Sonic and all other various Sonic The Hedgehog characters are Copyright SEGA, Sonic Team, TMS Entertainment, and all other associations affiliated with the Sonic X anime/manga. All other characters belong to their rightful owner (me) and have no similarities with above-said characters whatsoever. Names used for other characters are random. Any people bearing the real name, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Another update!
9
For months, it seemed that the undeniable shock of Amy's demise would never end, transgressing into episodes of intense sorrow, guilt, sadness, and agonizing distress at trying to live life without one of their own, as well as periods of denial which were vehemently defended to a point where everyone had virtually distanced themselves so that each could deal with the loss in their own way.
For months, no one could really talk or even see one another, as idle conversation could no longer happen without it steering back to the how's and why's of her disappearance, kidnapping, and untimely passing.
But as an old saying goes, in which it states that time will heal all wounds, things slowly began to ease, allowing the hopeful and the heartbroken to finally come to terms with the undeniable truth that had befallen them.
Though the decision was tougher than any decisions they had made in their life, it was agreed upon that there was nothing more that could be done other than accept what fate had brought them, and give the fallen pink hedgehog a proper service for which her teammates and friends could each bid her farewell one final time.
There were quite a few that had shown to pay their respects, their gratitude, and their thanks for the girl who had made an impact on their lives, which soon caused the initial overtone of despair to eventually ease, as they all shared past stories, both funny and inspirational, and celebrated her life well into the next morning.
But while others slept, content that they had bid their fallen friend a well deserved farewell to the afterlife, Sonic remained awake, perched atop a large branch from an old weathered tree not far from Amy's home, which had been left untouched so that it would serve as a place for quiet reflection.
A passing breeze gently rattled the branches that were spawning new buds ready to welcome another spring season, and as it passed, Sonic swore to himself that he had heard his name being mentioned somewhere amongst the passive whistle.
He looked up at the immense wall of grey clouds rumbling overhead as the wind slightly began to pick up in intensity. Rain would soon be coming.
Sighing, he jumped down and walked over to her house, her walkway now partially hidden from the unkept grass. Before he grabbed the handle, he noticed the sign bearing ownership of the house. Immediately, he remembered the promise he had made to her upon his return from the other dimension, fulfilling it by presenting her with a white rose.
A small smile rippled across his mouth as he remarked on how he had kept his promise, where she had not.
Slowly, he opened the door to the dark and chilly room that had now become pale, as dust had begun to accumulate. Everything was still the same as she had left it on that fateful night. As he crept through the room, distant voices from memories that rampaged through his mind began to toy with his mind. At times, he could almost see them fade into view, as if time itself had gone backwards.
There were moments which brought forth slight chuckles, such as those where he found himself vulnerable to uncomfortable and innocent innuendos she'd let loose on him just to see his reactions, which were mostly him being embarrassed and red-faced.
As he sauntered through the room, taking inventory of all the dust-covered surroundings, he came upon a small picture frame resting by her phone. Gently, he wiped the glass, revealing the picture that had made the blue hedgehog uncomfortable for years. Sonic couldn't help but laugh a little at the expression on his face as he looked at himself being literally tackled behind by the pink hedgehog, adorned with a smile that couldn't have described her feelings during that time any better.
He looked at a little longer, reprimanding himself for being such an insensitive jerk to her, forcing her to follow his every lead as if to simply have fun with her feelings instead of listening to them.
His smile faded, as did the paled light from outside as the first raindrops began tapping on the roof.
He plopped down on a nearby chair, caring little for the cloud of dust that puffed out in every direction, still staring at the picture, sighing.
"Guess I really blew it, didn't I?" he asked the picture. "All this time, you just wanted for us to be a couple, and I never paid attention to that. I know it sounds corny and all, but I was only trying to protect you, Amy. I didn't want you to…"
He choked on his words for a moment.
"To get hurt."
He placed the picture back onto the table, face down.
"But I guess I'm a little late for that, now. I let you down, Amy, and now you're gone. I never did get to tell you how much I—"
His speech was interrupted with a loud clap of thunder, startling him, awakening him. The timing was so coincidental; it was as if Amy herself was sending a message to him, reprimanding him for becoming so wishy-washy and depressed, telling him to get off of his ass and start saving the world again.
Another long rumble eventually made Sonic smile through tears that had formed.
"I get the point, Amy," he said, wiping them away. "I'm going. I'm going."
But before leaving, he plucked the picture out from the frame, folded it, and stuck into the side of his shoe.
-0-0-0-
Tails had approached Rouge to try and convince her to join the team so that they could assist the local governments in thwarting any sort of evil capers executed by copycat groups trying to complete what Eggman had never been able to do: conquer the world.
Though she made it quite clear to the two-tailed fox that her relationship with other members of the team would remain anonymous and distant, she did agree to join, convincing Tails that her line of work would revolve around her own specific skill set.
And with a pointy finger jabbed into Tails' chest, as well as an icy sneer laden with the obvious warning to not try and couple her with the echidna, the fox found it rather easy to cooperate with her demands.
"I'm glad you see it my way," she had said with a sly smile, cupping his chin into her hands.
And so, with the team somewhat together again, though Knuckles and Rouge often turned their noses up to each other, only having to talk when it was absolutely necessary, their unique dynamic makeup immediately began to pay off, as within a few months, they had become successful in fending off two attempts from copycat groups trying to revive Eggman's base, as well as his robotic creations.
Though in days past, Sonic would've been mum in his victories he deemed as being relatively minor in comparison to vicious plights staged against Eggman and his robotic henchmen, but he swore that at times, he could almost hear Amy nagging at him for not appreciating the joy it brought to simply help someone out in any dire situation, whether they were of major importance or not.
Cream had also agreed to help out; watching over Sapphire during time the team was out chasing adventure, as well as heading up the cooking details since Rouge was adamantly refusing to do such a thing, cringing at the thought of becoming more of an at-home mother instead of a master treasure hunter with a skill set learned from time spent as a government agent that had begun to resurface with each assignment given to the team.
Though reluctant at first, Sonic finally agrees with the others that Cream should probably work from Amy's home, since it had become pretty dingy and run-down from months of neglect, even though it was intended to be left untouched so that it could always radiate her spirit.
But dust, mold, and a paler appearance tended to do the opposite.
Cream made herself at home, her culinary arts providing delicious treats that closely resembled those made by the pink hedgehog. That, along with her quirky amenable behavior, mainly stirred by her insistent pining for Tails almost seemed to partially fill a void, too, much to Sonic's amusement.
A different time had set its foundation upon the gang, with them acting more and more as an investigative agency with the authority to be the judge and juror to those daring enough to try and continue the evil doctor's footsteps.
But it wasn't long until Tails interrupted a luncheon with disturbing news. He had received a message from Chris (the two had managed to build a communication portal using his teleportation machine, as well as Tails', using the chaos emeralds to power the connection during the brief visit they had before abruptly returning home after Sonic had learned of Amy's demise.) stating that he had been approached by what appeared to be a government-run energy company inquiring about chaos emeralds and where they could be found since Chris had had contact with them before.
"Chris told me that he had asked where their company was located," he explained, "But their representative dodged the question, telling him that if he happened to know where some could be found, that he send them a letter with specific directions to the location, and that if those directions were true, that he would be compensated generously."
Sonic sipped the last of his soda, leaning back in his chair, inquisitive.
"Compensated generously, huh?" he said. "This has got to be Eggman's doing."
"Chris and I thought the same thing," Tails responded. "There's no way he's dead. He's way too cunning to go up in a self-detonated explosion."
"Right, Tails. And if my hunches are correct, if Eggman wants to know about the others, then the original three must still be with him."
"We've got to stop him, then," Knuckles chimed in. "Had it not been for me, I mean, us, to stop him last time he was in Chris' world, he would've easily taken over, and that was with him only having one emerald. Can you imagine what he'll do with three?"
Sonic tapped a finger on his chin, conjuring up a plan.
"Rouge? You're the one with the government knowledge. Any thoughts?" he asked, motioning toward the ex-spy.
"The only thing I can add is that places like that don't like to go public," she added, trying to convince Sapphire to try a piece of apple pie. "They kind of like things to be hush-hush, if you know what I mean."
"Go figure," Knuckles grumbled, his back facing her.
Rouge cast an icy stare at the echidna's back, but kept on explaining that such places often use post office boxes to receive messages that weren't digital, such as inquiries, purchases, and so forth.
"Well," Tails added, reaching into a pocket of his lab coat he had begun to wear on a regular basis. "Chris did give me this little bit of info."
Scribbled on the paper was an address to a post office box bearing the agency's name, as well as an e-mail address.
"Interesting," the blue hedgehog said, looking over the addresses, knowing that it was now time to get back into the business of thwarting Eggman and retrieving the emeralds. The mission would be a simple one, but it would also be one to honor their fallen friend and ally, and perhaps even be a way for it to provide some closure.
"Did Chris respond to them yet?"
"I didn't ask, but I doubt it," Tails responded.
"Then maybe we can have him send one, then, boasting his knowledge of the emeralds, and the fact that he knows where some are, and willing to part with them for a highly considerable sum of money."
"Are you crazy, Sonic?" Knuckles griped, slamming his hands down on the table. "Sell the emeralds we have left to Eggman?!"
"Pipe down, idiot," Rouge finally scoffed, rubbing her ear from the loud bang caused by the echidna's rash temper. "I think I know where Sonic's going with this. You're going to make some fake ones again, right?"
"Exactly," Sonic agreed, a sly smile forming.
"Ah, the old bait and trap!" Tails said. "Count me in!"
"We'll have Chris make them an offer they can't pass up: a 'trial' package containing two fake emeralds. If they like them, then Chris will promise them more, at a good price, obviously."
"Oh, this is going to be great!" Tails squeaked before a sudden realization hit him. "But what will happen to Chris' lab once they find out they're fakes?"
"Not to worry," Sonic promised. "Chris can just send them an e-mail with an explanation that an employee had eavesdropped and tried to swindle them by making the false ones."
Despite his confidence, Sonic knew the plan wasn't fail-safe.
"But you're right. With Eggman behind it, once he knows the emeralds are fakes, he'll be coming back for Chris, and it won't be a pleasant visit."
Having been eager to fight a legitimate fight for so long, Knuckles practically leapt to his feet.
"Well what're we waiting for?" he shouted, clinching his fists. "Let's go!"
There was a brief moment of silence floating about the room, as everyone didn't know exactly what to say about the echidna's corny stance, before a chorus of choked-back snickers began rippling over the silence, both irritating and embarrassing him.
However, despite the outlandish display, he was right. Preparations for the risky excursion needed to get underway, and fast, as they didn't know whether or not Eggman would try to make a surprise visit.
-0-0-0-
The letter sent to the agency worked without a hitch, and a rendezvous point with Chris was set up to acquire the fake emeralds Tails had methodically constructed from normal gemstones, injecting a coloring agent to match the real ones safely housed within the X-Tornado.
Upon the night of the acquisition, the group had met at Tails' lab.
"I made sure to replicate just the ones we have," Tails explained as Sonic examined the impostors with an impressed look. "That way, ol' Eggy won't figure out they're fake too soon. By the time he does, we'll have them all back with us."
"Nice," Sonic said with a smile, handing it back to his beaming associate. "This should buy us enough time."
He turned to the others who had also shown up and briefed them of the night's activities. "This is going to be a simple hit and run routine, like we used to do. Only this time, we'll be a little more prepared, right? Okay, Rouge, floor's yours."
The former government spy, decked out in her dark outfit that hadn't been worn for such a long time, stepped up and placed a large case onto the table, which confused everyone.
"All of you know how G.U.N. worked, right? Well, these are its radical cronies that don't play fair at all. If we're storming their base or whatever it is, we're not going to get far by just our good looks and moves. Well, I might be able to, anyway."
She laughed heartily as her joke was met with the same silence given to Knuckles. She quickly stopped after only hearing her laugh, composed herself, and opened the case.
Inside laid several guns of several sizes, as well as other peripherals and assorted weaponry that looked both impressive and intimidating.
"Holy crap, Rouge!" gasped Sonic. "Starting a war today or what?"
"Trust me on this, Sonic," she said, plucking out a large black gun: a Glock 22, and jamming a full magazine into the handle. "Fists and speed doesn't stop bullets. Our entry is not going to be appreciated very much. They're going to be playing rough, so we might as well play rough, too."
She dispersed the guns to everyone, including Knuckles, who grunted gruffly at having to rely on human made weaponry when a pair of fast moving knuckles laden with rock hard growths seemed worthy enough to him.
"What about sensors?" asked Tails, trying to peer down into the deep case.
"Not a problem, here," Rouge added, taking out four pairs of headphone equipped with a small red eyepiece that would pick up all sorts of laser detectors. "While these will take care of the sensors, it won't be much help to the motion detectors. Tails, you and I will have to crack the override mechanism with these little devices I programmed."
She handed him a small device that resembled a small digital music player.
"The control panels located by each door also power the security sensors within that region. They can be accessed by either manual transmissions, or remote, hence, the remote sensor. All you do is thumb to the execute file, run it, and make sure it's pointed at the control panel."
"I have to ask," Sonic said, impressed at the variety of toys she had acquired. "Where did you get all this?"
"Being a government spy had its perks. I'll leave it at that."
She winked toward Sonic, who laughed.
Within a few hours, and after there were final instructions given to everyone on how their plan was to unfold once the fake emeralds were taken, as well as final checks on the gear and on the X-Tornado, the team entered the portal that had been linked to Chris' machine.
There was no time for hello's or anything resembling a warm welcome, as work had to come first. Instead, they piled Chris into the backseat with Rouge as Sonic and Knuckles took their usual spots upon each wing, giving a thumbs-up to Tails, who fired the engines.
The flew over Station Square, across the adjoining lake, and over to a smaller town miles away, landing in a vacant lot that neared a run down factory that had long been out of service, still early enough so that their arrival wouldn't have been noticed by the coming agents.
With a few minutes to spare until the exchange, Chris readied himself while the others kept a vigilant watch to make sure nothing could go wrong. Before disappearing into the shadows, Sonic helped calm Chris down to make sure his nervousness wouldn't surface.
"Don't worry, pal," Sonic reassured. "You'll be fine."
"I hope you're right," Chris replied, uncertainty tainting his words. "I just hope Eggman isn't the one who arrives. If it is, then we're screwed."
"Nah. Eggy's got nothing on me. Besides, he doesn't have his hunks of junk there to rescue him this time. Don't sweat it."
Chris smiled faintly as a pair of oncoming headlights appeared at the end of the alleyway leading up to the lot.
"Game on!" Sonic said, giving his friend a quick thumbs-up before disappearing into the shadows.
The young man prepared for the meeting by silently reminding himself that Sonic was there just in case things didn't quite go as planned. It relaxed him, though he still wasn't sure what he would do if Eggman were to get out of the car.
But such a problem never came, as a man clad in black hopped out of the car once it had arrived, its headlights illuminating Chris' metal briefcase containing the fake emeralds inside.
"You Thorndyke?" the shadowy man asked, careful to remain hidden behind the beams.
"It's me, Chris," he said, tightening his grip on the briefcase.
"Let's see 'em."
"I want to see the money, first."
Sonic grimaced at Chris' forwardness, mouthing 'what's he doing?' toward Rouge.
The shadowy figure chuckled. "You Thorndyke's never change, do you?"
Chris frowned a little, unsure of that comment was supposed to mean.
"Sure. You're the one with the emeralds, right?"
A smaller briefcase slid over to his feet, open, revealing several stacks of money, each sporting Benjamin Franklin on the front.
"Thirty million," the figure said. "Fifteen for each emerald. Now, let's see them."
Rouge nearly choked after hearing the amount, wishing she had gotten to them instead of getting a lousy five million for the ones she had sold earlier. She looked back at Sonic, mouthing the amount with wide eyes.
Chris carefully placed his briefcase on the ground, opened it, and slid it over by the figure's feet.
The figure was immediately impressed by the brilliance each emerald shone from the headlights.
"Nice," he growled with pleasure. "Very nice. We will likely be contacting you again, Chris Thorndyke."
Quickly, the figure scooped up the briefcase and disappeared into his car, driving off without knowing that behind him lurked a large jet armed with four combatants poised to stop his boss, Doctor Eggman.
Chris watched his friends, as well as the agency's car, disappear into the night before plucking out a cell phone, dialing it quickly.
"Craddock?" he said with a deep sigh. "They're on their way. Yes. I got the money. Don't say that. I'm not proud of what I've done. All I want is Helen back, unharmed."
A faint bit of laughter crackled over the phone before Chris disconnected it, and abruptly threw it onto the ground, obliterating it.
He looked at the pieces for a moment, then, buried his face into his hands.
"I'm so sorry, Sonic. Please find it in your heart to forgive me."
Now this is a twist, isn't it:)
Again, thanks to all who have read this first fiction from me. I hope you've enjoyed it, and continue to enjoy it with each new chapter. Those of you who haven't done so yet, please R/R! Thanks!
