CHP 2: Nature and Soleanna

Oh the wonder and beauty of nature's design

Oh how beautiful must be the hands that have made it

Mere chance could not create nor craft such refine

Tis the task of men to preserve and save it

As I place my feet on raw earth and breathe

As my chest heaves in this wonderful fragrance

As I fall in love deeper, oh far deeper than 'neath

I pray bless the hearts that grant me this gay chance

My heart sings with joy, I sing with the songbird

I full embrace the lofty tree that is his home

So much I wish to say, so many long words

To praise as I cry, as I touch nature, alone

Maria had landed on earth in a beautiful forest. Her first moments as she stepped out onto the wonderful earth which she loved so dearly were enwrapped in euphoria. Maria had spent years dreaming about this moment, and now that it was finally happening she put away all her previous worries and took in these precious moments. She felt a song in her heart as she walked across the threshold of nature and took in the fresh air and admired the wonder of the natural world.

The trees were so tall and grand, and their leaves a brilliant warming shade of green. The grass was so soft and lush beneath her feet, as she had taken off her shoes and carried them in her hands so that she could feel the natural earth beneath her. The birds sang up in the treetops, and squirrels frolicked to and fro from tree branches to the earth beneath. Everything was so alive.

Her initial euphoria however slowly gave way to a feeling of loneliness. She wished that she could have experienced these moments with Shadow. She wondered how he initially felt when he first reached earth. She wondered if he felt this lonely ache in his heart as well. She started to wonder if perhaps he had something to do with the destruction of half of the moon that she had noticed earlier…

But her questions did not linger, for her gaze caught a delightful distraction. She approached with wonder a gorgeous clearing where there stood a large flowering tree beside a lake, and there were many other flowering trees around making this a lovely sight to behold.

"Wow…" Maria spoke aloud to herself. "It's so beautiful. I've never seen so many flowers before."

"I said the exact same thing the very first time I saw this place in a dream…" spoke a feminine voice. Maria was surprised. She turned her head around to see a tall and slender human girl with bright eyes and red hair.

"Ah hello there… Have you visited many wonderful places like this before?" Maria asked out of curiosity.

The girl smiled and nodded. "Some... but none as naturally beautiful as this one. This is nature's raw beauty at its fullest in Soleanna. I come to this place when I need to feel a sense of freedom from my responsibilities at home."

"Ah I see… It's truly a wonderful sight. I've never seen anything so pretty before. This is my first time being up close with nature like this…" Maria said, her voice trailing off as she once again got caught up in the beauty of her surroundings.

"Ah, you must have grown up a city girl. My family often traveled to the castle in Kingdom Valley for picnics after we moved to the city castle, but ever since I lost my father… I often come here alone to reminisce on those memories, and stay to daydream." The red haired girl folded her hands together against her chest and glanced downwards as she reflected on those aforementioned memories.

"You lost your father? That's tragic… I myself just learned yesterday that my grandfather died, and he was like a father to me. I really feel for you. I myself haven't had much time to grieve yet" Maria said and placed a hand of comfort on the girl.

The girl looked down at her and smiled gently and appreciatively. She then held out her hand in greeting. Maria took it and held it with a smile and nod before letting go.

"Allow me to introduce myself properly," said the red haired girl. "I am Elise the third, crown princess of Soleanna. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Oh my," Maria spoke in surprise. "A princess?! I surely must be in a fairytale. Ahem, um, no disrespect, your royal highness." Maria quickly corrected herself with a curtsy.

"Oh please there's no need for that, I'm treated far too formally at home. I'd like to have a friend who sees me as an equal…" Elise said with pleading eyes.

"Oh, er, I'm sorry Miss Elise. I should introduce myself. I'm Maria Robotnik, it's my absolute delight to meet you!" Maria smiled brightly.

Elise smiled back.

"So what brings you to this part of the woods, Maria?"

Maria smiled shyly as she blushed a little as she folded her hands behind her back.

"Oh, it's my very first time seeing nature up close because it's my first time on the planet. You see, I was born on a space colony and only just recently have been healthy enough to come down to earth. I'm just taking everything in 'cause it's all so wonderful."

"You were born on a space colony and this is your first time on the planet? That's so fasticating! Really!" Elise said with delight and curiosity. "What was it like up there? What kind of space colony was it? Was it on another planet, or a satellite? Do you have someplace to stay now that you're on earth? I have so many questions!" Elise covered her mouth as she giggled in delight.

"Oh, teehee~" Maria giggled in reaction to Elise's giddy curiosity. "Well I can't say I really have any place to stay, I was thinking about sleeping in the woods. As for how it was like up there, I have so many memories, choosing just one is a challenge!" She laughed.

Elise laughed with her.

"Oh wow that's amazing. I don't have much time to stay here and chat the day away, but you know what? I have a wonderful idea that I hope you'll like. How about I make you one of my ladies in waiting? You'll have a paying job, living quarters in the castle, and you'll be close to me all the time so that you can tell me about your life on the space colony!"

Maria's eyes widened.

"You'd do that for me? That's oh so wonderful, but I couldn't possibly ask for that much! I haven't done anything to deserve such generosity, it's too wonderful, like a dream I'm afraid I'll wake up from." Maria started tearing up.

Elise saw Maria's tears and felt compelled to comfort her.

"Oh no, you don't need to cry dear, you'll be helping me and I'll be helping you, it's a trade for equal needs! Being a maid isn't that glamorous, but I'll make sure that you're treated very well! "

Maria hugged her, much to Elise's surprise but not to her disapproval.

"You're so kind, thank you, I'll do my very best to earn my keep! I can tell already that you're going to be a true dear friend." Maria said as her tears flowed out.

Elise returned her embrace with the tears of a touched heart.

"You too…"

After this tender moment, Maria returned to the space vessel to retrieve her belongings. Elise was fascinated and curious, but did not linger for the fact that her time was limited. As they were walking towards the entrance of the forest, they were approached by the royal guards that had been watching the princess from a respectful distance.

"Your highness, it's time to return to the castle." Said the captain of the guard.

"Ah alright, understood." Elise nodded.

"Who is this… animal that is accompanying you?" He asked.

"She's coming back with us as my guest." The princess replied with a commanding tone.

Another guard mumbled "Of course she'd pick up another stray…"

"What was that?" Elise asked the culprit.

"Ahem, I said we shouldn't waste another moment of the day." He acted as if he had said nothing offensive previously.

Elise glared suspiciously but said nothing more to them.

From there the girls were escorted to Soleanna castle where Elise called a council meeting.

It took a fair bit of waiting, but very soon all the royal court made their entry and sat to discuss whatever it was that the princess had called them there for.

"Your highness, you called us here?" Asked the royal advisor.

"Yes, I would like to instate a new lady in waiting. This is Miss Maria Robotnik, the new maid I would like to hire."

Maria waved bashfully.

There were gasps all around.

"Robotnik?! Apologies my Lady, but Robotnik is a notoriously wicked name, associated with many crimes and destruction around the globe. Ivo Robotnik has wreaked havoc on many places in the world, and with his grandfather's death ray he had half of the moon destroyed, which completely wrecked the tidal balance. I strongly recommend a thorough background check before hiring any person of the name Robotnik."

Maria was shocked by the things she had just heard.

Elise did not hesitate to defend her friend though.

"That death ray, rather called the Eclipse cannon, was also used just a day ago to destroy the black comet if you hadn't seen the news. The Black Arms aliens would have taken over our world were it not for that device. Yes, due to a Robotnik there were losses, but yet there were many gains. You forget that Gerald Robotnik revolutionized science in many ways and were it not for him, Soleanna might not be as strongly thriving because his research and theories have been used by the Soleanna technology industry for many years."

"Still your highness, I suggest a background check and that she be kept in guarded confines until we can verify that she has no ill intent."

"You mean to treat my guest as a prisoner?" Elise tried to keep composed but she was quite visibly upset.

"Not as a prisoner my lady, you may let her stay in a guest room of course, but we highly recommend that she have guards with her at all times. Just as a precaution until we verify her background."

Elise sighed then turned to Maria.

"How do you feel about this, Maria?"

It took Maria a moment to process what Elise asked. She felt uncomfortable cold glares at her from everyone but the princess. She gathered together her courage and she then replied. "Well I certainly don't want to impose or cause any stress, I had told her highness that her offer was too grand and wonderful for me to hope for, but she insisted. I don't mind what you decide, I'm fine with anything as long as I'm able to be on this dear earth. You can lock me up or have guards in my room even, so long as I have a window to see the wonder of nature around me I will be more than content."

Elise was touched. "Oh Maria, you're such a pure soul…" Elise then addressed the council. "Well it's decided then. You may proceed with a background check and Maria will have a room in the guest quarters with a balcony over the garden. You may assign guards outside of her room if it makes you feel more comfortable, but they are not to disturb her privacy unless it seems that something is amiss. Understood?"

The council all agreed, and the meeting adjourned after they had Maria fill out the necessary paperwork.

Elise walked Maria to her new room.

"Sorry about all the formalities and precautions we have to take around here. Being a princess is so exhausting and living in a castle isn't the easiest thing either. I hope you don't object to any of this. I realize that maybe I've been too pushy. I may be a princess, but you have the freedom to tell me no!"

Maria giggled.

"Oh no, you don't need to apologize. I have no objections to anything. Like I said before, I have no place to go. I simply want to live out my days here on the planet and hopefully have the chance to touch lives and make people happy. Just like my friend Shadow…"

"Shadow?" Elise asked. "You don't mean Shadow the hedgehog, who just saved the world yesterday and seemingly sacrificed himself months ago to save the planet with Sonic?"

"I'm positive it's the same, though I never realized he had saved the world months ago. You see, I had been in cryogenic sleep for 50 years until Shadow destroyed the comet yesterday. I was supposed to find him, or he was supposed to find me, but he left as soon as the deed was done… Apparently he was told that I died." Maria teared up a bit.

"Fifty years? Oh my, have you got a lot to catch up on." Elise said.

"I'm sure you'll see Shadow again though! Actually Maria, here's a proposition. As a princess I can extend an invitation to the heroes who have saved the world to come to the masquerade ball being held in just a few weeks. You will come as my partner, and if Shadow shows up you'll be able to reconnect with him!"

Maria's countantance lit up.

"You'd do that for me??"

"Of course! I've only met you just today but I feel very trusting of you already. I want to do all I reasonably can for you. Plus…" Elise touched her pointer fingers together.

"I dream about Sonic a lot. He's a blue hedgehog that has saved the world more frequently than Shadow. You could say I'm a big fan of his… I really would love to meet him, so extending an invite to them is beneficial to me as well."

Maria smiled.

"I hope you get to meet your hero."

They stopped in front of a door.

"Here's your guest room. You should find all that you need in here and the maids have placed clothes in the wardrobe for you. I have a few more duties to fulfill before I can retire for the night, but I will see you at breakfast tomorrow. It's been a lovely time with you, I hope we can get to know each other even better tomorrow."

Elise then waved goodbye to Maria then walked away with part of the guards that had escorted them there, and the remaining placed themselves at either side of Maria's door.

Maria reached out a hand to one of the guards in greeting with a kind smile. "I haven't introduced myself properly yet. I'm-"

"We know, you're the Robotnik girl." The guard interrupted, while giving a look that implied he was disgusted by the thought of touching her hand. "We were fully instructed, and we won't be here all the time so there is no need to become familiarized with each other. Another detail of guards will come here soon to relieve us of this post, and another detail will soon replace them. Our rotation system causes no need for acquaintanceship."

Maria was a bit hurt by his harshness but tried to not get upset. "Ah okay… but I do think it would be nice to be acquainted with each and every person I meet."

She looked up to scope out the mood of the other guard to see if he would like to be acquainted with her, but he did not acknowledge her existence.

Maria hesitated, but then carefully entered her guest room.

She stood at the door a moment after she shut it and overheard the harsh soldier say

"That Princess is not only incompetent in her duties, but has the most unhealthy obsession with animals. She's already brought back a squirrel, a badger, a fox, and now this hedgehog. All those previous ones were bad news. This case will inevitably not be any different."

Maria felt a pang in her heart.

"So… Because of my new form… They only see me as an animal… So that's why everyone has been acting strange." Maria almost cried.

However, she glanced around her new living quarters and found to her surprise that it was more than a mere room, but an entire suite fit for a princess. There was a large bedroom with a large king size bed with frilly pillows and beside the bed was a bed stand. There was also a walk-in wardrobe over to the side of the room, a bathroom through another door, and the balcony had long curtains draped over the glass doors. There was a bar which divided the sleeping quarters from the kitchen, which was full of all the cooking accessories one should need, and a button to summon a private chef.

Maria approached the wardrobe first to change into a nightgown and found that none of them were as modest as she would have preferred, but she was at least thankful to have clothes provided for her. She put a robe over her nightgown, put her personal belongings in the bed stand, then opened the curtains of the balcony and windows, and stepped through the glass doors of the balcony into the night air.