Author's note
Hey everyone, thanks for taking the time to read my fic. This is my first attempt at writing, so don't expect anything good. The story's start is a bit common, so I'm sorry for the repetitiveness of it. Constructive criticism appreciated, and thanks again for giving my story a shot!
Prologue
They stood on a cliff, watching from afar. It was all or nothing now. Tails looked around and saw a cross between fear and hope in Sally's eyes while she waited. Bunnie was trying to keep everyone's hopes up, but it was obvious that she was just as worried. Even Knuckles had a look of anxiety on his face. Tails glanced back at the wasteland before the Freedom Fighters.
It was terrible. Simply looking at the site made Tails sick to his stomach. Where there had once been trees, flowers, and lakes, there was now nothing of the kind. There was no grass anymore, only dirt. Oil and toxic waste flowed through the once sparkling rivers. There was only metal coming up from ground, and nothing but black smoke coming up from the metal. Tails grimaced and a tear came to his eye. This time Robotnik had gone too far. He had turned life into death, and he was going to continue until the Fighters were crushed under his fist.
Antoine was the first to speak after the silence. "Princess, perhaps we shall withdraw. Within a few minutes Robotnik's army shall be upon us. If we stand our ground we may not last long. We must"
"No!" screamed Sally as she shot Antoine a glare. "I'm not leaving! I don't care how long it takes! I'm not going anywhere! I'll…I'll wait…" Tears were starting to well up in her eyes. "I'll wait…for him."
"But my lady…" protested Antoine.
Knuckles pulled him aside. "Not now, you bonehead. You know as well as I do that Sonic is running out of time in there, and though it may be wise to retreat from that army, Sally's not going to move until she sees Sonic or the Reaper – whichever comes first."
"But, sir Knuckles…"
"No buts. We're gonna stay right here until our buddy makes his way back. Besides," Knuckles' expression turned to a grin. "If that army does happen to make it back here, you and me will take care of 'em." Antoine's face went up in shock at the mention of him fighting. He turned white and started to shiver a bit.
"Heh heh," chuckled the echidna. "Hey Tails, Antoine here is being as yellow as ever. What do ya say – you'll help me fight off the army, won't ya?"
Tails started hovering above the ground with excitement in his eyes. "You bet Knuckles! Just wait until they get over here, I'll show them a thing or two! A little of this, a little of that! Some of this, too!" Tails threw some punches in the air and practiced a few air maneuvers, much to the amusement of everyone. Though it didn't seem so, Tails was more worried about Sonic than everyone else, except maybe Sally. He hung his head in a sudden mood change, and frantically began speaking. "Hey, Rotor. You think we should prepare the Tornado, you know, just in case something happened to Sonic? Maybe something happened. We don't know what could have happened to him. What if he's not alright? We have to go, we just have to!"
"Now now, Tails. I know you're worried about Sonic. We all are, but you know as well as the rest of us that there's no chance of any of us getting in now. It took everything we had just to get Sonic inside Robotnik's fortress. It's all up to him now. This was the plan from the start. Even so, look." Rotor pointed towards the guns mounted around the fortress. They were huge and there were hundreds of them. "Those are all anti-aircraft guns. Even with the Tornado, we wouldn't get very far before we'd be brought down, either by bullets, missiles, or EMP shockwaves." He patted the young, sulking fox on the back. "There's nothing else we can do. We just have to wait."
A sigh escaped from Tails lips. "I know…I know, Rotor."
Time seemed to slow down as Freedom Fighters sat there, waiting. They all knew that all came down to this. Tails watched the approaching army of robots as he sat there, lost in thought. How can I just be sitting here? Tails thought. Why couldn't I have been more help to Sonic? He could already be dead…Oh God, don't let it be true! Tears streamed down the fox's face as time crept along.
Hours seemed to pass, though it was only a couple of minutes, and finally the army reached the fighters. Knuckles was the first one up, ready to fight off the robots for as long as his body would last. Bunnie was right behind him, not about to give in to the robots. Rotor had his wrench, and even Antoine was up and ready to fight. However, Sally and Tails, usually fierce fighters when it came to defending their friends, could not find the strength to stand up.
"Hey, you guys not feeling alright?" asked Bunnie as she turned towards Sally and Tails. Getting no reply, she took charge. "Knuckles, Antoine, Rotor – listen up! Something's up with Sal and Tails, so gather 'round 'em and try to keep 'em safe, y'hear?" The four nodded in agreement and formed a circle around the two lost Fighters.
And so the battle began. Knuckles was making short work of the robots with his punches, while Bunnie was sending them out of commission with her robotic feet. Before long, Rotor had fashioned a gun out of the remains of some of the robots and was able to do some damage.
Some sparks flew as one of the robots fell to the ground, and a surprised Antoine was standing before it, rapier in hand. He looked at his rapier, and back at the heap of metal. "Wow! I did it, I can't believe it! I really did it!" With this, Antoine grinned from ear to ear.
"No time to gloat, bonehead," said Knuckles dodging a pulse cannon shot from one of the army. "There may not seem to be many right now, but these are only the scouts. If you want to see the real fun, look to the east." Antoine turned and gasped at what he saw.
"There's…There's hundreds…No…Thousands of them!" His former glee turned straight to horror. "Oh God, oh God…We're done for…" He took a step back and dropped his rapier.
"Quit yer whinin' you yellow bellied buffoon!" Bunniewasn't in the mood to put up with Antoine. "Get used to it. It's either fight or die now!" Taking advantage of the small break, she grabbed Antoine by his collar and scowled at him. Fear took him again. "Listen, you see Sal over there?" Antoine nodded. "Well, if we don't keep fighting, she's going to die, ok?"
Realizing it was true, Antoine found some resolve left in his terrified limbs and regained his composure, giving Bunnie a slight nod. "Thank you Bunnie, you've shown me the truth. Now, once more, I can fi"
A laser blast whizzed by Antoine's ears. "Careful there!" yelled Rotor as he retaliated, taking the robot down with his gun. "We can't afford any losses right now! Keep your eyes peeled or you may find yourseaaAargh!"
"NO!" yelled Knuckles, running to his friend, holding out a hand. He didn't make it in time. Rotor collapsed. Knuckles stopped in his tracks. The fighters were shocked. The walrus they knew so well had fallen, a bullet through his neck. Bunnie rushed over, crying, "Rotor…Rotor, dear, speak to me! Don't you go to sleep on me!" As she picked up his head, she felt it go limp in her arms. He was gone. Bunnie lowered her head to Rotor's chest for a few seconds. When her head rose, there was fire in her eyes.
"They WILL pay for this!" Antoine and Knuckles were astonished. "I won't let them get away with it!" Bunnie slowly rose to her feet. A final tear was shed as she turned away from Rotor. Her eyes caught the army, and Bunnie charged. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ROBOTNIK!"
"Bunnie, no!" Knuckles tried to stop her, but it was too late. Bunnie's mind was lost in a fit of rage and passion. No one could get through to her. The remaining fighters saw her vanish into the horde of robots. Sadly, Knuckles turned towards Antoine. "It's only you and me now, bud." They glanced at the robots. "Well, Sir Knuckles, this looks like it may be the end," said Antoine.
"Yep, this could be it. But I'll be damned if I'm gonna go down without a fight! You with me on this one?"
"Yes. Let's show them just what freedom really stands for!"
Out of nowhere, Antoine was suddenly flattened. Knuckles gasped in astonishment. He checked Antoine. He was unconscious, but not dead. What could have moved so fast! There's no way anything can be so quick!
Before another thought came to his mind, Knuckles was face to face with the enemy. Standing before him was a new metal hedgehog. "One of you guys, huh," Knuckles told the new face. Robotnik's copies of Sonic had all failed in the past, but Knuckles knew better than to let that affect his fighting. "Take this!" Knuckles let his fist fly, but there was nothing there!
"What? No!" Knuckles glanced around. "He can't be that fast!" Carefully scanning the area, Knuckles saw some movement in the bushes. "Heh, go on…attack me," Knuckles chuckled, keeping an eye on the bush. A full minute passed. Hmm…This one is different than the others. Robotnik must have programmed stealth into him instead of just pure speed! This could prove a challenge...
A flicker in the corner of his eye was all Knuckles needed. He threw a punch on his right side, completely catching the robot off guard. As the robot fell, Knuckles knew the fight was over. Not much could withstand one of his fists at full force. "Is that the best you can do Robotnik?"
The robot stirred. Knuckle's eyes went wide as he watched what should have been a heap of rubble rise to its feet. He knew this was no ordinary robot, and the robot knew that this was not a common Mobian.
And then the fight began. Knuckles, like always, had the advantage in power, but this robot was incredibly fast! Knuckles was being pummeled by a hit and run tactic, but he wasn't about to stop. Every now and then, Knuckles fists connected with the metal, but nothing seemed to be working. The fight raged on for about five minutes, and Knuckles was already panting. The robot, however, wasn't showing any signs of weariness. The two came to a stand still again, locking their eyes on one another, waiting for a move to be made. The echidna took this time to analyze, looking for any weak spots... His entire body seems to be covered, but there has to be some small glitch. Robotnik couldn't have created this in such a short time without some bugs. As they circled, Knuckles took note of the robot's razor sharp spines. Good thing it didn't use those yet, I'd have been a goner! The arms seemed like his best bet to defeat the robot. They had an exposed joint around the elbow, and if Knuckles could utilize that weakness he realized he could take down the robot much easier.
Just then Knuckles realized his mistake. He and the robot had been circling slowly, and Knuckles had dropped his guard a tiny bit to analyze the robot. In doing so, he neglected to notice where the robot was. No, I can't believe it! What's wrong with me? As Knuckles started to collapse with a shocked look in his eyes, he groaned, "Everyone…I'm…I'm sorry…" The echidna hit the ground and lay motionless. Standing over the body was the metal Sonic, masterfully brandishing the fallen Antoine's rapier. It was dripping red from the pierce.
Tails and Sally hadn't moved. While their friends were fighting, they just sat lost in thought. Neither had a said a word, but they knew they were each basically thinking the same thing. To think, this has all been for naught. I've failed at defeating the tyrant Robotnik. I've failed my people. And I've sent Sonic to his doom. Death is the only option available for me now.
I wasn't strong enough. Sonic has been so kind to me, but in the end, I've been nothing but weak. If only I could have been stronger, maybe it wouldn't have ended like this. Maybe everything would have turned out all right. I've failed, and Sonic has to be dead by now. I'm so sorry everyone, I just wasn't strong enough!
Both of them lowered their heads in acceptance as the metal Sonic approached them to finish the Fighters off once and for all. It was all over now. The robot pulled the rapier back, about to strike the orange one.
The evening sun disappeared over the horizon. The world was clouded in darkness. As one last tear escaped Tails' eyes, he looked up at the menacing eyes that pierced his very soul. Robotnik had won; he had created a world void of happiness for all of its inhabitants except for those who pledged ultimate loyalty to him. This was the end.
A white flash suddenly was emitted from Robotnik's fortress. Its luminosity grew larger by the second, and before long everything within a ten mile radius had been enveloped by the white light. Tails looked at the menacing eyes. They had lost their red glow. Tails and Sally were suddenly engulfed by the incredible light. Everything went white, and Tails was sure he was dead.
Tails awoke with a start. Oh man, not the dream again. One day I've gotta get over it! That was so long ago…He glanced at his alarm clock, which read 8:30 AM. The alarm was set for 8:45 AM. Hmm. I've still got time before class starts. Tails turned back over in his bed. Man, I can't wait! Soon as I'm out of class, I'll get to see everyone again! I hope everyone's been doing ok. I wonder…will he be there? Tails drifted back to sleep, with a less nerve-wracking dream putting a smile on his face.
That's it for now! If anything didn't make sense, please let me know, and thanks again!
-LunarOcean
