Robotic humanoid roosters were not a common sight on the planet of Mobius. In fact, there was really only one in existence at the present time. Standing tall and erect, with hands placed purposefully on his hips, you could almost say he looked majestic. Almost.
The rusted robot's name was Scratch, and he was one of the many dismissed robots that Dr. Ivo Julian Robotnik had made in his long legacy of terror. Badniks, as they were commonly referred to, and this one had been out of work for some time. A worn collar and belt hugged his frame while a rose red patched up plume stuck up on his round head. Two red tail feathers also protruded just below his belt, and although dirty and shredded they were still held proudly high. As the robot was modeled after a rooster, a stubby beak also stuck to the front of his face, the dulled yellow color matching his legs.
The badnik stood just outside of a dense forest, clogged up with shrubbery that the regular Mobian would not wander in without proper equipment. This was the reason Scratch was here, to be safe from the world. In the densest parts of this forest robots of all kinds attempted to exist. Attempted, because it was hard for any robot to function without the occasional check up. Especially Robotnik's robots. They were built to need someone to care for them. Yet the majority of those laid off would come here anyways, and the majority of them lived mostly because the care of their brethren.
Unknown to most, this forest buzzed with artificial life. Scratch had been one of the first, as he had lived there almost 10 years. That was a long time for a robot to be out of work. He had been dumped with his 'brother', Grounder. Grounder was a green lump of a bot with over 300 accessories crammed into his short frame. The two hardly resembled each other, but they had been built at the same time so they had bonded and stuck together out of instinct. You needed a buddy to live out here. Yet, the robotic rooster had come out alone.
To be truthful, he was tired of all this. He wanted to belong somewhere, not make a home for himself as he had been doing. He wanted to serve again, wanted to be oiled, and most of all...he wanted someone to care. Eyes narrowed, the robot looked out over the landscape. Tapping one clawed foot impatiently, he waited.
Suddenly, something at the far end of the valley he was looking over shot in and out of Scratch's view. It could be described as an azure blur, riding the wind. The grass it had passed momentarily became disturbed before gently drifting back into place.
The badnik's beak curved into a slight smile, eyes still narrowed. He waited every day for that, oddly enough to most. He had become very patient over the years, and he could wait for hours at a time for this once a week occurrence. Yet, he chose to wait for a blue blur that could only be seen from his spot for less than a second.
Why? Because that blur had once been his objective. His livelihood, and the whole reason that his Master had created him. A hedgehog. That's what it was. A simple creature it seemed, but it was also the fastest creature on Mobius.
The Mobians were anthropomorphic animals, and some acquired amazing abilities for no thinkable reason. This hedgehog, called Sonic, was one of them. He could outrun almost anything, and could even, on special occasions, break the sound barrier. Three feet tall, red sneakers, and a startling blue color on his quills, he was the hero of Mobius.
Well, he was no hero to the badnik. His sensors went berserk, and his vision lit up with alerts, his original objective lighting up in front of his eyes:'GET THAT HEDGEHOG BRING HIM TO YOUR MASTER QUICK ITS NOT TOO LATE!'
But Scratch didn't even flinch, he just stood and watched the blur disappear. He could wait. He could always wait because someday...someday...he would get Sonic. And then his Master would take him back. And then everything would be OK again. No more rust, no more self-repairs, and no more hiding.
"Soon, hedgehog. Soon!" The scratchy voice that gave the badnik his name quietly rasped. Then the badnik turned and strutted stiffly back into the dark forest, content to wait until the time came when he would once and for all complete his purpose.