Before I begin, let me say that I have hardly read any of the Archie comics. Maybe two or three in my life and even then, it was years ago. Therefore, some details may be wrong and some characters may be slightly OOC. I have read as much as I could about the characters as possible online, but those with better knowledge, please let me know of any discrepancies. Keep in mind, though, that this story will not take place completely in the Archie Sonic Universe. Also, for the purpose of this story, the Anti-Mobians have not yet met their Prime counterparts.
A golden yellow, two-tailed fox walked behind a black hedgehog with red highlights on his spines. Walking alongside the fox was a red echidna with a black Scottish tam. The fox, known as Miles, frowned at the hedgehog's back. He didn't fully trust the guy, but if there was a chance to stop Scourge, he would take it.
Why am I doing this? he thought, He hasn't even told us his name, or what his plan is, yet. If I don't get any answers after we're done here… well, we'll see…
Currently, they were on their way to pick up one more person. With such a small group, Miles hoped the hedgehog had one hell of a plan.
"I don't like this… I don't think bringing her along is a good idea..." he commented.
"Don't worry about it," replied the hedgehog nonchalantly, raising a dismissive hand.
"You telling me not to worry about it is making me worry about it."
"Didn't I say you don't have to do anything? I'll talk to her."
"I know I don't have to do anything. I still don't like it."
"I know how ye feel, lad," said the Irish-accented echidna, Knuckles, so named for the spikes protruding from his fists, "But we'll need all the help we can get to stop Scourge."
"That's true… but a group this small...?"
Soon, they came to a small house with an overgrown garden and dirty windows. Supposedly, inside was the last person the hedgehog – Black, Miles had mentally named him – was looking for: Rosy the Rascal. The problem was, the house looked abandoned.
"Alright, you two stay here," said Black.
"No problem there," said Miles.
"Sure ye don't need any help with her?" asked Knuckles.
Black shook his head, smirking a little, "I can take care of this myself."
Miles leaned on the wall next to the door, "Fine. But if she goes nuts, I'm sure not going to try and stop her."
"Like I said, leave it to me."
Putting his hand on the doorknob, he turned it and pushed the door open.
Miles rolled his eyes, "Oh, that's a great start - just walk in."
The hedgehog ignored him and surveyed the small, messy living room to the right of the main hall. A couch, a table and a television, but no Rosy.
He stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
"Rosy?"
No answer.
He walked through the living room to the kitchen and didn't find her there, either, although there were small splatters of something red here and there on the floor. Hoping it was just ketchup and not blood, he moved on into a large, almost empty room. Empty, except for a desk with coloured pencils and crayons – some snapped in two – and the walls, which were lined with drawings of a green hedgehog in various painful situations. Even though the drawings were bad, in both quality and taste, the black hedgehog could tell who was being depicted. On the floor were several ripped pieces of crumpled paper with half-finished artworks on them, as though the artist had gotten too excited and accidentally ripped the paper during creation.
Shaking his head, the hedgehog checked the final room, a dining area, which was small and looked like it hadn't seen much use. Looking back at the picture room – some sort of study? – Black realised that Rosy had switched the intended uses of these two rooms around. She probably ate her meals in the kitchen or living room, anyway.
There was only one place left to look – upstairs.
Cautiously walking up the stairway, Black listened and heard harsh breathing coming from one of the rooms. The door was ajar and he peeked in. The room was narrow and dark, the light coming in from the windows doing little to illuminate what was probably a storage area. At the far end of the room, the hedgehog could partially see a pinkish figure crouching with their back turned to him.
Opening the door fully, he stepped in. The figure jumped and turned, her expression one of shock and fear. Her head dropped and she meekly looked at him from the corner of her eyes.
Drop the innocent act, girl. I know what you are... thought Black. Although he had to admit, she looked almost cute this way. But behind her pale green eyes, her mind was coming up with various ways of mutilating him.
He took a step towards her and she shrank back, shoulders hunched defensively, dropping a hedgehog-shaped doll.
She's hoping I'll let down my guard and come closer... then bam! Not gonna happen, sweetie...
"Rosy..." he said with a small grin, his red eyes boring into hers, "...I'm going to go get Scourge."
The emphasis he put on 'get', along with his facial expression, took her attention and she stood straight, listening intently.
"Do you wanna help me get him?" he asked.
Smiling wickedly, she brought her foot down heavily on the doll and twisted it back and forth. Black nodded, There she is... the true Rosy...
"I'll take that as a 'yes', then," he said and cocked his head towards the door, "Follow me."
.
They were approaching the front door when Black heard something and knew full-well what it was. Quickly, he half-turned to Rosy and stopped her massive green hammer with one hand, admittedly impressed at her strength. He looked straight at her, "Don't do that."
"It was only a joke..." she said, giving an innocent smile that didn't reach her eyes. No matter the expression, her eyes maintained a look of insanity.
Almost effortlessly, he pushed her hammer back, nearly making her lose her balance.
"Do it again, and you're not coming with us."
Rosy hung her head, "...Okay... I won't..." she replied. Somehow, Black didn't think she meant it.
"One exception: Scourge. Do it to him all you like."
Rosy looked up, grinned and licked her lips.
.
Hearing the door open, Miles jumped back from the wall and warily watched the pink hedgehog following Black. The two seconds she made eye contact unnerved him.
"Where's my Scourgey?" she asked eagerly, looking around and clutching her hammer tightly.
"Where do you think?" asked Black.
The young hedgehog looked over at the large building in the distance.
"Castle..." she said in a low voice, referring to Castle Acorn.
"That's right. And that's where we're headed. Come on, let's go."
"Hold it," said Miles, "What exactly are we going to do?"
"Well, we need to get to Scourge, first of all."
"That much is obvious."
"He'll have guards inside the castle. We'll need to fight through them and get to the throne room where our almighty 'King' should be waiting."
"If it's to take down Scourge, I'll fight... even though I'd rather not," said Knuckles.
"Glad to hear it. You're good at hand-to-hand, which is exactly why I brought you along."
"So, we get to Scourge. Then what?" asked Miles, wanting to get his answers.
Black smirked, "Then you leave Scourge to me."
"What?" screamed Rosy.
"Calm down, Rosy. I'll let you have a shot at him. You can get to finish him off. How does that sound?"
"No! He's mine! I get to squish him! Nobody else touches him!"
Uttering a cry of rage, spittle flying from her mouth, Rosy reared her hammer back, about to take a swing at the black hedgehog, when he raised an eyebrow at her and she remembered what he said earlier. She gritted her teeth and relaxed her stance, yet looked no less dangerous.
"...Okay..." she murmured.
Miles moved his gaze from Rosy to Black and wiped the sweat from his brow, "Alright, so you're going to take him on by yourself, huh? How do you propose to do that?"
"Trust me... I've got the perfect thing in mind."
"That being?"
"You'll see. I don't want to ruin the surprise."
"If you don't tell me, I'm not gonna help you," said Miles, steadfastly crossing his arms.
"So you say, but I bet you're burning with curiosity to find out."
Miles clenched his fists and ground his teeth, then sighed heavily. Black was right; he was.
"Fine..." he muttered, looking away.
"Alright, then. Shall we?"