and seemed to go limp. "Yo Tiff!" Sonic called, shaking her lightly. "are you alright?" Rotor asked.

Tristina moaned and opened her eyes, blinking. "did it...work? Is the Princess okay?" she asked weakly.

[OctaScratchRock]

Sally was dizzy, but began to come around well.

"Tristina......" she said, "Thanks for that."

Tristina simply nodded and looked up at Sonic.

"You've got the most incredible abilities of any hedgehog I've ever seen," said Sonic. "And that's REALLY saying something."

[tiff15]

"Coming from the fastest hedgehog Ive ever seen, that means a lot." said Tristina, elbowing Sonic.

Tristina then leaned back in her wheelchair and sighed, not having had a moment of peace since that morning had started in the Great Swamp.

"Princess...I've never doubted your leadership, your courage, or your wisdom. but bringing the Accelerator back to Knothole..."

Tristina shook her head. "Forgive me, but I'm failing to see a reason. sure, we could always use more mechanical parts, and yes, it would have been helpful..."

Tristina stopped, trying to phrase her criticism as politely as she could. "Given the overall danger to Knothole's secrecy...I'm sorry, but bringing that thing back to the very place we're trying to protect..."

"She's trying to say it was a bad call, Sal," said Sonic, crossing his arms and tapping his foot.

Tristina lowered her gaze to her lap.

"I'm sorry, Princess. I didn't mean to get you in all this trouble over a quill and a stupid piece of electronics. I was trying to protect everyone...like you." said Tristina, wringing her hands.

[OctaScratchRock]

Sally looked around at everyone, and they were all looking at her.

"Maybe you're right, Tristina....." Sally thought out loud. "But if we can't use it, and if it's too dangerous........... what do we do with it?"

Everyone was puzzled. What exactly WOULD they do with it?

[tiff15]

Tristina suddenly snapped her fingers.

"Why not give it back to its creator?" Tristina said with a smile.

"what?" Sonic cried. "Have you lost your mind?!" Sally echoed.

"...with a few alterations of course," said Tristina, holding up her hands to calm them down.
-----

The next morning, Tristina went with Rotor to the spot where the Accelerator still lay, abandoned after Tristina and Sonics unexpected foray into Sally's psyche.

"The Princess and I wrote this program last night," said Tristina, grinning. "If all goes according to plan, Robotnik will spend MONTHS untangling the digital mess this is going to create. Robotropolis will be too bogged down with errors and 'false alarms' to be of any threat to anybody. a definite boon for the freedom fighters, to be sure."

taking a deep breath, Tristina raised her hand. the second the holographic keyboard appeared, the Accelerator began to glow light blue as Tristina typed. after a few minutes (with Rotor keeping lookout) the light blue aura of the accelerator faded as did Tristina's keyboard.

"Done. Rotor, your up." Rotor approached the machine and checked it over. aside from spending 8 hours in the great swamp, there was no evidence of tampering. "its cool." said Rotor. "Sonic will meet you at the edge of Robotropolis." said Rotor. Tristina nodded and gave Rotor a thumbs up, then took off towards Robotropolis. arriving at the all to familiar junk pile. Tristina barely had time to sigh before a signature Sonic boom erupted through the air.

"Yo Tiff." said Sonic, skiidding to a stop around her. "whats the plan?" "I figured a good round of cat and hedgehog would..." Tristina stopped as a Surveillance orb floated in the sky above them. "Yo tubby!" Tristina called, pulling the accelerator from her backpack and showing it to the orb. "We've got something you want! Now the question is, how badly do you want it?"

Sonic then stepped behind Tristina's wheelchair as the orb focused on the accelerator in Tristina hands. "The second the bots show up, juice," Tristina whispered, holding up the device so the orb could get a better look.