Team Apocalypse Imprisoned

Morning found Sleet and Aleena lying next to each other, Aleena's arm stretched over Sleet's chest, and Sleet's arm beneath her. Both gazed expressionlessly up at the sunrise. Neither spoke. Ancient Walkers, what had they done? This wasn't supposed to happen. Good and evil becoming one? Heroes and villains like this. More confusing still was their lack of regret, for while did indeed feel it, given the chance they wouldn't change what had transpired.

For a while they said nothing. Finally, though, Aleena asked, in little more than a whisper, "What have we done?"

Sleet tensed. After a moment he relaxed, closing his eyes. Solaris, he'd hoped she wouldn't ask. Finally, though, he was forced to reply. "I don't know."

"The eternal answer," she remarked.

"Do we need to know? Did we ever really need to know?" he asked, referencing all those years ago. Was it sixteen or nineteen? He didn't remember.

"What will happen when this ends, do you think?" she questioned.

For a long time, he was quiet. Eventually he answered, "I don't know."

"Will we go back to what we were before… before this?" she asked.

He shivered at the thought. "I don't know…" he said. He closed his eyes. Oh what was he saying? Of course he did. So did she. "Yes," he finally admitted.

"I don't want to," she stated, startling him.

He blinked then rolled over, arm still beneath her, staring into her beautiful eyes. They shone with tears, but none fell. She'd learned long ago how to control them. In part because of him... He stroked her cheek gently then sighed and bent down, kissing her softly. Lovingly. She returned. Pulling back, he stated, "We can't stay here forever."

"Why not?" she asked with a smirk, teasing him.

He chuckled once more, and leaned in to kiss her again. All at once, however, his communicator beeped. He paused, centimeters from her face, then closed his eyes tightly with a sigh, teeth clenched. She swallowed and stroked under his chin, scratched behind his ears. He chuckled wryly, but the smile fell. For a moment, they looked at each other. Finally he kissed her hand. "This ends now, my illustrious queen," he said.

She drew in a shaky breath, forcing back tears, then nodded, sitting up. They gazed at each other a moment more, then pulled away, hands slipping apart. The minute contact was lost, that was it. They rose, unable to look at each other without feeling sick, and got dressed.

Sleet picked up his communicator. "Sleet here," he said. He looked back, only to see Aleena glancing at him once more before disappearing into the trees. He growled, adding, "Be quick about it! Queen Aleena's on her way to the velocitree. If she gets there first, we're done."

"Sleet, get there fast! Got news from Dr. Robotnick that Mephiles, Ix, and Drago attacked Snivley's base. They saw where the Gardens are and are on their way!" Scourge exclaimed. Lucky for Sleet and Aleena, the gardens had moved before Mephiles et al had gotten there. It had bought them time, but not a lot of it, because now they were finally closing in.

"What?!" Sleet demanded.

"You heard me. Fang and Dingo are en route to pick you up, but there's no way they'll beat that crystal faker even if they do find him first! Get moving, got it?" Scourge continued.

"Consider it got, and keep me updated," Sleet replied, signing off. Hmm, this just got difficult. Maybe he'd need help after all, however begrudging it was.

StH

Aleena approached the velocitree and pulled out a knife to strip off some of its bark. She took the piece and wrapped it up safely. She couldn't destroy the tree—well, she could, but odds were it was among the last of its kind, so she didn't want to—but if she could get the bark to study, they might be able to find a way to combat its effects if Eggman did weaponize its powers. His intention was to use it on Mephiles, yes, but he'd planned to use it on Sonic once before, so the odds were once Team Apocalypse was neutralized or dealt with, he would come after her son. On the other hand, if she could take some of the seeds with her and destroy the tree, then if it was indeed the only one left, the Sonic Heroes would not only have the advantage, but she'd also have a way to regrow it once Apocalypse and Eggman were dealt with. All the potential issues would be solved. However, destroying this tree fast enough would require fire. Fire in a garden this dense would only end badly. The odds of her being able to regrow the Hanging Gardens of Mobius? Who could say. She didn't want that… But the Hanging Garden versus the world? The choice was clear.

Just then she cried out, feeling something trip her. She lost the bark and spun to see Sleet grabbing it up. Oh no. "Give it to me!" she snapped at him, leaping up and trying to pull the bark fragment from his hands.

"Finders keepers Queen Aleena," he replied smugly. Oh, Ancient Walkers only knew how much she wanted to slap that smirk off his face.

"I claimed it first!" she shot.

"You dropped it!" he retorted.

"You tripped me," she said in outrage.

"Now Aleena, let's not be childish," he declared.

Just then, the two heard a sonic boom! They froze, looking down towards the bottom of the gardens. After a moment, Aleena asked, "What was that?"

"Oh no!" Sleet exclaimed.

She sharply looked at him, demanding, "What's oh no?"

He looked worriedly at her, answering, "Uh, about that…"

"Sleet," she warned through clenched teeth.

He let go of the bark, and Aleena knew something was wrong. Sleet didn't give up that easily. That same moment she realized that if a problem was this big, they would—and she shuddered to think it—have to work together. He'd seen and been reassured that after an encounter like… well, enough said, they could still do a complete one eighty and hate each other again, and that was enough for him. Now they needed to neutralize. If only he'd tell her what was happening. "We need to get out of here, quick," the wolf stated, running for the top of the hanging gardens.

Uncertainty flooded her and she followed. "What's going on?" she asked. Reaching the top and looking around for any sign of friend or foe, Sleet paused and looked to her quietly. She saw it in his eyes, the answer. She covered her mouth. He sighed and nodded. Drago, Mephiles, and Ix had arrived.

Aleena looked worriedly back. "How do we get out of this?" she asked.

"Nack and Dingo are on the way. So is Team Evil," Sleet replied.

"And Team Dark, last I knew. But they won't get here in time," Aleena stated.

"Chaos Control?" Sleet offered.

"Not if Shadow doesn't suspect Mephiles has caught up," Aleena explained. Nor was Team Dark sure where the Hanging Gardens of Mobius even were.

"Then keep out of sight, my dear sweet baby," he stated. "They know about the velocitree."

"What do they want with it? Has their goal changed again?" she asked.

"You expect me to tell you?" he questioned.

"Then I'll guess. I know what it does, Sleet. I planted it. Eggman wants its essence to use as a weapon. I can only surmise against Mephiles, for now, since to keep up with him will be a great help in battle," she stated. And, as established, probably her children and their friends later.

He blinked at her. She'd come actually very close. Had he ever really doubted her, though? No. All at once they heard voices. "Hide," she hissed. The two dove into some thick brush. Just then, Team Apocalypse appeared.

StH

Team Apocalypse stopped not far from them, in plain sight, and were still. They were searching. "I sense you, canine," Ix soon said to the nothingness. Sleet glared coldly. "And you, Queen Aleena," he said, turning his head and looking directly at the bush they were hiding in. Drago darkly chuckled, grinning wolfishly, and Aleena subtly shivered, pressing slightly closer to Sleet, who was resisting the urge to growl.

"Give us the bark of the tree and I promise it'll be a little less painful," Mephiles said.

"For Sleet maybe," Drago muttered. Sleet bared his teeth darkly at Drago's implied plans for the queen.

"Don't make us come over there," Ix warned them.

"A bluff? Or do they know?" Aleena questioned.

Sleet looked ponderous. On the one hand if they were certain they were here, why hadn't they attacked already? On the other, if they had even just a general idea that they might be close, they'd probably take the plunge anyway. "Does it matter? Either way they'll investigate their hunch," he soon answered.

"But if they aren't certain, we can try to slip away to another location to hide," she said.

"Yes, but if they sense a change they'll know where to focus," Sleet answered. "Either way they have us. Might as well get it over with."

"The longer we can delay, the more time it gives our backup," Aleena argued.

"And the more painful it gets for us if they never come," he hissed, hackles raised.

"They will come," Aleena promised.

"You have five seconds before your suffering is drastically increased," Mephiles darkly threatened. "Five… Four… Three… Two…" There was a pause and they exchanged curious looks. "One," the voice suddenly said from right behind them.

StH

Sleet and Aleena gasped, whirling around. Mephiles was right there! Suddenly the hedgehog let fly a chaos spear. Sleet screamed in agony as it drove itself into his abdomen, doubling over in agony. Aleena leapt back in alarm, quills becoming more rigid. "Sleet!" she cried out in alarm.

Mephiles pulled the wolf near. "Don't think you'll get off this easily," he said with a dark smile. The spear was jerked out of his body and Sleet gave an anguished yelp and staggered back.

Aleena gasped, quickly moving to brace him. "Sleet," she said in fear. He didn't respond, still in shock. All at once his knees buckled and he fell to them, arms wrapped numbly around the wound in shock. "Sleet!" Aleena exclaimed, falling next to him and holding him steady, eyes wide in alarm. He looked up at Mephiles in disbelief only to see him unleash another spear. Sleet caught his breath and shoved Aleena to the side. The spear pierced him through, pinning him to a tree. A surge of power tore through it into the wolf, and Sleet screamed. "No, leave him!" Aleena shouted in rage, immediately attacking Mephiles.

Mephiles, not expecting the queen to act so recklessly, was thrown off guard. Aleena was swiftly getting the upper hand. Until, that is, Drago snarled and pounced on her from the side, knocking her off Mephiles and locking her in combat with himself, which he intended to relish. It became clear quickly, though, that Aleena was going to deliver a lot of pain before she gave up, so relishing the fight became fearing it quickly enough. She was fighting like a mad woman, and Drago was struggling to keep her under control. It would only be so long before she broke free. Ix suddenly waved his hand, catching her in a type of field, and raised her into the air. She struggled to get free of it but wasn't having much luck thus far. She screamed in pain, throwing her head back as a surge of electricity, or something similar, shot through her. It kept on and she kept screaming until finally it stopped. Her body sagged weakly as she gave a strangled gasp.

"The Queen has been neutralized," Ix said.

"So has the bounty hunter," Mephiles stated, glaring disgustedly down at the impaled and suffering wolf, who he planned to keep alive for a good long while yet. Sleet growled darkly in his throat in defiance. Slowly he began pulling his way off the spear, snarling viciously and trying to ignore the metallic taste of blood in his mouth. Mephiles watched on in disbelief as the canine dragged himself along the spear until pulling free of it entirely and collapsing to hands and knees. He crawled towards him, murder in his eyes, and Mephiles actually stepped back in surprise and unease. The wolf collapsed to the ground, fighting for every breath and quickly bleeding out. Mephiles relaxed a bit and his eyes narrowed. The canine was as good as dead without them. "Take them both prisoner. We'll…" he began.

Suddenly Ix cried out in shock as something struck him, making him lose his hold on Aleena. Mephiles spun, eyes wide. He hardly had time to gasp before he was tackled from the air by a grinning green figure that decidedly wasn't Manic. Drago yelped as a third intruder leapt down and landed on him, pinning him. Frantically he struggled to get out from under whoever had plopped down on him, fighting to breathe.

"Bet you didn't expect this, did you Meph?" the green figure said.

StH

"Jet, Wave, Storm!" Aleena said, grinning. The Babylon Rogues had arrived! It would be them to know the precise location of the gardens, wouldn't it?

"Sup Queeny?" Wave said, flying casually down while Ix writhed and clawed at himself. "Like it?" she asked, holding up the device that she'd used to shoot Ix with. "A little something Shade helped me cook up to stand a chance against whack job over there."

"You came right on time," Aleena said. She ran to Sleet, Wave following.

"Ooh, he's not looking too hot," Wave said.

Aleena slid next to him and tried to staunch the blood. He needed help right now, or he would have no hope of surviving. "Quickly, get him somewhere he can be treated," Aleena urgently said. "I'll follow with Jet or Storm."

"Gotcha," Wave replied, taking the wolf onto her Xtreme Gear and immediately flying farther into the gardens, to Aleena's surprise. There was something here, then, that could help Sleet. She wasn't sure if she liked that Wave wasn't fleeing to safety, though. Her eyes narrowed, and she turned attention to Jet and Storm, each grappling with their respective opponent. Jet was doing an amazing job keeping up with Mephiles. She hadn't expected it. Mephiles was actually being challenged. She could have cheered. Drago, by now, had passed out from lack of air, and Storm was just getting off him. Storm leapt on his Xtreme gear and picked up Drago before tearing towards the writhing Ix and seizing him. Aleena grinned and ran to help Jet. Mephiles fought determinedly against the hawk, but when Aleena made the scene he knew the game was over. Immediately he went to try and call out clones, but Jet suddenly darted behind and struck him with some sort of gadget that had Mephiles crying out in pain. Soon he wavered and collapsed with a groan.

"I can't believe it. The Babylon Rogues defeated Team Apocalypse!" Aleena said, shocked.

"We're the best," Jet replied, grinning. Actually, it was total fluke, though it didn't hurt that the battle was taking place on their turf, but hey, he wasn't going to hesitate to brag the situation up to Sonic et al. Show them their place, you know.

"This time around perhaps you are," Aleena replied, smiling.

"See, trouble is everyone else overthinks. The Babylon Rogues? We just do. Plus, there's no way these freaks are getting their claws into our gardens," Jet said. "Well, yours and ours."

"I didn't think you knew about them anymore," Aleena said.

"Birds always find their way back home," Jet replied slightly wistfully, looking around the beautiful gardens with a solemn and slightly sad expression. "We still remember this place. We always will. You shared it with the Rogues, I think. Isn't that how it went? The more of us that disappeared, the more threatened we were, and you didn't want us to disappear so you gave us leave to use this haven the Rogues had gifted you long ago, to use as a kind of nursery."

"You've researched," Aleena remarked. He was for the most part correct, though not one-hundred percent.

"Yeah… Part of it was research. Part of it was memory," Jet replied. "Anyway, we should catch up to Wave and Storm. There's a safe place here, hidden away. They never would have found it, and even if they had they wouldn't have been able to get in. It's only accessible by Rogues."

"Fascinating," Aleena said. Jet smirked, threw Mephiles over his shoulder, let Aleena hop on, and took off to find it. "Will it stand as a prison for them?" she asked.

"In theory? Yeah. Long as no one breaks them out, victory is ours," Jet replied. "The Babylon Rogues had their ways of containing powerful entities."

"Drago is no entity," Aleena warned.

"Just means he's even less likely to get out," Jet replied. She was quiet. He was getting a bit overconfident, she thought, but she supposed it didn't hurt to hope. Smiling, she looked around at the passing trees and plants and flowers, feeling for the moment at peace.

StH

Sleet's eyes flickered open. He saw trees and sky, he heard running water nearby. He grimaced and softly groaned at the stab of pain that went through his body. A whine escaped him, and he damned it. "Shh," a soft voice said. He knew that voice. Aleena… "You'll be alright… For a moment I thought I'd lost you…"

"You were afraid?" he asked in mild surprise, closing his eyes again. She was quiet, not snapping up the bait. "What happened?" he asked once he discerned she wasn't going to respond.

"The Babylon Rogues arrived. They were able to disable and imprison Team Apocalypse in the Hanging Gardens. They took you somewhere safe and tended to you as best they could. They saved your life," she answered.

"The skater punks defeated and imprisoned the world enders?" Sleet incredulously asked, opening an eye dubiously.

"They did," Aleena replied, smirking. Her smile fell. "For how long remains to be seen."

"Keeping them here is a mistake. Should they escape, all the bounty of the garden is theirs for the taking," Sleet said.

"The Babylon Rogues have offered to stay and guard them," Aleena stated.

"They won by fluke. They may not be so lucky next time," Sleet argued. He gave a small gasp of pain and lay back, grimacing.

"Shh, rest," she said.

He felt her putting pressure on his stomach and frowned. He glanced down. "You said they had saved me," he remarked, glaring at the injury.

"They have," she said.

"Don't lie to me, Aleena," Sleet warned.

"They have," she said, voice firmer than before.

"Then why do I smell so much blood?" he asked, tone dark.

She was quiet. "The herb takes time to work," she soon replied. She took her hands carefully off the injury. "It's closing up. Slowly, but closing nonetheless. Nack and Dingo are on their way… Should either Team Vile or Team Evil attempt to take anything from out of this garden, you will be joining Team Apocalypse in prison."

"Hmm," he replied, but said little more. "If we do, I assure you Team Apocalypse will regret it more than we will."

"You are vastly outpowered," Aleena replied.

"Not with Team Evil at our backs," Sleet said.

"The bleeding is stopping," she murmured to him.

"Because I'm on borrowed time or because it's closing?" Sleet asked flatly.

"Because it's closing," Aleena said.

"You're lying," Sleet said.

"Why are you so sure I'm lying?" she asked.

"Because if I were healing, there'd be no reason to take me out of the safe house. I would be able to see the outside again on my own terms," Sleet answered.

Aleena was silent, a look of regret and grief flashing across her face before she hid it away, schooling her expression into a stoic one again. "You'll live," she said.

"Thank you… For bringing me here so I could see it one more time…" Sleet murmured, feeling himself getting more and more tired.

She let out a shaky breath. "You'll live," she said again, voice quieter. There was a quiet, high-pitched whine of pain that escaped him as he shuddered. "Please live," she pled softly.

"It feels natural to die like this. In the open air instead of inside some dingy building," Sleet murmured. He began to cough. Choke more like it. She lifted his head, resting it against her chest and letting him expel the blood from his lungs. She refused to look at it, just held his head close against her chest with tears burning her eyes.

"Please live," she said again. "Please."

"Your majesty, am I worth a queen's tears?" he teased.

"No. But have I ever been like other queens?" she asked with a sad grin.

He listened exhaustedly to her heartbeat. "My queen is like no other and never will be. No other could I hate so passionately… And love so dear…" he said.

She gasped back a sob, closing her eyes tightly and gently stroking his fur. "Love?" she answered, trying not to cry. "I thought that time had long passed."

"And yet here you are, cradling me in your arms as I die," he answered. "What once was ours is long ago lost. What is ours now, is this. This-this chaos and confusion, this cacophony of emotions, this insanity and contradiction."

She sniffed. "Can anyone navigate through such bedlam?" she asked.

"Are we anyone?" he replied, laying back weakly.

She kept her hand behind his head as she gazed down at him. "Don't go," she said. "Should anyone bring your life to an end, let it be me."

"You've done it already," he answered. "Many times. When I feel in love with you, when you left, when you married me, when you… when you married him…"

She sobbed this time, unable to hold it back as she closed her eyes, teeth clenched. "You speak of another sort of life altogether," she said. "In that life you killed me just as often. When I fell in love with and wed you, when I thought you had died, when you murdered the man I'd married… When I learned you were still alive but had joined in war against me and my children in vengeance… I never wanted a love founded on death…" She looked into his eyes. "For once, even if it should be the last time you ever do, show me a love founded on life."

He gazed up at her in silent wonder. After a moment he chuckled, closing his eyes again and leaning his head back. She held him silently in her arms. "Do you hate me?" he finally asked.

"Yes," she replied.

"Do you love me?" he asked.

She was quiet. "Yes," she finally said.

"What will win, Aleena?" he wondered.

She was quiet. After a moment, though, she moved, pressing her lips against his. She felt him catch his breath before returning it. Soon she drew back. "I don't know the answer anymore than you do," she said, nuzzling him gently. "But give me the time I will need to learn. Don't let go. Don't let go."

He opened his eyes, staring at her in silence. "I wanted a life with you," he soon said. She sniffed, teeth clenched as she let her tears fall, unable to hold them back this time. He was going to let go… "I will have it, even if it must only be this one for the rest of our lives; this blend of hatred and devotion combined." She gasped softly, looking down at him. He was going to fight... For her he was going to fight! She lifted him again, resting his head against her chest and closing her eyes tight, willing help to come quickly.

StH

"Did he die? Did he?" Drago insisted of Mephiles from their prison. Mephiles scowled darkly. He roared in fury, sending a bench crashing across the cell. Drago started then snarled angrily. "Bastard dog!" he furiously said, pacing in rage around his own cell. "The can be no man luckier than Sleet."

"His luck will run out. Luck always does," Mephiles growled. "But he's more your concern than he is mine. My attention is more on Scourge."

"We should have played nice with Teams Evil and Vile longer," Ix bitterly said. "Now not only will we have the heroes after us, but our fellow villains as well."

"But our fellow villains will be accosted on both sides as well, as will the heroes," Mephiles pointed out.

"Perhaps, but who is more likely to align with whom?" Ix said.

"Therein's the question, isn't it? Team Vile are a bunch of bounty hunters. In theory, pay them enough and they'll align with whoever. Problem is the history Sleet has with Aleena. That and the fact Dingo's a soft-touch and Nack's tickled pink with this new team of his," Drago said.

"Team Evil, however, is still up in the air," Ix said.

"Dark Oak has a history similar to Sleet's. Scourge and Fiona are another story though," Drago mused. "So is Eggman and co. If we were to align with anyone, it would be Robotnick."

"The trick would be not turning on him for convenience, because the moment we do he runs crying to the Sonic Heroes and we're dead in the water," Ix said. "Before we throw Eggman to the dogs, we need to be rid of the heroes."

"Before we start planning that far ahead, however, we need to plan how to get out of this prison," Mephiles said. "The Babylon Rogues won't keep us on the Hanging Gardens, there's too much risk, but there is a chance that wherever they fly this prison chamber to will be convenient. Or a chance that as we're being flown or there, we can escape. Losing multiple small battles that may or may not even be pertinent to us is nothing. Losing a larger scale one? That's another matter."

Was the velocitree not pertinent?" Ix asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not as much as I made it out to be to our enemies," Mephiles replied. "I learned my lesson about letting on just how crucial each part of a plan can be. I won't make those mistakes again… But they will…" The other two blinked then smirked wickedly, darkly beginning to laugh.

StH

"Will he survive?" Aleena asked Snively and Robotnick.

"It'll be touch and go, but he should," Snively answered as he and his uncle worked on saving Sleet's life.

"What a relief," Vanilla said. Yes, they were enemies, but that didn't mean any of them wanted the wolf to die.

"Then we will take our leave," Aleena said. The Hanging Gardens of Mobius had disappeared again, and with it the Babylon Rogues who were presumably taking care of Mephiles, Ix, and Drago. Now they could finally return home to rest. At least until the next incident that crept up.

Eggman privately seethed at the fact they were just letting the heroes walk out of here, but to be fair they were vastly outnumbered. The rest of the heroes had been contacted and were on standby in case their allies didn't walk out of here unharmed, which irked Robotnick to no end. "Fine. Go. Get out of here and good riddance." Turning, the heroes walked out without wasting further words on their enemies.

When they were outside, Manic turned to Aleena in concern. "You okay mom? Shadow, Rouge, and Omega didn't exactly find you in the best shape," he said.

"I'm alright, Manic. Most of the blood on me was Sleet's," Aleena said. If not for Shadow's arrival and subsequent teleportation, the wolf probably wouldn't have made it to help in time.

"We've had a heck of a time, haven't we?" Sonic said, smirking.

"No kidding. I need a spa day," Sonia said.

"You got it, sis," Sonic replied, grinning teasingly. Granted this challenge hadn't been as tough as he'd thought it was going to be, but that just meant next time Mephiles and co came back, they would be all the more dangerous and all the more prepared. With their luck, probably farther along in their plans too. Until that time, though—and he hoped it was a long time coming—they could rest and relax and enjoy another day of freedom. This was what they fought for, and they'd always fight for it. He looked over at his siblings and mother and smiled. Together.

END

Final A/N: Finally, after I don't even know how many years, I've finished this story! It's way more anticlimactic, I feel, than I'd wanted it to be, but at least it's done. It's been killing me to have it unfinished for so long. I was going to leave off on a hook, originally, but truth be told I'm not sure when the next story in the series will be done. It could be years. I didn't want to do that to my readers like I did with my Mario series, and so I've left it off in a way that makes it feel it's at least mostly tied up, I think.

I'm so, so sorry it's taken so long. I promise I won't start posting the next one in the series until it's for sure done. I can't even apologize enough for how long coming this stories been, but your continued support has really helped me push through. I only wish I still had the motivation I used to for it. One day, hopefully, that motivation will come back. Sonic Underground has a really special place in my heart. Anyway thank you again, readers, and again so many apologies for how long coming this was and how anticlimactic it ended. I really wish I could have done better.