"The Factory by the Beach"
A Music Interpretation by Nidonemo
Music: "Reactive Factory Remix" by Huepow00
The blue hedgehog walked up to the edge of the cliff, overlooking the sea below.
In the distance the waves crashed against the sinking remains of a factory, abandoned long ago by the evil Dr. Eggman and his minions. The setting sun cast a bright orange light against the incoming storm clouds and forgotten ruins, almost giving it an acceptable and caring appearance. He tossed his head, letting his quills be caressed by the ocean breeze.
"All right…let's go." The hedgehog said to himself as he walked a few feet backward and crouched.
He leaned back and then ripped forward, casting himself right off the cliff's edge, soaring for but a moment before plummeting towards the sands below. His feet slammed the cliff side and he ran down the rocky wall, using his own momentum to balance out. In another moment his feet touched the sand, and he was off, rocketing towards the abandoned factory.
The sea lapped at the shore, his shoes splashing in the surf as he made his way to what appeared to be the entrance to the factory at one point. Old remains of discarded robots and broken parts surrounded him, there was a loud siren and an old turret began to move in the rafters above. The salty air corroded its neck long ago, and it could only shoot in bursts, all of which missed Sonic by miles.
A few yards ahead, a large steel I-beam had been loosened by the vibrations of the turret, and it began to fall. The hedgehog burned forward, seeing it shake from its old position and barely made it under before the large corroded steel smashed into the floor. The resulting shudder to the facility began loosening more rafters and beams, and before long the air was filled with the deafening crashes and bangs of steel against eroded steel.
After skillfully dodging each and every beam and rafter as if they moved at a snail's pace, Sonic found himself blocked by a locked door. He screeched to a halt and looked around, then upward. A dangling beam hadn't fallen just yet. He took up a discarded wrench and hurled it upward, smacking the beam head on, loosening it. It fell with a mighty crash, and broke the floor below it, uncovering a hidden manufacturing basement.
Eyes of red began to glow, disturbed by the blue intruder. Swarms of mechanical bees began to flutter their wings after years of dormancy. The hedgehog didn't waste any time and made his way forward, into the dark and flooded basement. He could feel the rapid wings fluttering around him in the darkness, their eyes locking on and reading his every movement, calculating the most efficient way to destroy him. His pumping legs were soon awash with cold seawater, he felt himself sink into the dark abyss below him, the bees short circuiting on the surface, unable to follow.
He felt his heart skip a beat, he couldn't see his own hand in front of his face, and he didn't know how far he had sunken. Where was the bottom? Was there a bottom!? Panic began to slip inside his psyche, as the hedgehog felt his breath burn inside his chest. He needed air!
His foot touched steel! Finally! Although his enthusiasm soon faded, as two gigantic red eyes began to glow in front of him.
"Target found…" came a metallic growl from below.
Sonic could feel his heart leap into his throat; his chest began to burn even harder, demanding a breath of air. He looked upward and thrashed the water, kicking like mad, reaching for the dimmest of light above him. He felt the light slipping away, he thrashed harder, there were vibrations below him, he had to get out, he saw the surface, he had to swim harder, his chest burned fiercer, his heart pumped, he had to get out now, and he had to get to the surface NOW!
"Target locked on…initiating…" came the rumble from below.
His fingers broke the surface, and soon a desperate gasp for oxygen was heard, followed by startled coughing. His eyes shot around, looking for a platform of any kind, a floor, a climbable wall, anything he could use! Then he saw it, a dangling bundle of wires just a few strokes away from him. He began to thrash toward it, feeling the gigantic metal monstrosity behind him rise to the surface, it made his quills crawl. He grabbed and pulled on the wires and tried to hoist himself out of the dangerous depths. Hand over hand he pulled himself upward.
Looking around, he saw a platform to his left, and began to swing, using the proper momentum, he hurled himself toward the edge and barely caught the platform. Pulling himself up, his body slumped and he took a few very deep breaths before trying to get to his feet. As he rose, soaking wet, his eyes locked with two very large, very familiar glowing red ones.
"Prepare…Sonic…" came a mechanical growl.
The steel his foot had touched before was the snout of a gigantic aquatic machine shaped like a serpent from the tales of elderly fishermen. The serpent whirred and there was a loud click, as it slammed its face into the platform Sonic stood upon. However, the hedgehog had already predicted this, and was already in the air. Sonic landed upon the back of the serpent's neck and noticed a loose panel. He stomped on the opposite edge of the opened panel and the plate tore itself from the metallic body.
"Action not recommended by target…" came another growl.
A nearby circular panel opened and a long claw came forth from inside, sharp pincers snapping in the hedgehog's face. Sonic jumped back and felt the serpent move again. He tried to keep his balance and hopped on top of the head. The pincers opened and lunged at him once more; Sonic dodged them and readied a spin dash. His spiked body spinning, quills grinding against the cold, wet steel, he released himself and cut right through the claw's arm.
A loud painful robotic squeal was heard and the remains retreated inside the serpent's body like a frightened child. Sonic then turned his attention back to the exposed panel and jumped into the air. He curled up and slammed his quills into the raw machinery of the serpent's cranium.
The serpent let out a roar of screeching gears and malfunctioning outdated sound technology, and began to repeatedly slam its own head into a nearby wall.
"dESTroY…t-t-tARGeT! P-p-percent-t-tage c-c-crItiCAL…AUT-T-TOMA-A-ATED-ED-ED-ED…" the serpent sputtered, still slamming its head into the now severely dented wall.
Sonic leaped off and snagged the wires once more, watching and wincing at the serpent's self destruction. Before long, the serpent slowed, and gave itself one final smash into the wall, and broke right through it. Sand and surf began to fill the subterranean factory and the setting sunlight spilled through. Relieved, Sonic jumped through the gaping hole and hit the sands running.
He soon found himself free of the steel and wires, and once more breathing fresh salty air, palm trees waving overhead as he sped onward alongside the coastline. Taking a final glance behind him, he could see the abandoned factory begin to sink ever further into the sea.
END