Chapter 3
The odor of the sea was strong in the air around the crag where the Eggcarrier had made its temporary home. Heavily armed turrets guarded the only entrance in and out of the vessel; the whirring sounds they made were picked up by Rouge's ultra-sensitive ears. She crouched low in the bushes where she and her partner were taking cover. Turning to him, she was met with a most displeased look.
"And how are we supposed to get by those?" he mockingly questioned.
"I never said we were going through the front door did I?"
"Then how do you propose we get in? I may be strong but we will be noticed if I make a hole in that wall."
Rouge sighed, "You need to stop thinking with your fists and start thinking with whatever is inside that head of yours."
Knuckles growled but she ignored it and continued.
"Here," she crouched down and removed a roll of paper from a pouch on her back. The document turned out to be a blueprint of the current Eggcarrier.
Slightly befuddled, Knuckles looked up at the bat, "How'd you get this?"
"Oh come on now, look who you're talking to," she snickered; the Echidna, however, was not so easily amused and urged her to continue.
"Anyway, THIS is where we get in," she pointed at what appeared to be shaft leading from the bottom of the ship, deep into its core.
"An air duct?"
"Well, if you mean garbage when you say "air" then yes, you're right."
The mere thought of a dark, dank, chute reeking of garbage contorted Knuckles' face into a grimace of unfathomable disgust. He turned his distorted face towards his partner as a twitch of repulsion shot through his brow.
"Hey, I'm not too thrilled about it either! But this shaft leads right into the factory of the Carrier which is right next to the R&D lab. Any other vent will bring us into his living quarters which are far from where we want to be."
The Echidna did not want to trudge through Robotnik's trash, but the thought of him falling through a duct to find the Eggman singing in the shower frightened him more. Slowly and reluctantly, he agreed.
"Good," Rouge assumed command, "Ok, follow me."
She signaled for him to stay low and together they swiftly ran to the border of the cliff. Pointing in the direction they needed to head, they both leaped off the edge and glided towards the lower hull of the craft.
Both of them met the hull with a dull clang, digging their claws into the side to avoid plummeting into the ocean below. The pair gradually climbed towards the duct Rouge had pointed out earlier. Upon arrival, they both looked into the long dark tunnel; it reeked of motor oil and 3 week old tacos.
He turned to Rouge, trying to keep a straight face from the smell. "Lady's first."
This comment did not amuse the bat one bit. She merely pointed into the abyss-like hole, "In. Now."
With Knuckles leading the way, they scaled the dark passageway which led up into the ship. The surface was smooth and slick with grease from unrecognizable sources. The deeper they climbed, the stronger the toxic odor grew; almost strong enough to make one faint. The darkness was deep as pitch, but the pair's heightened senses more than compensated for the lack of light.
After what seemed to be an eternity of climbing they reached an area that leveled off enough that they could stand. The tunnel was by no means small; it was large enough to accommodate the many large machines that Dr. Robotnik saw fit to dispose of, leaving more than enough room for the pair to stand comfertably in. Knuckles stretched out his arms from the climb while Rouge removed the blueprints from her pack. Her exceptional night-vision allowed her to see the plans clearly without the aid of a light.
"We must be in the compactor," Rouge said, rolling up the document and carefully placing in back in her bag. "There is a shaft up ahead that should take us into the robot factory. Once in there we have to be very careful, since that's the place Robotnik keeps all his minions." Knuckles acknowledged her with an understanding grunt.
With Rogue leading onwards, Knuckles followed the bat cautiously through the compactor; its long path littered with broken machines and rejected robots.
A shifting in the debris is heard ahead of them.
Both treasure hunters put up their guard. "Did you hear that?" Knuckles asked.
"Something is up ahead."
In the distance, two circular red lights slowly flicker on. A motor roars to life as the eyes rise higher and a metallic voice echoes down the shaft.
"E-108 Mk. I, light sentry, is now online, stating primary functions: patrol and defend the Eggcarrier from intruders. Commencing primary function."
The heavy clanging of steel feet grew louder and louder as the unseen robot approached; his glowing eyes revolved from side to side scanning for trespassers.
"Alright! Something that finally falls into MY field of expertise." Knuckles grinned with malicious intent.
Before Rouge could say anything to stop him, Knuckles had already begun to charge the mechanized guard, pounding his fists together with what could only be described as excitement.
The guard turned its full gaze towards the sprinting Echidna.
"Intruder sited, commencing termination."
The sentinel then raised its single right arm; attached to it was a large machine gun. Knuckles dove behind a nearby trash pile to his right as it unleashed a torrent of gunfire; however he was not quick enough to dodge the bullet which pierced through his left shoulder.
Upon hitting the floor he propped himself up against the mound of twisted metal, "DAMN IT!" He growled in anger at his own carelessness.
Rouge, upon hearing the gunfire quickly took cover to the left of to Knuckles position.
"We've got to get past him!" She shouted over the barrage of bullets which divided them, "The compactor can start up at any mome-" but before she could finish her sentence, an even larger motor was heard starting up behind them. They both looked back, the sentry still firing blindly in their direction. Just as Rouge predicted, the compactor had been turned on for its morning duties and way slowly closing in on them.
"This day just gets better by the moment doesn't it?" Knuckles asked to himself more than his partner. He then turned his full attention to Rouge, "Rouge! When I give the signal, run for the shaft! Don't argue just do it!" She nodded, awaiting his signal, the compacting wall growing closer to them by the second.
After a few more seconds of firing, the assault suddenly stopped.
"Ammunition reserve is depleted, switching to close quarter combat mode."
At that instant Knuckles gave the signal, "NOW! Go for it Rouge!"
The pair simultaneously ran from their cover towards the robot; Rouge passing him first, dodging a vicious swing of its large weapon. Recognizing Knuckles quickly, it turned to face the raging Echidna. Its gun arm raised up and swung around to throw Knuckles an engine powered right hook. Knuckles quickly rolled under the hook, grunting in pain because of his damaged arm. Upon recovering from his dodge, he quickly turned to face his opponent.
"You call THAT a right hook?" he taunted, "I'll show you how a real fighter throws a punch!" With that, he used his good arm to smash the robot in its open midsection, shattering it clean in half. Screws and shrapnel flew everywhere, but Knuckles didn't have time to bathe in the glory of his handicapped victory, for the monstrous compacting wall was almost upon him. Realizing this he then ran and jumped into the upper shaft where Rouge was waiting for him. The compacter then shut the gap behind them, making it impossible to return through this entrance for a while.
This shaft was oddly enough lit by tiny lights that lined the edges of the ceiling. It was bright enough for Rouge to see that Knuckles was wounded. She nodded towards the injury, "That won't slow you down now will it? You attract enough attention when you're HEALTHY."
Knuckles shot her a glare that would make a hurricane turn around in fear. He then tore off one of his signature green socks and wrapped it around the open wound.
"There. All better, let's get a move on."
They began walking through the angled chute upwards towards the exit. Neither of them spoke.
Just before exiting, Knuckles looked back the way they came and muttered,
"What kind of weirdo puts lights in a garbage chute?"