A/N: Hello, everyone. Well, that was a nice little break.
Sword: Now, back to this story!
As always, Tails, Cream, and all related material belong to Sega. Snively belongs to Archie. Beauty and the Beast belongs to Disney and Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. Sword, Pen, and the story belong to me and the story was requested by soul96961. Thank you to EchidnaPower, TailesLovesCream, DaddlerTheDalek, Lilly the Omega Wolf, and the guest review for their reviews.
Pen: I'm going to check my .
Sword: What for?
Pen: To buy…certain things.
Sword: Ooo, sounds ominous! I need to know! I'll find out what he's up to and tell you peoples what it is after the story! Enjoy!
I better come with you.
Chapter 11- A Lot of Firepower
The Chaotix staked out Robotnik's office for a few days round-the-clock, swapping between shifts while the others would check the castle for any sign of Cream. Rarely did Robotnik leave the office and when he did, Snively was left in charge. And always, the smog chugged out through the chimneys, soon coating all the rooftops in a thin layer of smoke.
Robotnik had assured the people there was nothing to worry about. "We've started a new recycling system in here," he said. "Had to work out some of the kinks in the furnaces, but everything is fine. The smoke should clear soon enough and it's not harmful."
Right, Vector thought from behind the barrels in the alleyway with a perfect view of the office. He yawned, then hacked up ash in his throat. He beat his chest, spitting what he could on the ground.
"Here," Espio appeared behind him with Charmy, and handed him a tall cup of coffee. "Sounds like you could use this."
"Thanks." He gulped it down and peered through the smoke. The morning sun was higher than he realized. "Any luck at the castle?"
"Nope," Charmy said. "Not a peep."
Vector finished off the coffee dregs, swilled the nasty taste around, gargled it to collect the ash, then spat it on the ground. "Same here."
"Go get some rest," Espio said.
No sooner had he said the words, the office doors opened. Out marched Robotnik and Snively in a hurry. The Chaotix hid behind the barrels and the pair swept past them, not acknowledging anyone or anything.
"You're sure?" Robotnik asked. "Another one?"
"Yes," Snively said, then they were down another street and out of earshot.
Vector poked his head out, locked eyes on the door, and beckoned the other two along. "This is our chance!" He raced across the street with them. The smoke was thicker here and he held his breath, not daring to cough.
Pulling a set of lock picks from his glove, Espio went to work on the door as Vector stood guard with Charmy. While the early birds paid them no mind, Vector didn't like being in the open like this. Especially since Robotnik could come back at anytime.
Espio hummed to himself. "Interesting."
"What?" Vector knelt to where the chameleon pointed. A red wire ran along the door's frame. "Some kind of trap?"
"Or an alarm." He looked to Vector, waiting for the go-ahead.
"Do it," he said. "We'll be in and out of here quick anyway."
Now he really hated this situation. As Espio worked, he feared a bell would go off and Robotnik would race back to the scene, guards in tow and shoot them then and there. However, the lock clicked open with no incident and no Robotnik. They stole inside and shut the door quietly.
Thankful to be out of the smog, Vector took in the foyer of a small waiting room and uncomfortable chairs. His eyes trailed the stairs to Robotnik's office, where the door was ajar.
"Where to first? His office?" Charmy asked.
"I'll check that out," Vector said. He saw another door near the stairs where a burning smell originated from. Likely the source of the smoke. "You two check down there. Meet back in five minutes. And be careful."
Vector hustled to the office and ransacked the desk drawers, flipping through papers and documents. Most of it was technical data that he didn't understand. A few drawers were locked and he searched for a hidden key, uprooting potted plants and feeling around the fireplace. No luck.
Charmy flew into the room, waving his hand. "You've got to see this," he said.
Following him downstairs and through the now open door at the bottom, they entered a basement factory and workshop. Vector had been right. The smell definitely came from here. Large, noisy machines and great heated furnaces full of orange coals belched clouds through pipes running into the ceiling. Smelted objects of all kinds rolled out of the furnaces and onto moving platforms into the machines, where they were welded together.
However, Charmy ignored all that and pointed out where Espio stood. In front of him was a five-by-five rack, holding a full load of drones similar to the one Robotnik had shot down.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Espio said.
Vector stood beside him and noted the weapon barrels attached to each drone. "This seems like an awful lot of firepower for a rescue."
"Exactly," Espio said. He ran a finger along a drone's barrel. The drone suddenly came to life and started to rise. It locked sights on Espio and the barrel heated up.
He spread his feet in a battle stance and pulled three kunai from his glove, readying them between his fingers. The barrel glowed red hot and fired a searing laser at him.
Or where he was. Espio jumped out of the way and flung the kunai at the barrel. They embedded deep and electricity crackled out of it. As soon as it came to life, the drone dropped back on the rack and powered down.
The pair heard a sigh of relief and turned around. Charmy had his finger on a remote's OFF button and a guilty face. "Sorry," he said.
"Like you said," Espio said, still keeping his stance, " 'an awful lot of firepower.' "
"We have to stop this," Vector said. "But for now, we have to get out of here."
"I'd like that," an all too familiar person said. "As soon as you pay for these damages." Robotnik stood at the top of the stairs, adjusting his glasses as two robot guards marched down with guns trained on them. "Or should I add them to your rent? But I have the feeling you can't afford that. No matter."
One robot knocked out Charmy and held him at gunpoint, keeping Vector and Espio from attacking. The other whacked Espio in the back of the head and he went down. Vector curled a shaking fist.
The robot raised its gun, aiming the butt at Vector. "I'm sure we can arrange other forms of payment," Robotnik said. And that was the last thing the crocodile heard.
"You're a prince," Cream said, holding one of Miles' hands up high and the other on her waist. "You should know how to do this."
"We've never really had any balls," he said, spinning her around by her upper hand like she showed him. He whipped her out across the lab, then snapped her back to him, a little too hard. She bounced into his chest and giggled, and deep inside, his heart fluttered a little.
"You're getting better," she said, taking a seat on a stool.
For the past few days, she had been teaching him a few dance moves after finishing with the new Scout Master he had built for her. In between dance sessions, they strolled the garden and explored the castle, happening upon rooms he had forgot even existed.
The whole situation had been like a wonderful dream, having someone close. As close as Sonic, Amy, or Knuckles, but in a different way. His heartbeat skipped to its own tune and he felt on air with her. Happy and like a normal person instead of a monster.
However, as Cream's eyes trailed to the Love Harness, so did his and reality crashed back down. He still had no clear plan for reducing the risk and was running out of excuses. She had asked him about the machine often at first and he dodged the question. Now, she avoided the subject. Maybe she caught onto the truth.
He couldn't let her die. There had to be something he could do!
As Cream stood, an idea popped in his head. "Hey," he said, pushing her back on the stool. "I have a question."
"What is it?"
He licked his lips. He had to phrase this right. "You're taking a big chance for me doing this—er, for us. All of us in the castle." Miles internally smacked himself. Focus. "If it doesn't work out, you know—"
"Hey, I already said I'll take that risk," she said.
"No, no, I know that," he said. "But on the off-chance something goes wrong, would you like to see your mother again? Just in case?"
Her jaw dropped and her eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Yes," he said.
"When?"
"As soon as you want," he straightened up. "Today even. We could make it there by sundown."
She bowed her head in thought or shock. He wasn't sure which, but he prayed that she agreed to it. Much to his relief, she nodded a moment later. "Yes!" Then she threw her arms around his neck, squeezing tight. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You don't know how much this means to me! Thank you, Tails!"
She stiffened against his body, realizing the mistake. However, he returned the hug, smiling in her neck and warmth radiating through his body. "You're welcome, Cream."
The hug lingered, yet not long enough for him. She hopped off, saying, "I'll go pack some food for us."
"Good idea," he said as she ran out. His heart hammered in his chest and he couldn't shake the beaming expression.
But the Love Harness could.
He stared it down, took a deep breath, and steeled himself. Then he plodded upstairs to prepare a carriage and horses from the stable.
"At least I can transform your eyesore of an 'office' into something better," Robotnik said, examining the damaged drone. He plucked one of the kunai out and threw it at the Chaotix. It pinged harmlessly off the iron bars of their cell, cut into the wall of the basement. "Maybe a decent inn. Or even a workshop for myself and be above ground for once."
"All this time and you never cared about Cream," Vector said, baring his razor-sharp teeth. "I should've known."
"You're mistaken. I do care about her and all the other townspeople. What kind of leader would I be if I let them get hurt?"
"One without taxpayers," Espio said. "Or subjects to a crown."
Robotnik's glasses flashed. "Very perceptive. Yes, fine."
"You're a monster!" Charmy shouted, kicking the bars and reeling in the air, holding his sore foot.
Robotnik frowned. "All I ask for is some loyalty and you people to do your civic duty. Do you think this town pays for itself?"
"No, and neither does your office," Vector said.
"Are minor indulgences such a crime? I keep the people of this town safe from threats after all. What difference does it make for what reasons I do it?" He pulled the last kunai out and activated two drones. They carried their broken brother to a workbench. "Trust me, a little extra tax for some well-deserved luxuries is nowhere as bad as the inventor in that castle."
"The beast isn't a bad guy!" Charmy said, massaging his toes. "He's really nice and loves Cream!"
Laughing, Robotnik grabbed a pair of pliers. "A beast! Oh, that's a good one. Must be a one convincing trap to fool you three. Then again," he stroked his mustache and studied the trio, "maybe not. I can't wait to see this inventor, whoever he or she is. It will be quite the show."
Vector gripped the bars tight, trying to yank them apart. "And you'll sacrifice Cream's safety? All to get this castle?"
"That brat and her insipid mother should've never gone in there." Robotnik exchanged the pliers for an explorer tool and looked up. "Oh, don't worry. I'll try to save her. But she's not my top priority."
"She doesn't need saving!" Charmy said, attacking the bars again and again toppling down.
"Sir," Snively called from the staircase, "dinner is ready."
"Be right there." Robotnik set his tools aside and returned the hovering drones back to the shelves. "Don't worry," he said to his prisoners. "I won't keep you in here forever. After all, a king needs some good jesters." He laughed and headed up the stairs.
"What do you got?" Vector asked Espio once he was gone.
He knocked on the rock wall. "Solid. Can't fit through the bars either. Could probably work on the lock." He slipped a hidden kunai from his shoe.
"Get to it," Vector said, scanning the cell for any other weakness and the room for anything to help. "We've got to get out of here."
Vanilla stirred a pot of soup in the fireplace, humming an old song to herself. She went to the kitchen and chopped up some carrots as she gazed out the window at the village below, lighting up as the sun set on the horizon. It was so peaceful. So calm. So…
Quiet.
She glanced into the living room at Cream's chair as if expecting her to be sitting there, offering to help with dinner. She didn't dare acknowledge Cream's bedroom. All she would find in there was a room she straightened, a bed she made, and tears she cried in the pillows. She sniffed, cutting faster and wiping her eyes.
"Ouch." She nicked her finger and stuck it in her mouth, sucking the blood. Turning on the sink, Vanilla washed the cut, then dried it and her eyes with a towel. Her appetite had suddenly disappeared and she left the carrots and soup alone. She simply leaned over the sink, looking up to the stars. Please keep her safe, she prayed. Please, God, wherever she is.
It was then she noticed the large black shape moving outside down the road. A horse? No, it was too big for one horse. Two horses? And a carriage?
Vanilla rushed outside and the carriage stopped at the edge of the house lights. Someone climbed out and ran to her, throwing herself in Vanilla's arms. "Mom!"
"C-Cream?" Vanilla choked and tears streamed down her face. She squeezed her daughter tight to her chest, burying her face in her shoulder, crying harder than Cream did. A tiny body crashed into Vanilla's cheek, burying itself in her warmth. "Cheese! Both-Both? How-How are you-Where did you-You're here!"
"We are! I missed you so much!" Cream said. Cheese chirped his affection too.
"How did you escape?" Vanilla checked her daughter's face, arms, everywhere for injuries, bruises, even the tiniest scratch. She found none. "How did you get away from that horrid beast?"
"Mom, we were wrong about him. He's really nice. In fact, he brought me here."
"He?"
"Tails." She pointed at the carriage.
But the carriage was gone. The large shape and the two horses were rumbling down the road, leaving Cream, Cheese, Vanilla, and the cottage far behind.
A/N: So I hope you all enjoyed the story so far. Sorry it took a little longer to get out.
Sword: And I found out what Pen is buying! Something called plastic explosives and floor plans of a house. It looks like mine.
Uh, we should go call some people. All of you out there, thank you for reading and please let us know what you think of the story so far. C'mon, Sword. Let's go talk to some nice cops.
Sword: Yay! The fuzz! Bye people!