A/N - Thanks so much for all reads, reviews, faves and follows! =D Sorry this is so late. I've had a super busy weekend. So this update will be pretty close to the next one!
Chapter Nineteen
Infinite shook water from his fur as he strolled from the bathroom. A much needed shower after that walk around the sewers. It had taken over an hour to get the stink out of his fur, and he still felt like he'd never be clean.
Amy's apartment was quiet and dark, only the faint streetlights leaking in between the curtains. The eerie silence only added to the loneliness. He didn't want to stay here. The whole place smelled like her, a constant reminder that she was out there somewhere while both Shadow and that robot roamed loose. A quick snack and a rest, and Infinite would be back out on the streets to put an end to it all. He flicked on the TV, and a sheep's voice immediately began broadcasting Mainframe's news. All the way back in Central City, if the view from her window of Twinkle Park was anything to go by. Infinite stopped by the kitchen to grab a jar of peanut butter and stuffed his hand into it to scoop some out. The taste and texture of it was oddly relaxing.
He went over to the window and shunted the curtain aside to see out into the street. Empty. Not even a GUN soldier. Going off the news broadcast, all the soldiers were congregating around the Judge, keeping the streets free of pedestrians. Rounding up each and every last straggler to get them to safety.
He glanced over to the holoscreen as he licked peanut butter off his fingers. No live footage now. All stills and short videos caught by onlookers. A missile had been launched, taking out a a chunk of a skyscraper as the Judge took down a GUN chopper. The helicopter lay in a smoldering scrap heap in the middle of a small side street.
More stills. This time the park. Craters and smoking trees lay scattered throughout. More evidence of the Judge's rampage.
Shadow had been a problem, sure, but that robot was a massive threat. Tails hadn't been wrong when he'd labeled it as 'a massive overreaction'.
Infinite snorted and turned back to the window. If it had been roaming anywhere else, he'd leave GUN to deal with it. But as things stood, if it got to Shadow before he did, then there'd be nothing left. Infinite would never get his answers. Never find out why exactly the hedgehog had tried to frame him. And as for Amy… she was still in the city, with her friends no doubt.
He removed his fingers from his mouth and sighed, leaning against the windowsill. His appetite retreated back inside him like a frightened mouse.
What could he do? His powers were failing him. Like this, he was weak. Weak and pathetic. He couldn't protect anyone. That robot had almost killed him. Smashed him like a fly.
What could it do to an ordinary Mainframer?
A vivid image of it filled his mind, rampaging after the citizens. After Amy. Snatching up her and her friends in its massive, clawed, deadly hands.
Infinite screwed his eyes shut and clenched his fist. No… no, he didn't need to think about that! Something soft coated his hand and he opened his eyes again. His claws had cut into the jar, and peanut butter leaked out over his fur and onto the windowsill. He released it and tried to lick himself clean.
His ear twitched as a strange sound filled the room. A deep whir that pulsed almost like the Phantom Ruby.
Phantom Ruby?!
He dropped the peanut butter and turned to face it, baring his canines. Reality swirled inside a small pocket, revealing a pristine white room beyond it. Starline strolled out of the wormhole and smoothed out his suit, then flicked his wrist and closed up the distorted air.
Infinite's breathing turned erratic and his breath grated and rattled in his throat. His shoulders tensed and he dug his claws into his pads.
"What are you doing here?" he spat.
"Now, now." Starline smiled. If it was meant to be friendly, he needed a lot of practice. "Is that any way to greet an old friend?"
"Friend?!" Infinite's fur spiked along his spine. "We are not friends!"
"Really?" Starline widened his eyes, a pathetic feigned attempt at disappointment. "After all we've been through?"
"You mean 'after all you put me through'? I am not your toy, Doctor!" Infinite spat the last word as if it were poison.
Starline chuckled and clasped his hands behind his back. "I thought we'd put all that behind us after I saved you from Gadget?"
Infinite let out a low growl and swished his tail. His ears had pulled back flat against his head, and he had to will them to stand upright. Threatening, not fearful. The mad doctor couldn't do anything to him now. Not anymore.
Starline sighed and shrugged. "But I guess you're not one to so easily forgive? I mean, surely you understand? I'm a doctor, after all. I was curious about you."
"You almost killed me. You tortured me… you laughed!"
"Like I said." Starline met his eyes. "I was curious."
Curious?! Infinite's eyes flashed with fury and the Phantom Ruby's familiar hum thrummed in his ears. Its crimson haze surrounded his body, gaining a raised eyebrow from the platypus.
"You are not taking me back!" Infinite roared.
Starline closed his eyes and raised a hand. "I wouldn't dream of it. No… I have more pressing matters to deal with right now."
Infinite glared at Starline as he tried to steady his breathing. Every muscle was tense, a stark contrast to the doctor's casual posture.
"I actually need your help," said Starline.
Infinite blinked, his jaw hanging open. Was that platypus serious?
Infinite looked him up and down then snorted. "If you think I'm going to help you after all you've done to me, then you're crazier than I thought."
The crimson haze faded out and he sank back against the window. That alone had done a number on him. He grabbed the mangled jar of peanut butter and licked what was left of it off his hands as he made his way to the sofa.
Starline watched him curiously before following him. He perched on the arm of the chair, gaining a livid glare from the jackal.
"I thought I made myself clear," he growled. "I am not helping you."
"You haven't let me tell you what it is yet," said Starline. "You might actually want to help me."
Infinite narrowed his eyes. Just one swat. One swat from his Phantom Ruby and Starline would be dust. Literally. Then Infinite would vacuum him up and that would be the end of that. He lifted his sticky hand but froze as Starline scooped up a folded piece of card from the table and flicked it open. A roller coaster ride, back from when he dragged Amy to Twinkle Park.
Starline made a thoughtful 'hmm'.
"Give that back!" Infinite barked, snatching for it.
Starline held it out of reach and slid from the sofa. "I did wonder if you two were still hanging around together. This house does go a little against your tastes." He set the photo back down on the coffee table and fixed Infinite with another smile. "Is she still in the Beatdrop Capital? Or was she evacuated?"
"I'm not telling you anything."
Infinite's voice was laced with warning, yet each word washed over Starline like snow melt.
"You might want to," Starline explained. "That Judge robot is stopping at nothing to get what it wants. If you value her life, you'll make sure she's safe."
Infinite rose from the sofa and deposited the peanut butter beside him. "Are you blackmailing me?!"
"Not at all!" Starline gasped. "Infinite, listen to me. I came here to ask if you will help stop that robot. No other reason but that."
The room suddenly fell silent, save for the news article still covering the Judge. Infinite blinked at Starline and let his arms fall to his sides.
Starline shrugged. "It's true. Releasing it was a fatal error. In many senses of the term. It was unleashed to apprehend Shadow, but its programming is flawed. It believes every single thing that gets in its way - robot, Mainframer, building, vehicle - everything is a threat to its mission. A Judge robot is meant to be particular. Focused. But this? Liken it to an out of control child, if you will. Then put that child in an unruly robot body. It's chaos!" He threw his hands in the air, then shook his head and tutted. "Such a mistake setting it loose. And no one can seem to stop it."
Infinite flexed his claws, but his breathing had finally settled. "So why come to me?"
"Because unlike us, you can stop it. Your powers-"
"I can't stop it." Infinite slumped back into his seat again and ran his hands down his face. "It almost killed me."
"I know."
He looked up at Starline and raised an eyebrow. "How do you-"
Starline raised a hand to silence him. "Irrelevant. The thing is, you now know what it's capable of. And I know what you're capable of. If you can warp reality, then you can put a stop to the Judge. Destroy it! Turn it into a snail and crush it! Anything. That's what your powers do, right? Alter reality?"
Infinite snorted and reached across the table for his mask. "When they work."
Starline inclined his head on one side. "Whatever do you mean?"
"I need to sort out Shadow first. Something is going on, and I believe he has something to do with it."
"Shadow?" Starline nodded and clicked his tongue. "Oh yes. I believe he's been demonstrating similar powers to you."
Infinite stared at his mask, trailing a finger along its muzzle. Shadow… His lips curled back and he repressed a snarl.
"I think I understand," Starline went on. "You're useless to me right now."
Infinite jerked his head up to look at him, canines bared. "Useless?!"
"You just told me your powers aren't working." Starline shrugged and shook his head. "That makes you completely useless to me." Starline tapped his chin and gazed up at the ceiling. "Unless I use you as bait?"
Infinite's body trembled with rage. Useless?
"I mean, if they're not working, then you can't exactly deal with that robot. Can you?"
"Let me make one thing very clear, Doc." Infinite rose from his seat and set his mask in place, fastening it around his ears. "I'm not working for you. Don't you get the wrong idea. I already have a plan, and I'm sticking to it."
"Oh?" Starline inclined his head on one side.
"I'm going to deal with Shadow." Infinite met his eye and finished licking peanut butter off his fur. "And once he's dealt with, my powers will be back under my control. Then I'll reduce that Judge to scrap metal."
Starline tutted, but a smile spread across his bill. "I much preferred the idea of transforming it into a snail to crush it. It rang with a poetic justice."
Infinite glared at him. "I do things my way."
"Of course." Starline waved his left hand, and a wormhole opened behind him. "It was lovely to catch up again. I suppose I'll see you when all this has blown over, hmm?"
Infinite flicked his tail. "If I see you again, it'll be too soon."
Starline grinned and closed the wormhole up behind him.
...
"Urgh, this place is vile." Amy's nose crinkled as she followed Whisper up the ladder towards the surface. "I feel like I'll need a super long shower after this."
Tangle laughed behind her. "Oh, you are such a sewer rookie, Amy."
Amy shook her head and focused her attention on reaching the manhole cover. "I can't believe people actually want to play in somewhere like this."
"Well, Shadow clearly thinks it's a good place to hide," said Tangle.
"Because no normal person would dream of venturing down here on a whim!" Amy jibed, flashing the lemur a smile.
"Yup! Got me there!" Tangle grinned up at her. "I am far from normal!"
Metal grated along concrete as Whisper shunted the manhole cover aside. The sewer lit up with a dim dusky light. Whisper clambered out onto the street and offered a hand to Amy. As the pink hedgehog reached the top of the ladder, she stretched out a hand and froze as a shadow loomed over her. A shadow with quills. A chill ran down her spine and she looked up at Whisper, who was now distracted by the newcomer.
"Y'all right up there, sisters?" Tangle asked.
Amy turned her head to see behind her, then let out a sigh of relief. Sonic stood there with one hand on his rifle, but he gave her a relaxed smile. Tails stood against the wall nearby with his trusty robot canine.
"Sonic?" She blinked her large eyes in surprise. What was he doing in the Beatdrop Capital?
"Didn't expect to see you coming out of a sewer!" he said. "You looking for sewer monsters?"
"You could say that." Amy pulled herself out onto the ground and stood aside to make room for Tangle.
"GUN soldiers?!" Tangle leapt onto the sidewalk and fist-pumped the air. "So cool!"
Whisper shook her head and looked away.
"Trying to help Infinite, huh?" Sonic shifted his weight to one leg and folded his arms. "I'm not really sure you should be looking for Shadow, though."
Amy's quills stood on end and she turned to face him. "How do you know about that?!"
"Shadow?" Sonic lifted his hands in a shrug. "Guy's all over the news, Amy. It's not exactly a secret."
"I meant how did you know that Infinite's looking for him?"
"He told me." Sonic grinned. "Our path's kinda crossed a couple of days ago. Poor guy had a near death experience."
"What?" Amy gasped, grabbing Sonic by the collar. "How?! Is he okay?!"
Sonic laughed and prised her hands from his jacket. "Relax, Amy, he's fine!"
Amy let out a sigh of relief and stood back from him. "So he ran into Shadow then?"
"Nope!" Sonic nodded towards the buildings behind him, but she couldn't see anything there. "The Judge. That crazy robot is looking for Shadow, too, and doesn't exactly like anyone getting in its way."
"What, so he had a fight with that Judge?" asked Tangle. She exchanged glances with her friends and raised an eyebrow. "Voluntarily? Man, that guy really is nuts! We fought that thing out of self defense!"
"You fought that Judge?!" Sonic's brow furrowed with worry.
Tails looked up with a start, and T-Pup let out a long whine.
Amy opened her mouth to speak, but Whisper silenced her with a hand on her shoulder. The wolf stared at Sonic, taking in his weapon and GUN uniform.
"Didn't exactly leave us much choice," she said quietly.
Sonic ran a hand across his forehead and sighed. "I guess I should just be glad you're all okay? But seriously, what were you thinking?"
"Doesn't matter," Whisper went on. "So where is he now?"
"Who, Infinite?" Sonic shrugged again. "No clue. We kinda lost him. But he's looking for Shadow, and I reckon if we find Shadow then we find Infinite. But… as for you three… you really shouldn't be lurking around in this city. It's been evacuated, yanno."
T-Pup gave an affirmative bark, then let its tongue loll out of its mouth in a happy pant.
Amy looked up from the dog to the twin-tailed fox beside it. Tails gave her a glance, but was more occupied with searching the shadows for any sign of a threat. Not a single hint of emotion on his face. It was only the second time she'd seen him like this, and it unsettled her greatly. It was almost as if he radiated cold, turning things to ice around him.
He pushed himself from the wall and adjusted his rifle around his shoulders. "Sonic's right. You three shouldn't be here. Allow us to escort you to the station."
"There are no more trains leaving here now, bud," said Sonic.
"Then we shall take them in the Tornado." Tails scanned his eyes over the three girls. "I can make three trips."
"No! Please." Amy held up her hands. "We can't leave. He needs me! He's exhausted, he can't handle Shadow alone!"
"Yeah, I kinda got that impression," said Sonic. "But he turned down the offer from us, and I know for a fact he wants you out of this city."
"He told you?" she squeaked.
"Yeah." Sonic gave a single nod. "But I know how stubborn you are! I think I managed to convince him you'd be okay. But I think it's time you three headed to North Cipher, where it's safe."
"No, I can't! I'm not leaving him here alone!" She turned and ushered her friends ahead of her. "Come on, girls."
A hand fastened around hers and she looked back into Tails' icy blue eyes. "You don't really have much choice."
T-Pup whimpered and looked between his handler and Amy.
Amy tried to yank her hand back, but he held it firmly. "Let me go, Tails!"
"Come on, bro," said Sonic as he joined his side. "You don't need to use force. Let her go."
"If I let her go, she won't comply," said Tails. "And will end up doing something foolish again."
"I'm not just going to run blindly into danger!" Amy protested.
"That's what you say," said Tails. "But you're the one searching a sewer for a deadly criminal."
Sonic pushed between them, but Tails narrowed his eyes at the hedgehog.
Tangle inched closer to Amy's back and said in a voice barely more than a whisper, "Keep them distracted. I'll grab his weapon."
Amy ignored her, more occupied with freeing herself. "Come on, Tails! I know you remember me!"
Tails pushed Sonic aside with his free hand. "Of course I remember you."
"Then you must know I can defend myself! Just because I don't work for GUN doesn't make me any less capable!"
"GUN has specific intense training to deal with situations such as this."
"Seriously?" Sonic grabbed Amy's hand in a bid to free it from Tails' death-grip. "Even we didn't train to deal with people possessing such powers, bro."
"We were trained to deal with catastrophic events," said Tails. "This qualifies as one."
Amy blinked as a stripy black tail stretched out behind Sonic and Tails like a giant hand. The blue hedgehog made a quick 'hm?' and followed her gaze. Tangle snatched Tails' gun and yanked it back, causing the fox to stumble and release Amy.
Sonic leapt away from them in a blur and stood on the other side of the road with his fists clenched. He stared up at Tangle, perched on a street lamp and brandishing Tails' rifle as if she'd acquired the spoils of victory.
The blue hedgehog laughed and shook his head. "What are you guys playing at?"
Amy whipped out her mallet, drawing Tails' blank stare from Tangle onto herself. "We're not playing anything. We're going to help Infinite find Shadow, and you can either help us or work against us."
Tails straightened and flicked both his tails, a sign Amy knew full well meant he was bracing himself to charge into them.
Sonic strolled across the road and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. But his eyes were on Amy.
"You wanna team up?" He sounded surprised. "You shoulda said that sooner, rather than going about things yourself."
Amy blinked in surprise. "Wha…?"
Tangle slid down the street lamp with Tails' rifle now strapped across her back. "You seriously gonna help us? GUN?!"
Whisper looked between each of them, silently.
Sonic shrugged and folded his hands behind his head. "Sure! I'd be iffy to let you guys go off on your own, but I know what you're capable of as a team. Amy, at least. And let's face it, if you can take Tails by surprise then you've got skill!" He winked at Tangle.
Tangle beamed from ear to ear and clenched her fist. "So I'm gonna be workin' with GUN soldiers? This day just got a whole lot more awesome!"
Sonic folded his arms and winked again. "Just what I was thinking!"
Tails stared at the excitable lemur and held out his hand. "Gun."
...
The wind whistled through Rouge's wing with every beat, each one forcing air through the tiny bullet hole in her membrane. It hurt like crazy, but compared to her mission, it was nothing. She followed the trail of robot wreckage from the park and through the winding streets. Strider Drones, fliers, Stalkers, EggPawns… anything that had got in Omega's way. Cleaners were mopping up the mess, busying around the streets in an emotionless frenzy. The city was a state. She desperately needed to find Omega before Shadow woke up.
She'd warred with the decision to leave him there on the Casino rooftop. Both he and Omega needed her, but the black hedgehog was being stubborn. Unwilling to listen to her reasoning. As far as he was concerned, Omega was now a ruthless killing machine, and their top priority was to get as far away from 'it' as possible.
He didn't believe for a second that Omega's original programming could be restored. Rouge, however… she didn't know. GUN would likely have extracted it, wiping it entirely from his memory in favor of the Judge programming. No memories. But GUN also valued their robot staff. Would erasing it be classed as an execution? Omega had gone rogue, after all, turning against GUN by abandoning their mission to capture Shadow.
Omega hadn't wanted to. He'd been confused by Rouge's sudden change of heart. Robots didn't understand emotions. They didn't have them. Just a vague programming that caused them to react to certain situations, but there was no feeling in it.
But they did understand loyalty. And reason. Once he'd seen what Shadow was truly like - innocent, not the monster GUN had made him out to be - Omega also had a change of heart. He'd stuck by their sides to protect both Shadow and Rouge, spotting and disabling any spy drones that GUN sent after them. Well… disabling was a nice way of wording it. To be more precise, each one was reduced to jagged shrapnel. When it came to other robots, Omega had an unusual rivalry. He'd never bat an eyelid about destroying another robot. Mainframers, however…
Rouge perched daintily on a street lamp and tucked her wings in, wincing at a stab of pain. It was fleeting. It didn't matter. What did matter was the robot only a few feet away. His glowing red eyes misted in the stormy air, trained on Beatdrop City Station. A sentinel, silent and towering over the overturned hover-cars.
"What are you waiting for, Omega?" Her voice was barely even a whisper.
She scanned the silent streets around him. What she'd dismissed as rain water glistened in the dim street lights. Blood, and lots of it. The corpses of hundreds of GUN soldiers littered the street, sprawled over their weapons.
Rouge's tiny tail curled tightly beneath her, and her ears pulled flat against her head. Her heart hammered in her chest and she shook her head slowly. No. This wasn't Omega. He wasn't some merciless killing machine.
He turned his head left, then right. Rouge clutched the street lamp, her entire body rigid. But he didn't look in her direction. He fixed his weapon across his back then turned, marching away from the station. To where, she hadn't a clue.
She couldn't move. Her entire body was unwilling. She watched him go, a sense of dread washing over her. She was probably going to lose him once he vanished beyond the buildings. But if she approached him now, she'd be joining those poor soldiers.
No empathy. No remorse. Just an empty killing machine trying to find its target, and clearing every obstacle from its path in order to do so.
How on earth was she going to get through to him?
...
Review Replies:
knightofthewintermoon - Thanks for reading! I'm glad you're enjoying Infinite's story =D I'm also happy you may be rooting for Infinite and Amy here, too XD Don't worry about leaving out Memory Leak. We all have our favourite characters we enjoy reading about. Memory Leak was just an explanation as to how the rumor got out, and was inspired by a contest on the Sonic Amino (although I didn't write it in time to enter!) So it's nothing too major. The stories themselves can be read stand-alone, as there's not too much of a link between them except character progression. Are there any other characters you like? Book 3 doesn't include Infinite, I'm afraid. It's about Team Datastream trying to find a cure to a 'mysterious event' spreading across Mainframe. It also brings back certain space pirates ;)
Thanks everyone! Please R&R! =D
