Sonic the Hedgehog- The Broken Hero
Chapter 1
Static flared in his headphones as a voice tried to reach Sonic from Headquarters, but their words were lost in the interference. Just like the dozen times before, the static went silent after a moment, when Headquarters realized they couldn`t contact the blue hedgehog. Sonic was so deep into enemy territory that all their attempts at communication were blocked out by the frequent enemy transmissions and strong electromagnetic fields.
Sonic slumped up against the broken stone wall, which had been almost completely destroyed by an ally mortar earlier that day in a strategically-planned long-range attack to weaken enemy defenses. The attack was only partially successful, however. The enemy defenses certainly were damaged, but the enemy had stood their ground, holding their position instead of retreating. Allied generals had come to the assumption that something of value was being held in the nearby fortress, and it was Sonic`s mission to figure out exactly what it was.
Another wave of static rang through Sonic`s ears from his headset, which made him groan. Hadn`t they realized that he couldn`t be contacted? Or maybe they just had something important for him to know and were desperate to relay the information. He couldn`t ignore that possibility. Sighing, Sonic pushed up the visor on his helmet and wiped the line of sweat gathering on his forehead with his gloved hand. He needed to find higher ground to make communication with Headquarters possible.
Finding and holding a suitable place to make a transmission of his own would be a feat in itself. He had no concerns about getting to that place, with his ability to run at supersonic speed. But he couldn`t be moving at the speed of sound while trying to communicate. It would defy the laws of physics. He would need to find a place well concealed from enemy vision. Height and concealment were two things not commonly found in pairs.
Sonic pushed down the visor on his helmet, then turned himself around and pushed himself up while leaning against the wall. He peeked through a spot on the wall that had been blasted away by a mortar shell. Two soldiers were conversing with one another several buildings down the street, far enough away that Sonic couldn`t hear what either of them were saying. Down this street was the quickest way to the outskirts of the fallen city, but it wouldn`t be wise for Sonic to raise an alarm. He wouldn`t forget that it was his mission to infiltrate the base and discover what they were guarding within, all while being undetected. He would need to take the long way around.
In a blue blur, Sonic sprinted through the streets and around fallen debris. Occasionally, Sonic needed to make flash decisions to change route to exit the city due to squadrons of enemy soldiers doing routine patrols of the territory. Besides a close encounters of almost running into a patrol group around a corner, Sonic had no troubles leaving the city. But he still had a slight panic attack, skidding to a stop on the street as he came up to the last fallen home of the city.
The countryside here wasn`t fertile lands with farms, but a barren desert with a few odd hills dotting the landscape. Out there, off of the paved roads of the city, Sonic would be very limited in his mobility. If he attempted to move at high speeds, undoubtedly, a plume of dust would follow him, clearly stating to the enemy `I`m here! Kill me!`. The single two-lane road leading away from the city wouldn`t be a help, either, since it contoured the terrain, swerving through its lowest points. A slow, stressful walk across the desert would be his only method to reaching a destination.
Such a destination Sonic had pinpointed on his first glance across the landscape. Not too far away, an allied fighter plane laid in a heap of metal with a wing pointed almost directly vertical. It wasn`t the height he had hoped for, but in this barren land of nothingness, it was his only choice. The hedgehog stepped from the pavement of the street onto the sandy ground of the desert, taking his first step of many to reach the fallen aircraft.
This walk was not a walk in the park for Sonic. Unless the park one was walking through was surrounded by buildings with sniper infantry stationed at every window, all aimed at a helpless rodent caught between the slides and swingset, completely exposed. Sonic broke into a slight sweat from the pressure. He wanted to run, but he knew he couldn`t.
After several long moments, Sonic managed to get to the plane wreckage unharmed. As he neared, Sonic had to watch his step because of bits of metal broken from the plane in the crash landing that had broken away and scattered all over the crash site.
Walking among the debris, Sonic avoided looking towards the cockpit, afraid of seeing the torn apart corpse of the pilot. Besides, the tail of the plane would give him a good step onto the plane. It took some effort, but Sonic managed to clamber his way up the side of the plane and pull himself onto the wing.
Without wasting any more time, Sonic pressed a button on the side of his helmet to begin transmission, "Headquarters, come in. This is Sonic the Hedgehog. Come in, over."
A moment passed with no response, so Sonic decided to try once more. "Headquarters, please respond! This is Sonic the Hedgehog!"
A voice spoke through his headset with a little static, but Sonic could make out every word spoken. "We read you, Sonic. This is Lieutenant Lombert. What is the status of your mission?"
"Prepared to infiltrate, sir." Sonic replied sternly.
"Good. Sonic, the urgency of this mission has increased tenfold since your briefing at Headquarters. We have information from a trusted informant that what the enemy holds in their base is not a weapon, but a hostage. And judging from the time, you only have five minutes to perform a rescue. The hostage will be executed precisely at 1400 hours. Can you do it?"
Grunting and getting prepared to jump from the wing of the plane, Sonic replied. "Sir, that will be four minutes too many."
"Good. I expect to hear the hostage's voice next time we speak. Lieutenant Lombert out."
The line of communication was broken, and silence returned to Sonic once more. Until the rapid beating of his heart filled that silence, and adrenaline began pumping through the hedgehog's veins. The stakes had just risen drastically, causing Sonic to pull a grin across his face, thinking to himself, This is getting interesting! Throwing caution to the dry desert wind, Sonic leapt from the aircraft's wing and sprinted towards the city, a sandy cloud building and following him.
The sonic boom Sonic created when he reached his top speed was likely to alert the nearby soldiers of his presence, but he didn't care about his presence remaining concealed anymore. As he passed by several patrol units, they were all scrambling to send an alert back to their base. Hardly a few seconds later, an alarm wailed in the near distance, near the city center. This would only aid his approach. He now knew exactly where the base was by following the alarm, and plowed through any soldiers that stood in his way.
It took a minute for Sonic to reach the supposed base of the enemy. But the first word Sonic would use to describe it would be 'fortress'. The enemy had occupied an ancient castle, towering many stories tall and made of stone. But to Sonic, there was no difference between this and a run-down shed. They were both easy to break into.
Spilling out of the front gates were legions of soldiers, probably expecting the entire Allied army to open fire at any given moment. Little did anyone suspect that Sonic could use this as an opportunity for entry to the base. He ran up to the gathering crowd, which arose a panic in the soldiers as they desperately tried to ready their weapons. Sonic leapt over the mass of soldiers, in the space above their heads and beneath the risen gateway. Gunfire exploded only inches from Sonic, but the humans couldn't track Sonic with his supersonic speed. They were all one step behind. Immediately after landing behind the crowd, Sonic made several quick swerves to avoid gunfire, then plowed through a pair of guards to gain access to the corridors of the castle.
At the entrance to the inner castle were three different corridors heading right, forward, and left. Sonic didn't have the time to make a proper decision to which one he would take, so he sped down the right corridor without a second thought. Just as he was making his turn, another alarm sounded, echoing off the stone walls at an ear-splitting volume. The noise nearly made him stumble, but he managed to keep his footing. This was likely why Sonic didn't hear the culminating voices of soldiers around the next corner.
"Whoah!" Sonic exclaimed just after rounding the corner, facing a barricade of soldiers making their advance to the castle gates. They were all cramped together shoulder-to-shoulder all the way across the corridor, so Sonic wouldn't be able to push through.
Scrambling, Sonic skidded to a stop while trying to turn around simultaneously. He flopped to the ground after stumbling, then desperately tried to pick himself back up again, and bolt it around the corner. Just as he was getting back up, a bullet grazed over Sonic's shoulder, but no real harm came to the hedgehog as he managed to sprint back around the corner.
With a heart racing even faster than before due to that little surprise, Sonic raced back the way he came. That little encounter had costed Sonic nearly two of his valuable five minutes until the time of execution for the hostage. A feeling of hopelessness was beginning to pry at Sonic's conscience. He only had two minutes left to rescue the prisoner from the clutches of his enemies. This time, he had to choose the right corridor. The consequence would be too dire if he didn't.
Fortunately, his decision would be made for him. In the corridor across from Sonic, another unit of soldiers was advancing, just like the group he'd just stumbled across. They began shouting over the alarm, and soon after, a barrage of bullets rained down upon the hedgehog. To evade, Sonic needed some fancy footwork, running along the wall for a few seconds, then jumping forward, directly into the center corridor, hopefully towards where the hostage was being held. The soldiers followed behind at a distance, cussing and screaming in frustration.
Sonic burst through a pair of double doors to a sight that he hadn't expected. He was now standing at the entryway of the throne room of an ancient king and queen. But this wasn't what had him standing numb at the doorway. It was the familiar figure tied queen's throne, helplessly staring down at him. Amy Rose.
The pain and desperation glinting in the tears that fell from her eyes struck a nerve within Sonic, and he quickly became infuriated. His blood pumped hot and hard within his chest, and his legs were itching to move just as quickly. Painful it was to his soul, seeing Amy bound against her will, and potentially only a minute from drawing her final breath on earth. Sonic wouldn't allow that to become a reality.
Without thinking, Sonic gave in to the itching feeling within his legs, and created a sonic 'boom' as he sprinted to Amy's side to free her. He held a hand out to fulfil his desire to touch her, but never would he reach her...
An unspeakable pain coursed through his entire body, holding him motionless in mid-step for several long and grueling seconds. The electric shock felt as if every muscle in Sonic's body were about to give at any time, exploding within him. When the flow of electricity through his body ceased, Sonic collapsed to the floor, sprawled at Amy's feet. In a muffle, the pink hedgehog had screamed, but was hardly heard. Sonic laid conscious but immobile, completely paralyzed.
A deep laughter gradually rose in volume, stepping beside the fallen hedgehog and kneeling. "Predictable. Really, you are, Sonic. You are never careful enough...and this time, it's your eternal downfall."
The mysterious figure grabbed Sonic by the neck, and lifted the paralyzed hedgehog so that they were looking one another deep in the eyes. His eyes were so cold...
"You see, Sonic. I never intended to kill Amy. She was merely bait...for you." the man said, throwing Sonic across the room. The crash to the ground would have hurt Sonic if he could actually feel it.
The figure stepped up to Sonic once more, this time holding a pistol between the hedgehog's eyes. "Still, there will be a murder today."
He looked at the watch on his left wrist. "10 seconds until 1400 hours, Sonic.
"...10...
...9...
...8...
...7...
...6..."
He held the pistol more confidently to the hedgehog's head, gently squeezing the trigger.
"...5...
...4...
...3...
...2...
...and 1..."
The mysterious man pulled the trigger back completely. "Execution..."
It was all over.