IMPORTANT! Read author note!

A/N: Allo allo! I would just like to say that Vector's character is NOT the one from Sonic Heroes (you know with the badass gold chain and everything), it's from the Archie comics (the one where he speaks like a gangsta, or, should I say cranksta? Get it? Crocodile and gangsta? Hahaha…) Why? Because although he looks neat in Sonic Heroes, I can't stand his voice or how they made him look a little chunkier. Just thought I'd make that clearer for you. Oh and BTW, the title comes from the song Wicked Game by H.I.M. and Chris Isaac. I love that song, you should check it out (I recommend the H.I.M. version). Bye bye!

Disclaimer:…. Seriously, does anybody really read this thing? I think you all know that I don't own the Sonic Characters. Or duct tape. I'd be freakin' rich.


Wicked Games

Prologue: The Worst Day

If shame had a face I think it would kind of look like mine
If it had a home, would it be my eyes?
Would you believe me if I said I'm tired of this?
Well here we go now, one more time

I tried to climb your steps
I tried to chase you down
I tried to see how low I could get down to the ground
I tried to earn my way
I tried to change this mind
You better believe that I have tried to beat this

So will this end?
It goes on and on
Over and over and over again
Keep spinning around, I know that it won't stop
Till I step down from this for good

I never thought I'd end up here
I never thought I'd be standing where I am
I guess I kind of thought it would be easier than this
I guess I was wrong, now, one more time

I tried to climb your steps
I tried to chase you down
I tried to see how low I could get down to the ground
I tried to earn my way
I tried to change this mind
You better believe that I have tried to beat this

So will this end?
It goes on and on
Over and over and over again
Keep spinning around, I know that it won't stop
Till I step down from this

Sick cycle carousel

This is a sick cycle, yeah…
Sick cycle carousel
This is a sick cycle, yeah…

So will this end?
It goes on and on
Over and over and over again
Keep spinning around, I know that it won't stop
Till I step down from this for good

Will this end?
It goes on and on
Over and over and over again
Keep spinning around, I know that it won't stop
Till I step down from this for good…

Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel
Sick cycle carousel…

-Sick Cycle Carousel

By Lifehouse


Vector walked along the darkened streets of Angel Island, cursing his rotten luck. That morning, he had woken up in Espio's apartment, on his coffee table nevertheless, with a massive hangover and no recollection of the night before. Then, as he was just getting over this little surprise, in walked Knuckles and the purple lizard himself. They had stared him down with glares for a good minute before they started yelling at him for screwing up 'once again'.

So, naturally, Vector left as fast as he could. He then wandered miserably through the city most of the day, trying to find something to make him feel better. To make matters even grimmer, his CD player somehow… exploded. It just fell apart for no apparent reason, sending his beloved mixed CD into the streets to get run over by a bus.

Vector cursed once again, and kicked an old soda can that was on the sidewalk as hard as he possibly could. Thinking about it all made him steamed. The rest of the Choatix treated him like some criminal now. The only one who really talked to him anymore was Mighty, and he had the feeling that even he avoided him sometimes.

It's because of what you're doing to yourself… A nasty little voice hissed inside his head. Vector forced the thought to the back of his mind. He knew… he knew that was it. He just didn't want to admit it.

It was all a vicious cycle. Vector would drink so much one night, and wind up in some strange place, often times with no memory of the day or night before. Then, the Chaotix would of course find out. That led to lectures from Espio or Knux himself, and after expressing their 'disappointment' and 'worry' to him, Vector would, consequently, feel like crap. And the only thing that would make him feel better was to drink, among certain other certain things… The sequence would then repeat itself.

Sadly, this had been happening for a long time now. Vector didn't know how it started, but it just wouldn't stop, no matter how hard he tried. He figured that this was probably going to continue until his demise, or even be his demise, and that was that. He just didn't really care at this point anymore.

The crocodile looked up at the gray sky, through the tall buildings and the overhanging shop roofs, and jammed his hands into the pockets of his 'new' leather jacket that he had bought at some secondhand store. It was the beginning of winter, and already the season had sicced its icy breath upon the island. He fished around for a cigarette, hoping that it would warm him up, but all he got with was an empty carton. Vector sighed. Of course he had little money on him, so he couldn't go out and buy some more, either.

Looking down at his feet, he began to think about what he could do to get cash, when he felt a cold, wet raindrop crash onto the back of his neck. He also noticed that the sidewalk was becoming speckled with the drops. Fast.

Vector gritted his teeth. If there really was a God up there, it hated him. And if to prove this theory, a huge sheet of rain suddenly fell from the sky and continued to rapidly pound against the his body as if he were being pelted with rocks. He ran frantically, looking for some shelter. He saw a pub about two blocks away from him, and decided that was his best chance for survival.

The reptile basically tumbled through the door and let it slam shut behind him, which caused some unwanted stares. Vector hated staring. Well, at least I'm better off in here than out there, he thought, as he brushed off the rainwater from the shoulders of his now-soggy coat. He glanced at the ogling faces. They certainly didn't look very friendly. He frowned. Or maybe I should take my chances outside…

Since Vector wasn't in the mood to see who could gape longer at who, he stuck his hands into his damp pockets and made his way over to an empty bar stool. The air was thick and hazy from all the smokers, and the only lights in the place were a few dimly lit, low hanging ceiling lamps. There were holes in the walls, no doubt from drunken fights, and the cheesy paint job was looking sorry. The pool table had nasty stains on its green felt surface, and Vector could see that the Eight Ball had been stolen from the bunch. He groaned.

Real nice place you picked here, Vector, he thought to himself bitterly. The bar he usually went to was at least twice as better than this joint, and the girls there didn't look like hookers. But, Vector figured that he brought this upon himself, and he would just have to deal with it. It was icing on the cake of crappy day-ness.

The scaly green fellow sat himself down, and buried his head in his arms on the counter, not caring that his sleeves were still wet with rain. He gave a quiet moan. No cigs, no money, now what? The bar tender looked at him and chuckled.

"Bad day, mac?" he said and poked the seemingly lifeless being in front of him.

"Just gimme something hard and cheap, and do it quick." Vector grunted, his voice muffled by his little barrier.

"That bad, huh?" The face-less voice snorted, as he filled a shot glass full with some strange concoction. "Well then, I'm sure this'll do, just don't ask what's in it."

Vector mumbled something unidentifiable as a reply. He heard the guy set the glass in front of him, then felt him pat his shoulder. Lifting his weary head, the crocodile looked at the mysterious drink. The liquid was dark and bubbly. He downed it in an instant. It burned as it slithered through his throat, but it felt strangely pleasant.

"Damn, that's good…" Vector breathed, feeling a little refreshed. "Uh… how much do I owe ya?"

"Nothing."

"What?" he liked the sound of that. The tender laughed.

"Listen buddy, it seems to me that you had one hell of a day, and I ain't gonna be blamed for makin' it worse by charging you, alrighty? Have as many as you want of those, and those only, it's all on me."

Vector thought he was going to cry he was so happy. He raised his head to look at his savior. The voice belonged to a seemingly fierce lion complete with five nose rings in each nostril, and his mane shaved into a mohawk. But right now in Vector's eyes, he was the equivalent to a saint. He glanced at his nametag, which read 'Clark'.

"Holy crap, I love you." That sent Mr. Clark into hysterics.

"Heh heh, well, I just hope things will look up for you soon, bud." And with that, Vector's new friend went into the back room. He wondered if he should've asked him for a couple of cigarettes too, but maybe that would've been pushing a little far.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Vector saw the cat next to him set down a half-empty carton of the cancer causing sticks just a few inches away, like he was taunting him. The cat then got up and headed toward what was most likely the restroom. He shuddered at the thought of using the 'ol sany-can here, but nevertheless, it was the best opportunity to get some free smokes…

Vector looked around to make sure he had no witnesses, then like a lightning bolt he snatched about three cigs. Luckily, he actually did have a lighter on him, and even though it was a little moist, it still lit. He smiled happily. Maybe his day would end on a good note.

The big lug of a kitty didn't even notice the missing sticks when he eventually crawled out of the commode, if he did he surely didn't care. He just grabbed one and lit up himself. Vector, relieved, closed his eyes and took a long drag on his stolen one. The smoke, with its deadly but oh-so-bittersweet poison, felt good as it filled his lungs. He exhaled slowly and watched the gray, swirling vapor rise toward the ceiling like a dream…

But Vector's 'dream' was interrupted abruptly when the TV's volume suddenly got loud by itself. Startled, he looked up at the two television screens which only seconds ago had been broadcasting a baseball game. Headlining the top of the screen read "BREAKING NEWS" in bold red letters, and in the center was the 'famous' female Echidna reporter Trisha Gillan. Vector looked around the bar to find that the whole place was now attentively gazing at the twin sets.

"We interrupt this television broadcast to give you breaking news on the Operation Peace Guard leader massacres." An automated voice informed the audience before switching over to Trisha's mike.

Ah, the OPG murders… I hope it's good news… Vector thought bleakly. This was a case that The Chaotix had been working on for about five months, around the time the murders started. The OPG organization was a project to help keep things between the overlanders and the Angel Island residents in good terms, like on Mobius. Many leaders of the project were big-time business CEOs who took peace-assuring steps by hiring overlanders and islanders alike. Although there weren't that many humans on Angel Island yet (close to none), many believed that with this act, more would make the journey to live there. Pitifully, most of the native residents hated the idea of overlanders on Angel Island, making the deed slow to progress. But now with the leaders of the operation itself around Angel Island being killed off one by one, there were rumors of a war looming in the future. It was frustrating, because no matter how heavily guarded the OPG followers were, they ended up dead. Vector himself and the rest of the group had worked the scene of the crime a few times, and had come to the conclusion that the murder was actually a female human, which was even more bad news.

Oddly enough, the murder left plenty of evidence to her identity, like she wanted to be found. In fact, the DNA results from the lock of hair they had found just recently at one of the crimes was supposed to reveal her name sometime this week. Unfortunately, it was pretty much too late since only one remaining member of the OPG was left….

"I regret to inform everyone today that Gerry Ling, renown politician and last associate of the Operation Peace Guard, was found dead just momentarily on the floor of his suite in the West Sun hotel. He too was murdered by a fatal shot to the head." Trisha said emotionless, as she circled the area surrounded by yellow police tape with her glove.

Make that none.

"Shit!" Vector spat, and slammed the counter with his hand. Clark automatically filled his shot glass with the same infamous dark liquid as before. How did this happen! Vector thought frantically as he slurped the drink down faster than before. Mighty and a whole crap load of guards were there 24/7 to make sure Gerry didn't end up like the rest of 'em… His eyes suddenly grew wide. Mighty…

The crocodile sat up straight, his eyes now glued to the screens. Trisha was bent slightly over and pressing her earphone in to hear the latest reports being fed to her. By the look on the Echidna's face, it was urgent news.

"I'm receiving word that the murder has been found still in the hotel, three flights down of where the scene of the crime is." She said, obviously excited. "The criminal has been identified as Shaya Greenwood, a female overlander."

Although the whole bar booed, Vector heard none of it. He didn't care about the stupid broad's name; he just wanted to know that Mighty was alright. Trisha continued her announcements.

"Shaya reportedly had the murder weapon in her hand when police found her unconscious, most likely from tumbling down the stairs as she was escaping. She is being taken away to a special holding cell at Alcaz Prison on Sakare Street as we speak." The reporter then turned around to face the front of the building. The camera zoomed in as she pointed enthusiastically toward the door. "There she is!"

Emerging from the window-covered structure were many, many policemen all surrounded around one girl, who was wearing torn jeans and a blood stained white shirt. Her hair was bright orange and cut into a short, feathery, flippy style, and when the camera zoomed in closer, tear stains were streaked across her pale face. Surprisingly, she was walking along quietly and wasn't struggling at all. When she saw the cameras all around her, watching her every move, her vibrant green eyes filled with fear and she bowed her head toward the ground. Was this really the cold-blooded murder of the ten peace leaders?

"What about the escorts, you idiot!" Vector snarled at the Echidna, not caring that half the bar was now staring at him. As if to answer his question, stretchers began to roll out of the building one by one, the first being the murdered politician. Vector started to get nervous. He clutched his shot glass so hard he heard it crack.

"What you are seeing now is Mr. Ling's bodyguards being taken from the hotel. A total of twelve guards were assigned to protect Gerry Ling, and now most are either dead or injured." Trisha explained with false sadness in her voice. Vector was on the edge of his seat, scanning each stretcher, hoping that his armadillo friend wasn't one of the unfortunate souls underneath a sheet. The camera zoomed in even closer to give viewers a clear shot of the drama. Then, to his joy, a beat-up figure leaning on an EMP came limping from the deadly depths of the building: Mighty.

Relieved, the reptile took an endless drag on his cigarette to soothe his violently shaking, nervous body. Damn armadillo, Vector thought grumpily as he exhaled smoke, gave me a freakin' heart attack… He didn't bother to listen to the rest of report, as his mind was too busy thinking about how pissed 'ol 'Rad Red' was going to be. Dreadlocks was probably going to chew out poor Mighty, too.

Knuckles hadn't been in the best of moods for a while now, most likely because of Vector. He seemed more on edge and had a short temper lately, and the massacre of the Operation Peace Guard leaders probably weren't helping to ease his tension. Now that the leaders were all wiped out, there was no telling how the Echidna would act…

Vector downed about five shots at the thought. By then, he felt himself getting a little woozy, so he decided it would be best for him to leave. He got up, thanked his new friend Clark for the free drinks, and then dizzily made his way over to the door. That was a mistake. On his way there, he tripped over himself and landed face first on a table, which knocked over someone's beer, and then the beverage in turn spilled all over a tough-looking hog. The croc grimaced. He could tell that he was in for it now.

The hog got up, infuriated and sopping wet. He was huge. Putting both hands together in a fist and raising them over his head, the brute then attempted to slam them down on poor Vector, but luckily the scaly reptile managed to roll out of the way. The table literally snapped in half at the vicious blow. Others then joined in at the brawl, either on Vector's side of the hog's, creating a nasty scene that was wrecking the place.

Finally, sirens could be heard outside at the front of the bar. Police came swarming through the door, getting everybody in control. An important-looking wildcat in uniform then stepped up on a chair to ask the group a certain question.

"Who the hell started this mess?" he barked, obviously angry.

Automatically the crowd all turned and pointed to Vector, who was in the corner of the room trying to make himself unnoticeable. He winced.

"Now wait just one freakin' moment…" he began to say, but was cut off by a police officer who violently slammed him against the wall and handcuffed him. Vector gritted his teeth. "Gently there, bub. You might bruise me." The officer was not amused.

"Save your remarks, you hooligan." He answered bitterly. The crocodile rolled his eyes as he was being taken away into the back seat of the cop car.

"So you're just gonna slap cuffs on me and call it good just because some people said I started that riot?" he said menacingly. "I suppose you arrested that human girl the same way too? Took a tip from some islander, who was most likely racist, that she was the killer, eh?"

The police officer purposely slammed Vector's head on the top of the car before pushing him into the vehicle as an answer. Stunned but angry, Vector tried to counter it by kicking at the cop, but the door slammed shut at the last second, narrowly missing his leg. His captor got into the driver's seat and turned around to meet him with a hotheaded expression on his face.

"Listen you insolent, smart-mouthed little bastard," He growled viciously. "Don't make me punish you more than I have to."

Vector gave a little smirk, satisfied that he had gotten to the guy. He kept his mouth shut for a time before they passed what appeared to be the police station. Confused, our favorite little reptile decided to give a little friendly 'reminder' to the officer.

"You just passed the police station, buddy." Vector said mockingly. "Aw, are you lost?"

Through the rearview mirror, he could see the policeman give him a wickedly evil smile. The croc suddenly got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it wasn't gas.

"Well since you are so obviously interested in the peace leaders murderer," the cop hissed, poison oozing from every word. "I thought you'd be thrilled to have your cell next to hers instead…"

To be continued


A/N: So, how was it? Please tell me in a review! I apologize if there is some material about Angel Island and Mobius that is not correct, because I'm not really a dedicated follower of the comic series anymore (my bookstore stopped carrying them…). I really made up the thing about overlanders and stuff on the island and the OPG (obviously), so I'm sorry if it sounds kinda…weird, lol. So, if there is anything that doesn't sound right about the whole human and Angel Island theme, please tell me, I'll appreciate the info very much. And again, please review! Even if it's criticism, as long as it's CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. I'm excited to know if people liked it. Thank you!