Whelp, this is my very first story I've ever written. Hope it was worth it
to whoever reads this. <G> I want to thank Alessandro Sanasi, Shawn Wolski,
David Pistone, Kris Kelley, and everyone else who helped me get this story
done.

This story is protected by copyright laws.  Feel free to distribute this 
story, but the author does not allow any unauthorized alteration of the 
story or distribution for profit.

All characters depicted herein are the creation and property of Service 
and Games (SEGA) and/or Archie Publications and/or DiC except for the 
following:
Bookshire: created and owned by David Pistone.

Send all comments to SirKain@mnsinc.com, or catch me on FurtooniaMUCK
at 192.82.208.37 9999.

Note: This story starts on Earth, present time.


    It was about 11:30p.m. when Eric got back from playing a role-playing
game with some of his friends.  Eric searched through his backpack, pulled
out his house key and unlocked the door.  "Ah... So good to have everyone
away on vacation!  For once I'm glad I'm alone.  No curfews, no nagging, no
rules.  Life can't get any easier than this!" Eric said smiling, while
feeding his fat cat, Misty.
    Around 2:00a.m., Eric was still up, playing one of those first-person
perspective games on his computer when he heard one of his cats scratching
on the front door.  "Aw, man!  Right in the middle of a good game."  Eric got
down to the front door, and was about to open it, when he looked through the 
window and saw his other cat, Calli, scratching like crazy against the door.  
"What in the world has gotten into you?"  He opened the door, and Calli backed 
up to the edge of the sidewalk, meowing.  "Stupid cat...", Eric grunted as he
walked out to get Calli, but then something caught his eye.  He turned to look
in the woods on his right, and in the distance he could make out a faint glow.
"What the...?  Oh, please tell me that's NOT a fire over there!  I better go
look," Eric said to himself.
    After grabbing a flashlight, he ran down to where he could see the glow.
It was in the creek, and yet he couldn't see if it was a fire or not.  So, he
stepped to the edge of the old creek, and then he saw a yellowish, glowing,
oval-like hole!  "What in the world is that!?"  Before Eric could say anything
more, the soft, muddy edge he was standing on gave way, and he fell through
the strange hole.

* * *

    On Mobius, the Freedom fighters were doing their usual thing.  Sally
was working with NICOLE, finding out any new info from Robotropolis,
Rotor was in his workshop, fixing a bug in Bunnie's arm, and Sonic and
Tails were in the Great Meadow.
    "Race ya to the other end of the meadow, Sonic!" Tails barked happily. 
    "You're on, big guy!" Sonic said as he started to race behind Tails.  Just 
as Sonic was about half-way to the other end of the meadow, a strange yellow 
portal opened up somewhere in the forest not far from his position.  Sonic hit 
the brakes and stared at the strange yellow hole.  "Huh...?  Don't tell me 
Buttnick has invented something new to find us!  Better check it -"  Before 
Sonic could say any anything else, a black-looking object just came out of the 
portal, crashing out of the portal and into a tree, then plopping to the 
ground.  "Tails!  Jam back to Knothole and tell Sally and the rest of them what 
happened.  I'm gonna check this out!" Sonic said as he started to juice to 
where the thing came out.
    Back in Knothole, Sally and the rest decided to take the black cat to
Rotor's workshop, where they had equipment to help heal it with.  After a
few hours it started to move around...

* * *

    Eric woke up to one of the worst headaches he had ever felt in his
life that he could remember.  He tilted his head left and right a few times,
trying to get his senses to kick-in again.
    "Oh man...  What happened...?  I never had a headache like this!" Eric said
to himself, but that one strange thing kept going though his head:  The
mysterious glow in the forest, he standing on the creek bank looking at it,
then slipping and falling right into it and then crashing into a huge tree.
    He tried to sit up, but the headache forced him back down.  "Uhnnnn."
He sighed, closing his eyes again.  "What the heck happened?"  He opened his
eyes again, focusing on where he was.  Eric's heart began to pace, as he
realized he was NOT anywhere he remembered!
    Somewhere to his left, a door opened, and a voice soon spoke.  "Ah, I
see you are awake now.  How are you feeling?"
    "I guess I'm OK, but I have one seriously bad headache....  tell me,
where am I and - AAAAAHHHH!!!"   Eric fell out of bed and pushed himself to
the far wall.  "Who - who are you?"
    Rotor blinked in surprise.  "Um, my name's Rotor.  Are you okay?"
    Eric stared at the figure before him.  This *has* to be some kind of
joke, he thought to himself.  Some of his friends had pulled weird pranks
before, but never something like that.  "Okay, okay,  you got me.  Now,
please, take off the mask.  Tom, is that you?"
    Rotor was confused.  "Uh, no.  Listen, you had a pretty bad fall back
there in the forest.  Why don't you let me help you back into bed, and then
we can talk.  Here."  He offered his hand.
    Eric shrunk back.  "Stay back!"  He brought his hands up, as if to
protect himself.  "Stay back or I'll..."  Eric gasped in mid-sentence as he
looked at his hands for the first time since waking up.   They were cat's
paws, covered in black fur!  He looked in horror at his arms,  jaw falling
wide open.  They also had a coat of black fur.  Eric frantically looked at
his body, his legs, his feet.  Black fur everywhere, except for his red
shorts, and his feet were now paws as well.  Panicking, he felt his face.
His paws felt more fur and even whiskers.  Reaching upward, he found his ears
not on the side like they were supposed to be, but near the top of his head!
Eric screamed, and looked at Rotor, his eyes wide with fear.  "What did you
do to me?!  I'm a freakin' cat!!"  He tugged at the fur on his arms, but it
was soon obvious this was no costume, as he felt a little pain from pulling
on the fur.  "What is going on here??"  He prayed it was a dream, but it
certainly didn't feel like any dream he could remember.  It felt all too
real.
    Rotor was more confused than ever now.  "What are you talking about?
Of course you're a cat, just like I am a walrus.  Sonic, a friend of mine,
found you out cold in the forest where you had fallen from some strange
portal.  I didn't do anything except have him bring you here."
    Eric continued looking at his fur and paws, trembling with panic.
"This... this just can't be true!" Eric said in his thoughts again.
    Rotor spoke again.  "Will you at least tell me your name?"
    "My name?  My name's Eric." Eric answered absent-minded.
    "I'm Rotor, like I said."  He chuckled and offered his hand once more.
    Eric nearly jumped out of his skin again, but he gingerly moved his
paw to accept it.  A chill ran through him as Rotor grasped his paw and
helped him up.
    Rotor thought for a moment.  "Sonic said you came out of some kind of
portal, like I told you, but I'm not sure.  Maybe Sally and NICOLE can help
on that.  Think you can walk?"
     Eric had forgotten all about his headache, but it was still there.
However, since he was now somewhat standing, and was currently experiencing
several of the worst scares of his life, he felt that walking couldn't make
it any worse.  "Yeah, I can walk."
    "Good, then follow me. I'll take you to Sally."

* * *

    Eric followed Rotor out of the hut and through the village.  Still he
couldn't believe what was happening to him, and his mind still had that one
thought going through his head:  The strange night and the weird yellow hole
and the whole bit.  But HOW did this happen to him?  He wiggled his paw,
shivering when he felt the fur rub between his fingers.
    As they walked, Eric looked around him in amazement.  He saw rabbits,
raccoons, foxes, all kinds of animals walking around and talking, as if they
were human, to each other.  Eric shook his head in disbelief.  "Great!" he
thought to himself.  "What next?  I HAVE to be dreaming. I just HAVE to..."
Eric let off a sigh.  "I HOPE I'm dreaming..."
    But it still didn't feel like a dream.

* * *

    Rotor led Eric to Sally's hut, and told him to wait outside.  A few
minutes later, Rotor motioned him to come in.  As soon as Eric entered, he
saw a female squirrel-like person looking at him.  "So, you must be Sally,
right?"  Eric asked, still feeling silly talking to animals.
    "Yes, my name is Sally.  Rotor, I would like to speak with him privately."
    "No problem, Sally."  Rotor said with a wave, and left the hut.
    Sally studied Eric for a short time, remembering what Rotor had told her. 
Eric didn't seem to know where he was, he didn't even believe he was a cat,
and he was scared.  This sounded unbelievable, as had Sonic's explanation of
how they had found Eric in the first place.  She wondered if he might somehow
be a spy, sent by Robotnik with this bizarre story invented in order to let
him be accepted into Knothole.
    But on the other hand, she thought, it would take a very stupid person to
try and spy for Robotnik, who was greatly known for, among other things, his
ability to double-cross.  Also, looking at Eric now, he did seem genuinely
surprised, and totally unaware of where he was.  Seldom before had she seen
such fear and uncertainty in someone's eyes.  And besides, spy or not, he was
already in Knothole.  So she decided to treat him as a guest and tell him what
he wanted to know... within reason, of course.
    "Well, Eric, from what I see you are quite confused.  Tell me, do you
have any idea where you are?"
    "No, no I don't." Eric replied.
    "Okay, well, this village is called Knothole, and it is located within
the Great Forest."  She looked into his eyes, wondering if he would show
any recognition of those names.  But if he had known them, he sure didn't
show it.
    "And where are you from?" Sally asked.
    "Where I'm from?" Eric echoed, getting up from his seat.  "Look. I'm from
Fairfax, and I haven't the foggiest idea where Knothole is!  Never heard of
such a place.  That wouldn't be so bad, except now I don't even have the
foggiest idea who I am anymore!  I mean, look at me, I'm a cat for crying out
loud!"  He sighed, resting his head on a wall.  "I just want to know why I am
here, and why has all this nonsense happened to me?  Why am I a cat?"  He
rubbed his forehead, and let off another sigh.  "And I just want to go back
home..."
    If he's a spy, he's better than any I've ever heard of, Sally thought,
but her mind was beginning to dismiss the possibility.  "I don't understand.
What do you mean why are you a cat?  You mean you weren't always one?"
    "Of course I wasn't!  I am, er, WAS human before I fell through that
weird yellow hole.  The next thing I know, I'm somewhere totally different,
and animals talk, and I'm a cat."   Suddenly he laughed in spite of himself.
"Am I even on Earth anymore?  I mean, what planet is this?"
    "Where on Mobius was Earth?' Sally asked.  "Is this another planet?
This world is called Mobius."
    Eric nodded, looking at himself yet again.  "Mobius.  Knothole.  Okay.
I'm sure it's a neat place to visit and all, and that's peachy-keen, but I
think I've had just about all the... surprise... I can handle.  I just want
to get back where I came from, and be human again.  Is that asking too much?
Tell me, please, is this possible?"
    Sally had stopped listening at the phrase 'nice place to visit', and her
gaze fell.  "But it isn't a nice place, Eric.  It used to be, but not
anymore."
    Eric raised a brow.  "Come again?  From what I've seen in this little
bit of time, it seems like everyone's having a blast."
    Sally sighed.  "Mobius, I'm sorry to say, is not a place I would
recommend an other-worlder to visit."
    Eric was surprised.  "And why is that?", he asked.
    Sally looked up again at Eric.  He wasn't a spy, she was almost
completely sure of that now, and even if he was, what Mobian didn't know
the devastation the planet had suffered for the past decade?  And so, she
proceeded to tell him the story, of her father, herself, and the treacherous
Minister of War who had become Dr. Ivo Robotnik...

* * *

    Eric just stood there, jaw open, shocked of all the horrible stuff
this Robotnik has done.  "Good lord... I can't see how anyone could get
away with all this, and even LIKE it all."  He shook his head in disbelief.
    "Well, I'm sorry that it looks like you are going to be stuck here for a
while.  I'll arrange you to sleep in one of the empty huts we have, and there
is food there as well.  We will talk more tomorrow," Sally said, and started
to walk to the door.
    "Thanks a lot, Sally.  I just need some time to think this all over,"
Eric said, following Sally to his new home.

* * *

    Later that night, Eric laid in bed wide awake, looking up at the sky
through the window, thinking to himself.  "Sally sure is nice and all, but
I just don't know what to do," Eric thought to himself.  "I'm not what I was
before... my whole life has basically been tossed away because of... of
whatever that yellow thing was I fell through.  Now I'm here, as a cat, and
have to start my life all over again.  And if Sally is telling the truth about
this Robotnik, we're gonna be toast unless we can take him down."
    Eric let off a sigh as he remembered his peaceful and easy life at home,
not having to worry about some crazy person taking over the world.  Being
able to walk outside without worrying about being captured or shot.  Being
free... and having his family and friends.  Things that he didn't have any
more and that he missed dearly.
    Eric got up and looked at himself in the mirror.  His whole body was
nothing but black fur now, with a tail, red pants, and bright green eyes.
He began shaking his head.  It sure would take some time to get used to being
this way.
    Hearing some noises, he cracked the door open enough to look outside.  He
saw some Freedom Fighters chatting by a campfire in the middle of the village. 
    "How can they still be so happy when all this is happening around them?"
Eric said to himself.  "I can't get over how much spirit they have... but I
guess that's all they have left.  Definitely some brave people here."  Then he
made a decision.
    "I can't just sit around like I did at home.  I need to help them get
Robotnik defeated and peace restored on this world! Fat chance I can do much, 
though..."
    Eric walked back to the mirror again, and chuckled a bit, while holding
the tip of his tail.  "I always wondered what it would be like to be a cat...
I guess I'll have to live with it."
    With that, Eric closed the door, and went to sleep.

* * *

    The next morning, Eric went to Sally's hut again, and knocked on the
door.  Sally greeted him and invited him in.
    "So, have you decided to be with us, or go your own way?" Sally asked.
Eric looked at her, and took a deep breath.  "Whelp, I thought about it all
night.  I see you Freedom Fighters have great spirit, and that's good.  I
would like to help you and become a Freedom Fighter, if possible.  I don't
want to sit around and have that Robotnik guy trash everything.  I don't know
what I can do to help out, but I want to try anyway."
    Sally smiled.  "That's wonderful!  I can't call you a Freedom Fighter
just like that, though.  You need to go on a couple missions with us and prove
yourself, but not risk others in the process.  But we'll talk about this
later.  Now I want you to meet the person who found you when you fell through
that portal.  He should be here any second now..."
    Before Eric could ask who it was, he heard this ear-piercing 'BOOM!' from
a distance, and saw a blue streak fly in the room, and stop right at the
doorway.  "What's up, big guy?  My name's Sonic!" Sonic said with a smirk,
and held his hand out to shake Eric's.
    Eric was shocked!  He had never seen any living thing moving THAT fast 
before.  
"Holy cow!  How in the world can you move that fast!?"
    "Geez!" Sonic smirked again.  "When ya have it, ya have it.  And I
definitely have it!"
    Sally rolled her eyes and grinned.  "I'll let you two
get to know each other.  I'm going to be here working on a new mission."
    "No prob, Sal.  I'll show him around the pad, and show him to some of the
other Freedom Fighters.  You're gonna like it here, Eric."  Sonic said,
leading Eric back outside.

   Sonic gave Eric a tour of the village, and introduced him to many of the
village residents...

    ..."You mean you can FLY?" Eric asked in disbelief.
    Tails smiled.  "Yep!  Watch this!"  Tails rose slowly into the air,
hovering for a few seconds before he began flying circles around Eric's head.
Then, he dropped back down to the ground and stood there, giggling while Eric
stared in surprise.  A flying fox? Eric thought.  Well, why not, everything
else that's happened has been just as unbelievable...

    ..."Hello again, Rotor.  Listen, sorry for freaking out on you like that."
    "No problem, Eric.  I hope you're feeling better."
    "Yeah, I think so."
    "Good.  Oh, pardon me while I work on this here.  I just need to get a part
from the closet..."
    Sonic chuckled.  "The closet?  Uh-oh.  C'mon Eric, we better split!"...

    ..."And that's Antoine's place," Sonic said, pointing to a hut they were 
passing.
    "Cool.  What's he like?"
    Sonic snickered.  "Ant?  He's pretty out of it.  'Bout the only thing he's 
good at is being silly."
    "Really?  What's he done?"
    "Well..."  Sonic was interrupted by a shriek from somewhere inside the hut, 
followed by Antoine's high pitched wail.
    "ACK!  ZER EES NO BUTTEHR!!  WHAT WILL I BE DOING??"
    Sonic nearly fell over laughing.  "Cooking again.  Let's get out of here 
before he wants us to try it!"...

    ..."Well hello, Sugarhog!"
    "Hey Bunnie!  Somebody I'd like you to meet.  This is Eric."
    "Nice to meet you, hon," Bunnie said, offering her paw.
    Eric shook it, then his eyes caught sight of her other paw.  "Oh my God!  
What happened to you?"
    Bunnie sighed.  "Well, Sugar, it's called Robotnik.  He captured me a long 
while ago and was going to roboticize me when Sugarhog here saved me from the 
machine."  She smiled at Sonic, making him blush.
    This was Eric's first opportunity to see Robotnik's work up close, and his 
anger against Robotnik continued to grow.  "That...that's insane!  Now I KNOW I 
wanna take this guy down!  I'm going to make SURE he suffers while I'm here!"
    "We know what you mean, Eric.  Definitely, we know," Sonic said.  They said 
their goodbyes and Sonic and Eric walked back to Eric's hut.

    The next morning Eric was awakened by someone knocking on his door. Eric 
quickly got dressed and went to the door, finding Sonic.  "Uh, yeah Sonic? 
What's up?"
    "Sal's cooking up a mission for us to go on.  I wanted ya to join us on 
this one. C'mon, or we'll miss the briefing," Sonic said.
    Eric followed Sonic to the center of Knothole, where Sally was waiting for 
them. "Hi guys.  OK, here's what I have planned for us to do in Robotropolis.  
We need to shut down the generator that powers the SWATBot factory.  There are 
two keypads on the generator, one on each end.  Eric, you will be in charge of 
one of the keypads.  Sonic and I will work on the other one."
    "Woah, wait a sec.  What am I supposed to do?  I don't know how to hack a 
computer.  I know how to FIX them, but not hack them," Eric said.
    "Don't worry, use this communicator. I'll tell you what to do through it." 
Sally handed Eric a small communicator.
    'What does she think I am? Someone from the army?? I just hope that I don't 
goof up,' Eric thought to himself.
    "OK. Eric, Sal, grab on! We're headin' to Robo-city!" Sonic said, taking 
Eric and Sally with him speeding towards Robotropolis.

* * *

    Sonic, Sally and Eric reached Robotropolis and were hiding behind some 
garbage cans, looking at the Generator.  Sonic warned Eric of the SWATBots, 
telling him what they were, and to avoid them at all costs.  "I'll try, 
Sonic..." Eric said, his voice trembling a little, while looking at his 
surroundings.  "Man!  I can't believe that such a city could exist.  Totally 
made of metal, no living things around, except us, and robots everywhere... 
this is definitely a town NOT to screw around in."
    Sonic sneaked over to the generator, and signaled Eric and Sally to follow 
since the coast was clear.  Soon they found one of the keypads. "We need to 
punch in the code at the same time to short-circuit the generator, making it 
shut down," Sally told them.  "Eric, you need to run to the other side, and get 
to the other keypad."
    "OK. I'm on my way," Eric replied and ran to the other side, watching out 
for SWATBots.  He found the other keypad, and opened it up.  "OK Sally, I'm at 
it.  What next?"
    Sally started to tell him the buttons to hit, but he didn't pay attention. 
His eyes were watching a SWATBot that just came around the corner, looking 
directly into his direction.  "Sally, there is a SWATBot here!  I don't think 
it sees me, but-- CRAP!  It sees me!  Get outta here, I'm gonna try and outrun 
it!"
    "But what about-"
    "Forget it, GET A MOVE ON, NOW!" Eric shouted and started to run, heart 
racing, the SWATBot hard on his heels.

* * *

    After running around the city for quite some time, Eric was totally 
exhausted and had to slow down. "Ugh... think.. I lost him...  Dangit!  Now 
what am I supposed to do!?" Eric said to himself, looking around helplessly.  
Finally he hid behind some rubble near a metal door.  "Looks like some kind of 
storeroom here.. better hide there until things are safe again, and then signal 
Sonic and Sally with the--"  Eric stopped mid-sentence as he remembered he left 
the communicator by the keypad.  He smacked his forehead.  "Doh.  Way to go, 
Eric!  Smart move!  Well, guess I'll go in anyways, so the SWATBots won't 
find me."  Eric walked toward the door, but suddenly it slid open, revealing a 
SWATBot facing him.  Eric started to run back to find somewhere else to hide, 
but he only ran into two more SWATBots.  This time it was impossible to get 
away.  "Oh god... don't shoot!  I give up!" Eric yelled as he threw his paws in 
the air.  The two SWATBots grabbed him and carried him towards a strange egg-
shaped building.

* * *

    "So, this is the unknown Freedom Fighter who was caught trying to sabotage 
my generator, is it?" Robotnik said to Eric, smiling evilly.
    "Yeah, and who the heck are you?  Are you this Robotnik everyone told me 
about?  If those robots wouldn't hold me back I would show you what I think of 
you!"
    "I sure am." Robotnik replied with a chill.  "And when you are roboticized 
you will be a loyal servant, and soon all the other Freedom Fighters will 
follow."
    "Ha! Get real, Robotnik!" Eric yelled defiantly.
    "Don't be so sure." Robotnik replied.  "With my new invention I am now able 
to open a portal to any location I desire.  And then I will send mySWATBots 
through it, catching your friends off-guard."
    Eric gasped as he heard the word 'portal'.  "A portal?  A yellow glowing 
portal?" he blurted out.
    Robotnik stared at Eric, looking surprised.  "Indeed it is.  But how do you 
know?"
    "Then YOU are the one who is responsible for what happened to me!" Eric
screamed, now full of rage.  "Your stupid invention sent me all the way from my 
home world to this crazy place.  I saw a yellow glowing hole in a creek, and 
fell in.  Next thing I know, I'm in Knothole!  Before this happened I was 
human, and now I'm a cat!"
    "What an interesting story" Robotnik said, while turning towards a round 
screen.  "I have to admit that I had a few problems with the dimensional 
constants during the testing phase.  If you would tell me where Knothole is 
located in relation to the portal that brought 
you here, maybe we could come to an agreement..."
    "No I won't!" Eric yelled at Robotnik.  "You may have me, but you will 
never capture the other Freedom Fighters, you MANIAC!"
    "And how are you going to stop me, then?" Robotnik asked, while walking up 
to Eric's face.
    Eric started to lose control of his temper, and gave a quick thrust of his 
leg downwards, slashing Robotnik from the chest down.  Robotnik grabbed his 
chest and let off a scream.  With a sudden move, Eric freed himself from the 
SWATBot's grip.  But before he could try to make a run for the door, he was 
cracked across the face from Robotnik's backhand and sent flying across the
room.  Eric's body smacked against the wall, and fell to the ground in an 
unconscious lump.
    "For that you will pay!" Robotnik screamed furiously.  "For that you will 
pay DEARLY!  SWATBots, take him to the roboticizer, NOW!" he ordered.

* * *

    "I guess the coast is clear now, Sal," Sonic says, while looking out of 
their hideout, checking to make sure that no SWATBot are within range.  Sally 
nodded and they both ran over to the generator.  They reached the side Eric was 
at when the SWATBots got him, and saw his communicator left there.  "We have to 
go look for him!" Sonic said.  "Eric doesn't know Robotropolis.  We can't just 
leave him here!  There's no telling what ol' Buttnik is going to do to him if 
he's caught!"
    "Sonic, get serious!" Sally replied.  "He forgot his communicator, and we 
don't know where he is now. This place is crawling with SWATBots.  It's too 
dangerous to search for him."
    "I don't care!  I won't leave him here! He also risked his hide to save 
ours," Sonic persisted.
    Sally thought for a moment and Sonic started to tap his foot impatiently.  
Finally, Sally said, "OK, fine.  You are fast enough to outrun the SWATBots. 
You will have a better chance if you go alone searching for him.  But first we 
have to finish what we started here..."

* * *

    Eric started to come-to, feeling a little dizzy.  He opened his eyes, and 
realized he was still in Robotnik's headquarters!  Eric tried to move, but 
noticed two SWATBots were holding him, and he saw Robotnik standing by a weird 
machine with a dome.  Robotnik started to grin evilly.
    "Ah, you finally woke up.  Since you told me that you are from another 
planet, I would like to show you my marvelous invention:  The roboticizer."
    Eric's eyes widened and his heart paced with fear when he heard that word. 
Two other SWATBots enter the room, carrying a young female squirrel. She was 
totally consumed with fear, her eyes wide as she tried to break free of the 
SWATBots' hold.  Eric watched the squirrel, getting even more scared about what 
is about to happen to him.  The two SWATBots who were carrying the other 
prisoner put her into the strange tube-shaped cylinder, and closed the glass 
door.  She started to cry and scream, but nobody could hear her.  She started 
to bang on the door, frantically trying to get free.  Eric just stood there, 
shocked. 'Oh my lord,' he thought to himself.  Robotnik flipped a switch, and a 
glowing beam hit the squirrel from above.  Right before Eric's eyes, the 
squirrel's arms and legs started to change into metal, then her chest, and 
finally, the machine took all signs of life from her and robotisized her head. 
Eric's heart almost stopped when he looked at what the machine did to the once-
living squirrel, and looked at its eyes, all red.  'Oh god.... THIS is 
what's going to happen to me!?' Eric started to tremble a little bit, feeling 
the most scared he has ever felt in his entire life. The two SWATBots took the 
robotisized creature out of the room.
    Robotnik looked at Eric, and smiled, looking friendly at him. "Of course 
you won't have to share the same fate as she did, if you tell me the location 
of Knothole. The war on Mobius is of no concern to you, and you don't even 
belong here.  I only ask for a little favor.  Tell me where Knothole is 
located, and I will let you go free, and I could gladly send you back home.  I 
give you my word."
    Eric looked at Robotnik, with fear in his eyes. Eric started to think about 
his family again, and his friends and home.  His own, normal life.  Not having 
all of this chaos, and being human again.  Eric then looked over at the 
robotisizer, thinking about the robotic squirrel and remembering the horrifying 
transformation she went through.  'He's my only way to get home...'  "OK, I'll 
tell you," Eric said, trembling a little.
    Robotnik listened carefully.  Eric told him that Knothole was about 300 
meters from the great meadow.  "Finally!" Robotnik shouts with glee.  "With 
that information I will finally have my victory over those accursed Freedom 
Fighters!"  Robotnik started to walk out of the room.
    "B-but... You promised me you would send me back home....That was the deal, 
right?" Eric asked.
    Robotnik turned around again, showing one of his most evil smiles.  "You 
actually believed I would let you go?  You definitely aren't a smart one.  Why 
should I even bother?  You already told me what I needed.  SWATBots, put him 
into the robotisizer!"  With that, Robotnik walked out.
    "N-no!  You promised! You promised!!" Eric screamed after him, his eyes 
full of tears.  "I will get you for this Robotnik, I swear I will!"  The 
SWATBots dragged him to the roboticizer and put him in. Eric tried to ram the 
door open, but it was too strong.  The machine above him in the cylinder 
started to make a humming sound.  Eric's heart raced again.  "I'm done for!"  
Eric closed his eyes, still crying.  'I'll never see my family again... 
never...'  Suddenly, the humming he heard stopped.  Eric opens his eyes and 
realized the room is completely dark.  He wiped the tears form his eyes.  
'Alright! Sally and Sonic got the generator to shut down.  Hopefully that 
killed whatever was holding the door closed...'  Eric also noticed one other 
thing; he could see in the dark!  Eric rammed the glass door again, and it came 
open.  The two SWATBots in the room were aiming their spotlights in all 
directions, but not anywhere near where Eric was.  Eric made a break for the 
door, and started to run down the hallway.

* * *

    "Snively! What is wrong with the generator?" Robotnik yelled.
    Snively shrieked, "It appears that the freedom fighters short-circuited the 
main generator, s-sir."
    Robotnik rammed his fist into a nearby machine.  "Blast them!  I want ALL 
SWATBots to guard the backup generator.  NOW!  I won't have them stop me from 
finding Knothole!" Robotnik yelled again.
    "B-but Sir, are you sure you want to send ALL available SWATBots-"
    "Don't ask questions, just DO IT!"
    "Y-yes sir.  Right away, sir," Snively replied, issuing the commands.

* * *

    "Yes!  Yes!  We shut it down, Sonic!" Sally said happily.
    Sonic hi-fived Sally in return.  "Yeah! Now to find Eric. Outta here!"
    "Wait Sonic!  They probably took him to Robotnik's headquarters.  I just 
hope that Eric is still alive..."
    Sonic nodded in agreement with Sally.  "OK, I'll be back in a sonic-
second!"
    "Be careful-"  Sally stopped mid sentence as Sonic darted off.

* * *

    Eric walked down the empty corridors for some time, not getting anywhere.  
All of the corridors look exactly the same, no matter which way he took.  'Man, 
how am I supposed to get out of here!?  If I don't find a way out soon, I'm 
history!'  Eric was about half-way down a corridor when the lights came back 
on.  Eric gasped.  "Ack! The power's back. I've gotta hide!" he said as he ran 
into a nearby doorway.  Eric glanced around the room.  The room is empty, 
containing nothing but a huge machine in the middle of it and lots of terminals 
and screens that reminded him of the ones similar to Earth's.  Eric started to 
walk up to the one in the middle of the opposite wall.  Eric looked the 
computer over, and noticed a partially-opened drawer.  Eric opened it and found 
a couple of CD-looking disks.  "Hmm.... Better hold onto these.  Maybe Sally 
could use them... IF I get out alive, that is."  Eric closed the drawer, and 
looked at the screen in front of him.  It said, "Teleportation mainframe. 
Target-Knothole."  Eric gasped.  "This is the machine controlling the portal!  
And its set to open up at Knothole!  Me and my big mouth," Eric said to 
himself, angrily.  Eric looked at the screen again as another line came up, and 
this made him gasp again.  "Beginning final phase of opening portal on 
target..."  Eric noticed a small screen turn on next to him, showing Robotnik's 
face.
    "SWATBot, report the progress on the-!  WHAT!?  You're still alive?  You 
are supposed to be robotisized by now!" Robotnik said.  "How did you get to the 
portal machine?"  Robotnik turned around, yelling at Snively.  "Snively, send 
some SWATBots to get the intruder in the portal room immediately!"
    "I-I'm afraid I can't, sir... You sent all the SWATBots to guard the backup 
generator." Snively replied.
    Robotnik looked helplessly at the screen at Eric.  Finally, he smiled.  "It 
doesn't matter.  He doesn't know how the machine works, and the process for 
opening the portal is almost complete!  It's only a matter of minutes."
    Eric thought to himself again.  'He's right.  Knothole is doomed, and I 
don't know how to stop this blasted machine!!  This is all my fault!'  Eric 
looked at the machine, but the 
many buttons and control panels meant nothing to him.
    Robotnik smiled even more.  "It's all over!" he shouted with joy.  "The 
Freedom 
Fighters are finished.  You're ALL finished!!"  He started to laugh a cold and 
evil laughter.
    Eric started to fill with anger, it consuming him.  He looked directly at 
Robotnik.  "No!  You won't win this time!  I  won't let you!  Not after what 
you did to me, sending me here, ruining my life and many others here!"  Eric 
walked away from Robotnik's screen, and grabbed one of the chairs, and raised 
it over his head, walking back to the screen. "Your plan is going down, 
Robotnik!" Eric yelled.
    "NO! Don't do it! Don't damage it, and I'll send you home. I promise this 
time!" Robotnik begged.  Eric froze, beginning to think of his family, home, 
himself being human again.  Eric also remembered how he was ripped from his 
world and thrown here, thanks to Robotnik, and how he tried to KILL him. Eric's 
anger grew even more, and started to grind his teeth together.  Eric started to 
smash the machine maniacally, making chunks fly, sparks fly, and Robotnik 
scream.
    "NOOO!! I was so close!  SO CLOSE!!!  You.. You will pay for this, you, 
you-"
    "Ah, shaddup!  I've had enough of seeing your sorry-looking self!  Eat 
this!" Eric yelled as he swung the chair into the Screen Robotnik was on, 
smashing it.  Eric looked around the room, seeing sparks flying every direction 
from the machines.  Eric started to walk out, but he was hit from the back from 
a good sized chunk that came from one of the exploding machines, making him 
collapse.  Eric grabbed his head, feeling very dizzy, and closed his eyes.  
'Well, I tried anyways... At least Sonic and the rest of Knothole is safe for 
now...' Eric thought to himself, before passing out.
    Suddenly Sonic zoomed into the room, seeing Eric on the ground and the 
machines getting ready to blow.  Sonic grabbed Eric, and started to speed out 
of the room, machines exploding when he was half-way down the corridor.  "Hang 
in there, Eric. We're outta here!" Sonic said as he started to head out of the 
building.  Sonic stopped at the generator, where Sally was.  "Sal, grab on! 
We're leaving this dump!" Sonic said, holding out his had to Sally.  Sally 
grabbed on, and Sonic zoomed out of there, heading back to Knothole.

    Sonic and Sally took Eric back into Rotor's hut, and asked Bookshire to 
look at him.  Bookshire viewed the screens that had wires attached to Eric. 
"Hmm. He'll be fine, but it will take some time.  He really overworked himself, 
so he needs to rest."
    "Whew! That's a relief. Hey, what's that in his hand?"  Sonic pointed to 
Eric's clenched 
left hand.  Sally pried his paw open, and found two shiny data disks, and 
handed them to 
Bookshire.
    "I'll look at these later with you, Sally," Bookshire said, and Sally 
nodded.
    "I guess he grabbed those in that portal room I grabbed him in," Sonic 
said.

    Later that evening, Eric was still asleep.  Sally was in Bookshire's hut, 
listening to what he had found on the disks.  "It's not too much, really.  They 
appear to contain some of Robotnik's notes and other general information about 
the portal machine.  Unfortunately, there's nothing like schematics or any 
details on the technology."
    Sally nodded.  "So are they any good to us at all?"
    Bookshire thought for a moment, scrolling the text on the screen.  "Not by 
themselves.  However, using these notes to do some research, and if we were 
ever lucky enough to find the right equipment..."
    "Yes?"
    "I would imagine that we could use these notes as a starting point to 
figuring out how the portal machine worked.  After that, it might be possible 
for us to build our own."
    "Hmm," Sally said, thinking.  "So it may be possible someday to find a way 
home for Eric?"
    Bookshire nodded.  "Perhaps."  Then he sighed.  "But I would have to say it 
wouldn't be for quite some time to come.  Like I mentioned, the information on 
these disks aren't very detailed."
    Sally got up.  "At least we can tell him there's still hope.  Thank you, 
Bookshire."

    The next day, Eric woke up, and they moved him into his room to sleep.  
Eric wasn't really with it to talk about anything, since he was so tired.
    Later that night, Sonic, Eric and some of the other freedom fighters 
gathered around the campfire.  Sonic started to tell the others about how he 
messed up Robotnik's main generator with Sally, and how he heroically saved 
Eric before the machines blew up.  Eric was listening, but was somewhat away 
from the campfire, leaning against a tree watching.
    Tails spoke up.  "But, wasn't that machine Eric's only way back home?  I 
thought he wanted to go home."  Eric heard that, and let off a sigh, and 
started to walk away, back to his hut. "What's with Eric, Sonic?" Tails asked.
    "Listen, big guy. He's been through a lot. It's going to take some time for 
him to get used to being here...."
    Antoine hesitantly spoke.  "Umm, I am zinking... Why not we have a ceremony 
for Eric?"
    Sonic was about to say a crack to Antoine, but when he heard that idea, he 
grinned.  "Yeah! Good idea for once, Ant!"  Sonic smirked.  "Let's go see what 
Sally thinks."

* * *
	A little after Eric left the campfire, he heard a knocking in the vicinity of
his hut's door.  Checking his chronometer and seeing that the time was 2200
hours, he thought to himself, 'Now who would be coming over at this time of
night?'  He walked over to the door and asked, "Yeah? Who is it?"
	"It's me, Bookshire.  May I come in, Eric?" the voice from the outside 
answered.
	Eric opened the door, allowing Bookshire to enter.  He sat down on his
bed after pulling a chair over to it.  Giving an indicative gesture with his left paw
and arm, he said, "Please...sit down."
	Bookshire smiled and took his seat in the offered chair.
"Thank you."
	Eric stared at the floor, and nodded absentmindedly, only half-hearing 
Bookshire's response.
	The raccoon noticed Eric's general mood, and his face changed
to one of seriousness.  "There's something I have that I believe you deserve to
know about..."
	No reply from the black cat, other than, "About my chances of getting
back home?"
	Bookshire nodded.  "Yes...that.  I've discussed the matter with Sally...
And we both see that there's no way to return you to your home, at least not
anytime in the near future.  There's no schematics on the disks anywhere that
give us information on how the portal was put together and its functionality.
I'm sorry, Eric..."
	Eric continued staring at the floor and let off a little sigh, a tear running
down his muzzle.  "S'okay...I'll get used to it."
	Bookshire put a comforting paw on Eric's right shoulder and rubbed a
little.  "I know this is hard on you...but we will find a way, eventually.  Which 
reminds me...I've been thinking about how you got here, and how you were 
altered from a human to a cat."
	The black cat looked from the floor to Bookshire's face, a mixture of 
sadness, confusion, and interest present in his eyes and muzzle.  "H...how?"
he stammered.
	The raccoon leaned back in the chair a little, his head angled up a bit 
as he thought.  After a few seconds, he explained.  "I know this is going to 
sound a bit crazy, and what I say shouldn't be taken for scientific fact...but 
here's what I have so far."
	A brief pause, then he continued.  "From what I was thinking, each 
dimension has its own...personality, for lack of a better term.  Our DNA is 
'written' and 'initialized' to fit the 'personality' of the dimension we live in.  
Just as you were human in your dimension, and I am a raccoon here, we are
products of our particular universe."
	Eric looked a bit confused, but nodded for continuation, interested in
the hypothesis.
	"Given that assumption, there is an incompatibility between a
dimension and a 'foreign' lifeform.  When you were sent here, your DNA was
'reformatted' to fit this universe.  And so...you changed from human to what 
you are now."
	Eric scratched his head, somewhat more confused than before.
"It makes a little bit of sense...but I still don't understand."
	Bookshire quirked his mouth, somewhat confused himself.  "I know...
As I said before, I'm not an expert on this.  Until we see someone who might 
be able to explain how and why, that explanation will have to do for now."
	He looked away for a brief moment, then turned his head back
toward Eric and smiled.  "Regardless of why or how you came here, this is 
your home for the duration of the time you're here.  Welcome to Mobius, 
Eric...and the Freedom Fighters." He extended a paw to the cat.
	Eric smiled for the first time in the past few days and took the paw, 
shaking it. "Thank you, Bookshire. Thanks for coming by and trying to explain 
why I'm this way, and welcoming me here."

***
    The next morning, Eric was woken up by a knock on his door.  He got
up to open it, and he blinked in surprise when he did.  All of the Freedom 
Fighters were waiting outside, standing in two rows to the left and right, with 
Sonic, Sally, and Antoine at the end.  Sally said in a very formal manner, 
"Eric, please step forward."  Eric, a little confused, walked up to Sally.  
Sally spoke again, saying, "A long time ago there was a tradition on Mobius.  
The bravest of Mobius's citizens were dubbed a knight by the Royal Family.  
This tradition still exists, and therefore, because of your courage to give up 
everything you loved to save us all, I decided that we should carry on this 
tradition."
    Eric was speechless, and he just stood there, his mouth hanging open.  
Sally smiled for a moment, then put on a formal face again as Antoine handed 
her his sword.  "Kneel down, Eric." she said, and Eric did.  "According to this 
tradition, every knight gave himself a name to be called by during battle. What 
name would you like to give yourself, Eric?"
    Eric thought for a moment, then smiled as he remembered the name that he 
often used in role-playing games.  Finally, he said, "Um... whelp, I always 
liked to be called 'Kain'."
    "All right."  Sally touched Eric's shoulders with the sword, then smiled as 
she said, smiling, "Rise to your feet, Sir Kain!"
    Eric stood back up, and the Freedom Fighters gave him a cheer.  Everyone 
smiled, and Eric realized he was finally beginning to feel at home here.  He 
was happy.
    Sonic walked up to Eric and smirked.  "Now you've made yourself a hero AND 
a 'Sir' in only a few days.  I wonder what you will be up to next?"
    Eric chuckled.  "I guess for a start I could use a nice armor to wear..."

THE END