Two years.
Two years of hell.
He hunched over the computer screen, dull blue eyes once bright and full of energy scanning over the data the machine had just collected. The fox glanced at his cup of coffee, sitting on his right, full. Was it still hot? Or was it as cold as his heart felt at this moment? Twin tails twitched behind him as the young mobian grabbed the cup and brought it to his lips.
Huh. It was lukewarm.
Tails put the cup aside and focused on the computer screen once more. Supposed sightings, rumors, everything he had collected over the last two years was spread out in front of him. But, even with all the information he had gathered, it was still useless. Nothing seemed to work.
The fox had tried finding his brother. Oh, he had. Again and again; an endless search that brought more despair each time his leads turned out to be nothing but false hope. The fox was doing his best, trying to keep on with the search, but it seemed as if this was useless.
He has the facts. He had the location and time of the kidnapping, and yet whoever took Sonic was like a ghost, ethereal and untouchable, mist that slipped in between his hands. Anyone could have taken the hedgehog. Eggman, the government, GUN, any other shady organization or company he had poked around in search of his brother.
As childish at it was, he still had the hope that the blue hedgehog would turn up by himself eventually, but that was nothing more than a juvenile dream, a impossibility. Tails sighed, bringing the cup of coffee up to his lips.
He could still cling to that belief, even if he knew it was a lie.
xxxxxxxxxx
Green eyes snapped open.
Clawed fingers twitched restlessly.
Huh. Did someone talk about me?
Probably. The people outside the cage were getting more active. He couldn't count the times he had been restrained, chained down and sedated as they poked around my insides. Those sessions were growing in count more quickly than before.
A low, inhuman hiss reached my ears.
It took me a moment to realize it came from my throat.
Well did you look at that. It wasn't the first time such sounds escaped my mouth; but I knew I wasn't able to do that before I came here. I glanced behind me. A long, reptilian tail stared back. Neither was the tail...or the fur change.
I did remember having a vibrant blue pelt...but now it was black, inky black, a void. The fur looked silky, but it was in fact hard, like a tough, flexible armor that choked my body, a pelt that didn't belong to my body, like the tail or my claws.
I growled lowly, turning around, facing away from the steel door that barred me from my freedom, and retreated in between the crates that filled my cage.
My fingers twitched, itching for the moment the door would be open. Something inside me moved, restless, telling me that soon, there would be change.
Soon, that door would be open for good.