Episode Zero IV- The Death Egg
"The Meta-Human Project? Amanda, have you gone mad?"
"A war is coming, Charles. We must do what we can to make sure that we are ready."
"That boy is not going to become an instrument of war! This family has had enough of that!"
"The war will be at your doorstep whether you want it to or not. We're teaching these children to better protect themselves…to do good with these powers."
"He has no powers, Amanda!"
"You know as well as I do that's a lie, Charles. Please, if you won't allow me to take him, then at least administer this. It will help in bringing his abilities to the surface."
"Metahuman…," Sonic said to himself, staring down at his hands and feet.
"Uncle Chuck, what's a Metahuman?"
"It's nothing, Maurice. Nothing to be concerned about at all…come now, dinner is ready."
As much as his uncle tried to stray his eyes away from the truth, the truth came knocking down their door. The day that Sonic recessed into the deepest trenches of his mind…he remembered only their conversation in the aftermath. To think that it was only a year ago and the stench of smoldering rubble burned his nose hairs still.
"I'm sorry to hear about your Uncle…he was a fine man. A brilliant scientist…"
"You're the lady from a few months ago."
"Yes, my name is Amanda Blitzkrieg; I worked with your Uncle Chuck. He and I were close friends. There may still be a way to save him if-"
"What? What is it? I'll do anything to have him back! Tell me what I need to do, Doctor Blitzkrieg!"
"It's almost show time, ladies!" Sethlans announced over the pod radio. "Knowing the Doctor, he's already expecting us!"
"Be ready for anything," Sion reminded them as their pods pulled themselves into the Death Egg's orbit.
With a clenched fist, Sonic willed away the recollections of that event. To him, everything culminated towards this moment. Reeking havoc across the Neo-US to find out the truth about Doctor Robotnik and his true nature all led up to this moment. Robotnik's space base, the stage for the grand finale...
"Here I come, Robotnik!"
Sonic wasted no time as the pod docked at its station, bursting out of the glass and running out onto the metal bridge.
"Hold on, Sonic!" Sethlans tried to stop him as he and Sion ran out to him. Sonic crossed his arms and tapped his foot. "Remember, we gotta stick together!"
"Sure you guys won't try ditching me again?" Sonic scoffed.
"Geez, kid. You just jumped out of there without any regard. Hell if we knew there was any air around here!"
"Look if you guys are complaining, I'll just meet you once I put an end to Robotnik!" Sonic started to take off, but…
"Sonic," Sion grabbed him by the shoulder, to both Sonic and Seth's surprise. "Robotnik is the enemy of us all. Everything we do is for his downfall. We're in this together."
Sonic glanced at Sion's hand on his shoulder then at Sion. He realized Sion was reminding him of the same thing from when they escaped the airship. Whether he needed their help didn't matter, they were in it together for the long haul. They both nodded and the trio took off into the large egg-shaped base looming over them.
Doctor Ivo Robotnik/Age: ?/Race: Human/Occupation: Evil Genius
"Those fools followed me all the way to my Death Egg!" Robotnik snarled, plopping in his floating chair, adjusting his small bifocal sunglasses as he watched the trio run about inside his space base.
"It seems that you have a problem with rodents, good Doctor…"
Robotnik scoffed at the male voice speaking through his computer. "A problem I'll be rid of soon enough!"
"I would hope so, Doctor," the eloquent man said, slight accent in his tone. "If I cannot trust you to deal with rats, then how will you fare against birds?"
"He holds the final Chaos Emerald, and how convenient he's at the space colony, Luna, as we speak! The final preparations for my Egg Fortress are nearly complete! Those three rats won't-"
The alarms resounding in the room and flashing red and yellow lights said differently as a female robotic voice announced, "Warning! Warning! Intruders detected on Level Five Epsilon of Death Egg. All personnel respond! I repeat…"
"Get it done, Doctor," the man stressed upon Robotnik over the recurring announcement.
"Grrr! Blasted Nexus!" Robotnik screamed as the mysterious man cut his transmission feed. "Let's see how you deal with no gravity!"
With a snicker and a smirk, Robotnik empathically pressed on a button that read, 'Reduce Gravity'.
The Final Frontier
"This is a long way up!" Sethlans commented as he flew up to the ceiling of the security checkpoint they demolished. He looked behind himself and saw Sonic and Sion floating beside him with a cluster of metal parts from the machines they destroyed. He laughed, "Hey! I didn't know you guys could fly too!"
"We're not flying," Sonic told him with a straight face, arms and legs crossed as his head hit the metal ceiling. "Ow…"
Sion cut through the metal ceiling with a swipe from Hakumei. "Seems the gravity has been disabled," thrusting himself upward into a more open space, he and the others landed upside down on what now was the bridge. The view of the decaying Earth behind them was clear as they saw an upside-down elevator at the end of the dangerous walkway. "Convoluted setup, Doctor…"
"Robotnik is confusing, period," Seth added as he flew beside them towards the elevator.
"What's your guys' stake in this anyway?" Sonic asked.
"Just another mission, that's all."
"It's gotta be more than that."
"Why does it have to be?"
"No one goes this far just for a mission."
"If you believe that, then you got a lot to learn, Sonic," Seth chuckled as they stopped at the elevator. He pulled the switch to his right up and continued as the doors closed, "I mean what drives you, huh? You're out here in space, just like us trying to stop this guy."
"He knows what happened to my Uncle Chuck," Sonic said, his voice and head lowered.
Seth saw he struck a chord, shaking his head. "Damn, I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"Don't be!" Almost immediately, Sonic raised his clenched fist and grinned. "All the sorry is going to Robotnik when we kick his butt!"
Seth grinned and nodded along. "Hell yeah!"
"I wonder if there's a way to disable the stealth generators for this base," Sion pondered aloud. He looked to his allies. "That would alert the Separatists."
"Yeah," King agreed. "Nothing like a giant, egg-shaped space station grinning at you to get your attention!"
Sion gave a nod as the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Sonic stepped out, but…
"You guys ready or what?" he asked them.
"You get to Robotnik," Sethlans counseled. "We'll find those stealth generators and meet up with ya. Shouldn't be too hard to find you two duking it out."
"Be careful, guys."
"Don't worry. We got this!"
Sonic gave them a thumbs-up as the doors closed and the elevator descended. He turned to face the large upside-down space before him. A long walkway spiraling downward—this would be up. After getting his bearings straight, he hurried on to catch Robotnik before it was too late.
Alana Livingston/43/Human/Pilot Commander
Ding!
The elevator doors opened and the duo walked out, surprised the gravity inside of this spacious room was normal. They heard turbines roaring in the far end, but whether or not they were the generators powering the cloaking system for the base remained to be seen.
"You know for such a large and elaborate base, the defenses suck," Seth pointed out, fascinated by the dim red glow in the room. "But then again, we're not your average offense."
Sion grunted as they sauntered about, honing in on the origin of the turbines. The room was set like a maze. Who knew where it could be? The hollow echoing didn't help either, Sethlans making a face as he…
A stomp! Sion and Sethlans stopped.
"Sion?" Seth whispered. "I think you know…right?"
Sion nodded, readying his sword as did King. The stomp grew louder, shaking the ground. They gripped the hilts of their swords tighter, and dared to veer over their shoulders.
Slits of crimson illuminated behind them as a machine suddenly appeared, poised for action.
"Meet E-24 Chameleon, boys!" Robotnik's voice reverberated inside of the room as Sion and Seth whipped around and jumped back. E-24's uncurled its tail as the machine screeched. "Let's see you deal with him while I take care of the blue brat! My Death Egg will be your tomb!"
Sethlans grinned as Robotnik cackled, confusing the doctor slightly.
"Smiling until the end, eh?" Robotnik asked.
Sethlans looked up as the large machine towered over them. "You sic'ing this disappearing scrap heap means that we're close to shutting down the stealth generators! So once we deal with him…"
Sion lifted his head at E-24 too, "we'll shut your cloaking system down. Revealing yourself to the Separatists."
"Heh!" Robotnik accepted their challenge. "Good luck! You'll need it."
E-24's high-pitched shriek echoed as it pounced Seth and Sion. The duo had a plan, however. This would be over in a matter of minutes…
The Final Frontier
"You accursed, blue-haired pipsqueak…," Robotnik's voice roared within the confines of the base as Sonic neared the top of the Death Egg. "You've chased me across the planet, destroying my machines, prolonging the inevitable…why? Do you think you're some kind of hero? Did Nexus send you? Who are you working for?"
Sonic stopped in the middle of the apex walkway, a sudden rumbling surprising the teenager as Robotnik continued, "It matters not, I suppose. Either way, you will fail. I will have the last Chaos Emerald, and I will control this world through my new empire! You are but a pest that will soon be exterminated!"
An enormous white flying fortress ascended in front of Sonic. Breathless, Sonic felt like he was looking at a space ship from the comics. Large laser cannons on each wing and a yellow tip on the egg-shaped cockpit, Robotnik dubbed it, "the Egg Fortress! Powered by the six Chaos Emeralds, I am unstoppable! Do you see why I say you were nothing but an insect? You are dealing with forces the likes you've never seen!"
Even so, "I'm not stopping just because you think you've got the advantage!" Sonic pointed at the colossal opposition before him, grinning. "I won't stop 'til you pay for what you did to my home and everyone else's!"
"Prepare to be space dust, boy!" The laser cannons on the Egg Fort shined a bright crimson as they screamed preparing to fire. "Egg Lasers, fire!"
Sonic broke out into full speed as the lasers burned the bridge in his wake into ashes. As he ran, he saw an opportunity to attack. A streak of blue light shot past the Egg Fort and Robotnik snarled, "How is he that fast?"
An explosion of his right laser cannon wasn't the answer he was looking for as he saw Sonic on the monitor high above the Egg Fort, still smiling. "You think this is funny you miserable little-!"
Sonic landed on top of the cockpit window, planting his hands on his hips as he looked down at Robotnik inside. "Having fun, Eggman?"
"Eggman?" Robotnik yelled. "My name is Ivo Robotnik not Eggman!"
"But it sounds so much better and sticks with your theme, ya know?" Sonic countered.
"I don't advice on how to brand myself from a teenager!"
"Suit yourself, Eggman," Sonic shrugged before readying his fist. "But I'm about to crack this egg wide open!"
"You think it's that easy?" Eggman grinded his teeth, his grip on the control bars tightening. "You haven't even seen half of what my Egg Fort can do!"
The Egg Fort vanished suddenly! Sonic's heightened reflexes saved him as he leapt onto the bridge and searched for the Egg Fort. "How did it-?"
"Heh heh heh!" Eggman chuckled as the Egg Fort appeared far out from the Death Egg. "I told you. You have no idea of the forces you're up against, boy!"
Sonic growled slightly, seeing the damage he caused to one of the two laser cannons. At least he was making progress, but he couldn't reach the ship out there. There was no artificial air out there more than likely.
"I'll give you a taste of what this flying fortress can do with just one Chaos Emerald!" Robotnik boasted. "Transform!"
The spaceship took another form in little time. A dragon head forming underneath the cockpit, the wings of the fortress became the robotic beast's own, metal talons sprouting from newly formed legs. Eggman cackled as his Egg Fortress became, "the Egg-Wyvern!"
"See what I mean?" Sonic pointed out as the Egg-Wyvern bellowed into the emptiness of space. "Eggman sounds so much better with all of these Egg references…"
"Silence!" Robotnik snapped back before an alarm beside him caught him off-guard. "What now?"
What he saw on the screen below him to his right wasn't good.
"No!" Eyes widened behind the bifocal shades of the doctor. "Not now!"
Trent McCloud/17/Human/Soldier
"Really, Doc? You think this thing was gonna stop us?" Sethlans asked with a smirk, standing over his defeated opponent.
"All objectives have been cleared," Sion uttered, sheathing his sword as the flames from the exploding generators set off more alarms.
The stealth generators were off-line…
Jin Phoebus/30s?/Human/Separatist Party Leader
"So Samuel," Alana Livingston began as she sat across from Sam, Trent, and Celeste, "it is our understanding that you have detected a weakness in this space colony. Now while I am skeptical to believe such a thing after our people put so much time into ensuring the safety of this colony, I am moreover curious as to how—how did you acquire this information?"
Sam raised an eyebrow.
"You are a home-schooled child, so I cannot determine your real IQ to see if you have hacker abilities; however I do know that your mother is Doctor Amanda Blitzkrieg."
"You know my mother?" Sam inquired hesitantly.
"Doctor Blitzkrieg is a well-known genius scientist. She was an advocate of the study for the evolution of humanity."
Trent and Celeste made a face. Sam felt they were getting uncomfortable.
"She aligned herself with the Americans…unfortunately for us, but that's not the point," Alana said with a shake of her head before resting her chin on her cupped hand on the table, "the point is you've inherited her intellect, I'm guessing. You know your way around the net. Why else would you know this?"
Sam smirked.
Alana grunted. "Something funny?"
"You think you've got me figured out," Sam replied, shaking his head. "If I'm such a 'hacker' why would I request to the military—of all people—to find out who attacked my home? Wouldn't I just find out myself? You guys aren't as smart as you make yourselves out to be."
"Watch it kid," Alana countered. "I don't tolerate mouthy children."
"You don't scare me, lady. I don't care who you are. I don't give a damn about this war or what you're fighting for, because in the end, my family will still suffer. We'll still have nothing—even on New Earth. Masquerading in your own ego just because you've got the bigger 'stick', all I wanna know is who attacked my home. If it wasn't the Americans, the Britannians, or the Separatists, then who? You're so concerned with the outside that you forgot about the inside."
Everyone's eyes widened from Sam's statement.
"If a 'kid' like me can break through your firewall, what's to stop BAHRAM?"
"So I was right!" Alana snapped up from her seat, slamming her hands on the table. "You did ha-"
The sounding of the alert system interrupted her as everyone except the Prime Minster and Sam jumped out of their seats.
"What's going on?" Alana demanded answers as she stormed out of the conference room.
"Attention in the facility! We have spotted an unidentified object nearby the space colony. Probability of enemy forces high! I repeat…"
"How the hell?" Celeste gasped over the repeating broadcast, looking at Sam. "What's going on, kid?"
Sam hunched his shoulders. "This isn't me, Celeste. I've got nothing to do with this."
"He's right, Celeste," said the Prime Minister as he stepped forward.
"Prime Minister Phoebus…," Trent trailed in his words.
"This is destiny taking its course," Phoebus announced. He turned his gaze to Sam. "Are you ready to meet your enemy?"
Sam's eyes widened. Did the Prime Minister have the answers he sought?
The Final Frontier
"Curse those fools!" Eggman yelled as he bashed his fist into the console. However as an extreme bipolar, he calmed himself a moment later. "Oh well, I suppose I can welcome myself much sooner and take the final Chaos Emerald!"
Sonic clenched his fists.
"I've got more important things to deal with! Our fight will have to be settled later!" the doctor told Blitzkrieg as the Egg Fort transformed into its original form. "All forces, prepare to attack the space colony Luna! Initiate the Doomsday protocol!"
A sadistic smile plastered on his face, the doctor sat forward as his ship launched him full speed towards the space colony in the distance, leaving Sonic. The boy crossed his arms, watching hundreds of fighter ships launch from the bays below to follow the doctor's lead.
"Looks like the real party is just starting!"
"Sethlans!" Sonic saw his allies approaching over his shoulder. "Sion!"
"They're going to attack the space colony Luna," Sion stated.
Seth narrowed his gaze on the ship-based colony in the distance, Luna. "Not only that…he's going after the last Chaos Emerald."
"How're we gonna get to him?" Sonic wondered out loud. "That's way out there in space!"
"Don't worry," Seth placed a comforting hand on Sonic's shoulder as he stood beside him. "I've got an idea of how we can beat him there."
Sonic grunted quizzically, but Sion knew what his partner meant. "You're not going to use that?"
King shook his head slowly. "No choice at this point, Sion."
"But without a strong catalyst, there's no telling what will happen."
"Like I said, Sion," Sethlans' expression grew deathly earnest, "there's no other choice but to use it…Chaos Control."
Sonic echoed, "Chaos Control?"
To Be Continued…
