This chapter has three names.

First name: A day in the life of Eggman

Dr. Eggman had been called many things in his life. He had been called a maniac, a megalomaniac, a tyrant, an evil genius, an evil moron, a threat to the world, a jerk, a slime ball, a puppy kicker, an oil tycoon, a oil spillage supervisor (who made sure the oil spilled), and an insurance sales man.

He'd even been called by his super villain (and on occasion, hero) name, Eggman. When he really thought about it, it sounded like a name for a comic book villain. He bet that if he was a game character, he would have a cooler name.

But one thing he'd hardly ever been called was Dr. Robotnik. And that was his name. Why wouldn't anyone take it seriously? Sure, it belonged to one of the maddest men in history, his grandfather Gerald, but that was his name all the same. Did they see him as some sort of comic book villain who needed an alias to be evil?

"Sir, production of the Egg Beater has halted due to the massive size of your abdominal region," the robot chicken said as he gave Eggman a clip board with stationary with his grinning face at the top.

No, he just couldn't figure it out.

Some might be surprised at his current condition. Three days ago, he had fallen out of his precious Egg-Wyvern, and out of his Egg-Carrier. It was really high up in the sky. And he had fallen out of it. While stuck in an ejector seat. Without a parachute. And he had fallen.

And had not gotten hurt.

He was fine. He was not mortally injured in any way whatsoever. How had he accomplished this feat, one might ask. How had he fallen from three miles up in the sky and not get a scratch on him? How does he get punched in the face, over and over again, and still have a face at all?

Eggman threw the clipboard at the robot chicken, which smacked it in the 'face'. "Pingas!" Eggman swore. "You bumbling bolt-head!" cried Eggman as his face grew red. "Scratch, how many times have I told you to that I only weigh two-hundred and fifty pounds! Weight is not an issue with me!"

"B-but sir," Scratch, the tall and lanky robot chicken whined, "It's not your weight that's the problem, it's the machines. That much metal won't hold itself up properly, Dr. Robotnik."

At least his robots would call him by his real name. Eggman sighed. "Then use those anti-gravity hover modules I've been working on…"

"The ones you told me not to touch?"

"No, the ones that I've been keeping in my back pocket. Of course the ones I told you not to touch! But now I need you to touch them so you can bring them to the machine ward. Is that too hard for you, Scratch?"

Scratch shook in its head and turned around. "No, Dr. Robotnik." Scratch began to walk away, his heavy talons clanking with every step.

"And don't forget what happened to Grounder!" called Eggman happily, and Scratch suddenly started running.

Eggman sighed and rubbed his temples. He wasn't sure how much longer he could handle being a 'Comic Book Villain.' Everyone thought he pulled these resources out of his butt. No, he had to spend money. He couldn't just make robots all willy nilly. To make matters worse, he had completely wasted his time with that time machine idea, ironically enough. He didn't get anything out of it except more enemies to worry about.

Many people-nincluding an irritating hedgehog- thought him to be your generic evil guy. No, Eggman was a lot more than that, hence having so many different names. He might have appeared as a fool during his escapades, but no one ever thought about how much effort went onto his Egg-Viper, or Egg-Wyvern, or his Egg-anything. The only people that really saw him as a threat were the government. But who cares about their opinion?

"There is him…" whispered Eggman. He turned in his swivel chair, and looked at the headlines of the two newspapers he had placed in a glass case each. He stroked his mighty mustache as he grinned.

'New Hero, Metal Overdrive, Saved a Family from a Large Fire. Speculations of Sonic the Hedgehog finally going techno on the World.'

'Metal Overdrive, and the Knights of Chaos, Knighted by the Princess of Soleanna. Metal Overdrive turns out to be an actual Robot made by the nefarious Dr. Eggman.'

Metal Sonic. His greatest creation, then, now, and probably forever. Sure, Metal Sonic had betrayed Eggman. Sure, he had tried to kill Eggman. Even surer, Metal Sonic was now a hero. But he was Eggman's greatest success. At first, Eggman believed he had wasted Figure .09 on him. In fact, he believed that now more than ever. But Figure .07 had simply failed. Figure .08 was a slight success, but it only took emotions. Figure .10 wasn't even as good, despite its perfect thought process. Eggman wondered whatever happened to that ungrateful Black Knight. But Figure .09 was the clincher, the proof of his genius, the thing that showed that Eggman was a force to reckon with. Of course, Figure .09 was a little drastic… but only he and Sonic knew that.

Eggman suddenly frowned. Sonic knew this. Sonic knew of Eggman's power. But Sonic did not respect him. Ah, but Metal Sonic…

"Yes I remember it fondly," he said to himself. "I was digging oil out of the ocean, and you knew what I was doing was worse than any anti-nature business around, and perhaps more harmful than my missile strikes." Eggman stood up and put his hands behind his back. "But you don't respect me out of fear. You don't even respect me because I gave you your life. You respect me because you know I deserve it. You know what I do and you show it by fighting me without a smug phrase every two seconds. I can hardly wait until Figure .09's memory failsafe falls and you take out that miserable hedgehog's life once and for all…" Eggman ravished the thought. Being rid of that pest and having an arch nemesis who, like that little fox boy, knew he was a force to take seriously. A defeat at the hands of Sonic was torture. But to be defeated by Metal Sonic would make sense.

"Ah, Metal," Eggman said as he turned around and sat back in his chair. "What I wouldn't give to be able to tell you how proud you've made me even though I absolutely hate you." Eggman paused. Why was he proud of Metal? Was Eggman- dare he think it?- feeling almost like a father? It would make sense. Eggman had made him, so Metal Sonic was like a son. Eggman had plans for Metal, but he didn't follow them. Just like a real son would.

Eggman sighed deeply. It was time for his annual walk.

"Dr. Robotnik," said a deep synthesized voice from Eggman's computer. "The Metro Battle Front competition is lacking in a few battle spots, and the Casino Nights Park has tripled in profit. Due to this unforeseen problem and sudden financial success, your annual Poker Game must be rescheduled."

Eggman pressed a button on the computer. "Eggman is out right now," he said.

"I understand, Mr. Ovi," the computer responded.

Eggman stood up and opened one of his desk drawers, revealing a large grey overcoat and a hat to match, and a little bottle of liquid. Eggman took the bottle and sprinkled some of its contents on his mustache. Slowly, his mustache became a light grey, almost white. Eggman pulled the overcoat on and removed his glasses and goggles. From the pocket of the overcoat, Eggman produced a pair of sunglasses and slipped them over his eyes. He took the hat, put it on, and walked out the door.

-break-

Mr. Ovi, with his hands in his pockets, walked through the streets of Eggman's Grand Metropolis. His eyes were hidden behind his sunglasses, but his gaze was set forward.

Mr. Ovi came up to a nice little café, one of the few family owned places in the entire city, and walked in. The tall mutt/dog at the counter looked up from his magazine and smiled warmly. "Aw, Mr. Ovi. Right on schedule as always. The usual lemon flavor?"

Mr. Ovi shook his head. "Not in the mood for lemon today, Archie. Give me a raspberry."

Archie made a look of surprise. "Gee, having a bad day? Or is it a good one?" Archie asked as he retrieved a napkin and pulled out from the display case a raspberry éclair that was as big as a Subway sandwich.

Mr. Ovi first took a large bit before speaking. "A bit of both. I have this son, see…" Mr. Ovi took another bite.

Archie grinned, showing he was missing one of his bottom teeth. "Wow, you have a wife and kids?" he said, sounding earnestly surprised.

Mr. Ovi shook his head. "No. Just a son."

"Oh… I don't know. You always seemed like the kind of guy who maybe hundreds of screaming fan girls would adore, for some reason. You sure you don't have a wife?"

"Very sure."

"I see… well, what's up with your son anyway?"

"He's been acting out against my plans for him… but only because I treated him like trash in the first place. If I had actually treated him with respect, he might not be against me right now or my plans for him. But, perhaps, he's even greater even though I don't like what he's become."

"And what's that, Mr. Ovi?"

"… He's become free, Archie. He doesn't listen to the rules of anyone but himself and his friends. And before you ask, his friends are just the same. I wanted him to be a machine, but the way I… raised him wouldn't allow it. My son is gone and he's better than ever. So I'm glad for him. But I am disappointed with his decision."

"Sad, really sad. I remember the day I told my dad I didn't want to be a technician for the government. He looked sad too. He let me go, and he hates me. But he still loves me. The love is stronger than the hate. What's your son's name?"

"I'd rather not say."

"Alright then. Can I ask another question?"

"Shoot."

"Why do you only come here once a month at the same time?"

"Hmm…" Mr. Ovi paused and took a particularly large bite. "I find I lack the time to be frequent, but not to be consistent."

Archie nodded. "To each his own, then. You must be a very busy person to have a schedule for my little corner store here."

"Archie… do you like it here?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you dislike this 'Eggmanland'? Do you hate Eggman? Do you wish you were somewhere else in the world? Why are you here, in this city, Archie?"

Archie sighed deeply through his nose and sat on the chair opposite Mr. Ovi and leaned back so only two of his chair's legs were on the floor. "There's a reason this place is open on Sundays, Mr. Ovi. I don't go to any church of any kind, even though I believe in a God. I don't go to church or Mass on Sundays because I don't agree with everything they say in those places. I'm not Catholic because I won't admit that there's only one true God. I can't be Mormon because I don't believe access to heaven is that easy. And I simply don't trust priests for… obvious reasons."

Mr. Ovi shivered.

"I believe in about two-thirds of what those religions say, but there's a little bit I just can't live with.

"I think the same thing about Eggman and this place. There are a lot of things I like. I like his clean streets as opposed to G.U.N.'s 'protected' streets. I remember hearing about when those aliens attacked. While Westopolis was getting torn apart by those- what were they? Black Arms, that's it! While the Black Arms were crushing stuff, I was here, safe and sound thanks to Eggman's self-developed defense system. He's a genius, man, you can't argue with that."

Mr. Ovi grinned. "No, I suppose I can't."

"Just look at this city. It's perhaps one of the best around. What I wouldn't give to punch those 'Sonic Heroes' in the face for messing up the power systems and making it so that we didn't have power for that whole three weeks. But Eggman does do some pretty insane things. World domination through his giant war machines. I was scared all those times had had that Death Star rip-off of his up in space. Then there was the recent 'Space Armada' thing right before the earth split into pieces. I wonder what caused that, anyhow? Of course, there's the amount of natural resources he has to use and the money I bet he collects dishonestly. And then, my least favorite thing about Eggman: his oil ocean. You've heard of it, right?"

"Ah, yes," nodded Mr. Ovi. "A collection of every fuel known to man and animal kind. And it takes up more space than Texas." Mr. Ovi chuckled.

"That's something of Eggman's I don't agree with. He's got enough fuel to help out the whole world, but he keeps it to himself, let's nobody get to it, and uses it for his world conquering escapades. The question is: can I live with that? Yes I can. As long as I get to live here, where I can enjoy myself, pay taxes like an honest guy, and still have the freedom to bungee jump once in a while, I don't care. Eggman could take over the whole world and I wouldn't care. The world might be better for it. That's something I bet Sonic and the rest of those heroes don't realize when they fight Eggman. But, the way I see it, most of them are one sided and don't even care. They only see the bad in Eggman and won't budge from that stance. They have an order of things, and Eggman making the world a better place just doesn't fit in with that."

Mr. Ovi was silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly said, "I sometimes think of leaving everything here behind. But I'm too far in already to suddenly get out."

Archie nodded. There was silence for a little while as Mr. Ovi finished his éclair.

"I'll take my leave, then," Mr. Ovi said. "Thank you, Archie, for the pastry."

"Hey, you paid for it. Don't thank me for that."

"Then thank you for the company. One of these days, we'll have to actually get to know each other."

"Somehow I don't think that's going to happen like that, Dr. Robotnik."

Mr. Ovi stopped and turned his head to face Archie.

Archie grinned. "When you see a guy every time of the month at the same time, you start getting used to their face. Ever the stuff you can only notice up close."

Mr. Ovi sighed. "I suppose I should have expected it. I won't bother you again." Mr. Ovi started to leave.

"Now why would you do that?"

"You said you don't like Eggman."

"I said I don't like the things he does. Besides, I willing to bet Dr. Robotnik isn't quite so energetic. Come on, have another one. On me."

Mr. Ovi took off his hat, reached in his pocket and pulled out his round spectacles, replacing his sunglasses with them. Dr. Robotnik, behind his huge white mustache, grinned. "Yes. Dr. Robotnik is a little less wild than Eggman."

"Well then, Dr. Robotnik… what will it be?" Archie moved behind the counter.

"Give me the Blueberry," said Dr. Robotnik. "I'm feeling in the need for something somewhat tart."

"You're going to need the pep when you tell your 'son' how proud you are of him."

"Pingas…" Dr. Robotnik slightly swore. "I was hoping you had forgotten."

"Nope. This dog ain't that old yet."

Dr. Robotnik sighed. "Perhaps you are right. Maybe it's time I show him just what he means to me."

For the rest of the day, Dr. Robotnik forgot the world and enjoyed something he hadn't had in so long, due to the time he spent with his machines, he had forgotten it existed.

Good company.

Second Name: The not so Marvelous Riders of the Marvelous Queen

Espio looked at the pub and held up the address he had written down. This festering, greasy place was where he was to meet his 'new' partner. Just the place Espio would expect to find him.

Espio pulled his cloak tighter around himself and walked in. He was surprised by how few people there actually were. But that worked just fine for him. He liked the solitude of only a few.

In the corner, Espio spotted his old 'friend.' He was currently just sitting down doing nothing, his hat covering his face and making it appear as if he were asleep. Espio knew better. A sniper, a snitch, and a snake never really slept. He was all three.

But Espio was confused. For some reason, a familiar looking cat was sitting with him, a fishing pole in one hand. And he wasn't dead. That was strange.

Espio walked up to them, his heavy ninja boots, though they were light to him, clanked loudly against the floor.

"Nack," said Espio in his raspy whispered voice. "I can hardly believe you're still alive."

The weasel lifted his hat up, his fang sticking out of his mouth as he grinned. Espio noticed that his eyes were a different color from the last time he saw him "Espio, 'ow many times did I tell ya ta call me Fang back in the ol' days?"

"I lost count. And I'm still not calling you that."

"So, we're still enemies after all this time?"

"Selling us out to a robot cult will do that to a relationship."

"Heh, heh… you were the only one of us who could actually figure a person."

"You were never a member of the Chaotix, Nack. It's all because of you that Mighty quit. Times for us have been hard."

Fang snickered. "Always knew Mighty was going to quit before he retired. Besides, I 'eard you guys just got a huge pay day. Isn't that right? "

"Yes. But I will never forgive you."

Fang's face suddenly turned blank and his green eyes glowed, and a different voice came out of his mouth. "We do not have time for this, Fang. We are expecting your assistance soon."

Espio took a step back. "What the heck was that?"

Fang shook his head and blinked. "Sorry about that. I got this 'ere computer virus stuck in my head," Fang started banging his head with his fists, "and he- won't- leave me- alone!" Fang sighed. "But it has a point. I'm expecting someone, so if you wouldn't mind-"

"I am that someone," said Espio as he tossed a folder onto the table. Fang blinked in surprise and opened it up, showing pictures of and notes about rings.

"Rings?" asked Big slowly.

"Aye…" said Fang. "Rings."

"What's he doing here?" asked Espio, pointing a thumb at Big.

"He's me muscle," said Fang. "Never go on a mission for the most valuable artifact in the world without it."

"Hello, Mr. Lizard."

"Uh, hi."

Fang frowned and raised an eyebrow. "So, if you do hate me, why are you 'ere, offering your assistance? You can't 'ave already spent all yer money already. Vector isn't that ignorant."

Espio shook his head. "No, he isn't. Vector's off helping someone you might have heard of. His name's Metal."

"Metal Sonic?" asked Fang.

"Yes and no. He's just Metal now."

"Right, I've seen 'im a few times. Recently had to give 'im somethin', actually. I wouldn't have guessed our old boss would be so close. I almost wished I'd stayed an' said hi."

"He was never your boss, Nack."

"Yeah, yeah, grudges an' all that. So, why are you here?"

Espio closed his eyes and smiled. "I never forgave you, Nack. But I don't care as much as I used to… Plus, I'm bored. Need something to do so I don't get lazy."

Fang chuckled. "Good to 'ave you on board, then. Why don't you tell 'im, A.D.A.M.?"

Again, Fang's face went blank. "Certainly, Fang. My last user was an inventor of high caliber who used to work with Dr. Eggman long ago. This inventor, who shall be referred to as Nate, created the device in which 'Power Rings' come from. Do you know what Power Rings are?"

"I understand that they increase speed."

"They do much more than that. But it is very difficult to tell the difference between a normal ring and a Power Ring. It is impossible to track the device by simply following a trail of rings. This device is the 'Ring Forge', and I believe it has been secured recently, as rings have not been frequent to be found and the government has paid off a large amount of its debt. For this reason, we require your tracking and infiltration skills. Are you prepared?"

Espio nodded.

"Wait a minute 'ere," said Fang as he blinked his empty face away. "Where's Charmy?"

-break-

"OhmygoshI''ssomuchsugar!"

-break-

"He wanted to stay home. I don't think he'll do anything too stupid."

"You idiot. Don'cha remember when we left 'im in charge of the egg?"

"He's become a lot more mature since then."

"I'm hungry," Big suddenly said.

Fang growled slightly. "I told ya, after we take care of business."

Espio at last sat down with them. "Let's talk over some food, Nack."

Fang sighed. "Fine. 'Ey, barkeep!"

The large man behind the counter grunted.

"Two orders of the 'Grub' and the Fish Fry, if ya don't mind."

The large man again grunted and went into the pub's kitchen.

"Any idea's where we need to start?" asked Espio.

Fang grinned, his namesake ever showing. "We need you to infiltrate a G.U.N. base and get me to the mainframe of all o' G.U.N. Leave the hacking and spamming to me."

Espio again grinned. "I had forgotten, Professor Nack, that you were good at that."

"Ah, stop, you're makin' me go all soft. Besides, I might be good with computers… or maybe not, but I studied the sub-atomic world, remember? A.D.A.M. will actually be doin' most a' the work."

"How?"

"Do not worry about that." Fang lifted up one of his hands, and it was suddenly covered in silver liquid claws. "My nanotech form will allow me instant access to all of G.U.N.'s data."

"I see," said Espio. "So, what happened after you turned us over to the… what were they called?"

"The Metallix," said Fang. The bartender brought out three hot plates of food, two with chicken, rice, and potatoes, and one with fried fish and lemon.

"Right, the Metallix," said Espio. "What happened after you sold us out?"

Fang took a large bite of his chicken, and forcefully swallowed. "Damn you A.D.A.M., you've completely rewritten my taste buds."

A.D.A.M. said nothing.

Fang sighed and put his meat down. Big took a bite of his fried fish, ignoring the lemon. He gave some to Froggy, who Espio, despite his ninja skills, had only just noticed was on top of Big's head.

"After I sold you guys out, I 'ad way too much free time on my hands. I've been driftin' from place to place, sometimes just by walkin' 'round, sometimes because I was called to do a job, usually involving bounty huntin'. I've done practically everythin' ya can imagine at least twice. I was even an astronaut and went to Mars on a little mission N.A.S.A. didn't expect me to come back from."

"Any hero business?"

"Does anti-hero business count?"

"Yes."

"Then yes. I've saved some random pedestrians and the like before from imminent doom while I was doing something bad. I might be a gunner, but I'm not just gonna wait around while some human tries to destroy an innocence of their own kind. But only if it doesn't get in my way."

"I know you've killed before, Nack. Haven't you killed children before, too?"

Fang sighed, but his grin never faltered. "If there is a god- mind you, I won't say there is one- that's one thing I can't be punished for. I've never killed anyone older than fifteen, unless I did one of those chain reaction things. But we've all done that, I'm sure."

"You mean the Chaos theory?"

"Yeah, tha' one. Tha's a funny thing about Chaos. It only has one thin' predictable about it; that it's unpredictable. Its rule is that it has no rules. But it has the rule of having no rules, which means there is a rule, and it breaks it. Thus it follows the rule of not obeying rules. An endless cycle of Order to be broken by Chaos, then repaired by Chaos, only to be broken again."

"Endless possibilities," said Espio. "But not all of those possibilities are good ones." Espio looked up, his gaze lost in the past. "Did you ever find that subatomic world, Nack?"

Fang snickered. "I was close this one time. But me shrink belt wouldn't shrink me any more than a grain of salt. I just couldn't get it ta work right. On a plus side, my muscles had less weight on them an' I caught air better. I could almost fly like that."

"Do you still have the belt? I might know someone who could help."

Fang shook his head, his grin still not wavering. "Naw, I gave up on that dream long ago, Espio. Course, I wished I kept it so I could steal treasure easier, but what're ya gonna do?"

"Fish is good fried," stated Big as he nudged his plate forward. "I should learn to cook like that."

Fang laughed a little. "I like this guy. It's like he's the livin' embodiment of the phrase 'ignorance is bliss'."

Espio raised a brow. "If he's not intelligent, why is he here?"

"I said ignorant, not dumb. He's a few cents short of a combo meal, sure, but he's plain. He's quick and to the point. He's observant, even if he doesn't know what he's lookin' at."

"How did you get him to come with you?"

"Turns out he figured out some stuff about this Sonic feller that would cause quite a ruckus if anyone foun' out. You know Sonic, right?"

"Yeah?"

"See, he pooled together the Earth's dark energy an' turned 'imself into a monster. But get this: the monster's friendly, and Sonic's gone crackers."

"What do you mean Sonic's lost his mind?"

"Sonic's goin' to nearly any length, breaking some of his taboos, just so he can destroy Metal. You've seen Metal in the papers, 'ow he's been saving a few thin's 'ere and there, but Sonic doesn't give two cents about it. He's dead set on taking him out, even though Metal's gone good guy. Big 'ere wants to stop Sonic, 'cause he knows that Sonic isn't bein' 'very nice.' So, I told 'im how I can help. These Power Rings are some of Sonic's greatest weapons, but you know how it works; take their power and turn it against them. A.D.A.M. told me 'ow to use the Power Rings against Sonic."

"And just how would A.D.A.M. know how to defeat Sonic?" Espio asked with his eyes as slits.

Fang's grin broadened. "'Ave you ever had information that only you and about two other people in the world knew about? It's quite a feelin'. I know things about Sonic that no one, not even Sherlock Homes, would 'ave been able to piece together. No one would believe me without proof, a' course, but I know why Sonic can run at the speed of sound and why he and Eggman are at each other's throats. I even know the psychological reason for why he's so arrogant and cocky all the time. A.D.A.M. was Eggman's computer program at the time, before he was a semi-sentient thing. As it turns out, there was a time when Sonic couldn't run at the speed of sound. You see, Sonic's actually-"

"Hold it," Espio harshly whispered as he shut his eyes tight and raised his hand up in focus. "Someone just had a huge burst of excitement. Someone is eavesdropping on us."

Fang, in an instant, pulled out his six-shooter and shot a single bullet upwards. The few people in the pub froze.

"Alrigh'" called out Fang. "You can make this easy on yerself by just telling me who you are and why you were listenin' in on our private conversation."

No one said anything.

"Not talkin', ay? Espio, do your ninja thing. Get ready, Big. We're gonna get a big catch, I can feel it."

Big stood up and held his fishing rod over his shoulder. "Is it a bad person?" asked Big.

Espio closed his eyes and walked around the few people that were there. A single man tried to walk out, but his un-gracefulness gave Fang an easy target. Fang shot a single bullet, which only just missed the man's head.

"Watch it, pal," said Fang almost cheerfully. "I never miss by accident."

Espio opened his eyes, sighed, and closed them again. "Whoever you are, I am impressed. You can hide your emotions very well. It was just a lucky spike that I caught. But that just means you're very relevant to what it was we were talking about."

Big then noticed something. One man was smiling. A person does not smile when there is trouble.

Big pointed a large finger at the man. "Him," said Big. "He was listening to us."

The man suddenly scowled, and Espio's eyes opened quickly. "It is him!" Espio cried. The man suddenly jumped up and tossed his chair into Espio, who was caught off guard by the sudden attack. Big cast his line as the man started to run, hooking the man's pants. The man ran in a single spot for a moment before being hoisted up.

The man now being suspended in the air was short, to say the least. He was wearing normal attire for a human, but he was out of proportion to a normal dwarf. He was like a human version of an animal person, complete with big hands and feet with gloves and shoes. His head was big, but it was tall and bald with only a few little hairs sticking out here and there. His nose was long and pointed like that of bird's beak. The little man just seemed slimy for some reason. And Fang knew some things about slimy.

"Put me down!" the short man shouted, flailing all about. "You have no right to be doing this! I am an honest citizen!"

"Honest my butt," stated Fang as he pointed his gun at the man's head. "Now why don't ya just-" Suddenly Fang's face went blank.

"You…" said A.D.A.M. "It's you… you're alive."

The short man gulped. "I swear, A.D.A.M., it wasn't me! He made me do it!"

"I remember you… you deleted her…" Fang's blank face contorted to that of rage. "You deleted Nicole! I must delete you!"

In an instant, the short man threw a pellet to the ground and smoke surrounded them. He quickly pulled out a knife and cut the tiny string that was holding him up. Big lost balance from the sudden loss of weight and fell back with a large thump. A.D.A.M. felt the gun get slapped out of Fang's hand, and he heard the sound of running. Espio quickly threw a throwing knife through the cloud, but it was deflected as the short man tossed a plate to intercept it. Espio, while he didn't actually see it happen, could pick it up with his other senses and was amazed. This person was quite skilled.

Fang's eyes turned completely green. "I must delete you! Delete all Eggman data! Delete! Delete!" From Fang's back grew four silver tentacles, each with a three fingered claw on them. The extra appendages hoisted Fang's body up while one of them went for Fang's gun in the haze. As soon as it was back in his/their hands, they bolted out the door, into the night air.

The short man was climbing up a fire escape and onto a roof, moving surprisingly fast for his stature.

A.D.A.M. started moving Fang's body across the street, his tentacles making cracks with every step. He latched to the wall and started climbing up after the short man. A.D.A.M. made it up to see the short man jumping to another roof, again with agility that did not seem possible for a man like him. A.D.A.M. gave pursuit, making his way swiftly across the rooftops, easily catching up to the short man.

A.D.A.M. raised Fang's gun and fired the remaining four bullets, but he missed each time, causing Fang to inwardly scream about his reputation. A.D.A.M. ignored him and instead reached out with Fang to grab him.

The short man suddenly jumped onto some nearby train rails and A.D.A.M. was about to jump to, but a passenger train suddenly zoomed past. A.D.A.M. stopped dead and watched as the machine sped by. When at last it finished passing, there was no remnant of the short man, not even blood.

Fang's face went blank again, and the tentacles retracted. Fangs blinked, and his eyes were back to being white with green iris's. "Yeh idiot! I could 'ave got 'im if yeh ad't completely lost it!"

"I am sorry, Fang… I let my past aggression get in the way of your safety. It shall not happen again."

"F'rget meh safeteh! What if he ge's 'hold of Sonic?"

Espio leaped next to Fang, looking around frantically. "Where did he go?" Espio asked calmly after he had looked around.

"The computer let 'im get away," growled Fang as he tossed his hat to the roof beneath them. "It was somebody A.D.A.M. knew from his past that deleted his girlfriend or somethin'. As if we didn't 'ave enough to worry about with 'im knowing what we're up to…"

"I loved her…" A.D.A.M. quickly corrected.

"Who was he?" asked Espio.

Fang picked up his hat and turned around. "Come on, we need to get goin' while the gettin's good. The Marvelous Queen Mk Two can get all three of us out of 'ere in no time."

Espio stepped in front of Fang. "Who was he?" Espio more so demanded this time.

Fang rubbed his temples and sighed. "That guy was the only person smarter than Eggman, an' he's ten times as cruel. That was Eggman's nephew, Snively Robotnik."

Third Name: Sniveling and Conniving Snively, and Sonic's Metal Breakdown

The train slowly pulled up to Station Square's stop, its doors opening. Passengers, though few, got off as the doors opened. However, one passenger did not get off the conventional way. Instead, this person crawled through the wheels of the transport vehicle, and clawed his way over the stone floor. His eyes were bloodshot from holding onto the bottom for the last twenty minutes. His hands felt as if their calluses had thickened by half an inch, and it was quite uncomfortable.

After getting a safe distance away from the train, he rolled onto his back and starred up at the ceiling, breathing heavily but purposely trying to get it back under control. He blinked his lavender eyes a few times.

"I'm alive…" he whispered as he grinned, his nasally voice even more so than before, "Thank god, I'm alive…"

Before he knew it, memories flooded his mind now that fear was not gripping him. A.D.A.M. was still active. He was still alive. He could hardly believe it. But then, it was hard to believe that Snively was still alive.

His name was Snively Robotnik, he remembered, a name that came with much hate and turmoil, more than anyone on this planet really understood… except for his accursed uncle and that blasted hedgehog.

Snively got back up, swept the dust off his green coat, stuck his hand in his pockets, and began walking down the stairs.

Snively noticed that the ticket counter was closed, but fortunately for him a timetable for the train was left out. The next train that could take him back to Central City was not due until eleven A.M. the next morning. Snively could live with that. He'd just sleep on a bench until tomorrow.

He began to walk along the streets of Station Square, amazed. It wasn't too long ago that his foolish uncle had released a torrent of angry water at this place, yet it seemed to have rebuilt itself just fine. He looked at the high transit entrance to Twinkle Park and sighed. What he wouldn't give to be able to go in there for free. But, unfortunately, certain requirements had to be met. He was simply not 'handsome' enough to ever get the right requirements. He was… snively. It was the best word for him.

Snively rubbed a single tear away and continued on. He looked somewhat angry as he took each carefully calculated step. This was his uncle's entire fault. He wouldn't be living in the gutter right now if that waste of matter hadn't been ashamed of his grandfather's name all those years ago. But he was, and now he's not. Snively could have lived with it, but he was brought along for the ride. The Robotnik fortune was wasted, and Ivo couldn't even be bothered to remember that he was still alive.

Still alive. That was one blessing he could still count. At least he didn't not exist yet. But what he wouldn't give for the chance to sleep in a nice bed, take an actual bath, and actually be able to afford that crown his tooth desperately needed. Snively poked his tooth, hoping to numb the pain. Like that place he and his uncle went to so long ago, the soreness just wouldn't go away.

"Sonic… you poor child," said Snively to himself. "I still can't believe what happened. It was such a chance, such a random equation… and the variables just keep stacking up." Yes, it was so sad, watching all that fire…

And then there was the Chaos. Snively had heard what happened. People these days. So focused on creating their own order that they forget the simple order of math, the fact that two plus two equals four has, does, and always will exist, and you can't change that. Chaos was always angry. You can't just take that away without either going through much trial and error, or taking the quick way out and taking its consequences. They think they nullified it. Bah. True, positive plus a negative equals neutral, normal if you will, but that was just the energy. Where did they think the actual emotion went?

"I need to stop," Snively said as he sat upon a bench. "I left that life… I've never been happier. I hope you are proud of me… Hope." Again a single tear was wiped away from his eye. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two shiny little metallic balls that seemed to be stuck together. Snively pulled them apart, tossed them in the air, and listened as the magnet balls clacked together and fell back into his lap. Snively sniffed and smiled. He tossed them again. And again. And again.

Suddenly Snively left his trance when he noticed a presence sitting next to him. Snively turned his head to see his greatest fear in the universe.

Sonic.

Snively leapt up and yelled, quickly running away.

Sonic, in a second, was in front of Snively, grabbing him by the collar. "Scream again," Sonic whispered, "And we will both be in deep trouble."

Snively pursed his lips together to show he was going to be silent. Sonic dragged Snively back to the bench he was sitting on and threw him down, tossing a bag into his lap. Snively looked up. Sonic look was almost indescribable. It was mad. It was insane. But he still looked sorry, if that was possible. Snively opened the bag, and his stomach suddenly growled. Inside were two hotdogs with simple ketchup and mustard.

Snively looked up, filled with anxiety. "You remembered?" he asked as if he were talking to someone that could snuff him out in a second.

Sonic nodded. "Extra of both toppings. No chili, no onions, just those." Sonic's eye twitched.

Snively was a little unsure, with good reason obviously, but he simply ate. It had been so long since he had hot food…

"I need your help," said Sonic after Snively had finished the first hotdog. Snively paused before taking a bite of the second piece of food. When he said nothing, Sonic continued. "Metal Sonic has my memories, and if he gets access to them, I will be the most hated thing on this planet."

"You would not," Snively quickly stated, his mouth full. "It would still be my idiotic uncle. He caused it, after all."

"But no one would ever look at me the same way again. My reputation would be toast. The world… my friends would all look at me like a monster."

Snively sighed, but gave a false evil grin. "Friends? And here I thought you were reserved to never let anyone get close to you. But you simply weren't careful enough. You should know, Sonic; every action has an equal and opposite reaction. If that robot's going to blab, it's because you befriended that other two-tailed fox kid."

Sonic's body shook as his head turned.

Snively frowned. "How amazing yet painful. What are the odds? He is a fox. He has a knack for machines. He has the same name. Even the same deformation. But he is not the other one. He's gone. Just like the rest of them."

"Zip it," Sonic said through his teeth.

"Touchy," said Snively as he finished the last bite of his hotdog. "So, it's the Figure, right?"

"Yes."

"The one with the 'Perfect Copy' function?"

"Yes."

Snively put his hands together and closed his eyes. "You're barking mad, and yet you were still kind enough to bring me some food. There's proof that you still have some of your real self in there…

"But why should I? As the 'good doctor' intended, he is superior to you in nearly every way, including kindness. I'll never forget how you called the old one 'pixel brain' every time you addressed him. I could tell he didn't like it one bit, but your ego got in the way."

"I'll pay for a real home for you, and get you a stable job."

Snively scowled. "No, hedgehog. I already spent nearly two years doing the fat man's bidding, taking abuse, creating weapons of mass destruction, and having to watch those poor creatures get caught in the hellfire. I hated it. I simply wanted to leave, but I couldn't. Only my uncle had the means by which I could go and never come back, and you all treated me as if I actually wanted to be there. What I wouldn't have given- what I wouldn't give now- to be able to relax in a big chair and simply read a good book. But I have been denied simple pleasure because of my sniveling. I was too afraid to say no to him, and look at what happened. This time, I'm saying no. I'm not letting flames rule this world as well."

Sonic suddenly gripped Snively's throat. Snively gagged, unable to make a word.

"I'm afraid you have no choice," said Sonic, his voice becoming shaky. "Don't you get it? If they find out what happened, they'll be after you too." Sonic loosened his grip slightly.

Snively gasped and coughed. "Then I'll go to them and tell them myself," Snively said between his teeth.

Again, Sonic tightened his grip. "I won't let you do that, baldy. We either A) work together to destroy Metal and you get paid because I'm nice or B) I use my spin dash on you and we see how it works on a human without Eggman's abilities."

Snively's eyes widened. "You wouldn't!" he coughed.

"You know that's a dumb thing to say," said Sonic as he grinned almost madly. "So, do we have a deal?"

Snively nodded. He knew when he had no choice. Sonic set Snively down, taking care to hurt him no further. "I'm sorry… I don't want to do this."

"Then don't" said Snively. He was ignored.

Sonic threw a bag at Snively. "I found this suit when I was exploring a temple, but it doesn't work. Make it work."

"Great beans in a basket!" cried Snively as he pulled out an oddly shaped blade. "This is a weapon suit from the fourth great civilization! Great Grandpa would have killed for this…"

Sonic suddenly picked up Snively, who gave out a yelp. "Reminisce later. Where's your house?"

"Central City."

"Do you have a lab?"

"No."

"Then I'll take you to Tails's," And Sonic ran.

And Snively suddenly wished he had let A.D.A.M. get him. At least A.D.A.M. would have made his death quick. But now he would suffer. He could only hope, now. Hope that the flames of the Sun wouldn't end this world as well. And just plain ask for Hope.

-Author's note-

Despite being almost 8000 words, this chapter feels short. Probably because it's three mini-stories, but still.

A welcome change of pace, but completely off topic, and at the same time, still on topic. I'm using some liberties from the comics, if you fans can tell.

Not sure what to say, but I like these interludes I came up with. This'll be the pattern from here on out; a goal is established, followed by action, followed by maybe more action, followed by a NiGHTS chapter, followed by a multi-chapter. There's some exceptions to this, but this is it in a nutshell.

What the heck is going on with Sonic! And why do I keep adding characters when I already am having a hard time using them all! Holy cruuuuuuuuuuuuuud!

Sincerely,

The Conflicted Writer