A question of Ideology - By Rich Morgan

A QUESTION OF IDEOLOGY - A 'ZONERUNNERS' STORY

by Rich Morgan

"Dude, you can't be serious!"

"I'm afraid so, Sonic... we... had no choice."

Sonic looked up at the figure calmly sitting at the other end of the table in the small, poorly lit empty stone room. He searched for the right words to say, his mixed feelings of anger and sorrow somehow preventing him from communicating his thoughts. He clenched his fists in frustration, and closed his eyes as he spoke again, this time considerably quieter.

"How long has this been going on?"

The elderly dog held his thick glasses in his paw, wiping them clean as he replied to the question.

"Six months, or therabouts... people had... assumed the worst. Something had to be done."

"Done? By risking innocent civilian lives?! Why not just hand them straight over to Robotnik, Talbot?" Sonic shouted.

Talbot placed his glasses back on his snout and stared at the aggrivated hedgehog. All was silent for a few, uneasy moments, Talbot simply looking at Sonic. Sonic didn't like the situation. He wasn't afraid of Talbot, but he certainly didn't trust him. Eventually, the dog opened his mouth to speak.

"The Mobian People chose to set themselves free. This was not forced upon anyone - isn't it clear that they would rather die seeking their freedom than to succombe to the evil of Robotnik's empire?"

"But dude, we're talking about innocent lives here!"

"All have opposed the New Mobian Order themselves, Sonic. Nobody... had this thrust upon them unwillingly."

Sonic banged his fist on the table in rage. Talbot peered over the top of his glasses at the young hedgehog as Sonic shouted in frustration, unable to accept what he was hearing.

"Tell them I am still here to save them from Robotnik! Nothing has changed!!"

"It's... too late, Sonic. The people have decided to take action, and no one... not even you... can change their minds."

"But look what you have done to them dude! You've put weapons in the hands of the citizens!" Sonic pointed at the Runner standing next to the doorway in the dimly lit room, protectively holding a rifle at his side. Talbot looked at the figure, and then back at Sonic. He frowned and spoke firmly this time.

"I.. did NOT supply them with weapons. I am not their leader, nor am I in any position of authority for that matter - the people do as they please! Weapons were a solution to the conflict experienced against the Badnik Trooper Army. You must have seen some by now, and if you have, you'd understand how tough they are. The people... cannot overpower them with their bare paws!"

Sonic opened his mouth to reply, but Talbot continued to speak.

"Sonic, the people won't just wait for you to save them. How do you think that Robotnik established himself so easily in the first place? Society's... dependance on you proved to be our undoing. When you disappeared, Mobius was essentially defenceless. Now, the people are fighting back, against Robotnik, against his reigeme, and against his minions."

Sonic slowly sat back down. He knew that to argue over the situation was both pointless and unneccesary. No matter what he said, he couldn't change what was happening across Mobius.

"Maybe so, Talbot, but they gotta be warned that this hero business is a dangerous game..."

"Nobody sees this as a 'game', Sonic. And no-one... no-one is trying to be a hero. They are simply standing up for themselves."

"People are gonna get hurt, dude." Sonic voiced his biggest worry once again. Talbot quickly replied with an unusual fierceness.

"Everybody knows that. But what else can we do? Sit and wait for Robotnik to enslave us, our families, our children?"

Sonic sighed and looked at Talbot again. He had to accept the situation. After a brief pause, Talbot leaned back in his chair and once again returned to speaking quietly and calmly. Now it was his time to ask a question.

"I... don't suppose you'd co-operate with the Runners of Mobius? It would be... unfortunate if there was a breakdown of communication amongst the freedom seekers of the world. United we stand, divided we fall... surely there's some meaning in that phrase...?"

"Look, I don't approve of this - but I guess I have no choice. These dudes are depending on me, aren't they?"

"Yes. You are a symbol of hope and optimism for Mobius, Sonic. No-one has forgotten what you have accomplished."

"Well, i'm gonna continue to do it MY way. I'm not giving up!"

"No one said you should. it's just the people-"

"Yeah, I know, the people want to be free."

The slightest of smiles crept along Talbot's face as he heard Sonic make the last remark. The hedgehog stood up, and pushed his chair back. The guard at the door looked up at him.

"Well - laters, dudes. I gotta split."

Talbot, still sitting with his head resting on his paws, looked up at the blue hedgehog partially lit by the single lightbulb above.

"Good luck for the future, Sonic. I'm sure we'll meet again."

"Yeah, you too Talbot. You'll be seeing plenty of me - I guess it's time to save the world again."

"Only this time... you're not alone. We're ready for what will ensue... use this to your advantage. Rao, show Sonic the way out, please."

The guard in the corner slung his rifle over his shoulder and walked silently over to the door, unlocking it with a loud clang that echoed through the cold, dark building's passageways. He held the door open as Sonic walked towards it. Just before he left, the hedgehog stopped and looked back at Talbot. He had one more thing to say.

"Be careful, dude - don't make an army out of these people. Is that any different to what Robotnik plans to do with them anyway?"

Sonic turned away and walked through the door, Rao following close behind. A metal clang echoed through the building as it closed. Talbot sighed loudly as he sat and thought about the situation - what had happened since the dawn of the occupation, what was to become, and what future fate may have in store for the Mobian people.

He thought of Sonic, and his ignorance to the situation. He was strong minded and determined, but Talbot believed that the young hedgehog had no idea just how immense the threat of Robotnik was. The Runners were not the small groups of supporters they once were, childishly cheering Sonic on as he set animals free from container units and Badniks in the Zones - for the last eight months, they were the only thing between Robotnik and total domination of the planet. Bravely they had stood against all odds, and risked absolutely everything in the journey for freedom. The population were no longer content with waiting to be rescued from the evil of the New Mobian Order - they felt a burning desire, as Talbot himself did, to live in peace and freedom, and would stop at nothing to get it. It was a common dream, a shared motivation, that created the Runners that actively fought night and day to set the world free, and nothing more.

As he sat, eyes closed and motionless, alone in the cold, dark room, he just wished that Sonic could see it that way.