Chapter 21 – Secrets Uncovered
By late afternoon, the rain had stopped and the clouds had broken, allowing the afternoon sunlight to shine through. Inside Sonic's apartment, a light ray fell upon Tails' eyelids, causing him to stir and groggily open his eyes. A quick check of his watch told him it was about 4 o'clock P.M. No sooner had he checked his watch when Sonic woke with a gasp of fear, making Tails jump a bit. Sonic, now sitting on the side of his bed, was shaking a little while rubbing his forehead. Regaining his composure, Sonic got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. Tails went to follow but was met with a sore neck and back. He quickly cracked his neck and back, earning a series of satisfying crunches from doing so. He caught up with Sonic in the kitchen where he was drinking a glass of water he'd filled from the sink. Hopping up on the counter, Tails decided to strike up a conversation with Sonic.
"You alright, Sonic?"
"Just having the same nightmare I always have..."
"Your son?"
"...Yup..."
Tails realized that this conversation was not going to end well at this rate. Thinking back to Espio's suspicious actions from earlier, the kitsune decided to gets Sonic's take on it.
"Hey Sonic... what was Espio telling you about earlier?"
"He wanted me to come with him on a job. One of the leaders of the Babylon Rogues, Storm the Albatross, was killed and his funeral's today. In addition, Vector and the head of the Babylon Rogues, Jet the Hawk, are signing some sort of pact today that will make both of their mobs become one.
That was all Tails had to hear.
"Sonic... I heard Vector say something was going to happen at a funeral, and now this guy Storm is going to have one. Maybe there's a connection. Think about it, Vector is out to become the king of this town, and his entire enemy is going to be in one place at one time. If I were Vector, I'd think this were a perfect time to make a move and remove my opposition."
Suddenly, Sonic looked up with surprise in his eyes.
"Tails... I think you've got it figured out!"
Tails, thinking Sonic had been sarcastic, only frowned.
"No, no, seriously! Check this out!"
Sonic stood straight up now and took a step closer to Tails.
"Think about this, Tails. Storm was shot and killed, but he's basically number three in the Babylon Rogues. Now, why would somebody want to kill the number three guy?"
"It doesn't make sense..." Tails said, rubbing his chin in thought.
"Actually, it does! Somebody goes out to shoot Jet, but missed and killed Storm. Now, who'd take such a shot?"
"Probably Robotnik..."
"Right again! But do you think he would have missed?"
"No way he'd miss what he was aiming at!"
"Unless... he meant to miss."
This answer caught Tails off guard.
"Woah, wait. Are you saying that Robotnik intentionally missed the shot? Why the hell'd he want to do that?"
"First off, Tails, it would make Vector look innocent. It would be obvious it was him if Jet was killed, as Vector wouldn't waste his time taking out Jet's subordinates. Not only that, but Storm, being the fat ass that he is, would make a perfect package to take out the remaining leaders of the Babylon Rogues and all of their friends."
Tails ears perked up as it was starting to make sense to him.
"Sonic... are you saying what I think you're saying?"
"Right on. They kill Storm to make Jet want to join with Vector. In doing so, they gain a way to take out Jet's clan. They stuff Storm's body full of explosives while his body is at the morgue and then detonate it at the funeral. That would take everybody remotely having to do with the Babylon Rogues and Vector would be able to take over the whole town! That's his whole plan! That funeral is gonna get blown sky high!"
Tails once again rubbed his chin in thought and came to a conclusion.
"You're partially right, Sonic. You're right about Vector taking out he Babylon Rogues, but you're wrong about the bomb. It's not gonna be just a regular old bomb."
"Oh, he we go with the movies again!" Sonic said, irritated, throwing up his arms and turning his back on Tails.
"Sonic, listen! We've had enough regular explosions already in this movie. Not only that, but a regular bomb leaves too much room for survivors. Whatever Vector has in mind, it's gotta take the whole thing out in one shot."
Sonic suddenly let his cup fall to the floor which shattered on impact and a slick spot now formed on the linoleum floor.
"Oh shit Tails..."
"What?"
"Nerve gas..." Sonic said, turning around, revealing the terror in his face. "A few days ago a few canisters of VX nerve gas were stolen from the G.U.N. military base. They might have put those inside Storm's body instead. And if they detonate that stuff on the roof of the Station Square hotel, which is right in the middle of town..."
Tails was now just as horrified at what they'd figured out.
"Sonic... that stuff would not only take out the Babylon Rogues, but everybody in the hotel, the surrounding area, and practically all of Station Square..."
Both Mobians looked right into each others eyes, both knowing full well what they had to do.
"Tails, we gotta stop this!"
"Let's go!"
Both beings bolted for the front door and ran at full speed to the Bonneville in the parking lot. Moments later the engine was started and they left the parking lot in haste.
"I'm gonna take Route 101. It's the fastest route!"
"Got it! Let's just get there fast!"
Sonic floored the car as they got to an on-ramp for Route 101 and started to make their way into the heart of Station Square.
--
After driving at top speed for about twenty minutes, the Station Square Hotel appeared as they rounded a corner on he highway. Taking an exit ramp, the two heroes were now on street level and was quickly approaching the building. Once they'd come right along side of it, Sonic took a hard left, cutting across the opposing lane of traffic, and smashed through a fence around the perimeter of the grounds. He then proceeded to drive the car through a shallow reflective water pool, spraying water up waves along side the car, and brought the Bonneville to a screeching halt in a parking lot next to the hotel. No sooner had Sonic shut of the engine he'd gotten out and turned to Tails.
"Stay in the car, Tails. I'm gonna go find Espio."
"No way! I'm coming with you!"
Sonic slumped his shoulders in disgust.
"Look Tails... let's just for one minute pretend this is a movie. What usually happens when somebody tells someone else to stay in the car, and he doesn't?"
"That person usually saves the day," Tails said confidently.
"Or gets killed!" Sonic retorted.
"Fine, I'll stay in the car..." Tails whined as he slouched in his seat.
Sonic started to make his way towards the hotel when Tails suddenly remembered another common movie occurance when somebody waits in a car.
"Sonic! Sometimes in the movies waiting in the car is what gets the person killed!" Tails shouted.
"There's a gun in the glove compartment!" the hedgehog shouted over his shoulder as he disappeared into the cars in the parking lot.
Tails, taking Sonic's advice, went to open the glove compartment. But when he did, the latch was quite stiff and wasn't opening. He gave it a little more force, but still for what ever reason, it wouldn't open. Finally, he gave it all he had. Instantly, the glove compartment creaked open, and no less than about half a dozen guns, a pair of handcuffs, and a belt of large caliber bullets spilled out onto the floor.
"Holy shit..." Tails said, amazed at the arsenal that had somehow been crammed into the glove compartment.
Studying the guns carefully, Tails quickly realized why they were in there. Most of them looked old and unused. Why the bullet belt was in there, Tails didn't have the slightest clue. What he did spot was one of the guns looked new, a silver Walther PPK. Tails picked up this gun, checked to see the clip was full, which it was, and cocked the weapon. Sitting there now, Tails began to think that staying put wasn't a good idea. There was a lot of people that wouldn't be pleased to see Sonic around here. On top of that, Tails still didn't trust Espio. Despite what Sonic told him Tails decided to try and catch up with Tails. Tails made to hop out of the car, but just before he did, he grabbed the pair of handcuffs that had fallen out of the glove compartment, thinking they might come in handy. Armed and ready to help Sonic, Tails started to make his way towards the hotel.
--
Up on the roof of the hotel, the funeral services were just getting underway. Storm's body, dressed in a fine black tuxedo, was in a casket in front of rows of chairs. Scattered amongst the seats as well as the roof were various religious and funeral personnel, as well as all the connections and associates of the Babylon Rogues that had been made in Station Square, both humans and mobians alike. And in the middle of all this, the remaining members of the leaders of the Babylon Rogues, Jet, a green hawk, and Wave, a purple swallow. Both were dressed in black and were greeting or speaking with the various people on the roof. At one point, there was a break in the people, and it was at that point that Vector, in a black tux and hat, stepped out of the crowd, followed by Robotnik, still wearing his terribly-out-of-place white tuxedo.
"Hello, Vector..." Jet said, his voice lacking a bit in emotion.
"Jet... I know this is a difficult time for you... If you wish, we can do this another time... After all, I'd hate to become a fourth wheel to somebody who's going to be my partner."
"It's fifth wheel... you idiot..." Robotnik said under his breath.
Jet sighed heavily but managed to look up at Vector.
"No... Vector. This must be done. The troubles between us in the past must become just that, the past. After something like this, I don't want to lose any more teammates, and if that means joining forces with somebody I've had bad dealings with in the past, then I guess I have to do it..."
Vector appeared to act touched, but of course, it was all an act. Jet was falling right into his hands, not evn sensing there was anything foul going on.
"Jet, your words are admirable. I wish my associate Dr. Ivo Robotnik and I had had the chance to meet him before... the incident..."
Once again, Jet bowed his head. Wave put her hand on his shoulder as a sign of compassion, but it made no difference.
"Storm was my right hand man... and he brought a new meaning to the word loyal. Whoever shot him should be blown to pieces..." Jet stuttered, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. "Why'd this have to happen.. why Storm... And who'd do such a thing?... Who'd be so sadistic that they'd... they'd... "
Jet, finally over come by grief, over-turned a table next to him while crying out in anguish, tears falling from his eyes. He then sat down in a chair that had been at the table and put his face in his hands as he sobbed. Wave grabbed another chair and put it next to Jet. She wrapped her arms around Jet and laid her head on his shoulder, tears in the corners of her eyes as well.
"DAMMIT!..." Jet roared into his hands.
"Jet... maybe Vector's right. Perhaps we should do this another time when we're not so distressed," Wave suggested.
"I'd have to agree with her, Vector." Eggman said.
"Yes, I do to. Jet, we shall meet again later when you are-"
"No... we will do this now," Jet said, fighting back his tears.
Vector gave Robotnik the slightest look out of the corner of his eye, signaling that all was going to plan. The four of them helped reset the table. Once they'd all taken their seats, Jet and Vector took out two documents hat pledged allegiance and partnership between the two of them. After each mob leader led the others documents, they signed the documents and re-exchanged them. The crocodile and hawk then shook hands over the table.
"I'd just like to thank you for for doing this, Jet." Vector said.
"It's like I said, Vector. I don't wanna lose any more teammates, and you're an established group. I just hope we will be able to get along and won't have any further tragedies."
"One can only hope, Jet."
That said, all four rose from their seats.
"Well, I still feel we should not stay, Jet. This service is for you, and though we are partners, I will respect you and allow you proper time to grieve."
"You're so kind... thank you..." Wave said, still holding Jet with one of her arms.
"Yes, thank you Vector. But perhaps you should at least pay your respects before you leave. At least... you'll have met Storm..."
Once again, Jet lowered his head.
"We shall do just that, Jet."
That said, Wave an Jet disappeared back into the crowd. Vector then looked over Robotnik. The look in the crocodile's yellow eyes said it all. They weren't suspected for anything. Jet hadn't figured out that it was in fact Robotnik that had killed Storm. They hadn't figured out that the agreement they'd just signed was never going to be followed. And most of all, they didn't suspect that Vector was planning on killing everybody on this roof. The two evil doers made their way up to the casket where Storm was. The two looked at him momentarily, then Vector looked at Robotnik out of the corner of his eye and nodded ever so slightly. As stealthily as he could, Robotnik reached into the casket and pushed a button on a digital watch on Storm's right arm. A timer lit up on it displaying fifteen minutes. As the watch slowly started to tick away, an evil grin crossed the croc's face.
"Do your best, Storm," Vector said evilly.
"I think we should go now," Robotnik suggested.
"Yes... however... we must stop in at the ground floor briefly. I must talk with... him."
Without another word, both of them started to make their way to an external elevator to get down to the ground.
--
Back down on he ground, Sonic had finally located Espio off to the side of one of the entrances.
"Espio!"
The hedgehog started sprinting his way over to the chameleon.
"Sonic!?"
The hedgehog fought his way through the hordes of people arriving for the funeral and caught up with Espio.
"You sure changed moods pretty quickly, Sonic."
"Espio, listen to me!"
Espio was a little taken back by the sudden response.
"Storm's body is a bomb! Vector had it stuffed with the nerve gas from the G.U.N. base and he's gonna use it to take out everybody that has to do with the Babylon Rogues!"
Espio, despite usually being a laid back character, was now clearly showing fear.
"So that's why the city morgue was broken into! They're using the body as a chemical bomb! Sonic, I don't know how the hell you figured this all out, but we gotta stop this! Follow me!"
Espio started running toward the side of the building with Sonic in pursuit. Both of them were unaware that a pair of cyan eyes was watching them.
"Espio, where are you going! The entrance is back there!"
"This is a quicker route! Come on!"
They rounded a corner and started running down a long, enclosed driveway. All around there were dumpsters and a signs that said "Waste Disposal Area." This was enough to get get the hedgehog's attention as it was. But Sonic noticed the lack of one crucial thing, and that was a way out of the driveway they were in. It was at that moment Sonic stopped. Espio also stopped and turned around, having noticed the lack of Sonic's footsteps.
"Sonic, what the hell are you waiting for!"
Sonic looked at Espio with a stone-cold expression as he walked the short distance between them. When he got a few feet away, he quickly spin-dashed Espio, knocking him over.
"Sonic, what are you-"
The reptile's sentence was cut off by Sonic putting his foot down on Espio's chest.
"Who are you working for, Espio?"
"What are you talking about!"
"How stupid do you think I am!? This is a driveway for trash cans! There's no way outta here and there's no way into the hotel. So I'll ask again, who are you working for!?"
For a second, Espio only looked at Sonic, who was glaring at him. He then closed his eyes and smirked a little. Without warning, Espio went invisible and tele-ported out from under Sonic's foot. Though it was only about a second later, by the time Sonic turned around, he was greeted by the chameleon pointing a 9mm Beretta pistol at him.
"I didn't want it to come down to this, Sonic..."
Espio walked over to Sonic and took his Desert Eagle out of his belt line and tucked the massive hand cannon into one of his pockets, then stepped back, all the while keeping his own gun trained on Sonic.
"You bastard... Tails told me not to trust you..."
"So that's his name!"
"Yeah... he told me you've killed people."
"So many, I can't even remember most of them, Sonic. You, on the other hand, I will remember when I kill you."
"Assuming you even get that chance!"
The chameleon turned around to see Tails, who'd watched both of them enter here, pointing his silver PPK at him.
"You move, and I'll blow you away," Tails said, his voice suggesting he was serious.
Espio only scoffed and went invisible again. A distress drop formed on Tails' head, as he'd not known Espio had this power. He started pointing in all directions, hoping to spot some sort of sign of Espio. Out of nowhere, Espio appeared to Tails' left side delivered a drop-kick from to his side, sending Tails into a nearby wall. The impact made the fox lose grip on his gun and the handcuffs he'd grabbed fell out of his jacket pocket as well. Espio walked over to the dropped materials to retrieve both of them. He used a kleenex to pick up the gun.
"Congratulations, Tails. You're fingerprints are all over this gun. I can now use it to frame you for murdering Sonic."
Before Tails could get up, Espio raced over to the fox with lightning speed and put one of the cuffs on Tails' left wrist. He then started to put the other cuff on a pipe that happened to be right next to him, still keeping Tails' gun pointed at Sonic. Tails and Sonic quickly exchanged looks, both knowing this was not good.
--
Vector and Robotnik had just reached the ground level via the external elevator. A quick around told them all was not well.
"He's not here..." Robotnik said.
"I expected this might happen. Let's start checking the rendezvous points." Vector suggested.
--
Back with Sonic, Espio had just finished cuffing Tails to the pipe and was now standing up again, still pointing Tails' gun with the kleenex wrapped around it at Sonic.
"Why the hell are you doing this, Espio? You used to be somebody I could trust."
The chameleon scoffed, then chuckled.
"Isn't it obvious, Sonic? I got tired of my services not being compensated for properly."
Sonic gasped and looked at Espio in disbelief.
"You doing this shit for money!?"
"That's right, Sonic."
As the two stared each other down, Tails stood by on the side, unable to do anything. Standing there chained to the pipe reminded him of the night Nack had broken into his home and did the same thing. This memory reminded Tails of something else. It was a long shot, but with his free left hand, he reached into his left jacket pocket. In his fingers he could feel a small, metal handcuff key, the one he'd been carrying the whole time from before.
"You see Sonic, Vector cut some deals with the Babylon Rogues to get on their good side and come to the service today. Five to one says that the bomb, which you somehow figured out existed, has already been activated. When it goes off, it's the Babylon Rogues will go the way of the Dodo."
Unbeknownst to Espio and even Sonic, Tails had just unlocked the cuff from around the pipe.
"I know all that. Where do you fit into this mess, Espio?" Sonic asked coldly.
"I'm glad you asked. In exchange for making sure Vector's plans weren't interfered with, Vector agreed to give me a percentage of the profit he's gonna make by taking over Station Square. I'll become a billionaire overnight, Sonic!"
Silently, Tails had just gotten the cuff off from around his right hand and tucked the cuffs into his pocket. He could clearly see the huge handle of Sonic's Desert Eagle sticking out from Espio's pocket, but he had to wait for the right moment to grab for it.
"Espio, are you out of your freakin' mind! That gas will probably kill half the city if it's released, maybe even all of it!" Sonic shouted.
"So what? Why should I care about that? All I care about is getting my pay. In fact, why should you even care about that? You're about to have a bullet put in your head. I think I'd be more concerned about myself then a bunch of bastards that don't mean shit."
Sonic, enraged by Espio's inhuman comment, glared at him with his teeth bared. Espio' response was to point his gun right at Sonic's head. To steady his grip on the gun, Espio put his other hand on the gun, leaving the Desert Eagle in his pocket wide open.
"Well Sonic, it's time for me to go. And you too. But... just before I kill you, I just want to say it was a pleasure working with you before. It's too bad you won't be able to enjoy the incredible wealth like I'm about to get. All that money... it just make my heart- "
"FREEZE!"
Tails had leapt forward and grabbed the Desert Eagle out of Espio's pocket and pointed it at the chameleon. Espio whirled about with a rather surprised look on his face. He went to point the gun in his hands at Tails, but Sonic tackled Espio into the nearby wall and twisted his arm with the gun behind his back, making Espio yelp out in pain.
"Tails, give me the cuffs!"
The fox threw the cuffs to Sonic and he started trying to cuff Espio's hands behind his back. The whole time, Tails never lowered the giant fifty caliber pistol from Espio. The gun was so big for Tails' hands that he couldn't even get his whole hand around it, so he had to clasp it tightly with both hands. Not only that, but the tremendous weight of the gun made it incredibly hard to hold and Tails could barely keep it pointed straight. Espio managed to sneak a livid glare at Tails for having foiled his plans.
"Damn you..."
"Hey, you got nobody to blame but yourself, Espio!" Sonic told the struggling reptile.
"How'd this whole thing turn around into this!" Espio shouted.
"Man, I've seen some stupid bad guys before but you have to top them all!," Tails said, catching both of their attention. "You made the classic movie mistake, Espio! You talked to much! If you'd just fired, you'd have won! But noooooo! You just had to get in one last dumbass monolog before finishing the job, didn't you?."
The purple lizard was completely confused by what Tails had been saying, but he quickly dropped it when Sonic clenched the cuffs tightly onto his now pinned wrists. The hedgehog then started to force Espio to walk.
"OK Tails, now we gotta find either Vector or the Eggman."
Tails lowered the gun in his hands.
"Where do you think we should start, Sonic?"
"How about right behind you."
The voice came from behind Tails. I was a low, raspy, male voice that he knew all to well. Looking over his shoulder, Tails looked right up into Robotnik's face.
"Hello, fox boy."
Tails tried to spin around and shoot Robotnik, but Vector, who'd been right beside Robotnik, tail whipped the fox, sending him flying backwards. Tails hit his head on the pipe he'd been chained to only minutes ago, a resounding clang coming from it as he collided with it. The impact nearly knocked Tails out. Taking advantage of the confusion, Espio, despite having both hand cuffed behind him, jumped up and delivered a kick to Sonic's shoulder which sent him over next to Tails. Vector then stood in front of both Sonic and Tails, pointing a gold .38 Perti revolver at both of them.
"Hello, Sonic. So nice you could join us today," Vector jeered.
Behind them, Robotnik took out his .500 S&W revolver and pointed it at them. Espio wasted to no time in tele-porting out of the handcuffs. He then threaded the cuffs behind the pipe on the wall and cuffed both Tails and Sonic to it. Now, both heroes were incapable of doing anything. They were stuck to a pipe, they had three guns pointed on them, no way out, now way to call for help, and worst of all, a ticking chemical bomb up above. Unless they could think of something fast, the apocalypse of Station Square would take place in only a few minutes time.
--
A/N - I'd just like to say I'm trying my best to keep up with updating. It's hard to do with college taking up a lot of my time, something I'm sure a lot of us can relate to.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed that chapter. There's plenty more action to come, so tune in!