Sonic Squad

Season Two, Episode Seven

The Dark Future

By Cole Bezotte

Note from the author: This is the final chapter of the Sonic Squad series. This was going very good until it all turned into crap! I'm just going to finish this here and now and get it over with. Thank you!

Courtney embraced Tails as he cried heavily over her shoulder. "The future…" he whimpered, "…it's not as I want it to be!"

"What do you mean?" Courtney asked in reply. "What will happen?"

"I can't say it. I'm too afraid to reveal it."

"I… I understand. Why don't you go lie down and rest. You look very stressed out."

"Okay… I will…"

That night, Courtney snuck into Tails' hut to find the secret that he had hid from him. But the minute she stepped into his room, she almost had second thoughts about the idea. She had just heard an argument between Mario and Luigi; Mario was upset about Luigi sending Tails to dismantle the PINGAS machine, since it got him into some big trouble.

"What were you thinking, you idiot?!" Mario shouted, easily heard from the distance. "You sent him down there only to make things worse! Were you seriously trying to kill him?!"

"It was only a mistake!" Luigi protested. "I know opportunity when I see it! But I never expected Tails to experience something terrible about it."

"I wish I know what's going on in that head of his."

Courtney wished the exact same thing; now was her chance to know what Tails had seen.

She loomed over Tails in his bed. Placing her hands on his sleeping head, she concentrated really hard and used her powers to pry herself into his thoughts.

And just like that, she was inside his head. Her ghostly form walked around inside Tails' dream as her physical form stayed where she was outside. Courtney right away found the future that Tails had seen earlier that day… when everything went wrong.

She witnessed what was to happen ten years later. A new war broke out as Plague, king of Straggo, struck at his rival Mobians. Straggo and Mobius were now bitter enemy planets; spaceships were constantly built to compose an aerial assault on either planet, or a battle in outer space. Plague now wished to take the throne of Mobius by force. Sonic and Sally had already become the new king and queen, and their son and daughter Manik and Sonia were the prince and princess.

Tails, on the other hand, was a skilled soldier and still an expert pilot. For every plane that was too small for him as he grew up, he always made a new one with the correct size for him. He had grown into a much taller fox with thicker hair and bushier tails. He promised to marry Courtney once the war was over; he had fallen deeply in love with her.

During the battle at the Great Forest, Tails had landed his new plane in an almost inaccessible area. This was where Sonic and Knuckles currently fought the army of charging Straggons. This was unlike any other battle on Mobius; the Mobians were no longer dealing with Dr. Eggman's robots. There was now more bloodshed coming from blue aliens killing many innocent animals. But for every moment of trouble came the fastest hedgehog alive. Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails fought diligently against the raging savage aliens that desired to conquer the peaceful planet.

Tails did not know who was among these Straggons until something very big happened. He suddenly saw Sonic being thrown back by some supernatural force. But after Sonic landed, Tails immediately noticed some blood on his chest; Sonic had been slashed by a very sharp blade. Tails went over to him and knelt down to stroke his chest.

"You must go…" Sonic whimpered in pain. "I don't think I can make it here…"

"Don't give up now, Sonic!" Tails replied. "You're my best friend, and I will NOT leave you here to die!"

Tails was about to pick up Sonic and place him over his shoulder, but he suddenly caught sight of something from a distance. He saw a familiar-looking Straggon wearing a black torn cape and holding a razor-sharp sword. "Cobra!" Tails exclaimed in anger.

"I'm surprised you remember me," Cobra teased in reply. "But will you even remember the first one you've ever loved?"

Tails gasped heavily after hearing that; he really did remember his first love Cosmo from many years ago. "Don't remind me…" he whimpered as heavy sweat streamed down his head.

"But I MUST. After all, Courtney doesn't even know you are still grieving over Cosmo's death. You still are the emotional young fox you once were."

"Don't… listen to him…" Sonic whispered behind Tails. "I know both Courtney AND Cosmo will forgive you for your decisions. They know you are still a very honest man."

"He's right…!" Tails exclaimed. "I won't listen to you, Cobra! You've been ruining our lives and poisoning our minds! And I won't let you lay a hand on anyone else again!"

"That's only what you THINK," Cobra replied. "Everyone in your pitiful Freedom Fighter group has been treating you like a young one all your life. They hardly even know you are itching to get in on the action they hog to. How does that make you feel?"

"Stop lying, Cobra!"

"You would know exactly what I mean once you see THIS!" Cobra pointed with his sword towards someone lying on the ground. It was Courtney; she was stabbed and killed by a vicious Straggon.

Quickly and desperately, Tails ran over to Courtney. With tears rapidly streaming down his face, he placed his hand on her chest. Her heart was not beating; she was dead. Tails could not believe what was happening; his biggest hopes and dreams were now crushed.

"I am not responsible for her death," Cobra said to Tails. "Join me, and together we can rule the universe as master and apprentice! Take your rightful place as a true warrior! You can take what you want, even if it is revenge! I can even help you save your loved ones!"

"No!" Sonic exclaimed as he struggled back up to his feet rushed towards Cobra. "I won't let you take him!"

Cobra was already aware of Sonic's surprise attack; he quickly turned around to strike at him again. But little did he know that someone would act as Sonic's shield; Tails got in the way and took the slash instead of Sonic. "The fool!" Cobra thought. "Why did he do it!? I could have given him ANYTHING, but he chooses DEATH instead!"

Blood spurted from Tails' chest as he went down to the ground. "TAILS!" Sonic screamed. He ran to him, more stressed than Tails once was. "Tails! Please don't die! I NEED YOU!"

Tails struggled to open back up his eyes; perhaps this was the last time he would ever see his best friend Sonic in his life. "Don't try to stop it…" Tails whimpered with his dying breath. "I'm doing this for you, Courtney, and all my friends…"

"But you're too young to die!" Sonic replied. "I never expected this!"

"Neither did I… but it's for the better. I saved you just as you would save ME. Go now… Sonic… win this war for me… always remember me…" And that was all Tails said before he breathed his last breath and died.

That was all Courtney wanted to see before she exited Tails' mind. She had now seen the dark future that Tails had witnessed and kept secret. She wept bitterly as she left his hut, heading back to hers. Now she was very desperate to find a way to change what would become the bitter end.

The next morning, Courtney woke Tails up early and before anyone else was awake. "Why are we awake at so early of a time?" Tails asked as Courtney walked him outside the village.

"I have something very important to tell you," Courtney answered in reply, looking very sad. "I saw everything you know about the future."

"You WHAT?!"

"I can't let that future happen. I can't let you give up hope and let yourself die. That's why we have Eggman's invention to help fix all that up."

"Really? How?"

Courtney led Tails over to the PINGAS machine and explained what the plan was. "I can't believe we're doing this…" Courtney continued, "…but it's time to end the life of Cobra once and for all."

"You mean…" Tails replied "…you're going to KILL HIM?!"

"I'm very sorry, but it's the way things have to be. He's the reason our future will be ruined. It's time we finally say our last good-bye to him."

"I don't know why, but I'm following along with you."

"Thank you, Tails. You are my best friend. For now, I'll need you to change the command sensor and repair the sniper."

And Tails did so. With his wrench, he changed the sensor for the machine to obey his commands. After repairing the sniper, he commanded it to aim in the exact direction of where Cobra was located. And it obeyed; Cobra was right out in the open at the moment, walking towards the Great Forest.

"It's all ready," Tails said. "Fire when ready."

"I'm sorry, my former master…" Courtney whispered to herself, "…but this is for your own good."

Tails covered his ears after setting the sniper's coordinates to aim at Cobra. Then a loud bang came from the gun as its bullet shot in the exact direction as planned. All Tails and Courtney could hear was a loud roar coming from a distance; the scream came from Cobra. He was dead, with all his hopes and dreams destroyed.

Now Tails and Courtney could hope for a better future that will soon await them. "Wait a minute!" Courtney said suddenly. "I feel something flowing to my index finger. Now I remember! On my home planet Corlon, there is something special given to every adopted child. When a female Corlonian takes in an orphan, an inky fluid reaches from her arm to her index finger. She needs only to cut her finger open and spread the fluid on the child's forehead. It will give him a special mark, showing that he is now part of her family."

"But your race is gone now," Tails replied sadly. "There's no one whom you can place the mark on."

"There is one thing I can still do." With that, Courtney knelt down, picked up a sharp piece of metal (chipped off of the PINGAS), and used it to cut her finger open. The inky fluid immediately began to show, and so she stroked Tails' forehead with it. "I'll be using this for my own purpose, though," she continued. "That mark will show that you are mine, my first love…"

After the village was repaired with all damages removed, it was time for Mario, Luigi, and Shadow to return to Brooklyn. Christopher was back to being his full human self again, and so he was able to think straight and reactivate the portal. Mario had heard news that Bowser had returned from the Straggon zone in which he was held captive; now he planned to go back to the Mushroom Kingdom and attempt again to take the hand of Princess Peach.

As for Sonic, he promised to take Sally Acorn's hand in marriage once they reached the proper age. King Max had already agreed, leaving Antoine D'Coolette and Amy Rose in jealousy. But a deal was a deal, and so Sonic and Sally were soon to become the new rulers of Mobius, just like the future revealed. This was to be a GOOD future, unlike what Tails had seen. Now that Cobra was dead, a much better life waited for our heroes.

As for Tails, he began to fully like Courtney. And Courtney liked him the same way.

WELL, THAT'S THE END OF SONIC SQUAD. THIS WHOLE BLAMED THING STARTED IN MAY 2011, AND ENDED HERE. EVEN THOUGH THERE WERE SO MANY OTHER IDEAS FOR THE SERIES, I TRASHED MOST OF THEM. BUT I STILL WANT TO THANK YOU FOR READING WHAT WAS LEFT OF IT.

I ALSO WANT TO THANK MY OLDER BROTHER FORREST BEZOTTE FOR GIVING ME SOME IDEAS AND EDITING, AND MY YOUNGER BROTHER HUDSON FOR HIS HELP IN THIS AS WELL.

I ALSO WANT TO THANK MY FRIENDS ISAAC AND KAL BOSWELL FOR BEING THE FIRST TO DRAW FUNNY FAN ART OF THE SERIES, AS WELL AS GIVING ME SOME GREAT IDEAS. THANKS TO FERNANDO JIMENEZ AS WELL FOR BEING A GREAT CONSULTANT.

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED SONIC SQUAD!