Tip of the Spear

They were afraid of him.

He could see it in their eyes. Smell it in their fur. Even see it in the way they held themselves. The Resistance soldiers weren't robots. They fought against robots, and had so far done a poor job of it. So poor that in a matter of weeks, 99% of planet Earth was under the banner of the Eggman Empire, and within the next few days, South Island would stop being the 1%. If left to his own devices, he could cut that time down to mere hours, but Eggman had ordered him to wait. He, the one who had been the tip of the spear of the armies of the Eggman Empire. He, being ordered to hold back.

It bothered him, as he tore through the Resistance soldiers stationed in this deserted part of the Green Hills. What he could do to the Resistance in hours, he did to the creatures before him in seconds – remove them from the equation. Toss their broken bodies aside and let the drones do with them as they wished. Bothered him, because he was stuck in this miserable piece of land in this miserable world, while Doctor Eggman was…what, he wondered? Foolish? No, not really – you didn't conquer the world by being stupid. But what then?

"The Doctor told you to hold back."

He didn't shift his gaze. The Resistance was beneath him. The robot that descended from the sky was just as unworthy of his time.

"Do you disobey?"

"Let's not go through this again – you waste your time and my breath, and the latter has value."

"I do not breathe."

"Yes, well, that's why they call you Metal Sonic isn't it?"

"They call me by the name I was given."

Infinite smirked. He knew of this robot's history. He wasn't the only robotic duplicate of Sonic that existed, but for some reason, Eggman kept this particular creation around, even after he'd betrayed him. He was as formidable as one of the doctor's robots could be, but there was no grace to his conquests. No elegance. He might have been the smallest of Eggman's lieutenants, but he was no less a brute.

"But my name is irrelevant to one such as you." The robot hedgehog took a step towards him, and Infinite supressed the urge to laugh – if this was an attempt at intimidation, he was failing miserably. "The doctor bids you join us in Park Avenue."

"Park Avenue? It's still standing?"

"The Resistance are fighting back. One of their number is wreaking havoc in the Green Hills."

Infinite's eyes flashed as he turned his gaze over the hills in question. 'Wrecking havoc.' Interesting.

"And the fake hedgehog is pushing forward as well."

Infinite looked at Metal Sonic. "Fake hedgehog?"

"He's at the spear's tip. He's returned, and the Resistance fights harder for it." Now, it was Metal Sonic's eyes who flashed. "My copy."

Infinite chuckled. Oh you poor broken creature. You really are insane aren't you?

Insanity could be used as a weapon if pointed in the right direction. After all, wasn't Eggman slightly insane as well? Few who built giant mechs called "Death Egg robots" were among the annals of this world's greatest thinkers. Usually people who tried to conquer the world just ended up destroying a large part of it.

"Now, you'll follow me, and remember – the hedgehog is mine."

Infinite watched Metal Sonic's turbine activate. He had no time for broken pieces of machinery. It would have been simpler to simply rip out the turbine and show it to the robot before it shut down, saving him time and effort later. But, he didn't. He'd been at the tip of the spear for Eggman's armies, and now, the one called Sonic was at the tip of a different spear, pointed in his general direction. And instead of letting his lieutenants run wild, Eggman was-

Of course.

He'd been holding them back because he was afraid. Sonic and his friends had returned from the Twilight Cage, the Resistance fought harder, and the one called Sonic had thwarted him at every single turn up to this point. Had thwarted Metal Sonic numerous times, Chaos and Zavok once each, and Shadow…he wasn't sure about the one called Shadow. He suspected that the one called Eggman wasn't sure either. But then, all his other lieutenants had turned on him in the past, and now he utilized them to the fullest extent. Or had, up until now. Dictators always feared losing control, even to their own detriment. Now, the spear was pointed in their direction, and the doctor was dithering between parrying the blow or relying on a shield.

Nonetheless, Infinite followed the metal hedgehog. Spears were long, but could be broken easily.

Especially when they overreached.