The group stood, staring down the much taller metal foe with almost, annoyed expressions, like they didn't see the challenge behind it and felt it more a unnecessary distraction than any attempt to stop them. Even now, as it stood well taller than them, sturdy enough to withstand mobian weaponry as if they were primitive sticks and stones against a tank, they felt no pressure. It was not unlike many of Eggman's older, supposed super robots, just fancier with its colors, fresher with its design.
Barely giving it a second thought, Sonic struck the robot with a powerful spin dash - caught by surprise the metal vessel stumbled backwards slightly, but regained itself quickly. A mechanical growl left the voicebox, and it lashed out faster than expected in retaliation, its long arm swinging at the nearest to it. Tails yelped, mostly in surprise, and quickly took flight to dodge the swing, growling at the machine. Picking up speed, Tails flew up to the machine, delivering a swift uppercut to the bottom of its head and leaving a small dent in its armor.
That, is when this machine finally decided to give the heroes an idea of what it was designed for. Before Tails had a chance to get clear, it crashed its cold hand into his side and sent the small fox tumbling out the sky, barely landing on his feet. Disoriented, Tails barely escaped a crushing strike from the towering machine thanks to the efforts of Knuckles.
The Echidna managed to reach Tails in time, catching and, with all his strength, managing to hold the machines hand in place long enough for Tails to get clear. With a mighty push, Knuckles sent the machine stumbling backwards, falling to the floor. It stared him down, its optics glowing intensely and it let out another metallic screech, so loud it grinded on their sensitive ears and forced them to shield themselves from the echoing screech. It only grew louder, the roar echoing for many miles and the machine rose to its feet, its left arm extending and multiple small compartments opened to reveal multiple small rocket launchers built beneath its exterior armor. Sonic forced himself to meet the mech's cold, calculated gaze, and in doing so only caused the screech to grow louder to almost unbearable levels. In a matter of moments, something Eggman had expected to be destroyed with relative ease seemed to have incapacitated the heroes and be preparing to destroy them already.
As the rockets prepared, and its processors locked them onto the individual heat signatures of each hero, Sonic, once again, felt a sense of genuine fear, at the fact something Eggman had created was able to best them somehow. He could barely hear his own thoughts, his own screaming of pain as the immensely loud, painful sounds assaulted his sense of hearing. If he survived this, he wouldn't be surprised if he was atleast partly deaf afterwards. He made an attempt to ignore the metallic roar, removing his gloved hands from his ears but for a moment before he collapsed and shielded them again... And all too sudden, it went silent, and for a second Sonic thought he had truly gone deaf, until he heard the frazzled sparks popping of a damaged machine. He cleared his ears, and looked at the robot in surprise. Where its voicebox most likely once was, now sat a large hole and sparks flew from it. Sonic shook his head in an effort to refocus himself quickly, and took advantage of the machines confusion to strike back with a violent Spin Dash right to its left arm, tearing completely through the armor and severing the limb from its joint with a satisfying snap of wires and steel.
He tried to find who was responsible for destroying the voicebox, and then noticed Shadow, kneeling and breathing deeply, a gloved hand on his ear while the other still faintly glowed from the use of Chaos energy. He gave Sonic a weak thumbs up, to which the blue hedgehog returned and lashed out again with another powerful Spin Dash to the mechs other arm, once again severing it with ease. Disarmed - quite literally - the machine attempted to fight back by unloading both of its shoulder mounted blaster guns, targeting the most vulnerable. Amy, she was still trying to recuperate from the earlier onslaught of violent sound, and thus made herself a prime target for the machines primary programming: kill the Heroes. Sonic noticed this, and growled darkly, even his fur adopted a slightly blacker tone, and the Hedgehog Spin Dashed the machine a third time, this time right through where its heart would be, ripping through it with so much force and ease that the very machine broke and shattered apart under it, collapsing into multiple pieces in a way almost no other machine had ever done when struck by his trademark attack. He stood, turned to face it in, what could only be shock at what he had just done, and took a deep breath to calm himself, his fur returning to normal color.. The pieces of the mech lay there, scattered around much like the shards of glass would when the window they made was shattered, only smoking and sparking. His breathing was deep as he tried to recollect himself, and turned on his heel to check on his friends. Most, if not all of them were still a little disoriented. Tails' hearing seemed a little worse for wear, though hopefully it was only temporary.
"You guys alright?"
"Never better." Silver grumbled, getting up to his feet, still rubbing his ears.
"Eggman's tactics are getting more crazy by the day.." Sighed the red echidna, approaching the scattered remains. "His robots aren't getting much stronger though." He laughed softly, gesturing at the mess of parts.
Sonic shrugged, thanful none had seemed to make note of the fact his fur had darkened moments before the final strike.
"Well, are we still going to the beach?" Amy finally piped up, and Sonic less than eagerly nodded. "Great, come on." He gave Tails an unenthusiastic look, and followed on close behind the rest, taking glances back constantly at the fight scene. He had lashed out many times, with violent force during battles to destroy some of Eggman's most powerful and armored robots, but never once had he destroyed them in such a way that made them look as though they were made out of glass, and now it was something he couldn't seem to shake. Maybe the beach would help clear his head. They had been planning more things like this, treating themselves to days out, or group meals to keep them grounded in normal life, and away from the constant stress of waiting for attacks by Eggman.
The beach, when they arrived, was far from empty, an abundance of Mobians there, some swimming in the ocean water and others relaxing under the sun, and, despite Sonic's dislike for being so close to the ocean, he couldn't help but enjoy the sight of them enjoying themselves, a reminder of what he and his friends were fighting for. For the chance to be free and happy like this. They found an open spot on the sand, near some rocks, and they made themselves comfortable. The sun was bright, warm and welcoming, and the ocean enticing to those that loved the water. Sonic took a seat on one of the rocks, slightly away from the rest but still within conversation distance, the same of which couldn't be said for Shadow, whom sat further away but not to far as the outcast himself, and he stared out idly at the water, the tiniest trace of a smile on his face. On the rock just infront of him, Tails and Silver were sat, talking, well, Tails talking and Silver listening closely in interest and intrigue. Amy had, almost silently, disappeared to the waters edge, apparently having dragged Sticks along with her, and Knuckles seemed to already be fast asleep on the sand, enjoying the warmth of the sun.
"Hey Sonic?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah Tails?" He had zoned out for a moment, just enjoying the peace and warmth.
"Why don't you go for a swim?"
"You know why." He rolled his eyes as he responded half heartedly. Everytime, even though Tails knew of his dislike for water, the fox also suggested he go for a swim. It was never gonna happen. "Why don't you and Silver?" Silver rubbed the back of his head slightly, and chuckled awkwardly. Sonic raised a brow.
"I err, actually can't swim." He laughed beneath his breath. "Not alot of opportunities to swim in the future I'm from.. Hehe"
"Well, now's a chance to start, right?"
"Maybe soon, I wanna enjoy this for now. Get nothing like this in the future.. Not even a clear sky."
"What, actually happened to the world Silver. You've never told us."
"Probably Eggman." Shadow spoke up out of nowhere. Silver shook his head.
"Eggman, didn't actually have much to do with.. Well, anything in the future."
"I thought you said you came back to stop Eggman from successfully using the Time-Writer." Sonic leaned forwards in curiosity now.
"Yes, but not because it was Eggman who destroyed the world."
"What? Then, who did?"
At this, the silver hedgehog shrugged, looking at Sonic blankly. There was no lie in his eyes, the young male had genuinely no clue what destroyed his world. "The Time-Writer froze you guys forever in time.. Eggman ruled, for a few years. By the time I was born, Eggman was nothing more than a name told by Mobians who lived through his rule and survived.. Whatever happened. Some say Eggmans machines turned on him and they destroyed themselves in a big fight.. Honestly I wish I knew more." He sighed, his head hanging slightly. Perking up moments later, Silver quickly changed the topic.
"So err, Tails, think you could teach me how to swim soon?"
"Definitely." Smiled the young fox, nodding his head happily. Silver gave him a grateful smile, and turned back to look at the water. After a moment or two, he leaned against the rock but kept his eyes focused on the water with almost, a longing in them, though he made no effort to move closer.
Sonic sighed beneath his breath, almost in pity at the ivory hero, and turned his focus to the waterfront. While he disliked water, he couldn't deny there was something, simplistically beautiful and relaxing about it on the horizon. He turned upon hearing the innocent laughter of many kids, and he smiled when he saw a group of them, playing in the sand and building sand-castles, something Sticks had found herself enjoying the last time they came to a beach.
"You guys want an ice-cream?" Sonic asked, mostly after noticing one of the kids had a vanilla ice-cream. Silver, like a big kid, instantly turned to Sonic with an eager smile. Sonic laughed at his excitement, taking it as a yes. "Thats a yes from Silver. Shadow? Tails? Knuckles?"
Knuckles was still fast asleep, barely paying any mind to anything anyone had been saying. Shadow shook his head as a no, though Sonic would get him one anyway. He'd be too proud to admit he liked such a treat, or atleast, thats how Sonic saw it. Tails simply nodded.
"Strawberry for me." Tails answered.
"I'll have a chocolate." Silver added.
The blue blur nodded, deciding to also get Shadow a chocolate and Knuckles a Strawberry, as those were their respective favourites. He quickly dashed over to the two girls at the waters edge, getting their requests in before dashing over to where the ice-cream stand was and giving his order.
"Hello Sonic, what can I get ya?" The young cat girl asked, stifling her excitement at having a Hero at her very stand.
"Two chocolate, two strawberry, and three vanilla please."
"Anything else?" She asked, while scooping the ice-cream into separate cones. He shook his head kindly in a 'no' gesture, money in his gloved hand. "You want any help carrying all these?" She laughed. He shook his head.
"Alright, here, cause you're a first time customer at my stand, and after all you and your friends have done for us. You can have two of these on me." She smiled softly. "Five Rings please." Sonic handed her the correct amount, then struggled at carrying all seven ice-creams in his two hands.
"Thanks err."
"Names Holly, anytime Sonic." She smiled and waved as he walked back, not wanting to ruin the treats by speeding. He dodged and weaved between the many other mobians, almost all of whom recognised him and gave him space. Having a respect, aswell, for him made life slightly more bearable aswell, for Sonic as he didn't have to try fight off a dozen or so fangirls clamoring for his autograph, atleast, the Mobians in this part of the city seemed to give the Heroes their space, same couldn't be said for the rest of the lands. He noticed his friends on the rocks where he had left them, Amy and Sticks having returned from the water, and Sonic smiled softly when he caught Silver and Sticks talking. They were some of the rarer ones to interact together, and the paranoid badger seemed to be both fascinated and terrified of Silver and his power.
"So, did you see any government agents outside your house yesterday?"
"Govern-what?" Silver looked at Sonic out the corner of his eye confused, to which the blue blur shrugged.
"Government agents, you know.. You leave anything nice on your door and it attracts them... And possums. And they smell bad.. The possums too."
"I.. Huh?" His shoulders deflated in pure confusion. Sonic cleared his throat, and gestured to the ice-creams in his hands.
"Ooohhh yay. No you can't have some." Sticks warned, to.. No-one in particular, as she took her ice-cream.
Silver thanked Sonic as well, taking his, and he began to enjoy the chocolate treat, sneaking small glances periodically at Sticks, something Sonic caught and winked playfully at him. The ivory hedgehog blushed slightly, flustered but quickly he managed to compose himself, playing around with his Pyschokinetic abilities to create a small sandcastle just infront of Sticks.
"Whoa." Like always, even with her distrust at his power, her superstitious nature, she was always fascinated at it and always impressed by it. "Are you a government agent aswell?" She asked him, not taking her eyes off the sandcastle he was building.
"I don't think so?" He answered, though clearly quite unsure of himself.
Sonic, after handing everyone else their ice-cream, took a seat back on the rocks and started enjoying his own vanilla flavored ice-cream.
"Uhm, e-excuse me?" A young, timid voice suddenly piped up, and the group all turned in unison to see a young girl, possibly only six, standing there, shuffling nervously on one foot and looking down. "I erm.. I was just wondering if I could have a picture with you all."
"Yeah sure, c'mon!" Amy cheered excitedly, and the girl, with a huge smile, quickly ran over to them. Sonic, Tails, Amy and Silver were the first, Knuckles, Sticks and Shadow not being as interested but ultimately joining eventually. A few seconds later, and her older brother gave them a thumbs up and shown the group the picture, before handing her younger sister her phone back.
"Oh Mobius thank you!" She squealed happily, bouncing on the spot.
"Haha, c'mon Sally, lets leave them to enjoy their day huh? You wanna go swimming?"
"Yeah, race you!" and with that, the two sisters ran off towards the waters edge.
"This is better than training." Knuckles finally spoke up, having been mostly quiet for the time they were at the beach.
"Definitely." Tails nodded.
"It would've been nicer if Eggman didn't interrupt us on the way here."
"Why don't you just ask the people watching us where his base is?"
"You mean, like, ghosts?"
"Is that what they are? I thought they were spies."
"I don't think I can talk to ghosts Sticks." Chuckled the ivory hedgehog, finishing his ice-cream, at the same time finishing the small set of sandcastles he was building with his power.
Hours lolled by as they stayed, enjoying the heat and light, until one by one they decided it was time to head home as the day started growing late. First, it was Amy to leave, and Knuckles offered to walk her back as he wanted to get home early aswell. Shadow dismissed himself afterwards rather abruptly, muttering a quick goodbye and leaving through a Chaos Teleport. With just Sonic, Tails, Sticks and Silver left, the four decided to climb higher up the rocks and get a better vantage of the falling sun and the glow it cast over the ocean. The beach, at first swarming with Mobians enjoying the weather, was now more empty, most having gone home once the best of the day had passed.
Silver, having an idea, quickly took off, returning shortly with some sticks and twigs he gathered off the floor near one or two trees, setting them up in a small cone and using two pebbles to light a spark in them. After a few tries, he eventually brought a small flame to life, and the four huddled around it. The time passed in a comfortable silence, with Sticks staring now at the small fire, completely entranced by it and Silver sneaking small glances at her out the corner of his eyes, not going unnoticed by Sonic.
The navy blue hedgehog shuffled over beside his telekinetic friend, nudging him slightly and gesturing with his head at Sticks knowingly.
"Never seen a badger before?" He joked.
Silver shook his head and sighed, almost sadly. "What's up?"
"Huh? Oh it's nothing." He didn't sound convinced, and while Sonic had a strong idea of what was actually bothering him, he knew better than to push Silver for answers. The Time-traveller was as stubborn as Knuckles sometimes, and never caved quickly to talking about things that were bothering him. "We gonna do any training tomorrow?" He was quick to change the topic off him.
"Yeah, I guess, if you're up for it."
"Always. Meet outside my apartment again?" Sonic nodded.
"Hey, Silver, Sonic, can you meet up outside my workshop actually?" Tails asked.
"Huh? How come?" inquired Silver.
"I finally finished one of the things I was working on and I'd like to give them a try tomorrow on one of your shields."
"Sure, what time?" Sonic asked.
"One in the afternoon work for you?" Sonic gave a thumbs up and Silver nodded, followed by a yawn.
"Heh, it's later than I thought, think I'll turn in. See you guys tomorrow." the other two males nodded in response, and Silver turned to Sticks, waving his hand slightly infront of her face to snap her out the trance.
"You want me to walk you home? Or are you staying out longer?"
"Huh? Oh yeah yeah, sure." She answered, not specifying which question she was answering. "Let's go."
"Who knows, maybe we can finally catch those elusive 'government agents'." Laughed Silver jokingly, momentarily forgetting that she might think he was being serious, which. She did.
"We're gonna have to hurry if we want to. They're very sneaky." At that, she grabbed his hand and practically dragged him along the path. Sonic and Tails both watched them leave in amusement, the two deciding to stay out a little while longer.