Memories of David The Echidna

Yeah, he does seem like an important supporting character. He drives Gizmo everywhere and gives good advice. xD

Heh..can't wait hun.

XD And he's a doctor. He's also more than half the reason Gizmo took up inventing, and everything else he's worked on.

Haha. Then I think you owe his father a name and a sprite.

Yes. Yes I do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SaoBpmKpDU

I am officially ticked off right now. This person. He has been stalking me and trolling me for years now. I had thought that he finally left me alone, until someone showed me this.

This has completely ruined my mood for the entire week. I couldn't even listen to the whole thing.

Well, I haven't quite continued yet. Ever since that incident, I haven't been feeling up to writing anything on my own in a long time. But my motivation is returning, especially since several ideas keep coming to me and getting bottled up inside. (Not necessarily for this fanfic, but still.) But because of what happened, I almost hate the title of this now. But I don't know what else to change it to.

In anycase, just to show that I'm not completely giving up on this story, I've gone and saved what I worked on in Microsoft Word, and touched it up. I then ported the updates here, and added a Table of Contents to the first post. (I've always wanted to do that.) Soon, I'll be working on the third chapter. I've been reminded that whether or not people like this story, I HAVE to finish it. There are too many things that need answering in my (or rather, our) series, and this is the best way to settle things for good. I want to have a fresh start on our new season, if we should continue from here on, without anything holding us back. That's why I have to go through with it till the end.

The day passed by quickly. As the sun was setting in the horizon, I had just finished testing the last few variations in his stock. He tried different styles and methods in creating his armor, but we had confirmed that only the first one was worth selling. "So, I take it that we're done for the day?" I asked, as I finished putting the last piece of armor we tested back on the rack.

"Yes, that'll be all for now." Kaine responded. "Thank you for your assistance."

"Don't mention it. So when do you think you'll be able to start the sales?"

"Actually, I believe I could make it happen tomorrow." He said with a smirk. "Oh, and before I forget, here." He walked over to me, and dropped some cash into my palm. I looked down at it, it was a lot less than I thought it'd be.

"This is it...?" I asked, somewhat disappointed.

"This is just a tip. The real paycheck comes after the sales." He reassured.

"I suppose that makes sense." I said. "Thanks. I'll see you tomorrow." And with that, I headed home.


And sure enough, the next day I saw him in the lobby at noon, with his rack full of armor. In fact he had three racks. I was shocked that he had produced so much already. I took the day off from fighting to look after the sales. At first things were rather quiet, with only a few customers. But after Kaine decided to have me do a little "Demonstration", the lobby was buzzing with excitement. The lower leagued fighters were nearly running each other over to get their hands on the Power Armor.

By the end of the day, he was nearly sold out. "That went well." I commented. "How was that for the grand opening of your new business?"

"Just about what I expected, with a little extra cash to spare." Kaine smirked proudly. "It's gonna start getting a bit hectic in the ring, now. All the local cream puffs and little wimps are suddenly mopping the floors with the major league fighters. Thanks to ME of course."

"Heh." I glanced towards the hallway leading to the arena. "Gotta wonder how they're taking it. And of course, I'm one of those Major Leaguers."

Kaine chuckled a bit. "Well, you'll need all the luck you can get if you come face to face with one of them." He boasted. "Whelp, I'm gonna call it a day." He turned around and began to look at all the cash he collected. "Here, take this." He turned back towards me, handing me a small sack. I took it, and heard the jingling of rings inside. Probably more than twice as much as the last payment.

"Thanks." I said. "I'll be looking forward to the next sales day." I watched as he carted away his belongings. Having two jobs now, I didn't think I had much to worry about now. Things were looking bright for me and my family. Although I admit, I was a bit worried that I may have unleashed something terrible to my main career.











Smash soon arrived back home. He walked into the living room through the garage, once again. Upon looking around, he noticed that the house was still empty. Everyone was still out at the park. He walked over to the couch, and slumped down on the cushion. 'Well that's one problem solved.' He thought. 'Now back to the main one...' He looked up at the ceiling, recalling the events that had transpired that day. 'So, all I got at the Blitz Pit was that armor, amongst a few other things which are pretty irrelevant to this case. That armor, though...that can't be irrelevant. It's gotta be a clue of some sorts. I just wish I knew what it meant...' He sighed, now realizing that he was pretty much back at square one until Gizmo got back to him with some results. 'There must be clues somewhere...I don't know much about where Dad used to go other than to the Blitz Pit. That was my best shot...at the time. Of course, he didn't die at the Blitz Pit...or did he?' He looked at his watch. It was nearly 3:00 in the afternoon. 'I think I've got some time to think.' He looked back up at the ceiling again. '...Some time to think about what happened that day.'

Closing his eyes, he began to recall the events of the day his mother and father passed away, seven years ago.
'It was the 5th of April; The day after my sister's Birthday. We couldn't celebrate Pearl's birthday on the day we should've, since Dad had something important to do that day...and he couldn't get back until late that night.'
He leaned to the side to rest his elbow on the arm of the couch.
'So the next morning, Mom and Dad left early that morning to get what they needed for the party; specifically some ice cream, and her birthday present. We were expecting to see them back by noon at the earliest. However...they never came back.'
His eyelids tightened as he remembered waiting the entire day with his sister for them to return.
'Late that evening, the police came to our house to deliver the bad news. I couldn't believe what I had just heard...in fact, I outright refused to believe it...'
Images of him yelling and screaming at the police in absolute denial came to mind.
'It wasn't until they handed me a box, a gift-wrapped box, when I stopped to listen. Inside...was Pearl's birthday present. I came to realize that they were telling the truth...We never did celebrate Pearl's birthday that year...'

It was painful for him to remember Pearl's reaction to the news, especially since she was right behind him listening on the conversation that whole time. She hid her face behind her hair, and wouldn't look up from the ground. He could tell that she was in shock over it. 'Pearl...She's suffered from this far more than I have. All this happened on her birthday, a day that should have been happy for her. I can't imagine how much pain that put her through...She was shell-shocked for like the entire year onward. I could barely even get her to speak for months! And the only thing I could say to her that day...was "Happy Birthday", and give her the gift. I wanted to stay strong for her, and keep her spirits up so that she'd know that we'd pull through okay in the end, but...I think that probably hurt her more than it helped. That was the best I could come up with...'
He took a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm.
'After that, Pearl and I lived alone together. I decided that I would take care of her on my own. Mainly because our uncle Spikes was moving, and we couldn't get in contact with him until Crash called nearly a year later. I didn't learn of my Grandma's phone number until some time later, and even then she lived--and still lives--way too far from here. And going to an orphanage was out of the question. Which now that I think about it, is rather disturbing considering what the only orphanage in town was like. Anyway, the only job I could think of getting easily, was one at the Blitz Pit. Since Dad used to take us there sometimes, I knew the way pretty well. I signed up, and it's been my source of income ever since.'

Smash shook his head, bringing his train of thought to a halt. 'Wait, I'm trailing off subject now.' He thought, now sitting up straight. 'I'm supposed to be looking for clues or any helpful information regarding that day, not going on a short Autobiography!' He chuckled lightly to himself for getting carried away.
'Looking back on what I know, My family is pretty much in the dark on what happened, yet there's apparently rumors floating around that he was in a car accident. The police told me that the investigation was still going on, and that they would inform me if they found out the cause of his death. Yet, they never did. I've been waiting for them all this time. But with all that had happened in those 7 years, I'm ashamed to admit that I'd forgotten. So that brings us to the question: Just what DID the police find out? Or rather, What the crap have they been DOING all these years?' He stood up. 'It looks like I've found another lead...' Looking towards the door, he knew just the person to talk to.


Smash parked his motorcycle in front of a house, just down the street from where he lived. The house belonged to his best friend, Speedy the Hedgehog. He got off and walked up to the front door, and rang the doorbell. After waiting a couple of minutes, the door opened to reveal a red hedgehog with beautiful long hair; Speedy's mother. "Hello, Smash. Good afternoon." She greeted with a smile.

"Ah, Hello Ma'am." He replied.

"You can call me Meryl. I don't mind." She said.

"If that's what you want, then okay." Smash shrugged. "Anyway, is your husband home? I need to speak with him."

Her eyebrows rose. "Oh? No, he still hasn't come home from work, yet. But he gets off in about three hours."

"I see..."

"What did you need to talk to him about? Anything I can do?" She asked.

"Nah, not really. It's a bit personal, I'll probably explain some other day."

"I see. Well, if there's anything we can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask."

Smash nodded. "Thank you Ma--I mean, Meryl." He said. "I've gotta go now. Take care, and tell Speedy I said Hi."

"I will. Goodbye for now!" Meryl waved before closing the door behind him. Smash headed back to his motorcycle, and drove down the street.

'Three hours, huh? I'm not waiting that long.' He thought. 'At least, I hope I won't. I'm gonna try to see if I can catch him down at the station. It'd probably be best if I did.' He turned up the road heading north, driving towards the Police Station.



Soon, Smash pulled into the parking lot of the station. He shut off his bike and walked towards the building. Suddenly, a familiar smell wafted by his nose. "...Hot links." He smirked. He was definitely here. Walking around to the side of the building, he saw a middle-aged red hedgehog wearing a cowboy hat, leaning on the wall of the station. The hedgehog was taller than he was, and had a very iconic brown handlebar mustache, that curled at the tips. He was just taking the last bite out of his ketchup covered hot link, and licking the condiments off of his gloves. "Hey, Speeder!" Smash called out.

The man glanced towards him at the corner of his eyes, soon turning around to face him. "'Afternoon, Smash. I was just taking a short lunch break." He said, tipping his hat off to him. "What brings you up here?"

Smash stopped in front of him. "Well y'see, I wanted to talk to you about something."

Speeder brushed his hands together, and then against his sides. "Well, What can I do for ya?"

"Tell me, do you know anything about my mother and father's death?" He asked. Speeder's eyes widened, somewhat surprised by the question. "David and Sarah Corliss. Do you know anything about the incident?"

Speeder took a step back, looking somewhat shocked. "Y-your last name is Corliss...?" He asked.

Smash put his fists on his hips. "C'mon, don't tell me you've forgotten that David of the Blitz Pit was my father, now!"

Speeder adjusted his hat, staring at the ground. "No, it's just that I..well, it just didn't register in my mind to piece together those parts of the puzzle." He said. Smash tilted his head to the side, a bit confused. He looked up at the echidna with a frown. "Let's talk inside." He said.

"Hm? Okay..." Smash said, before following Speeder indoors.


Once they were inside, Speeder led Smash to a desk at the far end of the room, and pulled out a chair for him to sit down in. Smash took the seat while he sat down in another chair. "Okay so, I take it you know what happened, don't you?"

Speeder looked down a bit. "I feel rather ashamed to tell you this after all these long years." He said. "Lemme apologize ahead of time for this."

"It's cool. Right now what's important is that I know everything that happened." Smash said. Speeder nodded, and continued.

"Back then, I was just a rookie on the force. Just a guy who did what he was told, nothing less, nothing more. When that day came, I was assigned to help with the investigation. It was my first case. When we arrived on the scene, the detectives took over most of everything, while the other officers were questioning the locals."

"And what were you doing?" Smash asked.

"...Putting up the Caution tape." Speeder said, somewhat sheepishly. "I couldn't really get a good look at the victims since the detectives were all over them, and they eventually were taken away for the autopsy. But with the way things were going, it seemed like they knew what had happened."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Eventually we all split up to do a bunch of different tasks, mainly gathering evidence to prove their theories correct."

"So what did you find?" Smash asked, getting more anxious by the minute.

"A cup 'a Hot Jones for the lead detective. And a dunkin' donut."

Smash's head drooped. "You weren't a very high man on the totem pole, were you?"

Speeder scratched the back of his head. "Well, um..A-anyway, as I was saying. Things started to get a little confusing later. The whole deal with the autopsy report, I couldn't really understand what was going on."

Smash's head rose back up. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, You've heard the rumors about the car accident, right?" He asked.

"Not until earlier today." Smash grumbled.

"Well, I can't even really say for sure that a car accident even occurred..." Smash's eyebrows rose at this. "The guy who was supposed to hand out the autopsy, well he went missing before we could get it. STILL haven't found the man."

Smash sat up straight, staring at him in shock. "What...?"

"Yeah. So we ended up having to send someone else on the job. And then we get that one about the car accident." Speeder said, folding his arms. "But one of the guys said that there was a glaring contradiction with that autopsy, if I remember correctly."

"A glaring contradiction?"

"Yep. We were gonna double check it, but then another case came up and we ended up dropping the it altogether." He said with a sigh.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me..." Smash groaned. "So that's it? You all just left it hangin-"

"It's because of what happened in the next case, that we had to drop it." Speeder interrupted, flashing him a serious look. "Because what happened this time, affected not one, but several of the fighters at the Blitz Pit, and cost the lives of several officers here." Smash looked shocked. He stayed silent, and let him continue. "In that next case, there was a man. I don't remember that man's name, or the whole story behind the guy, but I know that he was selling some strange armor type things to the fighters. Apparently this whole thing was a plot, and he was going to use the money to fund for something fiendish. Once everyone found out, the fighters started a revolt against him. And that's when we were informed. Though the police didn't really approve of the fighters tagging along, We banded together and set out arrest the man. We pursued him all the way to Hedgehog Park, and the next thing we know, he's got a gun and he's opened fire. He caught a few of us off guard, and ultimately landed several good shots on us. Fortunately, he ran out of ammo. We pressed him into a dangerous situation, and he tried to do something with his armor. I dunno what it was he was trying to do, but it failed--the whole thing blew up on him and knocked him into a tree, rendering him unconscious. So basically he took himself out for us. But at a great cost; we'd lost practically everyone who was on the team regarding your case. The only survivors I know of are me, and a man who's retired."

Smash stared at him for a good long while. He was completely taken back by the story, and was struggling to find something to say.

"And here's a bonus piece of info." Speeder added. "The fighters didn't just find out on their own that the guy was up to no good. Someone told them all. And that person was none other than your father, who died the very next day."

That last part felt like someone had punched him in the chest. He was at a complete loss for words. "...Speeder...I, I don't..." He closed his eyes for a few moments. "..Why didn't you ever tell me?" He asked, quietly.

"Well, like I said earlier. It took me a while to really get around to putting two and two together." He scratched his head. "Really sorry about all that."

Smash shook his head, and looked back up at Speeder. "...So what happened to the man? Is he dead?"

"No." Speeder said. "The guy's been in a coma ever since. I doubt he'd be getting out anytime soon, but if he does I don't think there will be anyone out there to really stop him legally. Especially since I'm like the only "figure of authority" who really knows about em."

"I see." Smash looked down. Countless thoughts were racing through his mind. "Do you think that I could look at all the documents and files concerning the case?" He asked, looking back up at him.

"Which one?" He asked.

"David and Sarah's, but I'd like to look at the other one too, if possible." Smash said.

"I see. I'll send em over to your place later today." Speeder said. "Right now it's about time that I get back to work." He stood up, and looked down at Smash. "I already know what you're trying to do. Digging up the past to solve a long forgotten mystery, it's no easy task. But keep at it, I know you'll figure it all out eventually." He walked away, leaving the blue echidna sitting by himself at the desk.



Smash once again walked into the living room of his home through the garage. He glanced around, the house was still empty. 'Well, this is just what I needed. Peace and quiet, I need to think about all of this...' He walked upstairs into his room, and slumped over onto his bed. He was beginning to get a little bit tired. 'I can't believe Speeder was really on the case.' He thought. 'It looks like the whole Car Accident thing might not actually be true, after all. But what's this whole thing about the missing man? What's going on with that? And then there's the riot...' He closed his eyes.
'Dad...Is that why you couldn't celebrate Pearl's birthday on the right day...? What you were really doing, was warning everyone...Warning all your colleagues back at the Blitz Pit that you spend all your work time with, about the threat that was coming up. I always thought of you as a hero, but that was just because you were my dad. I never knew you really were one.' He let out a sigh, and opened his eyes again. He stared at the ceiling of his bedroom.
'But couldn't it have waited? Was it really necessary to postpone the party? I wonder, was that man about ready to follow up with his plans so soon that it required immediate action? Possibly. But now that makes me wonder...He was selling armor like things to the fighters...It couldn't mean...' He sat up. 'Is that suit of armor I found in Dad's locker, one of the same things that man was selling?'
He glanced out the window, feeling as if another lost piece of the puzzle just fell into place. Standing up from the bed, he headed for the door.

"I think it's time to pay Gizmo another visit." He walked out of the room, once again heading out to hit the road.

It wasn't long before he arrived at Gizmo's house. He walked up to the doorstep and knocked on the front door. It soon opened up, and Terrence, Gizmo's father, stood behind it. "Hello again, Smash." He greeted.

"Hey. I was just coming to check up on Gizmo." Smash said. "Is he still working in the basement?"

"Yep. Hasn't even taken a break since you left." He stepped aside, "Come on in."

"Thanks." Smash walked inside and closed the door. He quickly brushed his shoes off on the welcome mat before heading towards the basement. As he opened the basement door, he heard the voices of Gizmo and Kitty down below, as they worked together on the armor. He walked down the stairs, wondering how far he'd gotten. "Hey, Gizmo!" He called out, just as he reached the last step.

The cat looked up from his work, taking his goggles off his eyes and onto his forehead. "Smash! Welcome back." He said, rather cheerfully. Kitty rose into the air from behind him, waving his hand happily.

"So how goes it?" Smash asked.

"Well, I've discovered some interesting things about this armor." Gizmo said, grinning a bit as he twirled a wrench around in one hand. "First off, I'm pretty sure we both knew that this armor was strange, right? Well it turns out that it really is unique."

"What do you mean?" Smash asked again, walking towards him and Kitty.

"This armor was specially designed to power up the user to great extents." He said. "I realized this when I saw this knob here," He tapped his wrench on the right shoulder, where a small knob with the words 'Manual' and 'Automatic' were. "Apparently, Automatic just brings out all the power at once. But Manual, though I haven't tested it, I assume it means that you have to try to utilize the power yourself."

Smash stared at him for a few minutes. 'I think...that I was right.' He thought. "Where does it draw it's power from?"

"That's what I found the most interesting." Gizmo said, turning to open up the chest-plate. "Look here and see for yourself."

Smash looked over his shoulder and down towards the armor. His eyes widened when he saw a light pinkish ring, about the size of a bracelet, resting inside. "...A ring?" He asked, somewhat surprised.

"An Elemental Ring." Gizmo corrected. "In fact, one of their rare Life rings, to be precise. Made even more rare now seeing as the whole factory closed down. You're lucky to have this thing."

"I see..." Smash stroked his chin. "I wasn't aware that these things could provide power like that."

"Neither did I, which is why I was so intrigued by it." Gizmo closed up the compartment. "Which really makes me wonder how they made em."

"Same here." Smash stood up straight. "Hey, check and make sure this thing is completely stable." He said. Gizmo looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "If I ever end up using this thing, I don't want it backfiring on me from old age."

"Hey, now! Have I ever given you faulty equipment before?" Gizmo asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Hey, I don't mean to offend, I'm just saying." Smash said. "I have my reasons. I trust you'd have it in top shape anyway, but just give it a double check, okay?"

Gizmo frowned, he knew something was up. "Well, if you say so." He stood up and dusted himself off. "Don't you worry. When I'm done with this thing, it'll be better than when it was first made!"

"Alright. Thanks again." Smash glanced down at his watch. "It's getting late. I'll call ya tomorrow." He said. "See you two later."

"See ya!" Gizmo said.

"Bye Bye!" Kitty waved. After Smash had left, the two exchanged glances.

"Well, you heard us." Gizmo said, smirking a bit at his chao buddy. "Fire up the Power Copy Machine, Kitty. It's time to apply some "Upgrades"..." He rubbed his hands together, excitedly.


As Smash rode back home on his motorcycle, he couldn't help but wonder about the armor. 'That armor has to be linked to that revolt, somehow.' He thought. 'A man making armor type equipment to sell to the fighters. Finding old "Power Armor" in my dad's locker. That can't be a coincidence. Now for the tricky part: Why did he have armor in his locker, if he went on a revolt against the man making them? Maybe he bought the armor from him, and somehow that's how he found out that the guy was up to no good? I wonder...' He stopped before a red light at an intersection. 'Would he really need that kind of armor? I wonder if he actually used it. I wonder if I'll ever use it. Should I?'
As the light turned green, he remembered his chat with Speeder. 'Ah right, he said he'd send those files over "later today". Since it's kinda late, I'd assume that he'd sent them by now. Finally, things are moving along in this case...'

Can't wait for more of this story Smash! Its getting good!

Thanks! Already started on the next chapter.

The days went on just like that. I worked with Kaine after my battles in the arena; on the weekdays we would create and test new armor, and the weekends were when we sold them. With the extra money, I would occasionally spend it by buying treats for or going out with my family when I had the time. It was a time where everything seemed happy.
But, Something was bothering me. After seeing how much more powerful the fighters were getting from the products, I gradually began to feel worried. Not so much that I might end up having to face on of them in the ring, but the fact that they could easily take that power outside. There could be all sorts of trouble if that kind of power fell in the wrong hands.

Winter was coming to an end. We were greeted with a brisk spring breeze, a bit earlier than expected. The snow quickly melted away, and the weather was pleasant. It was around this time that my wife was invited to see an old friend, who lived all the way out in Techno Hill Zone. They were having a barbecue, and though I thought it strange that they'd start so early in the year, the weather was nice enough for it. We decided to go together as a family, after I came home from work that day.

The day passed by rather quickly, and before I knew it we were just cleaning up after selling a substantial amount of armor. As I collected the suits of armor, I asked him, "Do you really think we should be doing this?"

Kaine looked up from the cash register, "Pardon?"

I turned to face him, "Selling Power Armor, I mean. Is it really okay to just do that?"

"Why do you ask? What's wrong with it?"

"It's been bothering me, lately. We both know good and well that Power Armor was a great success, but should you really give away such power to random people?" I asked. "What one could do with that kind of power, the possibilities are vast. What if they fell into the wrong hands?"

Kaine shook his head. "No need to worry. The lower leagued fighters are the only ones permitted to buying this stuff." He reassured.

"Yes, but how do we know that the wrong hands aren't the ones of the fighters themselves?" I argued. "There's no way you can truly predict what every fighter in here would do. They could cause as much trouble outside of the Pit as they could inside."

Kaine paused, seemingly unsure what to say. I know I'd cornered him there with my point. "I have faith in the fighters, I don't think they'd do anything like that." He said. "Besides, it's a little late to be asking that, now. We've already made this an official business now."

"I suppose..." It didn't really make me feel too much better about it, but I just dropped the subject there. I still had someplace to be, so I couldn't waste my time. After we finished, I received my daily salary and headed back home.












Smash walked back into the living room through the garage door, once again. This time, he was greeted with the smell of food cooking. 'Well, looks like they're finally home.' He thought. He walked into the kitchen, and saw a dark blue hedgehog with beautiful flowing hair--which was currently tied into a ponytail, chopping up vegetables by the counter. She noticed him immediately, and smiled warmly at him.

"Oh, there you are!" She said. "I was beginning to wonder. I thought you'd have been home by the time we got back."

Smash rose his eyebrow at her, grinning a bit. "Well while you took your sweet time, I've been back 4 times already."

She giggled, "You were that bored without me there to keep you company, huh?" She joked. "You should have come to see us if you had that much time on your hands!"

Smash laughed. "Well actually, I've been rather busy today. Just kept dropping by here as a sort of rest stop." He said.

"Is that so?" She brushed aside the vegetables she chopped up onto a plate, soon bringing out another set of veggies to chop. "What have you been up to all this time?"

Smash opened his mouth to respond, but stopped when he heard the doorbell ringing. "Well, I'll tell you later." He said, turning around. "I'll get that." He walked out the kitchen and to the front door. Looking through the peek hole, he recognized the red figure at his front step. He swung the door open with a smile. "Hey, Speedy. What's up?"

Speedy, a red hedgehog wearing a "I ❤ Hot Links" T-shirt and a longtime friend of Smash's, looked up at him holding a briefcase in his hands. "I was hoping that you could tell me." He said with a frown. Smash gave a look of concern; he seemed uncharacteristically serious, and that worried him. "My dad asked me to drop this off with you, and I have no idea why." He held up the briefcase for him.

"Oh, I know what this is." Smash said as he took it. "Thanks." He opened it up, and saw just what he was expecting: The case files he'd asked for. "Yep, this is it."

"My dad hardly ever asks me to send briefcases to anyone, let alone anything to you." Speedy said, somewhat suspicious. "Especially not "Super Top-Secret" files on "Classified Information". Not only that but he seemed unusually serious and focused, today...Smash, are you in trouble? What did you do?"

Smash closed the briefcase. "I didn't do anything, and Top Secret Classified Information is a bit of an exaggeration, I think. Anyway, come on in." He let his friend walk in and closed the door behind him.

"Smash, What's going on here? Did something happen?" Speedy asked, now looking worried.

"Sort of." He said. "I suppose I'll have to explain everything right about now." Smash walked towards the couch, putting the briefcase on the table before sitting down. Speedy followed behind him and sat down on the chair next to the table's left side. "Alright...It all started when-"

"Oh hey you're back." A voice said from behind the couch. Pearl had just come downstairs and stood behind the couch, standing just above her brother's head. "Hi, Speedy."

"Hey, Pearl." Speedy said. "Er, we were kinda in the middle of a sentence, here."

"No, it's alright." Smash said. "She should hear this, too." 'In fact, this concerns her more than anyone else besides me.' He mentally added.

Pearl blinked, cluelessly. "Hear what?" Her gaze soon drifted towards the briefcase on the table. "Who does that belong to?"

"Sit down, Pearl," Smash said. "And I'll tell you everything I've learned today." Pearl was confused, but she did as she was told.


"It's been a long day for me." Smash said, solemnly. "I've stirred up some old memories, stuff that we put behind us without a second glance for seven long years." He glanced towards Speedy, then Pearl, both of whom were giving him a look of concern. "Today I was at the Blitz Pit, hanging out with the guys as we took the day off from fighting. We talked about the World Tournament, and soon the subject drifted on to the old fighters who've gone." He closed his eyes for a moment. "They mentioned David, who as you both should know, was a great fighter back in the day." He reopened his eyes, giving them a serious look. "Did you know that he was in a car accident?"

Pearl froze in shock. "What...?"

Speedy shook his head and shrugged. "I don't have a clue what happened back then." He said. "...Did you?"

"As shocking as it may sound, That was the first time I ever heard of it." Smash said. "In fact, I'm pretty sure we're the only ones in the whole family who has."

"Wait, Huh?" Speedy looked baffled. "But...How does that make sense...?"

"It doesn't. That's why I began to investigate." He then leaned back in his seat, letting out a heavy sigh. "Thing is, The police said that they'd take care of everything, and let us know when they found out what had happened. We've been waiting ever since." He glanced over at Speedy, taking note of his rather worried expression. "I'd have gone out and investigated my own self, but at the time we were more concerned about our living conditions. Not long after I signed up for the Blitz Pit did I meet you and Violet. Eventually, we met Neo and then Jenny, and everyone knows where THAT lead us."

"Right..." Speedy looked down.

"So how is it that word of a car accident reaches everyone but us?" Smash asked, rhetorically. "That's why I went and talked to your dad before he got off work. I needed to know just what the police were up to all this time, and why they didn't let us know anything."

"What did you find out...?" Pearl asked quietly, staring blankly at the floor.

"It seems that a lot more happened back then than we thought." He said. "Speeder's first case, was the case of our parents' death."

Speedy's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "A-Are you serious!?" He exclaimed. "You mean...you mean he knew what happened?"

Smash shook his head. "Not enough to solve the mystery, but he was there on the scene." He said. "Unfortunately your dad wasn't given many great opportunities there, but what he knew did prove to be useful. What he knew was that things got confusing, and a car accident might not have even happened." Speedy leaned forward, now anxious to know what happened. "He told me, that the person in charge of handing out the autopsy report went missing. And he's still missing to this very day."

"Missing...?" Pearl asked, now looking up at him.

"Yeah. In fact, now that I think about it, the guy was most likely declared legally dead a few months ago."

"Whoa..." Speedy gasped softly.

"So they had to get a new guy for it." Smash continued. "When they received the report, one of the lead detectives on the case said that there was a glaring contradiction with it."

"Really? What was it?" Speedy asked.

"Dunno. Let's find out." Speedy's eyebrows rose as Smash leaned forward to grab the briefcase from the table. He set it on his lap, and opened it up. Speedy stood up from the chair and sat down next to him, as Pearl scooted closer. "Let's see here." He took out a folder, and began searching through it's contents. It was rather light, in fact, there were hardly any papers inside. He took out an envelope and opened it up. "Here it is." He said. The two leaned closer as he took out the report and read it.

"What's it say?" Speedy grunted, trying to get a good look.

"The Cause of Death was a powerful blow to the entire body with a large, blunt object; Death was almost instantaneous. The names of the victims are David Corliss and Sarah Corliss. Time of Death was 6:23 PM, and apparently the whole thing took place in...Green Flower Zone, just a ways away from the city limits..." Smash looked up as his voice trailed off.

"They were...already on their way home when it happened..." Pearl said, somewhat sadly.

"I don't know if it's the same one, but I already see a big contradiction here." Smash said, placing the paper down on his lap. He glanced at Pearl, who was starting to space out. "For the time we lived down there in Green Flower Zone, I've learned the area enough to assure you that no car "Accident" could have happened."

Speedy recognized that look in his eye. He had just solved another portion of the mystery, and he was ready to go into full detail of just how he did it.
"Firstly, let's look at the facts. IF We're to trust this "autopsy", then they died somewhere along the path to our house. Word on the street is, it was a car accident. Fits the autopsy's description, yes, but is that probable?"

Speedy listened carefully, waiting to hear the contradicting part. "Hey wait, now that I think about it...It's just a small dirt road that ends once it gets into Green Flower Zone, right?"

"Exactly. There is little to no traffic at all in that area." Smash said. "Exactly how does one get into a car accident in the middle of a clear grassland, with a few large hills, when it's just you and two people walking around and nobody else? Plus, you really can't go very fast, as there are quite a few tight turns and a couple of narrow bridges, which I might add are not even meant for cars, meaning they'd have to be very careful driving over them if they can even fit. And considering the victims, I highly doubt they'd have been killed by a car moving half a mile per hour." He shook his head. "And suppose they DID get into an accident, Why did the person not stop to help them? According to the police, they just found them lying there, with nobody else in sight."

"A hit and run?" Speedy suggested.

"Run where, I'm wondering. It's a one way road, and a dead end at the bridge past the waterfall. They'd have to turn back and head back to the city, and only be able to turn around once they were well on the main road." Smash took a quick glance at the paper. "And considering how fast the police got there, the car would have been spotted pretty quickly."

"When did you get the news about it, anyway?" Speedy asked.

"Police arrived at about quarter to 7:00. Judging by the fact that it'd have taken them a bit of time to figure out where we lived, that means it gives the person less than 20 minutes to turn around and get back to the city without detection." Smash said.

"Don't you think it's strange?" Pearl asked, suddenly. "That the police would get there so quickly? They must have gotten there in about 10, maybe 15 minutes after the accident."

Smash nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Not only that, but the station is way up in the northern part of town, while the incident occurred all the way past the southern border of the city." He looked back down at the paper, his eyebrows rising as he realized something. "Come to think of it, How would the police even know if a hit and run happened all the way out there in the first place? It's not like they do patrols down there. Unless someone called them, they wouldn't even know what was going on."

"Unless...someone did call them..." Pearl suggested.

"But even then, they wouldn't have been able to arrive so quickly after the accident." Smash said. "Remember how great the distance is between the two."

Pearl flashed him a look--the same glint Speedy saw in Smash's eyes earlier. "Which means that they'd have to have called before the accident actually happened." She said. "Then again, who's to say an "Accident" even happened?"

Smash knew just where she was going with this. "It'd have to be a pretty elaborate "Accident" if the police were notified before-hand."

Speedy glanced back and forth between the two. "You mean...-"

"There was no accident. There was no car." Smash declared "We're dealing with a case of homicide."



After dinner, the three sat back down in the living room to continue their discussion. After putting the kids to bed, Luna came to join them, and served them all a cup of green tea. Smash briefly filled her in on what was going on as they cleaned up before-hand.
"Y'know, you two are amazing." Speedy complimented. "You managed to solve nearly half the case from just one sheet of paper! I could never do that."

"Hehe, thanks." Pearl giggled lightly. She took a sip of her tea, as Luna sat down next to Smash. "We still got a few more unanswered questions."
"Such as who the culprit, and what their motivation for murder was." Luna stated.

Smash reclined back on the couch, folding his arms behind his head. "I dunno for sure, but I got a hunch about both of em." He said.

"Really?" Pearl asked, looking surprised.

"There was a lot more that Speeder told me, than just the thing about the autopsy." He explained. "That's why I got this briefcase here."

"Well, go on! What else did he say?" Speedy asked.

"Well for starters," He began. "He said that they were going to investigate the contradiction and see what was up with it, but they didn't get the chance to because another case came up. It required immediate action that time, so they basically had to drop what they were doing and go."

"Well that kinda sucks." Speedy said, frowning with disappointment.

"The next case is what gave me my hunch, though." Smash said. Everyone's eyebrows rose at this, as they wondered what he meant. "I'mma get straight to the point. There was this guy making armor type equipment for the lower leagued fighters at the Blitz Pit. He was using the funds to save up for some kind of big and evil plot. Fighters found out, and they pretty much formed an angry mob. That's when the police got involved."

"Whoa, really?" Pearl asked, looking rather surprised.

"Yep. They chased him all the way to Hedgehog Park. When they had him cornered, he suddenly whipped out a gun and shot at the police. Caught many of them off guard, as they thought he was unarmed. He got quite a few of them before he ran outta bullets, and apparently the only survivors in the team working on our case was Speeder and some guy who retired."

"Holy..." Speedy's voice trailed off before he could even think of how to finish that sentence.

"Seeing how he still had a mob to deal with, and he ran out of bullets, I assume he tried to power himself up with the armor he wore, also assuming it was one of the ones he was selling. I'm not sure, Speeder said he tried to do something, but it backfired. Literally." He frowned a bit. "The thing exploded around the chest plate, and knocked him into a tree. Knocked em the heck out."

"Whoa." Was all that Pearl could really say at this point.

"What happened next? What became of that man?" Luna asked.

"He's been in a coma ever since. From what he told me, I don't think the guy's gonna be released anytime soon."

"And the case?"

Smash shook his head. "They had to cancel it." He said. "With only two people on the team, one who barely had any knowledge of what was going on with it, not to mention the funeral was probably being held pretty soon, about the very next day if I recall correctly, I don't think they could hold it up very long. "

"I see..." Luna leaned back in the seat, thinking over the matter.

"And before I forget, someone told them all that the guy was up to no good." Smash said. "And that was our Dad." The three were taken by surprise again, Pearl being the most shocked. "Not quite sure how he figured it out, but he did. And he was about ready to lead them all as well, but he and Mom died the next day."
Smash glanced around at them. They were silent, still surprised by that fact.

"Dad..." Pearl whispered softly.

"So, uh...you think he did it?" Speedy asked. "The guy who's in a coma now?"

Smash nodded. "Yep. He's the one, I'm sure of it." He said.

"What makes you so sure?"

Smash sat up straight. "My father never had any real enemies." He said. "If someone were to kill him, they'd have to have a good reason to do it. Which is generally the case in a lot of murders, but still. If he exploited and foiled the man's plot, he'd have just created a new enemy, don't you think?"

Speedy nodded. "Yeah. And the fact that he died the very next day doesn't really help his case."

"Exactly. What's more, I've found another clue." Everyone looked at him, curiously. "Before I talked to Speeder, I went to the storage room of the Blitz Pit. Y'see, David passed away before he could resign, and his stuff's been in there ever since. So I went to get it and see if I could find anything out."

"And you did, didn't you?" Luna asked, smiling a bit. "What was it?"

"A suit of unusual armor."

Their eyebrows shot up. "Wait, So that means..." Speedy paused for a second, "..wait, what does that mean? Um..." He muttered under his breath for a couple of moments. "Wait, that means that he must have gotten armor from that man! Right?"

"Most likely." Smash nodded, somewhat amused by his sudden pause. "Though I have no direct proof, after all we've learned I can only imagine that to be true."

"So where is it?" Pearl asked. "I wanna see it."

"I left it with Gizmo. The thing wasn't in the best shape so I asked him to fix it up for me." He replied. "But I ended up learning that the armor was specially designed to power up the wearer, and it was powered by an Elemental Ring. A Life Ring, to be exact."

"Really?" Pearl asked, sounding really intrigued.

"Whoa, Cool!" Speedy exclaimed. "Do you think he used it, much?"

"Who knows?" Smash shrugged. "In anycase, this all links together one way or another. I know that armor has to relate to that man. Speaking of which..." He leaned forward and opened up the briefcase again. "I got files on that case, too." He took out another folder, one which was heavier than the last, and looked inside. There were many more documents on the case than the last one. Browsing through them quickly, he took one sheet of paper and read it. "Let's see here. The suspect's name is Kaine Abbanc. No charges have been pressed as of yet, but he has been suspected of "swindling and/or deceiving" the minor league fighters of the Blitz Pit into buying his armor, so that he could use the funds to create a weapon to "terrorize the public"..." He looked up from the paper. "Reeaal subtle."

"So that was what he was doing with the money?" Speedy asked.

"Seems so." Smash nodded, putting the paper back. "Let's see what else they got on this guy." He looked through the folder again. After a few moments, he pulled out another document. He took a good look at it, reading the contents silently to himself. "Hmm..." His eyes scanned the page for any useful information. "...Hm?" He stopped at one line that caught his attention. "...Says here that Kaine used to be a fighter at the Blitz Pi--waait a minute." He set the paper down on his lap, his eyebrows furrowed as he remembered something from earlier that day. "That guy in the lobby, he mentioned someone named Kaine who used to be a fighter there, and had retired. That was only seconds before he mentioned Dad's car accident."

"Really?" Speedy asked, raising his eyebrows.

"A fighter retires from the Blitz Pit, and returns to raise funds from the lower fighters, so he could create the ultimate weapon in secret..." Pearl said, almost as if she were summarizing a story.

"Because he couldn't get the money from fighting; He retired 'cause of a real nasty injury." Smash said. "Which means that he might have planned this from the beginning."

"And if that plan was foiled twice, and the last time sealing the deal by bringing the cops out on him, that would make a perfect motive for murder!" Speedy exclaimed.

"And since Sarah was with him, I assume he killed her to erase any witnesses." Luna added.

"Which means that if he attacked them on their way through Green Flower Zone, they could have had a chance to call the police before it was too late!" Pearl suggested. "And since they arrived so soon after he killed them, the dirty coward must have ran off to hide somewhere until they left! It's far more believable that he'd be able to get away without detection on foot than in a car, given the area they were in."

A grin spread across Speedy's face. "Fellas, I think we've just solved this mystery!" He announced, full of confidence.

Smash shook his head. "Not quite. There are still a few loose ends and unanswered questions here and there." He said.

Speedy sulked back into his seat, pouting with his arms folded. "Aw, come on. What else is there? We solved the most important parts, didn't we? He did it, there is no question about it!"

"Maybe. But there's still the fact that we don't know for sure that the armor I found really was made by him." Smash reminded him. "And then there's the missing guy, and that shoddy autopsy report. I mean, I know the person wasn't familiar with the case, but still. If that "Glaring Contradiction" wasn't the same as the one I found, then it was probably the fact that the person put down "Car Accident" when there was no car. How do you screw THAT up." He paused, thinking about it for a moment. "Come to think of it, Who WAS the replacement guy, anyway?"
The group exchanged glances, and just shrugged.
"And last but not least, we need some actual evidence." He said. "Remember, all this is just logical speculations. As believable as they may seem, we won't know for sure what's true or not without any hard evidence."

"Yes, of course." Luna agreed. "So, what are you going to do?"

Smash looked at her at the corner of his eye. "Well...Only thing I can think of at the moment, is talking to Speeder about this again and keeping him up to date with what we've got. I also got a few more questions to ask him about the incident."

"I see." Luna smiled a bit, and put her hand on his shoulder. "You've made a lot of progress for one day. I'm sure they both would have been proud."

Smash's face softened up at her words. "Thank you." He said, smiling warmly at her. Considering he should have started making progress years ago, it made him feel less guilty to hear that.
Pearl wanted to remind her that she and Speedy helped too, but decided against it.

"And of course we all were here to help you." Luna giggled a bit, noticing Speedy still pouting. "And we'll be here the whole time. I'll do anything I can to help out."

"Me too!" Speedy said, completely forgetting what he was pouting for. "I'll come with you to talk to my dad about it."

"And of course I'll be coming too." Pearl said. "No way that I wouldn't."

Smash grinned slightly at them all. "Thanks, everyone. It's settled, then. We'll head out tomorrow and chat with him. What time does he get off, Speedy? Or at least when is his break?"

The hedgehog thought for a moment. "Umm...I think he's got the same times as he did today." He said. "I'll ask him when I get back."

"Alright." Pearl said. She glanced towards Smash, "If we have the time, I wanna go back up to our old house tomorrow." She said.

Smash didn't bother questioning why. He had a feeling he knew. "Same here. We'll make time before or after we see Speeder."

"Great. I'll have to stay home and watch over the kids, but keep me informed on what's going on." Luna said. "I'll do what I can to help from here."

"Sounds like a plan." Smash said. "Well, it's getting late. We need to rest up for tomorrow." Smash and Speedy stood up.
"Yeah, I'd better be getting home now." Speedy said, looking at his watch.

"Want me to walk with you back home?"

"Sure." Speedy nodded. The two stretched for a moment before heading to the door.
"I'll be back in a bit." Smash said to the two girls.

"Bye Pearl, Bye Luna!" Speedy waved.

"Bye bye!" The two said in unison as they waved back.


The two walked out the front door and headed towards the sidewalk. The sun had just set below the horizon, and it was starting to get pretty dark. "So, what do you think about all this?" Smash asked.

"It's rather sudden, really." Speedy said. "All this in one day. Kinda overwhelming..."

"Tell me about it." Smash huffed. "Glad you didn't see me at the pit. I was pretty thrown off, to say the least."

Speedy glanced over at his friend. "When are you gonna tell everyone else about this?"

"I'd rather finish up what I started before getting everyone else involved." He said. "After all, it's a thing of the past. Not much we can do other than uncover the truth. It doesn't even really concern them, anyway. I'd rather not call a meeting for something so personal."

Speedy nodded, looking towards the road ahead of them. "I see your point." He said. "Still, I think some of the guys are wondering what happened, anyway. Nobody ever really knew anything about your parents." He shook his head. "When I met you, I just thought you were some guy fighting for wealth and fame. I never knew you were doing it to support the two of you, or that you two were the only family you had in the whole area. And I definitely didn't know your dad was a great fighter there, either."

"Heh. There's more to someone than meets the eye." Smash said. "The interesting facts and traits you'll find in a guy once you get to know em. You never know what new thing you'll learn about those around you."

"Heheh, yeah." Speedy grinned a bit, looking forward. "So, what're you gonna do when you've finished all this?"

Smash shrugged. "I don't really know. I'll probably inform my family, first of all." He said. "After that...well, we'll see what happens."

"Yeah..."
The rest of the walk was quiet, but short. Speedy really didn't live too far away from him. The two stopped in front of his driveway. "Well, see you tomorrow." Speedy said, looking behind him as he walked up to his door. "Thanks for coming with me!"

Smash waved back. "No problem. See ya later." Speedy walked inside, leaving Smash out in the driveway. He turned around and headed back. 'I never would have thought I'd make this much progress today.' He thought. 'If things keep going like this, we'll have found out everything in no time at all.'
He soon made it back to his house. 'We've still got a busy day tomorrow. I'm wondering what else is in store for us...'