The Sun is Unclouded in the Radical City by SladeJT
Summary: There's something scary about dolls. Sure, Tails Doll is creepy looking, but is it really cursed? Here is a look into the doll's creation.
Author Notes: It's been a busy term and I've been trying to focus on my classes. They ate up practically all my free time, so I havn't been updating my Fanfic 100. It's now the end of Finals and I was trying to find a way to calm my nerves. For some reason, writing this out did the trick. I hope you enjoy it. Personally, I never saw Tails Doll as creepy but then again I always had at least one favorite plush doll throughout each stage of my life. First there was Rajah the life-sized lioness doll. Then there was Uni the pony foal-sized Unicorn doll. Finally, there was – and still is – Rainbow the pastel-colored Teddy Bear. I know they are not very imaginative names. The point is, plush dolls never really disturbed me except for the ones that look like humans or human babies, especially but not limited to the Cabbage Patch dolls. I can understand why people are creeped out by Tails Doll, but… yeah…
I hope you enjoy the story. Obviously, I don't own any of the characters.
Doctor Ivo Robotnik scowls as he reclines in his hoverpod. That rodent and his friends have been a thorn in his side for far too long. Every time he comes up with a brilliant plan to take over the world, they stop him dead in his tracks in spite of his robotic forces. Mere words cannot convey how... how frustrating such a thing is.
He needs a new plan - something unexpected, something he never did before.
This is precisely why he signed up for the World Grand Prix. He knows that the Hedgehog will not pass up a chance to run in such a race even if he has yet to sign up for it. He will. Robotnik knows the speed-demon has an ego the size of the planet. If he can beat the Hedgehog at his own game, that should squelch his self-confidence enough that the next time the future master of the world attempts another takeover, Sonic will be seized by self-doubt!
Such a brilliant plan could only have come from one mind!
Of course, he will not play 'fair'. The racing contract he signed did not state he had to play fair. In fact, the World Grand Prix originates from ancient contests of strength and skill. The racers are encouraged to fight during the race! He simply took it to the next step by signing in four other racers of his own creation. Metal Sonic, Metal Knuckles, and Egg Robo are his most obvious choices. They are his top of the line person-sized combat units. The regular Badniks would not stand a chance in anything but stalling the Hedgehog. However, Robotnik still needs to submit a fourth. He does not have a fourth, aside from all the older Sonic-Killer Models.
Robotnik does not feel like reusing another old design. That would not suit his brilliance. Perhaps he could design a new robot based off of another one of the Rodent's friends. They all seem to be fairly swift; a robot based on their design would be fairly aerodynamic. Sonic and Knuckles... speed and strength. The novelty of Knuckles' gliding skill was an interesting challenge. The robot's design was first sketched out during that debacle on Angel Island. He never actually got around to using the schematics, but now was as good as any to unveil it. While making the schematics, Robotnik considered implanting the jet-boosters in Metal Knuckles' feet however he realized that the flexible dreadlocks were - are - an ideal place to allow the robot to fine-tune his aerial flight path. He wanted to use seven but the final design ended up only supporting five.
Perhaps he could create something based on Sonic's sidekick, that little fox-boy. Yes, the little kit is an interesting quirk of nature just like his friends due to his second tail. Somehow, the fox... Tails was it? Miles? His name doesn't matter. Somehow the fox figured out how to utilize what would normally be a handicap due to the extra weight into a boon. The boy can fly! Just as Sonic defies the laws of nature and the sound barrier, so do his friends. It is truly amazing and it is (dare he admit it) fun to see if he can meet the challenges posed by replicating their quirks in his creations.
A robot based on Tails obviously requires the bipedal Animal template unfortunately the tails pose the biggest problem. The two tails are too bulky to be more than dead weight and designing them to open up as helicopter blades could cause them to collide and jam into a crumpled mess. Perhaps as jet-boosters? No! All that extra bulk would still be a waste of materials. Besides, the Tails-design needs to be lightweight in order to be a match to the fox.
Would a robotic design be unsuitable for the kit? It does seem that way. However, Robotnik needs a new creation to submit to the World Grand Prix. He needs a total of four units and he cannot hire that mercenary Nack "Fang" Weasel and expect him to uphold his end of any deal after his treachery on the Death Egg II. Most types of metal Robotnik uses in his creations would be far too heavy for such a creation. What if he created a robotic skeleton and covered it up with plastic? That could do the trick. Plastic is highly durable and so what if the byproducts are highly toxic? He could just dump them in the ocean. However, most plastics would be too rigid for something that is supposed to be aerodynamic and (more importantly) mobile.
Perhaps Robotnik could use a minimalistic design? It doesn't need to be as complex as the Metal Sonic or Metal Knuckles designs. After all, Tails is smaller than a large amount of his combat units and making the design overly complex would be like using one of the Hover Mobile's new missiles on a doll.
In that moment, inspiration seized the would-be emperor. A doll would be light enough to match Tails in speed and build. How to make it fly… Robotnik could use the same technology that allows his personal vehicles to hover on the doll. Of course, an internal skeleton perhaps limited to the head and part of the torso would be more than enough room for the hover technology. The doll doesn't have to use the same chips as the Metal-series. Robotnik already has the schematics for the racetracks; the World Grand Prix's track locations were easily discovered through their ledgers and a few scouting units. This "Tails Doll" would be very simplistic and only do what it is supposed to: follow the tracks from start to finish. Even if it gets knocked off-course, it will just resume the path. This is perfect!
It barely took the rest of the day to activate the newest creation and register it in the World Grand Prix. With all the preparations complete, Sonic will surely lose!