Chapter Ten: Closure
Millay ignored her radio as soldiers yelled for backup, needing only the security camera live feed on her tablet as evidence. The blue streak racing across the screen took less than 7 seconds to incapacitate every guard standing, then dispatch every armoured truck and watch tower at the Greenhill border. He moved so fast, a tornado of grass and gravel formed around the area. Students inside the Tiltyard as well as the working class began filling the streets to witness it. His pounding footsteps were drowned out by the roar of the crowds who saw him take the army down. The remaining soldiers put their weapons down and took a knee as city police regained control. G.U.N reigned over the city less than a minute ago, now they forced to bow down before the fastest thing alive.
"...he won't stop the Guardians," Millay said. "One Omega Shadow will be more than enough to contend with, what will he do against one hundred of them?"
Tails could only spit blood out as he coughed and gasped on the floor. The G.U.N woman stepped over him and turned to her golden Shadow Android.
"Bring me the SAGE program, then you may finish him anyway you please."
Millay was pushed back by a strong gust of wind and computer screens were shattered by the force that just entered the corridor. The Android was split in two and crumbled to the floor in a pile of scraps. Tails had enough strength to turn to the right and lay eyes on his best friend.
"Step away from him." Sonic ordered. A dark blue aura surrounded him and the heat it generated caused the air to turn hot.
Millay complied and leaned against a metal desk. "...so, you've become more powerful in your absence. I was under the impression that wasn't possible without the Chaos Emeralds."
"Things usually heat up when you push me far enough. And boy, have you G.U.N folks pushed it."
She smirked while looking over the beaten fox on the floor. In that moment, Millay came to terms with the situation she was in and her impending fate.
"I assume you plan to prosecute the company and I for everything we've done. If the roles were reversed and I was the all powerful one, I wouldn't waste money keeping you alive in a penitentiary."
Sonic wouldn't fall for her game and kept calm. "Sucks to be y-"
The barrel of Millay's service pistol barely touched her temple before Sonic leaped forward to stop her from taking the easy way out. The shot rang out and she fell to the floor, but the bullet missed. She struggled in the blue blur's arms and felt the heat first hand.
"That's not how you're going to pay for the pain you've caused them." Sonic said. "Your victims will watch you make that walk, and the money your company's made WILL pay to keep every single one of you thugs alive and well behind bars. That's how a normal society works."
This would be the only time Tails got the satisfaction of seeing Millay vulnerable and afraid, before being whisked to a cell by Sonic as she snarled in his arms. He returned in seconds and picked the fox up to get him medical attention.
"I'm so proud of you, Tails. This was possible because of you, okay? Don't ever forget that. You're gonna be okay and we're gonna laugh about this once you get back up. This win is yours, little brother."
Tails still couldn't form a coherent sentence, but he didn't need to. Sonic flagged down an ambulance and went through the back doors to put the fox on a stretcher. As paramedics attended to him, Fiona and the group spotted Sonic and Tails inside the ambulance.
"MILES!" Fiona shouted while running through the crowd, being stopped by an officer.
"It's okay, she's with him." Sonic said.
"Thank you."
"You stay with him while I finish up out here. We'll sort this out later."
She hugged him and then climbed inside the ambulance to be with her badly injured boyfriend. Sonic watched them drive away, then he sped off to help where he could. He watched a massive tanker ship collide with an equally large battle ship just off the coast of Greenhill so he ran there first. He appeared to glide across the water as he ran, then he hit an Omega Shadow with a buzzsaw attack.
As Cream and Charmy were ushered by police out of the street, they realized the Rogues had left before anyone could stop them. Drago was also gone. Sonic ran back to drop Marine off with the crowd and zoomed back to the sinking ships.
"Go get 'em, blue!" The raccoon girl shouted.
"What's going on? Whose he fighting, Marine?" Cream asked.
"It's a fleet o' them Androids! I caught 'em over the radio, see, and their ship's Cap'n kept calling them 'Guardians'. I figured I oughta do something while I was out there."
"So you crashed your ship directly into them? What would you've done if you couldn't get back to land?"
Marine grinned. "I don't waste time thinking 'bout the little things. As long as I did something to help, I'da happily went down with that ship."
As Cream and Charmy thought about her words, Marine looked around for the rest of the group.
"Say, what happened to everybody else?"
"Rogues split, Fiona went with Tails to the hospital and Drago is...somewhere." Cream answered.
A series of explosions out at sea caused a shockwave that rattled Greenhill, and everyone ran for cover. The tanker and G.U.N battle ship sunk under water, taking every Guardian with them. After a few seconds of stunned silence, Sonic sped back and dropped the captain of the G.U.N ship at the policemen's feet.
"That's the last of them." Sonic said. "Make sure to put him with his comrades."
Two officers put the captain in handcuffs and hauled him away, while Sonic was already gone before anyone said a word.
"Tails actually did it. He brought Sonic back to beat G.U.N." Cream said.
Charmy chuckled quietly. "Never doubted him. Come on, let's get off the streets."
Order was restored swiftly, with schools and workplaces being dismissed early so everyone could be with their loved ones. The dark blue aura slowly faded once Sonic knew Greenhill was safe, then he made his way through the Zones to bring down other G.U.N factions. The city was free of G.U.N activity by sunset.
The bruises on Tails' face swelled down but he was left with a nasty scar above his right eye. On top of that, he'd broken three ribs during the fall but luckily he had medicine that helped him heal fast.
Fiona sat with him for as long as she could before inevitably being picked up by police, what with her being an escaped convict. She brushed the long strands of hair out of his face before kissing his forehead and leaving in police custody. He slept for another 3 days before the nurse told him.
Tails was putting on his shoes when Sonic's brother Manic surprised him. "T! Bro, you're a hero!"
"Manic, hey." The fox said before being hugged. "It's great to see you."
"My friends in the Labyrinth Zone got word about what happened here and I came once things cooled down. Dude, you killed it! G.U.N closed up shop, we're no longer on a shit-list and everything is back to normal."
Tails glanced over at the chair his girlfriend sat in and sighed. "Yeah, exactly like it was before. Fiona's back in a cell, man...(exhale) I guess I should be thankful for the time we did have together, but...I thought I could keep that going. You know, being happy."
The green hedgehog put his arm around Tails. "I know. It ain't fair on ya sometimes. Seems like side-guys like us can't have everything, no matter how much we give. I'm sorry about her, really. You did your best for her and she knows it."
He stopped the tears from rolling down his face and cleared his throat. "Anyway, uh - What's it like out there?"
"Come along and find out. Everybody's been waiting for you to get back, and Sonia said she wants to hold something special for you."
Tails checked himself out of Greenhill General and sat shotgun inside Manic's black sports car. Even though it was the same city, Greenhill seemed different to the fox. It was the first time all year that civilians didn't have to worry about walking the streets after sunset.
The guys arrived at Sonia's loft and joined the small group on the patio. The giant hole inside had been blocked off while Sonia looked for the right contracting company to fix the damage, and all of the smashed windows had already been replaced.
"What's up sis!" Manic called out. "I brought the hero of the day."
"Gee, thanks for the modesty."
"It's all in good fun, my guy. Ooh, I see drinks. I'll catch you out there, bro."
"There he is." Sonia said as Manic walked past her. "Tails, we've been waiting all week to say thank you."
"Hey, it's nothing." Tails replied while she hugged him. "Part of the job, right."
"I've received a few messages for you. I think you'll like them."
She handed a file folder over to the fox and he smiled upon opening it. The first item was a post card and small photograph of Estelle Lefthand standing with Kaneko Dogg outside of the Tiltyard gates.
Hey Tails, we wanted to let you know that we've been accepted into the Tiltyard for Term 2. Ms. Morrin also got her job back and she's with her son again. Kaneko will never say it but I will. Thank you for everything. See you at school.
-Estelle
He flipped the page and looked over a photo of the home economics teacher hugging Magnus, the leader of the Tech Study.
Guess I should've seen that coming.
The next item Tails picked up was purple voucher and a business card from the owner of a restaurant called Poncho's.
Mr. Prower, we would like to show our gratitude by offering you free meals for life at every Poncho's locations. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for everything you've done to get our freedom.
-Rusty
The last item Tails looked at was a blue sticky note with a phone number and only a few words.
Call this number when you're back on your feet.
-Warwick
"Thanks for hanging on to this, Sonia." Tails said as he closed the folder.
She finished up her glass of wine before speaking. "I heard about Fiona's situation. I assure you, my lawyer Mr. Pierce will help sort this out on your behalf, Tails."
He nodded in response. "I appreciate that, Sonia. (laughs) Getting her outta trouble is a big reason why I started this whole campaign, you know. I really just want closure on things, now."
She lightly squeezed his hands and looked him in the eyes. "We'll get her back. I promise you."
He smiled back at the pink hedgehog, and she revealed what she had planned for him. "So, now that you're up and about, I wanted to hold an event at the ballroom downtown. For you."
"Oh, Sonia, you don't have to-"
"Too late, I've already organized it. This is the least I could do. So, come to the ballroom in one hour, everyone is going to be there. Okay?"
"Alright, I'll be there."
"Enjoy yourself, Tails. You deserve it."
As he waved to her, Charmy nudged Tails' shoulder and greeted him.
"You feeling better?"
"I'm feeling about as good as I look, Charm. Just getting caught up, is all."
"Hey, take all the time you need."
Cream came over to hug the fox next. "Hey Tails. I'm glad you're okay."
"It takes more than a 30 foot fall to keep me down." He joked.
"I heard Sonic is bringing everyone else to the ballroom later tonight. It'll to great to finally see Amy and Knuckles, again."
"Yeah, for sure. Hey, can I use your phone to make a call? I wanna get this backdoor business with Warwick out of the way before the event."
Cream handed her phone over. "Do you know what he wants?"
Tails dialled the number on the sticky note. "No clue. Hopefully he at least apologizes for being a dick this entire time..."
He heard one dial tone before the former G.U.N agent picked up. "Glad to see you haven't forgotten about me, Miles."
"How'd you know it was me?"
"I opened this line specifically to speak to you, no one else. Come to the Poncho's on Third. I'll have someone explain the rest once you check in."
"Oh, so I don't get a chance to tell you off face-to-face?"
Warwick laughed. "I'm running around the office of the new Mobius government. I've gotta make amends to everyone I failed by allowing G.U.N to takeover. But you'll see me around, kid. Alright, I gotta go, now."
Tails hung up and gave the phone back to Cream.
"Is everything okay?" She asked.
"Yeah." Tails answered as he walked down the wooden staircase. "I'll see you guys at the ballroom."
"Stay safe, bro! We'll keep the drinks cold for ya!" Charmy called out.
Tails didn't know what to expect as he made his way to Poncho's. Warwick had duped Sonic and his friends before so a last minute betrayal wouldn't surprise him. The things he accomplished in the last month did. But only one thing was on his mind for the entire walk.
Even though Millay and G.U.N have been put away, Tails was still stressed out, as if things weren't quite settled. He hated to think the worst, but after everything he'd been through at the hands of an authority he'd trusted, it was hard to remain calm at the moment.
The teenage fox pushed the front door open and his heart began to race when he realized no one else was inside. He took a deep breath as he rounded the corner and looked across the empty tables.
Only one booth was occupied, and the girl sitting down was equally as relieved to see him.
"Miles!"
Fiona was across the checkered floor and in Tails' arms in the blink of an eye. She buried her head into his chest and couldn't stop sobbing, but they were tears of joy. The once un-winnable fight was now over and she was finally free. The document Warwick left with her detailed the terms of her pardon, and all of it came down to Tails never giving up.
His legs suddenly felt weak so he leaned against the booth for support, but slowly slid down to the floor while still holding his girlfriend close. She knelt down in front of him and met his teary gaze.
"Miles, are you alright?"
He rubbed his eyes and smiled at her. "Yeah, I'm just happy to have you back."
"I'm not going anywhere. I swear. I'm with you forever, Miles Prower. I love you."
She pressed her lips to his and laced her fingers with Tails' as she leaned in closer. All of his injuries went away in that moment and both held the kiss for as long as they could. Rusty, the owner of Poncho's, looked out from behind the grill and grinned while giving the couple a thumbs up.
Finally, Fiona slowly pulled away and opened her eyes. "...is this where we're staying, now?"
"I don't know. Didn't plan on making it this far."
She returned a smile and both foxes stood back up. Tails looked at Warwick's document on the table, then Fiona picked up a black bag.
"He didn't say much to me, but he made it clear that SAGE was best kept in your hands."
She handed the A.I to Tails. "...well, that's uncharacteristically generous of him."
"So, where do we go from here?"
He grasped her hand and they sat in the booth. "I say we enjoy a well earned 5 course meal before we head out to Sonia's big event."
"She's holding an event?"
"I was just as surprised as you when she told me. I'm looking forward to stepping through those doors with you."
THE END
THANKS FOR READING, EVERYONE. THIS WAS VERY FUN TO WRITE, AND WITH "SAGE" NOW FINISHED, I HAVE ONE MORE STORY LEFT THAT ENDS THE STORYLINE WHICH STARTED WITH "THE NOBODIES"
UNTIL THEN, PEACE!
~Menace3117