~ Chapter 1 --> Chapter 2 ~
~ Summary ~
When the presence of a Hoverby at Dusty Village incites fear that the Tralius Egg Army is beginning to close in on their peaceful home, three Mobians decide to rise to the challenge, willing to do whatever it takes to keep their home, and the Arid Prairie Zone, safe from the Eggman Empire.
~ Parts ~
~ Part 1 ~
It was another balmy, if somewhat humid, day at the Dusty Gulch, with a bright sun sitting high in the sky and only a smattering of clouds dotting the blue expansion. Things were quiet as well...and to a lone mulgara sitting upon the ledge of the gulch, overlooking the modest village tucked into the bottom of it, the silence was deafening. She sighed and leaned back, a light breeze ruffling her hair.
"Another day...another case of the doldrums," she mumbled, eyelids drooping. She yawned a bit, stretching her arms. She looked like she was about to doze off when she saw a faint shape hovering down within the gulch, near the river that ran from Lake Fortuna. She sat up and squinted at the shape; it was vaguely cylindrical in shape, with two golden disks at either side of its frame. It was clearly no animal, as its purplish body glinted in the sun like metal.
"What...?"
She got up and swiftly climbed down the slope to the gulch's bottom, and ran towards the shape. It was hovering above the river now, a strange, purple cylinder flanked by two rotary engines, with two yellow antenna sitting atop its 'head'. It turned towards her, revealing a pair of red and black robotic eyes.
"Badnik...!"
She skid to a halt, and immediately turned tail towards the village; by now, other Mobians could be seen wandering outside, drawn to the strange sight.
"What's going on?" one of them asked as the mulgara ran towards them.
"It's a Badnik...!" she cried out, panicking a bit. That single word was enough to send a ripple of worry through the small crowd. People started mumbling, looking at each other.
"Badnik??"
"But they're only in the Red Outback Zone, right...?!"
"What do we do?!"
The sight of a Badnik had incited an almost instant fear in the villagers; a fear that the Tralius Egg Army, which had already established a formidable foothold within the Red Outback Zone, was starting to invade the Dusty Gulch, and potentially other areas of the Arid Prairie Zone, as well. The people of Dusty Village were well aware of the existence of the Eggman Empire, but had found comfort in the belief that their modest home would remain untouched.
Now, such beliefs were being shattered, and nobody felt safe. The mulgara frowned, trying to think of a way to calm everyone down. At that point, a male quokka and a female quoll had approached as well.
"Jesse, what happened?" the quokka asked. The mulgara was startled out of her deep thoughts, and looked at her friend.
"I...saw a Badnik by the river," she said, looking somber. "I don't know if Dusty Village is safe from them anymore, not if they're starting to send their minions to sniff around..."
"Will we have to move?" one of the villagers asked, eyes wide with fear. Jesse shook her head.
"No. They're not going to make us move," she said, crossing her arms. "If anything, we're going to make them move."
No one seemed to be on board with this idea; people were shuffling and looking around nervously.
"We can't hope to do anything against them," said one, crossing his arms. "For one, they're heavily armed. And two, there are way more of them than there are of us; we wouldn't stand a chance if they decided to attack."
Most oft he other villagers murmured and nodded in agreement. Jesse bit back a growl of frustration.
"But...we can't just sit here and wait for them to come knocking!" she protested, hands balled into fists. "We have to protect our home!"
"We can't fight them, though," the protesting villager continued. "We don't have anything to defend ourselves with!"
Jesse shook her head, starting to turn away from the others.
"We can't be that defenseless," she growled, crossing her arms. Her two friends walked towards her, looking concerned.
"Jesse..."
~ Part 2 ~
~ Part 3 ~
~ Chapter 1 -- Chapter 2 ~