Author's Note: Long time no see, huh?? Well, sorry this isn't an update to my current fics or anything. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten Never Let Go and Spirit of the Wolf. I've just been preoccupied with both loads of work and loads of new ideas and obsessions. In case you didn't know, I'm now into Sonic, so I dunno when I'll continue with my TMNT stories. Ya never know with me. XP But I promise you I won't forget about them.

ANYways, here's a little snippet of a new idea of mine. It's still a work in progress - I've only written one and a half chaps - but it's a great plot and I definitely intend to continue with it. I just wanted to put this up here to get some opinions, and let everyone know I'm still alive. ;P As mentioned in the summary, this is an alternate universe, meaning a lotta things are changed around and some of the chars might not act like themselves, though that's mostly only in the beginning. This part here is way toward the end, so if I do finish it you'll have to wait a while to find out what happens next. I love cliffies and confusing people. -evil laugh- And by the way, I've improved on my writing quite a bit since my other stories, so I hope that shows through in this. Though it hasn't been proofread by anyone but me so it's bound to have some mistakes, but that's a given.

Well, I'll stop ranting and let you read. Enjoy~


"Hey, Sonic!"

Sonic turned at the familiar voices, his expression brightening when he saw Knuckles and Tails waving at him further down the hall. Shadow was with them as well, wearing his typical uninterested guise, along with Silver and Blaze. Espio stood close by, and Rouge was making her way over to them, carrying several books. He grinned and started toward his friends, but suddenly froze. His ears twitched; there was a faint noise, like the pounding of heavy feet accompanied by a faint, mechanical whirr. 'I swear I've heard that sound before...'

His watching comrades stared at him, both worried and confused.

"Soni-"

Before Tails could finish his inquiry, there was an abrupt crash and screams of alarmed furries rang through the halls.

"What is that thing!?"

"Oh my God-!"

"EVERYBODY GET DOWN!"

Students and teachers scattered, frantic. Many of them were pushed aside as a huge, robotic arm crashed through the front part of Emerald High. Sonic's eyes widened when he realized it was headed straight for him, but by then he didn't have the time to move out of the way even with his lightning-fast reflexes.

He let out a strangled cry as the metal fist slammed into him, nearly crushing him completely as he collided with the wall at the end of the hallway. The mechanical arm pulled back, taking chunks of the building with it and allowing the speedster to fall back to the ground. He gasped and coughed in the dust that had been unsettled as he pushed himself up on his hands and knees, one arm wrapped tightly around his abdomen. His book bag lay among the rubble a few feet away, tattered and half buried in the wreckage after having been so violently flung aside.

"Sonic!"

The startled exclamation came from Knuckles, who was currently rushing toward his fallen friend, followed closely by the rest of the small group. Even Shadow, normally amused when witnessing the cobalt hedgehog take a beating, looked alarmed and slightly concerned as he dashed over.

"Stay back!" Sonic ordered above numerous screaming furries as he heaved himself to his feet, wincing slightly.

Knuckles slowed slightly, perplexed. "But-"

"One more step and I'll knock ya out before this psychotic so-called 'doctor' does!"

"What!?"

Sonic didn't have time to reply as the metallic fist came crashing in again, this time through the roof. Sonic leapt back, narrowly avoiding being hit a second time. Scowling, he jumped up and went into a spin attack, slicing cleanly through the metal as if it was paper. The appendage wasn't fully severed, however, and retreated with the grinding of metal gears. Sonic landed in a crouch nearby, his expression now that of anger. His eyes were fixed on what looked to be some kind of small, half-circle hovercraft that was descending through the destroyed roof. Inside sat a heavyset man with a long mustache that nearly made invisible the smirk on his face.

"Why, hello there, Sonic! Long time no see!"

Sonic snarled, infuriated. "I can understand attacking me, Eggman, but you just hurt innocent people! Have you lost your mind!?"

"It's called revenge, hedgehog!" The scientist spat back, leaning forward in his seat. The robot, which bore an uncanny resemblance to the man, loomed up behind him, waiting for another order to attack. "Get used to it!"

"What on Mobius is going on!?"

Rouge, now standing beside the blue blur, put her hands on her hips, having dropped her books long before. Knuckles, Tails, Espio, Silver, Blaze, and Shadow came to a halt beside her.

"I thought I told you guys to stay back!" Sonic snapped as he straightened up, moving between his comrades and the 'doctor' hovering in the air above them. Much to his annoyance, he was once again ignored.

"That's the scientist that was on the news a year ago," Espio observed, watching Eggman warily.

Blaze's tail twitched nervously. "But I thought that blue hedgehog drove him off."

"Blue hedgehog..." Knuckles' eyes widened in realization and he gaped at the cobalt furrie standing before him. "Sonic...!?"

"There's no time for that now!" Sonic growled, glancing over his shoulder at the echidna. "Just run!"

Not waiting for a response, he lunged, landing on the robot's arm as it swung again. The machine reeled back, swiping at the hedgehog that was currently zipping around, leaping from its shoulders to its head and back again. The seven furs below stared after him, bewildered.

"Sonic's the..." Tails trailed off, bright blue eyes wide.

Shadow huffed and crossed his arms. "I guess I underestimated him."

Knuckles shook his head, snapping out of his trance. "Well, don't just stand there! We have to help him!"

He took off, heading outside as the fight moved further away from the school. The others exchanged glances before hurrying after him, making their way around the fallen debris. The other furries in the building gazed after them with frightened, confused faces, slowly venturing out as the sounds of battle grew fainter.

Knuckles skidded to a halt in time to avoid a missile as it made contact with the ground, creating a small explosion. His gaze flicked to the source, and he was startled to see the enormous robot standing no more than ten yards away. It was at least three times the height of the school and made of dense, tough metal. Its shape mimicked that of a human and many guns and rocket launchers were visible protruding from around its shoulders and hands.

"Oh my!" Rouge breathed from where she hovered slightly above the echidna, one hand covering her mouth.

"Who could even have access to all of that machinery?" Tails wondered aloud, amazed.

Espio pulled out a few shuriken hidden in his belt. "Better question: how the heck are we supposed to take it down?"

"There's Sonic!" Shadow interrupted, pointing to the blur of blue that had appeared on the robot's arm.

Sonic dodged yet another missile, now perched on the robot's wrist. The machine whirred angrily, swatting at the hedgehog with its other hand.

"Come on, Eggbot! Get that insolent rodent!" Eggman shouted, pounding on the control panel of his hovercraft.

"Eggbot?" Sonic echoed incredulously, nimbly side-stepping another attempted attack. "Seriously, can't you come up with a decent name for once?"

"Cheeky little rat!" The scientist fumed. "I'll show you! Eggbot, launch all missiles!"

Sonic leapt up, evading the barrage of rockets. Still in mid-air, he reached into a pocket on the inside of his jacket.

"I knew these would come in handy!"

In his open palm were several tiny, yellow squares, each with strange, golden designs that sparked with electricity. Clenching his fist, he flung them toward the robot. In the middle of their flight, they changed, turning into small, airplane-like devices. Each of them struck a different place in the Eggbot, burying themselves deep into its circuits. Small explosions erupted from where they hit, causing smoke from the bot's fried circuitry to cloud the air.

Sonic landed in a crouch a little ways away, narrowing his eyes to peer through the haze. Silence settled, and he relaxed.

"Guess that did it."

Moments after he spoke, more missiles shot out of the clearing cloud of smoke. He ducked as the rockets slammed into the ground around them, a few missing by mere inches.

"Ho ho ho ho!" Eggman grinned smugly at the speedster, still hovering above his creation. "Did you really think your uncle's little inventions could stop my robot!?"

Sonic snarled and pounded the ground with one fist, frustrated. Seconds later he was forced to dive forward in order to avoid being blown up by three more missiles. He grunted as he landed on the hard pavement, momentarily stunned. His eyes widened when they settled on another rocket; this one was mere feet away, and heading straight for him.