Prologue
"You've failed me again."
The cold words filtered through the static in Metal sonic's head. He tried to open his eyes, but saw nothing beyond the electric 'snow' displayed by his failing circuits. Something heavy collided with his head. His vision cleared for a instant and a flicker of an image filtered into his processors.
A pair of shoes, boots! He was laying at someones feet. Who?.., he couldn't remember. Red lights fluttered through his vision, blurs of red against the impenetrable snow. He couldn't see the symbols, but knew what they meant. He was shutting down, dying, in a sense. The red lights flashed again, this time more clearly. DANGER! He tried to move, tried to stand, the motors and circuits in his body refusing his commands.
A second heavy thud, and one eye corrected itself. His eye narrowed, fucusing. Metal turned his vision upwards to the dark shape looming down over him. Robotnik!
"DRRrr-Octrrr..." His voice was a sour buzz.
"Hmph, I shouldn't be surprised. you never win against him." Robotnik leaned down and picked his mangled creation up by his throat. He looked at the mess that had once been his pride and scowled. "Hmm, maybe I missed something?" Robotnik examined the wreckage, turning his creation slowly in the air, looking closely at the damaged contraption. "What is it about you Metal?" The doctor asked sadly. He sighed as his eyes scanned his creation. "What minor flaw in your design keeps you from achieving your goal, time and again?"
"D-dOc-TOr.. DDDDd-aaAM-Age.. CRrriiiiitt-ic-CAl" The thing buzzed again.
"Silence, I know you're damaged!" Robotnik threw Metal angrily to the floor. "I don't know if it's worth giving you another chance, or if I should just start over." Robotnik threw his hands up and began pacing back across the ruined floor. The Doctor sighed, letting his anger bleed out of him slowly. Metal sonic was a relic, an obsolete peice of hardware created years ago. He had moved on to bigger and better things since then, But he had never come nearly as close to destroying the annoying blue menace as he had with Metal Sonic. The doctor rubbed a hand across his smooth scalp and grumbled to himself as he fished a hand inside his coat pocket, feeling the marvelous edges of the gem nestled within. "Hmm..." Robotnik felt the warmth of the emerald spreading up his arm. He brought out the gem and held it before his eyes, studying the azure depths of the blue chaos emerald. Just holding it was enough to feel the power nestled within the glittering depths of the flawless crystal.
"Doc-Trr.."
Metal sonic's pathetic buzzing brought Robotnik back to the present. He slowly turned to regard the heap of twisted circuits with cold eyes as he reached his decision. The doctor reached into his pocket with his free hand and produced a small remote. He studied the buttons casually before pressing a small one near the bottom, opening a small panel in the floor, then he unceremoniously nudged Metal over the edge into the black pit, listening as his steel carcass banged against the walls as he fell. Robotnik resumed his study of the chaos emerald, smiling wickedly to himself. Maybe it was time to try something new... yes.
"Bigger and better things..."