Author's Note: Procrastination hit hard this time.
Noonui: Thank you again so much for the review! I'm glad you liked the chapter and I'm glad that Bunnie's lines worked well, I wasn't sure if I was getting her dialect close enough to cannon. I'm glad everything was fun and seemed in character!
Tails watched the scene unfold. He thrashed silently to untangle himself from the backpack as a suffocating mist of tension settled over the room. His binding strings only worsened if he moved too quick, something he had begrudgingly learned in Freedom Fighter training. So he worked slowly, thankful for the power ring's faint light next to him.
Then, the threat to his family rang into his ears and the fox froze. That only lasted a moment before he struggled fearfully to shove the rest of the tangle off. It laced around his arms and legs in tight binds that dug into his skin. With a silent heave, he pushed his limbs apart and heard a freeing snap.
Immediately, Tails scrambled to his feet, snagged the power ring, and sprung out of the darkness. His namesakes propelled him as he crashed into Vharst's back with fury. The mobian stumbled steps forward, flailing his arms to get any balance back as the fox held tightly to his head. He continually shifted directions, trying to topple the other mobian.
"Get off of me!" Vharst shouted. He swung around to tear the force from his back. His arms were confused, unaware of how big his attacker was. With the added weight of Tails' spinning namesakes, he fought as if there was a full sized mobian.
Meanwhile, Sally rushed towards Sonic, making sure the dazed hedgehog was stable before joining Tails in his fight. She wanted him as far from the mobian as possible. That monster had done enough damage to the poor fox. Seeing them so close, imagining what could happen if the mobian were to gain control... she sped to step in. A momentary breeze of relief appeared when it seemed like a battle was in the fox's favor. The force from his namesakes was causing an unfamiliar whirlwind of pressure to Vharst and he struggled to stand.
An opening appeared and the ground squirrel took it. She slammed into Vharst's side and skidded him against the ground. Immediately, the mobian rolled to get away. Sally lunged for him but missed, and he used the opening to throw Tails off, standing with a frazzled mess of fur only a meter away.
He glanced between the other two, eyes widening as he saw the fox. They narrowed again. He whirled his rifle around to take a shot at Sally. Years of experience taught her to veer out of its way before the mobian finished pulling the trigger. She scrambled to Tails, terrified for the fox's safety.
He had only just recovered from his fall when he saw Vharst attack and, without thinking of the opening it caused, turned to see if the ground squirrel was okay.
"Aunt Sally!" he yelled after her, feeling a wash of relief as she dodged the blast. A click sounded behind him and he turned just in time for a foot to slam his back to the floor.
"Basement is now at an A-tier security level!" Vharst yelled into a radio, fumbling through the blaster's settings again. "Get down here now only if… Dang squirrel!".
He took another shot as Sally raced his way. It blasted the same fog-like cone that had hit Sonic. The switched setting had been meant to stun his pet, but given the situation and limited time with it, the target changed.
Despite the attack being a little slower, it was much wider. Sally skidded out of range of the center yet was clipped in the outskirts. Faint symptoms of weariness left a dull sensation in her head. She slowed her pace as to not trip over, but still kept a run towards the assailant. Vharst raised his blaster again.
Tails watched with a heart pounding in horror and helplessness. He had tried to drag the mobian off of him, to escape or at least throw him off balance, but these attempts had caused Vharst to dig his foot down harder. Filled with fear of what might happen, the fox hardly noticed the shout from Bunnie and arm that yanked Sally out of the way.
A sudden arm yanked Sally back.
"wha-?" she rounded into a defensive stance, far from her starting point. Upon seeing Bunnie she forgot all details and dashed forward again. All she could focus on was the little fox trapped and in harm's way.
Bunnie rapidly glanced between Sonic and Tails, quickly making up her mind to swallow her words and help the latter first.
Watching everything, Sonic himself felt utterly helpless. He wanted to move! He clenched the wall and tried to step forward, making it only a few steps before stopping. It was just mind over matter right!? Then why couldn't he run? Why was he stuck here doing absolutely nothing!?
Before the rabbit could catch up with Sally, a sound caught her ears. Someone rushed past Sonic and tackled her from behind. She twisted around to fight them, throwing a guessed punch in their general direction that barely missed.
With one swift movement the other mobian swung out their blaster rifle and fired at the rabbit's mechanical arm. It's blazing light hit, and electricity surged through her wiring. A numbness surged through her metal limbs. She lost control, and her legs buckled underneath her, barely giving the rabbit enough time to catch herself before she was charged again.
Her rebooting appendages were no help, with only one arm and more mobians entering the room, her battle was lost.
Sally continued to run forward, she hadn't heard the commotion behind, blinded as she was by her objective. It was by instinct alone that she had managed to dodge the oncoming stun blasts. Her attention locked on Tails, only watching Vharst out of necessity. She saw the finger on the trigger, it tensed, she zigged out of the way, and repe- saw the gun change settings and face Tails.
"Stop or I'll shoot him!" Vharst yelled.
Instantly she halted.
Her breaths pounded from exhaustion, panicking, looking at the fighting form of Tails, for a way to get him out. Once again, her hand tensed around Nicole.
"Guards, over here now!" Vharst commanded, taking deep breaths himself, though the mobian let himself relax as they approached.
When they were close enough to Sally, he spoke again. "I want these three taken to Vagalume's prison, put them in the holding cell till transport gets here." He commanded loudly, giving a quick nod towards the freedom fighters. "And bring a cage for the kitsune."
"No!" Sally screamed "Don't you dare go near him!" already in a tight knot, the pain in her heart thickened at his words. She vividly fought against the guards as soon as he stopped aiming at Tails.
Vharst took a pause, and debated making the kit yelp to prove a point, but that was dismissed as an intrusive thought, even if it was the own thing's fault, his pet had been through enough.
"It isn't yours anymore." He simply stated.
Tails struggled as the conversation ended. He scrambled with no gains, watched as his family was taken away, called, screamed after them as burning tears clouded his vision.
"NO! Get off of me! Let them go!" He yelled, his desperate hands grabbed Vharst's ankle and pulled. Still nothing changed, and the fox felt a shattering fear continue to dig through his chest "Stop! No! Please let them go! Please!"
He had been yelling at the guards, out at the way that they left, the way he'd last seen his family, but a slight shift of the foot above made him change his line of sight. Vharst was looking right at him with a familiar gaze. One that sparked a sudden wave of helplessness in the fox. He felt like he was in the cage again, wholly unable to escape, except now with greater need to.
Above him, the mobian turned back to look at the door, impatiently waiting for the others to return. The kitsune's things weren't too close, so it could be a few minutes. He kept his gaze off his pet, as if lost in thought, not giving it's cries any notice of being heard. His hand fidgeted with the blaster rifle, making sure it had its safety on. Even on stun, Vharst knew there was a slim chance the weapon could actually injure the kitsune, and with the threat of escape gone, he didn't want to risk that.
As the minutes dragged by, Tails' restlessness increased, though Vharst noticed that its struggles were lessening in force. They came as waves, instead of the unmoving torrent that they once were. He hoped the kit was tiring itself out, that would help them not accidentally hurt it in transfer. Though, even at this rate, he wasn't sure how smoothly that would go. Interrupting his thoughts, he heard the kitsune speak in a more controlled manner, so he half eyed down in curiosity.
Tails was looking directly at him. "Please.." he begged, his voice shuddering under the weight of his own words. "Let them go…I'll…I'll obey you…" Vharst could see him shaking, but the fox swallowed his fear in determination. "I'll stay here and… and I'll be a real good animal."
Tails watched a slight change in expression pass through Vharst's face and felt terrifying anticipation rise within himself. He braced at the thought of any positive response, not wanting to do anything he said. But he would, he- he could stay here for… he didn't know… however long Vharst wanted him for. He could be a cage, and obey, it would be okay. It was better than all the Freedom Fighters getting captured.
After a bemused moment, the mobian bent down and spoke firmly.
"I'm sure you will'' the words brought stillness to Tails' heart "but that doesn't change anything" Vharst explained with faux compassion.
Tails struggled in shock. "No! Let them-!" he shouted in defiance, prompting Vharst to camp a hand hard over his muzzle.
"Kit." he snarled "Do not test my patience. You've done enough!" He squeezed the fox's mouth harder. "No more talking."
Tails squirmed to get away, but being as stationary as he was, the fox had limited speech until Vharst decided to let go. Immediately he shouted again, and the force came back, this time with a slightly increased pressure on his stomach.
"Quiet." Vharst commanded, as if the fox could still say more. The mobian muttered something about forgetting in a few weeks, but Tails was too distraught to hear.
He needed to help the freedom fighters! This whole thing, they'd only put themselves at risk because of him! Now his family was going to be thrown in prison. Would they be robotisized? Did this city have a Robiticizer? Surely the mobian would use it if given the chance. His claws raked the floor in search of grip, slipping back every time he tried too hard to pull. A hollowness struck his chest, growing deeper into panic with each attempt. He looked up at Vharst once more, but the mobian had turned away and couldn't see the glare Tails momentarily shot, nor even give hint that he felt the kit's struggle to get up.
The fox's ears caught the sound of heavy footsteps, ones that were coming closer. He stiffened. Vharst sent a winning glance down that caused every ounce of Tails' energy to morph into pent up anger. His mind snapped into a plan. He whirled his arms back, dug his claws into the pinning leg and yanked down. Bright red wounds cascaded into Vharst's fur.
"ARH!" An instinctual kick flung the fox away. Vharst seethed through first seconds of injury, only realizing what he had done after.
"Stupid, stupid, kit!" He snarled at the blur of orange that was streaking towards the room's exit. Oncoming footsteps stopped Tails in his tracks, he heard the guards outside, moving faster at the furious cry of their boss. He swerved around to try to find another way out and, seeing Vharst readying the blaster's stun setting, dove to the bulky servers that had previously hid Aunt Sally and Sonic.
Its hardware was organized in a seemingly crude manner. Wires were strung everywhere, laced between drawers of unassembled weaponry and masses of paper files.
"It's under the table, get it!" Vharst's furious voice made his heart quicken. He scamperd deeper into the infrastructure and searched for a plan. Across the way shown an opening, but part of the path was uncovered, and he'd have to be quick. Tails listened breathlessly to the footsteps around him, securing the power ring around his arm for added comfort. He prepared a dash at the opening, right as someone shown their flashlight through it.
"Yip!" He crashed backwards. The power ring surged as soon as it hit metal and he yelped again, jumping away from the sparking terminal.
"Thing's over here!" A bright light overcame his vision. "I'll try to grab him, you go around the back!" Tails scrambled behind one of the boxes, catching sight of another light not a meter from where he stood.
He could hear the first mobian shuffling closer.Where can I go!?He stole another peak around the corner and felt the power ring once more, having collided with additional machinery. He jumped back and watched lingering electricity fade into oblivion, parts flaking off like ashy wood.
He had an idea.
Tails swung the power ring off his arm and plunged it into the nearest bulk of machinery. Sparks flooded out, growing in reach and strength, causing the nearby mobian to scramble out, Tails hot on his trail.
He burst away before the guard had time to right himself, weaving through the failing attempts to grab him and taking off into the next room. That surge of energy was only going to spread, he needed to be quick. There were shouts from behind, but all Tails could concentrate on was tracking his family. Where had they taken them?
He zoomed around the house, through halls, searching, staying out of reach with his gifted namesakes. Every empty turn carved further into is being, an anxiety growing in place of hope, they couldn't have taken them away already. Tails flew faster, not hearing the shouts around, or feeling a steady heat rise through the wood.
He shot down a corner that led to solitary guarded dead end. Nearly crashing into the far wall, he swung his tails forward and reeled towards the start. A quiet sound caught his attention, followed by a thump on the door and some concerned words.
He recognized the voice and twisted around, but the guard was still there and more than aware of the kit's presence. Despite distraction, Tails watched him, noticing a key in the tapir's belt and with that information, dove forward. Right before he was about to hit the mobian's shoulder, his arms were grabbed in a wide swing and he slammed into the near door with a mighty yelp.
"Tails!?" the muffled voice of a freedom fighter rang from the gap underneath.
He only regaining his composure as the guard was attempting to shackle him, the fox twisted around and threw them both off balance. He hurried up and dashed at the keys, this time getting a full grip on them and yanking the object away before running towards the locked door. He tried to find the right key but was again thrown to the ground. The tapir was upon him, both trying to get his keys back and chain the form that stole them.
In an alarmed rush of adrenaline, Tails flung the key ring under the door, watching the guard follow to grab it. Thankfully, he wasn't fast enough.
By the time the mobian spun back around, the fox was on his feet again, ready to fight, hoping the others would get out fast. He heard footsteps in the halls behind, covering whatever small noises might come from the closed-off room.
With the knowledge of time's pressure, the guard charged at him, thinking that possibly the fox could be taken care of before the others broke out. It would make things easier, even if the chances of being manageable were slim. Tails ducked under the attack with a quickness from training and dashed between the guard's legs, twisting his namesakes around the mobian's ankles and nearly tripping him over. His own practice kept him upright and he spun around to face the fox. Tails caught sight of him begin to raise a blaster rifle and lunged forward to grab it away. The fox was so much smaller than him, with a fraction of his strength, but it was the same with Swatbots. He spun his namesakes and tried to bolt above the mobian's torso to fly him off balance.
It half worked. The two landed in a tumble and the tapir yanked Tails' arm. He tried to roll against his grip, eyes widening as he saw the guard prepare his rifle. Suddenly, a magnificent force of metal blew out the door behind them.
The freedom fighters had all been taken to an upstairs room after getting caught in the basement. Sonic was still recovering from the blast and Bunnie had some sort of electric-based bind disabling her metal limbs.
Sally went between trying to get her friend free and pry the main door open. The device on Bunnie was tight and the exit was hard and locked. The ground squirrel didn't know what to do, her efforts were painstakingly fruitless.
She wasn't sure how long they'd been there, ten maybe fifteen minutes? What had happened to Tails after they'd left? His screams as they'd been forced away burning through her mind, glimpses of his hopeless face causing even more pain. He was alone now, that very thought struck her heart as she continued vigorously searching. However, as hard as she tried, the barren room gave no tools for retreat. Sally could see the pain in the other freedom fighters, Bunnie more so, but as Sonic continued to build up strength his own emotions became apparent, a past worry raged on his face. He'd tried to spin dash free, but hadn't been able to do so yet.
A recognizable yelp tore them all out of their thoughts as someone hit the exterior of the door.
"Tails!?" Sally ran to the entrace. Was it really him!? They waited for a response, but only heard the sounds of a skirmish. She listened in tension, then tried furiously once more to unlock the blasted frame. Tails was out there, she needed to help him! If only this exit wasn't so har- a rattle of metal flew past her feet. Keys crashed near Bunnie, who immediately snatched them and struggled with one hand to untangle her binds.
"I've got it" Sally rushed over and snagged the object, undoing multiple locks with quick precision.
"Turn away y'all!'' Bunnie wobbled up. With little time for Sonic or Sally to follow directions, her hand crashed towards the door. Splinters flew everywhere as she reeled her limb back and charged forward.
Fighting every ounce of herself that needed to follow, Sally first undid Sonic's binds. If Bunnie lost to whoever was out there, they probably needed the hedgehog's muscle more than the ground squirrel's own.
His chains fell off easily, crashing to the ground as he rushed forward with Sally in his arms. They rounded the corner to see Bunnie tackling a tapir while Tails watched in alert only a few paces back.
"Tails!" She slid out of Sonic's hold and ran to hug the fox. "I'm so glad you're safe. Are you okay!?"
"Yeah." He slowly nodded, watching the fight. Suddenly the fox snapped out of tension "Yeah! Aunt Bunnie got him!"
She let out a relieved breath at his response. "She sure did! How about we move a few steps away?" Sally was confident in the rabbit's ability, but wary protectiveness shouted to keep the kit well out of danger. So many terribly unexpected things had happened that she fought to trust her own reality.
But she'd been through this before, with Robotropolis, and she knew not to sink deep into that mental pit.
"Hey!" Espio's shout forced her out of thought. "The basement's on fire. We need to GO."
She blinked in surprise.
"Come on." Sonic said. Sally noted that he still looked weak from the short run out the door. Even so, his speed would be the fastest way out. She nodded and got into the hedgehog's arms, sitting Tails in her lap. The other two grabbed onto his shoulders and he took off.
Blazing back through the house, the group followed Espio's winded directions. Small smoky wisps soon rose up from some floorboards, creaking concerningly as they ran. Sally held Tails tighter in the threatening heat.
They burst outside and upon entering the rain forest, Sonic all but collapsed. Though the group was safe of immediate harm, he tried to do better, but his shaking body wouldn't let that happen.
"Are you alright?" Sally checked the hedgehog. His breath was harsh but regular, and he grit his teeth.
"Yeah, just give me a sec." He strained.
"Yeah right you are." Vector quipped, walking into view. "We can rest a few meters back, it'll be safe enough for a while" He was holding the last intact computer, accompanied by Charmy.
Bunnie helped Sonic walk to further underbrush, where the group stayed for half an hour, listening to the louder shouts from Vharst's place. Charmy offered to go up for a look, but Vector thought it unnecessary, they had what they needed. The bee grumbled some annoyed reply but stayed where he was.
Tails sat near the freedom fighters, halfway held by Aunt Sally and Sonic as he watched the scene. A part of him knew that normally he would have wanted to fly off as well. However, after everything that had happened, all he wanted to do was stay down here, held by his family.
Thanks for reading. :) Have a blessed day.