Holoskan Chemical Outpost, 9PM HCT(Holoska Central Time)
The two hedgehogs had been travelling for a good while across the world, having taken a biplane ride(courtesy of Tails carrying them both) overseas to drop them off into the colder regions. Right now, they were putting the plan into action and were already en route to the outpost, via specialised freight rails that they used for grinding instead, switching from time to time so they wouldn't hit any dead ends. Dead ahead laid their target, the chemical outpost that's one of many international branches, all dedicated to one thing. The pipes filled with blue liquid are actually transporting it to be distilled, it being a pure oil-like element that has the power to combust if it were to get into direct sunlight. The outposts and plants take it, and split the liquid into two forms: oil and waste that can be converted into power, the former usually given to the Oil Ocean repository while Hexaco received the waste.
"Did it get colder since I last came here?" Sonic yelled, as a moderately strong wind blew around him and Shadow. "Probably. It must have been the launch base causing the slight rise in temperature around the area. Now come on, we're nearly there. Keep your guard up!" He raised his voice, as the rails entered a small corkscrew twist and sent the both of them into a wide air conditioning vent, whizzing past the slow moving fan-blades as the hedgehog duo dropped onto the metallic flooring below. Red-hued lighting illuminated the circular shaped hall the two were occupying, no noise apart from the slow blades and muffled work going on underneath their feet. To their left and right laid doors, allowing them to have a choice of where to enter.
"Do you still have your communicator with you?" The crimson-streaked hedgehog spoke, holding up what seemed to be the same radio communicator they used when the team were a resistance. Sonic stared towards Shadow for a good while as he tried to process it- Since, he'd thrown it away after the war had taken place. What good did it have if he was always in a quick run's reach to anyone?
"...No?" Sonic answered, darting his eyes away as he scratched his ear, only to be caught off guard by his ally throwing his one over to him, while pulling out another one. "It won't matter, anyway. I'm going to split off and look for our target- You do the same." And with that finished, Shadow finished speaking and sped off, one of the doors opening up as it revealed a vast chemical factory, noise filling the area compared to the hall. Deciding to take the other side to explore, Sonic ran off to the other side, finding himself on a balcony that overlooked an array of black and blue coloured pools, each of which were tall and deep with the fluids inhabiting them.
Sonic considered this mission the two were on might be slower, since the directions to that computer he found before must have changed by now. Adding to this, the atmosphere was cooler, probably to condition the oil and keep it out of harm's way. Heading down some steps via the platform, the blue hedgehog wandered past some of the drums, his footsteps echoing along the metallic floor. "Okay... Where are you, terminal?" He mumbled to himself, taking the time to look for any other openings or ways he could navigate the plant...
Whereas, Shadow was taking a more silent approach, having found an overhead vent not too long ago that he had found- which connected to other rooms around the area, which meant he had less ground to cover rather than wandering around aimlessly. Though, he'd noticed something. The plant seemed to be in order, but there were no workers around in any of the rooms he'd covered by peering through the vents. Though it limited his vision, he needed to be sure that nobody was just being quiet, and decided to go for a louder solution. Kicking through one of the metallic panels, it made a loud clang on the floor that should havegotten the attention of something... But yet, nothing still. Landing near the bent panel, he turned on his communicator and spoke into it. "Found the terminal yet? Everywhere I've looked seems to be empty, so there's nobody to ask around."
"Got the same coming up for me, too. Is everyone on vacation or something?" Sonic spoke into it after hearing the fellow hedgehog's voice on the other side as he opened up a door and checked the wide hallway behind it- which didn't provide any leads to what they were looking for. However, hidden in a corner was one of Eggman's lesser drones, a Motobug- though this one had a chrome coat of paint, allowing it to blend into its surroundings thanks to the reflection. It had picked up on the blue blur's movements, using its neon eyes to scan him over while one of its antennae aimed directly towards the hedgehog, beginning to charge a quick energy blast which promptly shot right towards him.
As soon as Sonic heard something, he quickly sprang into action and just missed the shot as it zipped past him, only to look in the direction where he came from once landing. "What the heck was that?!" Sonic gasped, only to find out that the Motobug in question had already made its presence known, not even giving him a chance to get his bearings as it revved up and rammed right into him, shoving him back into the steel walls behind. Adding to this, it seemed like this Badnik wouldn't slow down with the assault, proceeding to pin the hedgehog with its shell and spin its wheel as fast as it could, like it was trying to pressure Sonic through it. Fortunately though, his communicator went flying, as Shadow heard noise coming from it once it turned on.
In minutes after trying to track the source of the other communicator, Shadow arrived with fury in his expression and sent the Motobug flying with a harsh kick! This made its hull crack and blow up from the impact as it met the ceiling, crumpled bits falling to the floor as they smouldered. Meanwhile, the recently-pummelled hedgehog had dropped to the floor, trying to recover as he took deep breaths, able to stand once more thereafter. "We better keep moving." Shadow bluntly stated. This meant that they weren't alone in the first place.
"Why did that attack me? Badniks like that come in groups; not by themselves... Something's up." Sonic huffed, finally able to breathe normally again as he stared at the wreckage in confusion- Though the robot wasn't entirely out of commission. Having recorded footage of its short lifespan with one of its eyes, it finally flickered to an off state as the data it collected had shot off, relaying itself to other robots in the vicinity. Now, a good number of them were on the way, en-route in all sorts of directions.
The Motobug was simply a trigger for a silent alarm around the outpost. There were many, many more that had been hiding for a contingency plan like this- and now was their time to strike.
Finally done with this chapter! Next time, 'Onslaught at The Outpost': So much for a quiet, tactile mission. The hedgehog duo have got to find that terminal, and with a fair armada of robots in their way, they're definitely going to make some noise!
By the way: This fanfic comes with a YouTube playlist of music, selected by yours truly to fit the themes and tones of the story while you go! Check it out here: bit. ly/2FbTAGM
See you next chapter! - D